Friday 24th March 2017

Naira Extends Gains, Moves Towards Convergence With FX Rate for Invisibles Now N380-N385/$1 as CBN pumps another $100m into market Law professor, Azinge, warns against politicisation of central bank Obinna Chima in Lagos and Kasim Sumaina in Abuja Currency speculators and others who had stockpiled the greenback continued to

count their losses yesterday, when the naira extended its gains on the parallel market and inched closer towards a convergence between the street price for the dollar and the

rate offered by the CBN for invisible transactions.

The naira sold for between N380 and N385 in Lagos yesterday, stronger than N399 from the previous day.

The FX rate for invisibles has remained at N375 since the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) announced new policy measures for the FX market a month ago.

The central bank also sustained its intervention by auctioning an additional $100 million through wholesale FX forwards to banks for onward sale to their customers in all

sections of the economy.

Of the $100 offered by the CBN, $91 million was taken up by currency dealers.

Continued on page 12

PDP Crisis: Sheriff, Makarfi Agree to Stop Verbal War... Page 13 Friday 24 March, 2017 Vol 22. No 8009. Price: N250

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Cynthia Osokogu’s Killers Get Death Penalty Davidson Iriekpen

L-R: Chairman of Bi-Courtney Aviation Services and guest speaker, Dr. Wale Babalakin (SAN); Mr. Femi Falana (SAN); Emir of Kano and chairman of the occasion, Muhammadu Sanusi II; Mr. Kayode Sofola (SAN); and Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, at the 10th memorial lecture in honour of the late Kehinde Sofola (SAN), held in Lagos… yesterday etop ukutt

A Lagos State High Court in Igbosere yesterday ordered the hanging of Okwumo Nwabufo and Olisaeloka Ezike who were charged with the murder of a post-graduate student of Nasarawa State University, Ms. Cynthia Osokogu.

The judge said the convicts should be hung by the neck until they are dead.

Osokogu had been lured from Abuja to Lagos on July 21, 2012 by Nwabufo, whom she had met and befriended on Facebook.

Continued on page 10

Babalakin Counsels Against Appointment of Senior Advocates to S’Court, Except...

Falana challenges lawyers on observance of rule of law Sanusi decries absence of family law for protection of women and children Davidson Iriekpen and Segun James A Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Dr. Wale Babalakin, yesterday faulted the proposed appointment of SANs and other lawyers to the Supreme Court of Nigeria.

“Such a privilege is for very

exceptional people and there are very few around that make the mark,” he said.

The Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Walter Onnoghen had invited the Bar to nominate lawyers

for appointment as Supreme Court justices, following which the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) shortlisted nine persons, including six SANs. But Babalakin, who delivered the 10th memorial

lecture in honour of the late Kehinde Sofola (SAN), said the legal system should be structured in a manner that only very gifted lawyers aspire to judicial appointments, adding that it was the

only way to provide justice according to the law.

Babalakin was of the view that lawyers who are appointed straight to the Supreme Court come once in a lifetime and are of exceptional

Again, Presidency Wades into Senate, Babachir Face off... Page 10

intellect.

He said such appointments are not meant for “pedestrian advocates”, opining that it would kill the moral of brilliant judges at the lower bench.

He said: “The fact that you Continued on page 10

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Again, Presidency Wades into Senate, Babachir Face off Ita-Enang, Senator Sani meet, agree to reschedule hearing Damilola Oyedele in Abuja The presidency has again moved to avert another face off between the Senate and one of its appointees, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr. Babachir David Lawal, following the fresh invitation to the SGF to appear yesterday before the Ad hoc Committee on the Mounting Humanitarian Crises in the North East.

The Senate committee on Tuesday said it was reopening its investigation into the expenditure and activities of the Presidential Initiative on North East (PINE), which Babachir in his capacity as the SGF oversees.

The probe is aimed at ascertaining how much had been released to PINE, how the funds were utilised from inception to date, and to investigate the diversion of grains and other food items from the Strategic Grain Reserves, National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) and other sources for the internally displaced persons (IDPs).

The committee said it was

reopening the probe so as to give Babachir fair hearing after he had failed to appear before the committee last December, leading to his indictment by the Senate and call for his sack and prosecution.

Babachir was indicted by the committee for mismanaging the funds of PINE and awarding a multimillion naira tree-cutting contract to his company, Rholavision Engineering Limited.

However, Babachir wrote to the committee on Wednesday informing it that he would not attend the hearing scheduled for yesterday, as he had gone to court to challenge the invitation.

But before the Senate could meet yesterday to deliberate on his letter, Babachir sent another letter contradicting his initial letter, claiming he was unable to attend the public hearing due to a pressing government engagement, requesting that a new date be set for him to appear.

The hearing did not hold yesterday.

THISDAY gathered that Babachir may have been prevailed upon by the Special

Adviser to the President on National Assembly (Senate), Senator Ita Enang, who brought the second letter early yesterday morning, when the hearing was supposed to hold.

A Senate source told THISDAY that Babachir’s initial letter, where he claimed to have gone to court was embarrassing to the presidency. “The president’s letter to the Senate after the SGF’s indictment said he was not given fair hearing, now the Senate said it will conduct the hearing to give him fair hearing, but he heads to court. “Is that not embarrassing for the president who said his appointee was not given fair hearing,� the source said.

Signs that a detente may have been reached became more evident yesterday, when the chairman of the ad hoc committee, Senator Shehu Sani (Kaduna Central) failed to mention the first letter written by Babachir. Instead, he claimed to have only heard about the lawsuit filed by Babachir and Rholavision in the media. “We are scheduled to hold a public hearing today to give

a second opportunity to those persons who were either deliberately or conspicuously absent in the first sitting we had last year. “Today, the newspapers were awash with reports that the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal has taken us to court to restrain our committee from doing its work. “Well, we are yet to receive any court order in that respect.

But what we did receive is a letter from the Secretary to the Government of the Federation of which with your permission I will read,� Sani said.

It read in part: “I wish to kindly request that you draw the attention of the other members of the committee that I will not be able to appear before the committee primarily because of a pressing engagement of government which clashed with the date and time of the hearing. I kindly request a rescheduling of hearing please.�

Sani added that the interim report submitted by the committee generated a lot of issues, informing the decision to do a much more thorough

job this time around before submitting a final report. “But we cannot do that without giving another opportunity to those who felt they were deliberately not given fair hearing by the tone of the letter that was sent here by the presidency. “The Senate committee will give a new date for the hearing and we assure this Senate and the people of the North-east that the committee will deworm, disinfect, and fumigate the North-eastern part of Nigeria with the job which we are going to do,�

Sani added.

Sani and Enang later jointly briefed newsmen, where they were both evasive about the initial letter.

Sani said it was not only the SGF and Rholavision that are being invited, adding that most of the estimated 20 companies that executed contracts for PINE remained untraceable.

Enang said the executive has great respect for the institution of the Senate and the senators themselves. “That is why the Secretary to the Government personally

wrote and signed, and he is requesting for a rescheduling of the meeting and not saying he will not come. “He is requesting for a rescheduling and the letter has been delivered to the committee. We have great respect for the institution of the Senate and indeed the National Assembly as the legislature,� Enang said.

Responding to questions on the tension between the executive and Senate, especially in the last two weeks, Enang said the relationship remained cordial. “What is happening is that the political space is active, not that it is tense. It shows that the legislature is concentrating on its work. “The executive is being put under pressure which should be the case, and this is what the legislature is expected to do under a democracy. “Nigerians should know that there is nothing abnormal in this situation. It has been hotter than this at other times, but we are doing everything to make sure that the temperature does not get higher than this,�

Enang said.

and as a pre-anesthetic.

It may cause drowsiness, confusion, impaired motor skills, dizziness, disorientation, dis-inhibition, impaired judgment, and reduced levels of consciousness.

The deceased’s legs were also chained while her mouth was stuffed with a

handkerchief and part of the weave-on that she had on her head.

A tape was thereafter fastened across her mouth to secure the materials stuffed in her mouth in place.

The convicts then made away with her two Blackberry mobile phones, jewelry, a sex

toy vibrator, her international passport, and a pair of shoes belonging to the deceased.

After the murder and their apprehension, the Lagos State Government on February 8, 2013 arraigned Nwabufo and Ezike on six counts of conspiracy, murder and stealing, contrary to

Sections 231, 221 and 409 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011.

Arraigned along with them was a pharmacist, Orji Osita, who was accused of dispensing Rohypnol to the convicts without a doctor’s

more cases than courts.

In his remarks, the Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II expressed concern over the rampant cases of abuse of children and woman in the country, noting that this has gone on because Nigeria is practically the only nation in the world without a codified family law.

He regretted that this was the reason that children and women practically have no rights in the system.

The emir also reiterated his stance that a man who cannot feed and take care of one wife has no business marrying a second wife.

Sanusi has been an advocate against polygamy in instances when a man lacks the resources to cater to one wife, the children from the union, and the home.

Sanusi, who was the chairman at the memorial lecture, stressed that new laws should be enacted that will give children and women the right to have a say in issues relating to them.

Also speaking, a judge of the Court of Appeal, Justice Bimbo Obaseki-Adejumo lamented that insufficient courts and judges were responsible for the unending rounds of adjournments at the nation’s courts, pointing out that the few judges in the country were overstretched and fatigued.

Justice Obaseki-Adejumo disclosed that there are only 1,200 judges in a country of over 180 million people, blaming it for the unending adjournments in the judicial

system.

Justice Obaseki-Adejumo, who was one of the discussants at the lecture, disclosed that some judges have over 500 cases to handle while others have 300, but the lucky ones have 200 cases.

She wondered how anyone could cope with such workload.

She also lamented what she described as the destruction of the judiciary, saying that the way thing were shaping out in the country, the judiciary may soon become extinct and removed from its role as the third arm of government.

The late Sofola had a celebrated legal career for over 50 years before he passed away in 2007 at 83.

CYNTHIA OSOKOGU’S KILLERS GET DEATH PENALTY Nwabufo had paid for the deceased’s flight ticket from Abuja and lodged her in Room C1 at Cosmilla Hotel, Lake View Estate, Festac Town, Lagos, where he later, in collusion with Ezike, murdered her on July 22, 2012.

In the hotel room, the convicts had drugged

Cynthia, who was 25 years old, by putting Rohypnol in her Ribena drink after which they chained her hands to her back and secured same with a padlock.

Rohypnol is legally prescribed for medical use in more than 50 foreign countries for the treatment of insomnia

Continued on page 12

BABALAKIN COUNSELS AGAINST APPOINTMENT OF SENIOR ADVOCATES TO S'COURT, EXCEPT... are a good lawyer doesn’t necessarily mean you will be so exceptional as a Supreme Court judge. “The protagonists of this proposal mentioned some names that had made it to the Supreme Court directly from the Bar. But Dr. Teslim Elias’s curriculum vitae speaks for itself. “Another lawyer that was appointed directly to the Supreme Court in another jurisdiction was Mr. Justice Jonathan Sumption. Jonathan Sumption had a First Class degree in Medieval History from Oxford University. “These are the caliber of men who can make a claim to direct appointment to the Supreme Court of any country.

They come once in a lifetime. “This hop, step and jump is not meant for every pedestrian advocate who has nothing to show than a prolonged stay in the courts with relative lack of distinction. “If you are considered so gifted, an exception can be made for a few appointments to the Court of Appeal where, if you now distinguish yourself, you can be given accelerated promotion to the Supreme Court.�

Babalakin spoke on the theme: The role of the legal profession in nation building: the Nigerian context.

Recalling the judiciary’s “glorious years�, Babalakin, who was called to the Bar 35 years ago, said the law profession he knew while growing up was very organised, cases proceeded on

the dates they were scheduled for, there were hardly any adjournments, objections were raised and resolved immediately, and there was no adjournment to consider any interlocutory issue.

He said judges were so knowledgeable and so versatile that lawyers knew they could not use any delay tactics, while criminal cases were disposed of within a month of commencing trial.

Babalakin said judges were also well paid. According to him, in 1964, the salary of a High Court Judge in Western Nigeria was ÂŁ3,400 per annum, higher than that of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) governor, which was ÂŁ2,700 per annum.

He said the military intervention in governance was “an unmitigated disaster in the development of the Nigerian legal system and the legal profession�, adding that it culminated in the retirement of exceptional judges in 1975 without due process. He described this as “the greatest set back to the legal profession�.

On the way forward, Babalakin said the study of law must be made a serious business, with improvement in the quality of teaching, which to him “is simply not good enough�.

He said appointments to the Bench must be based on merit rather than federal character, as law is essentially a profession that requires very serious intellectual capacity.

For instance, Babalakin said

the current members of the Supreme Court of England are either graduates of Oxford University or Cambridge, while those of the United States Supreme Court are all graduates of America’s best universities. “These countries realise that you cannot place the judicial process in the hands of less qualified people. As I have often repeated, there is no difference between an incompetent judge and a corrupt judge. “The effect of incompetence and corruption on the legal system is the same; that is injustice,� he said.

On delays, Babalakin said frivolous adjournments must be discouraged, while courts must not adjourn any case for the convenience of counsel.

The courts, he said, must be ready to proceed with matters.

Prosecution of criminal cases, he added, should only take place after a very thorough investigation and review of the evidence by very seasoned legal practitioners, as according to him, poor prosecution of cases have a considerable negative effect on the legal system. “The idea that the prosecution would seek to adjourn the trial of a criminal case because it requires more time to adduce or compile evidence must be very strange to those who are familiar with the operation of the common law in the prosecution of criminal cases,� he said.

On corruption in the judiciary, Babalakin said the

discipline of judicial officers must be done in a very transparent manner.

He called for a system that is capable of showing up an incompetent or corrupt judge “without much ado�.

Activist-lawyer Femi Falana (SAN), who was a discussant, said unlike some senior lawyers, the late Sofola never associated with corrupt judges.

He said the Bar has also not done enough to help ensure the observance of the rule of law.

Falana recalled that the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) under the late Alao A.K.A Bashorun once boycotted the courts to force the military to obey orders.

He said the NBA in recent times has been silent when the authorities violate the rule of law and abuse human rights.

Falana said instead of advising governors to obey the laws or court orders, attorneys-general advice them to disobey them because cases in court will not be decided during their tenures. “When you do that, you subvert the rule of law,� the Falana said.

He also criticised SANs who adopt new delay strategies of endless cross-examination of witnesses, saying: “We need to call our colleagues to order before they destroy the judiciary.�

Falana said everything must be done to restore faith in the judiciary, adding that the public has lost confidence in it to the extent that traditional rulers and the police now resolve

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NEWS

Chimamanda Adichie’s Americanah Gets Big Endorsement from New Yorkers as ‘Must Read’ Book A warning to all New Yorkers: If everyone on the subway seems to be reading the same book this spring, you’re not going crazy.

New York City residents have picked “Americanah”

by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie as the winning book for the “One Book, One New York" programme.

The programme encourages all city residents to read the same book over the next several months, in an effort to revitalise small bookstores and create a greater sense of community among the city’s readers.

The city has also donated 1,000 copies of Americanah to branches of the New York Public Library (NYPL) for readers to check out.

Small meet ups will take place throughout the

city, culminating in a June event at the NYPL’s main branch, where Adichie will be present.

The initiative allowed New Yorkers in all five boroughs to vote on one of five books to start reading in the month of March. Residents voted online or in kiosks in subway stations through the end of February.

Other cities such as Chicago and Philadelphia have hosted community reads in the past, though none have created as large a book club as New York now might.

In partnership with Buzzfeed, the Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment turned to those other cities to suggest books for people to read. It also consulted with heads of local libraries,

publishers, and academics, the New York Times reports.

The shortlist offered five choices: "Between the World and Me" by Ta-Nehisi Coates, "The Sellout" by Paul Beatty, "Americanah"

by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" by Betty Smith, and "The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao" by Junot Diaz.

As the Times reported, the five books’ publishers each donated 4,000 copies to more than 200 library branches around the city in preparation for the final vote.

“Americanah,” Adichie’s third novel, is about a young Nigerian woman grappling with issues of race in the US. It was widely regarded as one of the best books of 2013.

Adichie

NAIRA EXTENDS GAINS, MOVES TOWARDS CONVERGENCE WITH FX RATE FOR INVISIBLES Confirming this, CBN spokesman, Isaac Okorafor said dealers would get value for their respective bids today.

He disclosed that the highest and marginal bid rates were N330/$1 and N320/$1, respectively, adding no intervention was made by the central bank to meet requests for invisibles yesterday.

On the parallel market, the nation’s currency has appreciated by 27 per cent, or about N140, from N525 to a dollar a month ago.

The central bank has been intervening aggressively on the official market in recent weeks, leading to a narrowing of the gap between the official and parallel market rates.

CBN Governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele on Tuesday expressed optimism about the convergence of the rates on the official and parallel markets, stating that the gains made by the naira against the greenback in recent weeks was not a fluke.

Emefiele said he was happy that the central bank’s intervention was yielding positive results.

But THISDAY gathered yesterday that while the central bank has succeeded in substantially clearing backlog of dollar demand for retail invisibles, it was falling short of meeting the FX demand for capital repatriation and other wholesale invisibles.

A chief executive of one of the leading banks in the country, who confirmed this in a chat, however pointed out that this could be a strategy by the CBN. “While the CBN has done a lot in the past one month, we must not forget that there is a backlog of investors who are trying to repatriate capital that has not been settled.

“The CBN was focusing on trade transactions previously and recently on school fees, PTA/BTA. But foreigners who had invested in bonds, equities and need to repatriate dividend payments are still behind on the queue.

“I want to assume that once the central bank sorts out the retail invisibles, it would start to attend to FX demand for capital repatriation,” the bank CEO who did not want his name in print said.

The country’s external reserves, meanwhile, closed at N30.347 billion yesterday.

‘CBN Must Not be Politicised’ Meanwhile, a professor of law and Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Prof. Epiphany Azinge has advocated for the complete independence of the CBN. This came against the backdrop of the reported call by the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun for the reduction of powers of the

central bank.

The minister was reported to have blamed the CBN for the disconnect between the fiscal and monetary policies of government.

Azinge, while speaking yesterday as a guest on Arise News Network, the sister broadcast arm of THISDAY, said the call was unprecedented.

He said: “In line with global best practices, we came to the stage where it was widely agreed that the independence of the CBN was very, very important and critical for the sustenance of the monetary policies of this country and to that extent, the Act clearly stipulated that there shall be an independent body known as the CBN that will be free to discharge its functions.

And that independence is very critical.”

According to him, “Firstly, the substantive law in force hinders towards the 1991 Act which we operated from many years until the coming into force of the 2007 Act, which is the extant law for now.

“What that means is that before promulgating the 2007 law, a lot went into it in terms of discussions, conversations, analysis and what have you.

“Also, we must have it at the back of our minds that it’s something that has resonated over the years. Scholars have obviously engaged in this

discussion for a very long time and generally, the consensus at this point in time is that independence is very, very fundamental.”

He was of the view that the minister’s argument that the CBN needs more checks and balances holds no water, adding that it would only amount to undue interference.

“The last thing that we should be thinking of is the politisation of such a body, because the core mandate of the CBN is such that once it is subordinated to politisation, obviously everything is thrown out of the window,” he added.

Azinge explained that the issue of formulation and implementation of policies by the finance minister maybe at the realm of government and have nothing to do with the core mandate of the body charged with the responsibility of ensuring price and monetary stability, among other functions, including the issuance of legal tender.

On the checks and balances inherent in the CBN Act, Azinge said: “The composition of the board that is charged with the responsibility of supervising the CBN, as it were, is quite clear.

“There is a chairman aside the governor, we have four deputy governors, there is also the permanent secretary of the Ministry of Finance

who is on the board. Then there is also the Accountant General of the Federation.

“So that essentially gives the minister a seat. Whatever you want to do can be done through the instrumentality of your permanent secretary who is possibly there in a representative capacity,” said the professor.

He further stated that minister’s statement might not get the backing of legislature and expressed doubt that the National Assembly would respond to her call to reduce the powers of the CBN. “Even at that, that will be subjected to a lot of serious debate and I don’t think that much can come out of it. Because again, the CBN governor reports to the president on some of the issues and of course, the National Assembly is there with oversight functions, so they are also in a position whereby reports can also be made available to the National Assembly.

“So, there is no complete disconnect. But to think that the Minister of Finance is in charge of finance and to that extent, the CBN should be subordinated to the whims and caprices of the minister as the case maybe, to me, is not the right idea,” he said.

He added: “When we are talking about power, we should at any point in time be thinking of the equivalent

in other jurisdictions and climes. Even starting from Africa and all over the world, the modules that we are practicing is fashioned along the lines of modules all over the world.

“And I believe for now, we are inline and in conformity with the best practices and to that extent, we are on the right course.”

He said though the presidency might have the best of intentions, the management of the economy, especially with respect to monetary policies, should be left to technocrats to handle.

“I believe that we have more than competent hands, in terms of technocrats to handle that. I believe that it is better to allow the technocrats to run the issue of monetary policies in this country,” he maintained Recalling that from 1991 to 2007, monetary policies in the country experienced fits and starts, Azinge noted that from 2007, the former CBN governor Prof. Chukwuma Soludo was able to re-engineer the whole process by getting the National Assembly to come to terms with the reality that Nigeria was off the mark and it needed to align with global practices.

“And from 2007 to 2017, which is about ten years or thereabout, I don’t think that we have missed out much in the process,” he said.

that though there was no direct eyewitness, the circumstantial evidence placed before the court by the state were “cogent, complete, unequivocal, compelling and leads to the irresistible conclusion that the accused persons and no one else committed the crime”.

“The first and second defendants were positioned at the scene of the crime at Cosmilla Hotel. The circumstantial evidence against the first and second defendants is compelling and cogent and leaves no doubt in anyone’s mind that they killed the deceased.

“It is on record that the first and second defendants made a confessional statement describing how they caused the death of the deceased,” the judge held.

After pronouncing them guilty, she sentenced them to 14 years imprisonment for conspiracy, three years imprisonment for stealing, and imposed the death sentence by hanging for the offence of murder.

Before handing down the sentences, the judge asked the defendants if they had anything to say.

Counsel for the convicts, Mr. Victor Opara and S. Eze, urged the judge to temper

justice with mercy.

Opara said Nwabufo was a first-time offender, adding that the convict was a young man who had “tremendous energy to do something worthwhile with his life”.

“I urge this court to grant him a reformative sentence,” Opara pleaded.

But in her response, Justice Akinlade said: “I have listened passionately to the allocutus of counsel.

Section 221 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State says clearly that a person who commits murder shall be sentenced to death.

“In judgment, justice is required not only for the

victim, but also for the society.

“In their attempt to steal Cynthia’s property, they stole her life. They were not even remorseful.

“But for the efforts of the police and the Ministry of Justice, we wouldn’t have been able to do anything.

This court cannot change the law.”

Concluding her ruling, the judge said: “I pronounce the judgment of this court upon you, Okwumo Nwabufo and Olisaeloka Ezike, that both of you be hung by the neck, until you are dead. May God have mercy on you.”

CYNTHIA OSOKOGU’S KILLERS GET DEATH PENALTY prescription.

Also arraigned was the second defendant’s brother, Nonso, who was accused of being in possession of the two stolen Blackberry mobile phones.

In a judgment delivered yesterday, almost five years after the crime, Justice Olabisi Akinlade convicted Nwabufo and Ezike as charged by the state.

She, however, discharged and acquitted Osita and Nonso on the grounds that the state did not prove the charges of recklessness and negligence pressed against them beyond reasonable doubt.

In convicting Nwabufo and Ezike, the judge relied on the oral evidence of 10 witnesses and the 17 exhibits tendered by the prosecution, as well as the confessional statements of the accused persons.

Among the witnesses were two receptionists at Cosmilla Hotel, who booked the convicts into the hotel on the night of July 21, 2012. Also called was the hotel manager and a pathologist, who gave the cause of Cynthia’s death as asphyxia, and the policemen who investigated the case.

In her judgment, Justice Akinlade held

FRIDAY MARCH 24, 2017 ˾ T H I S D AY

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NEWS

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

PDP Crisis: Sheriff, Makarfi Agree to Stop Verbal War BoT to consider Dickson’s report Onyebuchi Ezigbo and Alex Enumah in Abuja The turbulent reconciliation process in the crisis-ridden Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) yesterday showed signs of resurgence as both factions led by Senator Ali Modu Sheriff and Senator Ahmed Makarfi signed a ceasefire agreement to stop the verbal attacks against each other.

The undertaking came just as the Board of Trustees (BoT) of the party warned leaders of the party against selfish ambition which it lamented is threatening to destroy the party.

The two warring parties which met under the auspices of the reconciliation committee headed by the Bayesla State Governor, Seirake Dickson, also agreed that they would work together with the committee to engender peace and genuine reconciliation in the party.

The agreement to this effect was contained in a communique signed by Hon. Ahmed Gulak and Hon. Bernard Mikko on behalf of the Sheriff-led leadership and Prince Dayo Adeyeye and Hon. Dave Iorhemba on behalf of the Makarfi faction.

The Chairman of the reconciliation committee, Dickson, and his deputy and former Deputy Senate President, Senator Ibrahim Mantu, also signed the agreement.

The communique issued at the end of the meeting by the two factions, stated: “All actors of the party should desist from making derogatory, inflammatory and divisive statements against party officials, stakeholders and members.”

It further stated: “That the party should not dissipate its energy among itself but to focus on how to unite and be a formidable opposition capable of taking over power from the failed APC-led government.

“That all key actors in the on-going peace process should henceforth desist from making statements attacking each other and statements insinuating negative acts capable of dragging the party to the mud.

“In conclusion, all key actors in the PDP have agreed to work together with the National Reconciliation Committee led by Governor Dickson to engender peace and genuine reconciliation.”

Meanwhile, the BoT has warned leaders of the party against selfish ambition which it lamented is destroying the party.

The Chairman of the BoT, Senator Walid Jubril, stated this while receiving the report of the Dickson-led reconciliation committee.

Jibril dismissed plans to form a new party adding: “Any attempt by any member to leave PDP for an unborn party will not be a good decision.

He noted that while judiciary is doing its best to resolve the problem legally, the political solution should also be pursued.

The BoT chair said the board would meet with other organs of the party to see how a convention can be held before or latest by June.

Dickson had earlier cautioned the two factions, led by Sheriff and Makarfi to drop their ego and ambition for the unity of the party.

Yesterday’s meeting which took place at the Bayelsa State

Presidency Writes Senate, Nominates 27 as INEC Resident Electoral Commissioners Damilola Oyedele in Abuja The presidency has written to Senate President Bukola Saraki, seeking the screening and confirmation of 27 nominees as Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in line with Section 14 (3) of the third schedule of the 1999 Constitution.

Saraki at plenary yesterday read the letter dated February 27, 2017, and signed by the then acting President Yemi Osinbajo, who forwarded the names while President Muhammadu Buhari was away on medical vacation in London.

It read in part: “In compliance with the provisions of Section 14(3) (a) of the Third Schedule to the 1999 Constitution (as Amended), I write to request the confirmation of the following nominees for appointment as Resident Electoral Commissioners.

“The curriculum vitae of the 27 nominees are forwarded herewith for information and consideration of the Senate.

“It is my hope that the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria will consider and confirm the nominees

in the usual expeditious manner.”

Eight of the nominations are for re-appointments, while 19 are new appointments.

Those for reappointment are Ahmad Makama (Bauchi), Mike Igini (Delta), Hussaini Pai (FCT), Sadiq Musa (Kaduna), Jibrin Zarewa (Kano), Rufus Akeju (Lagos), Sam Olumekun (Ondo) and Kasim Geidam (Yobe).

Those for new appointments are Prof. Godswill Obioma (Abia), Ibrahim Abdullahi (Adamawa), James Apam (Benue), Nwachukwu Orji (Ebonyi), Iloh Valentine (Enugu), Asmau Maikudi (Katsina), Mahmuda Isa (Kebbi), Prof. Samuel Egwu (Kogi), Prof. Mustapha Zubairu (Niger), Agboke Mutiu (Ogun), Abdul-Ganiyu Olayinka (Oyo) and Prof. Riskuwa Shehu (Sokoto).

Others are Ahmad Mahmud (Zamfara), Nentewa Yilwatda (Plateau), Umar Ibrahim (Taraba), Emeka Ononamadu (Imo), Obo Effanga (Cross River), Prof. Francis Ezeonu (Anambra) and Briyia Frankland (Bayelsa).

The nominations were referred to the Senate Committee on INEC for further action.

Supreme Court to hear suit challenging Makarfi’s appeal May 4 Government Lodge in Maitama, Abuja, saw the representatives of the feuding PDP factions exchanging handshakes and cracking jokes. Also at the meeting, was Sheriff’s Deputy, Cairo Ojougboh. They later posed for a group photograph with Dickson, thus signalling their acceptance to forge ahead with the peace talks.

The meeting with the BoT was held at the residence of the Chairman, Walid Jibril with some of the key leaders in attendance including, Prof. Tunde Adeniran, Senator Stella Omu, and Abbah Gana.

However, the Supreme Court will on May 4, hear an objection filed against the hearing of an appeal brought before the court by the Ahmed Makarfi-led National Caretaker Committee of the

Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Both the PDP and its National Chairman, Senator Ali Modu Sheriff, had filed two separate motions at the apex court challenging the competence of Makarfi’s appeal against the judgment of the Court of Appeal which restored the Sheriff-led leadership of the party.

The two motions dated March 16 and 21, 2017 are asking the apex court to strike out Makarfi’s appeal, on the grounds that he (Makarfi) does not have the authority to file the appeal on behalf of the PDP. While the motion of the PDP was filed and argued by Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), that of Sheriff was filed and argued by Akin Olujimi (SAN).

The two applicants in their separate motions are contending

that by virtue of the Court of Appeal judgment, delivered on February 27, 2017 in Port Harcourt, the issue of authentic leadership for the PDP has been settled.

The applicants are also contending that since the Makarfi-led leadership had lost at the appellate court, they have no legal standing to file any appeal on behalf of the PDP as an appellant in the suit.

They also insisted that the appeal filed by Makarfi had become incompetent having been filed without the authorisation by the PDP or its leadership.

Meanwhile, the Makarfi faction, through its counsel, Mr. Kanu Agabi (SAN) has filed a counter affidavit to the motions of PDP and Sheriff, praying the court to discountenance the two motions

and allow the main appeal to be heard meritoriously.

Agabi is asking the court not to give audience to the Sheriff faction because it has no valid notice of appeal before the court and that being a party in the Port Harcourt case, they have right to bring the appeal before the court.

However, Justice Tanko Mohammed who presided over the five man panel of the court has given the Sheriff faction 21 days within which to react to the counter affidavit of the Makarfi group.

Justice Mohammed subsequently fixed May 4 to hear the two motions.

The Makarfi-led faction had filed an appeal at the Supreme Court to challenge the decision of the Court of Appeal, which affirmed the Sheriff faction as the authentic leadership of the PDP.

CONSOLIDATING NIGERIA-US RELATIONS

L-R: United States Ambassador to Nigeria, Stuart Symington; Chairman, Flour Mills Nigeria Plc (FMN), Mr. John Coumantaros; President, Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote; Governor, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele; Chairman, BUA Group,Abdulsamad Rabiu; Group Chief Executive Officer, Oando, Adewale Tinubu; and Director, FMN, Alhaji Ahmed Joda, at the dinner to launch US-Nigeria Council in Lagos.... recently

Buhari Condemns Terror Attack in London, Sympathises withVictims Senate demands increased security at National Assembly Omololu Ogunmadeand Damilola Oyedele in Abuja President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday condemned Wednesday’s terrorist attack near the United Kingdom Parliament building at Westminster, London.

Buhari, according to a statement by his chief spokesman, Mr. Femi Adesina, sympathised with the British Prime Minister, Theresa May, and assured her that the government and people of Nigeria “stand with Britons at this sad and trying moment in their country.”

Describing terror attack anywhere in the world as condemnable, Buhari said the whole world must join hands to defeat perpetrators of terrorism.

He prayed God to comfort families of the victims and heal the injured.

Meanwhile, following the terrorist attack outside the British Parliament in Westminster, the Senate yesterday urged the security department of the National Assembly to increase security within and outside the parameters of the complex to forestall terrorist, or other attacks.

The Senate also expressed condolences to the government and people of Britain, and the families of those who died or were wounded in the attacks, for which the so-called Islamic State has claimed responsibility.

The Senate further called on the United Nations to establish protocols for intelligence information sharing among its member states to fight global terrorism, following the adoption of the resolutions of a motion by the Majority Leader, Senator Ahmed Ladan (Yobe North).

Senator Samuel Anyanwu (Imo East) said it is necessary that perceived security lapses in the National Assembly are quickly taken care of.

“For some of us who work late, leaving here at 6 or 7 p.m. you see all manner of persons around,” he said.

Senator Mohammed Hassan (Yobe South) noted that drills to simulate terrorist attacks or fire outbreaks, have never been conducted in the National Assembly.

Such drills, he said, are important, and should be imbibed as part of drastic measures to prevent or avert attacks.

Senator George Thompson Sekibo (Rivers East) noted that vulnerability of the mandates of the legislators makes the National

Assembly prone to attacks.

“God forbid! Assuming the place is bombed one day, when we resume, say after two weeks, some would be afraid to speak their minds. Years ago, many senators could not call out Boko Haram by name. On a daily basis, we condemn persons or challenge them. We need to set up adequate measures to protect ourselves,” he stated.

Senate President Bukola Saraki presided over a minute of silence in honour of those who died in the UK attack.

Earlier on his twitter handle, Saraki tweeted his condolence message.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims of terrorist attack in UK, as we stand in solidarity with Britons and members of @ UKParliament.”

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T H I S D AY FRIDAY MARCH 24, 2017

COMMENT

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

THE NATURAL BORN BUILDER Edo Ukpong pays tribute to Tope Sonubi, an enterprising businessman, at age 50

“

What do you think you are doing? Don’t tell me you are an Abacha supporter!” I had harangued my friend, Tope Sonubi. “What do you mean? How can you call me an Abacha supporter?’ he fired back.

“But you are wearing an Abacha lapel badge!”

“Oh this? Come on, it doesn’t mean anything. Everybody in Abuja is wearing Abacha badges” “You are not everybody! You are better than that!” It was a joke. But as we departed that occasion, I noticed that the badge had disappeared!

From time to time over the years, Topedo, as we call him, has reminded me of that incident, and how easily one can get carried away in the business world and how he appreciates the fact that I made a fuss about it.

A trained writer would perhaps have started with the story of how we met, especially as that is by far, a more compelling introduction to Topedo’s personality. I believe that most people’s personality traits do not change with time. The traits perhaps go through some evolution in form but the defining essence remains intact. Some of us acquire the ability to project our innate traits to positive tools in our life journey. Others perhaps are captive to their innate traits and surrender to less positive outcomes.

Sometime in 1980, in my final year at King’s College and very much living by my own rules, I had not gone down to the dining hall for breakfast. Long after breakfast and as the stewards were beginning to clear up, I sent a junior to bring my breakfast upstairs to the dormitory (against the school rules). To my surprise, he came back with the news that my breakfast had been ‘cleared’ by a junior boy. Even before I demanded the identity of the culprit, the junior pleaded on behalf of the “offender”, that he did not know it was my ration. I sent for him. Topedo arrived my imperial presence looking sorry for himself but armed to disarm with a large bowl of corn flakes, a full tin of milk and many lumps of sugar! I was enraged and I scolded him severely and told him I would not have punished him if he had simply apologised. I instructed him to report by my bedside in Hyde Johnson’s house (from Harman’s house at the other end of the school) every morning at 6am and kneel down with his hands up for half an hour! That was the opportunity for the born builder that he is, to build a relationship with a character largely seen especially by juniors as “unapproachable and somewhat of a terror”!

In fact, I ended the punishment after only a few days when it occurred to me that Topedo took delight in serving his punishment but not without interrupting my sleep ostensibly for me to witness his execution of the punishment!

My obsession with the game of cricket was well known. Though Topedo was not a cricketer, he must have done a crash programme because unbelievably we would spend the half hour ‘gisting’ about cricket and other things of interest. I soon realised that the cheeky junior might actually be enjoying his early morning access and that he might

YEARS AGO, I SUGGESTED HE APPOINT A CHAIRMAN FOR THE GROUP AND HE TOLD ME HE HAS ALWAYS HAD ONE – GOD! WHO COMES WITHOUT EXPENSES AND OTHER BAGGAGE

be regaling his envious classmates with “Kwaks said this”. After the punishment he had achieved a level of familiarity where even his cheeky offer to be in charge of bringing up my breakfast was only met with a “Get out!” As ‘A’ level exams approached, my junior friend now firmly entrenched as my school son exhibited a level of genuine concern and encouragement, which in retrospect was way beyond his age. The fact that the ‘success card’ he made for me, out of the several I received is the only one I keep until this day is instructive.

Those who have come across Topedo on life’s journey would agree that he was indeed born with a connecting cord! He has the gift of seeing through people’s ‘’screen savers’’ and the generosity of heart to elicit genuine endearment – he just knows how to connect! It is the connections that Topedo has built, that he has harnessed to become one of Africa’s most successful entrepreneurs.

Any good builder and especially a natural born one, realises that building successfully requires team- work. So today, Topedo driven by fearless and unlimited ambition and in trusted company of co-achievers has built one of the biggest conglomerates in Africa. I should know! Topedo walked into my law office sometime in 1997 and requested that I incorporate a company for him to engage in oil business. I advised him to face architecture. I still remember his remark about whether the players in the industry have two heads. So little was my faith in my friend’s new dream of transforming from a high street fashion storeowner to an oil magnate that I did not bother to charge him even for the expenses of incorporation or ask for a small stake in lieu. A colossal mistake! How was I to know that some of the customers of his fashion shop would become key players in the oil industry and the strength of the personal relationships built with them will come to good use in establishing a foothold in the industry?

Topedo’s building prowess is more publicly evident in the business world but also of satisfaction to him are those that have no commercial value. A man whose unlimited ambition is buoyed by ferocious tenacity and absolute belief in his own capabilities does not need any further proof of his potency than the results that continue to manifest.

A typical silent operator, he is dismissive of the typical rumours and speculation that trail successful people and businesses. People who know of our close friendship always regale me with ‘facts’ about who he is “fronting” for and things like that. When told, his answer is typical Topedo: unaffected, focused and realistic – ‘people must talk and there is nothing I can do about that and hey it makes no difference to anything’. Years ago, I suggested he appoint a chairman for the group and he told me he has always had one – God! Who comes without expenses and other baggage!

March 15 is just a date to mark the symbolic attainment of the age of wisdom. You have been 50 a long time! I wish you many more miles in your earthly journey.

Ukpong is a Lagos based commercial legal practitioner

WHY PRESIDENT ERDOGAN IS AFTER GULEN The president wants to cover up systemic corruption in government, writes Ofem Uket

F

ethulah Gulen was a reputable ally of President Recep Tayip Erdoan before the 2013 judicial enquiry and investigation into the alleged corrupt practices against the government of Erdogan.

There are fundamental reasons why Mr. President is at dagger’s drawn with the self-exiled Islamic scholar Fethulah and sympathisers of the Hizmet movement within the last four years. Firstly, it is the desire of Erdogan to cover up the massive and systemic corruption in government circles. Secondly, is the quest for control over civic leaders and thirdly is the blame game against Gulen for the political instability in Turkey to further justify his despotic rule.

In his first telephone conversation with President Donald Trump of the United States, Turkey’s President Erdogan reportedly brought up the extradition of Fethullah Gulen, a retired preacher and Erdogan critic who has lived in the U.S. since 1999.

Erdogan and his proxies have blamed Gulen and his sympathisers for nearly every trouble facing Turkey recently, including the July 15, 2016 coup attempt, the assassination of the Russian ambassador to Turkey in December 2016, the downing of a Russian jet by the Turkish air force in November 2016, and a corruption probe in 2013 implicating relatives of his cabinet members. Despite Gulen’s repeated condemnations of any and all heinous acts, he has become Erdogan’s strong political foe.

Turkey has a population of 75 million people, according it the status of one of the most densely populated countries in the World. The numerical strength of a nation is an advantage to its political and economic fortunes.

Erdogan’s intellectual roots lie in the Turkish political Islamist movement called “Milli Gorus” (Nationalist Perspective). Gulen’s “Hizmet” (Service) movement, on the other hand, is rooted in the Sufiinfluenced civil and cultural school of Islam that

does not seek political power for a social agenda.

Political Islamists have always had the self-image of the unifying political force of all religiously observant Muslims, and they regarded groups who did not support them politically as traitors. When Erdogan split from his mentor Necmettin Erbakan’s political Islamist party, Erbakan called the new formation traitors. In today’s Turkey, Erdogan is using religious language openly for political gain, using the government’s Directorate of Religious Affairs as a political instrument, and labeling observant Muslim groups who are not aligned with his party as traitors.

The perceived political alignment between the two came from Erdogan’s promise of a pro-European Union (EU), democratic future for Turkey, and Gulen’s principled support for that vision. Gulen met with Erdogan only three times, and all before Erdogan’s party came into power. It’s a myth that Mr. Gulen and Mr. Erdogan were aligned against the secular military. Gulen has never been against a Western, liberal version of secularism or the military as an institution. He historically supported centrist political parties that defended moderate secularism.

He has written articles praising the military as an institution providing a vital service to the nation.

At the same time, he has consistently been against military coups and the military’s dominating domestic politics, which was also seen by the EU as an obstacle before Turkey’s accession into the union.

Gulen initially supported the democratic reforms promised and partially implemented by Erdogan’s AKP but began to criticise the government after the democratic reforms were stalled and the signs of corruption and authoritarianism increased. In 2005, Gulen-sympathetic news media outlets and civil society organisations strongly opposed a counterterrorism bill that was open to abuse against civilians and journalists not involved in violence.

Due to widespread public opposition, the bill was defeated in the parliament. In 2006, Gulen warned

Erdogan about the continued government profiling of citizens, unfounded shuffling of civil servants and reversal of democratic reforms.

In 2010, a Turkish government-supported flotilla attempted to break the blockade around Gaza and was raided by Israeli soldiers, resulting in the death of nine Turkish citizens on board. While Erdogan took full political advantage of the incident, Gulen’s approach was more balanced, criticising Erdogan government for taking a confrontational approach in its claim to help the Palestinians when nonconfrontational approaches were available.

Erdogan’s real intentions became clear after his third election victory in June 2011, when he began pushing for a “Turkish-style” executive presidency, which is now close to reality. The proposed system abolishes the office of prime minister, gives the president the power to abolish the parliament, eliminates the parliamentary approval process for his cabinet and does away with parliamentary investigations.

Erdogan began pressuring Gulen to publicly support his executive presidency by repeatedly threatening to shut down Hizmet-affiliated educational institutions in Turkey and all over the World.

Gulen refused, having realised that Erdogan was not pursuing reforms to enhance Turkish democracy, but rather to enhance his own power.

In 2013, Gulen-linked media criticised Erdogan’s empowering the intelligence service with operational powers and complete immunity, and Gulen refused to side with Erdogan in the brutal suppression of Gezi Park protestors. An infuriated Erdogan shut down all college admission tutoring centres in the country, about a quarter of which were run by Gulen sympathisers.

A public corruption probe involving members of Erdogan’s cabinet became public in December 2013, including details of a $300,000 watch purchased by Iranian-Turkish businessman Reza Zarrab for the former economy minister and $4.5 million in cash

at the home of the CEO of state-owned Halkbank, the bank that facilitated payments to Iran for oil and gas. Erdogan labeled the probe as a “judiciary coup” against his administration by Gulen sympathisers and their international conspirators.

Erdogan started a defamation campaign against Gulen and Hizmet sympathisers, calling them “leeches,” “assassins” and “blood sucking vampires.” The prosecutors were removed from the case, then fired and later arrested.

The new prosecutors assigned to the case summarily closed it. Thousands of members of the judiciary were fired and replaced with pro-Erdogan appointments.

Covering up corruption is Erdogan’s main motivation for obsessively targeting Gulen. The public smear-campaign against Gulen allowed Erdogan to cover up the tracks of an unprecedented and massive corruption case. He used the case as an excuse to transform the Turkish judiciary into an instrument of political persecution.

A new “penal judges of peace” system was established to consolidate arrest warrant decisions in the hands of a small number of judges. The bar for issuing arrest warrants was lowered and, once issued, could not be appealed to a higher court. In October 2014, an association of judges and prosecutors called YBP (Unity in Judiciary Platform), supported by Erdogan, won the majority of seats in elections to the Higher Council of Judges and Prosecutors.

The next target for Erdogan’s drive for total control was the Turkish military. Unlike the judiciary, Turkish military had resisted his efforts for domination – until the coup attempt of July 15, 2016. Erdogan said the coup attempt was “a gift from God” that allowed him to fire thousands of military officers in the aftermath and reengineer the hiring, training, reporting and organisational structure of the military.

Uket wrote from Abuja

15

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EDITORIAL HAYATOU AND A NEW ERA IN CAF Age and dynamism are required in the running of international sports associations

W

hile Nigeria played a critical role in the rise of Issa Hayatou in African football, it also played a role in his fall. The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) president, Amaju Pinnick, who has now been elected into the Confederation of African Football (CAF) executive committee, was one of those whose push against Hayatou proved very crucial as he was defeated by 34 votes to 20 by Ahmad Ahmad of Madagascar after 29 years in ofďŹ ce.

In 1984, Hayatou was a student in the administrative class of the late Patrick Okpomo, two-time Secretary General of the then Nigeria Football Association (NFA) at the National Institute of Sports (NIS), in Lagos.

Precisely, the former Cameroonian quarter miler was on an 18-month programme in sports management course with the late Okpomo as the course adviser. Two years after the programme, Hayatou was elected into the executive committee of CAF at the 1986 Nations Cup ďŹ nals in Egypt.

WHAT HAYATOU’S Another two years DEFEAT SIGNIFIES later, he rose to MOST ELOQUENTLY IS become the new CAF THAT GERONTOCRACY president following WHICH USED TO DEFINE the health crisis that FOOTBALL BOTH ON eventually claimed the life of Ydnekatchew THE CONTINENT AND GLOBALLY IS NOW GIVING Tessema from Ethiopia. Hayatou was just WAY two years old in the executive committee of the African football ruling body at the time.

Indeed, Hayatou’s rise in CAF was as meteoric as it was fortuitous. Even though it was Omar Sey that was at the period being groomed as a successor by Tessema, his appointment as the External Affairs Minister for his country, The Giambia, in 1988 paved way for the young Cameroonian to win the ofďŹ ce ahead of then CAF Vice-President, Dr Abdel Halim Mohamed (Sudan) who

Letters to the Editor

I

was leading the body in acting capacity at the time. But following his defeat last week, Hayatou held the record for longevity in the CAF executive committee having been there for 31 years. This is apart from being the president for 29 years.

What Hayatou’s defeat signiďŹ es most eloquently is that gerontocracy which used to deďŹ ne football both on the continent and globally is now giving way. With the dynamism required in running international sports associations, long tenure has gradually become a thing of the past. This factor no doubt played out at the last elective congress in Addis Ababa against the incumbency of Hayatou. Physical ďŹ tness is as essential as mental alertness which ordinarily diminishes with age.

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A TALE OF TWO SAMUELS

n faraway Geneva, Switzerland, over 10 dozen top chief executive officers of blue-chip companies operating on the Black African continent rounded off their meeting with the objective of uncovering the magic wand for the rapid industrialisation of Africa. These egg-heads plus a mixture of politicians from Africa had originally set out to find out the new most workable economic models to turn around the continent currently ravaged by hunger, mass poverty and conflicts. Somewhere in between their dialogue sessions, a prosperous African- born but Europe- based billionaire Mr. MO Ibrahim convinced them to change the focus of deliberations to a much more pressing issue- lack of good governance.

One striking factor out of their constructive dialogue was the unanimous conclusion that the most critical needs of the African continent are not economic models or absence of such but good governance.

Although, I am uncomfortable that these African business leaders did not behave wisely by holding this sort of a key meeting outside of the shores of Africa, but it is better to analyse the message and avoid paying so much attention to the messenger, it is strategic to affirm that the assertion of these African business leaders is correct.

The plenary session, comprising Mo Ibrahim of the Mo Ibrahim Foundation, Pierre Guislain (Africa Development Bank) and Abebe Aemro Selassie of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), blamed African governments for the continent’s dwindling economic fortunes.

This important call by respected business and socio-economic leaders for effective decentralised political systems at the forum where more than 1,000 chief executives of leading organisations are seeking sustainable solutions to Africa’s economic woes would sure put pressure on weak governments and encourage prudent management of resources.

Mercel Mbamalu had captured the nitty-gritty of that high profile

hat perhaps explains why the new generation of CAF executive members is an assemblage of young men in their mid-40s which is a follow up to what happened at the elective congress that brought in Gianni Infantino as the new FIFA president at the age of 46. The election also witnessed the return of Nigeria into the executive committee of CAF when Pinnick defeated one of the allies of Hayatou, Anjorin Moucharafou from Republic of Benin with 32-17 votes to clinch the West-B slot. Pinnick became the third Nigerian after late Etubom Oyo Orok Oyo who retired on age factor and Dr. Amos Adamu, who was suspended from all footballing matter for three years because of his involvement in the cash-for-vote scandal that rocked the body in the process that led to the hosting right for 2018 and 2022 being given to Russia and Qatar.

In fairness to Hayatou, he brought some positive changes into CAF, especially the reorganisation which led to increase in number of competitions including the recent African Nations Championship (CHAN) among players who ply their trade on the continent. But many of those changes were in his younger days. The same factor of age which worked in his favour to defeat the then acting CAF president, Dr. Abdel Halim Mohammed of Sudan, worked against him last week.

We wish Ahmad Ahmad and his new team at CAF success.

meeting in such a manner that a reader in Nigeria would nostalgically ask question about why Nigeria’s political space is no longer dominated by leaders with sterling qualities such as the two most famous SAMUELS- Chief Samuel Mbakwe and General Samuel Ogbemudia.

Let’s revisit that strategic African business parley in Geneva whereby we were told by The Guardian that whilst responding to the moderator’s question on what he represents in the African economic model, Mo Ibrahim had sought to modify the theme of the conference – “Re-inventing the Africa Business Model� – on grounds that transparency should be much more important to the continental administrations than any economic model. “Africa is not a company. It is made up of 54 countries,� he noted, describing the situation as a “big elephant in the room.� The philanthropist argued that what the continent needs are “countries with no corruption. An Africa that is more transparent with open governance.�

This perspective reminds us of the indubitable fact that leadership legacies shape public opinion in a very formidable way. In that line Mr. Julius Olu Odetunde who wrote a book entitled: “Teach yourself Yoruba proverbs and idioms in English language�, reminds us of a particular Yoruba proverb: “oba to je ti ilu toro oruko re pare, eyi ti o je ti ilu fi tu oruko re o ni pare bakan naam, � meaning “a king who reigned when the town was peaceful will not be forgotten, and the one that reigned when the town was chaotic too will not be forgotten.�

This proverb warns that if one assumes or hold the reins of government or any other leadership’s post in life, one should strive to do good, because whatever we do today will soon become history.

Emmanuel Onwubiko, Head of Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria

WHY CBN’S MPR ISN’T PRO-INVESTMENT?

T

hat CBN’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) could retain the key interest rate (MPR) during their last two meetings does not portray a serious MPC team. Or is the economy this static or is the recession now over to warrant keeping MPR unchanged?

Does it mean that as far as the members of the MPC are concerned the current high cost of money is okay that it needs to be encouraged? Why should what is militating against the real sector investment, investment badly needed to grow the economy out of recession be encouraged? Should the CBN be encouraging or discouraging high interest rate, especially given how high interest rates discourage domestic borrowing for industrial activities?

The current MPR is only good for importation of finished goods since most importers can afford high interest rates in such presence of an increasingly strong naira. Is naira strong because we are importing less and exporting more? Why should CBN through its interventions in the same market that is supposed to be market-driven have to artificially subsidise dollar in order to create a falsely strong naira?

That is why I am of the opinion that in recessionary economy like ours, bringing down the cost of money is more important than fighting inflation blindly; after all, high cost of money is an important cause of high inflation.

So my advice is let the MPC focus more on lowering interest rates which will increase real sector investments and grow the economy and jobs and less on defending the naira since a strong naira only grows our appetite for imported goods.

Odilim Enwegbara, Abuja

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T H I S D AY FRIDAY MARCH 24, 2017

T H I S D AY ˾ FRIDAY, MARCH 24, 2017

17

POLITICS

Group Politics Editor Tobi Soniyi Email tobi.soniyi@thisdaylive.com 08033146139 SMS ONLY

PERSONALITY FOCUS

The Unlikely Pacifist?

Amidst a leadership tussle that has given him the edge in wresting control of the Peoples Democratic Party from his opponents, the decision by Ali Modu Sheriff not to contest the party’s leadership shows uncommon sportsmanship, Segun James writes

I

t is said that the margin of victory in life can sometimes be measured in inches. This is what Ali Amodu Sheriff, the Court of Appeal-declared Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) may have done when in apparent victory he openly foreclosed any desire to contest the chairmanship of the party again.

He also said he would leave the decision on whether to run for the office of the president on the platform of the PDP or not in the hands of God. That certainly is beyond anybody at the moment.

They say that life is the best teacher, and that we never stop learning; that every experience we go through teaches us something new.

But that is not to say every lesson learnt is of the life-changing variety.

This certainly can be said of Sheriff because recent activities in the party he leads have shown how quick friends can become enemies, especially in a party like the PDP. Following a report by the reconciliation committee set up to finally resolve the party lingering crisis, which suggested he be allowed to conduct a new convention of the party tentatively scheduled for June 30, 2017, Sheriff had suddenly taken up the toga of a statesman.

While promising not to contest, he however will not abandon his supporters in the battle that has pitched members in factional war as he made it clear those members of his National Working Committee (NWC) whose tenures are still running should still have the right to re-contest for offices at the party’s convention.

The position of the chairman came just as the leadership of the National Caretaker Committee led by Senator Ahmed Makarfi condemned the stance of the Bayelsa State Governor, Seriake Dickson, chairman of the party’s reconciliation committee which it said, is one-sided and in favour of Sheriff. The Makarfi group sees Sherrif as a usurper and could not fathom why the Dickson committee would suddenly confer legitimacy upon him.

At a press conference in Abuja where he made his decision known, Sheriff noted that every position he had occupied so far in his political career, came from God, adding that it was God that made it possible for him to lead the PDP at the moment.

“Every position I occupy in life, God made it possible. I am a firm believer in the will of God. The issue of the presidency is not for me to decide. I told you I will not run for the chairmanship position, the rest we leave to God,” he said.

According to him, as soon as the party concludes its ongoing consultations; it will set up a convention committee which will fine-tune the modalities for organising the event.

Sheriff also commenced talks with the Board of Trustees (BoT) through its Chairman, Senator Walid Jubril, who promised to get back to him in order for them to schedule a formal meeting with the members.

“Everywhere in our party, we are working across board; everybody is working for the party to come back to its position as in 1999.

We are for peace, but that does not mean that we are afraid of anybody; we will not be relenting, we need our party back in power and we will carry everybody along that mean well for PDP. “I assure you that PDP will not be destroyed; PDP is a creation of God and cannot be destroyed by anybody. We are on course

Sheriff...extending the olive branch

and we will go as planned. For anybody who believes that it is not political solution, they are on their own,” Sheriff stated.

But the National Caretaker Committee (NCC) headed by his rival, Ahmed Makarfi is not impressed with his statesman-like posture.

Instead, it picked holes in Sherrif’s speech at every turn, adding that the report of the reconciliation committee headed by Dickson was a subterfuge to give the man a soft landing and save him from the impending embarrassment which will follow if the Supreme Court gives judgment and set aside the judgment of the Court of Appeal which recognised Sheriff as the authentic chairman of the party.

The NCC condemned the call by Dickson for its disbandment, describing it as improper and biased. According to its spokesman, Dayo Adeyeye, position expressed by the Bayelsa State governor where he called for the resignation of the National Caretaker Committee as a way out of the present

Unless the process is refined, the leaderless party may again find itself in murky water in no distance future. But with magnanimity of Sheriff who has displayed maturity, it is time to return to the table of politicking

impasse in the party is wrong and biased.

Adeyeye said the proper thing to do if Dickson wants the caretaker committee to be disbanded is to persuade and convince the 80 per cent of the members on the merits of his point of view.

He disclosed that former President, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan had suggested the resignations of Sheriff and that of the NCC as a solution to the crisis in the context of finding a suitable political solution to the crisis but that while Makarfi accepted it in the interest of peace, Sheriff bluntly refused.

Stressing that it was not proper to ask the caretaker committee to surrender the destiny of the party to Sheriff who brazenly and without any remorse destroyed the chances of the party in the Edo and Ondo State governorship elections.

It is true that man does not often change his deepest convictions, but it is not unusual for a man to change his calculation of risk.

This it seems, is what Senator Ali Modu Sheriff may have done and it is paying up for him. In the crisis rocking the party, he is no longer seen as the clog in the wheel of the party’s progress but as the man whose actions and statesman-like behaviour may save the PDP from impending doom.

In declaring his intention not to contest, he said he had already written to the different organs of the party to nominate members that would serve in the convention planning committee.

Sheriff also begged members of the NWC “to forfeit their unexpired tenure for the general good and unity of the party.”

Sheriff’s position is coming four weeks after the Appeal Court in Port Harcourt affirmed him as the authentic chairman of the PDP. Sheriff is Borno State’s first governor to serve two consecutive terms (2003–2011).

Though Sheriff had held two elected offices as a member of All Nigeria People’s Party (ANPP) , he would later join the All Progressives Congress (APC) becoming a founding member of the party.

In 2014, Sheriff switched affiliation to the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) . He acted as the National Working Committee chair from February 16, 2016 until the national convention, when he was removed and replaced

by Ahmed Makarfi, a decision that triggered the crisis in the party today.

Ali Modu Sheriff was born in Ngala town, Ngala local government area, Borno State in 1956. His father, Galadima Modu Sheriff was a business tycoon. He attended Government Secondary School, Bama (1974–1979). He later attended the London School of Business, where he studied Insurance, Banking and Finance. In 1981, he joined his father’s construction company as a Director, later becoming Managing Director. In 1985, he registered his first company. His companies include Meroil Organisation and Union Chase.

He was elected as a senator from Borno during the Third Republic under the banner of the National Republican Convention (NRC). His opponent then was Kolo Kingibe, wife of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) chairman, Babagana Kingibe. He was also a member of the Constitutional Conference and chaired the committee on states and local government.

Ali Modu Sheriff was elected Senator representing Borno Central on the platform of the United Nigeria Congress Party (UNCP) during General Sani Abacha’s military regime.

After democracy was restored, in April 1999 he was again elected Senator, Borno Central on the platform of the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP).

In 2003, he ran for governor of Borno State on the ANPP platform and won. He was re-elected in 2007 and sworn in on 29 May 2007. In both cases, he defeated the PDP candidate Kashim Ibrahim-Imam.

During 2014, Sheriff switched affiliation to the Peoples Democratic Party. On 16 February 2016, he became the chairman of PDP National Working Committee. The Court of Appeal sitting in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, on Friday 17, February, 2017 declared Sheriff as the authentic National Chairman of the PDP. Sheriff is not new to crisis and political intrigues. Sometimes ago, when the activities of the notorious fundamentalist group, the Islamic sect, Boko Haram was at its peak in Bornu State, he was accused of being a sponsor by an Australian hostage negotiator, Steven Davies. He denied the allegation. Despite several insinuations linking him to the sect, he remained unscathed and had survived the accusation only to emerge the chairman of the party.

That the PDP needs a new leadership selection system is no longer news, but surely not the one that followed the last national convention of the party that threw in Ahmed Makarfi as the caretaker chairman and the crisis that followed when Sheriff refused to step down. Unless the process is refined, the leaderless party may again find itself in murky water in no distance future.

But with magnanimity of Sheriff who has displayed maturity, it is time to return to the table of politicking. The party needed a leader fast and immediately as the 2019 general election draws near.

T H I S D AY ˾ FRIDAY, MARCH 24, 2017

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POLITICS

PERSPECTIVE

Time for Africa to Put Its House in Order Recent xenophobic attacks on Nigerians living in South Africa have shown that relations among countries on the continent is far from ideal. The Senate President, Senator Bukola Saraki gives reasons why it is time for African leaders to reach out to one another

F

or everyone concerned about a more equitable world order and the place of Africa in it, there could not have been a more important topic for discussion at a forum which brings global leaders in business, politics and the civil society together.

Over the last seven decades or so, we have witnessed a steady evolution in the agenda of South-South cooperation. From the liberation struggle of the early years, to the non-alignment of the cold war era, through to the more recent push for democratisation and democratic consolidation, and the preoccupation with development at the turn of the millennium, the developing world had demonstrated an incredible capacity for dynamism in defining its political agenda.

However, while the rhetoric of decolonisation and non-alignment might have dominated some of the early conversations among the countries of the global south, South-South cooperation and the various regional integration efforts that derive from it, have been largely driven by solidarity and the need to build partnership based on shared geography, a shared political history, and a common worldview. South-South cooperation has over the years inspired the construction of alternative international governance framework which seeks to enable countries in the developing world to take responsibility for their own development.

Starting from the first Africa-Asia Summit in Bandung, Indonesia in 1955; the AfricaSouth America (ASA) cooperation Summits in Abuja, Nigeria in 2006 and Venezuela three years later; the Nairobi Conference of 2009; as well as numerous similar conferences, Africa has demonstrated its willingness and capability to build greater partnership and cooperation not only within the continent, but also across other regions of the global south.

Despite the dominant narrative of pessimism about the African continent, our experience has demonstrated that so much can be achieved if we work together with ourselves and other regions of the world who share in our reality and are prepared to cooperate with us as partners.

However, over the years, despite the great progress that has been made in regional and sub-regional cooperation on the continent, the crowning glory of which was the creation of the African Union in 2001, it appears that majority of our countries have not fully imbibed the global outlook required to move more quickly towards realising the full vision of the Union. I have no doubt that we cannot achieve any effective integration of Africa with the rest of the global south in cooperation and partnership, unless we achieve first the integration of Africa within itself. Without the demonstrable commitment by African countries to think beyond their immediate borders, Africa will continue to remain junior partners, even in its relationship with other parts of the developing world. The exploitation of our continent does not become more acceptable simply because it is done by another developing region rather than Europe or America. The strength of Africa’s cooperation with the rest of the world, lies in the ability of Africa to cooperate with itself.

It is however important to emphasise that when we think of the integration of the African continent, we need to think more in terms of the integration of our people even more than we think of our physical borders.

In this wise, Africa will continue to present an interesting challenge to migration experts.

In different parts of our continent, majority of our people still regard the borders as mere colonial legacies. An important example is West Africa where the borders are drawn vertically, but the people are distributed horizontally. Communities who have lived as one family for centuries have refused to

Chairperson of the African Union (AU), President Alpha Conde of Guinea...its time to pursue African unity

recognize these artificial lines. People who have traveled by road from Lagos to Abidjan have found to their utter surprise that while they waited for hours at the various border posts to have their passports checked and stamped, ordinary villagers in the border towns moved freely to fetch water or buy a loaf of bread, without the slightest realization that they have crossed the border into another country!

Technology, especially advancement in information technology, has also significantly changed the way we think about our borders and its ability to keep people in or out.

As our people continue to interact across virtual spaces, sharing knowledge, ideas and information with ever increasing ease and speed, we in the political leadership must realise that the decision has been more or less taken out of our hands and that the physical borders have been rendered almost irrelevant by technology.

Our people will continue to cooperate and collaborate, regardless of what we do.

Information about business and employment opportunities will reach them wherever they may be, and they will follow those opportunities. Pastoralists will follow the water and the green pasture, and young people will follow employment and business opportunities. Unless we clearly define what these mean in terms of our relationship with ourselves, migration will ultimately lead to tension and the inevitable conflict.

We have seen already, xenophobic attacks in some parts of the continent. This alone must force us to think again about what African integration and cooperation mean to us.

Do we want an Africa where law abiding citizens of all our countries should be able to move freely and partake in social and economic opportunities in any part of the continent, from Cape to Cairo or Casablanca to Kinshasa? Or, do we want an Africa that is still largely insulated against itself, an

I have no doubt that we cannot achieve any effective integration of Africa with the rest of the global south in cooperation and partnership, unless we achieve first the integration of Africa within itself

Africa where Europeans and Americans will feel even more welcomed in our countries than fellow Africans?

Without doubts, the vision and philosophy of the African Union is for a continent whose strength and prosperity are based on greater cooperation and partnership among our various countries and its peoples. We are still far away from realizing the full vision of the Union, which includes a common currency and common Central Bank among others. However, we need to demonstrate that we remain committed to achieving this vision no matter how long it takes.

Permit me to emphasise that we cannot form a strong partnership with other regions of the world, whether in the global south or the north, unless we have forged a strong partnership and cooperation among ourselves.

Even as a young man growing up in Nigeria and the United Kingdom, I heard mostly of Europe and America as our traditional trade partners rather than other African countries.

Every year, thousands of Europeans and Americans visit various parts of Africa for tourism. Egypt, Morocco, Kenya, Tanzania, South Africa, Gambia, Mauritius are only a few of their favourite tourism destinations. For Africans however, Europe and America, and lately the United Arab Emirates, remain our favourite holiday destinations. It is not just the case that Africans don’t want to travel to other parts of the continent; but the reality is that it is easier to move across the countries of Europe than it is to travel across Africa. We need to make it easier for our people to know each other and make it easier for Africans to know Africa.

Perhaps, the greatest challenge faced by the African continent today is that of youth unemployment. Nigeria’s 70 million youth population between the age of 18-35 presents both opportunities and threats almost in equal measure. This demographic opportunity is one thing that almost the entire African continent has in common. While the average age in Europe is 45; for Africa, it is in the 20s region. A large youth population such as ours means a huge market in terms of products consumption, services and labour. However, for Africa to benefit from the demographic dividends that a massive youth population offers, we must make the right investments in quality higher education and create the right conditions and opportunities for entrepreneurship and employment.

No single country on the African continent can do this alone. A large market is only useful when the people have the necessary purchasing power; and a huge population is only an asset when it is productive.

The challenge of cross-border crimes, the smuggling of small arms and light weapons across our borders; or even the wave of terrorist activities provide another compelling reason why effective cooperation and partnership is almost a matter of life and death. The experience we have had with Al-Qaida in the Maghreb (AQIM) in Mali and the Boko Haram in Nigeria shows that security and stability of our countries can only be guaranteed through a regional governance system which would make it impossible for terrorists and criminals to find a safe haven within any of our borders.

Many countries in Africa have witnessed remarkable economic development in recent years. However, in the context of overall global economy, this progress amounts to very little or nothing. Africa’s share of the global trade is only 2% and of this, only 11% is Africans trading with themselves. We have to reverse this trend.

The various regional and sub-regional development banks are markers of our commitment to home grown credit. However, broad based financial inclusion remains a challenge, and limited access to credit and financial services to the teeming population of Africa’s poor and young people will

continue to threaten any efforts at poverty eradication and promotion of real entrepreneurship among our youths. Strengthening financial inclusion must therefore remain at the top of our regional political agenda.

Like in all situations, embedded in all these challenges are great opportunities for our continent. The prevailing “America First” situation in the United States as well as the Brexit, will open news windows of opportunities. Investments and businesses will seek opportunities elsewhere and governments will seek new partners. Africa must put its acts together and position to benefit from the opportunities, fast more than before, that these political situations would present.

Tourism will remain key drivers of economy on our continent. However, music and movies have witnessed remarkable progress in recent years. Nigeria’s Nollywood is the fastest growing movie industry in the world. In recent past, American and European music were on their ways to colonizing Africa. This trend has been effectively reversed in the last few years as African music continue to grow in popularity in different parts of the world, including China.

Trust and genuine partnership are key factors in opening up the African continent to African businesses and people. This is why I must commend the King of Morocco for the recent bilateral agreements with Nigeria in different areas, including the Bilateral Air Services Agreement; Marine Fisheries Cooperation; Diplomatic and Official Services Visa Exemption and many more. We need to build on this and hold it make it easier for people and goods to move across our continent.

We must strengthen relationships among our parliamentarians, among our governments and among our businessmen to share experiences and build mutually beneficial partnerships. There are very exciting models to build on. The Lagos to Tangiers highway project; the Trans Sahara gas pipeline project, as well as the Chinese-backed railway projects that would connect East African countries are only a few of these.

My goal as the President of the Nigerian Senate is to improve parliamentary collaboration across Africa and to improve economic partnerships on the continent by enacting laws that would promote trade in Africa and make doing business in Nigeria safer and easier.

All the foregoing have significant implication for leadership.

While it is not a perfect yardstick, recent outcome of the Mo Ibrahim Prize for Achievement in African Leadership calls for a sober reflection. We must re-evaluate our leadership recruitment standards and how we measure performance in leadership. In the context of this conversation, I believe that the kind of political leaders that can help our continent in the 21st century are those who are able to think in regional terms and operate in a global context; those who have the self-confidence to play in a team of leaders to find a common solution to the common problems that confront our countries, our continent and all of humanity.

Time is not on our side. The world needs us. Let us believe in ourselves. This is our time. Political leaders in Africa must reach out to each other on how to co-operate for the benefit of the people. That is why I commend the building relationship between President Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria and King Muhammed VI of Morocco. Our leaders must also work with the private sector to drive development and economic growth. We must not lose the current momentum in pulling up our people and our continent.

Saraki, President of the Senate delivered the speech during the opening session of the Crans Montana Forum of Africa and South-South Co-operation for Africa’s Development in Dakhlan, Morocco.

19

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BUSINESSWORLD

Group Business Editor Chika Amanze-Nwachuku Email chika.amanzenwachukwu@thisdaylive.com 08033294157

͡ Ëœ Í° ÍŽ ÍŻ Íľ NIBOR OVERNIGHT 1-MONTH

NIBOR 15.3333% 17.0332%

3-MONTH 6-MONTH

20.1621% 23.1621%

NITTY 1-MONTH 2-MONTH

ͯ͹˛͎͡;͎Ϲ 14.0684%

3-MONTH 6-MONTH

ͯͳ˛;͜͜͡Ϲ ͯ͡˛ʹʹͲͲϹ

EXCHANGE RATE ͹͎ͳ˛ͳ͎˚˚ͯ ̊ ̊

Quick Takes Virgin Launches Students Fares

Virgin Atlantic has introduced aordable student fares in the Nigerian aviation market to two exciting destinations from Lagos.

The airline is oering ight from Lagos to London at $212 and from Lagos to JFK airport New York at $324 for students.

The airline said these fares are return and are exclusive of taxes, while Virgin Atlantic also oers a one way fare of $183 on the Lagos London route to cap up this exciting oer.

According to Samuel LindďŹ eld, the Virgin Atlantic Country Manager, “Virgin Atlantic as a brand is proud to support the dream and aspirations of young Nigerians and their desire to get global education and training that would prepare them for leadership roles in the future. It is in our DNA to promote opportunities that would help the Nigerian youths to prepare themselves for leadership roles, and also develop themselves for future challenges. The eligibility age for this fare is 16 yearsâ€?.

He further explained, “This oer is open to students in secondary and post-secondary school institutions. It is in response to the current economic challenges in Nigeria which has made it imperative for parents and students to eectively manage their travel budget and plan for their future as they prepare for the challenges ahead.

This fare is available in the economy class cabin and it oers an opportunity for these students to experience Virgin Atlantic’s quality service and award winning inight entertainment systems.�

ROYAL RECEPTION

L-R: Station Manager, SAHCOL, Alhaji Abu Aminu Alidu; Relationship Manager, First Bank, Mrs. Senanu Ladipo; Managing Director, Med-View Airline, Alhaji Muneer Bankole; Emir of Kano, His Highness Alhaji Muhammad Sanusi II; Captain Usman Saleh and, Director, Med-View Airline, Mr. Jalal Ammouri, during a reception for Med-View Airline team by the Emir of Kano in his palace to felicitate with the airline on its Lagos-Kano inaugural ight ...recently

Concerns over New Terror Threat at Airports Experts Call for Proactive Measures in Nigeria Chinedu Eze There are new concerns over the possibility of explosives being hidden in laptop batteries and other electronic devices by unscrupulous travellers, who would use them to blow up airliners while airborne.

This, operatives said was what informed the recent ban of large electronics on flights from selected airports in the Middle East and Africa by the US. CNN reported that recently obtained intelligence shows an al Qaeda affiliate has been trying to perfect techniques for concealing explosives in the batteries of electronic devices.

AVIATION Aviation security experts said that Nigerian security system may not be prepared for it because it would need advanced technology to detect such incendiary devices hidden in electronic gadgets.

The CEO of Scope Centre, Adebayo Babatunde told THISDAY on Wednesday that it has become obvious that cyber security is the new focus in terrorism and the advancement and international dimensions are worrisome. “The extent of breach a tablet or pad or any of such devices

can cause is overwhelming and I’m not sure anyone can affirm what maximum damage they can cause. In response to this threats the United States of America came up with this prohibition order on tablets, pads and other electronic devices carried on passengers flying to the US from certain airports, this was swiftly followed by the UK government having received the intelligence from the US. “For us in Nigeria, the growing activism and militancy coupled with the tactical shift of the Boko Haram insurgents call for maximum alerts and surveillance. No proactive measure is too much for threat

prevention. It is incumbent on our security managers to measure the threat levels in the different regions and come up with the appropriate measures but as it relates to international aviation, I will advise that Nigeria should follow the examples of the US and UK. There’s no need to reinvent the wheel when we have a module to copy. Travellers will be expected to check in their tablets and other computer electronics while travelling from all our international airports,�

Babatunde said.

He added that other measures Continued on page 20

Concessionaires at Loggerheads with NPA Management over Debt Recover Eromosele Abiodun Efforts by the management of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), led by Ms. Hadiza Bala-Usman, to recover the huge indebtedness by port concessionaires are facing stiff resistance from port concessionaires THISDAY investigations have revealed A competent source who do not want his name in print told THISDAY that some port concessionaires have commenced plot to create chaos in the port system and smear Bala-Usman’s image and ultimately unseat her.

MARITIME The concessionaires, THISDAY gathered have enlisted the services of some operators and others to churn out information capable of creating disaffection in the system and create bad-blood in the port sector.

Bala Usman had on assumption of duty declared that her mandate would be “to block revenue leakages, enforce efficiency, transparency and accountability.�

Debt profile assessment in NPA revealed that the

authority is being owed over N30billion by key operators and some other players’ operators.

Hadiza equally discovered that many of the concessionaires flagrantly breach the concession agreement, and insisted that they have to remit their throughput fees and other levies in dollar denomination as stipulated in the concession agreement.

Consequently, she urged the debtors to pay up or face sanction directed the NPA’s account section to recover the debts so as to boost the nation’s revenue profile.

THISDAY checks revealed that many of the concessionaires are contesting the NPA’s right to charge Value Added Tax (VAT) on services provided by the authority.

Some industry stakeholders told THISDAY that they are not surprised that there is an orchestrated plan to derail the vision of the NPA leadership by creating distraction and laying landmines.

THISDAY findings revealed that while there is a gang-up among some concessionaires against Hadiza and the Continued on page 20

NAMA MD Inspects Kaduna ILS

TheManagingDirectoroftheNigerianAirspaceManagementAgency (NAMA), Capt. Fola Akinkuotu has commended the performance of the newly installed and calibrated Instrument Landing System (ILS) as well as other navigational aids at the Kaduna International Airport, describing them as “highly sophisticated and dependable equipment.�

Akinkuotu, who made this observation when he led top management sta of the agency and media representatives on an assessment tour of the facilities noted that “the successful landing of the Ethiopian Airline Jet- Boeing 787 and the many ights of other local ights at Kaduna ever since the closure of Abuja airport is a pointer to the fact that our navigational aids are performing optimally and can contend with the increased traďŹƒc on a 24-hour basis.â€?

Akinkuotu who is also an aeronautical engineer extolled the ingenuity of NAMA engineers “for doing a good job on the installation of the ILS,� describing them as highly experienced. He explained that the components of the ILS including the Distance Measuring Equipment (DME), Localizer and the Glideslope have two channels so that while one is working, the other is on standby, ensuring uninterrupted and seamless performance. While disclosing that the agency has two generators to ensure steady power supply, the NAMA boss however lamented that the agency was spending humongous sums in providing power to the navigational facilities as that of the national grid is either very low or epileptic. To mitigate this challenge, he said plans were in the pipeline to deploy solar energy to ensure uninterrupted power supply to all the equipment and cooling systems.

Turkish Airlines Oers Aid to Somalia

As part of its humanitarian gesture to ensure safety of lives across the globe and particularly across its countries of operations,Turkish Airlines has granted oďŹƒcial consent for carriage of 200-tons of aid for the next six months to support the call to tackle hunger and drought in Somalia.The gesture followed Airline’s listening to a humanitarian aid campaign that began on social media by a French social media star, Jerome Jarre, calling Turkish Airlines, as the only airline that ies to Somalia, to use its global network and reputation for hospitality to help the people of Somalia.

Jarre, with over 1.3 million followers on Twitter, drew attention to the hunger and drought in Somalia with his video, viewed 2.5 million times, calling for Turkish Airlines’ help with the hashtag #TurkishAirlinesHelpSomalia, on Wednesday, March 15.

Following the call for action, high-proďŹ le Twitter accounts including Hollywood star, Ben Stiller, added their voices to the call for Turkish Airlines to support the campaign.

“Some airlines that benefitted from bailout did not utilise the money to grow the industry, like funding manpower training; they diverted it to other businesses�

Managing Director, Afrijet Airlines, Alhaji Mohammed Tukur

20

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BUSINESSWORLD CONCERNS OVER NEW TERROR THREAT AT AIRPORTS currently in place should be maintained and upgraded if there is advancement in counter technology.

Reacting to the report also, the CEO of Centurion Securities Limited and the Secretary General of Aviation Round Table (ART), Group Captain John Ojikutu said except the Boko Haram sects decided to be copycats, generally, the greatest threats to civil aviation is towards the West from the (Middle) East, especially America. Ojikutu said the US and its closest ally the UK would be the main target. “The threats are from Al Qaeda and ISIS mainly and mainly too from the Middle East. The arrangement we have to face such threats is to focus more on direct flights to the US and Western Europe particularly to Britain and sometimes too to places like Amsterdam as Abdulmutalab the underwear bomber once taught us. Intelligence, prepassengers profiling are the antidotes. Airlines must ensure that they put into operation a computer assisted pre-passenger pre-screening system to identity frequently travelling passengers from irregularly passengers and identify those that could be risks or threats to their flights,�

Ojikutu said.

CONCESSIONAIRES AT LOGGERHEADS WITH NPA MANAGEMENT OVER DEBT RECOVER leadership NPA, a particular concessionaire has made it a part of its corporate plan to rubbish the leadership integrity of NPA, so as to remain on top of competition.

Meanwhile, the NPA has faulted report of alleged “Crisis of confidence rocking integrity of the NPA. In a statement, the NPA said: “The spiteful commentary has been delivered with such passion as to leave none in any doubt as to the jaundiced perspective of the virulent critics of the changes being effected at the NPA. Yet, no one has stepped forward to claim ownership of the outlandish assertions.�

Group Business Editor

NEWS

TNIF Applauds Increased Revenue Generation by Customs Ndubuisi Francis in Abuja The Director-General of a pan-Nigeria group, Think Nigeria First Initiative (TNIF), Ambassador Abubakar Tsanni has commended the Nigeria Customs Service, Tin Can Island Command for generating a daily revenue of N1 billion since the beginning of March 2017.

Such a feat, he noted, could only be achieved by a well-coordinated and focused leader that has the interest of the country at heart.

Tsanni described the Area Controller, Yusuf Bashar as a certified trade facilitator, who had brought a lot of changes and innovation to the entire command. He urged the Area Controller to continue with the impressive record, saying that if such feat can be sustained, the command can meet its monthly target of N25.4 billion and N303 billion annual target respectfully.

He also stated that the return of President Muhammadu Buhari from his medical trip abroad is a good news for Nigerians. He prayed God to grant him total healing, saying Buhari’s return has rekindled the hope for a better change in Nigeria.

Tsanni, therefore, called on every citizen, irrespective of

religious or ethnic background, to join in praying for the total recovery of the president as well as the peace and development of the entire country.

He also commended the Christian Association of Nigeria

(CAN) and the Izala Islamic group as well as other wellmeaning citizens who have continued to pray for the president, urging everyone to support the APC-led administration in rebuilding Nigeria.

He also extolled what he described as the exemplary leadership style of Buhari, noting that he transmitted power to the Vice President Prof Yemi Osinbajo, adding that it demonstrated unity of

purpose in governance.�

The TNFI’s boss said that Buhari’s anti-corruption drive was yielding positive result as the federal government has continue to recover huge sums of money from treasury looters.

WELCOME TO NPA

L-R: Editorial Manager, Oxford Business Group (OBG), Davide Rasconi; Regional Manager (Africa); Elise Postigo; Managing Director, Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Hadiza Bala Usman; Country Director, Diana Rus; when OBG visited Bala Usman at the NPA corporate headquarters in Marina, Lagos‌recently

‘NLNG Positioned to Grow into Global Shipping Leader’ Eromosele Abiodun The Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) Limited’s shipping operation is relying on the strategic deployment of skills and technology to power its transformation into a global maritime industry leader, the company’s General Manager Shipping, Temilola Okesanjo has said.

He stated this in a presentation titled, “NLNG Global player in the Chartering Market,� at the Multimodal (Logistics) West Africa Conference, the largest Transport & Logistics Exhibition in West Africa held in Lagos.

Nigeria LNG, he said, has since inception in 1999, chartered-in 45 Vessels (including LNG, LPG and Condensate carriers) for shipment of its

products to buyers across the globe and chartered- out five of its own vessels to other operators in the market.

According to him, “NLNG currently operates the largest fleet of LNG carriers in the country and has within in its operations portfolio, a total of23 Vessels, three different ship owners and four fleet managers, making the company a formidable player in the Chartering Market, even as it continues to deploy skilled manpower and cutting edge technology for sustainable growth.� Okesanjo referenced how NLNG’s shipping operations have had to adapt quickly and cost effectively to a progressively more challenging and competitive global maritime market, especially in the aftermath of the Fukushima

nuclear incident in Japan in 2011. “One of the primary impacts of Fukushima was the need for cargo diversions, sometimes away from traditional routes and an increase of voyage distances to discharge ports in the Far and Middle East as well as adjustments to operating capacity requirements as a whole. All this in our endeavour to find profitable takers for the 22 million tonnes per annum capacity of our six train production plant at Bonny� “Today, the shipping aspect of our business is being positioned for emerging market opportunities through a revamped chartering structure designed to optimize available shipping capacity. The evolving market conditions demand flexible shipping portfolios as conventional

shipping structures are being challenged, �Okesanjo said. “With eleven buyers on 16 contracts to base destinations in Europe and North America, including Spain, France, Portugal, USA, the company has realized considerable revenue from opportunistic diversions and sub-charters�. He added.

According to Okesanjo, NLNG’s operational modality involves the provision of adequate shipping capacity to lift contractual volumes from NLNG terminal at Bonny in Rivers State, facilitating the implementation of diversion requests to longer distances being proposed by buyers, and enabling the sub-charter of surplus capacity when applicable to ensure full utilization of capacity and competitiveness.

As part of an ambitious fleet regeneration initiative, he said, NLNG retired six vessels built between 1977 and 1982 which were replaced by six modern technology Tri-Fuel ones built

by Samsung and Hyundai Heavy Industries of South Korea and delivered between 2015 and 2016. “NLNG supports the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) certification of its staff. It also provides for training of Nigerian Seafarers, and manages a world class Vessel Traffic Information Management System (VTIMS). NLNG is also putting in place a Maritime Centre of Excellence (MCOE) with capacity for training and research using cutting edge technologies including a state of the art Simulation Centre installed at Bonny Island.

Ă’Ă“Ă•Ă‹ Ă—Ă‹Ă˜Ă¤Ă?Ě‹ ĂĄĂ‹Ă?Ă’Ă&#x;Ă•Ă&#x; AgriBusiness/Industry Editor

ĂœĂ&#x;Ă?Ă™Ă? Ă?Ă‹Ă‘Ă“Ă?

Comms/e-Business Editor

Ă—Ă—Ă‹ Ă•Ă™Ă˜Ă”Ă“ Capital Market Editor

ÙÎÎã Ă‘Ă?Ă˜Ă?

Senior Correspondent

Ă‹Ă’Ă?Ă?Ă— Ă•Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ĂŒĂ™Ă–Ă&#x; (Advertising) Correspondents

Ă’Ă“Ă˜Ă?ĂŽĂ&#x; äĂ? (Aviation) Ă“Ă˜ĂŽĂ‹ ĂœĂ™Ă•Ă? (Labour) ĂœĂ™Ă—Ă™Ă?Ă?Ă–Ă? ĂŒĂ“Ă™ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă˜ (Maritime) ÔÓÙĂ?Ă™Ăœ Ă–Ă“Ă•Ă? (Energy) Ă‹Ă—Ă?Ă? Ă—Ă?ÔÙ (Nation’s Capital) ĂŒĂ“Ă˜Ă˜Ă‹ Ă’Ă“Ă—Ă‹ (Money Mkt) Reporters

Ă&#x;Ă—Ă? Ă•Ă?Ă‘Ă’Ă? Ě™ Ă™Ă˜Ă?ĂŁ Ă‹ĂœĂ•Ă?Þ̚ Ă™Ă?Ă‹ Ă–Ă?Ă•Ă’Ă&#x;ÙÑÓĂ? Ě™ ËÚÓÞËÖ Ă‹ĂœĂ•Ă?Þ̚

Terminal Operators Applaud NPA’s Moves to Make Ports Competitive Eromosele Abiodun Private terminal operators at the nation’s seaports have commended the Managing Director of Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) for taking bold steps to address the issues hampering efficient port operations.

The Seaport Terminal Operators Association of Nigeria (STOAN), which is the umbrella body of operators, said it supports the planned review of the concession agreement and other initiatives of the present NPA management. “As the MD of NPA has stated

several times, the concession agreement is subject to intermittent reviews. This has also been the position of STOAN. The review will address unforeseen developments and challenges encountered in the system. We support it. We also support all the steps she has taken so far.

We are on the same page as far as our ports are concerned.

The abiding interest, which should as a matter of fact be the interest of every Nigerian, is making Nigerian ports the best in Africa and among the best in the world,� STOAN said in a statement.

The association also said that it was working with the Hadiza Bala Usman-led NPA management and other relevant agencies of the federal government to address certain government policies, which are diverting cargoes away from Nigerian ports. “We must commend Ms. Hadiza Bala Usman for taking time to tour and assess the ports upon assumption of office in order to appreciate the issues at hand. We are aware also that she has accessed the state of the port access roads and have promised to ensure that government fixes

those roads as soon as possible.

This is certainly highly commendable and it shows that the present government is a listening government. “We are also aware of the meeting between her and the Comptroller-General of Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) Col Hameed Ali (RTD.) to refine and simplify the cargo clearing system at the port. These are genuine efforts that must not pass unappreciated,� STOAN said.

The association appealed to the federal government to address the issue of high import

duty on imported vehicles and the restriction of 41 items from the official foreign exchange window of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), as part of measures to attract cargo to the port. “The ban on importation of vehicles through the land borders will be more effective with a corresponding slash in the tariff of vehicles. The sure way to check smuggling is to accompany the ban with a slash in Customs duty to bring it to par with what obtains in the ports of Cotonou and other ports in the sub-region,� it said.

T H I S D AY Ëž Ëœ Í°Í˛Ëœ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍľ

21

BUSINESSWORLD

NEWS

Chi Farms Partners Aviagen as It Marks 10th Anniversary Chi Farms Limited has announced landmark 10 years of business relationship with Aviagen, the global market leader in poultry genetics and owner of the popular ‘Arbor Acres’ broiler brand.

According to the company, a direct result of this partnership has made Chi Farms Limited the leading Grand Parent Integrator and distributor of quality day-old chicks in Nigeria. “We have strived to build a legacy by leveraging on this unique partnership to guarantee security of local supplies, such that today the ‘Arbor Acres’brand is the market leader of all broiler brands in Nigeria�, says Dr Tunji Olaitan, General Manager Chi Farms. Chi Farms explained that after it received the first ‘Arbor Acres’ Broiler Grand Parents from Aviagen over 10 years ago, the AA brand has grown to become the most widely accepted and the

number one choice of broiler farmers and integrators in Nigeria today. Chi Farms and Aviagen partnered to promote the growth of local poultry industry in Nigeria through supplies of top quality genetics, promotion of best practices and technical support services. “We are proud that we produce day old chicks in Nigeria that have the same quality as you would buy abroad. Our investments in high tech equipment and continuous training of our staff pay off�, says Executive Director Chi Farms, Martin Middernacht.

He said that Chi Farms Ltd. already has the capacity to supply all of Nigeria’s broiler breeder day-old chicks, and hence has made Nigeria independent from imports in this category.

Middernacht added that to further grow the industry Chi Farms and Aviagen agreed to still further growing the

grand-parent stock capacities in Nigeria to assure full domestic supply also in the future. The two companies are also planning to set up a poultry school on the basis of Chi Farms’ Customer Focus Team, which already provides technical services to poultry farmers. Chi Farms Ltd. is a leading company in the poultry, cattle, catfish, feed milling and food processing business in Nigeria. Chi Farms Ltd. is part of TGI Group, the holding and investing company of Chi Ltd., WACOT Ltd., Cormart Ltd. and others. Chi Farms, has been in the agro-allied industry operating for over two decades in Nigeria. In a world facing the challenges of food shortage, Chi Farms is showing the way forward with highly productive and sustainable farming operations.

Chi Farms is headquartered at Ajanla, close to Ibadan, and operates 12 additional farming estates in Ogun and Oyo states.

LG Electronics Debuts Dual Cool Smart Inverter Air Conditioner at UNILAG Mary Ekah LG Electronics recently unveiled its latest Air Conditioner with a Dual Inverter Compressor in a grand style, with a donation of some units to the University of Lagos, during the Korean Embassy lecture held at the Ade Ajayi Auditorium.

The LG Dual Cool smart Inverter Air Conditioner (Advanced Gencool), designed for the Nigerian market, meets the demands of customers, who want to use Air Conditioners in Nigeria with a current as low as 0.74KVA. Expressing gratitude to the Korean embassy for deeming the University fit for the lecture series, the Vice-Chancellor, University of Lagos, Professor Rahmon Bello, urged all present to take show commitment to the lecture, considering the wealth of experience of the Korean Ambassador H.E. Noh Kyu-duk in international diplomacy.

He acknowledged the tremendous support the University has received from LG Electronics, a Korean company in terms of donations, like the CAC academy; Engineering

lab; award of scholarship to the deserving students of the University over the years amongst others. He said that it was a clear indication of the company’s interest in the growth and development of the University and contribution to educational development in Nigeria, which he said is an act worthy of commendation, even as he called for more collaboration in the future.

In a lecture titled “Korea Nigeria Relations: Korea’s Economic Development and Cultural Enrichment�, Kyu-duk, reminded the audience of the long standing bilateral trade relation that exists between the Korean Republic and the Federal Republic of Nigeria since February 1980, and highlighted the various support programmes Korea has offered to Nigeria, adding Nigeria can learn from the experience and success of Korea.

He also shared areas of common interest between the two countries and how to better foster the ties between the two countries.

As a way of support to

the embassy LG Electronics, a Korean company and a leading brand in consumer electronics globally donated the latest LG Dual Cool Inverter Air Conditioner (Advanced Gencool) with a dual Inverter Compressor.

The AC starting minimum current is 0.7KVA, which is the first of its kind. Interestingly, it is specifically designed to save up to 70% energy due to the varying speed of the rotary compressor.

Speaking during the event, the General Manager, Air Conditioning and Energy Solutions LG Electronics West Africa operations, Mr. C.Y Park said: “The good thing about the AC is that it is a highly durable Product and comes with a 10 year warranty on the compressor boosting the customers’ confidence on the AC. Also speaking at the event, Head of Corporate Marketing, LG Electronics West Africa operations, Mr. Rajesh Agnihotri said LG’s is committed towards coming up with products that will continue to meet the needs and aspirations of its ever-growing consumers in the country.

Kaduna Investment and Economic Summit to Hold Next Month John Shiklam in Kaduna The second edition of the Kaduna investment (KADInvest) and economic summit is to hold next month.

Executive Secretary of the Kaduna State Investment Promoo tion Agency (KADIPA), Alhaji Gambo Hamza disclosed this at a news briefing on Tuesday in Kaduna.

The theme for this year’s summit, according to Hamza, is “Making Kaduna the Investment Destination of Choice� adding

that it is aimed at consolidating the achievements of the first edition which held in April, 2016. He said the United States of America, European Union as well as foreign and local investors have indicated their intention to participate in the event. Hamza said the achievee ments recorded after the maiden edition of the summit in 2016, include the establishment of a $150m Olam Animal, Poultry and Hatchery factory located in Chikun local government area of the state along Abuja-Kaduna

Express way and the $120m Vicampro potatoes farm and processing facility in Manchok, Kaura local government area.

Hamza, further said the previous summit led to the establishment of a $10m Dangote Tomatoes production plant in Kaduna. He said all the investment projects have reached advance stage of completion.

Hamza said the two day summit which begin on April 5, 2017, would unveil “Ease of Doing Business Charter� in Kaduna.

RISK MANAGEMENT WATCH Robert Mbonu

Changing the Culture recent master stroke by the federal government at an attempt to change the culture of fraud and graft is through ÞÒĂ? ĂĄĂ’Ă“Ă?ÞÖĂ?ĂŒĂ–Ă™ĂĄĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ÚÙÖÓĂ?ĂŁËœ Ă‹ĂšĂšĂœĂ™Ă Ă?ĂŽ last December. The policy’s objective Ă“Ă? ÞÙ Ă?âÚÙĂ?Ă? Ă?ĂœĂ‹Ă&#x;ĂŽËœ Ę¨Ă˜Ă‹Ă˜Ă?Ă“Ă‹Ă–Ě‹ĂœĂ?Ă–Ă‹ĂžĂ?ĂŽ Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă—Ă?Ă?Ëž Ă?Ă&#x;ĂšĂšĂ™ĂœĂž ÞÒĂ? ʨÑÒÞ Ă‹Ă‘Ă‹Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ăž Ę¨Ă˜Ă‹Ă˜Ă?Ă“Ă‹Ă– Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă—Ă?Ă? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ corruption and recover public funds that can be ĂŽĂ?ÚÖÙãĂ?ĂŽ ÞÙ Ę¨Ă˜Ă‹Ă˜Ă?Ă? Ă“Ă‘Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă‹ËŞĂ? Ă“Ă˜Ă?ĂœĂ‹Ă?ĂžĂœĂ&#x;Ă?ĂžĂ&#x;ĂœĂ? ĂŽĂ?ʨĂ?ÓÞ˛ Ù×Ă? Ă’Ă“Ă‘Ă’Ě‹ĂšĂœĂ™Ę¨Ă–Ă? Ă?Ă‹Ă?Ă?Ă? Ă’Ă‹Ă Ă? ĂŒĂ?Ă?Ă˜ ĂœĂ?ĂšĂ™ĂœĂžĂ?ĂŽ Ă“Ă˜ the media since this policy was implemented.

Whistle blowing occurs when an employee or ĂĄĂ™ĂœĂ•Ă?Ăœ ĂšĂœĂ™Ă Ă“ĂŽĂ?Ă? Ă?Ă?ĂœĂžĂ‹Ă“Ă˜ ÞãÚĂ?Ă? Ă™Ă? Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă™ĂœĂ—Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ëœ Ă&#x;Ă?Ă&#x;Ă‹Ă–Ă–ĂŁ ÞÙ ÞÒĂ? Ă?×ÚÖÙãĂ?Ăœ Ă™Ăœ Ă‹ ĂœĂ?Ă‘Ă&#x;Ă–Ă‹ĂžĂ™ĂœËœ ĂĄĂ’Ă“Ă?Ă’ has come to their attention through work. The disclosure may be about the alleged wrongful Ă?Ă™Ă˜ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă?Ăž Ă™Ă? ÞÒĂ? Ă?×ÚÖÙãĂ?ĂœËœ Ă™Ăœ Ă‹ĂŒĂ™Ă&#x;Ăž ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă™Ă˜ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă?Ăž Ă™Ă? Ă‹ Ă?Ă?ÖÖÙå Ă?×ÚÖÙãĂ?Ă?Ëœ Ă?Ă–Ă“Ă?Ă˜ĂžËœ Ă™Ăœ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŁ ĂžĂ’Ă“ĂœĂŽ ĂšĂ‹ĂœĂžĂŁË› Whistle blowing is therefore ‘making a disclosure in the public interest’. The federal government ÚÖËĂ?Ă?ĂŽ Ă‹ ĂœĂ?ĂĄĂ‹ĂœĂŽ Ă?Ă™Ăœ Ă‹ ĂĄĂ’Ă“Ă?ÞÖĂ?Ě‹ĂŒĂ–Ă™ĂĄĂ?Ăœ Ă‹Ăž ĂŒĂ?ÞåĂ?Ă?Ă˜ 5 percent and 25 percent of the total amount recovered. ÙåĂ?Ă Ă?ĂœËœ ËÖÞÒÙĂ&#x;Ă‘Ă’ ĂĄĂ’Ă“Ă?ÞÖĂ?Ě‹ĂŒĂ–Ă™ĂĄĂ?ĂœĂ?ËŞ Ă‹ĂœĂ? ĂšĂœĂ™ĂžĂ?Ă?ĂžĂ?ĂŽ Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂŽĂ?Ăœ Ă–Ă‹ĂĄ Ă“Ă˜ Ă—Ă‹Ă˜ĂŁ Ă”Ă&#x;ĂœĂ“Ă?ĂŽĂ“Ă?ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ă?Ëœ ÞÒĂ?ĂœĂ? Ă’Ă‹Ă Ă? ĂŒĂ?Ă?Ă˜ many cases where punishment for whistle blowing Ă’Ă‹Ă? Ă™Ă?Ă?Ă&#x;ĂœĂœĂ?ĂŽËœ Ă?Ă&#x;Ă?Ă’ Ă‹Ă? ĂžĂ?ĂœĂ—Ă“Ă˜Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ëœ Ă?Ă&#x;Ă?ĂšĂ?Ă˜Ă?Ă“Ă™Ă˜Ëœ ĂŽĂ?Ă—Ă™ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ëœ ĂĄĂ‹Ă‘Ă? Ă‘Ă‹ĂœĂ˜Ă“Ă?Ă’Ă—Ă?Ă˜ĂžËœ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽËšĂ™Ăœ Ă’Ă‹ĂœĂ?Ă’ Ă—Ă“Ă?ĂžĂœĂ?ËÞ×Ă?Ă˜Ăž ĂŒĂŁ ÙÞÒĂ?Ăœ Ă?×ÚÖÙãĂ?Ă?Ă?Ë› Ă?Ă‹Ă?Ă? Ă™Ă? a wrongly terminated civil servant working for ÞÒĂ? Ă™ĂœĂ?Ă“Ă‘Ă˜ ĘĽĂ‹Ă“ĂœĂ? Ă“Ă˜Ă“Ă?ĂžĂœĂŁ Ă“Ă? Ă˜Ă™ĂĄ Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂŽĂ?Ăœ ĂœĂ?Ă Ă“Ă?ĂĄ Ă?Ă™Ă–Ă–Ă™ĂĄĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ÞÒĂ? ĂŽĂ“ĂœĂ?Ă?ÞÓà Ă? Ă™Ă? Ă“Ă?Ă?Ě‹ ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă“ĂŽĂ?Ă˜Ăž Ă?Ă—Ă“ Osinbajo. Ă“Ă—Ă“Ă–Ă‹ĂœĂ–ĂŁËœ ÙÞÒĂ?Ăœ ĂœĂ?Ă‘Ă&#x;Ă–Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ă? ÞÒËÞ Ă‹ĂœĂ? Ă“Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? ĂšĂ&#x;ĂŒĂ–Ă“Ă? Ă“Ă˜ĂžĂ?ĂœĂ?Ă?Ăž Ă?Ă&#x;Ă?Ă’ Ă‹Ă? Ă‹Ă˜ĂžĂ“Ě‹Ă—Ă™Ă˜Ă?ĂŁ Ă–Ă‹Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂŽĂ?ĂœĂ“Ă˜Ă‘Ëœ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ĂšĂœĂ?Ă Ă?Ă˜ĂžĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ÞÒĂ? Ę¨Ă˜Ă‹Ă˜Ă?Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă™Ă? ĂžĂ?ĂœĂœĂ™ĂœĂ“Ă?Ăž Ă‹Ă?ÞÓà ÓÞÓĂ?Ă? should be included in the ongoing culture change programme.

Ă˜ Ă?Ă Ă?ĂœĂŁ Ă?Ă˜Ă Ă“ĂœĂ™Ă˜Ă—Ă?Ă˜ĂžËœ ÞÒĂ?ĂœĂ?ËŞĂ? Ă?Ù×Ă?ĂžĂ’Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ ÞÒĂ?ĂœĂ? ÞÒËÞ ĂŁĂ™Ă&#x; Ă?Ă‹Ă˜ËŞĂž Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă–Ëœ ĂŁĂ™Ă&#x; Ă?Ă‹Ă˜ËŞĂž ÞÙĂ&#x;Ă?Ă’ Ă™Ăœ Ă?Ă?Ă? Ă™Ăœ Ă?Ă Ă?Ă˜ Ă?Ă—Ă?Ă–Ă–Ëœ ĂŒĂ&#x;Ăž ĂŁĂ™Ă&#x; Ă•Ă˜Ă™ĂĄ ÓÞ˪Ă? ÞÒĂ?ĂœĂ?Ë› Ă?ÙÚÖĂ? Ă—Ă“Ă‘Ă’Ăž ÞËÖÕ Ă‹ĂŒĂ™Ă&#x;Ăž Ă“ĂžËœ ĂŒĂ&#x;Ăž ÞÒĂ?Ă“Ăœ ĂĄĂ™ĂœĂŽĂ? Ă‹ĂœĂ? Ă Ă‹ĂœĂ“Ă?ĂŽ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă™Ă˜Ă?Ă“Ă?ĂžĂ?Ă˜ĂžË› Ă’Ă?ĂŁ Ă—Ă“Ă‘Ă’Ăž Ă?Ă Ă?Ă˜ Ă“Ă–Ă–Ă&#x;Ă?ĂžĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ? Ă“Ăž åÓÞÒ Ă?âË×ÚÖĂ?Ă?Ëœ ĂŒĂ&#x;Ăž ĂŁĂ™Ă&#x; Ă˜Ă?Ă?ĂŽ ÞÙ Ę¨Ă˜ĂŽ Ă“Ăž Ă?Ă™Ăœ ĂŁĂ™Ă&#x;ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă–Ă? ĂŒĂ?Ă?Ă™ĂœĂ? ĂŁĂ™Ă&#x; Ă?Ă‹Ă˜ assimilate it and adjust your behaviour to it. The Ă“Ă˜Ă Ă“Ă?Ă“ĂŒĂ–Ă?Ëœ ÙÎÙĂ&#x;ĂœĂ–Ă?Ă?Ă? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă?Ă™ĂœĂ—Ă–Ă?Ă?Ă? ĂžĂ’Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă“Ă? Ă?Ă&#x;Ă–ĂžĂ&#x;ĂœĂ?Ë› Every community and organisation has it.

Embedding a new and critical management discipline like enterprise risk management means you are looking to change the culture. The main ĂŽĂœĂ“Ă Ă?Ăœ Ă?Ă™Ăœ Ă?Ă&#x;Ă–ĂžĂ&#x;ĂœĂ? Ă?Ă’Ă‹Ă˜Ă‘Ă? Ă“Ă˜ ĂœĂ“Ă?Ă• Ă—Ă‹Ă˜Ă‹Ă‘Ă?Ă—Ă?Ă˜ĂžËœ ĂšĂ‹ĂœĂžĂ“Ă?Ă&#x;Ă–Ă‹ĂœĂ–ĂŁ Ă“Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? Ę¨Ă˜Ă‹Ă˜Ă?Ă“Ă‹Ă– Ă?Ă?ĂœĂ Ă“Ă?Ă?Ă? Ă“Ă˜ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă?ĂžĂœĂŁ Ă“Ă? about managing the conduct of the people within ÞÒĂ? ĂŒĂ&#x;Ă?Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ă? ĚŽ Ă™Ă˜ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă?Ăž Ă“Ă?Ă• Ă‹Ă˜Ă‹Ă‘Ă?Ă—Ă?Ă˜ĂžË›

Ă? ĂšĂ?ÙÚÖĂ? Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă– ÞÒËÞ ÞÒĂ?ĂŁ Ă‹ĂœĂ? Ă‹ ĂšĂ‹ĂœĂž Ă™Ă? ÞÒĂ? ĂžĂ?Ă‹Ă—Ëœ they do things for each other because they want ĂžĂ™Ëœ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ÞÒĂ?ĂœĂ? Ă‹ĂœĂ? Ă?Ă™Ă—Ă—Ă™Ă˜ ÞËĂ?Ă•Ă?Ëœ Ă?Ă’Ă‹ĂœĂ?ĂŽ ÑÙËÖĂ? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă—Ă&#x;ĂžĂ&#x;Ă‹Ă– Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă?Ă‹Ă“ĂœĂ–ĂŁ ĂŽĂ“Ă?ĂžĂœĂ“ĂŒĂ&#x;ĂžĂ?ĂŽ ĂŒĂ?Ă˜Ă?ʨÞĂ?Ëœ ÞÒĂ?Ă˜ ÞÒĂ?ĂœĂ? will be a communal approach and acceptance of Ă—Ă‹Ă˜Ă‹Ă‘Ă?ĂŽ ĂœĂ“Ă?Ă• ĂžĂ‹Ă•Ă“Ă˜Ă‘Ëœ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ĂœĂ“Ă?Ă• ĂŒĂ‹Ă?Ă?ĂŽ ĂŽĂ?Ă?Ă“Ă?Ă“Ă™Ă˜ Ă—Ă‹Ă•Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ within the boundaries set by the risk appetite.

Developing a risk culture needs to take cognizance of the art of managing change and ÞÒĂ? ĂŽĂ“ĘĽĂ?ĂœĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă—Ă‹Ă˜Ă‹Ă‘Ă?Ă—Ă?Ă˜Ăž Ă?ÞãÖĂ?Ă? ÞÒËÞ Ă‹ĂœĂ? Ă˜Ă?Ă?ĂŽĂ?ĂŽË› Businesses must go beyond how a product is sold to whether it meets the customer’s needs ĂžĂ’ĂœĂ™Ă&#x;Ă‘Ă’Ă™Ă&#x;Ăž ÞÒĂ? Ă–Ă“Ă?Ă?ÞÓ×Ă? Ă™Ă? ÞÒĂ? ĂšĂœĂ™ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă?ĂžËœ Ă?ĂžĂ‹ĂœĂžĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ åÓÞÒ ĂšĂœĂ™ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă?Ăž ĂŽĂ?Ă?Ă“Ă‘Ă˜ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă?Ă˜ĂŽĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ åÓÞÒ ÚÙĂ?Þ̋Ă?Ă‹Ă–Ă? service. They should try to identify products and sales practices that could come under the spotlight in the future. We would call this managing the conduct risk throughout the product lifecycle. ÖÙÙÕ Ă‹Ăž ÞÒĂ? Ó×ÚËĂ?Ăž ÞÒËÞ ÞÒĂ? ĂŒĂ‹Ă˜Ă•Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă?Ă?Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽĂ‹Ă–Ă? have had on the reputation of the entire banking industry will reveal that the conduct agenda extends far beyond simply ensuring that banks are transparent around the products that they sell.

In order to protect the long term interest of Ă?Ă&#x;Ă?ÞÙ×Ă?ĂœĂ?Ëœ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ÞÒĂ? ĂšĂ&#x;ĂŒĂ–Ă“Ă?Ëœ ÞÒĂ?ĂœĂ? Ă—Ă&#x;Ă?Ăž ÞÒĂ?ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă™ĂœĂ? ĂŒĂ? an overt strategy in the enterprise risk management programme to encourage openness and frank whistle blowing with guarantees of protection for the messenger as part of the risk culture.

Ten things that need to take place in order ÞÙ Ă?ĘĽĂ?Ă?Ăž Ă‹ Ă?Ă&#x;Ă–ĂžĂ&#x;ĂœĂ? Ă?Ă’Ă‹Ă˜Ă‘Ă? Ă“Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? Ă™ĂœĂ‘Ă‹Ă˜Ă“Ă?Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ åÓÞÒ ĂœĂ?Ă?ĂšĂ?Ă?Ăž ÞÙ Ă?Ă—ĂŒĂ?ĂŽĂŽĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ĂœĂ“Ă?Ă• Ă—Ă‹Ă˜Ă‹Ă‘Ă?Ă—Ă?Ă˜ĂžËž ͚˛ Ă–Ă“Ă—Ă“Ă˜Ă‹ĂžĂ? ÞÒĂ? ĂŒĂ–Ă‹Ă—Ă? Ă?Ă&#x;Ă–ĂžĂ&#x;ĂœĂ?Ëž Ă?Ă™Ă˜ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă?Ăž ĂœĂ?Ă‘Ă&#x;Ă–Ă‹Ăœ cultural surveys both formal and informal to establish how comfortable people feel when taking managed risk. ͺ˛ Ă?Ă‹Ă?Ă&#x;ĂœĂ? ÞÒĂ? ĂœĂ“Ă?Ă• Ă?Ă&#x;Ă–ĂžĂ&#x;ĂœĂ? Ă“Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? Ă™ĂœĂ‘Ă‹Ă˜Ă“Ă?Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ëž Ă™Ă˜ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă?Ăž Ă‹ ĂœĂ“Ă?Ă• Ă?Ă&#x;Ă–ĂžĂ&#x;ĂœĂ? Ă—Ă?Ă‹Ă?Ă&#x;ĂœĂ?Ă—Ă?Ă˜Ăž ÞÙÙÖ ĂœĂ&#x;Ă˜ Ă?Ă&#x;Ă?Ă’ as an online questionnaire.

3. Establish clear managed risk taking boundaries ÞÒËÞ Ă‹ĂœĂ? Ă?Ă?Ăž ĂŒĂŁ ĂœĂ“Ă?Ă• ËÚÚĂ?ÞÓÞĂ?Ëž Ă?Ă‹Ă?Ă’ ĂŽĂ“Ă Ă“Ă?Ă“Ă™Ă˜Ëœ ĂŒĂ&#x;Ă?Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ă? unit and team to be given clear boundaries that they then translate into boundaries for individuals 4. Behave appropriately if people fail when ÞÒĂ?ĂŁ ÞËÕĂ? Ă—Ă‹Ă˜Ă‹Ă‘Ă?ĂŽ ĂœĂ“Ă?Ă• ĂĄĂ“ĂžĂ’Ă“Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă?Ăž ĂŒĂ™Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂŽĂ‹ĂœĂ“Ă?Ă?Ëž This should be implemented slowly tackling the Ă—Ă™Ă?Ăž Ă“Ă—ĂšĂ™ĂœĂžĂ‹Ă˜Ăž Ă‹ĂœĂ?Ă‹Ă? Ę¨ĂœĂ?ĂžËœ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă?Ă?ĘľĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ÞÒĂ? ĂžĂ™Ă˜Ă? from the top. ͽ˛ Ă‹Ă˜Ă‹Ă‘Ă? Ă?Ă&#x;Ă–ĂžĂ&#x;ĂœĂ? Ă?Ă’Ă‹Ă˜Ă‘Ă? ĂĄĂ?Ă–Ă–Ëž ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă™Ă‘Ă˜Ă“Ă?Ă? ÞÒËÞ Ă“Ăž ĂœĂ?Ă›Ă&#x;Ă“ĂœĂ?Ă? Ă‹ ĂŽĂ“ĘĽĂ?ĂœĂ?Ă˜Ăž Ă?Ă•Ă“Ă–Ă–Ă? Ă?Ă?Ăž ĂžĂ’Ă‹Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? one required when managing the status quo.

6. Understand the conduct risk inherent in the ĂŒĂ&#x;Ă?Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ă? ×ÙÎĂ?Ă– Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă?Ă&#x;ĂžĂ&#x;ĂœĂ? Ă?ĂžĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ?Ă‘ĂŁËž Ă‹ĂœĂžĂ“Ă?Ă&#x;Ă–Ă‹ĂžĂ? ÒÙå you manage it and articulate the behaviours that are appropriate for ensuring that the conducts within the organisation are suitable for the lifetime of the product.

7. Demonstrate that you make ‘good’ rather ĂžĂ’Ă‹Ă˜ ËŠĂ&#x;Ă˜Ă?Ă&#x;Ă?ĂžĂ‹Ă“Ă˜Ă‹ĂŒĂ–Ă?ËŞ ĂšĂœĂ™Ę¨ĂžĂ?Ëž ĂĄĂ’Ă“Ă–Ă?Ăž ĂŁĂ™Ă&#x; Ă—Ă“Ă‘Ă’Ăž ĂŒĂ? driven on [quarterly] returns to your stakeholdĚ‹ Ă?ĂœĂ?Ëœ ĂŁĂ™Ă&#x; Ă?Ă‹Ă˜ ÞËÕĂ? ĂœĂ‹ĂŽĂ“Ă?Ă‹Ă– Ă?ĂžĂ?ĂšĂ? ĂžĂ’ĂœĂ™Ă&#x;Ă‘Ă’ ÞÒĂ? ĂœĂ“Ă?Ă• management programme to ensure that you do Ă˜Ă™Ăž Ă?Ă&#x;ĂšĂšĂ™ĂœĂž Ă?Ă’Ă™ĂœĂž ĂžĂ?ĂœĂ— Ă‘Ă‹Ă“Ă˜Ă? Ă™Ăœ ĂšĂœĂ™Ę¨ĂžĂ? Ă‹Ăž ÞÒĂ? expense of long term sustainability. ΀˛ ÙÙÞ Ă™Ă&#x;Ăž Ă‹ĂœĂ?Ă‹Ă? Ă™Ă? ĂŒĂ‹ĂŽ Ă?Ă™Ă˜ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă?Þ˞ Ă‹ĂŽ Ă?Ă™Ă˜ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă?Ăž must be found and punished. Just like a rotten Ă—Ă‹Ă˜Ă‘Ă™ Ă“Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? ĂŒĂ‹Ă?Ă•Ă?ĂžËœ Ă™Ă˜Ă? Ă—Ă“Ă?Ă?ĂœĂ?Ă‹Ă˜Ăž ĂĄĂ“Ă–Ă– ĂŽĂœĂ‹Ă‘ in others and so the whole basket of mangoes will spoil. Î Ë› Ă‹Ă?Ă? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ĂŽĂ?Ă‹Ă– åÓÞÒ ÞÒĂ? Ă&#x;Ă˜Ă•Ă˜Ă™ĂĄĂ˜ Ă•Ă˜Ă™ĂĄĂ˜Ă?Ëž known as “the elephant in the roomâ€?. This is often the thing that stops risk management from being Ă?Ă&#x;Ă–Ă–ĂŁ Ă?ĘĽĂ?Ă?ÞÓà Ă?Ëœ Ă“Ăž Ă˜Ă?Ă?ĂŽĂ? ÞÙ ĂŒĂ? Ă?Ă‹Ă?Ă?ĂŽ Ă&#x;Ăš ĂžĂ™Ëœ Ă—Ă‹ĂŽĂ? visible and dealt with.

10. Encourage a risk culture that encourages openness and supports people to speak out in ÞÒĂ? Ă“Ă˜ĂžĂ?ĂœĂ?Ă?Ăž Ă™Ă? ÞÒĂ? ĂŒĂ&#x;Ă?Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ă?Ëœ ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă&#x;Ă?ÞÙ×Ă?ĂœĂ? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ĂĄĂ“ĂŽĂ?Ăœ ĂšĂ&#x;ĂŒĂ–Ă“Ă?Ëž ĂŽĂ™ Ă˜Ă™Ăž ĂŒĂ? Ă?ËÞÓĂ?ʨĂ?ĂŽ Ă“Ă˜ Ă”Ă&#x;Ă?Ăž Ă“Ă?Ă?Ă&#x;Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă‹ ĂĄĂ’Ă“Ă?ÞÖĂ? ĂŒĂ–Ă™ĂĄĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ÚÙÖÓĂ?ĂŁËž Ă‹Ă?ÞÓà Ă?Ă–ĂŁ Ó×ÚÖĂ?Ă—Ă?Ă˜Ăž Ă˜Ă?ĂĄ culture changes like the implementation of a whistle blowing policy as part of your ongoing culture shift project. Ă“Ă˜Ă‹Ă–Ă–ĂŁËœ ĂĄĂ’Ă“Ă–Ă?Ăž Ă?Ă&#x;Ă–ĂžĂ&#x;ĂœĂ? Ă?Ă‹Ă˜Ă˜Ă™Ăž ĂŒĂ? Ă?Ă?Ă˜Ă?Ă?ĂŽ Ă“Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? Ă&#x;Ă?Ă&#x;Ă‹Ă– ĂĄĂ‹ĂŁ åÓÞÒ Ă™Ă&#x;Ăœ ʨà Ă? Ă?Ă?Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ă?Ëœ ĂĄĂ? Ă•Ă˜Ă™ĂĄ ÞÒËÞ it is there and it is all pervasive and dominant. Ă™ Ă?Ă’Ă‹Ă˜Ă‘Ă? Ă“Ăž ÞËÕĂ?Ă? ÞÓ×Ă? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă?ĘĽĂ™ĂœĂž ĂŒĂ&#x;Ăž Ă“Ăž Ă?Ă‹Ă˜ ĂŒĂ? achieved and it can be measured and the results Ă‹ĂœĂ? ĂĄĂ?Ă–Ă– ĂĄĂ™ĂœĂžĂ’ ÞÒĂ? Ă?ĘĽĂ™ĂœĂž ĚŽ ÞÒĂ? ÚÙĂ?ÓÞÓà Ă? Ă&#x;ĂšĂ?Ă“ĂŽĂ? is that it can save the business! Ëž ĂŒĂ™Ă˜Ă&#x;Ëœ Ëœ Ě™ ĚšËœ Ëœ Ă? Ě™ ĂžĂ?ĂœĂ˜ĚšËœ Ă?ĂžĂ&#x;ĂŽĂ“Ă?ĂŽ Ă˜Ă‘Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă˜Ă‘Ëœ Ă“Ă? Ă‹Ă˜ Ă?âÚĂ?ĂœĂ“Ă?Ă˜Ă?Ă?ĂŽ Ă‹Ă˜Ă•Ă?Ăœ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă˜ĂžĂ?ĂœĂšĂœĂ“Ă?Ă? Ă“Ă?Ă• Ă‹Ă˜Ă‹Ă‘Ă?Ă—Ă?Ă˜Ăž ĂšĂœĂ™Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă“Ă™Ă˜Ă‹Ă–Ë› Ă‹ĂœĂ˜Ă?ĂŽ Ă‹ ÚÙĂ?Ăž Ă‘ĂœĂ‹ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă‹ĂžĂ? ĂŽĂ?Ă‘ĂœĂ?Ă? Ă“Ă˜ Ă“Ă?Ă• Ă‹Ă˜Ă‹Ă‘Ă?Ă—Ă?Ă˜Ăž Ă?ĂœĂ™Ă— Ă?ĂĄ Ă™ĂœĂ• Ă˜Ă“Ă Ă?ĂœĂ?ÓÞã ĂžĂ?ĂœĂ˜ Ă?ÒÙÙÖ Ă™Ă? Ă&#x;Ă?Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ă?Ëœ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă“Ă? Ă‹ Ă—Ă?Ă—ĂŒĂ?Ăœ Ă™Ă? ÞÒĂ? Ă˜Ă?ÞÓÞĂ&#x;ĂžĂ? Ă™Ă? Ă“Ă?Ă• Ă‹Ă˜Ă‹Ă‘Ă?Ă—Ă?Ă˜Ăž Ě‹ Ë› Ă‹Ă˜ ĂŒĂ? ĂœĂ?Ă‹Ă?Ă’Ă?ĂŽ Ă™Ă˜ ͸Π͸Πͺ͸Πͺ͸͟͞ Ě™ Ă˜Ă–ĂŁĚšËž Ă?Ă—Ă‹Ă“Ă–Ë? ĂœĂ—ÍźĂœĂ“Ă?Õ×ÑÞ̜ Ă‘Ă—Ă‹Ă“Ă–Ë›Ă?Ù×

22

T H I S D AY Ëž Ëœ Í°Í˛Ëœ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍľ

BUSINESSWORLD

AVIATION

AIR WATCH

NCAA Grants AOC to Genesis Global Aviation Stories by Chinedu Eze The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has granted Genesis Global Aviation Air Operator’s Certificate (AOC).

Genesis Global, which extended its services recently has joined the helicopter service providers and has primed itself for oil and gas services, charter services, funerals and other helicopter services in the country. NCAA presented the company the AOC in Lagos recently and the company said that with the certificate it is now poised for full commercial helii copter services. The Chairman and Accountable Manager of the airline, Captain Emmanuel Ihenacho, told journalists that achieving the certification was a major milestone for the company. “The AOC is a wonderful achievement in my own opinion. We have been in the business for more than two years and it had been a very hard and arduous journey to being where we are today. There are five stages of the AOC and

you have to go through vigorr ous examinations, standards to meet, understanding the rules and so many other things. The aviation industry is one of the most regulated industries in the world and this is because of the safety considerations of operating delicate aircraft. So, if you make a little mistake there is no second chance to say I want to rectify it and that is why it is a major challenge to anybody who wants to invest in the industry, “ Ihenacho said.

Ihenacho, who is a former Minister of Interior, said the demand for helicopter services could not be overemphasised despite the prevailing economic situation in the country. “It is indeed true that a lot of players in the industry are falling out but that has not changed the situation that would require helicopter services. It can be in respect of offshore service delivery or for emergency medical evacuation or for general logistics of moving people and personnel from one point to the other. So,

if the economy is bad and the helicopter service providers are falling, it does not mean that other people cannot be entering the market and going in the opposite direction. We are not quitting because we believe in the resilience of the Nigerian economy,� he said. “We believe that what we are witnessing is just a dip for the time being and we believe that there is bound to be a rebound at some point in time,� he said.

Also, the Deputy Managing Director of the airline, Capt.

David Nwoke said the company owns and operates a fleet of six EC155b Eurocopters.

According to him, it also has plans afoot to acquire additional rotary assets to deliver safe, qualitative and cost effective commercial helicopter services to the general public.

Nwoke said the helicopters, which are between 12 to 15 years old, would be operated by expert Nigerians, adding that this was part of the airr line’s contribution to curbing unemployment in the country.

Air Peace Begins g Expansion p to Regional, International Destinations Fast growing domestic carrier, Air Peace has disclosed that it would expand to more regional and international destinations in the next few months and would make Enugu its operational hub for long haul flights.

The airline which pledged seamless air travel with its project to connect more local, regional and international destinations assured its customers that it would continue to sustain its on-time flight operations.

The airline made this known at the weekend in Port Harcourt, Rivers State when its Chairman/ Chief Executive Officer, Chief Allen Onyema was conferred with the award of “Aviation Man of the Year 2016� by ATQnewsand Akwaaba African Travel Market.

Speaking at the Rivers event tagged; “Port Harcourt Bantaba�, Onyema said Air Peace was strengthening its fleet with Boeing 777 aircraft

in preparation for the launch of its Guangzhou-China, Dubai, Mumbai, Atlanta, London and other long-haul routes.

He said the airline, which had added a Friday evening flight to its daily Lagos-Accra-Lagos route, would make Enugu the base of its Gwangzhou-China operations. Air Peace, he said, had distinguished itself in the Nigerian aviation industry with its unrivalled on-time perforr mance, safety and maintenance record. Responding to a question on the ownership of the airline, the Air Peace boss dismissed insinuations that a former First Lady fondly referred to as “Mama Peace� had an interest in the carrier. Onyema, who was represented by the airline’s Corporate Communications Manager, Mr. Chris Iwarah, said Air Peace symbolised the effort of his organisation, the Foundation for Ethnic Harmony in Nigeria (FEHN)

to promote peace in the country through the creation of gainful employment for thousands of converted militant agitators and other jobless Nigerians.

He insisted that efforts to set up the airline predated Nigeria’s return to democracy in 1999.

Onyema explained that he was advised to set up an airline because of its capacity to create massive job opportunities for members of the society.

The Air Peace boss expressed gratitude to the organisers of the award for recognising his efforts to transform air travel experience in Nigeria and beyond, pledging to support the group in its programmes.

Also speaking, organiser of Port Harcourt Bantaba, Mr. Ikechi Uko said Onyema was chosen as the “Aviation Man of the Year 2016� for positioning Air Peace as Nigeria’s preferred airline and for expanding to Accra, Ghana.

Emirates Introduces Attractive Fares for Nigerian Travellers Emirates has announced a raft of attractive fares for its Nigerian passengers, offering customers a special discount to select destinations for a limited time only.

The value for money promoo tion which offers 35 percent off the Economy class tickets and 40 percent off the Business Class tickets is available on selected return Economy Class and Business Class tickets to select destinations. The sale is valid for booking between 27th March and 4th April 2017 and for travel between 27th March and 30th June 2017.

Trip from Nigeria to Dubai start as little as $930 in Economy

Class and $3,971 in Business Class. Similarly, fares for Guangzhou start from $1,129 in Economy Class and $4,789 in Business Class. Passengers can make the most of fares starting from $1,074 and $3,235 to New Delhi, to Bombay $1, 101 and $2,971, to Shanghai from $1,471 and $4,789, to Beijing $1,471 and $4,789, to London Heathrow from $1,154 and $4,193, and to Hong Kong $1,188 and $4,519 in Economy Class and Business Class respectively.

The airline said its hub in Dubai offers a modern, convenient and comfortable transit to connect to flights across the airline’s worldwide network,

with many key destinations having multiple departures and being serviced by the airline’s iconic double decker, A380 aircraft.

It also explained that customers travelling on Emirates can look forward to world class service and hospitality from the airline’s multi-national cabin crew, while enjoying complimentary gourmet meals and beverages.

Emirates also offers over 2500 channels of on demand audio and visual entertainment on its ice system, from the latest movies, music and games, including 90 dedicated channels for children.

Still on the Dana Air Crash

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Ă’Ă? Ă‹Ă˜Ă‹ Ă“Ăœ Ă–Ă“Ă‘Ă’Ăž ͡͡Ͱ Ă?ĂœĂ‹Ă?Ă’ Ă™Ă˜ Ă&#x;Ă˜Ă? ÍąËœ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍ°Ëœ ĂĄĂ’Ă“Ă?Ă’ Ă•Ă“Ă–Ă–Ă?ĂŽ Ă‹Ă–Ă– ͯͳ͹ ÚËĂ?Ă?Ă?Ă˜Ă‘Ă?ĂœĂ? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă?Ù×Ă? ĂšĂ?ÙÚÖĂ? Ă™Ă˜ Ă‘ĂœĂ™Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂŽËœ Ă?Ă™Ă&#x;Ă–ĂŽ Ă’Ă‹Ă Ă? ĂŒĂ?Ă?Ă˜ ĂšĂœĂ?Ă Ă?Ă˜ĂžĂ?ĂŽ ĂŒĂŁ ÞÒĂ? Ă“Ă‘Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă‹Ă˜ Ă“Ă Ă“Ă– Ă Ă“Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ Ă&#x;ĂžĂ’Ă™ĂœĂœ ÓÞã Ě™ ĚšËœ Ă‹Ă?Ă?Ă™ĂœĂŽĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ÞÙ Ă‹ ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă?Ă˜Ăž ĂœĂ?ĂšĂ™ĂœĂž ĂŒĂŁ ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă?Ă“ĂŽĂ?Ă˜Ăž Ă˜Ă Ă?Ă?ĂžĂ“Ă‘Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ Ă&#x;ĂœĂ?Ă‹Ă&#x; Ě™ ̚˛ Ă’Ă? Ă‹Ă?Ă?Ă“ĂŽĂ?Ă˜Ăž ĂœĂ?ĂšĂ™ĂœĂžËœ ĂĄĂ’Ă“Ă?Ă’ Ă—Ă‹ĂŽĂ? ĂšĂ&#x;ĂŒĂ–Ă“Ă? ĂŒĂŁ ÞÒĂ?

ĂŒĂ™Ă&#x;Ăž Ă‹ Ă?Ă™ĂœĂžĂ˜Ă“Ă‘Ă’Ăž Ă‹Ă‘Ă™ Ă?ÞËÞĂ?ĂŽ ÞÒËÞ ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă’Ă™Ă&#x;Ă–ĂŽ ÞËÕĂ? Ă?Ă&#x;Ă–Ă– ĂœĂ?Ă?ĂšĂ™Ă˜Ă?Ă“ĂŒĂ“Ă–Ă“ĂžĂŁ Ă?Ă™Ăœ ÞÒĂ? Ă?ĂœĂ‹Ă?Ă’ ĂŒĂ?Ă?Ă‹Ă&#x;Ă?Ă? Ă“Ăž ËÖÖÙåĂ?ĂŽ ÞÒĂ? Ă‹Ă“ĂœĂ–Ă“Ă˜Ă? ÞÙ ĂŒĂœĂ?Ă‹Ă?Ă’ Ă?Ă‹Ă?Ă?Þã ĂœĂ?Ă‘Ă&#x;Ă–Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ëœ ĂĄĂ’Ă“Ă?Ă’ Ă?âÚÙĂ?Ă?ĂŽ Ă“ĂžĂ? Ă™ĂĄĂ˜ ÖËâÓÞã Ă“Ă˜ Ă?Ă˜Ă?Ă™ĂœĂ?Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ ĂœĂ?Ă‘Ă&#x;Ă–Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ă? Ă™Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? Ă‹Ă“ĂœĂ–Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ë› Ă?Ă?Ă™ĂœĂŽĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ÞÙ ÞÒĂ? ĂœĂ?ĂšĂ™ĂœĂžËœ ÞÒĂ? ĂšĂœĂ™ĂŒĂ‹ĂŒĂ–Ă? Ă?Ă‹Ă&#x;Ă?Ă‹Ă– Ă?Ă‹Ă?ĂžĂ™ĂœĂ? Ă™Ă? ÞÒĂ? Ă–Ă“Ă‘Ă’Ăž ͡͡Ͱ Ă?ĂœĂ‹Ă?Ă’ Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă–Ă&#x;ĂŽĂ?ĂŽ ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă‹Ă?Ăž ÞÒËÞ Ă?Ă˜Ă‘Ă“Ă˜Ă? Ă˜Ă&#x;Ă—ĂŒĂ?Ăœ Ă™Ă˜Ă? Ă–Ă™Ă?Ăž ÚÙåĂ?Ăœ ÍŻÍľ Ă—Ă“Ă˜Ă&#x;ĂžĂ?Ă? Ă“Ă˜ĂžĂ™ ÞÒĂ? ĘŽĂ“Ă‘Ă’ĂžËœ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ÞÒĂ?ĂœĂ?Ă‹Ę°Ă?Ăœ Ă™Ă˜ Ę¨Ă˜Ă‹Ă– Ă‹ĂšĂšĂœĂ™Ă‹Ă?Ă’Ëœ Ă?Ă˜Ă‘Ă“Ă˜Ă? Ă˜Ă&#x;Ă—ĂŒĂ?Ăœ ÞåÙ Ă–Ă™Ă?Ăž ÚÙåĂ?Ăœ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă?Ă‹Ă“Ă–Ă?ĂŽ ÞÙ ĂœĂ?Ă?ĂšĂ™Ă˜ĂŽ ÞÙ ĂžĂ’ĂœĂ™ĂžĂžĂ–Ă? ×Ùà Ă?Ă—Ă?Ă˜Ăž Ă™Ă˜ ĂŽĂ?Ă—Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă?Ă™Ăœ Ă“Ă˜Ă?ĂœĂ?Ă‹Ă?Ă?ĂŽ ÚÙåĂ?Ăœ ÞÙ Ă?Ă&#x;Ă?ĂžĂ‹Ă“Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? Ă‹Ă“ĂœĂ?ĂœĂ‹Ę° Ă“Ă˜ Ă“ĂžĂ? ĘŽĂ“Ă‘Ă’Ăž Ă?Ă™Ă˜Ę¨Ă‘Ă&#x;ĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ë› Ă’Ă? ĂœĂ?ĂšĂ™ĂœĂž Ă™ĂŒĂ?Ă?ĂœĂ Ă?ĂŽ ÞÒËÞË? ËŤ Ă’Ă? Ă“Ă˜Ă‹ĂšĂšĂœĂ™ĂšĂœĂ“Ă‹ĂžĂ? Ù×ÓĂ?Ă?Ă“Ă™Ă˜ Ă™Ă? ÞÒĂ? Ă&#x;Ă?Ă? Ă™Ă? ÞÒĂ? Ă’Ă?Ă?Ă•Ă–Ă“Ă?ĂžËœ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ÞÒĂ? Ă?ĂœĂ?ĂĄËŞĂ? Ă“Ă˜Ă‹ĂŒĂ“Ă–Ă“ĂžĂŁ ÞÙ Ă‹ĂšĂšĂœĂ?Ă?Ă“Ă‹ĂžĂ? ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă?Ă Ă?ĂœĂ“ĂžĂŁ Ă™Ă? ÞÒĂ? ÚÙåĂ?ĂœĚ‹ĂœĂ?Ă–Ă‹ĂžĂ?ĂŽ ĂšĂœĂ™ĂŒĂ–Ă?Ă—Ëœ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ÞÒĂ?Ă“Ăœ Ă?Ă&#x;ĂŒĂ?Ă?Ă›Ă&#x;Ă?Ă˜Ăž Ă?Ă‹Ă“Ă–Ă&#x;ĂœĂ? ÞÙ Ă–Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă‹Ăž ÞÒĂ? Ă˜Ă?Ă‹ĂœĂ?Ă?Ăž Ă?Ă&#x;Ă“ĂžĂ‹ĂŒĂ–Ă? Ă‹Ă“ĂœĘ¨Ă?Ă–ĂŽËœËŹ Ă?Ă™Ă˜ĂžĂœĂ“ĂŒĂ&#x;ĂžĂ?ĂŽ ÞÙ ÞÒĂ? Ă?ĂœĂ‹Ă?Ă’Ë› Ă’Ă?Ă˜Ëœ ËŤ Ă‹Ă?Ă• Ă™Ă? Ă?Ă“ĂžĂ&#x;Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ Ă‹ĂĄĂ‹ĂœĂ?Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ă?Ëœ Ă“Ă˜Ă‹ĂšĂšĂœĂ™ĂšĂœĂ“Ă‹ĂžĂ? ĂŽĂ?Ă?Ă“Ă?Ă“Ă™Ă˜ Ă—Ă‹Ă•Ă“Ă˜Ă‘Ëœ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ĂšĂ™Ă™Ăœ Ă‹Ă“ĂœĂ—Ă‹Ă˜Ă?Ă’Ă“ĂšËœËŹ ĂĄĂ’Ă“Ă?Ă’ Ă“Ă? ÞÒĂ? Ă’Ă&#x;Ă—Ă‹Ă˜ Ă?ĂœĂœĂ™Ăœ ÞÒËÞ Ă?Ă™Ă˜ĂžĂœĂ“ĂŒĂ&#x;ĂžĂ?ĂŽ ÞÙ ÞÒĂ? Ă?ĂœĂ‹Ă?Ă’Ë› Ă?Ă‹Ă?ĂžĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ÞÙ ÞÒÓĂ? ĂœĂ?ĂšĂ™ĂœĂžËœ Ă‹Ă Ă“Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă&#x;ĂœĂ“ĂžĂŁ Ă?Ă™Ă˜Ă?Ă&#x;Ă–ĂžĂ‹Ă˜Ăž Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă?ĂœĂ?ĂžĂ‹ĂœĂŁ Ă?Ă˜Ă?ĂœĂ‹Ă– Ă™Ă? Ă Ă“Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ Ă™Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂŽ Ă‹ĂŒĂ–Ă? Ě™ ĚšËœ ĂœĂ™Ă&#x;Ăš Ă‹ĂšĂžĂ‹Ă“Ă˜ Ă™Ă’Ă˜ ÔÓÕĂ&#x;ĂžĂ&#x; Ě™ĂœĂ?ĂžĂŽĚšËœ Ă™ĂŒĂ?Ă?ĂœĂ Ă?ĂŽË? ËŤ Ă?Ă‹Ă“ĂŽ ÞÒËÞ Ă—Ă&#x;Ă?Ă’ ÞÒĂ?Ă˜Ëž Ă˜Ă™Ăž Ă™Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? ĂŒĂ‹Ă?Ă“Ă? Ă™Ă? ĂĄĂ’Ă‹Ăž ËŞĂ— ĂœĂ?Ă‹ĂŽĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă˜Ă™ĂĄ Ă“Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? ĂœĂ?ĂšĂ™ĂœĂžËœ ĂŒĂ&#x;Ăž ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă‹Ă?Ăž ÞÒËÞ ÞÒĂ? Ă‹Ă“ĂœĂ–Ă“Ă˜Ă? ĂĄĂ‹Ă? ÙÚĂ?ĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă‹ Ă?Ă“Ă˜Ă‘Ă–Ă? ÞãÚĂ? Ă™Ă? Ă‹Ă“ĂœĂ?ĂœĂ‹Ę° Ă˜Ă™Ăž Ă‹ ×ÓâĂ?ĂŽ ĘŽĂ?Ă?Ăž ÞÒĂ?Ă˜Ë› Ă’Ă? Ă–Ă™Ă?Ă? Ă™Ă? ÞåÙ Ă?Ă˜Ă‘Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă? Ă™Ă˜ Ă‹Ă˜ Ă‹Ă“ĂœĂ?ĂœĂ‹Ę° Ă™Ă˜ Ă”Ă&#x;Ă?Ăž Ă™Ă˜Ă? Ă’Ă™Ă&#x;Ăœ ĘŽĂ“Ă‘Ă’Ăž ĂĄĂ‹Ă? ĂĄĂ™ĂœĂœĂ“Ă?Ù×Ă? ÞÙ Ă—Ă? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ĂŒĂ?Ă–Ă“Ă?Ă Ă?ĂŽ ÞÒĂ?Ă˜ ÞÒËÞ Ă“Ăž ĂŽĂ?Ă—Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽĂ?ĂŽ Ă‹ Ă?ĂœĂ“ĂžĂ“Ă?Ă‹Ă– Ă“Ă˜Ă Ă?Ă?ĂžĂ“Ă‘Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ Ă˜Ă™Ăž Ă™Ă˜Ă–ĂŁ ĂŒĂŁ ĂŒĂ&#x;Ăž ĂŒĂŁ ÞÒĂ? Ă—Ă‹Ă˜Ă&#x;Ă?Ă‹Ă?ĂžĂ&#x;ĂœĂ?ĂœĂ?Ë› Ă&#x;Ă?Ă’ Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă“ĂŽĂ?Ă˜Ă?Ă? ĂœĂ?Ă›Ă&#x;Ă“ĂœĂ?ĂŽ ÞÒĂ? Ă‘ĂœĂ™Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂŽĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă™Ă? ÞÒĂ? Ă‹Ă“ĂœĂ?ĂœĂ‹Ę° Ă“Ă˜Ă Ă‹ĂœĂ“Ă‹ĂŒĂ–ĂŁ ĂžĂ™Ă™Ëœ ÞÒĂ? Ă‹Ă“ĂœĂ–Ă“Ă˜Ă? ÙÚĂ?ĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ă?˛ˏ Ă’Ă‹Ăž Ă—Ă‹ĂŁ Ă’Ă‹Ă Ă? Ă?Ă™Ă˜ĂžĂœĂ“ĂŒĂ&#x;ĂžĂ?ĂŽ ÞÙ ÞÒĂ? Ă?ĂœĂ‹Ă?Ă’Ëœ Ă‹Ă?Ă?Ă™ĂœĂŽĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ÞÙ ĂœĂ?ĂšĂ™ĂœĂžËœ ĂĄĂ‹Ă? ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă‹Ă“Ă–Ă&#x;ĂœĂ? Ă™Ă? ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă™Ă?ÕÚÓÞ Ă?ĂœĂ?ĂĄ ÞÙ ÞËÕĂ? ÞÒĂ? ĂœĂ“Ă‘Ă’Ăž Ă‹Ă?ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂŽĂ?Ăœ Ă?Ă—Ă?ĂœĂ‘Ă?Ă˜Ă?ĂŁ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă“ĂžĂ? Ă–Ă‹Ă?Ă• Ă™Ă? Ă?âÚĂ?ĂœĂ“Ă?Ă˜Ă?Ă? Ă‹ĂŒĂ™Ă&#x;Ăž Ă“Ă‘Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă‹ËŞĂ? ÙÚĂ?ĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ă‹Ă– Ă?Ă˜Ă Ă“ĂœĂ™Ă˜Ă—Ă?Ă˜ĂžË› Ă&#x;Ăž ÔÓÕĂ&#x;ĂžĂ&#x; ĂŒĂœĂ™Ă&#x;Ă‘Ă’Ăž ÞÙ ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă™ĂœĂ? ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă—Ă“Ă˜Ă‘Ă–ĂŁ Ă?Ă’Ă‹ĂŽĂŁ ÚËĂ?Ăž Ă™Ă? ÞÒĂ? ĂšĂ“Ă–Ă™ĂžËœ Ă‹ĂšĂžĂ‹Ă“Ă˜ Ă?ĂžĂ?Ăœ Ă‹Ă˘ĂžĂ‹Ă˜Ë› ËŤ Ă’Ă?ĂŁ Ă?Ă‹Ă“ĂŽ Ă’Ă? Ă’Ă‹ĂŽ Ă‹ Ă—Ă“Ă?ĂŽĂ?Ă—Ă?Ă‹Ă˜Ă™Ăœ ÞÒËÞ ĂĄĂ‹Ă? Ă˜Ă™Ăž ĂœĂ?ĂšĂ™ĂœĂžĂ?ĂŽ Ă™Ăœ ÖÙÑÑĂ?ĂŽ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ĂĄĂ‹Ă? Ă?Ă&#x;Ă?ĂšĂ?Ă˜ĂŽĂ?ĂŽ ĂŒĂŁ ÞÒĂ? Ě™ Ă?ĂŽĂ?ĂœĂ‹Ă– Ă Ă“Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ ĂŽĂ—Ă“Ă˜Ă“Ă?ĂžĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ěš Ă“Ă˜ Ͱ͎͎͡˞ Ă?×ÚÖÙãĂ?ĂŽ ĂŒĂŁ Ă‹Ă˜Ă‹ Ă“Ă˜ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍ° ĂŒĂ&#x;Ăž Ă’Ă? ĂœĂ?Ă˜Ă?ĂĄĂ?ĂŽ Ă’Ă“Ă? Ă–Ă“Ă?Ă?Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ëœ ÞÒÙĂ&#x;Ă‘Ă’ ÞÒĂ? Ă?ÞË×ÚĂ?ĂŽ Ă–Ă“Ă?Ă?Ă˜Ă?Ă? ĂŒĂŁ ĂĄĂ‹Ă? Ă˜Ă™Ăž Ă?Ă“Ă‘Ă˜Ă?ĂŽ ĂŒĂŁ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŁ ÙʊĂ?Ă“Ă‹Ă–Ë› ËŤ Ă“Ă? Ă?Ă’Ă?Ă?Ă•Ă™Ă&#x;Ăž Ă?Ă‹ĂšĂžĂ‹Ă“Ă˜ ĂĄĂœĂ™ĂžĂ? Ă‹ĂŒĂ™Ă&#x;Ăž ʨà Ă? Ă‹ĂŽĂ Ă?ĂœĂ?Ă? ĂœĂ?ĂšĂ™ĂœĂž Ă™Ă˜ Ă’Ă“Ă— ĂŽĂ&#x;ĂœĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă’Ă“Ă? Ă–Ă“Ă˜Ă? ĂžĂœĂ‹Ă“Ă˜Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ åÓÞÒ Ă‹Ă˜Ă‹ Ă“ĂœËœ ĂĄĂ’Ă“Ă?Ă’ Ă’Ă? Ă?Ă™Ă˜Ă?Ă–Ă&#x;ĂŽĂ?ĂŽ Ă™Ă˜ ÍŻĂ?Ăž Ă‹ĂŁËœ ĂŁĂ?Ăž ĂŒĂŁ Í°Ă˜ĂŽ Ă‹ĂŁ Ă’Ă? Ă?ĂžĂ‹ĂœĂžĂ?ĂŽ ĘŽĂŁĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă‹Ă? Ă‹ Ă?Ă‹ĂšĂžĂ‹Ă“Ă˜ Ă™Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? Ă‹Ă“ĂœĂ?ĂœĂ‹Ę°Ëž Ă‹ Ă—Ă™Ă˜ĂžĂ’ Ă–Ă‹ĂžĂ?ĂœËœ ÞÒĂ? ÚÓÖÙÞ ĂĄĂ’Ă™ ĂĄĂ‹Ă? Ă˜Ă™Ăž ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă–ĂŁ Ă?Ă?ĂœĂžĂ“Ę¨Ă?ĂŽ ĂŒĂŁ ĘŽĂ?ĂĄ Ă‹Ă˜ Ă‹Ă“ĂœĂ?ĂœĂ‹Ę° ÞÒËÞ Ă’Ă‹ĂŽ Ă‹ ĘŽĂ‹Ă—Ă?Ă™Ă&#x;Ăž Ă?Ă˜Ă‘Ă“Ă˜Ă? ÍŻÍľ Ă—Ă“Ă˜Ă&#x;ĂžĂ?Ă? Ă‹Ę°Ă?Ăœ ÞËÕĂ?Ùʼ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă?ĂœĂ‹Ă?Ă’Ă?ĂŽ ÞÒĂ? Ă‹Ă“ĂœĂ?ĂœĂ‹Ę° Ă‹Ę°Ă?Ăœ ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă™Ă˜ĂŽ Ă?Ă˜Ă‘Ă“Ă˜Ă? ĘŽĂ‹Ă—Ă?Ă™Ă&#x;Ăž ͹; Ă—Ă“Ă˜Ă&#x;ĂžĂ?Ă? Ă‹Ę°Ă?Ăœ Ă•Ă“Ă–Ă–Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ ͯͳ͹ ĂšĂ?ĂœĂ?Ă™Ă˜Ă? Ă™Ă˜ ĂŒĂ™Ă‹ĂœĂŽ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă?Óâ ÙÞÒĂ?ĂœĂ? Ă™Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? Ă‘ĂœĂ™Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂŽËœËŹ ÔÓÕĂ&#x;ĂžĂ&#x; Ă˜Ă™ĂžĂ?ĂŽË› Ă’Ă‹Ăž Ă“Ă? Ă“ĂœĂ™Ă˜Ă“Ă? Ă“Ă? ÞÒËÞ ÞÒĂ? Ă‹ĂŽĂ—Ă“Ă˜Ă“Ă?ĂžĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ Ă“Ă˜ Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂŽĂ?Ăœ ĂĄĂ’Ă“Ă?Ă’ ÞÒÓĂ? ĂžĂœĂ‹Ă‘Ă“Ă? Ă‹Ă?Ă?Ă“ĂŽĂ?Ă˜Ăž ÒËÚÚĂ?Ă˜Ă?ĂŽ Ă’Ă‹Ă? ĂŒĂ?Ă?Ă˜ Ă?Ă&#x;ÖÙÑÓĂ?Ă?ĂŽ ĂŒĂŁ Ă?ÞËÕĂ?ÒÙÖÎĂ?ĂœĂ? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ÙÞÒĂ?ĂœĂ? Ă‹Ă? ÞÒĂ? ĂŒĂ?Ă?Ăž ĂžĂ’Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ ÞÒËÞ Ă’Ă‹ĂŽ ÒËÚÚĂ?Ă˜Ă?ĂŽ ÞÙ ÞÒĂ? Ă“Ă˜ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă?ĂžĂœĂŁËœ ĂŁĂ?Ăž ÞÒÓĂ? Ă—Ă‹Ă–Ă?Ă?Ă‹Ă?Ă‹Ă˜Ă?Ă? ĂĄĂ‹Ă? ËÖÖÙåĂ?ĂŽ ÞÙ ÞËÕĂ? ÚÖËĂ?Ă?Ë› Ă˜ĂŽ Ă˜Ă™Ăž Ă™Ă˜Ă–ĂŁ ÞÒÓĂ?Ëœ Ă“Ăž ĂĄĂ‹Ă? Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂŽĂ?Ăœ ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă‹Ă—Ă? Ă‹ĂŽĂ—Ă“Ă˜Ă“Ă?ĂžĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ ÞÒËÞ ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă‹Ă?Ă’ĂœĂ‹Ę° ͎͎ͯ͡ Ă™ĂĄĂ˜Ă?ĂŽ ĂŒĂŁ Ă“Ă˜Ă‘Ă? Ă“Ăœ Ă?ĂœĂ‹Ă?Ă’Ă?ĂŽ Ă“Ă˜ Ă‹ĂœĂ?Ă’ Í°ÍŽÍŽÍś ĂĄĂ’Ă?Ă˜ Ă“Ăž Ă’Ă“Ăž ÞÒĂ? Ă’Ă“Ă–Ă–Ă? ĂĄĂ’Ă“Ă–Ă? Ă‹ĘľĂ?Ă—ĂšĂžĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ÞÙ Ă–Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă‹Ăž ĂŒĂ&#x;ĂŽĂ&#x; Ă‹Ă“ĂœĂ?ĂžĂœĂ“Ăš Ă“Ă˜ ĂœĂ™Ă?Ă? Ă“Ă Ă?Ăœ Ă?ÞËÞĂ?Ë› Ă˜ĂŽ Ă“Ă? ÞÒĂ? ĂšĂœĂ“Ă˜Ă?ÓÚÖĂ? ÞÒËÞ Ă‹Ă?Ă?Ă“ĂŽĂ?Ă˜Ăž ĂŽĂ™Ă?Ă? Ă˜Ă™Ăž Ă”Ă&#x;Ă?Ăž ÒËÚÚĂ?Ă˜Ëž ÞÒËÞ Ă“Ă? Ă?ÙÖÖÙåĂ? Ă?Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă?Ă? Ă™Ă? Ă˜Ă?Ă‘Ă–Ă?Ă?ĂžËœ Ă?Ă&#x;ĘľĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă?Ă™ĂœĂ˜Ă?ĂœĂ? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ĂšĂ™Ă™Ăœ ĂœĂ?Ă‘Ă&#x;Ă–Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ëœ ÞÒËÞ Ă?Ă‹Ă—Ă? Ă‹ĂŽĂ—Ă“Ă˜Ă“Ă?ĂžĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ Ă?Ă’Ă™Ă&#x;Ă–ĂŽ ÞËÕĂ? ÞÒĂ? ĂŒĂ–Ă‹Ă—Ă? Ă?Ă™Ăœ ÞÒĂ? Ă?ĂœĂ‹Ă?Ă’ Ă™Ă? Ă?Ă?Ă™Ă?Ă“Ă‹ĂžĂ?ĂŽ Ă Ă“Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ Ă–Ă“Ă‘Ă’Ăž ÍąÍ´ÍŻËœ ĂĄĂ’Ă“Ă?Ă’ Ă?ĂœĂ‹Ă?Ă’Ă?ĂŽ Ă“Ă˜ĂžĂ™ Ă?Ă&#x;Ă?Ă– ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă—Ăš ĂšĂœĂ?Ă—Ă“Ă?Ă?Ă? Ă™Ă˜ Ă&#x;Ă‘Ă&#x;Ă?Ăž ÍąËœ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍąËœ ĂĄĂ’Ă“Ă–Ă? ĂžĂ‹Ă•Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ Ùʼ Ă?ĂœĂ™Ă— ÞÒĂ? ÎÙ×Ă?Ă?ÞÓĂ? ĂžĂ?ĂœĂ—Ă“Ă˜Ă‹Ă– Ă™Ă? ÞÒĂ? Ă&#x;ĂœĂžĂ‹Ă–Ă‹ Ă&#x;Ă’Ă‹Ă—Ă—Ă?ĂŽ Ă˜ĂžĂ?ĂœĂ˜Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ă‹Ă– Ă“ĂœĂšĂ™ĂœĂžËœ Ă‹Ă‘Ă™Ă?Ë› Ă’Ă‹Ăž ĂœĂ?ĂšĂ™ĂœĂž Ă—Ă‹ĂŁ Ă˜Ă™Ăž Ă’Ă‹Ă Ă? ĂŒĂœĂ™Ă&#x;Ă‘Ă’Ăž ÞÙ ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă™ĂœĂ? ĂĄĂ‹Ă? ÞÒĂ? Ă“Ă˜ĂžĂ?Ă˜Ă?ÓÞã Ă™Ă? ÖËâÓÞã Ă‹Ăž ĂŽĂ&#x;ĂœĂ“Ă˜Ă‘

Sirika

ÞÒĂ? Ă‹Ă˜Ă‹ Ă“Ăœ Ă?ĂœĂ‹Ă?Ă’Ë› Ă?Ă?Ă˜Ă“Ă™Ăœ Ă“Ă˜Ă?ĂšĂ?Ă?ĂžĂ™Ăœ Ă“Ă˜ Ëœ ĂĄĂ’Ă™ ĂĄĂ‹Ă? Ă“Ă˜Ă Ă™Ă–Ă Ă?ĂŽ Ă“Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? Ă‹Ă&#x;ĂŽĂ“Ăž Ă™Ă? Ă‹Ă˜Ă‹ Ă“Ăœ Ă‹Ę°Ă?Ăœ ÞÒĂ? Ă?ĂœĂ‹Ă?Ă’ ĂŽĂ“Ă?Ă?Ă–Ă™Ă?Ă?ĂŽ ÞÙ

ÞÒËÞ ĂŒĂ™ĂžĂ’ ÞÒĂ? Ă—Ă‹Ă˜Ă‹Ă‘Ă?Ă—Ă?Ă˜Ăž Ă™Ă? ÞÒĂ? Ă‹Ă“ĂœĂ–Ă“Ă˜Ă? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ĂĄĂ?ĂœĂ? Ă?Ă&#x;Ă–ĂšĂ‹ĂŒĂ–Ă? Ă“Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? Ă‹Ă?Ă?Ă“ĂŽĂ?Ă˜ĂžË› ĂšĂ?Ă‹Ă•Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă™Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? Ă‹Ă–Ă–Ă?Ă‘Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ ÞÒËÞ ÞÒĂ? ÚÓÖÙÞ Ă™Ă? ÞÒĂ? ĘŽĂ“Ă‘Ă’Ăž ĂĄĂ‹Ă? Ă’Ă‹Ă?ÞÓÖã Ă‘Ă“Ă Ă?Ă˜ Ă‹ Ă–Ă“Ă?Ă?Ă˜Ă?Ă? ĂŒĂŁ Ëœ Ă’Ă? ĂŽĂ?Ă?Ă?Ă˜ĂŽĂ?ĂŽ ÞÒĂ? Ă‹Ă‘Ă?Ă˜Ă?ĂŁ ĂŒĂŁ Ă˜Ă™ĂžĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ÞÒËÞ ËŤ ĂŽĂ™Ă?Ă? Ă–Ă“Ă?Ă?Ă˜Ă?Ă? Ă Ă?ĂœĂ“Ę¨Ă?Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ ĂŒĂ?Ă?Ă™ĂœĂ? Ă Ă‹Ă–Ă“ĂŽĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă™Ăœ Ă?Ă™Ă˜Ă Ă?ĂœĂžĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŁ Ă?Ă™ĂœĂ?Ă“Ă‘Ă˜ Ă–Ă“Ă?Ă?Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ë› Ă? ÞÒËÞ ĂĄĂ‹Ă? ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă‹Ă?Ă?Ëœ ÞÒĂ? Ă—Ă?ĂŽĂ“Ă‹ ĂĄĂ™Ă&#x;Ă–ĂŽ Ă’Ă‹Ă Ă? Ă?Ă‹Ă?ÞÓÑËÞĂ?ĂŽ ÞÒĂ? Ă‹Ă&#x;ĂžĂ’Ă™ĂœĂ“ĂžĂŁË› ËŤ Ă–Ă– Ă’Ă?Ă‹Ăœ ĂĄĂ‹Ă? ÞÒËÞ ÞÒĂ? ÚÓÖÙÞ˪Ă? Ă?ËÚËĂ?ÓÞã ĂĄĂ‹Ă? Ă–Ă“Ă—Ă“ĂžĂ?ĂŽ ĂŒĂ&#x;Ăž ÞÒĂ? Ě™ Ă“ĂœĂ?Ă?ĂžĂ™Ăœ Ă™Ă? Ă–Ă“Ă‘Ă’Ăž ĂšĂ?ĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ă?Ěš Ă?ÞÓÖÖ Ă‘Ă‹Ă Ă? Ă’Ă“Ă— Ă‹ Ă”Ă™ĂŒ ĂŒĂ?Ă?Ă‹Ă&#x;Ă?Ă? Ă’Ă? ĂŒĂœĂ™Ă&#x;Ă‘Ă’Ăž Ă’Ă“Ă— Ă‹Ă? Ă‹ Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă?Ă˜ĂŽËœ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ÞÒĂ?ĂŁ Ă‹Ă–Ă?Ă™ Ă˜Ă?Ă?ĂŽĂ?ĂŽ Ă‹ Ă?ĂœĂ?å˛ˏ Ă? Ă‹ĂŽĂŽĂ?ĂŽË? ËŤ ĂžĂ?Ă˜ĂŽ ÞÙ ĂŒĂ?Ă–Ă“Ă?Ă Ă? ÞÒÓĂ? ĂŒĂ?Ă?Ă‹Ă&#x;Ă?Ă? ÞÒĂ? Ă–Ă‹Ă?Ăž Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă“ĂŽĂ?Ă˜Ăž ÞÒËÞ ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă&#x;Ă–ĂžĂ?ĂŽ Ă“Ă˜ ÞÒĂ?Ă“Ăœ Ă‘ĂœĂ™Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂŽĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ĂŒĂ?Ă?Ă™ĂœĂ? ÑÙÞ Ă“Ă˜Ă Ă™Ă–Ă Ă?ĂŽ ĂĄĂ‹Ă? ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă? ÞÙ Ă‹ Ă‘ĂœĂ™Ă?Ă? Ă˜Ă?Ă‘Ă–Ă“Ă‘Ă?Ă˜Ă?Ă? Ă?ĂœĂ™Ă— ÞÒĂ? Ë› Ă˜ĂŽ Ă’Ă? ĂŽĂ“ĂŽ Ă˜Ă™Ăž ĂœĂ?ĂšĂ™ĂœĂž ÞÒĂ? Ă—Ă‹ĘľĂ?Ăœ Ă‹ĂšĂšĂœĂ™ĂšĂœĂ“Ă‹ĂžĂ?Ă–ĂŁËž Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂžĂ“Ă– ĂĄĂ? Ă?Ă™Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂŽ Ă™Ă&#x;ĂžËœ Ă—ĂŁĂ?Ă?Ă–Ă? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ÞÒĂ? Ă’Ă“Ă?Ă? ĂšĂ?ĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ĘŠĂ?Ă?Ăœ Ě™ Ěš Ă‹Ăž ÞÒËÞ ÞÓ×Ă?Ëœ Ă Ă‹Ă˜ ĂœĂ?ĂĄĂ“Ă˜Ă?Ă•ĂŁË› Ă’Ă‹Ăž ĂĄĂ‹Ă? ĂĄĂ’ĂŁ ĂĄĂ? Ă?Ă‹ĂĄ Ă’Ă“Ă— Ùʼ˛ Ă’Ă‹Ăž ĂĄĂ‹Ă? Ă™Ă˜Ă? Ă™Ă? ÞÒĂ? ĂšĂœĂ?Ă?Ă™Ă˜ĂŽĂ“ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ă? ĂŒĂ?Ă?Ă™ĂœĂ? ĂĄĂ? Ă–Ă?Ăž ÞÒĂ?Ă— Ě™ Ă‹Ă˜Ă‹Ěš ĂœĂ?Ă?ĂžĂ‹ĂœĂž ÞÒĂ?Ă“Ăœ ÙÚĂ?ĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ë› ËŤ Ă?ĂžĂ&#x;Ă‹Ă–Ă–ĂŁ ÞÒĂ? ĂœĂ™Ă™Ăž Ă?Ă‹Ă&#x;Ă?Ă? ĂĄĂ‹Ă? ÞÒËÞ ÞÒĂ? Ă—Ă‹Ă˜Ă‹Ă‘Ă?Ă—Ă?Ă˜Ăž ĂšĂ?ĂœĂ?Ă™Ă˜Ă˜Ă?Ă– Ă?×ÚÖÙãĂ?ĂŽ ĂŒĂŁ Ă‹Ă˜Ă‹ Ă‹Ăž ÞÒËÞ ÞÓ×Ă? ĂĄĂ?ĂœĂ? Ă˜Ă™Ăž Ă‹ĂŒĂ–Ă? ÞÙ Ó×ÚÖĂ?Ă—Ă?Ă˜Ăž Ă?Ă‹Ă?Ă?Þã ÙÚĂ?ĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ëž ÞÒĂ? Ă?ĂœĂ‹Ă?Ă’ ĂĄĂ‹Ă? Ă‹Ă? Ă‹ ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă&#x;Ă–Ăž Ă™Ă? ÞÒËÞ˛ Ă’Ă? Ă?Ă˜Ă‘Ă“Ă˜Ă? Ă“Ă?Ă?Ă&#x;Ă? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ÙÞÒĂ?Ăœ Ă‹Ă?ĂšĂ?Ă?ĂžĂ? ĂĄĂ?ĂœĂ? Ă‹Ă? Ă‹ ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă&#x;Ă–Ăž Ă™Ă? ÞÒËÞ˛ Ăž ÞÙÙÕ Ă&#x;Ă? Ă“Ă˜ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă—ĂŁĂ?Ă?Ă–Ă? Ă“Ă˜ ĂšĂ‹ĂœĂžĂ“Ă?Ă&#x;Ă–Ă‹ĂœËœ ÞÙ Ă“ĂŽĂ?Ă˜ĂžĂ“Ă?ĂŁ ÞÒĂ?Ă?Ă? ĂšĂœĂ™ĂŒĂ–Ă?Ă—Ă?Ëœ ĂĄĂ’Ă“Ă?Ă’ Ă?Ă’Ă™Ă&#x;Ă–ĂŽ Ă’Ă‹Ă Ă? ĂŒĂ?Ă?Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? ĂœĂ?Ă?ĂšĂ™Ă˜Ă?Ă“ĂŒĂ“Ă–Ă“ĂžĂŁ Ă™Ă? ÞÒĂ? Ă—Ă‹Ă˜Ă‹Ă‘Ă?Ă—Ă?Ă˜Ăž Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă˜Ă™Ăž ÞÒĂ? Ă‹Ă&#x;ĂžĂ’Ă™ĂœĂ“ĂžĂŁ Ě™ ̚˛ ËŤ Ă‹Ă˜Ă‹Ă‘Ă?Ă—Ă?Ă˜Ăž ĂĄĂ‹Ă? Ă˜Ă™Ăž Ă‹ĂŒĂ–Ă? ÞÙ Ă“ĂŽĂ?Ă˜ĂžĂ“Ă?ĂŁ ĂšĂœĂ™ĂŒĂ–Ă?Ă—Ă? Ă–Ă“Ă•Ă? ĂŒĂ‹ĂŽ Ă?Ă˜Ă‘Ă“Ă˜Ă? Ă—Ă‹Ă“Ă˜ĂžĂ?Ă˜Ă‹Ă˜Ă?Ă? ÞÒËÞ Ă–Ă?ĂŽ ÞÙ ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă‹Ă“Ă–Ă&#x;ĂœĂ? Ă™Ă? ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă˜Ă‘Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ë› Ă˜ĂŽ ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă‹Ă—Ă? ĂšĂœĂ™ĂŒĂ–Ă?Ă— Ă?Ă™Ă˜ĂžĂ“Ă˜Ă&#x;Ă?ĂŽ Ă‹Ę°Ă?Ăœ ÞÒĂ? Ă?ĂœĂ‹Ă?Ă’ Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂžĂ“Ă– ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă™ĂœĂ—Ă?Ăœ Ă“Ă˜Ă“Ă?ĂžĂ?Ăœ Ă™Ă? Ă Ă“Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ëœ Ă˜Ă™ĂĄ Ă?Ă˜Ă‹ĂžĂ™Ăœ ĂžĂ?Ă–Ă–Ă‹ ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă‹Ă’ Ă‘ĂœĂ™Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂŽĂ?ĂŽ ÞÒĂ?Ă— Ă?Ă™Ăœ Ă‹ Ă˜Ă?Ă‹Ăœ Ă?ĂœĂ‹Ă?Ă’ ÞÒËÞ ÒËÚÚĂ?Ă˜Ă?ĂŽ Ă“Ă˜ Ă™ĂœĂž Ă‹ĂœĂ?Ă™Ă&#x;ĂœĂžËœËŹ ÞÒĂ? ÙʊĂ?Ă“Ă‹Ă– Ă?Ă‹Ă“ĂŽË› Ă˜ ĂĄĂ’ĂŁ ÞÒĂ? Ă‹Ă“ĂœĂ–Ă“Ă˜Ă? ËÖÖÙåĂ?ĂŽ ÞÒĂ?Ă?Ă? Ă?Ă’Ă™ĂœĂžĂ?Ă™Ă—Ă“Ă˜Ă‘Ă? ÞÙ ÒËÚÚĂ?Ă˜Ëœ ÞÒĂ? ÙʊĂ?Ă“Ă‹Ă– Ă?Ă‹Ă“ĂŽËœ ËŤ ĂŒĂ?Ă–Ă“Ă?Ă Ă? ÞÒĂ? Ă‹Ă˜Ă‹Ă‘Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă“ĂœĂ?Ă?ĂžĂ™Ăœ ĂĄĂ‹Ă? Ă—Ă“Ă?ĂœĂ™Ă—Ă‹Ă˜Ă‹Ă‘Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ ÞÒĂ? ÙÚĂ?ĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ ̙ÞÒĂ? Ă‹Ă“ĂœĂ–Ă“Ă˜Ă? ĂŽĂ?Ă˜Ă“Ă?ĂŽ ÞÒÓĂ?ĚšËœ ĂĄĂ’Ă“Ă?Ă’ ĂšĂœĂ?Ă Ă?Ă˜ĂžĂ?ĂŽ ÞÒĂ? Ă‹Ă“ĂœĂ–Ă“Ă˜Ă? ĂžĂ?Ă?Ă’Ă˜Ă“Ă?Ă‹Ă– ĂšĂ?ĂœĂ?Ă™Ă˜Ă˜Ă?Ă– Ă?ĂœĂ™Ă— ĂŽĂ™Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ ÞÒĂ?Ă“Ăœ Ă”Ă™ĂŒË› Ă’Ă‹Ăž ĂĄĂ‹Ă? ĂĄĂ’ĂŁ ĂœË› ĂœĂ?ĂĄĂ“Ă˜Ă?Ă•ĂŁ ̙ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă?Ă™Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂžĂ‹ĂŒĂ–Ă? Ă‹Ă˜Ă‹Ă‘Ă?ĂœĚš Ă–Ă?ʰ˛ˏ Ă’Ă‹Ăž Ă“Ă? Ă‹Ă‘Ă‹Ă“Ă˜ Ă“ĂœĂ™Ă˜Ă“Ă?Ă‹Ă– ÒÙåĂ?Ă Ă?Ăœ Ă“Ă? ÞÒËÞ Ă?Ù×Ă? Ă™Ă? ÞÒÙĂ?Ă? Ă?ÞËÕĂ?ÒÙÖÎĂ?ĂœĂ? ĂĄĂ’Ă™ Ă?Ă&#x;ÖÙÑÓĂ?Ă?ĂŽ ÞÒĂ? Ă‹ĂŽĂ—Ă“Ă˜Ă“Ă?ĂžĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ Ă“Ă˜ Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂŽĂ?Ăœ ĂĄĂ’Ă“Ă?Ă’ ÞÒĂ?Ă?Ă? Ă‹Ă?Ă?Ă“ĂŽĂ?Ă˜ĂžĂ? ÒËÚÚĂ?Ă˜Ă?ĂŽ Ă‹ĂœĂ? ÞÙÎËã Ă?Ă‹Ă–Ă–Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă?Ă™Ăœ ÞÒĂ? ĂœĂ?×Ùà ËÖ Ă™Ă? ÞÒĂ? ĂšĂœĂ?Ă?Ă?Ă˜Ăž Ă“ĂœĂ?Ă?ĂžĂ™Ăœ Ă?Ă˜Ă?ĂœĂ‹Ă– Ă™Ă? ÞÒĂ? Ă‹Ă‘Ă?Ă˜Ă?ĂŁË› Ă˜Ă? Ă™Ă? ÞÒĂ?Ă— ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă?Ă˜ĂžĂ–ĂŁ Ă“Ă˜ Ă‹ ĂšĂœĂ?Ă?Ă? Ă?Ă™Ă˜Ă?Ă?ĂœĂ?Ă˜Ă?Ă? Ă?Ă‹Ă“ĂŽ Ă“Ă‘Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă‹ Ă’Ă‹ĂŽ ĂŒĂ?Ă?Ă˜ ĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ?ĂŽ Ă Ă?ĂœĂŁ ÖÙå Ă“Ă˜ Ă?Ă‹Ă?Ă?Þã Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ÞÒËÞ ĂĄĂ‹Ă? ĂĄĂ’ĂŁ ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă&#x;ĂœĂœĂ?Ă˜Ăž Ă“ĂœĂ?Ă?ĂžĂ™Ăœ Ă?Ă˜Ă?ĂœĂ‹Ă– Ă?Ă’Ă™Ă&#x;Ă–ĂŽ ĂŒĂ? ĂœĂ?×Ùà Ă?ĂŽË› Ă&#x;Ăž Ă?Ă&#x;ĂœĂœĂ?Ă˜ĂžĂ–ĂŁ Ă“Ă‘Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă‹ËŞĂ? ĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă™Ă˜ Ă?Ă‹Ă?Ă?Þã Ă“Ă? ͡ͳ ĂšĂ?ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă˜Ăž Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ùà Ă?ĂœĂ‹Ă–Ă– ĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă™Ă? Í´Íł ĂšĂ?ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă˜Ăž ĂĄĂ’Ă“Ă?Ă’ Ă’Ă“Ă? Ă’Ă“Ă‘Ă’Ă?Ăœ ĂžĂ’Ă‹Ă˜ Ă‘Ă–Ă™ĂŒĂ‹Ă– Ă?ĂžĂ‹Ă˜ĂŽĂ‹ĂœĂŽ Ă™Ă? Í´Í° ĂšĂ?ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă˜ĂžË›

Ăž Ă’Ă‹Ă? ÞÙ ĂŒĂ? Ă˜Ă™ĂžĂ?ĂŽ Ă‹Ă–Ă?Ă™ ÞÒËÞ Ă‹Ă˜Ă‹ Ă“Ăœ Ă’Ă‹Ă? Ă“Ă—ĂšĂœĂ™Ă Ă?ĂŽ Ă“ĂžĂ? Ă?Ă‹Ă?Ă?Þã Ă?ĂžĂ‹Ă˜ĂŽĂ‹ĂœĂŽ Ă?Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă? Ă‹Ę°Ă?Ăœ ÞÒĂ? Ă‹Ă?Ă?Ă“ĂŽĂ?Ă˜ĂžË› Ăž Ă’Ă‹Ă? ÚËĂ?Ă?Ă?ĂŽ Ă‹Ă&#x;ĂŽĂ“Ăž ĂŒĂŁ ÞÒĂ? Ă–Ă“Ă‘Ă’Ăž Ă‹Ă?Ă?Þã ĂœĂ™Ă&#x;Ăš Ă™Ă? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă“ĂžĂ? Ă?Ă™ĂœĂ?Ă“Ă‘Ă˜ ĂšĂ‹ĂœĂžĂ˜Ă?ĂœĂ?Ëœ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă“Ăž Ă’Ă‹Ă? Ă‹Ă–Ă?Ă™ ÚËĂ?Ă?Ă?ĂŽ ÞÒĂ?

Ă˜ĂžĂ?ĂœĂ˜Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ă‹Ă– Ă“Ăœ ĂœĂ‹Ă˜Ă?ĂšĂ™ĂœĂž Ă?Ă?Ă™Ă?Ă“Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ ĂšĂ?ĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ă‹Ă– Ă&#x;ĂŽĂ“Ăž Ě™ ̚˛

T H I S D AY Ëž Ëœ Í°Í˛Ëœ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍľ

23

BUSINESSWORLD

AVIATION

Is NIMET Hobbled by Inclement Weather?

The Nigerian Meteorological Agency is saddled with the responsibility of providing accurate weather forecasts for the aviation, maritime and agricultural sectors, among others. Chinedu Eze writes that despite the efforts to live up its mandate, airlines still record high air returns due to sudden adverse weather conditions For the Aviation sector, December 2016 will remain memorable, not for good, but for bad.

It was the period airlines recorded huge losses due to the harmattan haze, which hampered flights operations. The period was so bad that the air traffic control would give a flight start up only to call the pilot to return to base (air return) because of sudden adverse weather not reflected in the weather prediction earlier published.

But while airlines agonised, the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NIMET) was commended for providing accurate prediction of weather up to 80 percent, which is more than the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) average. Aviation industry operators have noted that a lot of progress have been achieved by the federal government through NIMET which has significantly reduced air accident due to bad weather, as the agency has been able to predict and provide pilots with reliable weather reports.

However, the grouse of the airlines is that there ought to be 24 to 48 hours prediction that would provide hour to hour results in order to avert air return, which frustrates air travellers, inconveniences them and digs hole in the coffers of the airlines.

Dust Haze But the outgoing Director-General of NIMET, Dr Anthony Anuforom said there may not be such prediction for flights because there could be sudden weather changes within minutes, like when the low level wind shear gathers in a moment and disappears afterwards. Such appearance cannot be predicted under 48 or 24 hours projections. “On the weather prediction, we give to the aviation sector, don’t forget that aviation is probably one of the most regulated activities in the world. Our operations are as prescribed

by ICAO. We do our job in conformity with ICAO standard and recommended practices.

So whatever ICAO says we should do that is what we are doing. That is why we are able to earn our ISO 9001 (international rating), in order words you are doing it the way they said it should be done. “Now on the issue of whether we can give weather report ahead, yes of course. In addition to those forecast when there is impending adverse weather we give out the information with sufficient insight, at times up to 24 hours or 12 hours. During the Christmas period for instance, whenever I am on duty, that time there were some days when the dust haze was really bad, it affected me. I wanted to travel on December 23, 2016, but we could not travel because of dust haze. I had to wait till December 26 and even that date didn’t work, so I had to hit the road to travel to the east,� Dr Anuforom said.

He explained that the December haze is generated in Niger and Chad; mainly from Niger and the air blows it south ward to Nigeria. “We have facilities, satellite receiving stations to tell us when there is up take of dust from Niger, now when there is that uptake from the wind trajectory and speed you can estimate when it will hit Maiduguri, Kano, or Katsina, Abuja. At such times we issue such alert. So apart from the forecast, we issue weather alert as well,� Anuforom explained.

While there was bad weather element in the air crashes that happened before 10 years ago; from Sosoliso flight crash in Port Harcourt to ADC crash off Abuja to the most tragic air crash in Nigeria, in Kano, January 22, 1973.

But in the last 10 years since Anuforom became the Director General of NMET, a lot of progress have been made.

There has been installation of Doppler Weather rather at some airports to check low level wind shear; there are also the installation of weather equipment, establishment of laboratory and library and also the training of personnel, which have

Anuforom

given rise to improved service delivery in the last 10 years. Airlines and air traffic control officials who work with NIMET gave credit to Anuforom whom they said transformed the agency.

Severe Weather Conditions Last week, NIMET made 2017 Seasonal Rainfall Prediction (SRP) and warned of severe weather conditions in the country with heavy rainfall and a harsh harmattan haze that would have dire impact on the finances of airlines. “The 2017 harmattan will cause reduction in horizontal visibility which will cause flight disruptions and loss of revenue due to delays and cancelations and this will not only affect the aviation sector as shipping and inland water transportation are also expected to be negatively affected in 2017,� said Anuforom who insisted that the agency’s prediction is almost 80 per cent accurate.

Weather poses one of the greatest challenges to air transport navigation. Pilots need accurate weather information to guide them in their ight path so that they don’t run into thunder or lightening or bumpy clouds that could crash the aircraft

Anuforom, in an interview with journalists said that in the last 10 years, the agency under his leadership had invested massively in the purchase and installation of high-tech weather gathering and processing instruments.

Manpower Development He said weather data gathering is not just dependent on technology alone, but on human capital. Anuforom said he inherited an agency with low staff morale due to their poor remuneration and lack of knowledge on the job but under his leadership, NIMET has invested in the training and retraining of the requisite personnel at home and abroad in its bid to ensure that it achieved its target of an accurate weather forecast for Nigeria, as it is done in the developed countries of the world. “The workers I met could not stand shoulder to shoulder with their peers in the other aviation sector parastatals. But I got them and improved their salary package, the NIMET consolidated salary, and I also ensured that they got the best of training at home and abroad, mostly from the companies that we were purchasing some of our equipment from,� he added.

Anuforom said because of the improvement his administration made in the last 10 years, the Nigerian aviation sector had not recorded any weather-related air crashes in the country.

Equipping NIMET “Weather poses one of the greatest challenges to air transport navigation. Pilots need accurate weather information to guide them in their flight path so that they don’t run into thunder or lightening or bumpy clouds that could crash the aircraft,� he said.

He said low level wind shear contributed significantly to the Sosoliso and the ADC Airline crashes of 2006. “When I came in as CEO in 2007, I said we have to end all weather related air accidents in

Nigeria and we could only do this if we get the right equipment and the right manpower that can supply the airlines and the pilots with the accurate weather forecast that they needed. And we did. We purchased and installed 13 wind shear alert systems, six weather radars, eight upper air stations, 20 thunder storm detectors, five air quality and ozone monitoring equipment. “All these were not in existence in the country.

And 10 years thereafter we have not recorded any major weather related incident or accident in Nigeria. That is one of my greatest achievements in the last 10 years,’ said. Anuforom whose tenure expires by the end of March 2017, noted that the capability to serve other sectors outside the aviation sector. He however decried the low utilisation of weather data by Nigerians as a culture that was very wrong in the contemporary age of high technology usage. According to him, all the efforts put in by the agency was to boost Nigerian businesses, especially those dependent on weather for their survival. He listed sectors as aviation, agricultural production, housing and urban planning, ocean going vessels and oil rigs operations as those that needed weather data the most for their operations, “You can no longer afford to plan without weather data for some critical businesses. And the good news is that we have worked hard to achieve over 80 per cent accuracy in our prediction which is significantly higher than the acceptable World Meteorological Organisation’s minimum acceptable threshold of 60 per cent. “Rainfall and temperature are the basic weather variables that affect activities in most sectors of the economy. And these include, agriculture, tourism, trade, aviation, maritime, and disaster risk management and therefore a prior knowledge of the likely pattern of these variables is vital for effective planning and policy formulation and programme execution, particularly in those sectors of the economy that are dependent on, or directly affected by rainfall and temperatures. So we all need weather information; every business man needs it. In the developed world they hardly plan their businesses or set out on a daily activity without knowing what the day’s weather held in stock for them. Its time Nigerians started imbibing this culture,� he added.

Expanded Services The outgoing NIMET boss said although the agency had initially set out to supply weather data to the aviation industry, it had however expanded its scope of predictions to cover investors in the power and agricultural sector. “Our predictions now cover when it is safe for farmers to sow crops, how long the season will last, and the quality of the seasons in terms of dry spells during the cropping season. “This type of forecast we are giving practically minimized guess work about when to plant and when not to plant and it reduces the chances of crop failure especially to large scale farmers. And we urge them to get these predictions in our offices. “Nigeria’s hydro power generation is expected to experience less boost as a result of normal to below normal rainfall amount predicted for many parts of the country in 2017. Investors in this sector are advised to harness the excess water, especially in places where normal to above rainfall is experienced, for effective hydro power generation for the improved electricity supply to the country in 2017,� he added.

There is no doubt that NIMET has improved on weather in the last 10 years, but to ensure that aircraft operate during harmattan haze, it behooves government and the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NIMET) to upgrade landing aids to Category 2 and Category 3 so that with accurate prediction of weather by NIMET, NAMA would always know when best to deploy its equipment to ensure safe flight during harmattan haze, which takes about two months of every year.

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Abdullahi: Closure of Abuja Airport will Not Exceed Six Weeks Director of Consumer Protection, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, Adamu Abdullahi, has assured air travellers that the rehabilitation work on the Abuja airport runway will not exceed six weeks. He also spoke on high air fares and challenges facing Nigerian airlines. He spoke to Chinedu Eze. Excerpts: How do you see the government directive to foreign airline to move their Abuja operations to Kaduna?

The airlines have to make a commercial decision whether to go to Kaduna or not, some which didn’t go like British Airways, issued a notice that they have cancelled their flights but they were not allowed to move those slots to Lagos to double their Lagos frequencies. And you know that there is no code-share between the foreign airlines and Nigerian operators so that the local airlines could help to their passengers farther. Ideally, if they doubled their Lagos flights then they would have a local carrier that will be moving their passengers from here to Kaduna.

Now how do you see the position of the passengers in this case?

We don’t envisage having problems with BA, they have been in the business for long and in such circumstances they know what to do. They know what the regulation says. The regulation is very clear. They have cancelled their flights on time, I am positive that by now they have started making refunds to passengers. So the passengers will be free to go and buy another ticket from another airline to keep their appointment. Because really going to Kaduna or not is a commercial decision, the government cannot force airlines to go to Kaduna. Because any aircraft that leaves any destination A, going to destination B always has an alternate airport, destination C, in case of any problem with destination B that it is going to, it can always land in C. So what the government did was to now provide Kaduna as alternate to Abuja that is airport C. so the decision is really on the airline, if it wants to go to that alternate airport fine and good. If not, the government cannot come out and say you must go to Kaduna; it is not something that the government can force them to do. Yes the passengers have a say in such circumstance, if the passengers insist with the airlines and agree with the airlines that they would carry them to whatever destination they are going to and no complains come to my desk, then I don’t have any quarrel with that. It is the decision of airlines versus passengers; they decide among themselves what they want to do. It is more or less a contract of carriage between the two of them; therefore, it is their decision.

People are feeling that the six weeks given for the completion of work on the runway might be exceeded; are you optimistic that it will just be six weeks?

I am solidly behind my Minister of State, Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika. The Minister said not a minute above six weeks and I am taking him for his words and I appeal to the public to also take him for his words and pray for him to succeed rather than start to cast doubts or to have doubts in their minds.

Our prayer is that it will take six weeks and we believe that the six weeks that he has already mentioned is sacrosanct.

You know that Arik cancelled all its international ights and curbed their regional and local ights. I want you to look at the impact, what is the impact on the passengers of a Nigerian airline that has dominated the West Coast?

Seriously the Arik story is a tragedy; that is the only way you can look at it. This is a very, very promising airline. When it started all of us were happy that we are not going to

Abdullahi

miss a national carrier, they have the capacity.

At a state they had up to 28 aircraft, so we believed then that all the routes were covered and they were. Because at a stage they were doing 120, 150 flights in Lagos alone. Then all of a sudden things started to go the way they were going.

We kept giving the warnings because the signals were there but once you kept maltreating passengers the way Arik did, the only way is down, because the passengers will no longer have the confidence in you.

Air travel is about confidence, it is just like you and your banker, your doctor, you and your airline should be about the same thing.

Promise should be sacrosanct, when they tell you that they will leave at 3 o’clock let it be 3 o’clock. And they didn’t try in that direction at all, more importantly even when they could prove that the delay or the cancellation was really beyond them they didn’t do what they were supposed to do.

They didn’t go by the regulations, they leave the passenger on the airport even late in the night, they won’t take them to hotel as the regulations say they should.

They will be arguing left, right and centre.

Even giving refreshment was a major problem

with Arik and things like that. So what has happened has happened and as you asked the impact is really great. But the way we have tried to resolve it is when the passengers started agitating, we asked Arik to advertise and tell passengers that they have canceled this flight and that the passengers should come for refunds which the passengers did.

They came and at a stage there was a really a stalemate because Arik could not keep to its promise, their accounts were garnished, we understood with them and we explain to the passengers that for the meantime they had to hold.

The Minister made entreaties with Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) (which garnished the airline accounts) and AMCON understood that they have commitment to their passengers and they have to refund those tickets.

Medview really tried in this instance because they agreed to pick most of the passengers especially to London Gatwick where they go to. So most Arik UK passengers joined Medview Airline and most of them have really left; unless, of course, you have booked in advance but those that were supposed to leave at the time at that time had left.

And it is still an ongoing thing, even this morning (March 6, 2017) I had an alert on my phone that somebody is happy that his family that was stuck has finally left and they have now gone with Medview.

The other issue is the economy aspect that you are talking about. Arik used to sell its ticket in naira and even when the exchange rate became very high people were able to afford Arik tickets because they were buying in naira. Now that Arik has really scaled down its operations our only prayer is that things will look up. As of this morning Arik was promising that they were trying to see the possibility of bringing five more aircraft into their fleet. If they can do that, I know that the operations will go up more.

And this issue of retrenchment of staff is something that really bugs my mind because sending 1,500 aviation staff into the market is not the best of times. People are already suffering with jobs and they know what will happen. So we pray that things will look up and these additional five aircraft and more will come back into their fleet so that their operations will continue; especially the wide Continued on page 25

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ABDULLAHI: CLOSURE OF ABUJA AIRPORT WILL NOT EXCEED SIX WEEKS bodied aircraft, the two that they have, we want to see those aircraft back in the system.

Once they do that I am positive that the international operations will resume and things will be looking up. But for now it looks very bleak and so they need prayers, the new management of Arik need prayers and we are praying very hard for them and guiding them and showing them the way and generally we bend over backwards to be of assistance to them because Civil Aviation Authorities (CAAs) all over the world are supposed to grow the industry, so in doing that we help them.

Talking about growing the industry, an operator that is into charter said if NCAA decides to carry out economic regulation, insists that airlines pay all the debt, pay salary as at when due, that almost all the airlines will be shutdown.

That what is happening in the economy is reecting on the airlines. What is your reaction to that?

We agree but as a CAA the major contention we have with the airlines is this 5% charge that they have refused pay. The 5% is not really a charge on the airlines; it is the passengers that pay that money. And we have tried to make the airlines understand that all they are doing is to collect government revenue on behalf of government. So give us back what is due to us so that we can oversight you because NCAA does not get kobo from the government. We depend on that 5% that we get to run all our affairs.

The issue of salary is something that is also contentious because, the pilot, the crew and even the engineer that you have not paid his salary is an accident waiting to happen. This is because his mind will not be on his work. Remember vividly the Associated aircraft accident; that was what the pilot and the co-pilot were discussing before they crashed. It was on record that was what they were discussing. So these are things that we have to really take seriously and know that the airlines must pay their staff salaries.

That is the only one we are very, very insistent on. The other ones are really commercial decisions; we don’t come into it. If they owe their fuel suppliers for instance, their caterers, the handling companies, we will advise them to pay something, even our own we keep telling them to pay some amount. It is only when they come to renew their Air Operator Certificates (AOCs), renew pilot license, crew licenses, that we will tell them to come and pay what they owe.

Now there are fewer aircraft and more passengers with Arik down, what is the impact of that to passengers because fares are high?

Fares are very high, I just bought to and fro ticket to Kano from Lagos on Azman Air N40, 000 to Kano and N35, 000 return, that is N75, 000. It is not everybody that can afford that because you know what people are facing. It is not air fare that is exactly everybody’s priority at the moment, everybody wants to eat, that is the most important thing for now. So it is an issue of demand and supply, the aircraft are not there like you pointed out and then the cost of operation also is very high. If Jet A1 goes for N280 per liter you should expect that you must pay a very high rate. If most of the crew we have to pay in dollars and you know the cost of dollar now, spare parts come in dollars, the aircraft itself, insurance, almost everything in aviation is in dollars. And dollar has gone hare wire; therefore it is a reflection of what is going on generally in the country that is also happening in aviation.

Things have started looking up because we have seen how the dollar issue is now stabilizing and with that we expect that we will have a better business climate and we are hopeful that it will now enable airlines to service their aircraft. We are waiting for their return of the ones that were ferried overseas, so we are very hopeful that now they will have the wherewithal to bring back these aircraft so that they can join their fleet.

What do you think would be the impact on the air travel market generally

Abdullahi

in Nigeria, considering the long term consequence of limited aircraft in service, the high fares and the recession?

For a very long time aviation has been trying to woo passengers from other modes of transport, unfortunately Nigeria does not have a very active railway service so everything that happens, happens by road. The road has also become really tough because the roads are really bad and the security challenges are there when you go by road and the fares are really much higher than they used to be even going by road. So it is going to be very difficult to woo back most of the passengers once they leave aviation because once you taste road, you find out you can travel cheaper and you find that you arrived in one piece to your destination you will be tempted to try again. But nothing will ever beat aviation because it is the fastest mode of transportation and the safest means of transport; therefore, nothing beats it. With time everything will still come back to aviation.

What advice do you have for the passenger as a regulatory body and what word do you have for the ďŹ nal movement

from Kaduna to Abuja after the closure?

Well, the government has done its own beat, a lot of effort has gone into putting Kaduna in shape and I would say that, that is a job well done. We should give ourselves kudos.

The Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) has done what it’s supposed to do, the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) has been there permanently, in fact the Managing Director moved there permanently and most of his directors are on ground.

And I would say so far they have done a wonderful job. Kaduna State government came in, and came in a very, very big way because some things that looked impossible in the Nigeria have happened. They have done the roads, the roads from the airport to the rail station are almost done, I am positive that by Monday (March 13) that road will be commissioned. That road also leaves the railway station and comes out to the bypass and the bypass has also been done. The Kaduna- Abuja road as you have noted has also been commissioned and they have finished all the patched work.

So once the roads are there and you even have an alternative of railway and the Nigeria

Railway Corporation (NRC) has promised that they are going to add more trains and coaches on the Abuja-Kaduna rail line, I believe that we don’t envisage having any problems. The buses are ready to convey the passengers, helicopter services are also coming up to provide service for those that can afford it at N50,000 and some people can afford that, so they can go ahead.

In terms of security, the police have planned it in a very good way. They will deploy helicopter service there. They are going to survey the environment from up there to make sure that passengers are safe.

There won’t be check points per say, but there will be police presence; they will be monitoring and seeing what is going on.

The Federal Road Safety (FRSC) will control traffic whenever there is any hiccups, they will be there to direct traffic. So we don’t envisage having any problems. Whatever happens, we are talking of six weeks; six weeks is really a short while if you come to think of it. So this is something that we believe will come to pass. So we implore passengers to exercise a lot of restraint, plan their journeys very well.

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BUSINESSWORLD

MARITIME

Reviewing Dakuku’s First 100 Days Eromosele Abiodun np posits that the Director General, Nigerian g Maritime Administration and Safety y Agency, g y Dr. Dakuku Peterside has in the first 100 days in office recorded some noteworthy achievements During the Management Performance Review (MPR) held in Lagos a few weeks after his appointment, the Director General, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Dr. Dakuku Peterside declared that under his leadership, NIMASA would be transformed into a world class, high performing organisation.

As part of the determination to make the agency a leading one, Peterside launched a Medium Term Maritime Growth Strategy Plan (MTMGSP), designed to run through three years.

In less than 16 years, NIMASA has had 10 DGs, an indication of how rotten the system was.

The last DG is now currently facing corruption charges. His predecessor entered a plea bargain to refund some inappropriately appropriated money, while another former DG was sentenced to a five-year jail term.

Meanwhile, the MTMGSP covering three years is built around Peterside’s core mission at NIMASA, which is to reform, restructure and reposition the agency for sustainable growth and development of the maritime industry.

The strategy document is built on five pillars including: Survey, Inspection and Certification Transformation programme; Environment, Security and Search and Rescue Transformation programme; as well as Capacity Building and Promotional Initiatives which entail growing indigenous tonnage, ship building and human capacity.

Others are Digital Transformation Strategy; and Structural and Cultural reforms including changes to work ethic and attitude of staff as well as processes and procedures.

The Many Challenges Peterside assumed the position at a time the agency was facing a myriad of problems ranging from high level corruption, piracy and man power shortfall amongst other problems. One of the major problems facing NIMASA today is the issue of piracy and security of Nigerian waterways.

The severity of the problem was highlighted at a conference organised by the Nigeria Shippers Council (NSC) by the Chairman of the Port Consultative Council (PCC), Kunle Folarin, who declared that Nigeria will continue to lose millions of dollars in revenue accruable from fishing until both NIMASA and Nigerian Navy agree as to who is in charge of Nigeria’s waterways. “I think that will probably be well addressed when the struggle between NIMASA and the Nigerian Navy is settled, we will know who is in charge of our territorial waters. This is where we have problem, there is multiple attention of several agencies claiming mandate of a particular function. Unlike the glorious past of now aged seafarers, Nigeria now parades an army of half-baked seafarers because there are no training vessels for their sea time training.

As a result, there are many seafarers walking about with fake certificates. “The demise of the Nigerian National Shipping Line (NNSL) and the consequent loss of opportunity for sea time training for budding seafarers and cadets as well as the challenges faced by the Maritime Academy of Nigeria to turn out world class and employable seafarers have been jointly blamed for the dwindling fortunes of seafarers in Nigeria. These twin factors have jointly led to mass unemployment as well as the prevalence of fake and ill-trained seafarers.�

Another major challenge the MIMASA DG faced in his first year in office was the issue of staff promotion.

Before now, promotion to director cadre had stagnated for over a decade. The new management has broken the jinx and over 300 staff of the agency benefited from a recent promotion exercise. “Despite all the challenges faced during the exercise we were able to pull through,� he stated.

Commenting on the redeployment, he said: “We had the mandate from the President through the Honourable Minister of Transport to go and Reform NIMASA, this we have initiated by first of all knowing that NIMASA cannot work under the defunct structures of JOMALIC and NMA.

Dakuku

We also noticed that NIMASA had resourceful members of staff but needed motivation and this we have started by reorientation of the staff. We have introduced a professional and leadership series to grow capacity of staff, thus developing a new work ethics in the Agency. We are by this process reforming the work ethics of the staff for better service delivery.�

Devolution of Powers This is considered a major achievement of the Peterside’s era at NIMASA. Prior to now, most operations at the agency were centralised. Sailing certificates, payment of bills by stakeholders were coordinated completely from the head office. This was considered cumbersome, leading to loss of valuable business time thus less productivity.

As against what was obtainable in the past, the Peterside led management is implementing a framework that will see more powers devolved to the zones. Preparatory to this, most zones are now headed by substantive directors.

This, NIMASA said, is to ensure that more responsibilities and authority are devolved to the zones thus reducing time to do business with the agency, thus improving efficiency. “In this era of online communication, a semi autonomous Zonal structure will surely enhance the operation of the agency,� the agency said.

IMSAS Scheme NIMASA has also complied with the (International Maritime Organisation (IMO) Member State Audit Scheme (IMSAS), a scheme developed by the IMO to assess the extent to which a member state complies with its obligations set out in the various IMO instrument to which it is a party.

It became mandatory since January, 2016.

Under the leadership of Peterside, the agency subjected itself to IMO IMSAS in June 2016.

Consequently, Nigeria was rated very highly after the exercise.

Before now, Nigeria was out of council at the IMO for over half a decade, thus relegating the country at international politics in the maritime sector. In a bid to reposition the Nigerian maritime sector and make Nigeria it a global voice again, the Heads of African Maritime Administration have agreed to converge in Abuja in April for the

3rd Association of African Maritime Administration Conference. Aside of the immediate benefits of having maritime stakeholders across the globe converge in Nigeria, this will go a long way to enhance the chances of Nigeria to return to Council at IMO at the category C level. NIMASA has gotten presidential approval to seek election in to the category C of the IMO council.

With these, experts believe the Nigerian maritime sector will be repositioned to take its lead in the comity of maritime nations.

Rebranding NIMASA In a bid to align NIMASA with other foremost maritime administrations in the world, the agency has embarked on a rebranding exercise. The new NIMASA brand, according to sources at the agency, would be unveiled by President Muhammadu Buhari on the 22nd of April which coincides with the hosting of AAMA. THISADAY findings revealed that the rebrandd ing was conceptualised by Peterside to inject a breath of fresh air to the NIMASA brand.

Also, as part of the management’s drive to make the zones the operational bases of the agency, the board of director’s recently approved the construction of new offices at the Port Harcourt at the Eastern Zone as well as Warri in the central zone. This, it stated, will make stakeholders able to begin and conclude transactions at the zonal level.

Full Automation The agency has fully automated its operations with the management stressing that the digital transformation strategy is part of its medium term strategy to remove human interface with stakeholders and hasten our processes. “It is expected that stakeholders will be able to register their vessels and all other transactions with NIMASA with a click of a button on their lap top. On-line transactions with highly sophisticated security measures are being encouraged by this administration. In information driven age that we live in, access to information definitely enhance operations of any maritime administration,� it stated.

That is not all, within six months in office, the Peterside led management upgraded Nigeria’s subscription of the Lloyds list intelligence to

a full bouquet which is beyond the previous capacity of the sea searcher and this now guarantee unfettered access to current data in the maritime industry. This, stakeholders believe, has improved on the volume and value of data available to Nigerian maritime stakeholders.

Recently, the US Coast Guard visited the country to ascertain the level of security at the Nigerian Ports. NIMASA, the Designated Authority (DA) for the implementation of the ISPS code in Nigeria was highly commended by the US Coast Guard delegation for its implementation strides.

Tasks Ahead Coastal and Inland Shipping Act 2007 has been begging for full implementation over the years. The law, popularly called Cabotage law was intended to protect indigenous interests for investors and professionals.

Close to a decade after its enactment, the law has not met 10 per cent of its expectations from stakeholders. It was expected to synchronise with the Nigerian Content Act owing to their uniformity of purpose. While Peterside has taken steps to address the matter, more still needs to be done.

Another major issue that stakeholders want the NIMASA DG to address is the problem of foreign owned vessels.

This is because even in the face of few available job openings in the sector, foreigners and foreign owned vessels still dominate Nigerian waters.

Also, given that NIMASA is supposed to take the lead in shipping development, which is part of its mandates, one would expect Peterside to take shipping development as his top-line agenda, because we all know the effect of capital flight on the economy. “He needs to bring someone who is an industry person to drive the affairs of the agency. The industry person should be the one who is technii cally competent and who also has political reach.

So, there are two ways to look at it, if you have someone with knowledge of the industry but without the political reach, it will not be very fine.

And if you have someone with political reach and who does not have the other two qualities is equally dangerous but the top management team can combine all these qualities then we can be sure that we will have a very formidable industry,� a stakeholder declared.

WEEKLY PULLOUT

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

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THE UNTOLD STORY OF OJI'S SUICIDE

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The Untold Story of Oji's Suicide Chiemelie Ezeobi writes that in taking his own life, Dr. Allwell Oji, a young practicing doctor, brought to the fore unintended implications not just for his family, but for the medical community and the society at large

Late Oji Sympathisers at the scene where Dr. Oji parked his car before jumping into the lagoon on the Third Mainland Bridge

Doctors are supposed to be invincible. They are also supposed to be all knowing, especially when it comes to cures for all manner of illnesses. So the question that has continually bugged people's minds was what could have made a man, a medical doctor nonetheless, who gave no prior signs of depression, to commit suicide?

Dr. Allwell Chiawolamoke Oji, had previously lived a life under the radar of Nigerians until Sunday, March 19, 2017 when he gained national wide attention after he committed suicide.

Until his tragic death, Oji was a medical doctor attached to Mount Sinai Hospital, Papa Ajao, Mushin.

The middle-aged unmarried medical, had jumped into the lagoon at Third Mainland Bridge after he ordered his driver to park his car, a Nissan Sports Utility Vehicle with registration number LND476EE. His suicide mission has unleashed series of events that has sucked not just his driver in but his family and emergency workers involved in the case as well.

An Alleged Tale of Sickle Cell Trauma After days of people wondering what might have caused such a passionate man to end his life, those who were purportedly close to him said he was battling with Sickle Cell Anaemia, which was often accompanied by incessant seizures.

It was also gathered in a post by the Nigeria Medical Association, Taraba Branch, that the doctor was battling with Sickle Cell Anaemia.

This was further supported by a post on Instagram by one Nkechi Oji, who said he also battled depression because of what the ailment had continually denied him; practicing medicine to the fullest.

Also, in another post by one Ruth Okija on Instagram, Oji was said to be a 2008 student of College of Medicine, University of Lagos.

He was a locum medical officer with Mount Sinai Hospital.

The report also stated that the fair doctor was born on May 21 and loves reading in his spare time, adding that he found the practice sessions on respiratory and cardiovascular examinations very interesting.

Due to his passion for surgery, he was said to have written the exam for his residency in surgery so he could become a consultant and passed but due to his ailment, he was turned down. The hospital was said to have turned him down because they felt his ailment, which was accompanied by seizure, could be a deterrent to performing his duties.

It was also gathered that the family got him a driver because of the seizures and had just employed this present one, Ita, who is presently cooling his heels at the police cell.

The Hospital's Disposition When THISDAY visited St. Sinai Hospital at 35, Olanibi Street, Papa Ajao, Mushin, activities were going on in the hospital as usual, with the staff attending to the patients on ground. A member of staff, who had refused to disclose his identity referred THISDAY to their head office at Falolu Street, Surulere.

According to him, although they have branches scattered around Lagos, they run a central administration system, which gives

Dr. Oji's mother at the scene where her son committed suicide

the headquarter the sole discretion to handle administrative issues. His colleagues who worked with him last week Friday, disclosed that he wasn't in any way suicidal in any way.

However at the headquarters, THISDAY was first directed to a nurse, who left to call the Chief Medical Director (CMD), and came back minutes later to say the CMD wasn't on seat. Whilst the back and forth talk was going on, a medical personnel decked in grey trousers and white and blue stripe shirt, walked up and interceded.

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24.03.2017

while investigation continues. I met with the family members to express condenlences on behalf of the Lagos State Government and therefore declared the search closed."

On gaining audience with him, questions on the disposition of the doctor, his medical health, his state of mind and his last appearance in the hospital was asked but got no answer.

The personnel who also declined to reveal his identity parried every question with 'no comment', except when he was asked if the doctor was indeed sacked and he replied in the affirmative.

A Family's Hope As expected, THISDAY had gone to No. 3, Odunnuku Street, Abule Ijesha, Yaba, where the doctor resides with his mother and sibling, but attempts to access the green and lime two-storey building, proved abortive when two family members accosted THISDAY at the gate.

According to them, the doctor's mother, a retired banker and a member of Deeper Life Bible Church, was not favourably disposed to talk to the press. Refusing to accept the death of her son, she was said to be in her room despite the presence of her church members, who had come to condole her.

According to the family members, she was holding on to her faith that he was not dead, merely missing, given that he showed no signs of depression prior to the incident.

A family member who spoke on anonymity said the media should give them space to deal with the issue in peace, adding that the 35-year-old was not such an introvert that he would be depressed without anyone noticing.

The family said the deceased was the first son of three kids; two boys and a girl, adding that the father of the family was late.

A Tale of Mixed Emotions It was mixed emotions for the Oji family on Tuesday, three days after the suicide, at the Marine Police Division, when they were called in to identify the body of a young man recovered from the Lagos lagoon by the police.

Although the recovered body later turned out not to be that of the medical doctor, it was a mixture of relief and sadness for the family for two reasons; the family, especially the mother, had against all odds still held on to the belief that her son was not dead, but alive.

The devout Christian, who attends Deeper Life Bible Church, was said to have been hoping for a miracle after emergency workers failed to recover the body in two days. This is because, in a typical situation where one drowns in a large body of water, it usually takes two days for the body to resurface.

On the other hand, had the recovered body been that of the doctor, it would helped the family deal with the closure sooner, as it would speed up the processing of their healing.

The body, who for now is being referred to as a 'John Doe', was recovered after people found the body floating around the Marina on Lagos Island.

They called the attention of the Marine Police led by the Officer-in-Charge of the Marine Police, SP Chinedu Iwuozo, who in turn mustered their patrol boats to the area, and recovered the body. The body, whose identity is still unknown, was dressed in a blue jean trouser, and a neutral-colour T-shirt and he had no shoes on.

Although the water had changed the colour of his skin, it was obvious that he was a young man, even with his bloated body peeling and decomposing.

Given that the body was recovered by the Marine wing of the Nigerian Police, at about 10.30am, the identity of the deceased had remained unknown until the family came in late in the afternoon and clarified issues.

When THISDAY had contacted the police at that point, it was gathered that the mother of the doctor, Mrs. Chinyere Oji, a retired banker, was already heading to the police station alongside other family members to identify the body.

However, at about 1pm, five male relatives without the doctor's mother and without further ado were shown the body and they said it was not theirs.

Meanwhile, fishermen at the sawmill at the Okobaba area, near the scene of the incident, said they were not aware of anyone falling into the water recently except the case of the doctor.

They however, did not rule out the possibility of anyone falling overboard, as according to them, they get a lot of bodies floating on the lagoon.

Encomiums from Colleagues

The doctor's oďŹƒce at Mount Sinai Hospital

Also, one of his former colleagues back at the university, one Dr. Attah Essien, indeed confirmed on his Facebook wall that the doctor attended UNILAG. He wrote, "Dr. Oji Allwell was my junior and also a graduate of College of Medicine, University of Lagos."

Meanwhile, after scouring the internet for details about the deceased, THISDAY stumbled on a post by one Mrs. Chi Ude, who said the doctor lost his father two years ago, adding that the family was still coming to terms with that.

Another commenter who went anonymous also wrote, "Allwell Oji was my classmate too and he was an A student. If I remember correctly, he was very light skinned with some type of mouth. During exams, we all wanted to sit near him. He was so brilliant."

A Nightmare for Emergency Workers More than five days, after the medical doctor jumped into the lagoon at Third Mainland Bridge, his body was yet to be found, a nightmare for emergency workers. This kind of case is one that emergency workers dread as the manpower used is often exhausting.

From the day the incident happened, emergency workers and local divers have been at the scene, with different patrol boats searching tirelessly to recover the body of the 35-year-old.

According to the General Manager, Lagos State Emergency Management (LASEMA), Mr. Adesina Tiamiyu, who was at the scene of the suicide for three days, they are still searching the waterways.

He said, "We have expanded our search to go further (more than 10 miles) than where it happened. We engaged local fishermen and divers. Also to assist are the Lagos Ferry Services and the Lagos Waterways Agency patrol boats, which were deployed to the waterways. We have informed the residents to look out for floating bodies."

The scene of the accident on Third Mainland Bridge

A LASTMA official also at the scene of the incident said at this point, they were no longer looking at the incident as a rescue mission rather a recovery mission.

According to her, the distance from where he dived into the lagoon was very far and since he dived in first with his head, there was every possibility that he hit his head first before his body followed.

She explained that jumping into the water from that distance, the water will likely feel like a stone when it connects with the head, leading to unconsciousness.

Apart from local divers, fishermen and patrol boats from the Lagos State Emergency Management (LASEMA), Lagos State Ferry Services and Lagos Waterways agency, were at site to help.

Meanwhile, with the false alarm on Tuesday, the emergency workers who had called off the search earlier in the day, however, resumed again after the family's identification process failed. Thus, emergency workers from Lagos State Emergency Management (LASEMA), Lagos Ferry Services, the Lagos Waterways Agency and Marine Patrol have since resumed search as at press time.

According to the General Manager, LASEMA, Tiamiyu, they will continue searching the waterways until it yields results.

Finally, Police Recovers Body of Late Dr. Oji After three days of being underwater, the body of Dr. Oji was recovered at about 4pm on Wednesday by the operatives of the Marine Police and his identity was confirmed by his family at about 5.25pm.

Confirming the incident, the General Manager, LASEMA, Mr. Tiamiyu, said, "At about 4pm, the body of Dr. Oji was recovered by the Marine Police and the body was identified by some of his family including the driver in the presence of the Commissioner of Police Lagos State, Mr. Fatai Owoseni.

"The body will be handed over to the family

The Main Victim of Oji's Suicide After all said and done, the main victim of the doctor's suicide mission was his driver, one Henry Ita, who is still in police detention.

His only crime was carrying the doctor to his destination.

When he purportedly resumed work three months ago as the Oji's family driver, Ita probably had no inkling that months down the line, he would be spending nights upon nights in police detention.

Due to the doctor's alleged Sickle Cell Anaemia, accompanied by repeated seizures, he was said to have always been driven by a driver. No one knows if the family intimated him on the peculiarities of his boss' medical condition.

On the said day, he was said to have driven Oji from home and they were heading towards Marina on the island when he was instructed to park the car. When he reportedly queried his boss, he was told that he wanted to urinate. That obedience has since cost him his freedom.

To his horror, his boss got down from the car, walked to the driver's side and jumped clean into the lagoon headlong.

When THISDAY also visited the Adeniji Adele Police Division where the driver, Henry Ita, was being held, it was gathered that preliminary investigations were still on.

Also when THISDAY visited the Divisional Police Officer, Adeniji Adele Police Division, SP Ayodele Umujose, he debunked claims that the doctor left behind a suicide note.

He said, "From our preliminary interrogation of the driver, he said his boss received no prior phone call, from the time they left home till when they got to the bridge. He said their destination was the Marina, where his boss told him they were going. However, when they got to the bridge, he claimed his boss insisted that he parks the car.

"According to him, he had told his boss that the area was too dangerous to park but he insisted, claiming that he was pressed and needed to urinate. The driver told us that immediately his boss got done, he moved to the other side of the bridge as if he wanted to urinate and then dived in."

On the driver of the medical doctor, Henry Ita, who is still in detention, he said, "The driver has given us his statement. He is still helping us in our investigation. He will he be released at the appropriate time."

Also contacted, Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, Olarinde Famous-Cole, said the driver was not arrested, rather he was taken in for questioning, adding that investigations were ongoing.

Thus, whilst the police widen the scope of their investigation, and the body of the medical doctor finally recovered after three day’s intensive search, the suicide mission of Dr. Oji is one the society and the family won't be too in a hurry to forget. However, the implication of this suicide for the society spells grave danger, as it sends a negative signal.

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24.03.2017

Xenophobia: Tehila Records Jams for Peace in Africa As part of efforts to promote peace and unity on the African continent, Nigerianbased record label, Tehila Records, organisers of the mega Alabanza gospel music concert, has announced plans to host the 2017 edition of the showpiece event in South Africa.

Tagged ‘South Africa meets Nigeria’, the concert, which will take place on Sunday, 26 March 2017, at The Lyric Theatre, Gold Reef City in Johannesburg, is a spiritual intervention, which seeks to use the power of music to regenerate the hearts of many and put a stop to xenophobic attacks.

The concert, which will bring people from all walks of life to The Gold Reef City, will emphasise the importance of peaceful coexistence, as well as the power of unity amongst Nigerians and South Africans, the two leading powers on the continent, as exemplified by the cast of gospel music ministers billed to perform at the event.

Performing in Johannesburg are the biggest gospel artistes from Nigeria and South Africa, the African continent and the diaspora such as Enkay, Chiika100%,

Enkay to jam against Xenophobia in South Africa

Ntokozo Mbambo, Sammie Okposo, Khaya Mthetwa, and Mabongi. Other confirmed artistes for the event are Uche (Double Double), Tim Godfrey, Mahalia Buchanan, Chioma Jesus, Bukola Bekes, and Freke Umoh.

Speaking on the essence of the concert, Alabanza Concert Convener and CEO of Tehila Records, Timothy Ogboruche said;

“This year’s Alabanza Concert is rooted in spreading the beautiful biblical precept which tells us how wonderful it is for God’s people to live together in peace and harmony. It is, therefore, our hope that as Nigerians, South Africans, and other people from different backgrounds come together to praise and worship God, they would also get to understand the importance of living together in our diversity, which is one of the greatest gifts God has blessed the human race with.”

The Alabanza Concert, an annual event since 2013, will be in its fifth edition this year. This year’s event is also a unique one as it takes place outside the shores of Nigeria for the very first time, depicting a fusion of cultures, sounds and nations across the continent. Tehila Records is one of the foremost gospel record labels in Nigeria set up to promote and groom gospel music artistes both nationally and internationally.

The record label is the organiser of Alabanza Concert, which has been a trendsetter on the gospel music scene with over 10,000 people in attendance each year.

Adesuwa Onyenokwe Captured in The Chatroom Mary Ekah Adesuwa Onyenokwe, publisher of Total Woman magazine and the producer of the show ‘Seriously Speaking’, is at the verge of putting into use her Drama degree from the Obafemi Awolowo University in the movie, The Chatroom. Amusingly, her interested was captured beyond just acting in The Chatroom, as she chose to do more than just that.

Onyenokwe revealed to an audience made up of women’s rights advocates, partners, film enthusiasts and the media during the unveiling of The Chatroom in Lagos that she was initially approached

by Maysquare Studios to take on an acting role in the movie but after she read the script, she opted to take on the role of Associate Producer because she was passionate about some the issues which the movie addresses, the major one being women’s empowerment.

The Chatroom is a production by Maysquare Studios with Peju Fadirepo as producer with Adesuwa Onyenokwe as associate producer.

Themed around abuse against women, the film, inspired by true-life events will features prominent actors like Damilola Adegbite Attoh, Kanayo O. Kanayo and comedian Akpororo. Also starring in the movie for the first time after a very long

L-R: Erelu Bisi Fayemi, Adesuwa Onyenokwe and Damilola Adegbite Attoh at The Chatroom unveiling

time will be international on-air personality and television host, IK Osakioduwa and popular radio show host, Yolanda George Adams fondly called Aunt Landa amongst others. The film will be shot in Lagos, Abuja and the United Kingdom.

On what inspired the movie, Fadirepo said that The Chatroom was borne out of a desire to make social impact, and that movie lovers will be positively impacted and transformed by the movie. It tells the story of Ebiere, to be played by Damilola Adegbite Attoh, a young girl who rises above a childhood of abuse to emerge

as a sought after star in early adulthood.

She assured that The Chat Room, which is based on a true-life story, is billed to have high entertainment value even as it informs and educate watchers of the issues around sexual abuse of girls. Speaking at the launch, the wife of the former governor of Ekiti State and founder of the African Women’s Development Fund, Erelu Bisi Fayemi, identified with the project as it promotes survival against all odds for women, stressing that the message was timely and that there was no better time for the production of the movie.

Women Economic Empowerment an Antidote to Poverty Peace Obi In commemoration of the 2017 International Women’s Day, the National President, Young Women’s Christian Association of Nigeria (YWCA), Lady Chikwue Ochiagha, has warned that various efforts by the countries of the world towards eradication of poverty, hunger and diseases may not yield the expected result without a conscious effort by societies to economically empowerment their women.

Ochiagha who made this known to newsmen in Lagos, recently hinted that when women are economically empowered, it equips and enables them to make right and independent choices as well as helps in the equitable distribution of growth and the attainment of sustainable development in societies.

Stressing that the advancement in various spheres of life, which ought to pave way for a more women-friendly environment both in access to opportunities, decision-making, among others, was yet to yield satisfactory result, the president

said that the year’s theme is a timely wakeup call for definite actions by homes, community leaders and governments.

According to her, the strengthening of globalisation and rise in commercial activities among countries that ought to bring about increased opportunities and spaces for economic engagement for women was also yet to effect the necessary change on the status quo men domineering environment.

Speaking on this year’s IWD theme, ‘Women in the Changing World of Work: Planet 50-50 by 2030’, Ochiagha said it is a timely pointer for governments and all stakeholders to rise to the challenge of improving the economic status of women and increased opportunities for girls. According to her, “The world is fast changing, and so should women’s economic engagement, particularly in involving the use of ICT and innovative technologies with the infinite possibilities they avail to ensure women remain relevant within economic spaces at all levels. “Unfortunately, such spaces remain largely inaccessible to women as revealed

in a study where people between the ages of 45-59 in Nigeria has 92 per cent of men in this age group employed as against 59 per cent for women. According to her, while concerted efforts have been made at national and local levels by governments and private sector, to improve women’s economic status through various income generating/financial literacy and management initiatives in the country, 54 per cent of women resident in Lagos alone for instance, still live below the poverty line. This, she said "points to a poignant reality of the need for urgent and sustained efforts in ensuring women’s peculiar needs within the ever changing work space do not get lost.”

Speaking further, Ochiagha said “The YWCA of Nigeria calls for the adoption of urgent measures to address the widening gender gaps in pay and leadership, women’s access to innovative technologies and decent work, and protection from violence in the work place by ensuring labour standards are enforced in work places – including the informal sector, for women.”

AKISCOM’s N150 Million Plaza Foundation Laying Ceremony for March 25 Mary Ekah By tomorrow, Saturday March 25, all roads lead to the proposed site for the ultra modern plaza intended to be built by the Akwa Ibom State Community (AKISCOM), Lagos branch, where the foundation laying ceremony and investiture of patrons will take place.

Speaking during a press briefing in Lagos to announce the upcoming event, the President, AKSCOM, Chief Elijah Ifot, said there was a dire need for the group to Emmanuel build a state-of-the-art ultra modern civic centre, named, AKISCOM Plaza in Lagos State as part of its civic responsibility and social welfare development towards its people. Ifot who put the estimated sum to complete the project at N150 million, noted that, “Necessary consultations have been made with experienced architect, Civil Engineers and Estate Surveyors who have provided the needed prototype designs.”

He commended the governor of Akwa Ibom State, Udom Emmanuel and the immediate past governor, Senator Godswill Akpabio for their contributions towards the acquisition of “a befitting parcel of land in the highbrow area of Itire, Surulere, Lagos for the proposed multi-purpose plaza.” Ifot revealed that due to the group’s financial constraint, it has decided to make a clarion call to all Akwa Ibom indigenes and friends to lend their supports both in kind and cash towards the realisation of this laudable objective, adding, “We are also seeking the support of corporate organizations, financial giants, NGOs, and in-laws who have the interest of Akwa Ibom people at heart towards the success of this project.” The event scheduled to take place at Adeniji–Durojaiye area of Surulere, Lagos, is expected to be graced by the Governor Emmanuel who will personally lay the foundation stone for the proposed building. Ifot revealed further that the community also intends to immortalise the names of individuals and corporate organisations that will contribute or donate towards the building of AKISCOM Plaza.

Entries Open for Cussons Baby Moment Season 4 Mary Ekah It has been a rather thrilling journey for many parents, as well as the Cussons Baby team, as the fourth edition of the Cussons Baby Moments contest rolls on, making it more interesting this year. The entry for the competition was announced on the 30th January and will end on 26th March after which voting commences to qualify for the next stage.

According to the brand, there are few changes this year. “Interested participants can purchase any gift pack to enter the competition and pictures uploaded to the Cussons baby website www.cussonsbaby.com.ng instead of Facebook as it was in previous editions.”The brand has leveraged the competition across all the social media channels, which makes it easier for parents to be up to date with information.

This year’s edition promises to be exciting and participants will win up to N1million Education Fund and a year’s supply of Cussons baby products as well as other fantastic prizes. The criteria to select the winner of the competition are based on the baby’s personality, charisma, star quality and overall compatibility of baby with the brand essence. An independent audit firm for transparency, fairness and credibility will; evaluate the entries and come up with the results from each stage of the competition. So go ahead, capture of all those amazing pictures of your baby, share those amazing moments and you could be on your way to winning N1 million Education Fund.

For the last three years, the Cussons Baby Moments Competition has been launched on Facebook with uploads by parents and guardians of fascinating and amazing moments of their babies in still pictures and short videos. Over the years, the competition has grown from over 200 babies in the maiden edition to over 650 babies in Season 3, 2016, vying for a place among top 10 finalists with N1million Education fund up for grabs.

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Nigerians Shine at the 2017 British Council Alumni Award Adedayo Adejobi At the recently concluded British Council’s 2017 Study UK Alumni Award Dinner, held in Lagos recently, young, enterprising and innovative UK- trained Nigerians were honoured with varying awards in recognition of the outstanding exploits, exemplary leadership and achievements in their chosen professional spheres of influence.

The Study UK Alumni Awards, which was initiated a year ago, aims to recognise and celebrate the benefits that studying at a UK university has had upon the individual, their community and country.

“We are celebrating Nigerians who have come back to Nigeria following a very good education and have achieved so much they could go anywhere, but they’ve chosen to come here and contribute back to Nigeria,” the Country Director, British Council Nigeria, Connie Price said.

“The awards is no doubt timely, and most crucially symbolic, as it in no small measure encourages me do more, thus impacting the economy, push the boundaries and innovate and strategise to help the economy,” Timipre Wolo said Wolo’s UK experience studying at the University

Participants at the British Council’s 2017 Study UK Alumni Award Dinner

of Aberdeen opened her up to multicultural experiences, solid educational development and career opportunities, giving her a breadth of knowledge and strategic tool. Driven by her passion and commitment to youth development, while serving in the PTDF, Timipre championed a number of youth empowerment initiatives such as the Youth Entrepreneurship Scheme; the

Special Training and Educational Scheme; the Vocational Training Programme and the PTDF pioneer Partnership with the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR).

These initiatives led to the award of full foreign undergraduate scholarships to young men and women from less privileged backgrounds from the Niger Delta and across Nigeria, to study at

various universities across the globe. Timipre also championed the first ever helicopter pilot training programme for the petroleum industry in Nigeria with the training of indigenous youths as internationally certified commercial helicopter pilots to take over opportunities hitherto dominated by Expatriates. Following the successful completion of their training, Timipre played a key role in initiating a job-creation partnership between the Fund and the private sector leading to the employment of the young budding pilots in the industry, upon completion of their type-rating/ hour-building internship.

The award was split into three categories: The Professional Achievement Award had an array of Mary Stephen, Tolu Ogunlesi , Olanrewaju Akinsola, Paul Oluikpo , Timipre Wolo, seeing Olanrewaju Akinsola clinch the coveted category.

The Social Impact category was slugged out by ex- THISDAY staff Bolaji Abdullahi ,Fatima Oyiza Ademoh, Mary Dinah and Mfon Ekpo.

Fatima Oyiza took of the University of Leeds took home warad and shine.

On the entrepreneurial front, Nasir Abdulkadir, Ehime Eigbe, Adebambo Akani, Anas Balarabe Yazid and Isoken Ogiemwonyi, were paraded as contestants for this category. Anas Balarabe Yazid of Imperial College won the category

Zuriel Oduwole Profiles Kenya Airways to Showcase Her Initiative Zuriel Elise Oduwole, an American girl education advocate and film maker, is in the news again. Developing sets of events, puts Kenya Airways front and centre of a fresh initiative by Oduwole, and her quest to attract foreign investors to what she calls ‘her Africa’. She returned from Mexico a few days ago, where she traveled as an Education Ambassador and Peace Emmisary on her own volution to try and ease the tension between the U.S. and that Spanish speaking economic powerhouse.

She was welcomed with open arms across

two states, and the city of Pachuca - the capital of Hidalgo State, honoured with a citation and an Award her for her various global initiatives including her current mission as an Education Ambassador. Two months ago, Secretary of State John Kerry honoured her in Washington DC, calling her the World’s Most Powerful Girl.

As a young film maker, who is also now teaching basic film making to Africa's youths, she is telling the positive stories of Africa, but this time, showing to the world the business brands across the continent, and she has began

Timekeepers to Unveil New Outlet, Brands in Nigeria

with Kenya Airways. Her feature and story on the airline is now scheduled for various news and business programme channels in Africa, Europe and the U.S. over the next few months.

In her own little way, she is adding value to Africa, its brands, and in this very case, Kenya Airways, by shining a positive light, and telling the story from the innocence and fresh perspective of a 14-year-old African Child. She is now traveled to Johannesburg, to continue showcasing 'her Africa'.

Zuriel Oduwole (left), receiving an Hidalmum Award from Tecnologico College, Hidalgo State

ST Novela, AMC Series Premiere New Exciting Series on StarTimes

Sunday Okobi In its efforts to provide premium products and services, quintessential wristwatch, jewellery and fashion accessories brand, Timekeepers, will on April 1, 2017, launch its new outlet at the Novare-Lekki Mall, Lagos.

According to a statement from the firm, Timekeepers will also unveil to the Nigerian market the GUESS and Gc (Guess Collection) watch brands, stating that Gc is a Swiss precision brand whose signature ‘Smart Luxury’ stands for the brands commitment to provide quality timepieces and luxury products at a surprisingly accessible price point.

The new retail outlet, accordingly, which will add up as the eighth Timekeepers store across Nigeria, “is yet another expression of its commitment to bringing its services even closer to its customers.

Timekeepers has over time established itself as a leading retailer and distributor of quality timepieces, jewellery, sunglasses and other accessories from some of the best known brands in the world. In its portfolio are watch and jewellery brands that include: Police, Cerruti 1881, French Connection, Sekonda, Roamer of Switzerland, Victorinox Swiss Army, Jacques Farel (Kids) and now GUESS and Gc (Guess Collection).”

According to the statement, the retail brand also parades a fine list of sunglasses from brands such as Rayban, Police, Hugo Boss, Gucci, Armani, D&G, Versace, Escada, Carrera and many more. In its accessories section,

Timekeepers new Lekki office

it offers the world famous Victorinox Swiss Army Knives as well Police perfumes.”

Timekeepers, in addition to the new NovareLekki Mall store, has stores at the Ikeja City Mall, Apapa Mall and Festival Mall in Festac all in Lagos; in Abuja it has stores at Grand Towers Mall and at the Jabi Lake Mall. It also has at the Polo Park Mall in Enugu as well as The Palms Shopping Mall, Ibadan.

It further noted that the brand runs an e-commerce website www.timekeepers-ng. com where its products can be accessed along with a wide range of informative write-ups on wrist watches, jewellery and accessories.

The Managing Director of Timekeepers, Akinyemi Mobolaji, expressed delight in how far the organisation had come, saying: “We serve as representatives to some of the world’s best-known brands acting as managers of their brands in Nigeria and the West African territory.

In a bid to further enrich entertainment and viewing pleasure for subscribers, ST Novela, Fox and AMC Series have lined up new exciting series on StarTimes this month.

ST Novela begins season 1 of Legendary Love, the story of a young lady who was unjustly accused of a clergyman's murder.

With that horrible crime, she was arrested and spent 23 years in prison. In the present day, a young lady must figure out the real story behind the Priest's mysterious death.

Suddenly, weird events start happening.

A series of grisly and horrible murders is washed over the Del Toro residence. These murders are committed by an enigmatic figure whose face is hooded in a smeared wedding veil. Will Natalia find out who is the culprit and identify the real "La Mujerde Judas"?

Legendary Love airs on Monday through Wednesday by 6:50pm.

Season 1 of on the wings of Love also debuts on ST Novela this month, from Saturday to Sunday by 6:50pm, showing a 2015 Philippine romantic comedy television series which premiered on ABS-CBN and worldwide on The Filipino Channel on August 10, 2015, replacing Bridges of Love. The romantic comedy centers around two different people—Leah, a simple girl with an American dream; and Clark, a boy living his American life—who are forced to marry to legally stay and continue working in the United States.

Popular series, EMPIRE returns on 23rd March, by Thursday at 8:00pm on Fox with

the second part of Season 3. A powerful family drama about the head of a music empire whose three sons and ex-wife all battle for his throne Damian and Mariana come from opposite worlds, but that will not be an impediment for passionate love to appear Also on ST Novela, from Monday to Friday, by 8:30PM, LANINA tells the story of a young girl recruited by force by the guerrilla, where she lived in first-hand the horror of war. After many years, she flees from the armed group and guided to set on a new path, returning to ordinary life which will not be easy due to the struggles of re integration in to society, the challenge of under stating this new side of herself and confronting her own family.

ST Novela will also in March continue popular series, Amazona on Saturday and Sunday 8:30pm with the story Victoriano, a landowner and businessman, father of three daughters (Diana, Casandra and Constanza), victim of lies and intrigues that prevent him from being with the love of his life, who has also sacrificed her happiness, as a victim of an act of violence that has condemned her to live in the shadow of the Santos family.

In a plot, full of emotional situations, the three daughters of Victoriano struggle to reach their happiness beside the man they love, no matter the consequences. Diana, the eldest daughter of Victoriano is the one who most resembles him and whom he can least break.

TAN to Hold Maiden International Conference on Tunneling and Underground Space in Lagos Peter Uzoho Tunneling Association of Nigeria (TAN), has announced that the maiden international conference on Tunneling and Underground Space will hold next week in Lagos.

The conference scheduled to hold between March 29 and 30, 2017 at the Conference Hall of the Oriental Hotel, Lagos, will have in attendance,

the President of the International Tunneling and Underground Space Association, Dr. Tarcisio Celestino, and its Executive Director, Mr. Olivier Vion, who will lead other delegates from around the world to attend the historic event.

According to the Association, the forum is targeted at sensitising Nigerian stakeholders on the concept of tunneling as a viable alternative to meet the ever-growing infrastructural deficit

in the country.

It said the body was working on a ten 10-year strategic advocacy plan, where it intends to partner with three frontline engineering institutions- one federal, one state and one private university, for a long-term capacity building in this field of engineering towards expanding the developmental and infrastructural scope in Nigeria.

TAN also disclosed that the forum would attract

students from universities and polytechnics, noting specifically that students from the University of Lagos and Afe Babalola University were billed to participate in the conference. The association believes that these youngsters would leverage on their early exposure to this emerging concept, to gain early buy-in which will place them ahead and open up opportunities for them in line with international best practices.

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24.03.2017

Orji

What Manner of Man is Orji?

Ever since his induction into the eight Senate in June 2015, Senator Theodore Orji has proved to be one of the most active and productive legislators in the upper chamber, writes Solomon Elusoji There are few senators of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in the eight Senate who can rival the exploits of Senator Theodore Orji, representing Abia Central Senatorial District.

In less than two years, he has taken his eight years experience of successfully governing a major state in the country and brought them to bear on the business of lawmaking.

The three major functions of a legislator are law making, representation and oversight and Orji has performed creditably well in all aspects. On law-making, Orji has acquitted himself so well that he was in June 2016 rated the third most productive Senator of the Federal Republic, sponsoring three solid motions which resulted in resolutions of the Senate.

One of the resolutions, which was made on January 30, 2016, mandated the Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB), to publish reports of its investigations into the causes of air accidents in the country. The second resolution was made on January 13, 2016, and it caused the Senate to pass a resolution calling on the Federal Government to immediately set up the Public Procurement Council in accordance with the 2009 Public Procurement Act. The third resolution, which was made on October 4, 2016, was on the need to check indiscriminate rock blasting in the FCT and other parts of the country, in accordance with international best practices.

Still on law making, Orji is the sponsor of nine bills, one of which has already been passed into an Act by the National Assembly while others are at various stages of passage.

The first of the bills is SB. 71, “A Bill For An Act To Make Provision For Freedom From Hunger And The Right To Adequate Food Of Acceptable Quality, Right Of Every

Child To Basic Nutrition And For Connected Purposes”. This bill is now an Act. It was passed into an Act on the floor of the Senate on Thursday, October 13, 2016. It is awaiting Presidential assent.

Another one is SB. 72, “A Bill For An Act To Repeal The Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission Act, Cap 117 Laws Of The Federation Of Nigeria And Re-Enact The Nigerian Investment Commission To Provide For The Creation Of An Attractive Incentive Framework And A Transparent Predictable And Facilitating Environment For Investment In Nigeria And Related Matters”. This bill is now for Second reading/debate stage.

The third bill is SB. 73 “A Bill For An Act To Provide For National Planning Process And For Other Matters Connected Therewith”.

This is also in the second reading stage. The forth is SB. 79, “A Bill For An Act To Provide For The Management And Conservation Of Nigeria’s Biodiversity, The Protection Of Species And Ecosystems That Warrant National Protection, The Sustainable And Equitable Sharing Of Benefits Arising From Bio-prospecting Involving Indigenous Biological Resources, The Establishment And Function Of The National Biodiversity Institute And For Matters Connected Therewith”. This is also in at the second reading stage.

Orji’s fifth bill is SB. 119 “A Bill For An Act To Amend The Deep Offshore And Inland Basin Sharing Contract , Cap D3 LFN 2004 And For Other Matters Connected Thereto”. This bill has long passed through first and second reading or debate stage. It was given to the Senate Committee on Petroleum Resources since the first quarter of 2016 but the Committee, for reasons known to them, decided not to report back to Senate.

The sixth bill is SB. 129, “A Bill For An Act To Alter The Provision Of The Constitution Of The Federal Republic Of Nigeria, 1999 (As Amended) To Enable The President And State Governors To Designate And Assign Portfolios To Persons Nominated As Ministers Or Commissioners Before Confirmation By The Senate Or The State House Of Assembly.

This bill was married to many other bills on amendment of the constitution and they all will be handled together.

Orji’s seventh bill is SB. 256, “A Bill For An Act To Provide For The Establishment Of The Nigerian Centre For Disease Control And Prevention (NCDC) And For Matters Connected Therewith”. This bill passed the second reading on the floor of the Senate on Tuesday, March 14, 2017.

The eight bill is SB. 259“A Bill For An Act To Regulate The Manufacture, Importation, Distribution And Quality Control Of Fertilizer In Nigeria And For Related Matters”. This bill is at the second reading. And the ninth bill is SB. 260 “A Bill For An Act To Provide For The Regulation And Effective Monitoring Of Metallurgical Inspection And Raw Material Development In Nigeria And For Related Matters”. This is also at the second reading.

“At this point, His Excellency is not a senator that anybody can overlook,” former deputy Speaker Abia State House of Assembly and Senior Legislative Aide to Senator Orji, Hon. Chidiebere Nwoke says. “Having been an executive governor of a state for eight years, he is quite experienced and very outspoken.

And he is quick to learn.”

On representation, Orji has given the people of Abia Central quality and unprecedented representation by the delivery of ample democracy dividends to them. Within two years

of his stay in the Senate, Orji has surpassed every achievement his predecessors put together ever recorded. In education, more than 200 students have benefited from the Senator’s scholarship scheme.

He has also undertaken numerous infrastructure projects, some of which include: the electrification of Umuhute Azueke Autonomous Community, Umuahia North L.G.A.; the electrification of Ahiaba Okpuala Community, Isiala Ngwa North L.G.A.; the electrification of Nvosi I, Amaku Community in Isiala Ngwa South L.G.A. of Abia State; the delivery of 500/11/KVA transformer to residents of Uwalaka Street, Enugu road, Awkuzu Street, Awolowo Street, Chidiebere Nwoke Street, Amuzukwu layout, etc. Umuahia North L. G. A.; the delivery of 500/11/KVA transformer to the people of Okpu ancient kingdom in Osisioma – Ngwa L.G.A. of Abia State.

Owing to the legislative sagacity of Orji, he is the Vice Chairman, Senate Committee on Agriculture and was able to attract some other projects through the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. These include: the construction of Attah – Emede Nkpuru – Umuakanu Road, Emede Ibeku Autonomous Community, Umuahia North L.G.A.; the reconstruction/rehabilitation of Umuire – Udide – Umuodudu – Agbo Road, Emede Autonomous Community.

Legislators perform their oversight functions through committee duties. Orji is the Vice Chairman, Senate Committee on Agriculture; member, Senate Committees on Police Affairs, Marine Transport, and Health. He participates effectively in the oversight activities of all these committees as a very prominent and important member.

33/ TRAVEL, LEISURE & TOURISM

24.03.2017

Ethiopian Flights to Three New Destinations in Three Days Africa’s largest airline group, Ethiopian Airlines, has announced that it has finalised preparations to launch flights to three new destinations – Victoria Falls, Oslo and Antananarivo – within three days, 26-28 March 2017. Heralding the launch of three new destinations in three days, Group CEO Mr. Tewolde GebreMariam said, “Three new flights to three new destinations in just three days is one of the greatest expansions in Ethiopian’s long and illustrious history. We are proud that we are able to link these new stations to the Ethiopian network in such a short period of time.

As of 28 March, our vast global network will add three new destinations which will further strengthen our leadership in the continent in connecting more cities in Africa to more cities in the world than any other airline; like 28 weekly flights to 4 destinations in China, 20

weekly flights to The Americas, 72 weekly flights to Asia, 65 weekly flights to Middle East, 400 weekly flights to 53 cities across Africa and almost daily 54 flights to Europe.

“This is only possible due to the continued support and dedication of the thousands of Ethiopian Airlines’ employees who strive for the best service, best safety, and best on time performance every day and the great vote of confidence that we are enjoying every day from our valued customers.” Victoria Falls, Oslo and Antananarivo are three of the seven new destinations to be launched during the first six months of 2017. Ethiopian started flights to Conakry in February 2017. Before July, Ethiopian will start service to three destinations in Asia: Chengdu, Singapore and Jakarta. Ethiopian envisages reaching 120 international destinations worldwide by the year 2025.

Ethiopian Airlines

Lufthansa, Vereinigung Cockpit Reach Comprehensive Agreement on a Deal to Last Until 2022 Following constructive talks, which took place recently, Lufthansa and the pilot's union Vereinigung Cockpit reached an agreement regarding all previously unresolved collective bargaining matters. In a declaration of intent, the negotiating partners agreed on forwardthinking provisions for transitional payments, pension plans, the framework agreement on employment conditions and the collective wage agreement for the pilots of Lufthansa, Lufthansa Cargo and Germanwings.

The recommendation developed in February by mediator Dr. Gunter Pleuger for the collective wage agreement formed one part of the considerations. But the new agreement has made a formal acceptance of the arbitration recommendations unnecessary. Likewise, Lufthansa will not be pursuing a previously announced plan to staff 40 newly acquired aircraft outside the group-wide collective bargaining agreement (KTV).

Over the next months, the details of the various collective bargaining agreements will have to be worked out. The agreement provides a one-off balance-sheet reduction through

Lufthansa

the conversion of the pension schemes. In return for the cost-reducing elements of the agreement, 325 aircraft will be crewed in the current KTV flight operations in stages by 2022.

This will make it possible for Lufthansa to

hire trainee pilots again in the coming years and create career prospects for pilots with a large number of positions for prospective captains. A reciprocal agreement to refrain from industrial action for the duration of the

talks has already been reached, and is set to be formalised in a collective bargaining agreement that will last until 2022.

Dr. Bettina Volkens, Head of Legal Affairs and Human Resources at Deutsche Lufthansa AG, says: "With this declaration of intent we have finally reached a breakthrough. The path is now clear for a comprehensive settlement with Vereinigung Cockpit on all unresolved collective bargaining issues. This is not only the end of the longest collective bargaining dispute in our company's history – it also creates a sustainable deal that will last until 2022 and, at the same time, lays the foundation for a new social partnership with the Vereinigung Cockpit. The path to this result exacted a heavy toll from everyone involved – but, in the interest of Lufthansa, our employees, customers and shareholders, it was worth it.

Today, I would like to thank everyone who made this success possible. We have a lot of work ahead of us now, because we want to implement this settlement in collective bargaining agreements together with the union as quickly as possible.

MIPAD Set to Unveil its 100 Under 40 Honourees Tomorrow In support of the International Decade for People of African Descent, proclaimed by United Nation’s General Assembly resolution 68/237 and to be observed from 2015 to 2024, the Most Influential People of African Descent (MIPAD) will tomorrow officially launch the MIPAD initiative and unveiling of the global list of MIPAD honourees (MIPAD 100 under

40) in Lagos.

The event will coincide with the UN commemoration of the International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade, and will feature special guest speakers including; Abike Dabiri-Erewa, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Foreign Affairs and Diaspora,

along with UN officials in Nigeria.

Also, the Awards Dinner in honour of the participants, ‘MIPAD Class of 2017’ is slated for on the September 26, 2017 in New York City after the 72nd Regular Session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA 72). Barack Obama, former U.S. President and António Guterres, current UN Secretary-General, are

expected to be invited as keynote speakers.

MIPAD is a civil society initiative that identifies and ranks high achievers of African descent in public and private sectors from all around the world as a progressive network of relevant actors to join together in the spirit of recognition, justice and development of Africa, its people on the continent and across its Diaspora.

Cash ‘N’ Carry Excites Lagosians as it Opens Goldberg’s Cultural Contest Lights Up Ekiti Ayan-Gbayi Group has clinched New Outlet the grand prize and emerged the Mary Ekah

The excitement was so copious as potential customers trooped to the newly opened showroom by one of the biggest electronic and home appliances retailers in Nigeria, Cash ‘N’ Carry, at the Adeola Odeku area of Victoria Island, Lagos.

Already there was a display of varieties of product at the new outlet from various brands.

Speaking on what informed the decision to open another shop at Adeola Odeku, the Managing Director, Cash ‘N’ Carry, Komal Shama said, “We wanted to bring Cash ‘N’ Carry closer to all our customers, so we wanted to be in the most accessible area of the Island, which we believe is Adeola Odeku.”

She said the influx of Cash ‘N’ Carry shops in the major cities of Lagos and other part of Nigeria, has afforded customers the opportunity to get the best products at the best prices, while expressing the hope that this has brought a lot of joy to the customers.

Encouraging customers that buying at Cash ‘N’ Carry brings peace of mind, she noted, “They don’t need to worry about the products, they are all genuine products and they have after sales service and we are the number one for after sales services.

We take care of all our customers no matter when they buy the products from us and I think that

L-r: Chairman, Grand Bee Hotel, Mrs. Sunmbo Soremekun, Executive Director, Cash 'N' Carry, Mr. Ashok Mirchandani and Chairman, Cash 'N' Carry, Mr. Kan Chatlan at the event

is the most important thing for our customers.”

On if the inflation in the country has in any way affected prices of products at Cash ‘N’ Carry, Shama answered in the negative, noting, “We are truly Nigerian, we buy local and sell local.

So we are not affected. We are grateful to our customers and it is because of our customers that we have Cash ‘N’ Carry today. They are, and therefore, we are.”

overall best drum band at the Excellency Tour in Ado Ekiti held penultimate Friday. After two breathtaking performances by each band, Ayan-Gbayi emerged the best after a close contest with four other groups and went home with N250, 000.

Ifesowapo Group emerged the second best band and carted away a prize ofN150,000 while Itesiwaju Group emerged the third best band Ayan-Gbayi Group, winner of the first prize in the Goldberg and went home with N100,000. Excellency Tour at Ado-Ekiti being presented with a cheque of Masterpiece Theatre Troupe and N250, 000 Alayande Group emerged fourth drummers’ procession, which geared the interest and fifth and took home N50,000 each.

Kayode Rahman, leader of the best drum of indigenes to the Excellent Nite, where all band said the Goldberg Excellency Tour has competing bands thrilled the audience.

Funso Ayeni, Senior Brand Manager, Regional brought a season of excitement and reward for local talents in Ado Ekiti and expressed Mainstream Brands, Nigerian Breweries Plc appreciation to the brand for supporting explained that the Excellency Tour will deepen traditional acts around the South West with the brand’s identification with the cultural the Tour. According to him, “This is the most values of the South-west people.

He congratulated all contestants in Ado Ekiti rewarding day for us as a band and we cannot hide our excitement for winning this grand for their efforts in honing their talents and encouraged them to continue with developing prize.”

Other winning bands expressed their apprecia- their skills, which will not only add value tion and welcomed the tour with excitement to their personal and professional lives, but and looked forward to subsequent editions also help in preserving the Yoruba culture.

The Goldberg Excellency Tour is scheduled being bigger and better.

The city of Ado Ekiti was agog with the for two other cities: Ile Ife and Benin City.

34/XTRA

24.03.2017

Okwuosa: An Outstanding Indigenous Professional Sopuruchi Onwuka The National Productivity Order of Merit Award (NPOMA), one of Nigeria’s most coveted national honours, conferred on eminent petroleum industry captain and versatile investor, Engr.

Emeka Okwuosa, amplifies his position as key pillar of support in the nation’s quest for socio-economic development.

In the letter NPC/AV/377/VIII of February 6, 2017 signed by Mrs. I. Adebimpe, the Secretary of the National Productivity Merit Award Committee, the National Productivity Centre recognised the contributions of Engr.

Okwuosa; The National Productivity Order of Merit Award is designed to affect productivity positively at both individual and corporate levels.

At the individual level, the award is intended to encourage such noble attributes as expertise in job performance, dedication, hard work, initiative, creativity, honesty, reliability, selfdiscipline, moral leadership, responsibility, punctuality, teamwork, contribution to the building of communities and organisations, and good human relations.

At the corporate level, NPOMA seeks to acknowledge organisations that are self-reliant in their adaptation and application of technology in order to guarantee for themselves cost effective operation and productivity efficiency. Also, the award recognises companies which show a trend for sustained increases over the years in such vital areas as local sourcing of raw materials, capacity utilisation, sales turnover, profitability, employee welfare schemes and training facilities.

At the latest awards which held on February 21, 2017, Engr. Okwuosa who has successfully established and groomed The Oilserv Group Limited from an indigenous service provider in the petroleum industry to a group of numerous and variegated companies, stood tall in the list of just 15 awardees selected from a total of 1,978 nomination forms sent out to all Ministries, Departments and Agencies at the Federal and State levels and also the private sector.

Acting Chairman, National Productivity Order of Merit Award, Mr. Ikechi Uko, said that the selection of the awardees was guided by the principle of integrity, openness, honesty and transparency.

Uko said that the assessment of nominees was based on a 16-point performance criteria which include job performance, expertise, dedication, creativity, initiative, responsibility, leadership and quality, among others.

He noted that corporate organisations were assessed based on an eight-point criteria including local sourcing of raw materials, employment generation, staff training, profitability, capacity utilisation and corporate social responsibility, among others.

According to President Muhammadu Buhari whose address was delivered by the Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, the national aspiration goal is to rebuild Nigeria into a competitive, virile, strong and productive economy where the citizens are creative, innovative, responsive, accountable, incorruptible, patriotic and diligent.

All the values recognised in the NPOM Awards aptly capture the key attributes that mark out Engr. Okwuosa as an outstanding indigenous professional who has driven enterprise development with a high dose of patriotism: leading industry innovation, creating jobs, training young professionals, domesticating industry budgets for cross-sectoral linkages and positively impacting local communities with robust corporate social responsibility initiatives.

Engr. Okwuosa represents a short story of long achievements delivered with patriotic indigenous hands which he exposed to world class expertise and equipped with hands-on training that qualified them to fit into the cluster of companies that form the Oilserv Group.

With over 34 years of engineering experience in full petroleum industry service loop, teaching, project management, business administration, Engr. Okwuosa has also traversed the global business plays and accumulated multifarious experiences in different challenging terrains of the world’s continents.

He had flown Nigeria’s flag high with professional competence while in the services of Schlumberger where he functioned in different positions: from Field Engineer to Technical

Okwuosa

Manager at the company’s operations in Europe, Asia and Africa.

It is with the rich wealth of experience, blend of global technologies and innate passion for excellence that Engr. Okwuosa established and developed the Oilserv Group to localise and domesticate global industry technology and expertise for in-country utilisation. Engr.

Okwuosa has expressed in numerous platforms for policy dialogue that the huge indigenous capacity gap must be closed for the country to progress towards economic diversification, industrialisation and stability.

This belief informed his commitments to partnerships with academic institutions, professional groups, training groups and industry associations to provide Nigerian youths with post graduate training, vocational skills, technology and the highly necessary cognate experience required for work place performance.

His Oilserv Limited has not only led in development and use of local expertise in industry operations, the group has also demonstrated effective local expertise with wide range of technical services that include engineering, procurement, construction (EPC) and maintenance of pipelines and facilities in the most challenging terrains in the Niger Delta.

With nearly 100 per cent indigenous workers, the company has today become a major pipeline development factor in the country, region, and continent.

The company is also the key project driver in realisation of Nigeria’s new gas infrastructure development under the ambitious Nigeria's Gas Masterplan evolved to optimise the economic gains of the country’s vast natural gas resources.

Oilserv also holds sway in other petroleum industry regions across Africa: Sierra Leone, Benin Republic, Ghana, Uganda, etc.

The company’s ISO 9001:2008 certification is a loud testimony of its compliance to most stringent global quality standards and operation efficiency.

Also riding on similar global certification for high standards and efficiency, Frazimex Limited, also established by Engr. Okwuosa, is in the fray with top shelf quality services in Front End and Detailed Engineering Design Services. The company takes the services scope further to cover new areas like civil engineering, electrical services, instrumentation and related activities.

With full chain of total petroleum industry services in his service package, it is therefore only logical for Engr. Okwuosa to venture into oil and gas exploration and production with the establishment of Frazoil Exploration and Production (E&P) Limited. And despite its relatively young age among competitors, Frazoil already operates Block 1 and 3 offshore the Republic of Benin, starting off straight with the clout of a regional player.

Engr.. Okwuosa also floated the FrazPower Limited to capture the commercial opportunities in the fast developing gas-to-power markets that currently sweep across Africa, thus contributing to economic growth of the continent where natural gas is being positioned to drive quantum leap

in power generation and bridge huge generation gaps. The investment in power sector is a key contribution in dismantling constraints to Nigeria’s economic development.

“The strategic vision is to deliver at least 10 trillion cubic feet (TCF) of gas reserves in the next 10 years leveraging sources at varying level of go-to-market readiness,” FrazPower pledges. And the company is already providing distributed power solutions to captive markets in some industrial clusters in the South-east part of the country, leveraging on micro gas liquefaction and compression technologies.

The virtual pipeline solutions have since enhanced capacity utilisation at the industries by introducing smart gas delivery solutions for power generation.

Ekcel Farms Limited is one of the newest of the companies floated by Engr. Okwuosa to demonstrate that commercial opportunities abound in the acute infrastructure and facility deficits in the domestic economy.

With initial $150 million in pocket, 5000 hectares of land and estimated workforce of 2000, Ekcel Farms flaunts the potentials to become a key economic growth driver and major contributor to the nation’s gross domestic product with its mechanised industrial farms that target the high value ends of cassava and tomato production.

Another company in the Oilserv Group is Crown Energy Resources Limited which positions in solid mineral extraction with a modern quarry in Cross River State. The company delves into production of stone materials for road and sundry construction activities.

Therefore, the conglomeration of Oilserv Limited, Frazimex Limited, Frazoil Limited, FrazPower Limited, Ekcel Farms Limited and Crown Energy Resources Limited in one integrated business model with enhanced internal synergy and optimised economies of scale has unleashed efficiencies and leveraged collective potentials that established Oilserv Group as leading indigenous energy factor.

Thus, Engr. Okwuosa’s Oilserv Group has altered traditional stereotype of substandard products and low quality services that worked against indigenous companies in the past decades when foreign companies held sway.

With companies in the group, Engr. Okwuosa may have found expression to his passion for indigenous human capacity development in high technology sectors of the economy. Through the group’s Graduate Training Programmes, Engr.

Okwuosa offers young Nigerian graduates the rare and elusive opportunity for hands-on training and exposure in oil and gas industry operations.

He has endowed professorial chairs in some universities, sponsored researches, built workshops and libraries and laboratories in various institutions across the country. The aim is to build a strong human resource base for national economic development.

Engr. Okwuosa is part of the powerful industry lobby group that influenced the evolution of the Nigerian Content Law in the petroleum industry with the aim to recover full control of the nation’s petroleum industry operations from the hands of fleeting multinationals.

Nigerian Content policy objectives include, among others, to arrest traditional export of Nigerian petroleum industry jobs for execution in foreign countries. The law therefore targets to enhance the petroleum industry contributions to the nation’s GDP via a strategy that deploys the huge oil and gas industry budget to reinvigorate activities in the business sectors of the domestic economy.

Engr. Okwuosa has consistently maintained that building local capacity is of strategic security and economic importance for sustainable development of the country. Therefore, he has encouraged his companies to float complementary industry specific training programmes for different levels of manpower required by industries in different sectors of the economy.

Thus while the graduate training programme targeted at building graduate capacity for project management, planning and control, operations and maintenance, quality assurance and control as well as other critical service packages, the related skills acquisition programme of Oilserv Group targets technical capacity for welding, fitting and other skills for sundry field activities.

With a lofty industry profile, Engr. Okwuosa boasts of a wealth of experience across the

global industry terrain while working with multinational industry technology developers where he had marked out himself as an outstanding talent with restless aspiration to do something different. He believes that every other Nigerian graduate should have similar exposure and expertise without necessarily suffering the drudgery of traversing the world to work for businesses that hold no contribution to Nigeria’s development.

His passion for indigenous expertise defies stereotype and drives innovation among indigenous firms in the country. He justifies patronage for indigenous companies through demonstration of robust capacity to deliver world class standards in services and products; his Oilserv Group currently wrestles jobs from foreign competitors and provides opportunities for Nigerian experts.

Engr. Okwuosa’s towering industry profile is supported by solid education from a selection of the world’s best institutions, ensuring sound knowledge and full mastery of business strategies. He continues to make contributions to the development of engineering and technical professions in the country through membership of numerous bodies.

He is a member of Society of Professional Well Log Analysts (SPWLA); Petroleum Technology Association of Nigeria (PETAN); Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN); Pipeline Professionals Association of Nigeria (PLAN); Nigerian Institute of Directors (IoD); Society of Petroleum Engineers International (SPE); and Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE).

Engr. Okwuosa is not new to awards and recognitions. His industry footprints and contributions to capacity building in the country have earned him innumerable awards. They include Award of Excellence by the Departments of Physics, University of Nigeria (UNN, 2006); Annual OTC/PETAN Awards for Excellence 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015; US/African International Oil and Gas Leadership Award, Best of Africa 2013; Keyman Award by the Enugu Chamber of Commerce, Industry Mines and Agriculture (ECCIMA, 2014); Best CEO of the Year 2013; Best CSR Practice 2013; and Award of Excellence (Nanotechnology) (UNN, 2014).

Okwuosa also garnered other awards that include: PETAN Oil and Gas Industry Achievement Award 2014; PETAN Distinguished Achievement Award 2014; and Fidelity Bank Distinguished Customer Award 2015.

In quick succession, Okwuosa was recently inducted to the rarified zenith of the academic world with two heartfelt honorary doctorates: ESUT - Enugu State University of Technology (December, 2016) and UNN - University of Nigeria Nsukka (January, 2017).

Being an eminent Knight of Saint Christopher (KSC) of the Anglican Communion and Founder of Sir Chukwuemeka Okwuosa Foundation, he has also continued to positively impact his immediate and remote societies through scholarships, poverty alleviation programme and limitless interventions in development of social facilities and infrastructure to alleviate the suffering of the people.

It is clearly obvious that Engr. Emeka Okwuosa has a speedy flight to the heights of professionalism, and has maintained a frontline position in deepening the indigenous capacity for delivery of world’s toughest industry jobs in line with world class standards and best practices while remaining socially responsible.

It is therefore only rational and justified that today the country’s best professional groups, industry groups, trainers and academic institutions salute his many pioneer roles and outstanding contributions to the advancement of professional excellence, business best practices and audacious strides in indigenous capacity development.

It is not surprising therefore that the National Productivity Centre once again counted Engr.

Emeka Okwuosa among the 15 individuals and five organisations found outstanding and subsequently recommended for government conferment of the NPOM Awards.

In appreciating contributions of Engr. Okwuosa and other awardees, Vice President Osinbajo commended the innovation and creativity of the recipients.

“Our nation is greatly enriched and ennobled by your hard work, enterprise, creativity and remarkable productivity,’’ the Vice President declared.

35/ENTREPRENEUR

24.03.2017

‘African Young Chef Competition Will Boost Nigeria’s Economy’ Africans and Nigerians in particular will be given the chance to watch African young chefs from 10 different countries battle live on stage in competition to crown the first ever ‘African Young Chef’. The Founder, the Culinary Academy Nigeria and President, Culinary Arts Practitioners Association of Nigeria, Ms. Tiyan Alile, in this interview with Mary Ekah, says the event which takes place live in Lagos on May 5th, does not only has the capability to unite the African content but also will, most especially, boost the Nigerian economy Can you tell us what informed the African Young Chef 2017 competition?

Culinary Academy is a hospitality consulting, lifestyle, recreational, and academic organisation, accredited by the Ministry of Education to provide Diploma in Culinary and Eatery Art and for people who want to become chefs. They do 18 months programme after which we push them into the industry. The institute is basically for people who want to move to next level in their catering skills and for those who want to become caterers and also want to explore their talents in the industry. I am also the Executive Chef of Tarragon Restaurant and also the President of the Culinary Arts Practitioners Association of Nigeria, which is an association of chefs.

And so, the Culinary Academy Nigeria is going to be five years old and part of our 5th year celebration is to launch this event, which we are going to hold every year. We are going to have a gathering of young chefs from 10 African countries that are going to come together and have the opportunity to network with colleagues in the industry, to do mentoring sessions and workshops with older chefs in the industry and do a healthy competition amongst themselves. So, the Culinary Academy Nigeria will be giving 10 bright young chefs from different African countries a chance of becoming the African Young Chef 2017. Ten of them will battle it out for one of them to emerge the African Young Chef 2017. The African Young Chef competition is a platform where we would be gathering young African chefs between the ages of 18 and 29 that are Africans.

How do you intend to get participants for this competition?

For this competition, our participants are coming from 10 different African countries.

What we did was that we wrote letters to culinary schools and hotels across Africa, telling them about this competition for them to send young chefs they think are bright and that can compete. We also called out for participants on social media platform, www. africanyoungchefs.com, where you can log on to participate but we are actually doing it on the first come first serve basis. Right now we have Gabon, Gambia, Rwanda, Kenya, Ghana, South Africa and Nigeria. We are hoping to get more because the competition is on May 5, 2017.

What are you looking at during the competition?

On the first day of the competition, which is the 4th of May, all the competitors will converge at the Culinary Academy, where we would hold a welcome party, while they would also get registered and get their kits for the competition. Then on the next day, which is May 5th, the event starts at 10.00am at the Habour Point, Victoria Island, where we would do a flag off where each country comes out to display their nation’s flag. And then the competition starts and they start cooking.

Prior to the competition, they would have got the ingredients that they are going to use and also they would have had a chance to try out dishes they are going to put forward.

And then the competition starts and when the competition is done, we would have a closing ceremony. And then they would get to display their country’s flags again and then we would pick the first, second and third winner. We would have a jury of three judges made up of celebrated and successful African senior chefs. Nigeria’s radio and television

Alile, initiator of African Young Chef Competition

favorite, best known for his works as the host of Big Brother Africa, IK Osakioduwa will host the event, with support from other big names supplying entertainment.

Apparently, this is going to be a huge event having the African continent gathering in Nigeria. Do you have sponsors for it?

Right at this moment, we are speaking to a number of people but right now, it is just our financial muscle pushing it forward. However, we are calling out to people in the food and beverage industry who can identify with this because it is not going to be just an annual event but an event that we would be taking around the continent because our plan is to unite the African continent with something that is a common denominating factor, which is food. So we intend to take it from here to different African countries as an annual event.

What exactly will Africans benefit from this annual event?

Our fundamental objective as a culinary academy is not just to play locally but to play on the global scale. And to fulfill that objective, we have done a couple of things.

Now, the Culinary Academy is creating a platform for young up-and-coming chefs to network with colleagues in the industry and engage with senior chefs in mentoring sessions and showcase their art at its best form, for a chance to win prize money,

world class equipment and internships with globally renowned leading organisations in the sector. During this event, there is going to be breakout sessions for mentoring, so it is going to be a platform where they can expand their knowledge base and of course the city of Lagos will also benefit from this event in the sense that by the time we have participants from different African countries coming with their mentors, the tourism and hospitality industry will be affected positively in one way or the other. And of course there would be capacity building, there is going to be potential recruiters as there are going to be a number of people from the hotel industry present. I am also calling on banks to come and see what is going on there and who knows, you might discover a young talent there that can actually help your business grow. So it is a platform of learning, capacity building and educational based and of course it is healthy competition, which at the end will bring out the best in all the competitors.

What is your view of the Nigerian food and hospitality industry presently?

Well, with my experience traveling far and wide, Nigerian food and hospitality industry, I would honesty say has grown. It has changed so much from the way it was like 10 years back. A lot of international brands have come into Nigeria in the last 10 years and I think that has also made Nigerians step up

their games. People are looking inward to our own ingredients and transforming that and making our foods exportable, which is a good thing. So I will say really, that the hospitality industry has really improved in the last few years and I am very proud of it and it is an industry that I have always wanted to project to the world. So there is always the next big thing to do and the African Young Chef 2017 competition is one of the next big things we are planning to do to ensure that we push this industry further.

What advice do you have for practitioners in the food and hospitality industry, especially the up-and-coming ones?

I will specifically advise the up-and-coming upcoming people on two things which I always tell people. First, educate yourself, learn about what you are doing and arm yourself with knowledge, get educated and understand the industry you are in and that is the only way you can transfer that knowledge to anybody.

And then the second thing I always tell people is act, live and work with your senses. Your sense of touch, visual, smell and all of that because that is how we operate. So if you are doing anything, let your senses speak to what you are doing. Even your emotion should be allowed to speak to you, let whatever you do come from your heart, your mind and your brain. Let your senses come together and propel you into doing the right thing.

36/COLLAGE

L-R; Daughter of Late Madam Adetokunbo Olayinka Badejo, Mrs. Kunmi Abdul, Former Speaker House of Representative, Hon. Dimeji Bankole and the Managing Director/CEO, Cleanserve Integrated Energy Solutions Ltd, Mr. Lekan Abdul. during the burial ceremony for the Late Madam Badejo in Lagos...recently.

DAN UKANA

24.03.2017

L-R; Otun Baba Ijo, United African Methodist Evangelical Church, Abule Ijesha, Yaba, Elder Kayode Folorunsho Oladepo and a Church Patron, Senator Anthony Adefuye,, at the Church’s 10th Year Anniversary Thanksgiving Service. in Lagos....recently

L-R: President, Polymer Institute of Nigeria(PIN), Dr Paul Manza; Immediate Past President, PIN, Dr Imanah Joseph; Group Managing Director, Flour Mills Nigeria Plc, Mr. Paul Gbededo; and Founding President, PIN, Mr. Kunle Ogunade, at the investiture of Gbededo as the fellow of the Institute in lagos....recently ETOP UKUTT

L-R Matron, United African Methodist Evangelical Church, Abule Ijesha, Chief Mrs. Mabel Kehinde Komolafe receiving a gift from the Church Chancellor, Barrister Kehinde Diya during the church’s 10th Year Annual Conference Thanksgiving Service. in Lagos....recently

L-R: Chairman of the Occasion, Mr. Gbenga Oyebode; Chairperson, Board of Trustees, Association of Private Educators in Nigeria (APEN), Dr (Mrs) Olufemi Ogunsanya; Keynote Speaker, Prof. Ladipo Adamolekun; Chief Excutive Officer, Supreme Education Foundation Schools (SEF), Mrs. Adenike Adamolekun;and Chairman, Board of Governors, SEF, Prof. Olugbenga Ogunmoyefa, at the 25th anniversary symposium in Magodo, Lagos.. recently

L-R; CEO, Unity Hospitals Group Ltd, Sir Dr Charles Oladeinde Williams (KJW); Principal, Methodist High School, Lagos, Very Revd David Oyebade; Archbishop of Lagos, Methodist Church Nigeria, Most Revd Luke Odubanjo, a US based Town Planner, Chief John Asiyanbi and the Presbyter, Wesley Cathedral Olowogbowo , Very Revd John Solubi during the 2017 Annual Covenant Sunday Thanksgiving Service in Lagos.....recently

37/THISLIFE

24.03.2017

Ihedioha at 52: Glowing Legacies of Service, Consistency and Trust Chibuike Onyeukwu Nigeria has a rich political history featuring politicians who made their marks in the sands of time by helping to shape the trajectory of national growth and development in a positive light. On the flip side, there are also those who have etched their names on the hall of infamy contributing ingloriously to several missteps and misfortunes recorded since the over five decades of independence from colonial rule.

Instructively, the political class has come to be synonymous with corruption, scandals and much else that is wrong with Nigeria. This makes members of this elite group get to be regarded with disdain, suspicion and scorn in some cases. It is hard for a politician to run through the mill of politics and public service in Nigeria and not celebrated negatively.There are however some bright spots in the dark clouds. There are still some men and women who have played on the political scene and exited to the sidelines with their heads held up high.

When I first met Hon. Emeka Ihehioha in 2002 while he was working with the then Vice President, H.E. Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, GCON, as Special Assistant on Political Matters, what really fascinated and endeared him to me during our brief chanced encounter was his unassuming disposition and unparalleled sense of humility and decency.

He further earned my respect by his vision about Imo State and the country at large which he discussed so passionately, intelligently and robustly. Such was Ihedioha’s burning zeal that left an indelible impression about him in my mind.

At the time, Ihedioha had brought Atiku Abubakar, as the Special Guest of honour at the annual Iriji(New Yam festival) of the people of Mbaise on 15th August, 2001. For us young Mbaise boys, this was significant as it was the first and indeed only time when the nation’s Number Two citizen was gracing our New Yam festival. That event was indeed colourful and from then Ihedioha became a darling of the Mbaise people. It was while hosting the visiting Vice President to a lunch at Chief P.C. Onuoha’s country home that few of us engaged Ihedioha. It became evident that he was a very patriotic, visionary and clear headed young man and we became convinced that he had a bigger date with history and indeed a role model.

Interestingly, he was later to transform this zeal and some of his passions into his political creed and part of his work plan as Ihedioha climbed meritoriously onto the public service ladder.

Upon election into the House of Representatives in 2003, Ihedioha was appointed Chairman of the Committee on Marine Transport. He was later elected Chief Whip 2007-2011 and then Deputy Speaker 2011-2015. He has in no small way proved to be of a different stock, away from the maddening crowd of political office holders going by his numerous tangible and intangible accomplishments which dot the minds and landscapes of Imo State. He has also become an easily recognisable personality in our nation.

Throughout his 12-year stint at the National Assembly, Ihedioha pursued people-oriented legislative governance. He made constituency projects and infrastructural development programmes the centre- piece of his public service. His driving force was to ensure the improvement of the standard of living of his constituents, and the wide spectrum of Imo people. By these accomplishments, he has proved sceptics wrong that some politicians could still have a human face and milk of human kindness. In our recollections, Hon. Ihedioha introduced and made constituency briefings a part of representative responsibility.

Born into the family of late Nze BMG Ihedioha and Dame Dorathy Ihedioha in 1965, Ihedioha lived and grew up among his people in the rural setting of Aronta Mbutu community in Aboh Mbaise Local Council of Imo State. This enabled him to acquire unassailable native intelligence and was accordingly exposed to the social challenges and infrastructural plight faced by the people. This informed his resoluteness in using his political positions to ameliorate the situation.

He captured this succinctly while delivering a

Ihedioha

keynote address at the 2016 Isi Mbano Anglican Diocesan Synod on ‘Restoring the Confidence of the Citizens in the Political Leadership in Nigeria’. He noted that he was motivated to pursue a career in politics because of the desire to effect a positive change having observed while growing up that under-development defined his locality and state. “My rural community, Mbutu, my town and indeed some neighbouring towns including parts of Ngor Okpala had neither electricity nor pipe borne water; nor accessible or motorable roads. Today we have undeniably effected remarkable positive changes in those areas of need,” he stated.

The former Deputy Speaker is right. He has in rare fashion empowered several youths and women by offering them special trainings in skills acquisition programmes and providing them with seed fund to take-off. His records in the provision of electricity projects, potable water, health and school facilities, construction and rehabilitation of roads and several other social amenities are legendary and veritable.

Credit is given to him for some of the best roads today in Imo State like the Mbaise Ring road.

This evidenced lofty selfless service to the people makes Ihedioha one of the most accomplished politicians from the South-east. To his huge political credit, Ihedioha is one of the few Nigerian politicians who advocate and advance Nigeria’s unity through conscious and concerted efforts, most times at great personal sacrifice and discomfort. The passion that runs in him is easily felt at your first encounter with him.

Since the last 25 years when he made his debut in Nigerian politics, he has remained undaunted despite the tackles and uncertainties that define Nigeria’s shadowy political landscape.

Like a cat with nine lives he has been in the centre of fierce political battles in the last two decades and survived all of them. Clearly, a burgeoning statesman, Ihedioha has distinguished himself as a thorough bred politician that has been distinctive. It is on record that he finished his three tenures in the House of Representatives untarnished, with his head soaring higher and his green cap still evergreen I was indeed intrigued by the passion with which he pursued his assignment as the Chairman of the House Ad-Hoc Committee on the Constitutional Amendment 2011-2015, during which he coordinated the legendary “peoples’ public sessions” across the 360 Federal Constituencies in the country. For Ihedioha, the true wishes of the people of Nigeria must be reflected to enable us effect amendments that will qualify for a peoples’ democratic constitution.

That assignment remains an exceptional feat.

It is noteworthy that as an accomplished legislator, Ihedioha sponsored many bills and facilitated historic passage of several critical bills and domestication of international conventions such that out of the 110 bills signed into law by President Olusegun Obasanjo in his eight years Presidency, Ihedioha’s piloted Marine Transport Committee had 10. Notably, the only private members bill signed into law was the Act for the Establishment of the Council for Regulation of Freight Forwarding Practice in Nigeria sponsored

by Hon. Ihedioha. Characteristically, this was driven by his resolve to drive reforms in the maritime sector. Some others that also received Presidential assent include Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) Act, 2007; Nigerian Ports Act (Amendment Bill) 2005 and Merchant Shipping Bill; the Chartered Institute of Shipping of Nigeria Bill 2005; the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (Ratification and Enforcement) Act 2004; the United Nations Convention on Carriage of Goods by Sea (Ratification and Enforcement) Bill 2005, the International Convention on the Civil Liabilities for Oil Pollution Damage (Ratification and Enforcement) Bill 2004 and Domestication of the ISPS Code 2004.

During his tenure as Deputy Speaker, Ihedioha led several Nigerian legislative delegations to the ECOWAS Parliament, the International Parliamentary Union (IPU) and Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA). This provided him an amazing opportunity to contribute immensely to the development of parliamentary diplomacy.

Ihedioha attended St. Ephraim’s Secondary School Owerrinta in the present day Abia State.

His tertiary education was at the University of Lagos, where he obtained a BSc degree in Food Technology in 1988. Further quest for knowledge took him to prestigious institutions across the globe under executive short term leadership programmes. These include the Stanford University USA, Harvard University USA, Oxford University Business School and London School of Economics UK, as well as the University of British Columbia in Canada.

There is no gainsaying that the knowledge and experience he acquired from these institutions further prepared him for the leadership roles he has been playing in the political arena.

Ihedioha’s experience in public service dates back to 1992 when he first served as Press Officer to the Senate President of the Third Republic, Dr. Iyorchia Ayu and later Chief Press Secretary to late Senator Albert Legogie then Deputy Senate President. Interestingly, he

has significantly been part of every civilian administration since then and 2015 when the opposition All Progressives Congress won election at the centre.

As someone who has had the privilege to traverse the Executive and Legislative arms of government at the centre between 1992-2015 Ihedioha is an absolute asset in nation building considering his wealth of experience and how he has been able to grapple with various challenges of national development.

As a devout Christian and a Soldier of Christ, Hon. Ihedioha has made enormous contributions towards the upliftment of Christian faith across denominations, especially the Anglican Communion. Accordingly, in the year 2000, he was admitted into the respected Order of the Knighthood of Saint Christopher (KSC) of the Anglican Communion, while the Church of Nigeria decorated him in 2014 with the Primatial Distinguished Service Merit Award for Excellence in Christian Stewardship. He is currently serving in the Eminent Persons Committee of the Church of Nigeria.

Given his significant profile in legislative governance and political leadership, he expectedly indicated interest in governing his state, Imo in 2015, a commitment he pursued with vigour.

This ambition was rightly endorsed by majority of Ndi-Imo, who were at that time yearning for change. He emerged as his party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) flag bearer, after keenly contested primaries. It is the popular belief that he won the popular votes of the electorate but was outmaneuvered.

The reasons why Imo people wanted Ihedioha were not far-fetched. Under the watch of Governor Rochas Okorocha Imo has not performed creditably well. People thus became desperate for genuine ‘rescue’ and Ihedioha was seen as a credible and veritable alternative having left uncommon legacies and demonstrated outstanding leadership on the national stage.

One virtue that has remained a driving force for Ihedioha is trust. Trust as a definitive character of those who occupy positions of authority, unfortunately, has remained in short supply in our society particularly in political circle this has given rise to a situation where violation and abuse of social contract have become a norm in the political leadership in Nigeria. Ihedioha has evidently shown to be of a different hue. As a public servant, he has exhibited a high level of integrity, selflessness, accountability and diligence.

As the major pillar of support for the Imo State PDP, when Chief Ikedi Ohakim lost his re-election in 2011, Ihedioha ensured that the party not only remained afloat but championed its repositioning as a formidable opposition party and indeed an attractive alternative platform.

In keeping with his favourite saying that no matter how big a cock grows, it must always be remembered that it was hatched from an egg, Hon. Ihedioha has remained a grassroots cultural thorough-bred: wining with royalty and dinning with the downtrodden.

As the governorship candidate of the PDP Imo State, Ihedioha had a vision towards “Rebuilding Imo State to a Model State” in fulfilment of his passion for the development of the state.

His vision statement for Imo State as contained in 2015 Governorship Campaign Manifesto read thus: “...to shape and sustain an environment of peace and prosperity in Imo State, through a government that is accountable to its people.

In this context, we shall lay emphasis on key sectors that will lead to wealth creation and social economic development of our people.”

Unfortunately, the dismal state of affairs in Imo State that spurred him to aspire to lead the state in 2015 has further deteriorated.

This development has logically placed even a bigger burden on Ihedioha whom the people looked up to in 2015 and still remains the most pertinent choice for the liberation, rebuilding and restoration of Imo values, come 2019.

Notwithstanding the temporary setback in 2015, the renewed confidence which the vision enjoy across the sectors is overwhelming and is better experienced very soon.

As we celebrate this good family man who has enjoyed the grace and faithfulness of God, it is also imperative that we continue to pray and encourage his selfless quest towards attaining a better Imo State and indeed Nigeria.

38/OPINION

24.03.2017

LEKANFATODU HEADS-UP

Email lekantodun@yahoo.com

Tel 07058069255

Osinbajo

An Encounter with VP Osinbajo Some days ago I stumbled on an amusing and similarly bemusing headline - “Acting President Osinbajo is not a ‘Nigerian”.

It was a brief but interesting piece written by a lecturer, Dr. Emmanuel Ufuophu-Biri, who after watching on live TV, the gracious manner with which the Vice President Yemi Osinbajo (then acting President conducting the affairs of the nation while President Muhammadu Buhari was on medical leave) managed an engagement with some Niger Delta stakeholders in Edo State, concluded that the VP was not a “Nigerian”.

Putting it plainly, the lecturer was completely gobsmacked by the humility, intelligence, attentiveness, calm, and other alluring traits that define the whole of Osinbajo before arriving at that dazzling conclusion.

Of course, when Osinbajo’s characteristics are juxtaposed, as Ufuophu-Biri did assuredly infer, with those of many Nigerians, either in the public or private sector, one will discover how most of these individuals will hang high on the negatives and it will then become clearer why Ufuophu-Biri has deemed Osinbajo as un-Nigerian.

Nigeria is a country that is suffering from chronic leadership deficit amongst other encumbrances that are at the root of her advancement.

And the evidences of this appalling deficit are visible everywhere. Therefore, there isn’t any point reiterating how poor political leadership has dragged Nigeria down thus far.

But seeing a truly exemplary figure like Osinbajo at the highest level of political decision-making in this country, and at this very moment should suggest that hope is not entirely lost.

With the little that I have gleaned about his person through close interaction at some point, I have no doubt that Osinbajo is a valuable asset to Nigeria and in so many fronts.

Most advanced nations are quite clever in highlighting the undertakings of their citizens that have attained milestones in different areas of human endeavours in order to inspire hope and to raise the standard of the process of leadership recruitment in these countries.

The astounding outcomes of this art of statecraft are examples people often mention as models for sound development.

Thanks to my several entrepreneurial

endeavours, I had a cherished opportunity to meet Prof. as the VP who is a Professor of Law is fondly called by his close friends and admirers.

I actually got introduced to the erudite scholar and pastor through another distinguished Nigerian and equally a highly accomplished lawyer, Mr. Odein Ajumogobia, Nigeria’s former Minister of State for Petroleum Resources and former Minister of Foreign Affairs.

It was in late 2012. At the start of the year, within my tranquil space in London, I had worked assiduously on a technology-enabled idea that will help to combat traffic offences and also improve transportation system in Lagos State.

And on the back of this, I had concluded a strategic partnership with a reputable tech-firm in the UK that will effectively deploy core technical sides of the project.

So the next step was to find a strong link in Lagos State that would connect me to the right agency in the state for the commencement of the project activities.

As such, I needed to get the buy-in of a dependable source whose word and personality is highly revered in the state; someone who could interpret a good idea on assessment and help to mitigate the unnecessary bottlenecks associated with government works in Nigeria.

As this was a revolutionary social enterprise that was ultimately designed to impact positively on the socio-economic life in Lagos State and Nigeria as a whole given the strategic place of the state to Nigeria’s economy, I was certain about the prospects of the innovation.

Sadly, in Nigeria, ideas don’t run just on its huge prospects.

More often, regardless of the positive impact the plan would have on the economic and social existence of the state, the idea must have a known face, strong hand and stable leg behind it before getting any attention in the right places.

Therefore my major task was to get that influential figure that would use his social goodwill to support in pointing and leading the plan to the appropriate quarters.

I had tried a few contacts but the feedback I was getting was that many of the top individuals that could help had gone on “holiday”. And

customarily, Nigerian “top people”, like the type I needed for the endorsement of this project don’t like to be “disturbed” during their holiday which is usually very long.

Osinbajo, being a former Commissioner of Justice and Attorney General of Lagos and someone who had gained incredible respect and reputation in the state and across the country on the account of the impressive reforms that he brought to the state’s judiciary, I reckoned would be the desired enabler for the venture.

Hence I decided to aim higher.

Therefore I called Ajumogobia, knowing he and Osinbajo had been good friends right from their days in the University of Lagos, to assist with my need.

Surprisingly, not too long after my respectful plea, Ajumogobia, who is a great epitome of human kindness, sent me a message saying that he had spoken to Osinbajo and he would be expecting to hear from me soon. He promptly gave me Osinbajo’s number.

The joy that enveloped me at the instance of this update was indescribable. After thanking Ajumogobia profusely for that unquantifiable gesture, I didn’t waste time to send an SMS to Osinbajo, to introduce myself. I followed up with a call a moment after.

As he picked the phone, he sounded so warm as if he had met me previously and that really doused those few seconds of fright that normally accompany a first (phone) conversation with influential people, particularly those in Nigeria who usually surround themselves with an air of haughtiness.

Imagine that the man was on holiday with his family. But he didn’t feel disturbed at all.

He simply told me when he would be back in the country and advised that I send a reminder so we could fix a meeting.

When the time came, I sent the reminder to him. And he responded swiftly with a date and directions to his office. Sincerely with this kind of warmness, it’s just normal for anyone who understands the typical ways of Nigerian VIP to assert that Osinbajo is clearly atypical compared to most of the people in that elevated circle.

After my presentation at the meeting held in his office, I was stunned by the very critical and even technical posers he threw at me on the viability of the project. And he was absolutely

pleased with the precision of my responses.

I was actually amazed by his interest in technology, and deep understanding of its use for growth.

A few days after, he had assembled some members of his Orderly Society Trust (OST), a development-focused organisation that he ran along with his wife before his election as VP, to engage with me for the implementation of the project.

Unsurprisingly, his staffers had conveniently picked Osinbajo’s culture of excellence and absolute courtesy. The two wonderful ladies, Folusho and Hadiza, that he mandated made fantastic efforts on the assignment.

As they were very prompt in sending messages to the strategic channels in Lagos State, as mandated by Prof., so were they providing me swift update on meetings and hitting Prof. with timely details for effective delivery of the plan.

At a point during this process, Osinbajo himself personally wrote email messages, which I was put in copy, in which he formally introduced me and the project to Mr. Fola Arthur-Worrey, former executive head of Lagos State Security Trust Fund (LSSTF) and Mr. Kayode Opeifa, former Commissioner for Transportation in Lagos State.

Upon receipt of the emails, the two gentlemen also received me very well. And the final action was to be taken on the project by the Opeifa's office.

But due to the usual red-tapes the project didn’t take off until the enthronement of a new government in the state. And Osinbajo have become enormously occupied with both professional and national activities and the presidential election that came along the way.

Meanwhile, seeing that the Nigerian government Aso Villa Demo Day, an IT event primarily set out to inspire budding IT entrepreneurs and provide them with the necessary resources which was the reason the CEO of Facebook, Mark Zurkerberg met with President Buhari and VP Osinbajo, which was held recently was vigoriously driven by the office of the VP and was perfectly delivered by some of the young IT buffs in the Presidency, particularly from the VP’s office, could mean that the process of having the right kind of leadership has just begun.

T H I S D AY Ëž Ëœ Í°Í˛Ëœ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍľ

39

BUSINESSWORLD

PERSPECTIVE

The Case for Estate Planning and Trusteeship In this article, Binta Max-Gbinije examines the trusteeship landscape in Nigeria and makes a case for deepening of the estate planning culture among Nigerians Nigerians are renowned for their resilience; a can-do spirit that has been instrumental in overcoming the herculean challenges. The ultimate goal is to be successful and happy. Success comes in various forms, but the ultimate indicator is the fulfilment that comes from achieving the goal you have set for yourself. At the Rio 2016 Paralympics Games, Nigerians set world records in various fields as they marched towards an impressive haul of medals. Last year alone, despite the daunting global environment, about $21 billion was remitted home by Nigerians in Diaspora, according to the Migration of Remittance Fact book 2016. Such is the Nigerian drive for success.

Almost everyone desires to be wealthy and to live comfortably. There is nothing wrong with being rich, aspirational or ambitious. Wealth is among several factors that endow comfort, which is a condition that everyone should aspire to have. However, money-making is not the easiest of tasks. This is a reality check that everyone understands. While hard work is an essential ingredient for wealth creation, more important is the value you bring and its appreciation in the marketplace.

The starting point is to make an effort, employing your own skills as well as proven strategies and approaches that others have used to succeed. In doing so, you may even become the originator of an uncharted pathway to success. We must keep trying. No two persons are the same; each one of us is imbued with our own uniqueness. What is paramount for everyone is to discern our peculiar talents or capabilities and utilize it to actualize our individual dreams or potential.

When people hear the nomenclature ‘corporate trustee,’ it seems like some highfalutin, foreign or elitist expression reserved for certain classes of people.

But, that is not exactly correct; it is an arrangement that is open to everyone.

We may just describe the term as a company that helps people to build, manage and protect wealth when their assets are put in a trust. A trust is an arrangement whereby assets are transferred by an individual/corporate (known as the ‘settlor’) to a trustee to be held by the trustee for the benefit of certain beneficiaries. So, corporate trustees are licensed by law to offer trust services to individuals as well as organizations.

Trusteeship is not alien to Nigeria or Africa. Among the various ethnic groups in Nigeria, trusteeship is well-embedded, and operates according to customary conventions. It is common, for instance, for a father to put his property in the care of a trusted friend or family member for onward transfer to his young children when they come of age. In some places, a man’s assets are inherited automatically by the eldest son or shared among his wives and children when he passes on.

Though corporate trusteeship has similar characteristics, the traditional practice however has a number of drawbacks that fail to address certain situations adequately.

Family dynamics and personal interest, for instance, may be quite complicated, thus creating gaps that often lead to acrimony.

Such instances include collusion and breach of trust, diversion of funds and termination of function due to death of the trustee, usually an individual, and family squabbles.

A good corporate trustee, on the other hand, offers numerous advantages for which the practice is steadily gaining acceptance in Nigeria. Among its benefits are continuity of role and function (since as an ongoing concern the firm will remain in business and continue to adhere to client’s instructions), objectivity, prudence and professionalism. In addition, a corporate

Binta Max-Gbinije

trustee ensures quick and prompt attention to affairs and elimination of diversion. The trustee has in-house investment expertise, experience and systems that ensure that full attention is given to managing trust assets and keeping track of investments, disbursements, and fees, among others. Because they operate in a sector that is highly regulated, a corporate trustee conforms to global best practices, which ensure quality service delivery and better results. People establish trusts for different reasons which may include confidentiality, estate planning, asset protection and tax reduction. It is therefore logical to seek the services of an entity with the resources and expertise to deliver the desired outcomes. The end result of having a trustee with experience and integrity to manage your financial affairs is peace of mind.

It is heart-warming to know that our people are increasingly becoming aware of

the benefits of estate planning. You have worked so hard to build a comfortable savings cushion with the intention of living comfortably at retirement and to make sure your children and family are well taken care of. It is only logical to have your ‘sweat’ well preserved by applying processes and procedures that ensure orderly management while alive and a seamless transfer at passage.

Death is often a sensitive or charged topic for most people to discuss. But, it is an issue we cannot run away from; life will end at a certain point in time. Yes, we will all depart this earth someday, with the question being the when, the where and the how. However, we can make our time on earth a happy memory for our loved ones if we have neatly tidied up and made the intergenerational wealth transfer a ‘painless’ process for them. That is the whole essence of estate planning.

There are different options available to the individual when planning his estate. These include writing a will, establishing a trust and making an inter vivous gift. While the will outlines how assets are shared at death, under a trust, assets are held by the trustee for the benefit of specified beneficiaries.

Inter vivous entails giving out assets as gifts while the giver is still alive.

We often hear of little things that matter in life. Nothing can be truer. That small step today can set the stage for an amazing achievement tomorrow. Starting an estate plan today, even with the smallest of assets, may become your wisest decision tomorrow.

A corporate trustee to assist you kick-start the process may just be around the corner.

All you need to do is to conduct thorough due diligence as you seek to engage one.

- Max-Gbinije is the Chief Executive of Stanbic IBTC Trustees Limited.

T H I S D AY ˾ FRIDAY, MARCH 24, 2017

40

CITYSTRINGS

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

Obong of Calabar Plays the Perfect Host The traditional hospitality of the Efik Kingdom was on display recently, when the Obong of Calabar bestowed the highest award in the kingdom on Prince of Kent, Prince Michael George Charles Franklin and Frenchman environmentalist, Mr. JeanYves Ollivier. Bassey Inyang who covered the event, reports

Obong of Calabar flanked by Prince of Kent, Prince Michael George Charles Franklin (left) and Frenchman environmentalist, Mr. Jean-Yves Ollivier (right). The Obong conferred the highest title in Efik kingdom ‘Adahidaha ke Efik Eburutu’ on the two Europeans at his palace…recently

I

t was pomp and pageantry at the palace of the Obong of Calabar, and Grand Patriarch of the Efikstate, Edidem Ekpo Okon Abasi-Otu V, one of the most outstanding traditional rulers in Nigeria, when he performed a regular feat for which the palace is famed: the conferment of traditional titles to deserving personalities in the society.

On many occasions different traditional titles have been conferred on deserving personalities, from Cross River State where the Obong’s sovereignty is immediately felt among his subjects, and far flung places where his territorial influence straddles across many communities up to Cameroon in Central Africa.

In this context, history was made on March 6, this year, as Abasi-Otu V , played host to, and honoured two Europeans, Prince of Kent, Prince Michael George Charles Franklin; and Frenchman environmentalist, Mr. Jean-Yves Ollivier, Chairman and trustee of the Brazzaville Foundation for Peace and Conservation, with the highest title in Efik kingdom, the Adahidaha ke Efik Eburutu.

The significance of the title of Adahidaha ke Efik Eburutu is that any person so honoured with it automatically becomes a chief in the Efik Kngdom, and one of the chief advisers

of the Obong and promoters of the traditions and culture.

The event was a gathering of a galaxy of stars of sons and daughters of the Efik kingdom, especially those at home, an indication that the honouring of the two-some was a serious matter.

Among them were the former governor of the state, Mr. Donald Duke; former Adviser

The event is significant. It is not too common to confer an Efik title on foreigners.

It is a re-enactment of the relationship between the Efik, Britain and France.

What we have seen is going to bring to the Efik kingdom and its people a positive relationship. We have by this shown that we still recall the past

to the President on National Assembly, Mrs. Florence Ita-Giwa; former commissioner representing the state on the board of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Professor Eyo Etim Nyong, former chairman of the NDDC, Senator Bassey Ewa Henshaw; High Chief Asuquo Ekpenyong, Etinyen Architect Bassey Ndem and one of Nigeria’s Ambassador designates, Dr. Nya Eyoma Asuquo.

The guests and all those who graced the event were treated to various Efik cultural displays and dances both young maidens, and masquerades, including the Ekpe masquerade. Of course, there was enough to eat and drink as those gathered were deservedly entertained with the various Efik delicacies, and assorted drinks.

In his remarks at the occasion, Chairman of Obong of Calabar Executive Forum, Chief Asuquo Ekpenyong, said: “The event is significant. It is not too common to confer an Efik title on foreigners. It is a re-enactment of the relationship between the Efik, Britain and France. What we have seen is going to bring to the Efik kingdom and its people a positive relationship. We have by this shown that we still recall the past.”

Addressing the august gathering, Duke, in flowery language eulogised the recipients of

the foremost traditional title in Efik kingdom, for their innate qualities, describing them as men who have contributed immensely to the development of humanity.

Duke who said the Prince of Kent, Prince Michael George Charles Franklin, has been his personal friend for decades said that the Prince occasionally represents the Queen of England, Elizabeth II, at some functions in Commonwealth realms outside the United Kingdom.

The former governor emphasised that his mere presence at the Palace of the Obong of Calabar has rekindle the bond that exists between the British royal family and the Palace of the Obong of Calabar.

Going down the historical lane, Duke said it was home coming for the Prince, who is a paternal first cousin to Queen Elizabeth II, for obvious reasons, one of which he recounted.

“Prince of Kent in 1956 planted a tree in the Hope Waddell Secondary School, and this year, 2017, he returned to the same school as part of the commemoration of its 122nd anniversary of the foremost institution to plant another tree,” Duke said.

Duke, who incidentally led the recipients to the palace, described Ollivier as a global Peace Ambassador who has traversed the

T H I S D AY ˾ FRIDAY, MARCH 24, 2017

41

CITYSTRINGS

The Obong decorating Prince Franklin in his palace

The Obong of Calabar, Edidem Ekpo Okon Abasi-Otu V, flanked by guests at the event

R-L: Prince of Kent, Prince Michael George Charles Franklin; and Frenchman environmentalist, Mr. JeanYves Ollivier, at the Obong’s Palace

world, more so, in his official capacity as Chairman of the Brazzaville Foundation for Peace and Conservation.

“He is one who has been involved in conflict resolutions round the world including conflicts in Congo and Southern Africa. He has a double honour of merit in promotion of peace from both the Apartheid government era, and the post-Apartheid governments of South Africa.

He is credited as one of those whose peace promotion works led to the release of the late Nelson Mandela,” Duke said.

After Duke had done the needful by preparing the grounds for the initiation of the duo into the traditional institution of the Efiks, it was the turn of the Obong of Calabar to cap the rites by formerly performing the traditional induction of both men into the

palace as advisers of the monarch.

As customary with such occasions, the Obong had some words for the recipients and the people of his kingdom.

Using Efik, the traditional language of the palace, the monarch said he was delighted in hosting them as his guest from overseas.

The Obong said for the Prince of Kent, the Adahidaha ke Efik Eburutu, which was being bestowed on him amounted to decorating him with additional traditional feathers as he was already a member of the royalty from the Queen’s Palace.

He said the visit of the Prince and the award given to him by the people would further cement the bond of relationship between British royal house and the Efik kingdom.

Speaking in similar terms about Jean-

The Obong’s honourees flanked by Onari Duke Duke and Donald Duke

Yves Ollivier, Abasi-Out V noted that the Frenchman’s record of service for global peace and conflict resolution stands him out as a personality that merits the honour conferred on him.

The monarch offered his fatherly advice to both men, saying they should not relent in their services to humanity, and should be free to relate with the Efik monarchy as they have been inducted as advisers in the king’s court.

The Efik monarch, as a symbolic gesture handed over certificates and commemorative caps to both men.

The Obong gave specific charge to Prince Franklin, demanding that the latter should show what he has been imprinted with to the Queen of England.

Prince of Kent in 1956 planted a tree in the Hope Waddell Secondary School, and this year, 2017, he returned to the same school as part of the commemoration of its 122nd anniversary of the foremost institution to plant another tree

T H I S D AY Ëž , MARCH 24, 2017

42

BUSINESS/MONEYGUIDE

House Directs CBN to Withdraw Mutilated Currency Notes in Circulation James Emejo Ă“Ă˜ ĂŒĂ&#x;ÔË The House of Representatives yesterday passed a resolution urging the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to urgently withdraw and arrange for the destruction of mutilated currency notes in circulation as well as replace same with new ones.

It expressed concern over the alarming rate of mutilated currency notes in circulation which has become a national embarrassment.

The House further mandated the Committee on Banking and Currency to conduct an investigation into the activities of an existing cartel in both the CBN and commercial banks who make brisk business recycling old Naira notes meant for destruction.

It said the investigation, which

should also include other allied banks must ascertain those involved in these sharp practices of injecting mutilated and defaced notes into circulation and report back to the House within six weeks.

Also, the lawmakers urged the National Orientation Agency to carry out a sustained public sensitisation and enlightenment programme to educate Nigerians on the need to handle the Naira notes cautiously and with care.

The House resolution followed a motion sponsored by Hon. Segun Adekola Alexander (Ekiti, PDP) on the need to stem the rising tide of defaced, filthy and mutilated currency notes in circulation. It noted that for reasons best known to the banks, torn, mutilated and unhygienic currency notes are being issued through automated

teller machines (ATMs) and over the counter.

The House, particularly expressed concern that these unfit currency notes harbour pathogenic micro-organisms which are hazadous to human health as well as laden with infectious diseases including diarrhea, food poisoning and respiratory problems from bad notes.

The House, regretted that despite the arrest and subsequent and prosecution of six CBN officials alongside 16 commercial bank officials in 2014, by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over a N8-billion mega scam involving the theft and recirculation of defaced and mutilated currencies meant for destruction, the cartel continued to flourish.

Zenith Bank Shelves Plan to Raise N100bn Zenith Bank Plc has shelved plan to raise N100 billion via a combination of bonds and share sales due to weak capital markets, it said on Thursday.

The bank had expected market conditions to improve when it announced plans to seek approval for the funds last month, said Zenith’s head of investor relations Michael Anyimah, but the lender cancelled them due

to the struggling economy. “The request for shareholders’ approval to raise fresh capital has been withdrawn,� Reuters quoted Anyimah to have said, adding that the bank had strong buffers to support its operation.

Zenith Bank shares which had shed 6.4 per cent this year on the Nigerian Stock Exchange closed at N13.60 per share yesterday.

Nigerian regulators have been trying to revive their IPO market which dried up almost 10 years ago following a crisis in the West African country.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has proposed to cut listing fees to attract issuers.

Zenith posted a pre-tax profit of N156.75 billion for 2016, up from N125.62 billion a year earlier.

Sterling Bank to Expand Retail Banking Nume Ekeghe Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Nosa Alekhuogie Sterling bank has disclosed plan to vastly increase its footprint in retail banking through investments in technology and other initiatives. The Group Head, Branding and Communications, Mr. Henry Bassey disclosed this during a courtesy visit to THISDAY’s head office in Lagos yesterday.

Bassey said: “We have come from an amalgamation of five investment banks and the reality is that we need to start playing actively in retail. Our retail journey started a couple of years ago so one of our clear objectives for 2017 is to be big on retail.�

He added: “On our brand-

ing and marketing, we have identified that we would hold on to three key pillars – football, fashion and film - and we are going to use this pillar to connect with our customer. Our marketing strategy, we want to be thought leaders in the space of agriculture, education, transportation. We are already doing quite a bit in that space.

So the idea is to really look at how we can explore the opportunities.�

Furthermore he spoke on the plan to attract the unbanked by leveraging on technology as well as the focus of the bank through the eyes of the branding and perception.

Bassey added: “Because we have come from five investment banks, with retail, if you look

at Nigeria’s population today, you can arguably say that 70percent is below age 35 so the plan is then to also look at the unbanked. “Beyond the unbanked is where we would see solutions that are tied to mobile and beyond just looking at mobile is where you would see solutions that literally have to do with data or no data. “We are saying that if we are going to win the war on retail, we are going to have to appeal to a younger demographic and in appealing to this demographic the pillars I mentioned become extremely critical. Export is also another area we are looking at and also forging strategic alliances and partners in this area.�

Corruption Destroys Values, Says CIMA Boss The President, Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA), Mr. Andrew Miskin yesterday stressed the need to tackle corruption, not just in Nigeria, but in other countries across the globe.

Miskin, said this when he lead some members of CIMA in Africa and Nigeria on a courtesy visit to THISDAY’s corporate head office in Lagos. “Corruption is always a problem. I have lived in many countries in the world and some of them are very high on the international corruption index, while some are low on the index,� he said.

According the CIMA boss, the real problem with corruption has to do with understanding its effects on the society. “It is when people start to understand the value corruption destroys, that they would start

to understand the decisions they make. “The type of corruption that really is a problem in countries is when you can bribe judges to get the result that you want in a legal case or to bride officials to take decisions which are favourable to your financial interest, rather than the overall benefits of the country.

Those are the things that clearly destroy values,� he added.

Miskin, however, pointed that ethics is a core and integral part of what CIMA teaches and practices, saying that what was important is to help people understand the importance of values. “You must make it clear why you need to tackle corruption and people must understand what the consequences are,� he said. He said management accounting is essentially about decision making in organisa-

tions, while financial accounting is about record keeping, accounts and financial system, and capital markets.

According to him, CIMA looks forward to strengthening its relationship with the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) and the Association of National Accountants of Nigeria (ANAN).

The Associate Director, Nigeria, CIMA, Ijeoma Anadozie, said the institute has been investing a lot of money to research on best practices in management as well as to create the desired values in organisations. On his part, the Regional Director, Africa, CIMA, Badianga Badi Promesse, said: “When we (CIMA) train our accountants, there is a culture that we instil in them, a culture of honesty, a culture of transparency and ethics.

CBN building

MARKET INDICATORS MONEY AND CREDIT STATISTICS

(MILLION NAIRA)

DECEMBER 2016 Broad Money (M2)

23,840,392.42

-- Narrow Money (M1)

11,520,166.67

---- Currency Outside Banks

1,820,415.90

---- Demand Deposits

9,699,750.76

-- Quasi Money

12,320,225.75

Net Foreign Assets (NFA)

9,353,504.03

Net Domestic Assets(NDA)

14,486,888.39

-- Net Domestic Credit (NDC)

26,970,297.97

---- Credit to Government (Net)

4,595,579.89

Ě‹Ě‹Ě‹Ě‹ Ă?Ă—Ă™Ë? ĂœĂ?ĂŽĂ“Ăž ÞÙ Ùà Þ˛ Ě™ Ă?Þ̚ Ă–Ă?Ă?Ă?

7,436,917.79

Ě‹Ě‹Ě‹Ě‹ Ă?Ă—Ă™Ë? Ă?ĂŽË› Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă“ĂœĂœĂ™Ăœ Ă?Ă?Ă™Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂžĂ? Ě™ Ěš

-2,841,337.90

---- Credit to Private Sector (CPS)

22,374,718.08

--Other Assets Net

-12,483,409.58

Reserve Money (Base Money)

5,837,322.41

--Currency in Circulation

2,179,174.28

--Banks Reserves

3,318,344.71 Ëž Ă™Ă&#x;ĂœĂ?Ă? Ě‹

MANAGED FUNDS Month Inter-Bank Call Rate

December 2016 10.39

Minimum Rediscount Rate (MRR) Monetary Policy Rate (MPR)

14.00

Treasury Bill Rate

13.96

Savings Deposit Rate

4.18

1 Month Deposit Rate

8.53

3 Months Deposit Rate

8.80

6 Months Deposit Rate

10.23

12 Months Deposit Rate

10.76

Prime Lending rate

17.09

Maximum Lending Rate

28.55 Ëž Ă™Ă˜Ă?ĂžĂ‹ĂœĂŁ ÙÖÓĂ?ĂŁ Ă‹ĂžĂ? Ě‹ ͯ͹Ϲ

OPEC DAILY BASKET PRICE AS AT, WED, 22 MARCH 2017 The price of OPEC basket of thirteen crudes stood at $48.28 a barrel on Wednesday, compared with $49.23 the previous day, according to OPEC Secretariat calculations. The OPEC Reference Basket of Crudes (ORB) is made up of the following: Saharan Blend (Algeria), Girassol (Angola), Oriente (Ecuador), Rabi Light (Gabon), 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

T H I S D AY Ëž Í°Í˛Ëœ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍľ

43

Nigeria’s top 50 stocks based on market fundamentals

23-Mar-17 22-Mar-17

% Change

Capitalisation

EPS

P/E

P/S

Div. Yld

Price/ Book Value

01 Dangote Cement Plc

165.00

165.00

0.00%

2,811,683,721,825.00

9.20

17.93

4.95

4.85%

3.76

02 Nigerian Breweries Plc

130.00

130.01

-0.01%

1,030,783,115,440.00

4.03

32.22

3.42

2.77%

6.29

03 Guaranty Trust Bank Plc

26.80

26.50

1.13%

788,755,603,203.20

4.90

5.47

1.96

6.60%

1.60

749.00

740.00

1.22%

593,699,532,748.00

8.81

85.00

3.44

3.87%

18.81

13.60

13.80

-1.45%

426,992,315,489.60

3.91

3.48

0.90

13.24%

0.61

359.28

398.00

-9.73%

198,793,329,254.64 -44.58

-8.06

2.56

4.43%

0.50

5.40

5.34

1.12%

195,909,442,138.80

1.75

3.09

0.59

11.11%

0.45

08 Lafarge Africa Plc

41.00

37.80

8.47%

186,750,974,210.00

-9.39

-4.37

0.88

7.32%

0.92

09 Presco Plc

47.00

47.00

0.00%

186,612,421,115.00

0.03

1,607.40

2.62

2.77%

4.46

10 Stanbic IBTCÂ Holdings Plc

17.70

17.70

0.00%

177,000,000,000.00

2.04

8.69

1.26

0.56%

1.50

11 Ecobank Transnational Incorporated

9.49

9.45

0.42%

174,137,241,030.35

0.68

14.03

0.30

6.53%

0.28

12 Access Bank Plc

5.93

6.15

-3.58%

171,542,871,771.83

2.59

2.29

0.48

9.27%

0.39

32.30

32.30

0.00%

122,200,468,875.00

0.69

46.67

1.84

0.15%

13.03

14 FBN Holdings Plc

3.07

3.10

-0.97%

110,198,548,871.44

0.21

14.80

0.21

4.89%

0.18

15 Mobil Oil Nig Plc

298.00

298.00

0.00%

107,457,388,076.00

19.32

15.42

1.18

2.42%

5.81

16 Total Nigeria Plc

272.90

272.90

0.00%

92,655,509,317.30

38.02

7.18

0.34

5.13%

4.07

17 Guinness Nig Plc

60.00

62.64

-4.21%

90,353,291,280.00

-3.06

-19.62

0.88

5.33%

2.29

18 Dangote Sugar ReďŹ nery Plc

6.18

6.18

0.00%

74,160,000,000.00

1.03

6.02

0.52

8.09%

1.19

19 Oando Plc

5.20

5.02

3.59%

62,580,018,248.80

-3.15

-1.65

0.25

14.42%

0.39

20 Forte Oil Plc.

45.59

46.41

-1.77%

59,380,113,485.77

3.31

13.79

0.39

7.57%

1.37

21 Julius Berger Nig. Plc

41.95

41.95

0.00%

55,374,000,000.00

-2.95

-14.24

0.47

3.58%

2.92

22 7-Up Bottling Comp. Plc

80.00

77.71

2.95%

51,247,229,040.00

-0.05 -1,751.50

0.55

2.75%

2.31

23 International Breweries Plc

15.30

15.00

2.00%

50,402,013,984.00

0.02

679.03

1.89

1.63%

4.59

24 Flour Mills Nig. Plc

17.50

17.50

0.00%

45,924,150,772.50

-1.19

-14.67

0.11

11.43%

0.46

25 Okomu Oil Palm Plc

48.00

48.00

0.00%

45,787,680,000.00

4.82

9.95

6.96

0.21%

2.84

0.72

0.73

-1.37%

27,879,118,146.00

-0.47

-1.54

0.53

0.00%

0.38

13.00

12.84

1.25%

24,971,237,031.00

3.37

3.86

0.33

7.69%

0.33

28 FCMB Group Plc

1.23

1.25

-1.60%

24,357,334,260.63

0.61

2.01

0.15

8.13%

0.14

29 Fidelity Bank Plc

0.82

0.83

-1.20%

23,749,320,267.44

0.39

2.12

0.16

19.51%

0.13

30 Sterling Bank Plc

0.74

0.71

4.23%

21,304,909,413.24

0.29

2.57

0.20

12.16%

0.26

31 Diamond Bank Plc

0.90

0.92

-2.17%

20,844,350,071.20

-0.29

-3.07

0.10

0.00%

0.09

28.20

28.20

0.00%

19,740,000,000.00

2.28

12.35

2.96

4.08%

11.53

33 Custodian And Allied Insurance Plc

3.31

3.31

0.00%

19,468,970,485.45

0.76

4.34

0.53

4.23%

0.68

34 Wema Bank Plc

0.50

0.50

0.00%

19,287,233,040.50

0.06

8.39

0.38

0.00%

0.41

35 National Salt Co. Nig. Plc

6.91

7.12

-2.95%

18,307,619,191.98

0.85

8.14

0.97

7.96%

2.48

14.50

14.50

0.00%

17,340,209,076.00

-2.98

-4.86

0.62

2.07%

1.97

37 Mansard Insurance Plc

1.60

1.60

0.00%

16,800,000,000.00

0.28

5.74

0.84

3.13%

0.80

38 Cadbury Nigeria Plc

7.49

7.49

0.00%

14,067,733,279.60

0.50

15.00

0.50

17.36%

1.38

13.99

13.99

0.00%

13,990,000,000.00

5.69

2.46

0.98

0.71%

0.38

40 Continental Reinsurance Plc

1.19

1.19

0.00%

12,343,565,731.28

0.42

2.83

0.56

10.08%

0.66

41 Honeywell Flour Mill Plc

1.02

1.02

0.00%

8,088,801,611.16

-0.40

-2.52

0.17

15.69%

0.24

42 Unity Bank Plc

0.67

0.67

0.00%

7,831,856,421.14

-0.10

-6.54

0.12

0.00%

0.09

43 Skye Bank Plc

0.50

0.50

0.00%

6,940,150,705.00

-2.93

-0.17

0.04

60.00%

0.07

44 Wapic Insurance Plc

0.50

0.50

0.00%

6,691,369,126.00

0.18

2.78

0.85

6.00%

0.41

45 Cement Co. Of North.Nig. Plc

4.70

4.70

0.00%

5,906,385,500.20

0.22

21.47

0.53

2.13%

0.55

46 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

47 AIICO Insurance Plc

0.56

0.55

1.82%

3,880,914,508.80

0.22

2.51

0.13

8.93%

0.38

48 Nigerian Aviation Handling Company Plc

2.06

2.09

-1.44%

3,345,890,625.00

0.15

13.63

0.41

9.71%

0.56

49 UACN Property Development Co. Limited

1.83

1.76

3.98%

3,145,312,490.85

0.30

6.12

0.74

38.25%

0.09

50 Fidson Healthcare Plc

1.01

0.97

4.12%

1,515,000,000.00

0.24

4.29

0.23

4.95%

0.24

04 Nestle Nigeria Plc 05 Zenith Bank Plc 06 Seplat Petroleum Dev. Co. Ltd 07 United Bank for Africa Plc

13 Unilever Nigeria Plc

26 Transnational Corporation Of Nigeria Plc 27 U A C NÂ Plc

32 Cap Plc

36 Glaxo Smithkline Consumer Nig. Plc

39 PZ Cussons Nigeria Plc

TOTAL

8,257,843,127,361.70

TOTAL MARKET CAP

8,827,468,348,542.89

% OF MARKET CAP Annotation - MA* = Simple Moving Average

93.55%

Table 1 Market Statistics Mkt Indicators

NSE All Share Index NSE Market Cap (N'Trillion)

Open 22-Mar-17

Close Change % 23-Mar-17

25,514.09 8.83

25,514.03 8.83

0.00 0.00

106.09 8.26

106.06 8.26

-0.04 -0.0%

Thisday BGL 50 Index Thisday BGL 50 Market Cap (N'Trillion)

Table 3 Top 5 Gainers Stock

Open Close Change 22-Mar-17 23-Mar-17 %

Lafarge Africa Plc Sterling Bank Plc Fidson Healthcare Plc UACN Property Development Co. Limited Oando Plc

37.80 0.71 0.97 1.76

41.00 0.74 1.01 1.83

8.47 4.23 4.12 3.98

5.02

5.20

3.59

Table 4 Top 5 Losers Stock

Open Close Change 22-Mar-17 23-Mar-17 %

Seplat Petroleum Dev. Co. Ltd Guinness Nig Plc Access Bank Plc National Salt Co. Nig. Plc Diamond Bank Plc

398.00 62.64 6.15 7.12 0.92

359.28 60.00 5.93 6.91 0.90

-9.73 -4.21 -3.58 -2.95 -2.17

Index remains at; Brent crude oil continues to nosedive Market pulse on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) today – Thursday, March 23rd, 2017 ended at as the stock market closed. This was further highlighted by negative performance from the NSE Subsectors: Banking and Oil & Gas (Save Insurance and Consumer Goods). However, trading activities decreased in volume as 115.11m shares worth of N1.42 billion in 2,861 deals exchanged hands today. This is a decrease from as 198.84m shares worth of N2.53 billion in 2,306 deals which exchanged hands on Wednesday. Topping in volume terms are: Guaranty Trust Bank Plc, Access Bank Plc and United Bank for Africa Plc; Guaranty Trust Bank Plc and Stanbic IBTC Holdings Plc ended trading as the most active stocks in value terms. New low for Brent crude oil price records at US$50.39 per barrel.

The All Share Index (NSEASI) closed at with 0.00% (-0.06) decrease to close at 25,514.03 from 25,514.09 the previous trading day. Market capitalization depreciated in tandem to N8.83 trillion from N8.83 trillion of prior trading day.

Similarly, the Thisday BGL 50 Index closes with an decrease of 0.04% to 106.06 from 106.09 recorded at the end of the previous trading day, while its market capitalization stood at N8.26 trillion from N8.26 trillion of the previous trading day.

Market breath closed positive today as 20 stocks gained on the bourse while 14 stocks also declined, leaving 56 stocks unchanged. Topping the Thisday BGL 50 Index gainers’ list Lafarge Africa Plc as it emerged as the day’s toast of investors with a gain of 8.47% to close at N4.23 per share.

It was followed by Sterling Bank Plc with a gain of 4.23% to close at N0.74 per share. Others on the gainers list include: Fidson Healthcare Plc, UACN Property Development Co. Limited and Oando Plc; while on the decliners’ list, Seplat Petroleum Dev. Co. Ltd lead with a loss of 9.73% to close at N359.28 per share. It was followed by Guinness Nig. Plc with a loss of 4.21% to close at N60.00 per share. Others on the decliners list include: Access Bank Plc, National Salt Co. Nig. Plc and Diamond Bank 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 ďŹ rm may have a conict 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

T H I S D AY ˾ , MARCH 24, 2017

44

MARKET NEWS

Market Performance Remains Negative on Profit Taking Goddy Egene and Nosa Alekhuogie The performance of the stock market remained negative yesterday as profit taking persisted. However, the decline was marginal as sentiments were mixed. Although price gainers outnumbered price losers, losses suffered by bellwether stocks made the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) All-Share Index (ASI)

to remain in the negative territory. The NSE ASI shed 0.05 per cent to close lower at 25,514.03.

Seplat Petroleum Development Company Plc led the price losers with 9.7 per cent trailed by Guinness Nigeria Plc, which went down by 4.2 per cent.

African Prudential Registrars Plc and Access Bank Plc declined by 3.7 per cent and 3.5 per cent per cent in that order. NASCON Allied Industries Plc closed 2.9

T H E MAIN BOARD

DEALS

MARKET PRICE

per cent lower just as Diamond Bank Plc shed 2.1 per cent.

Forte Oil Plc and FCMB Group Plc dipped by 1.7 per cent and 1.6 per cent respectively, while Zenith Bank Plc went down by 1.4 per cent.

Zenith Bank is losing value a day after the shareholders approved its final dividend of N55.573 billion final dividend for the year ended December 31, 2016. On the positive side, Lafarge Africa Plc maintained

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

6 6 12

30.00 34.00

19 19 31

the number spot on the gainers’ chart, rising by 8.4 per cent to close at N41.00 per share.

The stock had similarly led the price gainers the previous day as investors reacted to the 105 kobo dividend the cement manufacturing firm recommended for 2016 year.

Although the dividend is lower than the 300 kobo paid the previous year, market operators said they least expected any dividend from

12,629 11,640 24,269

374,530.15 421,345.20 795,875.35

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

Lafarge Africa Plc given its nine months results that showed N40 billion loss.

Lafarge Africa Plc reported a profit after tax of N16.8 billion as a result of tax credit of N39.71 billion. The profit was 38 per cent lower than the N27 billion profit recorded in 2015.

But for the tax credit, which came mainly from deferred tax assets generated from Unicem operations, the company

would have ended 2016 with a loss before tax of N22.8 billion.

The Chief Executive Officer, Lafarge Africa, Mr. Michel Puchercos, had said the immediate objective of the company is to deliver fully on “our turnaround plan by optimising our processes, developing our alternative fuel strategy, reducing operational costs to deliver strong EBITDA margins returning to historic levels.”

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

45

˾ FRIDAY, MARCH 24, 2017

MARKET NEWS

Stanbic IBTC Records 51% Profit Growth to N19 Billion Goddy Egene Stanbic IBTC Holdings Plc has become the fourth bank to announce its audited results for the full year ended December 31, 2016. The financial institution recorded improvement in most of the performance indicators and ended with a growth of 51 per cent in profit after tax(PAT).

According to the results, Stanbic IBTC Holdings Plc recorded gross earnings of

N156.425 billion in 2016, showing a growth of 12 per cent compared with N140 billion in 2015. Net interest income rose by 31 per cent from N43.86 billion to N57.85 billion, while income before credit impairment stood at N124.05 billion, up from N100.6 billion in 2015.

However, credit impairment charges rose by 33 per cent to N19.803 billion, from N14.93 billion.

Operating expenses rose by

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

11.2 per cent to N69 billion, from N62 billion.

Despite the higher impairment charges, Stanbic IBTC Holdings ended the year with significant growth in profit before tax, which rose by 57 from N23.65 billion to N37.209 billion. Similarly, PAT rose by 51 per cent from N18.891 billion to N28.52 billion. The board of directors has recommended a dividend of five kobo per share.

Analysing the fourth

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 22-Mar-2017, unless otherwise stated

quarter (Q4) results, analysts at FBN Quest said the performance was boosted by a significant other comprehensive income(OCI) of N4 billion compared with a loss of N87 million prior year.

“Returning to the PBT, the growth was driven by a marked growth of 72 per cent in net interest income: interest income grew 31 per cent while interest expense fell 17 per cent. This positive result

more than compensated for a weak non-interest income out turn , as well as increases in provisions (+85 per cent) and operating expenses (+15 per cent). Sequentially, although the PBT grew only four per cent, PAT grew much faster, by 87 per cent q/q because of the OCI gain. Relative to our forecasts, both PBT and PAT were ahead strongly, the latter on the back of the OCI result for which we forecasted zero.

The better-than-expected PBT

result was driven by several factors, of which the most significant was the strong net interest income result. This beat our forecast by 28 per cent,” they said.

According to FBN Quest, the Stanbic IBTC has not hosted a conference call since 2015 due to the delay in the publication of several quarterly results until recently, as a result of a dispute with the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria, which has been resolved.

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 aaml@afrinvest.com Web: www.afrinvest.com; Tel: +234 1 270 1680 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Afrinvest Equity Fund 128.54 129.02 1.20% Nigeria International Debt Fund 221.03 221.73 2.69% ALTERNATIVE CAPITAL PARTNERS LTD info@acapng.com Web: www.acapng.com, Tel: +234 1 291 2406, +234 1 291 2868 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn ACAP Canary Growth Fund 0.70 0.71 -0.18% AIICO CAPITAL LTD ammf@aiicocapital.com Web: www.aiicocapital.com, Tel: +234-1-2792974 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn AIICO Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 17.92% ARM INVESTMENT MANAGERS LTD enquiries@arminvestmentcenter.com Web: www.arm.com.ng; Tel: 0700 CALLARM (0700 225 5276) Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn ARM Aggressive Growth Fund 12.42 12.79 0.59% ARM Discovery Fund 291.68 300.48 1.57% ARM Ethical Fund 22.19 22.86 -0.66% ARM Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 15.86% AXA MANSARD INVESTMENTS LIMITED investmentcare@axamansard.com Web: www.axamansard.com; Tel: +2341-4488482 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn AXA Mansard Equity Income Fund 105.37 106.11 0.27% AXA Mansard Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 17.45% CHAPELHILL DENHAM MANAGEMENT LTD investmentmanagement@chapelhilldenham.com Web: www.chapelhilldenham.com, Tel: +234 461 0691 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Nigeria Global Investment Fund 2.22 2.28 2.27% Paramount Equity Fund 9.40 9.64 0.42% Women's Investment Fund 86.82 89.04 2.63% CORDROS ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED assetmgtteam@cordros.com Web: www.cordros.com, Tel: 019036947 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Cordros Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 18.55% FBN CAPITAL ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD invest@fbnquest.com Web: www.fbnquest.com; Tel: +234-81 0082 0082 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn FBN Fixed Income Fund 1,132.02 1,133.21 3.82% FBN Heritage Fund 112.16 112.90 0.51% FBN Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 17.36% FBN Nigeria Eurobond (USD) Fund - Institutional $107.27 $107.89 3.06% FBN Nigeria Eurobond (USD) Fund - Retail $106.99 $107.61 3.49% FBN Nigeria Smart Beta Equity Fund 113.25 3 114.71 0.50% FIRST CITY ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD fcamhelpdesk@fcmb.com Web: www.fcamltd.com; Tel: +234 1 462 2596 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Legacy Equity Fund 0.95 0.96 1.60% Legacy Short Maturity (NGN) Fund 2.66 2.66 3.33% FSDH ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD coralfunds@fsdhgroup.com Web: www.fsdhaml.com; Tel: 01-270 4884-5; 01-280 9740-1 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Coral Growth Fund 2,209.71 2,235.36 0.02% Coral Income Fund 2,191.34 2,191.34 4.14% GREENWICH ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED assetmanagement@gtlgroup.com Web: www.gtlgroup.com ; Tel: +234 1 4619261-2 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Greenwich Plus Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 17.16% INVESTMENT ONE FUNDS MANAGEMENT LTD enquiries@investment-one.com Web: www.investment-one.com; Tel: +234 812 992 1045,+234 1 448 8888 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Abacus Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 16.72% Vantage Balanced Fund 1.70 1.72 1.16% Vantage Guaranteed Income Fund 1.00 1.00 14.85%

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 1.02 1.03 2.75% Lotus Halal Fixed Income Fund 1,026.38 1,026.38 2.34% MERISTEM WEALTH MANAGEMENT LTD info@meristemwealth.com Web: http://www.meristemwealth.com/funds/ ; Tel: +234 1-4488260 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Meristem Equity Market Fund 9.73 9.81 0.71% Meristem Money Market Fund 10.00 10.00 14.59% 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 1.08 1.10 2.97% PACAM Fixed Income Fund 10.44 10.48 0.32% PACAM Money Market Fund 10.00 10.00 13.14% 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 110.94 111.76 8.92% 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 1.27 1.27 2.26% 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 1,845.94 1,855.71 0.79% Stanbic IBTC Bond Fund 155.45 155.45 0.97% Stanbic IBTC Ethical Fund 0.76 0.77 -0.65% Stanbic IBTC Guaranteed Investment Fund 192.46 192.46 2.98% Stanbic IBTC Iman Fund 128.49 130.14 -1.04% Stanbic IBTC Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 17.65% Stanbic IBTC Nigerian Equity Fund 7,400.46 7,483.98 -2.43% 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 1.15 1.16 7.80% United Capital Bond Fund 1.28 1.28 15.80% United Capital Equity Fund 0.65 0.66 0.89% United Capital Money Market Fund 1.14 1.14 11.37% 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 9.95 10.12 3.27% Zenith Ethical Fund 11.18 11.28 2.44% Zenith Income Fund 17.34 17.34 4.92%

REITS NAV Per Share

Yield / T-Rtn

11.41 125.28

1.01% 1.06%

Bid Price

Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

7.99 72.49

8.09 3 73.84

-8.95% -4.35%

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

2.76 6.26 11.73 14.72 128.05

2.80 6.34 11.83 14.92 6 130.05

0.36% -10.89% -2.21% -7.66% -1.40%

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.

46

FRIDAY MARCH 24, 2017 ˾ T H I S D AY

INTERNATIONAL

email:foreigndesk@thisdaylive.com

IS Group Claims Responsibility for London Car, Knife Attack The Islamic State group claimed responsibility for an attack by a man who plowed an SUV into pedestrians on London’s Westminster Bridge before stabbing a police officer to death on the grounds of Parliament, and the investigation shifted Thursday to a city in central England long known as an incubator for radicalism.

The attacker was born in Britain and had been investigated for links to religious extremism, British Prime Minister Theresa May said in a sweeping speech to lawmakers in which she also encouraged people in London to go about their lives.

At least eight people were arrested in raids, some in the central city of Birmingham.

The Islamic State group said through its Aamaq News Agency that the attacker was a soldier of the Islamic State who “carried out the operation in response to calls for targeting citizens of the coalition” of countries fighting IS in Syria and Iraq. In addition to the police officer and the attacker, who was shot by police, two people died on Westminster Bridge and at least 30 others were injured, seven critically.

British officials did not release the attacker’s identity or confirm a link with the Islamic State group.

May described it as “a perversion of a great faith.”

The IS group has been responsible for numerous bloody attacks around the globe and has specifically called for Western followers to carry out this kind of attack in their own countries, though the group has also claimed events later found to have no clear links to it. The London attack echoed vehicle rampages in Nice, France, and Berlin last year that the group claimed under its banner.

May set an unyielding tone Thursday, saluting the heroism of police as well as the ordinary actions of everyone who went about their lives in the aftermath.

“As I speak millions will be boarding trains and airplanes to travel to London, and to see for because he was not authorized to speak about ongoing security operations. It takes dozens of officers to watch just one terror suspect.

Attention will be focused on how much the country’s security and intelligence community knew about the attacker, who witnesses said went straight after the police officer after ramming the pedestrians.

“This man got out of the car with two knives in his hands and while he was running he was stabbing people. He arrived in front of the entrance to the parliament and he started to stab a policeman. You can imagine if someone was playing a drum on your back with 2 knives - he gave him around 10 stabs in the back, then he left the policeman and he came toward us,” said Vincenzo Mangiacarpe, an Italian boxer who was visiting Parliament.

Britain’s domestic security agency, MI5, was criticised recently for losing track of a former Guantanamo detainee who won a payout from the British government for his detention and treatment in the prison camp and later blew himself up and injured several others.

Mayor Sadiq Khan called for Londoners to attend a candlelit vigil at Trafalgar Square on Thursday evening in solidarity with the victims and their families and to show that London remains united.

Metropolitan Police counterterrorism chief Mark

London Police: Eight Arrests over Westminster Attack The suspect of a deadly attack outside the UK parliament in London was Britishborn, Prime Minister Theresa May said, as police arrested eight people after several overnight raids across the country.

In a statement to the House of Commons on Thursday, May said the attacker was once investigated by intelligence officers over concerns of “violent extremism”.

“He was a peripheral figure,” she said. “The case is historic, he was not part of the current intelligence picture.”

The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group claimed responsibility on Thursday for the attack. It said on its Aamaq website the attacker “carried out the operation in response to calls for targeting citizens of the coalition” of countries fighting ISIL in Syria and Iraq.

It was not possible for Al Jazeera to independently confirm the claim.

Some 40 people were wounded in the attack, 29 of whom were being treated in hospital, according to police.

Seven were still in critical condition.

May said those wounded in the attack included 12 Britons, three French children, two Romanians, four South Koreans, two Greeks, and one each from

Germany, Poland, Ireland, China, Italy and the United States.

Three police officers were also wounded.

The victims included Keith Palmer, a 48-year-old police officer who was stabbed to death, and two members of the public - a woman in her mid-40s and a man in his mid-50s.

The fourth dead was the attacker.

Earlier on Thursday, police said eight people had been arrested after raids on six homes in London, Birmingham and other parts of the country in their probe into the attack, in which a man ploughed into pedestrians in a car and then went on a stabbing spree before being shot dead.

“It is still our belief that the attacker acted alone was inspired by international terrorism,” Rowley said.

Al Jazeera’s Barnaby Phillips, reportin Leaders across the world condemned the attack, while lights on the Eiffel Tower in Paris were switched off at midnight in solidarity with victims of the attack.

US President Donald Trump and French President Francois Hollande both spoke to May and Chancellor Angela Merkel said Germany stood with Britons “against all forms of terrorism”.

Rowley revised the death toll from five to four, including the attacker, the police officer and two civilians. He said that 29 people required hospitalisation and seven of them were in critical condition.

He also said that authorities were still working out the number of “walking wounded.” Police had previously given the total number of injured as around 40.

May said people from 11 countries were among the victims.

They included: 12 Britons, three French, two Romanians, four South Koreans, one German, one Pole, two Irish, one Chinese, one Italian, one American and two Greeks required hospital treatment. Police earlier said that seven of the 29 who are hospitalised are in critical condition.

The threat level for international terrorism in the U.K. was already listed at severe, meaning an attack was “highly likely.”

President Donald Trump was among world leaders offering condolences.

London has been a target for terrorism many times over past decades. Just this weekend, hundreds of armed police took part in an exercise simulating a “marauding” terrorist attack on the River Thames.

May underscored that the attack targeted “free people everywhere,” and she said she had a response: “You will not defeat us.”

I formerly known and addressed as OLASOJI ADESOLA OLUBUNMI OLUFUNSHO PHOTIZO, now wish to be known and addressed as OYELAKIN ADESOLA OLUBUNMI OLUFUNSHO PHOTIZO. All former documents remain valid. The general public should take note.

I, formerly known and addressed as MISS EYO IMA-OBONG EDEM now wish to be known and addressed as MRS DANISON IMA-OBONG SUNDAY All former ĚŽĐƵŵĞŶƚƐ ƌĞŵĂŝŶ ǀĂůŝĚ͕ /ŶƐƟƚƵƟŽŶ ĨŽƌ WŚĂƌŵĂĐĞƵƟĐĂůƐ ZĞƐĞĂƌĐŚ ĂŶĚ Development (NIPRD) IDU and the general public should Please take note.

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The general public should take

note.

I formerly known and addressed as ETUK MERCY VICTOR, now wish to be known and addressed as ETUK MERCY OKON. All former documents remain valid.

The general public should take

note.

l formally known as BEROMRERE UPHENJERO M. KUALE hereby wish to be known as BEROMRERE VERA OHWOJAKPOR. All former documents remain valid. ŽƌƉŽƌĂƚĞ īĂŝƌƐ ŽŵŵŝƐƐŝŽŶ and the general public take ŶŽƟĐĞ͘ ÊÄ¥®Ùà ã®ÊÄ Ê¥ Ä Ã ͘

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FRIDAY MARCH 24, 2017 ˾ T H I S D AY

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WORLD OF ISLAM INTERNATIONAL Edited by: MJO Mustapha Email deji.mustapha@thisdaylive.com

The Myth of the DepressionProof Muslim of Hurting Hearts and Healing Zeba Khan/MuslimMatters There is this article I have not written yet, the one where I confess to struggling with depression.

In that soul-baring masterpiece I finally admit to sleeping too little and breaking down too often. I talk about having a child with autism, a rare genetic disease, and the heart-breaking pain of watching my children develop the same disease too.

I cry while writing it, you cry while reading it.

Its completion gives purpose to my years of private struggle but – but I haven’t written that one yet. So I’m writing this one instead.

We Muslims have some pretty ridiculous myths about depression, and the worst is that somehow there is “no depression in Islam.”

O MANKIND, THERE HAS TO COME TO YOU INSTRUCTION FROM YOUR LORD AND HEALING FOR WHAT IS IN THE BREASTS AND GUIDANCE AND MERCY FOR THE BELIEVERS. – QUR’AN 10:57 Allah calls the Qur’an the healer of hearts. If depression doesn’t exist, is Allah referring to coronary heart disease?

This myth’s existence is based on the idea that depression is a form of ingratitude or low faith.

Therefore, a person in depression must not be “in Islam” so to speak.

“Do people think that they will be left alone because they say: “We believe,” and will not be tested?”

Allah asks this of us in Surah Anqaboot. You think being a believer means never being stressed? Wrong.

WE DID TEST THOSE BEFORE THEM, AND ALLAH WILL CERTAINLY KNOW THOSE WHO ARE TRUE FROM THOSE WHO ARE FALSE. – QUR’AN 29:2-3 Allah tested believers before, and He’ll test believers now. To say that depression is a sign of weak faith is to imply that those with bad lives are guilty of being bad Muslims, and this completely contradicts what we know about the most righteous people. In fact, the more righteous you are, the more likely you are to be tested.

Sa’d ibn Abi Waqqaas, may Allah be pleased with him, once asked, “O Messenger of Allah, which of the people are most sorely tested?”

The Prophet said: “The prophets, then the next best and the next best. A man will be tested in accordance with his level of religious commitment. If his religious commitment is strong, he will be tested more severely, and if his religious commitment is weak, he will be tested in accordance with his religious commitment.

Calamity will keep befalling a person until he walks on the earth with no sin on him.”

For as long as people have been unhappy, the human mind has struggled with understanding the difference between a test and punishment. A person can suffer and instead of seeing their suffering as temporary opportunity, they wonder what they did to deserve such punishment.

Shaitaan loves this train of thought, because it travels due south. I’ve done everything Allah asked me to. I know I’ve messed up, but I said I was sorry. Why is He is doing this to me? Either Allah’s not fair or Allah’s not really there. Either way, this sucks and I don’t want to do this anymore.

That’s a dangerous ride to take, and if you don’t change direction before going too far, your options become limited to loss of faith or loss of life. You either give up on Allah and find other reasons to continue living, or discontinue living entirely.

NO FATIGUE, NOR DISEASE, NOR SORROW, NOR SADNESS, NOR HURT, NOR DISTRESS BEFALLS A MUSLIM, EVEN IF IT WERE THE PRICK HE RECEIVES FROM A THORN, BUT THAT ALLAH EXPIATES SOME OF HIS SINS FOR THAT. – PROPHET MUHAMMAD? Life is painful and unpredictable and complicated, so when it comes to knowing the difference between a punishment and a test, all you have to remember is this: How are you reacting to it?

If you find yourself faced with depression and you fight it with the help of Allah and all the means He puts at your disposal, it is a test and you have passed it even if you NEVER fully defeat depression.

As long as you keep your faith and stay patient, you have shed sins the way a tree sheds its leaves in fall. You trade some pain in this life for reward in the next, that other believers will be halal jealous of.

However, if you find yourself faced with depression and you resent Allah for it, allowing your state to push you farther from Him and closer to any sinful thing you can use to distract yourself from it, then your test has become your punishment. Your response increases your pain in this life AND the next.

SAY: “NOTHING SHALL EVER HAPPEN TO US EXCEPT WHAT ALLAH HAS ORDAINED FOR US. HE IS OUR PROTECTOR.” AND IN ALLAH LET THE BELIEVERS PUT THEIR TRUST. – QUR’AN 9:51 A dear friend of mine called me once, knowing that I was struggling. She had been taking a class on the names of Allah, and when she read up on Al-Jameel, she just had to tell me about it. “Zeba listen!” she said excitedly, “Allah is Al Jameel, He is Beautiful! He creates beautiful things! He loves Beauty!”

I thought of flowers and fractals and fish. I didn’t see the relevance. “And?” “Don’t you get it? Al-Jameel wrote your Qadr with beauty too. He wrote autism into your son’s Qadr.

He wrote beauty in all of it, even in your pain.”

If that hit you in the heart the way it hit me, make dua for Mona. I think of that phone call often, because it was the first time I began to see pain as part of Allah’s plan, rather than my own failure at the emotional invulnerability that I believed all good Muslims were supposed to have.

I wasn’t hurting because I was a bad Muslim, badly managing Allah’s punishment for my badness.

I was hurting because Allah was allowing me to experience hurt, and hurt forced me to seek Allah out for healing.

HOW WONDERFUL IS THE AFFAIR OF THE BELIEVER, FOR HIS AFFAIRS ARE ALL GOOD, AND THIS APPLIES TO NO ONE BUT THE BELIEVER. IF SOMETHING GOOD HAPPENS TO HIM, HE IS THANKFUL FOR IT AND THAT IS GOOD FOR HIM. IF SOMETHING BAD HAPPENS TO HIM, HE BEARS IT WITH PATIENCE AND THAT IS GOOD FOR HIM. -PROPHET MUHAMMAD? Being depressed feels like sitting underwater in the bottom of a well, hating the darkness but starving for the air and strength needed to swim toward the surface. It’s cold and lonely and desperately hopeless down there. Depression feels so very far away from Allah, but it forces me to fight my way closer to Him. And I feel safer and less afraid knowing that Allah put me at the bottom of the well the same way He put Yusuf down there, peace be upon him.

Allah knows I’m down here. He knows I can make it out. I don’t have to know everything that He knows, I just have to trust Him. In my other article - I’ll write it one day maybe – I have this totally neat, emotionally satisfying and perfectly well-rounded conclusion. I put depression in its proper context by calling it a test, not a punishment or curse for weak Muslims. I let on that I was depressed before but I’m ok now, and if I can make it out of depression then you can too.

That’s in my other article though. In this one, I’ll be frank. I get sad sometimes, I get really, really sad.

And then, I feel guilty for feeling sad. Not because I’m blaming myself for not being “Muslim enough” to get happy already, but because when I look at my first world life and my first world problems, I feel as if I am making a big stink. Like oh pity me, I’m chronically sick but happily married, well supported, and have a good healthcare plan that covers most of my deductibles and I also don’t live in a war zone.

None of my self-deprecating objectivity seems to work. I can imagine all the children dying in Syria and Palestine and Burma and South Sudan, but when mine cries in my lap because she’s not feeling well for the 99th day out of the last hundred, I feel like my heart is broken.

I’m trying to remember that my heart is NOT broken though. It’s working perfectly well and doing the things my heart is supposed to be doing. It is aching out of sympathy for the love of my children, because they too are being tested by the will of Allah. My heart is struggling and in pain, and I will use that pain to seek healing by the will of Allah. Because that is what my heart is supposed to do. Hearts are supposed to hurt, because Allah has promised to heal them.

email:foreigndesk@thisdaylive.com

Man Held for ‘Driving at Crowd’ in Antwerp, Belgium A French national of North African origin has been arrested in the Belgian city of Antwerp on suspicion of driving at a crowd, officials say.

A car was driven “at high speed” on De Meir, the northern city’s main shopping street, before it was intercepted. There were no reports of any injuries.

Knives, a non-lethal gun and some unidentifiable liquid were found in the car, prosecutors say.

Belgian PM Charles Michel praised the authorities for an “outstanding job”.

The attack comes a day after a car was driven at high speed along London’s Westminster Bridge, hitting many people, before the driver got out and entered the grounds of Parliament.

He was killed after fatally stabbing a police officer there.

Two other people died and 40 were injured in the attack.

It was also the day Belgium marked the first anniversary

of the twin bomb attacks in Brussels, that killed 32 people and wounded more than 300.

The car was spotted at around 11:00 (10:00 GMT), Antwerp police chief Serge Muyters said.

“The vehicle was driving at high speed on De Meir,” he said. “Our army colleagues spotted it and tried to bring the vehicle to a halt. “But the driver broke free and drove through the red light towards the port quays.”

UN: 400,000 Iraqis ‘Trapped in Mosul’s Old City’ Some 600,000 people remain in the parts of western Mosul held by ISIL, including 400,000 who are “trapped” in the Old City under siege-like conditions, according to the United Nations.

The Iraqi military launched the most recent offensive on western Mosul, the largest remaining ISIL stronghold in Iraq, on February 19, after retaking the city’s eastern side.

Many civilians fear fleeing because of ISIL snipers, but

some 157,000 have reached a transit centre since the start of the push, the UN’s refugee agency said on Thursday.

ISIL, which stands for Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, and is also known as ISIS, overran large areas north and west of the capital, Baghdad, in 2014, including Mosul, But Iraqi forces backed by USled air strikes and other support have since regained most of the territory they lost.

The operation to retake Mosul was launched on

October 17.

The eastern side of the city was recaptured in a threemonth offensive that ended in January, but the west, with its densely populated maze of narrow streets, is thought to pose a greater challenge.

Surrounded by a diverse array of forces, the remaining ISIL fighters are digging in for a fight to the end, using car bombs, snipers and grenadeladen drones to slow the troops’ advances.

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Senate Rejects Two Non-career Ambassadorial Nominees Confirms 45 others Damilola Oyedele in Abuja The Senate yesterday rejected the nomination of 82-year-old Justice Sylvanus Adiewere Nsofor from Imo State as a non-career ambassador over his refusal to respond appropriately to questions posed to him by the committee members.

The nominee from Ondo State, Mr. Jacob Igbekele Daodu, was also rejected based on the report of the Department of State Services (DSS), which indicted him for corruption.

The lawmakers however confirmed the nomination of 45

others as non-career ambassadors, following the adoption of the recommendation of the Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs.

Proffering insight into why the two nominees were rejected, the Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, Senator Monsurat Sunmonu (Oyo Central), emphasised that Nsofor was not rejected because of his age.

She however noted that he had walked into the screening arena looking frail and had to be supported as he was unable to walk by himself.

“His responses to the issues

Akiolu: No Lagosian Should Contest against Ambode in 2019

raised were either not answered or devoid of details and mostly satirical. For instance, we asked him to recite the national anthem, and he said we should have sent him a syllabul. A member of the committee asked him if he knew about IT. He asked what is IT, and I told him Information Technology.

He said, ‘its for your age, not mine’.

“Also, when asked if he was not too old, he said we should go and ask Mugabe who is still walking.

He has shown his temperament,” she added.

The DSS report on Daodu described him as deceitful and someone who indulged in corrupt practices when he was Chairman of the Ondo State Road Maintenance Agency, Sunmonu disclosed.

“Although the nominee has acquired experience from his previous work places, his responses during the screening exercise did not have direct bearing to the issues raised and were not satisfactory to the committee’s expectation,” reading from the committee’s report.

Senate President Bukola Saraki congratulated the confirmed nominees, but urged the executive arm of government to take note of comments on the performances of the nominees.

He also urged that all outstanding liabilities accrued to Nigeria’s foreign missions be settled to pave way for the smooth transition of the new ambassadors to wherever they are posted.

Those confirmed as non career ambassadors are Uzoma Emenike (Abia), Aminu Iyawa (Adamawa), Godwin Umo (Akwa Ibom), Christopher Okeke (Anambra), Yusuf Tuggar (Bauchi), Baba Magudu (Bauchi), Stanley Diriyai (Bayelsa), Stephen Ugba (Benue), Baba Ahmed Jidda (Borno), Etubom Asuquo (Cross River), Frank Ofeduma (Delta), Jonah Odo (Ebonyi) and Uyagwe Igbe (Edo).

Others are Eniola Ajayi (Ekiti), Chris Eze (Enugu), Sulieman Hassan (Gombe), Aminu Dalhatu (Jigawa), Ahmed Bamalli (Kaduna), Deborah Iliya (Kaduna), D. Abdulkadir (Kano), Haruna Ungogo (Kano), Isa Dodo (Katsina), Mohammed Rimi

(Katsina), Tijani Bande (Kebbi), Y. O. Aliu (Kogi), Nurudeen Mohammed (Kwara), Mohammed Yisa (Kwara), Adesola Oguntade (Lagos), Modupe Irele (Lagos), Musa Ilu Mohammed (Nasarawa), Ahmed Ibeto (Niger), Susanne Aderonke Folarin (Ogun), Afolahan Adeyemi (Osun), Ashimiyu Olaniyi (Oyo), James Dimka (Plateau).

The confirmed nominees also include Haruna Abdullahi (Plateau), Orji Ngofa (Rivers), Sahabi Isa Gada (Sokoto), Kabir Umar (Sokoto), Hassan Jika Ardo (Taraba), Goni Zanna Bura (Yobe), Garba Gajam (Zamfara), Bala Mohammad Mairiga (Zamfara), Habiss Ibrahim Ugbada (FCT) and Adeyinka Asekun (Ogun).

Governor rolls out plan for LASU Gboyega Akinsanmi The Oba of Lagos, Oba Rilwan Akiolu, yesterday said he had directed all governorship aspirants in the state not to contest the 2019 election against the incumbent governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode and his Deputy, Dr. Oluranti Adebule.

The monarch provided justification for his directive, which he said, was founded on Ambode’s unprecedented performance in government under two years even when other states of the federation were experiencing intractable economic meltdown.

The monarch disclosed this at the 21st convocation of Lagos State University (LASU) at the institution’s auditorium, Ojo, insisting that there was no vacancy in Ikeja House in 2019.

The convocation was attended by LASU Chancellor, Justice Adesola Oguntade, Chairman of LASU Governing Council, Prof. Adebayo Ninalowo, Vice Chancellor of LASU, Prof. Olanrewaju Fagbohun and members of the State Executive Council among others.

Former Executive Secretary of National Universities Commission (NUC), Prof. Peter Okebukola, foremost industrialist, Sir Adebutu Kessington and the richest black women in the world, Mrs. Folorunsho Alakija were presented honourary awards.

But speaking at the convocation, Akiolu explained his preference for Ambode in 2019, revealing how one of the governorship candidates in the 2015 contest recently ran into him, greeted him and alleged that the monarch truncated his governorship aspiration.

He said: “Few days ago, one of the aspirants greeted me. After greeting, he alleged that I halted his ambition. No one should come out in 2019 and declare his ambition.

“The only way to avoid not wasting their money is to support Ambode and his deputy to rule Lagos for the next six years. That was why about nine months to the 2015 governorship election, I said Ambode would be the next governor whether they vote or not.

“But all of them doubted me. I often pray before and after leaving

the bed. That is one of few things I learnt from the late father of Prof.

Peter Oke-Bukola, who served as my cadet officer then. Even though he was much older than I am, he was very humble.

“The prayer has helped me a lot.

The state of Nigeria indicates the type of police it gets. As a police officer, I served for 32 years. That is why I can confidently say I never collected money from anyone before performing my duties as a law enforcement officer.”

While addressing the gathering, Ambode revealed plans by his administration to build a 6000bed hostel within LASU main campus, Ojo in partnership with the private sector to improve on the learning experience in the institution.

The governor promised that the state government would continue “to invest in infrastructure in tertiary institutions in the state including LASU to make them emerge as great citadels of learning and pride of all.”

Ambode charged them to build on the ranking of the institution as the best state university in Nigeria to become one of the best five universities in the country by 2020.

He, therefore, urged the management of the institution “to work assiduously to make LASU emerge as the preferred university of choice by 2025. I made a commitment at the 20th convocation that we would invest massively here.

“I also promised that we would upgrade its status to that obtainable anywhere around the world provided all stakeholders can ensure that peace reigns on Campus. One of the results of that is the accreditation of this institution’s School of Dentistry; the only State University to have an accredited School of Dentistry.

“We will continue to invest in physical and social infrastructure in this University. We have many projects nearing completion and these legacy projects when completed will no doubt change the entire overview of the landscape of the university. One of these projects is a PPP arrangement to deliver a 6,000-bed hostel for LASU.”

MEDIA TOUR

L-R: Associate Director, Chartered lnstitute of Management Accountants (CIMA), ljeoma Anadozie; Managing Director, THISDAY Newspapers, Mr. Eniola Bello; President, CIMA and Chairman, Association of lnternational Certified Professional Accountants, Andrew Miskin; and Regional Diirector for Africa, Badianga Badi Promesse, during a courtesy visit of CIMA management team to THISDAY Head office in Lagos ... yesterday Abiodun Ajalla

Oil Prices Recover Marginally as OPEC, Non-members Meet Sunday Ejiofor Alike with agency reports Crude oil prices hovered above a four-month low yesterday, recovering slightly from last Wednesday losses as increased United States inventories and rising global output dampened efforts by the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to curb the glut in the international market.

As part of the efforts to improve compliance to the January 1, 2017 deal by OPEC and non-OPEC countries to curb global output by 1.8 million barrels per day, some oil ministers from the two groups will meet on Sunday in Kuwait to discuss compliance.

Global benchmark Brent crude oil was trading yesterday at $50.49 a barrel, above last Wednesday’s slide to $49.71, its lowest level since November 30 when OPEC announced plans to cut output.

The United States West Texas Intermediate (WTI) light crude oil slipped 18 cents at $47.86.

Brent has remained well below this year’s high above $58 per barrel, reached shortly after

January 1 when the deal between OPEC and non-OPEC states to curb supplies came into effect.

Nigeria’s Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, had told Arise News Network, the sister broadcast arm of THISDAY, that the current fluctuations in oil prices pose no immediate threat to Nigeria’s economic recovery, saying it would amount to being an alarmist to consider the gyrations in the oil market a threat to the Nigerian economy Reuters reported that OPEC has broadly met its commitments to reduce output, but non-OPEC producers have yet to fully deliver on pledged cuts and US shale oil producers have been pumping more oil after crude prices recovered from last year’s drop below $30.

Kachikwu had hinted that members of OPEC were already exploring opportunities to engage US oil producers on efforts to stabilise prices.

As global stockpiles rises even with OPEC-led cuts, oil ministers from OPEC and some non-OPEC members will meet next Sunday

in Kuwait to discuss compliance with the January 1 agreement.

Data from the US Energy Information Administration showed US inventories jumped by a bigger-than-expected five million barrels last week to 533.1 million.

However, London-based Barclays Bank offered a more upbeat outlook, saying the latest oil price weakness would not last into the second quarter. The bank forecast a modest price recovery.

“We see a rebound to the high $50 and $60 range in Q2 as inventories draw and the market readies for the peak driving and demand season,” the bank wrote in a note to clients, which was seen by Reuters.

The bank said inventories held by industrialised nations would be eroded by the end of the second quarter, sliding to OPEC’s targeted level of the five-year average.

But the Energy Information Administration (EIA) said US inventories climbed almost 5 million barrels to a record 533.1 million last week, thus

outpacing forecasts of a 2.8 million-barrel build.

The high inventories is coming as US oil production has risen over eight per cent since mid-2016 to more than 9.13 million barrels per day (bpd) to levels comparable in late 2014, when the oil market slump started.

There were also strong indications of a bloated market in Asia, where China’s fuel imports slumped, while its refiners sent huge volumes overseas as they refine more fuel than the domestic market can absorb.

China’s fuel exports reportedly hit the second highest on record in February, up 76.6 per cent over a year earlier at 1.06 million tonnes, data from the Chinese customs showed on Thursday. Diesel exports last month surged 66.7 per cent on year at 1.32 million tonnes.

Reuters reported that China imported 7,245 tonnes of gasoline in February, tumbling 94 per cent from the same period in 2016, while diesel imports dropped 52 per cent from a year ago to 50,000 tonnes.

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$115m Slush Funds: Court Admits Alison-Madueke’s List of Beneficiaries Davidson Iriekpen Justice Rilwan Aikawa of the Federal High Court in Lagos yesterday admitted in evidence, the list of beneficiaries of the $115m allegedly linked to the former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke.

The former petroleum minister, however, has denied having ties to the funds deposited with banks before the 2015 general election.

In his ruling on the objection raised by Olatunji Ayanlaja (SAN), counsel to the former Minister of National Planning, Professor Abubakar Sulaiman, who is being tried alongside the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in Kwara State, Mohammed Dele Belgore (SAN), concerning the admissibility of the list of beneficiaries, the judge agreed with the arguments of the counsel to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Rotimi Oyedepo, and held that the prosecution had complied substantially with the provisions of section 84 of the Evidence Act. Justice Aikawa added that the fact that the document was produced by a computer through an email address of a staff in the course of carrying out an official assignment does not in any way invalidate the tendering of the list of beneficiaries before the court.

According to the judge, “What the Evidence Act intends to do is to simplify and not to complicate the process of admitting documents in court.

“Any officer of the financial institution is competent to tender the document even if he is not the maker of the said document.

“The document and its attachment are one and same is admissible and can be tendered by the PW1.”

However, and shortly after the ruling, Belgore’s counsel, Ebun Shofunde (SAN), commenced the cross-examination of the first prosecution witness, Timothy Olaobaju, who confirmed before the court that he a statement to the EFCC on January 9, 2017 wherein he witness stated that he did not

mention Alison-Madueke in his statement to the anti-graft agency.

But as Olaobaju was about to give further explanations as to why Alison-Madueke’s name was not mentioned in his statement, the defence lawyers promptly interjected and insisted that further explanation was not needed.

Justice Aikawa was then urged

by Shofunde to adjourn the matter so as to enable the prosecution produce the said statement made by the witness.

Consequently, the judge adjourned until May 2, 2017 for the EFCC to make available the said statement.

The EFFC had notified Justice Aikawa that Alison-Madueke had questions to answer in the ongoing trial of Belgore and the former Minister of National Planning, Professor Sulaiman, over their involvement in scam to the tune of N450 million.

Specifically, Belgore’s counsel, Ebun Shofunde (SAN), had during proceedings, insisted before the judge that the list sought to be tendered emanated from the mailbox of the maker.

He called the attention of Justice Aikawa to Section 84 of the Evidence Act, which according to the SAN, governs documents made from computers.

According to Shofunde, “The document sought to be tendered has not met with the conditions made out in Section 84 of the Evidence Act. “The certificate itself was not made by the witness and that makes it more yahoo, yahoo and I urge your lordship to reject same.”

In his objection, counsel to the anti-graft agency argued that there is a certificate attached to the document sought to be tendered to authenticate same.

The EFCC lawyer said: “The document was identified by the witness as the list containing names of beneficiaries, and the transactions carried out by the financial institution.

“It is not the spirit of Section 84 (2) of the Evidence Act, that the a certifying officer who is merely

NIS Unveils OnlineVisa-on-Arrival Platform The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has announced the introduction of a liberalised online Visa-on-Arrival (VOA) facility to the public, especially foreign investors willing to invest in Nigeria.

The Comptroller-General of the NIS, Muhammad Babandede, made the announcement yesterday in Abuja.

Babandede said the measure was part of the resolution of the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) aimed at attracting foreign investors to the country.

“As a critical member of the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC), the NIS has automated its visa application and processing services at all entry points.

“This is to ensure that all genuine requests for VOA facility from any part of the world are processed and issued within 48 hours (two working days),” he said.

He explained that the online VOA application and processing

facility is a product of robust visa reforms regime intended to bring Nigeria in tandem with global best practices and attract Foreign Direct Investors and skilled professionals into the country.

The controller-general said the new process was designed to eliminate all unnecessary bureaucratic visa processing procedures in Nigerian missions abroad.

He said it was also to serve the interests of would-be visitors from countries where Nigeria does not have missions.

He said that a dedicated e-mail address: oa@nigeriaimmigration. gov.ng, had been deployed where visa applicants, their representatives or companies could forward their requests and details.

Babandede according to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), said that applicants were advised to use functional e-mail addresses where copies of approval letter shall be forwarded upon a successful process and payment.

to confirm the functionality or otherwise of the devices used in printing out the document so as to come and give evidence.

“Substantially, we have complied with provisions of Section 84 of the Evidence Act. “The certifying officer had confirmed that the document was printed in the ordinary course of business of the financial institution.

“He also certified that the list was produced by the computer owned by the financial institution.

“Throughout the period the document was printed, the computer used in printing the document was functioning properly.

“There is no contrary evidence to controvert this certification. The witness can validly tender the document he has identified forms

part of the transactions.

“It is an exception that a document must be tendered by its maker where the document emanates.”

Prior to this time, the EFCC lawyer had sought the leave of Justice Aikawa to reopen the evidence in chief of its witness, Timothy Olaobaju, so as to further examine him on the document.

While being led in evidence, Olaobaju insisted that the sum was offloaded to the loading bay for the beneficiaries to take possession.

According to the witness, “The money was counted by way of bundle counting, and they were in N1000 and N500 denominations.

“The money was kept overnight with the financial institution and in the vaults.

“That very day, before the beneficiaries came, we had already stacked the money for them to pick.

“But there was a delay because the minister refused to show his identity card.

“The beneficiaries said they could not carry the money that night because it was late.

“It is not true that none of the beneficiaries collected a dime.”

Belgore and Sulaiman were re-arraigned on an amended five counts, wherein the name of the former Petroleum Minister was clearly mentioned.

According to the amended charge, on or about March 27, 2015, Alison-Madueke was accused of conspiring with Belgore and Sulaiman to directly take possession of the sum of N450 million, which

they reasonably ought to have known forms part of proceeds of unlawful act.

They were equally said to have taken the said funds in cash, which exceeded the amount authorised by law, without going through any financial institution.

Belgore and the former Minister of National Planning were accused of paying a sum to the tune of N50 million to one Sheriff Shagaya, without going through financial institutions.

The commission however insisted that the offences contravenes sections 18 (a)15 (2) (d), 1 (a), 16 (d) and punishable under sections 15 (3) and 4, 16 (2) (b), and 16 (d) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) (Amendment) Act, 2012.

CSR IN ACTION

L-R: Speaker, Delta State House of Assembly, Hon. Monday Igbuya; Chief Executive Officer, Seplat Petroleum Development Company Plc, Mr. Austin Avuru, Governor Ifeanyi Okowa; and General Manager, External Affairs and Communications, Seplat Petroleum, Dr. Chioma Nwachuku, at the inauguration of eight projects constructed by Seplat for the Ugborhen Community in the Sapele Local Government Area of the state ... recently

Transparency International Denies Endorsing Magu Recent reports that Transparency International in the United Kingdom had endorsed the Acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has proven to be false.

A statement issued by the anticorruption body, EFCC, had said that the international anti-corruption monitor had endorsed Magu as an anti-corruption icon.

The statement of the EFCC had come on the heels of the rejection of Magu by the Senate as the nominee for confirmation to head the commission.

However, in a statement by TI

announcing the event which Magu was invited to, it was categorically stated that the invitation was not an endorsement by the world body.

TI-UK, accprding to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), stated in its website http://www.transparency. org.uk/, it said it had to clarify that inviting Magu did not constitute an endorsement as reported in the Nigerian media.

“In light of reports in Nigerian press, TI-UK would like to clarify the following points: “The event is being hosted by Transparency International UK, Global Witness and The Corner

House.

“This event does not constitute an official follow-up to the London Anti-Corruption Summit, hosted by the UK government in May 2016.

“The purpose of this event is to contribute to the discussion about the effectiveness of the UK-Nigerian asset recovery process, and more generally the UK’s asset recovery regime.

“All invited guests speak on behalf of either themselves or the organisation they represent – their participation does not represent an endorsement

by TI-UK.” Last week, the Senate had rejected Magu’s nomination following a

report by the DSS which alleged that he would constitute a liability to the anti-corruption fight of the current administration.

The security body had alleged that Magu hob-nobbed with individuals who were under investigation by the committion.

The report added that he (Magu) lived in a N40 million house paid for by someone being investigated by the commison.

Following this report which was sent in October 2016 and reaffirmed last week by the Department of State Services (DSS), the Senate rejected Magu’s nomination.

Another Batch of Stranded Nigerians Deported from Libya Chinedu Eze Another batch of Nigerians, numbering about 155 yesterday arrived Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) in Lagos from Libya after unsuccessful attempts to cross to Europe.

The returnees, who were largely in their 20s and 30s, were picked from different prisons and detention camps in the country.

According to the Nigerian Immigration Services (NIS),

their release was negotiated by International Organisation for Migration (IOM).

On March 7, a total of 171 were deported from Libya; another 171 on February 21 deported, while 161 voluntarily returned with the assistance of IOM on February 14.

The return of the latest batch of Nigerians yesterday was the fourth this year and ninth of such returns in the last 15 months in which a total of 1,521 persons have been repatriated.

Deputy Director, Search and Rescue, National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Dr. Bandele Onimode, said among the returnees were three medical cases.

One of the returnees had paralysis, the other with psychiatric case, while the last was a minor ailment.

All were being catered for by a team of IOM and doctors shortly after arrival.

Onimode said the returnees all voluntarily chose to return to Nigeria after they were rescued

from harsh and inhuman conditions in Libya.

He added that it was NEMA’s duty to receive them on behalf of the federal government, and connect the returnees with various state governments for proper integration.

The Public Information Officer of IOM, Julia Burpee, said theirs were cases of people stranded in Libya and unable to proceed as economic migrants to Europe, adding that about 7,000 Nigerians had been repatriated since 2001.

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Mark Tasks Security Operatives to Fish out Killers in Benue Says waste of human lives no longer tolerable ACF applauds Buhari over action on Zaki Biam Wike: Why I called for state of emergency in Benue Omololu Ogunmade in Abuja, John Shiklam inKaduna and George Okoh inMakurdiand Ernest Chinwo inPortHarcourt Former Senate President, Senator David Mark, yesterday tasked security operatives to fish out perpetrators of deadly attacks on Zaki Biam yam market last Monday, as well as several other communities in the state which he said had claimed hundreds of lives and property worth millions of naira destroyed.

About 50 people were said to have been killed during the attacked at the Yam Market in the area.

Mark according to a statement by his Media Assistant, Paul Mumeh, listed various communities in Benue State which he said had come under gruesome attacks in recent times to include Zaki Biam, Guma, Buruku and Agatu, among others by suspected Fulani herdsmen.

The former senate president who condemned the protracted attacks, further said they had become intolerable, noting that “harmless and innocent people across Benue State are being killed in their numbers routinely by armed men.”

He added: “Our people can no longer go freely to their farms and markets to pursue their legitimate businesses. Even those who resort to staying at home for fear of being attacked are not free.

“I’m yet to be told what the offence of the Benue man or woman living in his or her own land actually is. The killings of our people have continued, yet nobody has been arrested or apprehended for this heinous crime.”

He urged security operatives to deploy all powers within their

reach to halt the massacre of Benue people as he suggested the need for all security formations to collaborate and work together as a team if they must nip the crisis in the bud.

Mark, however, advised the people against nursing reprisal attacks, saying it would only aggravate the situation rather than abate it and called for massive deployment of security forces to affected areas to contain the situation.

However, Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) has commended President Muhammadu Buhari for taking a decisive action against killings by suspected herdsmen in Zaki Biam.

The president had while condemning the attack, directed an immediate investigation with a view to bringing the perpetrators to book.

The ACF in a statement yesterday in Kaduna applauded Buhari for acting promptly by directing the security agencies to investigate attack and bring the perpetrators of the wicked and dastardly act to justice.

The statement signed by the spokesman of the forum, Alhaji Muhammad Ibrahim Biu, also commiserated with the government and people of Benue state over the ugly incident.

The forum appealed to communities that have coexisted peacefully over the years to be vigilant and report any suspicious persons in their midst to the security agencies.

Meanwhile, the Special Tactical Team of Nigerian Police deployed in Benue State by President Buhari has arrived in Makurdi, the state capital, with the assurance to restore peace in Zaki Biam.

The leader of the team, a Commissioner of Police, Ben

Ahmed, gave the assurance yesterday while presenting members of the team to the state Governor, Samuel Ortom, at the Benue Peoples House, Makurdi.

The team is made up of Police Mobile Force, Specially Trained Anti-riot Policemen, Counter Terrorism Units, conventional policemen, Special Anti-robbery Squad, SIB, Police Air Wing (Aerial Surveillance Helicopter), Sniffer dogs and undercover operatives.

Ahmed said President Buhari was deeply worried over the happenings in the state, therefore, the deployment of the tactical team was in response to the call of the state governor. He pleaded with the people of the state to avail both the existing security men and the Special Tactical Team the needed information that could ease their operations.

In his response, Ortom expressed appreciation to President Buhari for the swift response to his distress call.

He noted that his government has been proactive in handling security issues, and that with the combined force of the visiting team, unimaginable success will

be recorded.

Ortom recalled the efforts of his administration in recovering over 700 weapons from youths in the state through the carrot approach of the state amnesty programme, saying the situation would have been worse if the weapons were still in the custody of hoodlums.

The governor pointed out specifically that Terwase Akwaza also known as Gana and members of his gang who masterminded the recent Zaki Biam attacks must be fished out and brought to justice.

He expressed disappointment over the careless statements credited to the Governor of Rivers State, Nyelsom Wike, who has allegedly called for a state of emergency in Benue State.

Ortom pointed out that the spate of killings in Rivers State is far higher than in Benue State, describing the action of his Rivers State counterpart as unfortunate.

He maintained that rather than sympathise with him at this time of pain, Wike has chosen to mock the state, praying that God should forgive the Rivers State governor.

Ortom has however sued for

cooperation from both security men and the people of the state for improved security.

Meanwhile, Wike has said he called for a state of emergency in Benue State because that state Governor, Mr. Samuel Ortom, was one of those who politicised insecurity in the country, which has now degenerated to consume his state.

He emphasised his call for the declaration of a state of emergency in Benue State because the state governor has lost control and lacks the capacity to stand up for his people.

Addressing the University of Port Harcourt Governing Council at the Government House, Port Harcourt during a courtesy Visit yesterday, Wike said Ortom was in the league of All Progressives Congress (APC) governors who plotted a state of emergency against Rivers State when the state had security challenges.

He said: “Benue Governor has lost control. That is why there is an immediate need to declare a state of emergency for

the restoration of security and protection of the people.

“If you are from Benue State, I apologise. But when Rivers State had security challenges, Governor Ortom was amongst the APC governors who plotted for the declaration of state of emergency in the state.

“When the problem of insecurity started here in Rivers State, instead of joining hands to proffer solutions, they politicised it. Unless all those at the fore front of the plot against the state repent, this insecurity will visit them one after the other.”

He said as a result of the politicisation of security by APC governors, today insecurity has been exported to several parts of the country.

He said because he is in contact with the people of Rivers State, it is difficult to rig in the state. The governor said those who plotted to rig in Rivers State now understand the consequence.

Commenting on the University of Port Harcourt, Wike urged the university management to remain apolitical.

Abuja Tops Road Accidents List 11,363 crashes recorded in 2016 nationwide Ndubuisi Francis in Abuja Latest road transport figures released yesterday by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) indicated that the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja topped the auto crashes list in 2016 nationwide.

Abuja is closely followed by Kaduna and Niger States while Borno and Bayelsa States recorded the least.

The 2016 road transport data also reflected that 11,363 road crashes occurred in the year in review.

A total of 5,053 were killed in the road traffic crashes recorded in the year while 4,696 of the 5,053 killed, representing 93 per cent of the figure were adults.

The remaining 357 people, representing 7 per cent of the figure are children.

Similarly, 3,970 males, representing 79 per cent were also killed in road crashes in 2016 while 1,083 female Nigerians, representing 25 per cent lost their lives.

Speed violation was blamed as the major cause of road crashes in

2016, accounting for 33.86 per cent of the total road crashes reported.

Loss of control and dangerous driving followed closely. Both accounted for 15.43 per cent and 8.53 per cent of the total road crashes recorded.

A total of 30,105 people were injured in the road traffic crashes recorded, with 28,250 of the 30,105 injured. According to the NBS, this represents 94 per cent of the figure who were adults while the remaining 1,855 Nigerians, representing 6 per cent of the figure are children.

Also, 22, 705 males, representing 75 per cent were injured in road crashes in 2016 while 7,400 females or 25 were, injured.

Total vehicle population in Nigeria in 2016 was put at 11,387,185. Commercial vehicles accounted for 53.8 per cent of th total vehicle population in Nigeria in 2016.

Private vehicles accounted for 44.5 per cent, government vehicles accounted for 1.65 and diplomatic vehicles accounted for 0.1 per cent.

COURTESY VISIT

L-R: Deputy Editor (Daily), THISDAY Newspapers, Mr. Joseph Ushigiale; Chief Operating Officer, Sterling Bank Plc, Mr. Herny Bassey; and Chief Operating Officer, Strategiz Effects Limited, Mr. Friday Atufe, during the team’s courtsey visit to THISDAY Head Office in Lagos... yesterday

Unions Picket Arik Air, Accuse Management of Insensitivity Chinedu Eze In keeping with their threat, aviation sector unions comprising of United Labour Congress (ULC), National Union of Air Transport Employees (NUATE), Air Transport Services Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (ATSSSAN) and National Association of Aircraft Pilots and Engineers (NAAPE) yesterday picketed Arik Air and grounded the airline’s operations.

The unions accessed the airline’s premises as early as 4a.m. and barricaded the gates despite heavy police presence, attributing the reason for disrupting the airline’s operations to the failure

of its management to reinstate the sacked union leaders and several other issues in the airline.

The General Secretary of NUATE, Mr. Olayinka Abioye, accused the new management of intolerance to unionism in the airline.

He alleged that the new management through a circular recently warned the workers not to join the unions in the industry and had refused to address all the pending issues as they affected workers in the airline.

Among the issues are: review of conditions of service, remittance of necessary unions deductions to their respective unions and the non-re-instatement of sacked

union leaders in the airline.

But THISDAY learnt that the union members were resisted by the workers of the airline who accused the unions of being insensitive to the plight of the airline, recalling that in December at the peak of operations they disrupted the airline, forcing it to cancel over 100 flights and losing over 800 million.

They stated that now that the airline is in a precarious state, they came again to further worsen the situation for Nigeria’s biggest carrier.

“Since Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) took over Arik Air, the airline has cut down its flights to 30 per cent and the management

has been able to pay one month out of the two months’ salary the former management of the airline owed staff.

“Also, many of the airline’s 28 aircraft are parked, only five are still operating, but the day AMCON took over the operations of the airline, it operated about 70 flights but now it operates about 18 flights a day,” the workers said.

In an online statement released by the Social Media Coordinator of the airline, Kayode Badmus, Arik Staff distanced themselves from the disruption.

He stated that no staff of Arik was in support of the action which he described as unnecessary.

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House Expresses Safety Concerns, Orders Probe of Kaduna Airport Niger Gov: Minna airport a cedible alternative to Abuja James Emejo in Abuja and Laleye Dipo inMinna The House of Representatives yesterday directed the House Committee on Aviation to receive and review the audit report by the Directorate of Aerodrome Standards of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) to ascertain that industry acceptable standards of ramp safety is being complied with at the Kaduna International Airport.

It followed a motion brought forward by Hon. Adeyinka Ajayi (Osun) on the need to review and ensure that the airport complies with operational and safety requirements as contained in prescribed aerodrome standards.

The House said despite all safety assurances by regulatory agencies, safety concerns have already manifested around aviation activities at the airport.

Specifically, it noted that ramp markings are allegedly inadequate

Release Kanu, other Biafra Activists, Says Peter Obi Former Governor of Anambra State, Mr. Peter Obi, has called for the release of the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, and other detained Biafra activists.

Obi, while fielding questions from journalists in Enugu yesterday, emphasised that the use of force is not the solution to the Biafra agitation as such agitations are best resolved through dialogue.

“I wish to appeal to the federal government to change its hardline posture on this issue and yield to the persistent clamour for the release of Nnamdi Kanu and other Biafran activists so as to douse the tension in the country, especially in the South-east and South-south geo-political zones.

The federal government should engage them in dialogue. Every agitation in the world is resolved through dialogue and not by means of force,” Obi said.

The former governor recalled that he was among the first to advocate a political solution to the renewed Biafra agitation and expressed disappointment that the advice was yet to be heeded.

“This has been my consistent position, and I remember making the same point when I spoke at an event organised in Enugu in February 2016 by the Igbo Youth Movement,” he said.

He noted that while the federal government may have reservations about the Biafra agitation, it should realise and acknowledge that the agitators, like other citizens, have their fundamental rights of freedom of expression and assembly guaranteed by the Nigerian Constitution.

“To the best of my knowledge, the agitation for Biafra is not violent and does not violate either the Nigerian Constitution or international laws. I, therefore, condemn the use of force against the agitators,” he said.

Obi noted that Nnamdi Kanu and others have been granted bails in the past by courts of competent jurisdiction. He said it was a matter of regret that the federal government failed to use those judicial windows to free the detainees. “The fact that they had been granted bails that were not obeyed makes it even more pertinent to set them free now. We are in a democratic regime and it is important that the rule of law should be obeyed no matter whose case is involved,” he said.

The former governor advocated the restructuring of Nigeria, saying that it remains the only panacea to the various agitations and deepseated anger that has consistently stoked tension and prevented Nigeria from moving forward.

Glo-sponsored AfricanVoices Features Nigerian Talk Show Host, Mo Abudu Nigeria’s talk show host, Mosunmola Abudu, popularly known as Mo Abudu, will this week take her turn as a guest on the Glo-sponsored CNN African Voices.

The 30-minute magazine programme is sponsored by telecommunication giant, Globacom, and is aired on the Cable News Network (CNN) on Fridays at 10.30a.m., with repeat editions at 2.30p.m. on Saturday, 12.30a.m. and 7.30p.m. on Sunday, 11:30p.m. on Sunday, 11.30p.m. on Monday and 5.30a.m. on Tuesday.

Mo Abudu is a renowned talk show host, TV producer, media personality, human resources management consultant and entrepreneur.

Described by Forbes as one of Africa’s most successful women, Mo launched Ebony Life Television in July, 2013. The station is regarded as ‘Africa’s first Global Black Multi-

Broadcast Entertainment Network.’

Joining her on the programme as second guest is Siba Mtongana, a South African celebrity chef and host of the Food Network show “Siba’s Table.” She is currently a judge on ‘Chopped South Africa,’ a hugely popular cooking competition in South Africa.

CNN referred to the two celebrities as successful women driven by “perseverance, passion, and positivity.”

The media organisation said Mo Abudu would take viewers “behind the scenes of her empire to see how she creates content that has audiences in Africa and abroad clamouring for more.

“Then, we take a peek into the world of South Africa’s biggest celebrity chef and see how she uses her childhood memories of food and South Africa as an inspiration for her recipes,” CNN stated.

while ramp restrictions are violated by unauthorised users who go right through the ramp marks- a clear violation of internationally accepted standards to airport safety.

The House said aircraft maneuvering and parking space are inadequate to accommodate the high number of aircrafts now operating in and out of the airport.

It further expressed concern over fuelling installations and procedure which grossly fall short of international standards and pose grave danger to employees, passengers and the public.

The lawmakers further noted that despite objections to the full closure of the Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport Abuja for six weeks, the public was assured and reassured by the Ministry of Aviation, Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN, NCAA, Nigeria Fire Service, Nigeria Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) and the Nigeria Meteorological Agency (NiMET) that the airport would be ready, fit and safe to

handle the new traffic arising from its new status.

Hon. Adeyinka Ajayi (Osun, APC) told journalists the House had approved the relocation of the Abuja airport to Kaduna on conditions that safety will not be compromised.

He added that the House, therefore, deemed it fit to investigate allegations of falling standards.

The House also said it was disturbed that some aviation fuel marketers have allegedly been transferring aviation fuel product from Bulk Road Tankers directly into browsers right on the tarmac at the Kaduna airport.

It held that these markets might not have been licensed to operate at the airport using this dangerous and illegal procedure, adding that they do not even have the requisite equipment for storage nor quality assurance kit needed for compliance to standards.

Furthermore, the House expressed disappointment that perimeter fencing and restriction

of access to livestock and local human traffic was inadequate, thereby leaving the airspace and runway vulnerable to invasion by livestock and locals, a trend which could be dangerous to aircrafts, life and property.

The House noted that unless urgently addressed, the country risks losing its International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) license including diminishing its reputation in the international rating and posses a lot of danger to passengers and aircraft safety.

Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila (Lagos, APC) said aviation fuel handling by unapproved persons could lead to contamination and jeopardise safety of aircraft.

He also wondered why despite the lucrative nature of Nigerian routes, foreign airlines have still decided to shun the Kaduna airport.

“What do they do that we do not know?” he queried.

Some members also likened the Kaduna airport to a construction site.

Hon. Hassan Saleh (Benue,

APC) said security personnel appeared to be overwhelmed at the airport as luggage were no longer being scrutinised.

However, the committee has one week to report back to the House for further legislative action.

Meanwhile, Niger State Governor, Alhaji Abubakar Sani Bello, has said Minna international airport is a “credible alternative” to the Abuja airport even as he promised that his administration would ensure it provided the airport with all necessary facilities to function.

The governor has already released N60million for the completion of the projects abandoned by the federal government.

The governor’s action came on the heels of some airlines opting to land in the Minna international airport instead of Kaduna as directed by the federal government following the closure of the Nnamdi Azikiwe international airport for rehabilitation.

FOOD SECURITY

L-R: Kebbi State Governor, Senator Abubakar Atiku Bagudu; the Emir of Argungu, Alhaji Sama’ila Muhammed Mera; and Group Managing Director of TGI Group, the parent company of WACOT Rice Limited, Mr. Rahul Savara, during the pre-inauguration visit to the 120,000 metric tonnes WACOT Rice Mill at Argungu, Kebbi State... recently

I am Not a Director of Arebs Resources Nigeria Limited, Says Atafo Abure Ejiofor Alike The law firm of Felix PO Nwadialo & Co has clarified that a minor, Master. Atafo Abure, has averred that he was neither a subscriber nor a director of Arebs Resources Nigeria Limited as he was only about three years in 2004 and did not know anything about the incorporation of the company.

According to the statement of claims in the suit between Master Atafo Abure, issued by his friend, Mr. A. Ebho Abure, who is also his father, Vs Fidelity Bank Plc, THISDAY Newspapers Limited and Arebs Resources Nigeria Limited, the law firm also clarified that neither did Master Abure as an infant at that time nor did his parents consent to his name being used as a member and director of the company.

Master Abure, who is the claimant, also argued that up till now, he is still a minor and lacks the capacity to decide to be a shareholder in a strange company that was not promoted by his parents.

The claimant faulted a publication on page 40 of THISDAY Sunday edition of August 9, 2015 captioned “CBN’s Directive on Recovery of Delinquent Credit Facilities” which claimed that Arebs Resources Nigeria Limited was indebted to the first defendant, Fidelity Bank, in the sum of N73,777,919.15 and also listed the claimant, Abure Atafo, as a director of the company.

But the chambers of Nwadialo & Co argued that by listing Master Abure Atafo as a director of the Arebs, the publication portrayed

the claimant as a “cheat, who has obtained money by false pretences and as somebody who cannot pay has debts and as a dishonest, fraudulent and untrustworthy person who would not be found fit and proper to advance his education.”

The law firm also clarified that the claimant as an under aged person, who is less than 18 years could not be a director of Arebs Resources Nigeria Limited, which is the third defendant, as the law does not allow infants to be directors of a company.

The claimant, according to the law firm, averred that Fidelity Bank in its hurry to disburse money to Arebs, failed to carry its due diligence as the claimant was never invited by the bank to ascertain and confirm that he was at that tender age, a

director of the company.

The claimant also denied signing any documents at the bank as the director of the company, adding also that his passport photograph was not given to the bank by himself or his parents.

The statement of claim also maintained “that the publication, which was circulated nationwide, dragged the innocence and integrity of the claimant who is a minor to disrepute and odium and jeopardises the ambition of the claimant to attain lofty heights in his academic, spiritual, business and professional pursuits as people can always refer to the publication and use it to discredit the integrity and the suitability of the claimant to opportunities that he would otherwise be entitled to.”

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Ile-Ife Crisis: Don’t Exhibit Ethnic Bias, Fayose, Monarch Tell Police Victor Ogunje inAdoEkiti Ekiti State Governor, Mr. Ayodele Fayose, has cautioned the police against ethnic bias over the handling of its investigation on the recent crisis in Ile-Ife, Osun State that led to the death of more than 40 people.

Fayose said: “It appears that the police have so far demonstrated ethnic bias in its investigation and this is not good for the unity of Nigeria and its people.”

The governor, who condemned the killing of innocent people and destruction of property in Ile-Ife,

said; “whether committed by Yoruba, Ibo, Hausa or any tribe, crime is crime and it must be treated as such. However, handling of crime must be without ethnic bias.”

The governor said it was strange that “in a clash involving the people of Ile-Ife, who are Yorubas and Hausa, who are settlers in the ancient town, only Yorubas were arrested, taken to Abuja and paraded before the press.”

In a statement issued in Ado Ekiti yesterday by his Special Assistant on Public Communications, Governor

Fayose, who condemned the mayhem, said: “If there was a clash between Yoruba people and Hausas in Ile-Ife, are the police now saying that only the Yorubas took part in the crisis?

“Both Yorubas and Hausa were attacked. Property belonging to both Yorubas and Hausas were destroyed. Are the police sayings that those 20 Yoruba people that they paraded in Abuja were the ones who attacked the Yoruba people that were also victims of the

crisis and destroyed those houses belonging to the indigenes of Ile-Ife that were destroyed?”

Meanwhile, a traditional ruler in Ekiti State and Alawe of IlaweEkiti, Oba Adebanji Alabi, has called on the Osun State Governor, Rauf Aregbesola, to give adequate compensations to the victims.

Oba Adebanji, a former envoy, called for total peace in Ile-Ife, the cradle of Yoruba race, urging the Hausa and Yoruba communities to embrace the peace parley put

in place by Ooni, Oba Enitan Adeyeye Ogunwusi to douse the raging tension.

Oba Adebanji, who spoke in Ilawe Ekiti, yesterday described the killings as worrisome, saying Ile-Ife has always played a fatherly role in the unity of Yorubaland in particular and Nigeria in general.

“I want to praise the courage and timely intervention of His Imperial Majesty , the Ooni of Ife for his historic visit to the sceneof the incident at the peak

of the crisis to quell the violence.

This is highly commendable and worthy of emulation by all traditional rulers.

“I appeal for calm, love and unity among the people of Ile-Ife and in fact everywhere in Nigeria. I plead for a total halt to this kind of menace and unwholesome activities of terrorists, kidnappers and insurgents amongst us all in Nigeria in the interest of national unity and meaningful development.”

Firm Expresses Desire to Create Six Million Jobs, Increase GDP to $5bn Ugo Aliogo The Executive Vice-President of Hudson Group, Prince Tom Iseghohi, has expressed the desire of his company to create six million jobs in the next three years and the increase Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to $5billion within five years.

Iseghohi, who disclosed this in Lagos at a two-day strategic session organised by the group in partnership with Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) and other partners, noted that from a gallop study conducted, it was discovered that Nigeria has the highest entrepreneurial intent in the world which he said is an indication that there are more Nigerian entrepreneurs willing to start a business compared with other countries in the world.

He also noted that if entrepreneurs are given the needed support to start up a business and they become successful, the country’s GDP would grow tremendously; the per capital income would increase and employment would be addressed.

He added that in terms of conversion of entrepreneurial intent for successful businesses, Nigeria is one of the lowest in the world.

Iseghohi explained that the two key reasons responsible for this challenge are as a result of lack of access to funding and access to market especially the international market, stating that the focus of the conference is aimed at creating a platform to solve the issues that face micro-small medium scale enterprises.

The Hudson VP stated that “we have put together a structure that includes international financiers, private sector, government officials and technocrats, to come together to solve this problem which is to formalise micro-small medium enterprises and give it access to technical partners and funding.

“At the end of the meeting, we

would have developed a clear road map that any person interested in creating a business can plug into and tap from. We have decided that we need to be measured by very clear matrix. If we are successfully, we should see SMEs getting more funding than they should have which is easily measurable.

“If we are successful, SMEs would create six million jobs in the next three years, and there should be a direct traceable impact on the GDP. Nigeria’s GDP can be trillions of dollar, but today, it is less than $500 billion and the best way to drive that is through the SMEs. We have seen the commitment of the government through SMEDAN. SMEDAN and other state governments are partnering us to try out a process which shows that this can be done.”

In his remark, the SMEDAN Director-General, Dr. Dikko Radda, who was represented by the Director Enterprise Development and Promotion Agency of Nigeria, Dr. Wale Fasanya, stated that the agency has been involved in designing programmes and projects, creating the appropriate platforms to address some of the numerous constraints of Micro Small Medium Scale Enterprises (MSMEs), adding that the contribution of the sector to export is 7.27 per cent.

He noted that in the face of recession, the sector is expected to serve as a catalyst for reversing the economic downslide, stressing that the expectation is not certainly misplaced but would be more justifiable if enabling environment is created for the over 37 million new jobs created by the sector.

Radda explained that as part of efforts to address the challenges faced by MSMEs, they have established a national collateral registry for MSMEs to secure loans; credit information portal to ease up the task of sourcing for information regarding available credits for MSMEs, SME rating initiative, marketing linkages, and others.

ECONOMIC DIPLOMACY

L-R: Nigeria’s Acting High Commissioner to Malaysia, Mrs. Janet Odeka; Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Dr. Kayode Fayemi; Malaysia’s Minister of Natural Resources and Environment, YB Dato Sri Dr. Haji Wan Junaidi Bin Tuanku Jaafar; and Secretary-General in the Malaysian Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, YBHG. Dato’ Sri Azizan bin Ahmad, after a meeting in Putrajaya, Malaysia....

Wednesday

Abandoned Bag at US Embassy in Lagos Causes Panic Chiemelie Ezeobi A mystery bag allegedly abandoned in a vehicle at the premises of the United States Embassy in Lagos yesterday caused panic among visa seekers as well as visitors.

News of an abandoned bag soon went viral after the bag was discovered by one of the security men attached to embassy, thus fueling rumors of a bomb scare.

Visitors and visa seekers as well as staff of the embassy took to their heels to avoid being caught up in the event of an explosion.

The unfortunate incident caused pandemonium at the Walter Carrington Way, Victoria Island, as drivers made frantic turn when they heard the rumours.

No sooner had the news gone viral than a combined team of anti-riot policemen and bomb disposal unit of the Force and mobile policemen were drafted to the area.

The policemen condoned off the entire area while detectives from the

anti-bomb unit went in to ascertain the nature of the suspected bomb.

Minutes later, the police team, along with some officials of the embassy left.

Addressing crime correspondents on the alleged bomb scare, the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Fatai Owoseni, dismissed it with the wave of the hand.

Owoseni insisted that there was no bomb planted at the American Embassy in the state.

He disclosed that the suspected bag kept in one of the vehicles at the Consular General’s office at Victoria Island only contained medical equipment.

“We got a call at about 7.40a.m. yesterday concerning a strange bag. I immediately dispatched the anti-bomb team, marine police and anti-terrorist personnel to the scene.

“The anti-bomb team professionally removeed the bag from the vehicle. After scanning the bag, they discovered that all items inside were medical tools.

“We are, however, investigating the reason why the bag was left there and who the owner is. We don’t want to leave anything to chance.

“We want to also allay the people’s fear in Lagos and the diplomatic communities that there is no cause for alarm. There is no bomb planted at the America Embassy in Lagos.

“The police in Lagos assure

foreigners and citizens of their safety.

We are ever ready to live up to our constitutional responsibilities.

“Since the bag was removed from the embassy, normal activities have resumed,” Owoseni said.

The commisioner displayed the contents of the bag before journalists and it included bandages, scissors, plaster among others.

Ninth Annual Bola Tinubu Colloquium Holds March 28 The Ninth Annual Bola Tinubu Colloquium will hold on March 28, 2017 at Eko Hotel and Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos.

The yearly event, usually attended by dignitaries from home and abroad, is held in commemoration of the birthday of former Lagos State governor and All Progressives Congress (APC) national stalwart, Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Although Tinubu’s 65th birthday comes up on March 29, the colloquium holds on Tuesday, a day before the birthday.

According to a statement by Tinubu Media Office yesterday and signed by Mr. Tunde Rahman, this year’s colloquium has as its theme: ‘Use What We Make, Make What We Use.’ It is slated to start at 11a.m.

T H I S D AY FRIDAY MARCH 24, 2017

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FRIDAY MARCH 24, 2017 ˾ T H I S D AY

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CRIME&PUNISHMENT Witness: How Badeh Used N800m NAF Fund for Shopping Mall A prosecution witness, Nuhu Dalhatu, yesterday told a Federal High Court in Abuja that about N800 million used for the construction of a shopping mall linked to Air Marshall Alex Badeh, a former Chief of Defence Staff, was traced to the Nigeria Air Force, (NAF) account.

Badeh, also a former Chief of Air Staff, is standing trial along Iyalikam Nigeria Limited

on a 10-count charge bordering on money laundering, criminal breach of trust and corruption to the tune of N3.97 billion brought against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

While being led in evidence by prosecution counsel, Rotimi Jacobs (SAN), Dalhatu, a forensic analyst with the EFCC, told the court that investigations were carried out

20 Suspected Kidnappers Arrested in Kogi Yekini Jimoh in Lokoja Kogi State Police Command yesterday paraded 20 suspects arrested for various crimes including kidnapping, armed robbery, criminal conspiracy, unlawful possession of firearms and culpable homicide.

The state Police Commissioner, Mr Wilson Inalegwu, while parading the suspects, said the security strategies he adopted since he assumed office barely a month ago have started yielding results.

According to him, the suspects were arrested at Igalamela/Odolu, Ankpa, Ibaji, Odo-ere, Okene, OdoApe during various security operations carried out by the Special Anti Robbery Squads (SARS) operatives.

Those paraded included Musa Audu, Adamu Lamun and Bodori Ide who were alleged to have kidnapped one

Aishetu Shehu on February 4, 2017 and collected N500,000 ransoms before releasing her.

Others were Enemona Godwin, Solomon Anthony, Yakubu Abdullahi, Hassan Abdullahi, Ekele Attah, Umar Abubakar, Ahmadu Panya, Jeremiah Olorunmowaju, Idris Umar, Umar Mohammed and Hussaini Yahaya.

Exhibits recovered from the suspects included four pump action guns, four AK47, two pistols, two double barrel guns, two dane guns, 200 live cartridges, 150 wraps of Indian hemps, military cap, boots and belts.

The police commissioner who commended members of the vigilantes and the public for their supports in the fight against crimes, assured the people of the state that the command would do everything within its powers to make the state secured for all.

Captors of Ekiti Teacher Demand N20m Ransom Victor Ogunje in Ado Ekiti The captors of a classroom teacher in Ekiti State, Mr. Festus Olatunde Oke, have contacted the family of the victim, demanding a ransom of N20million to effect his release.

Sources close to the family told THISDAY in Ado Ekiti yesterday that the victim’s close relations were contacted on Wednesday, two days after Oke was abducted.

The source also claimed that the wife of the victim had alleged that her husband’s kidnappers were Fulani.

When contacted, the Secretary of Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) in Ekiti State, Mr. Olugbenga Ajibade, confirmed that the family had been contacted, saying “we in the NUT are are also in contact with the family.”

According to Ajibade, “we have also learnt that the kidnappers demanded a ransom of N20million and we have been confused since the development.”

He said at the NUT, “we are at our wit’s end because we don’t even know how to come about that huge amount of money. We don’t even know how a teacher is expected to raise N20 million.

The NUT scribe said: “We

want to beg the Directorate of State Services (DSS), the police, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) and the state government to come to our aide because we are helpless and don’t know what to do.”

Mr. Festus Olatunde Oke was kidnapped at a point on Ise-Ikere road, by unknown people last Monday.

It was gathered that Oke was taken by the abductors at about 6p.m. by yet-to-be identified gunmen, who were said to have led him away into the forest.

It was gathered that Oke had visited Ado Ekiti from his station and was returning with his wife and mother, when the kidnappers intercepted them.

The kidnappers were said to have collected the phones of his wife and mother and abandoned them in his Toyota Camry car in which they were travelling, and led Oke into the bush.

Ajibade had said the NUT got the news on Tuesday, saying “his family members and all of us at the NUT are greatly worried, because he is just a teacher.”

He said the union had reported the incident to the police in the state and explained that the police had promised that they would launch a manhunt for the abducted teacher.

on a number of properties, linked to Badeh, one of which was the shopping mall located at 2, Oda Crescent.

“I was asked to investigate the procurement scam that was linked to the Office of National Security Adviser (ONSA), and Nigeria Air Force arms procurement contracts,” he said.

Dalhatu, who is the 17th prosecution witness, told the court that the property located at 19, Kumasi Crescent, was linked to his son. According

to him, his son was invited for interrogation, during which it was discovered that the property was bought at about N260 million through a former NAF Director of Finance.

“We were assigned five properties to investigate, including 19, Kumasi Crescent, Wuse 2; 6, Ogun River, Maitama; 2, Nelson Mandela Street, Asokoro; 2, Oda Crescent, off Adis Ababa Crescent, Wuse 2 and a plaza on Ahmadu Bello, Garki 2,”

he said.

“In the course of investigation, we found out that the property located at 2, Oda Crescent, was a five floor mall, under construction,” he said.

He explained further that: “The construction company (Rytebuilders Technologies Limited) was invited, and we requested for its project account. Upon analysis of the Zenith Bank account of the company, we discovered that about N800 million out of the

N1.2 billion total turnover, was from the NAF106B and NAF camp accounts from the Mogadishu Barracks, and it was authorized by E.A. Abu and Air Commodore Seyi.”

According to him, both of them were invited for questioning and they both admitted that: “For a period of seven months, N200 million from the account was transferred to Badeh.”

Further hearing in the matter continues on May 2, 3 and 4, 2017.

RELEASE OUR LEADER

Members of the Shi’ite Islamic group during a protest march for the release of their leader, Sheikh Ibrahim Zakzaky in Abuja ....yesterday Enock Reuben

Navy Flags off Sea Exercise, Obangeme Express Ernest Chinwo in Port Harcourt The Nigerian Navy will today kick off its sea exercise, Obangeme Express.

Addressing journalists on board NNS OKPABANA yesterday, Flag Officer Commanding (FOC), Eastern Naval Command and Officer in Tactical Command of the Exercise, Rear Admiral James Oluwole, said the exercise which would last from March 24 to 28 would involve 30 nations and two regional organisations.

“Exercise Obangame Express is a multinational maritime exercise sponsored

by U.S Africa Command that brings together African, European, South American,

and U.S. forces – part of Global Network of Navies – to promote inter-agency and transnational cooperation and coordination on maritime safety and security,” he said.

He disclosed that the word “Obangeme” means “togetherness” in the Fang Language of Southern Cameroon and other parts of Central Africa and was selected by African participants during a proof of concept for this exercise in 2010 to promote the importance of regional cooperation between all the navies of the Gulf of Guinea.

He explained, “The purpose of the exercise is to test multinational maritime forces in a broad range of naval

operations to deter piracy, illicit trafficking, and other maritime threats. The exercise will also involve land-based maritime operations centres throughout the region in order to prove their levels of interoperability and coordination.

“Thirty nations and two regional organisations such as the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the Economic Community of Central African State (ECCAS) are involved in the exercise.

“The Nigerian phase of Exercise Obangeme is scheduled for 24 – 28 March and will be conducted in the nation’s waters. NNS OKPABANA, NNS CENTENARY, NNS SAGBAMA

and one helicopter will be participating in the exercise along with a French Navy Ship, JACOUBER which will sail into Nigerian waters from Cameroon.”

He said the purpose of Exercise Obangeme Express is “to create realistic scenarios that reflect past piracy incidents whereby a hijacked vessel will transit from one territory to another. Maritime Operation Centres (MOCs) during the exercise will be challenged to recognise these illicit acts appropriately and share with other MOCs. Additionally, the exercise will test each individual maritime force to patrol their Exclusive Economic Zones and detect and prosecute illegal activity accordingly.”

Bala UsmanVows to Rid NPA of Corrupt Practices Eromosele Abiodun The Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Ms Hadiza Bala Usman, has stated that she will not be cowed by the orchestrated media reports aimed at tarnishing her image because of her decision to rid the authority of corruption.

In a statement yesterday, Bala Usman vowed to sustain her bid to clean up the NPA in line with the mandate given to her by

President Muhammadu Buhari.

According to her, “My attention has been drawn to malicious lies being bandied around by one Prince Henry Nwazuruahu on my person.

I wish to challenge him to bring up evidence on any such meeting with any All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftain and any monies being given.

“I wish to challenge him to provide the authorship to this report whom I shall file a suit against in the court of law for defamation of

character. In the last few days, I have faced a barrage of false malicious lies against my person in the media and I know the sponsors of this. I will not budge on my position on compliance to federal government policies and I will not bow on my stance to rid the NPA of corrupt practices,” she said.

She stressed that she would not be cowed or intimidated into conforming to corrupt practices of cheating the federal government of its revenues.

She added: “I have been issued with death threats and veiled messages conveying that my life is at risk because of the stance I have taken. No false media attacks or threats to my life will stand in the way of my doing the right thing.

“Finally, we have not received any such notification by the presidency of an investigation into our financial books; and indeed we are open to any of such investigation as we have nothing to hide.”

T H I S D AY ˾ FRIDAY MARCH 24, 2017

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FRIDAYSPORTS

Group Sports Editor Duro Ikhazuagbe Email duro.ikhazuagbe@thisdaylive.com

I N T E R N AT I O N A L F R I E N D L I E S

Iheanacho’s Penalty, Gives S’Eagles Lifeline against Senegal

Super Eagles of Nigeria in green and Senegal before the match yesterday at Hive stadium in London Femi Solaja The wining streak enjoyed by coach Gernot Rohr since he took over as the Super Eagles coach finally came to an end last night as Nigeria rallied to a 1-1 score line against fellow West African power house in football, Senegal yesterday at the Hive, Stadium in London.

It is one of the two friendly

matches lined up for the team in preparation for the Nations cup qualifying round of matches and the World Cup qualifiers which Nigeria is presently in the driving seat.

Although Nigeria paraded a much weak team considering the visa problem in getting replacement for some players that pulled out in the last minute including injured

goalkeeper Carl Ikeme, the players on parade lived up to their billing against the star studded Senegal side.

Captained by Ogenyi Onazi who was later injured mid way in the first half, Super Eagles had a better possession of the ball and almost got a goal in the 40th minute as Ndidi released Ahmed Musa whose cross to the far post had

nobody on hand to connect into empty net.

Iheanacho missed another seater on the stroke of halftime with only the keeper to beat.

In the second half, both teams made changes but it was the Senegalese with upper hand. Leicester City forward, could not meet up with the pace of the match, apparently the effect of inactivity with his

club may have taken toll on him thus gave Senegal to make several incursions from the right side of Nigeria defense line and in the 53rd minute, Mousa Sow broke the deadlock to give the 2,500 spectators something to cheer with a goal.

Towards the tail end of the match, coach Rorh made three quick substitutions to give the Nigerian side a little

bite in the attack. After several attempts, in the 83rd minute, Iheanacho was brought down in the vital area and referee Anthony Taylor made no mistake to award a penalty which the Manchester City striker convert to give Nigeria a deserved draw.

Nigeria will take on Burkina Faso on Monday in another friendly match in London.

AFRICAN ATHLETICS CHAMPIONSHIPS

Dalung Laments Inability of Cross River to Host NSF

Ogba Foresees Discovery of More Brume, Oduduru

Bassey Inyang

The President of the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) Solomon Ogba yesterday predicted that the Asaba 2018 African Senior Athletics Championships will produce future world champions in athletics just like the 2013 African Junior Athletics Championships in Warri produced Ese Brume and Divine Oduduru who started competing on the world stage shortly after the championships.

Ogba who led a delegation of Confederation of Africa Athletics (CAA) which included its President Hammed Kalkaba to meet the Governor of Delta State Governor Ifeanyi Okowa on Monday said part of the buildup activities to the championships will include junior competitions across the nook and crannies of Nigeria to discover budding talents that will participate in invitational relays and other events.

Said Ogba, “before the African Youth Championships in Warri, I assure Nigerians that the championships will lead to discovery of new stars and it came to pass with discovery of Brume who won three medals at the championships, set a new

African junior record in long jump, won the gold medal at the 2014 Commonwealth Games, represented Nigeria at the 2016 Olympic Games where she placed 5th in the long jump final with a leap of 6.81m, she has a personal best of 6.83 m in the event.”

Ogba also recalled that Oduduru who won the sprint double at Warri 2013 and a bronze medal, he went on to win the African Junior Championships five times, and was a silver medalist at the 2014 World Junior and also silver medalist at the 2015 All-Africa Games in Brazzaville.

Ogba who alongside the Chairman of Delta Sports Commission Tony Okowa and Kalkaba inspected the Asaba City Stadium venue of championships reechoed the promise of Okowa that the stadium will be completed before December 2017. “ I can also assure that championships will be driven by the private sector , we are working with Nilayo Sports Management Limited, an expert in the area to ensure that the championships is funded by the private sector” said Ogba.

Minister of Sports and Youth Development, Mr. Solomon Dalung, has lamented the inability of Cross River State to host the National Sports Festival since 2014 when it got the hosting right.

Dalung, who said this in Calabar on Thursday when he paid a courtesy visit to the Cross River State Command of the Nigeria Immigration Service, said the National Sports Council would meet soon to take a decision on the hosting right.

He said that it was sad that Cross River State could not host the competition which coincided with Nigeria’s centenary celebration in 2014.

Dalung noted that the festival was meant to explore

new talents that would be trained to compete at the national and international levels.

“The National Sports Festival is a festival that is held yearly. The intention is to mobilise and create an enabling environment for our talents to be harvested and developed for future competitions both at the national and international levels.

“Sadly for about three years now, we have not been able to hold the National Sports Festival and Calabar has the hosting rights. It was conceded to Calabar because it coincided with the centenary celebration of the country because Calabar was the first capital city of Nigeria.

“The government was of

the wisdom that it will be a great honour to the state but sadly, it was unable to live up to its responsibilities. The hosting rights still rests with Calabar until the meeting of the National Sports Council which has the authority to decide otherwise.

“We shall soon hold the meeting to decide what to do based on the inability of Cross River to host this festival.

When we decide, we will let Nigerians know,” he said.

Speaking on the election of the Amaju Pinnick as a member of the Confederation of African Football executive committee, Dalung said it was a step in the right direction.

“We are happy as a nation that the CAF election has come and gone. When I came on board as minister, I made

it clear that the absence of Nigeria in the executive committee of CAF, to me, was the beginning of what we can conceive as injustice.

“A country with over 170 million people cannot be copiously absent in such strategic organisation that is responsible for the passion of Africa. I am happy that a Nigerian has finally been elected, and for the presidency of CAF, another young person has also been elected.

“Like I said, as a country, what determines our participation in global politics is national interest. Wherever our national interest sways through, we will stand with it because there must be a Nigeria first before we can play football,” the minister said.

Golfers for Consolidated Hallmark Insurance Tourney Consolidated Hallmark Insurance Plc takes its 10th anniversary celebration to Ikeja Golf Club tomorrow where a special anniversary golf tournament has been scheduled hold even as over 120-players have already lined up to be part of the competition, the club’s competition secretary, Jolomi

Ideh has revealed.

Speaking to newsmen during the week, Ideh said the 10th anniversary celebration is already attracting lots of comment within and outside club, saying he expects a huge turnout and a keenly contested competition among participating golfers.

“It’s going to be a great

competition for the golfers and especially the celebrant.

And that is why you see the excitement everywhere”, Ideh said.

Expected to be part of the competition are the Managing Director of the sponsoring outfit, Eddie Efekoha, who is also the Chairman of Nigeria Insurers Association (NIA),

Muyideen Olaitain, the outing club captain, Akin Areola, top business executives and other notable Nigerians for the one-day competition.

While congratulating the outfit on their anniversary, Areola said the club will continue to appreciate its contribution to the club and golf in general.

Friday, March 24, 2017

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MISSILE Senate to Buhari “Now there is a test, so the president has a choice to choose between the rule of law and Hameed Ali. We will see what will happen. There is a provision that forbids Hameed Ali from being CG” – The Senate urging President Muhammadu Buhari to relieve Comptroller General of the Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) Col. Hameed Ali (rtd.) from his current post for contravening sections of the Constitution.

UDOMA UDO UDOMA GUEST COLUMNIST

Building a Competitive Economy for the Future

N

igeria’s GDP performance improved slightly in the 4th quarter of 2016 and showed us a route to recovery. The current recession has affected all of us. But the root causes of it are deep, and they must be addressed if we are to build a more sustainable and competitive economy. We must understand the causes of our economic malaise in order to implement solutions that are sustainable.

Nigeria’s economy has been structurally weak for decades. Our oil wealth has disguised the fundamental structural weaknesses that we have, and while the cash flowed many of those weaknesses were overlooked. We were complacent. We did not do the work that was needed to develop the broader economy and we are suffering the consequences today.

This is not because we did not know what needed to be done. The last two decades were full of economic plans and strategies designed to address them. Our challenge has been, principally, in implementation.

Nigeria needs to build an economy that is not only resilient, but globally competitive.

We have been focused on that since taking office, through our Strategic Implementation Plan (SIP), which has provided a platform. The evolution of the SIP is the Nigeria Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (NERGP), which we have unveiled this week. The NERGP provides a framework for implementation from 2017-2020, but does not mean we must wait until 2020 to see progress. The plan is focused on generating concrete and visible impact by the end of 2017, and many of the initiatives incorporated within it have been under way since 2016. We are not starting from scratch and the work that we have done so far, is already beginning to show dividends. We are absolutely committed to delivering the implementation of the plan and we have the political will, determination and the leadership to achieve this.

We have three core objectives. Restoring growth, investing in our people and building a competitive economy. These are delivered through five execution priorities. The first is to stabilize the macro-economic environment.

We must increase revenue and cut costs.

We will then focus on the four pillars of future growth; Achieving agriculture and food security; ensuring energy sufficiency in power and petroleum products; Improving transportation infrastructure, and driving industrialisation through local and small business enterprise. These objectives and priorities are underpinned by a robust delivery and monitoring mechanism to ensure that we are laser focused on implementation.

Our lack of infrastructure is our Achilles heel. It means that the food we eat is more expensive, individuals and businesses have to generate most of the electricity they require, far too few people have access to running water and travelling around the country is a slow and difficult process.

But beyond the effect this infrastructure deficit has on people’s daily lives, it has a

President Muhammadu Buhari hugely detrimental impact on our economic performance and the profitability, and often the viability, of our companies, which further impacts the lives of all our citizens. The better our economic performance, the more revenue the government will have to spend and the more it can do to address these deficits.

That is why our 2016 and 2017 budgets were structured to deliver investment in transport and energy infrastructure. We will borrow to build the foundations for future growth. Our non-oil revenue has been traditionally unacceptably low. Delivering growth in agriculture, while ensuring that our industrialisation strategy is broad based (focused on SME’s) rather than reliant solely on large scale projects, is critical to reversing this.

However, Government resources will not be sufficient to address all our infrastructural challenges. The Plan also provides for Government to partner with private and development capital from both within, and outside the country, to leverage and catalyse additional resources needed to grow the economy, and bring about prosperity.

Underlying each of our priorities is a common requirement. We must invest in the skills of our workforce. Unemployment is too high, and the skills gap is too great. To be competitive globally, we must address the way in which we train, and build capacity.

That is a core focus of this plan. We want to build an economy fit for the future, and that can only be done using our most precious, but most under-utilised resource, our people. It is why the plan places emphasis on building capacity in education, healthcare, social inclusion, job creation and environmental sustainability. Many of the initiatives this administration has already developed and rolled out have been focused on delivering basic needs for the most vulnerable in our nation. Our social investment programmes are examples of this focus.

While the scale of our task is very large, we are already seeing the dividends of some of our work. Our focus on Agriculture and Solid Minerals has resulted in some growth in those two sectors in 2016. However, given the current recession, revenues continue to be challenged. But we believe that withthe current

outlook of stable oil prices and increasing production, it can only improve. Our tax base in Nigeria is 6% of GDP compared to an average of 16% across the rest of Africa.

This is clearly far too low and there is room for significant improvement in expanding the tax base. There is much more work to do, but we are on the right track.

The Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) is also delivering results. Since its launch in the last quarter of 2016, we have seen the processes for obtaining visas streamlined considerably, with visas now available on arrival. There is much more to come and you will be hearing from that team over the coming weeks as they roll out the 60-day action plan to ‘Make Business Work’.

While the past 18 months have not been pleasant for Nigerians, they have served to show us a way to a future in which we will work our way out of the current recession and onto a path of sustained, diversified and inclusive growth. We willneed to intensify our cooperation and co-ordination with the State Governments. We will need to work closely with the private sector, and indeed, all Nigerians. It will not be easy, but this Administration has a plan to deliver. We have no doubt that, working together, we shall attain prosperity. r 4FOBUPS 6EPNB JT UIF .JOJTUFS PG #VEHFU /BUJPOBM 1MBOOJOH

Our lack of infrastructure is our Achilles heel. It means that the food we eat is more expensive, individuals and businesses have to generate most of the electricity they require, far too few people have access to running water and travelling around the country is a slow and difficult process

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