Sunday 2nd July 2017

Despite Osinbajo’s Directive, Petrol Marketers Yet to be Paid $2bn Subsidy Claims Ndubuisi Francis, Omololu Ogunmade,Chineme Okafor in Abuja and Ejiofor Alike in Lagos Petroleum products marketers and depot owners have said that despite the directive by Acting President Yemi Osinbajo to the Ministry of Finance to pay the marketers their outstanding

subsidy claims, which they estimated at about $2 billion, none of them was paid as at close of work on Friday.

THISDAY had reported that Osinbajo summoned a meeting of the Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN) and the Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association

(DAPPMA) on May 22, which had the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun; Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu; and the Central Bank Governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele, in attendance.

It was gathered that at the end of the meeting, the Acting President was said to have

directed the Finance Ministry to pay the marketers all verified claims so that they could resume importation of petrol.

However, a presidential source last night said there was no formal order in the real sense of it. The source who did not want to be named said the marketers would be paid in no

distant time, explaining that the current delay is as a result of shortage of funds.

The Executive Secretary of DAPPMA, Mr. Femi Adewole, also confirmed that Osinbajo had given approval for the marketers to be paid all verified claims.

He, however, raised the alarm that despite the directive by the

Acting President, the marketers had not yet been paid.

He pointed out that the delays in the payment of the marketers’ claims could precipitate crisis in the downstream sector as the banks have not backed down on their threats to seize tank Continued on page 9

Sambo Expresses Concern over Frequent Raid on His Residence by Anti-graft Agency ...Page 9

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Ajibola: Secession Not Solution to Nigeria's Problems Says genuine war against corruption is the way out

Sheriff Balogun in Abeokuta

A former World Court Judge, Prince Bola Ajibola (SAN), yesterday dismissed the growing agitation for secession by some

sections of the country and described the resort to such narratives as both cheap and indolent.

On the contrary, Ajibola was of the opinion that the way forward

for the country was to confront, fight and kill corruption, which he said was at the centre of the nation's problems and hindering it from deriving any benefits from its diversity.

Addressing some of the nation’s current concerns in a statement titled: "Confront and defeat corruption, don't balkanize Nigeria," and released to the media in Abeokuta, the Ogun

State capital, Ajibola said the present situation did not require the clamour for secession, but that "we need to rejuvenate our morality and conduct in and out of public office to serve as

good role models for the next generation.

"With this level of endemic corruption in the national psyche, Continued on page 9

APC Takes the Bull by the Horns, Plans Committee on Restructuring Panel to comprise governors, National Assembly members from party

Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja In a major shift in its political posture since assuming power in May 2015, the All Progressives Congress has resolved to address the issue of restructuring of the federation. THISDAY learnt that this was the highlight of a meeting held on Thursday night at the Imo State Governor's Lodge in Asokoro, Abuja, by the leadership of APC and state governors elected on the party's platform. A reliable source in the party said the meeting resolved to inaugurate a technical committee this week, which would comprise the APC leadership as well as some of its governors and National Assembly members, to work out details of the planned restructuring.

The APC government of President Muhammadu Buhari had since its inauguration adopted a reluctant and evasive posture on the question of restructuring of the polity, despite promising it in the party’s manifesto while campaigning for Continued on page 9

IN SERVICE OF THE COMMUNITY ...

L-R: Acting CEO, Central Securities Clearing System Plc, Bola Adeeko; President, Nigerian Stock Exchange, Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede; Chief Executive Officer, NSE, Oscar Onyema; and Executive Director, Capital Markets Division, NSE, Haruna Jalo-Waziri, at the 2017 NSE Corporate Challenge at Onikan Stadium, Lagos ETOP UKUTT ....yesterday

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T H I S DAY, T H E S U N DAY N E W S PA P E R • JULY 02, 2017

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Ex-VP Sambo Expresses Concern over Frequent Raid on His Residence by Anti-graft Agency Fears incriminating objects may be ‘planted’ in his home John Shiklam in Kaduna and Paul Obi in Abuja Former Vice-President Namadi Sambo has raised the alarm over the frequent raid on one of his Kaduna residences by operatives of the Independent Corrupt Practices and other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), saying the pace of their invasions portrays a desire to find fault by every means possible.

The latest of these raids took place last Wednesday, when the ICPC operatives, along with heavily armed security operatives stormed the house located at No.1 Alimi Road, for a search that lasted about two hours.

The ICPC, despite concerns raised by Sambo, has maintained sealed lips on the development.

But the police, yesterday, denied having anything to do with the raid on the former Vice President’s residence.

A statement on Saturday

by Umar Sani, spokesman of the former vice-president, stated that the house had been searched five times in the last six months, noting that some of the fittings in the house and other valuables had been damaged in the process. The statement said no incriminating thing was found at the residence, a fact attested to by some of the operatives who carried out the search.

Sambo, who, in the statement expressed worry about the rate of search, said it portrayed the desire of a fault-finding mission, adding that it would not be surprising if an incriminating object was planted at the residence in order to willfully and deliberately incriminate him.

The former Vice President’s statement reads: "In the late afternoon of Wednesday, the 28th of June 2017, the Alimi Road, Kaduna un-occupied

residence of the former VicePresident, Arc Mohammed Namadi Sambo, GCON, was invaded by security operatives armed with a search warrant, who conducted a forensic search of the entire residence.

"Initially, we were at a loss as to their identity but later discovered that they were operatives from the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission (ICPC). It is worthy of note to state that no such brazen attempts were made at any point, either at his Link Road Kaduna residence, or his Abuja apartment, which he presently occupy.

"As the visit of the operatives was unscheduled, the reasons for the search were not specifically stated. However, the outcome of the search was made known. At the end of the whole exercise, the officers, who carried out the search were satisfied that nothing incriminating was found.

As a law-abiding citizen, the

former Vice-President did not raise any alarm in the previous invasions in view of the fact that he has nothing to hide.

"The recent desperation exhibited by some security agencies in carrying out a raid on an unoccupied residence blocking all entry and exit points, in a commando-style and coming along with a bullion van speaks volumes of the clandestine intention of the security operatives.

"It is therefore worrisome to note that the consistency with which the searches occurred and the intervals between them portray a desire of a fault-finding mission. We are apprehensive that a repeat of such episode will not be surprising if an incriminating object is planted in his residence in order to willfully and deliberately incriminate him.

"It is against this background that we wish to draw the attention of the unsuspecting members of the public to this

phenomenon. The desperation of some of the security agencies is glaring by the number of times such searches were conducted and still counting. We hope it is not a way to try to give a dog a bad name in order to hang it".

Speaking to THISDAY, ICPC Head of Media and Information, Mrs. Rashedaat Okoduwa, refused to comment on the matter.

She told THISDAY that “there is no official response yet” to the allegations and complaints labelled against the agency by the former vice-president.

Okoduwa further maintained that "no report emanated from her office" with regards to the search of Sambo's residence in Kaduna.

But the Nigerian Police have exonerated themselves from the matter, stating that, at no time did the police participate in the search of Sambo’s house.

Police Public Relations Officer, CSP Jimoh Moshood, informed

THISDAY in Abuja that the Police were not involved.

"Those reports of Police involvement are not correct.

You know agencies like EFCC and ICPC use Police as their personnel, I can tell you that we are not involved," Moshood stated.

The invasion on Sambo’s residence has continued since he left office in 2015.

In 2016, Sambo's office around Central Area District of Abuja was invaded by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in search of incriminating files and documents.

As vice-president and Chairman of the National Privatisation Council (NPC), Sambo superintended over the sale of strategic and critical national assets, particularly within the power and rail transport sectors.

The Buhari administration has raised eyebrows over some of these contracts.

day said it intends to maintain a steady supply of petroleum products across Nigeria despite renewed call on the federal government by oil marketers to pay outstanding financial subsidies owed them, or the country risks a fresh round of petroleum products scarcity.

Group General Manager, Public Affairs of NNPC, Mr. Ndu Ughamadu, described the complaints and position of the marketers as unfortunate.

Ughamadu, however, explained that the NNPC had in the past intervened in getting the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)

to establish a special foreign exchange window to enable the marketers to continue to import and distribute petroleum products, adding that as a market participant, the NNPC is owed subsidy claims but it would not stop to import and distribute products.

Insisting that the corporation as the sole importer of petrol in the country at the moment would appreciate supports from all stakeholders, he thus called on oil marketers to continue to show commitments to stability of products supplies in the country.

DESPITE OSINBAJO’S APPROVAL, PETROL MARKETERS YET TO BE PAID $2BN SUBSIDY CLAIMS farms over the unpaid loans borrowed by the marketers to fund importation during the subsidy regime.

“The Acting President has issued approval for the marketers to be paid. It is the Ministry of Finance that is telling us stories.

As at the close of work on Friday, I spoke with the marketers but none of them has received any payment. But the Acting President has given the necessary approval,” Adewole explained.

On the speculations that the marketers would shut down their depots on July 1 (yesterday) in protest against the unpaid bills, Adewole said it was not a matter of going on strike as no bank is currently giving the marketers credit to import products.

He said unless the government paid the outstanding claims, marketers could not go back to the banks to request for credit for importation.

“The banks are not giving us money and are still threatening to seize our tank farms for failing to pay the debts. So, it is not an issue of going on strike or not going on strike because we can’t go to bank to ask for money now,” he added.

The failure of the federal government to pay the marketers their subsidy claims and matured Letters of Credit (LCs), estimated by the marketers at about $2 billion, had eroded their capacity to import petrol, thus imposing the burden of importation of the product on only the NNPC.

The huge debts, which grew as a result of rising cost of forex and the interest charged by the banks that funded the importation of the cargoes, had since forced foreign banks such as the Citi Bank of New York, BNP Paribas and others, which provided the LCs for the importation, to stop opening lines of credits for petrol marketers.

When THISDAY contacted the Director, (Information), Ministry of Finance, Mr. Salisu Na'Inna Dambatta, on the issue yesterday, he said he had no information on the subject-matter.

Dambatta accused our correspondent of being unfair to him by asking to be furnished with information on such a matter on a Saturday evening.

His words: "Mr. Francis, you are being unfair to me. How do you expect me to call the minister at about 6:40 pm on a Saturday? I know what you want to do: you have written your story and decided to call by this time so that you will say the ministry refused to react."

Efforts to explain to him that the request for the ministry’s response was sequel to the claim by oil marketers yesterday that the Acting President’s directive on payment of their claims had not been carried out by the ministry were futile.

Dambatta, however, expressed his regrets, but insisted there was no way he could reach the minister on a Saturday evening.

Meanwhile, NNPC on Satur-

APC TAKES THE BULL BY THE HORNS, PLANS COMMITTEE ON RESTRUCTURING the 2015 presidential election.

Both the government and the party had poured cold water on persistent and widespread calls for political and economic reform. Last week, APC was quoted as saying that the government’s commitment to winning the antiterrorism war and revamping the economy was delaying the restructuring of the country.

But one of the governors, who attended Thursday's meeting, said the gathering decided to set up the technical committee to harmonise the position of the party on the question of restructuring.

The governor, who spoke in confidence, as he was not authorised to divulge details of the meeting, said after the committee's work the party would summon another meeting to chart the way forward.

He said, “Of course, we discussed the Anambra governorship election, especially the threat to the election by IPOB, and the leaders of the APC in the South-east who attended the meeting assured us that the boycott was not going to have any effect.”

The governor said the meeting also discussed the arrangements for the party's mini-convention. He said the

leaders agreed to start with the process of local government congresses in states where existing vacancies in the party’s executives needed to be filled.

The APC national chairman, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, who briefed the meeting on the matter, was said to have told the attendees that the party had already constituted the team that would conduct the local government congresses.

He disclosed that the exercise would take off in September.

The governor said another matter, which came up at the meeting of the APC leaders, was the statement by the governor of Ekiti State, Mr. Ayo Fayose, that Buhari's sickness had deteriorated to the extent that he was on life support. He said the governors and members of the party's National Working Committee condemned Fayose’s penchant for attacks on Buhari.

Another party source told THISDAY yesterday that the APC leadership had deliberately delayed the National Executive Committee meeting and the mid-term convention in the hope that Buhari would recover from his illness and come back to be part of the exercise. He said, “That is why we are slowing down action

on the matter because if we go into the NEC or the miniconvention without President Buhari's presence, it will give the impression that we have moved on.”

Odigie-Oyegun had told journalists after the meeting with the governors that they resolved to take measures to check the spread of political agitations and activities that threatened national unity. He stated that the party viewed the wave of agitations across the country with concern.

The APC national chairman stated, "We discussed issues affecting the nation and the impact of the current wave of agitations across the country.

We decided to strengthen the party. We decided that the kind of verbiage and incendiary statements by different groups were not good for the health of the nation and we decided that it had to stop "For that reason, we have taken certain measures, which I will not disclose here, to ensure that the basic and fundamental unity of this country is preserved while at the same time listening to whatever grievances anybody has to say.”

Individuals in APC have held divergent views on the issue

of reform. Odigie-Oyegun said recently that the party could not ignore the clamour for restructuring. But Kaduna State Governor Nasir el-Rufai and others, especially from the North, believed the party remained opposed to the report of the 2014 national conference conducted by the Peoples Democratic Party government of ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, which dealt extensively with restructuring.

However, APC explicitly promised restructuring in its manifesto. Section 25 of the manifesto states, “APC believes that our politics is broken.

Our nation urgently needs fundamental political reform and improvement in governance to make it more transparent and accountable. APC will: “1. Initiate action to amend our Constitution with a view to devolving powers, duties and responsibilities to states and local governments in order to entrench federalism and the federal spirit.”

Section 24(3) of the manifesto says the APC administration will, “Begin widespread consultations to amend the Constitution to decentralise the police command and expand local content by including community policing.”

AJIBOLA: SECESSION NOT SOLUTION TO NIGERIA'S PROBLEMS breaking up is akin to multiplying avenues of corruption. We need to nurture a new generation of Nigerians through a review of our education curricula to promote good conduct, morality and globally acceptable conduct.

"The easy and indolent way is to yearn for breaking up at the slightest opportunity while calling people with opposing views names. We should not encourage greedy and self-centred people, who will always prefer to 'cut the baby into two' if they cannot possess it.”

He, therefore, urged Nigerians to confront and defeat corruption rather than seek the disintegration of the country, because according to him, Nigeria had all the potential of being a great country but had been set back greatly by corruption.

The world renowned legal luminary also lamented the deluge of hate speeches and calls for secession emanating from some sections of the country, noting that those against secession were not fools but proactive people, who knew that a corruption-free Nigeria under the unfettered reign of the rule of the law were parts of the antidotes to balkanisation.

Ajibola maintained that Nigeria's woes did not lie in any curse or predetermination but rather, "in our curious will to undo ourselves at will through unbridled corruption and ap-

propriation of our common wealth for personal use."

He noted, for instance, that the crater-ridden roads, health care provision in comatose, educational system starved of funds and widespread unemployment in the country were results of bad governance and that if the nation's diversity was well managed, it could be a source of harnessing talents from all sections and turning them into viable tools of development.

He observed that countries like the United States of America, the United Kingdom and India had deployed their diversities to positive use and transformation, praying Nigeria to follow suit.

"India as a subcontinent of over one billion people with many religious faiths and tribes is the world's largest democracy with no section calling for dismemberment in spite of its crises. On the contrary, the country has been able to fashion out technological and socio-economic advancement from its diversity.

"Those against secession are not fools but proactive people, who know that a corruption-free Nigeria under the unfettered reign of the rule of the law is the antidotes to all these calls for the balkanisation of the country, otherwise, the best alternative way forward would be to conduct a national referendum," he admonished.

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JULY 2, 2017 • T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R

SUNDAY COMMENT

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

THE DEPLORABLE STATE OF FEDERAL ROADS

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The federal government should find innovative ways to tackle the challenge of collapsing road infrastructure across the country

he deplorable state of federal roads came into focus a fortnight ago when two bridges linking the northern and western parts of the country collapsed.

Situated in Tatatu and Bokani villages in Mokwa Local Government Area of Niger State, the bridges succumbed to a massive flood, forcing commuters to ply the longer Minna/Suleja/Lokoja route for those heading west, and the Ilorin/Kabba/Lokoja Road for those going to the North. Barely a week after the Mokwa incident, another bridge in Michika Local Government Area of Adamawa State gave way, cutting off commuters from Yola, the state capital. Both incidents were indicative of the poor state of federal roads nationwide. Poor funding and endemic corruption are the obvious culprits.

Whereas federal road infrastructure deficit was estimated at N2 trillion as at 2015, being the debts to contractors for 266 roads awarded by the Goodluck Jonathan administration, the succeeding Muhammadu Buhari administration has been unable to meet the massive funding requirements to redress the situation.

Unfortunately, at a time the federal government should be looking for a solution to such a critical challenge, the National Assembly and the Minister with the responsibility for roads, Mr Babatunde Raji Fashola, were engaged in bickering and name-calling. That in itself was emblematic of the decay the nation now experiences in practically all sectors.

With its N200 billion and N311 billion sectoral alloca tions in the 2016 and 2017 budgets respectively, it is clear that Nigerians are in for a long walk as line appropriations are hugely inadequate to tackle the problem on the ground. It follows, therefore, that the federal government needs to find innovative solutions to close the yawing finance gap in the sector that is so critical to the growth and development of the national economy.

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We believe that some of the federal roads should be handed over to states for rehabilitation and maintenance as the current situation calls for a more serious and honest approach

S U N DAY N E W S PA P E R EDITOR TOKUNBO ADEDOJA DEPUTY EDITORS VINCENT OBIA, OLAWALE OLALEYE MANAGING DIRECTOR ENIOLA BELLO DEPUTY MANAGING DIRECTOR KAYODE KOMOLAFE CHAIRMAN EDITORIAL BOARD OLUSEGUN ADENIYI EDITOR NATION’S CAPITAL IYOBOSA UWUGIAREN

T H I S DAY N E W S PA P E R S L I M I T E D EDITOR-IN-CHIEF/CHAIRMAN NDUKA OBAIGBENA GROUP EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS ENIOLA BELLO, KAYODE KOMOLAFE, ISRAEL IWEGBU, IJEOMA NWOGWUGWU GROUP FINANCE DIRECTOR OLUFEMI ABOROWA DIVISIONAL DIRECTORS PETER IWEGBU, FIDELIS ELEMA, ANTHONY OGEDENGBE DEPUTY DIVISIONAL DIRECTOR OJOGUN VICTOR DANBOYI SNR. ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR ERIC OJEH, PATRICK EIMIUHI ASSOCIATE DIRECTORS HENRY NWACHOKOR, SAHEED ADEYEMO CONTROLLERS ABIMBOLA TAIWO, UCHENNA DIBIAGWU, NDUKA MOSERI GROUP HEAD FEMI TOLUFASHE ART DIRECTOR OCHI OGBUAKU II DIRECTOR, PRINTING PRODUCTION CHUKS ONWUDINJO TO SEND EMAIL: first name.surname@thisdaylive.com

Letters to the Editor

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he Umaru Musa Yar’Adua administration had actually started concession as a funding strategy, setting up the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC) as a regulatory body. Under President Jonathan, the federal government concessioned the 105- kilometre Lagos-Ibadan Expressway under its Public-Private Partnership (PPP) scheme to Bi-Courtney Consortium in 2009 for N89.53 billion for 25 years, a model which he promised would be replicated to increase private sector participation in the development of the road sector. In fact, 2,207.4 kilometres, out of its 36,000 kilometres of Trunk ‘A’ roads and bridges across the country, were earmarked for such concession. But the idea hit the rocks when Bi-Courtney could not come up with the funds to undertake the project, forcing the government to cancel the arrangement.

However, it has become necessary for the arrangement to be reviewed with a view to fine-tuning the rough edges of what we consider a workable strategy for reducing the financial burden of rebuilding our collapsing road infrastructure. The National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS) recently proposed a road tax collectible from road users, estimating that the policy would generate in the neighbourhood of N100 billion per annum. Ironically, the idea was jettisoned by the National Assembly for the reintroduction of petroleum road tax that had failed in the past to achieve its objective of providing captive fund for road construction. We urge the federal government to take a second look at the NIPSS proposal.

Finally, we believe that some of the federal roads should be handed over to states for rehabilitation and maintenance as the current situation calls for a more serious and honest approach. Interestingly, a couple of states, including Lagos and Kaduna, have clamoured for this. We note, however, that one of the major causes of road failure in Nigeria is the shoddy jobs done by contractors who in a bid to maximise profit use inferior materials. To make matters worse, government officials whose duty it is to supervise and approve the roads, often look the other way as they approve the inauguration of poorly finished projects, after collecting kick-back from contractors.

If the federal government is therefore serious about revamping the road infrastructure in Nigeria, there must also be a serious commitment to transparency and accountability.

TO OUR READERS Letters in response to specific publications in THISDAY should be brief (150-200 words) and straight to the point. Interested readers may send such letters along with their contact details to opinion@thisdaylive.com. We also welcome comments and opinions on topical local, national and international issues provided they are well-written and should also not be longer than (950- 1000 words). They should be sent to opinion@thisdaylive.com along with the email address and phone numbers of the writer.

ANAMBRA: UNNECESSARY FUSS ABOUT AN AIRPORT

he Anambra Airport City Project has been slammed with so much vigour.

Deliberately misconstrued by politicians and publicly lampooned by detractors. Both have seized upon the project to score off the Obiano government. They have queried its cost.

They have also dismissed its economic importance.

Is the state not too ambitious in building a $2billion airport city? Why spend that much when O.R.Tambo International Airport, South Africa, reputed to be one of the most expensive airports on the African continent is not anywhere close?

What will the airport do differently? Will it land a phantom aircraft? The questions and snide comments were endless. Most of them designed to impugn the fidelity of the project.

Notwithstanding, the Anambra airport city is not in anyway fundamentally different from others elsewhere. It is not going to land an unusual aircraft. But

it will surely have some facilities that will set it apart as different. It is also going to have an airport city (aerotropolis). It is for reasons of modern facilities and perhaps because of its perch on an artificial island that an airport like Kansai, International Airport, Osaka, Japan stands tall at $20bn – one of the two most expensive airports in the world. At $20bn it is 10 times the price of the Anambra city airport.

Airports are designed for a lot of reasons. If designed for skeletal services as evident in some African countries it actually spares on cost. Otherwise it is expensive when designed to cater for both passenger and cargo traffic volumes. Quite recently a lot of African airports, not as elaborately designed, had to undergo expansion in order to accommodate the booming tourism and renewed interest in investment on the continent. An airport is not expected to be cheap if designed to have modern facilities that allow it to play in the big league. The Anambra airport city project

is designed to have such facilities like terminal buildings or cargo sheds, more than a runway (each of which is not less than a mile long) aviation fuel dump, international hotel, maintenance workshop, industrial cum business parks, malls, etc., in addition to an airport city.

It is not very proper for objectors to the project to cavil about the cost when the state does not bear any financial responsibility in it. The project is at zero cost to the state. Her 5% equity contribution is in the area of land provision, building of access roads and creating enabling environment. Of the consortium of three companies, namely, Chinese Aviation Company (Sinoking Group), Orient Petroleum Resources and the Anambra State Government, only the latter has no major financial commitment to the project. Sinoking is contributing 75%, Orient 20% while Anambra State Government puts in 5%.

It is fairly odd to think that Anambra

State Government will be so inconsiderate as to lay some burden of debt on the future of the state. At least its record of achievements has not supported that. What the government has done was to exploit the advantage of private partnership initiative to build up the state and make it a place the citizens should be proud to call their home.

Those who quibble over a non-existent repayment schedule are just fretting over nothing. The airport will operate on the basis of Build, Operate, Manage and Transfer (BOMT). It is therefore unnecessary to split hairs on repayment when such was never on the card. The airport city will be sufficient unto itself.

On the part of those who dismiss the airport as being of little economic importance to the state it is a well-founded opinion that besides generating revenue it will aggregate jobs for the people. It is estimated that about 1200 direct jobs and close to 4000 indirect ones will be created.

It is a trifle more disdainful to advocate that Asaba, Enugu and or Makurdi cargo

aiport should serve the needs of the state.

If Ndi Igbo, nay Anambra, contribute a sizeable proportion to the estimated five to six million passenger flow in Nigeria airports annually it is pertinent for the state to have an airport. Except in a detractor’s mind, the idea to continue patronising the adjoining airports is not fertile. They cannot adequately satisfy the flight needs of Ndi Anambra.

As a matter of fact, those who call the airport city project unrealistic are not altogether foresighted. They are not better than Americans of the 1860s who dismissed the effort of the Secretary of State, William Henry Seward, in the purchase of the State of Alaska from Russia. They promptly nicknamed the purchase “Seward Folly or Seward Ice Box”. The “Seward Folly” would later turn out to be “the greatest diplomatic achievements of the age”.

––Ejike Anyaduba, Abatete

T H I S D AY SUNDAY JULY 2, 2017

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SUNDAYNEWS

News Editor Abimbola Akosile E-mail: abimbola.akosile@thisdaylive.com, 08023117639 (sms only)

Sagay: Private Sector Fraud Eclipses that in Public Sector • Says annual N2trn subsidy scam stopped, stolen assets recovered Demola Ojo

The Chairman of the Presidential Advisory Committee against Corruption (PACAC), Prof. Itse Sagay (SAN), has said that private sector fraud is far higher than that recorded in the public sector in Nigeria.

The professor of law, who called for anti-corruption agencies to beam their searchlights

more on the private sector, made the assertion weekend in Abuja at the Conference on Financial Systems Integrity Improvement, jointly organised by PACAC, the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), the Convention on Business Integrity (CBI) and the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN).

According to him, “Huge as

fraud in the public sector may be, my feeling – from the few things I’ve read - is that it’s not even as huge as that in the private sector. Private sector fraud, particularly in the banking sector, is enormous. I’m therefore glad that we’re here today to look at aspects of that.”

The don also noted that the President Muhammadu Buhari-led APC government

was elected by Nigerians during the 2015 election to put a stop to corruption in the country.

“This administration was elected mainly to pull down corruption, fraud and economic and financial crimes. Much has been achieved, although this is not appreciated by the general public,” Sagay said.

The conference, which proffered solutions to help tackle

CELEBRATING MADAM OLAOPA L-R: Children of late Madam Beatrice Okebola Olaopa: Mrs. Iyabo Morounkola; Ms Toyin Olaopa; Dr. Tunji Olaopa and his wife, Lola, at the funeral service for Madam Olaopa at Christ Baptist Church, Awe, Oyo State...weekend

PHOTO: Felix Ademola

Apapa Wharf Road: Reconstruction Project Begins July 7 • Stakeholders to fashion out traffic management plan Abimbola Akosile

Stakeholders have reached an agreement to take necessary measures in Apapa to ensure commencement of reconstruction of the badly-damaged Wharf Road leading to the nation’s maritime hub on July 7.

At a meeting held at the office complex of the Federal Ministry of Power, Works and Housing headquarters in Lagos, the stakeholders agreed on the date and several issues.

Among those who attended the parley were representatives of traffic regulatory and traffic management agencies, law enforcement agencies, transport unions, petroleum products unions, port terminal operators and the Nigerian Port Authority (NPA).

Others include telecommunications service providers, Apapa Local Government, representatives of Federal Ministry of Power, Works and Housing, AG Dangote Construction Company Ltd, contractors on the project, among others.

A communique, which

was presented at the end of the stakeholders’ meeting, was read by the Federal Controller Works, Lagos, Mr. Godwin Eke, and a consultant of AG Dangote Construction Company Ltd, Mr. Kayode Opeifa.

The stakeholders agreed that the Federal Ministry of Power, Works and Housing and NPA should collaborate to repair all bad roads and diversion routes, including Tin Can Island Road, Creek Road and Oshodi-Apapa Expressway, which will receive heavy traffic.

The stakeholders also resolved that a meeting be held between traffic regulatory agencies, law enforcement agencies and the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) on Monday, July 3 to fashion out a traffic management plan.

“After the meeting and the discussions and approval, it will be communicated to all stakeholders. Then, we can ask the contractors to mobilise and begin the reconstruction of Apapa Wharf Road.

“We all resolve to ensure

that parked trucks be removed from Apapa Wharf Road for construction works to commence in phases on July 7; it will never be a total closure of all the roads, but only on sections of the road where work will be done,” the communique stated. They also agreed that stakeholders would corporate with any changes in time line of traffic management which would be communicated to all parties by both the NPA and the contractor through LASTMA, for effective traffic diversions during the period.

The stakeholders further resolved that traffic management agencies would come up with a periodic traffic management plan backed by security provided by the security agencies.

They agreed that the Sole Administrator of Apapa Local Government, Mr. Luqman Alao, would work with all traffic management agencies, security agencies and the NPA, and coordinate activities between them and the military.

The stakeholders commended the NPA, AG Dangote, Flour Mills of Nigeria and

the Federal Ministry of Power, Work and Housing for coming together to execute the project.

The Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, had on June 17 handed over the Apapa Wharf Road to AG Dangote Construction Company Ltd. for reconstruction. The site was handed over after the minister signed a N4.34 billion Memorandum of Understanding with stakeholders who were to fund the project.

The project is to be funded

by AG Dangote Construction Company Ltd, an arm of the Dangote Group, the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) and Flour Mills of Nigeria.

The Ministry on June 22, held the first stakeholders meeting with some concerned parties on how to achieve success and speed on the project.

It held another meeting with telecommunication service providers and others recently on how to relocate service cables and pipes in the Right of Way of the project. The two kilometre road has a completion period of one year.

fraud and corruption in the country’s banking and finance sector had Nick Leeson as its keynote speaker. Leeson’s dealings and unauthorised speculative trading at Barings Bank led to the collapse of one of Britain’s oldest financial organisations in 1995.

Reeling out some of the achievements of the present administration, Sagay continued, “There’s nothing like subsidy scam anymore. At its height, over two trillion naira a year was being siphoned out of the country. People were collecting the money with the names of sea vessels that were either nonexistent, or in faraway territories.

That leakage has been stopped.

“Much has been recovered in terms of stolen assets. Although not much has yet been achieved in the area of conviction for corruption and financial fraud, there has been some which tend to be overlooked,” he explained.

Addressing the audience which drew bigwigs from the banking sector, government circles, law enforcement and the diplomatic community, Sagay pointed out that progress was being made in prosecuting offenders.

“There have been cases in the subsidy scam in which the defendants have been sentenced to 10 years imprisonment. We’ve had the case of a governor, although he has avoided prison custody for now. But he was sentenced to five years; and quite a lot of non-high-profile cases in the hundreds.

“Our problem is with the high profile cases and I can assure you a lot of review is being done about how to tackle it.”

Leeson, who has paid for his

crimes and uses his experience to help financial institutions plug holes that might be exploited by would-be fraudsters, said for there to be financial integrity, banks need to be held to account.

“You need a deterrent.

Systems need to keep people in check because it’s human nature to push barriers,” he said. “If you see people doing stuff and not getting punished, there’s a possibility you might do the same.

Or someone close to you.”

According to him, some of the things that aid financial crimes include a disparate system, poor communication and a complete lack of challenge.

“If your systems and policies are the same as two years ago, rest assured someone is already circumnavigating them. You need to keep them fresh,” he said.

ACCA’s Regional Head of Policy for Sub-Saharan Africa, Mrs. Jane Ohadike, explained that the global body for accountants was supporting the event which she described as “a noble cause” because the organisation has a mandate which goes further than developing quality finance professionals.

“We measure our success as an organization, not by how many professional accountants or financial managers we produce, but by product distinction in technical competence, by the ability of these professionals to apply their acquired skills to the effective service of the public, and thirdly – which is quite core to the profession and ACCA’s value code – the unconditional ethical code that is expected of professional finance managers and accountants globally.”

Health Ministry: Faulty Cables Caused Federal Secretariat Fire Olawale Ajimotokan and Senator Iroegbu in Abuja

The Federal Ministry of Health has attributed the fire outbreak at the Federal Secretariat yesterday to faulty electric cables on one of the floors.

Fire-fighters, private security men and personnel of the National Emergency Management Agency, (NEMA) offered emergency service by checking the fire from further spreading, when thick dark smoke issued from and hung over the secretariat along Shehu Shagari Way, early yesterday morning.

But the Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole, said in a statement, that the fire did not cause any material damage to the building nor did it affect the health ministry.

The statement, which was issued on his behalf by the Director, Media and Public Relations of the Health Ministry, Boade Akinola, reads: “An electric spark from cables and wires resulted in a small fire on the corridor of the third floor, wing B of the Federal Ministry

of Health Headquarters this morning.

“The private security outfit in charge of the premises swung into action and also contacted the fire service which responded immediately and put off the fire. There was no damage to any government property neither did it affect any of the offices in the building. Media teams from certain outfits have independently accessed the building and recordings are available”, the statement added.

The firefighters bearing water pipe, housed in the complex, used ladders to access the corridor where the fire originated from and where some items were kept.

Akinola, in response to THISDAY enquiries, also said no life was lost. She also assured that the situation has been brought under control with minimal damage to the 3rd floor of the building. “It was a spark in the corridor on the 3rd floor where cleaners rest. It did not affect any office. Prompt intervention of fire service saved the situation,” she said.

T H I S D AY SUNDAY JULY 2, 2017

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T H I S D AY SUNDAY JULY 2, 2017

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R • JULY 2, 2017

NEWS Organised Labour Hail Dangote on Investment Drive, Employment Abimbola Akosile

Following his fresh investments inautomobileandagriculture,the organised labour in the country has commended President and the Chief Executive of Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, for promoting investments and creating thousands of direct and indirect youth employments across the country and in Africa.

The labour said Dangote’s patriotismremainsunparalleled whenitcomestoinvestmentand thathisinvestmentsinmanysectorshavebeenakeyfactorbehind Nigeria’s improving economy.

Vice-President of Genevabased global union, the IndustrialALL and the Secretary General of the National Textile Garment Workers Union, Comrade Issa Aremu said this onthesidelineofthe5thTriennial National Delegates Conference of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria(PENGASSAN)inAbuja, whereherepresentedformerEdo governorAdamsOshiomholeas the guest speaker.

Aremu lamented that “others who should have invested in

the country are stashing their money abroad and thus denying the nation the much needed investment.”

He maintained that Nigeria would have been an industrial giantinAfricaifthenationcould boast of more Dangotes whose preoccupationwouldbetoinvest and create jobs for the teeming populace.

Aremu, a member of the National Executive Council (NEC) of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) also commended other compatriots who he said joined Dangote “in obedience to the clarioncalloftheopeningstanza of the national anthem ‘Arise oh Compatriots’byrisingindefence of national unity in the wake of discordantanddivisivevoicesby some misguided youths.”

Referring to the on-going construction of the Refinery and petrochemicals in Lagos

by Dangote, the labour leader said Nigeria was blessed to haveanastutebusinessmanlike Dangotewhowouldventureinto the business terrain where even theprofessionalswoulddarenot dabble into.

“Little wonder other African

leaders are courting his friendship so that he could extend his investments into their countries.

I don’t think there is any other Nigerian with such investment in and outside the country like Dangote. I understand he has his companies in 15 African countries. We, in the labour, are proud of him”, Aremu stated.

Speaking earlier on the theme of the conference ‘Emerging Trends in the Oil and Gas Industry and its Impacts on Labour Movement in Nigeria’, he pointed out that following the crash in the global oil prices, diversification was more than urgent,addingthatthiswaswhat Dangote group with investment in scores of sectors in Africa had been doing “even at a time it was not fashionable and even risky to do so.”

According to him, diversificationwasnotthesameasreplacing extractive crude oil with another extractive solid mineral but in beneficiation, industrialisation and value addition along the whole value chains, which he insisted “must start with the oil andgasindustrywiththerevival of the refineries.

Court Dismisses Certificate Forgery Suit against Andy Ubah A High Court of the Federal Capital Territory in Apo, Abuja has dismissed a suit seeking the sacking of the Senator representingAnambraSouth,AndyUbah, who was accused of certificate forgery by the plaintiff, Mr. Uchenna Nnadi.

Nnadi had alleged that Uba forged the secondary certificate whichthesenatorsubmittedtothe Independent National Electoral Commission(INEC)forthe2007 governorshipelectioninAnambra State and for the 2011 and 2015 Anambra South senatorial elections.

Dismissingthesuitinhisjudgment on Friday, Justice Valentine Ashi described it as frivolous and vexatious. The judge held

that the suit lacked in merit and constituted gross abuse of court process. He held that the forgery allegationlevelledbytheplaintiff against Uba, being criminal in nature, was not proved beyond reasonable doubt.

Uba won the 2007 governorshipelectionbutwasremovedby a court judgment after spending lessthanamonthinoffice.Healso contestedandwontheAnambra Southsenatorialelectionsin2011 and 2015.

The plaintiff had urged the court to declare that Uba having allegedly forged and submitted a secondary school certificate, which was the minimum qualification for holding the offices of agovernorandasenator,implied

thatthesenatorwasnotqualified to contest the said elections.

He therefore urged the court to declare as null and void Uba’s electionsasSenatorrepresenting AnambraSouthin2011and2015 as well his previous elections as Governor of Anambra State in 2007. Citing the provisions of sections 65(2)(a), 177(d), 66(1) (i), 182(1)(j) of the Constitution, the plaintiff claimed that Uba, “having not been educated to at least school certificate level or its equivalent” and for allegedly presenting forged certificate to INEC,wasnotqualifiedoreligible to stand for National Assembly election, governorship election in Anambra State or any other election in Nigeria

Nigerian League of Veteran Journalists Condemn Hate Speeches The Nigerian League of Veteran Journalists has expressed concern on the current spate of hatespeechandthepersistentdemandforsecessionbypro-Biafra groups. This was made public in astatementsignedbythegroup’s National President-General, Otunba Eddie Aderinokun.

The group frowned on the evacuation order issued against IboresidentsintheNorthernpart of Nigeria.

“Werecallthatwhatishappening today is reminiscent of the drumbeatsofwarthatpreceded the tragic civil war of 1967. As journalists who were on duty as reporters and editors during theNigeriancivilwar,wearenot happy to witness our country going down the same road to self-destruction.

“We reported the civil war to the world and we feel it is our

duty to warn those who wish to take our country down that dangerouspaththattheyshould halt the current exchange of hate speech,” the group remarked.

The group also noted that the disunity of Africa’s most

populouscountryportendsdire consequences for the continent and indeed the black race.

Instead of war, the group is of the view that “efforts to consolidateoureconomicgrowthshould be our national concern”.

NPF Festival Savings Account

The NPF Microfinance Bank Plc said its unaudited balance sheet size currently stands at over ₦18.8 billion as at May 31, 2017. The authorisedsharecapitalofthebankatinceptionwas₦500,000.00 made of 500,000 ordinary shares of ₦1.00 each and has over the years increased to its current level of ₦2 billion made up of 4 billion ordinary shares of 50k each of which 2.287 billion ordinary shares of50keachareissuedandfullypaidup.However,initsbidtofurther promotesavingcultureamongNigeriansaswellasbroadenfinancial inclusion the bank has unveiled a new product called ‘Festival Promo Savings Account’. The bank in a statement explained that this was specifically designed to encourage customers save towardafestivaloftheirchoice.Accordingtothebank,theproduct is designed to encourage savings amongst the populace in order to cushion the effect of money crunch faced by most families in Nigeriaduringfestivalperiods.

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JULY 2, 2017 • THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER

OPINION

Adesina and The World Food Prize

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The key to feeding Africa is to practice agriculture as a business, writes Ebere Echendu

n Monday, June 26, 2017, Nigeria’s former Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, now the President of African Development Bank, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, was announced as the winner of the 2017 World Food Prize, at a ceremony at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, in Washington, D.C. The World Food Prize, which is regarded as the Nobel Prize for Food and Agriculture, was founded in 1986

by Dr. Norman E. Borlaug. The award recognises the achievements of individuals who have advanced human development by improving the quality, quantity or availability of food in the world.

In announcing the award, the President of the World Food Prize Foundation, Ambassador Kenneth Quinn, stated that the selection of Dr. Adesina reflects both his breakthrough achievements when he was Minister of Agriculture in Nigeria, and his critical role in the development of the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa, where as Vice-President, he led a major expansion of commercial bank lending to farmers.

Adesina has over the past two decades provided strong leadership in expanding food production in Africa; introducing initiatives to exponentially increase the availability of credit for smallholder farmers across the African continent; and galvanising the political will to transform African agriculture.

As Nigeria’s Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Adesina was known as “the farmer’s Minister.”

Among other reforms, he introduced the E-Wallet system for fertiliser distribution. The system saved the government significant amount of money and ensured farmers have direct access to buying fertilisers.

Speaking on his selection for the Prize, Dr. Adesina

said he was humbled by the award. He said his work to ensure Africa could feed itself is still an uncompleted business.

Adesina, a son of a farmer, sees his life’s mission as lifting millions of people out of poverty, especially rural farmers; and turning agriculture into business all across the continent to create wealth for African people. According to Adesina, the prize serves as an encouragement for him to continue to pursue his vision for enhancing nutrition, uplifting smallholder farmers, and inspiring the next generation of Africans as they confront the challenges

Adesina has over the past two decades provided strong leadership in expanding food production in Africa; introducing initiatives to exponentially increase the availability of credit for smallholder farmers across the African continent; and galvanising the political will to transform African agriculture

of the 21st century.

As President of the African Development Bank, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina has put in place the High Five agenda which, among others, consist of a strategy to feed Africa.

The key to feeding Africa is to practice agriculture as a business and not as a development activity, Adesina is known to advocate. Africa has 65 per cent of the world’s uncultivated arable land but, regrettably, African countries imports food worth $35 billion every year from outside the continent. He said if this is unchecked, it will swell Africa’s food import bill to $110 billion by 2025.

Under Adesina as president of the AfDB, the bank is launching an agriculture strategy that will rapidly transform Africa’s agricultural sector, develop agro-allied industrial zones, push for food self-sufficiency and move the continent up the global agriculture value chain; and place Africa as the food basket of the world.

Adesina has called on governments and institutional investors, such as pension and insurance funds, to “see the gold” in African agriculture and invest in it to unlock its potential. In his words, “the future of African young people lies in a more prosperous and inclusive Africa, and there is no other sector that has greater power to create growth than the agricultural sector.”

Adesina will be presented the $250,000 World Food Prize and Laureate sculpture at a ceremony that will hold later in the year on October 19 in Iowa State, USA. Since its establishment more than 30 years ago, the World Food Prize has honoured 45 individuals from 18 different countries. Adesina is the 46th person, and the sixth African, to win the World Food Prize.

––Echendu, an accountant, and agro-industrialist, wrote from Lagos.

Fashola, National Assembly and National Interest

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Ikeogu Oke urges the National Assembly for a bold change in the interest of the nation

his is one of my several interventions in the public space urging the National Assembly to recognise the need to put national interest first in its actions. One of the previous interventions was entitled “Of Power Probes and National Interest” and published in most of our dailies. It was inspired by the National Assembly trivialising power probes in my opinion and making what I considered to be unfounded allegations about the country’s power sector reform.

Also, the allegations could have portrayed our country in a bad light and discouraged investors and so amounted to involuntary economic sabotage.

The probe was flagged in a story published on page eight of Vanguard of October 15, 2015. Had it taken place, it would have followed another power probe in two weeks whose result was still unknown. And I thought the House needed to do more than give Nigerians the impression that its mandate was to engage in such incessant probes that seemed fruitless and driven by self-interest.

More interestingly, the story stated that, “the house, in a resolution on the motion entitled “Alleged Nontransparent and Fraudulent Sale of Power Assets” bemoaned what it called lack of openness in the processes leading to the sale of power infrastructure to private investors. Also, that the house “resolved to … investigate the processes and sale of all aspects of power assets ... to determine if there were malpractices and misconduct in the exercise.”

The story gave the impression that the House blurred the gap between suspicion and proof of misconduct in the sales. I also came under the impression that the choice of words could have been more prudent, as it exposed the power sector to the risk of disinvestment by people, especially foreigners, who might interpret it as indicative of the sector’s unreliability for investment.

Another intervention was entitled “Lessons from Senate Probe of the Power Sector” (The Guardian, October 26, 2015, p. 20). Before I attended the Senate probe to which it was a response, I had noted a report on page 25 of THISDAY of September 22, 2015. The report was entitled “Power Probe: Another Legislative Sham”. It made a critical observation about a previous power probe by the Senate, namely, that the presiding committee showed “its lack of up-to-date knowledge of the sector it is probing”, with obvious implications for the credibility of the probe.

Both interventions came to mind as I read some publications resulting from the objection by the Minis-

ter of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, to the National Assembly’s alleged alteration of the 2017 budget after its defence. This is reminiscent of the widely condemned “padding” of the 2016 budget by the National Assembly. Major in the alleged behind-the-scenes alterations is the reduction of the budgetary allocations for such projects of national significance like the 3,050-megawatt Mambilla hydroelectric dam and the Second Niger Bridge to create a budget for the National Assembly members’ “constituency projects” such as boreholes, primary health care centres and street lighting.

And so, in a country that has long bemoaned its underdevelopment due to chronic power scarcity, we could have an absurd situation where the constituencies of its federal legislators would be littered with such new facilities with no electricity to run them because their having undercut the Mambilla budget could prevent the timely completion of the dam.

Need I ask who will manage the budget for those “constituency projects” or if this does not reflect a conflict between personal and national interest among the legislators in which they put their personal interest first in a manner that suggests abuse of privilege?

Fashola’s objection is not only that the alternations were made after the budget defence but also that they were not brought to the notice of the ministries, departments and agencies that had made the defence before the National Assembly passed the budget.

Shouldn’t this have been the case for a legislature one of whose cardinal responsibilities is “oversight”, with its implication of championing transparency, if it wishes to lead by example?

Or could it be that the National Assembly is resisting change in that, being used to “padding” the budget or altering it arbitrarily to serve the interest of its members, and having drawn public outcry over the 2016 episode, it would rather continue the practice by stealth than end it?

In the continuation of a front page story entitled “Senate Attacks Fashola” on page four of Daily Trust of June 25, 2017, the minister points out that there is nothing in the constitution like “constituency projects”. This suggests that the country may be funding illegal projects at the expense of major developmental projects like the Mambilla dam and the other projects affected by the budget alteration.

In the publication, the Senate, surprisingly, does not counter the minister’s allegation despite its hint at serious moral and procedural infractions. Rather,

it speaks through its mouthpiece, Senator Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi, to accuse the minister of “spreading wrong information and half-truth about the 2017 budget”.

Senator Abdullahi also insinuates that the minister’s objection was inspired by self-interest. For instance, for the Lagos-Ibadan expressway whose budget the minister also alleged its alteration by the National Assembly, he said the minister “would prefer an arrangement that allows the ministry to continue to award contracts and fund the project through government budgetary allocation at a time when the nation’s revenue is dwindling and at an alltime low”, and despite the existence of an agreement to fund the project by “Public-Private Partnership… using … Private Finance Initiative”.

Perhaps the dwindling of the nation’s revenue which Senator Abdullahi so patriotically pointed out does not apply when he and his colleagues spend part of the same revenue on their “constituency projects”.

On his part, Fashola has denied the allegation of his “spreading wrong information and half-truth” in a front page story in The Punch of June 27, 2017, entitled “Fashola Attacks N’ Assembly”. He also attributed the National Assembly’s attack on him and its claim of the existence of an agreement to finance the Lagos-Ibadan expressway project with private funds to a knowledge gap “about the facts of what they were getting into”. This harks back to the observation made by the writer of the THISDAY article I had referred to about a Senate presiding committee showing “its lack of up-to-date knowledge of the sector it is probing”. It also shows, with this new budget controversy, how things may have remained the same with the National Assembly in terms of tinkering with the budget and acting contrary to facts.

We learn from all this how those willing to exercise the political will to bring about lasting change in our country like Fashola may be antagonised by vested interests within the system. Yet we wonder why our country hardly makes progress despite much exertion. The gears of national progress often turn to cancel the efforts of one another, yielding futility.

––Oke, a former technical staff of the National Electric Power Authority and a former Technical Adviser to the former Minister of Power, Prof.

Bart Nnaji, wrote from Abuja.

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R • JULY 2, 2017

LETTERS

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The 2017 Budget of Controversy

o compelling attempt has been made by the Muhammadu Buhari-led administration to deal with the budget padding controversy.

Last year, the issue was a dark spot in the administration’s anti-corruption record. Chairman of the appropriation committee in the House of Representatives, Abdulmumin Jibrin (APC, Kano), was sacked by the leadership of the House because of his involvement in the padding of the 2016 budget.

The budget, which details his committee worked on, was replete with so many discrepancies, resulting in Buhari’s decision to withhold his assent. The discoveries were embarrassing to the National Assembly. The Senate proved its non-involvement in the malfeasance. Jibrin’s hands were caught in the cookie jar.

He was accused of unilaterally removing funds for construction of Lagos-Calabar coastal railway from the budget. He allegedly increased the budget by as much as N4 billion, without consultation with other members of the committee and the House.

The saga turned hilarious after Jibrin lost his juicy position. He turned into a parrot, barefacedly reeling out details of how the 2016 budget was padded to take care of the interests of presiding and principal officers of the House. He was determined to bring down the House. Unfortunately, the House successfully contained his brinkmanship and got him suspended, on September 28, last year, for 180 legislative sitting days.

The Jibrin debacle is not the thematic essence of this piece.

His acts of budget padding are referenced herein to provide anchorage for the thesis that the blight has continued to afflict the nation, leading to heamorrhage and distortions in public finance.

The historical malevolence has enriched a few privileged public

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Osinbajo office holders. Our commonwealth is misappropriated and plundered in a conspiratorial and gangsterish manner while the masses are perpetually impoverished.

Budget, which is an instrument of stimulating growth and development, is perverted on the altar of legislative leitmotif that feeds on constitutional empowerment. Appropriated funds are manipulatively diverted for personal aggrandisement.

Buhari saw through the legislative chicanery last year and, in his righteous indignation, returned the fiscal document to the National Assembly in protest against the removal of some key projects and insertion of others that he did not include in the original bill he presented to the legislature.

The presidential assent to the 2017 budget was dilatory due to the perennial problem of budget padding. About 4,000 new proj-

ects were reportedly introduced into the budget by the legislature.

The executive frowned at the development. After reaching an agreement to rectify identified flaws via a supplementary budget, acting president, Yemi Osinbajo, seemingly reluctantly, signed the appropriation bill into law. He still remarked about the introduction of entirely new projects or modification of projects in the budget by the legislature.

Interestingly, the National Assembly continues to insist that it is constitutionally empowered to deal with the appropriation bill in all its ramifications, including inserting new projects not proposed by the executive. The House of Representatives, through its publicists, has been focused on the advocacy. They have issued a series of statements that are celebratory of that position.

For instance, they drew public attention to a judgment by Justice Gabriel Kolawole of the Federal

High Court delivered on March 9, this year, on the issue, in a suit filed by Femi Falana (SAN) on March 31, 2014, which resolved all four questions formulated for determination in favour of the National Assembly (third defendant).

The most critical of the questions which came close to the point at issue was: “Whether by virtue of Section 81 of the Constitution of the Federal republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended), the 3rd defendant is competent to increase or review upward any aspect of the estimates of the revenues and expenditures of the federation for the next financial year prepared and laid before it by the first defendant (the President, Federal Republic of Nigeria).”

Although, the President, Attorney-General of the Federation and the Auditor-General of the Federation (1st, 2nd and 4th defendants respectively) did not react to the plaintiff’s originating summons, the legislature has celebrated the determination of this question in its favour. I sincerely do not think this is the bone of contention. Nobody has said that in the consideration of the appropriation bill, the legislature does not have the power of upward or downward review of any aspect of the proposed financial provisions. The argument has been that the legislature can do that within the ambit of the proposed fiscal provisions. It

produce president. Or that we cannot have a Muslim-Muslim or Christian-Christian ticket; and all sorts of retrogressive excuses.

Placed side by side with his colleagues in the current Eighth Assembly and others in recent times, even the worst political enemies of Dino Melaye would agree that he has done well as a lawmaker. The only thing they can say in a muffled voice is that “The man talks too much,” or that “Dino is an irritant,” or that “He is so flamboyant”, all such balderdash.

How do well meaning members of the society rate a lawmaker and decide whether or not he or she has done well or is doing well? The generally acceptable measure is in active representation which can be seen from how many bills and motions the representative initiated or co-sponsored; how active and articulate he is during debates at plenary; how much the representative has influenced his colleagues or ministers to attract developmental projects to his constituency and at the national level, how such a representative has contributed to making quality

laws.

There is no Nigerian therefore that would say that Dino is a dull senator. No one can count him among the bench warmers who sit all days without saying either ‘aye’ or ‘nay’. I don’t think anybody has caught Dino on camera sleeping while debate is going on. Rather, Dino has helped to place Kogi West Senatorial district on national consciousness.

From the House of Representatives before graduating to the red chambers, (the Senate), Dino has always been visible at plenary, raising motions, debating, arguing, sometimes dramatising.

Apart from actively representing his constituency, Dino has been a voice for the voiceless, standing against injustice and obnoxious, anti-people state policies as well as shouting to expose corruption. All these without fear of whose egg would be broken. It was Dino, more than any other senator that resisted the introduction of an offensive policy asking car owners to go and pay for duties which was purely a responsibility of dealers and importers. Although

checks and balances, which limits the spheres of proposing and approving authorities.

But the real contention is not expressly addressed by the provisions of the constitution and the judgment by Kolawole, which is: can the legislature introduce entirely new projects into the appropriation bill during considerations and/or prior to approval? Falana’s suit did not call on the court to rein in on this moot point, which remains the real issue requiring judicial ventilation.

If the executive and the legislative arms of government are not ready to embrace the idea of pre-budget consultations to accommodate and prioritise viable projects in which they have located national and constituency interests as I had suggested in a similar piece; or “the need for cooperation between both arms of government in the preparation of the estimates so that by the time the money bill is laid, most of the grey areas would have been resolved” as suggested by THISDAY newspaper in its Tuesday, June 27, 2017 editorial, titled: “Needless Tussle over Budget powers”, the executive should seek Supreme Court’s intervention for clear-cut pronouncements on the powers and limits thereof of the legislature with respect to the sacrosanctity of its (executive) budget proposals.

Sufuyan Ojeifo, Abuja

WHERE TUNDE BAKARE GOT IT WRONG

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n Monday, June 18, 2017, many national dailies published reports credited to Pastor Tunde Bakare of the Latter Rain Assembly Church.

The reports quoted the pastor as saying that the current political tension in the country which was caused by

DINO MELAYE: WHY HE SHOULD RUN FOR PRESIDENT

t is quite ironic to hear that Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello is alleged to be sponsoring efforts to recall one of the brightest and obviously the most outspoken and audacious Senator in Nigeria’s recent history, Dino Melaye. In serious societies, those who should be preparing to contest the 2019 presidential election should be the likes of Senator Dino Melaye; former governor of Cross River, Donald Duke; Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir el-Rufai; former Central Bank Governor, Chukwuma Soludo; Governor of Gombe State Ibrahim Dankwambo; founder of Heirs Holding, Tony Elumelu; the former Agriculture Minister, Akinwumi Adesina, and Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.

There are many other Nigerians that fit this list.

But this is Nigeria where leaders emerge on the basis of the religious, ethnic and other mundane considerations, instead of merit and track record of achievements.

And so, in making political permutations and calculations, we disqualify our best 11, due largely because it is not the turn of their geopolitical zones to

has the constitutional enablement to redistribute proposed expenditures with reference to only the projects and budgetary provisions presented to it by the executive.

If, for instance, the executive proposes to spend N200 billion on Lagos-Calabar coastal railway in a financial year, the legislature can decide to increase or decrease the proposed allocation depending on its considerations. The amount by which it is increased can be taken from another subhead to take care of the increment; or, the amount by which it is decreased can be taken to another project which, as feared, might be underfunded in the budget. It is not for the legislature to incorporate an entirely new project that is alien to the original contemplation of the executive.

The legislature is expected to keep within the policy framework of the budget as well as the underpinning capacity of government to generate revenue and source for funds to finance the budget. Otherwise, the legislature will always be driven by the exercise of its hesitant power to increase the proposed expenditures and thus put the executive under pressure to implement the altered budget.

The legislature must authorise expenditure from the consolidated revenue fund of the federation before the executive can access and spend. This is settled. There is constitutional imperative for

the Comptroller General of the Nigerian Customs Service insisted not to appear before the Senate in uniform, the organisation was compelled by the Senate through a debate led by Dino to suspend the implementation of that policy, indefinitely. How better then can a lawmaker perform before he is awarded medal of honour by his fellow countrymen and women?

Yes, Dino fought on the floor of the House when he was a representative. His clothes were torn in the process. But that is not an abomination for a lawmaker. Lawmakers fight and throw chairs and tear clothes, all over the world.

In November 2010, Argentine lawmakers fought physically following disagreements over budget after opposition MP Graciela Camano slapped another member Carlos Kunkelo in the face. In October 1997, members of parliament in the Uttar Pradesh State used microphone stands as spears on themselves during a violent dispute.

––Bonaventure Melah, Abuja.

hate and divisive speeches is the aftermath of the choice of an elderly person (President Muhammadu Buhari) as Nigeria’s president in the 2015 elections.

According to the reports, Bakare compared President Muhammadu Buhari and President Emmanuel Macron of France, saying that the election of the former was indicative of a global paradigm shift.

Not done, he wondered why Nigeria which once produced a 30-year-old leader in the person of Gen. Yakubu Gowon would prefer people in their 60s and 70s in the 2015 elections.

It appears that he forgot that Gowon was a military head of state and not an elected president.

The preacher also said that leadership vacuum often allowed the likes of Adonijah and Absalom in biblical mythology to overthrow their father, King David, in order to achieve their inordinate ambition, as nature abhors a vacuum.

Pastor Bakare enthused that if President Buhari is ‘very healthy’ then there would be no room for the likes of Absalom and Ahitophel to exercise their ambition. Here he is insinuating that President Buhari’s health challenge may create room for military takeover.

A critical analysis of the contents of Pastor Bakare’s address at the press conference portrays him as a man who indulges in double-speak, considering the fact that the same pastor casting aspersion on President Buhari volunteered to serve as his vice -president in the 2011 Presidential election.

It is shocking that few years

after that outing, Pastor Bakare is blaming the so-called current political quagmire on the choice of an elderly president. This is totally uncalled for when viewed against the backdrop that President Buhari, despite his age, has done more than his predecessors, going by the socio-political and economic state of the country at the time he assumed office in 2015.

Despite his age, it is on record that the federal government under the watch of President Buhari is focused on getting rid of the old order of doing things which provided the platform for corruption to be the order of the day.

Can Pastor Bakare say so of the USA, the bastion of democracy, where 70-year-old Donald Trump was elected as President in 2016? In all seriousness, how has age affected the performance of President Buhari?

It is the same Buhari who travelled widely on diplomatic shuttles in his first year in office to boost Nigeria’s battered image. Prior to his diplomatic manoeuverings, Nigeria and Nigerians were shabbily treated outside the shores of their country. There was little or no respect for the green passport and its holder just as there was no foreign investors’ confidence in the nation’s economy and Nigeria’s business environment.

The dividends of the foreign trips by the 74-year-old man are beginning to pay off as evidenced in Morocco’s bilateral agreement with Nigeria on fertiliser importation.

––Lady Aite-Ehiemua, ehiemuagao@gmail.com

18

THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER • JULY 2, 2017

INTERNATIONAL Celebrating United States’ ‘Fourth of July’ in Nigeria and Trump’s ‘Making America Great Again’

B

ritain is great in status but small in its metropolitan territorial size. When the factor of colonisation is reckoned with, the greatness of Britain is never in doubt, especially if we remember that Britain initially colonised the 13 states that united to form the United States ofAmerica on July 2, 1776.

Unlike the British, the greatness of theAmericans has little to do with their territorial size or population, even though they are both big. It is always the agenda and the mania of executing it, hence the legacy to be left behind after such execution, largely explains US greatness in international relations. It is the attitudinal disposition of theAmerican that serves as pull or push in the making of US greatness.

Ordinarily,Americans hardly believe or accept that there can be any person or anything better than theAmerican. If they make cars, theirs will be an oversize just to ensure that what isAmerican is different.

Most countries use 220-voltage equipment, theAmerican specification is 110 volts. The bumpers of US saloon cars are generally designed for heavy duty.

American cars are not meant to be fuel efficient. They are big with a lot of room space. What about the size of a typical individualAmerican? What aboutAmerican English? What need is there to re-spell organisation as reorganisation? Why change colour to color? Why is there a difference in the meaning given to ‘to table’ and ‘at table?’

The point being made here is theAmerican pride, theAmerican patriotism, which has it that anythingAmerican has to be original and typical.AnythingAmerican must be taken with seriousness of purpose and with a philosophy of difference. This philosophy begins with the distinction between ‘July 4’ and ‘Fourth of July.’ July 4 is simply a date but ‘Fourth of July’ is more than an ordinary date.

‘Fourth of July’ is entertainment and enjoyment. It is the time for underscoring the importance of freedom and anniversary of the publication of the Declaration of Independence from Great Britain in 1776. It is a public holiday during which allAmericans are required to relax and celebrate the values of freedom. Indeed, the Declaration of July 4 was meant to explain the decision prepared by a Committee of Five. Thomas Jefferson was the principal author of the draft decision. It should not be forgotten that the Thirteen Colonies that signed the July 4, 1776 Declaration had, two days earlier, separated themselves from Great Britain.

In June 1776, Richard Henry Lee of Virginia already proposed the declaration of US independence from Great Britain rule. On June 2nd, 1776 the Congress debated and edited the Declaration.As put by John Adams, July 2, 1776 would be ‘celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival. It ought to be commemorated as the day of deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to GodAlmighty. It ought to be solemnised with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations, from one end of this Continent to the other, from this time forward forever more’ (vide The US NationalArchives and RecordsAdministration) JohnAdams could not have been more correct or predicted any better, as celebration by succeeding generations began on July 4, 1777 – one year after the Declaration of Independence was approved.

Put differently, Resolution of Independence took place on July 2 while Declaration of Independence took place on July 4, 1776. Hence, the first anniversary was in 1777.

Perhaps, more interestingly, ‘Fourth of July’ is taken more seriously to the extent that if any July 4 falls on a Saturday, it will be celebrated on the Friday before it. If it falls on a Sunday, it will be celebrated the following Monday. In 1779, it fell on a Sunday and the holiday was shifted to July 5.

Additionally, there is also every good reason to seek to celebrate July 4 of every year because JohnAdams and Thomas Jefferson were not only both original signatories to the July 4, 1776 Declaration of Independence, but also died on a July 4, in 1826, that is, symbolically 50 years after the Declaration.

And true enough, ‘The Fourth of July’, as it is popularly referred to in the US, or the ‘Dunlap Broadside’ as the Massachusetts Historical Society calls it, is not about the grant of independence by Britain, but essentially about the celebration of a day when the people ofAmerica opted for self-determination. They were not granted independence.

They fought for independence from 1861 through 1865 and had to declare themselves independent for various considerations.

First, it was considered that ‘all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of Happiness; that to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.

That whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it and to

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Bola A. Akinterinwa Telephone : 0807-688-2846

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The King of Great Britain ‘made judges dependent on his Will alone... He kept among us, in times of peace, StandingArmies without the Consent of our legislatures. He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil power.’And perhaps most annoyingly for theAmericans, the King cut off US trade with all parts of the world, imposed Taxes without the consent of the people, transportedAmericans ‘beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences,’ andAmerican repeated Petitions were ‘answered only by repeated injury.’

It was in light of the foregoing that the ‘Representatives of the united States ofAmerica, in General Congress, assembled, appealing to the Supreme judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do in the Name, and byAuthority of the good People of the colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be Free and Independent States, that they are absolved from allAllegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved, and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace, contractAlliances, establish Commerce, and to do all otherActs and Things which Independent States may of right do.’

As much as emphasis was placed on values of rights, freedom and independence, the same values were also major dynamics of threats to national agreement. For instance, initially, in 1870, the US Congress made the US Independence Day an unpaid holiday for federal employees but the decision was reversed by the Congress in 1938 and again made a paid federal holiday.

This development might be a resultant from rivalries between the federal government and the constitutive states of the United States. It is within this context that the celebration of ‘The Fourth of July’ in Nigeria should be appreciated, evaluated and lessons learnt from it.

The Fourth of July in Nigeria

Trump

institute new government, laying its foundation on such principles and organising its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness (vide The Unanimous Declaration of the Thirteen united States ofAmerica in Congress, July 4, 1776.

The 13 states were New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia.

In this regard, emphasis is placed on life of the individual, his liberty, and the pursuit of his happiness. In the declaration, the word Happiness is with capital ‘H.’ It is also important to note that the origin of these rights was not only traced to the Heavenly Creator but also required all Governments, whose legitimacy must be derivable from the consent of the people governed, to secure all the Rights.

And more significantly, it was suggested that whenever these rights are not secured or are destroyed, the people must affirm their Right and secure their Safety and Happiness by either altering or abolishing the form of Government.

What is more significant, especially in terms of lessons of selfdetermination, particularly for people ofAfrica, is that the July 4 Unanimous Declaration in the Congress also had it that ‘prudence, indeed, will dictate that governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes, and accordingly, all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed.’

Again, in this regard, how do we situate the problem of sit-tight governments inAfrica, if it is advised that long-established governments should not be changed on flimsy excuses? Sit-tight leaders in Africa use the same democratic framework to alter the Constitutions and perpetuate themselves, and by so doing, threatening national and regional peace and security.

Secondly, it was considered that the King of Great Britain (then George III) was an absolutist and usurper, who denied the people of America the divine Rights ordained by the Creator of humanity. The Americans were not happy with the King’s repeated dissolution of the ‘Representative Houses for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.’

The truth in Nigeria as at today does not appear to lend any credence to Ambassador Stuart Symington’s observation that every Nigerian he met was happy and anxious about Nigeria’s diversity.Ambassador Symington was quite right in advising on the beauty of remaining united and sustaining the country’s diversity. However, this position is not consistent with that of Donald Trump.What really should the Nigerians hold on to: DonaldTrump’s strong attachment to the principle of self-determination or non-divisibility of Nigeria?

The first part of the celebration of ‘The Fourth of July in Nigeria took place on Wednesday, 28th June in Lagos while the second leg took place inAbuja the following day, the political capital, where all accredited diplomatic missions to Nigeria are supposed to be based.

Consequently, the date did not respond to the logic of a Friday or Sunday in Nigeria. Why is this so?

One possible answer may be in the sermon of freedom of choice, flexibility in decision-making, life made easy, etc, which the Americans are preaching to the world. In other words, there must be no rigidity in the choice of dates for celebration outside of the United States, especially when there are differences in time.Another reason might be security. There is the need for absolute security for invited guests. There is also the factor of convenience.

In fact, like it is the case with the Chinese, it might be because of due regards for the people of Nigeria. The national day of both China and Nigeria falls on October 1. To avoid unnecessary conflict of interests, the Chinese always hold their own celebrations before October 1 in due reference to the receiving state, Nigeria.

In the context of the United States, Nigeria does not have the same date with the US. However, as President Donald Trump has declared his policy direction, which is seeking to makeAmerica great again, and particularly with his style of undoing the US diplomatic tradition, the celebration of US Independence Day a week before the D-Day is possibly a pointer to a new direction.

It cannot but be a new direction, because the population of invited guests was about 130 as at the time I left. In previous years, more than an average of 180 invitees was recorded.Although fewer people attended the independence reception at the residence of the Consul General, the quality of reception was unprecedentedly very high, especially in terms of food diplomacy and courtesies extended by the consular staff to guests.

The fact that the venue oversees the lagoon, coupled with the green tree and leaves adorning it necessarily makes the air oxygenated and cool. The environment was natural. Security was tight. Music, varying from calypso to soft tempo, was supplied by Shuga Entertainment Nigeria Limited, whose three floor female dancers gave meaning to cultural diplomacy.

The organisers of the 241st US IndependenceAnniversary have the right to be wrapped up in the glory of the quality of Very Important Personalities in attendance. Chief Ernest Sonekan, former Head of State of Nigeria; Chief EmekaAnyaoku, a veteran diplomatist, former Minister of ExternalAffairs and former Secretary General of the Commonwealth of Nations; His Royal Majesty, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi, theAlaafin of Oyo; His Royal Majesty, Oba RilwanAkiolu of Lagos; Her Royal Majesty,Abiola Dosumu, the Erelu of Lagos; His Royal Majesty, Pere CharlesAiyemi-Botu of Seimbiri Kingdom; Dr. Segun Mimiko, former Governor of Ondo State; Mr. Donald Duke, former Governor of Cross Rivers State; General Theophilus Yakubu Danjuma rtd, a business mogul; Senator Musiliu Obanikoro, former High Commissioner of Nigeria to Ghana and former Minister of State for ForeignAffairs, etc, as well as Members of the Diplomatic Corps were also there to raise their glasses in toast of the 241st Independence Anniversary.

Perhaps, more noteworthy is the aspect of food diplomacy: bar was inexhaustible. Snacks were not stricto sensu limited toAmerican types. The anniversary was given needed support by Mirinda, Aquafina, Pepsi, Deloitte, Bristow,Andela, Rendeavour, Exxon Mobil, Delta Brittania, KPMG, Fedex,Aviat, Coca Cola and UPS. (See concluding part on www.thisdaylive.com)

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R • JULY 2, 2017

BUSINESS

Editor Vincent Obia Email vincent.obia@thisdaylive.com (08054681757)

LAST WEEK WEEK

Bilateral Trade The trade volume between Nigeria and Mexico grew by 360 per cent, from $166.5 million in 2012 to $600 million in 2016. The Mexican embassy’s Deputy Head of Mission, Rodrigo Tenorio, said this in Abuja. Tenorio spoke on the side-lines of a business roundtable organised by the Nigerian-Mexican Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Mexican embassy.

Foreign Investment The French government has set aside about €1 billion to invest in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry, to strengthen its economic relations in Africa. France’s Ambassador to Nigeria, Denys Gauer, disclosed this when the Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, Ndu Ughamadu, visited him in his office in Abuja. Gauer said some of the French companies interested in coming to do business in Nigeria included investors currently developing wind and solar energy solutions in Katsina State.

A transmission station

PSRP: Power Sector Requires $7.5 Billion to be Viable

Kunle Aderinokun

reduction in distribution including metering and $364 million would be used as a support to Transmission The Federal Government has said about $7.5 billion funding is is due to non-payment of actual Company of Nigeria to finance needed for the power sector over MO (market operator) and NBETs its priority projects.

While $350 million is a potential the next five years, starting from invoices by the Discos. This has this year till 2021, to make it viable. created a shortfall of N473 billion funding for rural electrification If achieved, the funding, which is due from Discos to the market.” initiatives, $305 would serve as $1.5 billion per year, would enable Acknowledging that,“The sector guarantees.

For the IFC investment, $1.3 diversification of the economy and is in transition from government to is estimated to drive growth by at private-sector owned and operated,” billion is being expected as a direct least $29.3 billion annually. the PSRP stated that, it was there- investment and mobilisation for The government, which revealed fore, “facing liquidity challenges power sector for additional 3.5 this in the Draft Final copy of the arising from consumers’ orientation gigawatts (GW) of power generation Power Sector Recovery Programme to pay only for what they use, (PSRP) obtained by THISDAY, noted transitional learning, regulatory The sector is in transithat the sector’s viability would, compliance, forex rate changes tion from government however, be depended on taking and vandalism of power assets to private-sector owned the steps outlined in the plan. that affect production stability and operated, therefore, facing liquidity Stating that the power market and breeds consumer resistance challenges arising from recorded shortfall of about N473 to payments.” consumers’orientation billion in 2015 and 2016 with tariff As part of government’s effort to pay only for what shortfall at approximately N458 to gather financial support for they use billion, the 55-page document the power sector, the Federal noted that, at the current tariff Executive Council, earlier in the level, even with zero collection year, approved discussions with as well as investments in distribution losses, the sector shortfall was the World Bank with a view to companies. The remaining $1.4 inevitable.“It is therefore paramount securing $2.5 billion for the sector. billion to be provided by MIGA that government provides a subsidy Consequently, the Bretton Woods is planned as guarantees for both (or similar mechanism) to offset the institution expressed willingness to gas and solar IPPs. In its introductory note, the PSRP expected shortfall,” the programme assist with the financing and two suggested, pointing out that, “the of its arms- International Finance document stated that the recovery longer it takes to increase tariffs, the Corporation(IFC) and Multilateral programme was developed in view larger the market shortfall grows.” Investment Guaranty Agency of the urgent need to address the According to the document,“ The (MIGA)- has indicated interest dire challenges within the Nigerian Tariff Shortfall is due to changes in to provide an additional US$2.7 Electricity Supply Industry (NESI).

In stating the challenge, the documacro-economic variables, volumet- billion for private investment. ric shock in energy supplied and the Giving a breakdown of the $2.7 ment lamented that, from being costs of interest on non-financed billion World Bank support, the an investment destination sought shortfalls via retail tariff sculpting. PSRP revealed that, $1 billion is after in 2013 – both at home and This has resulted in a shortfall of a performance-based loan for abroad, the NESI had fallen out N458 billion due to Discos from financial support to eliminate cash of favour.

“With the recent meetings in Customers. The market shortfall flow deficits; $500 million for loss ENERGY

Abuja of the DFI/MDBs over issues concerning the currency redenomination of the Put-Call Option Agreement (PCOA), there now remains only 2 dependable sources of financing for the NESI: NGN – The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) USD – The World Bank Group (WBG).

“A bold turnaround plan is now required to utilise current assets and resources optimally, and to restore investor confidence in the sector, required to deliver the planned sector reforms,” it stated.

As such, the key objectives of the PSRP are: “To improve power supply reliability to meet growing demand; to strengthen the sector’s institutional framework and increase transparency; to implement clear policies that promote and encourage investor confidence in the sector; and to establish a contract-based electricity market.”

To this end, the document highlighted the key deliverables as: “Dimensioning accumulated deficit (2015, 2016) and future shortfall (2017-2021); Developing mechanisms for settlement of accumulated debt; Developing interventions to minimise subsidy going forward; Restoring sector financial viability; Ensuring Disco loss reductions; Identifying funding sources; Addressing infrastructure gaps; Addressing gas pipeline vandalism; Enabling electricity market business continuity; Developing a communications strategy for stakeholders.”

Cashew Exports Nigeria is set to supply 130,000 tonnes of roasted cashew nuts valued at $7 billion to Walmart Super Market chain in the United States of America. Minister of Agriculture Audu Ogbe disclosed this while briefing State House correspondents after the Executive Council meeting at the Presidential Villa, Abuja. Ogbe said what Nigeria currently did was to ship the nuts to Vietnam, which roasted them and sold to the U.S. The minister had earlier said Nigeria will formally kick off the export of yam to the UK on Thursday.

Foreign Exchange The naira recorded a marginal gain on Wednesday, closing at N367 to the U.S. dollar, up from N368 the previous day.

The local currency has been hovering between N363/ dollar and N370/dollar as the Central Bank of Nigeria continues to supply foreign exchange into the market.

Analysts expect the local currency to trade within this range this week. Meanwhile, the CBN sold $195 million in various segments of the inter-bank market on Wednesday, the first day of transaction after the Eid-elFitr celebration.

Capital Market The Nigerian equities market appreciated by N185 billion at the close of trading on the floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange by midweek. The NSE banking index recorded the highest gain, as it appreciated by 3.16 per cent. This was followed by the NSE industrial, food/beverage and oil/gas indices, which gained 1.08 per cent, 0.84 per cent and 0.40 per cent, respectively.

The NSE insurance index was the only sector to record a decline, as it dropped by 0.09 per cent.

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R • JULY 2, 2017

BUSINESS/ECONOMY

CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele

Ibrahim

AMCON MD, Ahmed Kuru

Guarding against Credit Risk Build-up

Obinna Chima examines the move by the banking sector regulators to set up Private Asset Management Companies

S

ince the last banking crisis in Nigeria, the financial market regulators have been working relentlessly not to lower their guard in view of the headwinds in both the local and global financial market.

To the regulators, close monitoring of financial institutions under their regulation as well as collaborative measures are needed to shield the industry from another crisis, return it to the path of sustainable growth, protect banks from delinquent borrowers as well as avoid the build-up of non-performing loans (NPLs) in the industry.

These concerns were elevated recently when banking sector non-performing loans rose to 11.7 per cent in 2016, up from 5.3 per cent the previous year.

In view of the current macro-economic challenges in the country, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had granted a one-off forbearance to banks to write-off their fully provided for NPLs without waiting for the mandatory one year.

The CBN stated that it acknowledged the request by banks to amend the requirements of S.3.21 (a) of the Prudential Guidelines, which mandates banks to retain in their records, fully provided for NPLs for a period of one year before they are written off.

“The CBN has no intention of repealing the provision of the above mentioned section of the guidelines. In view of the current macro-economic challenges, however, the CBN hereby grant a one-off forbearance this year 2016 to banks, to write-off fully provided for NPLs without waiting for the mandatory one year,” it added.

Clearly, as a country that is heavily dependent on oil, prolonged decline in oil prices always has a knock-on effect on the banking industry.

Adverse commodity price shocks, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), also contribute to financial fragility through various channels. Firstly, a decline in commodity prices in commodity-dependent countries results in reduced export income, which could adversely impact economic activity and agents’ (including governments) ability to meet their debt obligations, thereby potentially weakening banks’ balance sheets.

Secondly, a surge in bank withdrawals following a drop in commodity prices may significantly reduce banks’ liquidity and potentially lead to a liquidity mismatch, the IMF stated.

Therefore, in order to continue to guarantee a safe and sound banking system, the CBN last week unveiled to members of the public, a draft document for licensing of Private Asset

Management Companies (PAMCs) in the country.

The Managing Director and Chief Executive of the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC), Umaru Ibrahim, had hinted of plans to introduce private assets management companies.

The Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON), which has been playing that role, was established on the 19th July 2010. It was created to be a key stabilising and re-vitalising tool aimed at reviving the financial system by efficiently resolving the non-performing loan assets of the banks in the Nigerian economy.

Private Asset Management Companies According to the CBN, the Private Asset Management Companies (PAMCs) are expected to play complementary role in the management of non-performing loans in the country.

The CBN, in the exposure draft for the licensing and regulation of PAMCs in Nigeria, signed by its Director, Financial Policy and Regulation, Mr. Kelvin Amugo, explained that developments in the Nigerian banking industry necessitated the initiative.

The draft framework stated that, “given the ever evolving developments in the industry, the decline in international commodity prices with its consequent impact on risk assets in the industry, it has become expedient to proactively widen the space for the management of NPLs through the establishment of PAMCs. “This is in line with the CBN’s core mandate of promoting a sound and stable financial system in Nigeria.”

The CBN described the PAMC as a privately owned institution licensed by the CBN as another financial institution (OFI) to acquire, manage, restructure and dispose of eligible assets of banks, OFIs and banks in liquidation.

According to the draft framework, the PAMC would perform the functions of AMCON, which included buying off assets of banks and other financial institutions and disposing them.

Also, they would be expected to provide consultancy and advisory services to banks and other financial institutions for the purpose of restructuring receivables and other assets including sale of such assets to third parties.

They would however not be allowed to operate as banks by taking deposits or granting loans neither would they be able to obtain credit from banks and other financial institutions in the county.

To be licensed, a PAMC would need a N10 billion paid-up capital.

In terms of risk management, the framework requires that PAMCs develop an enterprise risk

management framework, which will serve as a guide in the identification, measurement monitoring and control risk.

It added: “The ERM framework should be approved by the board of directors and cover the different forms of risks to which a PAMC may be exposed. Such risks include liquidity, credit, operational market, legal and compliance risks.”

Role of AMCON The role of AMCON in the economy has since been reviewed by various bodies such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Standard and Poor’s Ratings Agency, Fitch Ratings amongst others on several occasions. The mandate of the corporation was to help sanitise the banking industry.

Prior to the creation of AMCON, various reports had indicated that the situation in the banking industry was extremely dangerous such that most people were afraid that the Nigerian financial industry would have completely collapsed. So, AMCON was established as a long-term solution to the perceived crises.

Indeed, the collaboration between AMCON and regulators in the banking industry succeeded in creating an environment where even the federal government and taxpayers did not bear the burden. Since its creation, the corporation has bought Eligible Bank Assets (EBAs) in three tranches in the Nigerian banking industry as well as provided financial accommodation to eight institutions. The EBAs comprised of NPLs as well as systemically important loans in the Nigerian banking sector.

However, the story of the strategic health of banks in the country could not be complete without the all-important role that was played by AMCON, in cleaning up the sector. Clearly, the creation of AMCON to clean up the huge amount of toxic assets from banks’ balance sheets in order to revive both corporate and consumer lending in the economy remains an integral part of the financial stability plan of the banking system.

The ‘bad bank’, created in the last quarter of 2010, has since completed its NPLs purchase mandate and that has continued to reflect in the positive results being churned out by the commercial banks.

Need for another ‘Bad Bank’ The Managing Director of NDIC, Alhaji Umaru Ibrahim, had disclosed that the corporation had been working closely with the CBN to set up another resolution mechanism for cleaning up banks’ non-performing loans when the terminal life of AMCON expires. The sunset period for

AMCON may be by 2023.

Ibrahim, who said a joint NDIC and CBN committee was established to work on the fresh initiative, added that the new institution(s) would pave the way for the gradual folding up of AMCON. According to the NDIC boss, the new ‘bad bank’ to be established would be purely driven by the private sector.

This, he said, became necessary as there had been complaints against using taxpayers’ monies to bail out institutions.

“We are studying the need to establish what you may call AMCON. Two; that is the second round of AMCON, which would be driven by the private sector. This is very important because we know what has happened. There are concerns about using taxpayers’ money to bail out institutions.

“So, it is in line of the global best practice that we go back to the drawing board because our initial concept of AMCON in the early 90s was that it was going to be a joint venture between the private and public sectors’ investors, so as to minimise the risk of using taxpayers’ money to resolve the problem of buying and selling of bad loans.

“So, we established a joint committee to look into this and we hope that in the long run, we should be able to establish a second AMCON that would be private sector driven.

“Here, other investors can invest in it and the CBN, NDIC or the Finance Ministry can invest, so that going forward, buying and selling of bad loans would be under the control of that entity. That would pave the way for the gradual transition or folding up of the present AMCON.” the NDIC boss explained.

However, the Director General of the West African Institute for Financial and Economic Management (WAIFEM), Prof. Akpan Ekpo, advised the NDIC and central bank that instead of establishing “AMCON 2,” they should allow the existing AMCON to metamorphose into the private sector-driven resolution vehicle.

“They should amend the existing AMCON Act instead of spending resources to establish another institution. That would also amount to wasting taxpayers’ resources. We have learnt a lot from this AMCON. “But what we need now is a private sector-driven AMCON that they said they are proposing, but this current AMCON should be allowed to be transformed into that. Also, if it is going to be private sector, let only those who have experience be appointed into the board and not by patronage,” the WAIFEM boss stated.

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R • JULY 2, 2017

BUSINESS/ECONOMY

$300m Diaspora Bond Success Signals Economic Resilience

The successful listing of the $300 million Diaspora bond in record time signposts economic resilience and renewed interest in the economy by Nigerians in the Diaspora and those with offshore funds, Olaseni Durojaiye writes

A

Analysts The success and the speed with which the bond was oversubscribed notwithstanding, the bond have continued to draw opinions from analysts.

While the general opinion agreed that the cost was good and the oversubscription was a show

of confidence in the economy, particularly under the current administration, other opinions harped on the need to spend proceeds on projects that could fund its repayment.

To the Executive Director, BGL Capital Ltd, Olufemi Ademola, who spoke with THISDAY days after the DMO announced that the bond was oversubscribed, at 5.625 per cent Coupon rate, the bond issue was a “nice one” considering that the country’s $500 million Eurobond trade for seven per cent “it is very interesting.”

“That shows that Diaspora Nigerians are optimistic about developments in the country. It is a sign of endorsement by the guys abroad,” he added.

Similarly, Managing Director of Cowry Assets Limited, Mr. Johnson Chukwu, agreed that, at $300 million coupon rate of 5.625 per cent for a tenor of five years, the bond issue was a success.

However, there were insinuations that the entire bonds may not have been bought by Nigerians in Diaspora or institutional investors who planned to sell to retail investors.

According to Chukwu, until the list of investors and the investment bands are published, there is a doubt as to the actual investors. He insinuated that the real investor may not be entirely Nigerians in the Diaspora.

“Until the list of the actual investors is published or the band, I will say that it is unlikely that the bonds were bought by Diaspora Nigerians.,” he stated. “I state so because I have a fair knowledge of the income profile of Diaspora Nigerians and I don’t think they could have bought the bond within the time that it was bought; they would have needed more time to do so if they were to have bought that volume. It is not unlikely that some institutional investors bought the bond then plans to do retail resell.”

Another analyst and Director, Union Capital Ltd, Egie Akpata, aligned with Chukwu and insisted that the concerns around the actual investors are warranted. According to him, “If you look at the places that they went to, they went to two places in Switzerland, those are not places that you go to meet a community of Diaspora Nigerians; it is a place full of private banks; it is a place where wealthy Nigerians stash their wealth. Institutional investors could buy the bonds then resell, according to the mechanics of it, it is allowed especially in the US market, and the list of investors may not be released.”

online and offline activities to pick a winning team.

Sponsorship of sport and entertainment activities has gained prominence over other platforms in recent times because of the huge followership they command. To this end, leading global brands are daily using the two platforms as tools to connect with more consumers.

From Coca Cola to Adidas, Nike to MasterCard, sports and entertainment have remained permanent tools for positioning.

With the partnership, Star lager beer will now possess the right to promote its connection with Barcelona fans and keenly enhance visibility of the club in Nigeria.

Speaking on the new partnership, Marketing Director, Nigerian Breweries Plc, Franco María Maggi, said as a brand, Star would love to connect with as many football fans as possible.“We see this partnership as a way to further consolidate our commitment to millions of fans and bring quality enjoyment of football with unrivalled consumer interaction experience,” Maggi said. “Star is committed as a brand to nurture this partnership like others which will positively impact on the development of the football landscape in Nigeria. The brand is investing in order to tap, among other things, also in the possibility of world-class knowledge transfer.”

Knowledge transfer in this regard refers to the learning of tactics, communication processes, club

structure, team formation gathered during coaching clinics that will further enhance the current experience available in Nigeria.

The established partnership between both entities will have Star drive digital and outdoor amplification, viewership engagement and attendance at live matches that involve Barcelona.

For Star Larger, sports and entertainment are like Siamese twins that are used periodically to boost the profile of the brand. In the last five years, promoters of Star have not only leveraged entertainment to persuade consumers, they have used it to nurture talents and gain more market share. This explains why activation platforms like Star Trek, Star Quest and Star Mega Jam, have always been recurrent decimals in the nation’s entertainment scene.

In the area of sports, over the years, the Star brand has consistently supported football initiatives with platforms such as its highly impactful campaign to rally Nigerian football fans during the World Cup in 2014. The Star Super Fans Show also showcased and rewarded football fans for their passion and knowledge of the game.

Commenting on the partnership, FC Barcelona legend Edgar Davids confirmed that FC Barcelona was exploring new regions, especially in Africa’s most populous nation, Nigeria.

s Nigeria basks in the euphoria of the successful $300 million Diaspora bond issue, the first of its kind in the country, analysts and stakeholders say the feat was possible because of the resilient economy, which has renewed investor confidence. The federal government, which has been exuberant about the 130 per cent subscription of the bonds, revealed that there was considerable interest from investors from all over the world, with the issue attracting initial orders of about 190 per cent of the offered amount.

In fact, not a few of the economic watchers acknowledged that the oversubscription of the bond issue was a positive development for Nigeria and endorsement of the economy by investors in the Diaspora.

However, there is also an on-going discourse on application of the proceeds from the bond and repayment plan.

While the analysts did not see anything wrong with the latest borrowing, especially with the sharp drop in the nation’s revenue which led it into recession, some of them argued that emphasis should be on application of the proceeds.

According to one of the analysts, Dr. Vincent Nwani of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry, emphasis should be placed on what the proceeds of the bond are applied, so as to guarantee the repayment by the next generation.

Referring to the Ricardian Equivalence, he noted that, since the borrowing would be paid by future generations, it was expedient on government to spend it on revenue-yielding projects to ease the repayment burden.

The Bond In announcing the $300 million Diaspora bond penultimate week, the Debt Management Office (DMO) had said it would raise the funds from Nigerians in the Diaspora to finance capital projects and provide an opportunity for them to participate in the development of the country. As part of measures to fund capital expenditure, the Federal Government had in February announced its offering of $1 billion euro bond under its newly-established $1 billion Global Medium Term Note programme.

The $1 billion euro bond, which would mature on February 16, 2032, was eight times oversubscribed in the international market at an interest rate of 7.8 per cent with orders in excess of $7.8 billion.

The DMO also announced the Bank of America Merrill Lynch and The Standard Bank of South Africa Limited as the international joint lead managers and First Bank Nigeria Limited and United Bank for Nigeria Plc. The office noted that the bonds would be direct general obligations of Nigeria and will be denominated in U.S. dollars.

The DMO Director General, Dr. Abraham Nwankwo, explained in a statement that the Diaspora bond, was targeted principally at Nigerians abroad, to provide them with the opportunity to contribute to national development.

According to Nwankwo, the bond was structured as a retail instrument to appeal to a wide range of investors and was offered through private banks and wealth managers, rather than institutional investors, which normally deal in large volume transactions.

He enthused that the Diaspora bond had opened a new source of financing for the government for funding projects for the development of the country.

“This new window further enhances funding liquidity and flexibility of the Nigerian economy, which are necessary characteristics as the country gathers momentum towards the attainment of advanced economy status,” he explained.

Reacting to the successful outing, the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, said: “To have received the approval of the U.S. SEC was indicative that the highest level of transparency and accountability

Buhari in the economic process has been attained.”

Adeosun explained that the bond should positively impact the country’s credit rating, transparency rating and financial market development index rating.

“The Diaspora Bond is the first bond issued by an African sovereign registered with both the U.S. SEC and the United Kingdom Listing Authority

(UKLA) and targeted at retail investors,” she stressed.

For Star, Sponsorship is Winning Tool Raheeem Akingbolu

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arely a year after the management of the Nigerian Breweries rolled out the drums to celebrate its partnership with five European clubs – Arsenal, Manchester City, Juventus, Real Madrid, and Paris Saint-Germain – and a national partnership with the Nigerian Professional Football League, the company has announced a fresh partnership with FC Barcelona as the club’s official supporter in Nigeria. Just as patrons of the brand were relishing the import of the news, promoters of the brand announced its novel initiative to bring together music and football through what it tagged“Star Music The Fusion”. For those who had followed the history of the brand, again this was not really news; Star Lager has over the years been a pioneer of ground breaking platforms, including Star Music Trek, Star Mega Jam, Star Super fans Show and Star Quest.

With the new initiative, the brand is promoting six teams of football legends, music artistes and DJs, competing in a series of music and football concerts.

The novel platform has since begun to enthusiastically engage music and football fans with series of concerts,

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R • JULY 2, 2017

BUSINESS/ECONOMY

Job seekers at Nigerian Immigration Service recruitment exercise in 2014

Tackling Nigeria’s Unemployment Crisis

There is need to encourage entrepreneurship development, especially among the growing youth population, as a way of tackling the unemployment problem, writes Obinna Chima

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of Nigeria.

he increasing rate of unemployment continues to be a source of concern for the country.

The effect of the high level of joblessness has been seen in the upsurge in crime and other social vices, such as youth restiveness in almost every part

Statistics The unemployment report recently released by the National Bureau of Statistics shows that no fewer than 5.5 million Nigerians became unemployed in the two years of the President Muhammadu Buhari administration. The unemployment rate rose to 14.2 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2016, from 13.9 per cent in the preceding quarter.

Besides, a recent nationwide survey conducted by BudgIT showed that Kogi, Benue, Bayelsa, Abia, Ondo, Oyo, Ekiti and 14 other states owed their workers and retirees salaries and pensions ranging from one to 36 months.

According to the latest report released by the NBS, the unemployment rate is 4.2 per cent higher than the rate recorded in the fourth quarter of 2015. Consequently, 61.6 per cent of Nigerians in the labour force (not the entire population), aged between 15 and 24, were either unemployed or underemployed in Q4 2016, compared to 59.9 per cent in Q3, 58.3 per cent in Q2, 56.1 per cent in Q1, and 53.5 per cent in Q4 2015.

The statistical agency also said the population of the unemployed rose from 11.19 million at the end of the third quarter of 2016 to 11.55 million in the fourth quarter of 2016.

Concern The country’s rising unemployment rate, especially among the youth, is now a major source of worry for all stakeholders. The World Economic Forum and the Lagos Business School say the country sits on a “time bomb”.

The Nigeria Economic Transformation Map cocurated by the Lagos Business School show that the high rate of unemployment“can be attributed to many factors such as high dependence on oil revenue and limited diversification of the economy.”

Similarly, the Brookings Institution, a non-profit public policy organisation based in Washington, in a report titled,“Youth Unemployment in Nigeria: A Situation Analysis,” noted that several factors might be blamed for the prevalence of youth unemployment in Nigeria. According to the report, the country has a high population growth rate—3.5 per cent per annum—which accompanies its already large national population.

In addition, deficient school curricula and poor teacher training were listed as contributors to the failure of educational institutions to provide their students the appropriate skills to make them employable.

The Brookings Institution’s report said, “Since schools in rural areas are generally more deficient in infrastructure, teaching facilities and teacher quality than schools in urban areas, this may help account for the high growth in rural unemployed youth.

“In fact, some experts suggest that the major jump in rural youth unemployment could be due to the mass failure in national examinations conducted among final-year secondary school students in 2010, which made many of them unemployable in 2011.”

Entrepreneurship Development To address the worrisome employment situation, experts have stressed the need for youth empowerment and entrepreneurship development as Nigeria’s best option for wealth creation and economic growth.

Focus on SMEs Executive Director, North, Fidelity Bank, Mr. Mohammed Balarabe, said supporting Small and Medium-sized Enterprises would bring about economic empowerment and employment opportunities for a lot of youths in the country.

Balarabe said the continuing slide in the price of crude oil was a clear warning that it was no longer business as usual for Nigeria.

“It is against this background that I believe that fundamentally the Nigerian economy is going to change and for businesses to succeed going forward, they have to be ingenious and they have to come up with new ideas as to how to engage the environment to be able to success,” he said.

“With the drop in crude oil, demand for consumer goods would change, government spending pattern and even that of corporates would also change.

Thus, SMEs must change the way they seek to do business.”

Managing Director, Borodo and Co. Nigeria Limited, Alhaji Bashir Borodo, urged governments in the country to initiate friendly policies that will encourage SMEs. He called for development of the transport system across the country to ease the means of doing business.

“We need the support of our government. That is the only way we can move. One key issue for us is railway. Without good railways, production would be very expensive. So, our government must support SMEs,”Borodo, a former president of Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, stressed.

Chief Executive Officer of Fidelity Bank, Mr. Nnamdi Okonkwo, described SMEs as critical agents for economic development in any nation.

Okonkwo said Fidelity Bank had designed structures that would support SMEs in the country and make them profitable.

According to him,“SMEs account for about 80 per cent of businesses. There are over 40,000 micro, small and medium scale enterprises employing over 60 million people in Nigeria.

“That was why as a bank, in the past three years, we have continued to increase our focus on SMEs. We have a special unit that focuses on the challenges faced by SMEs in the country and we support them by a multi-faceted approach.

One of them is capacity building.”

Fidelity Bank’s Entrepreneurship Drive In line with its drive to promote entrepreneurship, Fidelity Bank Plc has been empowering Nigeria youths with skills needed to thrive in today’s highly competitive business landscape. The bank recently entered into a partnership with Empretec Nigerian Foundation to organise a graduate entrepreneurship programme in Calabar, the Cross Rivers State capital, where over 200 youths were trained in the theoretical and practical aspects of entrepreneurship.

Wife of former Governor of Cross River State and founder of Empretec, Onari Duke, and the state Commissioner for Commerce and Industry, Peter Egba, inaugurated the programme.

A flagship capacity-building programme of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), Empretec is dedicated to promoting entrepreneurship and micro, small and medium scale enterprises (MSMEs) with a view to facilitating sustainable development and inclusive growth.

The bank has also collaborated with Gazelle (Vocational Centre) Academy to introduce a national youth empowerment initiative. The empowerment programme, which is part of the bank’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives, is primarily targeted at creating a new breed of entrepreneurs among Nigeria’s youth population.

Dubbed the Fidelity Youth Empowerment Academy (YEA), the programme was designed strategically to drive awareness as well as empower undergraduates with requisite entrepreneurial skills that will not only help them establish sustainable businesses but also eventually turn them into bg employers of labour.

In a similar vein, last month, the bank, in collaboration with the Federal Polytechnic, Oko, venture, concluded an entrepreneurship training programme for 400 students in Anambra State.

Organised under theYEA stream 3, the week-long training programme was aimed at equipping the students with skills and capabilities needed to start businesses even while in school.

Some of the skill areas participants were trained in included fashion, accessories, cocktail, tailoring, makeup, shoe making, and digital marketing.

Speaking at the closing ceremony of the third edition of the Fidelity Youth Empowerment Academy held in Anambra State, Okonkwo noted that the initiative sought to empower the polytechnic community by creating thriving business owners among students.

He explained that this was in furtherance of the financial institution’s quest to not only tackle the country’s unemployment challenges but also improve the wellbeing of communities where it does business.

In the same vein, the founder, Gazelle Academy, Muna Onuzo, noted that entrepreneurship remained the most viable solution to the current economic challenges. He encouraged the students to use the platform to gain financial freedom and self-reliance.

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R • JULY 2, 2017

BUSINESS/ECONOMY

Towards Effective Implementation of 2017 Budget With the signing of the 2017 Appropriation Bill into law by the acting president, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, the effective implementation of the budget has commenced. Dubbed “Budget of Recovery and Growth”, can this financial plan put the economy on the path of recovery? Ndubuisi Francis tries to find out

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he 2017 budget was signed into law halfway into the fiscal year, June 12. President Muhammadu Buhari had presented the draft budget to a joint session of the National Assembly on December 14 last year. It was passed by the legislature five months later, on May 11.

Delay The signing of the budget had been delayed by disagreements over deductions by the National Assembly in the draft document from allocations to some critical infrastructure projects, including the standard gauge railway, Mambilla Power Project, the second Niger bridge, and Lagos–Ibadan expressway. These were then reallocated to new projects introduced by the lawmakers.

There was also the controversy over the Medium Term Expenditure Framework and Fiscal Strategy Paper, which had come into the mix and played no mean role in the delayed passage of the budget.

As prescribed by the Fiscal Responsibility Act, the MTEF, whose submission and approval usually precedes the submission of the Appropriation Bill, was presented by the president.

But it was rejected by the Senate as an“empty” document lacking in details. But Buhari went ahead to present the Appropriation Bill on December 14, while a more detailed MTEF was later submitted to the upper chamber.

Budget Breakdown The budget has an aggregate expenditure of N 7.44 trillion, representing an increase of 22.8 per cent over the 2016 budget of N6.06 trillion. This reflects government’s plan to restore the economy on the path of sustainable and inclusive growth, details of which are encapsulated in the 2017 - 2020 Economic Recovery and Growth Plan.

It is predicated on certain key parameters, including an oil production of 2.2 million barrels per day and benchmark oil price of US$44.5 per barrel. Others are an exchange rate of N305 to the dollar, inflation rate of 15.74 per cent, GDP growth rate of 2.19 per cent, as well as nominal consumption of N87.95 trillion and nominal GDP of N107.96 trillion.

Presenting the budget to the public penultimate week, the Minister of Budget and National Planning, Senator Udoma Udo Udoma, said the budget with an expenditure outlay of N7.44 trillion, had Statutory transfers of N434.41 billion, Debt Service of N1.66 trillion, and a Sinking Fund of N177.46 billion to retire some maturing bonds. Non-debt recurrent expenditure is N2.99 trillion, and capital expenditure is N2.36 trillion, inclusive of statutory transfers.

The overall projected N2.36 trillion fiscal deficit is about 2.18 per cent of GDP, and within the

three per cent threshold stipulated in the FRA. The budget deficit is to be financed mainly by borrowings, which have been projected at N2.32 trillion. Of this amount, N1.07 trillion (46 per cent) is intended to be sourced externally, while N1.25 trillion will be sourced domestically.

The debt-service-to-revenue ratio is projected to be about 32.7 per cent.

The recurrent non-debt expenditure of N2.99 trillion is made up of personnel costs - N1.88 trillion (63 per cent), overhead - N219.84 billion (7 per cent). Service-wide vote pensions – N89.98 billion (3 per cent); Consolidated Revenue Fund Pensions - N191.63 billion (6 per cent). Other Service-wide Votes - N138.70 billion (5 per cent).

Capital allocation is N2.36 trillion (inclusive of capital in statutory transfers). This represents 31.7 per cent of the total budget. Much of the capital provision is directed at projects that are aligned with the core execution priorities of the ERGP. Of the total approved for capital expenditure (principally infrastructure), more than N500 billion is directed to investments in roads, power and housing projects. About 65 road projects are included in the budget.

Some major capital expenditure allocations include: N553.71 billion for Power, Works and Housing; N241.71 billion for Transportation; N150 billion for Special Intervention Programmes; N139.29 billion for Defence; N104.24 billion for Water Resources.

The sum of N81.73 billion is for Industry, Trade and Investment; N63.76 billion for Interior, and N151.91 billion for Education (including Universal Basic Education Commission); N55.61 billion for Health; and, N103.79 billion for Agriculture.

Some major initiatives in the 2017 budget include: N100 billion provision for a new Social Housing Programme; N46 billion for Special Economic Zone Projects to be set up in each of the six geopolitical zones to drive manufacturing /exports; N16 billion for revival of the Export Expansion Grant. Other major initiatives include: Special Intervention Programme (inclusive of the Home Grown School Feeding Programme, Government Economic Empowerment Programme, N-Power Job Creation Programme, Conditional Cash Transfers and Social Housing Fund) – N400 billion.

There is also a provision of N148 billion mostly for counterpart funds on projects to be financed by China for various railway projects (Lagos-Kano, Calabar-Lagos).

Similarly, there is a N40 billion service-wide provision to settle reconciled outstanding electricity bills of Ministries, Departments and Agencies as part of overall strategy to revamp the ailing power sector.

Revenue Based on the key assumptions, the 2017 budget envisages a total revenue of N5.08 trillion, exceeding the initial executive proposal by 2.9 per cent and 2016 projection by 31.9 per

Udoma

cent. The projected revenue receipt from oil is N2.122 trillion and non-oil is N2.96 trillion.

The contribution of oil revenues is 41.7 per cent compared to 19 per cent in 2016. This is driven mainly by Joint Venture Cash Call cost reduction, higher production and price, exchange rate and additional oil-related revenues.

11 per cent of projected/revenue is expected from is recoveries of looted/misappropriated funds and fines.

Recapitalising BoI and BoA One of the major efforts to help the real sector in the form of tax credits, as captured in the budge, is the provision of N15 billion to recapitalise the Bank of Industry and Bank of Agriculture to strengthen their capacities to support Micro, Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (MSMEs).

Concerns Nonetheless, a fresh controversy is brewing, which may affect the implementation of the budget. This has to do with the power of appropriation, which has been called into question with the passage of the 2017 budget.

After signing the budget, Osinbajo criticised the legislature for altering the budget proposal sent to it by the executive. He argued that the parliament was not constitutionally empowered to alter the budget proposals submitted by the executive.

Some of the key projects affected by the National Assembly’s alterations included allocations to the Lagos-Ibadan expressway, the Mambilla power project, railway projects, and the second Niger Bridge.

Before signing the budget, the executive and legislature were said to have struck an agreement that the National Assembly should restore all the affected projects, upon the submission of a request by the executive, in a process known as Virement. But with the open criticism of the lawmakers and the reported move to seek the intervention of the Supreme Court on whether or not the parliament has the power to alter the budget, the country might be in for a long walk in the effort to revamp the troubled economy.

Besides, there are concerns over the $44.5 per barrel benchmark set in the budget. Although oil prices rallied back to about $45 per barrel on Friday, they touched $42.05 per barrel, their lowest level since August 2016.

The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries and other producers agreed to reduce output by 1.8 million barrels per day from January for six months, and in May, it extended the deal for a further nine months until March 2018. However, oversupply has persisted, particularly with output rising in Libya and Nigeria, which were exempt from the cuts due to unrest that had limited their output.

OPEC and non-OPEC oil producers’ compliance with the deal to cut output reached its highest in May (106 per cent) since they agreed on the curbs last year. OPEC supplies, however, jumped in May as output recovered in Libya and Nigeria. Libya’s oil production rose more than 50,000 bpd to 885,000 bpd after the state oil company settled a dispute with Germany’s Wintershall.

Nigeria’s oil production is also rising as exports of the country’s Bonny Light crude are set to reach 226,000 bpd in August, up from 164,000 bpd in July. The situation is raising apprehension as to whether the benchmark price for this year’s budget is feasible.

Of the N5.08 trillion revenue in the budget, the projected revenue receipt from oil is N2.122 trillion. This seems massive. To achieve this, both the quantity and price components must be consistent with budgetary assumptions.

Implementation Minister of Finance Kemi Adeosun had already assured that her ministry was ready to release N350 billion immediately as capital vote. But this has drawn cynicism from some quarters, bearing in mind that the same assurance was given after the unveiling of the 2016 budget, but no releases were forthcoming for close to two months, and this was explained away.

Udoma has disclosed that efforts were being made to find the resources required. He said, “We are challenging our revenue generating agencies, particularly the FIRS and Customs, to improve their efficiencies and broaden their reach so as to achieve the targets set for them in the 2017 budget.

Most importantly, we will strive to maximise the revenues we can generate from the oil and gas sector as it is clear that the foreign exchange generated from the sector is critical for our plans to diversify to the non-oil sectors.”

Time will tell if things would pan out has the federal government has planned.

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R • JULY 2, 2017

BUSINESS/HOUSING

Unhealthy Meddling with Housing Development

The Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN) is having its own savour of undue interference by the political class. Iyobosa Uwugiaren writes on the huge implication

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ike some critical regulatory institutions in Nigeria that have recently witnessed excessive interference from the political class, without being mindful of the Acts establishing them and the long-term consequence, the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN) is currently having its own taste. And many stakeholders in the sector, including the Trade Union Congress, staff members, mortgage banks, housing developers and others are seriously concerned.

To be sure, one of the parastatals, the Minister of Works, Housing and Power, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, promised to rely on in delivering affordable housing to Nigerians when he assumed office was the FMBN. He promised in December 2016 that the apex mortgage bank would be recapitalised to open doors for those who have contributed to have access to the fund, promising to deliver 40 blocks of houses in each states of the federation and hoped it would ease the stress of owning houses in the country.

In line with his direction, the mortgage bank was to be strengthened in such a way that civil servant would have a better access to owning a home through mortgage. The minister also promised to promote local contents and standardisation of building materials to pave the way for building and construction of affordable houses.

In the estimation of Fashola, FMBN was to play a crucial role, and he was pleased that the regulatory agency for the mortgage bank under then Acting Managing Director, Mr. Richard Esin, had positioned the institution to help him deliver on his promise. But few months after that strategy roadmap was put together, Fashola is said not to be happy that his plans have been altered with the recent appointment of ‘politicians’ to run FMBN without his input.

President Muhammadu Buhari recently approved the appointments of new chief executives for 23 federal government agencies, with the former Chairman of Katsina State branch of the All Progressive Congress (APC), Ahmed Dangiwa, as the new Managing Director of FMBN. While Mr Melvin Eboh was appointed the Executive Director (Org. Resourcing); Hajiya Rahimatu Aliyu, Executive Director (Loans Department, Securities Issuance and Market Development), and Umaru Abdullahi Dankane, Executive Director (Policy and Strategy Loans Set-Up and Pay Off).

Many stakeholders believe that the appointments of ‘’people who know nothing’’ about critical financial institution like FMBN, would not help the system at this time of economic recession. ‘’How can non-professionals be appointed to run a sensitive regulatory agency like the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria? For the first time in many years, politicians, who know nothing about finance institution were appointed by this government to run FMBN’’, a senior official in the housing section of Fashola-led Ministry told THISDAY in confidence.

The huge fear of the senior officer of the supervising ministry of the bank is that the present politician-led management may destroy the solid structures that were created in the past few months, and start using the bank for political patronage, as it was done before the former acting chief executive, Mr. Richard Esin - a professional banker - cleaned the stinking system.

Fashola attested to the professional proficiency of Esin-led former management when during the commissioning of 100 housing units in Ogbomoso, Oyo State earlier in the year, applauded the management of FMBN for returning the bank to profitability and disclosing that the mortgage institution returned a surplus of N2.7 billion for the first time in 20 years in 2016.

The FMBN had posted operating surplus of N2.7 billion for the year ended December 2016, marking the bank’s return to profitability for the first time in over two decades, as revealed during the bank’s 2016 Business Performance Review Session, which took place January this year in Abuja.

At that session, Fashola commended Esin-led management for their efforts and achievement in 2016, and was optimistic of the year ahead, expecting the bank’s efforts in the past years to evolve into significant results in 2017.

Other highlights of the performance in 2016 was the N9 billion approved by Fashola for the

Fashola creation of 1,244 mortgage loans across the country, under the National Housing Fund (NHF) Scheme; the disbursement of N1.2billion to over 1,600 beneficiaries under the bank’s Home Renovation Loan Scheme, and the disbursement of N2.722 billion to 22,716 retired contributors as refunds, in line with the NHF Act. THISDAY checks also showed that in September 2016, under the management of Esin, N472 million was recorded as third quarter profit, while N2.7 billion was recorded as profit by December 2016 full financial year. The bank also created 1,300 home owners through mortgages for National Housing Fund contributors to the tune of N10 billion in 2016, including housing estate projects funded by the bank and those not funded by the bank; disbursed N2billion to 2263 beneficiaries nationwide as Home Renovation Loans to enable them renovate and add value to their existing homes; completed and commissioned eight earlier abandoned/uncompleted estates funded by the bank, to inject about 1,300 housing units to the nation’s housing stock within 12 months. ‘’Before Esin-led team was sacked, without the knowledge of the supervising ministry, the bank was already focusing on completing 43 of such estates to inject about 15,000 housing units into the nation’s housing stock over the next two to three years’’, the source stated. ‘’There was consistent stakeholder engagement leading to the return of Zamfara and Ekiti states to the National Housing Fund scheme, while Lagos, Kano, Edo, Oyo, Ondo, Kebbi and Niger states were to return within the year; Edo State was to return within Q2 in 2017.’’

Within the period, the bank also recorded an incremental growth in the National Housing Fund balance through ‘’efficient collection methods’’ from less than N10 billion to N43 billion, representing an increase of over 300 per cent.

Out of 54,000 outstanding refund beneficiaries, who are entitled to N7billion, the Esin-led

former management paid 39,000 beneficiaries (representing 72 per cent) N5.2billion accounting for 75 per cent of the N7billion earmarked for those payments. The management also signed a $2billion ($200million annually) credit line as Housing Construction Finance facility with Shelter Afrique (an International Housing Bank based in Kenya), and the Real Estate Developers Association of Nigeria (REDAN) for the construction of 10,000 low-cost housing units per annum in Nigeria. As designed, the programme is expected to create about 150,000 jobs nationwide. ‘’Contrary to the former system of converting debts to political patronages, the bank recovered N1.6 billion in 2016, issuing a formal public warning notice to all FMBN debtors to pay up or face unpleasant consequences,’’ THISDAY was told. ‘’Indeed, it had engaged the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for assistance, while the bank also recovered N200 million from a state housing corporation on a failed estate development project.’’

For a bank that was enmeshed in huge corruption in the past, the insider said, the former management had introduced Bank Verification Number (BVN) in the payment of NHF refunds to retirees to promote transparency and increased accountability in the payment process. ‘’Upon introduction, cash-out dropped by 30 per cent within two months and the BVN requirement in mortgage loans application was to be extended, while appraisal and disbursement were to be carried out in partnership with the Nigerian Interbank Settlement Systems Plc (NIBSS)’’, the insider added. ‘’The bank had commenced massive automation of all aspects of the bank’s operations for operational effectiveness in the provision of all our services to customers, in partnership with global IT firms like Oracle, Microsoft, Hewlett Packard (HP), Apple, Main

One Ltd., Galaxy Backbone, etc, with the bank now linked nationwide in a Wide Area Network with 99.8% recorded uptime.’’

Other reforms that were carried out before now included: introduction of the monthly stakeholders meeting of the bank with the Real Estate Developers Association of Nigeria (REDAN), Mortgage Bankers Association of Nigeria (MBAN), Building Producers and Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (BUMPAN) and others to critically review key issues and challenges hindering the progress of the housing sector, and develop workable solutions for implementation with timelines, etc. The forum serves as a clearing house on most housing sector issues; and full implementation of the 2014 Central Bank of Nigeria’s examination report - a recent snap check by CBN examiners was positive; establishment of a functional Procurement Group and staff training of about 150 staff on procurement practices and policies to promote a high level of compliance in the bank.

Apparently to exhibit a high level of ethical practice in the workers’ business dealing with stakeholders, the bank had before now, partnered with the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Matters Commission (ICPC) for the training of 150 staff on anti-corruption programmes. This, according to document available to THISDAY, had earned the bank a written commendation from the supervising ministry.

While expressing worry over the sack of the Esin-led management and replacing it with politicians, the senior federal government official attested to the creation/promotion of industrial harmony and maintenance of a cordial relationship with FMBN pensioners by the Esin-led former team, especially when the bank paid all outstanding arrears of the Harmonised Pension Entitlements of FMBN pensioners with the total sum of N230million from the N2.7bn profit of 2016.

Under the former management, some ‘’important programmes’’ were being implemented and others were at various stages of implementation, including the implementation of the bank’s core banking application; implementation of the bank’s Wide Area Network (Secondary link); wholesale process audit of the bank leading to the attainment of ISO90001 and development/ implementation of a 5–year corporate strategic plan for the bank.

The fear that the bank’s administration may return to the era of civil service’s rule is huge among the FMBN’s workers and other stakeholders in the sector, and this may encumber the promise by the federal government to deliver on housing across the country.

The FMBN that was created in 1956, formerly known as the Nigerian Building Society (NBS) - a joint venture of the Commonwealth Development Corporation and the Federal and Eastern Governments of Nigeria, is saddled with the huge duty of tackling some issues in-built in the Nigerian housing sector in the area of housing finance.

According to the Act that created FMBN, the bank operates as operative vehicle for increasing the mobilisation of long-term funds, lending volume and expansion of mortgage lending services to all sectors of the Nigerian population.

The bank commenced the management/ administration of the contributory savings scheme known as the National Housing Fund (NHF) established by Act 3 of 1992. The NHF is a pool that rallies long-term funds from Nigerian workers, money market, insurance companies and the federal government to advance loans at soft interest rates to its contributors.

In line with the reform of the housing sector based on the federal government’s 2002/2006 National Policy on Housing and Urban Development, the FMBN was restructured into a federal government-sponsored enterprise with more focus on secondary mortgage and capital market functions.

Experts say the bank is expected to play the critical role of developing a robust mortgage finance system for the country, and shift its operational emphasis in order to expand its functions from only social housing on-lending under the NHF to include commercial on lending for housing, commercial mortgages refinancing, mortgage purchasing and warehousing and mortgagebacked securitisation.

T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R • JULY 2, 2017

25

BUSINESS/ENERGY

In Attempt to Lower Price, NNPC Intervenes in Diesel Market Chineme Okafor looks at the recent disclosure by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, which has almost solely assumed the task of supplying petrol in the country, that it had crashed the pump price of diesel by about 42 per cent

A tank farm in Nigeria

S

everal factors are responsible for the current domestic market fundamentals for Automated Gas Oil, also known as diesel. They include fluctuations in foreign exchange, refining costs, and international crude oil prices. The cost of crude oil purchased by refineries, their refining costs and profits, distribution, marketing, and retail station costs and profits, as well as extant taxes basically determine the pump price of diesel at service stations.

But the most significant factor has always been the price of crude oil, which has for some time remained relatively unsettled.

intervention, NNPC stated, “Such unpleasant situation placed a huge burden on truck drivers, who need the product for transporting their vehicles; the nation’s manufacturing sector, which requires it to run its operations; as well as on the masses, who need it for household power generation…

“However, following strategic intervention efforts by the NNPC towards sustained improvement in the supply of the diesel, the product’s retail prices as at the end of May 2017 ranged from N175 to N200 across the country – a significant price drop of about 42 per cent, while ex-depot prices also dropped to between N135 and N155.”

Intervention While the above factors would always affect the prices of refined products, including diesel, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation recently revealed that it had reduced the pump price of diesel by about 42 per cent across the country through its key strategic interventions. By its disclosure, the NNPC gave an indication that there was, perhaps, a situation of supply exceeding demand, which forced down price. But, on the contrary, the corporation seemed to have engaged several other measures to ensure the price reduction.

In a statement signed by its Group General Manager, Public Affairs, Mr. Ndu Ughamadu, in Abuja, the corporation explained that the downward price trend for diesel was observed over the last six months after diesel price in the country had skyrocketed. NNPC stated that in the first quarter of 2017, the retail prices of diesel, which is one of the deregulated petroleum products in the country, the other being kerosene, was N300 per litre in major demand centres across the country.

It noted that over its period of observation, prices began to drop to between N175 and N200 per litre.

Commenting on the hike before its

Measures Considering that the market for diesel is completely deregulated, it was expected by experts that whatever intervention the corporation initiated to bring down the price of the product would also be commercially driven. It was believed that the corporation’s involvement would not be in the form of subsidy, as is the case with petrol, which the government has placed a price cap on.

NNPC stated that some of the strategic interventions it initiated to reverse the AGO price hike included improving its supply and remodelling the product distribution to address sufficiency issues across the country. It also indicated that the impact of the intervention was huge on the supply chain, as it made efforts to close up supply shortages which may have been occasioned by the inability of other marketers to adequately satisfy the domestic market.

NNPC stated, “Since January this year, we have worked very hard with relevant stakeholders to improve distribution from refinery depots, by implementing a robust loading programme.” It said it was able to resuscitate its critical pipelines and depots in places like Atlas Cove-Mosimi; Port-Harcourt Refinery-Aba; and Kaduna Refinery-Kano, in it is quest to improve

the distribution of diesel.

But the corporation did not state if any of its refineries produced part of what it supplied to the domestic market. It added that efforts were equally on going to revamp and commission other critical pipelines across the country, indicating that it perhaps initiated proactive measures to ensure that supply and distribution of its imported diesel to end users were seamless.

NNPC said another key intervention that enhanced its supply and distribution of diesel in the country was the robust engagement with critical downstream stakeholders where salient issues were raised and duly addressed. These stakeholders included the Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN); Nigerian Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO); Petroleum Tanker Drivers (PTD); as well as Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN).

Equally important in the intervention efforts of the NNPC was the consistent positive engagement it said it had with the Central Bank of Nigeria and the latter’s expansion of foreign exchange intervention schemes for petrol to accommodate diesel and aviation fuel importation by marketers.

The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, disclosed recently that the CBN devoted about 30 per cent of its foreign exchange allocations to the importation of petroleum products.

NNPC said with these plans it would continue to ensure seamless supply and distribution of diesel and other petroleum products across the country.

The corporation’s monthly operations and financial reports for April, which it recently released, also indicated that importation of diesel to supplement volumes that were produced from its refineries had been sustained, though on a commercial term.

The report stated, “On Automotive Gas Oil (AGO) and Aviation Turbine Kerosene

(ATK), NNPC has continued to import to supplement local refining and CBN makes available foreign exchange to marketers to import AGO and ATK.” It also noted that a total of 78.99 million litres of diesel was sold by the NNPC in April, from which it made N12, 206,421,032.

But in an interaction with Ughamadu on the tendency for abuse of the intervention by officials of the corporation, as well as its sustainability, he said the process was initiated in line with NNPC’s current commitment to transparency and accountability in its business engagements. Ughamadu disclosed that since diesel was a deregulated product, NNPC was only in the importation and sale to make profit as a commercial entity.

He noted that profits were been recorded by the corporation on its diesel sales.

According to Ughamadu, “The past went with the past. We cannot go back to the past that we have gone past. The current NNPC under Baru is a very prudent and transparent entity and would not be involved in shady businesses.”

He further stated, “You would recall that Baru headed the anticorruption unit of the NNPC for a while, and that ensured things were done the right way, and even fired a general manager. So the issue about fraud in the intervention is completely eliminated because the NNPC of today is not what it used to be in the past.”

Asked if the corporation was incurring any losses from the intervention, and if such was impacting its books if they existed, he said, “The diesel market is highly regulated and everybody in it is free to bring in products at competitive market rates.

“That crash in price was possible because there are more quantities of diesel in the market, which makes the market fundamentals very good. In fact, in terms of opportunity cost, we are earning some profits from sale of diesel, which makes the market competitive and good for us.”

26

T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R • JULY 2, 2017

NIGERIA’S TOP 50 STOCKS BASED ON MARKET FUNDAMENTALS

FORTE OIL PLC: Increased operational efficiency begets rise in profitability

F

orte Oil Plc increased operational efficiency leads to remarkable rise in profitability despite notable decline in its top line earnings. The 2015 result is comforting and promising at a period when companies in the oil and gas industry across the globe are recording substantial decline in top-line and profitability due to crude oil trading at its lowest price in about 10 years.

Forte Oil Plc (Forte Oil), a downstream oil marketing company has been in existence for over 50 decades during which it has undergone several restructuring arrangements. It started operations originally as British Petroleum (BP) before changing to African Petroleum (AP). In 2007, Zenon Petroleum acquired 28.7% stake in the company through shares divestments by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC). This was followed by a restructuring exercise that led to the adoption of the brand name “Forte Oil Plc” in December 2010.

Forte Oil is a strong downstream petroleum company with about 500 retail outlets located across the thirty-six (36) states of the country. This has increasingly helped to enhance the company’s visibility and sales strength.

REVENUE IN REVENUE DRIVEN

BY FUEL CONSUMPTION

For the first quarter period ended March 2017, Forte Oil showed decline 7.30% in revenue to N33.00 billion from N35.60 billion recorded in the corresponding period of 2016 resulting from decreased fuel sales by the company due to reduced purchasing power of consumers in the country.

Cost of sales also followed suit with a decrease of 11.68% to N27.20 billion in March 2017 from N30.80 billion in March 2016. The decrease in cost of sales was as a result reduced operational expenses to meet consumer demand in the fuel segment.

INCREASED IN PROFITABILITY DRIVEN BY OPERATING INCOME

Gross profit for the first quarter ended 31st March, 2017 rose significantly by 20.77% to N5.80 billion from N4.81 billion in March 2016. Due to the increase in gross profit, gross

HOWEVER, WE ARE OF THE OPINION THAT FORTE OIL IS APPROPRIATELY POSITIONED TO BENEFIT FROM CURRENT FOREIGN EXCHANGE CONTROL PLUS EFFECTIVENESS IN MANAGEMENT’S STRATEGIC PLAN TO CONTROL ITS COST OF OPERATION AND ITS GROWING COST OF FINANCE

profit margin rose to 17.58% in 2017 from 13.50% in the corresponding period of 2016.

The Company’s performance aside revenue was notable as its operating profit grew by 48.29% to N3.63 billion in March 2017 from N2.45 billion in March 2016. This is driven by a significant decline in distribution expenses of 44.98% to N502m in March 2017 from N912m recorded in the corresponding period of 2016. On the other hand, administrative expenses grew by 4.65% to N2.32 billion from N2.22 billion over the same period while other income declined by 16.05% to N648m in March 2017 from N772m from March 2016.

Hence as at the end of March 2017, operating profit margin rose slightly to 10.99% from 6.87% during the period under review.

MASSIVE GROWTH IN PROFITABILITY ENHANCED BY DECLINE IN TAXATION

For the first quarter ended March 2017, Forte Oil’s net cost of finance increased massively by 37.81% to N1.58 billion from N1.14 billion over

the corresponding period of 2016. Thus, profit before tax grew to N2.05 billion showing a remarkable increase of 57.49% in March 2017 from N1.30 billion recorded in the year 2016.

Forte Oil’s net income for the period ended, March 31st 2017 grew significantly to N1.88 billion from N954m over the period of 2016, representing a change of 97.49%.

Qualitative increase in asset quality Total assets grew moderately by 1.97% to N143.53 billion in March 2016 from N140.76 billion in December 2016 as the Company trade receivables grew by 7.10%. The Company’s total liabilities rose by 1.20% to N98.59 billion in March 2017 from N97.42 billion in December 2016. The rise in total liabilities can be attributed to increase in trades and other payables as well as bank overdraft. Furthermore, net assets rose by 3.70% to N44.94 billion from N43.33 billion over the period.

In addition, return on Asset (ROA) grew remarkably to 1.31% from 0.68%. Also, Return on Equity (ROE) also rose to 4.19% from 2.20%.

BUY RECOMMENDATION

Myriad of developments that are expected to change the shape of this industry norms over the medium term have evolved as expected, which make prices of petroleum products to be determined by the total cost per unit till point of sale. Continuous management of foreign exchange rate by the Central Bank of Nigeria’s control measures will lead to appropriate price mechanism in the downstream petroleum sector to cover both landing cost and freight expenses towards ending any further disruption in the sale of the products or sudden price changes. We believe Forte Oil will maintain its power generation as the country’s power generating capacity appears bleak towards positive implications for the downstream oil and gas in the short-term.

However, we are of the opinion that Forte oil is appropriately positioned to benefit from current foreign exchange control plus effectiveness in

Valuation Metrics 23-June-17 Recommendation

BUY

Target Price (N)

65.12

Current Price (N)

50.04

Market Cap (N'm)

65,176

Outstanding Shares (m)

1,302

Rolling EPS (N)

2.93

Rolling PE Ratio

17.06

Forward EPS

3.82

Forward PE

13.11 Source: BGL Research

Q1 March 2017 Unaudited Results Turnover (N'm)

33,004

Profit Before Tax (N'm)

2,050

Profit After Tax (N'm)

1,884

Pre-tax Margin (%)

6.21% Source: BGL Research

Audited 2016 Full Year Results Turnover (N'm)

148,605

Profit Before Tax (N'm) Profit After Tax (N'm)

5,340 2,890

Pre-tax Margin (%)

3.59% Source: BGL Research

Shareholding Information Shareholders

% Holding

Zenon Petroleum

22.91%

Thames Inv. Incorporated

14.72%

ZSL Nominees

11.71%

ZSL A/C FOZ

11.34%

Femi Otedola

11.78%

Free Float

27.05%

Outstanding Shares (m)

1,302

Source: Company Data 2015 AC, BGL Research

management’s strategic plan to control its cost of operation and its growing cost of finance.

To this end, we are value Forte Oil Plc shares using price to earnings of 17.06.

Based on Company’s current performance, we project gross revenue to N168 billion and net income projection to N3.76 billion for full year December 2017; leading to a forward EPS of N3.82. Using multiples valuation method, we arrive at a target price N65.12 over the next 6 months. Since this represents an upside potential of 30.15% on the current price, we therefore recommend a BUY on the stock of Forte Oil Plc.

27

T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R • JULY 2, 2017

NIGERIA’S TOP 50 STOCKS BASED ON MARKET FUNDAMENTALS

NIGERIAN BREWERIES PLC: Earnings dampened by tough foreign exchange environment

I

nternational Breweries Plc was incorporated as a private limited liability company on 22 December, 1971 and became a public limited liability company on 26 April, 1994.

The Company recently released its full year result for the period ended March 2017 showing a mixed performance of significant rise in sales propelled by increases during the festive seasons. Nevertheless, a number of operational bumps were also noted due to inherent macroeconomic factors leading to decline in profitability.

The company’s management has kept up with its regular dividend payment, and has recommended a total dividend payment of N28.54 billion (on the basis of N3.60 per share) for every 50 kobo share, which is lower than the N4.70 per share paid last year.

FINANCE COST HAMPERS PROFITABILITY GROWTH POTENTIALS International Breweries Plc in its audited full year result for 31st March 2017 showed a substantive rise of 40.58% in revenue to N32.71 billion from N23.27 billion in March 2016, while net income on the other hand shows a huge slump of 61.01% to N1.03 billion from N2.65 billion in corresponding year of 2016. The performance of the brewing company can be attributed majorly to growth in cost of funds than in the previous financial period of 2016. A more difficult operating environment due to instability in foreign exchange terrain which impacted foreign exchange investment funds lead to increase in operating expenses and finance cost.

Moreover, the importance of the Nigerian beer market cannot be overemphasised in the company’s operations, as sales in Nigeria grew by 40.58%.

Furthermore, the Company’s cost of sales grew by 39.70% to N17.55 billion in March 2017 from N12.56 billion in March 2016 due to increase in cost of raw materials, especially sorghum which the company uses in the production of beer and rise in emoluments of production staff. Cost of sales remained stable at 53% as it consumes more than half of the Company’s total revenue.

The Company’s gross profit increased by 41.61% to N15.16 billion from N10.71 billion year on year, while its gross profit margin increased to 46.36% as at full year

CONVERSELY, RECENT REPORT SHOWS THAT AFRICA, ESPECIALLY NIGERIA HAS THE FASTEST GROWING BEER MARKET FOR THE NEXT FIVE YEARS. INTERNATIONAL BREWERIES PLC IS POSITIONED TO BENEFIT FROM SUCH GROWTH IN NIGERIA. THUS, THERE IS A POSITIVE OUTLOOK IN TOP-LINE AND BOTTOMLINE EARNING FOR THE ONGOING FINANCIAL YEAR

2017 from 32.74% as at full year 2016.

SIGNIFICANT INCREASE IN FINANCIAL CHARGES AND OPERATING EXPENSES IMPEDES STRONG GROWTH IN NET INCOME Operationally, International Breweries Plc recorded a significant rise of 57.25% in operating profit to N8.08 billion March 2017 from N5.14 billion in March 2016. The Company was able to grow its operating profit in spite of 41.52% and 3.79% rise in advertisement expenses and administrative expenses respectively. Total operating expenses for the year ended, 31st March, 2017 rose by 27.97% to N7.18 billion from N5.61 billion in March 2016.

The Company also recorded a massive drop of 98.67% in finance income to N2.98m in March 2017 from N225m reported in March 2016. It can be assumed that the reduction was due to fall limited or no sale of obsolete assets, which may generate income; and the unfavourable movements in foreign exchange rate. Furthermore, the Company incurred financial charges to N5.20 billion from N1.71 billion year on year, reflecting an extra-ordinary change of 203.95% driven mainly by increased unrealised foreign

exchange finance cost. Hence, due to the current challenging operating environment leading to rising inflation, increased cost of financing, higher foreign exchange cost and increasing input cost amongst other, the Company’s pretax earnings decline by 20.92% to N2.89 billion from N3.66 billion during the period under review while its net income declined significantly by 61.01% to N1.03 billion from N2.65 billion year-onyear.

ASSET QUALITY The Company’s key performance metrics remains strong despite negative change in pr-tax profit and net income margins as reported. Current ratio is positioned at 45.83% as at March 2017 from 51.01% as at March 2016. Return on Average Equity (ROAE) currently stands 7.42% and Return on Average Asset (ROAA) at 2.64%.

GEARED TO BENEFIT FROM THE MERGER WITH CONSOLIDATED BREWERIES The Nigerian brewing space is currently controlled by two major players accounting for about 90% of the market, while other fringe players control the remaining share. However, the proposed merger of International Breweries Plc, Intafact Beverages Limited and Pabod Breweries Limited is a move to change the customer terrain towards positive market share outcome attributable to International Breweries Plc. RECOMMENDATION: HOLD The performance of International Breweries Plc in the full year ended, 31st 2017 was hampered by finance cost compared to the corresponding full year period of 2016. No doubt the Company is structuring its activities to adapt to the current operating challenges and borrowings due for payment within the next two years amounting to N11m. This is in addition to the observed contraction in household consumption expenditure during the first quarter of the 2017 as a result of persistent hike in prices of goods and restrictive economic activities in the country around.

Conversely, recent report shows that Africa, especially Nigeria has the fastest growing beer market for the next five years.

International Breweries Plc is positioned to benefit from such growth in Nigeria. Thus, there is

Valuation Metrics 30-June-17 Recommendation

HOLD

Target Price (N)

27.77

Current Price (N)

30.57

Market Cap (N'm)

100,705

Outstanding Shares (m)

3,294

EPS

0.31

PE Ratio

97.36x

Forward EPS

0.34

Forward PE

90.63x

Audited Full Year March 2017 Results Turnover (N'm)

32,711

Profit Before Tax (N'm) Profit After Tax (N'm) Pre-tax Margin (%)

2,892 1,034 8.84% Source: BGL Research

Audited Full Year March 2016 Results Turnover (N'm)

23,269

Profit Before Tax (N'm)

3,657

Profit After Tax (N'm)

2,652

Pre-tax Margin (%)

11.18% Source: BGL Research

Shareholding Information Shareholders

% Holding

Brauhaase International Management GMBH. Stanbic Nominees Nig Ltd Public Float

72.17% 5.17% 22.66%

Source: Company Report 2017, BGL Research

a positive outlook in top-line and bottom-line earning for the ongoing financial year.

Based on historical year-ended financial performance and in conjunction with the findings of our analysis of the current operating landscape, we make a projection for full-year end, March 2018 revenue to N38.31 billion and a net income of N1.11 billion, leading to a forward earning per share of N0.34. Using the PE (Price to Earnings) method of valuation, we arrived at an average 6-month target price of N27.77. Since the target price represents a downside potential of 9.18% on the current stock price of N30.57, we make a HOLD recommendation on International Breweries Plc.

28

T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R • JULY 2, 2017

INTERVIEW

Ononokpono: Oil Industry Has Witnessed Quantum Leap in One Year

Done with his time as the helm of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) – Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) branch, Comrade Victor Ononokpono, now has his eyes set on a post at the national leadership of the union. He shared with Chineme Okafor, his yearning for the position, his stewardship at the PPPRA and his thoughts on the oil industry. Excerpts.

W

ould you give a general overview of your thoughts about Nigeria’s oil industry in the last one year, and how the PENGASSAN has contributed to its operations?

The oil and gas industry can be described as a metaphor per excellence. The sector that sustains the economy is the most comatose and troubled. The industry is merely surviving and not really existing functionally no thanks to the absence of functional legal or regulatory structure having had to depend on obsolete laws and statutes.

This very critical industry is deprived and in dire need of reform.

There have not been too many significant development in the industry over the years. The last refinery built by this country was in 1989. After ‘debottlenecking’ of Port-Harcourt refinery in 1989 from 110,000 barrel per day (bpd) to 220,000bpd, there hasn’t been any further expansion on the nation’s refineries.

The only identifiable development is the few ones seen in the downstream sector. The petroleum products pipeline networks are ailing and in need of attention. These problems are the reasons the infrastructure cannot support any kind of reform initiative.

It is unfortunate that during this period a lot of companies in the services sector failed to break even and there were job losses which affected our members.

The continued delay in the passage of the PIB has further affected or inhibited development in the industry. Hopefully, the Green chamber will concur with the Senate version of the bill.

However, in the last one year, the industry has witnessed a quantum leap in terms of policy drive in spite of the adverse activities in the international oil trade. The ever changing times in global energy market in the last one year has affected the nation like many others negatively.

Within these periods, PENGASSAN played significant roles in stabilising the polity. It was during this period, the association showed uncommon patriotism and stood by the government to remove subsidy on the price of petrol in order to free the treasury from the debilitating effect of subsidy payments to petroleum importers. The association severally denied itself its rights preferring to sacrifice for the general good of the nation.

It also partnered with government in restructuring NNPC for greater efficiency. PENGASSAN restrained itself from embarking on any industrial action in spite of adverse labour practices by some employers.

You’ve led PENGASSAN PPPRA branch for a period now, what did you meet on ground when you took over, what did you do differently, and what are you leaving behind?

Thank you so much for that question on stewardship. The

relations issues prevalent but they can also be endless. Our approach was slightly different though. We reckon that since the place of the union has been established, we needed to ensure the sustenance of that force in the consciousness of the employer.

Our approach was simply to engage issues intellectually and use research based methods at conflict management resolution.

It didn’t mean we didn’t deploy braun when necessary but it was usually the last option during crisis period. No employer ever controverts documented evidences when presented in the most cerebral manner.

Graciously, within these period, we were able to enshrine the adoption of the Corporate Policy Procedure Guide (CPPG) as the condition of service; developed a systematic pattern for welfare package; integrated the branch into mainstream of the association’s top most hierarchy; integrated the branch into the industry Collective Bargaining Agreement of NNPC; co-founded a formidable sub-group called Regulators Forum; installed processes of mutual engagement with management; established chapters across the zones; introduced a systematic approach to operational issues; ensured improvement in staff promotion and appraisal system; revamped the branch secretariat; and several other countless achievements.

But like I said, there is no end to industrial relations issues, having achieved internal stability, there is still a lot of ground to cover particularly with regards to government policies and organisational restructuring.

In your periods of heading the union here, what were your most challenging tasks, and how did you get through?

Ononokpone

branch is a very vocal and vibrant one because of the cerebral nature of the work force. 98 per cent of employees in the Agency are first degree holders. This means the level of discourse is usually robust and therefore engaging. When I assumed office as branch chairman in February 2014, the terrain was completely different from the functions of the branch secretary; an office I previously held.

There were still a lot of industrial relations issues centering on condition of service; collective bargaining agreements; enforcement of best practices; policy issues; and a wide range of staff welfare matters. My predecessor, Dr. Stephen Lazi, did a yeoman’s job at navigating through these myriads of labour-related issues by attending to them frontally and most time aggressively. He was very forceful and effective. So, you can understand the shoes he left behind.

Well, in any conventional work place not only are industrial

The most challenging tasks in this struggle were policy absorption.

Most policies of government did not factor the peculiarity of the industry we are in, so often times there was that shock and expectant resistance from labour.

Tied to this is the delay in the passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) which has slowed down efficiency in the oil and gas industry. Policies that affected critical industrial issues like pension; salaries; health and career progression were often the most tasking because negotiating them with the employer was difficult as management cannot be seen flouting government policies and directives.

Now that you’re looking to a national post, what really are your targets, what skillset are you taking to this new aspiration?

As a communicator, my objective is to rebuild confidence, improve PENGASSAN’s external communication and change the association’s publicity style from one-way asymmetric communication to a two-way symmetrical approach.

Lagos, One of the Most Beautiful Cities I Have Been to

Funke Olaode speaks to Haseeb Hasan, a Pakistani, at the Arabian Travel Market…

Who are you?

My name is Haseeb Hasan. I am from Pakistan. I am the CEO of Intek Solutions and Corporate Trainers based in Dubai. I am a motivational speaker and a life coach and I organise training programmes. My job as a trainer has taken me round the world including Nigeria.

How would you describe your experience in Nigeria?

It was a wonderful experience because Nigerians are very good people. One of our clients asked us to come to Nigeria a few years ago and I came with my wife.

We both stayed at the Federal Palace Hotel on the Island. We ate amazing food and we loved the food. Initially, our client told us not to go out that we should avoid eating local food. But I travel round the world and make friend with people. So I ask my friends to

arrange a private car for me and they did. My wife and I visited Lekki Conservation Centre and we took photographs on the road that I titled “A trip to Lagos through My Eyes” and I even posted on my Facebook. Lagos is one of the most beautiful cities I have ever been. We met good looking and hospitable people.

Sometimes an environment is being misunderstood by some people. But there are bad and good people everywhere. But I met very good friends out there who speak impeccable and sound English. And in terms of music give it to Nigerian artistes.

You said Lagos is one of the most beautiful cities you have ever been…

Yes. People are what make a place and also the nature. I spent about six hours at Lekki Conservation and did my yoga and relax very close to nature.

We later went out and met some very nice people. I had been warned not to stop by the Automated Machine Teller (ATM). I stopped in the middle of the market, went into ATM, withdrew some cash and put the money in my wallet openly without being attacked. And came back to my car. Believe me nothing happened.

I think these set of people are being controlled by the international media perception of what Nigeria is. Well, just like our clients, we were initially intimidated by what they told us.

For me, I don’t base my perception about what people say. These same people never explored Nigeria, the people and the culture.

It is from their hotel, to the office and to the airport. We explored all and we enjoyed it. So I will like to come to Nigeria and enjoy the food over again and again.

Hasan

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R • JULY 2, 2017

BUSINESS/TRANSPORT

Containers at an Inland depot

At Last, Kaduna ICD Set as Port of Destination

After years of efforts by the federal government to promote Inland Container Depots, also known as dry ports, in the six-geopolitical zones of country, the Kaduna ICD is set to begin operation, having been accorded the status of Port of Destination under which shippers could consign their goods to the terminal from any part of the world. Francis Ugwoke writes

T

he Kaduna State Government and indeed the promoters of the Inland Container Depots (ICDs), ICNL Nigeria Limited, have every reason to smile. Any moment from now, the dry port would be ready for inauguration as a Port of Origin or Destination. This is coming years after the promoters and the Kaduna State government set out to actualise their dream of bringing a port nearer to the door steps of the people. The Minister of Transportation, Hon. Rotimi Amaechi, and officials of the Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC), led by the Executive Secretary, Hassan Bello, had penultimate week carried out a final inspection of the site in Kaduna during which they expressed satisfaction with the facilities on the ground.

Amaechi and the state governor, Mallam Nasir el-Rufai, who was part of the inspection had on the occasion assured that every necessary infrastructure required from either the state or federal government will be taken care of for the smooth take-off of the dry port. The ICD project is between the Kaduna Government and ICNL Nigeria Limited, ICNL, and expected to facilitate trade for shippers in Kaduna and other neighbouring states. It is coming on the heels of calls for the decongestion of Lagos ports where shippers have been facing a nightmare doing business.

Final Inspection NSC as the ports economic regulator supervising the dry port project had many times in the past visited the site for inspection. Officials of

the regulator said that it was the seriousness exhibited by the sponsors of the project that led the federal government granting the ICD Port of Origin status. With this, importers can consign their goods to the terminal from any part of the world once it flags off operation.

So, the visit last week by Amaechi and the officials of the NSC was for final inspection of the site. Bello and the Chairman of ICNL Nigeria Limited, Dr. Temitope Borishade, had taken the minister, el-Rufai and other officials round all the facilities. The promoters had provided every facility needed in a normal seaport, including enough warehouses for containers, car park, offices, including those for government agencies at the ports. Bello had explained that the idea of the inspection was to ensure that the dry port meets all necessary international standards. With such inspection, he said the mistakes made in the case of seaports in the country would be avoided. He added that government wanted to ensure that necessary infrastructures were in place so that international organisations, including FIATA and International Maritime Organisation( IMO), could recognise them.

He said with such recognition, importers could consign their goods to the terminals as Port of Destination from any part of the world.

Commending the state government for the immense support so far given to the terminal, Bello said such goodwill should be sustained for the success of the ICD. He also said, “We will also ensure that appropriate cargo clearance equipment will be deployed while human and vehicular traffic within the port will be avoided as much as possible.”

Rail/Road Links One thing that is very important in the consideration of the federal government in according any ICD the status of port of origin is the availability of necessary infrastructure for the smooth operation of the ICD. During the visit, it was noticed that the state government needed to do more working on improving the access road in and out of the terminals. This was pointed out by Bello. Following this, el-Rufai on the spot promised to expand the road as well as open up another access road into the terminal to avoid the kind of congestion as has been the case in Lagos ports. He also assured that the state was ready to address all issues that will work against the success of the ICD, and urged the promoters of the project to turn to the state government if they encounter any problem. el-Rufai said,“We inherited this project from the previous administration and we thought it was a project worthy of our support and we did everything we could to make sure it works. We tried to do whatever we could to ensure that the infrastructure that is required to make the project a reality is done.

The road will be reconstructed with concrete pavement and we realised that we do not want to replicate the problem of Apapa port because it only has one exit and one entry.”

The governor appealed to the sponsors of the project to employ youths from the state instead of bringing in people from Lagos.“We want to support this work because 85 per cent of the population of Kaduna State consists of young people below the age of 35 and our biggest challenge; and our economic policy focus on creation of jobs.

“So, I appeal to you to make the best use of the facility, The Kaduna State government will be a partner and we will direct all the companies that we are attracting to Kaduna to use this facility,” he said.

Besides, the transport minister told the sponsors that the rail links to Kaduna and other parts of the country would soon be ready, pointing out that this will be a big boost for the ICD in the state and others operating in many parts of the country. Amaechi said the Lagos-Kano rail line and the Lagos- Port Harcourt standard gauge will start running before the end of the year. He expressed delight with what he saw on ground and disclosed there were plans to procure additional 20 locomotives dedicated for cargo movement from Lagos to Kano as well as Lagos to Port Harcourt. According to him, the rail projects on completion will make it easier for shippers to move their goods through rails, a situation that will save them a lot of costs, time and safety of their goods.

He, however, stressed the need for the road to the terminal to be completed.

Ready for Operation Apparently satisfied with what he saw on ground, Amaechi said the terminal would soon start operation. According to him, “Everything is set for commissioning because we have the land, warehouse and all but we want to wait for the completion of the roads. We want to wait for more activities in the dry port before we get the President to commission it.” Chairman of the ICNL, Borishade, said the company would flag-off operation soon, promising efficient shipping services to importers exporters.

30

T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R • july 2, 2017

MARKET NEWS

Oniha Takes Over from Nwankwo as DMO Director General Goddy Egene The Debt Management Office (DMO) will continue in full throttle as the acting President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo has approved the appointment of Mrs Patience Oniha as the new Director General of the agency to take over from Dr. Abraham Nwankwo.

Minister of Finance Mrs. Kemi Adeosun announced the appointment in Abuja.

Oniha, from Edo State, takes over Nwankwo, who

retired after serving for two terms of five years each. The handover formalities took place in a brief ceremony at the office of DMO. Market analysts said Oniha is returning to a familiar terrain.

Oniha retired as a director in the agency before he served in the Efficiency Unit of the Ministry of Finance before her new appointment as DMO Chief Executive.

The new DG was part of the success story the office achieved in the past 10 years.

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

During that period, DMO scored a number of firsts in its operational efforts to manage the country’s debt profile. These include the establishment of 37 subnational Debt Management Departments for the 36 states and the FCT, culminating in the construction of the first-ever comprehensive and reliable domestic debt database for all the states and the FCT in 2012; putting in place Primary Dealing-Market Making (PDMM) system for

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 29-June-2017, unless otherwise stated.

the FGN Bonds, enabling twoway quotes in the trading of FGN Bonds and, therefore, the introduction of a vibrant and liquid secondary market for FGN Bonds; listing of FGN Bonds on the Nigerian Stock Exchange; inclusion of Nigeria’s Sovereign Bond in Global Market Indices, the JP Morgan Index and the Barclays Capital Index; issuing of Nigeria’s Eurobond in the International Capital Market and its listing and trading on the London Stock

Exchange; issuing of Nigeria’s Sovereign Retail Bonds, the FGN Savings Bond and its listing on the Nigerian Stock Exchange and on the FMDQ OTC Exchange.

Others are issuing of Nigeria’s Diaspora bond and the first-ever registration of Nigeria to access the United States(U.S) financial market under the stringent U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission rules and regulations; designing and implementing Nigeria’s

National Debt Management Framework; Introducing the soon to be launched first-ever Nigeria’s Sovereign NonInterest Bearing Bond: the Sukuk as well as exporting of Public Debt Management services through capacitybuilding support to other African countries, including the Sudan, Zimbabwe, South Sudan, Kenya and Uganda.

DMO said in a statement that Oniha is expected to consolidate on these achievements.

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 162.11 163.26 27.85% Nigeria International Debt Fund 224.19 225.72 5.76% 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 0.74 0.75 6.47% 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 19.65% 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 15.66 16.13 26.84% ARM Discovery Fund 339.64 349.88 18.27% ARM Ethical Fund 24.45 25.19 9.44% ARM Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 17.59% 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 129.69 130.60 23.30% AXA Mansard Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 18.32% CHAPELHILL DENHAM MANAGEMENT LTD investmentmanagement@chapelhilldenham.com Web: www.chapelhilldenham.com, Tel: +234 461 0691 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Chapelhill Denham Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 16.95% Paramount Equity Fund 11.40 11.69 21.78% Women's Investment Fund 91.59 93.94 8.27% 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 19.11% 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 1,085.57 1,086.65 7.33% FBN Heritage Fund 131.40 132.50 17.85% FBN Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 18.45% FBN Nigeria Eurobond (USD) Fund - Institutional $108.51 $109.49 5.54% FBN Nigeria Eurobond (USD) Fund - Retail $107.73 $108.71 5.51% FBN Nigeria Smart Beta Equity Fund 146.36 148.45 29.98% 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 1.26 1.28 35.11% Legacy Short Maturity (NGN) Fund 2.77 2.77 7.91% 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 2,592.42 2,635.57 17.63% Coral Income Fund 2,299.43 2,299.43 9.27% 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 14.60% 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 17.70% Vantage Balanced Fund 1.97 1.99 17.03% Vantage Guaranteed Income Fund 1.00 1.00 16.16%

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 1.07 1.09 8.38% Lotus Halal Fixed Income Fund 1,040.40 1,040.40 5.70% 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 12.94 13.05 33.89% Meristem Money Market Fund 10.00 10.00 17.88% 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 1.13 1.15 13.93% PACAM Fixed Income Fund 10.63 10.71 2.37% PACAM Money Market Fund 10.00 10.00 17.01% 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 120.18 121.17 18.04% 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 1.32 1.32 5.80% 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 2,070.48 2,082.32 13.07% Stanbic IBTC Bond Fund 162.01 162.01 5.23% Stanbic IBTC Ethical Fund 0.92 0.94 20.78% Stanbic IBTC Guaranteed Investment Fund 201.78 201.78 7.97% Stanbic IBTC Iman Fund 158.99 161.13 22.49% Stanbic IBTC Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 18.40% Stanbic IBTC Nigerian Equity Fund 8,955.10 9,056.64 18.07% 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 1.27 1.28 7.14% United Capital Bond Fund 1.35 1.35 15.27% United Capital Equity Fund 0.80 0.82 -2.11% United Capital Money Market Fund 1.15 1.16 11.25% 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 11.81 12.00 21.80% Zenith Ethical Fund 12.59 12.72 15.04% Zenith Income Fund 18.14 18.14 9.76%

REITS

NAV Per Share

Yield / T-Rtn

11.41 127.64

1.01% 2.96%

Bid Price

Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

10.03 96.97

10.13 98.73

14.16% 27.93%

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

3.97 7.80 15.30 18.81 130.46

4.01 7.88 15.40 19.01 132.46

43.57% 10.89% 28.28% 17.82% 1.21%

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.

A

WEEKLY PULL-OUT

02.07.2017

TALENTS ON DISPLAY

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T H I S DAY, T H E S U N DAY N E W S PA P E R • July 2, 2017

COVER

Rehearsal with Nengi

TALENTS ON DISPLAY Vanessa Obioha reports that the grand finale of Season 7 of the Christian-centred God’s Children Got Talent attracted an eclectic myriad of youths and adults who came to witness a masterly display of diverse incredible creative talents

Y

Winner Esther Benyeogo celebrating

ou could feel the palpable tension in the packed hall of the Eko Convention Centre, Eko Hotels and Suites, Lagos, as the hosts Uti Nwachukwu and Ayo Thompson prepared to reveal the first bottom five of God’s Children Great Talent Season 7. The gamut of emotions displayed on the faces of both adults and children bore similar expressions of anxiety.

The evening had been a spectacular one. So much incredible talents from the 10 finalists had probably left the audience with more than one favourite, or perhaps a change of mind.

Who could blame them? This year’s edition was a keenly contested one that got millions of viewers glued to their TV screens for the weekly shows.

Arguably, children talent shows are not too popular in Nigeria. The few shows hardly garner much devotion compared to other talent shows. However, God’s Children Great Talent proved otherwise not only as the only Christian-centred talent quest for children and teens between ages five and twenty, but also as a model for seamless production. The latter was greatly achieved via the combined efforts of Darey Art-Alade’s Livespot Creative Agency and leading app platform, Unity. It is a known fact that most reality shows in Nigeria revolve round music. Hardly can one find a reality show that effortlessly marry other forms of creative arts on one platform. In a bid to recognise and celebrate talents in God’s children, GCGT embraces talents in four major categories: Music, Dance, Comedy and Spoken Word. The music category embraces all forms of music; be it rap, singing, or instrument playing.

For the first time since its debut six years ago, the talent show recorded the highest number of entrants. Over 10, 000 entrants registered while over 6, 000 showed up for the auditions in three regional locations: Lagos, Abuja and Port Harcourt. The number was further pruned to 20 semi-finalists who made it to the academy /boot camp where their talents were further drilled by professionals as well as mentored on leadership by renowned leaders like Tonye Cole of the Sahara Group and Herbert Wigwe of HOW Foundation. Out of these emerged the 10 finalists battling for the ultimate reward of N10m cash prize, N250m management deal and a Kia Rio car. They were Anderson Peter (Saxophonist), Goodluck Enoch (Rapper), Olawonuola Kehinde (Dancer), Sophia Albert (Spoken word artist), Nengi Jaja (Singer), Deborah Oladipupo (Drummer), Esther Benyeogo (Singer), Damilare Bafunso (Saxophonist), Joseph Odi (Drummer), and Emmanuel Osahor (Dancer).

It wasn’t going to be an easy feat for the young finalists whose ages were within the range of 8-20 years old. It called for endless rehearsals with their coaches to perfect their talents. They had to impress the judges: prolific music producer and engineer Tee-Y Mix; awardwinning singer and songwriter, Omawumi; and eclectic dancer and choreographer, Kaffy. And of course the audience whose votes would also count in the overall result.

So penultimate Saturday, an eclectic myriad of youths stormed the venue to witness the phenomenal grand-finale of the talent show for God’s children. Decked in their casual and formal outfits, even school uniforms, they posed on the blue carpet for selfies and wefies. Proud

JULY 2 , 2017 • T H I S DAY, T H E S U N DAY N E W S PA P E R

57

COVER

L-R Olori Wuraola Ogunwusi, Dr. Herbert Wigwe and Mrs. Sola David-Borha at GCGT7 finals

L-R Senior Pastor RCCG City of David Pastor Idowu Iluyomade, Chairperson GCGT Trustees Board, Pastor Mrs. Siju Iluyomade, Esther Benyeogo GCGT 7 Winner and CEO, Access Bank and Founder, The How Foundation Dr. Herbert Wigwe at GCGT7 finale

parents willingly indulged their progeny in the blue carpet glitz. The children gleefully pointed to images of their favourite contestant adorning the walls to their parents.

Despite being a youth oriented programme, renowned big wigs in the entertainment industry like Ayo Animashaun attended the show. His entertainment TV channel, HIPTV, did a live broadcast of the show.

Inside, attendees struggled for seats. Every available place was occupied. From upstairs to downstairs, there were no empty seats. The ushers did their best to control the traffic to avoid rowdiness. At a time, more seats were brought in. Yet, some guests who came late, stood through the entire show.

While the organisers failed to kick off at the scheduled time, the production was a seamless one. Each line-up performance for the night segued smoothly without a glitch. The only hitch of the night was when Uti’s mic went off for a few minutes. The stage was aesthetically designed to accommodate the performances. A huge screen displayed accompanying visuals of performance and adverts from the lead sponsor, HOW Foundation. Only one screen was provided in the hall for extra viewing.

The contestants first of all dazzled the audience with a combined presentation, before they performed individually for the first round.

Joseph Odi was the first to perform.

Nicknamed the ‘Drum Beast’, he beat the drum sets with vigour and pleasure, playing familiar sounds that pooled the audience to a cheerful sing-along.

One-by-one, they filed out, spitting fire on stage with their displays, eliciting loud ovation and screams from the audience. The audience was visibly awed by nine year-old Goodluck Enoch who dazed them with his rap song, ‘I’m blessed.’ He was clearly a crowd favourite particularly when he prayed for them after his second performance of the night.

But he wasn’t the only attraction of the night.

Nine-year-old Olawonuola Kehinde left a lasting impression on the audience with her ballerina performance. She flipped in the air, did a split or two and performed other stunts that got jaws dropped.

Nengi Jaja from Port Harcourt showed his vocal strength when he performed a high pitch rendition of Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston’s ‘When You Believe’. The 11-year-old’s magical voice was well applauded.

While the crowd was impressed by Jaja’s voice, they were further amazed by the angelic mien of 19-year-old Esther Benyeogo. Her rendition of Whitney Houston’s ‘Greatest Love

ESTHER WAS CROWNED THE WINNER AND AWARDED THE GRAND PRIZE. IT WAS THE BIGGEST SHE HAD EVER WON IN HER LIFE. BEFORE GCGT, SHE HAD WON N300,000 FROM A SINGING COMPETITION. FOR THIS, SHE WAS N10M RICHER, HAD A MANAGEMENT DEAL WORTH N250M AND A CAR OF HER OWN. AS THE NEW AMBASSADOR OF THE TALENT QUEST, THE DELTA-STATE BORN WILL UNDERGO VARIOUS LEADERSHIP PROGRAMMES TO ENSURE THAT HER TALENT REACHES ITS FULL POTENTIALS WHILE BEING A RESPONSIBLE YOUTH IN THE SOCIETY of All’ earned her laudable remarks from the judges, including guest judge TY Bello. By the time she performed Diana Ross’ ‘He Lives in Me’, the audience was completely blown away.

It was a battle of sounds between 20 year-old Damilare Bafunso and eight-year-old Anderson Peter. Both displayed such mastery of the saxophone that marvelled the audience.

However, it was Peter that warmed the hearts of the audience with his lovely charm and gestures.

His exceptional stage showmanship was very applauded, then he blew the mind of the audience with his longer notes. Surely, his gentle

mien and age was a big contrast to his masterly handling of the big instrument.

If looks could clinch the winning spot, then it would facilely go to 19-year-old Deborah Oladipupo. Her dazzling smiles as she struck the drums were very captivating. The ease with which she played the drums made her performance very enjoyable.

The only spoken word artist on the list, 10 year-old Sophia Albert, commanded the attention of the audience during her second performance. Titled ‘Mother’, her words adequately captured the joy and travails of motherhood. With beautiful lines and rhymes, she elicited a loud ovation from the audience.

Emmanuel Osahor, the 20-year-old who expresses himself through dance gave a better performance in the first round. His colourful LED robot costume enhanced his performance and created a beautiful effect on stage.

With all these amazing performances, the tension in the hall could be understood. Each of the performers deserved to win and which the organisers, City of David Parish of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, eventually ensured.

Each of the seven finalists were rewarded with N250,000 cash. The 1st and 2nd runner-up received N1m and N3m respectively.

There were also guest performances from Nikki Laoye, Darey Art-Alade, Frank Edwards, Enitan Adaba and GCGT Season 6 winner, Onome Enakerakpor.

As the time of reckoning approached, breaths were held, hands rested on heads, some stood, others sat, waiting for the hosts to reveal the seven finalists. Voting lines had closed earlier so it was time to know the fate of these talented ones.

Shouts of despair and disappointment rented the air as the names were reeled out, particularly when Enoch and Kehinde didn’t make it to the top three. Then it was left to Nengi Jaja, Anderson Peter and Esther Benyeogo. More screams of disappointment filled the air when Jaja clinched the third position. Immediately Esther was pronounced the winner, a deafening sound engulfed the hall. It was a mix of joy for the winner and letdown for Peter. Nevertheless, the celebratory mood went into full swing.

Esther was crowned the winner and awarded the grand prize. It was the biggest she had ever won in her life. Before GCGT, she had won N300,000 from a singing competition. For this, she was N10m richer, had a management deal worth N250m and a car of her own. As the new ambassador of the talent quest, the Delta-state born will undergo various leadership

programmes to ensure that her talent reaches its full potentials while being a responsible youth in the society.

The next day saw Esther being extremely grateful. Looking tired from the eight weeks of intense training as we sat in one of the meeting rooms at Eko Hotels and Suites, she was very grateful that all the efforts were successful in the end.

With Esther, there was no room for secondbest. “My kind of person doesn’t give room for anything except the best. If I’m involved in something and I believe it’s going to work, I put in all my efforts to ensure that it works,” she said.

The undergraduate of University of Benin started singing at an early age but not until age 13 did she realise that she could sing in front of a crowd. Her biggest inspiration, she revealed, was from God. Looking back at the event the previous night, she adjudged her fellow contestants winners as well.

“All the contestants that qualified for the finals were amazing. Honestly, I didn’t see anyone as competition. I was blessed by what they did. They were all fantastic. But I still had this mindset that- Esther you are really the best.”

The songs she performed were intentionally chosen by her because of the different ways they inspire her.

“I have my own personal spiritual revelation of the songs. For ‘He Lives in Me’, Christ lives in me. He watches over me, everything I do. ‘The Greatest Love of All’ was directed to the parents and future parents to encourage their children to pursue their path of greatness.”

A member of Christ Embassy, Esther described the whole experience as a wonderful one. With new found fame, she intend to work on some of her penned songs and definitely impact souls with her voice. One of the messages Esther was keen on spreading was encouraging talented youths not to give up on God. “Most of the youths have this notion that they cannot make it in gospel music but only in the secular genre. I don’t think it’s true.

First of all, my talent and every other person’s talent was given by God. I remember in one of the leadership classes, we were taught that God is our creator and has given each of us a talent. Now, you have to connect with your source which is God to make your talent bless and impact lives. For me, I think you just have to know your creator. That’s what I did. I recognised I could sing and I connected with my source; God. I feel the young people should hold on to their talents and trust God to take them to their destined places.”

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R • July 2, 2017

entertainment

Satchmo Jazz Promoter, Dolapo Ajayi with his sister, Mrs. Kofo Odeyemi

with nseobong okon-ekong 08114495324, nseobong.okonekong@thisdaylive.com

L-R: Mrs. Erejuwa Gbadebo, Dr. Alero Roberts and Mrs. Bickersteth

Top Musicians Making Satchmo’s Jazz Café Tick Nseobong Okon-Ekong his year’s edition of the Satchmo Jazz Festival adopted a different approach. The fourth in the series, it zeroed in on six brilliant artistes, playing some of the greatest classics of jazz.

They were brought together under the broad theme, Satchmo’s Jazz Cafe by the promoter of the show, Mr. Dolapo Ajayi who is also a lawyer.

Ajayi said the performers were chosen for being at the top of their game. Each artiste was nicknamed after various excitingly rich blend of hot coffee. So, we had names like Ristretto, Latte Mocciato, Bicerin and Cappuchino to reflect the expectation that the audience would be kept warm and cozy through the performance.

On the musical parade were Ella (Ifeoma Victoria) Nnabuchi, a gifted singer/ songwriter who rose to fame when she won the MTN Project Fame West Africa Wild Card competition and later emerged as the 3rd runner up at the end of the highly-rated musical reality show.

Ella’s unique singing style and sound draws from diverse genres that include Jazz, Neo Soul, Soul, R& B, Afro-pop, Kwaito, Dancehall and Reggae. She has worked with prolific producers like TY-MIX, DJ Coublon amongst others and has released chart topping singles like Play Play’, ‘I Like Am’ and most recently, ‘Over Again’. On the bill also was guitarist, Adeh Gbolahan who loves to rock. He has performed at many venues and events in Lagos and beyond including Felaberation, Lagos International Jazz Festival and the Bayelsa International Jazz Festival, among others. He has an album to his credit, ‘Kingdom Call’ and is in the studio recording his next album, with the single, ‘You and I’ already out.

Jazz Café Coming from two renown schools of music, Peter King College of Music and the MUSON school of music, Jesse Taiwo Ibidun plays a hard horn whilst composing and arranging his own music. He leads the Jetaibid Jazz Quintet. His debut EP containing two tracks: Freedom and Iba was released recently. The second lady on the line-up, Phebean also attended the Peter King College and MUSON. She is a seasoned performer known for her excellence on the saxophone. Her performance style is essentially Afrocentric, energetic and soulful. She also starred in

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Electric bassist, Brian Cox

Wole Soyinka’s Camwood on Leaves and in London Life, Lagos Living.

Even if the Satchmo Jazz Café had Brian Electric Bassist as the only performer, the audience would still have had value for their money. Born in Grenada, West Indies, Brian started playing electric bass at the age of 15. His professional career began after migrating to Canada in the 1970’s. After a mis-managed tour of Europe, Brian settled in Vienna, Austria where he honed his bassplaying skills working with a wide variety of musicians from all around world on studio sessions and at live performances.

In the last four years he has been playing in various jazz and alternative music venues in Lagos with his band, Innercity Jaz! + Brian.

Prolific trumpeter, composer and bandleader, Etuk Ubong who is currently taking jazz studies at the University of Cape Town is very much in demand. He has performed professionally with renowned musicians like Victor Olaiya, Femi Kuti and Buchi. The Etuk Ubong Quartet plays his original compositions at top live jazz events.

The backing band, 99 All Stars

JULY 2, 2017 • T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R

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ENTERTAINMENT TEENAGE SAXOPHONIST STEALS THE SHOW AT MEGA MUSIC TOUR Fourteen year-old Tom Odi was the cynosure of all eyes at the Abuja edition of the Glo Mega Music Nationwide Tour held at the old Parade Ground. He left good memories in the mind of the crowd that gathered to watch the show. Tom captivated the crowd with his seamless instrumental performance of Fada Fada, the hit track of Nigeria’s most celebrated ethno rapper, Phyno.

Odi, who was among the 13 local acts that opened the show, got a standing ovation as he blew the tune of the hit track through his saxophone while the audience chorused along.

He was not the only revelation of the evening of fun. An up-and-coming artiste in the Federal Capital Territory, Olalere Ayobami, who uses the stage name Hykon, also successfully replicated the performance style of King of the Streets, Olamide, combining Olamide’s Yoruba street lingos and Queen’s English in the delivery of his rap songs.

Soon, it was time to welcome guests. The anchors of the show, Nollywood diva, Mercy Johnson-Okojie, and her Ghollywood counterpart, Juliet Ibrahim, came on stage dancing to Timaya’s track, Ukwu.

Mercy demonstrated that she was not just an actress but a consumate entertainer, while Juliet turned her back to the audience and demonstrated how a lady should gyrate to good music. The crowd clapped and cheered the duo.

The real show began with the coming of Marvin Records music sensation, Korede Bello, who dropped his Butterfly and Mungo Park tracks among others on the crowd. Just as he stepped off the stage, his soul mate in the record label, Reekado Banks, came on board and the Katapot exponent simply delivered an awesome performance.

Yemi Alade, who came after the Marvin Records boys, was in her best element as she brought finesse and energy to her perfor-

mance, giving the audience reasons to Pose and wish they could buy her the Ferrari, her hit tracks. Dance hall maestro, Runtown, got the crowd to be Mad Over You as entertained the crowd with 12 hit songs to mark his 12th show in Abuja.

The show heightened when the biggest rapper from the East of the Niger, Phyno, came with his hit tracks. He was followed by the Nabania master, Flavour, who combined highlife with hip-hop to the delight of the crowd.

Abuja went on fire when Innocent Idibia, aka 2Baba, came with his True Love track. The crowd hailed him.

The last two acts of the night were the Omo Hobe and Shakiti Bobo creator, Olamide Badoo, and PSquare. The trio gave the audience undiluted entertainment.

THRILLS AT UYO FASHION FORWARD The third edition of Uyo Fashion Forward produced by Ubong ‘Kardynal’ Ekanem of Kardynal Kommunikationz was held recently at EEMJM Hotel Banquet Hall and OBA Liaison office Hall in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State.

This edition of the project featured a Fashion Masterclass, Runway Show and Fashion Fair.

Designers that showed their range included: I’Frixana, Ibom Glitterati, J Hart, Raimz Brown, Fresh by Catherine, Luda Nita, Ekaite, Amasian, Inyangobong Collection, Verge Fashion House, Rinz Couture, Lavender by Ini, Keem Prestige, Posh Gold and Ceejay International showed a range of bespoke eyewear.

Highlights of the event included the presentation of sewing machines to five up-and-coming designers by Rt. Hon. Victor Antai, Commissioner for Culture and Tourism, Akwa Ibom State. Uyo Fashion Forward seeks to gradually reposition fashion as a useful tool for culture, commerce and creativity in Akwa Ibom State. The show brings together, buyers, consumers and the media to view the current collections of global designers in the city of Uyo.

Luda Nita J Hart

Trump Odi on the saxophone

Coke Studio Africa Presents Global Fusion Edition

Coke Studio Africa has confirmed mega platinum star, Jason Derulo as the show’s guest star this year set to feature on a special episode themed the Global Fusion Edition. The American Pop/R&B singer and dancer who is currently riding high with his latest banger ‘Swalla’ is expected to jet into Nairobi, Kenya to participate in the recording of Coca-Cola’s flagship African music show.

During his time at Coke Studio, the new-school, multi talented creative giant who has sold over 50 million singles and impressively achieved 11 platinum singles will meet and work with 11 talented African Stars. They include Dela (Kenya), Rayvanny (Tanzania), Bebe Cool (Uganda), Mr. Bow (Mozambique), Falz (Nigeria), Joey B (Ghana), Betty G (Ethiopia), Jah Prayzah (Central Africa Republic/Zimbabwe), Shekhinah (South Africa), Locko (Cameroon) and Denise (Madagascar).

Ahead of his anticipated arrival to feature in the special Coke Studio episode dubbed ‘Global Fusion Edition, Jason says, “I am excited to be part of Coke Studio Africa - 2017. I can’t wait to arrive in Nairobi to meet and make great music with the African super stars,” adding, “I am also looking forward to lend all my expertise, learn and exchange ideas with the African artistes, producers and the show’s creators as I discover what they have to offer.”

Two of Africa’s hottest music producers: Masterkraft (Nigeria) and DJ Maphorisa (South Africa) will be tasked with producing all the African artistes and Jason Derulo, after which all the music will be performed and recorded live alongside Coke Studio’s highly talented house band.

This year, Coke Studio has merged Coke Studio Africa and Coke Studio South Africa into one—bigger and better, Coke Studio Africa – 2017, which includes artistes from South Africa, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Ghana, Angola, Zimbabwe, Togo, Cote d’Ivoire, Madagascar, Mauritius, Mozambique, DRC and Cameroon. The new season is set to premiere in different regions from September this year and will broadcast in more than 30 countries across Africa.

Coke Studio Africa is a non-competitive music collaboration show, which seeks to bring together, and celebrate the diversity of African music and talent.

It also gives upcoming artistes the opportunity to work with some of the best local and international music and production talent. It brings together artistes from different genres, eras and regions to create a modern and authentic African sound

Jason Derulo

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BOOKS TR

UT H

& RE A S O

N

LESSONS

LIFE

WITH AYO AROWOLO

ayo.arowolo@thisdaylive.com

09067059433 (SMS only)

YOU CAN TURN A SETBACK INTO AN ADVANTAGE you have your title. Land does not usually depreciate in value.

Don’t put money in business you don’t understand. In a bid to augment our salaries, my wife and I started transportation business.

But, sad to say that everything came to naught.

We lost all the trailers and tippers we bought in the process. The lesson we learnt from that was: do not go into a business you don’t understand. I advised my wife to concentrate on her profession, which is teaching; and she agreed with me. She is doing well running her own schools.

LESSON

–Tunde Lemo 3

Health When you lose your health, nothing else makes sense.

Many of us don’t understand that when you lose your health, everything else you have acquired loses meaning. Your attention would be on how to regain your health, and you are willing to sell everything to be healthy. I try as much as possible to exercise. At a point, I stopped exercising when I joined the CBN because of work. I almost paid dearly for that, as I suffered a health condition that almost kept me indoors if not for God’s timely intervention.

I have learnt to check my blood pressure on a daily basis. I have changed my diet and I now exercise. When you get to middle age, you must adopt life style changes. Again, your heart must be free: don’t bear grudges. Bitterness destroys your biological system; don’t be bitter. Don’t be jealous. The race of life is not a 100- metre dash.

It is marathon.

Tunde Lemo, who left the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) as a Deputy Governor three years ago, after completing his 10-year term, is a banker that has played successfully in two worlds. First, as a banker of note, having risen from the ranks to become the Managing Director of Wema Bank Plc; and second, he was pulled from Wema Bank to the apex bank as a regulator.

When I asked Lemo during my interview with him in his Ikoyi office, in Lagos, what one key life lesson he wanted to pass across, the one he emphasised so forcefully was that even when you have had a bad start in life, you could always redesign your life and neutralise those seeming disadvantages.

“I did not start with good grades in my early years in school. But when I realised that I was not disadvantaged in any way, I woke up one day and reasoned that I had to re-write the script of my life. That paid off. I rewrote my School Certificate exams and I made Division One. I also finished my University degree with First Class Honours. That also propelled me to put in my very best from the start of my career till I left three years ago.

Lemo, who now consults for corporate and public institutions, shares some more life LESSON Spirituality lessons. Enjoy his insights.

LESSON

1

ERRATUM:

Do more than you are paid to do.

The first lesson I learnt in my banking career is that if you must make a success of your endeavour from day one, you need to be different from others. I made up my mind that I would do more than I was paid to do. I saw a lot of my colleagues just putting in the minimum, just getting by. I refused to join the crowd. Interestingly, I was not bothered whether I was rewarded or not. My attitude was that even if my current employer did not reward me, I would have learnt some skills that I could employ to run my own business. I was putting in my best, and I didn’t know that those little things were being watched. Ultimately, I made it to the top as I was made the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Wema Bank five years after joining the bank.

I also learnt that integrity pays. I remember a deal where we were to be offered some huge amount of money by the client, but I told the person that whatever he intended to give us, he should add to what was due to the bank.

Eventually, the deal went bad. But, thank God I was spared the embarrassment that followed.

One key lesson I learnt as a public servant is that if you are after public applause for decisions you are making, you will make little progress, and this ultimately, destroys the society. Your job is

to make decisions that are, in your judgment, in public interest, who most times do not even know what is good for them.

LESSON

2

Money and Investment You don’t have to own your business to be rich.

The key lesson here is that we are individually wired for different things. We all don’t have to own businesses to make impact or to be wealthy. For me, the most important thing is to ask God the purpose for which He created you, and go after it with all your might. That was exactly what I did. People have become successful being number two or number three, for instance, to Aliko Dangote.

Make saving a permanent habit. I started saving from the very first salary I earned, even if it was one kobo or one Naira. Those little things eventually added up. There was also one interesting policy I adopted: I never allow my taste to catch up with my rising status. I look at my friends who are teachers, or doing something else earning one third or one fifth of my salary. Yet, I limit my expenditure to the salary that they are earning; whatever is the difference I save. That really worked for me. I buy shares, I buy land, and I tell people you cannot go wrong buying land, provided

In the last week’s life lessons featuring Chief Samuel Adedoyin, we erroneously put his age at 85 instead of 82. The last but one line in lesson 4 should also read: ‘Now, I make millions from rents on those properties’, instead of ‘Now, I make hundreds of millions from rents on those properties’ as published. Please adjust accordingly

4

A life without God is full of crises.

I gave my life to Christ in 1981. A life that is in Christ is a life devoid of crisis. First and foremost, you are insulated from a lot of pitfalls that sweep young people away. If you are sincere, you will not be into fornication, and you are no more drinking, and so forth. I probably wouldn’t have had the time to study diligently as I did if I did not give my life to Christ. All those distractions of girl friends and so on were removed from me.

LESSON

5

Marriage Pray for God to give you your own spouse.

The first thing I am grateful for is that God gave me somebody who shares the same faith, views and values that I hold dear as a wife. Your wife must be your best friend.

And from day one, you must make up your mind that your marriage is going to work.

You cannot marry a perfect human being.

Nobody is completely useless and nobody is 100 per cent perfect. As a man and head of the home, you need to show leadership.

Most women will love if they know you are committed, if they know you love them.

They begin to act up if they realise that you are not committed. When it comes to discipline of the children, you should both speak with one voice.

LESSON

6

Relationship You need to invest in friendship My principles in friendship are godliness, integrity and consistency. If you

1. The Holy Bible and Christian literature 2. In Search of Excellence: by Tom Peters and Robert H. Waterman, Jr. 3. The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People: by Stephen Covey 4. The Audacity of Hope: by Barack Obama 5. My Llife: by Bill Clinton 6. I also love to read autobiographies; I have read the one written by Jack Welsh

RELAXATION Classical and Christian music, especially the ones by Commander Ebenezer Obey, who is one of my idols.

WHAT KEEPS ME AWAKE I worry about the way we talk about the future of Nigeria. In fact, this is one issue that keeps me awake on a daily basis. We should emphasise our commonality and leverage our size and diversity for greatness. We should copy examples of Indian and China, Malasia, etc. Hate speeches and divisive conducts should be discarded by all.

COSTLY MISTAKE I turned down an offer as an Officer in a popular bank a few decades ago. I was to do six months to be promoted to an Assistant Manager. I insisted that with my First Class Degree, the least I deserved was an Assistant Manager from day one. My friends that took up the job got confirmed in six months, while I was still looking for the same job.

So, having rejected the job, I got a lesser job a year after those that accepted the job I turned down became my boss.

ROUTINE As much as possible before I sleep, I try to reflect on what I got right and what I got wrong.

BEST ADVICE One, from my late boss, Dr. Rufus Giwa: That when you are humble, people are willing to overlook your mistakes.

Two, was from Chief Joseph Sanusi who told me, ‘young man be truthful; falsehood may appear to be holding sway, but it cannot run for too long. I have held unto that.

Third, Dr. Lekan Are also taught me that everyone cannot like you even when you are doing good, but remain consistent and continue to do good whether people appreciate you or not.

GIVING BACK By the grace of God, I have a foundation called Tunde Lemo Foundation through which we give back and help the lessprivileged people to realise their dreams. are ungodly, indolent, and you are someone that has an unserious disposition, you are not likely to be my friend. I am committed to all my friends, and I will not be happy to have someone who is not committed to me.

LESSON

7

Attitude You can turn a setback into an advantage.

There is a way in which the environment you grow may create some obstacles for you. I had to work as a young teacher in a modern school. That was the first distraction I had. I did not start with good grades in my early years in school. But when I realised that I was not disadvantaged in any way, I woke up one day and reasoned that I had to re-write the script of my life. That paid off. I rewrote my School Certificate exams, and I made Division One. I also finished my University degree with First Class Honours.

That also propelled me to put in my very best from the start of my career till I left the CBN three years ago after completing my three-year term.

ARTS & REVIEW

BRINGING AFRICAN NARRATIVES INTO ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM PAGE 64

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PUBLICATION

02.07.2017

LAGOS AT 50

THE MORNING AFTER A scene from Kakadu

EDITOR OKECHUKWU UWAEZUOKE/ okechukwu.uwaezuoke@thisdaylive.com

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ARTS & REVIEW\\ANNIVERSARY

A scene from Wakaa the Musical

A scene from the Lagos Carnival

LAGOS AT 50: THE MORNING

Much of Lagos State’s year-long celebrations of its golden jubilee anniversary pivoted on culture, whic visible assets, says Okechukwu Uwaezuoke

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obbing lights of yachts in the otherwise dark Five Cowrie Creek.

Then, street and house lights, stretching along Victoria Island’s arterial thoroughfare Akin Adesola Street.

These lend their chorus to the visual symphony of the islets of luminosity in the vicinity.

Music to the visual senses...

Indeed, Lagos at night – or just a glimpse of it – feels that way. But, definitely, not the Lagos Yusuff Cameron Adebayo Grillo used to know 50 years ago.

Nostalgia lurks around somewhere in the voice of the leading artist – euphemistically identified as an “art enthusiast” in the commercial video ad – as he enthuses about “his” Lagos.

Now, silent are the drums of festivities recently rolled out by Lagos. They were in celebration of its golden jubilee anniversary. And for this, a cavalcade of cultural events were lined up alongside other events.

But it is not Lagos as a city that turned 50, but rather the state that assumed its name. For a quick peek into the city’s oral history, dating as far back as sometime between 1300 and 1400 AD, tells us otherwise. That was when the Oba – or king – of ancient Benin Empire sent a trade expedition to engage the recalcitrant Aworis, who were the original settlers. Much later, the British intervention in 1851 would pave the way for the eventual annexation of the city as a colony in 1861.

Fast-forward to May 27, 1967.

A state called Lagos was carved out of the old Western Region. “Of all the 12 states created in 1967

by General Yakubu Gowon, only Lagos State has remained indivis-

ible,” explained the Lagos State Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Steve Ayorinde. “Nothing has touched it; no state has been carved out of Lagos. It has never been severed. Its map has remained the same as it was 50 years ago.”

Back to the jubilee celebrations.

The cultural activities, held between April 8 and May 27, were actually the last lap of a year-long activities.

Preceding them were the 10-month fiesta, which officially flagged off on May 27 last year.

Before April 8, there had been the launch of the One Lagos brand (as the state’s tourism initiative), the Lagos Art Expo (on January 27 in memory of Chief Rasheed Gbadamosi, who until his death in November last year was a co-Chairman of the Planning Committee), the Lagos Contemporary Dance Festival and the Lagos Theatre Festival.

Add to these a “Love Lagos Weekend” town hall meeting in London on August 27, the creation of a Lagos Corner at the Notting Hill Carnival (which marked its 50th anniversary last year), the first-ever Lagos Street Party and the celebration of Lagos at the prestigious Toronto International Film Festival with eight films in September last year (as the first African city to be so recognised) and the second edition of the One Lagos Fiesta in December. These were complemented by a miscellany of lectures and symposia.

These events, according to the co-chair of the Lagos at 50 Planning Committee, Habeeb Fasinro, were carefully selected to tell the story and retrace the journey of the state from 1967 to this year. The 10-man Planning Committee, which was actually chaired by the Nobel laureate Professor Wole Soyinka, also extended the celebrations to the state’s old five administrative divisions – Ikorodu, Badagry, Ikeja, Lagos Island and Epe.

“Each of those divisions had a whole month dedicated to celebrating them in the course of the last 10 months,” Ayorinde disclosed.

“Equally more important is the fact that we have succeeded in tying the year-long anniversary to a monthly show that symbolically revolved round the 27th of every month since May last year.”

It was at a world press conference held on March 27 at the Governor ’s Office that the activities lined up for the golden jubilee’s last 50 days – from Saturday April 8 to Saturday, May 27 – were announced. Because that day coincided with the World Theatre Day, the state’s Council for Arts and Culture added colour to the occasion.

Thus, Lagos partied on. Blazing the trail for other shows was the Bolanle Austen-Peters Production’s musical Wakaa on April 8 at Terra Kulture in Victoria Island, Lagos.

Much later on, theatre buffs would be regaled with Nigeria’s other Broadway-style musical Kakadu at Harbour Point in Victoria Island on May 21.

But, during the Easter weekend, the real Broadway, import Fela! the Musical, was literally in Concert at Eko Hotel in Victoria Island, Lagos during the Easter weekend. For die-hard Fela’s devotees, it was an occasion to relive the fond memories of the late Afro-beat legend.

A quick cut to the creeks and lagoons. Colourfully-decorated boats set sail simultaneously close to the littoral communities of Epe, Lagos Island and Badagry on April 15. This was for the Boat Regatta Parade.

Back in the streets. A carnival procession on both the Islands and the Mainland on May 13 and the traditional Eyo(Adamu Orisha) festival a week later at the Tafawa Balewa Square turned the city into a huge party venue.

On April 30, a jazz music cum

fashion event featured Grammy award-winning jazz musicians and Nigerian musical acts on one platform with a runway display of the evolution of the city’s fashion in the past 50 years. On May 7, which was the “World Laughter Day”, 50 of the state’s best stand-up comedians enjoyed the spotlight in an event tagged Lagos Laughs and Ibile Comedy Challenge.

The celebration of the state’s both serving and retired civil servants with a special dinner on May 1 as part of the Special Workers’ Day celebrations was an obvious attempt by the organisers to make the festivities as inclusive as possible. Ditto the screening of five Nollywood classics on May 5 in the state’s five divisions – Ikeja, Badagry, Ikorodu, Lagos Island and Epe – during the event, tagged Lagos Loves the Cinema.

A complement of this event is the creation of Lagos State pavilion at the 70th edition of the Cannes Film Festival.

Following closely on the heels of Lagos Loves the Cinema on May 6 was the contemporary dance event, Lagos Dance Exhibition, which was aimed at celebrating local talents.

The year-long celebrations climaxed on May 27 – a day that coincided with the Children’s Day – with a photo exhibition and the governor ’s ball cum gala night at the Presidential Lodge in Marina.

Of course, questions bordering why the state had such lavish celebrations would sooner or later be asked. With a budget performance that has always topped 75% to 80% in the last three years and an enviable internally generated revenue (IGR) accounting for about 70% of its revenue, Lagos could well afford this jamboree.

Indeed, the IGR in the state is bigger than those of 32 states of Nigeria put together while its GDP is bigger than those of Kenya and Ghana put

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ARTS & REVIEW\\ANNIVERSARY The Inverted Pyramid; Adapted from a novel by Emeka Dike

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ch is one of the state’s most together. Thus, were Lagos to be a country, it would be Africa’s fifth largest economy.

On this premise alone, Lagos has good reasons to celebrate.

But there are other reasons which are both political and economical. “This is Nigeria’s and West Africa’s commercial and creative hub,” Ayorinde pointed out. “And equally important, if you look at the giant strides that the state has made in the last two years under Governor Ambode, with all the legacy and iconic projects that are lined up for commissioning throughout April and May, the need to have a grand ball becomes very evident.”

Equally pertinent was the fact that these jubilee festivities involved the Organised Private Sector and a miscellany of corporate sponsors. These sponsors, who included Eko Atlantic, Access Bank, First Bank, Glo, Nigerian Breweries PLC, Unilever and Laralek Nigeria Limited. Others are FCC Planet, CCECC; Julius Berger PLC; Craneburg, Eko Hotels & Suites; Visionscape; Avant Garde; Hitech Nigeria Limited, Metropolitan; Public Works and Onward Papers, had indeed made generous donations towards the initiative.

According to Ayorinde, over a billion naira was raised for the event. This was one reason he gave the sponsors the thumbs-up for their gesture. And this gesture, for him, was a way of giving back to a state that provided them with friendship and conducive environment for businesses.

It was thanks to their support, he added, that the state could lay claim to being not only the first state in the country, but also in the entire continent to have had this hugely-successful year-long celebration of the anniversary.

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ARTS & REVIEW\\LITERARY CAFE

FACTS VERSUS FICTION: THE JONATHAN YEARS BY RENO OMOKRI Charles Okigbo

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he recently released book titled Facts Versus Fiction: The True Story of the Jonathan Years, Chibok, 2015 and the Conspiracies by one of Dr. Jonathan’s former aides, a Reno Omokri makes very interesting reading even though it fails in its task of exonerating the former president from the many charges he is facing today in the court of public opinion. By appearance, mannerisms, and expressed imagery, Dr. Jonathan comes across as a simple, easy-going, peace-loving, and transparently honest individual. His performance in office should have earned him a B+ or an A-, but for some of the people who were supposed to assist him.

Although many of them failed him and Nigeria, there are still some successes and achievements worth trumpeting about.

That was one of the goals of Mr. Omokri’s book.

The Jonathan Presidency was remarkable for some noteworthy achievements that include modest economic growth, reasonable naira exchange value, the thriving (even if by default) of multiparty democracy, robust funding of the education sector, liberal provisions of financial support for infrastructure across the nation, more respect for Nigeria abroad, government declared interest in providing necessary agricultural inputs, and on and on.

As fascinating as the successes in some sectors may be, Dr. Jonathan’s greatest achievement was not even material but actually spiritual and soul-based, although not in a religious sense but in the cultural and humanistic sense that we are more than matter, flesh, and blood. Dr. Jonathan is obviously a religious person but more than just a Bible-quoting zealot, he is an example of a spiritualist in quest of nirvana by trying to avoid evil and do good.

There is abundant easy-to-find evidence in his public and private life to show that the young Ijaw man who never aimed or aspired to be President (not even Deputy Governor of Bayelsa State) meant very well for Nigeria. Unfortunately, some of those who worked closely with him seem to have abandoned him, leaving him open to all those virulent attacks from the current APC Government, some disgruntled former and current PDP politicians, and professional praise-singers out to beguile President Buhari, VP Professor Osinbajo, and Information Minister Alhaji Lai Mohammed.

Dr. Jonathan will be the first to admit that he is not a saint and we don’t expect his defenders to be extravagant in their portrayal of him. Two years after they left office, we expect at least four good historical, analytical, and objective accounts of what really transpired.

That is why many of us rushed to get and read Mr. Omokri’s new book, which is actually a big pamphlet or monograph of exaggerated 110 pages with many whole sections repeated in other parts. Nevertheless, this is a courageous effort that deserves praise in some respect.

Although the book is flawed in many departments from the title, cover page, foreword and the style of

presentation to its aggressive post-publication marketing, it still deserves praise for Mr. Omokri’s courage in producing it now. The flaws are easy-to-fix mistakes that can be corrected in the second edition.

Among these are the many typographical mistakes, the mix-up in the table of contents, the number of publishers, and above all not focusing strategically on the demonstrable achievements of the Dr. Jonathan Presidency.

Three of the structural flaws are the arrangement of the chapters, the unnecessary duplication of sections of the book, and the selection of the three items in the appendix. The book opens with the first chapter “The Conspiracy to Remove Jonathan” which paints a picture of Dr. Jonathan as a victim of alleged intrigues

by US officials and some Northern Nigerian politicians.

A book subtitled “The True Story of the Jonathan Years…” should open with incontrovertible evidence of successes and achievements from the period, out of respect for the principle of primacy in persuasive communication. The book should also have ended with further elaboration of those success stories of achievement in the last chapter, out of respect for the principle of recency.

The second structural flaw is the unnecessary repeti-

tion of whole paragraphs, sections, and pages, verbatim, more than once in some chapters. For example, some of what we have on page 12 appear again on page 21; parts of pages 13 and 14 are repeated on pages 22 and 23; parts of page 15 appear again on pages 23 and 24; parts of page 17 are repeated on page 26; and parts of page 20 appear again on page 29. These should not be difficult to correct in a new edition.

The third structural error which also reflects poor judgement in content management is the presentation of Mr. Jonathan’s GCE statement of result, the WAEC result, and the letter from Barrister Nyesom Wike to the Borno State Governor Dr. Kashim Shettima.

The examination results in particular are not necessary, as they add nothing to the story of Dr. Jonathan’s performance in office.

Apart from these structural flaws, two other blemishes that deserve correction in a reworked new edition of the book are the dangerous comment about the former US National Security Adviser, Ms. Susan Rice and the quality of the FGN projects that were selected to illustrate superior achievements. The categorical statement, first made on page 13 and repeated verbatim on page 21 that the former US National Security Adviser Ms. Susan Rice “was the person who on July 7, 1998, made the tea that the presumed winner of the June 12, 1993 Nigerian Presidential election, Chief MKO Abiola, drank minutes before passing away after reportedly foaming at the mouth” is clearly libellous and should be expressed more safely and elegantly.

Mr. Omokri could have done a better job of marshalling persuasive arguments with demonstrable evidence based on facts and figures from public and private sector sources, and indeed from many reputable international organisations to support his position that the Jonathan Government performed well in many areas. Unfortunately, some of the illustrations he selected achieved the opposite effect. Among these is Chapter 2 where the reader learns that the Dr. Jonathan Government set out to establish 400 Almajiri schools (page 33) but in the end managed to build 165 of these (41% achievement). Chapter 3, The Economy Under Jonathan (pp 37-60) has mostly propaganda stories of Federal Government accomplishments in almost every state. It is obvious that Mr. Omokri relied exclusively on contractors’ and government officers’ reports in describing these projects as accomplishments.

These flaws and blemishes notwithstanding, Mr. Omokri deserves praise for his courage and determination (obviously without much support) to speak up on behalf of a beleaguered former boss. Such courage is not common. Nigeria needs more courageous people like Mr. Omokri. The young writer has a bright future but must pay more attention to his craft and style.

Books on the true stories of the President Jonathan years are needed very badly now not only by former and current PDP stalwarts and all Jonathan’s friends, but also by the APC Government and the Nigerian public. The old and new PDP should not be silent about the numerous success stories and achievements that include the successful conduct of the last presidential election. The credibility of the APC will significantly go up multiple notches if it accepts the undeniable fact that despite obvious failings in some areas, the Dr. Jonathan and previous PDP regimes were not completely bereft of any remarkable achievements.

On its part, the Nigerian public must become more demanding of current and previous office holders to tell the true stories of their challenges, failures, and achievements. These stories can be told directly or through proxies. Mr. Omokri has shown what can be done by one young courageous writer, in the interest of public enlightenment. His effort deserves commendation.

––Dr Charles Okigbo, the pioneer Registrar of APCON now teaches strategic communication.

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ARTS & REVIEW\\ENCOUNTER

AVISITTO BMT’S WONDERLAND Tony Amadi

I

bumped into the former managing director of Nigerian Ports Authority and one-time Chairman of the People’s Democratic Party as well as Chairman of the African Business Roundtable, Alhaji Dr. Bamanga Tukur, early this June 2017 and asked him just one question: How are you spending your 80s on earth and he looked straight into my eyes and said nothing.

He then whisked me into his golf cart and drove me to a location behind his house on Adetokunbo Crescent, Wuse II, which shares walls next to the Swiss Embassy, Abuja to the BMT Garden, a sprawling theme park where we spent a better part of the afternoon, reminiscing over his past and present and talking extensively about the fortunes and misfortunes of the Nigerian nation and its wasted years and opportunities.

“If I had a chance of running the affairs of this country,’’ he began, “Nigeria wouldn’t have been the same again.”

The plan was to make a case study of Gongola State or the present (Adamawa and Taraba states) as a model in Nigeria. “I had won in a very credible election as Governor but General Buhari’s coup of late December 1983 put paid to that ambition three months after my swearing in at Government House, Yola. But I have since moved on.”

On my question as to how he had been spending his eighties which he attained a couple of years ago, he simply pointed towards the vast theme park. “That’s what has occupied my time since I quit partisan politics after my 80th birthday. This theme park has got everything in it – a hall for town hall meetings, a library, a swimming pool, a zoo, an entertainment complex and a number of meeting halls, cinema hall and a lot of other recreationary activities including a well-equipped gymnasium.”

The first thing that will strike you are the paintings of several African leaders from Julius Nyerere, Kwame Nkrumah, Abdel Nassar, Ahmadu Bello, Nnamdi Azikiwe and lots of great figures like Nelson Mandela and the immediate past US president, Barack Obama.

There is a new section in the vast complex created for the breaking of the Ramadan fast among a series of eateries, where you can grab good quality lunch. The diplomatic community in Abuja is specially catered for in the theme park and they gather there as the occasion demands for social activities. This area is set for the entertainment of the great men and women of society.

While we discussed, a sight-seeing coach pulled in with tourists, moving in a train-like mode. The occupants were mainly white people who normally enjoy such facilities, but as BMT, short for Bamanga Tukur told me, the theme park is projected as a facility for holiday-makers to move in and out of town as a veritable holiday destination. “We are expecting loads and loads of school children coming, primary and secondary children coming around to see this theme park and energise themselves.’’

What excited me most was the zoological gardens that

Motor train at BMT Wonderland

form a most important part of the theme park. BMT left me on my own to explore the zoo because it was Ramadan and he had to go for his prayers. There were two hyenas waiting to receive me in their den. Luckily the big one was sleeping and hardly noticed my intrusion, but the smaller one was far apart, a bit drowsy as it was late afternoon and the climate change that was spreading the heat on Abuja was very unfriendly. Various species of monkeys were on hand. Several camels were prominently accommodated as well, playing in a vast field all on their own but there was a four-horned ram that stole the show among the group of cows and goats that were caged in their own section.

I feared there could be snakes in the zoo, and was relieved when I was informed there was none yet. There is a huge tortoise that will excite the young kids and a lion is coming very shortly as I gathered that the management has sent trainees abroad to specialise in the handling of lions in a foreign zoo. The big birds were also prominently visible in the zoo, dominated by the huge ostriches which surged around my driver, Vitalis Okere, who was also enjoying the site-seeing tour of the BMT zoo.

Immediately you enter the theme park, an array of flags of African countries welcome you into the huge set up.

There is a Freedom Hill with drawings of Nigerian and African leaders, starting with a drawing of the man who

amalgamated the north and southern Nigeria in 1914, Lord Fredrick Lugard.

There is the Bamanga Mohammed Tukur Foundation for Education, Agriculture, Good Governance, Research, Information Communication Technology ICT, Rural Development, Youth Empowerment and Entrepreneurship. Bamanga Institute for African Trade and International Development is a chair established in the University of Port Harcourt and its work is felt in the theme park.

The theme park is obviously a garden with a difference.

Abuja is actually littered with a variety of gardens, especially for drinking and dancing purposes, but this one is with a difference. In this BMT variety, you can explore much more, study, research, play around, discover the zoo and entertain yourself and your family in all sorts of ways. When I asked the owner what it cost to set up this huge edifice, he simply said that it was not about the cost, but what use it can be deployed for the society to advance.

Indeed, it is not everything you would expect government to handle. The organised private sector which is another area of expertise that BMT is passionate about is usually encouraged to help reach the parts that government cannot effectively handle.

–––Amadi is a media and marketing consultant based in Abuja

MOVIES

See Why we are taking creatives to Kaduna Book and Arts festival – Lola Shoneyin Lola Shoneyin slays on many fronts as a true multi-hyphenate – mother, wife, CEO, writer, publisher and Director of one of the biggest book festivals in Africa, the Ake Book and Arts festival. Come July, her company, BookBuzz will be assisting the Kaduna state government with organizing the first Kaduna Book and Arts Festival (KABAfest) with firsteverCaineprizewinner,LailaAboulela,headliningit.InthischatwithToni Kan, MsShoneyintalksaboutwhatitall means,therelationshipbetweenKabafestandAkeaswellaswhattoexpectfromhernext.

Why are we going to Kaduna?

Artists, writers, film makers, poets and musicians are converging in Kaduna for the all new Kaduna Book and Arts Festival.We will have an opportunity to bond and interact with creatives from all over the country but a much deserved focus will be on creatives from northern Nigeria. From an organisational perspective, I have been so thrilled by the interest and the enthusiasm.

Last year at Ake, there was quite some emphasis on writers from the North of Nigeria, is this an extension?

At Ake Festival, we explore all sorts of issues that impact our lives on the African continent.There are several conflict zones on the continent and it’s important to honestly discuss the issues that lead to the conflict in the first place. Ake Festival provides a safe space for such conversations.

There has been a renaissance of sorts in Northern Nigerian writing, what do you think has been responsible?

You will be surprised to hear that a considerable number of novels and books of poems come out of northern Nigeria every year.The problem is that these books are not getting to readers outside

the academic circles in northern Nigeria. I think distribution is a huge challenge. I have no doubt that we’ll witness a renaissance soon.

What’s the connection between BookBuzz and KabaFest?

The Book Buzz Foundation organises Ake Arts and Book Festival and Kaduna Book and Arts Festival. BBF is an NGO so our activities are totally dependent on the sort of funding we get. We love organising these festivals. It is a lot of work but it is hugely gratifying.

Does this mean there won’t be an Ake festival this year?

Are you kidding? Of course, we are having Ake Festival this year! It’s our 5th anniversary so we have a very special theme. Now to fundraise.

We have noticed slight changes, Booklogue instead of Book chat, how different will Kabafest be from Ake? We want Kabafest to have its own character and identity so we created different names for some of the events.There will be food events at Kabafest. I tell you, I didn’t know there were so many desserts from Northern Nigeria. We are inviting anyone who

has a sweet-tooth to join us in the sampling of these delight. I also met this fascinating Syrian chef who has recently moved to Kaduna. She is in charge of the Syrian food-tasting event.The rice with almonds I tried when I met her was just delicious. Apart from the art exhibition with some incredible talent, I am also looking forward to the film screening by young Nigerian filmmakers from Northern Nigeria. You can find more info at kabafest.org.

We know you have a strong team, but won’t two festivals, months apart, take a toll?

We are starting two more next year!The team grows as we take on projects.The biggest one of all is the Right toWrite Nigeria Project which will kick off over the next few months. We are having to move into a bigger office space.

On a personal note, how do you fit it all in – mother, wife, writer, publisher CEO.Where do you find the time?

I have intense periods of activity but I try to take a week out, once every six months, to do absolutely nothing. I have never been afraid of hard work. I throw myself into all the projects that I take on and I devote the required energy to achieving the best possible results.That’s just the way I am wired.

Shoneyin Finally, three years after the mega successful and critically acclaimedThe Secret Lives of Baba Segi’sWives, are we expecting something new soon?

Depends what you mean by “soon”. I am writing but progress is slow because I have so much on my plate. In any case, with the Baba Segi film in the works, and the stage production in the UK next year, I am relishing the love that people continue to show for this book.

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CICERO

Editor Olawale Olaleye Email wale.olaleye@thisdaylive.com, SMS: 08116759819

IN THE ARENA

The Rising Call for Restructuring The agitation for a restructuring of the country is seriously gaining momentum. Perhaps, the time to consider it is now. Olawale Olaleye writes

F

ive years ago, former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, at an event organised by the Leadership Newspapers, first bounced off the idea of restructuring. At the time, the level of acceptability of this supposed all-time solution to what has become Nigeria’s permanent problem was

low.

He contended: “There is indeed too much concentration of power and resources at the centre. And it is stifling our march to true greatness as a nation and threatening our unity, because of all the abuses, inefficiencies, corruption and reactive tensions that it has been generating.

“There is need, therefore, to review the structure of the Nigerian federation, preferably along the basis of the current six geopolitical zones as regions and the states as provinces. The existing states structure may not suffice, as the states are too weak materially and politically to provide what is needed for good governance.”

Consistent with his position, exactly 10 months ago, Atiku, at the launching of a book titled, “We are all Biafran”, said Nigeria risked being a failed state due to its structure and emphasised the imperative of restructuring.

Then, just a few months ago, precisely in March this year, Atiku reiterated his commitment to restructuring when he said “There is no doubt that many of our states are not viable, and were not viable from the start once you take away the federation allocations from Abuja.”

Although acting President Yemi Osinbajo disagreed with him and suggested that the diversification of the economy would end the country’s problems, Osinbajo thought even if the country was restructured, the same problems would still linger if economic solution was not put in place.

Unfortunately, Osinbajo’s position was not as popular as Atiku’s call for restructuring, which began to acquire support even from the least expected quarters.

Soon to be on this list is a former military president, General Ibrahim Babangida, who said although the country had survived a lot of crisis in the past, restructuring could no longer be wished away.

“Restructuring has become a national appeal as we speak, whose time has come. I will strongly advocate for devolution of powers to the extent that more responsibilities be given to the states while the federal government is vested with the responsibility to oversee our foreign policy, defense, and economy.

“Even the idea of having federal roads in towns and cities has become outdated and urgently needs revisiting. That means we need to tinker with our constitution to accommodate new thoughts that will strengthen our nationality,” he stated.

Then, the All Progressives Congress (APC) governors followed suit. The Progressive Governors’Forum contended that the recent agitation by some ethnic groups was a reflection of the prevalent weak governance, economy and law enforcement.

In an eight-page document containing the governors’ position on the challenges to Nigeria’s unity and titled: “There has to be a nation first”, they said the demands for political

P O L I T I CA L N OT E S

restructuring and true federalism could be met by adjusting the federal system.

“It appears that demands framed by different groups in terms of political restructuring or true federalism can be met through adjustment in Nigeria’s federal system. Although such adjustment will not on its own address the root and branch of Nigeria’s challenges, it is worth pursuing in order to meet the demands of various Nigerian groups. The focus of this restructuring is to restore the principle of non-centralisation of power in the country’s federal arrangement being the defining element of a federal polity.”

Evidently, the idea sounded good enough that the opposition People Democratic Party Governors’Forum also backed the call for the urgent restructuring of the country as a way to addressing some of the ongoing agitations in some parts of the nation.

Chairman of the PDP Governors’Forum, who is also the Ekiti State Governor, Mr. Ayodele Fayose, in a telephone interview with a news medium, said his colleagues in the national leadership of the Ahmed Makarfi-led faction of the opposition party were on the same page with the APC governors on the need to restructure the country.

“Democratic governance offers Nigeria the rare opportunity to reconfigure the Nigerian state to become a truly federal democracy that meets the aspirations of our citizens in which

A Support Vote for the Sultan

S

Sultan Sa’ad Abubakar

fiscal and political autonomies at sub-national level co-exist without tension with a strong national government capable of being a mirror for its constituent elements.

“The APC governors have not just been saying it; Aregbesola said it; Ajimobi and a host of others in the APC have said it; and now, they have said it as a group and we support their call for restructuring. But the problem I have is that the Presidency is deaf to the voice of reason. But even if the Presidency is not going to respect the governors, what about those respected national leaders, who have been calling for restructuring?”, he asked.

As it is, the recent turn of events is a clear indication that the call for restructuring might have come to stay. It’s been long in coming and with the prevailing agitations as well as related concerns from different parts of the country, the need to reconsider the idea has reached a point it can no longer be jettisoned.

The nation is plagued more today than it had ever been and the current circumstances present more opportunities to redressing these issues of national concern once and for all than they had been in time past. The form and format it would take is what may be vague for now, what is not vague or in doubt is that the current structure is no longer effective (it has never been anyways) and therefore, the thought of an alternate option – a more viable one – grabs the attention.

ultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar’s Eid-el-Fitr message to Muslim Ummah last week was instructive. The very substance of his point was his plea to the federal government to probe the source of weapons used by suspected herdsmen in attacking communities across the country. He insisted that genuine herdsmen move with their cows and sticks, and certainly not guns.

“The real herdsmen do not carry guns, but they only move with their cows and sticks. Agreed, there are bad eggs among the Fulanis, but those carrying

arms and perpetrating heinous killings are not herdsmen. Those carrying arms are criminals and they should be treated as such. The government should, therefore, probe the sources of these weapons and take the appropriate action.”

That was quite thoughtful and sure deserves a vote of support from everyone. And quite expectedly, other weighty voices should follow suit.

Unfortunately, it should not have taken the Sultan to say this before the concerned authority or agencies knew it was part of their responsibilities. But now that the Sultan has said so, it is hoped that someone would take this seriously and follow it through.

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BRIEFINGNOTES

The Evans Tragedy

The handling of the arrest and investigation of Mr. Chukwudumeme ‘Evans’ Onwuamadike, a self-confessed kidnapper and armed robber, by the police is a source of concern to all those who have been following what has now become a ‘circus show’. Olawale Olaleye writes

N

ot even the likes of Lawrence Aninih, Dr. Ishola Oyenusi, Abiodun Egunjobi alias Godogodo, Okwudili Ndiwe otherwise known as Derico Nwamama, Shina Rambo or slain members of Baddo, a popular Ikorodu cult killer group, were celebrated as much as the celebrity status extended to Mr. Chukwudumeme Onwuamadike, the popular kidnapper known as Evans and since dubbed billionaire, either by the media or the police, who cracked his arrest, perhaps on account of the ransom he confessed to have so far collected from his high profile victims in different parts of the country.

From the first day Evans was arrested and accorded the free hands to grant his many celebrated interviews, an average discerning mind could tell that the Nigerian police, though reveled at his arrest as a major breakthrough in recent time, were going to bungle either the investigation of Evans’ many exploits or to say the least, his trial.

The fact that Evans had offered too many information, a majority of them quite sensitive and which the security agency was expected to have classified, pending the completion of their investigation but chose to willfully dish out, whether or not verified further, confirmed the fears that the police might be working to a despicable answer as far as the Evans case was concerned.

And then, the police, while still parading Evans and supposedly making immense image capital from his many interviews, either by default or design, vitiated their investigation of the kidnap of the six students from Igbonla Model College, Epe, Lagos, when they ‘inadvertently but openly tipped off’ the other members of the kidnap gang that some of their men had been arrested and had hinted on their hideout. That was crass incompetence.

The troubled parents of the kidnapped pupils would later affirm that the indiscretion of the police through the celebration of Evans’ case had emboldened the kidnapper of their wards and invariably compounded efforts geared towards their rescue.

At this point, Evans’ case had begun to assume an irritatingly annoying proportion following the subtle campaign for his release, which would later be heightened by the plea for mercy by his wife, Uchenna Precious, who had uploaded a selfie with their five kids, claiming innocence of the crimes her husband had confessed to and totally distancing herself from his nefarious activities, even though the husband had reportedly said on a few occasions that she was an accomplice, who had helped to pick up ransom a few times.

Then, the police came up with their shocker: “we are under pressure to release Evans” without as much naming those mounting the pressure on them. This soon fired up Evans, who then sued the police for continuing to detain him without charging him to court.

Evans, who has reportedly dragged the Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Ibrahim Idris, before the Federal High Court, Lagos over alleged illegal detention, also joined as respondents in the suit, the Nigeria Police Force, Commissioner of Police Lagos State and the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), Lagos State Police Command.

In the rights enforcement suit filed on his behalf by a Lagos-based lawyer, Olukoya Ogungbeje, Evans prayed the court to direct the respondents to immediately charge him to court if there is any case against him in accordance with Sections 35 (1) (c) (3) (4) (5) (a) (b) and 36 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Alternatively, he wanted the court to compel the respondents to immediately release him unconditionally in the absence of any offence that would warrant his being charged to court, contending that his continued detention since June 10, 2017, without being charged to court or released on bail was an infringement on his fundamental human rights.

He argued that the respondents ought to have charged him to court in accordance with the provisions of Sections 35 and 36 of the Constitution, noting that his alleged offence were correspondingly intertwined with the constitutional safeguards as provided under Sections 35 and 36 of the Constitution.

As if that was not enough an insult on the sensibilities of the Nigerian people, Evans took a step further and in yet a new suit, a second one in fact and within 24 hours, claimed N300 million as general and exemplary damages against the police for alleged illegal detention and unconstitutional media trial.

To seal this palpable mockery of police investigation, Evans’ father too, Mr. Stephen Onwuamadike, deposed to affidavit in his son’s support. He personally deposed to a 27-paragraph affidavit, where he averred that his son had been subjected to media trial without any court order by the respondents.

He contended that the media trial and news orchestrated by the respondents have continued to generate reactions in both print and electronic media without his son being afforded fair hearing and trial before a court of law. He observed that since his son’s arrest, all his family members have been denied access to him but the media.

Although the matter is yet to be assigned to any judge, the police have also reacted to the development and said they had a mandate to keep him for at least three months. Spokesman for the Police High Command, Jimoh Moshood, said the police had obtained a court order

Evans in police custody from a Federal High Court, Abuja, to detain Evans for three months, in order to allow them carry out proper investigation on the suspect.

The investigation, the police said would take the operatives to Ghana, South Africa and many parts of the country before he could be arraigned.

A Deputy Commissioner of Police, Administration, in the Lagos Command, Dasuki Galandanci, also told journalists last Friday that the Police were in the midst of a thorough investigation on Evans, noting that “Evans has been a kidnapper for a long time and has been on the wanted list of the Police in Anambra, Abuja, Enugu, Edo and Lagos States. He also has a criminal gang, some of whom have been arrested in Enugu and Lagos.

“But there are still more out there. Therefore, this needs a painstaking investigation. Besides, we need to understudy him as well as debrief him properly. By so doing, we intend to use his tactics to get others. He will eventually be charged to court after investigation is concluded,” he said.

The incontestable truth of this matter is that Evans is presumed innocent before the law until pronounced otherwise by a court of competent jurisdiction. It was not a wrong that he approached a court to press for his rights, because the police had begun to make a mess of it already as he was constantly in the news courtesy the police style of investigation.

It was smart also and of course, expected that the police would have approached a court of competent jurisdiction to ask for more time to hold him while they conclude their investigations, which they reckoned would take them to at least two other African countries and many states within Nigeria.

The period of wait also gives Evans some reprieve, because like a lawyer once said, even if someone pleaded guilty to murder in court, the court would still record not guilty for him until the investigations are concluded, because a murder case cannot just be dispensed with without ascertaining the circumstances leading to it.

Although this situation, he reasoned, was applicable only to a murder case while other cases in which the culprit pleads guilty would require straight sentencing. From his analysis, therefore, Evans remains innocent before the law even though he had confessed to his crimes and cannot be tagged otherwise until a court of competent jurisdiction says so. As such, neither the police nor anyone else can tag him ‘criminal’ before the law does so yet.

Taken together, the problem remains the police, who have contin-

ued to make a needless, shameful and disappointing public show of what was expected to be a discreet investigation of a high profile case that they had failed to crack for many years before finally coming round it. To think that the police would not have compromised their investigation in whatever way is slim. Whether or not such a development was deliberate is also very likely.

Their celebration of the arrest of Evans was too early and premature let alone making it some sort of circus show, which has come to embolden a self-confessed suspect to be asking for his rights as guaranteed by the law that he willfully circumvented in the bid to survive illegitimately.

The good news, however, is that he was arrested in Lagos, where he was domiciled and firmly established in his kidnap business for many years. Lagos, therefore, has a law against kidnapping.

Governor Akinwunmi Ambode of the state recently signed into law, the state kidnapping prohibition bill, 2016, which prescribes life imprisonment or death penalty for the offence of kidnapping and forceful extortion in Lagos State. This could mean that Evans may get a life imprisonment or death sentence. The law provides for death penalty for kidnappers, whose victims die in their custody, and life imprisonment for the act of kidnapping.

The Lagos State House of Assembly had passed the bill on January 5, this year and the governor has said the law was enacted to address key issues bordering on security, noting also that kidnapping had become a major threat to the safety of residents and, therefore, required decisive action by the government.

“This law imposes a penalty of life imprisonment for kidnapping for ransom. The law stipulates that, where a victim dies in the course of kidnapping, the suspect is liable on conviction to death. Security is of utmost importance to our administration, and we are confident that this law will serve as a deterrent to anybody, who may desire to engage in this wicked act within the boundaries of Lagos State. Our justice system will be required to execute this law in absolute and make sure that any criminal caught faces the full wrath of the law,” he said.

In the light of the foregoing, whether or not there was a deliberate attempt by the police or some of their men to frustrate the investigation and trial of Evans, the law of Lagos would neither change nor be bent for his sake. The gory tales of some of Evans’ victims sum it all up.

This trial is long in coming and now that it is here, no security arm of government or its personnel should mess this up. All eyes on Evans and the police!

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CICERO/ONTHEWATCH

Osun’s Bye-election Campaign Reaches Fever Pitch The frenzy that currently typifies the campaigns ahead of the July 8 bye-election in Osun West senatorial district, Osun State, has peaked as the respective candidates of the contending parties struggle to outdo one another. Yinka Kolawole writes

A

s the people of Osun West senatorial district, Osun State, count down to their by-election scheduled to hold on July 8, a lot is already beginning to define the turf in clear muscle-flexing campaign mode.

First, Chief Ademola Adeleke’s campaign train was attacked in Gbongan, the headquarters of Ayedaade Local Government Area of the state, a development that brought fright into the exercise.

And immediately this happened, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state accused the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) of being behind the attack on its candidate.

PDP in a statement by its state Chairman, Mr. Soji Adagunodo, claimed that hoodlums believed to be working for the APC attacked the PDP campaign train in Gbongan and at Ode Omu in their efforts to frustrate the party’s candidate.

But the APC in a swift response denied sponsoring the attack on Adeleke’s campaign. The APC Secretary in the state, Alhaji Rasak Salinsile said his party knew nothing about the attack.

Soon after this engagement, the PDP raised yet the alarm over alleged plan by the APC to scuttle the process of free, fair and credible poll and would later call for a postponement of the election.

PDP chair, Adagunodo at a press conference in Osogbo, alleged that some electoral officers were conniving with scores of APC chieftains to disenfranchise eligible voters in areas considered the strongholds of the PDP, by allegedly deleting their names from the voters’ list.

He further alleged that the APC had concluded plan to distort the allocation of ballot papers in such a manner that those meant for specific local governments, wards and polling units were diverted to wrong locations to delay the commencement of voting and by implications, disenfranchise many voters.

He frowned at the allegation that some chieftains of the APC had “procured the service of notorious thugs from within and outside the state to unleash violence in specific areas like Ede North, Ede south, Egbedore, Irewole, Iwo and Ayedaade local governments on the day of the election.

“We have credible information about the plans of APC and the state government to arrange the kidnap and or arrest of leaders of the PDP in certain local government on the eve of July 8th by-election. As we speak, certain chieftains of APC have compiled names of their party members and sympathizers to be accredited by INEC as election observers and monitors.

“You will recall 181 of these same elements from Osun State were arrested somewhere in Imo State in 2013, while traveling as fake observers for the Anambra governorship election”, he said, alleging also that the APC candidate in the election, Senator Mudashir Hussein, had clandestine plan to bring thousands of non-residents from Abidjan, Cotonou, Togo and Ghana as voters.

He therefore assured his party members and supporters in the ten local governments that make up the senatorial district of efforts at the national headquarters of PDP to guarantee credible exercise, saying “we shall not allow anyone no matter how highly placed to subvert the freewill of the electorate”.

Similarly, the PDP has also spoken against the allegations of plans for violence ahead of the election made against the PDP by the APC chair, Mr. Gboyega Famodun.

“We wish to state that the allegations are not only false and malicious but a clear indication that the APC is jittery, having seen its imminent electoral waterloo in the forthcoming elections.

Our party which neither controls any security apparatus nor maintains a hidden force cannot be planning violence ahead of an election that will afford the good people of Osun State an opportunity to take back the stolen glory of the state.

“It is the APC state government, under Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola that maintains a terror group called ‘State boys’ in the last 7 years. It is the APC that has notoriety for issuing threats of fire and brimstone ahead of elections. It is the APC and Ogbeni Aregbesola that are on record to have called on innocent voters

Adeleke

Hussein

to use charms and amulets against even security agents in previous elections.

But the APC candidate, Hussain, raised the bar of debate when he said Adeleke’s assertion on a live radio programme on the Rave FM, where claimed that his late brother was not a beneficiary of his large heart and obedience to party’s position, was sheer bunkum, adding that Adeleke was incompetent to speak on the negotiations that produced his late brother, Senator Isiaka Adeleke, in 2014.

According to him, “For Senator Adeleke’s brother, Ademola, to come out today and claim that I did not step down for his late brother is a clear indication that he is totally ignorant of the issues that led to his brother coming to the APC from the PDP, where he and his loyalists had been disgraced.

“Has he forgotten so soon how a serving minister of police affairs at the time, who was a loyalist of Omisore, threatened to beat him to coma but for what he knew was Adeleke’s poor health then? If he is so sure that their family’s so-called empowerment of Ede people or Osun West people was so strong enough to win him election, why not stay in PDP and fight it out?

He further said Adeleke’s statements on the live radio programme already showed the strategy of deceit being employed by the PDP candidate.

“Why is he announcing N250m scholarship scheme for Osun West students now? Why not before? If he had so much money and was ready to help, why is he at this point using his brother’s shadow to deceive the people?

“APC has said it and we mean it, humiliating defeat awaits Adeleke come July 8, 2017. Adeleke accused some people that they are Lagos-based! How else does a candidate prove to be shallow? Assuming we are Lagos-based, where is he based. He is based in America.

What knowledge of the Osun West does he possess to know

NOTES FOR FILE

what really are their needs?”

The APC believes that the allegation of rigging was the product of ‘sick mentality’ of the Osun PDP and its supporters, whom it said were psychologically tormented by the obsession to win Osun West senatorial seat by any means possible.

There’s no doubt about the fact that the election of July 8 is going to be a make or mar for the two major parties – the APC and the PDP – hence the seeming “desperation” by both of them to outdo each other. While the PDP needs it for a great comeback, especially that the governorship election is also due next year, the APC needs it to reaffirm its place in the state since the party and government are believed to have lost their relevance considerably in the last few years.

Thus, either way, the July 8 election is a crucial one for both the APC and the PDP and whoever wins it, might have taken a major leap into the possibility of winning the governorship election of next year or at the very least, constitute a huge influence in what happens in next year’s election. But unfortunately, whilst the weight of incumbency might have been demystified on the part of the APC given what the economy has become in the last over seven years, the PDP does not have an impressive presence either because of the humiliation it has so far suffered or the tag of corruption and incompetence hanging on its neck.

But the most interesting twist to the election is that it seems more of a manifestation of the power struggle within the APC than one between the APC and the PDP. There is the possibility that if Adeleke wins the election, he might later cross over to the APC and align with his own camp of the party.

However, if Hussein wins, it would further strengthen the other camp of the party, which is being rumoured to be pondering a defection to the Alliance for Democracy (AD) in the countdown to 2019. So, whichever way, the election is both crucial and critical to the survival of both parties, moving forward.

Rejigging the Anti-graft War

Buhari

The outcomes of some of the anti-graft cases are clear indications that the federal government must embrace a review of its entire approach to the fight against graft, particularly its prosecutorial methodology, because its current modus is primed to fail, no matter how many times the agencies of government try.

To that extent, to rescue the anti-graft war, government must take another look at its modus operandi. To think that one of the grounds for the ineffectiveness of the anti-graft war is the 20-mem-

ber committee called the National Prosecution Coordination Committee (NPCC) on high profile cases as against strengthening the existing agencies, is saddening.

That the suggestion was mooted at a time the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had begun to gradually find its feet exposed the inanity of the idea. Rather than assist EFCC and other sister agencies to function better, government opted for a duplicitous committee, the result of which is the evident ineptitude that

has characterised the corruption war, in addition to the financial burden the NPCC comes onboard with and without any defining legal basis.

This is why government must review its current frame work in the fight against graft, stay away from politicising the process, avoid distractive media trials and ensure that all cases embrace investigation-driven prosecution, towards making sure that whatever case it brings forward for trial is sure to pass all legal tests. It is not until then that the fight against graft can be taken seriously.

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• JULY 2, 2017

CICERO/REPORT

A cross-section of delegates at the conference

Can the 2014 Confab Report Change Anything?

With growing agitations across the country, the call for consideration of the 2014 National Conference recommendations is good and in collective interest. Shola Oyeyipo writes

A

gainst the backdrop of the clamour for the implementation of the 2014 National Conference recommendations, the big question is, if eventually implemented, what do the recommendations portend for Nigeria? Can it really birth the new Nigeria of everyone’s dream? Most of the proponents of the National Conference, who are also some of the leading advocates of its implementation, believe that the exercise offered two things.

First is that it could bring about a constitution that has the input of Nigerians as against the 1999 constitution imposed on the nation by the military and second, it is capable of bringing about a just society through genuine federalism. Although it is not clear why those opposed to the idea are persistent, a major fear is that it could be a prelude to disintegrating Nigeria.

Whichever side of the divide anyone is, what is constant is that at the close of the 2014 national conference, the delegates passed more than 630 resolutions and produced a 10,335-page report, which was submitted to the former president, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, who convoked the national discourse and promised to implement them.

To Jonathan and others, who believe in the conference, it was the best option to addressing the structural defects and the cosmetic federalism the country currently practices, which they have continued to blame for the plethora of problems confronting Nigeria, particularly sectional agitations, militancy and terrorism.

The recommendations were eventually not adopted and as such, the protests for the implementation have been sustained. The agitation is more stringent now following agitations by pro-Biafra groups in the the South-east and the quit notice issued on Igbo in the North by Arewa Youth.

But, as it is, some northern political elite are favourably disposed to the idea of considering the conference recommendations, even though some delegates from the region recently advised President Muhammdu Buhari to jettison the report.

But most Southern agitators have maintained that without true federalism, which the conference recommendations offer, there was a high possibility that the country might not survive much longer.

That much was postulated by a former governor of the old Anambra State, Dr. Chukwuemeka

Ezeife, during a chat with THISAY after a meeting of a coalition of prominent Southern leaders held at the Lagos residence of Professor Pat Utomi lastTuesday, when he advised that a committee to commence the processes that would culminate in the restructuring of the nation be setup to ensure that the country was restructured or else there was the risk of losing the country altogether.

“At a meeting recently held at Ladi Kwali Hall, I told them that time is running out for Nigeria. If we don’t get restructuring by mid next year, we may be losing the country. The federal government should finish with restructuring the country by mid next year, even if it will involve referendum. We should go back to what was given to us by our forefathers,” he said.

This position canvassed by Ezeife could be said to be nearing realisation with Senate already asking the executive to forward the conference report to it for consideration, yet, it runs contrary to that of Dr. Akintunde Adeyemo, a US-trained Nigerian born political scientist, who is currently serving as a legal extern at the Office of the General Counsel, Michigan National Guard, Joint Forces Headquarters. In his view, now is not the best time to tinker with the idea of restructuring because of the delicate level of peace in the country.

According to him, “The term restructuring is subject to different interpretations. What exactly are we restructuring – our political system; our federal system? When people talk about restructuring, I see it as another attempt to waste time and resources.

Any restructuring exercise must be thoroughly scrutinised before it is embarked upon. At this time, the country is relatively peaceful. Calling for a restructuring of the country at a time when different people are actively advocating for secession is not only a bad idea, but a risky proposal.”

While these opposing views dominate discussions, some pertinent issues such as the removal of immunity clause, creation of 18 additional states, derivation, creation of state police and other sensitive issues already approved at the conference are still silently some of the reasons behind the disquiet in the minds of the adherents of the national conference.

The event commemorating the 241 years of the US independence held in Ikoyi, Lagos residence of the Consul General, Mr. John Bray, and attended by various former heads of state and heads of government, members of the diplomatic corps, business, political, and traditional leaders, serving and former state governors, cabinet members, se-

nior government officials, senior media executives, civil society representatives and leaders at other levels, provided a platform to verify the opinion of Nigerians on the burning issue of implementation of the 2014 conference recommendations.

For instance, the Coordinator, Southern Professionals, Mr. Mr. Emeka Ugwu-Oju, was one of those who held the opinion that since the 2014 conference had the inputs of every section of Nigeria, it was better than anything else, except Nigeria went back to pre-1966.

“I think we should get something straight. The 2014 National Conference is not a magic wand to solve Nigerian problems. I think the way I see it and the way it is, it is like a starting point. Many people, rightly or wrongly, but I am one of those who think rightly, we don’t have a nation and we need to have a nation.

“And how do we have a nation? Our founding fathers came and said this is what we wanted.

That was what gave birth to what we had until the military intervention. After that, it is the whims and caprices of the military Commander-in-Chief.

So, it is like if we want to be on the right path, we should go back to where people had a consensus.

“That consensus doesn’t have to be perfect but at least, there was a consensus. They can then start asking, do we rejig it or we don’t? When we talk about 2014; some people could say Jonathan did this or did that but we had people from all over the country. And if people start analysing each of the characters that were there, they all had constituencies and they reached an agreement. So, let’s start implementing these agreements. Then if we need to make changes, we start making changes. But if we don’t go back to pre-1966, then you could say the nearest to it is the 2014. That is the basis, because the resolutions they have were reached by consensus.”

The Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi, a foremost Yoruba Oba, was of the opinion that the responsibility of prospecting for lasting peace lies with every Nigerian, more so that Nigerians are not faced with rejection outside their shores.

“If the Europeans are coming back together, there is the European Union (EU). Now if you go to Chad, if you go to all the African countries like Ghana, everywhere, there are Yorubas, Igbos and there are Hausas; they are tolerating us, why is it that in our country we are not going to tolerate ourselves? It is an irony.

“We should find a way of addressing the perceived problems that component parts of

Nigeria are having. I think we should sit down and have a roundtable conference. The report of the 2014 National Conference should be published – where every section of the country met for almost five months – 492 delegates met and they came out with a report.

“That report should be published, because in that report there was nobody that said they wanted to disintegrate. We do not want this country to disintegrate. In unity lies strength and with the potential of this country, if we live together, with our population, our mineral endowments backed with manpower, we have what it takes to become one of the greatest nations around the world.”

On what Nigeria stands to learn from the United States, former Minister of State for Defence, Senator Musiliu Obanikoro, said Nigeria did not need to wait as long as it took the US to stabilise, adding that what Nigeria needed most was an equitable society.

“We talk about federating units, America has federated properly and I think if we also federated properly in the true sense of federating, I think we would get to the promise land. It is evident that the structure that we run in Nigeria should be broken in a manner that America broke their own. There is city government, there is a county government, there is state government and there is a federal government. And all their four tiers function in proper manners without any overbearing influence from other levels. So, I think once we can recognise this and make the necessary sacrifices to make it work, we are not too far from development.

“A situation where our federal government runs a secondary school, to me, is not acceptable. These are things I think we can learn from the US and make our own society a better place for all of us and all the noise about breaking up the country, about this side not being fair to the other side will reduce drastically once we run a system that is just and equitable,” he said.

Former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, was not to keen in discussing political issues. His lack of interest in discussing any issues bothering on disunity and threat to Nigeria’s peaceful coexistent was equally profound. In fact, he proffered solution to some of Nigeria’s problems.

“You know we are here to celebrate the 241 anniversary of the United States of America. 241 years of struggle. The lesson for any democracy; any country in the world that has managed to make it in spite of their diversity, in spite of being

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• JULY 2, 2017

CICERO/REPORT • ‘Can the 2014 Confab RepoRt Change anything?’• a multi-ethnic, multi-religious, albeit dominantly Christians society is that every society, every democracy is a product of continued struggle.

“It never comes fully made. No country ever comes fully made.

It is a product of ongoing – continuous struggle by the citizens to make a more perfect union. There is no society that is perfect but every society continues to endeavour to forge and move towards a more perfect union and you never really get there. There is no perfect union. There is no perfect society.

“So, the lesson from America’s independence for Nigeria is that it is 56 years, we are heading for 57 by October – we have been together for slightly over a hundred years – we must begin to think about the next Nigeria and that next Nigeria must be everything the first Nigeria has not done and that is, in a process of creating a more perfect, a more prosperous and I would dare to say a more united country – trying to forge a nation out of the disparage nationalities. It is not an easy thing.”

According to him, “It would require a lot of dialogue. It would require a lot of contestation but I think where there is the will, there will always be a way. Nigeria has all it takes to be the – of course, it is already the greatest black nation on earth in terms of its population. It has all human and material resources.

“By 2050, it will be the third largest country by way of population.

If we can get our acts economically, Nigeria would by 2050, be ahead of UK and France economically, in terms of the size of its economy.

But the big issue is, if we can get our acts together. And that is where the work begins. The work is cut out for all of us.”

Afenifere’s National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Yinka Odumakin, who is one of the most prominent Nigerians on the vanguard for restructuring of the country, said while the agitation was not that all the recommendations of the National Conference should be adopted, there are some that hold the prospect of unlocking the full potential of the country.

Reacting to some critics, who said the provision that approved 18 additional states was unnecessary, Odumakin argued that “The reason we agreed on the additional 18 states was the fear of the minorities. When we got to the National Conference, we were for six regions but that did not get the support of the minorities. They felt that they would be sentenced to marginalisation under the existing six zonal structures and that was why we recommended those 18 states so that all those minorities can have their own states.

“But it has a caveat – that states can merge and they can form themselves to zones without being forced on them as it currently is.

It was those states approved for the minorities that made it possible for the over 600 resolutions at the conference to be passed without any voting.

“Out of those 600 resolutions, nobody is saying we should implement everything now but there are key provisions there that can take Nigeria out of the woods. For instance, that conference recommended that we use five per cent of our federal budget every year, to prospect solid mineral deposits of Nigeria and they are large – all the states have them.

“If we do that, a study has shown that Nigeria would have N60trn economy annually as against N6trn that we are making from oil and gas. Added to that is that we should move solid minerals from the exclusive list to the concurrent list. Believe you me, if we do that, all the cries of marginalisation; it is our turn, will go away, because every section of Nigeria has an island of prosperity.

“Unlike what we are doing now that we are concentrating on oil and gas, between May 2016 and May 2017, all Nigeria received from oil was $6.9bn, within that period, Disney Land made $30.8bn.

Today, Ireland does not have a barrel of oil, their GDP is $239bn and their population is 4.5 million people.

“With oil and gas, Nigeria’s population is about 200 million people, our GDP $481bn. So, even if we stop corruption, Nigeria will still be poor for the sake of oil and gas. And that key provision of the National Conference will make Nigeria a key country, where every section of the country will be engaged in production activities and nobody will have time for acrimony.”

However, advising Nigerians to hold dear what they have, the US Ambassador, Stuart Symington, urged the people to forge ahead in the unity that has been the foundation of the country, on which

Continued on Pg. 70

KEY RECOMMENDATIONS AT A GLANCE! Creation of 18 New States

The conference recommended the creation of 18 new states – three per geo-political zone. They include Apa, Edu, Kainji, Katagum, Savannah, Amana, Gurara, Ghari, Etiti (South East zone), Aba, Adada, Njaba-Anim, Anioma, Orashi, Ogoja, Ijebu and New Oyo.

Resource Control/Derivation Principle/Fiscal Federalism

The conference held that assigning percentage for the increase in derivation principle, and setting up Special Intervention Funds to address issues of reconstruction and rehabilitation of areas ravaged by insurgency and internal conflicts as well as solid minerals development, require some technical details and consideration.

Public Finance/Revenue Allocation

The conference noted that the sharing of the funds to the Federation Account among the three tiers of government should be done in the following manner: Federal Government – 42.5%, State Governments – 35% and Local Governments 22.5%

Forms of Government

Senate President Bukola Saraki...can the Senate make any difference?

platform the US is growing.

“When I ask Nigerians, what do you like best about Nigeria – I have asked over a thousand people and I got almost the same answer, they say I like me, I like my friends, I like our diversity, I like Nigeria. I may not be a Nigerian but I would answer the question the same way,” Symington said.

In the same spirit, prominent Yoruba leaders, a few days ago gathered in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, at a retreat organised by Yoruba Leadership and Peace Initiative and called on the federal government to commence the process of implementing the report of the 2014 national conference. They emphasised the unity of the Yoruba people and maintained that Nigeria was overdue for restructuring.

They urged the federal government and the National Assembly to ensure that the process of reviewing the constitution took place before the 2019 general election.

Former Deputy National Chairman, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Bode George, warned that the mistakes of the past should not be repeated to truncate the unity of Yoruba. He said that the thoughts of Chief Obafemi Awolowo, former Premier of the defunct Western Region, should be revisited in administering South-west states.

“I have read Awolowo’s methodology in education, health, politics and others, if it is utilised by any governor in the region, it will help in managing the states.”

Former governor of Ogun State, Otunba Gbenga Daniel, who described the report of the 2014 confab as “a good document” urged the federal government to begin the process of restructuring the country.

Convener of the retreat, Chief Deji Osinbogun, said Nigerians must come together to agree on the modalities for restructuring the polity.

He said that the National Political Reform Conference convened in 2005 by former President Olusegun Obasanjo did not douse the agitation for restructuring.

Generally, there is something a majority of the people appears to have come to terms with and it is the fact that the current structure is inherently defective and can no longer address the inadequacies of the various tendencies that make up Nigeria. Therefore, whether it is a reconsideration of the 2014 conference report or a fresh confab is convoked, what is not missing is that Nigerians must unanimously agree on the way forward as a people, without any section boasting undue advantage over another.

The conference recommended the Modified Presidential System, a home-made model of government that effectively combines the presidential and parliamentary systems of government. The president shall pick the vice president from the Legislature and should select not more than 18 ministers from the six geo -political zones and not more than 30% of his ministers from outside the Legislature.

Legislature

The conference proposed a Bi-cameral legislature, but noted that members should serve on part-time basis

Power Sharing/Rotation

The conference recommended that the presidential power should rotate between the North and the South and among the six geo-political zones while the governorship will rotate among the three senatorial districts in a state.

Local Government

Local Governments, the conference recommended, will no longer be the third tier of government. The federal and states are now to be the only tiers of government. States can now create as many local governments they want. The Joint State/ Local Government Account be scrapped and in its place the establishment of a State RMAFC with representatives of LG and a Chairman nominated by the Governor.

Immunity Clause

One of the critical issues discussed is the immunity clause and it was agreed that it should be removed if the offences attract criminal charges to encourage accountability by those managing the economy.

Independent Candidacy

To open up the political space, the conference recommended that every Nigerian who meets the specified condition in the Electoral Act should be free to contest elections as an independent candidate.

Governance

The creation of the office of the Accountant General (Director-General) of the Federation as a distinct and separate office from the Office of the Accountant General of the Federal Government was recommended. The Office of the Accountant General of the Federation shall oversee the accruals of revenue into and disbursement from the Federation Account as and when due; and shall administer these funds as required by the Constitution, while the office of the Accountant General of the Federal Government shall oversee the accounts of the Federal Government, the conference inferred.

Anti-corruption

The conference proposed Special Courts to handle corruption cases in the light of undue prolongation in the trials and prosecution of corruption cases in the regular courts.

Land Tenure Act

The Land Tenure Act, according to the conference, should remain in the Constitution but be amended to take care of certain concerns, particularly on compensation in Section 29 (4) of the Act to read “land owners should determine the price and value of their land based on open market value”.

National Anthem

The conference also proposed the re-introduction of the old National Anthem

Religion

The late Dr. Dora Akunyili and Senator Jubril Aminu at the conference

The Conference recommended that would no longer be any government sponsorship of Christian and Muslim pilgrimages to the holy lands. It also resolved that churches and mosques should begin to pay tax to government.

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CICERO/ENCOUNTER

Akere: The Solutions to Corruption in Africa are Education, Healthcare and Justice When Cameroun ‘won’ the title of the most corrupt country as rated by Transparency International, many didn’t find it funny because occupying the top position two years consecutively did a lot of harm. In the quest for answers and solutions many clumsy advocates of the incumbent government in the process complicated matters not before Muna Tadeng Akere, an erudite Pan African lawyer, stepped in. He took time out as the lead speaker of the conference organised by the presidency on “combating Illicit financial flows” at the Banquet Hall of Aso Rock to talk with Stanley Nkwazema about Africa’s biggest problem, affinity with Nigeria and the rare privilege of being the first black child born in a whites only hospital, Park Lane Hospital in Enugu, Nigeria. Excerpts:

W

hy are you in Nigeria?

As you may have known, illicit financial flows are serious problems and handicap to Africa. Five years ago, African Ministers of Finance and Economy met. It was organised by the ECA. They looked at our continent and thought that a lot of resources are leaving our continent. The figure is put between $60 - $80 billion US Dollars a year.

That is two to three times the amount of development aid we get from abroad; really Africa is a net creditor.

To be honest, all these funds that are leaving illegally, one way we can make the much needed change, to make sure that we get to this millennium development goals is to control illicit financial flows. I was on the High Level Panel led by the immediate past President of South Africa Thabo Mbeki, created by the Council of Ministers, were we mandated to continue working by the Assembly of Heads of States. As a member of the panel, I am honoured to be in Nigeria Illicit financial flow is not a one-way traffic, is it?

We have been looking at all the aspects of illicit financial flow into and out of Africa. We wrote the report under the chairmanship of Mbeki, we travelled all over Europe, the EU parliament, United States, White House and Treasury department, World Customs Union, to make sure it was a rounded picture. We picked countries in Africa that were typical and had boisterous Extractive Industry, mining, oil. Those were good examples on what they did right. We did work to make sure that our report was holistic. You cannot look at a report from only where the money is leaving without looking at where the money is coming from. That is why we chose the slogan ‘Track It, Stop it and Get it’ But why the deep interest in financial flows?

About 20 years ago, Transparency International ranked my country Cameroun as the most corrupt country in the World. Then I was the President of Cameroun Bar Association and there was so much outrage in Cameroun. Transparency International was insulted. I was intrigued about the classification. I called the founder of TI, Dr. Peter Eigen to come and explain to us the criteria he used. How can you name a country as being the most corrupt? He accepted and I organised a conference on Money Laundering and Corruption. When he was leaving, he appointed me to start the first chapter in Cameroun. That really captured my interest. As a lawyer in active practice, I never really understood the corrosive effect of corruption. At that point most African countries were in denial.

You cannot talk about corruption because nobody saw this. That really caught my fancy.

If there is something that affects the poorest of the poor, it is corruption. There are three sectors that I consider key in a country. It is Biblical. As a Christian, Jesus taught. That is education. He healed. That is health and he judged. That is justice. These three parts capture the poorest of the poor.

The least the poorest and the weakest any country wants is fair justice, health taken care of.

Regardless of his status there can be a better future for his child with education. These sectors can be ruined by corruption, by the fact that those who have the money ensure that their own siblings got better, school, and of course if they have cases,

When I used to go to Ghana, my friends will ask me to bring soap and things like that. Rawlings came and in a most drastic manner did what he did. Most Ghanaians’ agree that there are two turning points in the history of Ghana; Nkrumah and Rawlings.

If we can solve the problem of corruption in our country, it will become magical. I think the giant that your country is and the steps it is taking, regardless, shows that salvation is in the private sector. If you allow government to drive everything, then we will keep on wallowing in poverty. When the private sectors drive it, people will not only make profit, their companies survive to make sure that they offer services, which they are paid for. If the private sector is genuinely empowered, I think we have a chance.

Akere...our president should not contest next year’s election

they have all the lawyers. The poorest of the poor are left behind.

If a country can make sure that it solves that problem, there is a chance. There was a statement the present Pope Francis made in Brazil; you judge a country by the way it treats the poorest.

That attracted my attention. From then, I became the coordinator for the African Chapter of Transparency International. Afterwards, I got elected to the Board of Directors of T I. One year after, I was elected Vice Chair and was there for nine years, completing my three terms.

Now, I have been involved in the African Union, because I was the President of Pan African Lawyers Union. They created the economic and Financial Council of the African Union, which I was considered a civil society parliament of the AU. I went in from the Pan African lawyers Union as a representative at the ECOSOC. The Nobel Laureate, Wangari Maathai became the first chairperson of ECOSOC. She did it for three years before we went on an election process where I became the first elected President of ECOSOC. While I was doing this, the Prime Minister of Ethiopia, Menes Zenawi, who was then the Chairperson of the African Union Peer review Mechanism proposed me to become a member of the eminent person’s panel, then a Nigerian I admire and respect so much, Dr. Adebayo Adedeji was the chair and I was brought in. I was able to be the Lead Head to review Sierra Leone, Tanzania, and presented the reports to the Heads of state in Ethiopia. I also did the audit under the leadership of Adedeji. All my work has been in Governance, transparency and fight against corruption and working with EITI. I admire what Nigeria did by pushing EITI to NEITI. Even now, the former President of AfDB, Dr. Kabaruki invited me to be the first sanctions Commissioner of the AfDB. I was honoured by the current President, Dr. Adewumi Adesina.

He invited me to do a second term. It has to do with adjudicating on matters that have to do with fraud in the contracts financed by AfDB. When I was invited on the High Level Panel on illicit financial flows, Thabo Mbeki called my attention to how much money that is leaving our continent and how much could be done with it. It was mind-boggling.

What has the experience been like travelling round Africa?

The most amazing things about our continent Africa is that we Africans – Nigerians, Cameroonians, Ivorian, South Africans etc know exactly what is wrong. We know what is wrong and what is right but there is a minority that is driven by greed and that is the most corrosive force we have on the continent, to the point where they have almost dehumanised our citizens to the point they don’t even care about what happens.

I was travelling from Cameroun to Ivory Coast via Nigeria and was in transit at the airport in Lagos and I saw two Nigerians arguing after a Governor was caught in London and tried. I was just listening and after all, his friend just looked at him and said “Oga your money loss?”

To me that really betrayed how far these guys have driven us, when a citizen is not concerned or bothered by the fact that money is stolen in his country, to a point where he doesn’t feel that money in the state coffers belong to us all. There are civil servants that believe the budget of their ministry is theirs to share with their cronies and family members. That collective spirit is the bad aspect.

It goes through education and civics and the desperation of Africans in seeing to the rise of all manner of churches that feel salvation is to give 10 per cent of whatever you collect or by some kind magic our lot will improve for the better. If there is one thing we have to fight in our continent it is greed. We like deceiving ourselves with structures and commissions, organisations and conferences.

It’s almost masturbating an effect, because we just feel good but we know that as soon as we leave there, there will be a commission to be drawn by our friends.

Some forms of democracy seem to have made matters worse, because the amount of money that you need to run and be elected makes you indebted to a few people to the point that it is almost borne into the process that you can do what you want and citizens are almost convinced that they will come back to roost after all the lofty speeches. They will come back and realise that is how the machine moves.

In Cameroun, it is paining the country and everybody is seeing; it has to come to a point where everybody will say you know we have to stop this. You know what General John Jerry Rawlings did in Ghana? It got so bad in Ghana you couldn’t get a bar of soap, you couldn’t get toothpaste. At some point, rice was a problem.

What can you make of corruption and sit tight leadership?

First, Africans think so much about chiefs and chiefs don’t have terms and tenure of leadership.

They can easily accommodate those who sit there for long, so long as they are benevolent. But when a country is suffering and the generation gap between those who govern and those governed starts increasing, then there is a problem. In my own country, the President is 84 years and has been there for more than 34 years. It is normal that the gentleman, who is 35, 28 and 35 years, struggles to find relevance in what the President is saying.

Many years ago, over 50 when I was in secondary school doing my O’levels, I was told that you; the youths are the future of tomorrow.

Here I am in my 60s and those who made that speech or statement to me are still there. So, I don’t know which youth they were talking about? May be, those who will come after me! I think you are right; it is government that rotates through democratic means, not only because it is democracy but it is relevant to those ruling to be thinking as those they rule.

Look at the country France, the quantum change in that country is just because the youths found that these older guys were no longer relevant, so they go with the guy, who is 39 years old. Ireland just elected a guy who is 38 years old.

He is not only that but a mixed Indian and Irish heritage, which really a mark of the times is. The World is going global, whether they want it or not. In my country, over 70 per cent of the citizens are 30 years and under. The average of those governing is over 50 years.

Cameroun is a particular example and therefore it is not difficult to understand countries like Zimbabwe. The thing in those countries is that the leaders, when they get to a certain point, they depend on others, who accompany them. They create an oligarchy that captures the country to the detriment of the rest. Should we limit terms or not, may be to force people to understand that there must be an institution of change? That is the only way you can guarantee that you don’t have sit-tight leaders, who feel they are God’s gift to man.

That is the only way of making sure there is a change. I think the guiding factor should still be that those, who govern have the welfare of the people at heart. In Europe, there are limitations and when you get old, then, the guys let you go. Or when they feel you have to go. Look at the recently concluded polls in England, the Prime Minister, who had a comfortable majority dropped and labour came up. I think that in our democracy, the issue of tenure is a good thing.

(See the concluding part on www.thisdaylive.com)

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SUNDAYINTERVIEW LAI MOHAMMED

Photos Etop Ukutt

It’s Irresponsible to Be Reckless on the President’s Health Status

65-year-old Alhaji Lai Mohammed is the Minister of Information and Culture. A 1975 graduate of French from Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Mohammed later got his law degrees from the University of Lagos, after which he co-founded the legal firm of Edu and Mohammed as a senior partner in 1989. With the return to democracy in 1999, Mohammed served as Chief of Staff to former Governor Bola Ahmed Tinubu of Lagos State. In 2003, he aspired to be governor of KwaraStateontheplatformoftheAllianceforDemocracy(AD),whereheemergedastheparty’sgovernorshipcandidate.

WithhisunsuccessfulrunfortheKwaragovernorshipseat,hebecameactivelyinvolvedinpartypoliticsatthenationallevel.

Andforoveradecade,MohammedwasthevoiceoftheNigerianopposition,asspokesmanoftheActionCongress,Action CongressofNigeriaandtheAllProgressiveCongress-whichweretheleadingoppositionpartiesatvarioustimes.HisemergenceasspokesmanoftheAPC-ledFederalGovernmentwasthusseenasanaturaltransitionfrombeingthemouthpiece oftheoppositiontothatofgovernment. InthisInterviewwithTokunbo Adedoja,Mohammedshareshisexperienceoperatingonthetwodifferentturfs.HealsospeaksonseveralotherissuesincludingthecontroversyoverthehealthofPresident MuhammaduBuhari,whytherearenodailyupdatesonthePresident’sstateofhealth,andontwoyearsofAPC-ledFederal Government,placingitsscorecardagainstthechallengesinheritedfromthepreviousadministration.Excerpts:

R

ecently, the APC-led federal government marked two years in power. It’s a government that rose to power on the strength of its promise to bring about change that will impact the lives of the people positively.

This government has been in power for two years now but many Nigerians believe they are worse off than they were under the PDP government, especially in terms of cost of living. How would

you react to that?

The truth of the matter is that it is impossible to know what situation we would have been today if APC had not come to power.

But I can assure you that if it had been business as usual and APC had not come to power, it would probably have been much worse because we met an economy that was on the brink of total collapse.

And what are the indices of an economy that is on the brink of collapse? An economy where there is no infrastructure, an economy where there is no savings to fall back on, an economy which is

built around one single product, an economy where corruption was rampant, where there was no accountability, where there was impunity and where there was no discipline; an economy that puts more emphasis on consumption than production. This was the economy we inherited.

That we are in recession, it was bound to happen, the indices were there clearly. An economy where the price of the single most important commodity crashed from about $114 to under $50. So,

Continued on Pg. 74

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SUNDAY INTERVIEW ‘If APC Had Not Come to Power, Nigeria’s Situation Would Have Been Worse.’ .. Cont’d from Pg. 73 given that scenario whoever came into government will need to do a yeoman’s job to pull that economy out. And like I said this morning on another programme, it is like if a house is gutted by fire and people there escaped, you need to bring down the whole house because even standing there (in that state) it can be a danger to the inhabitants and to the neighbours. You need to bring down the whole house and then start rebuilding it from scratch. And that was exactly what we did. So, some of the hardship, including high cost of living, is a result of this.

But we are not lamenting, we’re not a government of lamentation.

We are a government that can actually say, two years on what have we achieved? And we have a scorecard that government should be proud of. For instance, in the first quarter of 2016, 29 sub-sectors of the economy were under recession. But today, we have almost halved that, only 16 of those sub sectors of the economy are still under recession and we’re working on them. In the first quarter of 2016, the manufacturing sector recorded a negative growth of seven per cent, by the first quarter of 2017 the same sector has got a positive growth of 1.36 per cent. To show that the emphasis we have put on infrastructure, agriculture and mining is working, and that is why today mining is growing at seven per cent, agriculture is growing at 4.1 per cent. The truth of the matter is that we needed to restructure the economy in a manner that it will no longer depend on one product and when you look at what we’ve done in the last two years, especially in the last budget cycle, we’ve done what has never been done in the history of the country before.

Look at the 2016 budget, which was expansionary on its own, we devoted 30 per cent to infrastructure, into capital projects alone; the highest before then was 16 per cent, and in the 2016 budget cycle we released N1.2 trillion for capital projects. The only way that you can diversify your economy is by investing in infrastructure; today as I speak with you, construction of roads are going on all over Nigeria and for you to see the difference between what we did and what was been done before, I will just give you some figures. In 2015, the federal government spent N18 billion on fixing roads all over Nigeria, in the 2016/17 budget cycle, we spent N260 billion on roads. In power, in 2015, the government only spent N5 billion on that sector, this year we have spent N99 billion on the sector. In 2015, in housing, it was only N1.8 billion that was spent in that sector, this year we have spent N70 billion on it. To show our singular commitment to infrastructure we have awarded the contract and started work on the standard gauge of the railway between Lagos and Ibadan. Not only awarding the contract, we have started work, in earnest, talking to General Electric that is leading a consortium to manage the 3500 narrow gauge rail line from Lagos to Kano, so that we can start using them for transporting goods and services and passengers, and in line with the agreement GE is going to supply 20 locomotives and 500 wagons and coaches. Further to showing our commitment to infrastructure, we have signed 13 Power Purchase Agreements (PPA) with 13 solar power companies, which is going to add another 1000MW of power to the national grid. We have intervened in the liquidity problem which has been affecting the industry, where the gas producer are not being paid and where they’re not being paid, the generating companies cannot generate power and that was why we put in place the payment assurance programme whereby we guarantee that if you supply gas we will guarantee your payment; and we’ve put aside N401 billion for this.

And, of course, we have the Energy Sector Plan which has been endorsed by the World Bank. In addition the Ministry of Water Resources is trying to use three dams to get us another 1000MW of power. The NNPC is also trying to get us 2500MW of power.

People must understand that with the power situation we met on ground was abysmal. On 29th of May 2015, the entire generation was 2690MW, by February 2016 we had grown this figure to 5040MW before the unfortunate militant actions that destroyed the Forcados export line and other lines. As we speak today, in that area, over 1000MW has been decommissioned, so we have to look elsewhere to open up and as we speak today, we are between 3800 and 4000MW of power.

In agriculture, between the Anchor Borrowers Programme of the CBN and the Agric Ministry, we’ve been able to bring about a rice revolution and a good example was the collaboration between Lagos State and Kebbi State which resulted in the Lakeb Rice Project. Today as we speak, yield per hectare has increased from two tonnes to seven tonnes because of the involvement of the Ministry of Agriculture. We’ve been able to eliminate subsidy in the fertiliser project because what we do now is, we get discounted phosphate from Morocco, we mix it with local urea and by that we’re saving 200millions of dollars in foreign exchange and about

N60billion in budgetary provision; plus the fact that we’ve been able to cut down about 30 per cent in the cost of fertilisers to farmers.

This is in addition to the rice mills, palm oil mills that the federal government has made available.

So, really, when people say the cost of living has gone up, it is true.

It is not as if we’re folding our hands, it is precisely because we know that the prices of things has gone up that we embarked on one of the most ambitious programmes which is the Special Intervention Programme through which we have been able to employ 200,000 unemployed graduates; been able to provide, under our home grown school feeding programme, we’re now feeding over 1100 pupils in over nine states all over Nigeria and that is going to increase. We have served free meals in the process, we’ve employed 12,000 cooks in the process and under our conditional cash transfer to the most critical vulnerable Nigerians, today over 27,000 Nigerians received stipends of N25,000 every month. Through our government entrepreneur programme, we’ve given out 57,000 interest free loans to market women, men and artisans.

So, yes it is true that the cost of living has gone up but it was bound to happen and we are not folding our hands, we are doing everything possible to bring it down. But until you diversify your economy you can’t bring it down; and we are looking at how we can intervene, probably in the area of transportation; subsidized transportation.

Nigerians have forgotten that before now, there used to be subsidy in petroleum products and trillions of naira used to be spent on that, which is now being used in other areas. They have forgotten too that whenever we’re approaching Christmas, Sallah or Easter, there will be long queues at petrol stations, all of that have disappeared.

So these are some of the things that government is doing and I can assure you that gradually the cost of living shall be brought down.

Many believe that had the APC government hit the ground running, even though we had a drop in the price of oil, we wouldn’t have been in this recession; they point to the fact that it took about five to six months to even constitute the cabinet and that about 2000 political appointments, board appointments and other appointments have not been made midway into the administration’s tenure. Just before the second anniversary, the government came out with the blueprint

I can assure you that if it had been business as usual and APC had not come to power, it would probably have been much worse because we met an economy that was on the brink of total collapse. And what are the indices of an economy that is on the brink of collapse? An economy where there is no infrastructure, an economy where there is no savings to fall back on, an economy which is built around one single product, an economy where corruption was rampant, where there was no accountability, where there was impunity and where there was no discipline; an economy that puts more emphasis on consumption than production. This was the economy we inherited. That we are in recession, it was bound to happen, the indices were there clearly

to revive the economy, why did it take so long? Also, the APC led federal government has continued to bemoan the evils of the past. Isn’t two years enough to forget the woes of the past and concentrate on the future?

It is unfortunate that people have mindset and mindsets are difficult to change. If we spent two years bemoaning the past we will not achieve what I have rolled out for you right now. And please mark what you said about it, the economic recovery plan and growth plan is not something that we just did, no. It was what we built on sustainable programme of 2015 and the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan is not for this year, it is for 2017 to 2020. It is like, this is our economic blueprint and our objectives are three things.

One, get out of recession; two, invest in Nigerians; and three, build a sustainable economy; which is hinged on five pillars: one, correcting the micro-economic environment, ensuring sufficiency in transportation infrastructure, ensuring sufficiency in food and agriculture, ensuring sufficiency in energy and power and finally, ensuring that a conducive environment for medium, small and micro businesses is achieved because the sector contributes 50 per cent to our GDP. Now coming back to our first question, it is not true that if cabinet had been immediately constituted there would have been no recession. The indices were clearly there. Recession was bound to happen. I mean, what do you do when you have an economy that is built on one and one product alone and the product price crashes from $114 to $40? (cuts in) May be it wouldn’t have lasted for this long.

No. I don’t think so; I disagree with you. Yes, people say it took so long to form the cabinet but they forgot two important things; APC itself was a product of a merger of political parties and between that merger and the election was under eighteen months. So, that was a big challenge on the hands of everybody; it was not like when I was in ACN, we had the structure, we know everybody, you know that after you won the elections you know who to reward and who not to reward. Now we have about four political parties: ANPP, part of PDP, ACN, CPC and APGA which is not easy.

Secondly, which is very important; this is a government in opposition, for the first time coming to power. Now we didn’t have the luxury that the Obasanjo administration had in 1999 when elections were completed in January 1999 and he didn’t assume office until May. And again, in 2003, it was the same government, so the issue of constituting cabinet was much easier. Here, we were dealing with two very new and strange phenomena at the same time, but for anybody to say that recession wouldn’t have happened or lasted that long is not correct. Look at all the indices.

One of the areas this administration said it had done so well was in the fight against corruption, yet there are views that it is one sided and that it was targeted at the members of the leading opposition party while those sympathetic to the ruling party are left to go free. There are also criticisms that instead of corruption cases being tried in the law courts most are tried in the media. How would you react to this?

See, he that does not have a wife cannot lose his in-law. Those that are saying that the anti corruption fight is against one party have forgotten that one political party had access to public funds, had access to public patronage for 16 unbroken years, therefore if you are fighting corruption, they are going to be the first people to come and answer for their stewardship. That was why I said if you were never married you cannot come and say your in-law is late. You cannot come and say you want to probe Lai Muhammed because Lai Muhammed was in opposition for 16 years, he never held any

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SUNDAY INTERVIEW ‘Why It Took Buhari So Long to Constitute His Cabinet.’ .

Cont’d from Pg. 74

political office. How are you going to probe me? That is the truth of the matter. If you want to start a probe today, a person who had no access to power, who had no access to public office, you can’t bring him in.

Two, we want anybody that is being probed by this government today to come and say I am innocent, I am only being persecuted.

We’ve not had one. On the contrary they have been giving all kinds of flimsy excuses. (cuts in)They’ve been pleading not guilty in the law courts Of course, if they pleaded guilty they will go to jail straight away.

And we’re saying that these are the facts, they were never manufactured. Thirdly, it is not correct to say those who have been accused of corruption, once they move over to the APC they are forgiven their sins.. That is not true. They should tell me just one example of anybody who has a case in court and that case has been withdrawn just because he has moved over to APC; It is what I call insinuations, it’s not true.

Then, again, anybody that wants to fight corruption must be ready to see corruption fight back. In the last two years of anti-corruption, we’ve seen corruption fighting back very vigorously and viciously because a lot of money is still out there; we’ve seen cases of when we are fighting corruption we went to somebody’s house and almost $10 million was found in a refrigerator when they got there. We’ve discovered another $146 million in another account which had no owner. Within two months of our whistle blower policy, we’ve been able to retrieve N8billion, $160 million. I mean these are not things that we are imagining or that we are fabricating.

You talked about what you called trial by media; what is called trial by media? If I go to your house today and I find $10 million in your fridge, won’t the media cover it? We don’t do media trial, what happens is that when things happen, the media will have to report it. Those are part of the half truths and outright falsehoods that are being bandied out, and it is always easier when you are out there to bandy these things, you don’t have to substantiate them, you just throw them in the air. But let anybody come and tell me today that X was charged to court for corruption and he decamped to APC and the Federal Government withdrew all the charges, then I will be able to respond.

Apart from the military era, there are views that this present government has exhibited high-level of impunity in terms of disobedience to court orders. I will give two examples, the Shiite leader, Sheikh El Zakzaky, and former NSA, Col Ibrahim Dasuki (rtd), who are being held despite court orders that they should be released. Even though government has a right to appeal or ask for stay of execution, until that is granted, that order stands. Why has the government been flouting court orders affecting this two personalities?

Every government in the world will at a point in time balance individual freedom with national security. Let me take the first case of El Zakzaky. I think people are just being mischievous; people have expressed a lot of ignorance in respect of El Zakzaky. Yes, El Zakzaky has not been released but where is El Zakzaky today? Is he in prison custody? Is he in police custody? No. He is in a house provided by government with his family. (cuts in) Against his consent?

Why? It is because the court order said we must release him within 45 days, rebuild his house and there is nobody today within Kaduna State or anywhere else that wants to accept El Zakzaky as a neighbour. So who do you release him to? For him to be killed?

So, he is in protective custody with his family and this is one thing people don’t say. Like I said, at a point in time, a government will be faced with this kind of dilemma, so how much rule of law do you want to balance against national security? In the case of Dasuki, Dasuki received two transfers in one day totalling $1.2 billion and he has refused to say where that money was sent to, who was given that money and the government said, where is that money? As we speak today he has refused to tell. Now, $1.2 billion is a lot of money.

Who can guarantee that if he is released today he will not abscond?

And with $1.2 billion at his disposal, is any government safe? It is good when people start talking about human rights and rule of law, but as a government, that is responsible for territorial integrity of this country, at times you have to take the heat because you want to ask yourself, if such an accused person is released and he disappears, and this is a country that we are still battling with terrorism, this is a country that we’re still battling with insurgency, and he links up with other enemies of government with an arsenal of $1.2 billion, would the people not blame us? So, I think these are high profile cases. On the surface it appears like a government that violates rule of law, but in reality it is a dilemma for government because we must balance individual freedom with national security. But I will say overall that we’re not a government of impunity How long will this last?

Like I said, any government in the world will at a time be faced with this kind of dilemma, and we do not know, I won’t say we don’t know how long it will last or how long it will take to release him, but you see, frankly speaking, it is a situation that is being reviewed daily. I just hope we will get to a situation where we will be able to balance individual freedom with national security.

There are other things that agitate people’s minds. The president nominated the headship of EFCC and another agency of the executive wrote to the parliament that the decision taken by the president was wrong, that the person that was nominated was not fit and proper to be made to head of that organisation. Not once, but twice, thereby stalling the process of what ordinarily should have been a smooth consideration. That is not even the problem; the president

was expected to either call that agency of government to order and say this is my nominee, so stop writing report on him, or to withdraw the nomination and say based on this damning report I am dropping you. But nothing of such happened and it has created an impression that the president has lost control of his government. How would you react to this as the spokesman of the government?

You talk as if we are not in this country. You see, it is the responsibility of the Executive (arm of government) to nominate and it is that of the Legislative arm to confirm but the fact that I have sent your name once, twice, it does not mean I cannot send your name three or four times. May his soul rest in peace, the late former Minister of Aviation, Babalola Borishade, his name was presented three or four times because this is a democracy, it is a collaboration between two arms of government; so Mr. President has the prerogative to say let me see whether I can convince them and Mr. President has confidence in his nominee and that is why he is returning the nomination, because Mr. President has confidence and trust in his nominee. He probably feels there has been some misunderstanding and that is why he is re-nominating him; and like I said we saw what happened when former President Obasanjo nominated late Borishade.

In the case of Aborishade it was because there was an issue between the president and the parliament, they didn’t want Aborishade. In this particular case, it is what I will call inter agency issue, an Executive agency wrote faulting the nomination made by the president; that is the point I am making, and the Senate based its decision on the letter.

Mr. President probably has information that even an agency may not have.

But he should have called the agency to order Do you know if he has done that? As Mr. President, you have access to information that even some of the agencies don’t have. You don’t even know the content of that letter, the president probably understands it better and said, okay, I have seen your letter but I am still going to nominate this person.

This administration has done well in the area of fighting terrorism and tackling insurgency in the North East, we saw that the nation was moving towards the precipice just before the election. But another front has also opened up in the form of herdsmen versus farmers, and it is killing people daily and displacing communities and rendering people jobless. It has also led to high cost of living because farmers are afraid to go to farm and prices of food stuffs have gone up. Many do not believe this government has a clue on how to solve the problem. We have had about grazing routes, we have heard about ranching, but none has been properly articulated into a policy statement. Does this government have a clue on how to solve herdsmen/farmers clashes?

The issue of herdsman and farmers is not the responsibility of the federal government alone, it is the responsibility of the local, state and federal government and the three tiers of government must work together to find a solution to it. I am glad to say that many states today have seen that this is largely a local problem and they are finding their solutions to it.

Edo State for instance have come out with a programme of finding a grazing territory whereby water and grass will be provided for

the cattle and any herdsman found anywhere outside the grazing areas, we will now know that these are marauders. Kaduna State has also come out with a combination of both grazing land and ranch; because at the end of the day it is about two communities that used to live together in peace and harmony then what went wrong went wrong? Oyo State too has come up with a very good formula; we regret the needless deaths but I can assure Nigerians that everything is being done to return things to normalcy. We recognise it as a problem and we are working round the clock to find a solution to it.

And then there is also the international angle to this problem with the free movement of people within the West Africa sub region as a result of the ECOWAS protocol. You cannot even tell the difference between the herdsmen from Cameroun, Niger or Senegal and those from Nigeria, and these are issues that we are going to address both at the African Union and ECOWAS level.

The release of Chibok Girls is another area where this administration has done well. Kids were taken away under a past administration, but this government has rescued almost half of the girls and they are undergoing the process of rehabilitation. Not only the family, the whole world is happy and they are hoping that the rest would be rescued. But then, there are also other people that were abducted, women, children and men that were liberated when this government dislodged Boko Haram fighters from Sambisa Forest but nothing has been heard about them. Is government catering for them, in terms of rehabilitation, like the Chibok Girls?

Tokunbo, I am happy that you raised this issue, you are one of the few journalists that have raised this issue and I am happy that you did, because besides the 106 girls that have been freed, we’ve been able to free more than 10,000 children, women and elderly people from the captivity and daily we are getting more and more people, but nobody speaks about it. And every day we are working on rehabilitating them, we provide schools, we provide healthcare services for them, we’re rebuilding towns. The truth of the matter is that people fail to appreciate the enormity and the scale of carnage that went on during the six years of Boko Haram and that it is not a crisis that affects only Nigeria; as a matter of fact about seven countries in the Lake Chad basin are affected so what Nigeria is grappling with today is a humanitarian crisis of global proportion and it is to the credit of this government and the state governments involved that they have been able to address these issues frontally.

So when we even ask for international support, it is because it is not a problem that is limited to Nigeria alone. Chadians, Nigeriens, Cameroonians, many of them are all in our IDP camps; many of them are also victims. We are talking of an area that encompasses almost 20 million people from seven countries and daily we’re getting more and more people and as we are get more and more captives out, so also is the burden of how to resettle and rehabilitate them and this is what the government is facing squarely.

Are you getting the required assistance from international agencies?

We’re getting assistance and I must say the international donors are doing great but we need better coordination among the international donors, the Ministry of Budget and National Planning is doing a yeoman’s job trying to get a better coordination among the international donors.

(See the concluding part on www.thisdaylive.com)

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PERSPECTIVE/TRIBUTE

Lulu Briggs: Celebrating God’s Faithfulness at 87 Kolawole Igandan

right. After a period of treatment, the reality dawned on me when we went back to the hospital “We went to the Intensive Care Unit of the hospital and I was told to gather my family together, I was told that there was nothing they could do. They told me that they couldn’t give me any assurance that he would get well and, that, I should just go home and bring his family the next morning at 10am, and I looked beyond the doctor who obviously had no good news for me and I talked to God. “We spent about four months in the hospital. There was heavy rejoicing the day they removed the ventilator from him and allowed him to breath by himself. That was when a test

run was carried out by the doctors to see if he could breath for six hours. He breathed for six good hours, and, eventually for a longer period and, then, the ventilator was removed.

“My husband kept improving until the day he was discharged, then we came home. I discovered that my husband lost absolutely nothing; his stubbornness is still there, his weight is still there, he never forgot how to shake hands and to snap his fingers at it and he does it till today. Of course, he recognises everyone and during the ceremony of thanksgiving and the night of adoration, he saw his old friends and they bantered and exchanged pleasantries. “l am a happy woman, I love my husband and I will rather stay with him no matter what it cost and no matter what I have to do to keep him here with me, because I believe the day God will call him, he will tell me first, there will be no struggle or stress. It will be peaceful”.

Her speech drew thunderous applause from the guests who were enthralled by her confidence and loyalty. A legal practitioner who doubles as the Director of Pro of the OB Lulu Briggs Foundation, Mr. Miebaka Nabiebu, further described the celebrant’s wife as the “secret weapon” of the revered Kalabari business man “Mrs Seinye Lulu Briggs has shouldered an enormous burden and privilege with dignity, iron heart, and strength. She is the right hand of OB Lulu Briggs and, in fact, his secret weapon.

In his remarks. Venerable Amaechi Dubem Okwuosa, a Special Adviser on Agriculture, Tourism, Training and Methodology to the Anambra State Governor, Mr Willie Obiano, noted that the celebrant had made an enduring impact on his people, hence, the zeal and determination to have him “live at all cost “He has assisted quite a lot of people and there is no one that comes close to him that he never assisted. I learnt from him to put smiles on the faces of people at the earliest opportunity. I am a testimony of his goodnes. He has been somebody in my life that there will not be two of them”.

Okwuosa also showered encomiums on the celebrant’s wife, Seinye, describing her as transparent, honest, and highly intelligent “In every situation, she waited upon the lord for direction and her courage has never failed her. She is equally a great philanthropist. Her care and love for her husband is only second to her love for God” General Alani Akinrinade, rtd, also noted that the celebrant is an upright man whose act of kindness to humanity is worthy of emulation.

“God must have listened to the voice of the people whose lives he has affected positively and gave him a chance to live again. I have known him for several years, so when I got this invitation to honor him, I seized it because he is a man that is worthy to be celebrated. His wife must be commended for her resilience, loyalty and diligence during their travails.”

––Igandan is a Lagos based journalist

The Manager, Operations, Environment Health and Safety, BATN, West Africa Area, Mr. Jide King, while addressing journalists on the company’s EHS system, noted that the company has adopted a number of strategies in trying to close the accident gap to zero. This, he said, underscores why the company takes risk assessment seriously and mandates employees to report near misses and accidents. He remarked that the company enjoins employees to see health and safety as everybody’s responsibility.

BATN, through its Environment, Health and Safety (EHS) management system, ensures that none of its employees are exposed to any of the major cause of occupational health hazards. The firm seeks to proactively prevent work-related illness by recognising hazards, assessing the risks and applying appropriate controls. For this reason, it has two on-site clinics that provide health services for factory workers in Ibadan and Zaria. Moreover, there is comprehensive medical insurance service for its employees and their immediate families all over Nigeria. It also provides workplace health education programmes for its employees.

The company has shown its commitment to healthy and safe work environments, through its partnership with the fire service to ensure that workers are exposed to the best practices in safety at work spaces. Its target is zero accident(s) in all area of its operations, which it set to achieve through: proper machine guarding, use of personal protective equipment where necessary, regular training on the use and operating principles of all plants and equipments, employment of the best technical staff to man all its operations, regular fire drills, and provision of first aid instruction.

In recognition of its commitment to safe workplace standards, the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), South West Zone, in March 2016 honoured the company with the award of ‘Best Kept Industrial Premises.’

Not only does the firm care about the wellbeing of its staff. It is also concerned about its external stakeholders such as contracted farmers, and tobacco farmers/workers, by ensuring that occupational health risks are drastically reduced.

It has manifestly demonstrated this in the handling of the Green Tobacco Sickness (GTS), a type of nicotine poisoning caused when nicotine is absorbed through the skin from wet tobacco leaves, otherwise known as Green Leaf Syndrome, a common health hazard that tobacco farmers are exposed to.

The disease is a real risk to farmers and their workers if they harvest tobacco when it is wet. There is no credible evidence to indicate that GTS can have long-term effects; and appropriate farming practices, including the use of protective clothing and avoiding contact with the tobacco plant when it is wet, can effectively manage the risk.

Moreover, tobacco curing, a carefully controlled process used to achieve the texture, colour and overall quality of a specific tobacco type, is a farm practice not only known for environmental impact but also health implications for farmers.

The process involves the use of wood as fuel to generate heat.

The company is also encouraging some of its contracted farmers to process (cure) their tobacco with appropriate, locally available alternative fuels. These include gas, sawdust, coal, candlenut shells or liquid petroleum gas, as well as coffee or rice paddy husks. Since all fuels have environmental impacts, the company is also evaluating ways to minimise fuel consumption, for example by using innovative designs for curing barns. Although, not all tobacco farmers need wood for their operations, where they do BATN encourages them to source it from woodlands grown for fuel supply purposes and to plant trees to supply their own needs. The trees are usually grown alongside tobacco farms as an environmentally sustainable crop.

Furthermore, the company is constantly researching on ways of preserving natural forests and reducing the environmental impact of tobacco farming activities, while passionately supporting afforestation and alternative food cropping.

Recently, it set the target of eliminating the use of unsustainable wood sources by its contracted farmers. Its afforestation programmes encourage tree cultivation to provide a sustainable source of wood for farmers who require it for tobacco curing.

To compensate for trees that have been felled, BATN has planted more than 170 million trees through its afforestation programmes over the last seven years.

In view of the foregoing, a clear case of how and why organizations should establish a culture of safety has been canvassed, using education and broad-based stakeholder engagement as strategic anchors. Sustaining these health and safety standards, no doubt, enables firms to demonstrate their commitment to good practice and also remain profitable in an ever competitive global economy.

C

hief Olu Benson Lulu Briggs, the consummate business man who chairs Moni Pulo petroleum Development Company, may not have envisaged the avalanche of encomiums that came his way at his 87th birthday anniversary celebration held at the Chapel of Glory International Worship Centre, Port Harcourt, Rivers State Activities to mark the birthday began with a Night of Adoration on the May 21, 2017. At the event, guests were treated to a praise worship session; followed by prayers for the good health, and continued prosperity of the celebrant.

It continued till 12.am when there was a display of fireworks to herald the birthday of the celebrant.

Early the next morning, the family held a thanksgiving service at the Chapel. Prominent Nigerians present at the services included the Deputy Governor of the State, Mrs. Ipalibo Harry Banigo, Justice Adolphos Karibi Whyte rtd, Obong of Calabar, Edidem Abasi Otu, Amanyabo of Opobo Kingdom, Otumfuo Nana Osei Tutu of Ashanti Kingdom, Amayanabo of Kalabari, King Amachree, General Alani Akinrinade rtd, Anikio Briggs, Julia Oku, Chief Frederick Bozimo, Commissioner of Police in Rivers State, Zaki Ahmed, Brig-Gen E.T Essien, Dr. Partick Dele Cole, OCJ Okocha SAN, Chief Abiola Ogundokun and a host of others.

In an emotion laden voice, the wife of the celebrant, Chief (Mrs.) Seinye Lulu Briggs, set the tone for the day with an account of events that almost shattered the family in the last six months.

“It all began when the OB Lulu Briggs Foundation decided to hold an awareness campaign against prostate cancer and we decided not just to talk about it, but how lifestyle and diet can contribute to it.

“We went a step ahead by providing an avenue where men could come and be tested free of charge, so we engaged doctors in different hospitals. Over four thousand men in Rivers State came out and were tested. The ones that had serious issues were assisted. Men became aware of the dangers of prostate cancer and how to detect it at a very early stage.

“It was after that exercise that we suddenly discovered that my own husband was having the same issue and that was how we traveled to London. I thank God, there was nothing cancerous about it and it was just an obstruction and the procedure was done immediately and we were happy he was healed. He was fine, and we got ready to go back home. Before then, I noticed he was losing weight rapidly and was not looking as bright as he used to. So, I communicated with his doctors and they were in doubt, they did not believe that something was wrong with him.

Further inquiry however confirmed my fear and I was proved

Lulu Briggs

Workplace Safety and the BATN Exemplar

Kasie Abone

O

n a daily basis, people all over the world face occupational hazards. Over the years, the global occupational hygiene community has worked diligently to develop ways to protect workers at various workplaces.

Standards and guidelines have been developed to help employers and employees improve on their Organisational Safety and Health (OSH) management systems and to promote a safe and healthy work environment.

OSH is an important issue in today’s workplace, and there have been huge transformations in the field in the past couple of years. Various reasons account for this, including proliferation and strengthening of safety and health legislation, close monitoring by regulatory agencies and the realization by employers and executives that workers are typically more productive in a safe and healthy workplace.

Regrettably, implementing feasible OSH programmes in developing nations, as well as in small and medium enterprises, where there is a dearth of resources and technical expertise, can be very challenging.

In Nigeria, for example, a significant number of workers are exposed to many hazards despite the existing legislations enacted by government on occupational health and safety in the industry.

However, it is cheering to note that a number of firms in the country have entrenched the OHS and housekeeping culture in their systems. British American Tobacco Nigeria (BATN) is one of the socially responsible companies that have accorded priority to occupational issues, health, environment and safety.

From the entrance of the company’s factory in Ibadan, this fact immediately stares a visitor in the face. For BATN, an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of care. For many years, the company has had in place a comprehensive Environment, Health and Safety (EHS) management system that is based on international standards. Every year, it continues to improve on it, targeting zero accidents across its operations.

In pursuit of this goal, the firm has gone into partnership with relevant regulation such as the fire service, among others, to impart additional knowledge on environment, health and safety measures to all its employees.

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JULY 2, 2017 •THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER

PERSPECTIVE

The Fire in RCCG Holy Ghost Services Bisi Daniels

A

s the monthly Holy Ghost Service of the Redeemed Christian Church of God spreads far and wide many more people are making the first Friday of every month a date for multiple reasons.

Lagos businessman Kehinde David is not a member of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) but among the treasures in his purse is a sheet of paper on which he has listed the themes of all the Holy Ghost Services of the church since 1998, when the programme which held in Lekki choked up traffic so heavily he had to walk all the way from the venue to his home in Surulere, Lagos. He never misses the service but it is needless to ask him why.

The Holy Ghost Service (HGS) is one of the major events which draw people from all over the world to the Redemption Camp in Lagos. The Arena, a new three-kilometre-by-three-kilometre auditorium at Sìmáwá is now the venue, having been moved from the one-kilometre-square auditorium at the Camp some 16 kilometres from Lagos, Nigeria. Live broadcasts are transmitted on TV, Radio and streamed over the Internet. Additionally, Special Holy Ghost services are held at different times in other locations around the world including the U.K. (where it’s known as the Festival of Life), the U.S., in Asia, and on other continents.

The growth of the HGS is also illustrated by the difference between the early days when Pastor Adeboye laid hands on everybody at the service to bless them and now. This time if he tries it, it will take him several hours to do that at the Arena alone; and have many more people waiting.

To accommodate the growing numbers, the church has facilitated the operation of viewing centres around the country and across the world for people who are unable to make it to the Camp, which turns into an ocean of people from as early as 4pm on Fridays for the service that starts at 7pm. Surprisingly, even the one-kilometresquare auditorium, which has been prophesised to be a children’s church soon, is now a viewing centre. And close as it is to The Arena, it hosts thousands of people during the Holy Ghost Services.

The wisdom of viewing centres It would appear that the introduction of viewing centres was as visionary as the construction of the Arena. From 40 parishes, including the Headquarters parish, in 1981, RCCG has spread to over 196 countries, with over 32,000 parishes in Nigeria alone. There are at least 732 branches in the UK and Ireland. The church is still rapidly expanding in areas like Asia and the Pacific, including India and Pakistan, and the Middle East, where there are parishes in Qatar, Kuwait, Lebanon and in all the seven Emirates of the United Arab Emirates.

How it started If people like Mr. David find the need to attend the Holy Ghost Service regularly, Pastor Adeboye perhaps has the compelling need to attend all the services; and he has since it was birthed in 1986 as a birthday gift from God. He tells the story in the book, Stories of Pastor E.A. Adeboye: In 1986, I was in London preparing the Sunday school booklet for the mission when I heard from God. He said, “Son, what do you want for your birthday?”

I was shocked. The reason I was shocked was that I didn’t know

came to the world.” With that he says he smiles when people wonder how a man can be so successful and be so humble.

“When you allow pride to creep into your life, you know what you are asking for?” Pastor Adeboye asks: “To be wiped out!”

Pastor Adeboye God was interested in my birthday; secondly, I didn’t know He could be asking me about what I wanted as present.

So I said, “Lord if that is you, please repeat the question.”

He assured me it was Him and asked again what I wanted as a birthday present.

I replied, “What I want is that all my members will get miracles.”

He asked, “Is that’s all?’

I replied, “That’s all I want.”

Then He said, “In that case when you get home, call them together and I will give them whatever they ask for.”

I needed to call the service a name, so I asked Him. And He said: “Holy Ghost Service” What happened at the first Holy Ghost Service was wonderful. And when we finished, my people came to me to request that I consult God for the service to hold every year.

God granted the request.

But soon after that, members of the church suggested that I request for a monthly Holy Ghost Service. And that is why we have been holding it every month now.”

The HGS started soon after, and in 1998, while visiting the Lekki area with some foreigners, the Lord told him to hold a service in the beach area and that became the historic Lekki ’98.

The theme of the event, which shook Lagos was appropriately “Divine Visitation.” The HGS moved to the Redemption Camp the following year.

Incidentally, Lekki ’98 is partly the reason for Pastor Adeboye’s disarming, “yes, sir-yes, sir” humility. He gives an account of that in the book: On his return to the Camp he was thanking God in the open between 2a.m. and 3a.m when God told him to bend down to draw a human figure in the sand. After that God told him to wipe out the figure, which he promptly did.

Then God warned him, “Son, if you ever forget who your boss is, I will wipe you out. Nobody will even remember you

Fruits of the HGS The Holy Ghost Service, which has almost become an interdenominational service, is a multi-purpose event that benefits the church as it does worshippers, who testify in numbers to miracles, signs and wonders.

For example, at one of the services, Pastor Adeboye pronounced blessing on clothes each congregant wore and advised they be kept for special occasions. At last month’s service, a female Pastor from Ibadan testified to how she had used the skirt and blouse she wore that day to raise a dead person and heal the sick.

Also, a 75-year-old man who was given three months to live by a London hospital testified; he was still alive ten year after he should have died.

For these reasons, Pastor Adeboye’s prophecies at the service, which he usually pauses his sermons to relay, are received with ovation. As soon as he pauses to say “The Lord said,” the congregation gets excited in readiness for a prophecy; and when it is given it is received with jubilation and shouts of Amen. The reason for this reaction is in the testimonies.

Beyond his anointing and power, Pastor Adeboye is known for his truthfulness, which a recent case confirmed. As usual, when the prophecy alert came the congregation was eager for it, but when he said God has healed a woman with burning sensation in her private part, the Arena went quiet, at least from areas within my earshot.

Pastor Adeboye noticed that so he said, “Well whether you believe that or not, we will see.” Two services later, an elegant middle-aged lady, in a flowing gown, testified from the fearsome altar that the prophecy was meant for her and she had been truly healed. A similar testimony was given by another lady months later.

Many people have said the HGS, which keeps them close to God and away from sin, also recharges them spiritually.

The prayers during the service are evidently powerful. Prayers, led by Pastor Mrs. Folu Adeboye, are also said regularly for the country and its leaders.

Also great is the opportunity given to youths in the church to preach to the world. A large part of the June Holy Ghost Service, last week, was devoted to that. And Pastor Adeboye, proud of the future leaders of the church, confessed that the ministration of the youth pastor who represented the North was so powerful it brought tears to his eyes. He turned back to look at the pastor as he spoke – a very moving moment.

Apart from the satisfaction of bringing joy to many homes through healing, baby boom for barren women, etc, Pastor Adeboye is overjoyed by the large number of people who give their lives to Christ at the HGS. Hundreds of people respond to the alter calls.

At the rate the HGS is growing, one will not be surprised to hear soon that the three-kilometre-by-three-kilometre auditorium requires extension for people who prefer the spiritual feel of the Arena to the television, live streaming on the internet or the viewing centres.

- Daniel is a journalist, poet and writer.

When Prosecution Becomes an Endless Exercise

Silas Onu

“T

he state is constitutionally obliged to see that every citizen’s reputation is sufficiently protected from ‘unjust’ attack …Equally as important as the constitutional right to freedom of expression is the constitutional right that every citizen has to his or her good name. This latter constitutional right imposes an obligation on the State to ensure that every citizen’s reputation is sufficiently protected from “unjust” attack.” writes Jim O’Callaghan in the Irish Times publication of 30th October, 2003.

The above excerpt caught my attention when it became clear to me that almost all the corruption cases that have been charged in the court of public opinion with imaginary evidence sufficient enough to attract media and public affirmation, in addition to the massive support from citizens who have been shortchanged by their leaders since independence, but with very disappointing outcomes from the court of law.

The outcome from many of the so called “high profile” corruption cases simply reveals that the State is incapacitated more by political consideration than professional ineptitude. A good number of the high profile citizens who have been charged by the State for one form of corruption or the other were only needed to make a show of the government’s pretentious resolve to fight corruption and thereby further deceive the many frustrated Nigerians who are hopeful for a corrupt free nation. But, like Jim O’Callaghan wrote in his publication quoted above,

these “high profile” citizens are by all standards entitle to the protection of their good name and as specified in our own constitution, their dignity of person. The state is also required to ensure that every citizen’s dignity of person is protected at all time.

Many of us had blindly supported this administration’s apparent determination in fighting corruption and were quick to justify the arrest and detention of Judges from the highest courts, in the belief that the agencies saddled with the task of fighting corruption have indeed found some real evidence and have sufficiently analyzed them in ways that made these evidence inextricably linked to the suspects. We became even bolder when snippets of seemingly incriminating materials (money in most cases) were leaked to the media by these agencies. With each image of piles of money recovered from the homes of politicians, past public/military official or judges, the more the rage of citizens was heightened as it only speaks to our common hatred for these classes of leaders whom we have been wary of since independence. So, the state agents, understanding the mood of the society, have also abandoned their core duty and delved into the murky waters of politics by appearing to be fighting corruption when they are actually being used for silencing opponents or punishing dissidents in an art of grand deception at the expense of the nation.

We have witnessed the total lack of regards for laws by the executive, especially regarding the issue of appointing the head of the main anti-corruption agency, the EFCC, assuming that only one man is qualified enough to head that agency. But now, we understand why he is most desired by the executive as, maybe, only he can function above the law and drag anyone to the mud once ordered to do so even

without the tiniest piece of evidence incriminating such a person – he is a name killer, a dignity destroyer – not a corruption fighter.

I’ll like to make a brief review of how a combination of these state agencies was engaged to kill the good name of a citizen – Olubukola Abubakar Saraki.

When he emerged as the President of the Senate in 2015, everyone was certain that he acted outside the political calculation of some APC big wigs who had promised that office to some of their loyal followers.

His act was seen as an affront to those who felt that they owned the party and worst still, he got the complete support of the PDP to emerge and surely he must pay for such an act of “betrayal”. Soon thereafter, questions began to emerge concerning his asset declaration when he was the governor of Kwara State.

As usual, once the plethora of imagined infractions was gradually being leaked to the media, many of us called for his prosecution and immediate removal from office. Action was filed at the Code of Conduct Tribunal and the media was filled up with guests who gave reasons why the President of the Senate must resign or step down until the case against him was determined one way or the other.

In all of these times, many of us had already condemned him and want him punished immediately, without even desiring to hear his explanations for the said non-declared assets. We linked him to the Panama leaks as the drama climaxed. We condemned the entire Senate for trusting in their leader and supporting him even with their presence in Court at each trial. He insisted that he wasn’t given a chance to explain the content of his asset declaration, but we insisted that he must be crucified.

In his normal human fears, not understanding what was going on and what the plans against him

was, he challenged the jurisdiction of the Code of Conduct Tribunal by insisting that the Tribunal was not properly constituted for not having its full complement (members). The argument went all through to the Supreme Court where it was held that the Tribunal was well able to try him as its jurisdiction is determined by quorum and not by the full complement of its membership. The trail went on with the Prosecution making a number of amendments in its charges which contains 18 counts. Then finally, the prosecution rested their case and the defendant pleaded that he has no case to answer. The tribunal agreed with the defendant, thereby discharged and acquitted him on all the counts contained in the charge.

Interestingly, while the drama was ongoing, the defendant and the prosecution both knew so much that we the people didn’t know or understand. While the defendant insisted that he was being persecuted, the prosecution maintained their media friendly posture by staging a carefully orchestrated trial where the law was expected to be turned on its head by having the defendant to proof his innocence before the entire nation. They knew that their case will not survive in the court, but understood that his name is more likely to be killed in the Court of public opinion. So they kept us busy in different media houses engaged in all sorts of analysis and condemnation.

I had the privilege of looking at the judgment of the Tribunal and all I had to say was “wow”! I exclaimed, not because the President of the Senate was discharged and acquitted, but at the complete waste of time and public resources by the prosecu-

Cont’d on Pg. 78

78

T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R • JULY 2, 2017

PERSPECTIVE

How Ajimobi is Building Enduring Legacies in Oyo Akin Oyedele

D

uring the electioneering for the 2011 governorship election, nearly all the political parties and their candidates jostling for the coveted office in Oyo State employed the usual refrain to worm themselves into the hearts of the electorate.As they mounted the rostrum, all you hear then was ‘we will build roads; low-cost houses will be yours for the asking; it will be life in abundance for citizens and sojourners…’ In fact, some chose to revile past holders of the office or frontline opponents in the war of attrition. Like Jesus Christ, in one of his parables to the Pharisees in John, Chapter 10, some of these politicians, who could hardly win in their polling units, would say, “All who came before me were thieves and robbers...The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy.

I have come that they (you) may have life and have it in all its fullness.”

Rather than malign his predecessors or adopt vainglory approach, SenatorAbiolaAjimobi chose a different path. He would always tell his teeming supporters that “if I will not make a remarkable difference as governor, may God abort this ambition. But, if my becoming governor will turn around the fortunes of this state may God assist me to surmount every obstacle towards realizing my ambition.” He did not only win in 2011, but broke the second term jinx in 2015 with the support of the appreciative citizens of the state.

In retrospect, it is on record that the Oyo State Ajimobi inherited in 2011 was an entity in complete tumult. Murder, brigandage, rape, arson and other forms of violence qualified Oyo then as a Hobbesian state where life was short and brutish. Motor Park czars and political jobbers, who have been canonised by incorrigible local overlords with connection in high places, had virtually made the state ungovernable. At the height of the impunity, one was described at a public event as a “dried fish that cannot be bent” by the very key figure the hapless citizens looked up to for their redemption. As the stupefied audience exchanged glances, he assailed them with the clincher, ‘you have to live with his excesses.’

No doubt, the job of government is to protect and promote the socio-economic wellbeing of the citizenry, through the provision of an enabling environment. It was with this in mind that Ajimobi premised his administration’s policy thrust on the restoration of peace and security, as well as the fading glory of the pacesetter state in all spheres. It was not mere happenstance that on assumption of office, the governor introduced eight pyramids of development, among which safety, peace and security were pivotal.

Ajimobi’s pyramid of development bears semblance to the theory of human needs espoused by the American psychologist, Abraham Maslow, in his 1954 book, Motivation and Personality. In hierarchical order, Maslow had rated safety and security needs highly, next to physiological needs (air, water, food, shelter, clothing and other basic physical requirements), which are the sine qua non of human existence.

In six years, the governor’s scorecard in peace and security suggest that he did not only dream about his desire to make the people of the state sleep with their two eyes firmly shut, he walked his talk. First, he reined in the rapacious drivers’ unions before clamping down on other bands of brigands. Next, the governor inaugurated a joint security outfit codenamed ‘operation burst’ with six zonal commands to whip into line the errant scallywags disturbing the peace of the land. To give the outfit the needed bite, the governor procured armoured personnel carriers, a fleet of patrol vehicles and state-of-the-art communication equipment for its operation. To enlist the support of stakeholders and forestall encumbrances in its running, the governor went a step further by floating a security trust fund to raise funds for its operations. The result of these efforts is a drastic reduction in crime rate and civil unrest manifesting in no major crime or robbery in the last six years.

Today, nightlife that was hitherto at zero level is now witnessing a new hustle and bustle, with night clubs and drinking joints dotting the landscape. Residents can now freely pass through the once dreaded Iwo Road interchange, formerly the den of armed robbers, drug addicts and rapists, who hid under the cover of darkness to bare their fangs.

Ajimobi For the furtherance of his agenda on safety and security, the forward-looking governor had recently embraced the safe city project.

The project will proffer cutting edge solutions that will nip crime and criminality in the bud, especially in Ibadan, the state capital. To this end, Ajimobi recently declared that plans were afoot to install closed circuit television (CCTV) in black spots and business districts in the city to monitor the activities of criminals. Although, the recent onslaught of the self-styled one million boys in Ibadan would suggest that it is not yet Uhuru, the rapid force with which they were crushed confirms that law enforcement agencies are equal to the task of tackling and ultimately ridding Oyo State of undesirable elements. The incident, however, points to the fact that no society, not even the developed ones, is insulated from crime. Eternal vigilance among citizens and cooperation with law enforcement agencies by blowing whistles on criminals will, no doubt, complement the efforts of the government in this regard.

Before the advent of the Ajimobi-led administration, Ibadan was touted as one of the dirtiest cities in the country because of the mountain of refuse indiscriminately dumped in open places. The city had no clear cut solid waste management policy, while it constantly suffered environmental hazard and degradation. But, Ajimobi took up the gauntlet and cleaned up the city in a well thought out urban renewal and physical infrastructure development programmes. Similarly, residents of Ibadan can attest to the poor network of roads in existence before the governor mounted the saddle. Not that his predecessors did not construct roads, but the quality of these roads left much to be desired.

That the pristine state capital had now become the next investors’ destination will not be an overstatement judging by the number of blue chip companies that have berthed in Ibadan since Ajimobi cleaned up the city. For starters, investors don’t take their money to an environment where the safety and security of their workers and investment would be jeopardised; where there is poor network of roads or where the environment is filthy and uncongenial for business At the last count, 36 new companies have been attracted to the state in the last six years, with close to 4000 direct employees, according to figures obtained from the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria. Further proof of this upsurge in industrialisation is the rating of Oyo as the fifth most investment friendly state by the National Bureau of Statistics, which also credited the governor as having attracted more than $61m (N22.4bn) foreign direct investment to the state so far.

The governor recently opened a new vista of industrial development with the acquisition of large expanse of land on both sides of the Lagos-Ibadan expressway to accommodate the Polaris-Pacesetter Free Trade Zone and an Industrial Park. The free trade zone is one of the dividends of Ajimobi’s many shuttles to China, where Oyo State is now very popular, because of the governor’s relentlessness and spirited efforts to attract investors into the state. Exuding confidence at a recent event, the governor enthused that seven of the more than 157 companies expected to populate the free trade zone would be inaugurated by the end of this year.

Within the first six years of his administration, Ajimobi constructed the Mokola flyover, which was the first by any civilian governor in the state. Although it may sound exaggerated, some travellers coming into Ibadan through the Challenge/Orita axis for the first time in six years have been said to miss their ways due to the transformation brought to the area with the new network of six-lane roads. Apart from Challenge, the once decrepit Alesinloye, Dugbe-Magazine-Eleyele Roads have been expanded to six lanes, complete with modern furniture and built to last.

The governor’s road revolution was extended to the other five major zones of the state. Thus, Oyo, Ogbomoso, Ibarapa, as well as Oke-Ogun I (Iseyin axis) and Oke-Ogun II (Saki axis) now boast of six-lane roads, for the first time in their histories. The administration also constructed 183 roads and seven bridges, totalling 590km. Similarly, to improve the condition of the road network across the state a total of 850km roads were rehabilitated and maintained in the last six years.

In his determination to bequeath a lasting road legacy on the state, the governor had in the past few weeks flagged off the Eleyele-Ologuneru-Eruwa; Idi-Ape-Basorun-Akobo-Odogbo Barracks junction; Gate-Old Ife Road-Alakia, as well as Oke Adu-Iwo Roads for construction into standard and six-lane roads. In Ajimobi’s avowed determination to enlist Ibadan among the elite state capitals and mega cities, the governor had also revived the Ibadan Circular Road, which had remained a dream in the past 15 years under successive administrations. To the delight of citizens, the governor had during the flag off ceremony explained that the project was awarded to the ENL Consortium Limited at the cost of N70bn, under a build, operate and transfer arrangement. He emphasised that it would be entirely financed by the contractor through a facility sourced from the China Exim Bank. When completed, the road is poised to decongest the city and enhance its aesthetics, apart from its unquantifiable commercial value. To demonstrate the importance attached to these projects, the governor had told the contractors that they must be completed before he leaves office.

Again, in order to restore sanity to the state, the governor recently inaugurated the first of its kind master plan for Ibadan, the state capital, in conjunction with the World Bank, while he also established the Bureau of Physical Planning and Development control. All these are tailored towards ending the regime of indiscriminate and haphazard constructions in Ibadan. But for the Ajimobi-inspired World Bankassisted Ibadan Urban Flood Management initiative, the perennial flooding that had consumed lives and property in Ibadan prior to his regime would have again wreaked havoc this year. In the last six years, extensive dredging and channelization efforts had taken place in the Ogunpa and other rivers in Ibadan, while drainages are being desilted for free flow of water.

As the Yoruba will say, ‘Oro po ninu iwe kobo’ (there are far too many words to encounter in a penny-worth newspaper!). There is so much to reel out about the Ajimobi success story...it will amount to a disservice to the governor, popularly called the game changer, to attempt to lump all his achievements in this single piece. Thus Ajimobi’s indelible footprints in education, agriculture, health, housing, social infrastructure, transportation, governance and service matters will have to be told another day soon. What is for sure and unarguable is that Ajimobi has already etched his name in the sands of time and would most certainly be remembered as the builder of the modern Oyo State by generations to come. Undoubtedly, Ajimobi’s regime was ordained by God. ––Oyedele is Senior Special Assistant (Media) to Oyo State governor.

• When Prosecution Becomes an Endless Exercise • Continued from Page 77 tion. If I was briefed to prosecute the President of the Senate with the set of facts used in this case, I will not hesitate in advising the government to forget about it as the man hasn’t done anything wrong in his asset declaration form.

Reading through the judgment, it became obvious that the President of the Senate, firstly, was being tried for not declaring that properties belonging to companies in which he owned shares (which he declared) belonged to him. How can any serious lawyer who understands that companies are by law “persons” with rights to own properties in their names, charge a shareholder with a crime for owning such properties because he declared his shares in such companies? It is only when such a lawyer is hired to persecute that he get blinded by the fees and disregard his integrity. All the properties that Bukola Saraki was accused of owning, in Nigeria and abroad, belonged to companies in which he owned shares of which he declared in his CCB forms. No court will convict a person for such a charge as it will amount to a travesty. Correctly, the Code of Conduct Tribunal threw out those counts as not having any direct links with the defendant.

Secondly, a situation where the prosecution accused the defendant of paying monies into a certain account and maintaining that such monies was clearly proceeds of crime and then, through their own witnesses (Prosecution witnesses) admits

that the defendant was worth $23 million in 2003, before he became a public office holder (an amount higher than what is in issue in the charge), was suicidal for the prosecution case as there is no law against being “rich” in Nigeria. The prosecution acted on suspicion that the defendant has corruptly enriched himself and thereby, without diligence, ended up persecuting him woefully. The point must be made that the defendant did declare the extent of his wealth and in a futile and attempt to smear his reputation and good name; the prosecution termed his declarations as “anticipatory declarations” and failed to substantiate same in their case.

Thirdly, one would imagine that a combination of state agencies engaged in the investigation of a case will certainly be up tight in their assignment and understanding of how the laws of the land operates. How can the prosecution parade a witness who “personally knew nothing” about the pieces of evidence he was expected to tender in Court? What can better describe a hearsay evidence than when a witness says that all he has said in court were based on what “his team” told him? Are we serious in this country? Do you mean that a civil servant with almost 20 years standing in the field of investigation and prosecution will make such a blunder in Court and we will still be interrogating the judgment of the Tribunal afterwards? I think that such a “team” deserves to be punished for allowing themselves

to be tools in the hands of powerful individuals in an attempt to destroy the good name of a citizen.

The Tribunal was even patient enough to wait for the defendant to make a “no case submission” as section 302 & 303 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act. 2015 allows the Court to make such a finding on its own (suo moto) without even being prompted by the defence.

The case of the prosecution was so bad that even the lead counsel knew what to expect and avoided the court on the judgement day. If he had any hope of getting anything out of the trial, the lead counsel for the prosecution would have been present in court, at least, for a chance to address the press once again.

Considering the total waste of time in the pursuit of shadow, one wonders how much resources went into this prosecution. In the midst of hardship and economic recession, when a wise government will be thinking of how to bring succor to its suffering citizens, some individuals at the helms of affairs orchestrated a phantom criminal trial to keep Nigerians busy with the discussion, like the coliseum of Rome, while they allocate huge sums of monies for a project that was obviously doomed from the onset. But who knows how they’ve individually benefitted from the entire drama? If we were to request for the retirement of all the monies spent in the “persecution” of Bukola Saraki, I am certain

that it will be mind boggling as it could run into hundreds of million. When you take into account the cost of hiring a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, the cost of investigation, the cost of engaging the media and other “logistics”, you will agree that it is indeed the ordinary Nigerians that have been shortchanged by our supposed anti-corruption agencies. I am certain that everyone involved in the “persecution” received some sort of allowance to take care of certain needs. The entire drama is even more of a disappointment when one considers that all of the noise and wasted resources were simply to please some political interest or persons, it was never in the interest of Nigerians or Nigeria.

As I conclude, it will be very improper to not recognize the patriotic judgment given by the Chairman and member of the Code of Conduct Tribunal who, individually and collectively, were harassed and intimidated by both side during the trial. They have sustained their integrity by maintain objectivity over emotions. They have shown themselves to be worthy of their calling even in the face of further intimidation and harassment. I salute their courage and industry.

–––Onu, ACIArb (UK), a legal practitioner, writes from Abuja. sj.onu@shieldswordconsult.com (See concluding part on www.thisdaylive.com)

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INFOGRAPH

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NASS 2017 BUDGET VS CITIZENS' RECOMMENDED BUDGET NASS 2017 BUDGET

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In response to the publication of the National Assembly Budget, BudgIT and EiENigeria, invited citizens to the “#OpenNASS datathon” on May 20, 2017 with the objective of developing a lean and effective budget for the National Assembly as a standard for Nigeria to reduce the cost of governance.

2

After rigorous review, the citizens proposed the reduction of the 2017 National Assembly Budget from the approved One Hundred and Twenty-Five Billion Naira (N125,000,000,000) to a leaner sum of Fifty-Two Billion, Eighty-Five Million, Three Hundred and Seventy Thousand, Seven Hundred and Fifty Naira (N52,085,370,750). In reaching the final sum in the proposed budget, participants took into account all overhead costs, maintenance costs, personnel, research costs and all the line items contained in the 2017 National Assembly Budget.

Infographics by:

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R • JULY 2, 2017

NEWSXTRA

Ndoma-Egba: Violence, Militancy Not Options for N’Delta Development • As NDDC begins emergency repairs on East - West road Bassey Inyang in Calabar

The Chairman of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Senator Victor Ndoma-Egba at the weekend declared that dialogue and not militancy remains the most suitable option that would lead to the overall development of the Niger Delta region.

Ndoma-Egba stated this on the sidelines of an interactive event by leaders and stakeholders from the region tagged ‘Dialogue in the Niger Delta’, held at the Tinapa international business resort, Calabar.

Fielding questions from journalists, the NDDC chairman said peace rather than militancy would encourage

investments, and hasten infrastructural development in the region.

“Dialogue is a singsong for the region now so, we don’t miss any opportunity to emphasis the need for dialogue because we believe that violence, militancy, and hostility are no longer options.

“So, every opportunity to

dialogue, we take it because we think that the region needs to be safe, needs to be secured, and needs to be peaceful for the much needed development to come in.

“In my remark, I made it very clear that militancy was no longer an option, that we must continue to explore option of dialogue, and the reason is simple; that we need investment in the region. Investments don’t go to hostile regions, and we must create a peaceful region that will be able to absolve the much needed investment, and we must bring the investors back. We can only do so when we commit to a peaceful atmosphere”, Ndoma-Egba said.

In stating that there was need for the implementation of a master plan for the development of the region, Ndoma-Egba said: “I don’t know whether there will be a new master plan or whether it is going to be an upgraded master plan or

revalidated master plan, but we definitely need a master plan for the region….We must have systematic plan for the development of the region, and that is what the master plan is for.

“We are at the point of identifying the stakeholders because the master plan must be stakeholders’ owned, stakeholders’ generated. So we are at the point of identifying the stakeholders, and coordinating the stakeholders so that work can immensely start. We at least, have sent out a template on what we need to achieve in the master plan”.

Ndoma-Egba said though the amnesty programme was not one of the primary responsibilities of the NDDC, however, it would cooperate with the agencies whose primary responsibility it was in driving the amnesty programme to success.

“The commission is not involved, per say, in the amnesty

project. We are linked because we are all about interventions in the region to secure development, and to secure peace.

The amnesty programme is a specific intervention to rehabilitate those who are involved in militancy, and get them back to productive life. So, it is an intervention programme that is separate from what we do, but to the extent that our activities affect the region, and we think that at some point, we have to collaborate.

Ndoma-Egba assured the people that though the current board of the NDDC was just six months in the saddle; they will deliver on their mandate because it is not “business as usual.”

Meanwhile, the NDDC has started emergency repairs on some of the failed portions of the East-West Road, especially the dilapidated sections between Eleme Junction and Onne Junction.

Nigeria’s Democracy, Our Benchmark, Says Benin Deputy President ADVOCATING EXPORT R-L: African Union Chairman and President of Rwanda, Paul Kagame, and Vice President, Olam Nigeria,

and Chairman, NACCIMA Export Advocacy Group, Mr. Ade Adefeko, at the Afrexim 2017 Annual General Meeting in Kigali, Rwanda...recently

Ahiara Diocese: Laity Still Reject Bishop Okpalaeke • Demand bishop from Owerri province, Okorocha wades in Amby Uneze in Owerri In line with Pope Francis’ directives demanding letters of allegiance from all the priests from Ahiara Diocese before July 9, the priests said they have complied with the contents of the Pope’s message, but the entire laity equally rejected Bishop Peter Okpalaeke from assuming office in the diocese.

Instead, the laity are demanding a bishop who has affinity or incardinated in the diocese without minding his ethnic background, noting that they would not accept Okpalaeke for

the fact that he does not understand the culture, language of the people, claiming he was secretly imposed on the people of the diocese without following due process expected in the selection and appointment of catholic bishops.

Meanwhile, the Governor of Imo State, Chief Rochas Okorocha had personally led heads of security agencies in the state as well as his cabinet members and the Chairman of the State Council of Traditional Rulers, Eze Samuel Ohiri to the Maria Mater Ecclesiae Cathedral, Ahiara Mbaise to address the

priests and the laity, where he had appealed for peace and calm while he studies the matter.

The appointment of Okpalaeke was however rejected by the Priests and Laity in the Ahiara Diocese, resulting in a stalemate that led to the shutdown of the Ahiara Cathedral and the Bishop’s Court.

Yesterday, thousands of Catholic faithful from the 163 Parishes in the embattled Diocese, stormed the Cathedral to protest the failure of the Vatican to appoint another Bishop to replace Okpalaeke, whom they said can never be welcome in the Diocese.

Lawmaker Faults Call for Restructuring Amid agitations and ethnic tension across the country, the Deputy Leader of the Senate, Senator Bala Ibn Na`Allah, has described the clamour for restructuring of Nigeria as unpatriotic.

Senator Na`Allah noted that the concept of restructuring does not exist in the dictionary of the framers of Nigerian constitution. He said the architect of the demands or agitation for restructuring, fiscal federalism probably did not understand the context from which the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria was fashioned.

The lawmaker said: “Let me tell you today, the architect of the demands or agitation for what is called restructuring, fiscal federalism probably do not understand the context from which the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria is fashioned, if they do and they understand what we refer to as jurisprudence of constitutionalism, then they would understand that the concept of restructuring does not exist in the dictionary of the framers of our constitution.

“If you look at the preamble of the constitution, we the people of the Federal Republic of Nigeria

having decided to live together as a united nation under God; so all these concept of fiscal federalism, restructuring etc., is to mislead the public for certain political interest, so it was never in anticipation of the farmers of our constitution that there was going to be such concepts.

“But what the framers of our constitution wanted is a united and prosperous Nigeria under one God; their understanding is that the constitution would be operated in such a manner as to foster the thinking and desires of the people to remain united prosperous under one God.”

The Republic of Benin has said Nigeria’s democratic governance is worthy of emulation, and the country’s next election is being planned to emulate Nigeria.

The Deputy President of the country, Prof. Octave Cossi Houdegbe, rising from a recent meeting with traditional rulers in Cotonou, Republic of Benin commended former Nigeria leader, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, for his exemplary leadership since returning the country to democratic rule in 1979. He said successive leaders have all played exemplary roles to nurture and sustain democracy.

The meeting deliberated on

role of tradition in ensuring lasting peace in Africa. A foremost traditionalist from Nigeria, Aworo Oba Asa, Chief Jimoh Aliu (MFR), was at the parley.

He said traditional education would entrench peace worldwide, if parents and guardian can impress it upon their children from the early stages of their lives that violence is evil.

Houdegbe, who doubles as Kokpon Awiyan of Dahe Kingdom, said Obasanjo had been a source of inspiration for African leaders as he always guides them towards the right path, seeking peace at all times, saying “We in the Republic of Benin are so proud of him”.

He added that through leaders like him, “Nigeria has taught Benin a great lesson, shown us something that people are respecting. And that is the mode of election. Nigeria is now seen as a rare model of democracy.

Other countries are still fighting and contesting the result.

“Our next election is being planned towards emulating Nigeria. In the parliament, we considered approaching Nigeria to learn the ropes. In Benin today, it’s poverty everywhere, not because we stopped doing what we used to do, we are not lazy, but we need the relationship with Nigeria, without which Benin cannot survive.”

Osinbajo for Arase’s Book Launch

Acting President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo SAN, royal fathers and other eminent personalities are set for a book launch at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel in Abuja on Tuesday, July 4. The book entitled ‘Law on Prevention and Detection of Crimes by the Police in Nigeria’ is written by former Inspector General of Police (IGP), Dr. Solomon Ehigiator Arase. According to a statement, the publication draws on Arase’s legal and professional experience in aiding the understanding of the laws, processes and complex dynamics guiding the prevention and detection of crimes in Nigeria. Osinbajo, who is the Special Guest of Honour, is expected to grace the event alongside former Cross River State governor, Mr. Donald Duke (Chairman); Edo State governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki; the Sultan of Sokoto, Muhammed Sa’ad Abubakar II; Oba Ewuare II of Benin, the Obi of Onitsha, Igwe Nnaemeka Achebe; Oba Rilwan Akiolu of Lagos; former Inspectors General of Police; Ministers and Service Chiefs, among others.

Adeyemi’s Life Mastery Academy

All is now set for the inaugural edition of the Life Mastery Academy, hosted by Sam Adeyemi the Lead Coach of the Sam Adeyemi Coaching Programme and President of Success Power International The programme, scheduled to hold on July 29, in Lagos, is designed to teach participants on how to gain mastery key areas of life such as finance, marriage, relationship, health, business, careers and other wheels of life In a statement he issued over the weekend Adeyemi charged Nigerians, especially those who are struggling with getting it right in life to take advantage of the seminar to equip themselves with the right strategies for living a successful life. Adeyemi will be joined by three seasoned speakers and life coaches - Lanre Olusola, Ayo Arowolo and Niyi Adesanya, to teach participants how to gain mastery of their minds and re-write the scripts for their lives.

He said some of the areas of focus will be helping participants gain clarity of vision; learn strategies for peak performance; master career and business, identify and take opportunities; build strategic networks; have financial mastery in boom and doom times as well as master their emotions.

Two FUTA Students Drown

Two students of the Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA), Ondo State yesterday got drowned on the school campus. The news of the death of the students Olabiyi Emmanuel of the Department of Agricultural and Environmental Engineering and Babatunde Alex of the Department of Project Management was broken by the Student Union President, Mr. Oladeinde Olayinka. According to him, both students drowned at the place for their Entrepreneurship Training (ENT) at the laboratory for Fishery and Aquaculture, at the back of great hall, Obakekere. It was gathered that after the training, four students the deceased and two others decided to take a selfie picture on the canoe packed at the venue. They then boarded a canoe packed at the venue of their training but the canoe capsized. It was gathered that two of the four occupants narrowly escaped death because they were able to swim, while the other two found it difficult to swim which led to their death. The student union leaders called on other students of the university to pay last respect for the deceased.

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IMAGES

R

ecently, funeral outing and Thanksgiving service for Deaconess Lydia Aderewa Abosede Mesele (Nee Omole), was held at the Apostolic Church Nigeria, Oke-Afa Assembly/ District Centre, Jakande Housing Estate Isolo, Lagos, with reception party at Hilcrest Event and Conference Centre, Ago Palace Way, Isolo. Here are some of the guests that graced the occasion Photos: Etop Ukutt R-L: Husband of the deceased, Elder John Adeniyi Mesele, and Mr. Ayo Mesele

L-R: Mrs. Olubukola Balogun (Nee Mesele) and Mrs. Nkabet Mesele

L-R: Pastor EO Baiyekusi and Pastor N. O Awojide

L-R: Pastor Mo Mesele and Mr. Taiwo Kola-Ojo

L-R: Sola Mesele and Kunle Mesele

Mr and Mrs Bayo Idowu

L-R: Mrs. Ufuoma Mesele and Mrs Olabisi Mesele

L-R: Managing Director, THISDAY, Mr. Eniola Bello, and Mr. Richard Akanmode

L-R: Mrs. Moji Rufai, Elder John Mesele and ElderOlaolu Eniolarunde

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THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER • JULY 2, 2017

IMAGES

L-R: The Officiating Ministers, Pastor P. B Folorunsho; Pastor C. O Olanlokun and Pastor T O Ilori

L-R: Prince Olusola Akanmode, Mr. Ogunkoya Adebowale and Alh. Moibi Shittu

Friends of Bukky Mesele

Mr and Mrs. Paul Ajetunmobi

Mr and Mrs Sheriff Yusuf

L-R Mr. Motunrayo Balogun, Grand Children and Mr. Sola Mesele

The Mesele family

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SUNDAYSPORTS

Edited by Demola Ojo Email demola.ojo@thisdaylive.com

Germany Tackle Chile in Confed Cup Final •Kick-off: : Portugal vs Mexico 1pm Germany vs

Chile 7pm

Duro Ikhazuagbe and Demola Ojo

T

he final showdown of the Russia 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup will take place this evening as world ChampionGermanytakeonSouth American champion Chile in St. Petersburg,Russia.However,before the mouth-watering showdown, the third place play off between Portugal and Mexico will whet fans’ appetite The final is the second meeting between the two countries in the competition after they first clashed inthegroupstage.Germanywillbe looking to win their first Confederations Cup title with Chile also eyeing the title at the first attempt.

Bothteamsplayedouta1-1drawin the group stage of the tournament when Lars Stindl equalised for the Germans afterAlexis Sanchez had put the South Americans ahead.

Germany leads the very limited head to head between the two with one win and a draw. Prior to the draw in the group stage, they had met in just one friendly match before, which Germany won 1-0 back in 2014.

Germany romped to a 4-1 win over Mexico in their semifinal clash, taking their tally to ten goals

infourgamesinthetournamentso far.Theyclearlyhavethefirepower with Lars Stindl and Timo Werner asgoodoptionsandLeonGoretzka raising his stock with a quick brace against the Mexicans as well. They haveaveryexcitingandfluidyoung attackwithmanagerJoachimLow electing to leave most of the squad that won the 2014 World Cup at home.

Chile on the other had an exhausting semifinal encounter with Portugal, having to win by penaltiesafteragoallessencounter against Portugal.

Chile’s Arturo Vidal, Aranguiz andArsenalstar,Sanchezconverted their penalty kicks past Portugal’s goalkeeper Ruis Patricio, while the European champions failed to convert any of theirs.

Portugal will face Mexico in the third place play-off. Again, it is the second time both teams will be playting each other in the competition after the first game ended in a 2-2 draw. However Portugal will have to make do withoutcaptainCristianoRonaldo asheRealMadridstarwasexcused from the squad, returning home to meet his newborn twins.

The32-year-old,whoalreadyhas

Sanchez (left) scored in the 1-1 draw against Germany earlier in the competition a seven-year-old son, Cristiano Ronaldo Jnr, from a previous relationship,isbelievedtohavefathered the twins with a surrogate mother in the United States.

“We knew he was having family matters at home,” Portugal manager Fernando Santos told a news conference yesterday.”Obviously it was an important moment in his life to have these children, whom hehasn’tseenyet.Andaswefailed toreachthefinalherethepresident of our football federation and me decidedthatitwillbeanicegesture to give him a chance to be with his family.”

Portugalareoftenaccusedofrelying heavily on Ronaldo, but they claimedtheirfirstmajortitlewithout

their injured talisman when they beat France 1-0 after extra-time in last year’s Euro 2016 final.

Borussia Dortmund’s Raphael Guerreiro is also missing for Portugal through injury, but veteran defenderPepereturnsafterhewas

suspended for the Chile clash.

“It will be a game with the same commitment, with the same willingness to win from both sides, I believe,” said Santos. “None of us wanted to play this game as our main goal was to reach the

final. But as we failed to get that result we have to be motivated for Sunday’sencounter. “Wehavethe same objective as we have had in the last two and a half years - to play for the win in every game.”

Mexico,whowonthetournament in 1999, have fallen behind in each of their four matches in Russia but willwelcomebackcaptainAndres Guardado, who was banned for the Germany game.

Pay TV channel, StarTimes will beam both matches live subscribers.Acting Brands and Marketing Director, StarTimes, Mr. Qasim Elegbede, said StarTimes is ever commitment to delivering quality sporting content to its loyal subscribers.

He said quality sporting content was the reason behind the acquisitionsofsportingrightsliketheFIFA World Cup in over 48 territories in Africaandothersportingeventsuch as the SerieA, Bundesliga, French Ligue 1, Chinese Super League, Eredivisie.

B& E Tournament: Torgah Closes Up on Mapwanya Olawale Ajimotokan Vincent Torgah kept the pressure onVisitorMapwanyabyreducing the latter’s five-shot lead at B& E Tournament on the West Africa Golf Tour to just three shots. The Ghanaian, who won the last leg of the tour-the Memore at Obinze,

Owerri, grossed 73 over IBB International Golf and Country Club, Abuja, last night. Cameroonian Pristhy Nji, who also matched 72, lurked by four shots outside the lead.

Nigerian Gift Willy, nailed an even par 72, incidentally the day’s best round as the field struggled to

break par in conditions that made scoringchallengingfortheplayers.

The tournament will hole out today, but the man to beat in the race for the prize money of USD 8,000 is Mapwanya. The Zimbabwean has maintained a steady lead over the field since the tournament teed off on Thursday.

T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R • JULY 2, 2017

High Life

85 with LANRE ALFRED 08076885752

...Amazing lifestyles of Nigeria’s rich and famous

Otunba Niyi Adebayo Sets August Date for Son’s Wedding

O

tunba Niyi Adebayo might have been out of government after serving as the first executive Governor of Ekiti State between 1999 and 2003, but he still has friends in high places.

Currently a top chieftain of the All Progressives’ Congress, APC, and one of the closest friends of billionaire industrialist, Aliko Dangote, Otunba Adebayo retains a measure of goodwill across the country and beyond. There was eloquent testimony to this when he held a grand burial party for his late father, former Governor of the old Western Region, Major General Adeyinka Adebayo, in May. Everybody that mattered in the society was there. It was one party that good money was harnessed to send forth the Adebayo patriarch.

Come Saturday, August 12, 2017, Otunba Niyi and his wife, Erelu Angela, would have cause to host high society to yet another grand soiree. It is the wedding of their son, Richard and his better half, Rennie Young. That day, the new couple would begin the first leg of their journey into matrimony. On September 3rd, 2017, the church wedding would hold in New York, United States of America. Those who know the Adebayos know

Ronke Ademiluyi

AT LAST, RONKE ADEMILUYI EARNS OONI’S GOOD GRACES

•WHY THE ROYAL FATHER MADE HER AMBASSADOR

The Ooni of Ife, Oba Enitan Ogunwusi’s ascendance to the exalted throne was not without squabbles and scheming especially from women. Before his enthronement, the Ooni was a rock and roller, the life of many diurnal gatherings and nocturnal peregrination.

A multiple threat potential; gangling and good-looking, wealthy and fun-loving, the

they don’t do things by halves.

They go all out. The wedding of Richard promises to be no less elaborate. 30-year-old Richard is the first and only son of the power couple. A lawyer, he is currently an executive director at Fortis Projects Services, a construction company, where he is partners with Seyi, the son of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu. Fortis was in the news recently when it partnered with Huawei Technologies Co. to commission the Funmilayo Mobolaji Johnson Skill Acquisition and Development Centre in Eti-Osa, Lagos, designed as an alternative to impart knowledge in various fields, ranging from catering, hat and bead making, hairdressing, fashion designing, photography, fridge and air conditioner maintenance, leather works, wood and carpentry, adult literacy and computer studies.Technologies Co. to commission the Funmilayo Mobolaji Johnson Skill Acquisition and Development Centre in Eti-Osa, Lagos, designed as an alternative to impart knowledge in various fields, ranging from catering, hat and bead making, hairdressing, fashion designing, photography, fridge and air conditioner maintenance, leather works, wood and carpentry, adult literacy and computer studies.

Ooni was also generous. Thus, when he was enthroned, it behoved him to remarry after his first marriage packed up. One of the prominent names that made the rounds then was that of Ronke Ademiluyi, a lawyer cum fashion entrepreneur and founder of the African Fashion Week Nigeria. She is also the proprietress of popular fashion house, Rukkies, in Opebi, Lagos.

It was wildly reported then that the Ooni had settled for the Rukkies boss. While she didn’t issue a rebuttal even as the news gathered momentum, her friends, those who preoccupy themselves with dishing hot news to others like they were paid to, had hit the streets, excitedly spreading the gospel of their friend’s good fortune.

Knowing their ways, it would not be out of place to imagine that they must have settled for an expensive aso-ebi for the imaginary wedding. That was not to be however as the Ooni eventually put them out of their misery and starry-eyed longing when he settled for the beautiful Olori Wuraola.

There was not a whimper from Rukkies’ circle thereafter. The good-natured Ooni recently appointed Ademiluyi as the Heritage Ambassador for Queen Moremi Legacy, saying it is in recognition of her being at the forefront

Niyi Adebayo

of promoting the African culture. By the appointment, Ademiluyi is expected to develop sustainable avenues, seek strategic partnerships and collaborations and also generate and design activities that would sustain, promote and boost the legacies of Queen Moremi.

Abayomi Akinjide

ABAYOMI AKINJIDE IS BEREAVED...LOSES WIFE Though Omonike Akinjide lived fully, serving God and humanity, the beautiful wife of Abayomi, eldest

son of legal luminary and former Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Chief Richard Akinjide (SAN), was not prepared for death.

Neither were those who were acquainted with her during her earthly trajectory.

Omonike died May 28th after a brief illness. She was 48.

She left behind her distraught husband and three devastated kids. Her burial rites began with a Christian wake keep at St. Luke’s Church in London. On Friday, June 30th, a funeral service was held at the Holy Trinity Brompton, while interment followed at Hendon Cemetery on Holders Hill Road. A well-attended reception in her honour was later held at Henson Hotel, Pembroke Suite, Ashkey Lane also in London. Yomi was beside himself with grief.

Several times, he stared into space perhaps wishing Omonike to surface from the cumulous clouds. But she never did. Born by a Polish mother to a Nigerian academic, late Professor Ifedayo Oladapo who died March 2010, Omonike was an energy lawyer in the firm of Aluko & Oyebode. She was the founder of Christiana Foundation, established in her grandmother ’s honour to make a change in the education of the Nigerian child.

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HIGHLIFE

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Kodjo Williams Now Born-Again

ife is interesting.

More often than not, it sets a stout heart to a steep hillside.

Many a victim of its inclement storms have been known to flail and flounder till an agonising end but tow the path of champion gladiators.

Eventually they surmount whatever hardships life throws their way. Is Kodjo Williams one of such champions? Time would tell. Until then, Anthony Kodjo Williams is a quiet man now. The athletic dude hardly goes out these days, thus denying not a few beauties the luxury of his attractive and commanding presence at social events. The lovable son of late Chief Sebastian Williams, Head of National Sports Commission, was a toast of many football lovers in his

heydays at Masters Sports in the 90s. His incisive analysis and constructive criticism of the ineptitude of Nigerian football ruling body, NFA, endeared him to many. No wonder his appointment much later as NFA chairman was greeted with rapturous applause by all and sundry.

But he left pretty soon. News is Kodjo is now a born-again Christian. Now that he is born-again, he has decided to desert his familiar ways. He now has a Christian fellowship centre in his Ikoyi home. How time changes. But back when he was still in the world, Kodjo was indeed a society reporter’s delight.

Before his epiphany with God, he managed to live life to the fullest. He partied as hard as anybody could. However, today, he has become bornagain.

Segun Awolowo

TURNS INSTAGRAM INTO HIS OYSTER…SEGUN AWOLOWO’S FAVOURITE PASTIME The rich take their pleasures, sadly, after the fashion of whatever seems to be trendy. Hence it is not in habit but in novelty and the passé that many a man pursues vainglory and pleasure. But what manner of vain gloriousness would drive Segun Awolowo Jnr, the publicity-loving grandson of late Chief Obafemi Awolowo, to engage in a desperate jostle for the limelight? What shade of vanity would drive him to engage in intense competition with local stars on the narcissist’s coven called Instagram, for social correctness and youth appeal?

Perhaps the type that drives the proverbial old woman to channel and relive the pleasure of youth and her famished beauty in grandiose

and evanescent dreams.

As you read, Segun is engaged in a feral and frantic hustle in the now fashionable quest for the juiciest portion of the spotlight on the social medium. The jury is still out on what Segun is more passionate about between taking endless pictures for social media exhibitionism or living life to the hilt. Segun, the executive director/ CEO of the Nigerian Export Promotion Council, is known to love the high life.

He was one of the silver spoon kids that held the society by the jugular in their younger days when the streets bowed to their wild and wide whims. Now in his 50s, the Ogun State University graduate-trained lawyer has parlayed his youthful exuberance to showing off on Instagram where he regularly posts pictures of his social and professional activities.

Predictably, when Aliko Dangote hosted friends on his luxury boat last Monday to a Ramadan party, Segun, it was, that hurriedly posted the picture of the billionaires present, sending blogosphere into a tailspin. This did not go down well with Aliko and other guests who saw his action as childish. But Segun remains unperturbed or so it seems.

STELLA OBASANJO’S SON, MUYIWA, SET TO IMMORTALIZE HER Death, we have since come to accept, is man’s most inevitable end. But when it does happen, it leaves in its trail anguish and sorrow. It is

Kodjo Williams

made fortunes while the Owu-born Ota farmer held sway was magnanimous enough to have placed at least half-a-page remembrance advert for the woman.

However, her son Muyiwa is planning to immortalise his mother.

Stella Obasanjo

even worse in families where the breadwinner is the one death stings and snatches.

That was the fate that befell the Abebe family of Edo State whose beautiful daughter, Stella, former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s wife and Nigeria’s former first lady, died in faraway Spain in 2005.

Apart from being the family’s financial backbone, Stella Obasanjo was a daughter in a million. She tapped into her vast contacts and goodwill to ensure that no member of the family or acquaintance lacked anything, at least until death took her away. While it is widely acknowledged that every year added to one’s life should be celebrated, thoughts should also be spared people who were once with us, especially those whose activities brought smiles to our faces. Not even one of the so-called Obasanjo boys who

EBEBI PEREMOBOWEI’S FORCED MODESTY Time humbles all and sundry. Hardly anyone notices Ebebi Peremobowei now. His former loyalists and political associates wouldn’t deign him a passing glance, not even as a cheap consolation to the former Deputy Governor of Bayelsa State. Ebebi was kicked out of office by his principal, the then governor of Bayelsa, Timipre Sylva. Ebebi’s ouster was a result of his protracted battle with Sylva. Ebebi was

Ebebi Peremobowei

T H I S D AY, T H e S u n D AY n e w S pA p e r • JULY 2, 2017

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HIGHLIFE

Super Cop, Fatai Owoseni’s Daughter Marries in the US

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nd so they kissed and started a lively, tender life. It was the kind of life that blossomed like a truth universally acknowledged and treasured by only the pure at heart.

Bride and groom beamed majestically, with content. Their heartfelt dreams had finally come true; they were bound by swathes of bliss, two simple vows and a grand matchless love – which makes them one of the happiest couples of their time.

And these are indeed precious times for couple.

Like a fairy tale come to life, Aminat Owoseni, one of the beautiful daughters of the Lagos State

Commissioner of Police, Fatai Owoseni, got married to her man, Abayomi Apooyin, yesterday, Saturday, in Cleveland, Ohio, USA, in a wedding ceremony that was as classy as it was expensive. Like her father, Apooyin is also a police officer.

You would recall that the engagement ceremony held in May in Lagos. And it had in attendance a lot of bigwigs like the Deputy Governor of Lagos State, Idiat Adebule, Oba Akiolu of Lagos, politicians and socialites. Unlike the Lagos party, the American leg was a private affair with few close friends and relatives in attendance.

impeached on charges of gross misconduct by the state’s House of Assembly. Before his impeachment, Ebebi was that rancorous politician who was dreaded by both his opponents and political associates. He was undeniably intoxicated and obscenely drunk on his power and perks of being deputy governor.

Before he was booted out of office, Ebebi had a swell time. He dominated and rode roughshod over everyone and everything including the House of Assembly from where he incidentally emerged to become the state’s deputy governor. No sooner he became the deputy governor, he forgot his roots and chose to live a life of grandeur. He was ruthless and spared no one his overbearing attitude including his boss, the state governor. By the time Ebebi took on the governor, he felt he was at his intimidating best even though he was unknowingly paving the path to his own exit from political relevance and the corridors of power. And he paid the price for his recklessness sooner than anyone could ever imagine. When Ebebi was eventually booted out of office, he was replaced by Werinipre Seibarogu, hitherto the Speaker of the House of Assembly. Now, Ebebi understands that nothing in life is permanent; he has realised that power is transient and arrogance often precedes destruction.

OSAZEE OSIFO …FIVE YEARS AFTER Five years after she tragically lost her husband, life, for Ibukun Osifo, has remained a clouded landscape.

Ibukun’s husband, Osaze, was until his death in 2012, the managing director of FBN Capital, a subsidiary

Aminat Owoseni, one of the beautiful daughters of the Lagos state Commissioner of Police, Fatai Owoseni, got married to her man, Abayomi Apooyin, recently

Osaze Osifo

of First Bank of Nigeria PLC. Regarded as a brilliant financial adviser with a robust banking career, Osaze died in his sleep at the Transcorp Hotel, Abuja, while on official assignment. He was just 45. Ibukun was 44 then.

Understandably, there is no longer poetry in her soul. A part of her left with Osaze.

Their two children, Adesuwa and Ehioze, are now her only source of joy, her constant companion during dark, lonely nights. Ibukun has shut her heart to any external intrusion. Now 49, Ibukun’s youthful beauty is still a pull for men and a muse for their poetic inclinations.

But getting her to sit to listen to sugar-coated, kneeweakening rhapsodies from eager men has been as hard as convincing her to go out on a date. For her, the only things deserving of her attention are her business, her husband’s foundation and her kids.

UCHE OGAH: WILL ABIANS HAVE THEIR WAY? If all wishes came true, then, Abians, especially those

conversant with happenings back home, would wish to have a governor in the mould of businessman and technocrat, Uche Ogah. A business colossus widely loved for employing and empowering his people, Ogah is the President of Master Energy Group, a conglomerate with over 15 subsidiaries playing actively in the Nigerian nay African economy spanning oil and gas, banking, insurance, aviation, shipping, dredging, logistics, construction, travel agency, power etc. Also a chartered accountant, banker and redoubtable philanthropist, the 48-year-old ran for the governorship primary of the People’s Democratic Party in Abia State which was eventually won by Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu. When a Federal High Court in Abuja declared that Ikpeazu filed false tax returns and was therefore not eligible to stand for the election, Ogah, as first runner up in the PDP primary, was issued a certificate of return by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC. The ensuing legal wrangling between Ogah and Ikpeazu went as far as the Supreme Court, which, last May, ruled in favour of Ikpeazu. But prior to his emergence on the political scene, Ogah had endeared himself to Abians.

An indigene of Onuaku Uturu, Isuikwuato LGA, the wellread businessman built the Masters Energy Industrial city in his native Uturu to offer massive employment for his kith and kin and galvanise the local economy. Reputed as one of the first five biggest industrial cities in Africa and first of its kind in South-East Nigeria, it houses more than ten factories which include lubricants, grease, bottle water, juice, noodles, rubber and

an assembly plant. Others are fertilizer, vegetables, rice, assorted wines and tyre plants. Speaking during an inspection tour of the city recently, Ogah said, “The New Masters Energy Industrial City will create huge employment for my people. I have a design to accommodate all region but I will ensure local content.

My people will benefit more and it will help reduce the rate at which Abians travel out in search of greener pasture. Young people are willing and ready to work but no job anywhere, they keep moving from the East to the West, from North to South in search of jobs and which makes many of them become frustrated and vulnerable to all forms of attack and some will even take to crime. Other state governments offered me lands to build this industry but I told my team that it must be sited in Abia.” Indeed, some things become possible when people want them badly enough.

Uche Ogah

Sunday, July 02, 2017

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MISSILE IBB to Nigerians “Drums of war are easy to beat, but their rhythms are difficult to dance. War is bad, condemnable and must be avoided.”

– Former military president Gen. Ibrahim Babangida (rtd.) saying the fact that Nigeria had not realised its potential as a nation is not enough reason for Nigerians to destroy its foundation.

SIMONKOLAWOLE SIMONKOLAWOLELIVE!

simon.kolawole@thisdaylive.com, sms: 0805 500 1961

‘Shifting Cultivation’ in Nigerian Politics

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f you are a newcomer to Nigerian politics, you should be forgiven for thinking Igbo are sworn enemies of northerners (and I mean the “core north” by that, and hereinafter). Since the 2015 presidential electioneering, there has been no love lost between the two big power blocs and erstwhile political allies.

Agitations for Biafra, which were dormant under President Goodluck “Azikiwe” Jonathan, have been magnificently revived, and in an unprecedented development, an Arewa youth coalition has issued an October 1 deadline to Igbo to quit the north. Although there are efforts to douse the tension, the rhetoric has only softened. The damage has been done.

The north and Igbo were political partners for decades, right from 1960s, so I am sitting here today asking myself: what went wrong? Many will trace the turning point to January 1966 when northern leaders and their southern allies were killed in what was termed — rightly or wrongly — an “Igbo coup”. There was a revenge coup by the north in July 1966. The end product of the coup and countercoup was the civil war of 1967-1970. But the north and Igbo appeared to have only briefly separated — their political romance resumed in 1979. Things went awry, though, in the 2015 electioneering, probably not helped by President Muhammadu Buhari’s “97% vs 5%” Freudian slip.

However, shifting alliances and coalitions are part of our politics. An excursion into our history will offer some illumination — and, if you will, a bit of consolation — that the north and Igbo are not mortal enemies and reconciliation should not be ruled out. If anything, it is the Yoruba and Igbo that have never managed to befriend each other, politically. It is somewhat an irony that the north and Yoruba are today locked in a political embrace after what appeared to be an eternal enmity, while Igbo are the outsiders, as it were. The basic truth, then, is that there are no permanent friends or permanent foes in politics: it is all about interests.

Let’s step back in time. In the 1959 general election which ushered us into independence in 1960, the Northern Peoples Congress (NPC) won the most seats in the federal legislature.

Under the parliamentary system that we operated then, NPC was in the poll position to form government and appoint a prime minister. But there was a snag: they won only 134 seats. In the 312-member parliament, that was not enough. NPC needed a minimum of 157 seats to have the simple majority, and so it needed a coalition to control power.

Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe’s National Council of Nigerian Citizens (NCNC) won 81 seats, while Chief Obafemi Awolowo’s Action Group (AG) got 73.

Actually, NPC and its allies had 148 seats, NCNC and its allies 89, and AG and its allies 75. Awo and Zik could have “stolen” power from NPC if they had joined forces: their total of 164 seats would have surpassed the 157-seat target. But in reality, Awo and Zik (you can say Yoruba and Igbo) were no political allies. They seemed to have mutual respect as well as mutual distrust for each other, certainly not unrelated to Awo’s controversial upstaging of Zik to become premier of the western region in 1952. But they had a history: in 1941, both men took opposing sides in the by-election to elect the president of the Nigerian Youth Movement

Nnia Nwodo, Ohanaeze leader

(NYM). Awo and Zik could never align.

We had a first republic where the north and Igbo were in a live-in relationship — even if you would call it “marriage of convenience”.

Zik became the governor-general of Nigeria (and, in 1963, the ceremonial president) while NPC’s Alhaji Tafawa Balewa became prime minister. NCNC also produced the senate president: Prince Nwafor Orizu. Awo, or should I say the Yoruba, played the role of opposition in the parliament. The Yoruba prided themselves as progressives, and it was unimaginable for them to work with the conservative NPC. The more pragmatic Zik chose to play mainstream politics, hence the coalition with NPC. Fast forward to 1979. Despite the civil war, Zik’s new party, Nigerian Peoples Party (NPP), still chose to work with the National Party of Nigeria (NPN), preferred by the conservative north (or the “northern oligarchy”, as the Yoruba mainstream loved to call it). Ironically, yet again, while NPN won 5.6 million votes in the presidential election (we had ditched the Westminster parliamentary system), Awo’s Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN) scored 4.9 million and Zik’s NPP had 2.8 million. Now, look at those figures again. If Zik and Awo had worked together, they would have polled 7.7 million votes and NPN’s Alhaji Shehu Shagari would not have been elected president.

In the national assembly, NPN could not control either chamber — it had only 36 out of the 95 senators (there were five senators from each of the 19 states in those days) and only 165 out of 433 members of the houses of reps. The way out? A north/Igbo alliance again! NPP, with its 16 senators and 78 reps, went into an “understanding” with NPN, even producing Chief Edwin Ume Eze-oke as the speaker. It was not the best of marriages, but at least they co-habited until the next election. By the way, Dr. Alex Ekwueme, an Igbo, was twice elected vicepresident to Shagari. Even if the nation was fractured along ethnic lines, there were still handshakes across the fence.

In the third republic, Igbo again aligned with the north. In the famous June 12 election, the National Republican Convention (NRC), fielding a northern candidate, Alhaji Bashir Tofa, won in three of the four Igbo states, namely Imo, Abia and Enugu (where NRC had also produced governors), while the Social Democratic Party (SDP), fielding a Yoruba, Chief MKO Abiola, won in Anambra (with a sitting SDP governor). Interestingly, although Tofa polled 756,142 votes in the four south-east states, he had a mere 16,394 votes more than Abiola. Perhaps with Awo and Zik out of the way, Yoruba and Igbo were beginning to flirt with each other. It was a shift, even if not wholly significant.

In 1999, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), a strong congregation of mainstream northern, south-east and south-south politicians, fielded Chief Olusegun Obasanjo in the presidential election that birthed this dispensation. The Alliance for Democracy (AD), in a partnership with the All Peoples Party (APP), fielded Chief Olu Falae, the “official” Yoruba choice. The Igbo kept faith with their historical alignment with the north, and voted for Obasanjo, the choice of the north. They also supported Obasanjo in 2003 and Alhaji Umaru Musa Yar’Adua in 2007, despite the candidacy of Dim Chukwuemeka Ojukwu on the APGA platform in both elections. Ojukwu was not an ordinary Igbo.

What then? I have gone into this historical voyage for two reasons. One, I have noticed that many members of the younger generation are taking 2015 as the starting point of Nigerian history and I consider this to be very dangerous. Our history is filled with shifting alliances: those who play in the mainstream today could be on the margin tomorrow. In fact, the Niger Delta aligned with the north from 1959 till the bad blood generated by Jonathan’s ascendancy to power in 2011. Before then, both blocs got along quite well. As things heat up today, it may be helpful to remember where paths crossed in the past. Burning the bridges should not be fanciful.

Two, Nigeria needs all the stability it can buy so that development issues can take the centre stage. While other African countries such as Ethiopia, Kenya, Ghana and Rwanda are confronting their demons and making steady progress, some Nigerians are massively obsessed with ethnic warfare as if that is what will construct the roads, equip the hospitals, reform the schools and put food on the tables of the helpless millions. I insist that political differences are inevitable in a country of three major ethnic groups with fiercely competing interests in the midst of scarcity. Differences can be better managed, and no part of the party must be deliberately isolated from power.

I’m sufficiently aware that many separatists believe that Nigeria cannot progress until it is broken up. Maybe this is true, but in the absence of compelling evidence, I am forced to stick to my suggestion that we try out development-obsessed leadership — and then see how far it can take the country.

Political alliances will form and dissolve, coalitions will appear and disappear. Our political history is filled with shifts in flings and marriages. That is the nature of our politics. We should never allow that to get in the way of development, justice and equity. Let the professional politicians politick, but the leaders must centre their heart on Nigeria’s progress. Focus.

And Four Other Things...

TOO YOUNG If Nollywood produced a movie depicting a junior secondary school student trying to poison a mate because of first position in class, it would appear unreal. But that is what just played out at the Lekki British International School, Lagos, where a 12-year-old JSS1 student reportedly sneaked into the school lab and stole sulphuric acid and ethanol, which he poured into the water bottle of an 11-year-old girl who had displaced him from the first position. Is the boy under intense pressure from his parents to always place first? Are Nigerian schools still grading students by positions in this age and time? Is the school security so lax that students can gain access to deadly chemicals? Scary.

SUNTAI’S EXIT There are certain things in life that I battle to understand, and the case of Mr. Danbaba Danfulani Suntai, former governor of Taraba state who died on Wednesday, is one.

When someone survives a deadly accident, you would ordinarily think the worst is over.

But he never really recovered from the air crash of October 25, 2012 when he piloted an ill-fated flight. The neurological injury turned him virtually a vegetable, making his recovery process agonisingly slow. And he still died, two days to his 56th birthday.

So I am wondering if the five years of vegetation was worth it at all. These are the hard things of life. Mystifying.

HAUSA DISSERVICE A lot has been said about President Muhammadu Buhari’s Eid el Fitri message broadcast on BBC Hausa service. Having been away for so long, with nobody hearing anything from him or seeing his picture, Buhari could have done better than that.

The president is already carrying the baggage of being perceived as a northern property and it would appear he is doing everything to prove his critics right. It is also significant that the presidential media team that is well endowed in issuing clarifications and rebuttals could not put any spin to this PR disaster. Whoever advised Buhari to do an Eid message in Hausa did him a great disservice. QED. FACEBOOK FARCE You couldn’t make this up. A 19-year-old American woman, Monalisa Perez, and her boyfriend, Pedro Ruiz, decided to perform a stunt on Facebook Live. In the presence of their three-year-old child, she fired a shot at Pedro, who was holding a book on his chest which they thought would stop the bullet. It didn’t. Pedro died. Ruiz’s aunt quoted Pedro as having said they wanted to pull a stunt “because we want more viewers, we want to get famous”. Exactly the world we now live in — where people do and say unthinkable things on social media “to get famous”. I have no doubt that the world will rise up, one day, to tame this digital monster. Crazy.

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