Saturday 23rd September 2017

Apapa Gridlock: Stay Away from Lagos, Ambode Orders Truck Owners LASTMA, RRS mobilised to prevent all trailers, trucks and oil tankers from gaining access to Lagos for now Gboyega Akinsanmi After a week-long outright blockage of all access roads to Apapa and intractable gridlock resulting from it, the Lagos State Government yesterday ordered all trailers, trucks and oil tankers

to stay off all roads within the state immediately.

Consequently, the state government directed the operatives of the State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA), Rapid Response Squad (RRS) and the State Taskforce on Environmental and Special Offences (Enforcement)

Unit among others to deny all articulated vehicles access to the state.

The directive was issued at an inter-ministerial news conference at the Bagauda Kaltho Press Centre, Alausa yesterday, lamenting implication of the gridlock for state's economy and health of

the residents.

The conference was addressed by the Commissioner for Information & Strategy, Mr. Steve Ayorinde; the General Manager of Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), Mr. Adesina Tiamiyu and President of the Association of Maritime

Truck Owners (AMARTO), Mr. Remi Ogungbemi among others.

In the last fortnight, more than 2,000 trailers, trucks and oil tankers had massively flooded Ikorodu Road all through to Apapa in bid to get into the Port and tank farms to convey commodities to their various destinations.

The influx of articulated vehicles had culminated in intractably protracted gridlock that shut down Ikorodu Road and subjected residents and motorists to undue hardship on the roads before getting to Continued on page 8

Borno Cholera Outbreak Could Have Been Worse, Says WHO...Page 16 Saturday 23 September, 2017 Vol 22. No 8192 Price: N250

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Abia Community on Edge as Herdsmen Insist on Right to Choose Grazing Areas… Page 16

Army: We've Stabilised South-east Despite Intense Opposition from IPOB, Sympathisers Expect more Operation Python Dance across the nation PANDEF kicks, urges military to halt action IPOB challenges proscription, labeling, as terrorists organisation Ernest Chinwo in Port Harcourt, Sylvester Idowu in Warri, Paul Obi and Alex Enumah in Abuja The Army yesterday said the South-east was now more stabilised than before notwithstanding the

intense opposition to its Operation Python Dance 11, also known as Operation Egwu Eke II, which is ongoing in the region.

In a related development, the Army has said that it would embark on more operations like

Operation Python Dance to tackle rising cases of insecurity and crime across the country.

This came as the military explained that it decided to embark on Operations Python Dance 11 and Crocodile Smile 11

in the South-east and South-south geopolitical zones of the country in order to tackle rising challenges of militancy, kidnapping and pipeline vandalism.

In a swift reaction however, the Chief Edwin Clark-led Pan Niger

Delta Elders Forum (PANDEF) kicked against the action and urged the military to reconsider the plan “in the interest of peace existing in the Niger Delta region.”

It also emerged yesterday that IPOB had challenged it's

proscription by the federal government and labeling as a terrorist organization.

Deputy Director, Army Public Relations, 82 Division, Col. Sagir Continued on page 8

Relief as OPEC Extends Nigeria’s Exemption from Oil Production Cut FG to track Nigeria’s stolen crude oil with fingerprint technology Ejiofor Alike and Emmanuel Addeh in Yenagoa

The meeting of the Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee (JMMC) of OPEC and Non-OPEC Countries in Vienna, Austria, yesterday extended its exemption from crude oil production cut, thus endorsing the country’s position Continued on page 49

ROYAL HONOUR FOR OSHIOMHOLE… R-L: Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State; Sokoto State Governor, Aminu Tambuwal; Chairman/Editor-in-Chief, THISDAY Newspapers and ARISE Television, Nduka Obaigbena; Kebbi State Governor, Alhaji Atiku Bagudu, and former governor of Edo State, Adams Oshiomhole at the royal reception organised by the Oba of Benin, Oba Ewuare II, in honour of Comrade Adams Oshiomhole in Benin City …yesterday

Ijaw Youths Reject Proposed Bill to Regulate Civil Society Groups ... Page 48

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TACKLING THE CHOLERA SCOURGE‌ The WHO Representative in Nigeria, Dr. Wondi Alemu administering cholera vaccine on an internally displaced person at Muna camp‌yesterday

ARMY: WE'VE STABILISED SOUTH-EAST DESPITE INTENSE OPPOSITION FROM IPOB, UNPATRIOTIC SYMPATHISERS Musa in a statement yesterday, explained that with Operation Python Dance 11, the influence of the Indigenous People of Biafra within the zone had been drastically curtailed.

He said: "Despite the initial opposition to Exercise Egwu Eke II by the outlawed Indigenous Peoples of Biafra members and their sympathizers and unpatriotic elements, the general area of the South- east especially Aba in Abia State is now fully stabilised.

"The usual violent activities of the outlawed Biafra “National Guards� (manning check points and extorting money from traders and motorists) have now been checkmated.

"Similarly, the outlawed Biafra terrorist group presence is no longer visible and people go about their normal businesses without fear, let or hindrance.

"The 82 Division Nigerian Army wishes to reassure the public that it is poised to maintaining the peace and security in the entire South-eastern region.

"Members of the public are please requested to cooperate with security agencies by remaining law abiding and passing credible information to the nearest security check point or call 193 and the various Sector Commanders’ telephone numbers that were earlier made public," Musa stated.

He also gave account and update on the operation, stating that "simultaneous activities have started in Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu, Imo and Cross River States without hitch.

"The essence of the exercise is to enhance troops' preparedness and proficiency in dealing with emerging security challenges peculiar to the South-eastern region, such as kidnappings, armed robbery, communal crisis, farmers- herdsmen clashes, cultism, violent agitations and insurgency, amongst others.

One interesting aspect of the exercise is that, it is multi-agency in nature and execution, thus enhancing synergy of efforts among the services, security and response agencies. Relevant para-military organizations such as the Nigerian Police Force, Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corp, Department of State Security Service, Federal Road Safety Commission, National Drugs Law Enforcement Agency and Nigerian Immigration Service are all synergizing and collaborating in the exercise to ensure attainment of these objectives.

Expect more Operation Python Dance across the nation The Army has said that it would embark on more operations like Python Dance and Crocodile Smile to tackle rising cases of insecurity

and crime across the country.

The Chief of Army Staff, Lt. General Tukur Buratai, who disclosed this while speaking at the executive session of the on-going 13th All Nigeria Editors' Conference (ANEC) in Port Harcourt, said the on-going “Operation Mesa� in states in the North and the Middle Belt was aimed at tackling challenges of cattle rustling, herdsmen-farmers clashes and kidnapping.

Buratai, who was represented by the General Officer Commanding (GOC), 6 Division, Nigerian Army, Major-General Enobong Udoh, said the exercises were aimed at focusing the personnel to relative professional scenarios as against stimulated training sessions.

He said: "The core value that emanate from professionalism and responsiveness in my own opinion include training, welfare, operational exigencies, logistics, civil-military cooperation, interagency cooperation and observance of human rights.

"Typical examples of pillar of professionalism and responsiveness are the exercises that the Nigerian Army has been conducting in all established areas in the country.

These exercises are aimed at focusing the personnel to relative professional scenarios as against stimulated training situations.

"Exercise Hadi Kunama 11, which took place in Southern Kaduna and Samgore forest in Kaduna respectively, the clearing operation in Niger and Zamfara States as well as the forth-coming Exercise Crocodile Smile 11 and Exercise Egwu Eke, which is ongoing are typical examples.

"More of such exercises are being planned to tackle existing security challenges in the country.

The challenges of cattle rustling, herdsmen-farmers clashes and kidnapping in some Northern states and the Middle Belt are being tackled through the conduct of Operation Mesa.

"In the same light, the challenges of militancy, kidnapping and pipeline vandalism in the Southern part of the country have been accorded adequate attention in the Nigerian Army order of service."

PANDEF Kicks against Re-launch The Chief Edwin Clark-led Pan Niger Delta Elders Forum (PANDEF) yesterday kicked against the re-launch of Operation Crocodile Smile 11 and urged the military to reconsider the plan in the interest of peace existing in the Niger Delta region.

The group maintained that there has been relative peace in the Niger Delta following the understanding reached with the aggrieved agitators by PANDEF, “which

have consistently demonstrated the primacy of dialogue and peaceful resolution of conflicts rather than destruction of oil and gas assets in the region.�

PANDEF, in a statement signed by its Coordinating Secretary, Dr. Alfred Mulade recalled that the federal government had made some indications of its readiness to fast-track development efforts in the region by the adoption of the 16 -Point Agenda as working tool for this purpose as well as the positive pronouncements on some of the 16 -Point items for immediate implementation.

"PANDEF therefore is of the strong opinion that whatever actions on the part of government that will undermine this much desired hard earned peace process should be discouraged.

"It is on this premise that PANDEF was taken aback by the announcement of the Director of Army Public Relations, Brig- General Sani Usman of the readiness of the Nigerian Army to Launch 'Operation Crocodile Smile 11' in the Oil-rich South-South Region, just as 'Operation Python Dance' was being deployed in the South-East zone of Nigeria, which has elicited mixed reactions from wide range stakeholders.

"Whilst it is not the position of PANDEF to challenge operational deployments of Nigerian soldiers in any part of Nigeria in accordance with best practices and rules of engagement, and without prejudice to the constitutional role of the Military in a democratic setting, we however observed that, this contemplated deployment of the 'Operation Crocodile Smile 11' is certainly misadvised, especially at this time when the region is gradually coming to terms with the urgent need for sustaining the relative peace in the region", it added.

The Niger Delta group recalled that the previous launch of the 'Operation Crocodile Smile' in the Niger Delta last year “left in its trail bitter tales of woes, including harassment, destruction of helpless communities and killings of innocent persons� adding that there is palpable fear that the second coming of this Operation Crocodile Smile “will not be any better since it is fraught with the tendencies for heating up the fragile peace in the Niger Delta region.�

It added: "This fear and concern is being expressed by cross section of the people of the helpless communities and stakeholders in the region, including the Delta Ijaw Women Initiative (DIWI), a body of concerned women who have also lend its voice to the call for restraint on the part the Nigerian Military in the planned deployment

of 'Operation Crocodile Smile' in the region.

"The basis for the second coming of Operation Crocodile Smile in the Niger Delta region does not arise at this moment. The reasons canvassed by the Military to justify the launch of the operation in the South-East which included kidnappings, robbery and other vices, have very low occurrence level in the South-South, and so do not require the deployment of any special 'Crocodile'. Militarization of the region is certainly not the way out.

"What is needed now is to consolidate on the existing peace to fast-track peace and development in the Niger Delta region."

IPOB Challenges Proscription Also yesterday, IPOB challenged it's proscription by the federal government and it's labelling as a terrorist organization.

The Acting Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Justice Abdu Kafarati, had, on Wednesday, while granting an exparte application by the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami outlawed the activities of the organisation and further labeled it as a terrorist organization.

But in a motion before the Federal High Court in Abuja and brought pursuant to section 6(6) (1)(4) of the 1999 constitution, the organisation asked the Court to set aside the order of injunction, it gave against IPOB on the 20th day of September, 2017.

In the suit with number: FHC/ ABJ/CS/871/17, IPOB is equally asking the court to make any further order as it may deem fit to make in the circumstance.

In the motion filed on its behalf by its counsel, Ifeanyi EJiofor, the organisation claimed that the Exparte order made on the 20th day of September 2017, by the Court was made without jurisdiction, as the order it said was granted against an entity unknown to law.

It further alleged that there is a clear suppression and misrepresentation of facts in the Attorney General Affidavit evidence, pursuance to which the Order was granted.

The organization added further that the order which proscribed it and labeled it a terrorist organisation was unconstitutional, since it was made in clear violation of the constitutionally guaranteed right of the Indigenous People of Biafra to self-determination; Article 20(1) of the Africa Charter on Human & Peoples Rights, now domesticated into our Law under (Ratification and Enforcement Act) (Cap 10) Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 1990; Right to fair

hearing, Right to freedoms of expression, and the press and Rights to peaceful Assembly and Association; clearly provided for under Sections 36, 39 and 40 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as (Amended) 2011.

The respondent/applicant argued that a declaratory order cannot be made pursuant to an Exparte Application, without hearing from the party against whom the order was made.

In an affidavit deposed to by one Prince Mandela Umegborogu, an Associate Solicitor in the Law Firm of I.C. Ejiofor & Co., the Respondent/Applicant maintained that members of IPOB are lawful and non-violent socio-ethnic pressure group, largely made up of Indigenous People of Igbo extraction, and of Igbo neighboring states of Biafra region/origin.

"That as Indigenous People of the Igbo speaking states, and neighboring states of Biafran

origin, they are a Community of individuals, and not registered as a registered as a legal entity.

"That the Respondent are merely a community of Indigenous People exercising their constitutionally guarantee right to self-determination freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association.

"That the Respondent’s members have no history of violence or armed struggle in the exercise of their rights to self-determination.�

"That the depositions in the Affidavit in Support of the Exparte application to proscribe the Indigenous People of Biafra are all false, and misleading.

"That pictures (photographs) and video footages attached in the Applicant/Respondent’s affidavit were all concocted and video/photo shopped to make it appear real, and do not represent the true images/ impression of the Respondent/ Applicant’s members.

APAPA GRIDLOCK: STAY AWAY FROM LAGOS, AMBODE ORDERS TRUCK OWNERS their destinations.

By implication, the state government convoked the news conference where it directed all trailers, trucks and oil tankers “to stay off all Lagos roads for now as a result of massive gridlock on Ikorodu road leading to Apapa.�

At the news conference, Elegushi identified the breakdown of operations at the ports as the roots cause of the gridlock.

The commissioner, equally, lamented that the situation had become so terrible that the state government must take drastic steps to remedy the situation, which has seen the gridlock extending from Apapa to Ojuelegba. “The port operators must solve the problem immediately so that Lagos residents and motorists would enjoy some respite. We appeal to owners of articulated trailers and tankers to stay away from Lagos for now until we resolve the problem.�

Elegushi added that officers of LASTMA and RRS had been mobilised “to prevent all trailers, trucks and oil tankers from gaining access to Lagos for now. All articulated vehicles should stay at Ogere and other areas pending the resolution of the gridlock in the state.�

He, therefore, appealed to all motorists and road users in the state “to seek alternative routes for now until the challenge of Apapa's gridlock is resolved.�

Also, at the conference, Ayorinde said: “More than 2,000 trucks are currently struggling to gain access into the port. As responsive

government, we cannot allow these pains to continue. We are taking steps to mitigate the problem to ensure that Lagos residents are not subjected to these avoidable pains and sufferings.�

Tiamiyu lamented the consequence of the gridlock, noting that the traffic situation in Apapa had been very tough in the recent times. “If there is an explosion in the area today, it will be grave because there is no access to Apapa,� Tiamiyu said.

He said the agency had sent drones “to monitor the situation in Apapa for proper government intervention, while urging Lagos residents to report any untoward situation to the agency through the dedicated 767 emergency line. “The state government is on top of the situation. We will enforce the law to ensure that Lagos is not shutdown,� he said, adding that “this is a challenging time, we have declared emergency around that area.�

Giving a stakeholder’s perspective, Ogungbemi said the situation in Apapa represented a time bomb that could explode anytime, saying that no amount of money was too much “to ensure safety of lives and properties. “The situation is a time bomb that can explode. The federal government should collaborate with the state so that the problem will be over; we don’t want to wait until it happens before they start sending relief materials. We are ready to give necessary support until sanity returns to Apapa.�

T H I S D AY SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 23, 2017

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NEWS

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FOR ASSISTED BIRTHS...

L-R; President Association for Fertility and Reproductive Health, DR. Faye Iketubosin; Founding President, Prof. Osato Giwa- Osagie with other executives at the regulatory conference in Abuja

NADECO Accuses Military of Undermining Civil Authority Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja

The National Democratic Coalition (NADECO) has said that the deployment of soldiers with armored tanks to Abia State in the South East without approvals by appropriate legal authorities amounted to an unconstitutional and gradual usurpation of power by the military.

The group accused the military of illegal take-over of the functions of the National Assembly,

the Abia State House of Assembly and the legal authorities.

In a statement issued by the Chairman of NADECO, Rear Admiral Godwin N. Kanu (Rtd), the pro-democracy group said the soldiers' action was "inconsistent with the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, and may be the beginning, if not checked, of the unwitting or witting subversion of democracy in Nigeria."

The statement reads: "On

Sunday 10th of September, 2017, the Nigerian Armed Forces invaded South East Nigeria, and in particular Abia State with a large contingent of soldiers, armored tanks and other military paraphernalia.

"In Abia State, the soldiers invaded communities, tortured civilian population, over-awed the constitutionally elected governor and civil .institutions of the state, and declared the Independent People of Biafra (IPOB) a terrorist

organisation, in defiance of the judgment of the Federal High Court.

"All of these actions are unconstitutional and represent an illegal take-over of the functions of the National Assembly, the Abia State House of Assembly and the legal authorities ".

The group which said that it was committed to securing and protecting Democracy in Nigeria however warned that it was time once again to rise

and defend democracy in our dear country.

"We are very troubled by recent national developments and are forced to issue this warning to all our compatriots that democracy is once again under threat in our nation,� they lamented.

On the clamour for restructuring' NADECO said that what was actually being canvassed for was true Federalism, adding that it was the problem with Nigeria and what was causing all the

agitations and instability, It further said that what we have today is an inverted federation which the Military converted Nigeria to.

"It is clear to us that unless Nigerians fully understand and address what is at stake, those who benefit from the continued instability of Nigeria will continue to create confusion and delay Nigeria from achieving its manifest destiny," NADECO concluded.

IGP: Newly Recruited Policemen TCN, WAPP to Build Additional 330kV Power Line to Benin Republic to Serve in States of Origin Laleye Dipo in Minna

Henceforth newly recruited police constables are to be posted to their states of origin, the Inspector General of Police Ibrahim Idris disclosed in Minna Niger State on Friday.

Alhaji Ibrahim Idris said apart from posting the recruits to their states of origin, majority of them would also be deployed to their local government areas.

The Inspector General of Police stated in a message to the passing out of police recruits at the police college in the Niger State capital The IGP who was represented by the Deputy Inspector General of Police in charge of Finance and administration Alhaji Shuaibu Lawal said the new posting policy was to give vent to the new "community policing policy".

To show the seriousness of the force to the new policy, only four out of the 464 policemen

that passed out were retained in Minna with two each posted to the ICT and police training schools respectively.

The IGP also disclosed that 956 specialists drawn from the 10,000 approved for the force had passed out as cadet ASP, and Inspectors while 767 other cadet ASPs and 666 cadet inspectors were being trained and would pass out in December.

Alhaji Idris reminded the federal government of his request for approval to recruit additional 31,000 policemen annually for the next five years to," make the Nigeria police operate within the United Nations approved ratio of 1:400 "Currently, the Nigeria police force is operating at a ratio of 1:600 which is far below the approved United Nations ratio," Idris said.

He reminded officers and men of the force that the public had high expectation of them saying,

"The protection of lives and property of the citizenry, enforcement of all laws and regulations and prevention of crimes lie squarely on police shoulders. “The police cannot afford to disappoint the populace by allowing crime and criminality to thrive in the country. You must therefore put in your utmost best to maintain law and order at all times."

Niger State Deputy governor, Alhaji Ahmad Mohammad Ketso who represented Governor Abubakar Sani Bello challenged the police force to "look inwards and think of how to confront the new forms of crimes and criminality that pervades our society".

Ketso congratulated the new policemen and urged them to serve with "due determination and dedication to service so that you can contribute your quota to the peace efforts of the government."

Chineme Okafor in Abuja The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) and the West African Power Pool (WAPP) have initiated plans to build a second 330 kilovolt (kV) transmission line to boost electricity supply to the Republic of Benin by 2021.

The Interim Managing Director of TCN and Chairman, WAPP, Mr. Usman Gur Mohammed, disclosed this at a meeting to kick-off the project's Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) Study in Abuja yesterday.

Mohammed said the transmission section of Nigeria's power sector was also targeting to attain 20,000 megawatts (MW) transmission capacity within the next three years.

He said: "The second 330kV Ikeja West transmission line to Sakete in Benin Republic is necessary as the first could soon be constrained by the demand for more power

from the Nigerian grid increase."

Mohammed explained that transmission was no longer the weakest link in the country’s electricity sector’s value chain as TCN now had a robust rehabilitation and expansion plan that had been endorsed by the ministries of power and finance and development partners.

"TCN is no longer the weakest link in the power value chain as it is fast tracking the implementation of many power projects.

"The transmission rehabilitation and expansion programme seeks to expand the grid to about 20,000MW in the next three years.

It is also intended to support the current institutional reform that will make TCN a 21st century compliant transmission firm," Mohammed stated.

According to him, the TCN has also embarked on a nationwide installation of transmission transformers with three installed

in Lagos last week, two scheduled for the north and another three in the Port Harcourt region shortly.

He said the TCN had saved cost of the installations of the transformers as the in-house engineers handled the projects at less than 10 per cent cost of what contractors would have used in the past.

The WAPP project, he noted would be supported by the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) and African Development Bank (AfDB), and that the ESIA study would be conducted in six months after which the construction would take another 24 months and then ready by 2021.

Similarly, the Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Power, Works and Housing (Power), Louis Edozien, said in his remarks at the meeting that: "The ministry’s primary responsibility is to satisfy the electricity needs of Nigerians.

T H I S D AY SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 23, 2017

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COMMENTARY

A REASON TO BELIEVE

Uzor Maxim Uzoatu pays tribute to Matthew Kukah, Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Sokoto

D

ivisive designs are all the rage across the country today.

Pulling together is neither here nor there in higher places and on the lower fronts. It is as though the nation is at war with itself. Nigerians appear to have totally missed the essence and falling in love with the accident.

Against this dire background, one cannot but heave a heavy sigh of relief when the vista of hope is seen in certain circumstances.

The picture staring back at me from the newspaper on my table as I write now shows Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah bringing together in peace the erstwhile warring duo of Prof. Pat Utomi and Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan. It is indeed in the Kukah character of peacemaking given that he was back in 2005 appointed by the federal government to serve as Chairman of the Ogoni-Shell Reconciliation.

As the Good Book states in the seventh verse of the Sermon on the Mount, “Blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called the children of God.� Many may not want to read much into Bishop Kukah’s brokering of peace between Utomi and Uduaghan, but it is very instructive that leaders do have followers who may escalate fiendishly any unresolved schisms involving their principals. The art of nipping trouble in the bud can never ever be praised highly enough. For instance, if the mutual suspicions that led to the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand at Sarajevo had been stopped in time the First World War would not have happened.

Nigerian leaders need to emulate Bishop Kukah in striving after peace instead of the unnecessary display of raw power all the time. The common touch of Kukah comes with no airs whatsoever. I can bear witness to that. When my mother died, a cousin of mine close to the bishop, Dr. Arthur-Martins Aginam, divulged the news to the revered prelate, and I was shocked out of my skin when my phone rang and the soft voice introduced himself as Bishop Kukah. He gently rendered his consolations, prayers and condolences, and when he was done I felt unimaginable elation. Words can indeed heal and uplift. I somehow believed that my dear mother, an esteemed Catholic organiser in her days, also heard Bishop Kukah’s prayers even in her repose!

It is little wonder that everybody wants a piece of Bishop Kukah who the respected Africanist Richard Dowden describes as “Nigeria’s spiritual guide and confessor�. A prominent Northern Muslim once complained that Kukah should not just be addressed as the “Catholic� Bishop of Sokoto because that title excluded non-Catholics like him! Even as a Muslim the man stressed that Kukah was his bishop too! Given our ethno-religious suspicions in Nigeria, the example of Bishop Kukah should be given pride of place in the country’s scheme of things.

The talk of marginalisation in Nigeria places Bishop Kukah’s homestead of Anchuna in Ikulu chiefdom of Zangon-Kataf Local Government Area, Kaduna State, at the most extreme of the margins. When he served at the Catholic Secretariat in Lagos, Kukah had cause to celebrate that a second person from his home place had secured a job in Lagos – as a cook! Even so, he does not bear the badge of marginalisation but continues to work for the growth of a nation where no man or woman

NIGERIAN LEADERS NEED TO EMULATE BISHOP KUKAH IN STRIVING AFTER PEACE INSTEAD OF THE UNNECESSARY DISPLAY OF RAW POWER ALL THE TIME

would be oppressed or denied justice based on primordial sentiments.

Born on August 31, 1952, Bishop Kukah has since being ordained a priest on December 19, 1976 packed so much work into this life as though having many lifetimes jammed together as one. After serving as a member of the Human Rights Violations Investigation Commission of the federal government, otherwise known as the Oputa Panel, which looked into the many violations in the locust years of military rule, Bishop Kukah authored the epochal book Witness to Justice: An Insider’s Account of Nigeria’s Truth Commission.

Let’s take a quote from the book to illustrate the Kukah essence: “Here in Nigeria and at international forums, despite my protestations and clarifications through media interviews, many masters of ceremonies at public events continue to introduce me as the former Secretary of Oputa Panel! I am not exactly sure why and how this came about but it may perhaps not be unconnected with the fact that I was the only member of the commission that carried a micro laptop on him during the entire public sittings. What is more, it was much later that I realised from public comments that many individuals said they often had to pay special attention whenever I took up the microphone to make a comment in the course of the public sittings. In addition, the chairman (who always insisted I sat beside him), and I were in consultation during the public sittings especially when there was a need to clarify an issue. Indeed, retired Col Bello Fadile, who had earlier appeared as a petitioner but later recycled as a lawyer to both General Ibrahim Babangida and Abdulsalami Abubakar made a sensational and an exaggerated claim by stating that the Final Report of the Commission should better be called Father Kukah’s Report.�

Of course the regime of President Olusegun Obasanjo chickened out of formally releasing to the Nigerian public the monumental report of the Oputa Panel but Bishop Kukah feels gratified nonetheless - true to his eternal theme of the promotion of peace - that the commission engendered reconciliation and embraces from erstwhile sworn enemies such as “President Obasanjo and Bello Fadile (over the 1997 coup plot); ACP Zakari Biu and Chris Anyanwu (allegations of torture during detention); Major Hamza Al-Mustapha and Mr Osinowo; Great Ogboru, Major Bilyaminu Mohammed and Professor Odekunle (allegations of torture during detention); Brigadier General Sabo and Chief Chuma Nzeribe, Brigadier Sabo and Lieutenant General Ishaya Bamaiyi (allegations of torture and defamation of character) or General Theophilus Danjuma and Alhaji Umaru Dikko (over the issue of his being transported back to Nigeria in a crate) among so many others that were less dramatic.�

In forging the way forward for Nigeria, Bishop Kukah founded The Kukah Centre (TKC), a policy research institute based in Abuja. Very noteworthy is that a centre founded by a devoted Christian has initiated groundbreaking initiatives toward training the Almajiri on vocations. That is the way go.

Bishop Kukah is a reason to believe on the workability of the pan-Nigerian project.

ELECTRONIC ADMINISTRATION OF PENSIONS Akintola Benson-Oke canvasses the need for reforms across board on pension matters

F

or a considerable while now, the Lagos State Government has enjoyed reputation as a responsible government that pays the requisite attention to its pension responsibilities to the workforce of the civil service. This reputation is indeed deserved.

It is one for which the government of Lagos State, and in particular, the administration of Governor Akinwunmi Ambode, tirelessly worked and laboured. We must therefore commend the laudable commitment of the governor to sterling pension administration and management in Lagos State.

In addition to this leadership and support, the Civil Service Pensions Office (CSPO) is at the heart of the innovations and dedication that have ensured general satisfaction with the management of pension obligations in Lagos State. I therefore also commend the leadership of the CSPO, both past and present, and the entire officers of the CSPO for their fidelity to duty. However, as we rightly bask in this deserved reputation, we must also be reminded of the need to ensure that the entire officers of the civil service and the CSPO are trained on the principles, standards, and mechanisms that have ensured the smooth administration of pension matters in Lagos State.

By approving a training on digital and electronic administration of pensions in Lagos State, the governing is aiming to assure the sustainability of the series of digital and electronic mechanisms and

innovation now enshrined in the processes of the CSPO. Participants at this training will be exposed to a considerable body of knowledge that will stand them in good stead to assume positions of responsibilities in the near future and to sustain the pace, level, and scope of innovation at the CSPO. Pension administration in Nigeria has been haphazardly handled over the years.

This has resulted in huge pension arrears and the subjection of pensioners to untold hardship; hence the need for reforms across board on pension matters. The core responsibility of the CSPO is, among other assigned functions, to process the terminal benefits of staff who exit the system by way of statutory or voluntary retirement i.e., those who disengage on the “Pay As You Go� scheme. In addition to this, the CSPO is responsible for processing of payment of pensions and gratuities; maintaining comprehensive and up-to-date personnel records for pensioners of the civil service; co-ordinating Civil Service Pension Schemes/Funds; organising verification exercise for pensioners bi-annually; and offering pension consultancy to other government agencies.

Others are follow-up on reimbursement claims from federal government in conjunction with the office of the Head of Service; maintaining relations with Lagos State Pensions Commission; maintaining relations with Lagos State Residents’ Registration Agency; organising

pre-retirement capacity building workshops for retiring Officers; appreciating pensioners at an elaborate pensioners/elders day celebrations in the fourth quarter of every year i.e. between September and December In line with the recognised need for reforms, the Lagos State Government committed itself to the task of ensuring a better and more effective pension administration system. It is to this end that the CSPO put in place various measures to ease the burden of retirees and ensure their comfort. The digital and electronic aspects of these measures include the CSPO biometric fingerprint identification system.

This training will explore the robustness and architecture of the biometric fingerprint identification system. The biometric fingerprint identification system is a world-class pension administration system that was introduced in 2008 for pensioners’ verification which comprises the following features that enable fingerprint identification solutions: enrolment and verification in designated location anywhere anytime; convenient, easy and secure processes creating a reliable database; extra fast pension administration and elimination of multiple identities.

The CSPO electronic records management system is saddled with the responsibility of ensuring that pensioners of Lagos State on the ‘Pay As You Go’ scheme are paid their entitlements as at when due. Presently,

pensioners’ population is in the multiple of thousands and this is one of the various measures put in place to make seamless the scanning of pensioners’ files and transferring them into the computer system. The system ensures that storage and retrieval of pensioners’ data is effortless.

The CSPO e-payment of pensions/gratuity on the other hand is a payment system designed to ensure early and prompt payment of pensions. The payment of monthly pensions is done through a digital platform that is designed to pay pensioners electronically.

The CSPO periodic verification exercises also conducts verification exercises (“I’m alive�) for the thousands of pensioners in all the local government areas and the local council development areas of the state. During these exercises, pensioners are required to submit photocopies of relevant documents which are then scanned and stored by the CSPO for future exercises and easy access by principal stakeholders.

Furthermore, specialised software introduced by Lagos State Resident Registration Agency (LASRRA) has been employed to establish a database for the state pensioners. Additionally, the pensioners’ help desk manned by competent officers has been put in place to ensure quick response to enquiries and requests.

Dr. Benson Oke is Lagos State Commissioner for Establishments, Training and Pensions

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ÍşÍťËœ ͺ͸͚Ϳ Ëž THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER

INSIGHT

Will there be end to the excuses?

Much Ado About IPOB’s Proscription

T

he right to self-determination is as old as mankind. All through history, people have been bound by the idea of a better life than they currently have through the idealism of living in a homeland where their shared culture reigns supreme.

For centuries, England was the colonial master of Ireland. It was so bad that the Irish satirist, Jonathan Swift wrote an evergreen piece ‘Modest Proposal’ which was an expose of the horrors the Irish faced living in England. This was the remote reason behind the formation of the Irish Resistance Army (IRA) which pressed for the independence of Ireland.

It morphed from using an intellectual, non-violent approach to full-fledged violence which made the English cede some parts of the country which is today known as the Republic of Ireland.

India at independence in 1947 witnessed the most bloody of pogroms as the cry for the creation of Pakistan led to the deaths of millions during the first partition under the leadership of Mohammed Ali Jinnah. The agitations continued and Bangladesh and Sri Lanka were further carved out.

The rise in popularity of the mafia in Italy was as a result of the determination of the people of southern Sicily to take their destiny in their own hands against the raw oppression of the north. The quest for their homeland led to the spread of its tentacles to the ends of the earth even though the reality of a physical homeland is still a pipedream to this day.

The crisis in the Middle East between Israel and Palestine has its roots in the 1914 Balfours Declaration which unilaterally allocated the Israeli homeland to its present location without any consultations with the Arabs. The 1948 dream of an Israeli homeland was as a result of thousands of years of agitation especially in Europe for a place of their own after the Jerusalem sacking which was the root cause of the massive dispersals.

Ever since the civil war ended with the famous ‘No victor, no vanquished’ statement by General Yakubu Gowon, the south-east zone is still being treated as a conquered territory. There is the dearth of federal presence there and the federal government appointments don’t tend to be in their favour. In the defunct Second Republic, apologists of the Kaduna mafia opined that the easterners had no right to complain since the vice-presidency was ceded to the zone barely less than a decade ago. I humbly beg to vehemently disagree as the position which Alex Ekwueme held was powerless to effect any real change. No sensitive appointment in the then Shehu Shagari led cabinet was manned by easterners. The position of the vice-president was so

powerless that it couldn’t influence the award of a single contract. In 1982, the then ruling NPN sensing its unpopularity, decided to bring back the Biafran warlord, Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu from exile in Cote d’Ivoire. They made it a condition that he must join the NPN as they wanted to make inroads in the south-east especially in the then old Anambra State. The then FEDECO smartly fixed the gubernatorial elections before the senatorial and after Chukwuma Christian Onoh won the gubernatorial, it then moved against Ojukwu by backing the NPP candidate, Alex Onwudiwe whom the Ikemba Nnewi said he had never even heard of. The biggest Igbo symbol was effectively kept out of the nation’s highest law making body – the Senate.

The Igbos rose to economic pre-eminence from the sheer dint of hard work and not because any favourable economic or political policy affected them. The few good roads and amenities that work in the east are largely built from the collective efforts of the entrepreneurs in the beleaguered zone. The zone is still largely treated like a conquered fiefdom.

Ruthless politics by successive administrations is being played with their welfare.

Tony Ademiluyi, anthonyademiluyi@yahoo.com

Averting Environmental Disaster in Nige-

“

Mother Nature is just and fair to all. But I am not sure whether we reciprocate her kind gesture as we often deal unjustly with nature�. Those were the disturbing words of my daughter as we recently drove round some parts of Lagos, observing man’s unbelievable thoughtless treatment of his environment. Being the commercial hub of West Africa, Lagos has obvious environmental concerns. But then, over the years, subsequent governments in the state have endeavoured to make sustainable environmental regeneration a core part of the ultimate goal of transforming the city-state into a smart city.

The United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction describes Environmental Degradation as “the lessening of the limit of the earth to meet environmental and social needs and destinations.� This basically means the act and process of disrespecting the environment.

Particularly in Lagos State, the activities that render the environment unhealthy and unsuitable over time include littering, noise, water and air pollution, loss of green cover and biodiversity, giant landfills caused by indiscriminate dumping of refuse resulting in land damage, deforestation, overcrowded tenements and poor sanitation.

T H E SAT U R DAY N E W S PA P E R EDITOR SHAKA MOMODU DEPUTY EDITOR YEMI ADEBOWALE 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 ASSOCIATE DIRECTORS HENRY NWACHOKOR, SAHEED ADEYEMO CONTROLLERS ABIMBOLA TAIWO, UCHENNA DIBIAGWU, NDUKA MOSERI GENERAL MANAGER PATRICK EIMIUHI GROUP HEAD FEMI TOLUFASHE DIRECTOR, PRINTING PRODUCTION CHUKS ONWUDINJO TO SEND EMAIL: ďŹ rst name.surname@thisdaylive.com

The effects of harmful actions on the environment are unwholesome and we all consciously or unconsciously responsible for it. When we purchase stuffs either in traffic or elsewhere and indiscriminately fling the remnants on the road or other such inappropriate places, what we do is to desecrate the environment. Unfortunately, what we fail to realise is that our seemingly harmless actions have far reaching consequences as it might take close to 900 years for such remnants to actually decompose. That is simply 900 years of infesting pests and trapping stale water which in turn comes with its own bacteria and then pathogens which all lead to life threatening diseases.

When you live in a neighbourhood and decide to blast music so much that the entire vicinity vibrates with amazing venom, unmindful of the peace of others, what you do constitutes serious injury to the health of others. As apparently not detrimental as some infamous environmental acts look, they can spur ripple effects on an entire community. The Ebola virus epidemic in some parts of West Africa and Lassa fever cases in some parts of our country are clear pointers to this. Thus, whenever anyone wants to embark on harmful practices with grievous implications on the environment, it is quite logical to think twice. Environmental degradation can turn a bustling metropolis into a cluster of slums and a bustling crime zone. People need to realise that individuals who live in overcrowded spaces are more likely to be exposed to scenes of violent schisms that inspire wild reactions like domestic and verbal abuse among others. Though these acts are not really limited to these areas, but they are most likely to occur there due to psychological effects of being deprived of private space.

The cost of our damaging behaviour against the environment is by no means minimal. For one, it makes government spend unnecessarily while trying to undo the harm done. And really, such fund could have been expended in meeting other crucial societal needs. Also, public health is sometimes seriously hampered as filthy practices tend to lead to outbreak of tragic epidemics which could lead to needless waste of lives.

The economy also takes a hit with instantaneous effects manifest across all sectors. Tourism, for instance, cannot thrive in any place where the environment is treated irresponsibly. Equally, potential investors will not make such a place a destination of choice. The bottom line is that insensitivity towards environmental issues would do us more harm than good.

Sade Padonu, Ikeja, Lagos

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T H I S D AY SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 23, 2017

T H I S D AY SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 23, 2017

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THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER Ëž ÍşÍťËœ ͺ͸͚;

NEWSXTRA

In Brief Strike Cripples Kogi

EconomicactivitiesinKogiStatewasonFridaycrippledfollowingtheindustrial actiondeclaredbytheorganisedlabourunionwhichwasfullycompliedwith bythestateworkers.WhenTHISDAYwentroundthetownonFridaysomeof thebusyroadslinkingtostategovernmentofficesweredesertedasoffices werecompletelyshutdown.AvisittoKogiStatebroadcastingcorporation, State Secretariat, State ministry of health showed they were all under lock andkey.StudentsofvariousSecondarySchoolsinthestatewerelockedout andhadtoreturnhomeasaresultofthestrike. Someofstateworkerswho spoke with THISDAY said they hadn't collected salary for 20 months. "By next month, October, it will complete 21 month I last collected salary in Kogi State. So what do you expect me to do? I have been feeding from hands to mouthwithmyfamily.Presently,mysecondbornissick,butIdon'thavemoney for hospital bill. So I have no other option than to resort to self-medication.

I heard recently that some workers have started feeding on Cassava leave justbecauseofhungerintheland.

Striking NAFDAC Workers Give Conditions

SECURING ANAMBRA...

StrikingWorkersoftheNationalAgencyforFood,DrugAdministrationand Control(NAFDAC)undertheaegisoftheMedicalandHealthWorkers'Unionof Nigeria(MHWUN)havecalledontheFederalgovernmenttourgentlyaddress theirsixgrievancesbeforetheycouldcallofftheirindustrialactionembarked upononFriday. AtajointpressconferenceattheNAFDACOffice,IyanaIsolo, Lagos,onFriday,LagosStateChairmanandSecretaryofMHWUN,Ibrahim Attah Isah and Ibrahim Bashir, respectively, stated that the workers had to embarkonanindefinitestrikeactionasaresultofthefailureonthepartofthe Federalgovernmenttoimplementseveralissuesthatwerenotadequately addressedduringajointmeetingheldonSeptember13,2017.

L-R: Anambra State Civil Defence Commander, Mr. John Aweh; State Director, Department of State Security, Mr. Yusuf Isyaku; Commander of Road Safety, Mr Sunday Ajayi; Commanding OfďŹƒcer, Nigerian Army, Mr Garba Umar and NDLEA Commander Sule Momoh

Otuaro Tasks SPDC on Operations

Tension in Abia Community as Herdsmen insist on Choosing Grazing Area Emmanuel Ugwu in Umuahia

Fear of herdsmen attack has gripped Ndiolumbe Nvosi community of Isiala Ngwa local government, Abia State following the refusal of herdsmen to vacate farm lands, insisting that it was their right to choose where to graze their cattle.

The traditional ruler of the agrarian community, HRH Eze Godwin Ogbonna told journalists at his Eziaha palace that his people became apprehensive when a man who gave his name as Mohammed Shuaibu came and threatened the community for ejecting cattle from farmlands after two weeks of devastation of crops.

He said that over 100 herds of cattle had come from Umuoba area and moved into Okiyi farm land and for two weeks, grazed in the area destroying farm crops to the chagrin of farmers who watched helplessly as their labour was wasted. “You can imagine where 100 cows stayed for two weeks, trampling on the farms and feeding on crops. Cassava, corns, vegetables and other valuable farms crops were laid waste.

Hunger is looming as crops ready for harvest and the newly planted ones were all destroyed. “I’ve been appealing to my people to be patient but the herdsmen refused to leave hence some youths forced them out the

farms, they were just driven out without any fight,�, he explained.

However, tension heightened when Shuaibu came down from Okigwe and told the traditional ruler that the herdsmen would not abandon grazing their cattle at Ndiolumbe, saying that they had surveyed the area and found it “very suitable for grazing�.

According to him, the spokesman of the herdsmen insisted that they should be allowed to graze and pay compensation any time their cattle destroyed farm crops but the community refused the offer on the ground that they won’t be living on compensation. “Our people are farmers and the herdsmen should understand that our crops are as important

to us as their cattle are to them.

So they should leave us alone and stop courting trouble,� the monarch said.

When contacted on phone Shuaibu confirmed the misunderstanding with Ndiolumbe, saying that they were invited by government Thursday where the matter was resolved. He said that the herdsmen had agreed to take their cattle away from the farmlands, adding, “we have moved to a neighbouring village.

It was gathered that the special adviser to the governor on security, Capt. Awa Udensi (rtd) had invited representatives of Ndiolumbe and herdsmen to a peace parley to avoid the dispute resulting in bloody confrontation.

The Voice Nigeria Enters Grand

Borno Cholera Outbreak could Finale, Winner Takes Home GS4 SUV have been Worse, Says WHO Bennett Oghifo There is heightening anticipation among the few contestants left as the hard-fought The Voice 2017 competition reaches its climax and the emergence of the winner of the star prize, a GAC GS4 premium car.

The manufacturers of the SUV applied sustainable and eco-friendly technologies, according to Diana Chen, Chairman of CIG Motors, the manufacturer’s representative in Nigeria, during its launch in the country.

The GS4, like every other car manufactured by GAC Motor follow the highest standards and they use only the best quality and environmental friendly materials.

The GS4 has optimal fuel efficiency with a combined fuel consumption of 6.3-liter/100 km (37.3mpg) and only 36dB in idling noise to provide undisturbed driving space for car owners.

It is no wonder the excitement is building towards a crescendo as The Voice Nigeria enters its grand finale. As the contestants are whittled down from the 48 contestants that started Season

2, the question uppermost in the minds of devotees of the show is: “Who will win the GAC GS4?�

For starters, it has been a gruelingly hectic few months not only for the contestants, but also for the judges who also doubled as coaches. The four judges; Waje, Patoranking, Timi Dakolo and Yemi Alade who replaced first season judge 2Baba (Tuface) - have based their judgements on various parameters, including technical ability, flexibility and the ability to handle and memorably perform any song choice they are faced with.

Each coach now has two talented and well-groomed performers primed and ready to win The Voice Nigeria 2017 and take home the GS4 - a car born of unprecedented level of craftsmanship and sophistication.

The eight determined individuals that have knocked out other competitors to emerge as the semifinalists and are set to give their utmost in pursuit of the grand prize are: Ebube, Yimika, Chris Rio, Syemca, Idyl, Jahtell, J'Dess and Wow.

Michael Olugbode, in Maiduguri The World Health Organisation (WHO) on Friday said the death toll of 48 recorded from outbreak of cholera in Borno State, North East Nigeria could have been more but for early intervention tion to combat the disease.

The disease, which afflicted about 2000 people mostly at the internally displaced persons camps scattered all over the Boko Haram ravaged state, was combatted with vaccines.

Speaking in Maiduguri after assessing the ongoing cholera vaccination exercise in Borno State, the World Health Organisation Representative in Nigeria, Dr. Wondi Alemu said the plan to combat cholera had been put in place since May before the commencement of the rainy season.

He said: "For the outbreak of cholera, we are prepared from May or June before the rainy season that this could occur. The preparation was led by the state government, ministry of health and some of the medicine and kits were placed where they were needed, once cholera was identified we moved in, the amount of work and commitment is commendable.

We have treatment centres close to the communities, yes it was anticipated, we were prepared for it."

He added that: "The government has prepared what we call national cholera prevention and control plan, where all of us are participating, particularly in Borno. And in this kind of situation when we have cholera outbreak, we have to do what is needed to save life and to check the disease from spreading.

"The issue is that for any of this case that is conducive for cholera spread, we have anticipated, based on the anticipation we have quickly come to contain it as quick as possible. If not for the intervention this is not the number of cases we would have had, it would have been much worse."

He said: "WHO has supported right from the very beginning in the confirmation of cholera cases and after that, worked with the state ministry of health and also other partners in the establishment of treatment centres and also provision of supplies, medicine, and technical support including going from house to house, finding cases and directing them to the treatment centres and making sure there is intervention."

Deputy Governor of Delta State, Mr. Kingsley Burutu Otuaro, had assured the Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) and other investors in thestateofaninvestor-friendlyenvironment.SpeakinginWarriatthe2017 SwampWestHubIntegratedStakeholdersEngagementForumforOgunnu, IduwiniDeltaandOjoboclustercommunities’leadershipandSPDC,Otuaro emphasised that peace was key to the actualisation of the SMARTagenda of the Okowa administration. Otuaro, who chairs the Delta State Advocacy Committee Against Oil Facility Vandalism, revealed that Governor Ifeanyi Okowa had set up additional bodies such as the Delta State Peace Building andAdvisoryCouncil,DeltaStateWaterwaysandLandSecurityamongothers topursueandsustainpeaceforsocialharmonyanddevelopment.

'FG has not Managed Agitations Responsibly'

Anetworkofyouthgroupsyesterdaytookaswipeonthefederalgovernment overthepoorhandlingofseparatists'agitationsandotheryouthmovements acrossthecountry. Thegroupsarguedthattheperennialcasesofagitations and political upheavals from the various regions were not in the interest of thecountry,asthenation'sleadershiphavefailedtoengagestrategicallywith the various groups. The groups, Yali Network, Play Forum andTap Nitiative are also planning to hold a youth summit today in Abuja that will bring all the variousgroupsandagitatorstogethertofinetoneaworkablepeacetemplate fornationalpeaceandunity.Thesummitfortheyouthgroupsfromthevarious geopoliticalzoneswillalsoexplorethegreyareasthathavecontinuedtoflame upcrisesandacrimonyamongthedifferentethnicgroups.

Rotary Health Projects

RotaryInternationalDistrict9110ofLagoshasinstitutedmajorhealthprojects toturnaroundthefortunesofpeopleinLagosstateandinotherpartsofthe nation, particularly those in the Northern States. Distric 9110 is described as the first ever, Rotary Mega Club of Lagos Island, with over 110 Members, predominantlypeace-lovingIndiannationals,residentinLagosStateandby extension, Nigeria. Rotary District 9110, under its President, Rotn., Sanjeev Tandon,institutedprojectssuchastheRotopinkWalkerton’17BreastCancer AwarenessonSunday17thSeptember2017from7:00am,atGeetaAshram Temple, Plot 12, Block 55, Grace Anjous Drive Lekki Penisula Phase 1, Lagos Nigeria,followedbyaBloodDonationCampProjecton29thSeptember2017 between10:00amand4:00pm,at110–114,OshodiApapaExpressway,Isolo, Lagos,whiletheFreeEyecataractoperationCampProject,titledVision2020 “TheRighttoSight�,isexpectedtotakeplacefrom25thSeptemberto29th September2017attheECWAEyeHospitalMissionRoad,Kanofrom8:00am to3:00pmeachday.

48th Afotamodi Festival

TheIsaraCommunityDevelopmentAssociation,OgunStatewillbehostingof the48thAnnualAfotamodiFestivalholdingfromSeptember30toOctober 8. AfotamodiFestivalistheannualcelebrationthatbringstogetherallIsara sonsanddaughtersbothhomeandabroadtofelicitatewithoneanotherand collectively contribute to the development of the town. Over the years, the festivalhasbroughtlotsofdevelopmenttothetownandpositivelyimproved onthesocio-economystatusofthetown.AfotamodiFestivalhasalwaysand willcontinuetounifyallindigenesofIsara.TheIsaraCommunityDevelopment Association has planned a week long full of varieties of events like football competitionandmanyothersportingactivities,indoorgames,culturalactivities andentertainment,educationalprogrammesandsymposium.The2017Miss AfotamodiBeautyPageantwillholdonOctober6,withacarprizeforthewinner.

WifeofKogiGovernorDonatesReliefMaterials

ThewifeofKogiStategovernor,Hajia RashidaBelloonFridaydonatedrelief materialstoFloodVictimsinKogiState.Overthepastfewweeks,unprecedented floodhasravagedmanypartsofKogiState,renderingthousandsofpeople homeless,andcausingmassivedestructionofproperties,andinfrastructure acrossthestate.Whiledeliveringhisspeechhesaid,"Itissadthatthisglobal phenomenonofdevastatingfloodhasoccurredinourstateatthistime,and haswreakedhavoctohumanlivesandproperties."Myheartgoestoallthose who have lost properties and have been psychologically affected by the displacementfromtheirpreferredcomfortzones,whilewethankGodthat no life was lost,� she said. She therefore reassured the people of Kogi State that the state government under the administration of the New Direction Governor,AlhajiYahayaBellowasdoingeverythingpossibletomitigatethe impactofthisnaturaldisaster.

Plus

LOUD WHISPERS POLSCOPE AUTO GLOBAL SOCCER TRIBUTE FASHION FILE

pg. 20 pg. 24 pg. 26 pg. 29 pg. 34 pg. 41

Bisi Adigun I Was Proud to Direct Wole Soyinka’s Play

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THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER SEPTEMPBER 23, 2017

PLUS

I Gave Up Teaching My Daughter How to Speak Yoruba in Ireland Playwright and theatre director, Bisi Adigun, is a Nigerian based in Ireland. He is also a producer, scholar and founder of Arambe Productions. In this interview with Adedayo Adejobi he talks about his love for the stage and his experience of directing one of Prof. Wole Soyinka’s plays, ‘Death and the King’s Horsemen’. Adigun also talks about inner struggles he faces as father trying to teach his daughter Yoruba

Y

ou decided to disrupt the norm by deconstructing ‘Death and the King’s Horseman’. What influenced it and why Prof.

Wole Soyinka’s work?

I set out to deconstruct Soyinka’s ‘Death and the King’s Horseman’. It’s a very good play and relevant to the political dilemma Nigeria is dealing with. The play has been done severally, and I feel the way Soyinka writes, one needs to understand his mastery of language to understand what he is saying. When I came to Nigeria last month, I stayed with some of my nieces, who are graduates of Obafemi Awolowo University. When I told them I’ll like to do ‘Death and the King’s Horseman’, they said they wouldn’t see it because they wouldn’t understand the play. This was one of the motivations. The writer has written the drama, it is the director’s work to make the play accessible to the audience. What I did was to make sure that people were not alienated by Soyinka’s mastery of English language.

Was there a theatrical approach to drive home the point?

I did my first degree in Ife. We were bombarded with Aristotle and other foreign people. I did my master’s in 1996 in Drama. When I travelled out of the country, I was in class one day when I mentioned Soyinka. Out of 12 of us in class, only one person knew who Soyinka was. That was the day I started studying Soyinka. Soyinka thinks global and uses local (images) to discuss global issues.

He believes Yoruba have three stages of existence: the living, the dead and the unborn and it is those three stages that must constantly re-energise for harmony.

For Soyinka, there is a stage in between those three stages; called it the fourth stage, where he believes his protagonist in Yoruba tragedy must willingly die for the benefit of the society. Out of all the books Soyinka has written, the one that

epitomises the theory of the fourth stage is Eleshin-Oba, the death of the king’s horsemen. When Soyinka writes his play, he is not a director, but when he is directing his play, he locks the writer out.

Knowing how sentimental Soyinka is to his works, how did you succeed in this project?

I invited Prof. Soyinka to the opening night, and he responded saying opening night definitely out but I’ll try and make it one of the nights subsequently. So, on Monday in the morning, someone told me Prof. Soyinka is coming to see a show in the evening. I got a bit rattled, as I planned on watching the play in the audience without my actors knowing, and then I’ll take notes during the afternoon performance. When they said Prof. Soyinka was coming I got a bit all rattled up, knowing full well that Prof.

Soyinka doesn’t like taking a spotlight from his plays. What he does is, he sneaks in and he sneaks out, that was what I was expecting. But this time around, he came in when I got there. I was told that he was at the restaurant. I went to greet him and his wife, we had a chat and then after then he was happy to come into the theatre even before the light went down.

He sat down with his wife, so we started.

He saw everything. The truth is this: Prof never shows any reaction about his performances. But everybody told me that if he doesn’t like a show, he won’t stay till the end. This time, he stayed till the end. He heard my last remark and also clapped for the actors. Everybody said that was a very good sign, and Jahman who is very close to him as well, said he enjoyed the show.

How does that make you feel?

One of my ambitions in life was to do a show at Terra Kulture. I didn’t only do a show at Terra Kulture, but to stage one of the best plays ever written by a Nigerian playwright, and then to have the man himself in the audience was a dream

SEPTEMPBER 23, 2017 ˾ THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER

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PLUS Marrying My wife, I didn’t see colour or race, I saw love. I moved to Ireland when there were few Nigerians there. Besides, there was some joy about her that I want to be part of. Beko and Ola Rotimi married white women. I saw and I felt there was something right about her. It wasn’t a planned thing. She has given me a daughter and a good life. I have to L-R: Dayo Adedayo, Adigun and Kudi Badmus on Adigun’s 50th say to you, after that ‘playboy’, Why I Cook Instead of My Wife true. I cannot put any price on it. For was going to be in Ireland for two weeks; I fought come before I knew it, it became home for me. I me, I will call that a pinnacle of my career realised most of the shows that required a as theatre maker. some black person, the black person was always dreg of the society, a prostitute and the Observing the Nigerian theatre in relabattles tion to the global landscape, how would the black man has to leave wherever the play is set for things to return to order. So, I rate it? regarding youNigerian began to think on Irish theatre diversity, I theatre is gravitating more to do so by the order. That led me to towards spectacle and at the expense of copyright, the content. So, when I give you a line to had set up my production company, Arambe Productions in 2003. It was time for black rather than believing the line would copy law and say people to play roles that black audiences generate laughter, you try and make be proud of. I eventually did my the line funny. Instead of an actor to be it was a long concerned about his characterisation, he is would PhD between 2007 and 2013 on Soyinka.

My argument is that most of Soyinka’s about cloth and the make-up. drawn out concerned plays are not done within; they are always Rather than acting from within-outward, people act outside-inward. How do I look? done outside Nigeria. That is why I said battle Do I look fine? Do I look beautiful? I don’t he thinks local but he writes global. After want you to give me superficial acting.

You must understand what you are saying and why. That is where the acting is.

Observing the crop of Nigerian directors, would you say they are meeting up with global best practice?

The truth of the matter is that I have seen a few theatres since I came and I will say I was blown away by ‘Hear word’. That is what I’m saying about the spectacle and the content. I saw a girl in the play, named Omono. She played a role of Fela, a lady abused by her husband, and an old woman. By the end of the show, I was looking for the girl who played Fela, I couldn’t see her. I also saw ‘Heartbeat’ by Joke Silva and Olu Jacobs at Terra Kulture.

I enjoyed it. It was musical and beautifully done. I also saw ‘Stable’

by Ben Tomoloju and Tina Mba. I think what Nollywood has done for us is, you don’t value what you have until you are about losing it.

There is a difference in watching a movie and real-life show. In real-life show, you see things happen in real time and there is no mediation. When you lose your line, you lose your line. Theatre is beginning to regain its prominence, place of pride as a cultural form to this country. Toyin Oshinaike, Segun Adefila, Ropo Ewenla and Wole Oguntokun are setting the pace in Nigerian theatre. I believe theatre has its place in contributing to the discourse of any society. On seeing Wakaa, the musical, I heard Ajekun Iya nio je. If I wrote a play now, Ajekun Iya must be in it because I want to make it relevant to what is going on and when people see familiarity they know they are not alienated. I think there are crops of good Directors coming up. It is my hope that Nollywood showcases Nigeria through theatre.

What does it feel like being a lecturer in African theatre at Trinity College?

I left Nigeria for London in 1996, and was there for three years. I relocated to Ireland. As soon as I landed, something just told me this is where I should be. In London, I worked with Peter Badejo, BBC, and BBC radio. We did the ‘Gods are not to blame’ for BBC radio. I

my doctorate, I was called to lecture. So, I designed African Theatre course for them.

To date, I take African theatre and postcolonial theatre.

I had lived in Britain, so the culture shock happened in Britain I couldn’t read people’s expression. But I got used to people kissing on the streets, rush hour in Oxford, people drinking, white man getting legless, every Friday.

Will you rather be in Nigeria or Ireland?

The moment you travel, you are reminded that you are not from here.

We were supposed to be rehearsing somewhere in Yaba, along Queens College Road, so I decided to check the place, as my actors’ welfare is my responsibility.

I went to see the place at night, when I returned it was closed. I’ll rather be where human lives are valued and my potentials realised. Of course, George Orwell says ‘all animals are equal, but some are more equal than others’. What frustrates me is when you come home, you find yourself in a jungle. Nigeria is a good place to live but no matter where you live, when you look around and you see so much penury, it makes your richness stink.

Why did you marry a white woman?

Marrying my wife, I didn’t see colour or race, I saw love. I moved to Ireland when there were few Nigerians there.

Besides, there was some joy about her that I wanted to be part of. Beko and Ola Rotimi married white women. I saw and I felt there was something right about her. It wasn’t a planned thing. She has given me a daughter and a good life. I have to say to you, after that ‘playboy’, I fought some battles regarding copyright laws and it was a long drawn battle. She stood by me at the expense of getting excommunicated.

How did you cope with the legal battle?

I won’t say I have overcome it. The play was my idea. I invited one of their most important writers to come with me to write. My company helped to get money to commission both of us to write it. Eventually, it became a huge success.

Some of the things they should have put in place while we were working together, they didn’t put it in place because they weren’t sure how successful it would be. Eventually, we got a lawyer and she didn’t do her job. They did a deal with my co- author and this led to a court battle. It is not over yet, so I won’t like to talk about

it. I have learnt not to have any skeleton in my cupboard. I wouldn’t have been able to fight if I had something to hide. It was destabilising and painful. I believe the fight I have fought is for the future generation.

Married to a woman from another race, how have you been able to cope?

Before we had our first child, she said I wasn’t ready and I didn’t know what she meant, until we had the child and I realised we had equal duty to take care of the kid. Growing up, I never saw any of my uncles carry or dance with their children. After the christening, the woman’s department comes alive. I couldn’t fathom that but I enjoyed it. As a pharmacist, there were times she had to go and work and I took care of my daughter and I enjoyed that. Similarly, I love Nigerian food; she couldn’t cook that; most of the time I do the cooking. I now realise I actually don’t mind cooking.

I find it therapeutic. I would have loved to speak my language to my daughter.

But every time I start speaking to my daughter in Yoruba, she would ask what that is, so I have to translate. I am thinking why I have to say things twice instead of continually speaking in Yoruba. I started speaking in English. To date, my daughter doesn’t understand Yoruba. I would have loved if I was married to a Yoruba woman in Ireland, that way, my daughter will be able to speak Yoruba fluently. If you don’t speak Yoruba fluently you won’t understand Soyinka’s play at all because the imagery in the language is very important. You need to be able to make the connection.

Does your wife get jealous of the relationship between you and your daughter?

No. I have a very good relationship with my daughter. We all get on very well.

What was growing up like for you?

My growing up was interesting. I was born in Jos. I lost my mom at nine in an auto accident. They were going to the burial of a cousin or so. I was moved to live in Ife with my aunt. There, I was taken to Oyelokun theatre to see ‘The gods are not to blame’. There I decided I was going to become a thespian. I was very good at sports, games and pass my exams in good grades. My aunty and uncle-in-law did what they could as my guardian, but the truth is my childhood was a mixture of lot of happiness and a lot of melancholy.

When I was defending myself in court, my wife researched and felt people who lost their mothers at a young age tend to feel they have the duty to change the world.

That’s why she connects with me because I’ve been deprived of the most important thing in my life. I watch out for others. So when I went to check the rehearsal venue whether it was alright for people, I am being motherly, and that’s what a mother would have done. The truth of the matter is, a little bit of happiness, melancholy makes you a well-rounded human being.

What sparks creativity in you?

When I am being creative, I get more creative. So when I am directing, I start playwriting. When I start playwriting, I start directing.

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THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER ˾ SEPTEMBER 23, 2017 with JOSEPH EDGAR (09095325791)

LOUD WHISPERS

Lai Mohammed

Uncle Lai Mohammed: Where Forth Art Thou I have decided to go Shakespearean on you simply because in all the hullabaloo going on in the country, I have simply not seen you and this is really sad. Let me tell you clearly why I am not particularly happy with you. You see what that boy Nnamdi Kanu has done is to play with the minds of the dislocated citizens by sheer focus-minded game. He has succeeded in mobilising a large swath of his people without any real structure and made them believe that simply by kneeling down and kissing his toes they will become angels in his mythical Biafra. My Lord, this is a fight of the mind and when you add poverty and ignorance or how else do you explain his assertion that Buhari is from Sudan - to the mix, you get a complete zombification of the people. How did Kanu succeed in launching such a ‘successful’ onslaught on the people, capturing their imagination and today, becoming the single dominating factor in our human life? He has singlehandedly made life uncomfortable for the whole 180 million of us without having the kind of structure and resources that you have at your disposal. My dear Uncle, no matter the number of pythons we unleash on him and his ilk we cannot win the battle unless we face him squarely in his own game which is a battle of the conscience. I am wondering why you are not triggering a massive campaign for national rebirth, a massive dissemination of information and sermons showing that we are better off as one country than a divided entity, no matter the structural imbalance that every region is facing. If you run through social media you will see all sorts of misplaced and misinterpreted ‘facts’ that continue to widen the schisms.

Today, we are so divided that every region is crying of marginalisation, including the Hausa/Fulani that we all grew up thinking that they are getting the best in the ;contraption’’. South West, South East, North everybody is crying of marginalisation and I am beginning to wonder who actually is causing the marginalisation, abi na Satan? My dear Uncle, I believe you should wake up to your responsibility and lets move away from your Chukwumerijiesque pronouncement of those causing the confusion being disgruntled politicians which in my estimation is grotesquely flat and put in place a robust and concise programme of national re orientation using the 75 million Nigerians who throng the Internet daily as your initial target. Please sir, you need to move fast otherwise if the regressive Kanus of this world succeed in killing the Nigerian dream with their shallow hate-filled diatribe, I, joseph Edgar the Duke of Shomolu and by the grace of God the Asiwaju of Ibibioland and the Akamba Ette Isong of Nsit Ibom will personally hold you responsible. I have said my own and I have gone back to the other room to see if I will get some service. By the way, what advice will you give in this my situation where the Duchess of Shomolu has withdrawn her services in the other room simply because the chop money is no longer as regular with her refusing all entreaties to be patient that the Statistician General has announced that we are out of recession and that we should all be patient before we start feeling the impact. The woman no hear o. She say make I go sleep with Statistician General o. Frustration!

Senator Adeleke

Keyamo

Nnamdi Kanu : Don’tAlumni Worry, Command School You Dey Kampe It was former President Olusegun Obasanjo who made this phrase popular. When asked about his health, he retorted with this legendary remark.

Today, I want to state my undying love for Nnamdi Kanu. For me this man is a leader, a mobiliser and a great philosopher. I have watched him very closely in the last two years. His utterances and passion for his beliefs continue to elicit a lot of admiration from not only me but from a lot of people especially the down-trodden who now see in him their salvation. Expectedly, his popularity has drawn a lot flak from enemies, those who fail to understand his message and they have continued to rail against him, even threaten his life. But that is the point despite all of these, my hero Nnamdi has remained steadfast with his message which has seen his followers double and increase by the day. For me, I swear by him and there is nothing anybody will say or do that will make me change my mind about such a gifted mobiliser and lover of the masses’. I am not afraid to state here that on Nnamdi Kanu I stand and will surely give my life in my support for him.

My people, before the Python dance

want kill me o.

Senator Adeleke : Dance Steps of the Python While the country is in turmoil, this my paddy was allegedly shown in faraway Atlanta dancing his heart away. This week, another virile video emerged of my paddy dancing like his life depended on it. Me, I just love this guy. He behaves as if he has no care in the world. Here is hoping that the video was not doctored; you know these days of high technology, anything can happen o and one must be careful before someone takes me to court. I never fit pay school fees talk less of paying lawyer fees. But let me describe what I saw.

I saw someone that looked like Senator Adeleke grab the microphone, stretch one hand in the air, shook his head like he had an epileptic fit and started whining his waist like Michael Jackson used to do, then he moved from this to the monkey

people start dancing towards me o, let me clarify the Nnamdi Kanu I am talking about o. This one no be IPOB own o, this one sells okrika in Shomolu

by Abiodun street junction near my mother’s former chemist shop. This one is from Ohafia unlike the other one who they say is from Umahia. It is the Shomolu Nnamdi I am hailing o, simply because he has supported our move to reduce our PHCN bill. A bill that keeps going up in direct opposite to the number of days we see power in our homes. Mr. Kanu who is very short and dark and married to someone from Kogi State has led the crusade against this wickedness and everyday as I watch him rail against the PHCN people who would have climbed the pole in their attempt to carry out their devilish plot of pulling down the wires, I cannot help but admire his courage as he stands there waving his receipt and shouting, ‘’biko, I have paid my bill o, it is those Calabar people in the next house that have not paid’’. Abeg, I hope I have made a clear distinction between the Kanu I am admiring and the one that the Python is looking to bite. Abeg, my mama is a widow, I no fit cry.

dance; here he opened his eyeballs and stared at the camera, shaking his bum, he started hopping up and down and in all these coordinating his steps with the song he was singing. Making a 360 twist, he shuffled to the back, ran to the stage, ran back and the audience paved the way exactly like in the Bible where God divided the Red sea for the children of Israel for the Senator to gyrate in between the watching crowd. Sweat was pouring from his face as he bent down to hold his knees in a bid to rest awhile before he collapsed while performing this national duty. My people, I enjoyed this video and I have been using it as my work out video trying to emulate his dance steps in a bid to keep fit. But one funny thing happened, as I was dancing and copying the Senator, my last child, Zara started crying and ran to her mum in terror screaming , ‘electric has shocked my daddy’’ the whole family ran out only

Melaye

to see me shaking and wriggling while watching the Senator and they all busted out laughing. For this our Baba, all the talk of marginalisation, recession, power shift no concern am o. E ma jo lo sir. Na you biko. We love you.

Mudi Celebrates Festus Keyamo If you drive past the Anthony Village studio of talented designer Mudi, you will see a large-size photograph of recently minted Senior Advocate of Nigeria – Sir Festus Keyamo on his iconic wall. Now, before I yab him let me add that Mudi is busy turning that wall into a space to immortalise some of the greatest African children. I know for a fact that Nelson Mandela, Stephen Keshi and other iconic people have graced that wall. So now na Keyamo and the reason is simple. My father before he died told me very clearly that for you to live a fulfilling life in Nigeria today, you will need a good doctor, a top police officer, a native doctor and a powerful lawyer. This advice rings very true and this is Mudi’s attempt at dragging this voracious fighter close o or how will he refuse to come and bail you at the police station when his picture is boldly placed on the wall of your studio. This Mudi think say he get sense but then again in this Nigeria that we are today, do you blame him when you can wake up in the morning and with no warning end up in a cell in the night simply because you happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. With Keyamo on your side, you will have that side covered.

But even this Keyamo, me I am not happy with him abeg. The other day at the EFCC office in Ikoyi (please do not ask me wetin I find go there, it is coming out in chapter four of my biography. I have seen things in this country) he drove in and I made to greet him, he did not answer me o. He ignored me and in anger I contemplated writing to the President of the Nigerian Bar Association to complain. But on second thought, I forgave him and made do with kicking his tyres when he had safely entered the building. Anyways, Mudi has celebrated him and I also reluctantly congratulate him for his promotion. He truly is a great son forget my bad belle.

Emperor Dino Malaye : Partying as Rome Burns I just joined Instagram o. You know at my age you try to catch up on these things. My teenage daughter is on Instagram so I made it a point of duty to be following her before all these useless paedophiles go and grab her. That is how I mistakenly went to start following this Kogi senator who is facing a recall. Daily, the kinds of post this baba posts on his Instagram page, you will think he is a rock artists o. Today shorts, tomorrow bandana, next tomorrow camouflage .

Then the carnival appearances, the posing with luxury cars and clothes you will think he does not have a care in the world. This is narcissistic at its highest. All this while, INEC is sharpening the knife to cut short his career at the Senate. But my people na lie o, na shakara; I can bet my last kobo that those pictures are just a show so that we will not think he is worried. I can swear at night he will be shaking in his Gucci underwear and be praying for a solution.

Well, his wahala; my PHCN bill just hit me, N45,000 for the month of August. Kai, Fasholaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!!!!!!

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THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER Ëž ÍşÍťËœ ͺ͸͚Ϳ

SPY GLASS

with .... 08054680651 of Transport and Infrastructural Development, Ministry of Youth Development, Special Adviser on Tourism Matters and Ministry of Environment, Parks, Gardens and Forest Resources.

He also served as the Chief of Staff to the Governor of Niger State until December, 2014.

KOLA KARIM’S HUMANENESS UMAR NASKO

UMAR NASKO’S POLITICAL VOYAGE The name Umar Mohammed Nasko is familiar to a lot of people, particularly in the political circle in Niger State.

Though many had thought that Umar, who was the PDP governorship candidate in Niger State in the April 18, 2015 governorship election, would coast home to victory given the overwhelming support of his people and closeness to the then-incumbent governor, Alhaji Aliyu Babangida , he lost to the opposition APC candidate.

Since then, he has reportedly lost his political relevance, while his political structure has almost totally crumbled before his eyes.

This situation has further confirmed that he has all along been riding on the crest of the popularity of his former boss, Babangida.

Nasko, who was the Managing Partner at New Africa Investment Limited between 2001 and 2007, had served on various boards and committees in the state. He was a member of the Transition Committee in Niger State; Member, Niger State Government Committee on Public Private Partnership 2007; Chairman, Vehicle Verification Committee in the Office of the Secretary to the State Government, Niger State; Member, Technical Committee on Harmonization of Niger State Action Plan in the State Government and Chairman, Local Organising Committee for the 2009 National Festival of Arts and Culture (NAFEST).

He was also member, Niger State Executive Council in his official capacity as the Commissioner for Tourism and Culture, Ministry

Kola Karim, the man behind the multi-million-dollar Shore Energy International, is an accomplished businessman. He is known for his excellent business and management skills. His transparency in business was recognised when he was honoured with the Young Global Leader at the World Economic Forum in 2008.

During the last Eid-el-kabir festival, Karim, one of the youngest businessmen in Africa, delighted many with some acts of humaneness.

It was gathered that apart from hosting families, friends and close associates at his residence, he also visited some orphanages, where he made donations of food items as well as undisclosed amounts of money, as a way of giving back to the society.

Karim’s Shoreline Energy partnered UK-based Heritage Oil in acquiring a stake in OML 30, an oilfield asset in Nigeria reportedly for $850 million. The company is in the business of power generation, transmission and distribution and telecommunications. Shoreline operates businesses in different African countries, including Ghana, Serra Leone, Tanzania and Uganda.

AYISHA OSORI DELIGHTS WITH NEW BOOK Ayisha Osori is a lawyer, consultant and prolific writer.

Osori, who holds a master’s degree in Public Administration from the Harvard Kennedy School, has worked in the oil and gas, financial services and FMCG sectors.

Recently, this restless soul, who is experienced in corporate practice, communications and gender advocacy, released a book entitled, ‘Love Does Not Win Election.’ The book, which is currently enjoying critical reviews among the literati, captures personal experience in her attempts to secure

electoral victory to further engrave her advocacy in the minds of her compatriots.

It will be recalled that she once lost out in House of Representatives primary election .

Also, in the build-up to the 2011 general election, she was involved in a lot of enlightenment activities on civic education.

In 2015, she contested the primary for the AMAC/Bwari Constituency FCT in December, but lost.

For a woman who has the love of her fellow women deeply seated in her heart, it is a wonder why her efforts to win an elective post have not come true.

Over the years, Osori, who was the lead consultant and national coordinator for the World Bank DFID Gender Dialogue Sessions, has been a strong voice against the growing gender imbalance in the polity.

Indeed, the Nigerian Women’s Trust Fund, which she founded in 2011, has been in the vanguard of the agitation for more female representation in Nigerian politics.

CELEBRATING ICONIC MO ABUDU AT 53 Mo Abudu, CEO, EbonyLife TV, is an accomplished television personality with an impressive and intimidating resume.

Over the years, she has successfully positioned herself as one the greatest television personalities in Africa.

Described as “Africa’s Most Successful Woman� by Forbes, beautiful Abudu has her hands on quite a lot of pies, including a talk show and HR management consultancy, among others.

Little wonder she was celebrated to high heaven last week when she clocked 53. The birthday was low-key though many couldn’t hide their love for the woman described as humble, loving and hard-working and for her ability to contribute her quota to Africa’s growing broadcasting sector and for raising her head up in an era where women’s rights are being trampled upon despite growing calls for gender equality.

When she started her syndicated talk show, Moments With Mo, many thought it was just another programme. But she has

MUDI

KOLA KARIM

AYISHA OSORI

MO ABUDU been able to prove that she has the Midas touch, as the show, which has now given birth to Ebony Life Television, Africa’s first global black multi broadcast, is now a household name. She has featured prominent personalities around the world.

MUDI : PROFILE OF A TRAILBLAZER Clement Mudiaga Enajemo, famously called Mudi, ranks among the top fashioner designers in Africa.

Over the years, the brains behind the soar-away brand, Mudi Africa, is known to be a trailblazer, which further goes to prove that his muse has never left him.

The multiple award-winner has consciously been recreating and positioning his brand to meet international standards.

The Delta State-born fashion designer, who impressed with his television and billboard adverts some 15 years ago, loves to express the dynamism in African cultures through his avant-garde designs.

A man of supreme taste, every move he makes in the industry is ultimately intended to promote his brand and win the hearts of his far-flung customers.

Today, his head office is said to be the best purposely-built fashion house in Africa according to a documentary by African Magic channel.

Apart from the foregoing, his growing clientele, which includes top Lagos pastor, J. T. Kalejaiye of Redeemed Christian Church of God, actor Richard Mofe Damijo, among others, speak volumes about his creativity and attention to detail.

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THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER ˾ SEPTEMBER 23, 2017

SUPER SATURDAY

Men No Longer Want to Play Their Role as Husbands DORIS SIMEON

Refreshing beauty is her middle name. Svelte, sexy, serene and simple; with eyes that reflect like glass and a smile that outshines the sun, the delectable figure flaunts her joy as she expresses her new lease of life and the vista of being able to do more than being an actress – she’s now a movie producer. With four movies to her credit, she said she’s just starting. One of Nigeria’s most famous and darling bilingual actresses, Doris Simeon speaks with Oge Ezeliora about her love life, broken marriage, newfound skills as a producer and her determination never to look like an old woman How I Produced Four Movies at a Time

W

hat project are you working on at the moment?

I just produced four movies which are set to be released soon: two Yoruba movies and two English movies titled, Aseju, Soul Betrayal, Alone in the dark and Olorire.

How do you juggle being an actress and a producer?

Acting is easy. Acting is fun especially if you are focused on what you are doing. Producing a movie is challenging – you’re faced with the stress of sourcing for scripts, cast, crew and finance.

How was it producing four movies at a time?

It boiled down to good work ethic even though the experience was hectic.

It was an awesome experience. I am glad that I actually produced the movies because my focus was to showcase upcoming actresses that I starred in the movies. I see a movie as successful by its impact on people and also the money I get from it. I will also consider the lessons from the movie. Before

now, I was looking forward to doing things outside the norm like being a female director; handling the camera and producing movies. These were parts of the production process where we hardly find women. But fortunately for me, I was pushed into acting and not just part of the crew who works behind the camera. Today, I am not only an actress but a producer. I am also happy because everything was successful. As a producer, the

first thing I consider is the moral lessons from the movie, the storyline, the cast and of course, the money involved. I found myself moving from one location to the other with hardly any break to breathe – coordinating the operations myself, making sure that everything was in order. I thank God it was a success and I am not regretting the bold step I took to produced all the movies at once.

How do you feel seeing younger actresses progressing quickly in the movie industry?

The industry is wide and is expanding day by day. I am glad about this development. We must create opportunities for upcoming actresses. Nollywood is not only for Doris. I am happy that people are looking up to me. I am mentoring actors and actresses.

THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER ˾ PTEMBER 23, 2017

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SATURDAY MEN NO LONGER WANT TO PLAY THEIR ROLE AS HUSBANDS Which of your recent movies did you find more challenging?

That would be Soul Betrayal – it was a tough nut to crack. The location we picked was also challenging. The people who promised to make their homes available to us for shooting later changed their minds.

But then, we did our best and worked hard for the movie to come out great.

If you are good at what you are doing, producers will definitely look for you.

How did you feel the first day you had to face a camera?

I was shy the first time but after series of rehearsals, the rest is history – I focus on what I was told to do. (My first time before the camera) was for a popular television comedy called Papa Ajasco produced by Wale Adenuga Productions. I was doing that before I went into full-time acting – joining Nollywood.

Is being an actress a blessing to you?

As an actress, God has blessed me and I can’t deny it, though it has not been easy. Being an actress is the best thing that has happened to me. My gratitude goes to God first. He has always been there for me. I can’t complain that I have been robbed of my private life.

My life is always out there. Above all I am happy being an actress.

How do you excel as a bilingual actress?

For Yoruba movies, the scripts come more often than the English movies. It is the same job but different languages. Shooting Yoruba movies is a bit difficult because you have a lot of job to do – translation is there. But the English movies are easy. It’s getting better now because these days, you now find actors from different circles coming together to shoot films and celebrate things together. This is something we have been longing and praying for. We thank God it’s working out well now. The English movie industry is highly competitive but the jobs are easy. If they ask me to speak English, I will speak. If they ask me to speak Yoruba in any movie, I will speak it so fluently.

How do you see the movie industry today?

We are operating at international standards. I will tell you that foreigners are even partnering us because they have seen the best in us.

Nollywood is really revolving and I am happy. The quality of our films is more getting better and better. We are now making quality and competitive films.

We also star international stars, especially from Hollywood and Ghollywood, in our movies.

What is your fashion dislike?

I don’t like dressing shabbily. I don’t like dressing like an old woman. I hate tying a wrapper around my boobs – that’s a complete turn off for me. Do you know I don’t even have a single wrapper in my wardrobe?

What’s your marital status now?

I am not legally divorced – the divorce suit is still in court. Yes, I am single and I am a happy woman.

Don’t you think being a single mother is now fashionable in Nollywood?

Single motherhood is not peculiar to Nollywood. If you go to the banking sector, there are single mothers there; in the military, in law firms and other fields, there are single mothers.

It is not our fault; it’s just that men no longer want to play their role as husbands. I am not a supporter of single parenthood: every man or woman has the right to live their life the way they choose. It’s just by God’s grace that I am acting and producing.

Emotional trauma is not what I will encourage anybody to pass through. God created every woman for a man. So marriage is good.

Is there any possibility that you and your ex will reconcile?

I don’t dwell in the past. I don’t want to talk about that anymore. I have moved on. I have no regret at all. I have only learnt to be stronger. The truth is that I have forgotten about everything.

Time has erased it (the emotional pain I went through). I am now a better person. Today, I am closer to God and I put God first in everything I do. I never gave up on love. I have found love again in Jesus.

I am married to my career right now.

I am in a relation-

Single motherhood is not peculiar to Nollywood.

If you go to the banking sector, there are single mothers there; in the military, in law firms and other fields, there are single mothers. It is not our fault; it’s just that men no longer want to play their role as husbands.

I am not a supporter of single parenthood: every man or woman has the right to live their life the way they choose. It’s just

by God’s grace that I am acting and producing.

Emotional trauma is not what I will encourage anybody to pass through.

God created every woman for a man. So marriage is good ship anyway but I want to be private about it. I thank God because I am a better person. My career and business are going on well.

Will you remarry?

I am single and ready to mingle. If God sends a man to me I will not reject him.

I am not bored. If it’s God’s plan for me I will go ahead (and get married); if not, then I will remain single.

Do you still have a good relationship with your ex-husband and his wife?

Yes, I do.

What’s unique about you?

It’s my patience. I am also playful. I am playful to the extent that a lot of people think I am not a serious person. I am a very funny person.

Apart from acting, what else do you do?

I am into hair-dressing. I started making hair as a little girl. Now, I have fulfilled my childhood dream of owning a big salon of my own. My mom was a hair-dresser and fortunately for me, I learnt a lot from her.

I have a salon at Ogba. Right now, we are also into households and interiors décor.

Have you always had a beautiful life?

I was born in Lagos; I can say I had a sweet childhood. I was pampered loved and well taken care of by my parents. I have a diploma in Production Management from the PEFTI Film Institute owned by Wale Adenuga. My parents originated from Okpella in Benin, Edo state. My father had many wives and many children. It was a polygamous home but we were well cared for. My mother was a peaceful woman and she loved her children so Doris much.

My New Life is About Jesus, Relationship and Career

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THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER ˾ SEPTEMBER 23, 2017

POLSCOPE

with Eddy Odivwri eddy.odivwri@thisdaylive.com 08053069356

We Pray for Them, They Prey on Us

I

n the Anglican Church where I worship and belong, there is a standing liturgical practice that requires the members of the church, during intercession, to always pray for our leaders, ranging from those who “exercise authority over us” at the local government through the state governors down to state and national legislators up to the presidency. Some meticulous priests go the extra mile of mentioning the various names of the said leaders. I think it is a biblical doctrine that commands the faithful to pray for their leaders. In those days, I writhe in some anger that well up in me, whenever the priests mentioned the name of late Head of State, Sani Abacha , urging us to pray for him to take wise decisions in the governance of the country.

As a political reporter at the time, I knew perhaps deeper than the average Nigerian, that there was no good whatsoever in the man called Abacha. Therefore praying for him, I thought, was a mere ecclesiastical ritual which I refused to participate in. How could we be praying for those who are preying on us, I reasoned. I have been proven right with the events that have followed.

Till today, 19 years after his demise, succeeding governments in Nigeria have been struggling to recover the unfathomable loot he stashed away in far away countries, while Nigeria and Nigerians reeled in poverty.

Sadly however, long after the Abacha menace, we have continued to have sets of leaders who spare little thought for the masses. Yet we continue to pray for them. I am not certain those prayers are being answered as we keep having leaders who end up degrading our lifestyles.

Sourcing and getting selfless leaders has been our major challenge in Nigeria.

Even when a selfless leader is seldom found, the array of selfish contingent of aides and other appointees of the selfless leader, plus other arms of government, dwarf and even derail the altruistic disposition of the said selfless leader. That is why it seems most times that the fight for a better Nigeria is unpopular and often lost, forcing us to keep yearning for halcyon days.

That also explains why the struggle for political power is high keeled.

Were it not so, the buzzing talk about the 2019 election right now will not be necessary. But even as we are still grappling with the challenges of this first term, from the federal to state governments, the swan song about the 2019 elections is already hitting a fever pitch.

The Buhari support groups, for instance, have been firing shots meant to endorse the recuperating president for a second term, just as some state governors are positioning themselves to unseat Mr President.

They forget that second term is usually a reward for a glorious and rewarding first term.

Indeed, many state governments who have received the second tranche of Paris Club refund (N243.7 Billion) are yet owing their workers, even when the funds are meant to clear the backlog of salaries owed state workers. Many people suspect that the said state governors have diverted the funds received to some other issues, including stockpiling funds for the 2019 election… at the expense of the present welfare of the people. These same workers are expected to pray(?) for these raiders, masquerading as leaders who are preying mercilessly on them!

Recently, the ululation of Mrs Aisha Al Hassan alias Mama Taraba, the Minister of Women Affairs’ endorsement of her godfather, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar for the 2019 presidential election, seized the airspace. There is no plan to solve the problems of incessant strike actions by almost all sectors of the economy. Their interest is how they will strategise for 2019.

One other sore pointer to the political predators is the ungodly salaries of our National lawmakers.

This had been a source of national complaint for years now. Recently, the Chairman, Senate Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Senator Aliyu Abdullahi, refused to reveal how much a senator earns.

This is against the backdrop of the rising public

Canticles...

NotoBiafra,YestoRestructuring

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id you hear that President Muhammadu Buhari has signed the papers for the proclamation of Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) as a terrorist organization?

Really? So what will happen now to all the agitators asking for the Republic of Biafra?

They have to zip that thought forever. Nigeria cannot be fractionalized by people who do not even understand what life is. Henceforth anyone caught with all those IPOB insignia like Biafran flag, Biafran currency, Biafran passport, Biafran uniforms etc, will be heading to Gashua But they say they have the freedom for self determination Yes, they do, but this must be expressed within the ambit of the law. Or does self determination mean having and bearing arms? Does it mean operating a parallel sovereignty within a sovereign entity? Does it mean having your own guards, your own secret service etc.? Does it mean constituting yourself into an arm of illegal government? What else is sedition?

Do they own and bear arms?

Saraki grumbling on the huge sum purportedly earned by our senators.

Chairman of the Presidential Advisory Committee on Anti-Corruption, PACAC, Professor Itse Sagay had said each of the senators earns N29m a month and over N3bn a year. Most of the salaries come as non-taxable allowances.

“From the information I have gathered, a Nigerian Senator earns about N29 million a month and over N3 billion a year,” the professor said.

He broke it down: “Basic salary N2,484,245.50; hardship allowance, 1,242, 122.70; constituency allowance N4, 968, 509.00; furniture allowance N7, 452, 736.50; newspaper allowance N1, 242, 122.70.

“Wardrobe allowance N621,061.37; recess allowance N248, 424.55; accommodation 4,968,509.00; utilities N828,081.83; domestic staff N1,863,184.12; entertainment N828,081.83; personal assistant N621,061.37; vehicle maintenance allowance N1,863,184.12; leave allowance N248,424.55; severance gratuity N7, 425,736.50; and motor vehicle allowance N9, 936,982.00,” Sagay said.

But despite the figures released, Senator Abdullahi refused to disclose what a senator earns, forgetting that there is Freedom of Information law in this country. Independent investigation reveals that a senator earns as much as N14m per month and House of Representatives members N8m each per month, recession or no recession. Their salaries are never owed. But not of those who voted them into office. Former CBN governor, and now Emir of Kano, Emir Sanusi II had once said the nation’s lawmakers earn a quarter of the nation’s budget.

It had been said that the Nigerian lawmakers are the highest paid in the world. They even earn more than the United States of America’s president. Yet we are a poor country.

But as if that is not even bad enough, these same legislators, in the name of constituency projects literally rape the treasury to feather their own nests.

Recently, a sacked senator was lobbying to yet undertake the execution of the N200 million worth of constituency projects he injected into the budget of a federal government agency. Imagine each of the 109 senators ‘collecting’ N200 million for constituency projects. Yet our villages are yet as rustic as medieval communes, lacking in things that make life less brutish. Add to this, the great privileges and perks usually given to the so-called principal officers of the National Assembly. Last month, the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, sacked nearly 100 of his aides. Yes,100 aides! Reports say he has 200 aides left, just as he planned to replace those fired.

We pray for them, they prey on us.

And what were the constituency projects: the supply of generators to individuals (usually cronies), buying of motor cycles for some youths, supply of dryers to some women, renovation and furnishing of the palace of the local monarchs, etc… such inane and wasteful burn of public resources. They hardly undertake entrepreneurial projects or going concerns that will grow the economy, or empower the constituents beyond their tenures. How can the federal government be expending huge money to be renovating the palace of certain local chiefs… all in the name of constituency project, whereas university lecturers, medical doctors and other health workers,

Are you asking me? With what were they attacking soldiers on the streets? Didn’t you hear a cache of arms was found in Nnamdi Kanu’s house? Who do you think is the importer of those arms being seized at the Tin Can ports every now and then? And to know those arms are coming from Turkey, the same country that seems to have some sympathy for IPOB. Or didn’t you hear that a certain Turkish “diplomat” was canvassing support for IPOB? No, the Turkish embassy in Nigeria disowned that ‘Diplomat’ and restated its commitment to Nigeria’s unity.

Look, the proper process of declaring them (IPOB) as terrorist organization is now being followed and the Federal High court has declared it so.

So, why is the cart being put before the horse? Why didn’t they do this before declaring it a terrorist organization by the military? Why didn’t the same military declare the Fulani herdsmen a terrorist organisation given the avalanche of killings and crimes they have committed across the land?

Let me tell you, it is more than what you think. Did you not read that IPOB members worldwide stormed the United Nations General Assembly in New York protesting the killing of its members? Didn’t you hear the empathic words from the UN inviting IPOB for a meeting?

Don’t assume that the group will be suppressed and discarded just like that.

Hmm, you make me laugh. Ok. Let them protest in New York and also move on to Buckingham Palace, London. And even move on to other places. But let’s see where they will have that their Biafra nonsense, whether it is in New York or in Nigeria. The prisons are yet unfilled.

Leave those diplomatic issues. The government will deal with them all, including those funding IPOB from France and co., plus even the UK which has refused to shut down the illegal Biafra radio broadcasting from London.

How can I forget the diplomatic issues when that is the greatest anchor IPOB can bank on now? And was it not hypocritical for Mr President to be focusing on far-flung countries like Myamar, North Korea calling for dialogue and conciliatory moves whereas he is clamping down on IPOB at home. Is that not diplomatic hypocrisy?

The will of the people cannot be suppressed. Even if you succeed in gagging them now, it will resurge again at a later date.

You miss the point. Biafra is no licence to good life. Take it from me.

What should be the focus is how to get Nigeria working again, so that our yesterday will not be better than our tomorrow. We should be concerned on how to bake a bigger national cake which will be equitably shared by all and sundry. That is why the advocacy should be towards restructuring the polity for equitable balancing and representation at all levels of government. No section of the country should be treated like second-class citizens. Every and all policies that support class and regional dichotomy should be abolished. Let the boy from Awkulobia feel as proud a Nigerian as a boy from Madagali. That is why the resounding anthem should be for restructuring and not Biafra agitation.

You talk as if it is that easy. Have you bothered to know who bakes the cake and who supervises the so-called sharing? Those are the issues. There is a notion that the Igbo will not get equity from the Nigerian state. It is like looking for fish in the rain forest. Fishes don’t live in forests. When there is a feeling and evidence of inequity like in the recent appointments in the NNPC where ten out of 15 appointments went to the north, three to the South south and two to the Southwest and none to the South east, one is left with the undeniable feeling of not being wanted in the Nigerian space.

It is acts like that which fuel the separatist agitation. Or would you beat a child and Kanu forbid the child from crying?

THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER ˾ SEPTEMBER 23, 2017

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EXPRESSION

MEDIAGAFFES

Writing on The Wall

EBERE WABARA

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AILY SUN of September 18 welcomes us today with this headline error: “NIMC deploys verification mode for (in) banks, others—DG” Voice of The Nation comes next: “150 killed in Niger boat mishap (fatality/tragedy)” (DAILY SUN Front Page Kicker, September 18) The victims were not killed, but died following the boat mishap—except, of course, there was a foul play or premeditated murder. If that happened, it should not have been classified a ‘mishap’.

Exemplary elucidation: “31 die in LagosIbadan Expressway auto crash” (Saturday PUNCH Front Page Reference Headline, September 16). ‘Killing’ is, usually, a wilful act. Most newspapers even publish “road crash” as if it is the road that crashes! Kudos, Saturday PUNCH, from where we extracted the next two infelicities, all the same: Dream weddings: “Sacrificing can become a life changing (life-changing) experience” “Inflation drops for seventh consecutive months (month) to 16.01%” “$1.1bn Malabu deal: Crisis brews over Reps (Reps’) invitation to Jonathan” “He said their action defeats (defeated) the essence of releasing the funds, noting that the (otiose article inclusion) civil servants and pensioners depend on such salaries and benefits for their upkeep and that of their families.” (DAILY Sun Editorial, September 18, 2017) “NACCIMA commends SON over (for) import, export capacity” “The Board, Management and staff of PETROGAS LIMITED and GAMMAGAS LIMITED announce the death of one of our founding DIRECTOR (directors)….”

DAILY Sun Editorial of September 13 takes over this week with two juvenile blunders: “It is, indeed, a sad commentary that in this

BY

21st century (21st Century), majority (a majority) of Nigerians….”

“Your commitments to the cause of humanity and many other ways in which you have impacted positively in (on) in the lives of several people within and beyond is a great attribute (are great attributes).”

“Accolades as ex-beauty queen float (floats) school in Abuja” “Gov Ikpeazu declares dusk to dawn (dusk-to-dawn) curfew in Aba” (DAILY SUN NATIONAL NEWS Rider, September 13) OVERHEARD: “…handwriting on the wall” Get it right: writing on the wall “FG seeks N921.4bn to complete 925 roads projects” All the Facts, All the Sides: 925 road projects.

“Even Dubai ran into trouble (troubled) waters in 2008-2009 when huge debt (a huge debt) forcibly….”

“The enforcement of that sentence against a teenage mother who had just delivered is certainly regretable.” On the move: regrettable. “…the average journalist usually burns this professional flag, forgets his own humble past once he or she crosses over to the corridor of power.” Saturday People: corridors of power and this: their humble past once they….

“The government wants to dump all the dead stadia or sell them off to those who can breathe the breath of life on (into) them.”

“However, it could be useful to indicate that our research shows that the fortunes of NEXIM moved comfortably between (from) 1990 to 1992 and….”

“These terminations were made after NEXIM had undertaken screening exercise (must you add ‘exercise’?) both at home and abroad and conducted series (a series) of travels, trainings (training).…”

“Trainings were held yesterday at the sports academy.” Viewpoint: ‘training’ is uncountable.

“Commissioner wants more vigilante

groups” Rutam, hello: vigilance groups.

“The article was an insult on the Federal Government, the National Assembly and an affront on the ICPC and its competent and hardworking staff.” Justice in service of community: an affront to (not on) the ICPC. And, of course, an insult to (not on) the FG “For quite sometime (some time) now, the poor and deteriorating condition of public infrastructure….”

“A few weeks ago, there was some news report (a news report) about the involvement of….” “…all the major roads in the Eastern part of the country have become pure death traps and for challenging his (President’s) nonchallant attitude and doing anything positive in Igbo land.” Get it right: nonchalant.

“Trump, North Korea Minister hold talks” Foreign Affairs: North Korean Minster. “…there have been series of polemical attacks of (on) the commission and its activities by an obscure and often fictitious section of the public.” This way: a (take note) series of polemical attacks.

“The president and commander-in-chief of the armed forces also addressed the nation same evening.” Get it right: the same evening.

“INEC apologizes over aborted PDP convention” To live in truth is to serve: apologize for something or to somebody.

“The most impassible (impassable) roads accentuate the usual hectic traffic of motorists, making business transactions in Lagos a herculean task.” “…robbers who held residents and commuters to ransome for hours….” Spell-check: ransom.

“I doff my hat for…” The right mix: I take off or doff my hat to (not for).

“Out of a lawyers’ population estimated at about 20,000, only five females have been opportuned (opportune) to adorn the silk.”

“This is another scintillating edition for the matured (mature) mind.”

ewabara@yahoo.com, 08055001948

“Preponderant of the views aired by the people centre around issues like corruption, unemployment….” Running a true federation: Preponderance…centres….

“Benue assures on abandoned project” Just tell readers who the state assured.

“A recent report on food related (a hyphen) ailments show (shows) that in many parts of the world….”

“Unfortunately, however, I, and many other Nigerians have been infuriated by our servants….” In pursuit of linguistic orderliness: many other Nigerians and I. The concept of the cart and the horse applies to language usage, too.

“But all our future blessing would be achieved through waiting in the Lord.” If you are after God’s heart, you wait on, not in, the Lord.

“Before embarking on the strike action….”

You can as well embark on the ‘strike inaction’! “It was as though both informants were mischievous people who had an affinity in (for) discrediting the preacher.”

“The vigilante group visited instant judgment on the thief and sent him to the great beyond.” In the name of excellence: vigilance group.

“Sixteen people were killed (16 people died) and two others seriously injured in a ghastly (fatal) accident which occurred along (on) the Bauch-Auchi road on Saturday.” If there were casualties, it follows that it was a fatal, not a ghastly, accident. The mishap did not drag along the road, but occurred at a spot on the road.

“Some of the despotic regimes thrown up in (on) the continent did worse things than was experienced under colonialism.”

“A weekly magazine took a professional risk and charged the speaker for (with) forgery.” “...the same-day election is being proposed by the senate as part of the antidote for….”

This way: antidote to….

PERSPECTIVE

Some Beautiful OnesAmbode,Ayande HaveBeenBorn Robert Boroffice

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hen Ayi Kwei Armah wrote his novel “The Beautifuy Ones Are Not Yet Born,” it was a mirror of the dawn of post-independence Ghana.An era characterised by despair and political disillusionment among Ghanaians. It was a prevalent situation nurtured by embezzlement of public fund and lack of patriotism.

The novel was borne out of a yearning for a generation of leadership -the beautiful ones, that will rescue Ghana from the clutches of corruption.

Several decades ago, when this novel was written, many countries including Nigeria shared with Ghana this state of hopelessness generated by corruption.

Over five decades after independence Nigeria is still confronted with a systemic corruption which has almost become enigmatic. A nation that is so blessed with natural resources fertile landmass and clement climate continues to grapple with poverty and underdevelopment.The impact of corruption has been compounded by insurgency provoked by religious and tribal myopism. I couldn’t contradict a friend who said Nigeria is full of contradictions.Those who are supposed to be excellencies turn out to be excellent thieves, ‘the honourable are far below honour and the distinguished are far from dignity. While I could not argue with him is because be backed up his view with concrete examples.

Yet, I believe that some beautiful ones have been born. One of them is Professor Ben Ayade. The governor of Cross River State. Ayade was my student at the University of Ibadan and he was my colleague as a senator in the Seventh Assembly. He has built

Ambode

Ayade

on what he learnt in my genetics class to move governance to a higher level in his state.Genetic evolution produces new characters that advance development propelled by natural selection.

Ben has utilised intellectual selection to prioritise his development objectives and goal for the socio-economic development of his state.The trajectory he has charted for his development strategies will lift up Cross River.

Professor Oloyede, who is the Registrar of JAMB is another beautiful one that has been born.I have known

him as far back as when he was the Vice Chancellor of University of Ilorin.Among the vice chancellors he was in a class of his own in terms of foresight, hard work and commitment to the ideal of an academic institution designed for learning research and building of character. As a member of Senate Committee on Education, I was excited to find out that Oloyede is the Registrar of JAMB. In the 2017 budget hearing, our committee challenged Prof Oloyede to fund his agency from internally generated revenue.

He accepted the challenge and I assured the committee that he would achieve to succeed in that project. I am therefore not surprised that JAMB has generated a revenue of N7 billion.

This leads me to the most beautiful of them, governor Akinwunmi Ambode of Lagos State. Two years before he was elected as the governor, he never dreamt or prayed to lead the State.Divine destiny bestowed on him that burden.

When I attended a book launch in Lagos where his governorship ambition was made public, I had an insight on his personality. I saw him as an engine of a Mack Truck in the body of a Volkswagen. He was struggling to contain his energy for work for passion to transform Lagos, fury of anger to combat corruption. As a Governor he has worked tirelessly do what is in the overall interest of Lagos. He tackled the Mike 2 manace without succumbing to tribal sentiment. He faced the problem of Tejuoso Market without bothering about insinuations of tribalism.The roads and bus terminals constructed are a beauty to behold. Lagos state is better for it.

His decision to contruct a befitting Lagos Airport road came like a meteorite that illuminates an eclipsed hope of a nation.Airports all over the world is the gateway to a nation. It gives a first-time visitor an idea what the country looks like. What we have as Lagos Airport road is an embarrassment to the nation an indicator of misplaced priority. I hope that the new road will eliminate the taxi park on the right side the road.

I have no hesitation to reach the verdict that with Governor Ambode, Governor Ayade and Prof. Oloyede, some beautiful ones have been born.

–––Boroffice is a senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

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THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER Ëž ÍşÍťËœ ͺ͸͚;

ESSENTIAL SKILLS with STEPHEN DIESERUVWE (Director General, Delta State TraďŹƒc Management Authority (DESTMA)

Reverse Park or Parallel Parking

The next Bugatti

Bugatti Plans to Produce 4-door Galiber Stories by Bennett Oghifo

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he French supercar manufacturer first expressed interest in building a sedan when it debuted the 16C Galibier at the 2009 Frankfurt Motor Show. The concept featured the same 1,000+ hp quad-turbocharged W16 engine as the Veyron, which would have been enough to propel the sedan to a theoretical top speed of 235 mph. Bugatti later shelved the concept during the development process of the Chiron – but don’t label the super

sedan stillborn yet.

Speaking to Automotive News, Bugatti boss Wolfgang Durheimer, said the brand’s four-door car “is not dead.� He also said Bugatti would probably remain a one-model brand, meaning the production Galibier may replace the Chiron rather than be sold alongside it. The Chiron is expected to stick around for about eight years, so the Galibier could rear its head in 2024 or 2025.

It remains to be seen what may power the Galibier – even within Bugatti. No decisions have been made in regards to the manufacturer’s future powertrains

as hybrid technology is progressing at a quick rate. The longer Bugatti waits to develop its next-generation powertrain, the more performance it may be able to deliver. No matter what lies under the hood, you can bet it will set a new standard for performance – just as every modern-day Bugatti before it has. “It will again be decided on the performance criteria because this is the ultimate our customers expect from us,� Durheimer said. “The ingredients are open.�

[Source: Automotive News]

Jaguar E-Type Zero: Most Beautiful Electric Car in the World

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aguar Land Rover Classic is presenting an electric-powered Jaguar E-type at the Jaguar Land Rover Tech Fest, which opens to the public on 8 September in London.

The car, known as E-type Zero, has been restored and converted at Jaguar Land Rover Classic Works in Coventry, not far from where the E-type was born.

Tim Hannig, Director, Jaguar Land Rover Classic, said: “E-type Zero combines the renowned E-type dynamic experience with enhanced performance through electrification. This unique combination creates a breathtaking driving sensation. “Our aim with E-type Zero is to future-proof classic car ownership. We’re looking forward to the reaction of our clients as we investigate bringing this concept to market.�

The Jaguar E-type Zero not only drives and looks like an E-type, it also offers outstanding performance. With the 0-100km/h sprint completed in only 5.5sec, it’s about one second quicker than an original, Series 1 E-type.

Tim Hannig said: “In order to seamlessly combine the new electric powertrain of E-type Zero with the dynamic set-up of the original E-type specification, we have limited the vehicle’s power output. We believe this provides the optimum driving experience.�

The E-type Zero vehicle, displayed at Tech Fest, is a restored Series 1.5 Roadster. It’s totally original in specification, apart from its 21st century state-ofthe-art powertrain and modified instrumentation and facia – although these are also inspired by the original E-type. LED headlights are also used to

Jaguar E-type Zero

achieve energy efficiency.

Again, they adopt the styling theme of the original Series 1 E-type.

Bespoke electric powertrain An electric powertrain developing 220kW has been specially designed for the E-type Zero. Its lithium-ion battery pack has the same dimensions, and similar weight, to the XK six-cylinder engine used in the original E-type.

The experts responsible for developing the electric powertrain have ensured it will be placed in precisely the same location as the XK engine, without structural modifications.

The electric motor (and reduction gear) lies just behind the battery pack, in the same location as the E-type’s gearbox. A new propshaft sends power to a carry-over differential and final drive. Total weight is 46kg lower than the original E-type.

This manoeuvring exercise involves reversing into limited parking space between vehicles. It is easier to manoeuvre your vehicle when reversing into a parking space. More often than not, there is insufficient space to drive forward into a vacant parking space and therefore your only option might be to reverse into the space. The reverse park or parallel park is an essential skill to learn if you want to be able to park in town on the street between vehicles. There are easy steps to follow when carrying out this manoeuvre.

Firstly, in choosing a location for this manoeuvre, you need to assess the parking space, to ensure that it is at least one and a half car lengths in size and that it is safe, legal and convenient to carry out the manoeuvre.

If there is a following car (light blue car the in diagram), you will need to signal your intention clearly (blue car in the diagram) before stopping.

You need to slow down well before the parking space you intend to reverse into and position your vehicle about one metre away from the target vehicle (green car in the diagram), parallel to it and slightly forward of the target vehicle.

Immediately you stop, select the reverse gear, apply your handbrake and keep your brake lights to confirm your intention to following traffic. It should be noted that, the closer you are to the target car the more difficult it will be to get a suitable angle to reverse into the available space.

Secondly, use the prepare, observe and move (P.O.M.) routine to reverse. To control your speed, try to have the clutch pedal just at or near the biting point (refer to the Moving Off article), and take into account any slopes including the camber of the road which may affect your speed. Carry out all round observation and be particularly mindful of pedestrians before reversing, especially children who are more likely to step out behind your vehicle. Be prepared to stop when pedestrians are around and continue only when it is safe. You should continually look over your right and left hand shoulders whilst reversing.

Thirdly, reverse back, steering in a straight line until the rear of your car is level with the bumper of the target vehicle. At this point, the rear of the target vehicle will appear to be halfway back window of your vehicle.

This is the point of turn. Look all around to check it is safe before steering, as the front of your car will swing out. Steer one full turn (360 degrees) right and reverse towards the middle of the parking space. As the front of your vehicle swings out check over your left shoulder for oncoming vehicles and stop if necessary. This is the point where you create the greatest hazard to other road users.

Fourthly, when your car is approximately 45 degrees with the kerb as shown in the diagram, as a guide, your right side mirror lines up with the offside brake light of the target vehicle, steer one full turn left (360 degrees). Your wheel will be straight at this point and reverse back in a straight line.

Lastly, when the nearside of your wheel arch appears to sit or hit the kerb, briskly turn your steering wheel full lock left to the left. When your vehicle is almost parallel with the kerb and still moving very slowly, steer right to bring all the wheels parallel to the kerb and finish within two cars length of the target car. Once you are in the space, you can move forward so that you are positioned centrally and then apply the handbrake or parking brake.

In next week’s article we shall be discussing how to reverse into a side road on the right.

For further explanations or clarification on the articles in the Essential Skills of Driving column, consult the author.

Stephen K. Dieseruvwe

Director General, Delta StateTrafďŹ c Management Authority (DESTMA) **DriverTrainer and Road Safety Consultant **Email: sdieseruvwe@gmail.com **Tel: +2348167814928

THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER Ëž ÍşÍťËœ ͺ͸͚;

27

Nissan Extends Global UEFA Champions League Partnership

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2017 Chevrolet Suburban

Exceptionally ReďŹ ned SUVs Stories by Bennett Oghifo

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he 2017 Chevrolet Tahoe and suburban SUVs provide outstanding horsepower, torque and towing muscle. The family vehicles are available in 7-, 8- or 9-passenger configurations. And no matter how far from home, available 4G LTE Wi-FiÂŽ keeps you connected to what matters most.

Your every need in mind What happens when you combine the utility of a truck, versatility of an SUV and amenities you’d find in a luxury vehicle? You get the ever-capable 2017 Suburban. With best-in-class highway fuel

economy of 23 MPG,†this bold SUV gets you where you want to go and is built to accommodate your family’s needs. It’s no wonder Suburban is part of America’s best-selling family of full-size SUVs. Powerfully efficient SUVs The strong, efficient EcoTec3 V8 engine of Tahoe and Suburban offers an impressive 355 horsepower and 383 lb.-ft. of torque along with best-in-class 23 MPG highway.†Striking design Make an impression with the premium design of the Suburban and Tahoe SUVs. Details include distinctive lighting with projector-beam headlamps and rear LED taillamps, available fog lamps, LED daytime running lamps, high-intensity discharge

(HID) headlamps, and IntelliBeam automatic on/ off highbeam headlamps.

Attention to detail The interior of Tahoe is inspired by the craftsmanship of high-end wristwatches, making the appearance of the instrument cluster intricate and refined.

Quiet interior Suburban and Tahoe feature an acoustic-laminated windshield and inlaid doors with triple seals to help reduce noise.

ReďŹ ned storage The center console in Suburban and Tahoe is large enough to fit a laptop computer and the standard 8-inch diagonal touch-screen slides up to reveal space to store your valuables.

issan Motor Co., Ltd. confirmed a three-year extension to its global partnership with the UEFA Champions League, including the UEFA Super Cup. Gareth Bale celebrated the announcement by surprising a group of schoolchildren by teaching them how to recreate his iconic winning goal from the 2014 final against Club AtlĂŠtico de Madrid.

The agreement cames ahead of the first game of the 2017/2018 UEFA Champions League season and will see the Japanese manufacturer stay as an official partner up to the 2020/2021 season. The UEFA Champions League continues to be Nissan’s largest investment in sports sponsorship, which began at the start of the 2014/2015 season.

The UEFA Champions League continues to be the most watched annual sporting competition on the planet, with a cumulative television audience of over four billion a season. The 2017 UEFA Champions League final attracted a global audience of over 160 million, more than any other annual sporting event and saw Real Madrid C.F. beat Juventus F.C. to record their 12th UEFA Champions League title. “Innovation that excites is at the core of everything Nissan does, and our partnership with the most exciting sports tournament on the planet over the last three years has been key to that,� said Roel de Vries, corporate vice president, global head of marketing for Nissan. “We’re delighted to be extending this partnership for another three seasons, and it will continue to be at the very heart of our global marketing strategy.

We’ve seen huge success from the partnership and the additional engagement it has allowed us to have with consumers.�

BMW M5 Competition Package

E

xcitingly and elegantly shaped, and more powerful than ever, the new generation oftheBMWM5isastatementofsupreme engineering skill and innovative driving intelligence. For hitherto unimagined dimensions of driving dynamics up to the limits. Full of state-of-the-art technologies that make the everyday business routine safer and more comfortable. The innovative all-wheel drive system M xDrive of the powerful all-new BMW M5 with its 600 hp (441 kW) engine turns the driver into the self-assured pilot of a high-performance sports saloon with unbelievable power, precision and agility – pure M driving pleasure on a new level.

BMW M5 with M xDrive: Fuel consumption in l/100 km (combined): 10.5 CO2 emissions in g/km (combined): 241 Con-

sumption data is determined in accordance to the ECE driving cycle, depending on the wheel and tyre sizes selected. The models illustrated include optional equipment.

Accelerates from every perspective ThenewBMWM5istheuncompromisingcombination of elegant business saloon and systematically power-oriented supreme performance: large air inlets in the athletic front supply the M V8 highperformanceenginewithcoolingair.Thelookcreated by the lines of the distinctive aluminium bonnet with two M specific swage lines is repeated in the contours of the roof made of very lightweight and tough carbon-fibre reinforced plastic (CFRP). The discreet M rear spoiler supports the sporty and powerful appearance and is an important element of the overall aerodynamic concept.

The all-new BMW M5 with M xDrive

THE NIGHT JOURNEY SYNDROME

I

don’t know if you read the news. As someone involved in saving lives on our roads, I was shocked when I did as I could not find the right words to describe the number of people who lost their lives in just one road traffic crash on the night of Thursday September 14, 2017. All I could exclaim was night journey again? After all the noise and campaigns and warnings against this trending travel pattern that daily wins more convert that even the various religious beliefs does .What really is the reason for this suicide driven travel pattern that addicts maintain is cozy, cheap and also fun. As I write and reflect on the figure again, my heart beats faster than ever. This is not death arising from terror attack nor militancy, not even from cult -gang clashes but from avoidable road traffic crashes This is how one of the online media report captured it, ’’An auto accident on the Lagos-Ibadan highway caused the death of 30 people on Thursday night. The spokesperson of the Federal Road Safety Corps, Bisi Kazeem, confirmed the incident to the News Agency of Nigeria in Abuja on Friday.Mr. Kazeem said the accident occurred at about 8 p.m. at Km 95 around the Elebolo QuaryArea on the Ibadan axis of the road. According to him, 10 other persons were injured in the crash involving 40 persons and two Mazda buses.“The crash occurred at a construction site, and it resulted from route and speed violations.“This has further underscored

SAFE DRIVING with

JONAS AGWU

amnipr, mcipr,mprsa,arpa (Corps Commander) Corps Public Education OďŹƒcer Federal Road Safety Corps. + 2348033026491

the Corps Marshal, Dr Boboye Oyeyemi’s advice to motorists to avoid night journeys, be careful around construction sites and drive within approved speed limits,� he said. Mr. Kazeem said rescue operations

by FRSC officials, who arrived at the scene minutes after the incident, ended at 2:42 a.m. on Friday. He disclosed that the corpses were deposited atAdeoyo Yemetu Hospital mortuary, Ibadan’’.

I have written several times on this death wish yet the apoltles night travel keep canvassing reasons why they can never give up their free choice which can not be restricted by law.This is because globally, there is no legislation anywhere in the world that prohibits night travel. However, the FRSC has a mounted a consistent campaign against night travel.

While the Corps appreciates the roghts of individuals in a democracy, the commision in keeeping with the peculiar Nigerian situation took its stand for several reasons, which in fact culminated in series of workshopsheldwithstakeholderstoraiseawareness

on the dangers involved. While acknowledging the emergence of night travel due to the collapse of rail systems, prohibitive cost of air travel and inadequate inland waterways, the Commission however, took cognizance of the inherent road crash dangers and the need for caution among travelers.

For instance the 2003 records shows that out of a report of 10,111 cases, 715 occured at night with about 945 fatal cases. Recall the celebrated case where 70 people lost their lives when two luxury buses collided in the night along Zuba – Gwagwalada road; ditto Ife and Aba crashes. Although few accidents occur at night heavier fatalities and casualty rate usually occur.

But why is FRSC concerned about night journey?

One of tyhe obvious reasons is the fact that rescue operationis minimal and most often non-existent in the night. Presently, except for the FCt and other cities in the country, the FRSC team rareky does night patrols along major highways simply because of the dangers involved.

Remember that the outcome ogf a road crash for the victim in terms of their chances of survibal and long term prognosis is affected by the level of available medical care. Unfortunately, ambulance services is still epileptic and even rescue effort are even complicated by the absence of health centers or even the attitude at most hospitals. Consequently, because access to emergency services is poor, death befor arrival at the hospital is usually high. In many cases their is no availability of ambulance, and raod

crash victims rely on passersby for help. Lack of any medical interventions and long dificult journeys to hospitals reduces the chances of survival Visibilty is another problem. Globally, it is recomended that improving the visibilty of road ussers is one of the specific intervention that can yield good results. Seeing and been seeing are fundamental prerequisites for the safety of all road users and their are several ways of enhancing visibilty. The use of extra reflectors on the vehicle or light reflective vests of the thin plastic material is also recommended by the United Nations and is contained the National Road Traffic Regulation, 2004. Illuminating crosswalks, including the flood lighting of pedestrian crossing and increased illumination at crosswalks are also recommended strategies.

Unfortunately, FERMA the lead Government agency charge with road maintenance, our road signs, and marking in terms of their chapes, colour and reflectivity do not meet international standards.

The consequencies is that driving is made more difficult and hazardious because of the absence of the appopriate road furnity to guide motorist at night and bad or poor weather. The result is the recourse by fleet operators to violate the provision of the traffic regulation by fixing extra lights, which has led to avoidable crashes and death. This is why FERMAopined that if maximum reflectivity is maintained in our pavement markings, signs and delineators, their would be increase in night time sand poor weather safety on our roads and ultimately fewer crashes injuries and fatalities may be recorded.

28

THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER Ëž ÍşÍťËœ ͺ͸͚Ϳ

FAMILY HEALTH with

BOBO BODE -KAYODE

High Blood Pressure

lifeissuesfromwithin@yahoo.com, .Cel, ͸΀͸ͽ͝͝Ϳͺ͝ͽ͞

T

your day, increasing your activity by even a small amount can help.

Think about how you can be more active in your daily life. Any activity that leaves you feeling warm and slightly out of breath is ideal.

he body of man made up off many parts and organs, which includes your blood.

The life of any man is in the blood. It is so important that there re levels below which your body begins to malfunction, and can cause death. Also, the pressure of the blood flowing in your body is very important, There are various things that can cause these to go very high or drop very low.

These extreme cases are dangerous , depending on the variation experienced.

Blood pressure is a measure of the force that your heart uses to pump blood around your body.

High blood pressure, or hypertension, rarely has noticeable symptoms. But if untreated, it increases your risk of serious problems such as heart attacks and strokes. The only way to find out if your blood pressure is high is to have your blood pressure checked.

Blood pressure is recorded with two numbers.

The systolic pressure (higher number) is the force at which your heart pumps blood around your body.

The diastolic pressure (lower number) is the resistance to the blood flow in the blood vessels. They’re both measured in millimetres of mercury (mmHg).

As a general guide IJHI CMPPE QSFTTVSF JT DPOTJEFSFE UP CF r 140/90mmHg or higher JEFBM CMPPE QSFTTVSF JT DPOTJEFSFE UP CF r between 90/60mmHg and 120/80mmHg MPX CMPPE QSFTTVSF JT DPOTJEFSFE UP CF r 90/60mmHg or lower A blood pressure reading between 120/80mmHg and 140/90mmHg could mean you’re at risk of developing high blood pressure if you don’t take steps to keep your blood pressure under control.

Risk of High Blood Pressure : If your blood pressure is too high, it puts extra strain on your blood vessels, heart and other organs, such as the brain, kidneys and eyes. Persistent high blood pressure can increase your risk of a number of serious and potentially life-threatening conditions, such as: r IFBSU EJTFBTF r IFBSU BUUBDLT r TUSPLFT r IFBSU GBJMVSF r QFSJQIFSBM BSUFSJBM EJTFBTF r BPSUJD BOFVSZTNT r LJEOFZ EJTFBTF r WBTDVMBS EFNFOUJB High blood pressure High blood pressure is often related to unhealthy lifestyle habits, such as smoking, drinking too much alcohol, being overweight and not exercising enough.

Left untreated, high blood pressure can increase your risk of developing a number of serious long-term health conditions, such as coronary heart disease and kidney disease.

Low blood pressure Low blood pressure is less common. Some medications can cause low blood pressure as a side effect.

It can also be caused by a number of underlying conditions, including heart failure and dehydration.

Check your blood pressure The only way of knowing whether you have high blood pressure is to have a blood pressure test.

All adults over 40 are advised to have their blood pressure checked at least every five years. Getting this done is easy and could save your life.

You can get your blood pressure tested at a number of places, including: r BU ZPVS EPDUPST TVSHFSZ r BU TPNF QIBSNBDJFT r BT QBSU PG ZPVS -PDBM IFBMUI DFOUSF )FBMUI $IFDL r JO TPNF XPSLQMBDFT r :PV DBO BMTP DIFDL ZPVS CMPPE QSFTTVSF ZPVSTFMG with a home blood pressure monitor.

If you have high blood pressure, reducing it even a small amount can help lower your risk of these conditions.

Causes of high blood pressure $BVTFT PG IJHI CMPPE QSFTTVSF It’s not always clear what causes high blood pressure, but certain things can increase your risk.

You’re at an increased risk of high blood pressure if you: r BSF PWFS UIF BHF PG r BSF PWFSXFJHIU PS PCFTF r BSF PG "GSJDBO PS $BSJCCFBO EFTDFOU r IBWF B SFMBUJWF XJUI IJHI CMPPE QSFTTVSF r FBU UPP NVDI TBMU BOE EPO U FBU FOPVHI GSVJU and vegetables r EPO U EP FOPVHI FYFSDJTF

Increase your ďŹ bre. Start the day with plain, unsweetened/ unsalted porridge sprinkled with ground axseeds, snack on raw nuts and carrot and celery sticks. Switch all carbohydrates to whole grains such as brown rice, whole wheat pasta and quinoa. Add pulses to soups and stews, and have an extra portion of vegetables or a salad with your sandwich instead of crisps

r ESJOL UPP NVDI BMDPIPM PS DPGGFF PS PUIFS DBGGFJOF based drinks) r TNPLF r EPO U HFU NVDI TMFFQ PS IBWF EJTUVSCFE TMFFQ Making healthy lifestyle changes can help reduce your chances of getting high blood pressure and help lower your blood pressure if it’s already high.

How to reduce your blood pressure Reduce your blood pressure The following lifestyle changes can help prevent and lower high blood pressure: r SFEVDF UIF BNPVOU PG TBMU ZPV FBU BOE IBWF B generally healthy diet r DVU CBDL PO BMDPIPM JG ZPV ESJOL UPP NVDI r MPTF XFJHIU JG ZPV SF PWFSXFJHIU r FYFSDJTF SFHVMBSMZ r DVU EPXO PO DBGGFJOF r TUPQ TNPLJOH r USZ UP HFU BU MFBTU TJY IPVST PG TMFFQ B OJHIU Some people with high blood pressure may also need to take one or more medicines to stop their blood pressure getting too high.

An unhealthy lifestyle will raise your blood pressure over time. And the higher your blood pressure becomes, the higher your risk of having a stroke or heart attack in the future.

But the good news is that if you have high blood pressure, healthy changes will help to bring it down.

And you don’t have to wait until you have high blood pressure to make healthy lifestyle changes.

The more you can reduce your blood pressure, the lower your risk of a heart attack or stroke will be.

1. Blood Pressure Diet - Eat less salt Too much salt raises your blood pressure, so it is important to eat as little as possible. In fact, some people with high blood pressure may be able to avoid blood pressure medicines by cutting down on salt.

Most of the salt you eat is not what you add to your food, but is in prepared foods like bread, breakfast cereals and ready meals.

Don’t add salt to food when cooking or at the table.

When shopping for food, check the labels and choose low-salt options when you can.

2. Blood Pressure Diet - Eat more fruit and vegetables Eating more fruit and vegetables helps to lower your blood pressure. Adults should eat at least five portions of fruit and vegetables every day. A portion is 80 grams, or roughly the size of your fist.

Try to eat a range of different fruits and vegetables.

Dried, frozen and tinned are fine, but watch out for added salt, sugar or fats.

3. Blood Pressure Diet - Keep to a healthy weight Losing weight, if you need to, will help lower your blood pressure and reduce your risk of health problems. The best way to lose weight is to choose more low-fat and low-calorie foods, and increase your physical activity.

Set yourself realistic goals. Make small changes to your eating habits and activity levels that you can keep to for life.

4. Blood Pressure Diet - Drink less alcohol If you drink too much alcohol, this will raise your blood pressure over time. The current recommended limits are 14 units of alcohol a week for men and women. A unit is roughly half a pint of beer or cider, a small glass of wine, or a single pub measure of spirits.

If you keep to the recommended alcohol limits, this should help keep your blood pressure down. #MPPE 1SFTTVSF BOE &YFSDJTF (FU NPSF BDUJWF Being moderately active for 30 minutes five times a week can keep your heart healthy, and can lower your blood pressure. If you can’t find 30 minutes in

Medication for high blood pressure If you’re diagnosed with high blood pressure, your doctor may recommend taking one or more medicines to keep it under control.

These usually need to be taken once a day. $PNNPO CMPPE QSFTTVSF NFEJDBUJPOT JODMVEF 1-&"4& 4&& :063 %0$503 1):4*$*"/ #&'03& 5",*/( "/: .&%*$"5*0/ r "$& JOIJCJUPST m TVDI BT FOBMBQSJM MJTJOPQSJM perindopril and ramipril r BOHJPUFOTJO SFDFQUPS CMPDLFST "3#T m TVDI as candesartan, irbesartan, losartan, valsartan and olmesartan r DBMDJVN DIBOOFM CMPDLFST m TVDI BT BNMPEJQJOF felodipine and nifedipine or diltiazem and verapamil. r EJVSFUJDT m TVDI BT JOEBQBNJEF BOE CFOESPĂĄVmethiazide r CFUB CMPDLFST m TVDI BT BUFOPMPM BOE CJTPQSPMPM r BMQIB CMPDLFST m TVDI BT EPYB[PTJO r SFOJO JOIJCJUPST m TVDI BT BMJTLJSFO r PUIFS EJVSFUJDT m TVDI BT BNJMPSJEF BOE TQJSPOPlactone The medication recommended for you will depend on things like how high your blood pressure is and your age. Healthy blood pressure diet Healthy blood pressure diet Your diet - what you eat and drink - has a real effect on your heart and blood pressure. The more healthy your eating habits are, the lower your blood pressure will be.

If you have high blood pressure, it is even more important to make healthy changes to your diet. If you take medicines for your blood pressure, then a healthy blood pressure diet can reduce the number ZPV NBZ OFFE 'PS B GFX QFPQMF GPMMPXJOH CMPPE pressure friendly eating habits may help them to avoid medicines altogether.

Fibre Increase your fibre. Start the day with plain, unsweetened/unsalted porridge sprinkled with ground flaxseeds, snack on raw nuts and carrot and celery sticks. Switch all carbohydrates to whole grains such as brown rice, whole wheat pasta and quinoa. Add pulses to soups and stews, and have an extra portion of vegetables or a salad with your sandwich instead of crisps.

Oily ďŹ sh Oily fish such as trout, wild salmon, sardines and mackerel contain anti-inflammatory essential fats, also known as good cholesterol. Eat two to three times per week.

Beetroot Beetroot contains nitrates which support vasodilation (the dilation of blood vessels) which in turn reduces blood pressure. Try juicing beetroot with carrot, apple and ginger, roast it or grate it into a salad.

Raw garlic Smelly breath may be worth your while if blood pressure is a concern for you. Garlic contains allicin, a natural antibiotic, and is linked to blood pressure improvements. It needs to be raw and plentiful, so think about adding it to an olive oil and lemon juice salad dressing or stir it in at the end of cooking.

Antioxidants and vitamin C "OUJPYJEBOU BOE WJUBNJO $ SJDI GSVJUT BOE WFHFUBCMFT include carrots, asparagus, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, watercress, cabbage, tomatoes, blueberries, kiwi and kale. Here’s a tip if you don’t particularly like sprouts: roast them in olive oil and add balsamic vinegar in the last 10 minutes of cooking to give them a lovely glaze. They also work well sliced in a stir fry.

Pomegranate Pomegranate has a number of beneficial properties for cardiovascular health. Stir pomegranate seeds into plain natural yoghurt and sprinkle ground flaxseeds on top. Get plenty of the benefits by drinking a small glass of pomegranate juice (with no added sugar) daily.

Magnesium Magnesium is needed for muscles to relax after contraction and may help with high blood pressure.

Get it from dark green leafy vegetables such as spinach, Brussels sprouts, Swiss chard; whole grains such as quinoa and brown rice; and nuts and seeds such as raw cashews, sesame and pumpkin seeds.

THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER ˾ JUNE 16, 2011

GLOBAL SOCCER

A

WEEKLY PULL-OUT

23.09.2017

Neymar Cavani The Battle for Supremacy vs

Stoke Test for Chelsea

PAGE. 29

30

THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER Ëž Í°ÍąËœ ͺ͸͚Ϳ

Neymar and Cavani

The Battle for Supremacy Ă?ĂŁĂ—Ă‹ĂœËŞĂ? ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă™ĂœĂŽ ͞ͺ͸͸ Ă—Ă“Ă–Ă–Ă“Ă™Ă˜ ×Ùà Ă? Ă?ĂœĂ™Ă— Ă‹ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă–Ă™Ă˜Ă‹ ÞÙ Ă‹ĂœĂ“Ă? Ă‹Ă“Ă˜ĂžĚ‹ Ă?ĂœĂ—Ă‹Ă“Ă˜ ĂĄĂ“Ă–Ă– ĂŒĂ? ÞÙÚÓĂ?Ă‹Ă– Ă?Ă™Ăœ Ă‹ Ă–Ă™Ă˜Ă‘ ÞÓ×Ă?Ëœ ÞÙ Ă?Ă?ĂžĂ‹ĂŒĂ–Ă“Ă?Ă’ Ă’Ă“Ă—Ă?Ă?Ă–Ă? Ă‹Ă? ÞÒĂ? ĂœĂ“Ă˜Ă?Ă? Ă™Ă? Ă‹ĂœĂ? ĂŽĂ?Ă? ĂœĂ“Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ă?Ëœ ĂĄĂ’Ă“Ă?Ă’ Ă’Ă‹Ă Ă? ÚÓÞĂ?Ă’Ă?ĂŽ Ă’Ă“Ă— Ă‹Ă‘Ă‹Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ăž ĂŽĂ“Ă˜Ă?Ă™Ă˜ Ă‹Ă Ă‹Ă˜Ă“Ë› Kunle Adewale ĂœĂ?ĂšĂ™ĂœĂžĂ?

W

ith four goals and four assists in three league matches, Neymar has so far lived up to expectation of fans that troop out to the Parc des Princes every weekend to watch the most expensive footballer in the world.

Last Sunday, against Olympique Lyonnais, a side that has yet to taste defeat in the Ligue 1 six-week old league, football analysts felt it was the real test for PSG and indeed Neymar and they were not disappointed as the match lived up to expectations, but not without controversies with Neymar and Edinson Cavani trying to establish themselves as to who really is in charge at Parc des Princes.

Before the arrival of the golden boy of Brazilian football, Cavani was the undisputed penalty taker, but Neymar was ready to prove that he has come to take charge. The two argued over who should take a penalty in their toughest test of the season so far against Lyon, with PSG maintaining their perfect start to the season with a 2-0 win though it wasn't their most convincing performance and both goals came from Lyon players as Marcelo and Jeremy Morel deflected shots from Cavani and Mbappe late on.

The main talking point was the

squabble between Cavani and Neymar, who for the second time in his stint in Paris, attempted to take a penalty. He was unsuccessful again, as Cavani took charge his effort was saved by Anthony Lopes.

There was also an incident where Cavani wanted to take a free-kick and Dani Alves nabbed the ball off him, and gave it to Neymar.

Though Manager Unai Emery has told them to sort out the issue, it doesn't seem like the situation has improved. Alarmingly for everyone associated with PSG, there are reports that in the dressing room after the match, things were close to getting physical between the South American pair.

An altercation between the two took place, with Cavani unhappy with the way Neymar conducted himself.

Captain Thiago Silva was said to have intervened to defuse the tension.

While both players along with Kylian Mbappe, have developed a strong understanding and formed a fearsome attacking trio that has scored 16 goals so far this term, the dispute is a major cause for concern and doesn't exactly bode well for team spirit.

In a classic case of modern football, it soon came to light that Neymar has unfollowed Cavani on Instagram as a

result of the disagreement, while after the game, the former Napoli man made a decision to rush out of the Parc des Princes and avoid what would have been intense questions from journalists in the mixed zone about the incident.

The Brazil superstar now wants to win the Ballon d'Or after leaving Barcelona. When Neymar joined Barcelona in 2013, Johan Cruyff could see trouble ahead. “I wouldn't put two captains on the same boat,� he said referring to the Brazilian joining the same team as Lionel Messi. “You have to learn from the past on this one.�

For once, the great man was wrong.

Neymar and Messi got on well that they both paid gushing tributes to each other when they parted company this summer.

However, it's unlikely to be that way when Cavani inevitably leaves Paris Saint-Germain – Neymar has already stopped following him on Twitter and he passed to him just twice in the weekend game against Lyon. Cavani didn't pass to Neymar at all, and by all accounts went for him in the dressing room after the game.

There are two differences between PSG in 2017 and Barcelona in 2013: Cavani is not Messi, and the Neymar of four years ago is not the Neymar of now.

Messi can be as self-centred as the next superstar but it's also true that by genius standards, he has a remarkably underdeveloped ego, and Neymar benefited from that.

At the end of the 2014-15 season, Barcelona were thrashing Cordoba 6-0 and Messi, on a hat-trick, let Neymar take a penalty because the Brazilian hadn't scored yet. It was typical of his attitude during their four seasons playing together.

Whenever they played weak opposition, Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez would make an effort to ensure all three get on the scoresheet. In closer, more difficult games when Messi felt that his aim was off and that Neymar was turning everything he touched into gold, then he would step aside and let the Brazilian be the protagonist.

In last season's comeback against PSG at the Nou Camp it wouldn't have entered Messi's head to push Neymar to one side for that late free-kick and even later penalty.

Neymar was also very keen to show that he had not come to rip Messi's crown off his head even though succession was his long-term idea.

On the day of his presentation, he said, “I've never worried about being the best in the world. The best is already here and he's Messi, who

31

SEPTEMBER 23, 2017 ˾ THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER

AFRICA PLAYS with KENNETH EZAGA 0807 0530 677, zigi199@yahoo.com

We want to Find the Next Nduka Odizor, Says Kanyi He is the principal partner of Lekki-based corporate law firm Kanyi, Karibi-Whyte and Hastrup, as well as chairman of the committee of law office management of the Nigerian Bar Association, Mr. Anire Kanyi has his hands full. He however is on a mission to fly the Nigerian flag on the biggest tennis stages in the world. A sports enthusiast, Kanyi is the chairman of the Tennis Management Company Limited, that is committed to providing an nnual platform to compete regularly for high stakes which would lead to a dramatic rise in interest and investment in the sport such that overtime Nigerians can see their finest made-inNigeria talents competing regularly at the Australian Open, the French Open, Wimbledon and the US Open.

P

lease tell us about your project My partners and I want to organise four major tennis tournaments in Nigeria every year.

These would be the Abuja Open, the Lagos Open, and two other opens – one south, one north – that will be decided through bids. Our maiden tournament will be the Abuja Open in May 2018, while the Lagos Open would follow in November.

We should have our first full calendar from 2019 or 2020.

Neymar standing on Cavani;s way

cannot be compared with anybody. I am one of the luckiest men in the world to be able to play alongside him and learn from him. I have come to help him stay as the best and to win many more trophies.” It may well have been as premeditated and scripted as his speech in Catalan that day but it played out just as he said he wanted it to.

Messi stayed No 1 and Neymar helped him.

Clearly, he has not gone to PSG to help Cavani remain the main man at the Parc des Princes. The Uruguayan is perhaps the bigger fool for not realising that if the £198 million man wants to take the half-time team talks as well as all the free-kicks and penalties, he is going to be allowed to.

And there is one more big difference between PSG and Barcelona. At Barca, Neymar had his band of brothers off the pitch, at PSG he has one on the pitch too.

In Spain, the so-called “Toiss” never left Neymar's side. This group of friends from Brazil was with him from his presentation in 2013 to his last day in Barcelona when they all went to get tattoos in the city – each one got a letter tattooed on to his wrist that when the group stand together and put their arms out spells “amigos.”

Several “Toiss” even went on the club flight to the US for the pre-season tour, much to the annoyance of some of the club's directors – especially the ones who knew Neymar was going to leave the club before the season started.

Despite the social entourage, on the pitch he was increasingly isolated.

He stayed with friends like Messi and Suarez but the Brazilian quota in the

squad seemed to go down every year and he was left sitting next to reserve team right back, Douglas, on flights to games.

He wanted Brazilian players brought to the club and the signings of Philippe Coutinho and Paulinho were both linedup with his desire to have his own gang very much in mind.

Barca followed through on Paulinho, and tried to get Coutinho, despite Neymar's departure.

At PSG, he has Marquinhos, Lucas Moura, Thiago Silva and Dani Alves.

He doesn't have to take the ball off Cavani because Alves will do it for him.

He's the prince of Paris now; he has his court, his royal protector in the shape of club president, Nasser Al Khelaifi, and unless Cavani starts playing like Messi, he has little choice but to dance to Neymar's tune.

G LO B A L S O C C E R ASSISTANT EDITOR KUNLE ADEWALE WAHAB AKINTUNDE THISDAY ON SATURDAY EDITOR SHAKA MOMODU DEPUTY EDITOR YEMI ADEBOWALE THISDAY NEWSPAPERS EDITOR-IN-CHIEF/CHAIRMAN NDUKA OBAIGBENA MANAGING DIRECTOR ENIOLA BELLO DEPUTY MANAGING DIRECTOR KAYODE KOMOLAFE

Why are you involved in this project?

I am a huge fan of tennis so this comes naturally to me. I also share the vision with my partners that it is up to us to shape the future for our young. Next time you drive out, take a look at the number of young people just milling around; boys and girls who have little or nothing to do but simply hanging around their neighbourhoods and inevitably getting into some trouble or the other. That is one reason I am passionate about this. We need to engage these youth; to keep them busy in the right way, and there isn’t a better way than sports. I also would like to see Nigerians playing in the big global tournaments and earning big rewards; that would be a thing of immense national pride. Those don’t have two heads or four feet, but then we must know that these achievements never come by happenstance. As a society we have to create the platforms, not just in tennis and sports, for our best talents to excel, and that’s what we want to do with the majors.

You know we are a ‘football nation, so how do you intend to cut through this?

I am a huge football fan myself, but tennis is also a popular sport with Nigerians.

The Roger Federer-Rafa Nadal-Novak Djokovic-Andy Murray era of dominance has helped ensure this. We also have some history in the sport and I am sure you’ll remember the days of Ogbe Hard Court and the like. We also had stars like Nduka Odizor and David Imonitie who captivated us. So yes, tennis has good potential, and given the package we have, we should at least be able to make it football, tennis and others (laughs).

What do you want to bring to the table that is different?

The idea of the four opens in itself is new. That would be steady and regular competition for our boys and girls around which they can have their own growth plans. However Nigerians are about to see what sports, both as a big business and as entertainment, truly means. We want to create the first generation of authentic local sports champions; the best of whom may probably earn up to N100m in a given year, including earnings and endorsements.

Champions who are popular with everyone, are seen as society’s best, live well and are considered excellent role models for our exploding young population.

That would require some heavy sponsorship Well we have some excellent marketing minds in our team, including the well-liked Lolu Akinwunmi, who has a towering reputation in the advertising industry. We also have access to several captains of industry as well; hopefully

there are those who will see the future with us. Beyond sponsorship however, we have other interesting revenue sources, actually the sports business is driven by TV rights.

There are a million TV networks out there these days and everyone is looking for rich content. That is what we are aiming for: content that can appeal to Nigerians and Africans around the world. There are many others as well, but let me leave it at just the regular ones for now.

Are your tournaments going to be for Nigerian players only?

At least for the first five years. What’s the point in having international meets when our boys are clearly some way behind?

We want a platform that gives them the financial support and focus they need to arrive on the world stage. Five years would give our best some time to catch up. Even then, our hopes of making a real impression on the world stage would probably still rest on the players who are six years to eight years today. That is why we would plough back a lot of our profits into society in a massive search for our big hopes: the next Odizors and Imonite, Momohs etc.

Our plan is to have five Nigerians in the ATP-WTA top 100 in 20 years. So, yes, for the first five years the tournaments will be local, and after that we have plans to open up a couple; first to African players, and then the world.

Is the Nigerian Tennis Federation with your company on this?

They are aware of what we are doing, because from the beginning, we have communicated with them; first with former President, Mr. Sani Ndanusa who was, and remains, very supportive. We have also met and are in discussions with the new President Dayo Akindoju. He appears a very clearheaded and composed man who is passionate about the sport and also the need for new beginnings. We seem to have common goals. We are still talking. Making tennis a top sport in Nigeria would require a collaborative effort between, not just us, but the sports fraternity. It is our hope and belief that what we are doing would redefined the role of local sports in all our lives.

32

THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER Ëž Í°ÍąËœ ͺ͸͚Ϳ

Ă™Ă&#x;ĂžĂ’Ă‹Ă—ĂšĂžĂ™Ă˜Ě‹ Ă˜Ă“ĂžĂ?ĂŽ Ă‹Ă?ĂžĂ?

Southampton have lost 24 Premier League games against Manchester United (W7 D5); four more defeats than they have suffered against any other opponent.

Manchester United have won 14 of a possible 18 points in their last six Premier League visits to St Mary’s Stadium (W4 D2 L0).

Southampton have failed to score in eight of their last 10 Premier League matches at St Mary’s Stadium.

Southampton have lost 10 Premier League games in 2017 so far – if they lose this match, they’ll have already equalled their tally of Premier League losses in 2016 (11) with 15 more games scheduled to play following this fixture this calendar year.

Manchester United have scored more Premier League goals in the 80th minute or later in games (9) than 17 of the 19 other clubs have scored overall in the competition this season.

Eight different players have found the net in the Premier League for Manchester United in their opening five games this season; more than any other side.

Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Romelu Lukaku have combined for three goals in the Premier League this season (providing assists for goals) – no other partnership has been as profitable in 2017-18 so far.

Romelu Lukaku has scored five goals in his first five Premier League games for Manchester United. The player with the most goals after six PL apps for the Red Devils is Louis Saha (six).

Chelsea Test Stoke's Resolve as Conte Mulls Return to Winning Ways Ę°Ă?Ăœ Ă?Ă™ĂœĂ?Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă˜Ă‹Ă– ÞÙ Ă‹ ÑÙËÖÖĂ?Ă?Ă? ĂŽĂœĂ‹ĂĄ Ă‹Ăž ÞË×Ă?Ă™ĂœĂŽ ĂœĂ“ĂŽĂ‘Ă? Ă–Ă‹Ă?Ăž ĂĄĂ?Ă?Ă•Ă?Ă˜ĂŽËœ Ă’Ă?Ă–Ă?Ă?Ă‹ ĂĄĂ“Ă–Ă– ĂŒĂ? Ă’Ă™ĂšĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ÞÙ ĂœĂ?ĂžĂ&#x;ĂœĂ˜ ÞÙ ĂĄĂ“Ă˜Ă˜Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ ĂĄĂ‹ĂŁĂ? Ă“Ă˜ ÞÙÎËã˪Ă? ĂœĂ?Ă—Ă“Ă?Ăœ Ă?Ă‹Ă‘Ă&#x;Ă? ʨâÞĂ&#x;ĂœĂ? Ă‹Ă‘Ă‹Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ăž ÞÙÕĂ? Ă“ĂžĂŁËœ ĂĄĂ’Ă™ Ă“Ă? Ă’Ă™ĂšĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ÞÙ ĂŒĂ™Ă&#x;Ă˜Ă?Ă? ĂŒĂ‹Ă?Ă• Ă?ĂœĂ™Ă— ÞÒĂ? ͺ͚̋ ĂŽĂ?Ă?Ă?Ă‹Ăž ÞÙ Ă?ĂĄĂ?Ă‹Ă?ÞÖĂ? Ă‹Ăž Þ˛ Ă‹Ă—Ă?Ă?ËŞ Ă‹ĂœĂ•

F

ive points from a possible 15 to begin the season may look underwhelming, but Stoke boss Mark Hugheswas quick to point out following the 2-1 defeat to Newcastle United last weekend that his side have been dealt a tough hand.

The Welshman has a point, having seen his side begin their home campaign with games against Arsenal and Manchester United, as well as travelling to an Everton side buoyed by their summer spending on the opening day.

It has been in those tricky home fixtures that Stoke have picked up their best results, though, thanks to a 1-0 victory over Arsenal on August 19 and a 2-2 drawagainst Manchester United in front of their supporters a fortnight ago.

Stoke are therefore the only team to halt joint-leaders Manchester United on their charge to the summit, but the defeat at St James' Park last time out in the league, coupled with another limp exit from the EFL Cup, has left a sour taste in the mouth.

While Hughes is deserving of some sympathy as he prepares to welcome another of the heavyweight sides to the bet365 Stadium this weekend, the experienced boss will also know that he is already under a bit of pressure following four games without a win.

The Potters took eight games to surpass the five-point mark last season, however, having endured a torrid runof form that saw Hughes's job called into question before slowly pulling away from danger.

Stoke have also managed to find the net in seven of their last eight league games stretching back into last season, boosted by the free signing of Cameroon international Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting, who netted twice in that four-goal draw against United.

Choupo-Moting is already forming a good attacking partnership with Xherdan Shaqiri to give Hughes further hope of better things to come, with the duo combining to create nine goalscoring opportunities so far this term - bettered only by Harry Kane and Christian Eriksen at Tottenham Hotspur.

Chelsea's goalless draw with Arsenal last weekend was a rarity in more ways than one, as they failed to beat their London

rivals on home soil for the first time in five years, while also being shut out for the first time at home under Antonio Conte.

The Gunners are the only side to keep the Blues' attackers quiet this term, though, with exactly two goals being scored in each of their previous four league fixtures, as well as a combined 11 against Qarabag and Nottingham Forest in the Champions League and EFL Cup respectively.

Conte is clearly not concerned about summer signing Alvaro Morata stepping up to the plate and building on what has been a decent enough start to life in English football, having agreed to sell AWOL striker Diego Costa to Atletico Madrid in the New Year following their falling out at the end of last season.

The bigger issue right now regards discipline, as David Luiz became the third Chelsea player to see red in the space of five league games - as many sendings-off as their previous 73 games - while Victor Moses and Pedro were also dismissed in the FA Cup final and Community Shield.

All-in-all it has been a mixed start to the campaign for the defending champions; initially putting their shock 3-2 opening-game defeat to Burnley behind them with three league wins on the spin - including a 2-1 triumphaway to Tottenham Hotspur but that stalemate with Arsenal has very much halted them in their tracks.

With United and Manchester City scoring goals and winning games for fun, there is now pressure on the Blues to pick up victory when they travel to the Potteries this weekend, requiring just one more point to hit the milestone 1,8000 during the Premier League era.

That will put them in a band alongside Arsenal (1,829) and Manchester United (2,034), and if their recent away form is anything to go by then Conte should be left smiling come teatime this evening, with seven wins in the bag from the last eight on their travels.

Chelsea have a tricky week ahead prior to the international break, also taking on Manchester City and Atletico Madrid in two defining fixtures at home and in Europe, but for now all focus will simply be on getting the job done against a stubborn opponent.

However, Hughes could have a defensive headache of sorts this weekend as Kurt Zouma misses out due to the stipulations of his season-long loan deal from Chelsea, while Ryan Shawcross is battling with a back problem.

The hosts have a number of players confirmed out for this afternoon's clash, with Julian Ngoy, Stephen Ireland, Ibrahim Afellay, Geoff Cameron

and Jakob Haugaard having to watch on from the stands.

After making mass changes to his side for the midweek defeat at Ashton Gate, Hughes is expected to revert back to his strongestpossible XI, which will likely mean Jese Rodriguez leading the line ahead of creative talents Choupo-Moting and Shaqiri.

Chelsea are without Luiz in the heart of defence as he sits out the second of a threematch ban, meaning that Andreas Christensen and not summer recruit, Antonio Rudiger, will get a run in the side.

Danny Drinkwater remains out with a calf strain and Pedro is also suffering from a knock sustained against Arsenal, so Eden Hazard slowly getting back to full fitness after getting another 90 minutes under his beltagainst Forest is almost certain to partner Willian in attack alongside Morata.

Conte is expected to go with a powerful central midfield pairing of Tiemoue Bakayoko and N'Golo Kante, but if further creativity is required then Cesc Fabregas with seven career assists against the Potters is the man who will be called upon.

Meanwhile, West Ham United must recall positive memories from previous encounters against Tottenham Hotspur to claim a third straight home win over their London rivals, manager Slaven Bilic has said.

West Ham beat Tottenham 1-0 at home last year and a win by the same score in May effectively ended the title hopes of Mauricio Pochettino's side.

Bilic, whose side have one win from five games, said his players had to repeat the patterns of play from their last clash when the two teams meet at the London Stadium in the Premier League today.

"Everyone involved talks for months about those games and we still remember the game in May and the one at Upton Park, so those are the patterns we want to repeat today," Bilic told the club's website.

"We ended their hopes of winning the league but it gives us no psychological advantage.

But the advantage comes when you remember good memories and good patterns to repeat what we have actually already done against that team," he added.

Pochettino, whose Tottenham side are fifth in the standings on eight points from five games, said the West Ham clash was massive for both the team and the fans.

Fixtures TODAY West Ham Burnley Everton Man City Southampton Stoke City Swansea Leicester

v v v v v v v v

Tottenham HuddersďŹ eld Bournemouth Crystal Palace Man Utd Chelsea Watford Liverpool

12:30 15:00 15:00 15:00 15:00 15:00 15:00 17:30

SUNDAY Brighton

v

Newcastle

16:00

MONDAY Arsenal

v

West Brom

20:00

ĂœĂ?Ă—Ă“Ă?ĂœĂ?Ă’Ă“Ăš Ă‹ĂŒĂ–Ă?

Man City Man Utd Chelsea Newcastle Tottenham HuddersďŹ eld Burnley Liverpool Southampton West Brom Watford Arsenal Stoke Swansea Leicester Brighton West Ham Everton Bournemouth Crystal Palace

5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5

14 14 3 2 4 2 1 0 0 0 -2 -1 -1 -3 -2 -3 -6 -8 -6 -8

13 13 10 9 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 7 5 5 4 4 4 4 3 0

ÙÚ Ă?Ă™ĂœĂ?ĂœĂ?

NAMES

CLUB

Sergio Aguero

Man City

GOALS 5

Romelu Lukaku

Man Utd

5

Gabriel Jesus

Man City

4

Jamie Vardy

Leicester

4

Sadio Mane

Liverpool

3

Danny Welbeck

Arsenal

3

Anthony Martial

Man Utd

3

Alvaro Morata

Chelsea

3

Mohamed Salah

Liverpool

3

Raheem Sterling

Man City

3

33

Í°ÍąËœ ͺ͸͚Ϳ Ëž THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER

GLOBAL SOCCER\\OTHER SPORTS

left Mr Segun Agbaje, MD/CEO, GTBank PLC; Governor Ibikunle Amosun of Ogun State; Abu Isaac, Winning Team captain, Patoku High School, Ayede, Ifo, Ogun State and HRM Oba Adedotun Gbadebo, Alake of Egbaland during the GTBank Ogun State Principals Cup 2017 ďŹ nal in Abeokuta, Ogun State on Thursday.

Photo Lamidi Bamidele

Nigerian Breweries Representative, Edem Vindah, Chairman 2017 Nigeria Cup Organising Committee, Brig-Gen, Musbau Amolegbe, (Rtd) lady Captain Golf Section of Ikoyi Club, Rronke Iyiola, Ngozi Mba from Notore

Pakoto, Gateway Win GTBank Ogun State Principals Cup Pakoto High School and Iko Gateway Grammar School have emerged as 2017 champions of the GTBank- Ogun State Principals Cup Season 5 in the boys and girls categories respectively after a pulsating final at the MKO Abiola Stadium in Abeokuta on Thursday.

Playing before top dignitaries which included Governor Ibikunle Amosun and his wife, GTBank Managing Director, Segun Agbaje and the Alake of Egbaland, Oba Adetotun Aremu Gbadebo, both finals ended in stalemate and were

determined by penalty kicks.

In the boys’ final, Pakoto High School who won the competition in 2015 defeated Ipara Community Secondary School, Ipara, 4-1 on penalties after the game ended 1-1 during regulation time.

In the female’ category, two time winners, Muslim High School, Isolu, were denied a third trophy as Iko Gateway Grammar School, Idiroko, came from behind to win 3-2 on penalties.

Muslim High shot into the lead in the first half but Iko Gateway scored

a late equaliser to end the game 1-1.

Winners in both categories were rewarded with the sum of N1,000,000 each, while the 1st ,2nd, 3rd runners-up got N750,000, N500,000, and N350,000 respectively.

Commenting on the finals, the MD/ CEO of GTBank , Segun Agbaje, said, “We are proud to lead this initiative that provides an avenue for students to showcase their talents and passion for the game of football even as they remain committed to their academics.�

Organisers Promise Exciting Time as Nigeria Cup Starts Today The organising committee for the 2017 Nigeria Cup slated for the Ikoyi Club golf section has promised that golfers competing in this year’s tournament and fans alike would be treated to an thrilling action throughout the tourney.

At a media briefing in Lagos on Wednesday to herald the tournament, Chairman of the committee BrigadierGeneral Musbau Amolegbe (retd.) said there was always the need to celebrate the country despite all the challenges it is facing. “It is true that the nation is facing lots

of challenges, yet we have to celebrate because there is no nation that has not gone through these stages at some point in their life,� Amolegbe said.

He said this year’s competition would tee off today with the children’s clinic, while the caddies will be hitting the course on Monday.

The retired military officer said the ladies would be busy on the course on Tuesday with a special four-club kitty fixed for the next day, while the professionals would have their way on the course on September 28.

He said N3m is staked in the pro-event with players selected based on their performances on the merit list.

Amolegbe said those who scaled through the pre-qualifiers on August 26 and those who because of their handicap automatically qualified would play on September 30.

According to him, the Gala Night will take place on Sunday to round off the tournament aimed at celebrating Nigeria’s independence.

Nigeria Cup is organised under the auspices of Ikoyi Golf Community

fighting for international titles at the event slated for the Indoor Sports of the National Stadium, Lagos.

Olaide Fijabi will defend his West African Boxing Union (WABU) title against Ghana’s Bilal Ibrahim. Another international duel will see Waidi Usman taking on Tanzania’s Juma Fundi in a challenge bout.

In the three remaining bouts of the seven-bout event, Rilwan “Real One� will face Samuel Opaogun in the lightweight category, while Rilwan Oladosu will swap punches with Tombraye Christmas in the light welterweight category.

In the light heavyweight division, Kabiru will duel with Akeem Adebayo.

the canvas in the third round. I will daze him,� he boasted.

On his part, Skoro said his Tanzanian opponent will know what hits him, but will be unable to do anything about it. “I don’t believe in the saying ‘he didn’t know what hit him’ because people usually know what hit them, but are unable to do anything about it. I will hit him till he surrenders,� he bragged.

The event will be broadcast live by SuperSport in 47 African countries.

GOTV BOXING NIGHT 12 I’LL RETURN TO TANZANIA WITH ABU TITLE, SHAURI BOASTS Tanzania’s Ramadhani Shauri, who is billed to fight Nigeria’s Stanley Eribo for the African Boxing Union (ABU) welterweight title on 1 October, has declared that he will dethrone his opponent.

Speaking yesterday from his base in Dar es Salam, the Tanzanian capital, Shauri boasted that the reigning champion will have a very short reign, as he has promised his compatriots to take the belt to Tanzania. “I am the champion in waiting. Edo Boy will fall. I am not flying to Nigeria for a vacation. I mean business. The belt is mine and nothing will stop me from going back with it,� he boasted.

Edo Boy will join three other Nigerians

Ramadhan

FIJABI, SKORO VOW TO DEMOLISH OPPONENTS Olaide Fijabi and Waidi Usman, West African Boxing Union (WABU) light welterweight and featherweight champions respectively, have vowed to demolish their opponents.

Fijabi will be defending his title against Ghana’s Ben Ankrah, while Skoro will take on Tanzania’s Juma Fundi in an international challenge duel.

Speaking in Lagos on Friday, Fijabi said his opponent will rue the day he agreed to challenge him for the title. “I don’t know who encouraged him to seek to fight me. Whoever or whatever did will discover that this is a different Fijabi. Ankrah will kiss

JOE BOY GETS NEW OPPONENT FOR COMMONWEALTH TITLE

Nigeria’s Oto “Joe Boy� Joseph has got a new opponent for the Commonwealth Africa lightweight title fight at the GOtv Boxing Night 12.

The new opponent, Israel Kammwamba of Malawi, replaces South Africa’s Dillon Youle who pulled out from the fight on account of injury.

The event, which holds at the Indoor Sports Hall of the National Stadium, Lagos, will feature seven bouts, including three other international title bouts.

The boxers are in line to earn a total of N20million in prize monies. The winner of the Mojisola Ogunsanya Memorial Award for the best boxer will go home with N2.5million. The two runners-up will win N1million and N500,000 respectively.

Port Harcourt Gets United World Wrestling 2018 Hosting Rights Ernest Chinwo in Port Harcourt The United World Wrestling has awarded the hosting rights for the 2018 Senior, Junior and Cadet African Wrestling Championships to Port Harcourt between February 7 and 11, 2018.

Announcing the approval of the hosting rights at the Government House Port Harcourt yesterday during a visit to Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, President of Nigeria Wrestling Federation, Daniel Igali, said the hosting rights is an affirmation that the hotels and security in the state meet international standards.

He said normally the different styles were hosted in different cities, but the three styles would be hosted in Port Harcourt next year.

He said: "This event will bring the world to Rivers State. This kind of major sporting event tells the world the type of capacity that is available in the state.

"We are expecting about 40 countries, over 1,000 athletes, coaches and referees. Since we are hosting all three styles, we are going to have 90 gold medals.

"We will be hosting the Olympic qualifiers for the Junior Olympic which is taking place in Budapest. This is a double header for Rivers State ".

He said Rivers State would be established as a sports tourism state and a world business centre.

Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, thanked the leadership of the Nigeria Wrestling Federation for the honour done to the state.

He said that the State Government would host the tournament in line with the approved standards of the United World Wrestling.

The governor announced the process for setting up of the Local Organising Committee in consultation with the Nigeria Wrestling Federation.

He said: "The preparation will start now. This is a big honour, not only for Rivers State but for the entire Niger Delta. This will make the entire world know that Rivers State is safe. “Rivers State is safe, that is why people are visiting the state. This wrestling tournament will add an international dimension.�

The governor said that approved hotels would be informed to upgrade their facilities.

Rogers Cup ‘Unites’ Nadal, Federer Tennis greats Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer will put their epic rivalry to one side when they team up together for the Laver Cup. The competition will see world No 1 Nadal and 19-time Grand Slam champion Federer play for Team Europe against a Rest of the World side in Prague.

It's been an incredible tennis year with the duo able to turn back the clock and share the four Grand Slams between them.Tennis LiveLiveStefano Travaglia 0 v 1 *Adrian Ungur Their rivalry has stretched 13 years and 37 matches with Nadal, back on top of the world rankings for the first time in three years, with a 10th title at the French Open and third at the US Open forming part of his 16-Slam portfolio.

Federer captured the Australian Open and Wimbledon titles and with a 2017 record of five titles, 39 match wins and just four losses, the evergreen Swiss remains at the very top of his game at the age of 36 with 19 major titles.

The dominant Spaniard leads their head-to-head record 23-14, but they will put their on-court rivalry aside when they team-up for the first time.

"After all these years I actually get a chance to support his forehand, his aggressive play, his fighting spirit, his everything," said Federer after the announcement of the Laver Cup teams. "He's been a wonderful champion for our sport.

"I think Rafa brought something to the game that we really haven't seen that much before, or not at all. The amount of spin he was able to bring to the game or the physicality and his movement on clay."

Nadal said of Federer: "I've never seen anybody with all the ingredients that Roger has. Big serve, big forehand, movement, the slice, but at the same time he plays with unbelievable elegance."

The pair had not met since 2015 before this year's epic Australian Open final where Federer prevailed, winning 6-4 3-6 6-1 3-6 6-3 after three hours and 38 minutes.

In their 37th and last meeting to date, it was Swiss maestro Federer who claimed the Miami Open crown and made reference to their first-ever meeting, at the same venue, away back in 2004 when a 17-year-old Nadal beat a 22-year-old Federer.

34

THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER ˾ SEPTEMBER 23, 2017

TRIBUTE

Sir Aaron Akabike ‘Obodoeze’ - 1932 to 2017 Chike Okeke

C

hief Sir Aaron Ibegbuna Akabike (Obodoeze) was born in 1932 by the late Onweli Akabike and late Nwabunwanne Akabike. Before he was born, just like the case of Our Lord Jesus Christ, there was a prophesy that a great chief would be born to the family of the Akabikes.

And he turned out to be even bigger than that. Sir Akabike started school in Kano as far back as 1942 and finished his standard six in Saint James School Awkuzu Anambra State. From there, he proceeded to Africa College (Now Our Lady’s High School) Onitsha in 1949. In 1952, after he graduated, he went back to Kano to become a Produce Inspector.

He left for United Kingdom in 1960 where he studied Economics in London University and passed with good Honors degree.

While he was pursuing his Masters degree he was recruited by Barclay’s Bank International. After securing his AIB and Advanced Studies in Financial Management at the City of London Polytechnic, he was trained for two years by Barclay’s Bank. Shortly before the Civil War, he was posted to Nigeria as the Local Officer and Head of East Central State. During the war he was the Local Controller for Barclay’s Bank till the end of the war in 1970. When Barclays Bank was changed to Union Bank Plc he was promoted area manager and served in many offices until he resigned to start his

Akabike

own business. He was a successful businessman, a great entrepreneur, a philanthropist, a devoted Christian, and effective community leader.

He was President General of Awkuzu Progressive Union Awkuzu from 1970-1982. He led in the development of Awkuzu by building the post office, civic center, Saint James Church Awkuzu, Boys Secondary school, and attraction of pipe borne water to the town. He also supervised the building of Iruogbo hall and pioneered a lot of other development projects in Awkuzu. A man of the people, both the young and the old, his life motto was- My family first, Awkuzu second. Indeed he lived for Awkuzu. Even in his last days Awkuzu never left his mind. In the leadership of the town, he always made an impact and had an input both financially and otherwise. A knight of Saint Christopher, he lived an exemplary Christian life and touched so many lives in the town and beyond. His legacies will forever live on in both his children and monuments he left behind.

He was survived by his wife, Lady Rose, many children and grand children A service of songs will be held in his honour at his Independence Layout Enugu Residence on Monday 25th September, 2017, Commendation Service at Cathedral Church of the Good Shepherd Enugu on Wednesday 27th September, while his remains will be laid to rest on Thursday 28th September after Funeral Service at St. James Anglican Church Awkuzu.

Rest in peace Obodoeze, the pioneer banker, the great community leader and a Christian worthy of note. May your noble soul rest in peace. Amen.

Okeke wrote in from Abuja.

Christopher Okigbo As a Martyr Chudi Offodile

I

am very glad to be here in this great institution, the university of Ibadan, formerly the University College, Ibadan, a place that had a direct bearing on the actions and inactions that shaped the events of the sixties and put Nigeria on its present trajectory. An institution that nurtured the most creative and most talented of Nigeria’s post-colonial generation. Today is about Christopher Okigbo, one of those incredible talents produced by this university and unleashed unto an unsuspecting literary world.

The sheer quality and brilliance of some of those talents was sure to attract the attention of the Alfred Nobel committee with an outstanding alumnus, Professor Wole Soyinka earning its prize in literature.

Thankfully, I am not saddled with the responsibility of discussing Okigbo’s poetry. I am assigned to deal with the burdensome but less complicated subject of his martyrdom.

Of course Okigbo died fighting for the freedom of his people of Biafra. A martyr by definition is a person who sacrifices something of great value and especially life itself for the sake of principle, a martyr to the cause of freedom. Why did he not just support the cause of Biafra like other intellectuals in other ways? Perhaps as an administrator, a diplomat, teacher or propagandist? Why did he opt for military duties, combat duties?

The history of the events of that era that led to the declaration of Biafra should provide the guide. The coup and counter-coup of 1966, the pogroms that followed, the exodus of Easterners from the rest of Nigeria and the collapse of the Aburi agreement. The challenge is to determine the true account of the events. Why are there different versions of our history emanating from the same set of facts? This very issue is at the heart of the failure of Nigeria’s match to nationhood. I will return to this.

Today we have heard and learned a lot about the life and works of Chistopher Okigbo but for the purpose of my presentation, I will rely and make reference to what Professor Chinua Achebe, another outstanding alumnus of this school, wrote about him in his book, There Was a Country and Professor Wole Soyinka’s encounter with the ghost of Christopher Okigbo in his book – The Man Died.

On the life and works of Christopher Okigbo, Achebe wrote: “I have written and been quoted elsewhere as saying that Christopher Okigbo was the finest Nigerian poet of his generation, but I believe that as his work becomes better and more widely known in the world, he will also be recognized as one of the most remarkable anywhere in our time. For while other poets wrote good poems, Okigbo, conjured up for us an amazing, haunting, poetic firmament of a wild and violent beauty. Forty years later I still stand by that assessment”.

Achebe continues his assessment by saying that, “his legendary creative work was first noticed at Government College Umuahia, where the teachers encouraged this budding talent. Later at the University College, Ibadan, he published a number of poems in Horn, the university magazine edited by J P Clark, yet another outstanding alumnus. He also published his work in Wole Soyinka’s Black Orpheus and Transition, and then produced a number of critically acclaimed poetry collections, including the groundbreaking classics, Heavens Gate and Labyrinths”.

Achebe made the point that when Okigbo decided to join the Biafran army, he went to great lengths to conceal his plan, making up a story about a secret mission to Europe and by the time he saw him two weeks later, he had become a major by special commission in the Biafran army. On why Okigbo joined the army, Achebe explained that, “the experience of the Igbo

community from the pogroms [mass killing of Igbo people especially in northern Nigeria] onward had different effects on different people. There was a multitude of reactions – anger, loathing, sorrow, depression, Etc. These sentiments in Christopher’s case somehow transformed into a very strong pro-Biafra feeling. He had no doubt at all in his mind about Biafra and the need for the country to be a free and separate nation. That strong stance was something new for Christopher”.

Back in Nigeria, Soyinka was a detainee. He was imprisoned because he not only denounced the war in Nigerian newspapers, but he followed it up with a visit to the rebel territory in search of peace. On his return to Nigeria he was arrested by the Gowon regime. And from prison he wrote: “Of the many ghosts that haunt me here, the most frequent and welcome are the ghosts of dead relations, grand father and the two ghosts of Christopher Okigbo, Adekunle Fajuyi… Banjo and Alale also visit, but hardly as ghosts”. “My grandfather sits gnome-like, chuckling secretively, every chunk of his body pulsing with love and strength… Where have you been, Where are you going, when are you coming again, why do you never stay?

Now I will leave Soyinka’s grandfather’s ghost alone lest he reappears. I should rather focus on the ghost of Okigbo, which should be with us here today.

“Christopher rushing in his whirlwind manner into the office of the Adjutant in Enugu. I am sunk in a deep armchair behind the door where I had been placed by the Adjutant after my earlier summary roughing-up by Biafran security, so Christopher does not immediately see me when he enters the office. Hot and breathless, he delivers the instructions he had brought from the front. The war is three weeks old.

The Adjutant takes rapid notes then says, look behind you.

Christopher’s eyes pop out of his head, then he breaks into that singular Cherookee yell-and-jig which has raised squirms of unease among a host of self-conscious acquaintances in every corner of the globe. He calms down minutes later, makes room for me in the convertible by flinging his major’s uniform in the back. As he drives towards the front, he says: you know, I learnt to use a gun right in the field. I had never fired even an air rifle in my life. I swear it, you know I’m not a violent man, I’m not like you. But this thing, I am going to stay with it till the end”. Soyinka recalls another encounter with Christopher sitting hours across the table from him while he awaited trial in a police cell in November 1965, discussing poetry.

Because of what Okigbo considered to be grave injustice suffered by Easterners, with the declaration of Biafra in May 1967 and the war that followed in July 1967, he joined the army and headed to the battlefield. Two months into the war in September 1967, he was killed in active combat in Nsukka sector. He was a hero and was honored posthumously with Biafra’s medal of honor.

Contrast with the role of Ukpabi Asika, another famous alumnus of this university who was opposed to Biafra. Asika joined the federal side and accepted the role of Administrator of the defunct East Central state. He lived and died a Nigerian.

And I pose this question: What if Asika had died in active service during the war, would he have qualified for martyrdom in the eyes of Nigerians? Is Asika a Nigerian hero? By the way, who are Nigeria’s heroes?

Nigeria’s complicated history frustrates the march to nationhood as different sections of the country see things differently and oftentimes interpret the same set of facts very differently.

There cannot be two sides of truth. An account of events is either true or false.

Our different accounts of historical facts cannot all be true and that makes the teaching of history rather problematic. The solution is not to remove history as a subject in our school curriculum or to engage in the dangerous dance of pythons

Okigbo with needless fatalities, but to commit to the universal ideals of justice and fairness. So that even with all our differences, applying the universal standards of justice, we can begin to pull closer, begin to see some things the same way and begin to forge a common worldview with the same heroes. Not different heroes for different ethnicities.

On the war and its aftermath, Soyinka predicted our present national quagmire and possibility of re-occurrence of the events that led to the war in the following words; “What is clear, miserably, humiliatingly clear is that a war is being fought without a simultaneous program of reform and redefinition of social purpose. A war of solidity; for solidity is a far more accurate word than unity to employ in describing a war which can only consolidate the very values that gave rise to the war in the first place, for nowhere and at no time have those values been examined.

Nowhere has there appeared a program designed to ensure the eradication of the fundamental iniquities which gave rise to the initial conflicts”. I would argue therefore, that the children of that war being branded as terrorists are indeed victims of war and should be treated as such.

Because he fought on the side of Biafra, expectedly, opinions differ on his place in history. But he was a hero. A hero need not be perfect but a martyr is a perfect hero, for there is no better way to die than for a cause you believe in. Christopher Okigbo died a martyr.

–––Offodile, Former Chairman Public Petitions Committee House of Representatives and author of The Politics of Biafra and the Future of Nigeria.

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FAIRGROUND

The Nigerian Stock Exchange and Ciuci Consulting Partner to Recognize 10 Enterprises

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he Nigerian Stock Exchange (“The Exchange or NSE�), one of the leading Stock Exchanges in Africa and Ciuci (pronounced see-you-see) Consulting, a leading Strategy and Consumer Intelligence Company are pleased to announce the launch of the Nigeria Business Composite 10 (NiBC 10) which will take place on Tuesday, September 26, 2017 at the Stock Exchange House, Lagos.

The NIBC 10 is a selection of 10 successful Nigerian Enterprises who have exhibited high potentials for growth and have over the years maintained a brilliant track record. This landmark event is aimed at celebrating these companies whilst inspiring confidence in the Nigerian society and its potential to produce thriving businesses.

Speaking on the initiative, the Acting Head, Corporate Services, NSE, Pai Gamde said “We are delighted to partner with Ciuci Consulting on the NiBC 10 initiative. It aligns with our commitment to promoting and supporting small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Nigeria, by providing a framework that can help mentor SMEs in the country. At the NSE, we have a strong support system for such companies as our ASEM board provides them a platform for growth and expansion. A platform we hope these companies will leverage in the coming months.�

According to Chukwuka Monye, Managing Partner of Ciuci Consulting “Nigerian entrepreneurs need to see examples of business men and women that are working hard and creating successful businesses in the same environment that many fear to explore. We have worked with each of the 10 companies who are at different growth stages and are pleased to

of Tara, Bestman Games, Iya Foods, L’Avyanna, Everyday Supermarkets, DBH Solutions, Ugo Monye Official, Healthcare Leadership Academy, Private Sector Health Alliance of Nigeria and Massey Street Children’s Hospital.

Chukwuka Monye

Oswald Guobadia

Nimi Akinkugbe

Tara Fela-Durotoye

recognize them and encourage them for what they do�.

The launch of the NiBC 10, will

bring together top Nigerian CEOs and captains of industry. Companies included in the NiBC 10 are House

About Ciuci Consulting Having carried out over 200 projects in the last 10 years, Ciuci Consulting has a proven track record of positively impacting businesses and the society at large by supporting enterprises that contribute to Nigeria’s socio-economic development. The firm has strong technical expertise in strategy formulation, research and human capital development and is founded on the principle that companies in Africa experience tough challenges that require practical and realistic solutions, not just reports.

Ciuci Consulting consists of ethicallydriven professionals who strongly believe in integrity and partnership as key ingredients for delivering highquality results to its clients.

About The NSE The Nigerian Stock Exchange, a company limited by guarantee, services the largest economy in Africa and is championing the development of Africa’s financial markets. The Exchange offers listing and trading services, licensing services, market data solutions, ancillary technology services, and more.

The Nigerian Stock Exchange continues to evolve to meet the needs of its valued customers, and to achieve the highest level of competitiveness.

It is an open, professional and vibrant exchange, and the Entrepreneurial Growth hub of Africa. The Nigerian Stock Exchange aspires to be Africa’s foremost securities exchange, connecting Nigeria, with the rest of Africa and the world.

Godrej Launches Profective Mega Growth Hair Care Brand

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rofectiv MegaGrowth, an iconic brand from the Strength of Nature family which has a history of providing exceptional and effective hair care products for African women across the globe, has launched operations in Nigeria through Godrej Nigeria Limited, a leading Nigerian FMCG company. In its endeavour to celebrate Nigerian women and provide world-class hair solutions, the company showcased the innovative Crème on Crème No lye relaxer, which offers superior hair manageability at affordables prices.

Strength of Nature’s team of scientists and cosmetologist have worked tirelessly over years to identify the fundamental causes of hair and scalp damage in order to understand how to prevent and treat it. Their extensive research helped them to identify the most nourishing and strengthening ingredients which make Profectiv MegaGrowth range the perfect solution to counter the daily stresses of heat styling, weaves, hair color and hair style transitions.

With this collaboration, Godrej, which is already one of the leaders in the hair extensions category in Nigeria, will become one of the first Nigerian companies to offer end to end hair solutions.

Profectiv MegaGrowth announced Tiwa Savage, the award-winning Nigerian musician as its brand ambas-

sador, and also unveiled its first-ever TVC starring her. The Nigerian icon epitomises the attitude and confidence that is synonymous with the brand.

Excited to be part of this association, Savage said, “I am thrilled to be associated with MegaGrowth, a brand that is loved across the entire African continent.

The team at Profectiv MegaGrowth is made up of true hair experts who understand the importance of hair for African women. I admire the fact that this brand celebrates Strong and Beautiful women.�

During the press conference held in Lagos, Mario de la Guardia, President and Founder of Strength of Nature said, “Our vision and commitment is to provide the highest quality, most innovative hair care products that meet the diverse needs of our consumers worldwide. “While we have made significant strides in achieving this vision in the US, our strategic global partnership with Godrej representing our brand provides us with a unique opportunity to better serve the huge number of potential consumers outside the US, especially in Africa.

The synergies between our strong US platform and Godrej’s African footprint are compelling, as is our shared commitment to excellence and innovation for the betterment of our employees, consumers and communities.�

Talking about the launch, the Mar-

L-R: Rakesh Sharma, Prashant Chacko, Tiwa Savage, Mario de la Guardia and Ayodele Otujinrin

keting Head, Godrej Africa, Prashant Chacko said, “We at Godrej are here to celebrate the indomitable spirit of Nigerian women.

We appreciate the role that they are playing in the transformation of the country and also understand the importance of great hair to them. Profectiv MegaGrowth is here to support them in their journey of personal transformation by offering them superior products which promote strong and beautiful hair.�

Profectiv MegaGrowth was introduced to the press at a Landmark Event Center on Saturday, September 9th, 2017, after which a launch party was held at the same venue. Panelists at the conference included Marketing Head, Godrej Africa, Prashant Chacko, Mario de la Guardia, President & Founder - Strength of Nature, Tiwa Savage, MegaGrowth’s Brand Ambassador, Ayodele Otujinrin, Marketing Manager - Godrej Nigeria and Rakesh Sharma (Head of Sales - Godrej Nigeria).

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THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER Ëž Í°ÍąËœ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍľ

Ikolaje Idiroko Holds African Integration Cultural Show Olaoluwakitan Babatunde

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he Royal Father of Ikolaje Idiroko, an International border town in Ogun State, Oba John Olakunle Ojo has called on African leaders to use culture in uniting the people.

Oba Ojo who made the call at the grand finale of the annual Ojude Oba Ikolaje Idiroko said the culture of Africans was unique and could be used to foster peace and unity.

He said: “Africans across international borders have similarities in cultural appellation and practices that can be harnessed for the promotion of peace and harmony, thereby jettisoning vices and bad representation from the foreign media. “Geographical delineation in Africa which was the creation of colonial masters tends to divide us along border line, but our culture and belief remains same.�

He therefore called on leaders to use the uniqueness in addressing various challenges facing the continent.

In his address at the event, a prominent son of Ikolaje Idiroko, and guest lecturer, Sola Ibirinde, highlighted the importance of Ikolaje Idiroko festival as an avenue for showcasing the uniqueness of Ikolaje Idiroko, a foremost International border town that connects Nigeria with other African Countries.

He said: “Contrary to the perception of people that Ikolaje Idiroko, being a borderline of two countries, there is the negative perception that we will be perpetrating criminal activities, hence the need to prove critics wrong that the location of the town on the map is not an attraction for unlawful practises.�

While pleading with Nigerian government to key into the programme by being active participants in all the programmes, Ibirinde said the tourism potentials of Idiroko and its people could be harnessed towards socio-economic development of the state. “With what happened in the last one week, it shows that our youths could be mobilised to contribute their quota towards making Nigeria great again,� Ibirinde added.

While appreciating the contributions of the Oniko of Ikolaje Idiroko in ensuring that peace reigns in his domain, Ibirinde called on all sons and daughters of the town to remain united in ensuring that the town remains peaceful, adding that there couldn’t be any development without peace.

The weeklong activities which climaxed with the crowning of Sarah Itunuoluwa as Miss Integration Beauty Queen also witnessed high turn-out of sons and daughters of Ikolaje Idiroko from home and diaspora. Participants for the beauty peagent were drawn from Republic of Benin and Nigeria.

3rd left is winner of 2017 Miss Integration Sarah Itunuoluwa (Nigerian) anked on the right by Miss Lydie Youroan (Beninoise / 1st Runner Up), and Miss Agossou Funmilayo (Nigerian / 2nd Runner Up). 2nd left is The Executive Producer Mr. Bonny Botoku

The Queen Mother to Miss Integration Hon. Alhaja Marufat Falola and Miss Integration 2017 Miss Sarah Itunuoluwa

Hygeia:ImplementingaBetterHealthcareDeliverySystem Ferdinand Ekechukwu

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takeholders congregated in Lagos recently to proffer solutions to issues of healthcare in the country.

The conference, which was on quality service delivery in the healthcare industry, was organised by Hygeia HMO Limited, in partnership with some healthcare management and medical service providers including PharmAccess, Swiss Re, Outreach Medical Services, Roche, and GE Medical Credit Funds, and Tremendoc.

The meeting was the culmination of a series of nationwide engagements with hospitals and healthcare service providers in the south-south and in other regions, where issues that affect the business of healthcare delivery were discussed.

These engagements, according to the Chief Executive Officer of Hygeia HMO, Mr. Obinnia Abajue, are part of the company’s commitment to interacting with their primary service providers and other stakeholders as partners in progress towards supporting the development of a viable healthcare delivery system in Nigeria. He noted that in the world of healthcare, the patient must come first.

Abajue pointed out that no matter

how good the capabilities to ensuring adequate healthcare were, there were some things that were contextual and unique to the Nigerian situation and which private enterprise cannot resolve. “This remains firmly in the domain of the government and our best hope is effective public, private partnerships to drive resolution of these issues,� he added.

The subject of the conference centered on key issues of public interest in healthcare delivery like emergency services, Hepatitis B, micro health insurance scheme, capacity gaps and inadequate funding for providers of primary healthcare services in the country.

In addition to the conference creating awareness and starting conversations around healthcare issues, it emphasised some key points that would enable accessibility and affordability to healthcare that would drive Nigeria closer to the Universal Health Coverage agenda.

To achieve this, providers were advised to adopt a multiplicity of methods to fund the delivery of healthcare services that is focused on achieving coverage within a short time.

Some of the topics discussed by panel sessions included providing healthcare insurance for lower income groups, financing options for healthcare providers in Nigeria and several other topics aimed at contributing to the awareness

and capacity of dealing with the issues, with the major focus on the patient.

The organisers claim that health insurance today, whether private or public, is the only universal concept for healthcare financing to deliver affordable care to more people. It therefore posits that to drive the awareness and that responsibility to get more people to know and participate is dependent on all the citizenry.

Health insurance as indeed the only vehicle of finance to healthcare, but just how many people are covered in Nigeria? The ministry of health identifies only about 4% of the population as covered on any form of risk protection mechanism for healthcare, leading to over 69% of out of pocket minute health.

Speaking at the conference, the Minister of Health, represented by the Chief Medical Director of LUTH, Prof. Chris Bode, revealed that since the rebasing of Nigeria’s GDP as a middle income country, there has been a significant reduction in various support in the country. This he noted has seen Nigeria pay an increase counterpart funding as pre-requisite for global funding support for diseases such as Aids, tuberculosis, and malaria.

Also speaking at the conference, the Lagos State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Olajide Idris challenged all healthcare professionals to look inward as it was

not a job for the government alone. He called for behavioural change at the policy level, provider level and consumer level.

He also stated that the state was planning to address the number of health issues in one fell swoop. “It might sound ambitious. We want to address universal coverage using our health insurance scheme as a mechanism,� he said. “And that scheme is to address the issue of access, the issue of quality, effectiveness, and of course financial protection for the poor.� Themed, Improving Healthcare Service Quality in Nigeria: Be a Part of The Solution, participants at the conference were drawn from key stakeholders group within the public and the private sectors, including the Minister of Health Prof. Isaac Adewole; Lagos State commissioner for health, Dr. Olajide Idris; and Chief Medical Director, Lagoon Hospital, Dr. Jimi Coker.

Others are the founder, Outreach Medical Services, Dr. Efunbo Dosekun; Senior Health Specialist IFC, Dr. Olumide Okunola; Public Reforms and Public-Private Dialogue, African Economic Policy, Dr. Tayo Aduloju; Head Shell Health, Dr. A. Oladoyin; Director Health Industry Services, Gbenga Olatunji; and representative of the United State Government & Healthcare in Nigeria, Ms. Darcy Zotter, Public Affairs Office, United States Consulate.

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SEPTEMBER 23, 2017 ˾ THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER

MARITIME BITS with John Iwori.... 08057763164

Revenue Increase through Efficient Channel Management In 2011 Nigeria opened her doors to the largest container vessel ever to call on any West African port called West African Max (WAFMAX) which has 4,500 twenty equivalent units (TEUs) capacity on a single voyage. The vessel which requires a minimum of 13.5 meters draught was brought into Apapa port by Maersk Nigeria Limited.

This development turned Nigerian seaports to a destination hub for both local and transhipment goods. This was attained by capital and maintenance dredging, including the provision of navigational aids and removal of wrecks from the water channels.

This has deepened the Lagos and Bonny channels making them accessible to bigger vessels.

In 2004, the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) entered into a public private partnership with the Channel Management Company (TCMC) under a joint venture (JV) partnership arrangement of 60 percent and 40 percent for the NPA and TCMC respectively.

The JV gave birth to the Bonny Channel Company (BCC) with the responsibility of dredging and securing access through the Bonny River to the NLNG Oil and Gas Terminal in Bonny Island as well as ensuring safe vessel navigation to the ports in Port Harcourt and Onne.

The JV arrangement also gave birth to the Lagos Channel Management Limited (LCM) which has the responsibility of carrying out capital and maintenance dredging along the Lagos channel to ensure vessel access into the Apapa, Tin Can Island seaports and the surrounding private jetties.

The partnership was to ensure capital and maintenance dredging of the Lagos and Bonny channels, provision of navigational aids and removal of wrecks along the channels.

LCM started rendering dredging services in Nigeria in 2005 when seaports in Lagos had a minimum of 8.2 to 9.7 meters depth. Few years down the line, the firm has been able to widen the channels to a

NCS Unveils Importer, Vessel Involved in Rifles Import as CGC Meets Turkish Ambassador The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has unveiled the importer involved in the importation of 470 riffles discovered las Thursday in Tin Can Island Port Complex (TCIP), Apapa, Lagos.

Besides the ship owner, the service also revealed the name of the vessel that conveyed the lethal weapons into the country.

According to the bill of lading of the container indicated elbow plumbing plastics and noted that the importer of the cargo is Great Oil and Gas Limited with the vessel named MV Arkas Africa owned by Hull Blyth.

This is coming on the heels of the meeting of the Comptroller General of Customs (CGC), Colonel Ibrahim Hameed Ali (retired) with the Turkish Ambassador to Nigeria.

The NCS boss who revealed this in Lagos while addressing journalists on the latest discovery of the dangerous goods stated that NCS has so far intercepted 2,671 rifles illegally imported into Nigeria in the last eight months.

The guns were alleged to have been imported from Turkey through profiling approach ordered by the Customs Area Controller (CAC) of TCIP Area Command, Comptroller Bashir Yusuf in the wake of the earlier discoveries in the port.

His words: “Following the increase in the number of arms seizures in recent times, the Customs Area Controller of Tin-Can Port, Comptroller, Yusuf Bashir, ordered a detailed profile of all imports, especially those coming from Turkey. Customs decided to follow profiling approach of 100 percent examination on containers, especially those containers coming from Turkey.

“Tin Can Customs Command intercepted another 20ft container number CMAUI817/8 containing 470 pump action rifles, immediately the container landed from the port of origin to Nigerian ports. The terminal operators have been consequently directed to quarantine the container for analysis. The container was later transferred to the Enforcement Unit of the command where 100 per cent examination revealed 470 pump action rifles.”

Following the development, Ali said NCS would continue to subject all containers to 100 per cent examination until 80 per cent of the licensed customs agents abide with global standards and practices.

“We are going to subject all areas of Customs operations to 100 per cent examination to safeguard life of the citizens”, he said.

minimum of 13.8 meters.

It was averred that these developments have yielded good results as Maersk Line and MSC took advantage of the wideness of the channel to bring in WAFMAX with 250 metres long, 13.5 meters draught and 4,500 TEUs of container carrying capacity into Apapa and Tin Can ports.

The LCM and BCC have aided vessel navigation along the two channels where they operate due to their continuous dredging activities.

The LCM carried out visual and side scan wreck survey of Lagos ports which identified the existence of over 70 submerged wrecks that required urgent removal. As a result of this survey, it commenced work and removed about 48 critical submerged wrecks.

According to LCM, the company built a culture of refurbishing all buoys every two years while the damaged ones are repaired within 24 hours.

This is in addition to the reinstatement of shore beacons and upgrading of entrance channel buoys with active AIS transponders. The East and West moles beacons were also refurbished.

Statistics made available by LCM shows that within

the first 10 years of its operation, it expanded the depth around the harbour entrance from 12.3 m in 2005 to 15.5 m in 2015; Commodore-Bullnose from 11.9m in 2005 to 14.3m in 2015; Bullnose-Apapa from 10.6m in 2005 to 14.1m in 2015; Bullnose-Dangote from 9.4m in 2005 to 13.6m in 2015; Dangote-Tin Can 10 from 8.5m in 2005 to 13.4m in 2015 while Tin Can 10 was expanded from 8m in 2005 to 12.8m depth in 2015.

Already, the number of ships calling at Nigerian seaports with draught above 11 meters increased from 21 in 2008 to 440 in 2015. While the number of ship calls with an average length of 200 meters increased from 404 in 2008 to 930 in 2015. Also, the number of vessels calling Lagos ports with length greater than 245 meters also grew from zero in 2008 to 300 in 2015 while the gross registered tonnage of vessels grew from 54,613,521 in 2008 to 79,861,913 in 2015.

The PPP has ensured the smooth navigation of oceangoing vessels by making it possible for bigger vessels with deeper draught requirements to call on Nigerian ports in an efficient and effective way.

This has increased cargo throughput in the port

and in turn helped to boost NPA revenue profile.

The BCC said it is focusing on increasing maritime activities by ensuring that the buoyed navigational routes are free of obstruction by focusing on continuous dredging, removal of wrecks, maintenance of aids to navigation and provision of towage services.

The dredging of the Bonny channel from fairway buoy to KP27.5 to a depth of 13.8m in 2009 enabled the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas Limited (NLNG) to operate round the clock with no tidal restrictions. In 2011, the BCC deepened the channel even further to accommodate larger vessels. It removed 14,000,000m3 of materials by capital dredging, 61,000,000m3 of material by maintenance dredging, installed and monitored 83 buoys, removed 45 wrecks and invested over 6,000 hours in training and knowledge transfer.

The Bonny channel is currently maintained at 14.3m draught.

WAFMAX also visited the Federal Ocean Terminal (FOT) successfully on a “trial run” in 2013. The BCC made this possible by expanding the Onne turning basin. In 2013, BCC did a towage trial run with WAFMAX at Onne port and it remains the biggest vessel to enter it till date. Since then WAFMAX has been entering the port.

Prior to its entry, studies showed that the approach channel and parts of Onne port need to be dredged.

For instance, the Bonny channel access in 2005 was 12.5metres and by 2016 was14.3m; in 2005 Bonny to Onne junction was 7.5m and by 2016 was 11m ; in 2005 Onne junction to Okrika was 7.5m and by 2016 was 10m; in 2006 Okrika to PHC port was 7.0m and by 2016 was 9m.

The BCC says its dredgers are state of the art.

These include the Atlantico Due, Orwel, and Rubens. It also said it has deployed the largest jumbo dredgers, Congo River and Pearl River said to have ever worked in Sub-Saharan Africa in its dredging operations.

“West Africa Sub-Region Needs French to Enhance Bilateral Relations, Trade”

L-R: Executive Secretary, Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Engr. Simbi Kesiye Wabote in a handshake with the Group Managing Director and Chief Executive (CEO), MG Vowgas Limited, Mr. Godwin Izomor shortly after Wabote and some top executives of NCDMB completed a tour of the state-of-the-art Mount Zion Fabrication Yard at Woji, Port Harcourt, Rivers State...recently

L-R: The Norwegian Royal Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Jens-Petter Kjemprud and the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Charkin Maritime and Offshore Safety Centre on arrival of the ambassador on an inspection tour of Charkin Maritime Academy (CMA), Port Harcourt, Rivers State…recently

Ajayi Takes over Agura Hotels The immediate past General Manager, Public Affairs, Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Chief Michael Kayode Ajayi has taken over Agura Hotels, Abuja as its General Manager.

Ajayi’s appointment followed the taking over of the ownership of the hotel by the management of the NPA. This was sequel to a legal judgement given in favour of the NPA against Fasel Services Limited, Omeire Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Industry Limited, Chief M.O. Kanu and Daniel Kanu.

Agura Hotels which was commissioned in 1986 as a five star hotel has 156 guest rooms and conference halls of different capacities. Over the years, however, its fortunes has nosedive with room occupancy rate at less than 20 percent in spite of its location in heart of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

Ajayi who is renowned for his intelligence and excellent human relations in his hey days as the General Manager, Public Affairs in the NPA, is expected to bring his wealth of experience to bear on his new assignment in Agura Hotels.

A statement issued by the Assistant General Manager, Corporate and Strategic

Communications, Mr. Ibahim Nasiru and obtained by THISDAY explained that in 2003, an Abuja Federal High Court upheld the NPA as the majority shareholders of Fasel Services Limited, a judgement which was registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) in 2017.

Arising from a board meeting of the hotel held on September 20, 2017, the NPA management explained that “it has assumed full control of the establishment with its Managing Director, Hadiza Bala Usman as Chairman while Chief Michael Kayode Ajayi has been appointed as the interim General Manager of the hotel”.

The new board of the hotel pointed out that an approved forensic audit of the hotel be carried out immediately while its Head of Finance steps down handing over all relevant financial instruments of the company to the newly appointed General Manager.

In addition, the board directed that all bank accounts hitherto operated be frozen while new accounts should be opened to enable what it called “swift and continuous operation” of the hotel.

In order to achieve greater economic growth and development in the region, the Director General, West African Institute for Financial and Economic Management (WAIFEM), Professor Akpan Ekpo has called on countries within the sub-region to embrace French Language as a tool needed to stimulate bilateral relations and international trade.

Ekpo who made this known while delivering a keynote address at the opening ceremony of the e-learning certificate course in French Language, organised by WAIFEM in collaboration with African Capacity Building Foundation (ACBF), in Lagos explained that Nigeria and other Anglophone countries are sounded by French speaking countries.

He argued that countries in the sub-region need to study French Language to enhance effective communication in international trade activities.

Continuing, he said: “WAIFEM introduced this course in order to bridge the gap in understanding and speaking of French in West African regional integration process. The first run, which was a resounding success was conducted between July and November last year, in collaboration with United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR), Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and Bank of Ghana”.

“The French course is structured in a most effective and professional manner to meet the needs of the adult learners. It is designed to assist public and private sector officials in the Anglophone West Africa and beyond, to overcome the language barriers faced in commerce, banking, industry, tourism, journalism and other cross border activities, thereby promoting regional integration process. The course is also suitable for those who wish to compete favourably in the global economy, as the world has become a global village propelled by information and communication”.

It is on record that since its inception, WAIFEM has successfully executed over 600 courses, workshops, seminars and missions.

No fewer than 6,000 participants from the sub-region and beyond have benefited from the programmes.

To attain its set goals and objectives, WAIFEM collaborates with a number of reputable institutions to ensure international standards in its programmes. These among others are International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank, Commonwealth Secretariat, UNITAR, the Commonwealth Secretariat and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA).

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THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER ˾ ͺͻ˜ ͺ͸͹Ϳ

ͺͻ ͺ͸͹Ϳ ˾ THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER

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THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER ˾ SEPTEMBER 23, 2017

BUSINESS INSIGHT

TheTransformativeBenefitsofNigeriaGoingCardless Uzoma Dozie

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hanks to changing lifestyles and the ubiquity of mobile phones, the number of people across Nigeria using mobile banking is rising exponentially. This is creating the opportunity to turn my vision of a cardless Nigeria into a reality.

By 2020 there will be 200 million smartphone connections in Africa (Guardian). In Nigeria, there are more mobile phone lines than adults, 16 smartphones are sold every minute and 24% of people already have access to mobile broadband (GSMA).

Mobile technology, mobile payments, and therefore cardless payments are already becoming a way of life for millions of people. Digital banking technology is moving beyond payments, as it is now possible to open a bank account, create savings plans and conduct other transactions using a mobile device.

Traditionally, the progression is as follows: cash-using customers become cashless as they switch to using cards, and then become cardless as they switch to using their mobile for all financial transactions. However, technological developments – in particular the growing use of mobile – have presented Nigeria with a unique opportunity to leapfrog straight from cash to cardless.

There are however great challenges to overcome. In Nigeria, 80% of payments are still made in cash. Diamond Bank is at the forefront of modernising payments with 89% of our transactions now cashless – up from 67% in July 2016. Steps are being taken in the right direction, and technological innovation can really propel this transformation forward.

Going cardless is well suited to the realities of Nigeria’s economy and geography, with over 50% of the population living in rural communities (World Bank) where infrastructure is often minimal. Customers are more likely to have access to a mobile phone than proximity to a physical branch, meaning electronic

Uzoma Dozie

payments are better suited to the population.

The leap to a cardless society will have life-changing ramifications for rural Nigerians. For example, in Diamond Bank’s partnership with MTN, over nine million customers have opened a bank account on their mobile phone simply by dialling a shortcode. Opening an account no longer requires a branch – it only needs a phone signal, which covers 99% of Nigeria.

Cardless banking will also enable these communities to become more economically active. With access to finance at their fingertips, mobile banking will allow individuals and SMEs to unlock their full financial potential. It will promote financial inclusion of a population that are typically under-banked or completely unbanked. It will also act as a springboard for them undertaking further financial transations, boosting financial literacy.

Using cardlesss technology to reach remote communities should be a key priority for Nigeria’s banks. Doing so is a win-win situation; not only does it ensure more people are banked, it ensures more people are part of the formal economy.

This will create jobs and revenue – necessary for the development of healthcare, education and some other key national infrastructure.

Going cardless will also give people access to financial products on-the-go. This improves the customer experience, as in a cardless economy people can make a range of payments anywhere and on a 24/7 basis, spending less time at ATMs and branches and more time generating commerce or with families.

Further down the line, you might ask: what comes after Nigeria goes cardless? We see the future of financial services as increasingly digitalised. Touch fingerprint recognition, as used on the Diamond Mobile app, and developments with retina technology have the potential to make banking easier for customers. Fraud could even be pre-empted, as the technology and service becomes more personalised to the individual or business. We are even exploring the potential role of virtual reality in our branches.

Nigeria is becoming more mobile and digital. It is now up to the financial services sector to respond to this technological revolution and challenge the norms to make way for a truly cardless future. Banks, supported by the Fintech industry, have the capacity to drive this enormous change.

I believe a cardless economy can transform Nigeria from the bottom up.

Vowgas

Championing Local Content in Oil and Gas Sector Determined to prove that there can be capacity for a wholly Nigerian company to become an active participant in the engineering and fabrication works in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector, MGVowgas Nigeria Ltd, has begun ambitious project building and equipping a modern fabrication yard in Port Harcourt, Rivers State

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he Group Managing Director of MG Vogas Godwin Izomor, exudes passion for Nigeria.

According to him, “there is now no more reason why fabrication jobs from the IOCs should be taken abroad, thus promoting capital flight. All that is needed in terms of quality and dimensions of work are here in this fabrication yard.”

Continuing, he said, “We have plasma cutting machine that can cut up to 200 millimetre thickness of plates. We have rolling machines that can roll up to 200mm thickness plates. We have three automated welding machines that can weld aluminium and stainless steel.”

Still speaking on the quality of machines in his yard, the Vowgas boss explained that “the difference between this yard and other yards is the kind of equipment we have here. Nobody in Nigeria has the kind of equipment we have. We are importing two major equipment like the oven.

Presently, our furnace has the capacity of 1, 600 degree centigrade. We shall also import the flanges from India and some other countries. And we will be the only fabrication yard that will have it here in Nigeria.”

The Vowgas boss added ,”Before now, barges and tug baots were imported from Europe and America under the flimsy excuse that Nigeria did not have the capacity to produce them. Today, we have been able to fabricate lots of equipment without any assistance from anybody.”

Izomor lamented the huge loss Nigeria has been suffering as a result of big companies taking jobs to other countries.

“We in MG Vowgas are pained daily when we see that for almost every little construction, other international companies take such jobs to their countries to fabricate and eventually ship it back to Nigeria. Apart from the loss of time and huge revenue, that system really depreciates Nigeria as it creates job for others in other countries and leaves our people even more unemployed.

“Unlike other countries that have operated in Nigeria: Samsung, Hyundai, other foreign companies, none of them has developed a good fabrication yard, like ship-building fabrication yard, that can compete anywhere in the world. They

Executive Secretary, NCMB, Engnr Simbi Wabote congratulating the Group Managing Director, MG Vowgas Nig Ltd, Mr. Godwin Izomor, after the tour of the Vowgas fabrication and Shipyard, in Port Harcourt… recently

are all rent seeking companies. They come here, collect multi-billion dollars and they don’t develop the economy. They collect the whole big contracts, $4 billion, $5 billion and they don’t have anything to show for their having operated in this country.

They go to their countries fabricate these things and bring them to Nigeria. This must stop,” he said.

Izomor explained that Vowgas, over the years, has carved a niche in engineering design and development services, given its assemblage of renowned expertise by trained personnel, adding that MG Vowgas have the expertise to offer services like fabrication of pressure vessels, modules, off-shore structures and FPSO (Floating Production Storage Offloading facilities).

He added that the company is equally strong in engineering, procurement, construction and installation (EPCI) in the oil and gas sector, especially with the availability of WPS (Welding Procedure Specification) machines.

With four modern and fully computerised fair workshops fitted with high caliber machines and equipment, the Fabrication Manager of Vowgas,

Engineer Paulo Rosario, noted that the speed and quality of works, using the modern equipment matche world-class standard in the oil and gas sector.

Impressed by the array of trained personnel, foreign experts and equipment at the facility, Mr. Simbi Wabote, the Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) who recently took a tour, of the facility with senior members of the Board, said there is no longer any justification for fabrication jobs in the oil and gas industry to be taken outside the country.

Wabote was impressed the job opportunities Vowgas facility has provided for Nigerians. He stated that from the aversion of capital flight which the coming on stream of the facility will ensure, it will also enhance the speed of delivery of jobs in the industry as the length of time usually lost in placing order for such jobs or sending such jobs abroad for fabrication, would have been cut off by the reliable alternative provided by MG Vowgas.

The NCDMB boss promised to partner

Vowgas for the development of EPCI services in the oil and gas sector.

“I am impressed with your excellent facilities here. I am blown away by what I have seen here.

Your office complex, the fabrication shops, your 300 metres long site is enough to take any FPSO, plus your water depth of seven metres which is also a very good edge too bring in vessels. Most of the global fabrication yards started like this. We will be willing to assist and partner with Vowgas to grow even bigger,” adding that the Local Content Digest will accommodate and feature the feats achieved by MG Vowgas.

“You know NCDMB is a regulatory agency for the entire oil and gas industry including the NNPC. As for this private initiative, our objective will be to ensure that work scopes that this yard can handle are given to this yard. We will ensure that they participate in competitive and transparent bidding process, and become the lead contractors instead of sub-contractors to people who don’t have facilities like this. This is an amazing facility and with a little encouragement, they will do much more than what we have here.”

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SEPTEMBER 23, 2017 ˾ THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER

FASHION FILE

OBOBO Collection

(Meaning FLOWER in Bini)

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THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER ˾ SEPTEMBER 23, 2017

By Azuka Ogujiuba azuka.ogujiuba@thisdaylive.com

FASHION FILE

OBOBO Collection

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he collection is impeccably stylish and beautifully designed for the modern curvy woman. The collection has bold, bright colours and flower prints which represents its identity.

The colllection captures the delicate nature of the curvy womans body and shows that delicate women are bold, fierce and dynamic. For this collection we’ve used different textures of fabric, we’ve also mixed different types of fabrics such as Stretchy Crepe and Silk. “The Omo Jumpsuit is one of our most sought after pieces because of the length of the trousers. We’ve ensured that our Omo Jumpsuit trousers hits the perfect length so it sits well on the

body,” the designer said.

ABOUT DESIGNER Osa Aisien is the Creative-Director and founder of Ma’Bello Clothier. The first solely owned and run Nigerian brand to cater to women with curves. Ma’Bello was birthed in December 2012 after years of frustration to find clothes that were stylish and flattering in her size. The curvy fashion represents the biggest opportunity in retail as an average woman is a UK size 14.

Ma’Bello Clothier came into the fashion scene and now stands as a brand that caters to a large spectrum of women in Nigeria. The label’s collection includes couture, ready-to

wear apparel for the modern and trendy woman and is fast becoming the go-to brand to its vast clientele.

At Ma’Bello Clothier we believe that the true beauty of a woman is her curves. All women should feel confident and beautiful and our clothing celebrates her shape.

We are here to cater to fashionable women and armed with in-depth professional advice and a real passion for plus size fashion.

Credit Model: EKIUWA OGUNBOR Hair: Onaturals Makeup: Colours by Ray

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MARKET PLACE with Omolabake Fashogbon... ͸΀͸͝͝͞ͺ͚͸͸Î

L-R: Managing Director, Middle-East & Africa, Temenos, Jean-Paul Mergeai; Executive Director, Inlaks, Olufemi Muraino and Sales Operations, Middle-East & Africa, Temenos, Alexandra Lavinia Pathinathan, after the presentation of Best Partner West Africa Award to Inlaks by Temenos, in Dubai... recently

Vice Chairman, Bwari Local Government Area, Abuja, Honourable Ahmed Nagimba; Representative of the Etsu of Bwari, High Chief Bulus Yerima; Transformation Director , Union Bank, Joe Mbulu and Oba Yoruba of Byazin Land, Kubwa, H.R.M Oba Olu Adeoye, at the launch of the new Union Bank branch in Kubwa, Abuja recently

Can Lagos Stop Trading at Undesignated Spots?

The Lagos State Government is not leaving any stone unturned to achieve its megacity ambition and part of its moves to realise the goal is to make every nook and cranny of the state eye-catching and habitable.

Heading for the accomplishment of the megaproject, the past administration showed zero tolerance for all sorts of unwanted trading activities.

In fact, when the former governor Babatunde Fashola launched a crackdown on unlawful trading most especially around Oshodi, it dawned on all that the commercial nerve centre was in for real business.

With the attention and seriousness given the sanitation exercise, one would not have thought that Lagos would wear its old picture again, but that can only be imagined.

It wasn’t too long before the renovated and sanitised areas began to wear their old looks.

The present administration was not too quick to look in that direction and when it realised the need to counter the menace, some areas like Oshodi under bridge and railway lines seemed to have been forgotten or perhaps, are no longer restricted to traders.

Away from the flamboyant actions against indiscipline in the state is the question of sustainability which has continued to plague and diminish the targeted accomplishments.

Recently, the state government expressed its anger at the unimpressive state of Agbado Okeodo Market, popularly known as Ileepo market in Abuleegba.

Not disputing the legality of the centre for buying and selling, the Secretary to the State Government, Tunji Bello, frowned at the fact that traders had extended their wares to the road side, thus denying pedestrians and motorists free access.

He cautioned the traders to adjust or have the market sealed off. This directive was effective just for a while. The traders only pretended to be compliant with the appearance of the law enforcement agents; once the agents are out of sight, the restricted roadside was soon turned into a crowded marketplace. In the evenings, Saturdays and Sundays,

activities on the roadside continue as though there are no restrictions.

Again, the Ikeja and Ojuelegba flyovers have just got a facelift, and anyone who visits the areas will remember the looks of the facilities soon after Fashola’s touch.

As it is, all the traders, including commercial drivers have vanished from the areas which now wear serene and decent looks; a good step which has earned the administration a lot of commendations. The big question is: would this effort

and investment be sustained?

Marketplace sampled some traders’ opinions on the development.

A yoghurt seller who identified himself as Ndubusi, said, “As long as the government cannot provide alternative and very cheap and subsidised shops that will accommodate traders, it cannot stop street or roadside trading. We all know that the poor are disadvantaged in this country and there are no special arrangements for them. This is the only way we make ends meet and

IPI Solutions Enters List of Fastest-Growing ICT Provider Multiple award-winning indigenous technology firm, IPI Solutions Nigeria Limited, has been recognised as one of the 10 fastest-growing Microsoft solution providers in 2017 by a United States Media, Silicon Review magazine.

In the latest publication of the technology-focused medium, the firm was commended for its range of innovations and investment in the information communication technology sector as it chronicled the major accomplishments of the firm starting from its launch success of its first products, its unique selling points and future aspirations.

Reacting to this feat, the Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of the firm, Mr. Adamu Garba, pointed out that the company was incorporated in 2008 out of a necessity to curb the ills that plagued business technology solution industry, at a time when the norm in the industry was to focus only on sales margin without priority for effective and conclusive project delivery. “Thus the company decided to look into Microsoft as a platform and then use the platform to penetrate the small and medium market as well as large enterprise organisations. In a few years, the company envisioned a very strong organisation with a high level of technical competency, processes, service delivery and consulting efficiency,� Adamu stated.

He added that the company’s target was to see the African market compete globally by bringing everybody to the cloud.

The latest development was

another milestone in the history of the ICT company following its evolvement over the years as one of the trusted IT solution providers and leading systems integrators.

According to the founder, the major attributes driving the firm include: competency, getting the right results for the customer, persistence, team work and extensive focus on what they know how to do best. “We don’t only sell Microsoft cloud, but also productivity output and service efficiency which has especially made our products and brand popular in the market,� he said.

In line with its strong drive for innovation and digital transformation, the company also announced plans to launch new cloud products around Microsoft technology platform later in the year. They include: Cyber Security As a Service (CsaaS), Data Assurance As a Service (DaaS), Gloomme (platform bringing service providers and those in need of their services together and Centrum.com. ng (platform providing large data solutions for clients).

The Silicon Review is a global trusted online and print community for business and technology professionals that focuses on nine technology and vertical communities such as Software, IT services, cloud, mobile, big data, security, telecommunications, hot start-ups and the best companies to work for.

Their community members include thought-provoking CEOs, CIOs, CTOs, IT VPs and managers, along with other diverse IT professionals.

we are being disturbed. “Now that we have been chased away, tell me, do the authorities expect that we will sit at home and expect manna from heaven? We will definitely look for somewhere to display our wares which government will come again and declare illegal spots.

Again, the government has succeeded in dealing with illegal commercial activities in some parts of the state, whether this effort will be sustained, only time will tell.

Dufil Determines Winners of 2017 IIDA As the preparations for the 10th edition of the Indomie Independence Day Awards (IIDA) hits top gear, host company, Dufil Prima Foods, has unveiled the faces of the judges who will decide the fate of the over 180 contestants vying for the ‘hero’ status.

According to the Group Public Relations and Events Manager, Mr. Tope Ashiwaju, the judges, numbering seven, were expected to sit next week Tuesday and do justice to the top 24 stories already picked by the selection committee to choose the best 10 who will wear the crown.

The award categories range from “Intellectual, physical and social bravery and exploits.�

Ashiwaju identified the judges as Managing Director/Editor-in-Chief, New Telegraph Newspaper and President of the Nigerian Guild of Editors, Mrs. Funke Egbemode; Founder of Hearts of Gold Children Hospice, Mrs. Laja Adedoyin; a Solicitor and Advocate of the Supreme Court of Nigeria and Managing Partner of Abiola Sanni and Co., Prof. Abiola Sanni; Founder of Rise Networks, Social Entrepreneur and Human Development expert, Toyosi Akerele-Ogunsiji; ex-Ben TV, London Director, Mr. Gbola Oba; the National Director, SOS Children’s Villages Nigeria, Mr. Eghosa Erhumwunse and MD/CEO of Rave TV & Trend FM, Mrs. Agatha Amata.

The company noted that the distinguished judges were carefully selected based on their proven credibility and integrity. “IIDA is a credible initiative and so we have carefully selected reputable and distinguished men and women from different spheres of life, based on their integrity, vast experience and reputation in the society, to help in picking the final 10 winners,� Ashiwaju said.

He added that a verification team were in the field to authenticate, validate and simulate the selected 24 stories, which would later be examined by the judges in arriving at the best 10 for each award category.

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T H I S D AY SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 23, 2017

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T H I S D AY SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 23, 2017

T H I S D AY SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 23, 2017

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NEWSXTRA

INEC, Police, APC Conspiracy Threat to Nigeria’s Democracy, Says Wike Ernest Chinwo in Port Harcourt Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, has stated that the “illegal conspiracy� between the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the All Progressives Congress (APC) and Police was a threat to the nation's democracy.

Speaking yesterday when he granted audience to the Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC) at the Government House, Port Harcourt, Wike stated that following the use of the Police to deny the people of Rivers East Senatorial District their mandate, the APC had made it their official policy.

According to him: "The strategy has been adopted by the APC as was experienced in Rivers State during the rerun elections. We have to alert all other Nigerians about this strategy.

"The alarm we have raised on the printing of fake result sheets was correct. They used Special Anti-robbery Squad to abduct INEC officials and smuggle in fake results ".

He called on all the political parties to be vigilant and stop the actualisation of the plot of APC to rig the 2019 polls.

"They know Nigerians are tired of being deceived. That is why they will plan to massively rig the 2019 elections. As IPAC members, you must be vigilant. They will do everything possible, including killing dozens of persons to remain in power. This is because the people have rejected them,� he said.

The governor said despite the anomaly that greeted the Rivers East Senatorial District election, INEC had remained silent, insisting that INEC must offer explanation on the alleged fraud APC used the Police to perpetrate.

Wike added that all other political parties participating in the forth-coming

HELPING THE DISTRESSED...

L-R: Area Sales Manager, Unilever Nigeria Plc, Mr. Clement Fashanu; Key Distributor Manager, Mr. Sam Uche; External Aairs Manager, Mr. Tomiwa Asaolu; Regional Sales Manager, Middle Belt, Mr. David Ebah and Deputy Governor, Benue State, Mr. Benson Abounu, during the presentation of relief materials to the Benue State IDPs camp, by Unilever, in Benue.......recently Anambra governorship election must be vigilant as the APC was planning to rig the polls.

"Democracy is under threat. We must defend it,� he said.

In his remarks, the Secretary of IPAC, Chief Perry Opara, said Rivers State was working because Wike was investing in development projects.

He commended Wike for carrying all political parties along in Rivers State and urged the Federal Government to imbibe the same pattern which would reduce tension in the country.

The 46 Political Parties of IPAC conferred on Wike, "The Most Opposition Friendly and Eagle of Nigeria" awards.

PDP, HURIWA Condemn Growing Attacks on Journalists in Imo, Kaduna Amby Uneze in Owerri The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Imo State Chapter and a Pro-democracy and non-governmental organisation, Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) have raised the alarm at the growing suppression of media rights in Imo and Kaduna states.

The two bodies condemned the recent banning of the THISDAY and Vanguard Newspaper reporters, Messers Amby Uneze and Chidi Nkwopara by the Imo State Governor, Rochas Okorocha, from covering government activities, thereby stopping them from carrying out their

constitutional duties of reporting and holding the government accountable in the discharge of their constitutional duties to the people.

In a release signed by the Party's State Publicity Secretary, Damian Opara said "the PDP State Executive Council after a very careful and painstaking review of the purported ban in an emergency meeting views the ban as a breach of the constitutional rights of the journalists and hereby condemn the action of Governor Rochas Okorocha in its totality.�

The party observed that one of the tenets of any democracy was the freedom of information and noted that it must be respected by

all segments of the government in the State, adding “the purported ban of the two journalists from carrying out their legitimate duties is to show the whole World how the Governor is becoming increasingly intolerant of opposing views to his draconian style of governance. “The APC government of Imo State under Governor Rochas Okorocha has done so much harm to the people of Imo State and has completely lost popularity and sympathy of the people, through his maladministration and should not transfer his aggressions to innocent Journalists who are carrying out their constitutional duties in Imo State.

Ambode to Swear-in Oke as Acting Chief Judge Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode will Monday, swear-in Justice Opeyemi Oke as the Acting Chief Judge of the State.

According to a statement by the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Mr. Habib Aruna, Justice Oke, who is the most senior judge of the State Judiciary, is to be sworn-in as CJ in acting capacity following the retirement of outgoing Chief Judge of the State, Justice Olufunmilayo Atilade who will attain the statutory retirement age on September 24, 2017.

Justice Atilade had on Monday paid a courtesy visit to the Governor at

Lagos House to officially announce her retirement from the State’s judiciary.

Speaking while receiving the outgoing Chief Judge, Governor Ambode pledged his administration’s determination to prioritise the welfare of serving and retired judges in the State so as to enable them continue to give their very best to the economic prosperity of the State.

He said since May 2015, concerted efforts had been put in place geared towards reforms in the judiciary to improve on their service delivery, noting that the Lagos State Judiciary had become a reference point of how

the judiciary should run. “Reforms in the judiciary is a continuous thing and in areas, in which we have not done utmost well as you so much envisioned, we would improve on them and we would also ensure that we make life comfortable for our retired judges as you move into that club.

I am very particular about the welfare of judges, that is a very sacred institution that we must continue to ensure that even in retirement there is so much for them to look back for the efforts they have made,� Governor Ambode said.

Ijaw Youths Reject Proposed Bill to Regulate Civil Society Groups Emmanuel Addeh inYenagoa Ijaw youths yesterday rejected a bill in the National Assembly aimed at regulating the activities of Civil Society Organisations in Nigeria.

The bill is sponsored by the Deputy Majority Leader of the House of Representatives, Umar Buba Jibril.

The Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) worldwide, in a statement signed by its Spokesman, Daniel Dasimaka, described the proposed law as “antidemocratic� and a “waste of scarce public resources aimed at creating new avenues for rewarding cronies of politicians.�

It said: “The IYC is against this bill because it portends a grave danger to our democracy. For the education of those who may not know what is at stake here, if passed, the Act shall create a Commission that would be responsible for the issuance licences

to all NGOs. “This will require renewing such licences every two years or less. And if the Commission’s board declines to renew any group’s licence, the NGO will cease to operate. “ If any NGO spends without the Commission’s permission it would amount to a crime which attracts a jail term of up to 18 months. We, Ijaw youths are using this medium to call on all lovers of democracy all over the world to rise in condemnation of this anti-democratic piece of legislation. “ It is aimed at weakening, delegitimising and stifling the voices and works of independent and credible Non-Governmental Organisations�.

The youth group alleged that the bill was copied from repressive states and regimes like those in Ethiopia, Somalia and Uganda, noting that it was aimed at achieving the criminalisation of expressions of

peaceful dissent.

According to the IYC, if passed into law, it will also put the spanner in the works of the legitimate work of NGOs and individual human rights defenders and activists scrutinising corruption in the National Assembly and exposing human rights violations by the government. “It is tragic and ironic that the National Assembly that is one of the biggest beneficiaries of the thankless sacrifices of Civil Society in confronting years of military misrule are the ones today trying to stifle them,� the group noted.

IYC maintained that the proposed bill that was calling for the setting up of yet another federal agency to be known as the NGO Regulatory Commission, with an Executive Secretary and a 17-member Governing Board was a needless waste of public resources.

Oba of Benin Hosts Oshiomhole to Grand Reception The Benin Monarch, Omo N’ Oba N’ Edo, Uku Akpolokpolo, Oba Ewuare II, on Friday hosted the former governor of Edo, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, to a grand reception in Benin City, for his outstanding achievements while in office.

Welcoming his guest to the colourful occasion that was graced by serving governors, captains of industry, and other dignitaries, Oba Ewuare II described the tenure of former governor Oshiomhole as eventful and an era that opened the way to social-economic development of the state.

According to the revered monarch, “a lot of encomiums have already been showered on the former governor but we felt we needed to host him at the Palace Ground for promoting the Edo Culture and doing what past

governors thought were impossible.

He was committed to duty, achieved what past administrations could not achieve and showed great respect to the Benin Monarchy.�

The Oba prayed for comrade Oshiomhole and presented a special gift, a bronze bust of the former governor to him.

In his remarks, the Governor of Edo State, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, expressed his appreciation to the Oba for honouring his predecessor and described the event as unique and historical.

Obaseki said that the Royal Father’s acknowledgement of the achievements of Comrade Oshiomhole, shows there is reward for people who truly serve the people. He added that the event would spur him as governor to do as much or even more than

his predecessor.

The governor explained that Comrade Oshiomhole did not only lay the foundation for economic development in the state but used the political platform to unify the various ethnic groups in Edo State.

In his response, Oshiomhole expressed his gratitude to the Benin Monarch for the honour and accredited his achievements to the support he got from the Benin Palace.

He said he succeeded as governor of Edo State because he had a father who is the Oba of Benin.

He thanked the Oba for the royal gift and described it as the summary of his life’s struggle. He urged his successor to aspire to do more than he did and urged Edo people to be patient with the Obaseki-led administration.

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Aviation: Sirika Inaugurates Presidential Task Force on Regulatory Matters

SCGN Calls for Good Corporate Governance

Kasim Sumaina in Abuja

The Society for Corporate Governance Nigeria (SCGN) has called for behavioural and institutionalised mechanism for Corporate Governance in Nigeria.

A Fellow the Society, Professor Fabian Ajogwu SAN, at a Press briefing yesterday to announced the 2017 edition of the yearly Conference of SCGN scheduled for Wednesday, September 27, 2017 at the Oriental Hotel, Lagos, said Corporate Governance and economic development were interdependent and intertwined through the process of economic reforms, while effective corporate governance mechanisms promote the development of strong financial systems in the economy.

He stressed that the Society every year holds a Corporate Governance Conference where topical issues were discussed with speakers drawn from heads of regulatory and statutory agencies, academicians and practitioners, captains of industries within and outside of Nigeria.

The Minister of State for Aviation, Sen. Hadi Sirika, on Thursday, inaugurated an 11 man presidential taskforce to address regulatory matters affecting the aviation sector.

Sirika, while inaugurating the Committee in Abuja, stated that the ministry was only following the directives given by Professor Yemi Osinbajo when he was the Acting President of the country to inaugurate a committee to tackle issues raised by the Airlines Operators of Nigeria

(AON).

According to him, "It is my pleasure to welcome you and to Inaugurate this task force on regulatory matters. The mandate of the task force includes; To look into the payment of multiple charges by the operators; the state of infrastructure at the Airports; and to look into negotiation of Bilateral Air services agreements (BASA)."

He noted that, the membership of the task force comprises of the following, "Honourable Minister of State for Aviation (Chairman); Special

Adviser to the President on Economic matters; Director General, Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA); Managing Director, Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria(FAAN); "Managing Director, Nigerian Airspace Management Agency(NAMA); Capt. Nogie Maggison, nominee of the Association of Airline Operators; Mr. Allen Onyema, nominee of the Association of Airline Operators; Alh. Kashim Shettima, nominee of the Association of Airline Operators; Capt. Mohammed Joji, nominee of the Association of Airline Opera-

tors; Department of Air Transport Management, FMoT; and International Air Transport Association (IATA)Representative."

He said, “This government takes every single assignment very seriously and it is our intention to give the best of service as well as a conducive atmosphere as we have been trained to do that�. "I appeal to members of this task force to do justice to the matters raised so that it can be closed once and for all and I pray that whatever comes out of it will be good for humanity," said Sirika.

SANITY ON LAGOS ROADS...

L-R: President, Association of Maritime Truck owners (AMATO), Chief Remi Ogungbemi; Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Transportation, Engr. Ajibade Caster-Adebowale; Acting Commissioner for Transportation, Prince Olanrewaju Elegushi; Commissioner for Information & Strategy, Mr. Steve Ayorinde and General Manager, Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), Mr. Adesina Tiamiyu during a joint press brieďŹ ng on the traďŹƒc gridlock in Apapa at the Bagauda Kaltho Press Centre, Alausa, Ikeja, on Friday

Relief as OPEC Extends Nigeria’s Exemption from Oil Production Cut Cont’d from Pg.1 that the exemption granted it at the November 2016 Ministerial Conference and extended by the May Ministerial Conference should be sustained until it stabilises its crude oil production.

It also emerged yesterday that the federal government is planning to halt the stealing of Nigeria’s crude oil by introducing a fingerprint technology which will track products anywhere in the world.

The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, who led Nigeria’s delegation to the JMMC meeting had argued that although Nigeria’s production recovery efforts have made some appreciable progress since October last year, Nigeria is not yet out of the woods.

He noted that even though Nigeria hit 1.802 million barrels per day in August; that was not enough justification for a call by some countries for Nigeria to be brought into the fold.

Kachikwu emphasised that Nigeria, as one of the older members of OPEC would continue to work for the good of the Organization and its member countries, respecting whatever agreements and resolutions are collectively made. He stated that Nigeria would be prepared to cap its crude production when it had stabilized at 1.8 million barrels per day.

He said that although Nigeria was not a member of the five-nation JMMC, he had gladly accepted the invitation of the co-chairs of the Committee and the OPEC Conference President to attend the meeting because he believed that the committee was doing a good job and needed to be supported and also to clarify Nigeria’s position on its crude oil production.

The meeting noted that overall compliance by OPEC and Non OPEC participating Countries to the Agreement on crude oil production cut for the month of August was 116 per cent.

This compliance level was highest since the agreement came into effect on January 2017.

It further noted that the objectives of the Accord were steadily being achieved with the gradual draw-down of inventories by nearly 50 per cent since the agreement came into effect In a communiquĂŠ after its 5th meeting, which took place yesterday, the JMMC welcomed the participation of Iraq, Libya and Nigeria, and the reaffirmation of their commitment to work closely with other participating producing countries to ensure the success of the Declaration of Cooperation.

The President of the OPEC Conference and Minister of Energy, Industry and Mineral Resources of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Khalid A. Al-Falih, participated in the meeting by telephone, expressed his solidarity with the JMMC, reiterated the commitment of Saudi Arabia to the success of the Declaration of Cooperation and cautioned against complacency.

He also reaffirmed the necessity of additional work to be undertaken by under-performing participating countries to bring their conformity levels to 100 per cent.

He then thanked Libya and Nigeria for their positive engagement and their ongoing coordination with the participating countries in the Declaration of Cooperation.

The next JMMC Meeting is scheduled to be held in Vienna, on

November 29, 2017.

FG to Track Nigeria’s Stolen Crude Oil with Fingerprint Technology To halt the stealing of Nigeria’s crude oil by locals who connive with operators of foreign vessels, the federal government said yesterday that it was introducing a fingerprint technology which will track products anywhere in the world.

Minister of Science and Technology, Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu, who spoke in Odi, Bayelsa State, yesterday, also disclosed that the Buhari government was set to build an oil and gas institute in the state due to the immense contribution of Bayelsa in the sector.

Onu, who was also in Odi to inaugurate a Bio-resources Laboratory and the livestock feed mill complexes at the Bio-resources Development Centre (BIODEC), disclosed that the programme which would take off before the end of the year, will solve the problem of economic sabotage. “Nigeria is changing with this capacity here now, we will able to do many things. I just gave them instruction that by the end of the year, we should have finger printing of our crude oil, so that if anybody steals it we will be able to identify it. “Even crude oil can have finger prints and with the equipment we have here, we can do it in Nigeria.

One problem that we have is that we rely on other people to solve our problems. We produce crude oil, we export it, but we now import refined petroleum products. “We export our woods and we bring in toothpicks. We don't want that anymore and for you to do all these things we rely on others. We

have to look inward and we need to build capacity and that is what this facility is doing for us. “We can do genome mapping of our rare crops, plants, animals that are unique to us. We can even finger print our own crude oil. “We also need to fight poverty. If you create jobs, you will fight poverty, if you train people, you fight poverty and that's what they are doing here and I think we are ready to fight poverty."

The minister had earlier visited the state governor, Mr Seriake Dickson, where he intimated him of the need to develop capacity in the oil and gas processes in the country.

In his comments, Dickson who was represented by his Deputy, Rear Admiral John Jonah, said the state would create an enabling environment to make the project a success in the state.

He noted that the Institute when established would create jobs, encourage skills and reduce spate of unemployment in the region.

Also speaking, the Director General of the Institute, Josiah Habu, said the target of the research centre was to bring “reliability, quality, originality, innovation and novelty to research and development�.

He said the commissioning of the facilities had officially open the gateway to a higher level of bio-resources prospecting and processing to new products and services to support local content.

"For a start, the quest for the DNA of Nigeria's crude oil will soon be answered. This is to enable the tracking of Nigeria's crude oil flow globally and hence solve the national problem of economic sabotage", he said.

Fadekemi Ajakaiye

Glo Storms FESTAC with Top Musicians In continuation of the 27-city music concert tagged Glo Mega Music Nationwide Tour, the company will today storm FESTAC area of Lagos with top music stars to entertain its subscribers in the locality.

The Glo Mega Music Nationwide Tour kicked off in Awka, Anambra State, on April 15 and has gone round 22 different locations such as Aba, Asaba; Calabar; Port Harcourt; Ajah; Victoria Island; Benin, Ekpoma; Owerri; Ibadan; Ikeja; Abuja; Abeokuta; Ijebu Ode; Akure; Enugu; Suleja; Kaduna; Kubwa; Lokoja and Makurdi before coming to FESTAC. In all the locations, artistes like Olamide, Phyno; Flavour; Timaya; Tuface; PSquare; Omawumi; Runtown; Kiss Daniel; Yemi Alade; Di'Ja, Korede Bello, Reekado Banks and Katch performed to the delight of crowds which gathered at each location.

Mercy Johnson-Okojie and Juliet Ibrahim would anchor the show. Odunlade Adekola, Patience Ozokwor, a.k.a.

Mama G, and Richard Mofe-Damijo will make celebrity guest appearances at the show, while DJ Neptune will supply hot vibes at the event.

In a statement issued on Thursday, Globacom explained that "the show remains free, as all any subscriber wishing to attend the event needs to do is to use airtime worth N2,000 in a month for data or voice and send SMS "MUSIC FESTAC" to the short code 207".

The statement added that those who did not meet the requirement as well as new subscribers "can also be part of the fun provided that they come to the venue of the show and buy recharge card worth N2,000. They will then receive tickets which will admit them into the hall of the event".

Speaking on the show, Olamide, who uses the stage name Baddosneh, said, "I am highly excited to be back to the crew of the Glo Mega Music Nationwide Tour having been out of the last two shows."

He said Professor Mervyn King, SC, Chair, King Committee on Corporate Governance that produced the King’s Code I, King II, King III and King IV in South Africa would be the main speaker at this year Conference.

The Senior Advocate and former Justice of the Supreme Court of South Africa, would be sharing insights in corporate governance, drawing from his wealth of experience on the subject.

The conference themed, ‘Institutionalisation of Corporate Governance as a tool for National Economic Development’, will extensively dwell on the practice of corporate governance in the public and private sectors, its impact on businesses, and National economic development at large.

He noted that the non-profit organisation, has over the years continued to deploy its resources to enhance knowledge and practice of corporate governance best practices and ethics in Nigeria, through Research and Publications on the subject of Corporate Governance, intensive learning programmes for Board Chairmen & Directors, Seminars & Breakfast meetings; and legislative advocacy in the field.

CHANGE OF NAME I, formerly known and addressed as MISS EZEONYEBUCHI, CHISOM JULIET. now wish to be known and addressed as DZ^ KZ EhÍł :/K&KZÍ• CHISOM JULIET. All former documents remain valid. The general Public take note.

I, formerly known and addressed as MISS. WILLIAMS MORAYO MARIAM, now wish to be known and addressed as MRS. BENSON MARIAM MORAYO. All former documents remain valid. The general public should take note.

I, formerly known and addressed as EFEMENA JENNIFER SAMPSON, now wish to be known and addressed as EFE JENNIFER SAMPSON. All former documents remain valid. The general public should take note.

I formerly known as MISS ONUOHA GRACE AMARACHUKWU. Now wish to be known and addressed as MRS MAKUN GRACE AMARACHUKWU. All documents remains valid.

General public please take note.

I formerly known as FAWEYINMI NIKE MUJIDAT AMINA OLUWAREMI. Now wish to be known and addressed as BADMUS ADENIKE OLUWAREMILEKUN. All documents remains valid.

General public please take note.

I formerly known as AAGBOINWAN MARY E. Now wish to be known and addressed as AGBOINWAN MARY EGHONGHON. All documents remains valid.

General public please take note.

I formerly known as ADENIJIADELE MUBARAK SUBOMI Now wish to be known and addressed as ADENIJIADELE MUBARAK ADESUBOMI. All documents remains valid.

General public please take note.

I formerly known as MISS ODIGIE OMONIGHO DEBORAH Now wish to be known and addressed as MRS EHIREMEN OMONIGHO DEBORAH. All documents remains valid.

General public please take note.

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T H I S D AY SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 23, 2017

#FMJFWFSTh 'FMMPXTIJQ (PMEFO (BUFT 3FTUBVSBOU *LPZJ -BHPT DPNNJTFSBUF XJUI 1BTUPS "LJOQFMV .ST 0MBPMV "LJOMBCJ

T H I S D AY SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 23, 2017

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THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER ˞ ͺ͝, 2017

POLITY

BEDC to Improve Supply to Usen Community

esidents of Usen community in Egor Local Government Area of Edo State will soon begin to enjoy improved power supply as Benin Electricity Distribution Plc (BEDC) concludes plans to bring an additional 7.5MVA in addition to the existing 7.5MVA transformer installed recently, the Chief State Head, Edo State, BEDC, Engr.

Fidelis Obishai has assured.

He gave the assurance during an information Sharing/Customer Forum of BEDC in for third quarter, held across select communities in Ologbo, Ulemo and Usen areas of Edo state last Thursday in Benin during, which he also apologized to the residents of Usen community for the present poor supply to the area.

Obishai in a statement, explained that the poor supply to the community existed before BEDC came on board stressing that replacement cost for the transformer was huge, adding that it was due to the inad-

equate capacity of the 7.5MVA transformer that resulted into massive load shedding presently experienced in the community.

Engr Obishai equally urged members of the Ologbo community under Ikpoba/ Okha local government to form an Electricity Committee that would help fast track issues bordering on power supply to their area, saying that the community was not relegated by BEDC because of its strategic position as an oil producing community.

Edo state he said has over 1,000 communities under the purview of BEDC, and that the company gets less than the required amount of electricity from the national grid to guarantee regular power supply to those communities and that the power supply to BEDC comes from Transmission Company in Benin and through Oghara in Delta state assuring that “Ologbo as an oil producing community is not relegated in the scheme of things.�

Obishai who urged residents of Ulemo

MultiChoice: We Are Not Launching Pay-Per-View

P

ay-TV service provider, MultiChoice Nigeria, has dismissed fresh reports saying it is about to make its services available via the Pay-Per-View model. In a statement issued in Lagos, the company said reports currently circulating and suggesting that it is about launching Pay-Per-View are unfounded. “MultiChoice wishes to correct the news currently being circulated and states that at no time was it announced that a Pay Per View service was about to be launched,� said the statement.

The company explained that before the Floyd Mayweather vs. Conor McGregor boxing fight, it explained to journalists at a media briefing premium subscribers on its DStv platform would watch the fight as

part of their package, while subscribers to pay television services in the USA would need to pay an additional US$99 on Pay per view basis to access the fight. “During the briefing, it was clarified that Pay Per View is a pay television service whereby subscribers of a particular television provider can purchase additional sporting events to view over and above their normal subscription package and charges. Furthermore, it was explained at the briefing that this service does not currently exist in Nigeria or anywhere else in Africa at the moment, but is being used in the United States and the United Kingdom,� the company explained.

It added that should it decide to offer a new service in the future, the media and its subscribers will be directly informed.

community in Oredo local government to pay their electricity bills promptly to enable BEDC embark on repair of faulty equipment in their area and also attend to other issues with prompt dispatch, described Ulemo community as peaceful and most organized out of the locations chosen for the customer engagement sessions.

In his address at the sessions, Executive Director, Research and Advocacy, Association of Nigerian Electricity Distributors (ANED), Mr Sunday Oduntan told customers that massive metering of customers though desirable was constrained by a number of factors prominent of which he listed to be energy theft through bypass, illegal connections and load diversion.

He urged customers to report those bypassing their meters by way of whistle blowing saying that the prevalence of bypass especially in Edo state was militating against metering. “BEDC out of the 11 discos has the

highest metering rollout in the last three years. People must know that electricity is no longer a free commodity or service like roads which government is expected to provide. Electricity is also not cheap as BEDC like other Discos buys electricity from the generation end at N68 and sells at N31.50kobo thereby underselling its product,� he remarked.

Most of the communities complained of poor supply, estimated billing, metering, faulty meters and fallen poles to which the BEDC management team comprising of the Chief State Head, Edo, Chief Agency and Channels Officer, Mrs Felicia Nlemoha, Head of Community Relations, Mrs Virginia Osineme, and Head of Customer Complaints Unit (CCU), Mrs Simisola Fatoki, provided responses to by advising customers to make use of BEDC payment channels and ensure prompt payment of their electricity bills.

Nwabueze Convinced Kanu to Accept Restructuring, Jettison Biafra before Military Invasion, Says Uko Christopher Isiguzo in Enugu

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ormer Secretary General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo and renowned Constitutional lawyer, Prof Ben Nwabueze reportedly prevailed on the embattled leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Mazi Nnamdi Kanu to embrace restructuring and jettison his secessionist agenda shortly before the launch of Operation Python Dance II by the military.

In a statement made available to newsmen on Friday, Founder, Igbo Youth Movement (IYM) and Deputy Secretary of the Igbo Leaders of Thought, Evangelist Elliot Ugochukwu-Uko who attended the parley said prior to the invasion of his Umuahia country home by soldiers, Kanu had in principle agreed to go in line with the demands for restructuring.

“The 30th of August, 2017 meeting between Mazi Nnamdi Kanu and South East Governors was historic, in the sense that Prof. Ben Nwabueze made Kanu to adjust his position in a landmark development.

Because of Kanu’s deep respect for Prof.

Ben Nwabueze, whom he trusts absolutely, Kanu accepted in principle, Prof. Nwabueze’s proposal that the IPOB accepts the restructuring of Nigeria and step down the agitation for secession. “But the restructuring should be a return to the 1963 constitution format. Kanu in reverence to Prof. Nwabueze, agreed in principle to the Nwabueze proposal, but insisted on discussing with and carrying along the entire leadership of the IPOB, both at home and in the Diaspora. “The meeting also agreed to meet again

L-R: Registrar/CEO, Medical Rehabilitation Therapists Board of Nigeria (MRTBN), Mrs. Olufunke Akanle; Dean School of Health Professions, University of Kansas Medical Center, Prof. Abiodun Akinwuntan; Minister of State for Health, Dr. Osagie Ehanire; and Keynote Speaker/Associate Professor, Department of Physical Therapy, Chapman University, USA, Prof. Emmanuel John at the opening ceremony of 2017 International Conference of the board in Lagos‌ recently

L- R: Managing Director/Chief Executive OďŹƒcer, Nestle Nigeria Trust (CPFA) Limited, Mr. Adewale Fakoya; Regional Head, Sales, Lagos, ARM Pensions, Mr. Gbenga Dada; Deputy Head, South-West Zonal OďŹƒce, National Pension Commission, Mr. Sola Adeseun; Head, Customer Experience, ARM Pensions, Mrs. Moronke Bamgbala; and Head, South-West Zonal OďŹƒce, National Pension Commission, Mr. Babatunde Phillips, during the ARM Pensions Retiree Forum in Lagos‌ recently

L-R: Area Sales Manager, Unilever Nigeria Plc, Mr. Clement Fashanu; Key Distributor Manager, Mr. Sam Uche; External Aairs Manager, Mr. Tomiwa Asaolu; Regional Sales Manager, Middle Belt, Mr. David Ebah and Deputy Governor, Benue State, Mr. Benson Abounu, during the presentation of relief materials to the Benue State IDPs camp, by Unilever in Benue‌ ecently

R-L: Managing Director, Rite Foods Limited, Mr. Seleem Adegunwa; Media Consultant, Rite Foods Limited, Mr. Fela Oke and General Manager, Proudly Nigerian Campaign, Mr. Michael E. Abugo, during the presentation and decoration of the Managing Director, Rite Foods Limited, Mr. Seleem Adegunwa as Board Members of Proudly Nigerian Campaign at Osososa Factory, Ijebu Ode, Ogun State... recently

T H I S D AY SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 23, 2017

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THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER Ëž ÍşÍťËœ ͺ͸͚Ϳ

Mike Igini

Senate’s Proposed Amendments to Electoral Act will Add Credibility to Elections Mr. Mike Igini has begun his second term as Resident Electoral Commissioner in Akwa Ibom State. In this interview with Jonathan Eze, Igini talks about progress in developing innovative electoral service in Nigeria. He recommends stier punishment for electoral oenders and commends the National Assembly for proposing amendments to the electoral act

C

ongratulations on your reappointment as a Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), what should Nigerians expect from you this time around?

Many thanks indeed and to the President and Commanderin-chief for the trust and confidence reposed in some of us in this endeavour. On the expectations of Nigerians from me, first, election management is not a one man show but a team work that requires the commitment of all citizens because election is one of the largest, administratively and logistically delicate, complex and all-involving activity that nations embark on in peace time. And so, it requires a total national effort, particularly the commitment of key national institutions and their personnel like the umpire itself and security agencies that must not and should not abuse their positions to favour one group against the other to secure dubious electoral victory.

As for me, Nigerians should not expect less but more until we are able to entrench a robust electoral process that can throw up only competent and credible people who understand the nuances and praxis of development and are able to run the affairs of state at all levels. My commitment in this regard is unwavering, I will be fair to all who seek to participate in elections under my supervision ensuring that established electoral laws, rules and guidelines are enforced fully, fairly and impartially to all. As part of a team, we shall ensure that INEC remains an independent and effective national institution for the recruitment of competent and committed leaders through the conduct of periodic credible elections and not a tool for electoral manipulation for victory.

We must ensure that hardworking and trusting Nigerian people are able to periodically express their desires for individual and collective development, by freely going to polling units to choose those that should lead them. It is the most cherished right of every adult Nigerian above the age of 18. This job is a call to duty to protect that right, it is a call that we must heed with respect for the peoples rights that we should never undermine, sell or destroy. Every time we ensure that an election takes place freely and fairly and the results honestly counted to reflect how the people voted, it is the greatest respect we show to them and that is what would happen here in Akwa lbom State. This is what the task is about and it is a very important service that those called upon to undertake should never compromise but must discharge to the people.

The Senate appears determined to sanitise party primaries and convention processes to enhance internal democracy in the selection of party candidates with the proposed new amendments to the Act. Is this achievable?

The Senate should be commended for the profound amendments it has proposed to the existing Electoral Act and as I have told a few people, it is revolutionary in terms of the context of electoral reforms because of the broad scope of changes proposed as we

Igini

await the concurrence of the House of Representatives. I hope they sustain it, because if they carry it through, several of the amendments will greatly impact the quality of our elections. Political Party primaries outcomes remain one of the greatest threats to our democracy in Nigeria, these reforms will help to sanitise the process so that parties respect their member’s choices and preferences and have defined and enforceable laws guiding their conducts not subject to multiple subjective interpretations.

It will greatly advance the course of democracy in Nigeria. From what we have come to know, politicians do not like unequivocal definitive rules, they want to leave loopholes making it possible to swing the law as they please rather than conform.

Unfortunately, when they are the victims they cry to all ends but when they are the beneficiaries they extol it. I believe that if you make the laws definitive and practice it, everyone will behave knowing there is a standard for everyone. I say the proposed changes are revolutionary because even in advanced democracies, they also experienced hegemonic resistance of elites to electoral reforms because politicians always want the laws to be in their electoral favour.

So reluctance to electoral reforms by political elites is not peculiar to Nigerian politicians?

Of course, such resistance is not unique to us, in fact, in the case of Britain, the long period of reluctance was despite evidence of vote buying, intimidation and abuses such as many cases of employers punishing employees who ignored their instructions on who to vote for and how to vote.

So given some of the proposals introduced by the Senate, I can tell you

We must ensure that hardworking and trusting Nigerian people are able to periodically express their desires for individual and collective development, by freely going to polling units to choose those that should lead them. It is the most cherished right of every adult Nigerian above the age of 18. This job is a call to duty to protect that right, it is a call that we must heed with respect for the peoples rights that we should never undermine, sell or destroy

the election in line with the provision of the Evidence Act sections 136 subsection (2) in particular and section 140.

This burden of proof is not static and would shift to the petitioner who has petitioned, but first the umpire should place all relevant material evidence before the tribunal before it is shifted to the petitioner. Election matters are sui generis and of a special class that are usually treated differently in terms of practice and procedure.

Recourse to section 131 of the Evidence Act provision that whoever asserts has the onus of proof on the basis of which petitioners are placed with the back-breaking burden of proof should not be extended to election matters like other civil proceedings.

Election Managers have both legal and moral duty to explain to the tribunal in rebuttal of the claims of the petitioner that they complied with the electoral legal framework in the conduct of the election and that the evidence trail substantially conforms with the election result as declared. On the question of what appears to be a loud silence over the general call since 1999 for the establishment of an Electoral Offences Commission, l wish to say that, every commendable efforts made so far to reform the electoral process will amount to nothing if electoral offenders are not tried and sent to jail.

based on my field experience that they will positively impact the credibility of elections if fully implemented because the devil really is implementation. The work of the Senate in this respect is a great leap which is not easy for politicians to make but they have acted like statesmen and women with a consensus that indicates that sanity is required for the common good for a better polity.

It was such common consensus by German politicians that led to the German Political Party Basic Law or Article 21 that regulates political party behavior to ensure that political parties in Germany do not endanger the normative commitment of the German state to democratic practices.

Are you calling for punishment of electoral offenders to stop election rigging and manipulation?

Absolutely, l’m calling for increased targeted deterrence because it is trite criminal axiom that a rewarded and unpunished wrongful act would be repeated. This is the problem and the tragedy of our country seeing people who have been engaged by highly placed individuals to undermine elections, walk freely and beneficiaries of patronage that should be in prison, occupy exalted public offices in the land.

For me, rather than go for a permanent Commission with all the problems of another bureaucracy, corruption and the politics of who should head such Commission and mode of appointment and such Commission becoming another national headache, l propose that some carefully selected judges be made to constitute an Electoral Offences Tribunal with units across the country, like the election petition tribunal to be inaugurated from the time of commencement of voters registration when the act of rigging election begins with politicians colluding with registration officers.

If the Tribunal is able to convict as many offenders as possible, many people would be restrained and afraid to violate or allow themselves to be used during the main election for rigging. We can also adopt the practice of other countries like U S and even in Kenya where all divisions of court are on standby on Election Day to deal with cases brought before them over electoral violations.

For example, in the Kenya general election of 4th March 2013 that l was part of the observer team, the Campaign Manager of a Member of Parliament was arrested by the police over money-for-votes bribery of voters.

Several envelopes containing cash were found on him, he was immediately arraigned, tried, convicted and sentenced a day after for three years imprison-

What do you make of the fact that nothing is done in the area of election petitions management as to whether a petition should be disposed of before swearing in of winners and ‘burden of proof’ whether it should be on INEC and the issue of need for electoral offences commission?

The question of litigation when people have been sworn into office is a fundamental one that needs to be addressed. This is despite efforts made in reduction of time with the amendment of Section 285 of the constitution. We should go back to the practice in 1979 and 1983 when all election petitions are resolved before people are sworn-in to avoid the use of public funds to prosecute individual political aspiration litigation and to avoid distraction of office holders from governing. On the question of burden of proof, I have always maintained and have demonstrated by personal field example that the burden of proof of how well an election was conducted, if challenged, should first be placed on the umpire that conducted the election; made the return and also was in custody of the entire materials used for

SEPTEMBER 23, 2017 ˾ THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER

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INTERVIEW Restructuring is Necessary for National Development ment while the election was still ongoing. It was a significant message sent by the Court as a deterrent to others who want to indulge in such conduct; that electoral manipulation is unacceptable.

That is the kind of thing we should see happen here in Nigeria rather than reward electoral offenders and those who sponsor them to undermine the electoral process.

You have been critical of your constituency, the judiciary and the role of lawyers over the 2015 election. How can the judiciary stem the tide of electoral irregularities and fraud?

Yes, I have been critical of my constituency in many respects borne out of my love for the noble profession, as one calling that is not only to earn a living but as one profession that has a special place in a society for the maintenance and preservation of social order.

Lawyers either in the bar or bench are supposed to be trusted and that is the reason why people go to lawyers to solve their problems but we are today losing the trust and relevance because of the collapse of values and professional ethics. We have jettisioned and sacrificed integrity and honour hitherto associated with lawyers because of politicians who are ever ready to buy their way to keep power not minding the damage to our institutions as we have witnessed in this country. But see what our colleagues in the bench at the level of the Supreme Court did in Kenya annulling a presidential election for failure by the IEBC to adhere to what it called the “dictates of the constitution” even though we are still awaiting for the detailed reasons of the court.

That was what the Supreme Court should have done here with the 2007 presidential election conducted seriously in breach of both the constitution and the Act when ballot papers were not serialised and some ballot papers for the same election where still in South Africa. Standards and ethical values are falling in our society. Our colleagues, especially a few celebrated senior ones that should show good examples are not doing so but have abandoned long held and cherished legal traditions and practices for short term expedient benefits at the expense of core value of professional integrity. We now see Lawyers in court fighting over representation of litigants, when they have not been briefed, Lawyers instituting multiple suits on same matters and parties in different courts or Judges of concurrent jurisdiction literally sitting on appeal over decision of sister courts, cases of lower court judgments that defied precedents laid by the Supreme Court, cases of illogical legal hermeneutics and corruption related problems. If you love the profession, you cannot help but be concerned by these ugly developments and the devastating image crisis, even for the many respected and upright members of the profession in both the bar and the bench. High profile election petition matters since 1999 created a nursery for these issues to breed by fertilizing them with gargantuan rewards. We have a professional obligation to see the inherent dangers and to stem them.

Are you attributing most of the failure of performance to structural problems as the advocates of restructuring maintain?

We should be honest enough and be able to tell ourselves inconvenient truths by acknowledging the genuine and patriotic argument of those you referred to as advocates of re-organisation or restructuring, which is necessary for self-discovery, for the attainment of the potentials of the country instead of stagnation. More governments would come and go and we will not make real progress with this kind of gridlock that we find ourselves except we return to the original template of 1960 independence federal arrangement that brought about the phenomenal competitive developments in the first Republic.

of expectation from a tier of government far away from the people.

Igini

Why should we have a federal road that no federal official of significance go through and the owner is not even aware that such a structure has become a death trap, whereas that road ought to have been the responsibility of the state which has tried to maintain it over time ?

This is why we must reexamine exigently the case for restructuring, it must be seen from the point of view of how to unburden the federal and state authorities from many needless obligations that the constitution has erroneously concentrated to them Recall our excitement for independence and the lofty aspiration then about the potential and greatness of Nigeria, which led to the declaration

by United States President J.F Kennedy then that, ‘’a great child had been born in Africa that would be like America in twelve years’ time”. Today how old is Nigeria as an independent country ? l’m asking you . Almost 57 years and here we are still grappling with the intricacies of how to even live together as a people. American greatness and prosperity is inconceivable if every Secretary of the Treasury of the 50 states in the US or commissioners of finance as will have them here, will have to be going to Washington DC at the end of every month to collect allocations to run those states. The counties and states are centres of development in the US but in Nigeria states are castrated by laws that took control of all resources and so do nothing and at the end of the month commissioners go to Abuja to collect allocation to run the states. It is illogical to operate with this assumption, that the federal government can address the multifarious problems of localities from a central point and here lies the burden

Will progress be difficult if states are not given more autonomy?

Let me give you an example from Delta State, where there is a federal road from Amukpe/Agalokpe through Eku down to Agbor, that has remained impassable for years since when l was in secondary school till date. To go to my place, that normally would have been less than 30 minutes from Amukpe through Aghalokpe, Oviore, Ovu Okpara down to kokori, now you have to go round and round through Warri for over an hour which is a circumvention of the route.

Why should we have a federal road that no federal official of significance go through and the owner is not even aware that such a structure has become a death trap, whereas that road ought to have been the responsibility of the state which has tried to maintain it over time? This is why we must re-examine exigently the case for restructuring, it must be seen from the point of view of how to unburden the federal and state authorities from many needless obligations that the constitution has erroneously concentrated to them, and therefore we need to have a bottom-up participatory development model for our democratic efforts, otherwise government may expend much efforts but not much impact will be felt. When Alexis de Tocqueville wrote glowingly of American federalism, it was because of the significant bottom-up model where counties and towns had an effective structure for addressing local problems locally. Tocqueville said that Federalism enabled national government to focus on primary public obligations “a small number of objects,” he stressed, “sufficiently prominent to attract its attention”, leaving society’s countless “secondary affairs” for the local governance structures.

What I am saying simply is that given the right federal technical assistance, the rice farmers in Kebbi, Asaba, Southern Plateau and Ebonyi local governments can plan and implement a more sustainable rice production strategy and we can extrapolate this to many other spheres.

But some public officials claim that they rely on metrics such as the consumer price index, employment rate and economic growth, in fact some elected governors are claiming that they have until 2019 to demonstrate their impact believing that even when they start slowly they can finish strongly; are they wrong in this assumption?

First, they do not have until 2019.

Between now and the general election in February 2019, they actually have only about four effective months for actual governance free of distraction now that we are in September . Next year 2018 is election preparation year, filled with activities such as party primaries, nominations, conventions and the expected fallouts of these exercises in form of litigations and more such as politicians jumping from one party to another coupled with campaigns. So, next year is out for meaningful business of governance regrettably. Then the general election is in February 2019 that office holders are erroneously referring to as enough time, but which is not available at all. In fact, between September 2017 and February 2019 you have basically four months of what is left of this year only for effective governance and by the time you comply with the 6 weeks adverts required by the Procurement Act and another 5 months for the entire due process before embarking on the execution of significant projects, they basically have no meaningful time left for real governance. This means that they must either have begun whatever they plan to do in this first two years to finish strongly, otherwise they must have trustworthy and effective delegates to hand the task to in the intensely political period that is left. On the metrics

you referred to, yes they can impact on some of them, if they take steps to increase productivity, but not all the factors are fully under the control of the public sector. We need clear quantitative and qualitative indicators for public sector performance to measure progress towards desired outcomes.

What will be the expected desired outcome for measuring the service delivery of INEC, for instance?

Here in Akwa lbom state under my watch, credible, transparent and acceptable election would be the key metrics for INEC performance. We are not where we should be yet but Nigerians could attest to the fact that since 2011, 2015 up till date, the Commission has made steady progress in developing innovative electoral service delivery templates, starting with the successful nationwide compilation of biometric voters register, followed by the production of the PVC and the introduction of the Smart Card Readers that marked a paradigm shift as well as brought about tremendous hope of electoral integrity and credibility. With all sense of modesty, some people have also argued that the progress made so far is unequalled in our prior quest to build an electoral system that would sustain our democracy. Unlike the 2003 and 2007 era, now no more pre-writing of election results in Government Houses, announcement and declaration of governorship election results in INEC Headquarters in Abuja instead of the states where the elections were conducted and other forms of organised electoral fraud supervised by the State in the name of election. The steady incremental progress made so far by the Commission can be measured as evidenced by the elections conducted since 2011 and as we look forward to the 2019 elections for further improvement, especially with the proposed new amendments by the Senate to strengthen the card reader, instead of a reversal of the thresholds that we have crossed. Furthermore, periodic, credible and acceptable elections is the key expectation from INEC to meet the minimal goal of democracy while those elected and appointed must fulfill the maximal goal of democracy through well thought out policy options and priorities to deliver development to the people.

Given the concern many express with our educational system, should INEC be concerned because of its reliance on NYSC for most of the ad hoc personnel used during general elections?

Beyond the needs of INEC we should all be generally concerned.

Quality education is the nursery of a nation’s future, not to pay attention to the quality and outcome of the public and private education at offer in the country is like a specie eating its own eggs; It will go extinct. Take the recent JAMB admission cut-off point dropped to 120 out of 400 marks; that is quite a regression. The way I see it, if you want to improve education you can’t do it by lowering standards, if the scores are low, it should mean that fewer people qualify or meet the standard. There was a time in this country when only 10 people in a school of 80 made WAEC, the standards were not dropped to give more students good grades, they studied harder to make up. I guess the point is evident that we are not educating our people for their utility in Society but mainly to earn grades or earn paper certificates. We should have a strategic approach to education based on our needs and the aspirations of our people. We need a complete 360 degrees on the purpose of our education. What are our critical human resource needs for development, how are we working towards those targets from our education policies? We cannot just be going through the motions, if we seek genuine answers to such questions, we will not need to worry about the quality of NYSC Corpers we will get for future elections.

Saturday, September 23, 2017

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Price: N250

MISSILE PDP to APC

“It is disheartening that rather than accept blame for its ineptitude, the APC government has continued to blame ‘enemies’ real or imaginary for its woes. We had advised not a few times, that the APC should look inward and seek solutions to its self-induced challenges in government.”

– The opposition PDP telling the APC to stop apportioning blame over its administration’s poor handling of the Independent People of Biafra’s crisis.

PENDULUM DELE MOMODU

dele.momodu@thisdaylive.com

On The Road to Port Harcourt

F

ellow Nigerians, I finally returned to Port Harcourt after over two years of absence.

It is strange how time flies and how it changes everything. Port Harcourt had always been one of my favourite cities in our dear beloved country. Once upon a time, Port Harcourt was known and referred to as the garden city because of its blossoming flowers. The good people of Rivers State are particularly warm and affectionate and I really enjoyed their generous hospitality which is so lavish and sincere. I will never forget the wedding of one of the daughters of the great Chief and former Minister, Alabo Graham-Douglas. Port Harcourt, and Rivers State in general, was so peaceful that I flew in our European photographer, Dragan Mikki, to cover the epochal event for us. Security was not even an issue as we boarded a speedboat to go to Abonema, the ancestral home of the Graham-Douglases. There was no fear of our Oyibo photo-journalist being kidnapped. We also flew Dragan from Port Harcourt to Abuja to shoot pictures of our dear First Lady, Mrs Stella Obasanjo, now of blessed memory. Wow, I feel so nostalgic about those good old days.

I made so many wonderful friends in Port Harcourt. Ovation International magazine has had one of its biggest fan base in that fun-loving city till this day. I remember and treasure the evening I was hosted by the big boys of the garden city and I was treated like a visiting President.

I saw enjoyment at its best. I was given the title of O-talk-na-do of Port Harcourt and the whole place reverberated powerfully as a result of the Ovation invasion. I was received at the Government House by the Deputy Governor Sir Gabriel Tamunobiebere George Toby, on behalf of the Governor, Dr Peter Odili, who was out of the country when I visited.

I would later meet and become inseparable friends with the then Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly and later Governor, Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi. I visited whenever I was chanced or invited by Amaechi. Our relationship blossomed when he left his Peoples Democratic Party and joined All Progressives Congress. We worked actively and passionately for the success of Major General Muhammadu Buhari, now President and Commander-in-Chief.

While Amaechi’s stupendous efforts won at the Federal levels, he could not replicate the same on his home tuff. His Governorship candidates and other aspiring legislative ones failed as they were roundly and soundly defeated by the opposition party. I doubt if my friend agrees till this day that his candidates were truly humbled but that is a matter for the courts as events unfolded.

I don’t know, and may never know, what happened in Rivers and how Amaechi the physician could not heal himself after fixing Abuja admirably. That is another story for another day. All I know is that Rivers has not been the same. I read a lot of blistering attacks on the new Governor, Nyesom Wike, who used to be one of the closest friends of Amaechi before things fell apart between them and the center could no longer hold. Since life is about perception, I did not look forward to going to Rivers anytime soon.

All that changed when I least expected. A phone conversation with the great man many of us refer to as “the godfather” in journalism circles, Mallam Ismaila Isa Funtua, changed all that. He had called while I was in Ghana to

Mrs Amina Oyiza Bello and Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State with their son Hayatullah Onoruoyiza Bello personally invite me to the 2017 Nigerian Guild of Editors Summit in Port Harcourt. He informed me he was also talking to Nduka Obaigbena, Chairman of Thisday newspapers, as well as Kabiru Yusuf, Chairman of Daily Trust newspapers.

I was indeed honoured by the invitation and I agreed to return to Abuja and fly from there with these distinguished personalities to Port Harcourt.

The journey to Port Harcourt was smooth as the four of us flew from Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja on a small chartered plane and landed under an hour. Everything was in place for our arrival including, cars and security provided by the Governor. We drove straight to our hotel, checked in, freshened up and rested a bit before going to join the

Governor for dinner. I had not seen Governor Wike since he moved into that Government Lodge where I used to visit my dear friend, Hon. Rotimi Amaechi. As we walked in, the Governor rose to salute “the godfather”, Alhaji Funtua: “my father welcome…” he said. He turned to Nduka Obaigbena, “my boss, how are you?” To Kabiru, “how are you Sir?” And to me, “my brother, I can’t believe you came. I told Alhaji you won’t come…” I smiled and we hugged briefly. I immediately understood why he felt that way but I love peace and would always work for peace.

Wike appeared extremely happy to see us. I saw firsthand why he is regarded as a consummate politician, regardless of what side of the political divide you belong. He understands the game

of reaching out to friends and foes. He did not hold any grudge against me for being one of those who fought tooth and nail to sack their Federal Government from power. As we walked to the garden where he hosted us, he held me at a stage and recollected how I dealt him some heavy blows in my column one day when he was still Minister. He said his whole body was vibrating with emotion as he read my article.

As he spoke, I remembered a Yoruba adage, “the man who used the toilet can forget but the one who cleaned the mess would always remember.” We both laughed over it.

We spent several hours with the Governor who regaled us with exciting tales from behindthe-corridors of power. Believe me, the man knows so much about Nigeria and sure knows how to navigate the murky waters of power as dished up by the political class. He’s a powerful networker who has no bounds or restrictions. His biggest assets are his disarming smiles, raucous laughter and general affability. It is impossible to sit with Wike and not laugh. He had many of his friends and political associates around. It was obvious that he enjoys a grip on the major political actors in the State, including a former Governor, a former Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, a former Party Chairman in the State and several others who sat with us. They were all there to testify to Wike’s ability to unite them. Also with us were senior journalists, Eric Osagie, Managing Director of The Sun and Louis Odion, former Commissioner for Information in Edo State.

We took a walk round the beautifully refurbished State House, including the spanking new Presidential Lodge for visiting Presidents.

Everything was tastefully done. The Governor looked confident and very much at home. He walked us back to our cars and we said goodnight.

We drove back to our hotel at about 1am. It was quite an experience.

READ THE CONCLUDING PART OF THIS ARTICLE ON www.thisdaylive.com

How the Yahaya Bellos Are Fighting Cerebral Palsy In most African societies, children born with cerebral palsy are often victims of social stigmatization. Superstition holds it that these children are either descendants of the gods or children who have been offered by their parents for rituals or other nefarious spiritual purposes.

For most of these children, it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than to be admitted into any school just like other children.

In many homes and neighbourhoods, they are separated from other children, treated with contempt and ridicule and eventually pushed to the fringes of society as outcasts. Indeed, it is a most gruelling and traumatic experience for these children, their parents and other loved ones, many of whom are now forced into a journey of hopelessness, having tried all means possible to find help, to no avail. Not for the Yahaya Bellos.

The story of Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello and his wife, Amina Oyiza Bello, a lawyer, is a remarkable tale of hope and resilience in the crusade to de-stigmatise cerebral palsy, educate people and bring hope and love to the children who are the most affected. The hand of fate

dealt the Bellos an unkind blow in 2007 when what began as celebration with the birth of their son Hayatullah Onoruoyiza Bello was soon cut short upon discovery that their new bundle of joy was stricken with cerebral palsy. It was a pain too hard to bear. Defying the odds, they hit the ground running. From one hospital to another, from country to country and continent to continent, they travelled with Hayatullah in search of a resolution.

In the midst of this crisis, Hayat Foundation, a special intervention foundation that focuses on issues dealing with persons living with Cerebral Palsy and other Disabilities was born. The objective of the foundation is to bring succour, support and improvement to the lives of persons, children, parents and siblings alike, living with cerebral palsy and other disabilities. By this singular gesture, the Bellos have not only confronted their challenge headlong but also stretched out their arms to the less privileged in our society who may not be as lucky as their son. “Because I experienced and felt loved while I was growing up as a child, I became convinced that I have

same responsibility to my son and therefore would not abandon him by hiding him in an obscure corner of the house where people will not see him”, Mrs Bello affirms.

Putting words to action, the Bellos will launch the Hayat Foundation on Friday October 13, 2017 in Abuja. Through this foundation, they hope to set up a Pan-African institute for children with special needs in the mould of the Kennedy Krieger Institute in Baltimore, Maryland, United States.

Already, several well-meaning Nigerians have united behind this noble non-political, non-profit initiative. They include Toyin Saraki, Folorunso Alakija, Abah Folawiyo, Florence Ita-Giwa, Ben Murray-Bruce, Ademola Adeleke, Abike Dabiri, Mo Abudu, Sade Okoya, Laja Adedoyin, Daisy Danjuma, Osasu Igbinedion, Aisha Falode and Adesuwa Onyenokwe. Others are still calling in to support this humble and highly courageous lady who has refused to be cowed or intimidated into hiding her son from the public just because he is physically challenged.

I seriously salute her for this worthy project..

She needs our prayers and support.

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