Sunday 14th January 2018

Nigeria’s Infrastructure ‘Unfit for Purpose’, Says NSE Chineme Okafor in Abuja The Nigerian Society of Engineers has said, at the current state, the country’s infrastructure is "unfit for purpose".

NSE gave its rating in the

2017 National Infrastructure Report Card Rating and Analysis, which was released at the investiture of Mr. Adekunle Mokuolu as the 31st President of the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE) yesterday in Abuja.

According to the report, within the last two years, between 2015 and 2017, Nigeria recorded two points drop in the rating of its infrastructure by the society.

Specifically, it stated that the overall rating of the national

infrastructure was F1, meaning "unfit for purpose".

The report explained that the latest rating of the infrastructure was informed by poor operations and maintenance standards, adding that of all the infrastructure

categories it analysed, only those of the oil and gas sector were relatively seen to be the best performing.

According to the report, “The scope of the National Infrastructure Report Card rating is defined to assess selected

infrastructure at national level rather than regional/state-wise.

Therefore, the results presented provide a national perspective to the state of Nigeria’s infrastructure systems.

Continued on page 10

FG Urges Restraint in Media Coverage of Farmers – Herders’ Crisis… Page 10 Sunday 14 January, 2018 Vol 22. No 8305

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APC Mulls Oyegun’s Tenure Extension to Facilitate Buhari’s Re-election

Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja

In an apparent move to ensure that President Muhammadu

Buhari romps home in his yet-to-be-announced bid for the ruling party’s re-nomination, a strong lobby group within

the All Progressives Congress is pushing for elongation of the tenure of the current National Working Committee led by

Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, THISDAY has learnt. This was as a reliable source within APC confirmed yesterday that

the party had decided to give Buhari all necessary support to run for a second term in 2019.

A top party source said the

current thinking in the party was that Odigie-Oyegun and his Cosntinued on page 10

To Dispel Death Rumour, DSS Presents El-Zakzaky to Public Cleric: I was ill but I’m improving Paul Obi in Abuja Trying to debunk his death rumour and douse tension among his followers, the Department of State Service (DSS) yesterday allowed the detained leader of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria (ISM),

Sheik Ibrahim El-Zakzaky, to speak to a select group of journalists, in his first public Cosntinued on page 10

CELEBRATING OKOYA… El-Zakzaky wearing a cervical collar during his appearance

L-R: Olori Abimbola Balogun; her husband and founder, First City Monument Bank Plc, Otunba Michael Olasubomi Balogun; celebrant’s wife, Alhaja Kuburat Okoya; celebrant and Chairman, Eleganza Group, Chief Rasaq Akanni Okoya; wife of Lagos State Governor, Mrs. Bolanle Ambode; wife of celebrant and CEO, Eleganza Industrial City, Mrs. Shade Okoya; and Chairman, Doyin Group of Companies, Chief Samuel Adedoyin, during Okoya’s 78th birthday party at his residence at Olorunshola Estate, Lekki in Lagos… Friday mubo peters

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FG Urges Restraint in Media Coverage of Farmers – Herders’ Crisis Says it’s working to prevent recurrence Adewale Ajimotokan The Federal Government has made a passionate appeal to the media and public commentators to exercise utmost restraint in their coverage of the fallouts of the recent farmers/herders' clash in Benue State in order not to further inflame passion and worsen the situation.

Also, the Presidency has alerted Nigerians about a fake Twitter handle purportedly belonging to President Muhammadu Buhari which had been posting spurious messages.

Making the appeal in a statement on Saturday, Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, said while the Federal Government was working hard to address the situation with a view to preventing a recurrence, not just in Benue State but everywhere across the country, it was incumbent on the media and public commentators not to engage in actions that could aggravate the crisis.

The said: ''Lest we are misunderstood, we are neither saying the media should not cover the crisis nor asking public

commentators to desist from commenting on it. All we are saying is that both must be circumspect. ''The current poisoned atmosphere of incendiary comments, unrestrained use of pictures and footages that offend human sensibilities as well as finger-pointing can only exacerbate the situation and complicate ongoing efforts to end the crisis.�

Mohammed said government was “absolutely saddened by the loss of lives and the destruction of property resulting from the crisis.

He recalled that President Buhari, while commiserating with the Benue governor over the killings, “unreservedly condemned the killings and also assured of the necessary security measures to prevent further attacks and bring the perpetrators to book.�

Assuring of the government's strong determination to find a lasting solution to the farmers/ herders' clashes, the minister said the Federal Government had also mapped out short and long-term solutions to the incessant clashes between farmers and herders, including

a planned conference of stakeholders, Meanwhile, the Presidency has also alerted Nigerians about a fake Twitter handle purportedly belonging to President Buhari.

The president’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina, said the parody account had been posting spurious messages justifying the attacks by herdsmen, saying they were only defending themselves. “Evil doers and enemies of our country are obviously at work, seeking ways to further

advance their pernicious acts.

The message is denounced in its entirety, and President Buhari stands by his earlier condemnation of the killings in Benue and other parts of the country as dastardly and unacceptable before God and man. “Those behind the concocted message are also enemies of God and man, who have no place in a decent society. The President stands by his earlier directives that all those behind wanton killings in any part of the country must be brought to book�, Adesina added.

the secret service.

On the rationale behind the decision to grant El-Zakzaky a public appearance and speak to journalists, a DSS official, Nnana Nnochiri, said: "In the last few days, two days to be particular, yesterday importantly, there was unfounded rumour which was spread across Nigeria that the leader of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria, Sheik El-Zakzaky, passed on in the custody of the service.

"As you can see in the last few minutes and you also interviewed him and he by himself pointedly told you that he is okay‌ every doubting Thomas

across Nigeria and those, who wanted to capitalise on the said rumour to foment trouble in Nigeria have seen that the man is alive. He's on his feet, he is hale and hearty. He is up and doing and you saw him with his wife.

"The fact was that some people wanted to take advantage of some developments in some parts of the country to further make trouble and mobilise the people to engage in untoward activities, which can impact negatively on the security, stability and order of the nation.

"The fact is that now that they have seen that the man

is alive, now that they have seen that nothing happened to the man, it is our belief that such persons, who ab initio, had planned such things to take advantage of such situations and who have seen that the rumour is unfounded should desist from any plan, every act they must (have) put in place.

"Nigeria must remain very peaceful, Nigeria must remain very stable, Nigerians must trust in the government, and security agencies to provide the environment to enable citizens and everyone and every peace loving person to pursue their legitimate business," he added.

as well that the endorsement of the executive can follow the same line. As it stands in Nigeria today, I will not advise the party go into internal feud, it won't be in its interest now.�

Okechukwu said that the zoning arrangement in the party, like the other parties in the country, which required the positions of presidential candidate and party chairman to be shared between the northern and southern regions, favoured Odigie-Oyegun’s retention as national chairman. Okechukwu said since Buhari was going for a second term, there was no need for a change of guard at the party’s leadership.

The VON director-general said, “The tradition in liberal democracy has been that if the zoning of the office of the incumbent president is going to remain where it is, the zoning of party national offices naturally falls in the same way because the zoning is either adjudged by the geopolitical considerations or other factors.�

The ruling party has been criticised by the opposition Peoples Democratic Party for failing to hold a convention

in the last two years in contravention of its own constitution. However, APC at its last NEC meeting in November tried to correct the anomaly by directing that a non-elective convention be held before the end of 2017. But the leadership of the party shifted the non-elective convention to this year, saying that it would like to align activities leading to its convention with the 2019 election timetable to be released by the Independent National Electoral Commission.

According to the INEC timetable, which was recently released, collection of nomination forms by political parties for national and state elections will be done between August 11 and 24, 2018 while conduct of primaries, including resolution of disputes for national and state elections, will be between August 18 and October 7, 2018. Also primaries for FCT Area Council elections will hold between September 4 and October 27, 2018.

The INEC timetable also fixed commencement of campaigns for the presidential and National Assembly elections

for November 18, 2018, with the campaigns to end February 14, 2019. For the governorship and state assembly elections, the campaigns will commence December 1, 2018 and end on February 28, 2019, according to the timetable.

While speaking last year on the mini convention, APC’s National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, said though no date had been fixed for the non-elective convention, the party had asked NEC to fix dates for all outstanding activities of the party before the main elective convention.

Abdullahi had stated, “Like I said after the NEC meeting, because we were unable to hold the convention at the scheduled time – our mini convention scheduled for July 2017 – that means that all the programmes that the party has would have to dovetail into one another. We have the party's state congresses coming up, we have the mini convention and the elective convention coming up that must happen by the first half of next year (2018).�

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo, who was a special guest of honour at the investiture, expressed doubts that electricity supplies in Nigeria had made some remarkable progress. But, he hoped there would be changes in the sector when the programmes initiated under the National Integrated Power Projects (NIPPs) are completed.

Clad in a cream overflowing native attire with a matching cream cap that has brown details, Obasanjo, made these remarks when he mounted the podium to present awards to recipients at the event.

When one of the award

recipients, a former Managing Director of the Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC) Limited, Mr. James Olotu, was called up and presented the award, the former president said he wanted to be sure the claims by Mokuolu during his citation that Olotu completed the construction of 10 power generation plants under the NIPPs were true, and hence, he asked Olotu behind the microphone to confirm that to him.

Turning to the audience after that, Obasanjo said: “If you want to know what I was asking him when the president (Mokuolu) said the 10 power plants have been

completed. I asked him if they have been completed and feeding power to the grid, and he said 85 per cent of them.� “That depends on what you are getting in your homes. Let’s hope that 100 per cent of them would be completed and all of them would be feeding power into our homes; maybe we will see the change.

Congratulations,� he added.

The former president however refused to speak further on this. He also did not respond to questions directed to him by reporters who accosted him on his way out of the investiture ceremony.

TO DISPEL DEATH RUMOUR, DSS PRESENTS EL-ZAKZAKY TO PUBLIC appearance since he was arrested in 2015.

El-Zakzaky and his wife were arrested in December 2015 in Zaria after his followers clashed with the convoy of the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. General Tukur Buratai. A clampdown by the army reportedly led to the death of scores of his followers who were reportedly given mass burial.

Even though a Federal High Court in Abuja in December 2016 ordered El-Zakzaky and his wife’s release, the court order was not complied with by government.

His followers, who are also known as Shiites, have staged series of protests

in some northern states, including Abuja, calling for his release. The past few days however witnessed a resurgence of their protests in Abuja following reports of his deteriorating state of health and rumours of his death.

At the brief meeting with journalists, El-Zakzaky who wore cervical collar, an indication that he suffered an injury to his neck at a point in time, said though he was a bit relieved, he was severely ill. The Shiite leader, who held a walking stick, also disclosed that the DSS allowed his personal doctors access to him for the first time.

He said: "It was severe

on me on Monday, but subsequently, it started subsiding and for the first time at least, the security has allowed me to see my own doctor.

"So it was my own doctors, who examined me. Before, I'm used to being examined by security doctors, but this time, I did not agree. So, it was my own doctors who came to examine, but I'm getting better. Thank you for all your prayers," El-Zakzaky stated.

A woman who wore a pink hijab, believed to be his wife who is also in detention, walked behind him as he exited the DSS building before he was driven in a vehicle to another facility of

APC MULLS OYEGUN TENURE EXTENSION TO FACILITATE BUHARI’S RE-ELECTION NWC should be allowed to stay in office a little longer to enable them organise the presidential primaries that would endorse Buhari later in the year as the candidate of APC in next year's presidential election.

Odigie-Oyegun and other members of the NWC were elected on June 13, 2014 for a four-year tenure, which would end this year. Though, the former governor of Edo State can seek re-election as APC national chairman, he is said not to be keen to vie again for reasons bordering on age and political considerations. The tenure elongation idea, THISDAY gathered, has gained ground within the party. Those trying to get him to continue as national chairman, and who are also pushing the Buhari re-election move, believe extending the NWC’s tenure would help to ensure stability and avoid internal disruptions, disaffections, and realignments that usually follow elective conventions. Which is why they are keen to push such contest forward, and have it after Buhari’s endorsement as the APC presidential candidate.

According to the source, the

approval for a three-month extension of tenure for the NWC may be sought through a nonelective convention to be held in June. It said Buhari loyalists considered Odigie-Oyegun a more trusted person to deliver the ticket of the party to the president without precipitating crisis. They believe that it would be too risky to take the party through two elective conventions in one year due to the negative fallouts of such exercises. Again, the possibility of not resolving the crisis that may result from the election of new national officers in good time may spell doom for the ruling party ahead of the presidential poll in February next year.

Another argument in support of the retention of Odigie-Oyegun is that since he organised the December 2014 national convention in Lagos, where Buhari emerged presidential candidate of the party, which many saw as a big boost for the party ahead of its victory in the presidential election, he should be allowed to replicate the feat.

It is however, uncertain how a key segment of the party

loyal to one of APC's national leaders who ones called for Odigie-Oyegun's resignation would react to the attempt to extend his tenure.

Many of the governors elected on the platform of the APC have openly supported Buhari's second term bid. However, there is no consensus yet on the kind of arrangement that would be adopted to hand the party's ticket to Buhari without undermining the democratic process and incurring the anger of some critical stakeholders. At the party’s last NEC meeting, members unanimously passed a vote of confidence on Buhari, saying he has performed satisfactorily. The national chairman also got a vote of confidence.

Underscoring the need to retain the national chairman, a chieftain of APC and Director-general of Voice of Nigeria, Osita Okechukwu, told THISDAY yesterday that, “Very few members of our party are in hash tones saying Mr. President should not go for second term, but majority had already endorsed him for a second term. It follows

NIGERIA’S INFRASTRUCTURE ‘UNFIT FOR PURPOSE’, SAYS NSE “The overall rating of Nigeria’s Infrastructure was F1 - unfit for purpose.

This rating is a further drop by two points for E2 in the previous rating carried out two years ago (2015). This rating generally portrays a perceived decline in the state of Nigeria’s Infrastructure.�

The national infrastructure report, which the immediate past president of NSE, Mr. Otis Anyaeji, presented to the Minister of Science and Technology, Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu, who represented President Muhammadu Buhari, stated that the present state of social mass housing in Nigeria was deplorable, and 64.2 per cent of the

country’s city dwellers live in slums with inadequate living conditions.

It also rated the country’s power infrastructure low on progress, adding that it dropped from its E1 rating level (poor state) to F2 (unfit for purpose: infrastructure has failed or is on the verge of failure, exposing the public to health and safety hazards. Immediate attention required), while its security infrastructure was rated F3 (unfit for purpose), its educational infrastructure, F2, its agriculture infrastructure, F1, and its information technology infrastructure, E3, meaning it is on a poor state and on the verge of

failure.

The report explained that 1,661 responses were obtained from the 36 states of the federation and Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Abuja, with a larger percentage of responses coming from Lagos, Abuja, Rivers, Delta and Kaduna respectively. “Expectedly, therefore, participants are key stakeholders or opinion leaders whose input and involvement in the subsector is significant enough to be able to influence the provision or public perception of the standard of service or performance of the Infrastructure,� it further explained.

T H I S D AY ˾ SUNDAY JANUARY 14, 2018

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JANUARY 14, 2018 ˾ T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R

SUNDAY COMMENT

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

2019: BETWEEN POLITICS AND GOVERNANCE The electioneering campaigns for the next election should not be done at the expense of suffering Nigerians

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n what can be described as an open invitation to partisan frenzy and scramble for the power stakes, given the nature of our political environment, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has announced a schedule for the 2019 general election. And like all election seasons, this year will test the ability of the incumbent president to balance the abiding imperatives of governance with the exigency of political survival. Yet if the morning, as they say, shows the day, Nigerians have serious cause to worry that 2018 may be another wasted year.

To underscore the urgency of the moment, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr Boss Mustapha, last week appealed to the National Assembly members to expedite action on the passage of the 2018 budget because there is no luxury of time. “Intense political activities will begin this February and as public officials, we have to quickly deliver,” said Mustapha though the question remains as to what can be achieved within the remaining one month. Besides, with reports of governors, including those bereft of ideas on how to run their states going to ‘beg’ the president to seek re-election, it stands to reason that the “intense political activities” spoken about by Mustapha may have commenced apace.

Unfortunately, prior to the INEC signal, many of the politicians had gradually drowned our national discourse in partisan rhetoric. But the stakes were raised even further when President Muhammadu Buhari allowed some of his more ardent devotees to

This is the time for the National Assembly to look again at the laws on campaign financing. We need to ensure that incumbents at every level are not squandering public funds to gain undue advantage over their rivals in the upcoming elections

Letters to the Editor

POWER AND CONTROL

GOOD & SERVICEORIENTED LEADERSHIP

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

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

openly canvass the prospect of a second term for him. One cabinet minister went as far as appointing himself the lead promoter of a Buhari 2019 campaign organisation; making the public announcement after a meeting with the president at the State House. Another minister has reportedly been quietly appointed to head the presidential campaign machinery. The latter development has neither been confirmed nor denied by the parties.

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n this national frenzy for political campaigns, governance is bound to suffer as appointed officials are drafted into partisan roles. While the professional civil service is meant to sustain the tempo of governance at all times, the reality of our situation is that both political direction and executive initiative rest with appointees for whom the political survival of their parties and principals mean everything. The situation is made worse by the flagrant abuse of process by incumbents—at practically all levels—who most often, divert public resources to partisan political ends. This is the origin of the ‘empty treasury’ syndrome that greets the beginning of every new administration in our country.

However, our main concern is the implications of partisanship, especially by those handling sensitive positions, including the security agencies, at such a critical period as this in the life of our nation. While extant government regulations require that political appointees seeking elective positions resign from those offices, those who do not seek any elective offices yet play active partisan roles hide under a lacuna in the law to compromise their offices to the advantage of their principals. Meanwhile, even when those who run our governments and decide for us in all the parties are partisan champions, the broad majority of Nigerians are mostly non-partisan. In any case, regardless of whether they are partisan or not, all citizens are entitled to all the services and functions which justify the existence of governments in the first place.

To that extent, we ought to insist first that all those who in this election season must play active partisan roles should excuse themselves from all public offices.

This is also the time for the National Assembly to look again at the laws on campaign financing. We need to ensure that incumbents at every level are not squandering public funds to gain undue advantage over their rivals in the upcoming elections. But beyond that, President Buhari and his henchmen must put the interest of the suffering Nigerians first at all times, even as they plot their legitimate aspiration for a second term in office.

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

KADUNA AND THE VALOUR OF DISCRETION

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olitics and education are on a collision course in Kaduna State. This collision was only a matter of time. Bitterness was brewing all along. When the damning result of the controversial Teacher Competency Test, initiated

by Governor Nasir el-Rufai, indicted the expertise and experience of an entire generation of teachers (about 22,000 in number), observers and sympathisers surmised that it was merely the first shot fired in what would prove to be a longrunning war of attrition. With the recent indefinite strike embarked upon by the Kaduna State Chapter of the Nigerian Union of Teachers(NUT), that prognosis is sadly proving true. And just as it is the grass that bears the brunt of the weight and thrashings of two clashing elephants, it is the future of the school children of Kaduna

State that is placed on the stakes of this battle. Put broadly, this strike, which is a response to an action touted as redemptive, simply imperils their future.

Given the gravity of what is said or unsaid, done or left undone in the bruising battle, discretion must be applied like a balm to soothe the many sores of the face-off.

That Nigeria lurches about today in the dark meadows of retrogression can largely be ascribed to the many troubles education has had to grapple with.

The many problems facing Nigeria are largely direct consequences of our failure as a country to prioritise education and place it on its deserving pedestal. Experience garnered from far and near has unfailingly shown that when given its right of place, education has within its means, an

unbridled power to effect difficult and uncommon changes.

The morbid failure to prioritise education has paid us back, and sumptuously too, in minds and intellects completely undeveloped or inchoately developed.

This legion of deformed and stunted minds has not only robbed Nigeria of critical partners in the project of progress, it has willingly churned out gleeful saboteurs of Nigeria`s progress.

The result has been sobering.

With so few transparent hands on the deck, amidst many soiled ones, the ship of Nigeria`s progress will continue to suffer fluctuating fortunes.

We are a people familiar with strikes borne out of intransigence.

Education has had its fair share over the years. Labour has been treated to a lavish share too. No one has been counting the costs.

Those extortionate costs have largely failed to alarm us into action. This strike in Kaduna State should never have been allowed to commence. With proper management of the embarrassing fallout from the competency test, it could have been prevented. As if generations of Kaduna children have not suffered long enough at the hands of ill-baked teachers, this brewing battle is poised to claim its most critical scalps yet.

The NUT, Kaduna State Chapter, has counted the governor`s crimes to include: allegedly defying a subsisting order of court to sack some of its members, and a flagrant breach of civil service rules, among others. However, the governor in doing everything in conjuction with the teachers to steady the ship of education in Kaduna State must ensure that his actions or inactions are not tainted by the mud of politics. Because while politics and education are not mutually exclusive,

education possesses far more superior resources. Thus, it must provide the compass with which politics must proceed.

While it is true that the colossal failure recorded in the teacher competency test sent shockwaves throughout the state and beyond, just as it is true that a lot of Nigerian teachers are not fully qualified to teach, discretion must be applied in steering the ship of education out of this mess.

The NUT, on its own part, must understand that its core objective of protecting the interests of its members must dovetail nicely with the more critical task of ensuring that the school children of Kaduna State get education of the highest quality. This simply cannot flow from incompetent hands.

This battle is yet another crack through which Nigerians can see the harm done to the country`s system through so many years.

––Kene Obiezu, Abuja

T H I S D AY ˾ SUNDAY JANUARY 14, 2018

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OPINION Public Service And Inspirational Leadership Trained, visionary and strong leaders impact their organisations positively, argues Akintola Benson Oke

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ublic service is the institution that drives activities of government. It operates with professionals and non- professionals from whom it demands a special aptitude, training, language, discipline and culture. It is the major instrument used by government to implement its policies, programmes and plans. No wonder many refer to it as the engine room of governance! Hence, for any government to do well, it must be backed by a virile and visionary public service.

In envisioning a public service peopled by leaders, we are mindful, as Robin Sharma observed that: “Leadership is not about a title or a designation. It is about impact, influence and inspiration.

Impact involves getting results, influence is about spreading the passion you have for your work, and you have to inspire team-mates and customers.�

The Lagos State Government under the leadership of Governor Akinwunmi Ambode fully recognises the enormous value that knowledge and soft skills training bring to bear on the attainment of the strategic objectives of the government and the state’s public service. This is why it has always been in the vanguard of advocating for the institutionalisation of essential training programmes that benefit the most strategically-placed officers in the public service.

Indeed, it is a truism that high performances have been known to increase in organisations that expose their human capital to leadership development through training programmes that help boost the dynamism, effectiveness and efficiency of the workforce.

The need for ensuring and assuring the efficiency and effectiveness of public institutions has never been greater than now. In a dynamic age of constant changes, it is widely agreed that institutions must have clearly-defined missions that are relevant to the needs and aspirations of its stakeholders. Following this, the human capital at the helm of leadership in these institutions must have the courage to envision a future that realises the attainment of the defined mission of the institutions. In order to actualise the vision, however, leaders must be trained to possess both the hard and soft skills that are fundamental for success.

The Anglia Ruskin University clearly articulates the benefits of strong leadership skills as follows: “In order to make the most of your proficiency in the workplace, it is important to develop your leadership skills. Whilst talent and a good work ethic will take you to a certain level, learning how to lead will get you to the top of the tree. If you can demonstrate that you know how to lead, you will

often be rewarded with a position that carries more responsibility, the ability to delegate and, of course, a good salary. Those who can lead know how to make important decisions that affect both themselves and people across the business, without deferring to anyone else. This is an absolute necessity for getting ahead within business – as long as you can prove the decisions you made were the right ones‌�

That observation is profoundly true as it relates to the benefits of leadership skills for the leader. I also wish to briefly comment on how the possession of the right skills will positively impact on the effectiveness of institutions.

Leadership is the most influential and critical element of all businesses. Effective leaders have the necessary tools and skills to inspire and impact their teams, allowing firms to run competently and smoothly. A good leader must understand the mission statements, objectives, action plans and goals of the organisation to be able to lead the workforce into realising them.

Indeed, only strong and trained leaders can envision the right and appropriate future for organisations. Where leaders do not possess the attitude, aptitude and skills that are relevant for the times, they become fundamentally flawed in any attempt to craft a beneficial and compelling vision for their organisations. And, as we all know, in the absence of vision, the people perish as the institutions become rudderless and their journey becomes one without a map.

Trained, visionary and, therefore, strong leaders will also beneficially

Leadership is not about a title or a designation. It is about impact, inuence and inspiration. Impact involves getting results, inuence is about spreading the passion you have for your work, and you have to inspire team-mates and customers

impact their organisations by being able to inspire the people in the organisation to enthusiastically buy into the vision crafted by the leadership. There is no effective leadership without a mobilised and enthused followership. A strong leader who resolutely believes in the vision of the organisation will magnetically attract followers who will join the movement to fulfil the mission and realise the vision. This calls for the presence of excellent communications and relational skills in the leaders of organisations.

In today’s world, a strategic leader must be able to act as a communication champion and a sense giver rather than just as an information processor. He must be able to use key elements of effective listening and understand why listening is important to communication. He must also be able to utilise candor to appropriately improve communication effectiveness, and recognise and apply the difference between dialogue and discussion. Additionally, he must be equipped to incorporate metaphor and storytelling into leadership communications, select an appropriate communication channel for the message and effectively use social media and non-verbal communication. Furthermore, and perhaps, most essentially, he/she must be able to effectively communicate during times of stress or crisis.

Trained leaders also know how to manage their own and other people’s time effectively. Being able to do so is critical when it comes to making the most of the leader’s time in the office and not becoming overwhelmed. Furthermore, it also ensures that the trained leader’s team completes everything it is supposed to do.

Furthermore, benefits that leadership skills can bring include the ability to resolve conflict, the ability to negotiate effectively for the benefit of the organisation, the aptitude to innovate and the skill to communicate quickly and effectively.

It is in view of the foregoing that the Lagos State Civil Service has always been in the forefront of innovation and dynamic effectiveness in the nation and the Ambode administration is dedicated to the maintenance of this noble position in the country. It is for this reason, among others, that diverse trainings have been approved and organised for the benefits of the critical and invaluable human resources in charge of the institution of the public service. The overall goal is to build a crop of public officials who could efficiently assist the government in proffering possible solutions to complicated problems. ––Dr. Oke is Lagos State Commissioner for Establishments, Training and Pensions

How Not To Fix The Economy Francis E. Ogbimi contends that Nigeria needs industrialisation to grow, and not mere capital investment

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he Nigeria of today is certainly not the Nigeria of 1960.

Nigeria in 1960, had 15,703 Primary Schools with 2,912618 enrolled; 883 Secondary Schools with 135,364 enrolled; 29 Vocational/Technical educational institutions with 5037 enrolled; 315 Teachers’ Training II with 27,908 enrolled; and three Colleges of Technology, one University College.

In the 1997/98 academic year, Nigeria had 39,377 Primary Schools with 23,809000 enrolled; 6000 Secondary School with 6,05600 enrolled; 58 Colleges of Education, 45 Polytechnics, 122 Technical Schools and 40 Universities with 983, 000 enrolled. Nigeria now has over 150 Universities (NUC, 2017) and produces over 300,000 graduates in the year. So, the Nigerian educational system has grown tremendously in quantitative terms and has produced many educated/learned people.

Nigerians have also been travelling abroad to virtually all nations to acquire education in various areas of knowledge. Nigerians have learnt a lot in about 57 years. Nigeria is a more knowledgeable nation than she was in 1960s. Sadly, Nigerian politicians have not changed, indeed they are worse than they were in 1960s. This article explains why the political group called the Peoples Democratic Party which ruled Nigeria in the period 1999-2015 and the political group called All Progressives Congress which has been ruling the nation since 2015 cannot fix the economy and promote democratisation.

In two newspaper articles entitled, “Nigeria needs political parties: Present groups are political machines and conspiracies (1),�and “Nigeria needs political parties: Present groups are political machines and conspiracies (2),�published in the Daily Independent newspaper, December 23 and December 30, 2014, I did not consider PDP and APC as political parties because they do not have the characteristics of political parties.

Yes, Nigeria needs political parties because the political groups in Nigeria remain political machines and political machines who seize power. President Dwight Eisenhower (1956) of the United States, reflecting on the issue of a political party, said, a political party deserves the approbation American, only as it represents the ideals, the aspirations and the hopes of Americans. If it is anything less, it is merely a conspiracy to seize power. About 20 years later, Daniel Boorstin (1973), American historian, again reflecting on the issue of a political party, said, a political party is organised for a purpose larger than its own survival; a political machine exists for its own sake, its primary purpose is survival. I agree with President Eisenhower and Boorstin.

Political groups in Nigeria do not represent the ideals, the aspirations and hopes of Nigerians; they exist for their members.

Politicians at the local government, state and federal levels get into government and become very rich people in three months. In view of the millions of barrels of crude petroleum sold daily for over five decades, over 70 per cent of Nigerians are very poor. The Nigerian politicians would claim that the nation is doing well. They would not accept the well-known bases for assessing the performance of a government – the state of the economy measured by the levels of employment/unemployment, productivity and inflation, and peace and harmony. Also, Nigerian political machines would not accept globally accepted reports like the UNDP Human Development Report, because they would clearly reveal that they are political machines and conspiracies with no plans to develop Nigeria. They would rather cling to the reports of less known bodies like Fitch and deceive the ignorant people that Nigeria is rated BB-, BC+; Nigeria has the highest GDP growth in Africa that will trickle down one day; Nigeria built roads and bridges, dams; etc., to God be the glory!

Political machines connive with foreigners to deceive the ignorant people to adopt programmes which though have beautiful names, lack growth elements and do not promote growth and development. Nigeria adopted the Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP) in 1986 when the military government of Gen. Ibrahim Babangida was ruling the nation. All governments, including PDP and APC governments since 1986 have continued to implement SAP. The PDP implemented SAP in the period 1999-2015. The APC has been implementing SAP since May 2015. SAP has three principal elements.

They are: one) the mandatory foreign exchange market (FEM), two) the sale of public enterprise and liquid assets to the rich nationals and foreigners and three) adoption of deregulation (laissez-faire economics or market economic philosophy or profit consideration, individualism) as the basis for assessing the performance of public projects and activities. African SAPs were introduced to Nigeria and other African nations in the 1980s by the World Bank and IMF. The original document (Bellow, 1986) claimed that the Nigerian SAP has four main objectives. They are to: one) restructure and diversify the productive base of the economy, two) achieve fiscal stability and positive balance of payment, three) set the basis for a sustained balanced non-inflationary or minimal inflationary growth, and four) reduce the dominance of unproductive investments in the public sector. However, the analysis of the Nigerian SAP in the book entitled, “Understanding why Privatisation is promoting unemployment and poverty and delaying industrialisation in Africa (Ogbimi, 2007), showed that the Nigerian SAP lacks growth elements and could not achieve any of its claimed objectives. SAP is merely

promoting unemployment and poverty and delaying industrialisation. Consequently, SAP has completely sapped and destroyed the Nigerian economy and impoverished the people. All that is left of Nigeria is a sapped majority of people and a destroyed naira. There are also a few economists, accountants, bankers, lawyers, others in government and business who do not understand the science needed for increasing productivity and transforming an agricultural economy into an industrialised one, who daily repeat the financial clichĂŠs associated with SAP and the stock market.

An important warning to all Nigerians is pertinent here. Mrs. Margaret Thatcher, a former Prime Minister of Britain, once said that to destroy a nation, you first destroy her national currency.

She was speaking in relation to the experience of Germany when the nation implemented the German SAP 1919-1923. Germany lost WW I in 1918 as the leader of the Axis powers. The Allied powers demanded $33b from Germany as war reparations. Germany could not pay. The Germans were forced to implement the German SAP principally characterised by the mandatory forex market (FEM). The German Market exchanged 4.2 units to the US$1 in 1919. In 1920, 63 Mark exchanged for one dollar. The Mark further depreciated in 1921, it exchanged 200 units to the dollar. The Mark depreciated catastrophically in 1922, it exchanged 2000 units to the dollar. In 1923, the Mark collapsed, it exchanged 4.2 trillion units to the dollar and stopped being a national currency. The Germans and Germany were seriously humiliated. But the strong will of the Germans saved them. They abandoned SAP in 1923 and printed another currency which the value was one trillion Mark, reverting the exchange rate to 4.2 units to the dollar. In the book on privatisation above (Ogbimi, 2007), it was demonstrated that a nation operating mandatory FEM experiences increasing speculation and decreasing productivity. Also the currency experiences increasing devaluation till confusion sets in the nation. The German experience is sufficiently instructive.

Nigeria’s planning has always been devoid of growth elements.

What Nigeria needs is industrialisation, not mere capital investment/Foreign Direct Investment (FDIs), not privatisation, not mere erection of infrastructure, not entrepreneurs. Industrialisation is promoted through learning – education and training. The Nigerian economy has been stagnating hence it is experiencing mass unemployment. Only mass education, mass training and mass employment can save the Nigeria of today.

Professor Ogbimi wrote from Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JANUARY 14, 2018

LETTERS JOKING WITH CHILDREN’S EDUCATION

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’m an enthusiastic believer in the saying that the education of a girl means the education of an entire community. But that is not to say that the boy child isn’t relevant in the educational calculation.

Those behind the aphorism are simply conveying the meaning that since a female gender is enormously gifted with the natural attribute of care, it makes a whole lot of sense to educationally empower a girl for the societal reason that as persons usually tasked with providing care to children, it is of strategic essence that she would inevitably pass on her knowledge to her offsprings.

Sadly, in Nigeria of our time, education from the point of view of public policy formulation and implementation is a huge joke.

Aside the perennial poor budgetary provision to fund the sector especially as it relates to early childhood education, there is also this aspect of knowing exactly which level of government is charged with the education of the Nigerian child.

For a very longtime, there has been this deliberate deception sold to readers that primary and basic education is the primary responsibility of state governments. But the debate has

Adamu Adamu, MInister of Education

continued till date regarding the appropriate governmental arm that should be charged with the obligation of delivering qualitatively sound primary education.

The 1999 Constitution in part two article 30 seems to have established that the duty to educate Nigerians is captured within the concurrent legislative list implying that both the state and federal levels of government can provide education to

the citizens.

That section states thus: “Nothing in the foregoing paragraphs of this item shall be construed so as to limit the powers of a House of Assembly to make Laws for the State with respect to technical, vocational, post-primary, primary or other forms of education, including the establishment of institutions for the pursuit of such education”.

However, one constant fact

is that both the state and federal governments seem to have endangered the educational future of Nigerian children by deliberately avoiding the monitoring of the implementation of how the Nigerian children are educated.

There is obviously a deliberate lack of effective supervision of the kind of education that state governments deliver to our children who are the leaders of tomorrow.

This virus of neglecting the educational right of the Nigerian child is as old as independent Nigeria which goes to explain why majority of the educational facilities built for the education of our children have become deteriorated in standards and indeed have substantially become dysfunctional.

Before committing these thoughts into writing, I took out four hours to visit over 24 public primary schools in the Federal Capital Territory and nearly same number in Onu-Imo local government council of Imo state to see for myself how far the standards of facilities have declined.

My findings brought tears to my eyes because I saw derelict structures looking like war- time relics in which our children in their millions are dehumanised in the guise of being educated.

Again, I recall visiting nearly

The Imperative of Restructuring Nigeria

F

rom observations, there is no doubt that our leaders are experts in listening without being attentive to the masses, an attribute that has, in turn, made their relationship with the people civil but cold. A situation occasioned by our handler’s inability to learn that ‘success is a lousy teacher which makes a winner feels that he cannot lose’.

This climate of opinion surrounding leadership in Nigeria has again made the recently well-chiseled speech of President Muhammadu Buhari as delivered in a nationwide broadcast on January 1, 2018 unacceptable by the critical minds. A particular reference to that speech that has received several knocks is the president’s hanging and the asymmetrical statement about the nation’s restructuring where he among other things stated that ‘no human law or edifice is perfect. Whatever structure we develop must periodically be perfected according to the changing circumstances and the country’s socio-economic developments’.

With appropriate humility, the above statement made by the president was correct and commendable but his silence on how this imperfect structure/edifice should be corrected is condemnable.

In like manner, identifying that imperfection exist in the first instance in my views makes the call for the nation’s restructuring inevitable and eminently desirable. Catalysing the process of reforming this changing circumstance

as muted by the president should be the preoccupation of the FG .and also acts as the propeller to having our federal framework reworked.

The above is imperative as the current posturing has made the government at the centre become the dispenser of goodness by proxy while leaving the federating states idle and lazy which is against the spirit of the federal system of government and the expectation of the masses.

What the masses are saying and wanting in my understanding is that the padding of the second schedule of the exclusive legislative list, of our 1999 constitution with 68 items has made Abuja suffer ‘political obesity’ and need to shed some weight via power devolution What the people are saying is that the over-bloated exclusive list has made our nation to currently stand in an inverted pyramid shape with more power concentrated at the top and the base not formidable enough making collapse inevitable if urgent and fundamental steps are not taken.

What the proponents of restructuring are saying is that majority of the items are too trivial for the federal government to handle and should serve the greater good of the people if left in the hands of both the state and the local government. This is the hub of the masses expectation.

Items such as police and some government security services, mines and minerals; including oil fields, oil mining geological surveys, control of

parks, stamp duties, public holidays, taxation of incomes, profits and capital gains, and insurance among others to my mind should find their ways back to the states and the local councils.

To illustrate the effectiveness of the above, if we had had state police in Nigeria, chances are that these gruesome killings that is ongoing in some sections of the country would have been better managed.

However, it will not be out of place if the states and local councils are allowed to handle all these and made to pay taxes when necessary to the federal government. By so doing, the federal government will be freed from handling the tiny details which prevent them from looking at the bigger national issues. In the same vein, it will empower states/ regions and local councils that have been technically rendered redundant.

This, in my view, is the synoptic baggage of what Nigerians are asking for and achieving it is a simple assignment. To get started will require Mr. President presenting an executive bill demanding for the nation’s restructuring before the National Assembly as waiting for the lawmakers to initiate such bill may translate to waiting till eternity.

The president needs to do this as that may be the only major effort he needs to convince the masses that he can take the nation out of the political and socio-economic impasse.

But in making this call, I am

well aware that there is nothing more ‘difficult to handle, more doubtful of success, and more dangerous to carry through than initiating such changes as the innovator will make more enemies of all those who prospered under old other’.

But any leaders that do will come out powerful, secure, respected and happy. This is an opportunity that Mr. President must not miss.

Therefore, this is the time for the president to prime and position himself for this major national transformation.

This time is auspicious for Mr. President to make his vision sharp and his goal clear to all. And this is the time in history for President Buhari to demonstrate that the credibility of his leadership is built not in words but action.

Another key point on the part of the masses is that for us to achieve this, we must rise above our divides by undressing ourselves of the garment of tribal loyalties which in many cases has proved to be stronger than a common sense of nationhood. Let us at this critical moment of our existence remember that we cannot solve our political and socio-economic challenges with the same thinking we used when we created it.

Let’s make no mistake about it, for us to build the Nigeria of our dreams, we must graduate our ‘thought system and loyalty to a level of being united rather than sectional. Our loyalty must transcend our race, our tribe, our class and we must develop a world perspective on the affairs of our nations’.

10 public primary schools in the United Kingdom two years ago and I can report that I saw functional and World’s standard school system for children. Any wonder then that the UK is classified as First World’s nation but Nigeria is perpetually classified as Third World’s. It looks increasingly that the policymakers in Nigeria are proud to continuously identify Nigeria as a Third World’s country so they can continue to deliberately under-develop the nation but at the same time sending their children to be educated in the Western World. This tendency to destroy educational institutions in Nigeria and to educate children of the political class in some of the best in the West should be viewed as a crime against humanity.

This is because an inevitable fallout of this spectacular collapse of the primary educational system in Nigeria is the large numbers of out-of-school children from millions of indigent homes.

By some calculations, there are around 100 million poor house-holds in contemporary Nigerian society. The fate of millions of children from such

impoverished homes therefore hangs precariously in the balance.

This pathetic demographical nightmare came alive when some few years back, the United Nations through her educational agency (UNICEF) conducted a research which came up with the frightening result that there were at least 10 million out -of -school Nigerian children.

About that time, the then President, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan rolled out a programme aimed at enrolling the 10 million out-of-school kids back to school but the measure was grossly inadequate because the government concentrated her efforts on addressing the cases of Northern boys known as Almajiris.

The then government built modern educational institutions for these boys but as soon as the government lost power to the current administration of President Muhammadu Buhari, that effort of educating Almajiris was consigned to the dustbin of history.

–Emmanuel Onwubiko, Head, Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria

WHY TELEVISION REPEATS ARE WELCOME

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love weddings. Weddings are supposed to be one of the happiest days in a lifetime of a new couple and I look forward to a fairy tale wedding even though they are rare.

One of the most glamourous wedding events in recent times was the wedding of Mr. and Mrs. Bankole Wellington.

We all looked forward to this occasion because besides being a fan of the Wellingtons, Banky and his beautiful bride, Adesua are a symbol of class and panache. But again, not everyone had the opportunity to get an invite to this near fairy tale wedding.

Just last week though, I got a text message from a friend that the #BAAD 2017 wedding (that was what the couple hash tagged their wedding) will be aired on DStv on Saturday. I was so excited but then again my excitement quickly faded when I remembered that I would not be home to watch the show as I had an important assignment at work and even worse, I couldn’t for now afford one of those decoders that gave you access to record programmes.

Then again I was so excited when the following day, Sunday, the same wedding programme I missed was repeated on AfricaMagic channel 151. Wow! it was so exciting; the two-hour programme got me glued to my seat from start to finish.

I was never a fan of repeats on TV. However, for those of us with tight schedules who also can’t afford to get a decoder that can record TV programmes, we are now fans of

programmes repeats.

I found out recently that repeats are part of the pay TV programming structure around the world and that the reason programmes are repeated are twofold or even more.

The first and more popular reason is to increase the opportunity for more people to catch programmes they may have missed on its first airing.

Sometimes a movie is shown at night on a certain day, then at daytime the next day or a few days later as occurred with the AfricaMagic airing of The Wellingtons wedding.

Another reason repeats happen is sometimes directed by the content owner. When entering into a contract to lease or purchase content, the content owner has the right to stipulate that the programme is shown a certain number of times, what time of the day and so on.

Additionally, I recently read that there are only about 600 new movies produced annually. If this is true, it means that television broadcast times for these movies will be just 1200 hours of movies and if a single channel broadcasting 24 hours a day needs 8760 hours of content annually, it’s a clear indication that programme repeats cannot be ruled out as you only have so many movie hours to fit in.

Until I can afford a decoder that records TV programmes like the DStv Explora, I beg DStv to help repeat interesting programmes that I missed out on as I have become an advocate of TV programme repeats.

––Okeh, a broadcaster, writes from Port Harcourt

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THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER Ëž ÍŻÍ˛Ëœ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍś

INTERNATIONAL

The New DĂŠtente in US-North Korea Nuclear Stalemate: Dynamics and Challenges

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here is a recent dĂŠtente in the nuclear stalemate between the United States and North Korea. The dĂŠtente has the potential to reduce the tension and speed of the journey to a possible nuclear war of which the two countries are currently the co-pilots. DĂŠtente is an important diplomatic word in peace-making and international relations lexicon. Unlike entente, also a French word, which means an ‘understanding,’ of the type of ‘gentleman agreement’ or a ‘memorandum of understanding,’ dĂŠtente is about easing of tension and pressure, the outcome of which is improvement in a relationship.

An entente can be cordial in objective, but belligerent in style and implementation. For example, the Entente Cordiale of April 8, 1904 done by Great Britain and France, was to enable diplomatic cooperation against Germany, considered then as a common enemy. In fact, the entente cordiale was a direct resultant from the belief of ThĂŠophile DelcassĂŠ, French Foreign Minister as from 1898, that a ‘Franco-British understanding could give France some levels of security against German system of alliances in Western Europe.

What is noteworthy about the 1904 Entente Cordiale is that it granted freedom of action to Great Britain in Egypt and to France in Morocco, but bearing in mind the interests of Spain in Morocco.

Additionally, the Entente Cordiale not only required Great Britain to cede the Los Islands (off French Guinea) to France, but also defined the international borders of Nigeria in favour of France, as well as gave France the control of the upper Gambia valley. In return, France renounced exclusive right to certain fisheries off the Newfoundland. In this regard, the ultimate purpose of the Franco-British understanding was targeted at Germany, the main agent provocateur of World War I. Eventually, when the first World War broke out in 1914, the 1904 Entente Cordiale came in handy as one of the good bases of the anti-Germany struggle.

On the contrary, dĂŠtente, the origin of which is traceable to a Latin word, detendita or detendere (past participle), is essentially about slackening or loosening. In fact, dĂŠtente is a compound word in origin: de, meaning ‘far away from; and tendere, meaning stretch.

Consequently, when discussing dĂŠtente in the context of diplomatic negotiations, it simply refers to the taking away of irritants in a relationship. It refers to relief. In this regard, in order to understand the fundamental difference between an entente and dĂŠtente, we must look at entente as a fait accompli, as a concluded agreement, on the one hand, and dĂŠtente as a process of achieving an entente, on the other hand. DĂŠtente is more about means or an instrument. It is transitory in nature and can take different forms.

For example, the nature of the new dĂŠtente in the US-North Korea is limited in scope to the disagreement over acquisition of nuclear capacity by North Korea. The nature is very political, especially in light of the conflicting national interests involved, as well as the conflict between the supranational authority of the United Nations and the authority of the Member States of the international community. How do we explain and understand the emergence of the dĂŠtente and its dynamics? US President, Donald Trump has declared his intention to teach the North Korean leader some lessons, probably in the manner of the 1945 little man in Hiroshima and the ‘fat man’ in Nagasaki. In the eyes of Donald Trump, JongUn of North Korea is, at best, a nuclear neophyte who will require the type of ‘little man’ dropped on Hiroshima, Japan during World War II. More importantly, what is the prospect of the dĂŠtente in light of the international politics of it?

VIE INTERNATIONALE with

Bola A. Akinterinwa Telephone : 0807-688-2846

e-mail: bolyttag@yahoo.com

There are three main issues on which US-North Korean political stalemate is largely predicated: unity of North Korea and South

Korea, North Korea’s nuclearisation efforts, and the controversy over whose national sovereignty is superior. Regarding national unity, it should be recalled that the Koreans fought a civil war for three years, one month and two days, that is, from 25 June, 1950 to 27 July, 1953 at the Korean peninsula. North Korea invaded South Korea following border clashes but the invasion did not succeed as South Korea enjoyed the active support of the United States.

In the same vein, the United States-led United Nations invasion of North Korea amounted to nought because China and the former Soviet Union also supported North Korea. It was therefore a war in which North Korea, China and Soviet Union faced South Korea, United States and its allies. Even when China invaded South Korea, it was successfully repelled. The war was brought to an end on July 27, 1953 with the signing of the Korean Armistice Agreement, done in English, Korean and Chinese, and which provided for the ‘complete cessation of hostilities and of all acts of armed force in Korea until a final peaceful settlement is achieved.’ Most unfortunately, however, the armistice agreement was not, stricto sensu, a peace agreement but essentially for demilitarisation.

It established a demilitarised zone, and by so doing, a new border. It compelled a cease-fire and enabled the repatriation of prisoners of war. Consequently, the issue of unity of the two Koreas has always remained on the front burner.

There is no disputing the fact that both countries want to unite in the same way West Germany and East German did by breaking the Berlin wall. In fact, there is a special Ministry for Unification in South Korea but the international politics has been a major impediment. For instance, many countries, including some veto powers of the United Nations Security Council (United States, United Kingdom, and France), as well as some very prominent developed countries, such as Canada, Belgium, West Germany before unification, Australia, Netherlands, the Nordic countries, Spain and New Zealand are backing South Korea. The main reason is the need to sustain capitalism and market economy. North Korea also has its supporters: China and Russia as veto power supporters, Eastern Germany before unification, Romania, Poland, Hungary Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, India, Mongolia.

From the foregoing, the supporters have various vested interests.

The United States does not appear to be interested in the unity of the two Koreas because of the need to sustain democracy and capitalism in South Korea. North Korea has a socialist system. China does not also appear to have much interest in a united Korea for reasons of national security. China shares international border with North Korea. In this regard, North Korea serves as a buffer zone for China.

Besides, it should be recalled that the United States is not only considered an enemy state in the eyes of North Korea but also particularly in the perception of the Beijing authorities. For instance, the United States favours two Chinas (Mainland China, which is socialist and Taiwan, which is capitalist) but China is vehemently

Donald Trump

Kim Jong Un

The Issues Involved

opposed to this. China is only interested in condoning ‘One China, Two Systems.’ Hence, China and the United States have their own Cold War within the context of the Korean nuclear saga. In light of the foregoing, to what extent can there be a lasting dĂŠtente in the context of a divided or unity-seeking Koreans?

This issue of unity should also be underscored in light of the foundation of the dĂŠtente, which is the manifestation of a quest for togetherness. The North Korean leader, Jong-Un, proposed that the two Koreas show togetherness by marching together at the Winter Olympic Games scheduled to take place in February 2018 in Pyeongchang, South Korea. This was not the first time. The two Koreas initiated sports diplomacy as far back as 1957 with the ultimate objective of forming a united team at the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. The objective failed. The 2000 attempt succeeded as athletes from both sides operated under a single flag that depicted the Korean peninsula during the opening ceremony of the games in Sydney.

North Korea’s proposal to participate in the coming Olympic winter games in Pyeongchang could not have been rejected in light of the common quest for national unity. It is useful to also remember that the South Korean leader, Moon Jae-in, was on record to have also been calling for reunification of the two Koreas. As noted by Hyonhee Shin and Josh Smith, President Moon Jae-in was once ‘an advocate of former President Kim Dae Jung’s Sunshine Policy of reconciliation with the North’ (vide their “The Challenge of Turning inter-Korean Thaw into Long-term dĂŠtenteâ€? (Reuters, World News, January 10, 2018). He therefore saw North Korea’s request for participation in the Olympic winter games as a new possibility to douse the nuclear tension between the United States and South Korea, on the one hand, and North Korea, on the other. This brings us to the second dynamic of the relationship: nuclearisation or non-nuclearisation?

PoliticsofNuclear Capacity Acquisition

The international politics of nuclear capacity acquisition is largely responsible for the tension in the bilateral relationships between North Korea and the United States. The politics is located at the level of the distinction between the nuclear-weapon-states and the non-nuclear-weapon-states as provided for in the 1968 Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, generally referred to as Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

The nuclear weapon-states are countries that had tested a nuclear explosive device before January 1, 1967 and these countries are essentially the five Permanent Members of the UN Security Council.

The NPT, which was opened for signature in 1968 and entered into force in 1970 for an initial period of 25 years, before it was renewed indefinitely by consensus on 11 May, 1995, is predicated on three main pillars: non-proliferation of nuclear weapons; disarmament; and peaceful uses of nuclear energy.

North Korea ratified the NPT on December 12, 1985 but gave notice of withdrawal on January 10, 2003 following US allegations of non-faithfulness by North Korea to the NPT. The notice of withdrawal came into effect on April 10, 2003. Why the withdrawal? ‘As provided for in the NPT, the NPT non-nuclear-weapon-states agree never to acquire nuclear weapons and the NPT nuclear-weaponstates in exchange agree to share the benefits of peaceful nuclear technology and to pursue nuclear disarmament aimed at the ultimate elimination of their nuclear arsenals.’ However, the NPT is only good on paper as it is not seriously adhered to: the nuclear-weapons-states do not want to disarm. They still have more than 22,000 nuclear warheads in their combined stockpile, And yet, they do not want new nuclear-weapons-states.

The argument often advanced is that others cannot be well trusted with the use of nuclear energy. When other world leaders reflect on the experiences of the 1945 US atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, especially that the United States prohibited by law the transfer of its nuclear weapons to any other country; if we take note of the 1961 United Nations General Assembly resolution seeking to negotiate a treaty that would ban countries without nuclear weapons from acquiring them and from transmitting information necessary for their manufacture to nations not possessing nuclear weapons; when the lessons of the 1962 Cuban nuclear missiles are also considered; if we remember that the 1963 Sovieto-American agreement on the Limited Test Ban Treaty, which did not ban nuclear weapons tests underground; and more importantly, if we consider that some countries refused to sign the NPT because they too wanted and still want to become nuclear-weapon-states; the struggle by North Korea to underscore sovereign equality, right to self-reliance in the area of scientific development cannot but be well understood. This brings us to the consideration of the third dynamic: North Korea’s non-acceptance of American hegemony.

The main rationale for North Korea’s nuclearisation struggle is how the United States is perceived. North Korea considers the United States as its number one enemy, a belief that informed the need to prepare to repel any eventual American aggression. As noted above, North Korea ratified the NPT in 1985 and withdrew from it in 2003. The withdrawal was to have free hands in the acquisition of nuclear power status. This was why in 2005, on February 10, North Korea made it clear to the whole world that it had already had nuclear weapons and therefore pulled out of the Six-party talks, which was hosted by China.

(See concluding part on www.thisdaylive.com)

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JANUARY 14, 2018

BUSINESS

Business Editor Vincent Obia Tel: 08054681757 Email: vincent.obia@thisdaylive.com

N1.6tn Bonds Listed on FMDQ OTC Exchange in 2017 LAST WEEK

Economy TheWorldBankforecastthateconomic growth in Nigeria would edge up to at least2.5percentin2018,asthecountry benefits from improved commodity prices,investmentsandtrade.According totheWorldBank’sJanuary2018Global EconomicProspectreportlaunchedon Tuesday in Washington DC, Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product is expected to grow by 2.8 per cent in 2019 and 2020. The World Bank forecast that global economic growth will go up to 3.1 per cent in 2018. According to the bank, growth in Sub-Saharan Africa is projected to continue to rise to 3.2 per cent in 2018 and to 3.5 per cent in 2019,onthebackoffirmingcommodity prices and gradually strengthening domesticdemand.However,thereport showedthatgrowthwouldremainbelow pre-crisis averages, partly reflecting a struggle in larger economies to boost private investment.

CBN The Central Bank of Nigeria has set state-by-state target for the 21 commercial banks and 942 micro finance banksinthecountrytoensurethatevery Nigerian adult has access to financial services. CBN’s Branch Controller, Federal Capital Territory, Elizabeth Agu, made this known on Thursday in AbujaattheinaugurationoftheFinancial Inclusion State Steering Committee meeting. She said CBN had broken down the target state-by-state “to ensure that the masses and people at thegrassrootshaveaccesstofinancial services, such as payments, savings, credit, insurance and pension.”

A view of Marina in the central business district of Lagos

Bamidele Famoofo

Bonds worth about N1.60trillion were listed on the trading floor of the FMDQ OTC Securities Exchange in the financial year ended December 31, 2017, THISDAY can report.

The FMDQ OTC Securities Exchange said it admitted the listings of seven bonds in the financial year. These were apart from 33 commercial papers (CPs) worth N152.35billion quoted on the floor of the securities market in the review period.

The FMDQ OTC Securities Exchange provides the platform for trading short and mediumterm securities, where investors could pick quick returns on their investments.

“By their admission to the FMDQ platform, these securities gain access to the full complement of the unsurpassed FMDQ listings and quotations service, which include, but is not limited to, improved secondary market liquidity, efficient listings/quotations process, unprecedented transparency and information disclosure, global visibility and improved network effects,” FMDQ OTC disclosed during the review of activities in the market in the period.

The latest of the listings was the Pioneer Diaspora Bond and the Federal Republic of Nigeria (FRN) Eurobonds listed by the Debt Management Office (DMO) in the month of December, 2017.

ECONOMY

The FRN Diaspora Bond – $300.00 million 5.625per cent Diaspora Bond due 2022 issued in June 2017, along with the two tranches of the FRN Eurobonds – $1.50 billion 6.500 per cent Notes due 2027 and $1.50 billion 7.625 per cent Notes due 2047 under its $4.5 billion Global Medium-Term Note Programme Eurobonds, were listed on the OTC Exchange to promote, among others, visibility for the issues and financial inclusion.

In the course of the investment year, the FMDQ OTC admitted commercial papers valued at N160.00billion. Corporate organisations, which raised short term capital by means of commercial papers in the review financial year included Lafarge Africa PLC, one of Nigeria’s leading cement manufacturers, which raised N60.00 billion and First City Monument Bank Limited, N100.00 billion.

The Wema Bank PLC N3.41 billion Series 1 and N13.62 billion Series 2 CP Notes under its N50.00 CP Issuance Programme were also quoted alongside Lafarge and FCMB on the OTC Exchange in the month of October. The FMDQ OTC revealed that the month of October saw key activities in the CP quotations space on the OTC Exchange.

FMDQ said it commenced the year with the commemoration of the successful quotation of the

Access Bank PLC N8.45 billion Series 1, N4.22 billion Series 2 and N22.33 billion Series 3 Commercial Paper (CP) Notes under its N100.00 billion CP Programme on the OTC Exchange.

“This marked the beginning of a year, which saw significant activity in the CP market as corporates made a deliberate move to tap the debt market to raise short-term finance to support their business operations.”

In yet another remarkable and historic feat, FMDQ, also in July, welcomed the listing of the pioneer Infrastructure Debt Fund on the OTC Exchange. Chapel Hill Denham Management Limited, following the approval of SEC, The FMDQ remains very optimistic about the possibilities of the Nigerian markets and looks ahead to 2018 with much eagerness and expectation

registered and established the N200.00 billion Nigeria Infrastructure Debt Fund (NIDF) Issuance Programme, and subsequently issued the first series under this Programme – Series I 49,450,000 Units of N101.20 each, on FMDQ’s platform.

The NDIF was the first-ever listed infrastructure debt fund in Nigeria (and Sub-Saharan Africa) and aims to enable investors ac-

cess infrastructure as an asset class, while providing the benefit of predictable returns available from long dated infrastructure debt investments.

Notwithstanding the successes achieved under the leadership of Mr. Onadele Bola-Koko, chief executive officer at the FMDQ OTC Securities Exchange in 2017, the market is upbeat about a better performance in 2018.

“Despite some challenging conditions faced in the markets during some periods in the year, they proved to be encouraging in terms of market development, and have, no doubt, set the pace for a significantly positive outlook for 2018”, the OTC market revealed.

The FMDQ remains very optimistic about the possibilities of the Nigerian markets and looks ahead to the coming year 2018 with much eagerness and expectation.

The OTC Exchange noted that it recognised the potential of fully-functional debt capital markets (DCM) and financial markets at large, and will remain steadfast in innovating and providing efficient services and infrastructure, as may be necessary, to support issuers, investors, government and their agencies and other corporate businesses at large, towards achieving an economy that would support sustainable development and directly impact the citizenry.

Power Powergenerationinthecountrymayhit afreshsnagfollowingtheexplosionthat ruptured the Escravos-Lagos Pipeline onThursday, even as generation from hydropower plants dropped by 494 megawattsinsixdays.Aheavyexplosion rocked the pipeline criss-crossing the Ugbokodo community near the Warri refinery in Okpe Local Government AreaofDeltaState.Theincident,which sources said occurred around 4am, forced residents of the community to scamper for safety in the bushes when they discovered that the inferno that resulted from the explosion was advancing towards their homes.

NSE TradingontheNigerianStockExchange maintained a bullish run with the AllShare Index hitting all-time high of 43,041.54, while market capitalisation crossed over to N15.317 trillion.

Reportsindicatedthattheindexroseby 1,225.43pointsor2.93percenttoclose higherat43,041.54against41,816.11 recorded onWednesday. Similarly, the marketcapitalisation,whichopenedat N14.880trillion,inchedN437billionor 2.94percenttocloseatN15.317trillion followingpricegrowthinanticipationof 2017auditedresults.ChiefOperating Officer, InvestData Limited Ambrose Omordion attributed the market rally to investors’ anticipation of improved 2017 audited results that would start hittingthemarketverysoon.Omordion saidinvestorswerepositioninginstocks withgoodfundamentalsaheadofearnings release. Seplat led the gainers’ table with a gain of N15.01 to close at N675.01 per share.

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JANUARY 14, 2018

BUSINESS/ECONOMY

United State Dollars

With Foreign Reserves’ Steady Rise, CBN Policies Yielding Fruits Following the significant accumulation of external reserves to $40.4billion, the highest since 2014, Kunle Aderinokun and Bamidele Famoofo examine factors responsible for the quantum leap and the benefits to the economy

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igeria, most populous and largest economy in Africa, recorded many firsts in 2017. The most significant, perhaps, was its exit from recession in second quarter in 2017 while GDP later grew by 1.4 percent a quarter later. In December 2017, a report from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) showed that the real sector of the economy had recorded a consistent growth for 10 months.

Again, five days into 2018; the apex bank announced that at $40.4 billion, Nigeria’s foreign reserves recorded the highest growth in four years.

According to the Central Bank of Nigeria, the growth indicated an increase of about $1 billion between December 2017 and January 2018.

Foreign exchange reserves (also called forex reserves or FX reserves) is money or other assets held by a central bank or other monetary authority so that it can pay, if need be, its liabilities, such as the currency issued by the central bank, as well as the various bank reserves deposited with the central bank by the government and other financial institutions. Reserves are held in one or more reserve currencies, mostly the United States dollar and to a lesser extent, the Chinese yuan.

Meanwhile, the quantum leap in Nigeria’s foreign reserves portfolio has remained a subject of debate among multilateral organisations like the World Bank and local institutions in Nigeria. While the former have linked the growth to a favourable commodity price in the world market, the CBN maintains that its policies on foreign exchange management have brought the gains to the nation.

The World Bank suggested in its January 2018 Global Economic Prospect report launched last week Tuesday in Washington DC, that an upward revision to Nigeria’s growth forecast was based on expectation that oil production will continue to recover and that reforms will lift non-oil sector growth.

“Nigeria is anticipated to accelerate to a 2.5 per cent rate this year from one per cent growth in the year just ended. An upward revision to Nigeria’s forecast is based on expectation that oil production

will continue to recover and that reforms will lift non-oil sector growth,” the report said.

The World Bank expects Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to grow by 2.8 per cent in 2019 and 2020 respectively.

A report from the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) corroborated the position of the World Bank that Nigeria’s economy growth, which also has impacted its external reserves, is in no way disconnected with an increase in crude oil prices which is particularly favourable to Nigeria.

According to OPEC, price of Nigeria’s Bonny Light crude oil reached $67.10 per barrel to emerge the highest priced product among members of Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) recently. “Apart from Bonny Light crudes, other Nigeria’s oil grades such as Brass River and Qua Iboe also appreciated in value to sell at $65.32 and $61.22 per barrel respectively on Tuesday, January 2, 2018, at the international market”.

But the CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, who in November last year at a gathering of bankers, economists and key stakeholders in the economy in Lagos, predicted that the nation’s foreign reserves, which has witnessed a positive growth over the last 12 months, from just over $23 billion in October 2016 to over $33 billion in October 2017, will hit the $40billion mark in 2018, said the feat was achieved largely due to the policy direction of the bank on foreign exchange.

His words: “The accretion in reserves does not only reflect increased inflow but also our shrewd forex demand management strategy. When we introduced a policy restricting 41 items from our forex markets, we were called all manner of names”.

Apart from its restriction policy on import, Emefiele disclosed in December last year that the nation’s foreign reserves rose to $38.2billion with the issuance of Eurobonds by the Federal Government.

He described the external reserves figure as the highest in 39 months.

In November, the Federal Government raised $3billion through Eurobonds, which were oversubscribed by about $11billion and split across 10-year and 30-year tranches at issuance yield of 6.5 per

cent and 7.625 per cent, respectively.

Some financial experts could not agree less with the Nigeria’s number one banker as they said the positive growth witnessed in Nigeria’s economy in the last 10 months was due largely to the forex management policy of the CBN. They identified the source of resurging forex liquidity and stability in the sectors as the emergence of the popular Investors’ & Exporters’ (I&E) FX Window, which has been operational since 10 months and stable oil prices.

Specifically, financial experts at Afrinvest Securities Limited, in their weekly market update, noted that improved liquidity in the FX market remain a key determinant of the performance of the broader economy, as recent developments in manufacturing and non-manufacturing sectors has indicated.

They however noted that despite improvements recorded in 2017, gains still remain “fragile” as the impact is yet to be reflected in non-oil sector growth figures, which was unimpressive in third quarter data as provided by the Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) for December, released by the CBN. Under the renewed forex intervention and management policy of the CBN since February 2017, these sectors were given opportunities to obtain the much-needed forex liquidity to sustain activities amid dwindling forex earnings by the country.

Acting Director, Corporate Communications, CBN, Mr. Isaac Okoroafor, explained that restricting access to official market against importers of the 41 items was the major turning point that helped to stop the haemorrhaging of the country’s external reserves, which hitherto witnessed heavy depletion due to huge import bills and other debt obligations.

According to him, the CBN policy had ensured a decline in Nigeria’s import bills from over $5 billion monthly in 2015 to about $1.5 billion in 2017.

He expressed optimism that with the determination of the bank and the cooperation of the fiscal authorities, the external reserves will continue to enjoy more accretion in the course of 2018.

CEO, Global Analytics Consulting Ltd, Mr. Tope Fasua, noted that the accretion to reserves was a great development, as occasioned by rising crude

oil prices, and the institution of better controls by the Central Bank. The deliberate policies to encourage exports and reduce importation - even where unpopular - are having salutary effects.

Fasua, however, cautioned that, there are two downsides. “The first is that fiscal policy is still dismal, thereby putting a question mark to how long we can sustain this run. Nigeria still budgets yearly for some of the most frivolous items that no other country will permit. “Secondly, we need to be sure that as reserves are increasing, the national debt is not galloping at a far higher pace such as to net off and render useless the current accretion,” he noted.

Fasua added: “A number of our peers are doing far better in economic management. Algeria has a strong debt sustainability policy even though it also relies on crude oil. Its external debt is currently around $3billion while its reserves stand at over $130billion. If looked at from the overall economy I doubt if we should commence celebrations yet.”

Similarly, Director, Union Capital Market Ltd, Egie Akpata, stated that for the external reserves to hit the $40billion mark was a positive and welcome development.

Specifically, Akpata noted that it showed that “the CBN strategies to improve the FX situation are working.”

“Part of the rapid growth in reserves came from a sharp reduction in imports, some of which was driven by CBN policies.”

Akpata explained that, ”The significant rise in oil prices last year also played a very important role in the rate FX was able to accumulate in the reserves.

“It is possible that the biggest factor in this reserves growth was the success of the I&E window which recent reports say has recorded $26billion in transactions since inception.

Without the significant FX inflows from foreign portfolio investors, it is unlikely reserves would have gotten to $40billion.”

Akpata, however, pointed out that, “The challenge for the CBN is how to ensure that those foreign investors don’t start to leave in large numbers as we approach the early 2019 elections.

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JANUARY 14, 2018

BUSINESS/CAPITAL MARKET

Trading on the floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange, Lagos

Equities Market Rallies to Record High Sustained demand by investors following expectations of impressive 2017 corporate earnings, strong fundamentals, and improving macroeconomic outlook drive equities market to 10-year high, writes Goddy Egene

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he recovery of Nigeria’s equities market in 2017 was expected after three consecutive years of decline.

While the market fell 16.14 per cent in 2014 and 17.3 per cent in 2015, it closed 6.17 per cent lower in 2016.

After those three years of decline, a recovery was expected in 2017. The market eventually rebounded and posted 42.3 per cent growth last year.

Operators had envisaged that the bullish trend recorded in 2017 would continue into 2018. However, nobody had anticipated the unprecedented level of rally recorded in the last eight days. The market has appreciated by 12.6 per cent in eight days as high demand for bellwether stocks lifted the market to a new high.

The Nigerian Stock Exchange All-Share Index rose from 38,243.19 at the end of 2017 to 43,041.54 as at Thursday. Similarly, market capitalisation added N1.71 trillion to close at a new high of N15.317 trillion since 2008.

Record Gain The early year market rally has been attributed to the activities of bargain hunters, who are taking position ahead of positive results from companies for the year ended December 31, 2017. The Nigerian stock market had closed 2017 among the top best performers. Specifically, 67 stocks recorded gains, while 38 depreciated. Some of the stocks appreciated above 100 per cent. The highest price gainer for the year was Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc that posted a gain of 227 per cent.

International Breweries Plc, Fidelity Bank Plc, Fidson Healthcare Plc, and Dangote Flour Mills Plc, appreciated by 194.5 per cent, 192.8 per cent, 189 per cent, and 185 per cent, respectively.

Assessment Market operators and analysts attributed the positive performance to some factors.

For instance, analysts at Meristem Securities Limited said positive sentiments dominated the Nigerian equities market in 2017 as investor confidence was restored following release of impressive financial scorecards. They also acknowledged

developments such as the increase of Nigeria’s weighting in Morgan Stanley Capital International Frontier Market Indexes, and the introduction of the Investors’ and Exporters’ FX window in April, which increased the participation of investors in the equities market.

Similarly, analysts at FSDH Merchant Bank said, “The performance of the market in 2017 was driven by: the increase in the price of crude oil; introduction of the Investors’ and Exporters’ (I &E) foreign exchange window leading to stability in the foreign exchange market; improved corporate earnings and the drop in the yields on the Nigerian Treasury Bills.”

Looking ahead, operators and analysts had projected another bull run for the market in 2018.

According to MSL, “Given that we expect the Nigerian economy to maintain its steady growth, we do not expect the market to deviate from its current trend; hence, we opine that this positive momentum will be sustained in 2018, albeit at a slower pace on the back of the high base effect in 2017.”

Similarly, FSDH said they expected the factors that drove the equity market in 2017 to support the market rally in 2018.

FSDH said, “We observed a strong correlation between the historical movements in the NSE ASI and the crude oil price (Bonny Light). The current consensus is that the average price of crude oil will be marginally higher in 2018 than 2017.

The inflation rate should decline further in 2018.

FSDH believes the expected drop in the equity market in first quarter (Q1) 2018 is an opportunity for strategic investment in the market ahead of the expected rally in second quarter (Q2). The following sectors should perform well in 2018: banking; building materials; consumer goods and agriculture.”

In their own assessment, analysts at WSTC Financial Services Limited say the equities market is expected to be driven by liquidity in the FX market, improving economic activities, impressive corporate performance and softer yields on fixed income securities in first half (H1) 2018.

In a similar vein, Vetiva Capital Limited has said

equities will have the upper hand in comparison to the fixed income space. According to the research analysts from the investment banking firm, “Despite the 2017 equity market rally driven by a partial liberalisation of the country’s exchange rate regime, the Nigerian Stock Exchange remains relatively undervalued.” They have projected further gains for the equities market in 2018, with an estimated full year return of between 15 per cent and 20 per cent.

Vetiva also presented its “10 High Conviction Stocks” for 2018, representing key counters on the NSE that present strong fundamentals and are expected to outperform the market in the year. With their “10 High Conviction Stocks” outperforming the board market return by 15 per cent and 16 per cent in 2016 and 2017, respectively, Vetiva highlighted Tier II banking stocks, among others, as key recommendations for 2018.

On the broader economy, Head of Vetiva Research, Olalekan Olabode, said, “As the Nigerian economy continues its recovery, possible political tension ahead of 2019 elections could cap gains from the wider economy. The second half of 2018 is likely to be blurred by possible political and social volatilities, whilst electioneering could potentially distract policy-makers and delay investment. The silver lining can be found in Nigeria’s more mature democracy in terms of credibility and transition, ensuring that the economy progresses relatively unencumbered.”

Also speaking, Chief Economist of Vetiva Capital, Michael Famoroti, stressed the need for brave policy action to shift growth beyond first gear. According to Famoroti, amid a more accommodative global environment, Nigeria should have confidence in boldly pursuing its internal growth agenda.

He stated, “Internally, the most notable improvement would be the full recovery of oil production, currently around 2.0 mb/d, to a level close to, but still short of the 2018 budget benchmark of 2.3 mb/d (forecast: 2.1 mb/d). From this, we can expect to see further consolidation in federal government revenues and the foreign exchange (FX) market.”

The analysts cited fast moving consumer goods, industry goods, banking, and construction as

the sectors that will deliver significant returns to investors in 2018. They said, “FMCG, industrial goods, banking, construction, and upstream oil and gas are poised to benefit most. Regulation constitutes a key risk to the downstream oil and gas industry. We expect a modest contraction in net interest margin in the banking industry in H1 2018.”

The inclusion of banking sector as one of the sectors that will perform well in 2018 is not surprising considering its performance in 2017. The banking sector, measured by the NSE Banking Index, grew by 73.3 per cent to lead other sectoral indices.

Fidelity Bank (+192.86 per cent) topped the gainers’ chart in the banking sector while recording the third highest return in the entire market. On its trail were Stnabic IBTC Holdings Plc (+176.67 per cent), FBN Holding Plc (+162.69 per cent), UBA (+128.89 per cent), and Access Bank Plc (78.02 per cent).

On the other hand, Jaiz Bank , Wema Bank Plc and Unity Bank Plc were the only counters with negative annual returns as their share price recorded respective declines of 49.60 per cent, 3.70 per cent and 3.64 per cent, in that order.

Analysts at MSL said active investor participation was seen in the sector, as investors reacted to the inflow of favourable news within the space in a bid to position adequately for short-term and long-term profits. They said, “The sector’s performance was largely anchored by investors’ reaction towards the financial performance and corporate benefits of sector companies. We also note the impact of portfolio rebalancing activities and the year-end rally on the sector, as this drove most counters to their year-highs. In the coming year, we envisage increased participation within the space as we note that the sector is highly suited for speculative trading as well as long-term investments.”

On the financial performance of companies in the sector in 2018, they envisage a moderation in profit growth on the back of a decline in asset yield.

“Therefore, even though we expect a positive return at the end of the year, we do not envisage gains as sizeable as that recorded in 2017,” MSL analysts said.

20

T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JANUARY 14, 2018

BUSINESS/AVIATION

Aircraft at Murtala Muhammed International Airport

How Govt Can Support Local Airlines As Air Peace expands its operation, Chinedu Eze writes on how government can support local carriers to grow and improve capacity

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here are three key things that make commercial flight operation in Nigeria expensive. One is that major aircraft maintenance is conducted overseas; two is that aviation fuel is, relatively, expensive in Nigeria, and three is multiple taxation of airlines.

In addition to the above, there is high insurance premium paid by Nigerian airlines because insurers, who are foreign based, see the Nigerian operating environment as harsh and precarious. So Nigerian airlines pay almost double what airlines pay in Europe and other parts of the world. It is said that the insurance premium charged Nigerian operators is the highest in a country that is not in war. It is the same with cost of aviation fuel.

Incentivising Airline Operation One of the most challenging businesses in Nigeria is the operation of an airline. According to former Chief Operating Officer of the defunct Chanchangi Airlines, Alhaji Mohammed Tukur, immediately an airline begins flight operations in Nigeria it starts to pay taxes and charges, with no tax holiday or suspension of payment of charges even for six months. Tukur believes such reliefs are the way to incentivise new airlines because of the pivotal role they play in the economy of any nation.

It was under similar challenges that three years ago Air Peace airline started flight operations. Surprisingly, it started with seven aircraft at a time airlines were starting with the mandatory minimum of two aircraft.

Within the first two years, the airline upped its fleet to 12, and after three years of flight service, the airline now has about 24 aircraft.

This is historical, especially when this was achieved under a very harsh economic situation; when recession was eating up the finances of organisations and when airlines were paying three times what they paid three years ago to acquire aircraft spares and conduct C-check overseas.

Air Peace recently acquired six Embraer 145 planes, a couple of Boeing 737 and two Boeing 777 aircraft, bringing its fleet size to 24 aircraft, to drive its massive domestic, regional and international expansion project.

Route Expansion Air Peace said it would introduce new routes in Nigeria and the West Coast in 2018 in order to operate some destinations currently underserved and offer air

travellers better choices. Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of Air Peace, Mr. Allen Onyema, said the new destinations would commence in 2018.

Reviewing the operations of the airline in 2017, Onyema said the airline deserved commendation for rescuing the Nigerian aviation industry and giving air travellers hope in the period under review. He said he was quite satisfied that Air Peace was able to expand its fleet to 24 aircraft, despite the economic downturn in the country and what the aviation sector experienced in 2017. He attributed the airline’s success in the three years of its existence to the unflinching support of the flying public and the quality leadership of its management team.

The Air Peace boss said the airline would remain grateful to its customers for their patronage over the years, urging the flying public to continue to trust the carrier’s services. Air Peace, he assured, would continue to strive to sustain its uncompromising approach to safety, prioritisation of the comfort of its customers and job creation.

Onyema, however, said the airline still had a lot of grounds to cover in its vision to transform air travel experience in Nigeria, the West Coast of Africa, and the Dubai, Guangzhou-China, London, Houston, Mumbai, and Johannesburg routes. He said the airline, which commenced flight operations to Accra, Ghana, on February 16, 2017, was determined to expand to about nine destinations on the West Coast of Africa.

The airline, he added, was awaiting the delivery of two Boeing 777 it recently acquired to start its flight operations to Dubai, Guangzhou, London, Houston, Mumbai, and Johannesburg.

Government’s Role In Nigeria there is always a conflict between the interest of domestic carriers and that of policy makers in government. To the policy makers, while government would always support Nigerian airlines, the airlines do not have the capacity to meet passenger demand in international travel. So government, through its Bilateral Air Service Agreement (BASA) policy, opens doors to international carriers, which have dominated the international market of the Nigerian aviation industry.

Aviation expert and former secretary-general of African Airlines Association (FRAA), Nick Fadugba, said foreign airlines operate the major routes from Nigeria and for these airlines to relinquish these routes, it must involve negotiation. But now, Nigerian airlines cannot provide the capacity to airlift even 30 per cent

of Nigerian travellers to international destinations.

But the conflict comes when a Nigerian airline is ready to operate international destinations and has to compete with the well-established airlines already operating the routes, for example, Medview competing with British Airways and Virgin Atlantic Airways on the Lagos-London route.

The airlines want government to give them incentives to enhance their operations. But because of the old BASA signed by Nigeria and the host countries of these airlines, there may not be much the government can do. But in countries like South Africa, foreign airlines negotiate commercial agreements with the national carrier, South Africa Airways, and determine frequencies and seat sales. So if Emirates, for example, wants to operate more frequencies to Johannesburg or Cape Town and South Africa Airways does not have the capacity to go to Dubai for the number of times in the principle of reciprocity, Emirates would have to earmark a certain number of seats in its aircraft and pay the revenues to South Africa Airways.

THISDAY leant that a similar arrangement was made between British Airways and the defunct national carrier, Nigeria Airways Limited.

Support There are areas Nigerian airlines would need government’s support. They expect government to facilitate single digit, long term credit facilities for airlines, as it is done overseas. This will enable airlines acquire new aircraft and also help them to develop indigenous manpower through training and retraining of pilots, engineers and other technical and commercial staff.

The airlines expect government to ease the process of moving aviation fuel to the airports because the current process is cumbersome, slow and causes flight delays. According to the CEO of Aero Contractors, Captain Ado Sanusi, tanking aviation fuel from Apapa to the Lagos airport, for example, is very slow with the well-known traffic gridlock on the Apapa road.

The airlines have requested that the pipeline that connects the Lagos airport to Ejigbo depot, which has been out of use for decades, should be revived and instead of tanking fuel to the tarmac to feed aircraft, fuel hydrants should be opened at the tarmac, the way it is done in other parts of the world.

Maintenance Recently, Aero Contractors has been able to suc-

cessfully upgrade its maintenance facility and can now do C-check on Boeing B737 classics. This is a great achievement because industry experts agree that any airline that takes its aircraft overseas for maintenance would be spending huge amounts of revenue on maintenance, buying foreign exchange at exorbitant prices, while the airline earns its revenue in naira.

Government needs to assist airlines to build their own maintenance facility, known as Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facility.

Sanusi said, “To control cost, every operating airline should be able to conduct its maintenance locally.

As Nigerian airlines earn their revenues in naira, they pay hugely for the maintenance of their aircraft overseas. If you earn tickets in naira you have to change it to dollar to maintain your aircraft overseas.

With the current exchange rate an airline pays a substantial amount of its revenue for maintenance and that is why they should patronise the local maintenance facility we now have in Nigeria. This will save them a lot of money.”

Government is also expected to assist these airlines as they negotiate with other countries they wish to operate to. One of the challenges Nigerian airlines face when they want to operate to West African and other destinations in Africa is lack of cooperation by the countries’ government.But when airlines from those countries wish to operate to Nigeria, concerned agencies quickly acquiesce their requests.

Air Peace has really set a new record in Nigeria, to acquire 24 aircraft in three years. In a recent interview with Onyema, he spoke about Air Peace airline’s aircraft acquisitions. According to him, “We started with seven aircraft; four Boeing B737 and three Donnier 328 jets. Today, we have been able to acquire 17 more aircraft.

So we now have a total of 24 aircraft in our fleet. Air Peace is Nigeria’s largest carrier today fleet-wise. We have 15 Boeing B737s, six Embraer 145 regional jets and one Donnier 328 jet. We also have two Boeing777 for our international operations.

This feat could not have been achieved without the corporation of our banks. And it is also the evidence of our integrity. If we are not effectively servicing our loans, I doubt if the banks would have been supporting us.”

What the airline and other carries need is unflinching government support to grow in capacity and also provide more employment for Nigerians.

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JANUARY 14, 2018

BUSINESS/POWER

X-raying FG’s New Strategies for Incremental Power Supply Chineme Okafor writes on the federal government’s efforts to increase electricity supply throughout the country this year

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peaking recently on the critical sectors under his watch, Minister of Power, Works and Housing Mr. Babatunde Fashola, stated,“I am concerned about the development of Nigeria, not about the next election. Enduring development of Nigeria is what drives my decision about power; it is what drives my decision about roads and what drives my decisions about housing.”

Fashola said this while responding to questions during a television programme THISDAY monitored from Abuja. He said despite the fact that 2018 is a pre-election year and usually a time when government’s attention is primarily fixed on electioneering programmes, at the expense of real development programmes, his commitment to the sectors would remain intact. The minister promised to define the trajectory of Nigeria’s power sector in 2018.

Promise From existing statistics, 2018 looks promising for the power sector. That is judging by efforts initiated in 2017, which are expected to advance power supply from the current year. Many analysts believe that a committed implementation of the Power Sector Recovery Programme – a plan initiated by the government with support from the World Bank to optimise the potentials of the power sector – could be a game changer for the sector. They, however, fear that the 2019 general election could be an upset to the full implementation of the PRSP. PSRP to the Rescue Considered a life saver for the ailing power sector, the PSRP can be described as the government’s trump card in its plan to restore the power market to both commercial and technical functionality. The series of policy actions embedded in the plan, many believe, would help Nigeria’s privatised electricity market get out of its current difficulties. The project promises to reset the way the electricity market operates and equally encourage diverse investments that would develop its potentials.

The government said it had embedded in the PSRP, “A series of policy actions, operational, governance and financial interventions” to be implemented over the next five years, and from which it hopes to restore the financial viability of the power market. Using the PSRP, the government would also seek to improve market transparency and service delivery, take up consumer satisfaction as priority, and reduce losses and energy theft recorded by the market. All these, it explained, would holistically add up, in the next five years, to deliver a brand new power market that would be responsive and responsible.

Starting from 2018, the government would be expected to use the PSRP to restore the financial viability of the power market, improve supply reliability, strengthen market’s governance, and most importantly, place a premium on transparency and contract-based market. Within the PSRP’s operational timeline of 2017 to 2021, the government said it would first commit to fund projected future sector deficits, as well as required market support measures until tariffs are adequate enough to support the market’s liquidity.

More Generation Capacity Expected Supported by a N701 billion payment assurance provided by the Central Bank of Nigeria for the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Plc to meet its obligations to generation companies, generation in 2017 grew and new peak records of 5,155.9MW and 5,222.3MW were reached on December 8 and 18, respectively. Similarly, it was reported that the country’s generation capacity rose to about 7000MW, and was stable above 4000MW even during the dry season when the reservoirs of the hydro plants are usually low on water levels.

In 2018, more generation capacity is expected.

Moreover, Nigeria’s first project-financed power plant – the 459MW capacity Azura-Edo power plant – began to generate electricity for the

Power distribution equipment in Nigeria national grid from its first turbine, the 153MW capacity GT-11. The plant is expected to come to full generation, and add 459MW to the grid.

Azura-Edo, which achieved its first power out seven months ahead of its projected delivery date, would complete its cycle of testing on the plant and fully supply its entire capacity by May 2018.

Other plants include the 40MW Kashimbila hydro power plant, the 240MW Afam fast power plant, 30MW Gurara Phase 1 hydro power plant, and 215MW Kaduna gas/LPG/diesel power plant.

If achieved, such improvement in generation could directly translate to more power supply to Nigerian homes and offices. It could also mean that homes and offices or industrial outfits would have to consume less of diesel and petrol to run their independent generating sets, while saving money on the running and repairs of the generators.

Power Distribution But there is also the important factor of the ability of the distribution networks or companies to improve their capacities to take more power to their consumers, provide meters to end instances of unfair estimated tariffs, and perhaps conduct appropriate and factual enumeration of their customer base to determine cost reflective tariffs to be applied to their consumers.

To address these, Fashola, indicated that the government would in 2018 initiate a new policy expected to be driven by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission to keep the distribution networks in line with the operational trajectory of the sector. The minister disclosed that about 2000MW of electricity were left unused in the system following the inability of the Discos to pick up the loads, and subsequently asked manufacturing bases and industrial clusters across the country in need of electricity to take up the excess load through the eligible customers’ regulation the government signed off in 2017.

Enumeration NERC has been reluctant to approve up to

three circles of tariff reviews for the Discos due to the commission’s doubts about the indices used by the Discos to compute their tariffs, especially the sample size or population of customers in their network. It is expected that appropriate enumeration of electricity consumers in Nigeria would be conducted by NERC in 2018, to first establish the true basis for tariff calibration and subsequently cut down instances of electricity theft and loss of revenue.

Fashola had explained that it was impossible to have a fair tariff in an electricity market that has just about seven million households as its recognised customers out of Nigeria’s 180 million people. He added that proper consumers’ enumeration was required to establish the true basis for calibrating tariffs in the sector. He also noted that the Discos would have to improve on their deployment of meters to consumption points, and that until these were done, approving a cost reflective tariff for the market looked difficult.

According to the minister, “We need to do something with the entire value chain, from tariff to metering to energy conservation, consumer education, to payment of debts by ministries and departments and ordinary consumers, and all of these are contained in the power sector recovery programme.

“Tariff is important. My opinion as at today is that before we can review tariffs, we should increase metering, we should also increase consumer audit to actually properly dimension the economy and see whether the unit cost is understated or overstated.

Because, if you have a market, an electricity market where seven million households are all that is in the database as consuming electricity in Nigeria, I am not sure that data is correct.”

Transmission The change of guard at the Transmission Company of Nigeria has come with improvements on its work ethics and expansion drive. With a new head, Usman Gur Mohammed, who was seconded from the African Development Bank, the restructuring

in the TCN has brought some improvements and standards in its projects’ planning and execution capacity.

Upon his resumption in 2017, Mohammed, who was initially resisted by the labour unions in the firm, reportedly instituted a good measure of appropriate corporate governance in the operations of the TCN. He also initiated and completed a financial audit of TCN’s account that were left unattended to for long and equally decentralized the process of decision-making to allow TCN’s regional segments act with some level of operational autonomy.

The TCN has gone on to revamp transmission projects that had been abandoned, and developed project-based work plan that has attracted some multilateral investments from the World Bank, AfDB, and Islamic Development Bank, among others. It equally developed a Transmission Rehabilitation and Expansion Programme, which would enable it prioritise and execute critical transmission projects across the country, as well as clear its stranded containers containing various transmission equipment at sea ports in Nigeria.

According to TCN, out of 759 containers abandoned by contractors at the sea ports within the last five years, 454 have been cleared with payment for 193 containers made while payment for the remaining 112 containers is still outstanding.

The company stated that some of the containers cleared from the ports had been sent to its various project sites in Yola, Gulak, Katsina,Jos, Dambatta, Ganmo, Abeokuta, Onitsha and Benin, as well as Odoguyan, Ede, Igangan, Okene, Walalambe, Akwanga, Kachia, Kumbotso and Kaduna.

However, TCN’s record of two system collapses in the early days of 2018 show that it still has a lot of work to do. Even though one of collapses was attributed to bush fire, the second that happened in the Odukpani end of its transmission network, means that Nigeria’s transmission network is still vulnerable to fluctuations, and would need to be fixed to guarantee stable transmission of power to distribution ends.

T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JANUARY 14, 2018

22

INTERVIEW Omotola: Key Problem with Nigeria’s Economy is Excessive Reliance on Importation Mr. Lai Omotola is the Chief Executive of CFL Group, one of Nigeria’s leading infrastructure development companies with 15 different subsidiaries. At an interactive session with some journalists at the company’s Maryland head office in Lagos, Omotola examined the challenges faced by the Nigerian economy and proposed solutions to the country’s socio-economic problems. He also explained rationales behind the company’s new multimillionaire head office. Gboyega Akinsanmi was there. Excerpts:

H

ow has the current economic decline affected the real estate sector?

r research into the markets, one would realise that h serious challenges. I have ample knowledge have of o this because I build market. They are seriously complaining c that the purchasing power of Nigerians have h dropped drastically.

If the economy is challenged, the real estate sector is not left out of the problem. Twhis is because the practitioners in real estate sector aimed to access fund from the banks. When you approach commercial banks, they demand for 37 percent. If that is included into the construction cost, it further increases the cost. For instance, if someone needs N1 billion to build an estate and on approaching the bank, they demand for 37 percent interest. If that money is added to the cost, the developer would ask any potential buyer to pay N90 million for a semi-detached duplex.

Do not forget that the purchasing power of the people have declined since the 2015 election. It is hard to raise funds. That is why a lot of estates are lying fallow because not everyone is ready to buy property. Do not forget that three things are important to a man: food, clothing and shelter.

The last is optional because one could decide that he does not have the fund to build and opt for rent. That is why whenever you see anyone that cannot afford rent in Ikoyi leaves for Lekki. When he realizes that the rent there is also expensive, he leaves for Epe. Now, Epe has become hot cake. If Epe is no longer affordable, he will say let me go to Shagamu and build his own country home.

Why are the stakeholders in the power sector s not exploring the window of foreign direct d investment to address the challenges in i the sector?

If this country is to get it right, three things h to happen. This country is under a serious has spiritual s siege. Someone must step up to do what I d described as spiritual correctness. God does not talk to t a group of people, but to someone who will be appointed to embark on certain activities. It must a be b corrected spiritually. Things are happening and all a we do daily is exclamation. Second, we must get g our infrastructures right. Third, the orientation of o entrepreneurs must be changed totally. Recently, the t Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) reported that about 250 business owners owe o it N3.2 trillion. If that money had truly been pumped into Nigeria’s economy, things would p have changed. For instance, when an average h Nigerian wins a contract, what he does is to N first f buy a car and not equipments. It is easy to get g foreign investors. But one must understand that t the foreign investors are very meticulous in whatever they do. An average entrepreneur in w Nigeria does not aim to go through the rigorous N path.

An average entrepreneur that had bought p the t power assets does not want to go through any thorough exercise. Corporate governance is very t huge.

Many of the entrepreneurs do not want to h pass p through corporate governance. An average entrepreneur in Nigeria takes from funds release e for f contract to fund other things. But the foreign investors, if involved, will never allow such. i

Are you optimistic that the current administration can solve the country’s economic problems?

To solve Nigeria’s economy, one does not need to think out of the box because the problems confronting Nigeria’s domestic economy are mundane. Our challenges do not really require that one thinks out of the box. It is not Japanese economy or Chinese economy. The problem of the Nigerian economy is benchmarked on what the citizens would eat. All we are eating are 70 percent imported. There are too many people chasing the dollar. That is why dollar is high.

Such arrangement must be changed. That does not require any special economic strategy. All that is required is old economics to solve. There is nothing serious about the Nigerian economy that cannot be resolved. From my research, I have realised that the economic team in any country is not about bridging crowd together.

The thinkers for the economy cannot be more than five. Those are the like minds. But when you bring 36 governors together for them to discuss on the country’s economy, what happens during that discussion would be quota system. But when the team has only five persons in strategic positions, things will change dramatically. The team should comprise the Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria, Minister for Finance, Minister for Works, Power and Housing, Minister for Transportation and Group Managing Director of Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation. What they need to turn Nigeria’s economy around is to create activities. Our economy has not grown because there has not been any form of activities in this government. When I mean activities, it indicates that the ministries embarking on things that can stimulate the economy. For instance, if Minister of Housing says I want to build one million houses and I need 1,000 contractors. Through that, he will be creating activities through the length and breadth of Nigeria. But what you find is that all the houses would be built by two contractors. If you do your research properly, for the past 20 years, in the ministry of Works &

In 2016, Nigeria spent N3.9 trillion on flour f and wheat importation. This figure is i higher than money spent on petroleum importation. i Are there things you think the federal government is not getting right in its economic diversification programme?

Omotola Housing, if they have the budget of N150 billion, the number of contractors working there are not more than five. They collect all the major contracts.

For these contractors, whenever they collect any contract, they are not employing anyone new.

They already have all that is required to complete the project. It is a chain. But if someone, who had not taken the contract before, handles it, he will employ more people. He will constitute a new team and the money will circulate. So if anyone throws in N100 billion, the money will circulate within their circle. Within that circle, you will see someone that has over 200 contracts in his capacity while his neighbor does not have one.

Such cannot happen in any developed country.

There is need for competition which helps to bring the best for the country.

If you were the CBN Governor, what would you have done differently to boost the country’s economy?

I need to tell you one thing: the CBN Governor is highly challenged. A lot of experts claim that the government has no business in business. But what happens when the businessmen fail is that the government must rise up and address the challenge. That is what we call intervention. The apex bank has been intervening in different sectors including real estate, manufacturing and others.

The CBN has become the lender of last resort

which should not be happening unless once in 50 years. It should be temporary. Perhaps after one year, the apex bank leaves the sector for the stakeholders. But the CBN has now taking the permanent role because the banks are lying prostrate. When the bank continues in that position, it would be difficult for the economy to come up.

The CBN is the one giving the loans that the bank should have done. Do not forget that the banks too need the CBN to survive. You will remember the National Bureau of Statistics report that stated that the money already collected by the commercial banks to remain healthy from the CBN is alarming. That is the same window the former CBN Governor, Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi shut. As a result, some banks had to merge while few went down.

The window has now been opened for the banks to survive. When the federal government does that persistently, intervening in every sector, one would not be able to really place such economy in capitalist or socialist.

How would you assess the effect of the recent recession on your business?

Those who suffered tremendous loss were the importers especially when the exchange rate was high. They left for market at about N500 to a dollar. But before they returned, it has crashed to N360. Due to this, some who often import large containers have reduced it. When one embarks on

Do not forget that wheat and flour are used to produce bread and others things we consume daily in Nigeria. Do you know that in Lagos alone, we slaughter about 4, 000 cows daily. I know one big retail outlet that slaughters 400 cows daily. They do not have enough to service their customers.

Do not forget that the cow cannot produce more than two litres of milk daily while other nations have cows that produce 15 litres. If the federal government decides to concentrate on feeding its citizens, more money will remain in the economy.

Consequently, income realised more from other sectors than crude oil. But the challenge with agriculture is that it is does not involve in deals unlike the real estate where deals are completed less than six months. Agriculture often requires patience because whenever one plants cassava, he must wait for six months before harvest. Not many will want to wait and that is one of the challenges facing the sector in Nigeria. Another issue that affects the agricultural sector is access to capital.

That is why many are not looking at investing in the sector, especially Nigerians. But the foreigners in the country are investing massively in the sector.

Our own manufacturers are shutting down, leaving the stage for the foreigners to manage. The reason is that Nigerian manufacturers have no ample access to funds unlike their foreign counterparts.

The Chinese came into Nigeria with funds from the Bank of China.

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JANUARY 14, 2018

TRAVEL

Edited by Demola Ojo Email demola.ojo@thisdaylive.com

A Front Row Seat at the International Carnival Calabar Demola Ojo

A

Senegalese acrobat executes a few flawless cartwheels as an appreciative audience hoots and claps in encouragement. Then a Ukrainian joins him, as a friendly competition ensues.

The circle that forms around them increases in width as more people are drawn to the spectacle.

Spurred on by the building excitement, a lady in Mexican costumes and colours catwalks through the centre of the“stage”; the rancorous response she elicits is proof that the onlookers are entertained. Then a uniformed official comes and leads her away. Enough.

That’s because we’re not at a performance ground, not even in Calabar yet but actually at the local wing of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos.

As the case has been in recent years, haze was once again a factor in the build-up to the Carnival Calabar. Flights to Calabar were cancelled for a few days. This also affected neighbouring airports in Uyo and Port Harcourt, where flights were either cancelled or rescheduled.

This presented a logistical challenge, especially in the case of the International Carnival which had representation from close to 20 countries. It was an arduous task, not only getting troupes from different continents to Calabar in time, but to also project the host country in good light despite schedules thrown in disarray.

But the upbeat spirit of the carnival spreads beyond Calabar as can be deduced from the scenario recounted above. Despite long hours spent waiting at the airport, bands from Africa, Europe and the Americas put on a mini-show in preparation for the real thing while being egged on by their Nigerian hosts.

The camaraderie that ensued is a reason why the International Carnival has become my favourite part of the Carnival Calabar. The bonding between groups from far-flung parts of the world despite differences in tongue is priceless.

As a journalist attached to the international contingents, I’ve over time established relationships that have become beneficial even across the Atlantic. This is especially true for the Brazilians from Sao Paulo that I ran into during the FIFA World Cup in Brazil.

Detour With the Calabar airport still not cleared for flights and time running out, organisers of the carnival decided on Uyo by air, then onward to Calabar by bus, which meant more time to mingle. The Nigerians and Croatians exchanged banter; why don’t we select 11 members from each group and play a friendly pre-World Cup match before the real thing in June?

The South Africans were especially excited on the bus trip from Uyo to Calabar. Uyo must be close to the coast, some deduced. While it was impossible to see the ocean from the air due to low visibility, the sight of palm trees rushing past the bus was a pointer.

Finally in Calabar, the different groups were accommodated in separate hotels. This again presented another opportunity for new hookups, with bands that came to Nigeria through Abuja.

For those a little reticent on the bus trip, it was another opportunity to mix and this time with a little more time.

My new friends turned out to be the Ethiopians and the Ukrainians. It was a pleasant surprise to discover that quite a few of the Ukrainians were able to communicate in English, even though it’s at best, a third language for them after Ukrainian and Russian. This is probably because the group came from Odessa, the former Soviet Union’s premier tourist destination.

Technology helps too; this went beyond Google Translate which was unnecessary on this occasion, but rather, the SoundCloud music app coupled with BeatsbyDre speakers which helped us party to the latest from both Nigeria’s

Ukraine

Lithuania

and Ukraine’s pop scenes.

Oh, all these and we haven’t even been to the U.J Usuene Stadium for the International Carnival competition, the reason these performers - and tourists – are in Nigeria in the first place.

Front Row While we may not have the most comfortable seats at the stadium, journalists have the best view; close up, right in the thick of the action.

It’s awe-inspiring, especially when you see your new friends doing extraordinary things, in some cases superhuman.

It is exhilarating and humbling; beautifully costumed men and women at the peak of their physical powers, performing dance moves and tricks and a few unexplainable things, like the Ghanaians swallowing fire, or the Kenyans defying gravity.

There were cultural dances from Ukraine, Mexico and Ethiopia, acrobats from Senegal and Kenya, flag twirlers from Italy and Croatians on stilts.

France was also represented by a colourful dance group while Lithuania stole the show at a point; a couple of fire performers wowed the audience through their fearless display with flames and fireworks.

There was a team from the US supported by representation from neighbouring Caribbean nations like Belize, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago and many more.

Tanzania and Swaziland were some of African countries represented through ensembles that brought traditional dances under the lights of the stadium to entertain as well as educate on each country’s history. South Africa also, with two different sets of performers displaying energetic Zulu war dances.

And despite Brazil’s representatives being a different band from the previous winners and coming from a different city (Rio de Janeiro in this case), they still kept the audience engrossed and entertained, and ended up winners of the competition.

This, partially due to a brilliant enactment of Capoeira, an Afro-Brazilian martial art that combines dance, acrobatics and music, developed mainly by African slaves in the 16th century.

South Africa came second while Ghana came third. From the reaction of the audience though, every band was a winner.

Highlighting Migration The International Carnival was the climax of a series of activities which attracted more than a million revellers over the previous few days in what the Calabar Carnival Commission described as an unprecedented shutdown of the city.

Speaking on the theme of the carnival (Migration), Cross River State governor, Prof Ben Ayade, expressed his belief that Africa is

Senegal

the future and encouraged the youth to put an end to migration, and rather“…come to Calabar as we have provisions for jobs and have created opportunities so that you can stay back here.”

Continuing he said;“this year’s carnival is not just about dancing and celebrating, but telling a very painful and sorrowful story as it relates to migration,” adding that “in due time Africa will rule the world.”

His words are a reminder that the carnival goes beyond entertainment and revelry and extends to economic empowerment. Cultural integration too, which for this writer is good reason to do it again.

24

T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JANUARY 14, 2018

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ŝƟďĂŶŬ EŝŐĞƌŝĂ >ŝŵŝƚĞĚ ^ƚĞĂĚLJ WƌŽĮƚĂďŝůŝƚLJ ĂŵŝĚƐƚ DĂĐƌŽĞĐŽŶŽŵŝĐ hŶĐĞƌƚĂŝŶƟĞƐ Ks Zs/ t ŝƟďĂŶŬ EŝŐĞƌŝĂ >ŝŵŝƚĞĚ ;͞ ŝƟ͟ Žƌ ͞ƚŚĞ ĂŶŬ͟Ϳ͕ ŝƐ Ă ƐƵďƐŝĚŝĂƌLJ ŽĨ ŝƟ 'ƌŽƵƉ ĂŶĚ ƚŚĞ ŽůĚĞƐƚ ĞdžŝƐƟŶŐ ŝŶƚĞƌŶĂƟŽŶĂů ĂŶŬ ŝŶ EŝŐĞƌŝĂ͘ dŚĞ ĂŶŬ ǁĂƐ ƉƌĞǀŝŽƵƐůLJ ŬŶŽǁŶ ĂƐ EŝŐĞƌŝĂŶ /ŶƚĞƌŶĂƟŽŶĂů ĂŶŬ >ŝŵŝƚĞĚ ƵŶƟů ϮϬϬϴ͕ ǁŚĞŶ ŝƚ ǁĂƐ ƌĞŶĂŵĞĚ ŝƟďĂŶŬ EŝŐĞƌŝĂ >ŝŵŝƚĞĚ͘ tŝƚŚ Ă ŶĞƚǁŽƌŬ ŽĨ ϭϮ ďƌĂŶĐŚĞƐ ůŽĐĂƚĞĚ ŝŶ >ĂŐŽƐ ;sŝĐƚŽƌŝĂ /ƐůĂŶĚ͕ /ŬĞũĂ͕ /ĚƵŵŽƚĂ͕ ƉĂƉĂͿ͕ ďƵũĂ͕ <ĂŶŽ͕ ĞůƚĂ ;tĂƌƌŝͿ͕ ZŝǀĞƌƐ ; ŽŶŶLJ͕ WŽƌƚ%,ĂƌĐŽƵƌƚͿ͕ KLJŽ ;>ĂŶůĂƚĞ͕ ŐďĞĚĂͿ ĂŶĚ ďŝĂ ; ďĂͿ͕ ƚŚĞ ĂŶŬ ŚĂƐ ƉŽƐŝƟŽŶĞĚ ŝƚƐĞůĨ ĂƐ ŽŶĞ ŽĨ ƚŚĞ ĨŽƌĞŵŽƐƚ ĐŽƌƉŽƌĂƚĞ ďĂŶŬƐ ŝŶ EŝŐĞƌŝĂ͘ ŝƟ ĨĂůůƐ ǁŝƚŚŝŶ ŽƵƌ dŝĞƌ%Ϯ ĐůĂƐƐŝĮĐĂƟŽŶ ďĂƐĞĚ ŽŶ ƚŽƚĂů ĂƐƐĞƚ ƐŝnjĞ ŽĨ EϲϬϰ͘ϯďŶ ĂƐ Ăƚ &z͗ϮϬϭϲ͘ dŚĞ ĂŶŬ ƉƌŽǀŝĚĞƐ Ă ǁŝĚĞ ĂƌƌĂLJ ŽĨ ĮŶĂŶĐŝĂů ƐĞƌǀŝĐĞƐ % ƚƌĞĂƐƵƌLJ Θ ƚƌĂĚĞ ƐŽůƵƟŽŶƐ͕ ĮdžĞĚ ŝŶĐŽŵĞ͕ ĐƵƌƌĞŶĐŝĞƐ ĂŶĚ ĐŽŵŵŽĚŝƟĞƐ ƚƌĂĚŝŶŐ % ƚŽ ŝƚƐ ŝŶƐƟƚƵƟŽŶĂů ĐůŝĞŶƚƐ ĂƐ Ă ŶŝĐŚĞ ƉůĂLJĞƌ͘ /ƚƐ ĐůŝĞŶƚƐ ƌĂŶŐĞ ĨƌŽŵ ůŽĐĂů ďƵƐŝŶĞƐƐĞƐ ƚŽ ůĂƌŐĞ ŵƵůƟŶĂƟŽŶĂů ĐŽƌƉŽƌĂƟŽŶƐ ĂŶĚ 'ŽǀĞƌŶŵĞŶƚƐ͘ ŝƟ ŚĂƐ ůĞĚ ǀĂƌŝŽƵƐ ůĂŶĚŵĂƌŬ ƚƌĂŶƐĂĐƟŽŶƐ ŝŶ EŝŐĞƌŝĂ ĨƌŽŵ ŝŶĐĞƉƟŽŶ ƚŽ ĚĂƚĞ ǁŝƚŚ ƚŚĞ ŵŽƐƚ ƌĞĐĞŶƚ ďĞŝŶŐ ŝƚƐ ƌŽůĞ ĂƐ ũŽŝŶƚ ŬƌƵŶŶĞƌ͕ ďŝůůŝŶŐ Θ ĚĞůŝǀĞƌLJ ďĂŶŬ ĂƐ ǁĞůů ĂƐ ƉĂLJŝŶŐ ĂŐĞŶƚ ĨŽƌ ƚŚĞ &ĞĚĞƌĂů 'ŽǀĞƌŶŵĞŶƚΖƐ & ϮϬϯϮ h^Ψϭ͘ϱďŶ ƵƌŽďŽŶĚ ŝƐƐƵĞ ĐůŽƐĞĚ ŝŶ DĂƌĐŚ ϮϬϭϳ͘

ĚĞĐůŝŶĞĚ ϵ͘Ϯй z%Ž%z ƚŽ EϮϴ͘ϵďŶ ŝŶ &z͗ϮϬϭϲ ĨƌŽŵ Eϯϭ͘ϵďŶ ŝŶ &z͗ϮϬϭϱ ĚĞƐƉŝƚĞ ƌĞ%ĂůůŽĐĂƟŽŶ ĨƌŽŵ ůŽĂŶƐ ƚŽ ŝŶǀĞƐƚŵĞŶƚ ƐĞĐƵƌŝƟĞƐ͘ dŚŝƐ ǁĂƐ ƉĂƌƚůLJ ŽīƐĞƚ ďLJ Ă ϯϱ͘ϱй z%Ž%z ĚĞĐůŝŶĞ ŝŶ ŝŶƚĞƌĞƐƚ ĞdžƉĞŶƐĞ ĨƌŽŵ Eϲ͘ϭďŶ ŝŶ &z͗ϮϬϭϱ ƚŽ Eϯ͘ϵďŶ ŝŶ &z͗ϮϬϭϲ͕ ƚŚƵƐ ŽƐƚ ŽĨ &ƵŶĚƐ ; Ž&Ϳ ƚĂƉĞƌĞĚ ĨƌŽŵ ϭ͘ϳй ŝŶ &z͗ϮϬϭϱ ƚŽ Ϭ͘ϴй ŝŶ &z͗ϮϬϭϲ͘ ŽŶƐĞƋƵĞŶƚůLJ͕ EĞƚ /ŶƚĞƌĞƐƚ DĂƌŐŝŶ ;E/DͿ ĚĞĐůŝŶĞĚ ĨƌŽŵ ϳ͘Ϭй ŝŶ &z͗ϮϬϭϱ ƚŽ ϲ͘Ϯй ŝŶ &z͗ϮϬϭϲ͘ /ŵƉƌĞƐƐŝǀĞůLJ͕ ŽƐƚ ƚŽ /ŶĐŽŵĞ ZĂƟŽ ; /ZͿ ŵŽĚĞƌĂƚĞĚ ĨƌŽŵ ϯϳ͘ϴй ŝŶ &z͗ϮϬϭϱ ƚŽ Ϯϲ͘ϳй ŝŶ &z͗ϮϬϭϲ ĂƐ Ă ƌĞƐƵůƚ ŽĨ Ă ϰϳ͘Ϯй ŝŶĐƌĞĂƐĞ ŝŶ ŽƉĞƌĂƟŶŐ ŝŶĐŽŵĞ ǁŚŝĐŚ ŵŽƌĞ ƚŚĂŶ ŵĂĚĞ ƵƉ ĨŽƌ Ă ϰ͘ϭй z%Ž%z ŝŶĐƌĞĂƐĞ ŝŶ KW y͘ ,ĞŶĐĞ͕ W d ƐƉŝŬĞĚ ϭϱϮ͘ϯй ĨƌŽŵ EϭϮ͘ϴďŶ ŝŶ &z͗ϮϬϭϱ ƚŽ EϯϮ͘ϮďŶ ŝŶ &z͗ϮϬϭϲ͕ ƉĂƌƚůLJ ƐƚĞĚ ďLJ ƚŚĞ ϱϬ͘ϯй ĨĂůů ŝŶ ůŽĂŶ ŝŵƉĂŝƌŵĞŶƚ ĐŚĂƌŐĞƐ ĨƌŽŵ Eϴ͘ϭďŶ ŝŶ &z͗ϮϬϭϲ ƚŽ Eϰ͘ϬďŶ ŝŶ &z͗ϮϬϭϱ͘ ZK ĂŶĚ ZK ĂƉƉƌĞĐŝĂƚĞĚ ĨƌŽŵ ϭϴ͘ϴй ĂŶĚ Ϯ͘ϱй ŝŶ &z͗ϮϬϭϱ ƚŽ ϰϭ͘ϰй ĂŶĚ ϱ͘ϯй ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞůLJ ŝŶ &z͗ϮϬϭϲ͘

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ƐƐĞƚ YƵĂůŝƚLJ͕ &ƵŶĚŝŶŐ Dŝdž͕ >ŝƋƵŝĚŝƚLJ ĂŶĚ ĂƉŝƚĂů ĚĞƋƵĂĐLJ ŝƟ ŐƌĞǁ ŝƚƐ ƚŽƚĂů ĂƐƐĞƚƐ ďLJ ϰϬ͘Ϯй ĨƌŽŵ Eϰϯϭ͘ϮďŶ ŝŶ &z͗ϮϬϭϱ ƚŽ EϲϬϰ͘ϯďŶ ŝŶ &z͗ϮϬϭϲ͘ dŚĞ ĂŶŬ ƌĞĂůůŽĐĂƚĞĚ ŝƚƐ ĂƐƐĞƚƐ ƚŽǁĂƌĚƐ ůŝƋƵŝĚ ĮŶĂŶĐŝĂů ĂƐƐĞƚƐ ĂƐ ůŽĂŶ Ŭ ĚĞĐůŝŶĞĚ ďLJ ϴ͘ϴй ĨƌŽŵ EϮϱϮ͘ϵďŶ ŝŶ &z͗ϮϬϭϱ ƚŽ EϮϯϬ͘ϳďŶ ŝŶ &z͗ϮϬϭϲ ǁŚŝĐŚ ǁĂƐ ŽīƐĞƚ ďLJ ϮϮϵ͘Ϯй ŝŶĐƌĞĂƐĞ ŝŶ ŝŶǀĞƐƚŵĞŶƚ ƐĞĐƵƌŝƟĞƐ ĨƌŽŵ Eϲϲ͘ϬďŶ ƚŽ EϮϭϳ͘ϯďŶ͘ dŽƚĂů ĚĞƉŽƐŝƚƐ ĞdžƉĂŶĚĞĚ ϯϱ͘ϲй ĨƌŽŵ Eϯϱϴ͘ϵďŶ ŝŶ &z͗ϮϬϭϱ ƚŽ Eϰϴϲ͘ϳďŶ ŽŶ ĂĐĐŽƵŶƚ ŽĨ ŝŶĐƌĞĂƐĞ ŝŶ ďŽƚŚ ĚĞƉŽƐŝƚƐ ĨƌŽŵ ďĂŶŬƐ ĂŶĚ ĚĞƉŽƐŝƚƐ ĨƌŽŵ ĐƵƐƚŽŵĞƌƐ͘ ŝƟΖƐ ŽƐƚ ŽĨ ZŝƐŬ ; ŽZͿ ŝƐ ĐŽŵĨŽƌƚĂďůLJ ďĞůŽǁ dŝĞƌ%Ϯ ĂǀĞƌĂŐĞ ĂƐ ŝƚ ĚĞĐůŝŶĞĚ ƚŽ ϭ͘ϴй ŝŶ &z͗ϮϬϭϲ ĨƌŽŵ ϯ͘Ϯй ŝŶ ƉƌŝŽƌ LJĞĂƌ͘ >ŽĂŶ dŽ ĞƉŽƐŝƚ ƌĂƟŽ ;>d Ϳ ƐĞƩůĞĚ Ăƚ ϰϳ͘ϰй ŝŶ &z͗ϮϬϭϲ͕ ĚŽǁŶ ĨƌŽŵ ϳϬ͘ϰй ŝŶ &z͗ϮϬϭϱ ĂŶĚ ǁĞůů ďĞůŽǁ ƚŚĞ EΖƐ ƐƚĂƚƵƚŽƌLJ ŵĂdžŝŵƵŵ ŽĨ ϴϬ͘Ϭй͘ dŚĞ ĂŶŬ ƌĞŵĂŝŶƐ ĂĚĞƋƵĂƚĞůLJ ĐĂƉŝƚĂůŝnjĞĚ ďĂƐĞĚ ŽŶ ^ > // ĐŽŵƉƵƚĂƟŽŶ ǁŝƚŚ Ă ĂƉŝƚĂů ĚĞƋƵĂĐLJ ZĂƟŽ ; ZͿ ŽĨ Ϯϳ͘ϱй͘ dŚŝƐ ŝƐ ĂďŽǀĞ ƚŚĞ ŵŝŶŝŵƵŵ ƌĞŐƵůĂƚŽƌLJ ƌĞƋƵŝƌĞŵĞŶƚ ŽĨ ϭϬ͘Ϭй ĨŽƌ EĂƟŽŶĂů ďĂŶŬƐ͘

,ĞƌŝƚĂŐĞ ĂŶŬ WůĐ ;͞,ĞƌŝƚĂŐĞ͟ Žƌ ͞ƚŚĞ ĂŶŬ͟Ϳ ǁĂƐ ďŝƌƚŚĞĚ ŝŶ ϮϬϭϮ ǁŚĞŶ ŝƚ ĂĐƋƵŝƌĞĚ ƚŚĞ ŽƉĞƌĂƟŶŐ ůŝĐĞŶƐĞ ŽĨ ƚŚĞ ĚĞĨƵŶĐƚ ^ŽĐŝĠƚĠ 'ĠŶĠƌĂůĞ ĂŶŬ ŽĨ EŝŐĞƌŝĂ ;^' EͿ ĨƌŽŵ ƚŚĞ E͘ dŚĞ ůĂƐƚ ƉƵďůŝĐ ĮŶĂŶĐŝĂů ƌĞƉŽƌƚ ǁĂƐ ƉƵďůŝƐŚĞĚ ŝŶ ϮϬϭϱ͘ /Ŷ KĐƚŽďĞƌ ϮϬϭϰ͕ ƚŚĞ ĂŶŬ ĂĐƋƵŝƌĞĚ ϭϬϬ͘Ϭй ƐŚĂƌĞŚŽůĚŝŶŐ ŝŶ ŶƚĞƌƉƌŝƐĞ ĂŶŬ >ŝŵŝƚĞĚ͕ Ă ŶĂƟŽŶĂůŝnjĞĚ ďĂŶŬ ǁŝƚŚ ĞƐƟŵĂƚĞĚ h^Ψϭ͘ϲďŶ ŝŶ ƚŽƚĂů ĂƐƐĞƚƐ ĂŶĚ ŽǀĞƌ ϭϲϬ ďƌĂŶĐŚĞƐ ǁŝƚŚŝŶ EŝŐĞƌŝĂ͘ dŚĞ ĂŶŬ ƉĂŝĚ ƚŚĞ ƐƐĞƚ DĂŶĂŐĞŵĞŶƚ ŽŵƉĂŶLJ ŽĨ EŝŐĞƌŝĂ ; D KEͿ ƚŚĞ ƐƵŵ ŽĨ h^ΨϯϰϬ͘Ϭŵ ;Eϱϲ͘ϭďŶͿ ĨŽƌ ƚŚĞ ĂĐƋƵŝƐŝƟŽŶ͘ KŶ ϮϳƚŚ ŽĨ :ĂŶƵĂƌLJ ϮϬϭϱ͕ D KE ƚƌĂŶƐĨĞƌƌĞĚ ŽǁŶĞƌƐŚŝƉ ŽĨ ŶƚĞƌƉƌŝƐĞ ĂŶŬ ƚŽ ,ĞƌŝƚĂŐĞ ĂŶŬ ĂŌĞƌ ƐƵĐĐĞƐƐĨƵůůLJ ŵĞĞƟŶŐ Ăůů ƚŚĞ ƌĞƋƵŝƌĞŵĞŶƚ ŽĨ ďŽƚŚ D KE ĂŶĚ ƚŚĞ E͘ ,ĞƌŝƚĂŐĞ ŽƉĞƌĂƚĞƐ Ă ŶĂƟŽŶĂů ďĂŶŬŝŶŐ ůŝĐĞŶƐĞ ǁŚŝĐŚ ĞŶĂďůĞƐ ƚŚĞ ĂŶŬ ƚŽ ƌĞŶĚĞƌ ĐŽŵŵĞƌĐŝĂů ďĂŶŬŝŶŐ ƐĞƌǀŝĐĞƐ ǀŝĂ Ă ŶĞƚǁŽƌŬ ŽĨ ϭϲϱ ďƌĂŶĐŚĞƐ ŝŶ ϯϰ ƐƚĂƚĞƐ ĂĐƌŽƐƐ EŝŐĞƌŝĂ͘ dŚĞ ĂŶŬ ŝƐ ƐƚƌƵĐƚƵƌĞĚ ĂůŽŶŐ ĨŽƵƌ ďƵƐŝŶĞƐƐ ůŝŶĞƐ͗ ZĞƚĂŝů ĂŶŬŝŶŐ͕ WƌŝǀĂƚĞ ĂŶŬŝŶŐ͕ WƵďůŝĐ ^ĞĐƚŽƌ ĂŶŬŝŶŐ ĂŶĚ ŽƌƉŽƌĂƚĞ Θ ŽŵŵĞƌĐŝĂů ĂŶŬŝŶŐ͘

&/E E / > W Z&KZD E

,ĞƌŝƚĂŐĞ ĂŶŬ WůĐ

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&/E E / > W Z&KZD E

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<ĞLJƐƚŽŶĞ ĂŶŬ >ŝŵŝƚĞĚ ;͞ƚŚĞ ĂŶŬ͟ Žƌ ͞<ĞLJƐƚŽŶĞ͟Ϳ ǁĂƐ ŝŶĐŽƌƉŽƌĂƚĞĚ ĂƐ Ă ďƌŝĚŐĞ ďĂŶŬ͕ ƐĞƚƵƉ ƚŽ ƚĂŬĞ ŽǀĞƌ ƚŚĞ ĂƐƐĞƚƐ ĂŶĚ ůŝĂďŝůŝƟĞƐ ŽĨ ƚŚĞ ŶŽǁ ĚĞĨƵŶĐƚ ĂŶŬ WŚ ͘ /Ŷ ϮϬϭϭ͕ D KE

T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JANUARY 14, 2018

ĂĐƋƵŝƌĞĚ ϭϬϬ͘Ϭй ŽĨ ĂŶŬ WŚ ƚŚƌŽƵŐŚ ŝƚƐ ĨƵůůLJ ŽǁŶĞĚ ƐƵďƐŝĚŝĂƌLJ ůŝŐŝďůĞ ^ĞĐƵƌŝƟĞƐ >ŝŵŝƚĞĚ͘ D KE ŝŶũĞĐƚĞĚ EϮϵϲ͘ϵďŶ ƚŽ ĞŶĂďůĞ ƚŚĞ ĂŶŬ ŵĞĞƚ ƚŚĞ ŵŝŶŝŵƵŵ ĐĂƉŝƚĂů ƌĞƋƵŝƌĞŵĞŶƚ ŽĨ EϮϱ͘ϬďŶ ĂŶĚ ĐĂƉŝƚĂů ĂĚĞƋƵĂĐLJ ƌĂƟŽ ŽĨ ϭϬ͘Ϭй͘ <ĞLJƐƚŽŶĞ ǁĂƐ ŐƌĂŶƚĞĚ Ă ĐŽŵŵĞƌĐŝĂů ďĂŶŬŝŶŐ ůŝĐĞŶƐĞ ǁŝƚŚ ŶĂƟŽŶĂů ĂƵƚŚŽƌŝnjĂƟŽŶ ďLJ E ŝŶ ƵŐƵƐƚ ϮϬϭϭ ĂŶĚ ŚĂƐ ƚŽƚĂů ĂƐƐĞƚƐ ŽĨ Eϰϭϯ͘ϬďŶ ĂƐ Ăƚ &z͗ ϮϬϭϯ ǁŚŝĐŚ ĨĂůůƐ ǁŝƚŚŝŶ ƚŚĞ ƚŚƌĞƐŚŽůĚ ŽĨ ŽƵƌ dŝĞƌ Ϯ ďĂŶŬƐΖ ĐůĂƐƐŝĮĐĂƟŽŶ͘ dŚĞ ĂŶŬ ƉƵďůŝƐŚĞĚ ŝƚƐ ůĂƐƚ ĮŶĂŶĐŝĂů ƌĞƉŽƌƚ ŝŶ ϮϬϭϯ͘ Ɛ Ăƚ &z͗ϮϬϭϯ͕ <ĞLJƐƚŽŶĞ ŚĂĚ ĞŝŐŚƚ ƐƵďƐŝĚŝĂƌŝĞƐ ƐƉƌĞĂĚ ĂĐƌŽƐƐ dŚĞ 'ĂŵďŝĂ͕ ^ŝĞƌƌĂ >ĞŽŶĞ͕ >ŝďĞƌŝĂ ĂŶĚ hŐĂŶĚĂ͕ ƚŚƌŽƵŐŚ ǁŚŝĐŚ ŝƚ ƉƌŽǀŝĚĞƐ Ă ǁŝĚĞ ƌĂŶŐĞ ŽĨ ĂŶŬŝŶŐ͕ /ŶƐƵƌĂŶĐĞ ĂŶĚ ,ĞĂůƚŚ ĂƌĞ ƐĞƌǀŝĐĞƐ͘ /Ŷ ŽƌĚĞƌ ƚŽ ĐŽŵƉůLJ ǁŝƚŚ ƚŚĞ ƐĐŽƉĞ ŽĨ ŝƚƐ ŵŽŶŽ ůŝŶĞ ŶĂƟŽŶĂů ďĂŶŬŝŶŐ ůŝĐĞŶƐĞ͕ ƚŚĞ ĂŶŬ ƐŽůĚ ŝƚƐ hŐĂŶĚĂŶ ƐƵďƐŝĚŝĂƌLJ ƚŽ hŐĂŶĚĂ KƌŝĞŶƚ ĂŶŬ ŝŶ ϮϬϭϱ͘ <ĞLJƐƚŽŶĞ ŝƐ ŝŶ ƚŚĞ ƉƌŽĐĞƐƐ ŽĨ ĚŝǀĞƐƟŶŐ ĨƌŽŵ ŝƚƐ ŽƚŚĞƌ ƚŚƌĞĞ ďĂŶŬŝŶŐ ƐƵďƐŝĚŝĂƌŝĞƐ ŽƵƚƐŝĚĞ EŝŐĞƌŝĂ͘ ,ŽǁĞǀĞƌ͕ ĂŌĞƌ ƐĞƌŝĞƐ ŽĨ ĚŝǀĞƐƚŵĞŶƚ ƚĂůŬƐ ǁŝƚŚ ƉƌŽƐƉĞĐƟǀĞ ŝŶǀĞƐƚŽƌƐ͕ D KE ƐŽůĚ ƚŚĞ ĂŶŬ ƚŽ ^ŝŐŵĂ 'ŽůĨ ZŝǀĞƌ ĂŶŬ ŽŶƐŽƌƟƵŵ͕ Ă ĐŽŶƐŽƌƟƵŵ ĐŽŵƉƌŝƐŝŶŐ ŽĨ ^ŝŐŵĂ 'ŽůĨ EŝŐĞƌŝĂ >ŝŵŝƚĞĚ ĂŶĚ ZŝǀĞƌďĂŶŬ /ŶǀĞƐƚŵĞŶƚ ZĞƐŽƵƌĐĞƐ͕ ĨŽƌ h^Ψϴϭ͘ϱŵ ;EϮϱ͘ϬďŶͿ ŝŶ ϮϬϭϳ͘

&/E E / > W Z&KZD E WƌŽĮƚĂďŝůŝƚLJ ĂŶĚ ĂƌŶŝŶŐƐ 'ƌŽǁƚŚ <ĞLJƐƚŽŶĞΖƐ ŽƉĞƌĂƟŶŐ ƉĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ ĨŽƌ ƚŚĞ LJĞĂƌ ĞŶĚĞĚ ϮϬϭϯ ǁĂƐ ďƌŽĂĚůLJ ƵŶĚĞƌǁŚĞůŵŝŶŐ͘ 'ƌŽƐƐ ĞĂƌŶŝŶŐƐ ŐƌĞǁ ŵĂƌŐŝŶĂůůLJ ďLJ ϭ͘ϭй z Ž z͕ ĨƌŽŵ Eϰϴ͘ϵďŶ ƌĞĐŽƌĚĞĚ ŝŶ ϮϬϭϮ ƚŽ Eϰϵ͘ϱďŶ ŝŶ &z͗ ϮϬϭϯ͘ dŚŝƐ ǁĂƐ ĂƐ Ă ƌĞƐƵůƚ ŽĨ Ă ĚƌĂŐ ŝŶ ŶĞƚ ĨĞĞ Θ ĐŽŵŵŝƐƐŝŽŶ ŝŶĐŽŵĞ ǁŚŝĐŚ ĨĞůů ďLJ ϯ͘ϭй z Ž z ĂŶĚ ƌĞǀĂůƵĂƟŽŶ ůŽƐƐ ŽŶ ĮŶĂŶĐŝĂů ĂƐƐĞƚƐ ŚĞůĚ ĨŽƌ ƚƌĂĚŝŶŐ͘ KŶ ƚŚĞ ŇŝƉƐŝĚĞ͕ /ŶƚĞƌĞƐƚ /ŶĐŽŵĞ ǁĂƐ ƵƉ ϯ͘ϳй z Ž z͕ ƐŽůĞůLJ ƐƵƉƉŽƌƚĞĚ ďLJ Ă ϮϮ͘ϴй ŐƌŽǁƚŚ ŝŶ ŝŶƚĞƌĞƐƚ ĨƌŽŵ ůŽĂŶƐ ĂŶĚ ĂĚǀĂŶĐĞƐ ĂƐ ǁĞůů ĂƐ Ă ŚŝŐŚĞƌ LJŝĞůĚ ŽŶ ůŽĂŶƐ

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ǁŚŝĐŚ ƐĞƩůĞĚ Ăƚ ϭϬ͘ϯй ŝŶ &z͗ϮϬϭϯ ĨƌŽŵ ϵ͘ϴй ŝŶ &z͗ϮϬϭϮ͘ dŚĞ ĂŶŬΖƐ ŽƉĞƌĂƟŶŐ ŝŶĐŽŵĞ ĨĞůů ďLJ ϭϳ͘Ϯй z Ž z ĚƵĞ ƚŽ ŵŽĚĞƌĂƟŽŶ ŝŶ ŶŽŶ ĐŽƌĞ ďƵƐŝŶĞƐƐ ŝŶĐŽŵĞƐ͕ ϴϲ͘ϳй z Ž z ĚĞĐůŝŶĞ ŝŶ ĐƌĞĚŝƚ ǁƌŝƚĞ ďĂĐŬƐ ĂŶĚ Ă Ϯϱ͘Ϭй z Ž z ƐƵƌŐĞ ŝŶ ŝŶƚĞƌĞƐƚ ĞdžƉĞŶƐĞ͘ 'ƌŽǁƚŚ ŝŶ ŝŶƚĞƌĞƐƚ ĞdžƉĞŶƐĞ ǁĂƐ ĨƵƌƚŚĞƌ ďƵƩƌĞƐƐĞĚ ďLJ ŝŶĐƌĞĂƐĞ ŝŶ ŽƐƚ ŽĨ &ƵŶĚ ; Ž&Ϳ ǁŚŝĐŚ ƌŽƐĞ ĨƌŽŵ ϰ͘ϰй ŝŶ &z͗ ϮϬϭϮ ƚŽ ϱ͘Ϭй ŝŶ &z͗ ϮϬϭϯ ;ďĞůŽǁ ƉĞĞƌ ĂǀĞƌĂŐĞ ŽĨ ϲ͘ϭйͿ͘ ůƐŽ͕ ŽƉĞƌĂƟŶŐ ĞdžƉĞŶƐĞƐ ŐƌĞǁ ƐůŝŐŚƚůLJ͕ ƵƉ Ϯ͘ϭй z Ž z ƚŽ Eϯϳ͘ϭďŶ͕ ďƵƚ ŽƐƚ ƚŽ /ŶĐŽŵĞ ƌĂƟŽ ŝŶĐŚĞĚ ŚŝŐŚĞƌ ƚŽ ϭϭϲ͘ϲй ŝŶ &z͗ ϮϬϭϯ ĨƌŽŵ ϭϬϰ͘ϰй ŝŶ &z͗ ϮϬϭϮ ŵĂũŽƌůLJ ĚƵĞ ƚŽ ĚĞƉƌĞƐƐĞĚ ŽƉĞƌĂƟŶŐ ŝŶĐŽŵĞ͘ dŚŝƐ ĐŽŵƉĂƌĞƐ ƉŽŽƌůLJ ƌĞůĂƟǀĞ ƚŽ ŽƵƌ dŝĞƌ Ϯ ĐŽǀĞƌĂŐĞ ĂǀĞƌĂŐĞ /Z ŽĨ ϳϮ͘ϳй ŝŶ &z͗ ϮϬϭϯ͘ ŽŶƐĞƋƵĞŶƚ ŽŶ ƚŚĞ ƵŶĚĞƌǁŚĞůŵŝŶŐ ƚŽƉůŝŶĞ ƉĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ ĂŶĚ ŝŶĐƌĞĂƐĞ ŝŶ ĨƵŶĚŝŶŐ ĂŶĚ ŽƉĞƌĂƟŶŐ ĞdžƉĞŶƐĞƐ͕ ƚŚĞ ĂŶŬ ƌĞĐŽƌĚĞĚ Ă ůŽƐƐ ŽĨ Eϰ͘ϴďŶ ŝŶ &z͗ ϮϬϭϯ ;ŝŵƉůŝĞĚ ůŽƐƐ ƉĞƌ ƐŚĂƌĞ͗ EϬ͘ϯϯͿ ĨŽƌ ƚŚĞ LJĞĂƌ͕ ĐŽŵƉĂƌĞĚ ƚŽ Ă ƉƌŽĮƚ ŽĨ EϮ͘ϰďŶ ;ŝŵƉůŝĞĚ W^͗ EϬ͘ϭϵͿ ŝŶ &z͗ ϮϬϭϮ͘

ƐƐĞƚ YƵĂůŝƚLJ͕ &ƵŶĚŝŶŐ Dŝdž͕ >ŝƋƵŝĚŝƚLJ ĂŶĚ ĂƉŝƚĂů ĚĞƋƵĂĐLJ dŚĞ ĂŶŬ ĂƩĂŝŶĞĚ Ă ĂƉŝƚĂů ĚĞƋƵĂĐLJ ZĂƟŽ ; ZͿ ŽĨ ϭϰ͘ϳй ŝŶ ƚŚĞ LJĞĂƌ ƵŶĚĞƌ ƌĞǀŝĞǁ͕ Ă ƐůŝŐŚƚ ĚĞĐůŝŶĞ ĨƌŽŵ ƚŚĞ ƉƌĞǀŝŽƵƐ ϭϲ͘Ϭй ƌĞĐŽƌĚĞĚ ŝŶ &z͗ ϮϬϭϮ ďƵƚ ĂďŽǀĞ ƚŚĞ ƌĞŐƵůĂƚŽƌLJ ŵŝŶŝŵƵŵ ŽĨ ϭϬ͘Ϭй͘ dŚŝƐ ŚŽǁĞǀĞƌ ǁĂƐ ĚƵĞ ƚŽ Ă ƌŝƐĞ ŝŶ ƚŚĞ ĂŶŬΖƐ ƌŝƐŬ ĂƐƐĞƚƐ ǁŝƚŚŝŶ ƚŚĞ ƐĂŵĞ ƉĞƌŝŽĚ͘ dŽƚĂů ƐƐĞƚƐ ŐƌĞǁ ϳ͘ϲй z Ž z͕ ŝŶ ƚŚĞ ƐĂŵĞ ǀĞŝŶ͕ ƚŚĞ ĂŶŬΖƐ ůŝĂďŝůŝƟĞƐ ǁĂƐ ƵƉ ϵ͘ϰй z Ž z ĚĞƐƉŝƚĞ Ă ϵϰ͘ϭй ĚĞĐůŝŶĞ ŝŶ ĚĞƉŽƐŝƚƐ͘

^ƚĂŶĚĂƌĚ ŚĂƌƚĞƌĞĚ EŝŐĞƌŝĂ >ŝŵŝƚĞĚ EŽŶ /ŶƚĞƌĞƐƚ /ŶĐŽŵĞ ŽůƐƚĞƌƐ WƌŽĮƚĂďŝůŝƚLJ Ks Zs/ t

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26

T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JANUARY 14, 2018

MARKET NEWS

Seven-Up Minority Shareholders Approve 100% Ownership by Affelka Shareholders of Seven-Up Bottling Company Plc on Thursday approved the Scheme of Arrangement through which the majority shareholder, Affelka S.A. would acquire the outstanding 26.8 per cent shares of the company.

The shareholders gave the approval at the Court-Ordered Meeting in Lagos.

Affelka S.A. will now increase its ownership of the company to 100 by acquiring all the outstanding and issued shares, previously held by the minority shareholders. In consideration for the transfer of the shares, a payment of N125.00 per share, which represents a 22.6 per cent premium on the last traded share price of Seven-up on January 9,

2018 and a 27.6 per cent premium on the share price as at close of August 9, 2017 being the last business day prior to the date the initial proposal was received from Affelka.

Speaking at the meeting, Chairman, Seven-Up Bottling Company Plc, Mr. Faysal El-Khalil, said: “We believe that the scheme will create considerable benefits and opportunities for all stakeholders of Seven-Up Bottling Company Plc. and will serve to protect minority shareholders from a continuous erosion of value. Furthermore Seven-Up Bottling Company Plc. is again assured of Affelka’s long term commitment to the company and Nigeria.’’

A Mutual fund (Unit Trust) is an investment vehicle managed by a SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) registered Fund Manager.

Investors with similar objectives buy units of the Fund so that the Fund Manager can buy securities that willl generate their desired return.

An ETF (Exchange Traded Fund) is a type of fund which owns the assets (shares of stock, bonds, oil futures, gold bars, foreign currency, etc.) and divides ownership of those assets into shares. Investors can buy these ‘shares’ on the

Affelka had to increase the tender offer price from N112.70 to N125 to ensure the minority shareholders approve the proposal.

The majority shareholder in Seven-Up Bottling Company Plc, Affelka S.A who is offering to buy out the minority shareholders of the company has raised the tender offer price to N125.

Before the meeting yesterday, investment analysts at Afrinvest West Africa, had advised minority the shareholders of Seven-Up Bottling Company Plc to accept the tender offer from the majority shareholder, Affelka S.A. According to Afrinvest, given

floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange.

A REIT (Real Estate Investment Trust) is an investment vehicle that allows both small and large investors to part-own real estate ventures (eg.

Offices, Houses, Hospitals) in proportion to their investments. The assets are divided into shares that are traded on the Nigerian Stock Exchange.

GUIDE TO DATA: Date: All fund prices are quoted in Naira as at 11-Jan-2018, unless otherwise stated.

the recent weak financial performance, historical illiquidity characterising Seven-Up’s stock - which will possibly worsen postacquisition - and the premium offered

by Affelka relative to the current market price, they recommended investors tender their shares for the price consideration.

The analysts explained that in its latest 2017 full year financial results, Seven-Up’s performance deteriorated on the back of rising direct and indirect cost profiles as well as finance charges despite growing revenue considerably.

Afrinvest explained that on the consideration of the options, its overall

analysis favours a “Sell” decision premised on the illiquidity, weak investor sentiments and premium pricing.

“In the event that the shares of minority shareholders are being bought over, investors who decide to hold would be faced with illiquidity challenge associated with the stock. As such, prices of the stock will remain rather unreflective of fair market pricing, thereby indicating an increasing likelihood of a substantial loss in value of investments,” they said According to them, despite investor’s negative sentiment for the stock, their our outlook for FY:2017 performance remains rather bleak given the company’s high leverage and cost inefficiency.

Offer price: The price at which units of a trust or ETF are bought by investors.

Bid Price: The price at which Investors redeem (sell) units of a trust or ETF. Yield/Total Return: Denotes the total return an investor would have earned on his investment. Money Market Funds report Yield while others report Year- to-date Total Return.

NAV: Is value per share of the real estate assets held by a REIT on a specific date.

DAILY PRICE LIST FOR MUTUAL FUNDS, REITS and ETFS MUTUAL FUNDS / UNIT TRUSTS AFRINVEST ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD aaml@afrinvest.com Web: www.afrinvest.com; Tel: +234 1 270 1680 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Afrinvest Equity Fund 196.44 196.52 10.33% Nigeria International Debt Fund 239.02 239.11 3.19% ALTERNATIVE CAPITAL PARTNERS LTD info@acapng.com Web: www.acapng.com, Tel: +234 1 291 2406, +234 1 291 2868 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn ACAP Canary Growth Fund 0.85 0.86 3.78% ACAP Income Funds 0.62 0.62 -4.17% AIICO CAPITAL LTD ammf@aiicocapital.com Web: www.arm.com.ng; Tel: 0700 CALLARM (0700 225 5276) Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn AIICO Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 16.60% ARM INVESTMENT MANAGERS LTD enquiries@arminvestmentcenter.com Web: www.arm.com.ng; Tel: 0700 CALLARM (0700 225 5276) Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn ARM Aggressive Growth Fund 20.06 20.67 9.80% ARM Discovery Fund 418.03 430.64 7.45% ARM Ethical Fund 28.42 29.28 4.03% ARM Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 16.74% AXA MANSARD INVESTMENTS LIMITED investmentcare@axamansard.com Web: www.axamansard.com; Tel: +2341-4488482 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn AXA Mansard Equity Income Fund 166.18 167.34 9.55% AXA Mansard Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 15.93% CHAPELHILL DENHAM MANAGEMENT LTD investmentmanagement@chapelhilldenham.com Web: www.chapelhilldenham.com, Tel: +234 461 0691 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Chapelhill Denham Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 18.25% Paramount Equity Fund 13.01 13.34 5.23% Women's Investment Fund 102.11 104.73 1.47% CORDROS ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED assetmgtteam@cordros.com Web: www.cordros.com, Tel: 019036947 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Cordros Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 0.00% CORONATION ASSEST MANAGEMENT investment@coronationam.com Web:www.coronationam.com , Tel: 012366215 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Coronation Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 0.00% Coronation Balanced Fund 0.00 0.00 0.00% Coronation Fixed Income Fund 0.00 0.00 0.00% FBN QUEST ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD invest@fbnquest.com Web: www.fbnquest.com; Tel: +234-81 0082 0082 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn FBN Fixed Income Fund 1,164.28 1,165.45 8.82% FBN Heritage Fund 150.13 151.67 7.77% FBN Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 15.85% FBN Nigeria Eurobond (USD) Fund - Institutional $114.00 $114.11 1.52% FBN Nigeria Eurobond (USD) Fund - Retail $113.38 $113.49 1.55% FBN Nigeria Smart Beta Equity Fund 192.61 195.45 12.78% FIRST CITY ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD fcamhelpdesk@fcmb.com Web: www.fcamltd.com; Tel: +234 1 462 2596 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Legacy Equity Fund 1.42 1.45 8.74% Legacy Debt Fund 2.89 2.89 0.45% FSDH ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD coralfunds@fsdhgroup.com Web: www.fsdhaml.com; Tel: 01-270 4884-5; 01-280 9740-1 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Coral Growth Fund 3,176.91 3,225.77 6.68% Coral Income Fund 2,479.87 2,479.87 1.39% GREENWICH ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED assetmanagement@gtlgroup.com Web: www.gtlgroup.com ; Tel: +234 1 4619261-2 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Greenwich Plus Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 15.46% INVESTMENT ONE FUNDS MANAGEMENT LTD enquiries@investment-one.com Web: www.investment-one.com; Tel: +234 812 992 1045,+234 1 448 8888 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Abacus Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 16.20% Vantage Balanced Fund 2.24 2.27 6.30%

Vantage Guaranteed Income Fund 1.00 1.00 18.33% Kedari Investment Fund (KIF) 115.08 115.08 0.36% LOTUS CAPITAL LTD fincon@lotuscapitallimited.com Web: www.lotuscapitallimited.com; Tel: +234 1-291 4626 / +234 1-291 4624 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Lotus Halal Investment Fund 1.21 1.23 1.06% Lotus Halal Fixed Income Fund 1,058.75 1,058.75 0.60% MERISTEM WEALTH MANAGEMENT LTD info@meristemwealth.com Web: http://www.meristemwealth.com/funds/ ; Tel: +234 1-4488260 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Meristem Equity Market Fund 16.01 16.16 13.58% Meristem Money Market Fund 10.00 10.00 16.76% PAC ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD info@pacassetmanagement.com Web: www.pacassetmanagement.com/mutualfunds; Tel: +234 1 271 8632 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn PACAM Balanced Fund 1.27 1.29 6.73% PACAM Fixed Income Fund 11.11 11.18 0.70% PACAM Money Market Fund 10.00 10.00 14.07% SCM CAPITAL LIMITED info@scmcapitalng.com Web: www.scmcapitalng.com; Tel: +234 1-280 2226,+234 1- 280 2227 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn SCM Capital Frontier Fund 133.85 136.28 32.12% SFS CAPITAL NIGERIA LTD investments@sfsnigeria.com Web: www.sfsnigeria.com, Tel: +234 (01) 2801400 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn SFS Fixed Income Fund 1.49 1.49 0.23% STANBIC IBTC ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD assetmanagement@stanbicibtc.com Web: www.stanbicibtcassetmanagement.com; Tel: +234 1 280 1266; 0700 MUTUALFUNDS Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Stanbic IBTC Balanced Fund 2,375.99 2,394.47 5.90% Stanbic IBTC Bond Fund 179.40 179.40 1.67% Stanbic IBTC Ethical Fund 1.10 1.11 9.41% Stanbic IBTC Guaranteed Investment Fund 222.16 222.29 0.90% Stanbic IBTC Iman Fund 188.35 190.81 5.26% Stanbic IBTC Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 16.53% Stanbic IBTC Nigerian Equity Fund 10,569.43 10,711.68 9.30% Stanbic IBTC Dollar Fund (USD) 1.06 1.06 0.00% UNITED CAPITAL ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD unitedcapitalplcgroup.com Web: www.unitedcapitalplcgroup.com; Tel: +234 803 306 2887 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn United Capital Balanced Fund 1.35 1.37 20.78% United Capital Bond Fund 1.57 1.57 27.95% United Capital Equity Fund 0.94 0.96 2.70% United Capital Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 15.30% United Capital Eurobond Fund 103.00 103.00 4.60% United Capital Wealth for Women Fund 1.10 1.10 15.40% ZENITH ASSETS MANAGEMENT LTD info@zenith-funds.com Web: www.zenith-funds.com; Tel: +234 1-2784219 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Zenith Equity Fund 0.00 0.00 0.00% Zenith Ethical Fund 0.00 0.00 0.00% Zenith Income Fund 0.00 0.00 0.00%

REITS NAV Per Share

Yield / T-Rtn

11.41 132.75

1.01% 0.22%

Bid Price

Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

12.43 164.85 124.03

12.53 168.41 126.36

2.55% 15.43% 13.53%

Fund Name FSDH UPDC Real Estate Investment Fund SFS Skye Shelter Fund

EXCHANGE TRADED FUNDS Fund Name Lotus Halal Equity Exchange Traded Fund SIAML Pension ETF 40 Stanbic IBTC ETF 30 Fund

VETIVA FUND MANAGERS LTD Web: www.vetiva.com; Tel: +234 1 453 0697 Fund Name Vetiva Banking Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva Consumer Goods Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva Griffin 30 Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva Industrial Goods Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva S&P Nigeria Sovereign Bond Exchange Traded Fund

funds@vetiva.com Bid Price

Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

5.14 9.66 18.78 20.58 152.09

5.18 9.74 18.88 20.78 154.09

8.40% 0.94% 5.73% 4.60% 2.35%

The value of investments and the income from them may fall as well as rise. Past performance is a guide and not an indication of future returns. Fund prices published in this edition are also available on each fund manager’s website and FMAN’s website at www.fman.com.ng. Fund prices are supplied by the operator of the relevant fund and are published for information purposes only.

A

WEEKLY PULL-OUT

14.01.2018

PATRICK IMOHIOSEN

DJ, PRODUCER & SINGER

28

T H I S DAY, T H E S U N DAY N E W S PA P E R ˞ ͯͲ, Ͱ͎ͯ͜

COVER

DJ Neptune

PATRICK IMOHIOSEN PA

DJ, PRODUCER & SINGER Popular D DJ, Patrick Imohiosen, better known as, DJ Neptune Neptun narrates his fascinating journey in the entertainment entertain business; from DJ to mainstream music. Nseobong Okon-Ekong reports music

O

n a sunny Sunday afternoon, DJ Neptune was lounging wit with his wife in their living roo room. Well, his real name is Pat Patrick Imohiosen. Nobody really calls him that. Everyone rea call calls him DJ Neptune. I was going g g to interrupt p the their intimacy, for a while.

They y knew I was coming. com When I arrived, Mrs. Imohiosen was all ch charm and hospitable. I accepted p some slices of cake and water. It was the First Sunday y of th the year and the celebratory air was still blowing. g She served the snack before taking g leave o of her husband and I. But the television was still sti tuned to E! which she was watching g before my arrival. Neptune was wearing g a track pant p and a T-shirt. He looked like one who had bee been reminded of a pressing appointment. pp I woul would never know if he had second thoughts g abo about the appointment. After the initial welcome fo formalities, he kept his gaze on the laptop, p p until I said I was ready to proceed with the interview. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I started out on the street like any other DJ and then I got g the op p opportunity to be on radio.

That was when every everything worked. That was 2004.â&#x20AC;?

Now, we can peg p g his professional career as a DJ, but the rest of h his statement was cluttered; so I needed more light ligh g to understand where he was coming g from from. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I was understudying someone. My y boss th then, DJ Douglass. He had a studio in a fast-food outlet at Egbeda-Lagos.

We were playing p y g the there and people came around to book us to play at parties and events.

The opportunity to be on radio came from a friend whose father worked at DAAR Communications, owners of Raypower 100.5FM. He put in a good word for me. I was put on a test. I did well and was hired.â&#x20AC;?

That really isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t the beginning of his story. The journey goes back to 2001. The entertainment industry was different. DJ equipment were very expensive. And not everyone could lay hands on them. To gain access, you had to work with one who had these equipment turntables and records, not even CDs. It was like serving a period of apprenticeship to become a mechanic. All that has changed. Today, people can easily download songs off the internet.

There is no doubt that Neptune has profound interest in entertainment, particularly, music. His passion for entertainment actually started with singing.

Back then, he had an uncle who came on a routine weekly visit to give him voice training tutorials. His father did not fancy this at all. When he passed, Neptune who was 16, at the time, had the opportunity to do what he wanted. Between completing his secondary school education, he ventured into the DJ world, while allowing the singing part to recede a bit. His plan was simple: start as a DJ. Grow it to a stage then introduce the other creative side of you out. So far, everything is working, according to plan, even faster than he thought.

When he started working as a DJ, he was driven by the passion. Originally, he

29

JANUARY 14, 2018 ˾ T H I S DAY, T H E S U N DAY N E W S PA P E R

COVER

FROM BEING A DJ, HE IS MAKING FRUITFUL INCURSION INTO MAINSTREAM MUSIC. TO DATE, HE HAS RELEASED 13 SINGLES, LARGELY COLLABORATIONS WITH ESTABLISHED ARTISTES, BOTH NIGERIANS AND NON-NIGERIANS. HE HAS BEEN RELEASING TRACKS FROM AS FAR BACK AS 2010. SOME OF THE ARTISTES HE HAS SHARED PERFORMANCE CREDIT WITH INCLUDE, BUT NOT LIMITED TO MI, NAETO C, DAGRIN, SARKODIE, MR. EAZI, DAVIDO, OLAMIDE AND YCEE… AS IT IS COMMON WITH DJS, NEPTUNE HAS DONE A LOT OF COLLABORATIONS WITH ARTISTES. HE EXPLAINED HOW THE WORKING RELATIONSHIP DEVELOPS just wanted to play so people could listen and enjoy his selection of music. Then he began to understand that as a DJ, what mattered was for him to play what the people love. That is what makes a good DJ. It was not about making money. There was really nothing to make. It was what gave him joy. Daily; the pump of the music.

The gyrating bodies on the dance floor.

The cheerful atmosphere. He loved them all beyond explanation. Along the line, he became mindful of the business of the trade.

He cleaned up his act, took part-time tutorials for a degree in Mass Communication from the Lagos State University and things became better.

Residing in a plum estate in Ajah with his wife and daughter may be a pointer to the good times that Neptune is rolling in, but his thoughts are clouded with visions of improved deals for DJs. “People have not really settled down to accept that DJ is an act on its own and that DJs should not be neglected the way they are being neglected now. If you have someone putting an event or a show together, the least person on their mind is the DJ. DJs are key in whatever event you are doing, be it concert, wedding birthday, child dedication. If music is not there, no matter how good your food is, no matter the kind of drinks you have, if the music is not there or if the music is not that good, people will not have fun like they want. It is not that people cannot be in their house and buy drinks and invite their friends, but they will rather go to the club and listen to how DJs play the music and everything surrounding it.”

However, on a good day, you are not likely to find Neptune in a club, except work takes him there. His reason: “I am a very private person. I don’t fancy that lifestyle. Hardly would you find me on red carpets and such places. It may be good for visibility, but the brand managers and those tasked with such responsibilities know who can deliver.”

Given a choice, Neptune said he would rather not work as a club DJ. “The club owners don’t pay and it is not worth my time. I am not going to play three nights in a week; 15 nights in a month and you are paying me between N80000 and N100000. I am one of the reasons the guys are in the club popping, the girls are shaking and making their sexy moves and obviously if the music is good the guys are happy and requesting for more bottles and some of these bottles are going for between N30000 and N40000 and some are as

expensive as between N200000 and N300000, but there is so much suffering that some DJs accept anything. To be honest whatever platform you have at a particular time, hold on to it and while you are at it, give your best because you never can tell who is listening and who is watching or who is monitoring you. You can be a club DJ and a radio station owner will come and hear. Wherever you are, do it well, even if you are not getting what you are supposed to be getting. Light is going to shine on you someday.”

From being a DJ, he is making fruitful incursion into mainstream music. To date, he has released 13 singles, largely collaborations with established artistes, both Nigerians and non-Nigerians. He has been releasing tracks from as far back as 2010. Some of the artistes he has shared performance credit with include, but not limited to MI, Naeto C, Dagrin, Sarkodie, Mr. Eazi, Davido, Olamide and Ycee.

Within the first quarter of this year, Neptune plans a major landmark in his career with the release of his debut album.

This full body of works will showcase his resourcefulness beyond reasonable doubt as it will feature fresh materials. With this album, his proficiency will be in two areas - as a DJ and as a producer. For the first time, he will be putting to test the combined power of a DJ and a producer. “I have certain ideas in my head that I try to bring to life. It might not necessarily be what is in vogue at that time or what people love, but by the time I have the finished product people will love it. What I do is I put all that needs to be put in place in terms of the sound production. Sometimes I work with producers to bring it to life. At other times, I just call a couple of artistes together.”

His ability to see beyond the immediate has paid off in the past. “As a DJ and producer, I visualize and say it will be crazy to have a Majek Fashek and a Burna Boy together on a track. They might not see it, but as a DJ and a producer, you are looking at it from different angles. I have been able to successfully do a track like that, that was released in 2010 that had the late Dagrin, MI and Naeto C. When I did that record, these three guys were on top of their game when it comes to hiphop in Africa. I am sure individually they never thought they could be on each other’s song. I was lucky to have done that because Dagrin passed on and when the record came out, I got crazy positive

reviews. That is the kind of power I have as a producer to be able to visualize certain sounds or tracks that even artistes or producers are not thinking of.”

Neptune agrees that DJs can influence the direction of music in a particular period. But he conceded that this power is not absolute.

According to him, some of this ability to sway lies in the hands of producers. “Different artistes have different ways of coming up with their songs. Sometimes they allow the producer to be the front man in terms of creating the instrument and then add vibes to it, while some artistes come with ideas and share it with the producer. In most cases, when the producer is producing the song they put a lot of things into consideration like what is in vogue now? What is your own style as an artiste. All that put together influences the end product. The producer may say I have this beat that I produced and you lay your vocals on it. It may be a sound that is in vogue at that particular time. If you have, say, 100 DJs in a night playing that particular song, the consumers - that is the people who go to clubs or listen to radio, get stuck to that kind of song. Two years ago, we were into fast-tempo songs. Last year, however, it dropped to mid and slow tempo and you see artistes who do fast songs finding themselves in that bracket at that particular time.”

As it is common with DJs, Neptune has done a lot of collaborations with artistes. He explained how the working relationship develops. “I am cool with most of them. Some are my close friends. Sometimes I get messages from them saying they have a song they think suits my brand. When I released ‘Baddest’ with Olamide, we had been talking about working together. He called me up to come to the studio and I got there and when I listened, there was a bit of that Ghanaian bounce in it.

As a DJ and a businessman, I thought about it from another angle, I am friends with Stoneboi from Ghana who at that time had just won Best BET African Act and I was also in touch with him about doing a track together so when I heard it, it came on my mind to visualize him on that track. Though Olamide was a bit skeptical, but he said he could trust my judgment. I sent it to Stoneboi, he heard it and he sent his voice back to me and that is how we had Olamide from Nigeria and Stoneboi from Ghana. That record did pretty well in Nigeria, in Ghana and overseas as well.”

Long after he started performing as a DJ,

he was without a nickname. The moniker Neptune came from fans. This is how it happened. “There is this song produced by The Neptunes for Busta Rhymes. There is this part of that song where Busta Rhymes ‘beatup’ The Neptunes. I was always scratching that part just creating different rhythms from that particular part of the record. There were these set of guys who had been to my previous parties. On this particular day, they walked into a different party and I was the DJ when they came they said this Neptune Guy is here again and sure he is going to do his usual routine, I just laughed over it. When I got home I thought about the whole party and I remembered what those guys said about me, I told myself why not stick to this name since some certain people already know you by it.

I did my research and made sure no other DJ from Nigeria and across Africa was bearing that name then. I took off the ‘s’ instead of The Neptunes, I just added DJ.” One of the strongest things on his mind right now is to leave a legacy that he would be remembered for. “I have had these thoughts on my mind for quite a while now. I feel I am at that stage when it is time to give back to the society. Whether I like it or not, I am still here today among the best because some certain people believe in me. I think it is high time I give back to the people who say I want to be like Neptune, but these things require a lot of funds. This is where I live. I am a family man and I can’t bring in troops because I am trying to give back. I need a place It is going to be well structured you don’t need to be there for long; maximum two months with access to internet and a lot of things we have these days you should be able to learn one or two things and be able to stand on your own. There are plans for that.”

Another dream of his that is materialising in leaps and bounds is arguably the biggest thing he will ever want to do.

“I will love to own my own radio station.”

Having travelled the world as a DJ, he has certain experiences that he is itching to introduce in Nigeria. While he is keeping them close to his chest, he birthed an online radio station - Neptune FM. “I set it up to give people around the world an understanding of Afrobeat and our music. I started it two years ago. In one month I was getting 40000 listeners from around the world. I had to put a pause to it. When I started, I was hoping to partner with one of the Telcos, but that has not happened yet. We will come back to it.”

30

T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˞ ͯͲ, Ͱ͎ͯ͜

with Ě&#x201C;

͎ͯͯ͜ͲͲ͡ͳ͹ͰͲË&#x153; nseobong.okonekong@thisdaylive.com

Stella Monye Appeals for Another Round of Support for Ailing Son Nseobong Okon-Ekong

I

brahim, one of singer, Stella Monyeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s two children and her only son is in dire need of corrective surgery to his damaged urethra which has led to other complications including kidney disease. Ibrahim was 10 years when he fell on a sharp object that pierced deep into his scrotum. An initial surgery created more problems which necessitated an appeal for public support championed by Dr. Raymond Dokpesi and the late Christy EssienIgbokwe.

Today, Ibrahim is 27 and has gone under the surgeonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s knife many times because the surgery collapses frequently. In recent months, a distraught Stella who had borne the excruciating burden of an enduring treatment for her son, cried out. â&#x20AC;&#x153;No mother should to go through my agony with her child. You do not wish that on any mother, not even a wicked witch. Each morning, I clean my sonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s opened stomach. Every week, we go into the hospital because of infections to his injuries, opened stomach and for his kidney dialyses. His urethra is damaged. This process has caused him kidney disease. Ibrahim lives with tubes inserted in his lower abdomen. My heart is darkness of pain. I see clouds of trauma, every day. His lower abdomen has been slashed open for two years: a tube is connected to his bladder to help him discharge his bodily fluids.

We fight infections all the time with endless visits to the hospital and with antibiotic prescriptions. My home is a mini chemist. I do not know how that boy is still alive.â&#x20AC;?

For the second time, Stella who initially rejected all entreaties to go public with Ibrahim medical condition, ate the humble pie. The glimmer of hope which is being offered from a SYLVESTER AGUDDAH: TURNING CARDBOARDS TO CASH Yinka Olatunbosun With roots in Badagry, Lagos, this corporate guru turned full-time studio artist, Sylvester Aguddah takes purposeful strides towards art when he quit his job at a leading telecommunications company in 2016. His winning medium is the cardboard, hardly used by most contemporary artists from Nigeria.

Without a formal training in art, it could have been a risk for Aguddah to depend on art for a living but still, it was a risk worth taking.

For 25 years, Aguddah had walked through the corridors of art, starting with his drawings as a child. He would later attend a secondary school with emphasis on art subjects. Growing up in Kano, he was enrolled at the Kano School of Business Studies and later gained admission to study Business Administration at the Ahmadu Bello University in Zaria and specialized in Marketing. Since he graduated in 1999, he had enjoyed posh life, international flights to choice destinations for business, and occasional time at his private corner where he does his art.

At the last exhibition with the theme, â&#x20AC;&#x153;ArtCyclesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;â&#x20AC;&#x2122; held in Lagos at the Renaissance Hotel, GRA Ikeja, this reporter sought him out as he spoke freely about how he left the lucrative corporate job for his passion: art. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I started my career with Procter and Gamble in 2000. I joined British American Tobacco in 2002 where I worked as a trade marketing representative and grew to the rank of area manager for seven years and I got the opportunity to work with Globacom as Senior Sales Manager and I was there for eight years until 2016 when I decided to chase my passion,â&#x20AC;&#x2122;â&#x20AC;&#x2122; he revealed.

As a corporate staff at a multi-national company, Aguddah did his art marketing quietly within close associates. But his talent was boiling let the hot steam from a pressure pot, fighting to be let out. â&#x20AC;&#x153;While I was in British American Tobacco, during one of our regional meetings, I was asked to bring along some of my works. A lot of my colleagues then found out that I was into art. I use cardboard sheets of different sizes and thickness to do my works and it is different from what most artists do today. I also do pencil

Stella Monye

of my sorrows to sleep every night, hoping for miracle to happen. I do not know how much time I have left in my life. Anything can happen at any time. I am in the early evenings of my life. Who will care for Ibrahim if I fall now? Who will wipe his urine, clean

his sore open belly, clean the inlet to the tube that connects to his bladder?

Who will empty his urine for him, wake up every three hours at night to wipe him up, change his wet clothes and or help him to the toilet? My Sonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s bladder is ruptured, so it bleeds into his abdomen, mixing with his urine: it is always infected. The doctors here tried to treat him recently, but recommended I took him outside Nigeria for corrective surgery. His kidney is swollen and lacerated. This painful process has impacted his kidney.â&#x20AC;?

Ibrahim who had his primary and secondary education at Chrisland Schools in Ikeja-Lagos dreamt of becoming a computer engineer or a pilot, but this has been truncated by his frequent visit to the surgeons

Aguddah may not necessarily belong to a prticular art movement but some of his works are avant-gardist in nature and content.

His subject matters are varied between the contemporary and romantic. He romantises nature with skylinesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; depictions and treats human emotions to reach a vast audience. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I like variety. Coming from my background in brand marketing and merchandising, this is about segmenting the market. I want to cut across all ages and social strata. I want the average income earner to be able to afford an art work and be able to give it as gift. I believe that art is priceless. You canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t really put a price to art,â&#x20AC;&#x2122;â&#x20AC;&#x2122; he said over the background jazz music wafting through the ground floor of the hotel.

He finished some of his cardboard pieces with several layers. For instance, one had 18 layers of cardboard sheets showing believable sunset

with cast of trees appearing at dusk. â&#x20AC;&#x153;In this abstract work, I try to show a man who is confused about which woman to marry.

Here you have two ladies, one light blue and the other is darker blue and a gentleman. The man is in dilemma as the two ladies seem to have met his criteria,â&#x20AC;&#x2122;â&#x20AC;&#x2122; he explained as he walked through the works inside the exhibition hall.

The excitement conveyed through the bright colours in his works exemplifies the spirit of a cyclist for it is very rare to see a sad cyclist.

Incidentally, the Minister of Sports who saw some of Aguddahâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s pieces at this exhibition thought the body of works was a good propaganda for sports development.

Asides doing art, Aguddahâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s lifestyle promotes African culture for he sports African fabrics religiously. Perhaps being born of a mother who is partly Togolese may have been

Stella and son, Ibrahim

specialist doctor in Indiana, USA, for constructive surgery would cost N35 Million. The amount is way beyond her reach. Unable to watch life ebb out of her son slowly, she has taken the desperate option of going public again. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t continue take the weights

Guests at the Artcycles event

sketches, photo art charcoal and photography.

People wonder how I manage to work with the cardboard as a medium because I had no formal training in art. It is just a gift I have,â&#x20AC;&#x2122;â&#x20AC;&#x2122; he said.

His work is essentially collage art with drops of abstract and photo art. Although he never really understudied any artist, he is enthralled by the works of Crosby Akunyili. His works are created to appeal to the eyes and mental disposition, soothing the mind and telling a story. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Some people buy art works because it relates to what they do,â&#x20AC;&#x2122;â&#x20AC;&#x2122; he continued. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s exhibition is about two special passions that I have: art and cycling. I love cycling and I do it on weekends. As a cyclist if you want to ride you have to be seen for safety reasons. I use bright colours so as to be seen. Cycling also keeps you healthy.â&#x20AC;&#x2122;â&#x20AC;&#x2122;

JANUARY 14, 2018 ˾ T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R

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ENTERTAINMENT

ROZE: New Kids on the Block Vanessa Obioha Their names do not easily ring a bell but their father’s name does. Although, he is now widely recognized as a politician, Hon. Ehiozuwa Johnson Agbonayinma popularly known as EJ is famous in the entertainment industry. His state of the art recording studio in Edo state is still an eight world wonder to those in the industry. He even blows his own trumpet, recalling his unflinching support to top-notch American artistes like LL Cool J back in the day. With his undying love for music even if he never carried the mic, it was expected that having his progeny toeing similar part will be embraced by him. But that was not the case. Education was paramount for EJ, so when his wife, Itohan hinted to him that his two boys, Eghosa Rodney and Osazuwa Michael have musical talents, he shrugged it off and insisted that they face their studies. However, today he is proud that his wife convinced him to give them a chance because the siblings now flying with the stage name Roze are enjoying the early joys of stardom. Their official single “The whole Night’ is already a hit in the U.S. ad it is expected to replicate the good reviews in Nigeria.

Born in Houston, Texas, January 11, 1998 and July 30, 1999 to Nigerian-American parents, later relocated to the home country of their parents, Nigeria, where they did their primary and secondary school education. Once done with their secondary school education, they moved back to Houston where they are now studying Petroleum Engineering and Architecture at the University of Houston and Houston Community College in Texas, United States of America respectively.

In their high school, Immaculate Conception College (ICC), both brothers were known for their musical talent in their class.

Zuwa (Osazuwa) was known in his set to be one of the best rappers they had, while Row (Rodney) was known to be one of the best vocalist they had. Ever since their childhood, both brothers have had a passion for music and affinity with several genres such as Hip Hop, R&B, Reggae, Country and many others.

They always seem to mention how they do not restrict themselves from various genres of music. However, what really did the magic for them was the popular 1965 American musical drama film produced and directed by Robert Wise, The Sound of Music. They fiddled around making beats and writing songs, until they got the attention of their father through the help of their mother. EJ would go as far as taking them to recording studios to record the songs they had written, staying by their side day and night in the studio, as they worked with music producers. Their mother, elated by their talent, love, and passion for music, would play their songs joyfully.

instrumental to this pan-African worldview.

Once, he had an opportunity to show his works in UK at a private collection and he went with just 10 pieces.

“It lasted 30 minutes and I sold out. I went with only 10 pieces,’’ he said. Having learnt his lesson, he prepared no fewer than 125 art works for the “ArtCycles” exhibition. He created the first 53 works in three weeks. In response to whether he had an assistant, Aguddah narrated an interesting story of how he got an assistant who worked with him on this last project.

Aguddah usually fixes bicycles at the close of work. One boy had been watching him. One day, Aguddah was tired and left one bicycle to be fixed the next day. By the time he got there, it had been fixed. The young bystander had fixed it. So, when Aguddah started his own company, he decided to engage the young man, Abass as his assistant.

“The boy is also into fashion because I usually give my staff a day off work to learn a skill.

What I find exciting about my pursuit of art is the exposure. I have met government officials and celebrities. Although I have not got any sponsorship except Renaissance Hotel, I look forward to more opportunities,’’ he said.

HOW NIGERIAN ARTISTES OWNED THE STAGE AT COKE STUDIO AFRICA 5 The fifth edition of Coca-Cola pan-African music initiative, Coke Studio Africa, showcased seven of the best musical talents from Nigeria who collaborated with other talented African music stars from other countries in Africa.

They were Olamide, Patoranking, Yemi Alade, Falz, Chidinma, and Runtown, with Dremo participating. For this particular edition, 16 countries participated, creating a platform for

Roze

Roze first appeared in 2014 while working on a test project, titled ‘Time to Party,’ which was never released. However, they later appeared again in 2016, being introduced to producer, Mekoyo, who has produced for artist such as Style Plus. Out of the several songs recorded

by Roze, the hit song titled “The Whole Night,” already making waves in the US, was decided to be released in Africa. The video for the track is directed by Clarence Peters. The single is an afro-pop with bearings of western pop, which speak volumes of their artistry.

more magical musical fusions and creativity.

Broadcast in more than 30 countries in Africa, the Nigerian artistes particularly did very well in creating hit songs with their counterparts from other African Countries on Coke Studio. Their stage performances, cover songs, and original songs were done remarkably. Some of the music tracks they did actually trended online and have gone on to be major music hits loved by the public. Particularly, the collaboration between South Africa’s Nasty C and Runtown on the original track titled “Said”.

Inspired by its wild acceptability, Coca-Cola

Olamide

At a time when music group breakup seemed to be rife with the recent breakup of twin superstars, P-Square, concerns were raised if Roze would be immune to such split.

“It is music. If any one of us wants to go solo, he can. It doesn’t hinder our progress. We can as well come together and make music. It is no big deal if we decide to go solo.”

While they may not be too familiar with the Nigerian music industry, the siblings have at least identified with wave making artistes like Wizkid for future collaborations.

has moved on to produce a musical video of the track. This is the first musical video coming out of the Coca-Cola’s Coke Studio show and it is hoped that in subsequent editions there will be more productions of Coke Studio musical videos that will come from the Artistes fusion.

Olamide collaborated with AKA, a top hip hop artiste from South Africa and they created the original track titled, “Kolole”, which got the crowd dancing away and loving the vibe that was created from the fusion. On the cover version of AKA’s track, “Run Jozi”, Olamide again showed his rap dexterity as he aced the delivery of the

Chidinma

song he created. The CEO of YBNL Nation has a strong brand with track record of performances in Africa, the US, London, the rest of Europe, Malaysia, to mention a few.

Patoranking, award-winning Nigerian singer, songwriter and performing artiste, who catapulted into fame with the remix of his song “Girlie O”, returned to Coke Studio Africa Season 5 and was paired with Tanzanian superstar, Alikiba. He made his premiere on Coke Studio Season 4 and was also paired with Tanzanian pop princess Vanessa Mdee then. Working with Masterkraft, Nigeria’s ace music producer, Patoranking revealed why he is called “fire.”

The original track he did in collaboration with Alikiba is titled “Katika.” Patoranking is a show stopper and a wonderful dancer as it is evident with his unique Alkayida step in his performances on Coke Studio.

Falz is already known for his versatility in the entertainment industry. He is a musician, rap artiste, an actor, and a comedian. This year in Coke Studio, he showcased his artistry. He returns for a second time to the Coke Studio stage to be paired with Uganda’s Bebe Cool.

He joined forces with Bebe Cool to create original and cover version songs. Interestingly, the throwback track they both did titled “Boju Boju”, stood him out. Falz’s rap skill is truly unique as no one appears to have come close to his style with respect to delivering rap lyrics and melodies. He was also featured on one of the collaborations with Jason Derulo alongside South Africa’s Shekhinah titled “One on One”, on the Global Fusion Episode.

Yemi Alade’s Afrocentric style was undeniably visible in the recent edition. Her fashion has always been an inspiration and she did not let her fans down in this season of Coke Studio extravaganza. Not just being identified as a Queen Slayer, dancer and heart stealer, her vocals – which rivals that of a goddess - were easily recognizable. She kept the Coke Studio Africa audience on the edge of their seats with new songs that span her collaborations with Congolese Youssoupha.

The version of “les disques de mon pere”, Youssoupha’s song, showed Yemi Alade’s adaptability as she delivered the cover with French lyrics that connected with the audience emotionally.

Chidinma also known as Ms. Kedike, from her hit single Kedike, revealed why she is one of Nigerian’s top Afro-pop singer, songwriter, recording artiste, and performer. She returned to Coke Studio Africa for the fourth time and this year she paired with Kenyan awardwinning music group Sauti Sol. Her version of “Live and Die in Africa,” Sauti Sol’s song, even got the Kenyan group acknowledging her musical prowess.

Kenya’s Nyashinski and South Africa’s Mafikizolo teamed up with rising Nigerian’s music star, Dremo, to do a remix of his song, “Ojere”. This was one of the big break tracks on the Coke Studio edition this year. It was a huge opportunity created by the Coke Studio platform for the musical audience across Africa and also for Dremo, who actually agreed that the Coke Studio remix of Ojere was a whole lot better than the original track.

This particular edition also featured Nigerian producers, GospelOnDaBeatz and Masterkraft, along other African producers.

They had the opportunity to produce cover and original tracks that have now become Coke Studio hit songs for Africa and the entire world.

Coke Studio is a practical inspirational and educational platform that encourages collaboration. The musical TV show is at the forefront of bringing talented artists together, creating effortless fusions, generating global buzz for musicians who are looking for that very platform, and unveiling the magic of music in Africa.

Patoranking

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T H I S D AY ˾ ͯͲË&#x153; ͰͮͯͶ

57

T H I S DAY, T H E S U N DAY N E W S PA P E R Ëž ͯͲË&#x153; Í°ÍŽÍŻÍś

EVENT

Alakija, Danjuma, Folawiyo, Akande, Queen Zaynab Obanor and others Grace FADAN Gala Funke Olaode

R

ecently, Fashion Designer Association of Nigeria (FADAN) led by its President, Mrs. Funmi Ajila-Ladipo held a Gala/ Award Night to round up its 2017 Fashion Week. It was more than a fashion show as the hall was jam-packed with an array of celebrities and fashinonistas including the richest black woman, Mrs. Folorunso Alakija who was one of the pioneer founders of the association. Also in attendance were Sen. Daisy Danjuma, Mrs. Abah Folawiyo, first woman to have PhD in Fashion Designing, Dr. Stella Mofunnaya, Mrs. Onikepo Akande, former wife of Ooni of Ife, Queen Zaynab Obanor, Mrs. Folashade ThomasFahn, the walking portrait of arts, Mrs. Nike Davies-Okundaye, Bisi Olatilo, Mrs. Ireti Asemota and Badejo-Okunsanya of CMC Connect just to mention a few.

Prior to the star stunned event, there was an exhibition and a workshop which centered on youth empowerment through skills acquisition with emphasis on how the established ones can help put the upcoming ones on track to enable them see fashion as a profession rather than mere glamour.

The workshop training anchored by Oluwaseun Ayanfeoluwa x-rayed the essential tools in the fashion industry. The class session also focused on and tutored members and selected grassroots designers on how to standardize and professionalize the fashion industry.

According to Ajila-Ladipo, the theme went beyond the runaway and entertainment, as it involved a new direction in youth empowerment.

Opening the show to the delight of the audience was Mystic Couture followed by Flawless Sparkle. Emos Signature, Mega Echoes, NG Couture, Lee Look, Bismol Collection also took turns to showcase their designs. They all wowed the audience with their superlative designs.

Spicing up the evening was a presentation of African beach wear from Graceâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Hat while House of Aisha

L-R- Ajila-Ladipo, Abbah Folawiyo and Folorunsoo Alakija at the event

Mohammed brought her Northern Nigeria heritage to the fore front with her superlative Kaftan design of Ankara mixed with Satin.

The king of the night was â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Kijipaâ&#x20AC;?

from â&#x20AC;&#x153;A Stitch in Timeâ&#x20AC;? collection which converted frequently tailoring items such as tape rule, tread, pins, scissors, razor blade, zip to showcase his creativity.

The night was rounded up with an award night that saw Mrs. Folorunso Alakija, Mrs. Abbah Folawiyo invested with the honours of Life Patron of the association.

Queen Zynab won culture ambassador award.

In her words, Alakija thanked the association for keeping the flag flying particularly by supporting up-coming designers. She enjoined the Ajila-Ladipo led executive to work towards making FADAN known worldwide through constant innovation.

In her brief remark, FADAN founder, Thomas-Fahn called on the three tiers of government to give maximum support to the fashion industry particularly the upcoming designers as it will give hope to the unemployed. â&#x20AC;&#x153; Aso-okeâ&#x20AC;? and other national attire should be promoted as it can serve as another foreign exchange earner,â&#x20AC;? she said

Models on the runway

Doctor Launches Mental Health Awareness Movie

P

innacle Medicals Speakout initiative in conjunction with Derwin productions have come out with a long awaited and most anticipated film, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Little Drops of Happyâ&#x20AC;?.

The Pinnacle medicals â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;speakoutâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; initiative is a project of Dr. Maymunnah Yussuf Kadiri, a neuro psychiatrist consultant and a mental health advocate who runs Pinnacle Medical Services Limited which is geared toward managing patients with psychological behavioural and mental related challenges. The movie, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Little Drops of Happyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; according to Kadiri is an advocacy film to create the much needed awareness in mental health and mental illnesses.

Kadiri says she wants to change the narrative to let people know that mental illnesses are real just like hypertension and diabetes. â&#x20AC;&#x153;And we need to show people empathy and give them support like we give people that have cancer, so, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Little drops of Happyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; was borne out of the fact that we are seeing more cases of depression in Nigeria and suicide too, it covers mainly issues of depression, postpartum depression, that is common among women, It sends a strong message but in an entertaining wayâ&#x20AC;?.

Dr. Maymunnah Yussuf Kadiri

The movie which premiered recently at Silverbird galleria Victoria Island is full of drama to hold viewers glued to the screen as it is very educative and entertaining and features actors like Ayoola Ayoola, Osa, Ngozi Nwosu, Seun , Ijeoma Onyeato of

Channels and Lisa Omorodion.

Speaking further on the movie Kadiri explained that â&#x20AC;&#x153;depression is a medical condition, not a spiritual attack and people should stop being in denial because it will not help in good treatment outcome, so, letting them know that depression is real but the good news is that depression is treatable. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The word manage is what we are trying to drive now If you are at risk if you are vulnerable instead of getting to the state of managing it because if you understand the preventive measures what you need to put in place you wonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t get to management. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Apart from healthy diet regular exercises sleeping adequately people need to get healthy support system around them because a healthy support system will help you seek for that much needed help if you cannot seek for help. And of course if you have depression and the doctor says that you need medication please take that medication will help you live a functional and productive life â&#x20AC;&#x153;Management of depression includes, counseling therapy, medication or the combination of all of these factors.

Sometimes people that have depression medicate themselves by taking substance to

alleviate those systems they may be having so when they take the substances which can be alcohol drugs marijuana or anywhere, even prescription drugs, the truth is that that help is a temporary one. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The movie which is already in the cinemas nationwide is for people to understand that when you have these depressive symptoms do not go taking different concoctions thinking that it will help you it is another roadmap to addiction and substance addiction is more difficult to manage or treat that depression So, go to the right place, the right people, the time is now. Get evaluation, get assessed, what type of depression are you having: Is it mild, moderate or severe?

In this movie, Mano Ojo has to deal with the infidelity of her husband and domestic violence. This leads to a series of challenges she has to confront and overcome. The challenges become too overwhelming to the extent that she loses her poise. She is misunderstood and termed mentally deranged. Nevertheless, Mano in the midst of her chaotic experience of dealing with depression and post-partum depression, has to save not just herself, but her estranged husband as well, from his promiscuous stance.

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T H I S DAY, T H E S U N DAY N E W S PA P E R ˞ ͯͲ, Ͱ͎ͯ͜

FOCUS

For its 10th Anniversary, AquaďŹ na Elite Model Look Threw it All on the Runway

Female models

Vanessa Obioha

T

here are a thousand and one reasons why the CEO of Beth Modelling Agency, Elohor Aisien should be grateful. First, her platform Aquafina Elite Model Look just turned 10.

Second, through this platform, Davidson Obennebo, the 2016 winner became the first African to win the Elite Model Look World Competition in 33 years. Other models like Mayowa Nicholas and Victor Ndigwe have likewise made her proud by modelling for top international brands like Victoria Secret.

Therefore, it was very understandable when she went all emotional on the 2017 grand finale of the event at Eko Hotels & Suites Convention Centre. It was a like a dream to her when she launched the platform 10 years ago. During that period, a lot of ups and downs took place, nevertheless, she was thankful for her friends, loved ones, crew and Aquafina for being there for her. Certainly, this milestone called for a bigger celebration which Aisien and her crew tried to do. From the blue carpet rolled out in the hallway, the majestic water fountain outside the main hall, the decorative stage with the huge inscription 10, spoke volumes of beauty,elegance and craftsmanship.

However, that was where it ended for the show itself wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t as spectacular as previous editions. First, the seating arrangement made it too difficult for some of the guests to enjoy the drama on stage. Two runways were created on both sides of the hall and in the middle was a cluster of white sofas where the big wigs stayed. Those seated beside the runways had little issues with the view but the row of seats facing the runways and stage had. The stage was to far away from them. One would have expected that the extra screen will be used for viewing but it was not the case as they were rather used for advertorials.

As more guests arrived, the show became rowdy. The ushers were at a loss on what to

do as guests freely walked in and out of the hall, sometimes colliding with the models on the runway. It was later in the show that hefty bouncers were called to curb the situation.

Expectedly, the show didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t kick off on time and the guests were made to endure the screaming voice of an invisible announcer before the hosts, Ill Rhymz and Osas Ighodaro took the reins. Perhaps in honour of the afrobeat legend, the show opened with dancers dancing to Felaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s music. Other music performances were supplied by Aramide and DJ Cuppy.

A constant feature of the Aquafina Elite Model look was Elohorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ability to spin a bold surprise on the runway. The 2015 edition witnessed a model exposing a breast on the runway. If guests were expecting a similar spectacle, they were disappointed. All they got was a couple of oil-bodied males in their black underpants and females in exotic swimwears.

However, it was a fierce battle for the 20 finalists who donned iconic pieces from notable designers like Morafa, Mai Atafo, Lanre Da-Silva Ajayi, Andrea Iyamah, Yutee Rone, Sisiano and South-African designer GertJohan Coetzee, to impress their judges, former beauty queen Agbani Darego, Veronica Odeka and Norden Thurnston of Seven-Up Bottling Company Plc. They were the lucky ones who made it to the last stage from over a thousand models who entered the race.

After much parade on the runway, Marvellous, Zainab,Tobi, Elizabeth, Glory emerged the top five in the female category while Stephen, Daniel Tofunmi, Alex and Gilchrist made the top five in the male category.

Stephen Aladenika and Oluwatobiloba Momoh emerged the winners at the end of the night. They were rewarded with a cash prize of One Million Naira each and will represent Nigeria at the Elite Model Look International World Finals where they stand a chance to win $150,000 alongside a contract with Elite Model Management Worldwide and a two-year modelling contract with Beth Model Management Africa.

Winners (m) Segun Ogunleye (l) and Norden Thurnston (r).

Male models on the runway

59

Ëž JANUARY 14, 2018

Overscenes

with LEKAN FATODU 08060140882

â&#x20AC;ŚHappenings Around the Diaspora

The Super STEMsters The rising number of illiterates in Nigeria has made the call for a lasting solution louder. And there is a special emphasis on female literacy given the very low figure of girls who are in school as compared to boys.

Contributing in this regard, some distinguished Nigerian women, who are reputable for efforts on women empowerment and other noble causes, are suggesting that it is not just sufficient to increase girls access to education in Nigeria, but also of enormous gains is the need to lead, inspire and encourage more girls to pursue different careers in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) As such, this column has followed some of these notable Nigerians who we have fittingly identified as STEMsters, as they are taking exemplary steps in bringing many Nigerian girls into the STEM space for greater individual opportunities and for Nigeria to take advantage of the STEM world just as the UK, USA and other advanced worlds.

ADETOLA SALAU

Anne-Marie ImaďŹ don

ANNE-MARIE IMAFIDON The UK-based renowned STEM advocate, Anne-Marie, is an attractive image of all that is amazing, rewarding and promising about career paths in STEM. The young entrepreneur captured the mind of the British public from childhood when at just age 10 she passed two GCSEs (Mathematics and ICT). The following year, Anne-Marie, who had already been branded a child prodigy by several British newspapers, passed an A-level in computing with ease.

Fired by rare determination to make significant marks in subject areas that have been described as tricky for women and exclusive to men, she pursued her first degree in Oxford University and later became one of the youngest to have a Master â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s degree in Mathematics and Computer Science in the same University at age 20.

Expectedly, her exceptional attainments and alluring credentials made her the biggest wish of many blue chip companies in the UK and beyond. But she eventually settled for the leading global investment bank, Goldman Sachs, which was her first experience in the corporate world.

Anne-Marie later moved to Hewlett Packard, and Deutsche bank before founding Stemette, an award-winning social enterprise that has since inspired more than 14,000 girls and young women into Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics.

The 27 year old inspiring entrepreneur was awarded Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) by the Queen of the UK in the 2017 New Years Honours for her services to young women and STEM sectors.

The highly motivated Anne-Marie has stated that the honour was a fillip for her firm resolve to help in expanding the STEM space for young women in the UK, and Africa.

Unlike many Nigerians who returned home to chase more financially-rewarding endevours, Adetola Salauâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s prime goal of relocating from her place of abode in America to Nigeria is to offer her best in the improvement of Nigeriaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s poor education sector and drive more awareness for STEM in the country.

Little wonder that since her return to Nigeria a couple of years ago, Tola, as she is fondly called, has been deploying all strategic platforms in ensuring that discussion on education is constantly on the frontburner.

As such, the vivacious international educator and engineer is always seen dishing out insightful thoughts on the advancement of STEM in newspaper articles and sharing profound opinions on the state of education and ways to get things better on reputable television stations like the Channels TV. Notably, in every platform she has deployed so far in the promotion of this noble cause, Tola never ceased to tell of her impressive career journey to suitably connect with her audience who are mostly young women.

Tola, a product of a home with love for scholarship, had a B.Sc in Chemistry from Fordham University, New York; and from there she proceeded to bag two Masterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s degrees in Chemical Engineering and Engineering Management from Syracuse University, New York.

The passionate STEM crusader founded Carisma4U Educational Foundation, a social innovation enterprise that focuses on the transformation of the educational system especially STEM education in Nigeria and Africa as a whole.

She is presently working on drawing the influences of relevant sector holders in achieving her goal for the development of education in Nigeria and beyond.

Adetola Salau

BEATRICE KOLADE Many followers of worthy causes have been filled with joy and gratitude over the steps taken by Mrs. Beatrice Kolade, wife of the respected technocrat and former Nigerian High Commissioner to the UK, Mr. Christopher Kolade, towards firmly situating the advancement of STEM in the projects of Christopher Kolade Foundation (CKF).

The CKF, an NGO, was founded a few years ago by the renowned corporate leader, Mr. Kolade, to support education and the economically disadvantaged amonsgt others.

But the organisation, as heard, has just been reinvigorated by the valuable inputs of the chairman of its board of trustees, Beatrice Kolade, who is a staunch STEM driver.

Indeed, nothing would have given sufficient validation to the vigour and thoughts the accomplished woman would have put into the works of the foundation than the CKF 2017 Stemma Hands-on Empowerment (SHE) Fair.

Concerned with the low representation of female students in the Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) fields, the brilliant and amiable chairperson supervised some workable activities for the SHE platform to nurture and reignite the interest of female students in science and technology.

And true to projection, the fair was a magnet for an overwhelming number of female students, many of whom talked about the inspiration they received and their renewed confidence to pursue careers in STEM. Meanwhile, Beatrice has affirmed that the foundation targets female students in public schools and that more attention is being paid to girlsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; participation in different areas of learning, including science and technology.

Beatrice Kolade

Timipre Wolo

TIMIPRE WOLO Timipre Woloâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s quest to see an impressive number of young Nigerians, particularly females, attain success in STEM is one of her ultimate life ambitions.

And she is not flagging in her efforts to firmly situate this worthy resolve. From her days as a student till date, she has been in the leadership of entrepreneurship, movement of alluring causes and processing of greater opportunities for young people especially girls.

After a first degree in Law from Ambrose Ali University in Nigeria, she moved to the UK where she obtained her Masterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s in Oil and Gas Law at the University of Abeerdeen, Scotland and graduated in flying colours.

She became known in Abeerden for her role in assisting some Nigerian students through the difficulties of settling into their new academic experience and a different society entirely. Her popularity soared after her graduation as one of the recognisable Nigerians in Scotland on the strength of her remarkable entreprenuerial strides.

She later relocated to Nigeria and took up an employment with the Petroleum Technology Development Board (PTDF) where she was actively involved in formulating strategies for capacity development and training for the government agency.

Timipreâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s strong desire to give more to the society made her leave the lucrative PTDF job and set up TFN Energy Limited, Centre for Gender Equality, Education and Empowerment (CGEEE) and Timipre Wolo Foundation through which she launched an initiative that enabled many young Nigerian women including some men to get trained and become internationally certified commercial helicopter pilots for the oil and gas industry.

The delectable and witty entrepreneur is said to be working on an innovative scheme that will draw more girls across Nigeria into the STEM space with the belief that women, according to her, â&#x20AC;&#x153;can take a leap and break any glass ceiling,â&#x20AC;?

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JANUARY 14, 2018 ˾ THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER

INFOGRAPH

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ARTS & REVIEW A

NIKE ART GALLERYâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S GALLANT MOVES PAGE 64

PUBLICATION

AS TIME UNFOLDS...

Ethereal Beauty 2017. Cheesecloth, jute string, lace, dye and wire

14.01.2018

EDITOR OKECHUKWU UWAEZUOKE/ okechukwu.uwaezuoke@thisdaylive.com

62

JANU ͯͲ˜ ͰͮͯͶ ˾ THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER

ARTS & REVIEW\\VISUAL ARTS

On the Long Run, 2017. Cheesecloth, burlap, jute strings, dye and wire

Unleashed, 2017. Newspaper, acrylic paint and wire

AS TIME UNFOLD

At Nnenna Okore’s recent exhibition Ukwa Ruo Oge Ya O Daa – There’s Time for Everything at the a mixture of exciting materiality titivates within the borderlines of exuberant colours, forms a immersed in her roots, Enekwachi Agwu writes

N

nenna Okore’s exhibition was framed by her allusion to the tropical Ukwa tree which among the Igbo people of Southeastern Nigeria is known for the proverbial fall of its fruits at maturation. The fall of the fruit is announced by a loud thud which, picked up or not, begins the stage of decay necessary for its seeds to be released for processing or a new life cycle. Okore says “The Igbo adage, Ukwa Ruo Oge Ya O Daa – There is Time for Everything, provides a rich metaphorical meaning for her recent body of work and underscores the intrinsic cycle of birth, growth, death and decay, which are governed by nature.”

An artist with a knack for organic migratory selection of materials, Okore’s eclectic sculptures challenge us to ponder on nature’s impetus, enigma, materiality and sublimity.

Whether one perceives them as familiar or esoteric bodies, the artworks surely project the collective transience and transformation of earthly entities. One of the outstanding works in the exhibition is “Ihe di Ife” (Living Thing). It looks like a colourful nest of eggs or of fruits of cola nut placed on wraps of leaves. Also, her piece “Resonance”, which is delicate to the extent that it appears like a fading vision with its faded hue, paradoxically suggestive of a plucked flower left under the scorching sun or the scene of an ongoing fertilisation. Other titles include, “Here and Now”, “Things that Meet the Eye”, “On the Long Run(Roots)”, “Ethereal Beauty” and “The Seed”.

Nnenna Okore After specialising as a painter at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Okore would later begin a crossover to sculpture starting with an internship at El Anatsui’s Africa Studio in Nsukka.

Since then her work has constantly shifted between painting and sculpture.

By her rich colourfully-dyed materials, she achieves a spectrum of layering of

earth colours, brown, red, crimson and orange. The highly-textured forms of her manifold mediums overlap variously resulting in more hues and biomorphic forms in an interplay of elements. Okore’s transnational influences – being of Nigerian origin, born in Australia, educated in Nigeria, Swaziland,

and the United States, where she currently teaches art – surely add up to her aesthetics and the conversations they generate.

Okore continues to reference the texts and poetry of Igbo ethnic language in articulating the philosophy that drives her practice. “For many of my work titles, I have deferred to the Igbo language as a means of conveying eloquently my conceptual focus”, she says. “In ways not even the English language can.” So, is it possible to solely locate Okore’s practice within a single plane of influence? She says, “Living in the West has no doubt afforded me many opportunities to develop and flourish as an artist and I am fortunate to have had these unique international experiences.” Though she believes that none of those experiences are as significant as those from her formative years in Nigeria. “Because the memory of living in my home country continues to be alive in me and I often return to these reminiscences for comfort and inspiration, and this informs my aesthetics.” The piece “Deeply Rooted” echoes her words. The convoluted forms reference the significance of the roots that nourish us even when not visible. “I am drawn to the lyrical and poetic nature of Igbo expressions,” Okore says.

How does Okore discover her medium? By considering every object around her environment as a potential art medium: “I rely on those I can find within my immediate surroundings, like hessian, cloth or paper while taking their physical or symbolic attributes into account.” The questions that often precede her decision on any material include: “What visual connections do I want to capture – natural, architectural or social? What forms or

63

THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER Ëž U ͯͲË&#x153; Í°ÍŽÍŻÍś

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The Inverted Pyramid; Adapted from a novel by Emeka Dike

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Ă?Ă&#x17E;Ă&#x2122;Ă&#x152;Ă?Ă&#x153; Ă&#x2018;Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x2013;Ă&#x2013;Ă?Ă&#x153;ĂŁ Ă&#x201C;Ă&#x2DC; Ă&#x2122;Ă&#x2DC;Ă&#x17D;Ă&#x2122;Ă&#x2DC;Ë&#x153; Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x2DC;Ă&#x17D; Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x2DC; Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x152;Ă&#x201C;Ă&#x17D;Ă&#x201C;Ă&#x2DC;Ă&#x2018; Ă&#x161;Ă&#x2019;Ă&#x201C;Ă&#x2013;Ă&#x2122;Ă?Ă&#x2122;Ă&#x161;Ă&#x2019;ĂŁ textures will best reflect the idea?

And is it going to be densely accumulated or loosely articulated?â&#x20AC;?

Whichever the case, the physical character and aura of her materials get an assured revelation in her visual arrangements.

Process is an important part of contemporary art practice and it is at the centre of Nnenna Okoreâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s work. Through rigorous techniques such as twisting, dyeing, sewing and teasing, the potentials of her selected mediumsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; for creative configurations are fully explored.

The attributes and dimensions of these materials such as fabric, burlap, fibre and paper undergo infinite experiments. A major driving process involves ceding control to her materials; allowing them to form freely and dynamically. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I allow myself to become the observer, trusting the materials to fulfil their will and come into being.â&#x20AC;? Okore says that the relationships with her mediums exist because she has a physical and spiritual connection to them.

Concern for the environment is at the top of Okoreâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s artistic enquiry, given that this subject matter cannot receive enough attention from artists and activists. â&#x20AC;&#x153;So, my works subtly bring attention to the looming crisis that issues of climate change portend, by presenting new ways of perceiving the physical and ethereal spaces within our universe.â&#x20AC;? r 5IF FYIJCJUJPO FOEFE PO %Fcember 21, 2017 at October Gallery Bloomsbury, London, UK. â&#x20AC;&#x201C;â&#x20AC;&#x201C;Agwu is a PhD student in art history at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka and lives in Abuja.

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JANUARY 14, 2018 ˾THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER

ARTS & REVIEW\\MUSIC

NARRATING NIGERIAN MUSIC STORY Yinka Olatunbosun

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very large number of young men and women turned out for the private screening of Wami Aluko’s first documentary video in music titled, For Those Who Listen, inside Cappa Estate, Maryland, Ikeja.

It was a good way to start the year what with music conversations and movie screening that demanded rapt attention.

No doubt, Nigerian music is one of the fastest selling cultural exports in Africa and Nigerian youths have revolutionalised music across several genres. Recently, most foreign critics class Nigerian music as “Afrobeats’’ thus making it necessary to rethink what Nigerian music content encompasses and how it has evolved overtime. The conceptual photographer and filmmaker, Wami Aluko sought to do this with this 34-minute video.

Wami became a professional photographer only two years ago as an A’ level student in England. Before then, she enjoyed taking pictures of her friends and posting them on her blog.

Later, she used the photography more as an art form than just a pastime.

“I started using the pictures to tell stories," she explained. "Recently, I did something on Funmilayo Kuti and feminism. I started doing film last year. Meanwhile, I had always had a passion for music so I thought of doing documentary on Nigerian music. I haven’t seen much done in that area. I also appreciate the import of music cycle not just the musicians who sing the songs.

Without the other people in the music production, you can’t have good music. I also wanted to show how Nigerian music is so diverse right now compared to what we earlier had."

In March 2017, she came up with the idea and commenced filming in May. Wami is a one-man movie squad-scripting, shooting and editing.

“I did it alone for about ten months. I handled the camera and did the scriptwriting. I have been taken pictures of artists especially young up-coming artists so I met with Lady Dunli, Idris King, Odunsi the Engine, Ray Taiwo, Mojo Kojo and DJ Femo so through that, it was easy to contact them and do the interviews. I interviewed music curators, DJs, music promoters and video directors, and friends who appreciate music a lot."

In her pre-production, she found out that

Eazi music, fashion, dance and other elements are also very essential to music. In post-production, she would probably realise why various personnel handle different aspects of film production.

For instance, screen writing is a much-needed framework to organise the thoughts conveyed in all the shots taken and in the conversations with the resource persons in either linear or episodic sequence. The result of her hard-work is a quick mashup of videos, a few lead-in texts and footages of live performances.

The young filmmaker had to tap from her personal income from the money she earned from her photography business. Inspite of the challenge of good funding for the movie, Wami displayed amazing cinematographic skills in the way she followed her subjects with the camera. In more years, she would have strengths in editing with voice overs or telling more with camera than with words from the interviewees. For those who expect her to show the leading pop music artistes in the video, she has promised that in future, she would expand the scope of the documentary.

“The idea was not to showcase the people

DJ Femo who are at the forefront of the Nigerian music industry but more of how their music had been influenced by other music genres across the world. We needed to show the world that Nigerian music is more than Wizkid and Davido.

I wanted to show how the music has impacted on the lives of the youths and I will still do another documentary on other generations and how it has trickled down to now. I think Nigerian artists are doing amazing things.

“I thought it would be nice to introduce other artists who are also very good through this short video. I feel like Nigerian music isn’t one genre.

We have other genres, call them afrofusion.

During the course of the documentary I discovered more about the breadth of Nigerian music.

Nigerian music also has a big influence in world music and airplays in the UK." She also advised that youths should stay focused and do whatever they set out to do inspite of any challenge. At the moment, she is preparing to do more screenings in the UK and push Nigerian narratives across the African continent.

Nike Art Gallery’s Gallant Moves

N

ike Art Gallery, Nigeria’s leading art gallery and hub of tourism wrapped up last year with a special award ceremony in honour of scores of artists, art curators and collectors who have contributed to the development of arts in

the city of Lagos.

Tagged “Connecting Lagos Concert”, it was organised as a red-carpet event to usher in the New Year. The awardees at the event include Bruce Onobrakpeya, Oscar Yao Doe, Kolade Oshinowo, Rom Isichei, Peju Alatishe, Tola Wewe, Ngozi Akande, Peju Olayiwola, Sandra Obiago, Yemisi Shyllon, Ambassador Benedict Onochie Amobi, Lucky Negete, Oscar Onyema, Mrs Temilola Hamzat, Robin and Hugh Campbell, Chief Mrs Paulette Vautrier, General Lekan Adeniran, Chief Diana Chan, Chinwe Uwatse and Jess Castellote.

For the co-owners of the gallery, 2018 is a special year packed with activities such as festivals and workshops. On the criteria for selecting the winners for the 2017 awards, Mr Okundaye said it was done on merit.

“We know who is dancing and who is not dancing,” said Mr. Okundaye. “We have watched the society and we know those who are competent in art especially in Lagos. We want to honour those who have genuine interest in the art and often respond quickly to invitations to art events and when you need their assistance they will provide.

I remember when we were working on a book on Nike Art Gallery, we had individuals who provided money to see the project through. I don’t want to start mentioning names. The book, Nike Okundaye: Her Life, Her Art’ is a 500-paged book.

It should be out between May and July.”

The gallery is working towards an annual event that will feature art exhibitions on a regular basis, amongst other events.

“Our foundation is also organising a series of

Nike Okundaye workshops which is targeted at rural women; to teach them art. We have done that in the past. We want to hold some here in Lagos and another in Osogbo, Abuja and Kogi where my wife hails from. This workshop will provide skills to alleviate poverty,” he continued.

Meanwhile, the Okundayes have acquired a sixhectare land from the federal government in Abuja.

The land will accommodate a multi-purpose art village that has a six- floor gallery, amphitheatre, library and a textile museum to accommodate all Nike’s textile works over the years. There will be a training facility with guest houses for trainees.

Okundaye also recounted a personal experience that touched him and propelled him and his wife to create job opportunities through the arts.

“I remember a time when a master’s degreeholder came to look for work and I told him that we only have a spot for a cleaner. He said he would take it. He studied Industrial Design. I decided to hire him as one of our management staff. He

later got a job at an oil company. You can see what poverty has driven lots of our young men to do. It is really painful.”

Nike Okundaye also added that the gallery will partner with the Lagos State government to organise all-year round cultural activities.

“We want to curate festivals every month in partnership with Lagos state government. We want more cultural activities to take place in Lagos so that people will be coming from different parts of the country to our city. That is why we are working with the organisers of Sisi Oge and this is just the beginning. We can recreate site specific festivals here such as Coconut festival in Badagry,’’ she disclosed.

Mr Okundaye pleaded for government’s quick intervention into the Nigerian visa process which many tourists claim to be quite difficult. The easy issuance of visa will create an enabling environment for visitors who want to experience Nigeria and her cultural life.

In Yaba, Workspace Turns Artspace Yinka Olatunbosun

W

hen Ms. Toyin Arowolo conceived the idea of a workspace in Yaba, she planned on creating an environment for individuals who desire to work in an office environment but may not have the financial muscle to secure a conducive space. She opened up TY Workspace and all seemed well except the absence of artworks. In the process of buying and placing the artworks on the walls, her artist relative talked her into making the space a home of art.

The rest is history. Recently, a handful of journalists were invited to the space for a first-hand experience of the new space. It was also disclosed that throughout the working days in December, an art exhibition will hold simultaneously with the original purpose for the space.

Featuring works from printmakers and scholars such as Dr. Aderinsoye Aladegboungbe and Dr. Kunle Adeyemi, the new space is designed to generate new audience for visual arts on the mainland.

It has been argued that most collectors of artworks are domiciled on the island.

However, some of the biggest art collectors in Lagos live on the mainland.

With the theme, New Space, New Treasures, the exhibition is an attempt to expand conversations around who collects arts and where to collect. While giving the pressmen a foretaste of the show, the CEO, TY Space, Toyin Arowolo, represented by the Office Manager, Gladys Akran, revealed that curating this exhibition at her space is deliberate.

“Our vision is to partner with more artists and showcase their art to the world. This is our first exhibition and we are looking forward to getting the theme into the consciousness of every worker in our community," she disclosed.

One of the participating artists, Aladegbougbe said there will be lots of miniature pieces on display to encourage new crop of collectors. The artist disclosed that he met Arowolo in Addis Ababa on his return trip from Sweden where he had an art residency programme and struck the art space conversation with her.

While responding to the question on the irony of the show’s showcase of new treasures from long standing artists, Dr Adeyemi argued that art is never old.

“Art is every new to buyers. The creation of art is all-time new. The space is an experimental space for art displays and the ideas in the works are new," he said.

The rooms in the workspace are named after African gemstones while the walls are tastefully decorated with paintings, sculptures, collages punctuated by no smoking signs.

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JANUARY 14, 2018

CICERO

Editor Olawale Olaleye Email wale.olaleye@thisdaylive.com, SMS: 08116759819

IN THE ARENA

Let the Race Begin…

The announcement, last week, of the 2019 elections timetable by the Independent National Electoral Commission has set the stage for a new season, writes Olawale Olaleye

A

gradual journey to 2019 began last week with the release of election timetable by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), detailing all the electoral activities leading to the next general election. By the timetable, all the political parties are expected to submit to INEC names of their presidential candidates latest by December 3, 2018. INEC said the earlier approved timetable, which had scheduled the presidential and National Assembly elections for February 16 and the governorship and state assembly polls for March 2, 2019 still stands.

National Chairman of INEC, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, said the only adjustment was that the area council election in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) would hold simultaneously on the same date with the governorship elections. This much he said while fielding questions from journalists. He added that the commission would go ahead with the rerun election for Anambra Central Senate seat fixed for yesterday, January 13.

With the approved new timetable, presidential and National Assembly elections would hold on the third Saturday of the month of February of each election year, while governorship and state assembly elections will hold two weeks later. Elections would also be conducted for 1,558 constituencies made up of one presidential constituency, 29 governorship constituencies out 36 states, 109 senatorial districts, 360 federal constituencies, 991 state assembly constituencies, six area council chairmen as well as 62 councilorship positions for the FCT. From the highlights, all the political parties have up till December 3 to submit their candidates for the presidential election, whilst publication of notice for national and state election would be done on August 17, 2018. However, that of the FCT area council elections would be for September 3.

Collection of nomination forms by political parties for national and state elections is to hold between August 11 and 24, 2018, while the conduct of primaries, including resolution of disputes for national and state elections, is between August 18 and October 7, 2018. But primaries for FCT area council elections will be between September 4 and October 27, 2018.

The timetable also fixed commencement of campaigns for the presidential and National Assembly election for November 18, 2018, and will end February 14, 2019. For the governorship and state assembly elections, the campaign will commence December 1, 2018, and ends on February 28, 2019.

Although the timetable is silent on the campaigns for primary elections which is an intra-party affair, it is expected that candidates itching to be nominated as the standard bearers of their parties would indulge in some campaigns of sorts almost immediately.

Whether it was deliberate or an oversight, it was not detailed in the timetable.

By implication, therefore, the journey to 2019 has begun with slightly heightened campaigns from what is currently obtainable. The political parties are

Yakubu expected to lead the push in their desire to have the best candidates clinch their tickets for all the seats up for grab.

This is why beyond the choices to be paraded by the respective political parties, it is also expected that the next campaign would be strictly issue-based, as would be seen in all the debates to be organised preparatory to the elections. To think a majority of the issues predating last elections remain unresolved, the 2019 polls will certainly provide an opportunity for an engaging review that would either justify why things are the way they are or dismiss outright, any attempt at rationalising the impossible.

Of course, attempts at character assassination which is most plausible in view of the current tenor of campaigns is unlikely to fly in next year’s election, so, the actors must narrow down “attacks” to the real issues, providing alternatives to what presently obtains and articulating new ways of doing things for new results.

It is good that the 2019 Games is going to start early

so the electorate could see the choices for what they are and could make their decision in good time. With the issues evident on the card, it should not be difficult for the electorate to make a distinctive choice in next year’s election.

If President Muhammadu Buhari is running, for instance, it is expected that he would be doing so on his performance record, which would be hinged on his campaign promises of security, corruption and the economy.

As such, whoever is coming out to challenge him must be able to articulate these positions better, distilling how he reckoned the president has failed in all the three major boxes of his campaign promises in the last four years of his first mandate.

It is evident that next year’s election would be tougher than the last. Perhaps, it would mark Buhari’s true test of leadership in all its ramifications. And importantly, it would indicate the best way forward for the country, most assuredly.

P O L I T I CA L N OT E S

The Army’s One Success

A

Buratai

part from Benue State, where mindless killings have become the new normal, Rivers State, which is although not new to banality in recent years, witnessed one of the most horrendous killings at the dawn of the New Year, when a group of armed criminals opened fire on innocent worshippers returning home from the cross-over service. It was one of the most shocking pieces of news in the year, second only to the Benue massacre by herdsmen.

However, in an uncommon feat, a detachment of army troops swung into action and within a week, killed Don

Waney and his unfortunate gang, who allegedly masterminded the insensate killing in Omoku area of the state. It was a feat that seemed to write-off some of the perceived inadequacies of the nation’s security agencies in recent times as evident in the face of the growing insecurity.

But beyond Rivers State, the security agencies in the country must be encouraged to tackle insecurity in other parts of country, especially in Benue State.The success of the Rivers’effort is an indication that these things are doable.They are therefore implored to be more professional and result-oriented as they help to quell the scourge of insecurity in many parts of the country.

T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JANUARY 14, 2018

66

BRIEFINGNOTES Imo’s Debt Profile Under Close Watch For the first time in the nearly seven years of the Rochas Okorocha administration in Imo State, the state’s economy is under close scrutiny by stakeholders, writes Amby Uneze

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eaders of thoughts in Imo State especially, those from the academia, captains of industry, business moguls and other professionals alike in different fields of human endeavour are worried about the dwindling economy of the state. To this extent, they decided to gather and pull their resources together with the sole intention of improving human capacity development, wealth creation and poverty alleviation in the state as a continuation of the call for Imo renaissance.

Although it took the dexterity of this group to confront Governor Rochas Okorocha on the state of the economy, daring the consequences, it is believed that Okorocha may not be happy after all, because some of the hidden issues he had kept out of the public view over the years have been revealed. Reason is that a former Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Maurice Iwu, led the Imo Economic Development Initiative (IEDI), which took the bull by the horn to reveal these anomalies that had bedevilled the state for the past seven years, or so.

The roll call of the elites include businessman, Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu; chairman of MTN Nigeria, Dr. Paschal Dozie; CEO Zinox Technologies, Chief Leo-Stan Ekeh; former INEC chairman, Prof. Maurice Iwu; chairman of National Population Commission, Chief Eze Duruiheoma; former minister for commerce and industry, Engr. Charles Ugwu; former president of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN), Major-Gen. Sebastine Owuama; member representing Owerri zone in the senate, Senator Samuel Anyanwu and his predecessor, Senator Chris Anyanwu and Hon. Thankgod Ezeani.

Other members are former Vice Chancellor of FUTO, Prof. Jude Njoku; former Vice Chancellor of Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike, Prof. Placid Njoku; Professor of Marine Biology at the University of Lagos, Obinna Chukwu; Chief Jerry Chukwueke, Chief Ambrose Ejiogu and Dr. Vin Udokwu among many others.

While the group’s interest was to look for a possible way to rescue the state from further enslavement as a result of huge domestic debt profile, poor ease of doing business, low level of state government participation in federal government intervention funding mechanisms, especially in agriculture, health, and small and medium enterprises activities, as well as other indexes, it is shocking to the people of Imo that the state government has put the state into a huge debt profile of N93.27 billion as at December 31, 2016, against the figure of N26 billion in 2011, when the present government came on board.

This figure is contained in the document released by the Debt Management office (DMO).

The team also revealed that Imo State has a poor position in the ease of doing business as it ranks 34th out of 36 states in the country, confirming a THISDAY report during the mid-term assessment of the state government early last year.

In a meeting held with the governor and his cabinet at the Government House, Owerri on January 5, the Imo Economic Development Initiative (IEDI) led by Prof. Iwu, told the governor the hidden truth about the real economic situation of the state which of course had remained ‘a no-go-area’ as far as the present administration was concerned.

But unknown to this group, the areas they have revealed remained sacrosanct to the governor and so nobody should dare raise such matters with him, as he was ready to severe any previous relationship that had existed in the past, if any.

However, the team started by informing the governor of its mission and what IEDI stood to achieve for the overall development and progress of the state.

“We thank your Excellency for this opportunity and the keen interest you have shown in the

Okorocha activities of the IEDI. This initiative started from informal discussions among Imolites resident in Lagos. They later extended that discussion to include those of us living in Abuja and Owerri.

“We seek primarily to contribute to the development of Imo State through private sector funding and leveraging on available federal and state governments resources. Our membership is made up of key stakeholders in Imo State, including captains of industry, members of the academia, technocrats, retired senior military and security personnel as well as other professionals of Imo State origin”, he said.

According to the group, “we are concerned about the current state of the economy of the state, as underlined by certain facts and figures available to us and from our observations, on sustainability index, a review of the states’ sustainability index which profiles the viability and sustainability of states indicates that Imo ranked 22 in the country, a marked decline from the 17th position it occupied on the same index three years ago.

“We are concerned about the poor contribution of our legacy industries to job creation efforts, despite considerable government investment in these industries. These legacy industries include Adapalm, Standard Shoe, Cardboard and Packaging, and Resin and Paint industry.

“On external funds, we are also concerned about the obvious low activity level of international multilateral funding and donor agencies assisted projects in the state. In the past, funds from these organizations had gone a long way in assisting the delivery of government projects.

“On government financial obligations, IEDI is concerned about the economic stagnation in the state. We believe this is as a result of poor money circulation within the lower strata of the society.

We suggest that government should ensure that salaries are paid as and when due to minimise the hardship in the state”, the group stated.

The group expressed dissatisfaction with government attitude to accessing federal government intervention funds as low level of

participations especially in agriculture, health and SMEs activities affected the state badly.

As a prelude to the meeting with the governor, the group had previously commissioned her corporate office in Owerri. At that event, Iwu had disclosed that its target was to accomplish the goals of stirring the socio-economic affairs of the state aright with a deliberate, well-thought out plan of strategies such as agriculture, urban renewal of the state’s three major cities, rural vitalisation (revival), health, energy, education and security.

According to him, “Imo sons and daughters have excelled in many fields of human endeavour but there appears to be no nexus between the acclaimed individual educational and business accomplishments and our ability to develop our state or produce an effective and responsive governance structure. The challenge facing us now is the development of Imo economy to reduce poverty and unemployment, create wealth and improve the internally generated revenue of the state”.

In his speech, Chief Leo-Stan Ekeh said he was of the belief that Rome was not built in a day.

“It’s never too late to start. God has a purpose for creating us as indigenes of Imo State. We have wasted so many years and we’re still wasting.

But we have the capacity to correct it. Our young people should not lose hope”.

He said the reason some well-known businessmen do not invest in Imo was the fear of losing their investment to lack of patronage. “You don’t invest in a place where the people are so poor that they can’t patronise you. The business is bound to collapse. So, while we think of building people and creating wealth, let us also think of building a government”.

Chief Iwuanyanwu described the occasion as a happy moment of his life and a turning point in the lives of the people of Imo State, adding: “Very often, I’ve not been very happy with the alarming unemployment rate in Imo State and South-east and in Nigeria at large. The level of unemployment here is enough to cause a revolution. That is

why I have questioned the education system we run in this country. The graduates are unemployable and that is not good”.

Iwuanyanwu, who described the initiative as a workable one because of the individuals behind it, told the IEDI members that they would focus on three major assignments, which would be how to alleviate the poverty in the state by getting graduates from the state employed; increasing the number of Igbos in Nigerian billionaire bracket and creating cottage industries in communities in the state.

He also told them to explore federal institutions like the Central Bank, which has a lot of financial windows to assist people.

“Recently, Iwuanyanwu Foundation partnered the CBN to train our unemployed youths to get jobs. In that programme, the CBN lamented that the South-east governors did not have interest in accessing the funds to help their unemployed youths. You must have to improve on that”.

Senator Chris Anyanwu, in her speech, commended the initiative and regretted that a state that produces such calibre of individuals has regressed overtime. While advising that the group should not be part of those that started and ceased to exist after some time, she said it borders on high level of “irresponsibility to have people like you and me come from here and watch things degenerate to this level”.

As if the ‘cat had been let out of the bag’ making the world to note that Okorocha had not lived up to billings, his chief press secretary, Sam Onwuemeodo, in reaction to the group’s document to the governor, expressed disappointment that the document found its way to the public domain.

“Before the meeting proper, the governor had directed that all those coming for the meeting from the government’s side should drop their phones with the protocol personnel at the entrance of the meeting venue. The essence was to ensure that whatever that was discussed at the meeting didn’t go out for public consumption since the Prof. Iwu group had described the meeting as private, and the governor too, didn’t want any development that could jeopardise the progress of the meeting. The governor, he further maintained, made sure that the document which Prof. Iwu read didn’t get into the hands of any of the government representatives.

“On the debt issue, the governor said his administration did not owe any bank anywhere in the country or outside. The N93 billion was an accumulated debts right from the creation of the state in 1976. And remarked that he had managed the debt profile of the state as governor and that was the reason some states with high IGR and allocations owe N241 billion, N155 billion, N140 billion, N311 billion, N157 billion and N142 billion respectively as shown in the record of Debt Management office as at December 2016. He regretted that the Prof. Iwu group only picked Anambra State in comparison with Imo, leaving many other states owing between N100 billion to N241 billion.

“On the poverty level in the state, the governor brought out United Nation’s Poverty index of the states to show that the poverty rate in Imo was 57 per cent in 2011 but has come down to 19 per cent with only Lagos, Osun, Anambra and Ekiti being better than Imo in the index, while Imo and Edo having 19 per cent each are better than the rest of the states with poverty rates of 21 per cent to 91per cent.”

Those present at the meeting included founder of ABC Transport Company Plc, Mr. Frank Nneji; former governorship candidate of the PDP in 2007 before he was dropped by the Supreme Court, Charles Ugwu; another governorship aspirant, Chief Jerry Chukwueke; a former Chairman of Aboh Mbaise Local Government, Chief Charles Onwunali, and Chief CY Amako.

Others were Deputy Governor, Eze Madumere; Secretary to the State Government, Sir George Eche; Chief of Staff, Ugwumba Uche Nwosu; the Principal Secretary, Dr. Pascal Obi; the Head of Service, Sir Callistus Ekenze; and a few other principal officers of the government.

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SUNDAYINTERVIEW

Ikpeazu...my performance will speak for me

Ikpeazu: Scorecard, Not Facebook Politics’ll Win Elections in 2019 In spite of the many challenges that still confront him especially, the stiff opposition, from the two opposition parties in the state – All Progressives Congress and the All Progressives Grand Alliance – the Abia State Governor, Dr. Okezie Victor Ikpeazu recently told Christopher Isiguzo in an interview that he was satisfied with his performance so far and that the 2019 elections would not be predicated on Facebook politics but on performance record. Excerpts:

H

ow has it been in the last 30 months – the challenges, the achievements?

I want to start with the achievements. We took over government, when Nigeria was under very serious recession and Abia, as one of the states in Nigeria, also had its fair share of the economic crunch. The most profound impact of that was that the major source of government revenue which is allocation from the federal government was going down, so it painted a background that challenged us to begin to think of how best to deliver democracy dividends and in fact, what kind of dividends, we were to pursue so that we could make the greatest impact as quickly as possible.

That led us to the five pillars of development, which we initiated for ourselves. We based our decisions on those five pillars, on what we regarded as areas that the state both in terms of geographical location and as a people had comparative as well as competitive advantage over others, because if you don’t have all the time in the world, all the money you need and you are required to make impact, the best thing to do will be to start from the areas of strength and we decided to mainstream five pillars, which include Agriculture, Trade and Commerce, Small and Medium Scale Manufacturing and of course, we have oil and gas around the southern part of our state and then Education.

In order to drive all these five pillars, we also quickly identified what we called enablers.

These enablers were to propel and catalyse the

development and manifestation of the so called pillars for the benefit of our people. The first, enabler which we said we must handle was the road infrastructure. Incidentally, these enablers are things you must do concurrently and we were battling to ensure that Abia emerges the safest state in terms of security. We were also minded to do something about road infrastructure. On the first day of our work, we moved to the streets of Aba. The strategy to begin with Aba was to see if we could deliver quality infrastructure in Aba in order to jumpstart the economy of the area and probably improve on our IGR profile so that we can get money to begin to develop other parts of Abia quickly and rapidly.

Of course, you know that Aba is the cash cow of not only Abia State but the entire South-east zone and anybody, who ignores Aba, would be doing that at his peril and at the peril of the economy of not just the state but the South-east.

We resumed on the streets of Aba and as I said, we were exposed to about 90 roads and we have about between 35 and 40 of those roads completed and 50 per cent of the roads are in Aba. But I want to speak about some of the things that are unique in what we are doing, because Aba is the lowest point of Abia State. It has flood issues, it has issues of stump water management, it therefore became a policy of this government that the roads where you see puddle of water that has rested for more than eight years, we decided to do rigid pavement technology using cement, PRC and then finish it with asphalt.

Again it’s a policy in the state that you don’t do any road in Abia State without end to end drainage not only in Aba area, so you must do

drainage and show us where the water will make a land fall and then, because we knew that most drainages are going to be targeted to waterside, the Aba River, we quickly within the first 100 days embarked on the dredging of the Aba River and when it was completed, we prepared it to take storm water flowing from the various roads that we are doing. Abia State indeed became the first state in the zone to pioneer Rigid Pavement Technology. As I speak, other states that have come into the basket of states that use cement didn’t go as far as finishing with asphalt as we do.

We also looked at roads that are of strategic economic importance. So, for every road we are doing, you must be able to answer question on the socio-economic impact of that road; where is it leading to? And that is what led us to Faulks Road, because it moves to Ariaria, it also led us to Port-Harcourt road, because there is a huge market along the road. I’m happy we’ve done a few things not just in Aba but across Abia State, we are not where we intend to be but certainly we’ve moved from where we were and by God’s Grace, this government will be the first government to plant the first flyovers in the state. That job is ongoing at Osisioma roundabout. The impact is to give people easy access to the economic centre of Aba, because of the heavy traffic that occurs around Osisioma junction.

Our plan is to deliver at least three flyovers, one at Isigate in Umuahia, while two will be in Aba, one at Osisioma and another at Nnentu.

All of them are geared towards easing traffic along Aba-Port-Harcourt expressway. Abia

today is the only state, where these trunk A 4 roads are dissecting the city in the middle. As many people that are living at the Uratta side of the state, same number of people is living at the Ariaria side of the cit. If nothing is done, you see that highway will become a nightmare for people going to Port-Harcourt to do business.

We must ease traffic along the place.

Finally on roads, there’s no other state within the economic bracket of our state that has kept the kind of contractors that we’ve kept for the past 30 months. We are using Setraco, Arab Contractors and the Chinese company that is handling the flyover. We also have other contractors like the one handling Nkporo road, Bulletin and the one doing Kamalu road, RECON – they are all foreign companies with very strong pedigrees in construction. We insisted that we must deliver roads and infrastructure that will outlive our administration, because the quality of infrastructure that you do speaks to the mindset of the would-be investor.

I’ve spoken about things we are doing in Aba, but that does not mean we are not strong in other parts of Abia. Arab contractors are doing Aba road in Umuahia and doing a solid job in Agabma ring road, 10 internal roads in Umuahia, World bank area etc. in Abia North, we are doing Abiriba ring road and we are putting a lie to the saying that there is not short cut to Arochukwu. We are today making sure that in less than two hours, you will get to Arochukwu, which means some people can go to work in Umuahia and return to Arochukwu the same

Continued on Pg. 68

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SUNDAY INTERVIEW t A*,1&";6 4$03&$"3% /05 '"$&#00, 10-*5*$4 -- 8*/ &-&$5*0/4 */ t Continued on Pg.67 day. We have achieved about 70 per cent of that vision and agenda, because we have launched 60 metre bridge that will connect Bnede-Ndioji-Ndi-okereke area and as I speak, that bridge will be ready for commissioning in the next two months.

Beyond the road infrastructure, what are the other areas of focus of the administration?

We are also running strong on our Made-in-Abia project. This project is our strategy to enhance trade and commerce as well as improve small scale manufacturing, because our people are particularly strong on leather works, shoes, bags, belts as well as garments. When we came on board, we discovered that the average young person will spend 18 hours on machine trying to build one thing or the other only to give credit to the man in China or Japan, who did not do anything. We now said itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s very difficult to do something with people whose moral is skewed against themselves. We now changed the narrative by saying to people that we wear only Made-in-Aba and we do it proudly because itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a tacit endorsement of the hard work of my boys, my artisans.

Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m proud of what they do. It may not be the best in the world but I must encourage them as their father. And the only way I can endorse them is to wear the product proudly and we have been on that since 2015 and it has yielded profound results. For instance, we were able to bring the vice-president (Professor Yemi Osinbajo) to Aba on two occasions to see how Aba people produce the kind of things theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve become popular with. Beyond that, it also made the federal government to begin to pay serious attention to the Aba Industrial area as a major contributor to the GDP of Nigeria.

About two million pairs of shoes leave the shores of Abia State every month to Ghana, Togo and all parts of West Coast and this is making profound impact on the GDP of the Aba businessman.

So, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not something you can just throw away and we were happy when the vice-president, then as Acting President issued executive orders part of which before you can import anything, go and see if Aba people can produce it. He was speaking to INEC because INEC Ballot Boxes are made in Aba and yet people take money to go to China to import them. When we wanted to conduct local government election here, we went to the market and saw somebody displaying INEC Ballot Box, and we told him the implication of that, because the boxes were supposed to be federal governmentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s property and that he could be arrested. But we were shocked to hear that he produced the boxes and that gave us inspiration to give Aba people order. If we spent N300 million on the election, N200 million out of the sum was spent in Aba, because the sling bags of the ad hoc workers and the ballot boxes were made in Aba. That Executive Order has serious impact. It means the military, Navy, INEC, before you import, if itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s uniform, apparel, something to be sown â&#x20AC;&#x201C; bags â&#x20AC;&#x201C; please go to Aba first. Second is that weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve attracted by direct sales close to N1.2 billion. The 50,000 pairs of shoes the Nigerian military ordered, if you multiply it by N10,000, thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s about N500 million. The N200 million we spent during the election in the production of bags and other things makes it N700 million. What of conference bags, gifts, duvets, all kinds of things that I use as personal gifts during the yuletide season, about N1.3 billion injected in direct sales. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not easy. Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve taken them beyond Nigeria. Theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve participated in international conferences, not only national trade fair, not only in Abuja which attracted over 40 members of the diplomatic corps, we were part of the Made-in-Aba Fashion Show in New York, where some of them shared runway with best designers in the world.

My greatest achievement in this project is that my people now proudly stamp Made-in-Aba on their products. They are now proud of what they produce. For the first time also, at no cost to the state government, Forte Foundation came and put Aba Entrepreneur on CNN, helping us to advertise the can-do spirit of the Aba person. These are very profound achievements in terms of our drive and our push to broaden the frontiers of small scale manufacturing. Power was a critical factor, in fact, a limiting factor.

When we saw that it was not entirely in our hands to do, we led a delegation to Cairo, to speak to Afri-Exim Bank to come and see how best we can unleash the power that has been so generated.

While that was ongoing, again, the attention of the federal government was drawn and they sent the Rural Electrification Agency, to come to Ariaria to supply electricity to parts of the cluster that do the shoes. Today, as we speak, weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve had uninterrupted power supply in some parts of Ariria that has lasted up to 10 weeks. What it means is that we might as well become the first state with uninterrupted power in Nigeria.

Beyond Trade and Commerce, beyond promotion of small scale manufacturing, we have also begun plans to automate the process of shoemaking in our environment. We knew clearly that before we can do this, we must also be able to build capacity.

So, we have plans to train 100 artisans and shoemakers in China, the first batch of 30 trainee shoemakers will be going to China for training before January 10, 2018.

On their return, we are bringing in with them equipment enough and capable of delivering shoes end to end in an automated way. The first indigenous Made-in-Aba shoe factory ran by the ordinary Aba shoemaker will debut in Nigeria within the first 6 months of 2018 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; capacity built, and machinery in place. So, this is the way we are thinking and this is the way we are progressing.

Away from commerce and infrastructure, what has the administration done in Agriculture in view of the dwindling fortunes in the oil and gas sector?

In Agriculture, we also have the good fortune of possessing the most fertile soil in the country and I say this because we have the empirical evidence, from a research carried out by Brazilians about the fertility profile of the Abia soil. The fact that our soil is capable of growing all kinds of things cannot make us jack of all trade, so we decided to focus and mainstream a few crops that we have traditional expertise and our people have flair for.

For instance, cassava, there is little or nothing you can teach the average woman in the rural area about cultivation of cassava with a little provision of the exotic species; provision or a little bit of mechanization. So, we are mainstreaming cassava, rice; we are mainstreaming cocoa; we are mainstreaming cashew; we are also trying to go into poultry, of course oil palm is a given for us in Abia.

We looked at what M.I. Okpara did and found out that he had acquired so many palm estates, some of them only 30 per cent cultivated leaving 70 per cent fallow and uncultivated. We also know that our challenge is land area. Abia is one of the smallest states in terms of land area. We said well, in the interim, let us cultivate to full capacity. In doing that, we will require the exotic tenneral specie of oil palm, which is the one NIFOR is vending. So, we decided to proliferate that specie, so as not to continue relying on any other source. We set a target of seven million for ourselves and as I speak, weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve achieved about three million. With three million seedlings, we are now set to cultivate to full capacity in all the already acquired estates.

If we do that, we already have so much left. The second phase is to replace every old palm tree, with exotic one, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s our policy that our flowers, ornamental trees, all of them must be oil palm or something that will yield money, because we must cultivate every available space with oil palm. It is really a big shame that the first seedling was taken from our environment here to Malaysia. They bought it for ten naira and now you can imagine that they are the largest producers of palm oil. We also have our beautiful story about mushroom farming. The beautiful thing about that is that half plot of mushroom farm can give you a daily cash inflow of

Politics is not played on Facebook. In 2019, what will count mostly is your scorecard. Anybody who is coming into the ring, unfortunately in 2015, I had little or nothing to say apart from my stewardship as a waste manager, in Aba or probably as General Manager of ASPINS of Chairman of Council. But today, when Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m coming in 2019, if decision is reached that we will throw our hats into the ring, I will come with my credentials. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m not going to tell Abians that I was distracted even though they knew that

between twenty to fifty thousand naira, because you harvest your mushroom twice a day.

So, if you can get a daily inflow of between 20 and 50 thousand naira on half plot of land, it is more lucrative than even being a Permanent Secretary, with average of N30,000 a day. This mushroom farming is unique to Abia. Ebonyi State has come to look at it. Beyond oil palm and mushroom, Abia State has acquired two rice mills, because we donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t need to take our rice paddy. The entire Bende belt up to Uzuakoli is our rice belt and we are saying this belt can give us rice enough to consume in Abia State with a little space to also export to other states. Today, we have two rice mills producing de-stoned, milled and beautiful rice and thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s what we find everywhere in our states.

A visit to Uturu revealed that the General Hospital there is abandoned, same with the Primary Health Centre in Umuakabia, Umuahia. Are these pointers to the fact that not much has been done in the health sector?

I inherited 174 primary healthcare centres, buildings for the centres, some of them functional, some not functional. Our approach to healthcare system in Abia is that we are in need of a workable strategy, so, this administration is research-based.

Most of the things we do are not what you see on any textbook, they are home-grown solutions that evolve from our peculiar socio-economic circumstance. We studied health problem in Abia and decided to attack with two strategies. The first one is the big picture, to lay emphasis on primary healthcare, because we donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t want people to come to hospitals.

If people donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t report to the hospitals, then you would have done something about their healthcare. Luckily, healthcare delivery service is measurable. You can measure through life expectancy, maternal mortality, infant mortality, or through nutrition profile, looking at the average weight and height of children can give you their status. We decided to intervene at the secondary healthcare level. There is nothing you can do in the 174 healthcare centres, if you like, equip them, you will not find medical doctors in all of them. And once you equip them and you announce theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve been equipped, what a man that is taking his wife to the place wants to know is, is the nurse there able to do the needful, is it possible for the wife to get help elsewhere without recourse to me, because I drove her on my bicycle to the primary healthcare centre?

So, we said, since this is the gap, letâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s reinforce secondary healthcare centre and then attach a cluster of primary health care centres to the place. If we have a secondary healthcare centre at Amachara, then we attach five to six primary health care centre.

The one at Umukabia and elsewhere and then say the one at Amachara should take care of the primary centres, using WhatsApp, telephone, keke, ambulance, the Medical Director at Amachara will be in touch with the matron or health officer at Umukabia, you can call and say how many deliveries have you taken today at Umukabia, and the person will respond appropriately and for the serious cases, they will be transferred to Amachara.

With that, the patient knows the big consultant is in the know of his/her situation. On that score, we decided to renovate the Secondary Healthcare centres. We started with four: Arochukwu, Okeipke, Obingwa and Ikwuano. Within the next 100 days, we will renovate another four. By doing this, we are also taking care of the primary healthcare centre and pointing to them, their referral secondary healthcare centre. This is where we are going now. We also said there is need to intervene quickly, if we need to get the profile of our life expectancy and we said who and who are within my profile bracket: the aged and the children.

We have acquired a property in Umuahia for a specialist hospital for mother and child. Children from 0-5 years and their mother will have state-of-the-art specialist hospital along Bende Road in Umuahia. That will take care of infant mortality. Within the first 100 days, it will become a policy that if a child under five

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SUNDAY INTERVIEW t A*,1&";6 4$03&$"3% /05 '"$&#00, 10-*5*$4 -- 8*/ &-&$5*0/4 */ t Continued on Pg.68 your pension when you are vulnerable and weak. I am not somebody who can be blackmailed or cajoled into doing wrong things. What you see about salary issue is orchestrated by political opponents, because unfortunately for them, three years down the line in court, their strategy is that we will not have anything to show. But there are seven things today in Abia State that we are the first to do it. We did the first flyover. We are the first to put Abia on CNN. We are first to build cement roads; the first to put three â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Grade A Contractorsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; on our roads simultaneously for three years.

There are seven firsts and they are worried because you cannot criticise the quality of roads that we are doing. For the first time, somebody is putting 6.5 killometres of drainage with three pumps to pump water from Eke-obara to Waterside in order to get the roads right. They are worried. The only thing to say is that you have not paid teachers, whereas I have conducted local government election. Why donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t you ask council chairmen, assuming their workers are being owed to pay them? Are you going to accuse President Buhari for the salaries that are not paid in Abia?

Nobody will do that. They are just trying to find something they will latch on.

Unfortunately for them, I am somebody who is so passionate about the welfare of my workers that by the time 2019 will come, these workersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; things might as well have disappeared during the last Paris Club Refund, when it came. Abia is the only state that gave everything to her workers, N5.7 billion. No other governor did it. So, people that are challenging me, when the time comes, we will ask them if they have ever given 100 per cent of their own income to their workers, we did it here. Anybody who gives you 100 per cent has given his all.

dies, the matron will have to report to the governor and explain the circumstances that led to the loss of that child. If itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s something beyond the capacity of the nurse, the governor will know, but if itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s due to negligence, then somebody will be held responsible.

Today, I care about the life of that child we are expecting. There is a schedule that you must report to me if we lose a child at birth. At this other extreme is the aged, 70 and above.

We have a good fortune in the state about some individuals holding expertise in one form of medical line or the other. There is a doctor in Ikwuano, Chukwuemeka, who returned from America. He has been appointed our medical head for the aged and gyniatrics. We flagged it off with tricycles for 17 councils and three Siena vehicles for three senatorial districts. He has already trained about 250 caregivers, who go to the aged person, try to know the medical condition of the person, look at the aged at home, monitor how they take drugs, and refer such person to primary or general hospitals, when the need arises. Two hundred and fifty people now move across the communities caring for the aged. If am able to take care of people in the vulnerable groups, I assure you that something will happen about life-expectancy of Abians.

Is there any policy to directly link up the local government areas in terms of infrastructure?

We have our ten kilometre per local government initiative. We have flagged off in 6 councils already. What you see in Anambra is as a result of an aggregation of efforts of successive leaders and Anambra has had the good fortune of understanding how politics should be. You have to build on what your predecessor left.

Predecessor did not build with his money; he built with the common wealth of Abians. This government will finish and conclude what we met on ground. We have completed the International Conference Centre started by Governor T.A. Orji. We are going to complete the Government House started by Governor T.A. Orji.

We are also going to complete with ASEPA building started by Governor Orji.

So, governance must be incremental one way or the other, because if I abandon them, what I have abandoned is the common wealth of Abians and thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s being frivolous. In terms of roads, this is why we are insisting that we want to deliver roads that will outlive the life-span of this administration. The roads Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m doing, I want to assure you that my successor will not go back on those roads. If I could see the roads that governor Kalu built, all I will need to do is to build on those roads, if I see roads built by Governor Orji, I will also build on them. Assuming Governor Kalu connected five local government areas, and Governor Orji connected another five, I will connect the remaining seven councils.

Unfortunately, sometimes in Abia, you see elites that are very bitter, that put themselves ahead of the interest of the people. You can see the wonderful example in Anambra. Nobody went to court after the elections. But as I speak, this is my third year and Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m still in court. You have desperate people and you begin to wonder: is this thing not call to service, you insist on serving. If you want to serve and the people say donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t serve, does it call for you to fight? I want to assure you that I have the promise of God that great things will happen. We are looking at securing a $200 million facility from World Bank. If that happens, in two years, I will connect all the councils, if it doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t, I will probably connect some, maybe 50 per cent depending on what my time permits me for this tenure.

The issue of salary is somewhat topical. What is your administration doing about salaries, pensions and gratuities?

Government is a continuum and there are four sources of revenue for every government: the allocation, IGR, grants and you can borrow. It is not economically viable to borrow in order to pay

salaries. If you borrow to pay salaries, salary payment in itself, is not income-yielding. You have to depend on your allocation and work on your IGR. If you depend on your allocation, some months in 2015, we were getting allocation that was 60 per cent less than what you require to pay salaries. I inherited a wage bill of N2.6 billion and at a point I remember I received N1.7 billion allocation.

How do you pay bill? During those months, we had a discussion with the workers to pay them once in two months.

Of course, we have cleared all that. Going forward, your efforts to shore up your IGR depend on the fidelity of your workforce.

Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s why most states are resorting to consultants. Your workforce is the people that can either make or mar. When I inherited a wage bill of N2.6 billion, I asked every worker to come with their BVN. That alone helped us to save N500 million and it crashed to N2.1 billion. Who was taking the N500 million away all the while and who knows how long they did that? So, thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a vicious circle that is propelled by the workers themselves that undermines the efforts of government to make sure they are paid promptly.

The true picture is that 75 per cent of my workers have received December salary â&#x20AC;&#x201C; all the workers in the ministries. But there are parastatals that we give subvention monthly, not salary. Abia State University receives subvention. I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t ask them about their IGR. We give them subvention, but when I give you subvention, you misuse it, then, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s up to you. At a point in Abia Poly, they had IGR of N2 billion a year. Their salary wage bill was N1.8 billion and they owed seven months. Whose fault is it? You have IGR of N2 billion and wage bill of N1.8 billion, why owing seven months? If your wage bill is N1.8 and your revenue is beginning to dwindle and then somebody opens your books, you have 130 people employed in canteen alone, the university canteen that has no hostel, which canteen in this world, even Wallmart will not have 130 people in the canteen.

I cannot put money in an open pocket, never. We insist you close 42 accounts and create a dash board, so we can see what you are earning and how you disburse it. In the third month of my administration in 2015, I gave them N2 billion. Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s their salary for a year because they owed First Bank N2 billion and the school was almost grounded. Some of the things you hear are as a result of our insistence that things must be done properly. Take it to the bank: all the workers in the ministries have received salaries up to December. Primary school teachers who are the responsibility of councils to manage are being owned three months and Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m sure that with what we want to do to help councils, rather than tamper with councilsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; funds. We are the people that give them money.

There is nothing to tamper. I hate it when people categorize all the governors as thieves. There are governors that donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have time for that. Some people are not interested in amassing wealth. I canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t do something that will not encourage me to sleep properly and I have my children, my wife and my parents that will be worried if they begin to read that I stole. I will lose everything I worked for, which is my integrity. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m not tempted at all to touch local governmentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; money. I will only ask them not to borrow from bank. Let me know what you are doing, because if you borrow without my knowledge, it will be aggregated as the debt profile of the state.

We are trying to see how we can bail out the councils with some money to ensure the teachers are paid. Pension, I canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t remember how many months, but with our intervention it canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t be more than four months or there about and again, the pensioners are happy with us. Before now, we had sub-treasurers, who were 17 in number. It was their responsibility to pay pensioners at the various sub-treasuries. When money is given, they will re-appropriate it and determine which pensioner they will pay. This made people to go about begging, but today, we have reformed the system that people now get their alerts without going to beg any sub-treasurer.

They are excited with this system. Some of these senior citizens contributed to the mess they have found themselves, because the civil service you leave as you retire is the same that ill-manages

Activities that will herald the 2019 elections will soon kick off and obviously, the opposition is already mounting against you. How do you intend to weather through this raging storm?

Politics is not played on Facebook. In 2019, what will count mostly is your scorecard. Anybody who is coming into the ring, unfortunately in 2015, I had little or nothing to say apart from my stewardship as a waste manager, in Aba or probably as General Manager of ASPINS of Chairman of Council. But today, when Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m coming in 2019, if decision is reached that we will throw our hats into the ring, I will come with my credentials. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m not going to tell Abians that I was distracted even though they knew that. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m coming to show my flyover. I will show my Ndi-Oji, Ndi-AbamOkereke road with bridge. I will show my Okom Bridge at Ohafia.

I will show Abiriba ring road. I will show Nkporo road, I will show the road at Mkpa, Agbama ring road, I will show Aba road in Umuahia handled by Arab contractors.

Of course, my flagship road, Faulks Road will be there, the shoe factory, I will show the N1.3 billion attracted to shoemakers, they will testify. I will show Owerri road and I will insist and show 56 transformers distributed. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m going to embark on a water project at Item. I will do another one at Ozuitem, areas that have never had water. These are the things I will show plus many others. I will challenge them to show their own. Will you paste your poster on my street light, if I plant additional 1000 street light, for your information, this government is the first to put street light in Aba, apart from individual efforts, if you want to challenge us, are you going to do so on my own projects or on the shoe factory.

The flyover will bear my posters, those shoemakers that will return from China, having gained knowledge on how to make shoes will testify. Everybody will come with their credentials and letâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s see what you have done. Those that will support me, I promise to arm them with enough materials to talk about us.

When you read that your administration has failed the people of Abia, what easily comes to your mind?

I see a frustrated people. I see lack of proper understanding of what governance is all about. I also see lack of understanding of my person. If they look at the circumstances that led to my emergence, they will know that there was something divine about it, because the bible says the battle is not for the swift, neither is it for the strong but time and chance happens upon it all and God will show mercy. The more people boast about their chariots and their weapons of mass destruction, the most confident I become. That a Goliath is now confronting David, Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m not fazed at all. I get worried sometimes though, because of the lies.

Somebody concocted something that I had gone to a shrine in India. Luckily for me, I had never visited India all my life. When I arrested him, he claimed that it appeared on his wall that somebody posted it there. You see how desperate they can be and some of the people who do these things have huge skeletons in their cupboards. They will just write something that I was caught in Ghana. I have never been to Ghana, because I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t believe Ghana should be a destination. I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t believe that Nigeria should be importing Alomo Bitter from Ghana. I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t believe in that kind of thing, with due respect to Ghanaians in their efforts to improve their economy, but I believe there are things we should be focusing on. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m not a freak for Ghana.

As governor, will you beat your chest and say you have done well in the last 30 months?

Given the circumstance, resources and the opportunities available, I sleep very well. I take stock of my activities everyday and each day that I take stock, each month, each year, even as we are talking, I am persuaded to say that I have enough reason to say I have given an honest day job, giving account of every minute that I have spent sitting as the governor of Abia State. It hasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t been about me; it has always been about the people and what I need to do to create better lots for my people. I am satisfied, but thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s still a lot to be done for my people.

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Mourners surround the caskets bearing the remains of victims of recent Benue attacks during their mass burial last week

Benue’s Tragic New Year Gift Like none before it, the killing of the people of Guma and Logo communities in Benue State by marauding herdsmen is an extremely sad development, writes George Okoh

L

ast Thursday in Benue State was a day of grief, anguish, hopelessness and helplessness as families of the 73 people killed in Guma and Logo Local Government Areas of the state by suspected Fulani herdsmen were laid to rest in an emotion-laden ceremony organised by the Benue State government.

People of different classes and status, who were at the Ibrahim Babangida Square, venue of the memorial service, mostly wore black as a sign of mourning, grieving with the bereaved.

The event became charged, when the corpses of victims of penultimate Saturday’s attacks were brought in open truck loaders.

As the requiem, the grieving families cried uncontrollably, reflecting on how their loved ones were slaughtered in cold blood by the armed herdsmen.

One of the survivors, Akaatenger Azinga, whose wife was killed, said he was in his house sleeping with his wife when the attackers came and knocked on his door and his wife went to open it, only for her to be captured and slaughtered by the attackers.

“I heard my wife scream because they came in the dead of the night and when I went to try and rescue my wife, I discovered that they had slaughtered her. The next thing, they started chasing me with machetes but I escaped narrowly to a nearby bush,” he said.

Governor Samuel Ortom said never again would the herdsmen kill the people of Benue, stating that the herdsmen had failed woefully if they thought that by killing innocent citizens, his administration would be forced to repeal the law on Anti-open Grazing Prohibition, insisting that the federal government must arrest the leaders of the Miyetti Allah, Kautal Hore, a faction of the main cattle dealers’ association.

He maintained that since the state does not have adequate land for farmers, there was insufficient land for colonies that map out grazing routes.

The Silent Night…

The persistent crisis between the Hausa Fulani herdsmen and their host native Tiv community, took a disturbing dimension on New Year’s Day, when a group of Fulani herdsmen

stormed some communities in Guma and Logo Local Government Areas of Benue State, killing scores of people with mindless dispositions.

The killer herders brought a sorrowful end to about 73 unarmed locals, who were still celebrating the cross-over night. A survivor of the gruesome attack, Terna Acka, said the invaders came into Logo council area at about 10 am, shooting sporadically as worshippers were coming out of churches in Ayilamo, Turan and Gaambe-tiev areas of the local government.

In his account, he claimed several persons were killed while many are still missing and several houses and property destroyed in the process.

Holding back tears, he also narrated how three members of the newly constituted Livestock Guards set up by Governor Samuel Ortom for the implementation of Anti-open Grazing Law were murdered in cold blood.

On the same day while the attack was going on in Logo, another group of herders in their hundreds invaded Akor, Umenger and Tomatar in Guma council area, country home of Governor Samuel Ortom, killing and maiming any living object in sight. They left in their wake over twenty dead persons in a very gory state.

This killing is coming weeks after a similar attack took place in Ado and Otukpo local government areas of the state, leaving over six dead and several homeless with no source of livelihood. Houses, huts and food storage bans were also destroyed by the invaders.

Worst hit by the carnage were women and children, most of whom had taken shelter at nearby forests and bushes. The invaders, who were suspected to be Fulani mercenaries, matched from Nasarawa and Taraba border villages to take on their victims without any resistance from the native Tiv. Another victim, Francis Akile, who claimed to have lost his younger brother in the attack, said tension was building up before the attack as the herders in large numbers and their cattle were seen moving around and afraid to enter their communities due to the Benue State anti-open grazing bill that was recently signed into law by the state government.

“They have been lurking around while threatening us that they would come in and graze whether we like it or not but surprising

to us without any provocation, they came in on Sunday night and macheted people, killing as many people.”

When contacted on the situation, the member representing Makurdi, Guma in the House of Representatives, Mr. Dickson Tarkighir, regretted that youths, women and children were hacked down with machetes by the rampaging herdsmen, who also destroyed farm yields and seedlings of the farming populace.

“The situation is really pathetic because most of the affected people, apart from being displaced, can hardly feed themselves”, he said, adding that he was still in shock over the attack, which he described as barbaric, inhuman and sad.

“We were in the New Year mood and celebrating a bumper harvest of last year, when these marauding evil mercenaries came in and killed us en mass even as we have been relatively safe due to enforcement of the anti-open grazing law” He called on the Fulani herdsmen to respect the laws of the land, adding that the anti-open grazing law was not targeting anybody but was done to protect both the herders and farmers in the state. He therefore called on

A mourner at the mass burial

the federal government to immediately bring succour to the communities affected.

“As you can see, this year’s farming season will be greatly affected and may even lead to famine as people in our farming community are leaving en mass out of fear of further attack.”

Meanwhile, some of the surviving victims of the invasion are yet to overcome the shock of the nightmare.

Uja James of Ayilamo village, who lost his cousins in the crisis, said life would amount to nothing if the perpetrators of the crime were not brought to justice. He recounted that the aggressors matched into the village from neigbouring Nasarawa State, armed with guns and machetes with which they killed.

“It was around 3am, when we were woken from sleep by heavy foot match and shouting in the neighborhood and when most of us came out of our houses we discovered that the Fulani herdsmen had taken over our entire community burning and killing anything in sight. Our houses, huts, farm seedling, food and economic trees were all destroyed in one fell swoop.

“In the midst of that confusion, one was left with no other option but to run for safety. It

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CICERO/ISSUE t BENUE’S TRAGIC NEW YEAR GIFT tContinued from Pg. 70 was in this confusion that they killed my cousins,” he said, adding that the slain members of his family were butchered and dismembered by the mercenaries, who also ensured that all his farm produce and household items were not spared.

“What they have done to our community is highly condemnable, because we could not imagine what prompted the provocation and resort to violent attacks and killing of women and children in such a manner.”

Benue Governor Ortom while taking an on-the-spot assessment on the level of casualty at the Benue State Teaching Hospital Mortuary, where the corpses of the deceased were deposited expressed shock at the number of persons murdered.

“What I have seen here is far beyond the report we received. Several innocent people have been killed. Women and children murdered with their throat slit open. Many people are still missing while several houses have been destroyed. The whole of Guma and Logo have been turned into desolate lands. The security agencies in this country are aware of this because warnings were given out and this seems to be a tip of the iceberg,” the governor fumed.

He frowned at the lukewarm manner the security agencies and the federal government have so far handled the issue and called on

President Muhammadu Buhari to rise up and give his people protection to show that they are also citizens of this country.

“We have told our people to be law-abiding but there is a limit the people can go. This is not fair and right and we cannot accept it,” Ortom said.

While the survivors are still recuperating, anger pervaded Makurdi town as the people staged a protest against government’s alleged insensitivity to the attacks. The protester carried placards and called on President Mohammadu Buhari to resign from office over his failure to provide adequate security for the state.

The entire Makurdi metropolis and adjoining towns were locked down in protest against the killings by suspected Fulani herders. The inaction of the federal authority and its security agencies to take proactive action to stem the needless killings was also questioned.

They however blocked the entrance point to the state around the North Bank Bridge, Yagba village, Wurukun and Apir, where they had confrontation with security operatives for hours. The protesters, mostly youths pelted security men with stones. Some cars were burnt down in the process.

Ortom, who went to the scene of the protest, was turned back by his security attaché, when the irate youths refused to listen to his appeal for calm insisting that president Buhari must

Governor Ortom consoling some of the relatives of the victims come and address them.

But the governor sued for calm and called on residents of the state not to take laws into their hands but abide by the law. He disclosed that more casualties from the attacks were still being brought to Makurdi, even as he confirmed that the carnage had been reported to the president.

“I have reported the matter to the president and we are expecting action. Some of the people we have evidence against are the leaders of Miyetti Allah who, have been threatening the state. We are calling on the president to arrest them immediately,” saying “If not, they are saying Benue is not part of Nigeria”

…In Search of a Lasting Solution Governments, both at the state and federal levels, must as a matter of urgency proffer lasting solutions to the deadly herdsmen/farmers clashes around the country. Shola Oyeyipo writes

W

hat started as farmers/ herdsmen clashes had since graduated to become herdsmen attacks on farmers, resulting in deaths and serious injuries in some states across the country. It has remained one big problem that the President Muhammadu Buhari leadership is grappling with.

But then, there is the need for proper understanding of the issues. The herdsmen are naturally nomads, moving from one place to another grazing and in so doing, they encounter cattle rustlers. In the absence of proactive actions from relevant authorities, they resort to self-help by carrying arms as a form of protection.

In the course of grazing, these herdsmen trespass on farms, consequently destroying crops. So, stories of clashes between herdsmen and farmers are usually a fallout of attempts by farmers to stop herders from encroaching on their farms. This is usually met with stiff and violent resistance by the nomadic herdsmen, resulting in deaths or serious injuries.

While there are also reported cases of herders and their cattle coming under attacks by farmers, there are more instances of farmers or farming communities coming attacked by herders. Such attacks, which involve razing of houses and farmlands, and killing and maiming of people, sometimes displace the farmers from their ancestral land.

There are however views in several quarters that it appears that the government does not seem to appreciate the enormity of the herdsmen/farmers crisis as it continues to treat the rampaging AK47wielding herdsmen with kid gloves compared to how it reacted to similar security challenges in other parts of the country.

In fact, after a meeting with the president penultimate Friday after herdsmen attacked Benue communites, the Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, made a statement considered inappropriate in various quarters, when he was quoted as saying: “Obviously it is communal crisis. Herdsmen are part of the community. They are Nigerians and are part of the community. Are they not?”

His position did not go down well with a lot of Nigerians. Leaders from the Southern and Middle Belt regions under the auspices of Southern and Middle Belt Forum were so upset about the IG’s utterances that they called for his sack.

While Governor Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti State said the killings in Benue State and other parts of the country by herdsmen was “high level terrorism and ethnic cleansing,” Deputy National President of Arewa Youth Consultative Forum, Comrade Mohammed Kudu Abubakar, called on President Buhari to immediately declare herdsmen terrorists.

Governor Ortom visits Buhari in Abuja over the Benue killings Generally, the federal government has been on the receiving end. Many have pointed fingers at the failure to bring the killer herdsmen to book. The president himself has been castigated on the social media for not rebuking the nomads vehemently and deploying the military to check their deadly activities. Some have even attributed government’s handling of the issue to tribal sentiments.

Nobel Laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, attributed the continued killings by the herders to government’s decision to “look the other way” as the assailants went on rampage across the country.

Soyinka, in a statement titled, ‘Holy Cow: Impunity Rides Again,’ said: “Indeed the government is culpable, definitely guilty of “looking the other way.

Indeed, it must be held complicit.”

The position of the presidency on the matter, which seems to ultimately affect how the matter has been handled, was recently conveyed by President Buhari’s Personal Assistant on Social Media, Lauretta Onochie, while sharing comments by the Secretary to the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association, Baba Othman Ngelzarma, on her Twitter handle.

She faulted the alleged killing of about 200 Fulani herdsmen and cattle in various attacks across the country, saying “Every life is valuable.”

The truth is that with sectional sentiments spreading across the country, if left unchecked, the killings and massive destructions that have characterised farmerherdsmen attacks are capable of sparking religious and ethnic crisis in Nigeria.

Looking at the various arguments around the deadly rivalry between the farmers and the cattle

rearers, it is obvious that there are as many solutions to the ugly trend as there are people who hold views about the issue. Disturbed by the development, the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammadu Sa’ad Abubakar, waded into the matter, when earlier in the year, he met with the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) with the hope to look into the challenges leading to the clashes between the pastoralists and farmers. Among other things, the revered traditional leader urged herdsmen not to graze their cattle on farmlands.

The Southern and Middle Belt Forum is not only bothered about the level of killings in Benue State, they have called for the removal of the IG for purportedly making excuses for the murderers against the call of his duty, which is to protect lives and property.

For them, the best way to prevent the mayhem, restore faith in the government and prevent a resort to self-help in the face of existential threats from killers, is “Immediate removal of the IGP and his replacement for having failed to effect the law against murders and justifying crimes; immediate arrests of the killers and their sponsors and government must disarm all herdsmen across the country immediately.”

They also called for the unbundling of the police structure so that states can have their own police to enforce laws made by their Houses of Assembly and that the president should address the country on these incidents and announce concrete measures to assure citizens that his government has not abdicated the primary responsibility of protecting lives and property.

As an immediate step after the killings, President Buhari ordered IGP Idris to relocate to Benue and

personally take charge of the situation. In compliance with the presidential order, Idris has deployed several police mobile units to the troubled state.

But an All Progressives Congress (APC) stalwart, Mr. Tunde Ajibulu, does not consider the herdsmenfarmer clashes as a job for the police, because according to him, “The Nigerian Police are not trained for warfare. This is a special type of war, which needs specialised warriors to fight it.”

His argument is that a special military squad would be required to put a stop to the menace, noting that “This is even beyond an ordinary soldier in the Nigerian Army. This kind of warfare, as I said earlier, needs specialised warriors – something like a reconnaissance battalion (Recce Bn) replete with scouts and trackers is what is needed here.

Government has equally expressed worry about the situation and is working to end the killings.

Minister of Defence, Mansur Dan-Ali, while addressing participants at the Army War College, urged the military to come up with possible and lasting solutions to end herdsmen/farmers clashes, kidnapping, cattle rustling and communal clashes in the country. He said the menace of herdsmen was an embarrassment and source of worry to government. He suggested that the solution to such crisis could only be tackled at strategic level, which is what the college is all about.

On its part, the umbrella body for the herdsmen, Miyetti Allah, has continued to insist on the creation of grazing reserve commission. Just last week, the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh, said the federal government had concluded plans to establish cattle colonies that would solve the continued herdsmen/farmers conflict in parts of the country. The cattle colonies would be made up of several ranches.

This is in tandem with the position of the Managing Director, Nigeria Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agricultural Lending (NIRSAL), Mr. Aliyu Abdulhameed, who suggested that ranching would not only stop the fracas but also guarantee high milk production and that the cows would grow fatter, which would translate to more meat and more money for cattle owners, as well as, greater contributions to the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

According to him, “The clashes are because of the herders’ nomadic lives. Put them in a location; do a basic feed finishing, put them in one place. Let them eat, drink, sleep and put on weight. That weight is money for us. If they eat and walk around, they waste the energy and don’t put on weight. They lose weight.” Many believe that while solutions are being sought to address the matter, anyone – both the farmers and the herders – found to have carried out attacks should be apprehended and brought to book.

It is only by doing this that the perpetrators can be properly checked.

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APC members at a rally

When APC Leaders Converged on Abia...

Despite the absence of President Muhammadu Buhari at last week’s All Progressives Congress rally in Abia State, party leaders at the rally vowed to bring the state under APC control in 2019, writes Emmanuel Ugwu

T

he Abia State chapter of All Progressives Congress (APC) was reduced to a tottering baby following its dismal performance at the 2015 general election.

The party which gained power at the federal level did not win a single elective seat in Abia State. It took a distant third position in the governorship poll. Its post-election trauma was made worse by leadership crisis, which created gaping fault lines in the party as two factions jostled for recognition.

As it grappled with factional crisis, Abia APC appeared to have received a boost following what it considered high profile defections into the party. Former governor of Abia, Chief Orji Uzor Kalu, who has been oscillating from one party to another, and this time, has embraced APC, was among the ‘big fish’ caught by the APC in Abia. There were also some state lawmakers that saw APC as the right place to nurse their political wounds.

The party further derived more strength from Mr. Uche Ogah, an industrialist and oil magnet, who joined APC after failing to actualise his gubernatorial ambition on the platform of PDP. It was this spate of defections into APC that made the state chairman of the party, Hon Donatus Nwankpa to declare that “APC is witnessing a fast growth in Abia”.

With the assemblage of defectors with varying electoral values, the leadership of Abia APC felt it was time to showcase its new found strength in the state, one of the three states in the South-east zone controlled by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). The exuberant APC leaders came up with the idea of a “mega rally” to showcase their new strength. In fact, the planned rally was touted as “a show of force” reminiscent of the controversial operation python dance.

To give the rally a maximum impact, President Muhammadu Buhari was billed to grace the event. Time and time again, the rally was scheduled and rescheduled as Abia APC leaders struggled to bring Buhari down to Umuahia, the home town of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, the now missing leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), who was a thorn in the president’s flesh. On more than three occasions, the date for the mega rally was chosen and fixed last year but failed to hold as the organisers came up with the excuse that they were looking for a convenient date for the president.

Finally, the APC mega rally took place at the Umuahia Township Stadium on Tuesday, January 9, with the expected big masquerade conspicuously absent, perhaps because of the security situation in Benue State. Buhari was absent at the event despite the hype that he would come to Umuahia to bolster his party. The organisers and some individual party members had erected bill boards and banners welcoming President Buhari to Abia.

Messages like “Abians welcome Mr. President” written in both

Igbo and English languages were everywhere in the capital city. But the main man did not come. Undoubtedly, leaders of APC in the state were disappointed by the absence of Buhari. Abia people were also disappointed having been given the false hope and expectations that President Buhari was going to come to the state for the first time since he came to power.

Instead, the senior special assistant to the president on political matters, Gideon Samali, was announced as the president’s representative at the rally. Even at that, that claim became doubtful, when Samali did not make any remarks to show that he actually came to represent his boss. There was no message of support or goodwill from President Buhari to his party men and women in Abia. Buhari’s absence made what was expected to be a loud roar to become a muffled scream.

Nonetheless, the national leadership of the party was not found wanting as the National Chairman, Chief John Odigie Oyegun, led a high powered delegation to the rally. They include national vice-chairman, South-east, Emma Eneukwu, and his South-west counterpart, Segun Oni; national organising secretary, Senator Osita Izunaso; and national auditor, Chief George Moghalu, among others.

There was also a strong presence of APC stalwarts from other states that came on solidarity with their party members, who are desirous of repositioning the party ahead of the 2019 general election. Imo State Governor, Rochas Okorocha, came from across the border; and from Enugu, the immediate past governor of the state, Mr. Sullivan Chime came in solidarity with his fellow defectors.

Senator Izunaso performed the job of unveiling the “APC stars” in Abia. As he called out the stars onto the podium, it was quite obvious that some of the APC stars were no longer emitting light in Abia politics. While some waved the party broom, others just walked onto the stage with empty hands. There was enthusiasm on their faces as they chanted party slogans and waved brooms in the air. Among the notable names of defectors that were unveiled were a former labour minister, Emeka Wogu, Senator Nkechi Nwaogu and former member of House of Representatives, Hon Chinenye Ike. But the latest defectors came from the Abia State House of Assembly, where four lawmakers from the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) and PDP joined the APC. The lawmakers that formally declared for APC include Ikedi Ezekwesili (Umunneochi/APGA), Theophilus Ugboajah (Ikwuano/ APGA), Martins Azubuike (Isiala Ngwa North/PDP), and Solomon Okogbue (Bende South/APGA). Hon Azubuike was the Speaker of the sixth Abia House before he was removed in controversial circumstances. Since then, he has been an aggrieved PDP member and has now apparently found succour in APC. Surprisingly, two members of the House of Representatives, Hon Nkiru Onyejeocha (Umunneochi/ Isuikwuato federal constituency) and Solomon Adaelu (isiala Ngwa North/Isiala Ngwa South federal

constituency) did not turn up to be presented among the defectors.

The two PDP federal lawmakers were strongly linked with APC and it was believed that they would be at the rally to be formerly introduced to their new found party members.

Nonetheless, the administrative secretary of Abia APC, Hon Chidi Nwosu, later assured their supporters during a radio programme that Onyejeocha and Adaelu were already in APC and would be formally welcomed into the party soon.

Kalu, who was introduced as the leader of Abia APC said the rally “is the beginning of a journey” that the party hopes would take it to Abia Government House come 2019. He noted that the party was now formidable in Abia and was poised to better its performance in the 2015 general election. He said APC managed to score less than six per cent of votes in Abia but assured the party that with him on the driving seat, the party would rake in 75 per cent of votes in Abia come 2019.

“I will put everything I have to make this state APC,” he vowed, adding that “Democracy is about the people; it is not about ourselves.” Kalu was overtly overjoyed at the prospect of APC dethroning APGA to become the minority party in Abia House following the defection of the four lawmakers to APC, saying “We will use federal might against Abia House and stop them from sitting” in order to protect the four lawmakers should there be any threat to their seats in the legislature.

Oyegun said he was overwhelmed by the large crowd of party faithful that filled the stadium to celebrate the rebuilding of Abia APC, saying it was a sign that “Abia is now ready for APC”.

Alluding to the several postponements of the mega rally, the APC national chairman noted that he had been invited since last year to come and see that Abia State was ready for the party. “We have seen, we are satisfied,” he declared.

The grudges against APC were not lost on Oyegun as he acknowledged that “there is no question we have hardships in the land”. But he was quick to add that President Buhari was not unmindful of the hardships that Nigerians are experiencing, adding that there was light at the end of the tunnel, because according to him, Mr. President has been spending sleepless nights in search of solutions to the problems. “The bad days are coming to an end. The good days are beginning,” he said.

The clarion call for Ndigbo to join APC in order to enjoy federal patronage was not in short supply. Governor Okorocha said Ndigbo now have a second chance to retrace their steps to APC, because “we played bad politics in 2015” by supporting PDP. “Let’s join national politics; let every Igbo man join APC,” he pleaded, adding that “Abia is ready for change”. Even Chime, who was Enugu governor for eight years under the PDP platform, was not left out in the effort to convince Ndigbo to embrace the ruling party, saying “APC is the only way to go”.

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PERSPECTIVE

Voters on queue to cast their votes... Do they know what is in the political partiesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; manifestos?

Political Party Manifestos in Nigeria, UK, US Patrick Dele Cole Peoples Democratic Party Manifesto he party is committed to building a qualitatively better society based on the principle of democracy, human rights and moral justice under the rule of law. It would restructure Nigeria for true federalism: devolution of powers to the states and local governments is an indivisible Nigeria that resects geopolitical balancing and rotation of power at all levels of government. The judiciary will be independent. There will be gender equality in an economy that is private sector-led, extending good governance and probity in a free market-based economy in a multi-religious state.

PDP believes in the rotation of power according to the principle of Federal Character involving all interest groups.

On the economy, the state will play a leading role to achieve a self-reliant and just society. It will encourage pluralization, alleviate poverty, leading to full employment, diversification of the economy and reducing dependence on oil: there will be an efficient tax collection system, reduce the gap between the rich and the poor.

Agriculture will receive better inputs â&#x20AC;&#x201C; fertilizer, improved seedlings, farm animals, fish will be produced massively.

There will be a directorate of small-scale industries, a National Economic Reconstruction Fund and Bank for Commerce and Industries aiming at keeping interest rates low. There will be tax holiday for new industries. Health will be free to all, especially in all the institutions of learning and for the aged and handicapped.

The PDP would provide general hospitals to all Local Government headquarters (i.e. 774 hospitals). Specialist hospitals in all statesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; headquarters while promoting research into traditional medicines. The PDP will provide family planning.

Education should be free and functional, it would induce â&#x20AC;&#x153;political educationâ&#x20AC;? while encouraging private and voluntary organizations to establish schools. PDP will guarantee academic freedom while promoting science and technical education to build a solid foundation for economic take off. It will complete, like the APC, the steel, and all petroleum plans. It will provide modern efficient transportation; encourage vehicle manufacturer; re-establish the Nigerian National Shipping Line and wellmaintained ports. The PDP will re-organize the nationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s postal system, privatize NITEL and NIPOST and revamp Police and the Prison system...

The PDP would provide power and electricity to all Nigerians and encourage wind, sun energy projects. Water supply would be adequate for drinking and farming. It would improve the conditions of workers after reviewing the minimum wages and overhauling the Industrial Arbitration Court.

On solid minerals, the PDP will quantify all mineral deposits, revamp the rolling steel mills and reposition NNPC for the purpose. Both the PDP and APC say they would â&#x20AC;&#x153;restructure Nigeriaâ&#x20AC;?

T

All Progressives Congress Manifesto All Progressives Congress (APC) believes that all power is derived from the people through fair and free elections. It is committed to equal rights in a level playing field. It will restructure the government devolving power to the units. It would declare war on corruption in a nation that has food security, constant power

supply, integrated transport network, free education, and affordable health care and accelerated economic growth. The currency will be strong, interest rates low â&#x20AC;&#x201C; in the single digit and low inflation.

It would revolutionize the agricultural industry by establishing agriculture extension workers and produce inspectors; land preparation, commercial lives, afforestation.

The All People Congress would strengthen the Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) and Independent Corrupt Practice Commission (ICPC), encourage whistle-blowers, sanitize Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), and institute special courts for corruption. It would establish official and reliable urban transportation system, build 4000km of superhighways; 2000km of modern standard Rail System annually, complete the medium section of Ajaokuta Steel; Promote aviation and provide hanger facilities to service planes. APC would build 40,000 megawatts per annum and liberalize the Federal Governments monopoly on power; while investing heavily in solid minerals. It would fully implement the Universal Basic Education (UBE) Act; devote 10% of the budget to education. All education would be free especially primary and secondary education. It would build, and upgrade all Federal Government hospitals to international standards, and boost pharmaceutical production to 70% of Nigerians need. There will be free health care for pregnant women and children.

On the economy, APC would micromanage the economy by giving Central Bank its independence, grow the GDP by 10% annually, create one million jobs annually; amend the Land Use Act to create freehold land and institute an electronic land registration. APC would grow a new middle class by building one million affordable houses yearly for them and establish special banks for the sectors of the economy - agriculture, construction, Industry, Social Development, etc.

APC would create Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to become a cutting-edge institution for oil and gas, implement the gas master plan, stop gas flaring, strip Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) of its regulatory function.

Nigeria would become a major Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) manufacturer as well as producer of LPC and Compress Natural Gas (CNG), and encourage more exploration especially in Sokoto, Minna, Chad and Benue Basin.

On human rights, the APC would revamp the Public Complaints Commission and Code of Conduct Bureau while reorganizing the Police and ensure the full implementation of the Freedom of Information Act and establish a Conflict Revolution Commission.

Conservative Party Manifesto Conservative Party Manifesto aims at lower Immigration, raise tax-free personal allowance, increases National Health Service (NHS) funding. Middle-class pensioners would not be taxed if assets are below ÂŁ100,000. The Conservative Government would ban all new selective schools and build 100 new free schools. The schools budget will rise to ÂŁ4 billion per annum and no increase in the level of VAT. It would raise tax-free personal allowance to ÂŁ12,500 by 2020. The tax threshold of 40 pence per ÂŁ on earnings tax would rise to ÂŁ50,000. There would be new criminal offence of putting pension schemes at risk. Employers who employ Immigrant would still remain at ÂŁ2000 a year.

The party pledges a minimum ÂŁ8 billion over the next five years for National Health Service (NHS). The conservative party has always campaigned on a balanced budget account of the

deficit: and would eradicate deficit by the middle of next decade.

Foreign aid would remain at â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 0.7% of GDP and Defense at 2% GDP. The Conservative Party would: force internet companies to remove explicit and extremist material; it would create a national infrastructure police force to include Civil Nuclear force, the Defence Police, British Transport Police and the Serious Fraud Squad to be incorporated into National Crime Agency. It would devote ÂŁ1 billion to modernize police.

Build one million houses by end 2020 and a further 500,000 by 2022. It would introduce new council housing deals for local authorities. Fixed term social houses which will then be sold to the occupants, corporate pay would be subject to a strict annual vote by shareholders, companies to publish the ratio to workers Pay, Corporation to publish the ratio of men to women in their companies. There will be no referendum on Scotland before Brexit takes place. There will as, with Labour Party, be a fixed cap on energy tariffs, plus the installation of smart meters.

Labour Party Manifesto The Labour party would scrap tuition fees, boost workersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; rights and reverse some of benefits cuts, including the bedroom tax â&#x20AC;&#x201C; which is a tax on an unoccupied room in a council flat.

It would tax 1.2 million people who earn ÂŁ80, 000 at a tax rate 45 pence per pounds. The threshold tax would rise to 50p in every pound for those who earn ÂŁ123, 000. Corporation tax will be raised to 26% - a rise of more than 33%; thus raising ÂŁ19.4 billion. It would chase tax evaders more vigorously. The Labour party would not commit to any numbers on immigration. It will also remove income thresholds for spouses of immigrants. At present, a wife cannot join her husband in the United Kingdom if the husband earns below a certain amount.

Migrant impact fund would continue on Brexit, the party accepts the results of the referendum for the UK to leave the EU but would retain single market and customs union.

It would guarantee the rights of Europeans now living in the UK. It has asked for a transitional agreement between when UK officially leaves the European Union and when that cession becomes finalized. It would return rail ownership to the public.

There would be partial nationalization of Energy. The Central Government would control the grid and distribution of energy and would cap average household bills at ÂŁ1000 per annum.

Tuition fees would be abolished on Higher Education. Maintenance grants would be re-introduced for university students.

The party would provide ÂŁ30 billion to National Health Service (NHS) from the increased tax on private medical insurance and halving management consultantsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; fees.

National care service (i.e. providing care for the old and infirm) would be introduced while improving conditions of workers, entrenching worker rights through the Ministry of Labour to enforce workersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; rights.

Labour would repeal Trade Union Act and introduce a selective collection for Trade Union members.

It would provide a budget of $8 billion for Care workers. Care workers allowance would be increased in line with job seekers allowance.

It would Repeal Trade Union Act and ban Zero hours contracts for workers. The minimum wage would be equal to a living wage and entrench rights for workers to join unions.

Paternity leave would be doubled and protection of women on

Contâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d on Pg. 75

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PERSPECTIVE

Tony Elumelu as a Business Ambassador Bisi Daniels

H

e shuns politics and frivolities to concentrate on business and philanthropy, but some observers believe that with his visible and regular presence at high profile international business fore, and the recognition he receives, Mr. Tony Elumelu is fast becoming a business ambassador for the country.

Only recently, the chairman of Heirs Holding became the first African to receive the Dwight D. Eisenhower Global Entrepreneurship Award in its 33 years of existence. The progenitor of the award, Dwight, was the 34th President of the United States of America.

The award was presented to the chairman of the United Bank of Africa, UBA, at an award gala in New York by another former US President, George W. Bush. It was well attended by other recognized world leaders.

Last year, at the US â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Africa Business Forum (USABF) which was organized by Bloomberg and the United States department of Commerce held alongside the United Nations General Assembly, U.S. Secretary of Commerce commended Elumelu for his pivotal role in US-Africa business relations.

Elumelu was host to over 200 global leaders with Secretary of Commerce, Penny Pritzker as the guest of honour at the event. Indeed, he had spoken at the USABF earlier that day after President Obamaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s address, re â&#x20AC;&#x201C;emphasising that America needs to expand and scale up their policies in Africa and not necessarily make changes to what they are doing on the continent.

For Elumelu, awards and global recognition pour like confetti. He holds the Nigerian national honours, the Commander of the Order of the Niger (CON); and a Member of the Order of the Federal Republic (MFR); and he recognised as one of â&#x20AC;&#x153;Africaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 20 Most Powerful People in 2012â&#x20AC;? by Forbes magazine. r )F XBT B NFNCFS PG UIF 8PSME &DPOPNJD Forumâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Regional Agenda Council on Africa. r )JT QSFTFODF PO UIF #SFUUPO 8PPET $PNmittee, which brings together senior leaders in the global banking industry, is recognition of his work on African development. r )F JT B 'FMMPX PG UIF /JHFSJB -FBEFSTIJQ Initiative (NLI). r )F JT JOWPMWFE UISPVHI IJT GPVOEBUJPO XJUI the Tony Blair Africa Governance Initiative (AGI) in a partnership to strengthen the private sectorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s role in the economic transformation of select African countries. This partnership is called the Blair-Elumelu Fellowship Programme. r )F JT DP DIBJS PG UIF "GSJDB &OFSHZ -FBEFST Group (AELG)

Entrepreneurship development But perhaps his most visible presence on the global stage is entrepreneurship development in Africa through the yearly Tony Elumelu Entrepreneurship Forum. This yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s edition, which brought together thousands of entrepreneurs from across Africa, held recently in Lagos with seamless flow.

Ordinarily, the logistics challenge of hosting one thousand young people from over 54 countries and prominent investors, entrepreneurs, business leaders and policy makers should be an onerous task that would make the success of forum evoke a feeling of achievement and contentment.

But as he and his guests clearly showed, the enormity of addressing Africaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s twin challenges unemployment and poverty is for him a far greater challenge.

With Africaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s abundant natural and human resources, its endemic poverty has become a perplexing paradox. In the novel, THE FALSE TRUTH, a professor tells a sad tale of the continent: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Africaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s geography and environment are in direct contrast to its political and social circumstances. A continent that is so rich in natural resources has been plagued by destructive leadership motivated mainly by greed.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;With its pristine simplicity, the continent evokes thoughts of Eden,â&#x20AC;? the professor continued from a source. â&#x20AC;&#x153;This is evident in her exquisite flora and fauna. At the same time, the widespread senseless poverty echoes the outback of hell, with poverty and devastating diseases serving as the hallmark of the average citizenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s daily existence.

Capturing Africaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s magnetic ability to attract perilous opposites, TIME Magazine once reported

Elumelu receiving awards

that: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Africaâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;especially the sub-Saharan regionâ&#x20AC;&#x201D; has begun to look like an immense illustration of chaos theory.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;According to observations made by the British charity Oxfam, development efforts have been in place all over the continent throughout the past two decades, yet Africans continue to grow poorer with each passing year. This is hard to believe. I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have to tell you that Africa is blessed with all the resources that make for greatness â&#x20AC;&#x201D; human, material, and ecological.â&#x20AC;?

According to the professor, â&#x20AC;&#x153;The continent harbours more than 40 percent of the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s potential hydroelectric power supply; the bulk of the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s diamond and chromium resources; 30 percent of the uranium; 50 percent of the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s gold; 90 percent of its cobalt; 50 percent of its phosphates; 40 percent of its platinum; 7.5 percent of its coal; 8 percent of its known petroleum reserves; 12 percent of its natural gas; 3 percent of its iron ore; 64 percent of the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s manganese, 13 percent of its copper, vast bauxite, nickel and lead resources, and millions of untilled farmlands.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;You are probably wondering why, in this world of great abundance, such extreme poverty not only exists, but is allowed to continue,â&#x20AC;? the professor continued.

But while much of Africaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s poverty is attributable to poor leadership, it is obvious that there is much individuals can do to better their lot and others before the red of the famine of good leadership turns green.

Africaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s unemployment challenge Aliko Dangote, President of the Dangote Group, who spoke at the forum, offered another scary perspective: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Unemployment around the continent is troubling. A 2013 study by Brookings Institution found that African youth (15-24 years) constitute about 37% of the working age population. The same age group, however, accounts for about 0% of jobless people in Africa. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Working poverty rates among the youth in Sub-Saharan Africa was nearly 70% in 2016, translating to about 64 million working youth living in extreme or moderate poverty (less than $3.10 per day). â&#x20AC;&#x153;About 10 - 12 million young people join the continents labour market each year.â&#x20AC;?

But the man, who became an entrepreneur at young age, and is now a leading industrialist across Africa, employing thousands of people, has a solution: â&#x20AC;&#x153;From a very early age young Africans have to be encouraged, educated, equipped and inspired to be employers of labour rather than employees. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Entrepreneurship has the potential to be one of the most potent tools for Africaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s transformation.

Entrepreneurship can create jobs and increase the middle class which is essential in sustaining economic growth.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;We canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t look on without doing something,â&#x20AC;? says Tony Elumelu, an entrepreneur, philanthropist. â&#x20AC;&#x153;This is as fundamental reason we have the Tony

Elumelu Foundation doing what we are doing today.

He continued: â&#x20AC;&#x153;When we launched, we wanted to change the narrative on African development. We wanted to reframe the agenda, so that economic development would no longer be centred on foreign aid. We would show that Africaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s transformation could and should be driven

by Africans.â&#x20AC;?

Established in 2010, The Tony Elumelu Foundation is a leading philanthropic organisation in Africa with the aim of promoting entrepreneurship as the catalyst for the socio-economic development of the continent. The Foundation has set itself apart from grant-making bodies, by operationalising integrated programmes to support entrepreneurship in Africa and by enhancing the competitiveness of the African private sector TEF has achieved this, namely through its flagship initiative â&#x20AC;&#x201C; the entrepreneurship programme, a 10-year, $100 million commitment to identify, train mentor and fund 10,000 entrepreneurs.

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo Vice President Osinbajo, noted for richly illustrated speeches, graced the forum with another simple but powerful speech on the same theme of what will make Africa work â&#x20AC;&#x201C; the resourcefulness of its people. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Here in this room are seated the answers to that question, indeed we have right here with us 1000 reasons why Africa would work and you are those reasons why this country will work,â&#x20AC;? he opened his presentation. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Across agriculture, ICT, hospitality, fashion, energy, manufacturing, entertainment and many other fields, the breadth and depth of talent and innovation on display in the current and previous Tony Elumelu Entrepreneurship cohort have shown that there is indeed hope.â&#x20AC;?

He had examples to show: r *O UIF TFU XF IBWF 0TBLXF $IVLXVOonso who is building vehicles that would run on clean energy. r 4PKJ .FHCPXBO JT DSFBUJOH FEVDBUJPOBM products that would simplify STEM especially the teaching of STEM subjects. r 4JFSSB -FPOFBO &EXBSE /POJ GSPN UIF set built a tracking tool which was useful, following the devastating flood in his home country of Sierra Leone. r 'SBOL .VHBSVSB PG 3XBOEB JT UIF QSPQSJFUPS of a branding and marketing agency that is set to conquer the continent. r /LFN 0LPDIB .BNBNPOJ BT TIF JT DBMMFE runs a prolific microcredit enterprise. â&#x20AC;&#x153;These are merely a handful of some of the inspiring stories that have preceded you and we know now that indeed Africa is set for incredible progress in the next few years.â&#x20AC;?

There are many more at where his examples came from: r 4IBCCJSBMJ )BTOBJO .VTTB PG 5BO[BOJB JT PG

the 2017 set. He says, â&#x20AC;&#x153;After receiving the seed capital from TEF, we have secured office space, and managed to get an affordable bag making machine which produces non-woven bags. By doing this, we have had the chance to grow our business and hired 5 staff; by doing this, we doubled our output and attracted new clients. r %FOOJT .VMPOHP .VUPSP ,FOZB 8JUIJO two months of joining, I launched a new product.

Three months later, before even completing the programme, I have made 3 sales and 1 contract for over $28,300. This I owe to TEF training alone. r +FBO &NNBOVFM :BOOJDL -BCPOOF .BVritius: The seed capital is a blessing. I once read Mr.Elumeluâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s quote â&#x20AC;&#x153;Do not eat the seedâ&#x20AC;? and this was the guiding line for me when I received the seed capital. To be part of TEF has opened unimaginable doors and allowed me to dive deep and explore the depths of entrepreneurship.

I shall be forever grateful. r 1SPGFTTPS 0TJOCBKP BMTP EXFMU PO UIF CMPDLFST to the potentials of the young entrepreneurs, key among which he called the tyranny of the past. He cautioned them on how history can tie people down, compelling them to look back until sometimes they trip; compelling them to look at the present with fear and apprehension; how history, especially past failures individually or collectively can become a barrier to achievement of freedom. r 8JUI SFTPVSDFT BOE LOPXMFEHF BDRVJSFE CZ the participants, he charged them to make be forward ever their policy.

The Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, etc Citing factors like ingenuity, creativity, ideas and most importantly passion in the success stories of such great men around the world, Elumelu also urged the participants to be their best.

He however called on governments of various African countries to improve on the ease of doing business to enable entrepreneurs thrive.

He commended the Buhari administration for improving the operating environment in Nigeria.

Then, he stressed the point, he has often made, that it is for Africans to develop Africa.

But indeed, that should be a challenge for his enormous energy, wealth and experience.

The Future â&#x20AC;&#x153;At the end of our 10-year commitment,â&#x20AC;? the Foundation says, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Tony Elumelu Entrepreneurs will become a generation of dynamic African business owners, who will prove that local business growth will drive Africaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s economic and social transformation. We believe that by the end of this â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Decade of African Entrepreneurship,â&#x20AC;&#x2122; thousands of businesses will grow and flourish, driving sustainable prosperity across Africa.

Furthermore, they will create ripples and waves of economic transformation across the continent.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x201C;â&#x20AC;&#x201C;Bisi, a journalist and author, wrote THE FALSE TRUTH which is dedicated to Mo Ibrahim.

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PERSPECTIVE

Rethinking Decentralisation and Grassroots Devt Tunji Olaopa

T

here is one fundamental truism that has now been fortunately forced into the development discourse across the globe. This truism is that development is all about the people. In other words, any development efforts that are not conducive to the eventual empowerment of those they are meant for are, by that fact, futile. The seeming ordinariness of this thesis, as well as its revolutionary character, can only be appreciated if the historicity and the ideology of the global understanding of orthodox development discourse are properly contextualized. The current discourse that underlies the Washington Consensus sees development essentially as a catch up game; the rest of the world, and especially the struggling states in the third world, are expected to look to the West for development paradigms, insights, models and direction. This meant that models of economic development and governance paradigms can only be shipped down to, say, Africa for the various governments on the continent to just accept and deploy.

We really do not need to look far for the consequences of these development assumptions. They are glaring in the gross infrastructural deficits that face every African state since the coming of the World Bank and the IMF, and their interventions in the development equations in Africa. Beginning from the structural adjustment programmes (SAPs) of the 90s, citizens in most African countries were forced to swallow the bitter pills of austerity measures arising from the conditionalities imposed on the governments to achieve the development models prescribed by the Bretton Wood institutions. Yet, Africa has been struggling with development ever since, and into the twenty first century. And the indices of our struggles keep getting aggravated with bad statistics. In summary, Africa is home to most of the least developed states in the world.

It is a bad investment location. It has the highest mortality, illiteracy and child education rate. It is the poorest continent in the world.

And it houses most of the most corrupt states on the Transparency International Corruption Index.

The complement of the truism that development is about the people is that those who achieve significant development do so on their own term, while voluntarily but critically adopting and adapting global best practices that are close to their own internally-generated ideals of development. Fabricating that idea depends on the ideological assumption that any state has adopted as the guiding framework for ordering its internal matrices and external relations. This is what China has done with the Beijing Consensus. No matter what reservation we may all have about Chinaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s human right credentials, no one will doubt that China has gone very far in positively affecting the lives of her citizens. Chinaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s infrastructural achievements are fast becoming the cynosure of the global eyes.

We cannot say the same for Nigeria. The infrastructural deficit stands at $8 billion annually. In the 2016 budget, capital expenditure stands at a meager 30%. But this is not the fundamental source of the development issue. What is fundamental is the appropriate model for instigating development that will not only be about the people, as we have noted, but will also be accelerated in Nigeriaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s own unique development terms. The answer lies in the dynamics of local governance that speaks directly and immediately to the grassroots where Nigerians are. This is not a new insight, even though it is just now forcing its way into development thinking.

And amongst those who got to its fundamental essence first is

Buhari the redoubtable Prof. Akinlawon Ladipo Mabogunje. Renowned as the father of African geography, Prof. Mabogunje did not only give a significant African visibility to the obscure discipline, but he also factored Africaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s postcolonial predicament into the theoretical and substantive intellectual dynamics of the discipline. In Nigeria, for instance, Prof. Mabogunjeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s brand of geographical reflection on Nigeria spans such significant and critical national issues like housing, land reform, poverty alleviation, census taking, public service review, planning, community banking, urban development, the university, rural development and forestry. All these issues have, in one way or the other, some critical place in Nigeriaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s federal palaver. Land and land use in Nigeria are a critical example.

Nigeriaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s land troubles commences with the 1978 Land Use Act which effectively and unfortunately undermines the very spirit of federalism because the Act is a federal law which overrides any peculiar customary or legal statutes existing within the states. In a true federal situation, land belongs with the local communities, and hence with the state governments. And it is at this juncture of federalism, local dynamics of development and genuine land reform that Prof. Mabogunje interjects his reform recommendations.

This begins, according to him and the committee on land reform inaugurated by the Yarâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Adua administration, with a thorough cadastral mapping and registration of all lands in Nigeria. The land reform project involves a long term objective of registering all the land in Nigeria for the purpose of generating enormous revenue for the government as well as injecting capital investment into the country.

This reform dynamics is further connected to the second reform programme that is associated with Prof. Mabogunje. This is the OPTICOM rural development initiative which takes the grassroots locality as the first condition for thinking about development in any community. Development, in other words, commences from the identification of community groups and groupings that can facilitate development insights and ideas that the entire community can rally round and consolidate.

There is one cogent point that the above demonstrates. And this is that the present centralized logic of the Nigerian state and its governance model has been constraining development.

Centralization limits grassroots development initiatives because it ties development to the unitary framework which in itself limits national integration. Federalism has entered into popular consciousness as the best system to adequately resolve Nigeriaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s plurality. The federal option allows for a decentered federation that permits the federating units to pursue unit-, regional- or zone-specific development that emanates from a particular locality and its unique development problematic. Centralization was the choice postcolonial alternative especially in the immediate post-independence period when development planning in Nigeria requires the presence of the government at what was called the â&#x20AC;&#x153;commanding heightâ&#x20AC;? of the economy to facilitate the governmentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s capacity to steer the state along the path of development prosperity. This was significant given the urgent need for modernization of the Nigerian state after colonization.

In post-independence Nigeria, the problem of development was simultaneous with that of the national question of fashioning â&#x20AC;&#x153;one Nigeriaâ&#x20AC;? out of the many ethnic identities contending for relevance and the scarce resources of the state. However, we have the singular Civil War as the attestation of the failure of centralization of the Nigerian federation. Since independence, we also have the limitations of the numerous planning efforts as the negative testament to the inadequacy of centralized planning for development. But with the new democratic consciousness that is infusing political reflection about government, centralization is fact giving way to the idea of participatory understanding of government and governance. The idea of development democracy demands that the â&#x20AC;&#x153;commanding heightâ&#x20AC;? which the government seeks should be brought low to the level of the grassroots where the people themselves can become the real center of democratic and development participation.

Thus, development democracy begins at the level of local governance.

The local government within the lopsided federal arrangement in Nigeria is the most neglected tier of government in the theory and practice of democracy and federalism in Nigeria. And this becomes a deep indictment of Nigeriaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s democratic and development credentials because it is at this level that most Nigerians have their beings. â&#x20AC;&#x201C;â&#x20AC;&#x201C;Dr. Olaopa is the Executive Vice Chairman, Ibadan School of Government and Public Policy (tolaopa2003@ gmail.com; tolaopa@isgpp.com.ng) (See concluding part on www.thisdaylive.com)

t 10-*5*$"- 1"35: ."/*'&4504 */ /*(&3*" 6, 64 t Continued on Pg.73 maternity leave strengthened.

Executive pay to lowest paid workers should not be more than 20:1 ratio. Labour would review cuts to Universal Credit.

On infrastructure, the Labour Party would borrow ÂŁ250 billion over 10 years for energy, transport and digital infrastructure.

The party would improve 4G coverage throughout the United Kingdom and 5G to all urban areas.

On democracy, the Labour Party would lower voting age to 16 from 18 and would employ 10,000 more Police.

Conclusion I think it is impossible from the above analysis to make any distinction between the PDP and the APC. These parties are no more than machinery for political preferment. If they remain as now structured, the governors will continue to dominate them and through them have a dominant force in the Federal Government.

The country is buffeted by an enduring recession but neither party has applied the normal belt-tightening features to fight inflation. The rules for dealing with recession are not rocket science, recurrent expenditure continues to rise unabated; unemployment goes unattended, general inefficiency and looting of government funds are not attacked. No party has introduced well known panacea for recession and inflation. We are hoping to grow out of recession by the rise in the oil prices. But this is no solution as the cancer remains untreated.

Is it possible that this may be due to a failure of the political parties having no ideology and an identifying policy tied to that party? It would seem that the parties have no research department to churn out development policy that have been thoroughly investigated. In the UK and the US, the central office of the major parties are think tanks redefining policy and methodology for the steps they have to take to meet their purposes as clarified in the

manifesto.

As can be seen from above, the difference between the Labour and Conservative Party could not be clearer.

In the United States, the difference is clear between the Democratic Party and the Republican Party in the policies which Hilary Clinton and Donald Trump enunciated in the 2016 presidential election. Moreover, their think tanks are recruiting groups for bright young talents. Tony Blair, Gordon Brown and Ed Balls all worked in the Central Policy Unit of the Labour Party before seeking seats in the House of Parliament and then begin their slow rise to leadership. The same is also true about the Conservative Party where David Cameron and George Osborne learnt the grind of policy and equipped themselves for leadership.

In the United States, there are countless think tanks always weighing and refining policy basically which define the right and the neoliberal wings of the parties in the United States.

I have gone into some details about the political parties in Nigeria; itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a set of fine words signifying nothing because there is not a word on how they intend to turn these fine words into reality. Both APC and PDP would build million houses for the middle-class. Which one has acquired one inch of land for this project? On education, they claim they would institute free education up to secondary school, well, they are PDP and governments at State Level â&#x20AC;&#x201C; what has happened?

The parties claim they would build 200km of rail and 4000km of roads per annum â&#x20AC;&#x201C; oh yea? Where? Have the plans been put down for the houses, or plans for the roads or the railways? Our foreign policy is in tatters â&#x20AC;&#x201C; there is hardly enough money to run the embassies, the negative publicity of Nigeria has never been greater.

All these fine words about the NNPC mean nothing. Fuel subsidy has never been higher, fuel shortages are endemic, and the roads to the port are jam locked by tankers and trucks.

Hospital, agriculture, river transport, clearing oil spills, how can we Nigeria lose 4000 tankers? Ajaokuta steel plant is not finished?

Creating one million jobs per annum? I am of the opinion that the leaders of the parties have never read the manifesto.

There is no clarity about private enterprise or nationalization.

Not too long ago the government-owned 60% of all banks; then they sold their shares to make a few men super rich. The state governments are selling all their assets. There is no economic expansion. This is a nation in drift, totally rudderless, no focus.

Indeed, where there is focus it is one of shortsighted and selfish individualism.

The parties do not have a get out clause in their manifesto.

New nationalisms, now commonly called populisms (especially in Europe) are spreading out all over the world and old states are forced to take these new nationalisms into consideration. Yugoslavia broke into several countries.

In Nigeria do we not need â&#x20AC;&#x153;a get out clauseâ&#x20AC;? in the constitution so that those who want a peaceful exit can do so? Suppose â&#x20AC;&#x153;restructureâ&#x20AC;? does not work â&#x20AC;&#x201C; what next?

It means different things to different sectors. Even the European Union had to put get-out clause in the Union resulting as Brexit and recently a referendum was held in Scotland about whether that nation would remain in the United Kingdom.

As almost useless political party manifestos are, what should be done? Does this impasse call for a third party that is more focused on youth and young ideas for their development or even a political party more purpose oriented which can hold the parties to account for what they promised? â&#x20AC;&#x201C;â&#x20AC;&#x201C;Ambassador Cole, OFR, is a former presidential aspirant.

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Ëš

Imo under Okorocha: A Tragedy Foretold!

Oma Djebah

G

overnor Rochas O korocha of Imo state continues to attract unnecessary attention to himself and ridicule to the country for wrong reasons. His recent creation of the Ministry of Happiness and Purpose Fulfillment and his appointment of his younger sister, Ogechi Ololo (nee Okorocha) to head the new Ministry- has once again thrown Imo State into public opprobrium. Technically, there is nothing illegal with the appointment if she is qualified or possess the requisite expertise, experience and capacity. But there is everything wrong with the establishment of a Ministry of Happiness and Purposes fulfillment and naming an Okorocha as lead at this time! It raises serious ethical, political and moral questions in a poor state where Okorocha has already appointed his son-in-law as Chief of Staff to the Governor: Is Imo State a family business concern?

In a state where the level of unemployment is abysmally high with an established nexus between high unemployment and increasing criminality, going by data released by the United Nations Global Multi-Dimensional Poverty Index and National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), Okorocha should have focused on matters of Sustainable Development and job creation than courting controversy.

A governorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s performance and legacy rest much more on tangible accomplishments than ephemeral and comical deeds.

Tragically, every facet of Okorochaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s administration has seemingly been characterized by attempts to normalize abnormalities!.

The honoring of South Africaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s President Jacob Zuma - with a statue and a street in his name - a man highly derided back home with corruption charges swirling around him, leading a country economically in recession with unemployment high, is the height of diplomatic blunder and egregious political

Okorocha

errors. Worse still, it was alleged the official visit cost the state a staggering N520m ($1.4m) when civil servants have not been paid salaries and entitlements for months!

Curiously, this is the same state where Samuel Onunaka Mbakwe of blessed memory who by all accounts, remains its father, once governed with exceptional competence and pragmatic leadership. Okorochaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s actions remind me of â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;â&#x20AC;&#x2122;The Adventures of Finnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;â&#x20AC;&#x2122;, by Mark Twain, the late American satirist, with the theme knitted around how the lead character and a runaway slave set out on a sailing expedition on the Mississippi, away from civilization, mirroring all the contradictions in

L-R: Chairman, Seven-Up Bottling Company Plc (SBC), Mr. Faysal ElKhalil; and Director, SBC, Otunba Adekunle Ojora, at SBCâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Annual General Meeting in Lagos...recently

the US! Imo is currently characterized by too many contradictions with men of integrity setting out on a sail while the state is being debased!

Okorochaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s emergence as governor appears to be a tragedy foretold! He seems to have come on board ill-prepared for the task. For, prior to his sudden emergence in the political arena during Olusegun Obasanjoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Presidency as Chairman of Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), not many would attest to an inspiring career or background.

Back to the hackneyed official position for establishing the Ministry. It is platitudinous and most tenuous to attempt to compare Imo State with United Arab Emirates. One is an absolute Monarchy while the other is a sub-national within a Presidential system. Most importantly, modern nations or states create Ministries based on compelling necessity with responsibilities and schedule of duties well outlined. For example, in Sweden, the Ministry of Financial Markets and Consumer Affairs, which deals with matters of consumer regulations, etc. was established to institutionalize reforms in that sector under an accountable framework. In the case of Imo, what is the compelling necessity for a Ministry responsible for merriment? Okorocha must realize that history would be very harsh on him if he persists in his rather amusing and flawed approach to governance.

Interestingly, this reminds me of Adolf Verloc, the central character in Joseph Conradâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s novel, The Secret Agent who promoted acts that generated public outrage in Britain in the late 19th century. The first time I knew Imo was in for a shocker was during the early days of Okorochaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s election when he unilaterally announced the dissolution of 27 local Government councils when their tenure had not elapsed without being empowered by the State House of Assembly. He probably forgot to differentiate issues that require administrative procedures and constitutional processes. Expectedly, there was public outrage!

Sadly, this is the same state where Mbakwe, presided over, with charming dedication, visionary leadership and abiding faith in the values of industry and honesty. Mbakweâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s tenure

as Governor between1979-1983 marked a watershed in the annals of Imo history.

De Sam, as he was fondly addressed by all men of honour, was a leader whose exploits produced excellence in politics and distinction in governance. As already mentioned, Mbakwe came into office well-equipped for the job and most prepared for the task. Born in 1929, in Avutu, in present day Imo State, he studied at Teachers Training College, Oleh, Delta State from 1946 to 1947 and Fourah Bay College, Sierra Leone in 1952. From Fourah Bay, he proceeded to the United Kingdom (UK) where he qualified as a lawyer having attended the University of Manchester (1953-1956), University of Hill (1956-1958) and the Inns Court (1958-1959).

Mbakwe, is referred to as the father of Imo State on account of his transformational leadership which saw him nurturing the then young state into centre of industrialization between 1979-1983. Prior to his election in 1979, he had served as member of the Constituent Assembly in 1978 and immediately he assumed office, he quickly completed all major roads in Owerri, Aba and Umuahia respectively and embarked on rapid industrialization based on a zonal model of development. During Mbakweâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s era, Imo State was a centre of excellence in every sphere of public administration. Why? Three factors: knowledge, vision and commitment.

Tragically, can we really say the same about Okorochaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s administration whose series of actions tend to cast a slur on its capacity? To hark to the inimitable words of the superlative Chuba Okadigbo, where political leaders lack capacity, the net result is awful disaster! â&#x20AC;&#x201C;â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Oma Djebah, Journalist, public policy analyst, former Delta state Commissioner for Information and founder of The New Diplomat is on the Visiting Scholar Program at the School of Advanced International Studies(SAIS), Johns Hopkins University, US. e-mail:djebahoma337@ gmail.com

L-R: Father of the bride and Executive Chairman, Greenlife Pharmaceuticals Ltd, Dr. Obiora Chukwuka; his wife, Mrs. Obiageli; the couple, Taiye and Lindamaris; Groomâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s mother, Mrs. Funmi; First Lady of Ogun State, Mrs. Olufunke Amosun, and Groomâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s father, Mr. Adeyinka Adeyemi; after the holy solemnisation of their children held at the Catholic Church of the Resurrection, Magodo Shangisha, Phase II, in Lagos...yesterday

L-R: Mrs. Helen Mark; her husband and former Senate President, Senator David Mark; close family members, and Senator Tunde Ogbeha, during the dedication of St. Augustineâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Catholic Church in Otukpo, Benue State...yesterday

L-R: Brand Promoter, Iduh Isaiah; Consumers, Miss Nnenna Ede, Mr. Stanley Ogbu, and Brand Executive, Grand Oak Limited, Mr. Patrick Popoola, during the Regal Bars and Stores Sampling Activation promo held on Ipodo Street, Ikeja, Lagos...recently

T H I S D AY ˾ SUNDAY JANUARY 14, 2018

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R Ëž JANUARY 14, 2018

IMAGES

R

ecently, the 8th Day Fidau Prayer for late Alhaji Bisiriyu Ali, father of the renowned legal luminary, MalamYusuf Ali (SAN), was held at Club Grounds, Adamasingba, Ibadan, Oyo State. Here are a few dignitaries that graced the event.

Photos: Felix Ademola

Alhaji Hammed Ali and Malam Yusuf Ali (SAN)

L-R: Dr. Yusuf Ali, Kwara State Governor, Alhaji Abudufatai Ahmed, Malam Yusuf Ali(SAN)and Borno State Governor, Alhaji Shetima Kashim

L-R: Malam Yusuf Ali and Asiwaju Adegboyega Awomolo, SAN

L-R: Mrs. Kemi Mimiko and former Ondo State Governor, Dr. Olusegun Mimiko

L-R: Oyo State Governor, Alhaji Abiola Ajimobi and Yusuf Ali

L-R: Yusuf Ali, Engr. Lanre Shagaya and Ataoja of Osogbo HRH Oba Jimoh Olanipekun

L-R: Former Attorney General of Oyo State, Alhaji. Abdulsalam and former Oyo Governor, L-R: Yusuf Ali with Oba Ilori Olowosoke, the Olubosin of Ifetedo land Otunba Adebayo Alao- Akala

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JANUARY 14, 2018

IMAGES

A cross section of traditional rulers at the event

L-R: Mr. Mohammed Aarasheed, Former SSG Osun State, Alh. Kazeem Adio and Hon. Speaker, Kwara State House of Assembly

R-L: Prof. Rasheed Aderinoye of UI, Prof Emeritus Umar Rahman and Dr. Wale Babalakin SAN

L-R: Chief (Mrs.) Folake Solanke (SAN), MalamYusuf Ali and Alhaja Khadijat Olanipekun

Malam Yusuf Ali SAN with cross section of family members

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R Ëž ANUARY 14, 2018

SUNDAYNEWS

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

Queen Alily for Burial Jan 19

NEW AARE ONA KAKANFO L-R: Ayinba Mojisola Adams; her husband and new Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yoruba land, Chief Gani Adams; Oyo State Governor Abiola Ajimobi; Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi; and the Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Saliu Adetunji, at the installation of Adams in Oyo, Oyo state...yesterday

The family of late Major Felix Ohawadi Alily of Eziala Lorji Abah Mbaise Local Government Area of Imo State has announced the passing of their Matriarch, Mrs. Regina Queen Ahuna Alily. According to a statement by her eldest son, Brig-General Felix Alily (rtd), Mrs. Alily passed on December 3, 2017. Her funeral service will hold Ă&#x2122;Ă&#x2DC; Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x2DC;Ă&#x;Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x153;ĂŁ ͯ͡Ë&#x153; Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x17E; Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x201C;Ă&#x2DC;Ă&#x17E; Ă&#x201C;Ă?Ă&#x2019;Ă&#x2039;Ă?Ă&#x2013;ËŞĂ? Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x17E;Ă&#x2019;Ă&#x2122;Ă&#x2013;Ă&#x201C;Ă? Ă&#x2019;Ă&#x;Ă&#x153;Ă?Ă&#x2019;Ë&#x153; Uzunorji, Aboh Mbaise, Imo state at 10.00 am, while the Outing Service will hold on Sunday, Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x2DC;Ă&#x;Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x153;ĂŁ Í°ÍŻ Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x17E; Ă&#x17E;Ă&#x2019;Ă? Ă?Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x2014;Ă? Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x201C;Ă&#x2DC;Ă&#x17E; Ă&#x201C;Ă?Ă&#x2019;Ă&#x2039;Ă?Ă&#x2013;ËŞĂ? Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x17E;Ă&#x2019;Ă&#x2122;Ă&#x2013;Ă&#x201C;Ă? Ă&#x2019;Ă&#x;Ă&#x153;Ă?Ă&#x2019;Ë&#x203A; Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x17E;Ă? Ă&#x153;Ă?Ë&#x203A; Ă&#x2013;Ă&#x201C;Ă&#x2013;ĂŁ ĂĄĂ&#x2039;Ă? Ă&#x152;Ă&#x2122;Ă&#x153;Ă&#x2DC; Ă&#x2122;Ă&#x2DC; Ă&#x;Ă&#x2018;Ă&#x;Ă?Ă&#x17E; ÍŻÍľË&#x153; ͯ͡Ͱͳ Ă&#x201C;Ă&#x2DC;Ă&#x17E;Ă&#x2122; Ă&#x17E;Ă&#x2019;Ă? Ă?Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x2014;Ă&#x201C;Ă&#x2013;ĂŁ Ă&#x2122;Ă? Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x2014;Ă&#x;Ă?Ă&#x2013; Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x2DC;Ă&#x17D; Ă&#x201C;Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x2DC;Ă&#x2039; Nwannediya Iroha Nwaogu of Ogbor-Uvuru in Aboh Mbaise Local Government Area of Imo State. She started her primary education in All Saints Primary School, Ogbor Uvuru and continued in Banham Memorial School, Port Harcourt.

She was married to Major Felix Ohawady Alily and they wedded in Teshie Accra, Ghana, where her husband was then stationed as an Instructor at the Military Academy. Her husband passed Ă&#x2122;Ă&#x2DC; Í°Íľ Ă?Ă&#x152;Ă&#x153;Ă&#x;Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x153;ĂŁ ͯ͡͡ͳË&#x203A; Ă&#x2019;Ă? ĂĄĂ&#x2039;Ă? Ă&#x2014;Ă&#x;Ă&#x2013;Ă&#x17E;Ă&#x201C;Ă&#x2013;Ă&#x201C;Ă&#x2DC;Ă&#x2018;Ă&#x;Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x2013;Ë&#x153; Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x2DC;Ă&#x17D; spoke her native Igbo, English, Hausa, some Yoruba and Twi. She is survived by six children including Brig-General (rtd.) Felix Ogbonna Alily, Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x2013;Ă?Ă&#x2DC;Ă&#x17E;Ă&#x201C;Ă&#x2DC;Ă? Ă&#x2DC;ĂŁĂ?Ă&#x2022;ĂĄĂ?Ă&#x153;Ă?Ë&#x153; Ă?Ă&#x;Ă&#x2039; Ă&#x2019;Ă&#x201C;Ă&#x152;Ă&#x;äĂ&#x2122;Ă&#x153;Ë&#x153; Ă&#x2039;Ă ĂŁ Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x161;Ă&#x17E;Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x201C;Ă&#x2DC; Ě&#x2122;Ă&#x153;Ă&#x17E;Ă&#x17D;Ě&#x161; Ă?Ă&#x2122;Ă&#x153;Ă&#x2018;Ă? Ă&#x2DC;Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x17D;Ă&#x2122;äĂ&#x201C;Ă? Ă&#x2013;Ă&#x201C;Ă&#x2013;ĂŁË&#x153; Ă&#x2DC;Ă&#x2018;Ă?Ă&#x2013;Ă&#x2039; Ă&#x2019;Ă&#x201C;Ă&#x2DC;ĂŁĂ?Ă&#x153;Ă? Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x2DC;Ă&#x17D; Ă&#x2122;Ă?Ă?Ă&#x161;Ă&#x2019; Ă&#x2DC;ĂŁĂ?Ă&#x152;Ă&#x;Ă?Ă&#x2019;Ă&#x201C;Ë&#x17E; Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x2DC;Ă&#x17D; Ă&#x17D;Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x;Ă&#x2018;Ă&#x2019;Ă&#x17E;Ă?Ă&#x153; Ă&#x201C;Ă&#x2DC;Ě&#x2039;Ă&#x2013;Ă&#x2039;ĂĄĂ? Ă&#x201C;Ă&#x2DC;Ă?Ă&#x2013;Ă&#x;Ă&#x17D;Ă&#x201C;Ă&#x2DC;Ă&#x2018; Ă&#x153;Ë&#x203A; Ě&#x2122; Ă&#x153;Ă?Ë&#x203A;Ě&#x161; Ă?Ă&#x153;Ă?Ă?Ă&#x2039; Ă&#x2022;Ă?Ă?Ă&#x2019;Ă&#x201C;Ă&#x2DC;ĂŁĂ?Ă&#x153;Ă?Ë&#x153; Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă&#x201C;Ă?Ă&#x2039;

Ă&#x2019;Ă&#x;Ă&#x2122;Ă&#x2014;Ă&#x2039; Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x2DC;Ă&#x17D; Ă&#x153;Ă&#x2039;Ă?Ă? Ă&#x2019;Ă&#x201C;äĂ&#x2122;Ă&#x2014;Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x2014;Ë&#x17E; Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x2DC;Ă&#x17D; Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x2013;Ă?Ă&#x2122; Ă&#x152;ĂŁ Ă&#x17E;ĂĄĂ?Ă&#x2013;Ă Ă? grandchildren and four great grand-children.

Gunmen Kill 10 in Kaduna, Violent Protest Claims Two in Benue Abimbola Akosile in Lagos, John Shiklam in Kaduna, George Okoh in Makurdi, and Victor Ogunje in Ado-Ekiti

Gunmen suspected to be herdsmen, yesterday, attacked two villages in Birnin Gwari Local government area of Kaduna state, killing 10 people. Several others were said to have sustained injuries from gunshots and were rushed to the General Hospital in the area.

The attacks were said to have occurredinDangajiandUngwan Gajere villages on Friday night and lasted till Saturday. The gunmenweresaidtohaveburnt downhousesasthevillagersfled for their lives.

A community leader in one of the villages told journalists yesterday in the evening that the villagershadfledtheirhomes.He said â&#x20AC;&#x153;it is unfortunate that since on Friday night we encountered theattackofherdsmeninDangaji village. They were shooting and

burning houses and people had to run for their dear lives. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Thismorning(Saturday)they wenttoanothervillage,Unguwan Gajereandkilledaboutninemen.

One of those wounded died on thewaytothehospitalâ&#x20AC;?,headded.

According to him, â&#x20AC;&#x153;soldiers tried to get to the affected areas, but before they could get there, theherdsmenhaddisappearedâ&#x20AC;?.

The community leader said besidestheattacks,therehadbeen cases of kidnapping in the area.

He said last week, three people from Dangaji community were kidnapped and the kidnappers demanded for a ransom of N6 million from the community.

Howeverwhileconfirmingthe incident, the spokesman of the Kaduna state police command, Husseini Mukhtar said five people, mainly members of the vigilantes, were the ones killed.

Hesaidacombinedteammade up of the police and the military wasbeingputtogethertolaunch

a manhunt for the criminals.

Meanwhile, two persons lost theirlivesyesterdayinaskirmish inMakurdiinanincidentinvolving some hoodlums as violent protests continued in Benue State over the recent killings by herdsmen, which resulted in the loss of 73 lives.

The action of the hoodlums involving the latest casualties drew strong condemnation from the state government, evenasGovernorSamuelOrtom has appealed for calm from the protesting youths.

According to an eyewitness, trouble started on Saturday around the Wadata area of Makurdi town when some youthswereprotestingthekilling of their friends during the recent herdsmen attack but they were prevented by some hoodlums who attacked them.

The situation worsened when two of the protesting boys were allegedly hacked down by the

hoodlums and the skirmish escalated,leadingtotheburning of cars and houses in other areas in the capital.

When contacted, the Public Relation Officer of the Police (PPRO) Moses Iyamu said the police were still investigating the causes of the latest crisis. He denied knowledge of any death as a result of the skirmish.

Meanwhile,GovernorOrtom has condemned the protests in parts of the state capital and directed the State Commissioner of Police to restore order in the affected places.

The governor appealed to residents to remain calm and report any breach of peace to security agencies for necessary action. He said the state has suffered too many losses in terms of human life and property and cannot afford another round of crisis.

OrtomalsodirectedthePolice toarrestthosewhocausetrouble

Oyo Stands Still as Ajimobi, 300 Yoruba Monarchs, Others Grace New Kakanfo Installation t Adams pledges to unite all Yoruba leaders Ademola Babalola in Ibadan

History was made on Saturday in the ancient town of Oyo Alaafin in Oyo state, as the state Governor Abiola Ajimobi, about 300 monarchs across Yoruba-land, Kogi, Delta, Edo states and Benin Republic converged to witness the installation of the new and 15th Aare Ona Kakanfo (Yoruba Generalissimo), Otunba Gani Adams by the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi III. Adams, the National Coordinator of the Oodua Peopleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Congress succeeds late business mogul,ChiefM.K.O.Abiolawho died in detention 20 years ago.

Yesterdayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ceremony climaxed the three-day rites for the installation.

Thecolourfulevent,garnished withrichYorubaculture,wasalso witnessed by Yorubas from 79 countries around the world, most of who are members of the OoduaProgressiveUnion(OPU) founded by Adams.

Adams,whoworeatraditional jacket made of lion skin and presented with Sango (god of iron) staff of office after opening of 14 traditional calabashes of his predecessors, appealed to all Yoruba leaders irrespective of their religion and political affiliations to work together to foster unity in the land.

The new Aare Ona Kakanfo, who lamented the inability of the Yoruba leaders to work together, said his major preoccupation would be to unite all Yoruba leaders for the purpose of developing the race.

AstheGeneralissimoofYoruba land,theactivistturnedtraditionalistsaidhewouldworktogether withsecurityagenciesinNigeria to ensure that the South-west region is properly secured for business to thrive.

Healsoappealedtothefederal government to as a matter of urgency improve on the power supplyandcompletesomeroads in the South-west especially La-

gos/Ibadan Expressway, Oyo/ Oshogboroad,Badagry/Lusada /Sokoto road to help in boosting thetourismpotentialoftheregion.

He said the promotion of culture and core values of the Yorubawouldbeoneofhismajor prioritiesashepromisedtolaunch Aare Ona Kakanfo Foundation whereallthedocumentsrelating to the office as presented to him byAlaafinwouldbemadepublic through a website to be created.

He also promised to use his office to launch a scholarship scheme to promote education amongtheyouthandencouraged them to be optimistic about life.

He said, â&#x20AC;&#x153;If somebody like me from a very humble beginning canmakeit,thenouryouthsalso have hope of making it in lifeâ&#x20AC;?.

Also speaking at the event, chairman of the planning committee, Archbishop Emeritus Ayo Ladigbolu advised Adams to create the Kakanfo Directorate Council made up of eminent leaderstoassisthimtoâ&#x20AC;&#x153;tacklethe

issues of peaceful coexistence among diverse ethnic nationalities, religious tolerance, national re-orientation,South-westintegration, re-invigoration of the pride of place of Yoruba language and culture.â&#x20AC;?

Theclericnoted,â&#x20AC;&#x153;Themodern Kakanfodoesnotneedbowsand arrows, guns and daggers, but he requires courage, boldness, bravery, focus, application of native intelligence to international issues, and the brilliance and adaptability to respond to the myriad challenges facing ournationandourworldtodayâ&#x20AC;?.

Henotedthatwiththecompletion of the rites to become Aare OnaKakanfoAdamshasbecome adifferentpersonandspiritually empowered. He said in Yoruba proverb, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Anyone who deals too familiarly with a corpse may find himself stripped naked by a ghostâ&#x20AC;?.

He, however, congratulated ObaAdeyemiasthelongestserving Alaafin and the first to install theAareOnaKakanfointhe556 years of the Chieftaincy title.

whoever they are, to investigate the causes of the protests, and prosecute those responsible for breach of the peace.

He assured Benue peoplethat effortswouldbeintensifiedwith the collaboration of the relevant securityagenciestorestorepeace and order to all parts of the state.

In a related development, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bamidele Faparusihasappealedtothegov-

ernors not to frustrate the federal governmentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s plan to establish cowcoloniesinthe36statesofthe federation,astheclashesbetween herdsmenandfarmerscontinue across some states.

Faparusi, a former member of the House of Representatives, bemoaned the killings in Benue, Taraba,Adamawaandfewother states in recent time, describing thesituationsasnotonlypathetic but tragic.

Umeh Wins Anambra Central Senatorial Rerun David-Chyddy Eleke in Awka

The candidate of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Chief Victor Umeh, has been returned as the winner of the Saturday, January 13 rerun election for Anambra Central senatorial zone. Umeh, who was declared winner at 2:30am on Sunday morning, polled 64,879 votes to defeat 13 other candidates in the election.

The returning officer for the election, Prof. Charles Esemone, a Deputy Vice Chancellor at Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, who announcedtheresult said,â&#x20AC;&#x153;ChiefSirVictorUmeh,having polled the highest number of votes and satisfying the law, is

hereby returned elected.â&#x20AC;?

Umeh,whowontheelectionby a very wide margin, was trailed by the APC with a total of 975 votes. Other parties that also garnered votes in the election are PPA: 116 votes; MPPP: 111 votes and LP: 95 votes, among others.

InAnaochalocalgovernment, APGA polled 12,245 votes; in Awka North, 7,575; Awka South, 12,384; Dunukofia, 7,307; Idemili North, 9,218; Idemili South, 4,647, and Njikoka 11,506 voters.

The totalnumberofregistered voters in the seven local governmentareawas745,828,whiletotal number of accredited voters for theelectionwas67872.Totalvotes cast stood at 67,710.

Adewole Alerts Nigerians on Food Poisoning in Sâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Africa Senator Iroegbu in Abuja

The Minister of Health, Professor Isaac Adewole, has alerted the Nigerian public of the outbreak of Listeriosis, in South Africa.

Adewoleinastatementissued yesterdaybytheDirector,Media and Public Relations, Ministry of Health, Mrs. Boade Akinola, explained that Listeriosis is food poisoning caused by eating food items such as meats, dairy products, fruits and vegetables contaminatedbyListeriaMonocystogene. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The Nigerian public are advised to wash their fruits and vegetables properly, and ensure meats are well cooked before consumption,â&#x20AC;? he cautioned.

To this end, the Minister called for increased vigilance at the points of entry into the country by the relevant officials while directing the National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC).

He directed the NAFDAC and relevant agencies to increase their surveillance and monitoring of food items to ensure compliance with safety guidelines. Adewole said the Port Health Officials have also been put on alert. He however, urged Nigerians to be calm as the Federal Government was monitoring the development in South Africa and would be properly advised when need be.

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NEWS Mark, Onaiyekan, Apochi Urge Nigerians to Unite against Kidnapping, Killings t CAN to Buhari: Nigeria overdue for restructuring Senator Iroegbu in Abuja and George Okoh in Makurdi Former President of the Senate, Senator David Mark, Catholic Archbishop of Abuja, Cardinal John Onaiyekan and his Otukpo diocese counterpart,

Michael Apochi have jointly called on Nigerians to unite against criminality and fight for the liberation of citizens from the grip of Boko Haram, violent herdsmen, kidnappers and armed banditry in the land.

Mark and the spiritual lead-

ers spoke at the dedication of an ultra modern complex built and donated to St. Augustine Catholic Church, Otukpo, Benue state by the immediate past President of the Senate and his family on Saturday.

In his remarks, Senator Mark

expressed appreciation to God for the enablement to contribute to the propagation of the gospel needed to salvage mankind and make the society a better place.

He added that the church building was his familyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s modest contribution towards

PARTNERS IN PROGRESS L-R: Flag OďŹ&#x192;cer Commanding, Eastern Naval Command, Rear Admiral V.O. Adedipe with the Chairman, House Committee on Navy,

Hon. Abdussamad Dasuki, greeting Commodore MA Abba and other principal staďŹ&#x20AC; oďŹ&#x192;cers at the HQ Eastern Naval Command, Calabar, Cross River State...recently

spreading the gospel of God, and expressed hope that the worship centre would help curtail evil in the society and transform perpetrators for good.

Mark prayed for a peaceful, united and progressive society where everyone is free to pursue his or her legitimate ambition in any part of the country without fear of attack or molestation.

In his homily, Cardinal Onaiyekan thanked Senator Mark and his family for contributing to the work of evangelism, promising that the church would continue to preach peace, unity and harmonious relationship between and among Nigerians.

Onaiyekan bemoaned the unabating violent clashes, particularly the recent Benue massacre that has claimed scores of lives, saying, â&#x20AC;&#x153;We must as a people of Nigeria unite against these forces of evil to liberate ourselves. This carnage and blood-letting orchestrated by hatred and wickedness cannot be a way of life. We must all join hands to stop this spate of killings. â&#x20AC;&#x153;As Christians, we pray for peace, justice and love. We have no room for hatred or vengeance. Vengeance is for God. Let us do everything that

promotes peace and harmonious relationship with our neighboursâ&#x20AC;?, he added.

Onaiyekan reminded the apex government to include rebuilding of churches destroyed by insurgents as it prepares to rebuild the crisis-ridden North Eastern States.

In his remarks, host Bishop Apochi expressed appreciation to Senator Mark and his family for the gesture, and expressed belief that the house of worship would help promote peace, unity and curtail the ills in the society.

Four other Catholic Bishops; Peter Adoboh (Katsina-Ala), Wilfred Anagbe (Makurdi), William Avenya (Gboko) and Michael Gokum (Pankshin) and about 50 Priests joined in the dedication of the new church.

Meanwhile, the President, Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), HE Rev. Samson Ayokunle has thrown his weight behind those calling for the restructuring of the country.

Ayokunle in a statement issued yesterday by his Special Assistant, Pastor Adebayo Oladeji, faulted President Muhammadu Buhariâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s stand on the issue, having in his New Year message rejected the quest for restructuring.

Reps Câ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ttee Flay NIMASA for Awarding $195m Maritime Contract to Israeli Firm t Navy arrests 19 vessels, militants attack, disarm policemen in Ondo Chiemelie Ezeobi The House of Representatives yesterday flayed the Nigeria Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) for awarding the contract of patrolling the nationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s maritime domain to an Israeli firm to the tune of $195 million.

According to the Reps, the con-

tract was not just a security breach but also defies the local content law, which promulgates patronising made in Nigeria goods and services.

The Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on the Nigerian Navy, Abdussamad Dasuki, representing Kebbe/ Tambuwal Federal Constituency, Sokoto, disclosed this during an

on-the-spot assessment of the units and bases under the Western Naval Command in Lagos.

Alongside his committee members, he also toured the establishments under the Naval Training Command led by the Flag Officer Commanding, Rear Admiral Obi Ofodile.

THISDAY gathered that the controversial contract of securing

Nigerian coastal waterways was awarded to an Israeli firm, HLSI Security Firms and Technology.

Already, the contract has raised eyebrows with several civil society organisationscallingitanaberrationto the sovereignty of national security.

Concurring, the house of reps committee on Navy said ceding the patrol of waterways and other critical national assets to such foreign companies is to the detriment of the navy, whose constitutional

role it is to safeguard and patrol the coastal waters and the nationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZ).

According to Dasuki, the maritime trust fund falls under maritime security and anti piracy, thus the move to circumvent the navy out of its constitutional roles will not be allowed to happen.

He said, â&#x20AC;&#x153;One of the challenges we are having at the house of reps, has to do with the sister agency of the government, which is NI-

MASA. A situation whereby it is giving out jobs that are ideal for the Nigerian Navy and contractors in Nigeria to foreigners, especially jobs that have to do with our security, is not acceptable. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We as a committee are very much against it. We have the Nigerian Navy and it should be empowered. We should promote what we do locally so I see no reason why we cannot contract the over $180 million job to them.â&#x20AC;?

Keep Off Politics, Buratai Warns Soldiers Lagos Police Dismisses Three Cops for Recklessly Shooting Youth edge acquired so that you facing the country.

Wole Ayodele in Jalingo The Chief of Army Staff (CoAS), Lt. Gen. Tukur Buratai has asked officers and men of the Nigeria Army to abstain from partisan politics.

Speaking at the graduation ceremony of Regimentation and Leadership training for Officers of the 64 RC and SSC 44 course at the 20 Infantry Battalion in Serti, Taraba state on Saturday, Buratai charged any officer interested in politics to resign his commission or be ready to be shown the way out.

Addressing the graduands, the CoAS enjoined the officers to bring the knowledge and experience they garnered during the training programme to bear in tacking the various security challenges

Represented by the Commander, Infantry Corps, Maj. Gen Lamidi Adeosun, Buratai told the graduating officers that the course they have just concluded is very relevant in their carrier, just as he charged them to take full advantage of it.

According to him â&#x20AC;&#x153;it is pertinent to state that the recent gains of the Nigeria Army in the North-east and other internal security operations all over the country is expected to present the challenges of a growing rank of criminal elements and criminal activities. Such challenges were characterised by kidnapping, sabotage, assassination, armed robbery and other act of terrorism. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I therefore urged you to keep alive the knowl-

will give a good account of yourselves by adding value to the Nigeria Army in your respective capacitiesâ&#x20AC;?, he stated.

Also speaking on the occasion, the Commanding Officer of the 20 Infantry Battalion, Lt. Col. Anwar Abdullahi said the objectives of the course was to enhance the proficiency of the officers in weapons handling, marksmanship and shooting skills.

He further noted that part of the objectives of assembling the 206 graduating students for the course in October 2017 was to feel their knowledge in regimentation, customs, ethics and tradition of Nigeria Army and Junior Leadership training amongst others.

t Govt bans cart-pushers, wheelbarrow operators from streets Abimbola Akosile and Chiemelie Ezeobi

For recklessly shooting a civilian simply identified as Azubuike at the Amukoko area of Lagos on Friday evening, the state police command yesterday dismissed the three culprits.

The three dismissed policemen were accused of responding with guns to an alleged attack by the youths of the area, leading to the death of one and injury of another.

The policemen were identified as Sergeant Osaseri Saturday with force number 25759, Sergeant Segun Okun with force number 359075 and Corporal Adekunle Oluwarotimi with force number 496833.

According to the state Police Public Relations Officer, SP

Chike Oti, the trio have been tried and dismissed from the Nigeria Police for breaching the rules of engagement to wit reckless application of firearms.

He said, â&#x20AC;&#x153;The aforementioned Non Commissioned Officers (NCOs), committed the offence at Ifelodun Street, Amukoko, Lagos state. They disproportionately responded with bullets fired from their weapons at some youths alleged to have hurled some non-ballistic missiles at them such as stones, sticks and bottles; leading to the death of one of the youths and injury on another. â&#x20AC;&#x153;They were arrested, detained and tried immediately on the orders of the Commissioner of Police, Lagos state, CP Edgal Imohimi. The guilty

verdict was passed on them by the Adjudicating officer who considered that the officers did not appreciate the situation critically and ought not to have applied the maximum force on the unruly youths. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Meanwhile the officers will be charged to court next week, while a duplicate copy of the case file would be sent to the Directorate of Public Prosecution (DPP) for legal advice. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Sequel to the above occurrence, the Commissioner of Police has directed all the Area Commanders and DPOs in Lagos state to warn their men against misapplication of force. He further warned that officers must abide by the Rules of Engagement (ROE) as stipulated in Force Order 237â&#x20AC;?, he added.

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R Ëž JANUARY 14, 2018

EVENTS

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he funeral service for Chief Mrs. Angela Amajuoritse Gbinije, the Matriach of Patrick-Aghoghin Gbinije and Akpokiniovo-wekpe family who died at the age of 89 years, took place at St. John the Baptist Catholic Chaplaincy, Federal University of Petroleum Resources, Effurun, Delta State recently. The reception was held immediately after the interment at the family quarters in Agbarho. Here are the faces of some of the personalities that graced the occasion.

Photographs: Abiodun Ajala

L-R: Mr. Alfred Okoigun, his wife, Julie; Mrs Kessiena Martins and her husband, Tari

L-R: Mr. Oscar Udoji; his wife, lfunayan and Mrs. Mary lnegbese

L-R: Chief Joseph Akpeiyi and Prof. Omagbemi Omatete

L-R: Prof. John Orife and Mr. James Orife

L-R: Mr. Spencer Onasode and Mr. Amaju Pinnick

L-R: Mr. Ese Onasode and Mr. Joseph Ajekigbe

Dr. and Mrs. Godwin Omene

L-R: Mr. Manny Edu, Mr. Richard Odibo and Mr. John Momoh

L-R: Mr. Robert Odiachi, Chief Lawson Omokhodion and Mr Macaulay lyayi

Senator and Mrs. Roland Owie

L-R: Alfred Okoigun and Alhaji Ozi Salami

L-R: Dr. and Mrs. Yemi Olatunde

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High Life

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͎͎͜;ʹ͜͜ͳ;ͳͰ

...Amazing lifestyles of Nigeriaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s rich and famous

As Emmanuel and Roli Uduaghan Plan 30th Year Wedding Anniversaryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Soiree

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ccording to over-hackneyed clichĂŠ, successful marriage requires falling in love many times, always with the same person. But Jane Austen, late British novelist in an intense fit of creativity averred that happiness in marriage is entirely a matter of chance. Bet she never gave much thought to certain rare exceptions to her supposition; like Dr. Emmanuel Eweta Uduaghan, the former governor of Delta State and his wife and pillar of support, Roli Uduaghan. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s been 30 years since the ex-governor got married to his wife and the couple claims that they had never been happier. And to prove their resilient and abiding love for each other, the joyous couple would be celebrating their 30 years of fulfilling wedlock next month in a high-octane soiree. Friends and family unanimously acknowledge one indisputable fact, that theirs was certainly a love willed in heaven and actualised on earth, a love established and perpetuated enviably and splendidly to the pleasure of parties involved and the admiration of all.

In many ways, the

Patricia Etteh

10 YEARS AFTER, PATRICIA ETTEH, FORMER SPEAKER OF HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, GETS JUICY APPOINTMENT Like a cat with nine lives or a wildfire that wouldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t quench, former Speaker, Patricia Etteh, has re-emerged on the political scene.

This time around, she reignites like a wildfire in harmattan ravaging the fields of rural farmers. But if Etteh

Roli and Emmanuel Uduaghan

Uduaghansâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; love could indeed be likened to a tree; and that is because nothing could be more representative of their love than a beautiful, strong tree. Memories of his first awakening into love with the woman that is now his wife and mother of his children, course through is the inferno, who are the rural farmers? His political detractors perhaps. Against all odds, she has been appointed as Chairman of National Abuja Hospital by President Muhammadu Buhari.

Interestingly, Patricia has got the mien of a cat and the heart of a tiger, a Bengali tiger to be precise.

Yet she is only Nigerian, and a woman for that matter. While her disgraceful exit from the House of Representatives hung loosely above her fate like a recalcitrant ogre, she lifted herself on feral haunches and smashed the daunting pall of misery and regret. But the beauty of her resurgence exceeds her passion to fight; it is the spirit that she brings to the fight that decides her victory and makes her a formidable foe to the odds. It would be recalled that Etteh was forced to resign as Speaker of the House of Representatives in a celebrated fraud scandal. In the wake of her travails, Etteh was mocked for being an ordinary hairdresser. She resigned from office in October 2007 following her alleged involvement in a N628 million contract scandal.

Five years after serving as the first female Speaker of the House of Representatives for a few months, not a few people must have thought that Etteh had hit a cul-de-sac.

Unlike many of her ilk who after

his entire frame and psyche like the warm, giddy ecstasy that trails a teenagerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s first lingering, passionate kiss. The effect journeyed with him from adolescence through adulthood. In the magical and very exclusive circuit of their love, every happenstance is a wonderful leaving power turn Abuja to their second home where they go to court presidential favour or juicy contracts, Etteh chose to improve her lot and expand her knowledge base thus the 60 something year old woman enrolled to study Law at the prestigious Buckingham University, United Kingdom and was called to the Nigerian bar. Etteh is one of the major casualties of Nigeria â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s stuttering democracy. By a process that still smacks of manipulations, the beautician turned lawmaker became speaker of the House of Representatives in June 2007.

experience. The big things and little things matter all the same. Emmanuel and Roliâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s love defies the perfidious trials of promising love. In the soft glades of Roliâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s affection, Eweta learnt to be awake to the demands and necessities of love and marriage. pleasant place for rare merriment as Nosa celebrated her sweetheart, Capt. Hosa Okunbo, as he clocked 60. Nosa endeavoured to give her husband a treat befitting royalty as she hosted the crème of Nigeria and global high society to a grand anniversary in honour of her husband.

At the beginning of the event, business associates, friends and family thronged the venue like a

PARTY ACROSS THE SEASâ&#x20AC;Ś FRIENDS AND FAMILY STORM SEYCHELLES FOR CAPT. HOSA OKUNBOâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S 60TH BIRTHDAY SHINDIG Capt. Hosa Okunbo was probably content to see no other verdure than his lawnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s on his 60th birthday. He probably wished to feel no other breeze than his blown through his mansionâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s grand alcoves until the d-day. Nosa, his ravishing wife, had a shocker for him, a pleasant shocker to be precise, in Seychelles.

Seychelles will not forget in a hurry, the day ravishing Nosa feted friends and family in her husbandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s honour. The exotic nation became the masque of high festivity and a

Hosa Okunbo

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HIGHLIFE

Double Celebration! Lanre Ogunlesi Clocks 65 as He Celebrates 42nd Wedding Anniversary in Italy

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here is harmony in the heart of the stylish owner of prestigious Sophisticat Fashion House in Lagos, Lanre Ogunlesi, as he clocked 65 last Friday, January 11th.

Bliss activates and runs his soul amok as sweet nectar intoxicates the two-tailed pasha. Lanre and his beautiful wife, Modupe who clocked 65 last year, are celebrating their 42nd wedding anniversary even as you read. Although, he has every reason to shake his garment like the branches of the teak in spring and let his joy glow like the ďŹ reďŹ&#x201A;ies that light up the ďŹ elds and quiet meadows, but he decided to shun grandiose celebration and observe his 65th birthday in a low key fashion.

He shunned merriment and pageantry with the modesty and unabashed sensitivity of nobility. Lanre and Modupe are at Villa Eden, Merano in d Italian Alps, the world leading medical spa, even as you read.

Lanre is head over heels in love with Modupe 42 years after his heart skipped to the sweet, soft drift of her smile.

Lanre and Modupeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s story reads like a dreamy exposition to extraordinary verses of love. Rather than dwell on familiar intrigues and alien realities that render human passion a shoddy and infantile enterprise in the annals of

flock of sheep responding to the shepherdâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s summons. Expectedly, of an event of high net worth individuals, there was plenty to eat and drink. The tables heaved with choice food and liquor and the party rocked to music from A-list artistes.

There is no gainsaying Capt.

Hosaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s birthday offered his ravishing wife yet another opportunity to establish her undying love and devotion to him. In many ways, Hosa and Nosaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s love could be likened to an oak and that is because nothing could be more representative of their love than a beautiful, strong tree. Thus as friends, family and business associates made merry and dined with the Okunbos, Nosa, the chief hostess and heartthrob of the celebrant regaled whoever cared to listen with endearing recap of the first encounter that blossomed into a lifetime commitment between them.

She recounted memories of her first awakening into love with the man that is now her husband and best friend forever. As she did, palpable joy washed over her and coursed through her entire frame and psyche like the warm, giddy ecstasy that trails teenagerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s first lingering, passionate kiss.

Lanre Ogunlesi and wife, Modupe

mortal romance, the story of their love becomes the reference point for aspiring romantics.

Their love story is best told in a more substantive format and literary forum hence this only represents a cursory glance at the genesis of their love.

That the duo started out as friends and cautious romantics is a reality known to their loved ones: friends, family particularly.

According to Lanre, loving Modupe is both enlightening perfect epitome of the quintessential alpha female. We are talking about Bisola Dejonwo, the first daughter of Wosilat Okoya-Seriki. But this is a bad news for her and her estranged husband, Jide Tokan. They probably broke up with a lingering, lamenting kiss, sucking their two souls in only to disembowel their hearts and purge it of the passion and love that thrust them together as one, back when their two hearts thumped as one. Hardly anyone knows the actual reason for Bisola, the beautiful daughter of Wosilat Okoyaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s separation from her husband, but everybody remembers the story of

Bisola Dejonwo

and unrivalled ethereality of her love. The longer his stay with her, the deeper and more confounding his capacity to love her and yearn for her love. The couple attributed their marital success to an enduring love and friendship and the ability to look every issue in the eye and tackle it with tact and an overwhelming bid to resolve it. Perhaps, many more celebrity couples will look to the Ogunlesis for tips on how to be in a marriage.

their love. It is no secret that the duo were involved in a sizzling romance that seemingly defied common sense and wanton speculations of the high society rumour mill; their wellcelebrated romance has however, run its full course. However, Bisola watched helplessly as her marriage to Jide crashed. Having confided to her very close friends that romance and remarriage are the least of her priority at the moment, she decided to reassemble the shattered pieces of her life by immersing herself in work. After her marriage failed, it was expected that her beauty, success and pedigree would attract fresh suitors to her but it appears Bisola is not in a hurry. As you read, both have since gone their separate ways perhaps ruing what was and what could have been.

GOOD TENANT! ORJI KALU CONFIRMS OWNERSHIP OF FANIKAYODEâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S MANSION, DESCRIBES HIM AS THE QUINTESSENTIAL TENANT

MARITAL TRAGEDYâ&#x20AC;ŚWOSILAT OKOYAâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S DAUGHTER, BISOLA DEJONWOâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S MARRIAGE CRASHES She is fair, divinely fair; like a fit love for gods. Add beauty to her dazzling intellect and you have the

and invigorating; it reveals to him daily, his immense and unpredictable capacity for compassion and high aďŹ&#x20AC;ection.

Lanre never knew he was capable of loving anyone so until he met Dupe. And ever since he met the apple of his eye, he has worshipped daily in the spirit house of her love and elevated warmth. Living with Modupe is equally liberating; it unearths to him daily the subtlety and clamorousness,

A great truth is the truth whose opposite is also a great truth. Thus rabble rousers may hop off their hideous coach of malice; itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s about time they accepted the hard, subtle nudge of truth. Femi Fani-Kayode is the quintessential tenant, a perfect boarder of Orji Uzor Kaluâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Abuja mansion. Kalu, a former governor of Abia State, in an exclusive chat with HighLife, endeavoured to set the record straight concerning the rumours being peddled about him

Femi Fani-Kayode

and his tenant and former aviation minister, Fani-Kayode. According to Kalu, Fani-Kayode is not owing him a dime and he has no plans to evict the former aviation minister from his Abuja mansion. Fani-Kayode is a good tenant, Kalu claimed, stressing that the former aviation minister had never defaulted or delayed in paying him rent for occupying his luxurious apartments in Abuja.

Kalu said he felt the need to set the record straight and prevent mischief makers from tarnishing the image of his â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;very good tenantâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;.

Fani-Kayode was described by his

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HIGHLIFE

Essence and the Woman...As Irene Harriman Clocks 80 Tommorow

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he has gone through the motions of life with equanimity and grace. Through the shrill clang of trials and pain, she emerged victorious as the rough-hewn ore returns finer, like burnished steel from a steel forge. Yes, Irene Oritsetseutienyione Harriman understands this priceless fact hence her predilection for modesty and unabashed humility.

Irene, the wife of late Chief Hope Harriman, the Sobaloju of Ife, will be 80 years old tomorrow, Monday, January 15. And like a woman of true character and quiet nobility, she elected to celebrate her 80th birthday as a low-key affair with thanksgiving for Godâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s mercies over the years.

She has a great pedigree, no doubt. Her parents are Benjamin Akubo Ogedegbe

landlord and former Abia governor as the best tenant anyone could have. Kalu revealed that he had been friends with Fani-Kayode since his early teens when they resided in the same neighbourhood. According to him, no amount of mischief can impair the bond he shares with the former aviation minister, either as a childhood friend or tenant. So, it is official, Kalu has not given FaniKayode eviction notice and rumour mongers and makers of mischief should stop rejoicing about it. He may not have a mansion to his name despite the largesse he enjoyed from the administration of his former principal, Goodluck Jonathan, but he remains a very upstanding tenant.

THE DAGGERS IN HIS SMILE...LAGOS COMMISSIONERS LOSE SLEEP AS GOV. AMBODE SACKSTHREE CABINETMEMBERS The centre cannot hold again at the Lagos State House. All hell has broken loose. Certainty recedes, commissionersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; hearts grow forlorn and grim and distrust sprouts across the power corridors. Untold apprehension courses through the Lagos State House as you read.

There is tension at the government secretariat in Alausa, Ikeja, Lagos.

Akinwunmi Ambode

and Bridget Ogedegbe from Onofomi family of Warri Kingdom, Delta State.

Reputed for her quiet demeanour, Irene effortlessly exudes dignity and class. She started off as a civil servant before veering into business, where she became a success story. A mother of four Hon. Temi Harriman, Tuoyo Harriman, Ete Ayida and Bawo Harriman, with 7 grandchildren, she is no doubt a pillar of trust, hope, compassion and support to everyone around her, particularly her family members. She never shies from giving them crucial and beneficial moral support in the most trying and pleasant moments.

She is undoubtedly their guiding light through the wilderness of life and their interminable gust of calming wind on lifeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s stormy seas.

Ever since Governor Akinwumi Ambode sacked three commissioners for undisclosed reasons, other members of his cabinet have been struck with terror and foreboding of what bad news may arrive at their doorsteps. All the commissioners in Ambodeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s cabinet are very scared that the governor may use his sledgehammer against them at anytime. Thus they have been running from pillar to post, meeting their godfathers and party chieftains, in frantic bid to save their jobs.

ECHOESOFTAMBUWALâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;SCLASSY 52ND BIRTHDAYIN LONDON The life and times of Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, the governor of Sokoto State, heralds enlightening anecdotes for anyone who cares enough to view it. The anecdotes are as timeless as they are golden thus as the top politician turned 52 last Wednesday. And to avoid the prying eyes of bloggers and society journalists perhaps, his beautiful wife, Mairo, hosted him to classy dinner to mark the day in London. Tambuwalâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s friends and few family members were around to felicitate with a young man who, through sheer hardwork, has risen to the acme of an illustrious political career. The Tambuwals who are not necessarily the sociable type went the extra mile to ensure that few guests that stopped by had a good time. Nothing was in short supply.

Everybody had fun. Tambuwal joyously reveled in ecstasy as he was swathed in the most ornate of eulogies attributed to his good deeds.

In the last few years, Tambuwal has left no one in doubt about his capacity for fair and equitable representation. Over the years, he has demonstrated ability to meet with the needs and demands of the people that he encountered. His profound achievements as governor in the Seat of the Caliphate have drawn praises, honour and recognition from far and near. However, both Maro and Aminu, for the first time in their lives felt something different, extremely passionate, scary yet enjoyable. They

Irene Harriman

basked and sojourned in the lush, blissful vales of each otherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s passion and warmth. If friendship was rewarding for the duo, falling in love with each other was liberating. Ask Aminu. He will proudly tell you any day that loving Mairo is invigorating.

The passion and devotion he shares with her exposed him to priceless adventures in the meadows and everglades of love. They contend with all the force of their lives and for one thing only, to fulfill their heartfelt dreams of actualising a never-ending story of insurmountable love, forged by them, according to their own laws.

BUSINESSMAN NOT POLITICIANâ&#x20AC;Ś WHY KENSINGTONADEBUTUâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S SON ISUNDERPRESSURE TOCONTESTOGUNSTATE GOVERNORSHIPSEATIN2019 Ëž

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The people of Ogun State are aware of this sad fact hence their palpable odium for Ladi, Kensington Adebutuâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s son and preferred candidate for the 2019 governorship elections in Ogun State. Resentment festers in political and social circuits of Ogun State against Ladi due to his perceived lifestyle. Large sections of the electorate recently amplified their rejection of Ladi, claiming he is incapable to lead Ogun State as governor-elect.

According to them, they would rather the lotto billionaire renounce his choice of Ladi for another of his sons, Segun, who seems more mature and competent for the job.

Segun, the brain behind Petrolex is more acceptable to the electorate for several reasons: he is adjudged more industrious and decent in conduct than his brother, Ladi.

He also engages in several acts of philanthropy that endears him to the electorate. For instance, he recently launched a foundation where he adopted 300 orphaned and vulnerable children. On the other hand, Ladi cuts a pitiful picture by his lust for often inexcusable indulgences. Segun is generally perceived as a better

candidate than Ladi; the latter is seen as an extremely bad product to sell to the voting public. This is attributable to his shortcomings in conduct, attitude, character and intelligence.

Among the ruling class of Ogun state in particular, many believe that the governorship position should be held by a candidate who is man enough to dig a fresh fount, not the one who continually draws from estuaries dug by his father.

Though the Adebutus are known to be from Iperu, in Remo area of the state, it was gathered that Ladi would be vying for the ticket from Odogbolu, since the zoning formula wonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t favour Iperu Remo in 2019.

Pundits however believe that despite Ladiâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s present status as the Chairman, House Committee on Rural Development, he does not have the guts and outstanding track record to lead a sophisticated state like Ogun.

He reportedly depends on the clout and wealth of his father to actualise his ambition. That is why the political power blocs in the state are wary of throwing their weight behind him.

They do not like the way he brags about the wealth of his father, â&#x20AC;&#x153;That is a major put-off,â&#x20AC;? according to a highly placed politician in the state.

Ladi Adebutu

86

T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JANUARY 14, 2018

SUNDAYSPORTS

Edited by Demola Ojo Email demola.ojo@thisdaylive.com

Liverpool Aim to End Man City’s Unbeaten Run

L

iverpool take on Manchester City atAnfield today, looking to become the first team to beat the runaway Premier League leaders in the top flight this season.

Jurgen Klopp’s side, who are unbeaten in their last 14 league games at home to City, will be looking for revenge after losing 5-0 at the Etihad in the reverse fixture in September.

However, the Reds will be playing their first match without Philippe Coutinho after the Brazil playmaker joined Barcelona for £142m last weekend, although his departure will be offset

by Virgil van Dijk’s league debut for the hosts.

The Netherlands international made his first appearance for Liverpool in last Friday’s FA Cup third-round win over rivals Everton at Anfield, with the centre-back scoring his new team’s late winner.

Klopp is further boosted by the return from injury of top scorer Mohamed Salah, who has recovered from a recent groin problem and will lead the line.

The visitors, meanwhile, head to Merseyside holding a massive 15-point lead over secondplaced Manchester United in the table going into the weekend fixtures and looking to extend their current 30-match unbeaten run in the Premier League.

One player City boss Pep Guardiola will be hoping to fire his team to victory this weekend is striker Sergio Aguero, who has scored more Premier League goals against Liverpool than any other City player (six in 11 games).

However, the Argentine - who will start in attack in the absence of injured forward Gabriel Jesus - is yet to find the net in five league visits to Anfield.

Liverpool have Salah (groin) back from injury to face City, however, this game has come too soon for the likes of striker Daniel Sturridge (hamstring), captain Jordan Henderson (hamstring) and left-back Alberto Moreno (ankle).

That trio are all back in training, though, while right-back Nathaniel Clyne remains sidelined

Chelsea Held

by Leicester Chelsea did little to take the spotlight away from manager Antonio Conte, linked with a post-season move to French giants Paris Saint-Germain this week, in a goalless draw with Leicester City yesterday.

Alan Pardew oversaw his first Premier League victory as West Brom manager thanks to a 2-0 win over Brighton, while Rafael Benitez’s Newcastle came from behind to draw 1-1 with bottom-of-thetable Swansea City as the battle to avoid relegation intensified.

The Blues could not pierce Leicester’s defence at Stamford Bridge even when visiting left-back Ben Chilwell was sent off for a second bookable offence midway through the second half.

Meanwhile, Chelsea and England defender Gary Cahill went off injured in the first half as the Blues were left 15 points adrift of City.

West Brom, who kicked off level on points with Swansea, needed just four minutes to take the lead at The Hawthorns when Jonny Evans headed in from a corner. And they went 2-0 up in the 56th minute thanks to a Craig Dawson header.

The Baggies remained in the relegation zone as indeed did Swansea. Jordan Ayew gave Swansea the lead on the hour in Newcastle when he nodded in a rebound after an initial header was blocked before Magpies substitute Joselu equalised 10 minutes later with virtually his first touch of the game.

James Ward-Prowse scored his first two goals of the Premier League season for Southampton but that wasn’t enough to give the Saints a desperately needed win as hosts Watford rallied for a 2-2 draw.

De Bruyne tries to stop Salah in September’s reverse fixture

with a long-running back problem.

City will be missing Brazil international Jesus, who is set to be out for the next two weeks with a knee ligament injury, while captain Vincent Kompany is absent with a calf strain. Left-back Benjamin Mendy is still missing with a long-term knee injury.

Liverpool have conceded just four goals in their last 13 Premier League home games (W7 D6 L0), keeping nine clean sheets in that time.

Liverpool have not won four Premier League games in a row since December 2016 - the fourth game of which was a home win against Manchester City.

No opposing manager has beaten Guardiola more often than Klopp in all competitions (four, level with Jose Mourinho).

Since Klopp took charge of Liverpool in October 2015, the Reds have won more points in Premier League games between the ‘big six’ than any

other side (39). They also have more wins (9), fewer defeats (3) and more goals (40) than anyone else in these fixtures.

Salah has been involved in 22 goals in his opening 21 Premier League games for Liverpool (17 goals, five assists); only two players have ever been involved in more in their opening 21 Premier League games for a club -Andrew Cole at Newcastle and Dwight Yorke at Manchester United (23 each).

Madrid’s Crisis Worsens, Lose at Home to Villareal Pablo Fornals scored a superb late goal for Villarreal yesterday, as they won at the Bernabeu for the first time to load more pressure on Real Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane.

Real edged the first half and Gareth Bale had a header ruled out for offside, before Cristiano Ronaldo’s free-kick was tipped onto the bar.

However, the visitors improved in the second period and deservedly went ahead after breaking at pace from a Real corner.

Denis Cheryshev found Enes Unal, whose shot was saved by Keylor Navas - but Fornals then chipped the stranded keeper from 20 yards.

Fourth-placed Real Madrid, who won last season’s La Liga title and the Champions League, remain 16 points behind leaders Barcelona - and that gap could increase when Barca visit Real Sociedad on Sunday (19:45 GMT).

Zidane’s side’s Champions League spot for next season is looking perilous - they now sit only one point above Villarreal, who move up to fifth.

Ronaldo, who has only scored four La

Madrid lost for the second trime in three matches

Liga goals this season, missed several chances to score but had a strong penalty appeal turned down in the first half when

he was clipped just before shooting at keeper Sergio Asenjo, who put in an excellent performance.

Mergia, Dibaba Set for Standard Chartered Dubai Marathon Twooftheworld’sleadingmarathonrunnersAselefech Mergia and Mare Dibaba will go head-to-head in the women’s event when the Standard Chartered Dubai Marathon gets underway on January 26.

Mergia, who turns 33 just three days before the event, is the greatest female runner in the history of the Standard Chartered Dubai Marathon having won three times and set the course record of 2:19:31.

It will be her first start in the world’s richest marathon since her last victory in the UAE in 2015.

But if the Ethiopian is to maintain her 100% winning record, she will need to see off a talented field that includes compatriots Dibaba, Marathon gold medalist at the 2015 IAAF World Championships and a bronze medal winner at the Rio Olympics in

2016, and defending champion Worknesh Degefa.

With personal bests of 2:19:31 and 2:19:52 respectively, Mergia and Dibaba are the fastest women in the field and their race for the US$200,000 first prize will be one of the major battles to watch in the first big marathon meeting of the year.

“We are excited to have two huge talents leading the women’s field,” said Event Director Peter Connerton. “Aselefech Mergia has won every time she has raced here, while Mare Dibaba has won World Championship and Olympic medals since finishing third in Dubai in 2012.”

Held under the patronage of HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, and staged under the aegis of the

Dubai Sports Council, the Marathon will be staged in conjunction with a 10km Road Race and a 4km Fun Run. Registration for all three races is still on.

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Leicester Burnley West Ham Swansea Southampton Brighton Everton Arsenal 2:30pm Man City 5pm

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MISSILE PDP to Lalong “As if he has gone mad, he chose to berate Governor Samuel Ortom on a day when those killed by Fulani herdsmen were being given a mass burial, bragging that he advised him not to implement the anti-open grazing law.”

Plateau State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party condemning the state governor, Solomon Lalong, for insensitive comments on the killings in Benue State.

SIMONKOLAWOLE SIMONKOLAWOLELIVE!

simon.kolawole@thisdaylive.com, sms: 0805 500 1961

Before Nigeria Becomes Somalia…

I

got a call from a senior northern politician recently. He’s generally a man of peace and often calls to commend me anytime I write on “peace and unity”. But this was a different call.

His tone was remarkably different and harsh as he spoke about the Benue killings. He spared little time for the obligatory I-like-your-article ice-breaker and rushed into a conversation. “Look Simon,” he half-shouted, “you journalists must put pressure on the president to act quickly and decisively. The herders are very confident he has their back. The security agencies are treating them like kings. Our people will have to start defending themselves. Nobody has monopoly of violence.”

My head dropped. Sadness overpowered me.

These are the moments that test my faith in the precariously complex Nigerian project. It is particularly saddening that the Benue tragedy has provided a perfect setting for people to play politics of opportunism (2019 is around the corner, just your know), for people to rev up ethnic and religious sentiments, for people to queue behind those they perceive to be their kith and kin. Yet, for all you care, what we need most urgently is to prevent further bloodbath. Reprisals and more aggression will only turn Nigeria into another Somalia, the global capital of anarchy. We can do without that.

The point has been well made that President Muhammadu Buhari’s reaction to the killings has been too slow and too poor. The previous killings by Fulani herdsmen in Agatu (Benue) and Nimbo (Enugu) did not merit a stern response from the president, very unusual for a retired general who keeps celebrating his exploits in “keeping Nigeria one” during the civil war. Compare his attitude with how President Olusegun Obasanjo dealt decisively with the OPC menace in the south-west in 1999-2000 and you will see a world of difference.

Buhari’s fire-brigade to the latest Benue killings, apparently in reaction to so much public outcry, is seen as a reluctant afterthought.

It is not as if the Fulani have not been at the receiving end too — they were victims of massacres in Bachama, Adamawa state, and Mambilla, Taraba state, last year, in which hundreds were killed. Curiously, these tragedies went unnoticed by the national media. Photos of dead Fulani bodies did not make the front page of newspapers, neither did the killings trend on Twitter. Sadly, Nigerians have reduced human lives to football, playing home and away matches in massacre. Who scored more goals? Who killed more people? How can “my people” protect themselves? Or how can “my people” revenge? That is the unfolding story of Nigeria. What an apology for a human society!

After the blame game, where do we go from here? How do we pick up the pieces, heal the wounds and prevent the next bloodbath?

In preparing this article, I did a little internet search on clashes between farmers and herders in West Africa — in order to better understand patterns, undertones and antidotes.

The findings were absolutely terrifying. On April 9, 1989, in Diawara, eastern Senegal, Fulani herdsmen and Mauritanian Soninke farmers clashed following a drought that created grazing challenges. Hundreds were killed. Over 250,000 persons were displaced.

The ensuing Senegal-Mauritania Border War lasted for two years.

In March 2016, a violent clash between Fulani herdsmen and farmers in north-east Cote d’Ivoire

Buhari led to 17 deaths, AFP reported. In May 2016, armed Bambara and Fulani groups clashed in Tenenkou, west Mopti, Mali, leading to 20 deaths. In November same year, 18 persons died in clashes between herders and farmers in Bangui, Niger Republic. In November 2017, nine persons died in the Kwahu East District of Ghana following clashes between Fulani herdsmen and villagers. A commenter named Yaa Nyamekye wrote on Ghanaweb. com: “Why should foreigners take over our lands! Fulani, Chinese and Nigerians have taken over Ghana!”

Back to Nigeria, farmers and herders have perennially clashed. As a kid in my village in the 1970s, I witnessed some of these confrontations.

Herders seasonally invaded our farmlands to audaciously feed their cattle. At some point, village hunters were put on guard to repel them. Aggression, clashes and deaths have scaled up all over Nigeria in recent years. The herders are now acting lawlessly, destroying people’s livelihood, taking over public places and going scot-free. These incidents have become more highlighted under Buhari, who is also of the Fulani stock and a cattle rearer to boot.

The conspiracy theory is complete.

The Benue killings, in which 73 farmers and family members were killed by herdsmen “because our cows were stolen”, have accentuated many issues. There are allegations that the president tacitly supports the activities of the herdsmen by failing to act with the same enthusiasm and determination he displayed in dealing with the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB). The killings have also offered opportunities for politicians to play 2019 politics — the same way Buhari’s APC used Boko Haram killings to slaughter President Jonathan in 2015. Those who enjoy toying with ethnic and religious emotions are also having a ball, particularly on social media.

Beyond the politicisation of the killings, however, there are matters we need to be dispassionate about if our interest is to resolve the crisis. The immediate causes can be traced to these factors: (1) geography/ecology (2) culture and (3) insecurity. But, evidently, leadership failure is at the centre of it all. I will try my best to explain my thoughts within the space constraints. My major objective today is to call for reason. If we are going to build lasting peace, we must disrobe ourselves of the pervasive political, ethnic and religious

emotions currently at play. We need an open mind. More bloodshed may look appealing in the heat of the moment, but nobody will be safe in the end.

One, in terms of geography and ecology, climate change has forced a vast majority of the herdsmen to migrate downwards in search of fresh pasture in recent years. In an essay by Malcolm Fabiyi and Adeleke Otunuga, they said Nigeria has 22 million cows that consume about one billion gallons of water per day and 500 million kilograms of grass and forage crops. Lake Chad is drying up. Desertification and Boko Haram war have combined to drive herders increasingly southward since 2012. They are seeking survival. However, this has huge security implications. A proactive government would usually anticipate the consequences and develop appropriate plans and policies.

Two, culturally, the Fulani herders are nomadic. Ranching is alien to them. In the days when there was law and order in Nigeria — and I mean in the colonial era — we had grazing routes, complete with water supply, security, tax collectors and veterinary medical facilities. Now that all these have collapsed, the herders think they have a divine right to graze anywhere and nobody can stop them.

Invading farms and wrecking the economy of farmers has become very normal for them.

A proactive and responsible government will work at re-orientating the herders to embrace modern practices, deploying all moral suasion strategies to deal with the inefficient, outdated nomadic system.

Three, herders are at the mercy of rustlers who ambush them and steal their cattle. These criminal gangs are hardly apprehended or punished. Our security agencies are more competent in arresting bloggers and handcuffing them for “libel”. They have little competence in protecting the citizens despite the billions they get in budgetary allocations. Herders resort to arming themselves and deploying self-help since there is effectively no government.

Unfortunately, both the criminal gangs and the menacing herdsmen never face the full weight of the law. The primary reason for having a government is to prevent anarchy.

So where is government?

These are the things I think responsible leadership should offer. One, address the grazing crisis. The idea of creating “colonies” will work well in some areas but fail woefully in other areas because of historical divides. Government must get the buy-in of host communities. We must avoid trying to solve one problem and creating another. I repeat: government must tread carefully. Two, the herdsmen must be re-orientated to understand that we live in the 21st century and their “roaming culture” must be within the law. They have no right to carry on as if everywhere belongs to them. If everybody does what he likes, there will be no country left at the end of the day.

Three, those who fail to play by the rule must face the law. Nobody should ruin someone else’s farms or take lives and go scot-free.

Four, conflict management must be central to policies and measures aimed at solving these problems. Government should design a system of early warning and a complaint/ grievance management mechanism for herders, farmers and villagers. Aggrieved parties must be able to channel their grievances in a civilised manner rather than resort to self-help. Above all, leaders must genuinely work to promote justice and equity. They must cast aside their prejudices. If our leaders keep sleeping on the job, Somalia is sure to happen to us.

And Four Other Things…

NORTH MY WILL With Alhaji Ahmed Abubakar’s appointment as the DG of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA), the navy now remains the only security service not headed by a northerner (and for those who don’t know, chief of defence staff heads no service). Could it be that President Buhari can’t find any northerner yet to lead the navy? Even the major paramilitary services, which used to be manned by middle-belters for regional balancing, are now headed by the “core north”. I think this is a record. I’m not aware of any other time in our history when security has been so northernised. As someone who supports “balancing” because of our delicate national make-up, I’m scandalised. Insensitive.

METEORIC RICE When I heard that rice exports from Thailand to Nigeria dropped from 1.23 million metric tonnes in 2014 to 23,192mt as at November 2017, I was over the moon. It was a confirmation that our rice policy is working, I concluded. But a colleague drew my attention to the figures coming from Benin Republic: as Nigeria’s imports were decreasing, Benin’s imports were increasing. To the best of my knowledge, most people in Benin eat local rice. The logical conclusion is that Benin’s imports were meant for the Nigerian market through the land border (complete the sentence!) By the way, contrary to my assertion last week, Thailand and Vietnam have missions in Nigeria. Apologies.

ZERO ZAMFARA And so, only 24 candidates from Zamfara state passed the 2017 November/December senior school certificate examination of the National Examinations Council (NECO). In fact, the examination was taken by only 186 candidates in the state. The governor, Alhaji Abdul’aziz Abubakar Yari, is also the chairman of the Nigeria Governors Forum. He spends most of his time in Abuja and Saudi Arabia, and blames fornication for epidemics. He is a young man by some definition — he was elected governor in 2011 at 43. Maybe age is not the super solution to our leadership crisis. Yari will leave office next year, proud of himself that after eight years, only 24 candidates passed NECO. Disaster.

TRUMP’S TANTRUMS The erratic US President Donald Trump never has any kind words for Africa. Reported to have called Africa a “shithole” (he denied using that word but said he used a “tough” word which he refused to disclose), Trump has come under attack from African leaders. As disgusting as Trump’s words are, maybe we also have to look in the mirror. Most Nigerians who migrate to the US do so for economic reasons. If our country was working — just the basics of stable electricity, good roads, quality education, security and good jobs — who cares about America? The ultimate solution to tackling racist countries is for us to put our house in order. Trump’s words really hurt. Demeaning.

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