MONDAY 7TH MAY 2018

Maintaining Market Dominance, Tier 1 Banks Widen Gap with Tier 2 Lenders Obinna Chima The full year 2017 audited results of banks have shown that the gap between the tier 1 and tier 2 banks in the country, in terms of market share, has continued to widen.

A review of the audited

results of 11 banks, comprising the five tier 1 banks and six tier 2 lenders, showed that the tier 1 banks continued to control a significant chunk of the market in terms of assets, gross earnings, loans and advances, customer deposits and profit before tax.

The tier 1 bank results reviewed were those of Zenith Bank Plc, Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank) Plc, United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc, FBN Holdings Plc and Access Bank Plc. On the other hand, the six tier 2 bank results reviewed

comprised Fidelity Bank Plc, Stanbic IBTC, Sterling Bank, First City Monument Bank (FCMB), Ecobank and Wema Bank.

It is worthy of note that Diamond Bank Plc and Union Bank of Nigeria Plc notified the Nigerian Stock Exchange

(NSE) of further delays in the release of their respective results, saying that their audited financial statements would be ready this month.

The review conducted by THISDAY showed that the total assets of the 11 banks increased to N34.631 trillion at

the end of 2017, higher than the N30.665 trillion recorded in 2016.

But the five tier 1 banks listed above, at N22.355 trillion, accounted for 64.5 per cent of total assets in 2017, while the Continued on page 8

Don't Turn to Propaganda Poster Boy, PDP Tells Osinbajo… Page 57 Monday 7 May, 2018 Vol 22. No 8418. Price: N250

www.thisdaylive.com TR

UT H

& RE A S O

N

APC Asks Aggrieved Members to File Appeal After Marred Congresses Party to conclude Ekiti guber primary, 27 aspirants kick Fayemi threatens to sue if results are annulled Don’t turn state to war zone, Fayose warns Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja and Victor Ogunje in Ado Ekiti In a bid to address the grievances that trailed last

Saturday’s ward congresses of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in several states of the federation, the party has appealed to those

with complaints to direct them to the appeal panel.

The party has also directed that its primary for the Ekiti State governorship ticket

should continue from where it stopped.

But this bid not go down well with 27 of the governorship aspirants

who called for the outright cancellation of the primary and the conduct of a fresh election.

The primary, which held at

the Oluyemi Kayode stadium in Ado Ekiti, the state capital on Saturday, was disrupted midway Continued on page 8

Unidentified Gunmen Kill 45 in Kaduna John Shiklam in Kaduna It was yet again another day of tears and sorrow at Gwaska village in Birnin Gwari Local Government Area of Kaduna State, after the community was attacked by unidentified armed bandits on Saturday, leading to the deaths of 45 residents and several injured.

The incident was said to have occurred at 2:30 a.m. and happened barely 48 hours after the Inspector General of Police, Mr. Ibrahim Idris and the General Officer Commanding (GOC), 1 Division, Nigerian Army, Kaduna, Maj. Gen. Mohammed Mohammed had visited Birnin Gwari.

The IG had during the visit ordered for the immediate deployment of an additional 200 policemen in Birnin Gwari to tackle the continuing raids by armed bandits who have been killing, kidnapping and robbing people in the area.

A source within the Birnin Gwari Vanguard for Security and Good Governance, who pleaded anonymity, said the gunmen came from neighbouring Zamfara State.

“The armed bandits came from neighbouring Zamfara

State and encircled Gwaska up to neighbouring Kuiga village shooting sporadically.”

The source said most of those killed were those that tried to fight back, including women and children who could not escape.

He added that several people were injured during the invasion and were taken to a hospital in the Doka district.

“We will continue to appeal to the authorities to take urgent steps to forestall further attacks and the extinction of communities in Birnin Gwari Local Government Area,” he said.

A combined team of Nigerian troops and members of the local vigilante group were said to have rushed to the village when the incident occurred, but by the time they arrived the community, the bandits had fled.

The vigilante group source said: “We were in Gwaska together with the military around 7 p.m., but the commander asked the soldiers to retreat because it was getting dark.”

He said several people were still missing, adding that Continued on page 10

DOGARA SHOWS RANCHING CAN WORK…

Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Yakubu Dogara, inspecting livestock at his farm at the weekend

2

T H I S D AY MONDAY MAY 7, 2018

T H I S D AY MONDAY MAY 7, 2018

3

4

T H I S D AY MONDAY MAY 7, 2018

T H I S D AY MONDAY MAY 7, 2018

5

6

T H I S D AY MONDAY MAY 7, 2018

T H I S D AY MONDAY MAY 7, 2018

7

8

MONDAY, MAY 7, 2018 ˾ T H I S D AY

PAGE EIGHT M A I N TA I N I N G M A R K E T D O M I N A N C E, TI ER 1 BA N KS W I D EN GA P W I TH TI ER 2 LENDERS total assets of the tier 2 lenders stood at N12.276 trillion during the same period.

In 2016, the total assets of the five tier 1 banks stood at N19.581 trillion while those of the six smaller lenders accounted for N11.083 trillion of total assets in the same period.

Also, while the 11 banks realised combined gross earnings of N4.205 trillion in 2017, up from N3.515 trillion from the previous year, the five

tier 1 banks alone accounted for N2.681 trillion or 64 per cent of total earnings in 2017, as against the N2.200 trillion recorded in 2016.

But in the year under review, the above-mentioned tier 2 banks reported gross earnings of N1.525 trillion (36%) in 2017, higher than the N1.316 trillion in 2016.

Findings also showed that total loans and advances of the 11 banks whose results were reviewed stood at

N14.665 trillion in 2017, slightly higher than the N14.528 trillion recorded in the previous year.

Just like other indicators, the five tier 1 banks gave out 63 per cent of the loans and advances as they accounted for N9.197 trillion in 2017, lower than that of N9.277 trillion in 2016.

However, the tier 2 banks in all gave out N5.468 trillion in 2017, higher than the N5.251 trillion recorded in 2016.

Similarly, while total

customer deposits of the 11 banks stood at N21.132 trillion in 2017, higher than the N19.644 trillion they realised in the previous year, at N13.321 trillion, the five tier 1 banks accounted for 63 per cent of total customer deposits.

The tier two banks, on the other hand, posted combined customer deposits of N7.810 trillion or 37 per cent in 2017, higher than N6.996 trillion in the previous year.

In the same vein, of a total

of N838.719 billion posted as profit before tax (PBT) by the 11 banks in their combined full year 2017 results, higher than the N633.286 billion recorded in the previous year, the five tier 1 banks accounted for 77 per cent or N645.864 billion of the PBT they made in 2017, up from N525.813 billion in 2016.

The PBT of the six tier 1 bank in the year under review, however, stood at N192.855 billion, up from N107.473 billion in 2016.

Managing Director, Afrinvest Securities Limited, Mr. Ayodeji Ebo, attributed the yawning gap between the tier 1 banks and tier 2 banks to the fact that the bigger Nigerian lenders have been riding on economies of scale and larger branch networks.

“Because of these, the tier 1 banks have been squeezing out their tier 2 counterparts. What the latter can do is to ride on technology to improve their market share,” he explained.

Oni said he supported the idea but it would be difficult to achieve given the current fierce rivalry among the aspirants.

“I support consensus but that is now impossible because the perception of the society makes it difficult for politicians to reach a compromise.

“Politicians are always under pressure from their admirers, so announcing to them that you have stepped down for someone else could create a bad impression for you. It will be difficult to achieve at this level,” he noted.

Meanwhile, Fayemi and Senator Babafemi Ojudu, another APC aspirant exchanged barbs yesterday over who was responsible for the disruption of the primary.

While Fayemi accused Ojudu and Hon. Bimbo Daramola of being the masterminds behind the violence that caused the suspension of the primary, Ojudu said the former governor was too desperate to get the ticket, saying his antics would fail this time.

A statement yesterday by Fayemi’s media aide, Yinka Oyebode claimed that the disruption of the primary election was the height of desperation on the part of some aspirants, who having seen defeat staring them in the face, conspired together to ensure that the exercise was not concluded.

The minister was quoted in the statement to have said that the aspirants had resorted to violence and destruction, having realised that he was already in a clear lead in the five local government areas that had cast their votes.

“If the quest for a political position is to serve, then one wonders why the desperation being displayed by the likes of Femi Ojudu and Bimbo Daramola.”

But Ojudu dispelled the allegation, describing it as a spurious and senseless accusation coming from those that were averse to democratic ideals.

Addressing journalists in Ado Ekiti on the issue, Ojudu clarified that he was not desperate and that accounted for why he did not go to the election venue with party supporters, saying: “I even hate seeing thugs around me.

“They said I was desperate, let us ask ourselves, who among the aspirants took delegates to Igbara Oke and Owo in Ondo State to camp? It was Fayemi. He was the one who compromised the committee and bought over the security agencies to compromise the process.

“I brought him to Ekiti, I did a lot for him to be governor, so I have always known him to be desperate and we were getting video clips on how he offered bribes to delegates and how he was making calls at the election venue to the top security brass in Ekiti and Abuja to cheat the system.

“Let me tell him, all these antics will not work. The primary will be conducted and it must be free, fair and credible,” he said.

But even as the APC governorship aspirants engaged in a blame game over the suspended primary, the state governor yesterday said what was witnessed

was a show of shame.

Fayose warned the APC in his state not to turn Ekiti into a war zone, given the violence displayed by its members during the primary.

He expressed concern that the APC could replicate the violence on July 14 during the governorship election.

According to Fayose, “It is a sad day for democracy in Nigeria, especially from a party in government that prides itself as progressive.

“It is a clear indication that APC will fail woefully in the July 14 governorship election because apart from its rejection by Ekiti people, the party has become a house divided against itself, its centre can never hold.”

Fayose, in a statement he personally signed, also said: “We thought that we have gone beyond the era of ballot box stuffing and snatching as well as violence and killings during elections until yesterday’s show of shame.

“This development should be of great concern to all well-meaning Nigerians as we approach the Ekiti and Osun governorship elections as well as the 2019 elections.

“Another worrisome development is the information at my disposal that the APC is plotting to sponsor thugs to disrupt the PDP primary election scheduled for Tuesday, May 8, 2018, so as to create the impression that violence is common to all political parties.

“I, therefore, call on the security agencies to act decisively to nip this sinister plan in the bud. The police should not shy away from its responsibilities.

“Ekiti was adjudged by the police as the most peaceful state in Nigeria, it must remain so.

“In the last three years, our state has been peaceful and never witnessed any sponsored political violence or killings until this APC desperation set in.

“I also call on Nigerians, as well as the international community to focus their attention on Ekiti State from now on. Ekiti people must be allowed to choose their next governor under a free and fair atmosphere,” he stated.

A P C AS KS AG G R I E V E D M E M B E R S TO F I L E A P P E A L A F T E R M A R R E D C O N G R E S S E S by suspected thugs owing to the alleged irregularities that dogged the exercise.

Some agents working for other aspirants had accused the former governor of the state and Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Dr. Kayode Fayemi of colluding with the security agencies and members of the Governor Tanko Al-Makura-led primary committee to skew the outcome of the primary in favour of the minister.

This came as the Kayode Fayemi Campaign Organisation threatened to sue the party if the results of the inconclusive Ekiti primary are annulled.

Stepping into the imbroglio, however, the state governor, Ayodele Fayose of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) warned the opposition in his state not to turn Ekiti into a war zone, given the violence already displayed

by APC members during the primary.

The APC last Saturday had organised ward congresses in 33 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

While the exercise was hitch-free in a few states, there were protests and incidents of violence in many others, resulting in deaths in Rivers and Delta States on the eve of the congresses and on Saturday, respectively.

But in a statement issued yesterday by the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, APC hailed the congresses, describing them as “highly successful”.

“APC wishes to congratulate all its members for the generally peaceful conduct of the party’s ward congresses which took place across the country over the weekend.

“The party especially commends members who served in the congress committees for their dedication and impartiality.

“We, however, acknowledge there were some issues arising from the conduct of the elections in some states.

“With this in view, the party had set up various appeal committees which will begin sitting from Monday, May 7, 2018.

“We, therefore, call on all party members to remain law-abiding and where there are issues, they should seek redress through the appeal committees in their respective states,” the party said.

The APC also directed that its primary for Ekiti State governorship ticket should continue from where it stopped on Saturday.

The national leadership of the APC said that it had resolved the “issues and that the election can now proceed”.

Another statement by Abdullahi yesterday said the primary election committee had been asked to go back and complete the exercise.

The party said the exercise should be completed as soon as possible but did not give a date for the resumption of the primary.

The APC statement read: “The situation in Ekiti is regrettable. The issues have been resolved and it is our hope that the exercise can now continue from where it stopped.

“The primary election chairman has spoken to the national chairman after consulting with the aspirants.

“The position is that the process should resume as quickly as possible. The issue of indefinite postponement does not arise,” the party said.

27 Aspirants Kick But the statement by the APC contrasted sharply with several of the aspirants, as 27 of the 33 governorship aspirants in Ekiti State yesterday called for the disbandment of the Al-Makura-led committee, alleging open bias and incompetence exhibited in the conduct of the suspended election in the state.

The aspirants posited that the shoddy way the committee handled the primary was what led to the violence that marred the exercise on Saturday.

In a communiqué issued and read by one of the aspirants, Dr. Mojisola Yaya-Kolade, after a marathon meeting, the 27 aspirants expressed regret over the unfortunate incident that led to the protest and subsequent disruption of the primary.

They alleged that members of the primary committee, headed by the Nasarawa State governor, Al-Makura, had compromised the integrity of the poll, noting that this had invalidated its outcome.

The aggrieved aspirants alleged that they noticed lopsidedness and bias on the part of the committee members, and called on the national leadership to smoothen all rough edges for the poll to be re-conducted.

“We want the committee to be disbanded completely and our National Working Committee should set up a new committee to conduct another primary that will meet international standards,” the aggrieved aspirants said.

The also claimed that many of those on the panel for the conduct of the primary were friends of a particular aspirant, who they failed to name, adding that this could vitiate the outcome of the election.

“We are determined to win the Ekiti governorship election, but the right thing must be done for a candidate that will command the respect of everybody to emerge,” they added.

They suggested that the fresh primary should be conducted in an enclosed environment to prevent natural occurrences like rain from disrupting the process as witnessed on Saturday.

“Apart from that, no aspirant should have more than one agent because many of those who gained entry under the guise of being agents to some aspirants were used to perpetrate evil,” they stressed.

Also, the state chairman of the APC, Chief Jide Awe, called for the annulment of the suspended primary, saying: “There is no way you can conduct a primary without allowing the State Executive Council having a say in the process.

“The aspirants were not happy.

There are a lot of lessons to learn from the process as a party.

“One of the cardinal principles

of a free and fair election is for the electorate not to have doubt.

When a system is doubted in an election it becomes invalid.

“When a system is disrupted, it becomes invalid. An invalid primary cannot produce a valid candidate. We want to have a credible election so that the electorate will be able to vote for us at the main election.

“With what happened, we believe sincerely that the committee was culpable and the security agencies were compromised. So the thugs that disrupted the election, it was some people that allowed them in,” he said.

Fayemi Threatens Law Suit But even as the party moved to resolve its fractured ward congresses and go ahead with the Ekiti gubernatorial primary, the Kayode Fayemi Campaign Organisation earlier yesterday threatened to sue the APC if the results of the inconclusive Ekiti governorship primary are annulled.

Addressing journalists in Ado Ekiti yesterday, Fayemi’s agent, Mr. Samuel Abejide, said five local government councils had voted before the uprising that led to the abrupt suspension of the exercise, saying the results from the local government areas were valid in the face of the law and the Electoral Act. Naming them, he said the elections in Ekiti East, Moba, Ilejemeje, Ado and Ijero Local Governments had been concluded when the primary was disrupted.

Other delegates, who expressed their preparedness to sue the party at the press conference included Dada Sunday Ebenezer, Emmanuel Adekunle and Jimoh Azeez.

They said the party owed them a duty to protect the rights of its members, noting that their voting rights should not be an exception in this case.

Abejide also accused the security agencies of being compromised, wondering why the perpetrators of the violence that took place were allowed to go scot-free in the presence of more than 200 security forces deployed for the primary.

Fayemi’s agent also denied allegations that the Al-Makura-led committee had apportioned more than the required number of agents to the minister to the detriment of other contestants, saying this was not possible under the structures put in place at the venue.

“We believe the process of the election was free, fair and credible and that is why the results should be sustained.

“If they knew that they were leading, why should they ask for cancellation?” he asked.

Reinforcing the position canvassed by Abejide, Azeez stated that it would amount to an abridgement of the rights of voters if the results from the primary were annulled.

“I am a delegate of the APC and I voted during the election.

The process in those mentioned local governments was free and fair, so I don’t expect the party to annul it.

“Should the party go ahead and do that, I will not hesitate to go to court to seek redress,” Azeez stated.

Oyegun’s Integrity at Stake Also reacting to the outcome of the primary, former Ekiti State governor Segun Oni yesterday, called on the national chairman of the party, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun and the National Working Committee (NWC) to investigate the errors that led to the inconclusive primary.

Oni, former APC national deputy chairman (south) and governorship aspirant of the party, said the way some people who were discovered to be friends of a particular aspirant were nominated to the primary committee, calls to question the integrity of the party’s national leadership.

Oni spoke in Ifaki, Ekiti yesterday while reacting to the violence that marred the APC governorship primary.

Oni, however, saluted AlMakura for doing a thorough job only for his efforts to be allegedly sabotaged by unscrupulous elements around him.

He described the violence as very unfortunate, insisting that Oyegun must investigate how the secretary of the committee, Hon. Mogaji Aliyu, a known ally of one of the aspirants, was made a member of the panel.

Like the aggrieved 27 aspirant, Oni did not name the favoured aspirant.

“Those who have a penchant for cheating and fraud structured the primary to favour a particular aspirant. I was the APC national deputy chairman for four years, despite that I never used my position to influence anything about a primary I was directly involved in.

“When you have a penchant for fraud or cheating the system, it makes democracy looks sour and uninteresting.

“How would one feel to get to the field of play and find out that the referee was nominated by one of the teams? We found out that the secretary of the committee was nominated by an aspirant, and Governor Al-Makura later got to know about this and dropped him from functioning as the returning officer.

“Even the fraud permeated the ranks of the security agencies. I quite appreciate the fact that violence was not the right way, but it was caused by the pent-up anger.

“That is why the NWC led by Chief Oyegun owes all of us a thorough explanation on how Mogaji found himself on the committee and how to prevent such in the future, except we are hiding under democracy to fool ourselves.

“Whether I will be governor or not or hold political office in the future, I think enough is enough with respect to the desperation by people to get to certain positions, because we must give confidence to our people,” he said.

When asked whether a consensus will be a better option,

TOP GAINERS NGN NGN SEPLAT 35.10 737.10 FBNHOLDINGS 0.60 12.85 COURTVILLE 0.01 0.22 FCMB 0.11 2.51 WEMABANK 0.04 0.94 TOP LOSERS NGN NGN GSK 2.90 30.30 DOUBLE11 9.00 172.00 C & I LEASING 0.07 1.34 FLOURMILLS 1.80 35.20 LIVESTOCKFEEDS 0.04 0.83 HPE Nestle Nig Plc ₦ 1,422.50 Volume: 242.291 million shares Value: N3.027 billion Deals: 5,746 As at 4/5/18 See details on Page 35

% 5.0 4.9 4.7 4.5 4.4 % 8.7 4.7 4.9 4.8 4.6

T H I S D AY MONDAY MAY 7, 2018

9

10

Ëœ ÍżËœ ͺ͸͚͜ Ëž T H I S D AY

PAGE TEN

Many Wins of Buhari‘s US Visit Last week’s bilateral meetings between President Muhammadu Buhari and US President Donald Trump at the White House, including Buhari’s meetings with top executives of some US companies, got a lot of wins for Nigeria. Tokunbo Adedoja writes For the better part of last week, global media focus was on Nigeria as United States President Donald Trump hosted President Muhammadu Buhari in the White House. Buhari’s visit to the White House, the first by any sub-Saharan Africa leader since President Trump assumed office over a year ago, enjoyed days of media blitz. Expectedly, the keen interest in Buhari’s visit among U.S. media outlets was somewhat tied to the alleged vulgar remark made by Trump a few months earlier about African countries.

From the preview of his arrival in the U.S. to the joint press conference in the Rose Garden, coupled with the warm handshake by both leaders and that remarkable photo opportunity with Trump grinning and leaning over Buhari’s shoulder while (Buhari) was signing the visitor’s book in the Oval Office, images and clips of the visit went viral on the internet.

The reports, images and video clips of the leader of the free world and the largest economy with the leader of Africa’s biggest democracy and its biggest economy sent an unambiguous message about the strategic partnership between Nigeria and the U.S. A week after the visit, the media have not stopped appraising Buhari’s engagements in Washington. The common thread in all the reports was the conclusion that he returned home with a basket full of wins for Nigeria.

Prior to the visit, both the White House and Nigerian State House had released statements on issues that would come up for discussion. The statements listed security, trade and governance as key focal points of the bilateral talks. These issues were discussed at the meeting between the two presidents in the Oval Office, at the working lunch of 1+10 on each side at the White House, and emphasised at their joint press conference.

Investment and financing opportunities were also explored at the meetings Buhari held with top executives of some U.S. companies at the Blair House where he stayed during the visit.

The round-table discussions provided the opportunity for top Nigerian companies and business leaders to interface with top executives of U.S. companies, where Nigerian policymakers, led by the president, were seated.

There couldn’t have been a better demonstration of Nigeria’s commitment to the investment talks.

Even before their departure from the U.S., members of the Nigerian delegation were confident that the engagements they had were fruitful and beneficial. They were of the view that they got all they wanted. “It was a good meeting and it’s a win-win for both Nigeria and the U.S. There were a lot of wins,� Foreign Affairs Minister Geoffrey Onyeama enthused. “Today has been a good day for the United States and it’s actually a good day for Nigeria,� Industry, Trade & Investment Minister Ikechukwu Enelamah said, adding that in those meetings, “businesses were literally striking deals�.

One of such business deals was struck two days before the arrival of Buhari in Washington. It was a deal with the GE Consortium, comprising SiniHydro, Transnet and APM Terminals for the interim phase of the Nigerian narrow-gauge railway concession.

That interim agreement would last for 12 months during which remedial works will be carried out on part of the narrow-gauge rail line system to make it technically and economically operable. A joint operation will also be established between the consortium and the Nigeria Railway Corporation with an initial supply of 10 locomotives and 200 wagons.

The second phase will revamp the existing rail network and build new ones. The first phase is valued at over $40 million while the second phase is $2billion.

There were also several expressions of interest in investing in Nigeria at the meetings held at the Blair House with top executives of some U.S. companies, including those in agro-businesses. For example, John Deere - a U.S. company that manufactures agricultural, construction, and forestry machinery - was said to be looking into assembling and supplying tractors in Nigeria. It will start with a few hundred, then thousands and its full expression, it is expected to exceed 10,000 tractors.

Another major win for Nigeria was the unambiguous expression of support for the battle against terrorism without preconditions.

Efforts by Nigeria in the past to get military hardware from the US had met with several hurdles involving allegations of human rights abuses and lack of corporate governance.

Though prior to the visit, Nigeria had secured America’s nod to purchase 12 Super Tucano aircraft for deployment in the ongoing counter-insurgency and

President Muhammadu Buhari (middle) chairs a meeting between top U.S. company executives (sitting on the right) and the Nigerian delegation (on the left) at the Blair House, Washington D.C... last week anti-terrorism campaign and had even partly paid for the aircraft, the meeting between Buhari and Trump erased fears that it was a one-off deal.

Trump emphatically stated, in response to a question on how soon those aircraft would be delivered, that those reasons that denied Nigeria access to such military hardware were not tenable. “Part of the problem is you weren’t allowed to buy helicopters in our country and now you are.

I worked that out so that now you can buy the helicopters that you want. “They weren’t allowed to buy the helicopters for various reasons, which frankly weren’t good reasons. Now they get them, and they get them very quickly, and they are the best helicopters in the world. “We are also helping our Nigerian partners by facilitating intelligence cooperation and providing training and military equipment to Nigerian forces.

For example, we recently sold to Nigeria 12 US A-29 Super Tucano aircraft, great aircraft, in the first-ever sale of American military equipment to Nigeria,�

Trump said.

Trump’s acknowledgement of the effort to redeem Nigeria’s “massive reputation of corruption� through the current anti-corruption crusade, which had been faulted severally by critics as a witch-hunt and one-sided, was a big win for Buhari.

Coming at a time when there were allegations of selective application of his anti-corruption crusade, the thumb’s up from Trump will be a talking point for the regime as it approaches the 2019 election.

Buhari’s visit to Washington

also raised the possibility of Trump visiting Nigeria “soon�.

At the joint press conference with Buhari, Trump said he would love to visit Nigeria, although he did not provide specific timelines. A visit by the U.S. president places the country visited under global media attention. If Trump does, then he will be the first U.S. president to visit Nigeria in a decade.

Foreign Affairs Minister Onyeama noted that presidents’ schedules were usually tight and that it could take a year to plan such visits. He, however, said: “Maybe sometime next year we could envisage something like that.�

The United States got its own wins, so did President Trump.

One of such wins was the call for the removal of trade barriers which has now been brought to the front-burner of discourse between the two countries. The balance of trade between Nigeria and the U.S. shows Nigeria has a bigger balance sheet, but that is because of Nigeria’s oil exports to the U.S. Trump canvassed for the removal of trade barriers that affect U.S. agriculture produce, but that could also aid Nigeria’s agriculture exports. Nigeria does not seem to be averse to Trump’s call. Industry, Trade & Investment minister said: “The important thing is that the balance of trade should grow on both sides and it should be a win-win. And that is exactly what will happen based on what we see today.�

Former U.S. Ambassador to Nigeria, John Campbell, said Buhari’s visit to Washington was a small win for Trump.

He said Buhari’s response to a question on Trump’s derisive description of some African

countries as “shithole countriesâ€? took that issue off the table and provided a venue for Trump to appeal to his own political base, with his remarks on the killing of Christians by Islamist groups and the call for the removal of trade barriers, which his business friends in America would want to hear. “Among other things, Buhari’s visit may have at least partly defanged criticism of Trump that he is racist vis-Ă -vis his alleged derogatory remarks about Africa.

However, the Buhari visit is likely to have only a limited impact on American domestic politics in the run-up to the mid-terms in November,� the former U.S envoy said.

Campbell further noted: “For Buhari, the trip was a win in ways that are more concrete.

President Trump reaffirmed Nigeria’s regional leadership role, promised security cooperation, and promised that the attorneys general of the two countries are looking for ways to return stolen Nigerian funds, estimated at $500 million, parked in the United States.�

In the Nigerian government circles, optimism about concretising the outcomes of the bilateral meetings is high. This is because the engagements in Washington had the fundamental ingredients required for successful outcomes.

Drawing from his experience of engagements with nations and businesses as trade and investment minister for close to three years, Enelamah posited that economic cooperation requires working at it from three levels, and those three levels must click for cooperation to go far.

He listed the three levels as

a government to government cooperation; government to business cooperation; and business to business cooperation. “At this particular meeting, the government to government level involved not only the two presidents meeting but also cabinet members were there,� he noted, adding that for the government to business level, President Buhari met with various businesses and had very productive and engaging discussions with them. “I think the necessary thing now is follow-ups. We stay engaged and build on what we know to be a good relationship between Nigeria and the U.S. I think what happened just underscored it and we will not take it for granted,� Enelamah said.

Already, follow-up meetings have commenced. Attorney General Abubakar Malami met with his U.S. counterpart Jeff Sessions last Tuesday in Washington to work out modalities for the return of Nigeria’s stolen money. Those discussions are expected to culminate in the repatriation of over $500 million stolen from Nigeria and stashed in banks in various jurisdictions.

In a couple of weeks, Enelamah will also be meeting with U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross to look at the commercial and investment dialogue in details. The call for the removal of trade barriers would be part of the discussions.

More of such follow-up meetings will hold on other issues discussed in the bilateral meetings in the coming weeks and months to fully concretise the outcomes of the bilateral talks.

with sadness reports of the murder of our citizens by armed bandits in Birnin Gwari. “The Kaduna State Government is deeply committed to overcoming the unfortunate criminality and banditry being carried out against innocent citizens in Birnin Gwari Local Government Area. “The engagements

between the state and federal governments have yielded results. President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the establishment of a permanent battalion of the Nigerian Army in the Birnin Gwari general area. “The new security arrangements also involve policing. The Inspector General of Police has already announced

the creation of the Birnin Gwari Police Area Command and two new Divisional Police Headquarters. “The State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) has also been directed to provide relief materials with immediate effect to the affected communities,� the governor said.

UNIDENTIFIED GUNMEN KILL 45 IN KADUNA arrangements were being made to evacuate more people who had sustained injuries from gunshots.

When contacted, the spokesman of the Kaduna State Police Command, Aliyu Mukhtar, said in a text message that he “will get the details and get back�.

Speaking on the latest attack

on Birnin Gwari, the Kaduna State governor, Mallam Nasir el-Rufai commiserated with its residents over the killings.

He disclosed that the security challenges facing the area would soon be over as a permanent battalion of the Nigerian Army and a Police Area Command will be established in Birnin Gwari.

The governor said President

Muhammadu Buhari has already given approval to that effect.

In a statement by Samuel Aruwan, his spokesman, el-Rufai said the police IG had already approved the establishment of the Police Area Command and two new Divisional Police Headquarters in Birnin Gwari.

The statement said in part: “The state government received

T H I S D AY MONDAY MAY 7, 2018

11

12

T H I S D AY MONDAY MAY 7, 2018

T H I S D AY MONDAY MAY 7, 2018

13

14

T H I S D AY Ëž Ëœ ÍľËœ 2018

COMMENT

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

FISCAL REFORMS IN THE PETROLEUM SECTOR Suraj Oyewale argues that the Petroleum Industry Fiscal Policy bill could still be improved upon

A

t no time in recent times have Nigerian policymakers paid more attention to fiscal issues in the petroleum sector than in the last few years. After what started as a genuine attempt by the government to reform the sector via a legislative tool, the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB), was jinxed after almost a decade in the Nigerian legislative house; the decision of the current National Assembly to split the controversial bill into different parts – the Petroleum Industry Governance Bill (PIGB), Petroleum Industry Fiscal Bill (PIFB), the Petroleum Host Community Bill (PHCB) and the Petroleum Administration Bill (PAB)– proved wise as it has returned attention to the bill.

PIGB, which settles the commercial orientation vis-Ă -vis regulatory structure of government participation in the industry, has already been passed by the Senate and now awaits presidential assent. The fiscal bill, which seeks to settle matters of taxes, royalties, incentives, rents and contractual relationships in the industry has reached advanced stage of passage, according to industry and available information.

While the fiscal bill is still in the pipeline, the Ministry of Petroleum Resources, in 2017, released the Draft Petroleum Industry Fiscal Policy (PIFP). A policy is a statement of intent or a set of principles that generally gives direction to actions toward achieving a defined goal.

According to the document, the federal government seeks to establish a fiscal framework that will guide the planning and development of petroleum activities in a rational and sustainable manner for the socio-economic development of Nigeria. Essentially, the instrument seeks to help government to achieve its overarching goal of energy availability, accessibility and affordability. While a policy generally gives direction and provides framework, it is enforced through a legislative instrument. The Petroleum Industry Fiscal Bill, when it becomes an act, is therefore meant to be the legislative support to the MPR’s policy.

The 2017 Petroleum Industry Fiscal Policy largely reflects good thinking by the government but there are a number of rough edges that could be smoothened before the final legislation is passed.

First, I do not see any reason why a fiscal reform process that has the need to simplify the tax system at its heart would introduce dual tax system with the introduction of the Nigerian Hydrocarbon Tax (NHT), in addition to subjecting upstream petroleum operations to Companies’ Income Tax (CIT) while repealing the Petroleum Profits Tax (PPT). While it was obvious that the current framework for taxing oil production, a rather complicated PPT Act, needed to be set aside, replacing it with two different taxes rather makes the new regime more complicated. Simplicity is one of the canons of a good tax system. A dual system does not support this principle.

Second, I think the raise of Capital Gains Tax on petroleum asset sale from 10 per cent to 30 per cent in the proposed fiscal regime is unhelpful to development of small fields in Nigeria. Nigeria has witnessed a wave of transfer of assets from big transnational players to indigenous participants and other independents in the last two decades. This has aided indigenous participation and technology transfer in the industry.

This 20 per cent extra share of government’s take from the capital gain

I DO NOT SEE ANY REASON WHY A FISCAL REFORM PROCESS THAT HAS THE NEED TO SIMPLIFY THE TAX SYSTEM AT ITS HEART WOULD INTRODUCE DUAL TAX SYSTEM WITH THE INTRODUCTION OF THE NIGERIAN HYDROCARBON TAX (NHT) IN ADDITION TO SUBJECTING UPSTREAM PETROLEUM OPERATIONS TO COMPANIES’ INCOME TAX (CIT) WHILE REPEALING THE PETROLEUM PROFITS TAX (PPT)

by the divesting party is a transaction cost that may negatively impact divestment decisions, and, consequently, opportunity for smaller players to participate in the industry.

Third, the tax inversion penalty introduced by the proposed fiscal regime does not seem fair to oil producers. The government has proposed that total cost per barrel above 30 per cent of revenue per barrel would be disallowed for tax purpose. Total cost includes aggregate of development cost, production cost, transportation and administrative costs, and taxes. The government argues that Nigeria has one of the highest cost per barrel in the world. While this is true, this hardly arises because of any artificial cost padding as the tone of the policy document suggests. Saudi Arabia, for example, has very low cost-price-ratio because the country’s petroleum deposits are largely located on desert surface, which requires lower capital spending.

Nigeria’s richest fields are located in offshore deep water, requiring humongous capital spend, and pushing up average cost per barrel for the country. Even in onshore fields, aside the capital investment, a lot of administrative costs (from security to expertise premium) make the cost on the high side in Nigeria. In any case, no company really wants to keep a high cost as it erodes the value to its shareholders. Setting CPR to 30 per cent as the proposed fiscal regime does, could therefore be a double whammy.

The regime has a number of positives. Writers of existing petroleum laws in Nigeria, most of which have been written since many decades ago, did not envisage a time when gas would be an industry of its own. Most of the regulations on gas rely heavily on oil. The new thinking of policymakers is correcting this. The new fiscal regime copiously emphasises fiscal neutrality, where investment decisions on an aspect of the oil and gas value chain are made purely on its economics, rather than leaning on another aspect of the value chain.

This is why the new regime is discarding the associated gas framework agreement (AGFA) that allows gas development expenditure to be offset against oil income.

The decision of the policymakers to listen to the voices of gas stakeholders that application of NHT to gas disincentivises the all-important sub-sector of the industry is commendable. In the initial versions of the fiscal documents, the government sought to apply the newly introduced NHT to gas income, in addition to the currently existing companies’ income tax. This blunder would have flatly run against the vision of government to encourage investment in gas development in Nigeria.

The government also seeks to expand the activities covered under the gas utilisation incentives to include LPG projects and infrastructure.

This would be achieved by amending section 39 of the Companies Income Tax Act (CITA). The government also seeks to extend its midstream activities beyond gas processing to include oil processing (refining) and product transportation network. All these are good for the economy.

Oyewale, a chartered accountant and public policy analyst, is the Nigerian tax team lead of an independent oil and gas company

OVERCOMING THE HERDSMEN/FARMERS’CLASHES Government should adopt a timeless solution that addresses all stakeholders concerns, writes Sam Nwokoro

O

ne of the reasons why Nigeria’s economy does not experience consistent growth is because most economic policies are not holistic and all-embracing. At most, they are short-termed, fire-brigade measures with very short life-span before they become obsolete as new perspectives emerge.

The result has been that those policies failed to achieve the intended objectives. Consequently, there is a shortfall in the aggregate impact of such policies in the growth calculus. The result is unsteady Gross Domestic Product growth (rise today, fall tomorrow), limited tax windows, lack of innovation in productivity, paucity of clusters in the sectors, and this generally leads to stunted investments, both local and foreign, slow rate of job creation, spiraling unemployment, especially skilled artisanal jobs, continued over-reliance on the poorly diversified oil and gas sector as main source of national revenue and foreign reserves, inescapable resort to importation of unavailable products and services at huge cost to foreign reserves because of the disparity in exchange rates with all its volatility, and of course a damning sovereign rating that sullies the abundant human and natural endowments in the country of nearly 200 million energetic people.

Talent waste, destiny abridgement or arrested development and frightening percentage of unemployment and under-employment are all any society needs to relapse to a failed state, that is a state of Hobbessian nature. This is especially the case in any country where politics over-rides economics.

Short-sightedness in economic policies has done in this country for a long time. This is also responsible for why Nigeria is still struggling to

meet it iron and steel needs. When we thought about embracing the iron and steel sector, we started by first of all building the walls and decorating the roof before digging the foundationimporting different technologies from multiple countries: US, France, Germany, Russia. Then we allowed political brains, not technical brains to run the show. This is also why the oil and gas sector has not been able to create the kind of quantum jobs and ancillary services it is supposed to create by now since Nigeria birthed in the club of oil producing nations nearly 60 years ago. The Petroleum Industry Bill or whatever nomenclature it now goes with is something that is supposed to have been in place since the 1970s. Again more of political than technical brains have been running the Nigerian oil and gas sector-outside the oil fields and flow stations.

This again is also responsible for why Nigeria ranks low in global nutrition index because myriad of the nation’s agricultural policies right from independence had not thought about the protein segment. Until recently, Nigeria’s agriculture matrix had only emphasised on cassava, yam, garri, perhaps cotton, groundnut and maize in the past few years. Only yesterday we began to realise how rat-like we have been in the art of chewing grains like rice, wheat, millet, beans and sorghum, and then started a fire-brigade job of issuing whoever claims he can end rice importation in a jiffy import licence, preferential forex allocation, tax holidays, interestfree loans and all manner of incentives to go till the earth and subdue it with rice. But more than 10 years down the line since the rice sufficiency campaign started about 2006, how saturated are our markets with local rice and how affordable at the eateries? You don’t need to lecture anyone when you have attained self-sufficiency in

anything. The market price will say it all. You can only claim that Nigeria is now feeding her citizens with rice grown in Nigerian soil when with N50 or N100, the “Mama-Put� would dish you a plateful that can fill your stomach, and you still have left-over on the plate for the puppy gazing at you while you ate. No. Not when even a N500 plateful can only whet your appetite, not fill your stomach.

The same pathological incoherency seems to have befallen the issue of protein or beef production in the country. The major problem it seems bedeviling that sector now is the farmers/ herdsmen clashes which are also affecting the security of other food and cash crop production.

This is most worrisome because of a number of reasons bordering on policy pitfalls which have not been adequately addressed. They have not hitherto been seriously addressed because for all these donkey years of state partnership in funding the agric sector, the protein and beef segment, especially as it concerns the pastoralists who provide these beef –has not been well integrated into the agribiz chain in a holistic manner, otherwise these bestialities we are now having today in the form of herdsmen/farmers’ clash would not have arisen in the first place.

Beyond sentiments, the herdsmen versus farmers’ clashes can be solved if everyone approaches the matter as frankly and as altruistically as possible. The desperation or militancy of the herders to defend the lives of their flocks, even more than theirs is quite understandable.

Lacking in any other skill on which to survive in this competitive economic clime, nor knowledge about modern methods of plying their trade, the herders are disposed to think that any attempt at regulating them is an intrusion or affront to their survival.

Secondly, the herders do not own those cattle.

Though some of them do. But they are small in number. They would make account to their masters and possibly pay for any lost or killed one. More importantly, it appears the pastoralists have yet to be fully streamed into various government agricultural intervention schemes.

The past Goodluck Jonathan administration along with then finance Minister Okonjo-Iweala did wonderful crafting of agric policies that were very inclusive. But the extent to which awareness was created for the pastoralists to understand that they are also entitled to these schemes is what one cannot know in detail.

The fourth factor worth examining in the herdsmen-farmers’ clash is the impact of the receding Lake Chad in Northern Nigeria which is said to be the major source of water for the pastoralists, not only in Nigeria, but in the neighbouring countries such as Chad, Niger, Cameroun and Mali. The desertification resulting from receding rainfall and withering of grassland in the North has been discovered to be another factor causing the mobility of the pastoralists.

Obviously, the scale was not like this before.

Therefore, having identified these factors, the government should go about adopting a timeless solution that addresses all stakeholders concerns: that is –the farmers, the nomads, the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association, the parent body of the herders, community leaders, governors and security chiefs. Recently it is reported that one such summit took place and the Minister of Interior, Abdulrahman Dambazau agreed to the need for the much-talked about adoption of cattle ranching, which would compel the herders and cattle owners to restrict the movement of cattle in search of grazing land.

Nwokoro wrote from Lagos

15

T H I S D AY MONDAY, MAY 7, 2018

EDITORIAL RESOLVING THE JOHESU PALAVER Strikes among the unions have become too common for meaningful development

T

he ongoing strike by the Joint Health Sector Unions (JOHESU) which began on April 17 is already crippling the public health sector in the country.

And with most of our public hospitals becoming places of death, we urge the authorities to move in quickly to resolve whatever the problem is in the interest of the suffering masses.

What is particularly worrisome is that strikes have suddenly taken the centre stage of our national life. While refusal to work has been universally recognised as a tool available to the working people in their demand for a better work environment or the enhancement of their wages, the frequency of these strikes in virtually all sectors of the nation’s socio-economic life is now posing serious threat to our economic development. We therefore urge the federal government to put in place a machinery to seriously address all the issues that give rise to these endless strikes in many of the sectors.

In the instant case of the health sector, JOHESU is accusing the federal government of failing to implement a memorandum of terms WHILE WE AGREE of settlement signed WITH THE RIGHT OF with the union in 2017.

WORKERS TO DEMAND The union comprises ENFORCEMENT OF BETTER five affiliates: Medical WORKING CONDITIONS, and Health Workers WE DISAGREE WITH THE Unions of Nigeria PENCHANT FOR STRIKES (MHWUN), National AT THE SLIGHTEST EXCUSE Association of Nigeria Nurses and Midwives (NANNM), Senior Staff Association of Universities, Teaching Hospitals, Research Institutes and Associated institutions (SSAUTHRIAM), Nigeria Union of Allied Health Professionals (NUAHP) and Non Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutes (NASU).

The agreement borders on the upward review of Consolidated Health Salary Structure (CONHESS) scale, arrears of skipping CONHESS 10, recruitment of additional health professionals, implementation of some

Letters to the Editor

court judgments and upward review of retirement age from 60-65 years. The government had agreed to begin implementation five weeks from September 30, 2017. But it reneged. That was why JOHESU embarked on the current strike.

In a country where more than half of the population lives in poverty, being able to access healthcare at the public hospitals remains critical, as many cannot afford even the consultation fees in the private hospitals. Instructively, as soon as the strike began, many of the public hospitals had to discharge their patients, for their families to move them ‘elsewhere’. The elsewhere in this instance means private hospitals for those who can afford them, taking the patients home to die for those who cannot, or patronising alternative medicine practitioners. The implications of these are dire.

T T H I S DAY EDITOR IJEOMA NWOGWUGWU DEPUTY EDITORS BOLAJI ADEBIYI, JOSEPH USHIGIALE MANAGING DIRECTOR ENIOLA BELLO DEPUTY MANAGING DIRECTOR KAYODE KOMOLAFE CHAIRMAN EDITORIAL BOARD OLUSEGUN ADENIYI EDITOR NATION’S CAPITAL IYOBOSA UWUGIAREN

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

he Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole has said the demands of JOHESU, which include pay parity with doctors, is impossible but even the other parts of the agreement are yet to be implemented, hence the ongoing strike. It has become clear that the government simply enters agreements with the unions, just to end strikes, not necessarily with any intention to implement. That then explains why the unions do not trust the government. Almost all the unions in the tertiary education sector have already embarked on strikes at different times this year alone.

However, while we agree with the right of workers to demand enforcement of better working conditions, we disagree with the penchant for strikes at the slightest excuse. The unions have lost sympathy of citizens due to the realisation that the strikes are mostly about “welfare” and pay rise for their members. Besides, some of the demands of the unions are sometimes unrealistic, like seeking pay parity with doctors. But we agree to the point that government cannot cynically walk away from signed agreements.

We therefore call on JOHESU and the federal government to quickly find a middle ground, to avert avoidable deaths in the public hospitals.

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

PUBLIC HOSPITALS AS CONSULTING CLINICS

O

ne of the basic responsibilities of any government around the world is to provide social amenities to the people.

One of these social services includes the provision of hospitals both at local, state and federal levels.

Indeed, there are several building structures in Nigeria that parade themselves as hospitals but they are not because of so many things. For instance, they lack modern equipment, suffer from shortage of doctors and the worst part of it is that there is dereliction of duty by the small available number of doctors. Nigeria government has totally abandoned this very important sector because the ruling elites have nothing to do with Nigerian hospitals. Governors, presidents, permanent secretaries, local government chairmen, top government officials and those who are wealthy prefer to go to foreign countries along with their immediate family members for any ailment while the poor dies helplessly at the abandoned public hospitals.

The amount of money being spent abroad is good enough to provide good equipment to our public hospitals and to also give our local doctors the required training. The most painful issue is that our government has allowed our hospitals to be run by incompetent doctors and allowed every Dick and Harry to be a doctor. Today, a senior nurse has become a doctor especially at stateowned hospitals as nurses perform all the duties and responsibilities of doctors and they establish their own private clinics.

Dereliction of duty is another issue that should not be left out. Our medical doctors and senior nurses have become business tycoons. When you go to public hospitals they will refer you to a particular private hospital and when you get there you will find that they are the owners of that hospital; even if they did not directly refer you to a private hospital owned by them you must go there because they will never give you the required attention.

Last March, my sister who was pregnant and was in labour was taken to

a public hospital (Gambo Sawaba General Hospital) and we were told that she could not deliver the baby by herself and if she stayed long the mother and child might be endangered. The senior nurse who was doing the work of doctors told us to go to Ahmadu Bello Teaching Hospital because the governor of our state (Nasir el-Rufai) provides surgery materials for only 20 pregnant women in a week. He also told us that the materials were not provided for that week because of Good Friday and Easter Monday holidays. My elder sister begged them to give us the list of the materials needed so that we could buy them but they said it was beyond our financial capability, that it was only the government that could afford it and distributes to the hospitals across the state.

The main reason why they treated us that way was for us to go to their own private hospital which was not far away.

It was much later that I remember that our elder brother is a friend of a former medical director of the hospital. I called my brother and informed him about the situation.

This same man who had earlier referred us to teaching hospital did the operation and brought out a baby girl while I was at the chemist shop trying to buy the medicines prescribed by him.

They also go to work late because they normally go to their own hospitals before going to public hospitals where they work and leave quite early.

For this inhumane treatment to be effectively managed or controlled government should ban all government officials and their family members from going abroad for medical care. Doctors who are in active service should not be allowed to establish their own hospitals; government should provide all the necessary equipment and materials needed, senior nurses should not be allowed to establish private hospitals and more doctors and nurses should be employed.

Finally, their welfare should be improved.

Hasheem B. Ahmad, Hashimbahmad@gmail.com

APC AND N1.5 TRILLION NSIP FUND

I

t is hilarious that any All Progressives Congress (APC) operative would have the temerity to accuse the past PDP government of “corruption.” This Buhari APC-led government created a handy ATM machine, sort of, in the National Social Investment Programme (NSIP) that is a directionless vehicle by which cohorts of the Presidency may readily dip their plump fingers and help themselves to a hefty morsel in the name of some “school feeding programme.” Criticising the past Peoples Democratic Party’s ( PDP) government for what one is guilty of is called “Arab Syndrome” and it becomes real sad if this attitude is carried on to all facets of life. The APC must interrogate itself and be judged by a good conscience else it should resign itself to destroying what remains of the honest fabric of Nigeria.

Sunday Adole Jonah, Department of Physics, Federal University of Technology, Minna, Niger State

16

T H I S D AY MONDAY MAY 7, 2018

T H I S D AY MONDAY MAY 7, 2018

17

T H I S D AY ˾ MONDAY, MAY 7, 2018

18

Group Politics Editor Tobi Soniyi Email tobi.soniyi@thisdaylive.com 07054786260 SMS ONLY

POLITICS

M O N D AY D I S C O U R S E

Buhari Alone Isn’t the Problem Though there is enough proof to justify the claim that President Muhammadu Buhari has fallen short of expectations, the challenge of transforming Nigeria goes beyond the president, write Tobi Soniyi, Segun James and Shola Oyeyipo

President Muhammadu Buhari

M

any are disappointed today because the president, Muhammadu Buhari has not been able to transform Nigeria into a new country where everything suddenly becomes functional.

Nigerians expected so much from the president. His party, the All Progressives Congress promised so much and is delivering so little to the disappointment of many.

As 2019 general election approaches, we are beginning to make the same mistakes.

We are hoping that whoever becomes president should be able to correct all the structural imbalances afflicting the country. But the bitter truth is that this is not going to happen.

The best we can get is some opaque tinkering with the existing structures which will not fundamentally change the country.

So, we should begin to lower our expectations.

Just like the president, we all have our fair share of the problem.

Buhari Is a Problem But the president is a problem for many reasons. No doubt, a president is in a vantage position to steer the ship of the country to eldorado. And from the look of things, this president isn’t doing that.

Just like his predecessors, and Nigerian past leaders, Buhari is turning out to be a disappointment.

This much was stated by Nigerian foremost novelist, Professor Chinua Achebe when he wrote: “The trouble with Nigeria is simply and squarely a failure of leadership.

There is nothing basically wrong with the Nigerian character. There is nothing wrong with the Nigerian land or climate or water or air or anything else. The Nigerian problem is the unwillingness or inability of its leaders to rise to the responsibility, to the challenge of personal example which are the hallmarks of true leadership.”

Many had hoped that because of his

Chief Justice of Nigeria, Walter Onnoghen

Senate President, Bukola Saraki

spartan lifestyle, Buhari would make all the difference. With his abysmal performance so far, Buhari obviously isn’t the messiah Nigerians have been waiting for. Some of his shortcomings include: He is insensitive to the needs and feelings of the people he governs, his poor handling of the economy (allowing the naira to depreciate to as low as N350 to a US Dollar for instane), making appointments that ignored the ethno-religious setting in the country, his aversion for due process and rule of law.

Under his watch, in the last four months of this year, over 1000 persons have been killed in various parts of the country by herdsmen and, all the president did was to lament.

Since the killings began, the presidency was not only in denial but was also defending the atrocities. Those who should help him stop the killings are themselves bereft of ideas.

Apart from the herdsmen, militias have been on a killing spree in the northern part of the country. The General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, Pastor Enoch Adeboye who usually refrains from commenting on political issues is unable to hold himself back after news broke out that some gunmen went into a church and killed people.

He said: “It doesn’t matter the denomination…by the special grace of God, all Christians in Nigeria call me daddy. So when any of them dies, it’s my son or

daughter that is dead.

“It’s a terrible thing. A nation may survive a civil war, but no nation can survive a religious war and remains the same.”

He therefore called on the president to do more to stop the killings.

The Christian Association of Nigeria, (CAN) also called for a national day of protest to draw attention of government to the killings. Jolted by the killing of two priests and 17 worshippers of St. Ignatius Catholic church, Mbalom, Gwer East LGA of Benue State, CAN President, Rev Olasupo Ayokunle, urged Christians to hold the peaceful protests within their church premises on Sunday April 29, 2018.

He said: “CAN urges Christians in Nigeria to hold peaceful protest on the set aside date, in the premises of their churches asking the Federal Government and the security agencies to stop the unending killings and bloodshed in the country.

“Christians are to carry placards with inscriptions meant to address issues about sustained killings, attacks and destruction of their property in Nigeria.

“The inscriptions on placards could read, “Enough of bloodshed in Nigeria”, “Enough of unlawful killings in the country”, “FG, Release Leah Sharibu from the bondage”, “FG, Stop Herdsmen Killings”, “CAN rejects FG’s poor handling of insecurity”, etc.

“Government should be called upon to perform their constitutional responsibility of protecting citizens now. No excuse should be given for this wicked act again and perpetrators must be brought to book now.”

Many wrongly assume that Nigeria will become a better place once Buhari is no more at the helms of affairs, the truth, however is that this is not going to be the case

But the Problem

President

Isn’t

the

Many wrongly assume that Nigeria will become a better place once Buhari is no more at the helms of affairs, the truth, however is that this is not going to be the case.

If we remove Buhari and elect someone else as the president, will that person be able to stop the National Assembly

from continuing milking the country?

Even when the country is not earning enough to take care of the citizens, the lawmakers don’t love the country enough to make concession and reduce what they take from the country.

It will take our willingness as a people to do that which is right and good for the people before the country can be on a path to development.

Leadership is important, but we are wrong to keep on focusing on the Presidency as a place where this will happen.

Not necessarily. History is replete with stories of those who changed their country even when they are not occupying any leadership position.

If we remove Buhari, will that solve the problem of electing into the National Assembly people who don’t understand what they do there? This reaction of Senator Abu Ibrahim (Katsina- APC) during the debate on whether to impeach Buhari for paying $469m to the United States of America to buy fighter jets without appropriation raises the question whether the Senator should he there in the first instance.

The Senator accused senators of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) of conspiring to impeach Buhari.

He justified the president’s decision to make the withdrawal on precedence.

“He took action based on national interest, that’s why he authorised this payment. As far as I’m concerned, this is the first time that money drawn from excess crude oil account is being brought to the National Assembly. Since they begin to operate this account, I have never seen any expenditure that was brought here for approval. “$17.7 billion was drawn by (ex-President) Obasanjo to pay the Paris Club without National Assembly approval. Obasanjo left N9.3 billion in excess crude account but former President Goodluck Jonathan …the money with no recourse to the National CONT’D ON PAGE 19

19

T H I S D AY ˾ MONDAY, MAY 7, 2018

POLITICS

MONDAY DISCOURSE BUHARI ALONE ISN’T THE PROBLEM

It will take our willingness as a people to do that which is right and good for the people before the country can be on a path to development

Assembly. The account was increased to over $20 billion in 2008 and decreased to less than $4 billion by Jonathan in 2010.

It never came to National Assembly for approval. “$2 billion was used by the previous PDP administration to fight Boko Haram in 2014. Governor Godswill Akpabio was the one who moved the motion at the National Economic Council to get the money. $5 billion was taken for power generation, funding was also sourced for Niger Delta, the same process was not taken by (ex-President Yar ’ adua). It was later taken to the National Assembly and it was approved.

“This is a PDP conspiracy. I will like PDP to tell us which of their governors has taken the money released from excess crude oil account to the state assembly for approval. If this is a PDP conspiracy to tarnish the image of Muhammadu Buhari, they will not be able to do it because we are coming out with figures.”

People voted Buhari because they thought he would not be a Jonathan or an Obasanjo.

Besides, this idea of defending our tribesmen even when they have done what is wrong has become a part of our politics. The Southwest did that when Olusegun Obasanjo was president. The South-south and the South-east rationalised and justified all the wrong things Goodluck Jonathan did as president. No one should be surprised, the north is defending illegality perpetuated by Buhari. Those who should defend democracy and the people are busy defending their tribesmen.

The question is, if we get a new president, will this culture of tribalism suddenly disappear? Will loyalty to ethnicity disappear if Buhari leaves will our attachment to our ethnic group which often prejudices our approach to issues disappear?

Will the new president be able to stop states’ governors from stealing funds meant for their states and local government areas?

One of the recurrent frauds the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has had to deal with is the issue of governors diverting and stealing funds meant for local government areas. Not one of those governors has been convicted. This isn’t a Buhari’s creation. If we have a new president, will this stop to be the case?

The states are already terrorising local governments, they withhold their funds, meddle in their affairs and determine who become chairmen and councillors.

Yet the same states want true federalism.

If we change the president, will the new president be able to stop this invasion of councils by states?

Will the new president be able to make the judiciary to become fast and efficient in justice delivery?

We like to blame the president for all the woes in the country. But is it the president that is making it difficult for the judiciary to stop the practice of taking notes in long hands which results in wasting valuable time doing what technology has taken care of in other climes? Nigerian judges waste enormous time writing down everything the lawyers say. And Nigerian lawyers are very verbose. So our judges are writing themselves to death. But they don’t travel to Saudi Arabia or London on horseback. They fly. They like the fact that technology has revolutionized how we travel but they refused to embrace

Chief Emeka Anyaoku

electronic recording of court proceedings.

They keep the nation backward and allow litigants to die before the courts determine their cases. But we all blame the president!

If the president moves in to help with this, it will become interference in the affairs of the judiciary. Nothing is going to change in the judiciary regardless of who becomes the president unless those in charge become bold and introduce the necessary reforms.

We need innovators and reformers in all segments of our society but what we get are people who tinker with the structures and make incremental improvements.

If Buhari leaves, and a new president comes in, will our attitude to obedience to law change? Has anyone asked why drivers did not obey traffic laws during Jonathan and are still not obeying the law now that Buhari is there?

Has anyone asked why the Nigerian Immigration Service’s offices nationwide collected more than the required fees to issue passports during Jonathan regime and they are still doing it now that Buhari is there?

When Jonathan was there, we paid for drivers’ licenses but we did not get the licenses Today, we still suffer the same problem.

The reality is that it will take more than a president to change this country.

History is replete with stories of those who changed their country even when they are not occupying any leadership position

When will the people be able to have the courage to insist on what is right from those who hold power in trust for them?

If Buhari leaves will our politicians suddenly become democrats? Or will it suddenly inculcate in all of us democratic values?

While it should be conceded that there is no basis for comparing Nigeria with advanced democracies, there is nothing wrong with adopting that which is good from these countries. When you are given a job to do and it turns out that you can not do the job, you should honourably resign. Everyday, people are killed in outrageous circumstances, yet, the minister for defence is holding on to his appointment. The Inspector General of Police is safe in his job. If Buhari leaves or a new government takes over, will this stop to be the practice?

There are democratic values that are not written in any law which are observed in the interest of the people and the country.

Nigeria is racing towards another general elections, the likelihood is that the result will not produce any significant difference unless the electorate begin to act differently.

In this regard, the advice of a former Secretary General of the Commonwealth, Chief Emeka Anyaoku is very timely and relevant. Speaking on the theme ‘Leadership and the Future of Nigeria’ at a symposium to mark the ten years anniversary of the death of Senator Abraham Adesanya, Anyaoku said: “Now that national elections are approaching in 2019, I would like to end by urging all intending voters to regard a firm unambiguous and timespecific commitment to the restructuring of Nigeria’s present governance architecture, as the pre-requisite for voting for any political party and its candidates.”

The electorate should stop basing their decision on primordial sentiments. They should stop mortgaging their future for peanuts. They should dig into the past of

those aspiring to rule them and ensure that only people that demonstrate exceptionally leadership qualities are elected into public offices.

Again, we refer to the attributes of a good leader as identified by elder statesman, Anyaoku. He said: “A leader must, in my view, possess to a good degree inter alia the following attributes: the capacity to inspire and form affinity with the people that the leader is leading; the capacity to have and articulate a vision of where he/ she plans to take the country concerned; the capacity to deliver electoral promises; and the capacity to identify with and be seen to be tackling the challenges facing the people he/she is leading. Hence, leadership is primarily about service, and servant leadership enables the building of trust with bonding and continuing inspiration of the people. A good leadership must be defined by discipline, resilience, perseverance, determination, unyielding devotion, and, above all, a strong political will to act without deference to sectionalism.

“It is not always easy to find a convergence of all these attributes in a single individual.”

He mentioned three examples of leaders whose performance in their countries had demonstrable achievements, especially in putting their countries on the global map and in some cases, lifting them from the nadir of developmental challenges “A common feature of their successful leadership is their capacity, during electoral campaigns and on assumption of office, to spell out in clear and unambiguous terms the goals and guiding principles that would define their tenure in office”, he added.

Nigerians will have to begin to do things differently to expect a different result. Everyone has got a role to play.

Nation building is not for those elected into offices alone, the citizens should not accept the status quo as it. They have to continue to strive for a better country.

20

T H I S D AY Ëž Ëœ ÍľËœ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍś

FEATURES

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

Experiencing GTB’s Food and Drink Fair Kids and teens who participated in the third edition of the GTBank Food and Drink Fair had real-time culinary experience and great fun, writes Peter Uzoho

F

oremost African financial institution and lifestyle bank, Guaranty Trust Bank Plc (GTB), staged for the third time, its Food and Drink Fair which succeeded in attracting tens of thousands of Lagosians to the bank’s event centre at the Water Corporation Drive, Oniru, Lagos.

Organised every year as part of the bank’s corporate social responsibility, the fair is designed to celebrate Nigeria’s vibrant food culture and promote enterprise in the small business sector of the food industry by bringing together SME operators, global renowned chefs and food lovers from across the world.

Held for two days in the last two editions, the third and 2018 edition was extended for three days and featured different activities. There were adult and children masterclasses in the art and business of foods and drinks where renowned chefs delivered a host of live cooking demonstrations of their favourite delicacies.

Arriving at the venue the first day, Sunday, this reporter was stunned by the heavy crowd on ground right from the outdoor area to the experience centre as people jostled to find their way in and out. However, having already anticipated this kind of multitude, the bank’s logistics team put up measures to ensure there were no issues. On the wall as one entered the experience centre was the floor map which helped everyone locate the different areas with ease.

Carefully curated section of small food businesses offered best culinary experiences in Lagos and beyond. There were spaces for street foods offering the best local delicacies, as well as Farmer’s market where SMEs involved in agriculture sold fresh and organic farm products.

Attendees enjoyed diverse range of gastronomic delight from restaurants and outdoor grills well-known for setting taste buds on fire with exciting mix of eclectic cocktails and pastries.

Happening alongside eating and drinking were five masterclasses of 60 minutes each delivered by some of the finest chefs in the world.

Chef Imoteda took the audience on the art of plating; Chef Lorraine Pascale took them on making the perfect deserts; Chef Sunny Anderson lectured on home cooking made easy; Chef Scott Winston focused on support and advice for small food businesses; the last class for the featured first winner of the Great British Bake Off and TV presenter, Chef Edd Kimber, who took his enthusiastic audience on making pastries and sweet things.

On the second day, boisterous school children from different schools in Lagos appeared in company of their teachers to take part in the culinary classes. On their arrival, they were led to the children’s play area were they engaged themselves in some recreation activities. This reporter was actually attracted to the children’s play area where high octane actions were taking place. The area never experienced a dull moment as kids had ample time to have fun and taste familiar and new food and drinks. All the facilities needed for their play were available: the bouncing castle, the merry-go-round, the makeshift hospital and supermarket were all there for them to recreate a new school world.

They were tutored on how to use the ATM for cash withdrawals, how to bargain and buy items in the market, and how to prepare certain foods. This, as explained to this reporter, was to teach them, the future generations, all the good values and qualities they need to learn before they grow older.

As they were done at the children’s play area, the pupils and students were taken to the masterclass hall where one of Nigeria’s experts in the world of cooking, Chef Muneera Tahir simply addressed as Chef Muse, took them on how to make sandwiches, pancakes and how to bake chocolate cookies. Eager to understand every bit of the lessons, the children asked and asked and dozens of questions filled the

School children at Chef Muse's class

Kids shopping at the makeshift supermarket

arena, putting Muse on hot seat. But as part of her job, Muse took time to respond to all the posers to her students’ satisfaction.

The third day being a public holiday recorded an upsurge in attendance. Foodies and fun-seekers who couldn’t make it the first two days due to work and business schedules showed up.

Parents took their kids to the show to have fun to their fullest. The kids were also engaged in a masterclass where Chef Crofie practically taught them how to bake cupcake. They were so excited and could not hide their joy.

I feel good coming here because I’ve always wanted to learn the recipes for cooking and I’m happier because I now know how to make chocolate cookies. I enjoyed the teaching by Chef Muse. I would like to be a chef in future.

I say thank you to GTBank for putting up this event for us

With such awesome experience, the children shared their overwhelming joy with this reporter.

Master Ozezele Okharedia, 11 years old pupil of the Temple Preparatory School, Ilupeju: said: “I’m happy, I’m having fun here with my friends. We’re riding bicycle and I’m the director. I like this place, it’s so nice. I’d like to say thank you to GTBank for giving us this opportunity to have fun.�

Eleven-year-old Master Fola Odejano, from Readington School said: “I feel happy and glad and I think I just learnt how to use the ATM to withdraw cash. I’m so eager to learn how to cook because I normally watch my Mummy cook and I’d like to start preparing food myself.

I also want to make some friends here. I say a big thank you to GTBank for organising this programme and I want God to bless them.�

Miss Chantelle Offor, nine-year-old grade five pupil of Jewels and Pearls Private School: shared her excitement. “Coming here is so exciting, especially because I haven’t been here before.

So I feel happy. They are going to be teaching us how to cook and I want to learn. I want to learn how to bake cake and how to make pounded yam and lots more. I say thank you so much to GTBank for this opportunity. It has been so good.�

For Miss Valencia Erediauwa of the Learning Place Schools, Lekki: “I feel good coming here because I’ve always wanted to learn the recipes for cooking and I’m happier because I now know how to make chocolate cookies. I enjoyed the teaching by Chef Muse. I would like to be

a chef in future. I say thank you to GTBank for putting up this event for us.�

Miss Adaora Nwosu, 11-year-old Primary six pupil enthused: “It was a very fun filled experience, I learnt a lot which I didn’t know before and I got to taste the chocolate the chef prepared. I’m happy I came here, I’ve learnt new method of making sandwiches. This is my first time of attending this kind of event and it will certainly not be my last. I enjoyed Chef Muse’s class because she explained how to do a lot of things. She was very informative and she’s temporal as well. I say a very big thank you to GTBank because the event is full of fun and they planned it very well.�

Miss Chisaa Opara, 12, and JSS1 student of Vivian Fowler Memorial College for Girls, said: “It was nice because I’m a girl and I have to learn how to cook and I was watching the chef to know how to do some of those things.

I cook at home and I know how to prepare rice and stew very well. The way the pancake was done here was actually different from the way I prepare it, and for the sandwich, I’ve never prepared it before but now I know how to prepare it. “I’m even more excited that the chef had to pick me to join her in the presentation, and when I came back my friends were like, wow! Her teaching was nice because you can actually understand what she was trying to say and you will like to put it into practice.

Thank you GTBank for allowing us to have this experience and God bless them.�

21

T H I S D AY Ëž Ëœ ÍľËœ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍś

FEATURES

Five-year-old Master Faizu Gombe of Meldow Hall Nursery/Pimary School, Lekki: “I feel happy that I’m here. They’re teaching us baking; Auntie Crofie has taught us how to make cupcake, cupcake is sweet. I can make it now when I get home. I say thank you to our auntie. I say thank you to GTBank.�

Master Ikechi Esiaba, nine, and primary four pupil of Child Ville School, Ogudu, said: “I feel very excited being here. This place is so amazing and nice and I like it. Thank you GTBank.�

Ten-year-old primary six pupil of Pelgen Primary School, Shomolu, Miss Ijeoma Ilochi, said. “I’m so excited, I’ve seen a lot of my friends here. I’ve learnt how to make cupcake and it’s not hard, so easy to learn and I’m glad I’m here to learn it. I came with my parents and they bought me food and drinks; they said I should enjoy myself. I want to say a big thank you to GTBank and God bless them.�

For Miss Abisola Akingbade, eight, and year four pupil of Caleb International School who came with her brother, Tobi said, “I feel happy, I’m having fun with my friends here. It’s so nice coming here. I’ve learnt how to make cupcake. My Mummy brought us here. I say thank you to GTBank.�

Giving her experience with the children, Chef Crofie said: “It’s nice teaching children. You know when you’re with them you find out that they can do better than what you think they can’t be able to do. So I’ve found out that they are so eager to learn and they paid much attention to instructions. They are lovely children, so I enjoy being with them. And I encourage parents to try and give them opportunities to do some things at home, especially cooking, to prepare them ahead of time.�

Earlier, a teacher at Readington School, Lekki, Mrs. Esther Akintimehin, who brought her pupils to the fair, said they wanted the children to have more experience and practicalise the things they were being taught in school. “I believe today they’re also going to see different foods and drinks and I guess they will learn how to cook some of those foods at the end of the class. Apart from that, they are going to meet their peers from other schools, make friends, gist and have fun. So it’s going to be a lovely experience for them and for us as well,’ Akintimehin said.

She added: “Sincerely, I thank GTBank for organising this programme and making it possible for our kids to have some unique experience.

They’ve done so well, so I encourage them to keep it up.�

The Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Guaranteed Trust Bank, Mr. Segun Agbaje, who was cornered by this reporter, expressed his gratitude to God for making the programme to happen. “I’m really grateful to God because all these we can’t do without Him. Truly, I feel very fulfilled, I see lots of people, I’m seeing the small businesses who are the vendors, who

School kids riding bike at the children's play area

School kids at the play area

School children at Chef Muse's masterclass

It’s nice teaching children.You know when you’re with them you ďŹ nd out that they can do better than what you think they can’t be able to do. So I’ve found out that they are so eager to learn and they paid much attention to instructions. They are lovely children, so I enjoy being with them. And I encourage parents to try and give them opportunities to do some things at home, especially cooking, to prepare them ahead of time

Kids in the baking class with Chef CroďŹ e

are the people we do this for, to give them a platform; I see them sell things, I see people know them, I see great masterclasses where

people have been very engaging, asking very intelligent questions. So truly I’m very fulfilled,�

Agbaje said.

Explaining why the masterclasses were ar-

ranged for children, he said: “Children are the future. Children are the future of any society. So we’ve got to teach them all the right qualities and all the right things they need to know.�

22

T H I S D AY ˾ ˜ Ͷ˜ ͰͮͯͶ

BUSINESSWORLD SEPLAT PETROLEUM TO DRILL FIVE NEW WELLS IN OMLS 4, 38, 41

set a new record for quarterly revenue contribution and the steps we took to refinance the balance sheet have significantly strengthened our liquidity position and will allow investments to be scaled up. Our debut bond issuance marks another key milestone for the company, widening our long term capital base in support of our growth strategy while also reducing overall borrrowing costs,” he said.

“Looking ahead we will return to drilling in the second half of the year as we re-focus our efforts on the numerous high margin and short cycle cash return opportunities we have in our portfolio.I am also pleased to report that our strong operational and financial performance has resulted in the Board taking the decision to reinstate the dividend for our shareholders.

With our capital structure reset and robust free cash flow generation underpinning the business we also have the headroom to capitalise on inorganic growth opportunities as and when they may arise, in line with our price disciplined approach,” Avuru added.

FG WILL RESOLVE POWER DISTRIBUTION TROUBLES BEFORE YEAR END, FASHOLA ASSURES

PSRP is now completed and we can proudly report that,” Fashola said.

According to him, having reportedly solved the governance problem, the other items to be faced include metering and expansion of distribution network.

He stated that although there was an existing capacity of 2,000MW of power that could not be distributed, the government was working to see what it could do quickly to solve the problem before the end of the year.

On electricity generation capacities that could be added to the grid soon, Fashola said he was expecting the Azura Power in Edo State to come on stream fully with about 459MW, as well as Kaduna and Afam plants.

Group Business Editor

Chika Amanze-Nwachuku AgriBusiness/Industry Editor

Jonathan Eze

Comms/e-Business Editor

Emma Okonji

Capital Market Editor

Goddy Egene

Senior Correspondent

Raheem Akingbolu (Advertising) Correspondents

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

Nume Ekeghe (Money Market) Nosa Alekhuogie (Cap Mkt)

NEWS

Indorama Hits 4,000 MT of Fertilizer Production Daily Ernest Chinwo in Port Harcourt Indorama Eleme Fertiliser & Chemicals Limited (IEFCL) has said it produces 4,000 metric tons of Urea fertiliser per day or 1.5 million per annum, which it supplies to Nigerian farmers nationwide, and exports the surplus to foreign countries.

Head of Corporate Communications of the company, Dr. Jossy Nkwocha, said that Indorama has through its Urea fertiliser become the best friend of farmers across the country, and contributes immensely to food security in the country.

Nkwocha spoke at the weekend when members of the Rivers State Council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) visited the company as part of activities marking its Press Week and 2018 World Press Freedom Day. He said: “Indorama’s fertiliser export to other African countries and beyond has transformed Nigeria from being a fertiliser importer to a net exporter of the commodity, with the attendant huge foreign exchange earnings for the country.”

Furthermore, he explained that farmers were now assured of quality and adequate supplies of fertilisers as a direct outcome of the Indorama world-class fertiliser plant in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, which was officially inaugurated in July last year by the Vice President, Prof.

Yemi Osinbajo.

Nkwocha stated that through the Indorama Agriculture Development Programme (IADP), the company was building the capacity of farmers across the country by affording them free trainings on global best practices in fertiliser application and crop management.

These, according to him, were contributing to boosting the farmers’ harvests and putting more money in their pockets.

Nkwocha noted the facility visit was very good for the company as it afforded it the opportunity to thank the media for its support since its inception. “This (visit) is very good event for Indorama. It is an opportunity to thank the media for all the support we have gotten these years. We thank you for the support and cooperation extended to us since 2006 when Indorama took over Eleme Petrochemicals

Company Limited,” he said.

He urged journalists in the country to practice developmental journalism aimed at enhancing the welfare and development of the people of the country.

In her speech, the acting Chairman of the Rivers State Council of the NUJ, Comrade Uche Agbam, appealed to the company to support the union in the training and retraining of journalists in the state.

Agbam said, “We thank Indorama for giving us the opportunity to embark on tour of this complex. We are here because it is part of activities lined up for our 2018 Press Week.

“We need to have knowledge of the activities of this world-class complex and we believe that being here today will broaden our knowledge on reporting issues concerning Indorama.

ATCON NEW EXCOS

L-R: 2nd Vice President, Association of Telecoms Companies of Nigeria (ATCON), Mr. Muyiwa Ogungboye; 1st Vice President, Mr. Ikechukwu Nnamani and President, Mr. Olusola Teniola, during the ATCON AGM/NEC Elections 2018 held in Lagos...recently

Benin Disco Urges Compliance with Safety Standards As court jails two vandals in Edo Central Ejiofor Alike In commemoration of the recent 28th edition of the World Safety Day, the Benin Electricity Distribution Plc (BEDC) has called on individuals and organisations to ensure strict compliance to the highest safety standards with a view to reducing occupational hazards.

This is coming as a Benin Magistrate Court sitting in Ubiaja in Esan South East LGA, of Edo state, has sentenced two transformer vandals, Mohammed Dan Fulani, 27 and Babangida Aliyu, 29, to one month and two weeks imprisonment with hard labour for vandalising a BEDC transformer.

Speaking as a panelist during the Safety Day celebration at the University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH), Benin, the company’s safety manager, Mr. Gilbert Nweke listed some key responsibilities any organisation owes its workers in promoting a safe working environment.

He listed the responsibilities to include: providing a safe working environment for the workers, providing the needed tools and equipment to carry out the job safely, ensuring actions are taken to correct cases of hazardous conditions, making available the safety policy to workers and enforcing compliance with the use of Personal Protective

Equipment (PPE).

According to him, safety measures adopted by BEDC are collaboration with state governments to drive the campaign on the dangers of residing or performing commercial activities under power lines,enlightening the public on the need to imbibe safety culture while using electricity, substation fencing especially those in the commercial/public areas and residential quarters, on the job training of young graduates in partnership with Elizade University, Ilara Mokin, Ondo state and procurement of safety tools i.e. grounding kits, earth mats, operating rods, neon testers, discharge rods among others for technical staff.

Also speaking at the ceremony, the Consultant PediatricOphthalmologist, UBTH Dr. Valentina Okeigbemen, stressed the need to focus on the young worker because “our youth are our future generation and what affects our youth, affects our generations.”

The Director, World Safety Organisation (WSO, Nigeria), Mr. Soji Olalokun, in his opening speech, said the World Safety Organisation had keyed into this annual event as a way of promoting the objective of making safety a way of life worldwide.

In a related development, a Benin Magistrate Court sit-

ting in Ubiaja in Esan South East LGA, of Edo state, has sentenced two transformer vandals, Mohammed Dan Fulani, 27 and Babangida Aliyu, 29 to one month and two weeks imprisonment with

hard labour for vandalising BEDC transformer.

The two vandals were arraigned on a two count charge of “malicious damage and stealing” and pleaded guilty to the charges at the

Benin Magistrate Court before Justice N, B, Edogun.

A similar incident occurred in Ubiaja, a year ago when one Osifo Peter was arrested and prosecuted for vandalizing BEDC substation.

Dell Technologies, Microsoft Collaborate on IoT Solutions Delivery Emma Okonji Dell Technologies and Microsoft have announced their collaboration to deliver a joint Internet of Things (IoT) solution designed to help vertical customers simplify deploying their end-to-end IoT solutions from the edge to the cloud.

The combination of Microsoft Azure IoT applications and services, VMware Pulse IoT Centre and Dell Edge Gateways will offer customers streamlined management, centralised monitoring and security from devices to the cloud.

Businesses that are implementing IoT initiatives today have invested significant resources and manpower to research and integrate a multitude of hardware, software and cloud services across the fragmented IoT landscape to stand up a solution that meets their business needs and adheres to IT departments’ stringent standards.

Those businesses want to harness advanced services such as artificial intelligence (AI) and real-time decision making, while also making sure all deployment, asset management, security and compliance requirements are met.

Dell Technologies and Microsoft said the collaboration would make IoT easier for customers by delivering a secure solution that provides consistent infrastructure management from the edge to the cloud.

According to a joint statement released recently by the global technology solution providers, the joint solution offers an underlying IoT infrastructure, management capabilities and security for customers looking to deploy IoT for scenarios like predictive maintenance, supply chain visibility and other use cases.

The solution is expected to deliver intelligence at the edge with Microsoft Azure

IoT Edge. It is as application extends cloud intelligence to edge devices so that devices can act locally and leverage the cloud for global coordination and machine learning at scale.

It will also deliver management and monitoring of edge devices with VMware Pulse IoT Center: This provides more secure, enterprise-grade management and monitoring of diverse, certified edge devices including gateways and connected IoT devices, bios and operating systems.

This ecosystem will be built over time involving deeper integration and certification to support customer requirements.

The combined solution will deliver high-performance, rugged Dell Edge Gateways: IoT devices with powerful dual-core Intel® AtomTM processors connect a variety of wired and wireless devices and systems to aggregate and analyse inputs and send relevant data to the cloud.

23

T H I S D AY Ëž Ëœ ÍľËœ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍś

BUSINESSWORLD

Group Business Editor Chika Amanze-Nwachuku

Email chika.amanzenwachukwu@thisdaylive.com 08033294157, 08057161321

Ͳ Ëœ Í° ÍŽ ÍŻ Íś MONEY MARKET OBB OVERNIGHT

REPO Ͱ˛͜͹ Ϲ ͹˛͹͹ Ϲ

CALL 1-MONTH 3-MONTH

Ͱ˛͜͹Ϲ Ͳ˛ʹ; Ϲ ͳ˛ͯ;Ϲ

S & P INDEX INDEX LEVEL 1-DAY MONTH-TO-DATE

͹ʹ͎˛͡ʹ Ϲ ͎̋˛Ͱ͡Ϲ ͎˛͎ͯϹ

S & P INDEX 1/4 TO DATE YEAR TO DATE

Ͳ˛͹ͰϹ ͡˛ͳʹϹ

EXCHANGE RATE ͹͎ͳ˛Ͱ͎˚ͯ ̊ ̊

THUMBS UP A Step in Right Direction

ACCOUNTING TO SHAREHOLDERS

L-R; Company Secretary, FSDH Merchant Bank Ltd, Mrs. Aidevo Odu-Thomas; Chairman, Mr. Femi Agbaje; and Managing Director/ CEO, Mrs. Hamda Ambah, at the 6th annual general meeting of FSDH Merchant Bank Ltd in Lagos ... recently etop ukutt

Inflation Rate Seen Heading Towards Single-digit Obinna Chima Inflation rate in the country has been projected to drop further in April, thereby inching towards a single-digit rate.

Analysts at FSDH Merchant Bank Limited stated this in a report. They anticipated that inflation rate (year-on-year) would drop to 12.43 per cent in April 2018, from the 13.34 per cent recorded in the month of March.

The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) is expected to release inflation rate for April on May 13, based on the data release calendar on its website.

The investment bank said despite the increase recorded in the prices of some food and non-food items, the base effect of the Composite Consumer Price Index (CCPI) in April 2017, would depress the inflation rate.

It indicated that the value of

ECONOMY the naira depreciated at both the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange (NAFEX) and parallel markets. According to the report, the value of the naira depreciated by 0.09 per cent and 0.14 per cent to close at US$/N360.17 and US$/N363 respectively at the NAFEX and parallel markets at the end of April. “The rise in the international prices of food coupled with the marginal depreciation in the value of the naira led to an increase in the prices of imported consumer goods in Nigeria between the two months under review. “The prices of certain seasonal food items we monitored appreciated in April 2018, leading to 0.86 per cent increase in our Food and Non-Alcoholic Index. “This index increased yearon-year by 14.71per cent, up from 234.39 points recorded in

April 2017. We also observed an increase in the prices of Transport and Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas & Other Fuels divisions between March and April. “We estimate that the increase in the CCPI in April would produce an inflation rate of 12.43 per cent lower than the 13.34 per cent recorded in March,� it added.

Also, the Financial Derivatives Company Limited projected inflation rate for April to reduce to 12.7 per cent, adding that food inflation likely to reach point of inflection soon.

It, however, identified likely risks to further drop in inflation to include the passage of 2018 budget, increased election spending and growth in broad money supply (M2).

Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele recently said the central bank would continue to work towards a single-digit inflation rate.

“We would love as much as possible to have inflation as low as possible. Last month, inflation was 13.43 per cent. “We are hoping that in 2018, we should achieve a very low double digit inflation level and if we are lucky, high single-digit. “And I think with that we should be seen to be moving in the right direction,� Emefiele had explained.

The Food Price Index (FPI) from the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) for April 2018 showed that the Index averaged 173.5 points, 0.25 per cent higher than the revised value for March 2018, and 2.72 per cent higher than the April 2017 figure.

According to the FAO, sugar prices recorded the highest drop; vegetable oil and meat prices also declined.

However, prices of dairy and Continued on page 24

Despite NNPC’s Massive Importation, Marketers Still Sell Petrol Above OfďŹ cial Ex-depot Price Ejiofor Alike Despite the flooding of the Nigerian market with petrol by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), which has led to the sale of the product at official pump price, some depot owners are still selling above the official ex-depot price, THISDAY’s investigation has revealed.

THISDAY gathered at the weekend that while filling stations were selling at pump price of N140 –N145 per litre, which comply with the retail price band of N135 – N145 set by the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA), most of

ENERGY the depot owners were yet to revert to the N123.28 – N133.28 indicative ex-depot price set by the pricing agency.

It was gathered that apart from the major oil marketers, about 12 other depots had stock of petrol at the weekend.

The major marketers include: Oando Plc, Total Nigeria Plc, Mobil, Forte Oil, Conoil, and MRS. The major oil marketing companies traditionally sell at N145 per litre at the depots but to only their dealers, who are also

provided with special offers to ensure that they sell at the same N145 per litre in their branded filling stations.

Apart from the major marketers, petrol was also available in about 12 other depots – AA Rano, Chi-Pet, First Royal, Folawiyo, Heyden Petroleum, Integrated Oil and Gas, MRS, Obat, African Tanker, T-Time Pet, and Wosbas.

THISDAY’s investigation revealed that ex-depot price was different in many of these 12 depots, where products could be accessed from third party at ex-depot prices of N133.50 – N136.50, compared to the indicative ex-depot price

of N123.28 – N133.28 recommended by the PPPRA via the circular with reference number A.4/9/017/C.2/IV/690 of May 11, 2016.

One of the marketers, who spoke to THISDAY off the record, blamed the situation on NNPC’s role as the sole importer of petrol. “Marketers are finding it difficult with NNPC as the sole importer, because NNPC buys at a higher cost at the international market than the private marketers.

If the private marketers are given the same incentives to import like NNPC, they will buy at cheaper Continued on page 24

Ă‹Ă?Ăž ĂĄĂ?Ă?Ă•ËŞĂ? Ă‹Ă˜Ă˜Ă™Ă&#x;Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ă—Ă?Ă˜Ăž ÞÒËÞ ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă˜ĂžĂœĂ‹Ă– Ă‹Ă˜Ă• Ă™Ă? Ă“Ă‘Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă‹ Ě™ Ěš Ă’Ă‹ĂŽ Ă?Ă“Ă‘Ă˜Ă?ĂŽ Ă‹ ÍœÍ°Ë›Íł ĂŒĂ“Ă–Ă–Ă“Ă™Ă˜ ĂŒĂ“Ă–Ă‹ĂžĂ?ĂœĂ‹Ă– Ă?Ă&#x;ĂœĂœĂ?Ă˜Ă?ĂŁ Ă?ĂĄĂ‹Ăš åÓÞÒ ÞÒĂ? Ă?ÙÚÖĂ?Ă? Ă‹Ă˜Ă• Ă™Ă? Ă’Ă“Ă˜Ă‹ Ě™ Ă™ Ěš Ă’Ă‹Ă? ĂŒĂ?Ă?Ă˜ ĂĄĂ“ĂŽĂ?Ă–ĂŁ ĂŽĂ?Ă?Ă?ĂœĂ“ĂŒĂ?ĂŽ Ă‹Ă? Ă‹ Ă?ĂžĂ?Ăš Ă“Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? ĂœĂ“Ă‘Ă’Ăž ĂŽĂ“ĂœĂ?Ă?ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ë› Ă’Ă? ĂžĂœĂ‹Ă˜Ă?Ă‹Ă?ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ Ă Ă‹Ă–Ă&#x;Ă?ĂŽ Ă‹Ăž ÍŻÍ´ ĂŒĂ“Ă–Ă–Ă“Ă™Ă˜ Ă?Ă˜Ă—Ă“Ă˜ĂŒĂ“ Ě™ Ěš Ă“Ă? Ă‹Ă“Ă—Ă?ĂŽ Ă‹Ăž ĂšĂœĂ™Ă Ă“ĂŽĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă‹ĂŽĂ?Ă›Ă&#x;Ă‹ĂžĂ? Ă–Ă™Ă?Ă‹Ă– Ă?Ă&#x;ĂœĂœĂ?Ă˜Ă?ĂŁ Ă–Ă“Ă›Ă&#x;ÓÎÓÞã ÞÙ Ă“Ă‘Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă‹Ă˜ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă’Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ă? Ă“Ă˜ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă?ĂžĂœĂ“Ă‹Ă–Ă“Ă?ĂžĂ? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ÙÞÒĂ?Ăœ ĂŒĂ&#x;Ă?Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă?Ëœ ÞÒĂ?ĂœĂ?ĂŒĂŁ ĂœĂ?ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă?Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ ÞÒĂ? ĂŽĂ“Ă?Ă?Ă“Ă?Ă&#x;ÖÞÓĂ?Ă? Ă?Ă˜Ă?Ă™Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂžĂ?ĂœĂ?ĂŽ Ă“Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă?Ă‹ĂœĂ?Ă’ Ă?Ă™Ăœ ĂžĂ’Ă“ĂœĂŽ Ă?Ă&#x;ĂœĂœĂ?Ă˜Ă?Ă“Ă?Ă?Ëœ Ă?Ă‹Ă“ĂŽ ÞÒĂ? Ă?ÞËÞĂ?Ă—Ă?Ă˜ĂžË› Ă—Ă™Ă˜Ă‘ ÙÞÒĂ?Ăœ ĂŒĂ?Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ă“ĂžĂ?Ëœ ÞÒÓĂ? Ă‹Ă‘ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă—Ă?Ă˜Ăž ĂĄĂ“Ă–Ă– ĂšĂœĂ™Ă Ă“ĂŽĂ? Ă˜Ă‹Ă“ĂœĂ‹ Ă–Ă“Ă›Ă&#x;ÓÎÓÞã ÞÙ Ă’Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ă? ĂŒĂ&#x;Ă?Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ĂšĂœĂ™Ă Ă“ĂŽĂ? Ă–Ă“Ă›Ă&#x;ÓÎÓÞã ÞÙ Ă“Ă‘Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă‹Ă˜ ĂŒĂ&#x;Ă?Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă? ĂœĂ?Ă?ĂšĂ?Ă?ÞÓà Ă?Ă–ĂŁËœ ÞÒĂ?ĂœĂ?ĂŒĂŁ Ă“Ă—ĂšĂœĂ™Ă Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ ÞÒĂ? Ă?ĂšĂ?Ă?ĂŽËœ Ă?Ă™Ă˜Ă Ă?Ă˜Ă“Ă?Ă˜Ă?Ă? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ à ÙÖĂ&#x;Ă—Ă? Ă™Ă? ĂžĂœĂ‹Ă˜Ă?Ă‹Ă?ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ă? ĂŒĂ?ÞåĂ?Ă?Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? ÞåÙ Ă?Ă™Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂžĂœĂ“Ă?Ă?Ë›

Ăž ĂĄĂ“Ă–Ă– Ă‹Ă–Ă?Ă™ Ă‹Ă?Ă?Ă“Ă?Ăž ĂŒĂ™ĂžĂ’ Ă?Ă™Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂžĂœĂ“Ă?Ă? Ă“Ă˜ ÞÒĂ?Ă“Ăœ Ă?Ă™ĂœĂ?Ă“Ă‘Ă˜ Ă?âĂ?Ă’Ă‹Ă˜Ă‘Ă? ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă?ĂœĂ Ă?Ă? Ă—Ă‹Ă˜Ă‹Ă‘Ă?Ă—Ă?Ă˜ĂžËœ Ă?Ă˜Ă’Ă‹Ă˜Ă?Ă? Ă?Ă“Ă˜Ă‹Ă˜Ă?Ă“Ă‹Ă– Ă?ĂžĂ‹ĂŒĂ“Ă–Ă“ĂžĂŁ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ĂšĂœĂ™Ă—Ă™ĂžĂ? ĂŒĂœĂ™Ă‹ĂŽĂ?Ăœ Ă?Ă?Ă™Ă˜Ă™Ă—Ă“Ă? Ă?ÙÙÚĂ?ĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ ĂŒĂ?ÞåĂ?Ă?Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? ÞåÙ Ă?Ă™Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂžĂœĂ“Ă?Ă?Ë› Ă?ĂĄĂ? Ă™Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? Ă?ĂĄĂ‹Ăš Ă?Ă‹Ă—Ă? Ă‹Ăž Ă‹ ÞÓ×Ă? Ă“Ă‘Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă‹ËŞĂ? Ă?Ă™ĂœĂ?Ă“Ă‘Ă˜ ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă?ĂœĂ Ă?Ă? Ă’Ă‹Ă Ă? Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă’Ă?ĂŽ Ă&#x;Ăš ÞÙ ÍœÍ˛Íś ĂŒĂ“Ă–Ă–Ă“Ă™Ă˜ Ă™Ă˜ Ă’Ă“Ă‘Ă’Ă?Ăœ ÙÓÖ ĂšĂœĂ“Ă?Ă?Ă?Ëœ Ă‘Ă“Ă Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă™Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂžĂœĂŁ Ă–Ă?Ă Ă?ĂœĂ‹Ă‘Ă? Ă“Ă˜ Ă“ĂžĂ? Ă˜Ă?Ă‘Ă™ĂžĂ“Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ă? åÓÞÒ ÞÒĂ? Ă’Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ă? Ă?Ă?Ă˜ĂžĂœĂ‹Ă– ĂŒĂ‹Ă˜Ă•Ë›

Ăž Ă“Ă? Ă‹Ă–Ă?Ă™ Ă?âÚĂ?Ă?ĂžĂ?ĂŽ ÞÙ Ă‹Ă?Ă?Ă“Ă?Ăž ĂŒĂ™ĂžĂ’ Ă?Ă™Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂžĂœĂ“Ă?Ă? Ă“Ă˜ ÞÒĂ?Ă“Ăœ Ă?Ă™ĂœĂ?Ă“Ă‘Ă˜ Ă?âĂ?Ă’Ă‹Ă˜Ă‘Ă? ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă?ĂœĂ Ă?Ă? Ă—Ă‹Ă˜Ă‹Ă‘Ă?Ă—Ă?Ă˜ĂžËœ Ă?Ă˜Ă’Ă‹Ă˜Ă?Ă? Ă?Ă“Ă˜Ă‹Ă˜Ă?Ă“Ă‹Ă– Ă?ĂžĂ‹ĂŒĂ“Ă–Ă“ĂžĂŁ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ĂšĂœĂ™Ă—Ă™ĂžĂ? ĂŒĂœĂ™Ă‹ĂŽĂ?Ăœ Ă?Ă?Ă™Ă˜Ă™Ă—Ă“Ă? Ă?ÙÙÚĂ?ĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ ĂŒĂ?ÞåĂ?Ă?Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? ÞåÙ Ă?Ă™Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂžĂœĂ“Ă?Ă?Ë› ËŤ ÓÞÒ ÞÒĂ? ÙÚĂ?ĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ă‹Ă–Ă“Ă?Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ Ă™Ă? ÞÒÓĂ? Ă‹Ă‘ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă—Ă?Ă˜ĂžËœ Ă“Ăž ĂĄĂ“Ă–Ă– ĂŒĂ? Ă?Ă‹Ă?Ă“Ă?Ăœ Ă?Ă™Ăœ Ă—Ă™Ă?Ăž Ă“Ă‘Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă‹Ă˜ Ă—Ă‹Ă˜Ă&#x;Ă?Ă‹Ă?ĂžĂ&#x;ĂœĂ?ĂœĂ?Ëœ Ă?Ă?ĂšĂ?Ă?Ă“Ă‹Ă–Ă–ĂŁ Ă?Ă—Ă‹Ă–Ă– Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă—Ă?ĂŽĂ“Ă&#x;Ă— Ă?Ă˜ĂžĂ?ĂœĂšĂœĂ“Ă?Ă?Ă? Ě™ Ă?Ěš Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă?ÙÞÞËÑĂ? Ă“Ă˜ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă?ĂžĂœĂ“Ă?Ă? Ă“Ă˜ Ă—Ă‹Ă˜Ă&#x;Ă?Ă‹Ă?ĂžĂ&#x;ĂœĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă?Ă˘ĂšĂ™ĂœĂž ĂŒĂ&#x;Ă?Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă? ÞÙ Ă“Ă—ĂšĂ™ĂœĂž ĂœĂ‹ĂĄ Ă—Ă‹ĂžĂ?ĂœĂ“Ă‹Ă–Ă?Ëœ Ă?ĂšĂ‹ĂœĂ? ĂšĂ‹ĂœĂžĂ? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă?Ó×ÚÖĂ? Ă—Ă‹Ă?Ă’Ă“Ă˜Ă?ĂœĂŁ ÞÙ Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂŽĂ?ĂœĂžĂ‹Ă•Ă? ÞÒĂ?Ă“Ăœ ĂŒĂ&#x;Ă?Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă? ĂŒĂŁ ĂžĂ‹Ă•Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă‹ĂŽĂ Ă‹Ă˜ĂžĂ‹Ă‘Ă? Ă™Ă? Ă‹Ă Ă‹Ă“Ă–Ă‹ĂŒĂ–Ă? Ă–Ă“Ă›Ă&#x;ÓÎÓÞã Ă?ĂœĂ™Ă— Ă“Ă‘Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă‹Ă˜ ĂŒĂ‹Ă˜Ă•Ă? åÓÞÒÙĂ&#x;Ăž ĂŒĂ?Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă?âÚÙĂ?Ă?ĂŽ ÞÙ ÞÒĂ? ĂŽĂ“Ă?Ă?Ă“Ă?Ă&#x;ÖÞÓĂ?Ă? Ă™Ă? Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă•Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ ÙÞÒĂ?Ăœ Ă?Ă?Ă‹ĂœĂ?Ă? Ă?Ă™ĂœĂ?Ă“Ă‘Ă˜ Ă?Ă&#x;ĂœĂœĂ?Ă˜Ă?Ă“Ă?Ă?ËœËŹ ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă˘ĂšĂ–Ă‹Ă“Ă˜Ă?ĂŽË› Ă˜Ă‹Ă–ĂŁĂ?ĂžĂ? Ă‹Ăž Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă˜Ă Ă?Ă?Ăž Ă?Ă?Ă&#x;ĂœĂ“ĂžĂ“Ă?Ă? Ă“Ă—Ă“ĂžĂ?ĂŽ Ă Ă“Ă?ĂĄĂ?ĂŽ ÞÒĂ? Ă‹Ă‘ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă—Ă?Ă˜Ăž Ă‹Ă? Ă‹ ÚÙĂ?ÓÞÓà Ă? ĂŽĂ?Ă Ă?ÖÙÚ×Ă?Ă˜ĂžËœ Ă‘Ă“Ă Ă?Ă˜ ÞÒĂ?Ă?Ă™ĂœĂ?Ă“Ă‘Ă˜ Ă?Ă&#x;ĂœĂœĂ?Ă˜Ă?ĂŁ Ě™ Ěš Ă–Ă“Ă›Ă&#x;ÓÎÓÞã Ă?Ă›Ă&#x;Ă?Ă?äĂ? Ă“Ă‘Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă‹ Ă?ĂœĂ?Ă›Ă&#x;Ă?Ă˜ĂžĂ–ĂŁ Ă?âÚĂ?ĂœĂ“Ă?Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ă? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ÞÒĂ? Ă?ĂžĂœĂ™Ă˜Ă‘ ĂžĂœĂ‹ĂŽĂ? Ęś Ă“Ă˜Ă Ă?Ă?Þ×Ă?Ă˜Ăž ÞÓĂ?Ă? ĂŒĂ?ÞåĂ?Ă?Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? ÞåÙ Ă?Ă™Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂžĂœĂ“Ă?Ă?Ë› Ă?Ă?Ă™ĂœĂŽĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ÞÙ ÞÒĂ? ĂžĂœĂ‹ĂŽĂ? Ă?ÞËÞÓĂ?ÞÓĂ?Ă? ĂŒĂŁ ÞÒĂ? Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ă‹Ă– Ă&#x;ĂœĂ?Ă‹Ă&#x; Ă™Ă? ÞËÞÓĂ?ÞÓĂ?Ă? Ě™ ĚšËœ Ă—Ă?ĂœĂ?Ă’Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽĂ“Ă?Ă? ĂžĂœĂ‹ĂŽĂ? ĂŒĂ?ÞåĂ?Ă?Ă˜ Ă’Ă“Ă˜Ă‹ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă“Ă‘Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă‹ ĂœĂ?Ă‹Ă?Ă’Ă?ĂŽ Ă‹ ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă™ĂœĂŽ Ă’Ă“Ă‘Ă’ Ă™Ă? Í° ĂžĂœĂ“Ă–Ă–Ă“Ă™Ă˜Ă“Ă˜ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍľ ̙͜˛;Ϲ Ă™Ă? ÞÙÞËÖ Ă?ĂœĂ?Ă’Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽĂ“Ă?Ă? ĂžĂœĂ‹ĂŽĂ?ĚšËœ ÞÒĂ&#x;Ă? Ă—Ă‹Ă•Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă’Ă“Ă˜Ă‹ Ă“Ă‘Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă‹ËŞĂ? ĂžĂ’Ă“ĂœĂŽ Ă–Ă‹ĂœĂ‘Ă?Ă?Ăž ĂžĂœĂ‹ĂŽĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ĂšĂ‹ĂœĂžĂ˜Ă?Ăœ Ă‹Ă?ĂžĂ?Ăœ Ă˜ĂŽĂ“Ă‹ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ÞÒĂ? Ă˜Ă“ĂžĂ?ĂŽ ÞËÞĂ?Ă? ̙ËĂ?Ă?Ă™Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂžĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă?Ă™Ăœ ͯͰ˛ͳϹ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ͎ͯ˛͜Ϲ Ă™Ă? Ă—Ă?ĂœĂ?Ă’Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽĂ“Ă?Ă? ĂžĂœĂ‹ĂŽĂ? ĂœĂ?Ă?ĂšĂ?Ă?ÞÓà Ă?Öã̚˛ ÙåĂ?Ă Ă?ĂœËœ ÞÒĂ? Ă‹Ă–Ă‹Ă˜Ă?Ă? Ă™Ă? ĂœĂ‹ĂŽĂ? Ă“Ă? Ă’Ă?Ă‹Ă Ă“Ă–ĂŁ ÞÓÖÞĂ?ĂŽ Ă“Ă˜ Ă?Ă‹Ă Ă™Ă&#x;Ăœ Ă™Ă? Ă’Ă“Ă˜Ă‹Ëž Ă“Ă—ĂšĂ™ĂœĂžĂ? Ă?ĂœĂ™Ă— Ă’Ă“Ă˜Ă‹ Ă“Ă˜ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍľ Ě™ ÍŻË›ÍśĂžĂœĂ“Ă–Ă–Ă“Ă™Ă˜Ěš ĂĄĂ‹Ă? ͜˛ͯ ÞÓ×Ă?Ă? Ă“Ă‘Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă‹ËŞĂ? Ă?Ă˘ĂšĂ™ĂœĂž Ě™ ͰͰ͎˛ʹ ĂŒĂ“Ă–Ă–Ă“Ă™Ă˜Ěš Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă‹Ă?Ă?Ă™Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂžĂ? Ă?Ă™Ăœ Ͱ͎˛͡ ĂšĂ?Ăœ Ă?Ă?Ă˜Ăž Ă™Ă? ÞÙÞËÖ Ă“Ă—ĂšĂ™ĂœĂžĂ? Ă“Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? Ă–Ă‹Ă?Ăž Ă?Ă“Ă Ă? ĂŁĂ?Ă‹ĂœĂ?Ë› Ă’Ă“Ă? Ă“Ă? Ă?Ă–Ă?Ă‹ĂœĂ–ĂŁ Ă?ÒÙåĂ? Ă“Ă‘Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă‹ËŞĂ? Ă‘ĂœĂ™ĂĄĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ĂŽĂ?ĂšĂ?Ă˜ĂŽĂ?Ă˜Ă?Ă? Ă™Ă˜ Ă’Ă“Ă˜Ă‹Ëœ Ă—Ă&#x;Ă?Ă’ Ă–Ă“Ă•Ă? Ă—Ă™Ă?Ăž Ă™Ă? ÞÒĂ? ĂœĂ?Ă?Ăž Ă™Ă? ÞÒĂ? ĂĄĂ™ĂœĂ–ĂŽËœ Ă?Ă™Ăœ Ă—Ă‹Ă˜Ă&#x;Ă?Ă‹Ă?ĂžĂ&#x;ĂœĂ?ĂŽ ĂšĂœĂ™ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă?ĂžĂ? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă“Ă˜ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă?ĂžĂœĂ“Ă‹Ă– Ă“Ă˜ĂšĂ&#x;ĂžĂ?Ë› ËŤ Ă“Ă Ă?Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă?ĂžĂ‹ĂŒĂ–Ă“Ă?Ă’Ă?ĂŽ Ă?ĂžĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ?Ă‘Ă“Ă? Ă“Ă—ĂšĂ™ĂœĂžĂ‹Ă˜Ă?Ă? Ă™Ă? Ă’Ă“Ă˜Ă‹ Ă‹Ă? Ă‹ Ă—Ă‹Ă”Ă™Ăœ ĂžĂœĂ‹ĂŽĂ? ĂšĂ‹ĂœĂžĂ˜Ă?ĂœËœ ÞÒĂ? ĂŒĂ“Ă–Ă‹ĂžĂ?ĂœĂ‹Ă– Ă?Ă&#x;ĂœĂœĂ?Ă˜Ă?ĂŁ Ă?ĂĄĂ‹Ăš Ă‹Ă‘ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă—Ă?Ă˜Ăž ĂĄĂ“Ă–Ă– ĂŒĂ? ĂŒĂ?Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ă“Ă?Ă“Ă‹Ă– ÞÙ ÞÒĂ? Ă“Ă‘Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă‹Ă˜ Ă?Ă?Ă™Ă˜Ă™Ă—ĂŁ Ă“Ă˜ Ă?Ă?Ă Ă?ĂœĂ‹Ă– ĂĄĂ‹ĂŁĂ?Ë› ËŤ Ă“ĂœĂ?ĂžËœ Ă“Ăž ĂĄĂ™Ă&#x;Ă–ĂŽ ĂœĂ?ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă?Ă? Ă?Ă&#x;ĂœĂœĂ?Ă˜Ă?ĂŁ ĂžĂœĂ‹Ă˜Ă?Ă‹Ă?ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ Ă?Ă™Ă?Ăž Ă?Ă™Ăœ Ă“Ă—ĂšĂ™ĂœĂžĂ?ĂœĂ? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă?Ă‹Ă?Ă? Ă?Ă™ĂœĂ?â Ă–Ă“Ă›Ă&#x;ÓÎÓÞã ĂšĂœĂ?Ă?Ă?Ă&#x;ĂœĂ?Ă? Ă“Ă˜ ĂšĂ?ĂœĂ“Ă™ĂŽĂ? Ă™Ă? Ă?Ă™ĂœĂ?â ĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ? à ÙÖËÞÓÖÓÞã Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽËšĂ™Ăœ Ă?Ă?Ă‹ĂœĂ?ÓÞã˛ ËŤ Ă’Ă? Ó×ÚÖĂ?Ă—Ă?Ă˜ĂžĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ Ă™Ă? ÞÒÓĂ? Ă?Ă&#x;ĂœĂœĂ?Ă˜Ă?ĂŁ Ă?ĂĄĂ‹Ăš ĂĄĂ“Ă–Ă– Ă‹Ă–Ă?Ă™ Ă?Ă˜Ă’Ă‹Ă˜Ă?Ă? Ă?Ă“Ă˜Ă‹Ă˜Ă?Ă“Ă‹Ă– Ă?ĂžĂ‹ĂŒĂ“Ă–Ă“ĂžĂŁ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă?âÞĂ?ĂœĂ˜Ă‹Ă– ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă?ĂœĂ Ă?Ă? Ă—Ă‹Ă˜Ă‹Ă‘Ă?Ă—Ă?Ă˜Ăž ĂŒĂŁ ĂœĂ?ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă?Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ ÞÒĂ? à ÙÖĂ&#x;Ă—Ă? Ă™Ă? Ă?Ă™ĂœĂ?â Ă“Ă˜ĂžĂ?ĂœĂ Ă?Ă˜ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ă? Ă“Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? Ă–Ă™Ă?Ă‹Ă– Ă—Ă‹ĂœĂ•Ă?Ăž Ă˜Ă?Ă?ĂŽĂ?ĂŽ ÞÙ Ă?Ă&#x;Ă–Ă?Ă“Ă– Ă“Ă—ĂšĂ™ĂœĂžĂ? ĂŽĂ?Ă—Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽË› ËŤ Ă‹Ă?ĂžĂ–ĂŁËœ ÞÒÓĂ? Ă‹Ă‘ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă—Ă?Ă˜Ăž Ă?Ă™Ă&#x;Ă–ĂŽ Ă?Ă?ĂœĂ Ă? Ă‹Ă? Ă‹ ĂœĂ“Ă?Ă• Ă—Ă‹Ă˜Ă‹Ă‘Ă?Ă—Ă?Ă˜Ăž Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă&#x;Ă˜Ă?Ă™Ă˜Ă Ă?Ă˜ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ă‹Ă– Ă—Ă™Ă˜Ă?ĂžĂ‹ĂœĂŁ ÚÙÖÓĂ?ĂŁ ÞÙÙÖ Ă‹Ă? ĂšĂœĂ™ĂŒĂ‹ĂŒĂ–Ă? Ă–Ă™Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă? ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă&#x;Ă–ĂžĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă?ĂœĂ™Ă— ĂžĂœĂ‹Ă˜Ă?Ă‹Ă?ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ă? Ă‹Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă?ĂžĂ?ĂŽ ĂŒĂŁ à ÙÖËÞÓÖÓÞã Ă“Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? Ă–Ă™Ă?Ă‹Ă– Ă?Ă&#x;ĂœĂœĂ?Ă˜Ă?ĂŁ Ă?Ă™Ă&#x;Ă–ĂŽ ĂŒĂ? Ă’Ă?ĂŽĂ‘Ă?ĂŽ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă—Ă“Ă˜Ă“Ă—Ă“Ă?Ă?ĂŽËœËŹ Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă˜Ă Ă?Ă?Ăž Ă?ÞËÞĂ?ĂŽË› Ă’Ă? Ă‹Ă˜Ă‹Ă‘Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă“ĂœĂ?Ă?ĂžĂ™ĂœËœ ĂœĂ‹Ă˜Ă? Ă?Ă?Ă&#x;ĂœĂ“ĂžĂ“Ă?Ă?Ëœ ĂœË› Ă“Ă•Ă? äĂ?Ëœ Ă‹Ă–Ă?Ă™ ĂĄĂ?Ă–Ă?Ù×Ă?ĂŽ ÞÒĂ? ĂŽĂ?Ă‹Ă– Ă? Ă?Ă‹Ă“ĂŽË? ËŤ Ă’Ă? ĂŽĂ?Ă‹Ă– Ă“Ă? Ă“Ă˜ Ă–Ă“Ă˜Ă? åÓÞÒ ÞÒĂ? Ă?ĂŽĂ?ĂœĂ‹Ă– Ùà Ă?ĂœĂ˜Ă—Ă?Ă˜ĂžËŞĂ? ĂŽĂ?Ă?Ă“ĂœĂ? ÞÙ Ă‹ĂžĂžĂœĂ‹Ă?Ăž Ă?Ă™ĂœĂ?Ă“Ă‘Ă˜ Ă“Ă˜Ă Ă?Ă?Þ×Ă?Ă˜ĂžË› Ă’Ă“Ă? ĂĄĂ“Ă–Ă– ĂŒĂ™Ă™Ă?Ăž Ă™Ă&#x;Ăœ Ă?Ă?Ă™Ă˜Ă™Ă—ĂŁË› ËŤ ĂŁ ÞÒĂ? ÞÓ×Ă? ĂŁĂ™Ă&#x; Ă?ĂžĂ&#x;ĂŽĂŁ ÞÒĂ? Ă˜Ă“ĂžĂžĂŁĚ‹Ă‘ĂœĂ“ĂžĂžĂŁ Ă™Ă? ÞÒĂ? ĂŽĂ?Ă‹Ă–Ëœ ĂŁĂ™Ă&#x; ĂĄĂ“Ă–Ă– ĂœĂ?Ă‹Ă–Ă“Ă?Ă? ÞÒËÞ Ă“Ăž Ă‹Ă–Ă?Ă™ Ă?Ă‹Ă Ă™Ă&#x;ĂœĂ? Ă“Ă‘Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă‹ËœËŹ Ă’Ă? Ă?ÞËÞĂ?ĂŽË› Ă Ă?ĂœĂ‹Ă–Ă–Ëœ ÞÒĂ? Ă‹Ă‘ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă—Ă?Ă˜Ăž Ă“Ă? Ă?âÚĂ?Ă?ĂžĂ?ĂŽ ÞÙ Ă?Ă˜Ă‹ĂŒĂ–Ă? ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă™Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂžĂœĂŁ Ă—Ă‹Ă˜Ă‹Ă‘Ă? ĂžĂ’Ă“ĂœĂŽ Ă?Ă&#x;ĂœĂœĂ?Ă˜Ă?Ă“Ă?Ă? ĂšĂœĂ?Ă?Ă?Ă&#x;ĂœĂ? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă–Ă“Ă›Ă&#x;ÓÎÓÞã˛

EmeďŹ ele

T H I S D AY Ëž Ëœ ÍľËœ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍś

24

BUSINESSWORLD INFLATION RATE SEEN HEADING TOWARDS SINGLE-DIGIT

cereal continued to trend upward.

The FAO Dairy Price Index was up by 3.4 per cent between March and April. Increased demand for all milk products, coupled with reduced exports supply, led to the increase in the Index.

The FAO Cereal Price Index also appreciated by 1.7 per cent from the previous month, on the heels of improved prices of wheat, coarse grains and rice.

On the flip side, the favourable supply glut in the market, and a weaker Brazilian currency (Real) continued to weigh on the prices of sugar. Hence, the FAO Sugar Price Index fell by 4.8 per cent in April to a 31-month low.

The FAO Vegetable Oil Price Index was down by 1.43 per cent, driven by a fall in prices of palm and soy oil, the key commodities in the Index.

The FAO Meat Index was down by 0.94 per cent driven by the decrease in the prices for bovine and pig meat.

DESPITE NNPC’S MASSIVE IMPORTATION, MARKETERS STILL SELL PETROL ABOVE OFFICIAL EX-DEPOT PRICE

cost and the ex-depot price will come down,� he said.

However, despite these price differentials, investigation revealed that some independent marketers even sell below N145 per litre, while the major marketers stick to N145.

The NNPC had flooded the whole country with petrol, forcing the marketers to devise various kinds of incentives to woo customers and prevent glut in the market.

Some of companies are providing special offers to their dealers to boost turnover and avoid glut.

THISDAY had reported that exactly six months after the NNPC assumed the sole importer of petrol in October 2017, the corporation had finally normalised the supply of the product. The corporation’s inability to bridge the supply gap created by the refusal of the private marketers to import petrol, had led to fuel crisis, which marred the Christmas celebration and lingered into the first quarter of 2018.

Group Business Editor

Chika Amanze-Nwachuku

NCC Shuts Down Firms over 5.4GHz Deployment Emma Okonji The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), the telecoms industry regulator has extended its ongoing enforcement plan to Uyo in Akwa Ibom State, and Calabar in Cross River State, where it sealed up operations of most telecoms firms for violating the guidelines for the deployment of 5.4GHz frequency band in the states.

The enforcement team led by the Director, Compliance Monitoring and Enforcement, Mr. Efosa Idehen, took the NCC compliance monitoring to the states on April 26 and 27, 2018 to enforce compliance with its guidelines for the deployment of service in the 5.4GHz frequency band.

The Commission, based on the guidelines for the deployment of service in the 5.4GHz frequency band, had issued a public notice dated April 3, 2018, warning unlicensed operators and the general public to vacate illegal transmission in the 5.4GHz frequency band within 14 days.

The deadline for vacation ended on April 17, 2018, following which the enforcement team visited the states and shut down the operations of Hot Minet Services located on 80 MCC Road, Calabar and United Bank for Africa (UBA) on Udo Udoma Banking layout, Uyo, for failing to comply with the guideline and the public notice issued by the Commission.

The team also confiscated the non-type approved equipment used by the operators in

Comms/e-Business Editor

Emma Okonji

Capital Market Editor

Goddy Egene

Senior Correspondent

Raheem Akingbolu (Advertising) Correspondents

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

Nume Ekeghe (Money Market) Nosa Alekhuogie (AgriBusiness)

providing the alleged illegal services. The enforcement team directed them to obtain the requisite license before their premises would be unsealed.

Consequent upon the enforcement action, the radio equipment used in the provision of the service was

removed and held in custody of the Commission. The team had to order for the arrest of officials of the bank for their resistance.

According to Idehen, “It is pertinent to state that it’s a criminal offense to provide service in frequency band not validly assigned or

licensed by the Nigerian Communications Commission.

This position is supported by the provision of Section 121 and 122 of the Nigerian Communications Act, 2003.�

The punishment for the said violation is a fine for the initial fee for the relevant license; a fine not exceeding

ten times the fee for the relevant license; imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year; or both such fine and imprisonment, Idehen added., He said the suspects have been handed over to the relevant security agency for discreet investigation and possible prosecution.

UNVEILING OF HAJJ SAVINGS SCHEME

L-R: Chairman, Tafsan Investment Limited, Alhaji Adebiyi Bamgbose; President, NASFAT, Alhaji Yomi Bolarinwa; Divisional Head, Commercial Banking, Sterling Bank Plc, Tunde Adeola and Chairman, Tafsan Tours and Travels Limited, Alhaji Sheri Yusu, during the Sterling Bank’s formal launch of Hajj Savings Scheme in Lagos‌recently

Nigeria, SA Top African Airlines’ Passenger Traffic Record Chinedu Eze African airlines recorded 11.2 per cent in March 2018, indicating the regional carriers currently enjoy very strong demand compared to the same period last year.

The International Air transport Association (IATA) said this is more than twice the five-year average pace of 4.8 per cent, noting that airlines in Africa

are seeing healthy growth on routes to/from Europe and Asia, while the region’s two largest economies, Nigeria and South Africa continue to improve.

According to IATA, capacity climbed 6.7 per cent, and load factor strengthened 2.9 percentage points to 71.0 per cent.

IATA said global passenger traffic results for March 2018 showed that demand (mea-

sured in revenue passenger kilometers, or RPKs) rose 9.5 per cent, compared to the same month a year ago, the fastest pace in 12 months. The world body noted that capacity (available seat kilometers, or ASKs) grew 6.4 per cent and load factor climbed 2.3 percentage points to 82.4 per cent, which set a record for the month, following on the record set in February. All regions

except for the Middle East posted record load factors. “Demand for air travel remains strong, supported by the comparatively healthy economic backdrop and business confidence levels. But rising cost inputs—particularly fuel prices—suggest that any demand boosts from lower fares will moderate going into the second quarter,� said IATA’s Director General and

CEO, Alexandre de Juniac.

March international passenger demand rose 10.6 per cent compared to March 2017, which was up from 7.4 per cent year-over-year growth recorded in February.

IATA said all regions showed strong increases and total capacity climbed 6.6 per cent, and load factor improved 2.9 percentage points to 81.5 per cent.

FAAN Adopts Digital Payment System at All Airports Chinedu Eze

AgriBusiness/Industry Editor

Jonathan Eze

NEWS

The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) has said it would commence cashless transactions across airports in the country in order to foster ease of payment, create payment options and improve the speed and convenience of payment The General Manager Corporate Communications, Mrs. Henrietta Yakubu, in an interview in Lagos, said all necessary arrangements have been made for the smooth take off of the exercise bid to

commence across the airports soon.

According to Yakubu, the cashless transactions would reduce the cumbersome cash movement as transactions would be made in different ways such as POS, money transfers, adding that Remita agents have also been positioned strategically at various points across the airports.

She explained that the initiative was designed under the Presidential Enabling Environment Business Council (PEBEC) to ensure convenience and curb corrup-

tion, noting that car parks, cargo section, chartered / unscheduled flights among others would be affected by the introduction. “It will help FAAN to eliminate leakages and further increase revenue base of the organisation. No government official will handle cash during transactions when the exercise takes off. We are soliciting the cooperation of all airport users, concessionaires and the general public to ensure a hitch free exercise,� Yakubu said.

She further added that the

decision to adopt digital payment was as a result of the success of the Executive Order of the Federal Government in a bid to create enabling business environment in the country, especially within the airports as entry points into the country.

The new payment system, she stressed, was to ensure that those doing business at the airports were not harassed but are provided with accurate information on what and where to pay at every point in time.

Yakubu said visa on arrival

which has commenced at the international airports was part of the Ease of Doing Business, remarking that the digital payment was another feat to be achieved.

She observed that at the end, it would be a win - win situation for both FAAN and customers adding that the agency has been repositioned to provide improved services for customers.

The agency is sensitising the public about the new payment system through jingles in the broadcast and other media.

25

T H I S D AY Ëž Ëœ ÍľËœ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍś

Nigerian Bourse Pares Gains on Profit Taking Goddy Egene

NSE Banking Index appreciated by 0.8 per cent, while the NSE Insurance Index rose by 0.2 per cent.

On the contrary, the NSE Consumer Goods Index fell 1.5 per cent due to selloffs in International Breweries Plc, Nigerian Breweries Plc and Unilever Nigeria Plc. The NSE Oil & Gas Index trailed, shedding 0.8 per cent, just as the NSE Industrial Goods Index shed 0.2 per cent.

The recovered on Friday with the benchmark index rising 0.27 per cent to close at 41, 218.72 per cent, while market capitalisation ended higher at N14.93 trillion.

However, the gain on Friday was not enough to save the market from closing the week with a decline. In all, the market shed 0.06 per cent in the review week.

Profit taking in bellwether stocks prevented the Nigerian equities market from sustaining the gains recorded the previous week as the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) All-Share Index fell marginal by 0.06 per cent to close at 41.218.72. Also, market capitalisation shed N9.5 billion to close the week lower at N14.931 trillion. The market had appreciated by 1.05 per cent the previous week due to bargain hunting activities and investors’ reactions improved to first quarter results by some companies.

The market could not record another positive close last week as the benchmark indicator sagged under the pressure of profit taking.

However, the NSE Premium, NSE Banking, NSE Industrial goods, and NSE Pension indices appreciated by 0.12 per cent, 1.56%, 1.06 per cent and 0.21 per cent respectively.

Analysts at Meristem Securities Limited said in spite of gains recorded in the banking and industrial goods space, the market closed downbeat. “The market’s performance was majorly dragged by selloffs across counters in the oil & gas, consumer goods and insurance sectors,� they said.

In their own opinion, analysts at Cordros Capital Limited said: We look for return of gains on the bourse in the medium to long term, amidst fast-declining yields in the alternative fixed income market. More so, as macroeconomic fundamentals continue to impress.�

Market Turnover

Daily Performance The market consolidated on the positive performance of the previous week on when trading resumed on Monday. The benchmark index rose by 0.06 per cent to close at 41,268.01, while market capitalisation ended higher at N14.95 trillion. The appreciation recorded in the share prices of FBN Holdings, Dangote Cement, Fidelity Bank, Zenith Bank, and GTBank Plc propelled the growth.

Similarly, activity level trended higher as volume and value traded improved 41.1 per cent and 77.4 per cent to 450.5 million shares and N5.0 billion respectively. The three most actively traded stocks were Mutual Benefit (130.96 million share), UBA (67.75 million shares) and FBN Holdings (53.61 million shares).

In terms of sectoral performance, two of the five tracked indicators, however, appreciated. The NSE Industrial Goods Index recorded the highest gain, rising by 0.6 per cent following appreciation recorded by in Dangote Cement and CCNN. The NSE Banking Index trailed rising 0.4 per cent due to buying interests in GTBank and FBN Holdings. On the negative side, the NSE Consumers Goods Index led with a fall of 0.8 per cent following losses posted by Nestle, Dangote Sugar Refinery and Dangote Flour Mills. The NSE Insurance Index and NSE Oil & Gas Index shed 0.2 per cent and 0.1 per cent in that order.

The market sustained the positive performance on Wednesday, growing marginally by 0.09 per cent to close at 41,306.02, driven by gains in the share prices of Union Bank, Dangote Cement, Access Bank, Zenith Bank and UBA. The market capitalisation also appreciated same margin to close at N14.96 trillion. Ex-Dangote Cement the market would have closed 0.85 per cent lower.

But activity level was mixed as volume traded declined by 38.7 per cent to 276.2 million shares while value traded trended up 38.9 per cent to N6.9 billion. Wednesday’s top traded stocks by volume were UBA (52.3 million shares), GTBank (42.3 million shares) and Zenith Bank (30.1 million shares) while most active stocks by value

were Dangote Cement (N2.1 billion), GTBank (N1.9 billion) and Zenith Bank (N832.4 million).

Unlike the previous day, three of five went up led by the NSE Oil & Gas Index with 1.2 per cent. The NSE Banking Index trailed with a gain of 0.6 per cent, just as the NSE Industrial Goods Index chalked up 0.3 per cent.

Conversely, the NSE Consumer Goods Index led laggards as losses in Nestle and Nigerian Breweries dragged the p

index lower by 1.1 per cent. The NSE Insurance Index shed 0.59 per cent.

The bears returned to the market on Thursday reversing the gains posted in the previous trading sessions. Specifically, the index fell by 0.48 per cent to close at 41,107.81. Profit taking in International Breweries, Dangote Cement, Nigerian Breweries, Unilever, and Dangote Sugar was mainly responsible for the decline of the day.

However, activity level was mixed as

volume traded rose 16 per cent to 320.4 million shares while value traded fell by 30.9 per cent to N4.8 billion. Top traded stocks in volume terms were: UBA (79.9 million shares), Access Bank (57.0 million shares) and E-Tranzact (20.3 million shares) while the top traded in value were UBA (N935. 2 million), Access Bank (N644.4 million) and Zenith Bank(N488.3 million).

Despite the bearish trading, two of the sectoral indicators bullish. The

y

Rank

Broker

Description

Quantity

% of Volume

6,6%

67$1%,& ,%7& 672&.%52.(56 /,0,7('

&25(

&25( 6(&85,7,(6 /,0,7('

)%16

)%148(67 6(&85,7,(6 /,0,7('

&6/

&6/ 672&.%52.(56 /,0,7('

*7,

*7, 6(&85,7,(6 /,0,7(' %5'

5($'

5($',1*6 ,19(670(176 /,0,7(' %'5

0(5,

0(5,67(0 672&.%52.(56 /,0,7('

0&6(

025*$1 &$3,7$/ 6(&85,7,(6 /,0,7('

561/

5(1&$3 6(&85,7,(6 1,* /,0,7('

&66/

&$5',1$/6721( 6(&85,7,(6 /,0,7('

1,611,705,490

60.52

Top 10 Total Volume 127( 7KH WRS 6WRFNEURNHUV DUH UHVSRQVLEOH IRU RI WKH WRWDO YROXPH EHWZHHQ DQG

Top 10 Brokers by Value Rank

Broker

Description

Value

% Value

&6/

&6/ 672&.%52.(56 /,0,7('

)%16

)%148(67 6(&85,7,(6 /,0,7('

6,6%

67$1%,& ,%7& 672&.%52.(56 /,0,7('

561/

5(1&$3 6(&85,7,(6 1,* /,0,7('

()&3

()&3 /,0,7('

&+'6

&+$3(/ +,// '(1+$0 6(&85,7,(6 /7' %5'

*7,

*7, 6(&85,7,(6 /,0,7(' %5'

&66/

&$5',1$/6721( 6(&85,7,(6 /,0,7('

1,6/

1,*(5,$1 ,17(51$7,21$/ 6(&85,7,(6 /7'

$506

$ 5 0 6(&85,7,(6 /,0,7(' %5'

Top 10 Total Value

32,286,749,159.97

77.16

In the four-day trading sessions investors traded 1.331billion shares worth N20.835 billion in 18,695 deals compared with 1.825 billion shares valued at N24.653 billion that exchanged in 23,148 deals.

The Financial Services Industry led the activity chart with 1.042 billion shares valued at N11.275 billion traded in 9,665 deals, thus contributing 78.32 per cent and 54.11 per cent to the total equity turnover volume and value respectively. The Consumer Goods Industry followed with 84.124 million shares worth N4.322 billion in 3,691 deals. The third place was occupied by Oil and Gas Industry with a turnover of 51.918 million shares worth N596.463 million in 2,307 deals.

Trading in the top three equities, UBA, Mutual Benefits Assurance Plc and Access Bank Plc accounted for 457.930 million shares worth N3.784 billion in 1,469 deals and contributing 34.41 per cent and 18.16 per cent to the total equity turnover volume and value respectively.

Also traded during the week were a total of 709,058 units of Exchange Traded Products (ETPs) valued at N3.845 million executed in 10 deals, compared with a total of 56,260 units valued at N376,387.48 that was transacted the previous week in six deals.

Similarly, a total of 80,152 units of Federal Government and State Bonds valued at N82.543 million were traded last week in 14 deals, compared with a total of 725 units valued at N660,984.55 transacted the previous week in 10 deals.

Price Gainers and Losers Meanwhile, 37 equities appreciated in price during the week, higher than 33 in the previous week, while equities depreciated in price, lower than 41 equities in the previous week.

C & I Leasing led the price gainers with 29.5 per cent, trailed by Unity Bank Plc with 20 per cent. Veritas Kapital Assurance Plc chalked up 17.8 per cent, just as Cement Company of Northern Nigeria Plc and Beta Glass Plc garnered 14.6 per cent and 10.2 per cent respectively.

Other top price gainers included: Livestock Feeds Plc (9.0 per cent); NPF Microfinance Bank Plc (8.5 per cent); Mutual Benefits Assurance Plc (8.3 per cent); Union Bank of Nigeria Plc (7.2 per cent0 and Vitafoam Nigeria Plc (6.4 per cent).

Conversely, Dangote Flour Mills Plc led the price losers with 18.5 per cent, trailed by Eterna Plc with 13.0 per cent.

Prestige Assurance Plc shed 11.7 per cent, while Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc went down by 11.2 per cent.

Other top price losers included: Regency Alliance Insurance Plc (10 per cent); Oando Plc 8.7 per cent); Chams Plc (8.7 per cent); Japaul Oil & Maritime Services Plc (8.0 per cent); WAPIC Insurance Plc (7.0 per cent); Niger Insurance Plc (6.6 per cent).

26

T H I S D AY Ëž Ëœ ÍľËœ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍś

A view of Lagos ďŹ nancial district

AKINWUNMI IBRAHIM

Boost for Nigeria, China Trade Obinna Chima Since the inclusion of the Chinese currency among basket of reserve currencies that have special drawing rights (SDR), by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the government of China has continued to see it as a reflection of the importance of its currency in the world’s trading and financial systems.

The country’s expanding role in global trade and the substantial increase in the international use and trading of the Renminbi (RMB) has seen it increasingly enter into currency swap agreements with a lot of countries.

Some of the countries include the United Kingdom, Belarus, Malaysia, South Africa, Australia, Armenia, Surinam, Hong Kong, Pakistan, Thailand, Kazakhstan, South Korea, Canada, Qatar, Russia, the European Union, Sri Lanka, Mongolia, New Zealand, Argentina, Switzerland, Iceland, Albania, Hungary, Brazil, Singapore, Turkey, Ukraine, Indonesia, Uzbekistan, and the United Arab Emirates, with the deal totalling over RMB3.137 trillion.

And last week, it finalised its currency swap agreement with Nigeria, valued at $2.5 billion.

Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) spokesman, Mr. Isaac Okorafor, who announced this, said the CBN Governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele, led CBN officials while PBoC Governor, Dr. Yi Gang, led the Chinese team at the official signing ceremony. He said the deal was sealed the preceding Friday after over two years of painstaking negotiations by both central banks.

According to the CBN, the transaction, which was valued at 16 billion RMB, was aimed at providing adequate local currency liquidity to Nigerian and Chinese industrialists and other businesses, thereby reducing the difficulties encountered in the search for third currencies.

The CBN said among other benefits, the agreement is expected to provide naira liquidity to Chinese businesses and provide RMB liquidity to Nigerian businesses respectively, thereby improving the speed, convenience and volume of transactions between the two countries. “It will also assist both countries in their foreign exchange reserves management, enhance financial stability and promote

MARKET INDICATOR broader economic cooperation between the two countries. “With the operationalisation of this agreement, it will be easier for most Nigerian manufacturers, especially small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and cottage industries in manufacturing and export businesses to import raw materials, spare parts and simple machinery to undertake their businesses by taking advantage of available RMB liquidity from Nigerian banks without being exposed to the difficulties of seeking other scarce foreign currencies. “The deal, which is purely an exchange of currencies, will also make it easier for Chinese manufacturers seeking to buy raw materials from Nigeria to obtain enough naira from banks in China to pay for their imports from Nigeria. “Indeed, the deal will protect Nigerian business people from the harsh effects of third currency fluctuations. “With this, Nigeria becomes the third African country to have such an agreement in place with the PBoC,� it explained.

THISDAY exclusively reported that First Bank of Nigeria Limited, Stanbic IBTC, Standard Chartered Bank (SCB) and Zenith Bank Plc had been appointed the settlement banks for the bilateral currency swap agreement.

With their appointment, the four banks will be responsible for settling the trade transactions between importers and exporters from both countries, likely to take off just before next month.

The reason the four financial institutions were chosen was because StanChart and Stanbic already have operational offices in China, while Zenith and FirstBank have representative offices in Beijing.

However, whereas StanChart and Stanbic can start operations immediately as settlement banks, Zenith and FirstBank will be required to upgrade their representative offices to full operations in China.

While SCB already has a presence in China through its Standard Chartered Bank (China) Limited, Stanbic has been trading in the country through its affiliate, the Investment

and Commercial Bank China (ICBC).However, FBN and Zenith Bank were also appointed because they already have representative offices in China.

So, while SCB and Stanbic can start immediately, it would take FBN and Zenith Bank some time to join the settlement arrangement because they would have to convert their representative offices to operational offices.

The settlement banks are expected to handle the trade obligations that would enable an importer in Nigeria, after filling the required documentation, to easily exchange the naira for the Renminbi (RMB) instead of resorting to third currencies such as the U.S. dollar, while the reverse will be the case for importers in China that trade with Nigerian businesses.

Commenting on the bi-lateral agreement, Research Analyst at FXTM, Lukman Otunuga, pointed out that sentiment towards the Nigerian economy was elevated after the nation finally signed the agreement with China.

According to him, the move will not only improve the speed, but also the convenience of transactions between both nations. “There is a possibility that the naira will strengthen from the currency swap deal, as the demand for dollar drops,� he said.

To analysts at Cowry Assets Management Limited, the currency swap deal wouldfacilitate trade between the two countries, by providing adequate local currency liquidity to Nigerian and Chinese industrialists and other businesses, thereby sidestepping a third currency -the US dollar. “We expect the arrangement to ease pressure on the limited dollar supply at the Investors’ & Exporters’ forex window (I&E)and hence, enhance stability of thenaira/dollar exchange rate,� the firm added.

But the Head, Global Research, Standard Chartered Bank, Razia Khan, said she does not expect the bilateral agreement to have any immediate impact on Nigeria’s forex reserves. “Even if the swap were to be drawn on in the future, it would likely show up as a liability on the CBN’s balance sheet.

However, the swap is still significant in that it provides greater international liquidity to the CBN, reducing the need for the CBN to hold an especially high level of

precautionary USD FX reserves. “Given the rebound in oil earnings, Nigeria’s reserves are at an increasingly comfortable level. With the swap arrangement in place, it will however be possible for the CBN to draw on this in order to provide the CNY liquidity needed to support Nigerian import demand from China, without having to convert that to US dollar demand first. “So, in all, this should support expectations of forex stability in Nigeria, even as importer demand recovers. It is a small positive, which is reinforced by the greater positive of rising forexreserves because of the rebound in oil prices and exports,� Khan said.

Also, the Director General of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), Mr. Muda Yusuf, said the deal would positively impact trade and investments between Nigeria and China. “It will impact on trade positively between Nigeria and China, because it would make the payment system easier. However, it can only last if the exchange rate remains stable.

This is because if there are issues with the exchange rate, it may affect it,� he added.

CBN Governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele had explained that Nigeria was not the only country that had agreed to a currency swap with China, as several other countries – developed and emerging markets – with growing trade volumes with China had entered into similar currency swaps with the Asian country. “The agreement on the currency swap with China will definitely benefit Nigeria because the essence of the mandate is to ensure that Nigeria is designated as the trading hub with China in the West African sub-region for people who want the Renminbi as a currency denomination. “Also for us, we believe that using the renminbi will improve trade with China, as this will encourage importers to open L/Cs in the Chinese currency for the importation of raw materials, equipment and machinery from China, rather than other trading regions, so the agreement will encourage trade between both countries,� he had explained.

This arrangement is also expected tocontribute towards stabilising the country’s balance of payments (BoP) position.

27

T H I S D AY Ëž Ëœ ÍľËœ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍś

Dell: Digital Transformation, Key to Business Growth Chairman and CEO, Dell Technologies, Michael Dell, spoke with journalists in Las Vegas on how the technology company is driving digital transformation in work places, as well as providing data protection and security through innovative tech solutions in the digital era. Emma Okonji who was there presents the excerpts: unifiable. Vmware for instance, can accelerate business innovation by forming a consistent digital foundation, so that any device can access any application from anywhere. We also have the Dell EMC workforce transformation and how to keep data of organisations safe.

At Dell Technologies, we engineer security in every of our product and solution. On top of that we we lead the market in security and digital transformation. In 2014 we envisioned the combination of Dell EMC and Vmware to provide robust server and storage and virtualisation and in 2016, the combination helped customers in the area of data security and it has enhanced the tremendous growth of Dell Technologies by several billion dollars and we are growing faster than we planned.

What are the beneďŹ ts of digital transformation to organisations and what role will technology convergence play in the whole process of digital transformation that is currently sweeping across globe?

Digital transformation is about the use of technology to change the way businesses operate and making businesses much more efficient and profitable. It transforms economics of scale to drive smart cities, while taking real time decision.

Technologies are converging to offer better solutions for business agility. Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML) and Internet of Things (IoT) are going to drive convergence in the technology space. What this development means to us at Dell is that the globe needs to generate more data to catchup with the rapid technology growth that convergence is bringing.

Organisations must also invest in AI, IoT and ML to benefit from the digital transformation.

How will Dell Technologies help emerging markets in African countries catch up with digital transformation, considering the low level of technology infrastructure in the African region?

African countries need to embrace the global technology transformation and invest in technologies such as AI, IoT and ML to catch up with the speed of technology development. They also need to invest in infrastructure, especially broadband infrastructure. What I think every country should do, is to use local technology partners to develop local technologies that will address organisational and societal challenges, while they still invest in modern technologies.

What Dell Technologies could also do is to develop the local markets and offer them opportunities to grow their businesses and economies, using technology solution.

How will Dell Technologies help telecoms companies to deliver innovative and quality services to their customers, especially in Nigeria where subscribers are faced with poor service quality?

Dell Technology is a technology solutions company, developing solutions that will drive business efficiency across various sectors of the economy, including the telecommunications sector. So we have invested in private and public cloud and we have solutions that will enhance telecoms business in Nigeria and the rest of the world.

What is your advice for the African market, with regards to digital transformation?

Developed economies of the world are deploying technology to enhance businesses and promote economic development. African nations must do same and embrace digital transformation. Every African nation must see it as a necessity to grow its economy through the digital transformation that is currently sweeping across the world.

Digital transformation has enhanced businesses, and every business is looking for ways to deploy the best of technology solutions in every aspect of their operations to drive growth, new business partners, relationships as well as products and services. Technology is now top on the agenda for businesses globally because technology strategy is about business strategy, and every business must embrace it. We will continue to innovate each day to enhance customer’s business. Today’s success story is different from the success stories of the past because technology has become the game changer. We need to use data, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML) and Internet of Things (IoT) in a way that will drive speed of business. Technology transformation is the way to go and data is the fuel that will drive global technology transformation. Dell will continue to support innovations that will drive IoT, AI, and ML, through our public and private cloud solutions that we offer for business growth.

How will you address the fears of most organisations who are still skeptical about investing so much in technology business?

How will 5G technology help in driving digital transformation within organisations?

5G technology is about speed in accelerating business transformation and digital transformation comes with the fastest delivery of products and services to enhance business performance and returns on investment. So 5G is an accelerator that will further drive cloud solutions to boost digital transformation.

How will the combination of Dell EMC drive digital transformation, using Internet of Things and ArtiďŹ cial Intelligence?

Internet of Things (IoTs) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) are the next generation of technology solutions that are driving digital transformation and organisations need a lot of data to effectively use IoTs and AI to drive their business. They need to generate data, aggregate the data to take fast and instant decision that will turn around the organisation in a more efficient way.

Dell A recent research survey conducted by Dell shows that 42 per cent of the global population does not know whether they can cope with digital

African countries need to embrace the global technology transformation and invest in technologies such as AI, IoT and ML to catch up with the speed of technology development. They also need to invest in infrastructure, especially broadband infrastructure. What I think every country should do, is to use local technology partners to develop local technologies that will address organisational and societal challenges, while they still invest in modern technologies.

What Dell Technologies could also do is to develop the local markets and offer them opportunities to grow their businesses and economies, using technology solution

transformation, 51 per cent is still struggling to keep up with the digital technology space, while 93 per cent is faced with the barriers of digital transformation. But in all of these, digital transformation must drive Information Technology (IT) transformation, workplace transformation and security transformation. Organisation must therefore summon up the courage to continue to invest in technology to drive their business because the gains are enormous.

What is your view about technology regulation across globe?

Regulation is important provided it does not stifle technology growth. Technology has brought a lot of disruptions in recent times, yet some people are still afraid about the social impact of technology. What country regulators must know about technology regulation is that technology advancement could be used to propagate good and evil, depending on the mindset of the people at the centre stage, and we will not stop innovating just because some people use technology for harmful and selfish gains. The truth is that technology is the game changer and has brought about a lot of business growth and agility and we will continue to innovate. When fire was invented in the early years, some people felt it was a destructive technology but many saw it as a solution for industrial and domestic use, and today fire is used in homes in different ways. When the internet was first developed, many countries condemned it, saying it is evil but today the internet has revolutionise the entire globe, it has created lots of jobs and businesses and many are benefitting from it. What matters is about using technology in a responsible way.

In promoting digital transformation, what is Dell Technologies doing about data protection and security?

One of the biggest accelerator in digital transformation is the ability to protect and secure the growing amount of critical data.

Security transformation therefore must come with solutions that are resilient, adaptable and

How will you assess the growth of Dell Technologies as a technology company?

I started Dell Technologies about 34 years ago and the company has witnessed tremendous growth since inception. Today the company worth billions of dollars and we are still growing and acquiring new companies as the need arises.

At the Dell Technology World 2018, new solutions were announced. What are these solutions about and how will they enhance organisational growth in the African emerging markets?

Dell Technologies launched several new breakthrough at the Dell Technology World 2018. One of them is the Dell EMC storage and server products backed by a comprehensive services portfolio. This solution raises the bar to power up the modern data centre and these new products are designed to address a wide range of traditional and emerging data centre workloads to help customers drive better business outcomes.

We also unveiled the new Dell Wyse 5070 thin client, the company’s most versatile and scalable thin client platform that enables organisations to select just the right configuration based on employees’ needs. In addition, Dell Technologies is expanding Dell EMC’s VDI Complete Solutions, powered by VMware Horizon, to include support for 14th generation PowerEdge server infrastructure and virtualised graphics options for high-performance workloads. Both solutions lower the barrier to VDI adoption, making it easier than ever for organisations to plan, deploy, and run desktop and application virtualisation within their IT environments.

Again VMware outlined its vision for the future of networking, and unveiled the Virtual Cloud Network, which enables organisations to create a digital business fabric for connecting and securing applications, data, and users across the entire network in a hyper- distributed world.

To deliver on this vision, VMware announced the VMware NSX networking and security portfolio to enable consistent, pervasive connectivity and security for apps and data across software- defined data centre, branch, cloud, and telco environments.

28

T H I S D AY MONDAY MAY 7, 2018

T H I S D AY MONDAY MAY 7, 2018

29

30

T H I S D AY Ëž Ëœ ÍľËœ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍś

LCCI Names Rack Centre Winner of Local Content in ICT The Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) has announced Rack Centre, Africa’s Premium Tier III certified Data Centre as the winner of its local content in Information and communication Technology (ICT).

The recognition announcement was made at this year’s commerce and industry awards held recently in Lagos.

Director General of LCCI, Mr. Muda Yusuf, while explaining the rationale for the awards, which is in its fifth edition, said: “The objective

is to recognise, celebrate and promote private and public institutions that have exhibited the core values of best business practises, business sustainability and have positively impacted the society.’’ The Chamber said the award to Rack Centre and other winners was “an outcome of painstaking selection process from numerous entries received for the award category and backed by feedback from industry’s market intelligence.’’ Director, Advocacy and Enterprise Development, LCCI,

Dr. Vincent Nwani, said: “Rack Centre has made sustained and dedicated commitment to the Nigerian’s economy by its huge investment in data centre and network connectivity thereby saving the Nigerian’s economy millions of foreign exchange on an annual basis, and providing the much needed employment for the youth while also enhancing data security and reliability for corporations across the African continent. “We are very proud of Rack Centre and LCCI in its 2018

Commerce and Industry Awards; we recorgnise and celebrate the company for its value addition to the Nigerian Economy.�

The LCCI, which has grown from a membership strength of 14 in 1888, to 1, 500 as at today, prides itself as a credible platforms for such awards, which cuts across all the sectors of the Nigerian economy and was to showcase those organisations that “have made remarkable contribution to the development of commerce and industry and the economy at

large’ ’adding that corporate governance’ ’was also a major consideration in the evaluation of nominees for the award.�

Managing Director of Rack Centre, Mr. Ayotunde Coker said: “We are delighted and honoured to win this award from the LCCI, a great business institution in Nigeria.

Rack Centre is developing world class technology so that businesses do not have to host their data abroad, or spend scarce resources building data centres locally and our Cloud-on-Ground of-

fering brings a comprehensive range of cloud services to our doorstep, providing access to a comprehensive range of computing and network interconnect services locally.�

Rack Centre is the state-ofthe-art, Tier III Constructed Facility Certified data centre offering carrier neutral colocation services. It has connection to over 27 of the major carriers and Internet Service Providers (ISPs) in the country and direct connection to all undersea cables serving the South Atlantic Coast of Africa.

Vodacom Business Nigeria Wins at Beacon of ICT Awards Vodacom Business Nigeria has been honored with three major accolades at the Beacon of ICT (BoICT) Awards 2018.

Adding to the list of accolades, Vodacom, received awards for Enterprise Solutions Provider of the Year, an award conferred on the company consistently since 2013; Internet of Things (IoT) Focused Company, owing to its pioneering and visionary endeavors in this area in the past two years. A third award was also given to Vodacom for Enterprise Broadband Services Provider of the year.

The BoICT awards is a merit based celebration organised by Nigeria CommunicationsWeek, which aims to recognise outstanding contributions to the growth and development of ICT in Nigeria.

This year, over two million readers of Nigeria CommunicationsWeek voted in different categories and Vodacom emerging as the clear winners in the three categories; Enterprise Solutions Provider of the Year, Internet of Things Focused Company and Enterprise Broadband Services

Provider of the Year, a new category introduced this year.

Speaking at the award ceremony, which took place in Lagos at the Eko Hotel & Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos, recently, Managing Director for Vodacom Business Nigeria, Lanre Kolade said: “Winning these three awards elicits two very distinct emotions today, pride and humility. Pride in the achievements of our dynamic and tenacious team over the years, and humility because we would be nowhere without our customers who continue to trust us to meet their total communications needs and keep them connected 24/7.�

According to him, “These awards are an affirmation of our diligence and commitment to delivering the highest quality enterprise-grade total communications solutions in the industry.

We assure our customers that we will not relent in our pursuit of innovative technological solutions that accelerate business growth and profitability, with unwavering determination to turn their challenges into solutions.�

Aruna Appointed First Nigerian Tetra Pak MD Tetra Pak West Africa has confirmed the appointment of Oshiokamele Aruna as the new managing director(MD) of the company. The appointment of Aruna, makes him the first Nigerian to attain this position in the history of Tetra Pak, a leading processing and packaging solutions provider. “My ambition is to reinforce Tetra Pak’s leadership in West Africa, and support our partners and customers in their respective projects. West Africa has a great development potential and I’m glad to become more involved in my native region,� Aruna said.

Communications Director, North & West Africa of the company, Tawfiq Agoumi, said the appointment “is a reflection of Aruna’s impeccable pedigree and competence, and confirms the strategic importance of the Nigerian market, one of the most dynamic in the Middle East and Africa region.�.

Aruna, a graduate of Chemical Engineering is also a Chartered Accountant. He has attended various courses in top management schools including IMD in Switzerland. He has over 18 years’ work experience spanning various senior management roles including Tetra Pak West Africa, a company that he joined in 2005. His last position was Finance Director from 2011 until his recent appointment.

Tetra Pak is a global leading food processing and packaging solutions company. Working closely with its customers and suppliers, the company provides safe, innovative and environmentally sound products that each day meet the needs of hundreds of millions of people in more than 170 countries around the world.

With more than 23,000 employees based in over 85 countries, the company believes in responsible industry leadership and a sustainable approach to business.

CAPACITY BUILDING

Regional Bank Head, Victoria Island, Fidelity Bank Plc, Chinwe Ighodalu (fourth from the left), with female entrepreneurs at Impact Her Workshop after delivering a lecture to them on ‘Loan Readiness For Women in Business’ which took place at Canton Concourse, Maroko in Lagos...recently

ESET Wins BoICT 2018 Information Security Company Award ESET has emerged the Best Information Security Company of the Year at Beacon of ICT awards 2018, for its dedication to developing high-performing security solutions for home users and corporate customers.

ESET is known for predicting, preventing, detecting and remediating all known and emerging forms of cybersecurity threats.

The Company took home the prestigious award two years in a row after topping other challengers during the online voting, the BoICT Awards organisers said.

ESET is notable for her extensive line of solutions which protect across all types of environments and platforms from computers and servers to mobile devices, helping their clients maintain maximum protection across all types of environments. Founder/Editor In-Chief, Nigeria CommunicationsWeek, Mr. Ken Nwogbo, said the superior detection capabilities, low system requirements of the company’ solutions, coupled with the local presence and premium support services to their clients, irrespective of the company size, came to play even as the products are priced among independent anti-malware testing organisations.

Nwogbo further described the award as a testament to array of talents at ESET Nigeria

who are constantly innovating and contributing their quota to the growth of the ICT industry, adding “we are at Communications Week Media are happy that Nigerians have recognized ESET’s hard work, sincerity and dedication towards the defense of the of industry.�

Commenting shortly after receiving the award, Country Manager, ESET, Mr. Olufemi Ake, dedicated the award to the numerous ESET loyal customers in the country.

He also appreciated the team for their consistency and resilience over the years. “We are happy that Nigerians recognized our efforts in offering a full range of business and consumer products. In fact, more than 95 per cent of our customers in Nigeria are retained annually. This says a lot about our commitment to providing proactive protection and enviable technical support service to existing customers,�

Ake said. Our product ranges from Endpoint Security, Server Security (both File Server and Mail Security for Exchange Server), Access Protection (TwoFactor Authentication), Data Loss Prevention, Encryption, Mobile Device Management, Patch Management and Threat Detection & Management.

Etisalat, Intel, Ericsson Celebrate 5GVarsity Contest Winners Etisalat and Intel, together with Ericsson have congratulated students from the American University of Sharjah for demonstrating innovative 5G use cases as part of the recently concluded university competition.

The Information and Communication Technology (ICT) giants joined forces in February this year to launch the university competition, targeting engineering students from renowned UAE universities, under the theme of ‘Driving the Future of 5G Innovation’. Over 20 teams from the American University of Sharjah, Khalifa University and New York University Abu Dhabi competed to best demonstrate 5G use cases. Five of the 21 teams were shortlisted and invited to present their innovative ideas in front of a prestigious jury of industry executives: Khalifa Al Shamsi, Etisalat Group Chief Strategy & Corporate Governance Officer, Petter Järtby, Head of Etisalat Global Customer Unit at Ericsson, and Taha Khalifa, Sales Director, EMEA Territory at Intel evaluated the shortlisted projects. Abdullah Ahmed, Jayroop Ramesh, and Saad Aldeen from the American University of Sharjah won first place after presenting their ground-breaking idea of Decentralized Peer to Peer Mobile Devices Cloud computing using 5G technology.

Runner up position went to

students Baleegh Ahmad and Doovaraha Maheswarasarma from NYU Abu Dhabi who proposed a solution based on 5G, augmented reality and robotics to optimize and automate operations in the cargo industry.

Finally, Bashar Al Jabery, Marawan El Bardicy and Mustafa Al Jassim from the American University of Sharjah came in third place with their “Wear Hear� use case around using smart glasses, 5G and Edge computing to help individuals with hearing disabilities better communicate and integrate in the society.

The winning teams will all receive valuable prizes including internship opportunity in Etisalat or Ericsson as well as a one of its kind enrollment opportunity to a tailor made three-month coaching program from Ericsson Garage, which will be kicked off by a full week trip to Ericsson Stockholm.

Senior Vice President, Mobile Network, Etisalat, Saeed Alzarouni, who commented on the students’ entries at the awards ceremony, said: “We believe innovation is the future of human investment which is why our vision as a company is in line with the national agenda that emphasizes its importance across sectors where innovation, research, science and technology will form the pillars of a highly productive and competitive economy.�

31

T H I S D AY Ëž Ëœ ÍľËœ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍś

SES Increases Reach in Nigeria to over 11m TV Homes Emma Okonji SES, a global satellite service provider, significantly increased its technical reach in Nigeria to over 11 million TV homes in 2017, up from three million in 2015. The growth figure was obtained from the recent Satellite Monitor research, a market study commissioned

by SES that provides insights on the broadcasting industry and on SES’s reach in the country.

The smonitor results reveal that SES now reaches over 11 million TV homes, of which 3.5 million are directly served by its satellite fleet - a twofold increase compared to 2015. This means SES now directly serves 37 per cent of satellite TV homes in Nigeria. Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT) homes fed indirectly

by SES also contributed to the increased reach.

The prime orbital position at 28.2 degrees East was a key driver for the growth of SES’s direct reach, with three million TV homes directly served via this orbital slot, up from 1.3 million in 2015. This video position

hosts SES’s premium free-to-air TV platform for Nigeria, giving broadcasters access to the highest technical reach in West Africa.

The growth of SES’s reach was also driven by direct satellite broadcasting and feeding DTT head-ends via five degrees East.

According to the survey, there are 35 million TV homes in Nigeria, of which close to 10 million are served by satellite, and the rest are served by terrestrial networks. The penetration of digital TV has expanded to 25 million homes receiving digital TV signals, which represents 35 per cent growth compared to 2015.

Analysing the survey results at a press conference, Vice President, Sales and Market Development for Africa, SES Video, Mr. Clint Brown, said: “SES has been committed to driving the growth of digital TV in Nigeria for many years, and local partners in the country appreciate the Satellite Monitor study as a token of our commitment. “We are particularly excited by our growing technical reach

Teniola Re-elected ATCON President, Harps on Broadband Access Emma Okonji The Chief Executive Officer of Kinten Telecoms, Mr. Olusola Teniola has been re-elected as President of the Association of Telecoms Companies of Nigeria (ATCON), while the CEO of Medallion Communications, Mr. Ikechukwu Nnamani emerged the new First Vice President of ATCON. Other members of exco that emerged at the election, which took place last week, were, Mr. Muyiwa Ogungboye of eStream Networks as Second Vice President; Myke Ofili of Coloplus Worldwide Services Limited as National Secretary; Aderonke Adeyegbe of Comercio Limited as Financial Secretary; Anucha Hyacinth of GTS -Infotel Nigeria Limited as Treasurer and Adanna Nosiri of IHS Nigeria Limited as Publicity Secretary. Others were Ezekiel Egboye of Rack Centre Limited as Coordinator, Equipment Dealers; Osondu Nwokoro of ntel as Coordinator, Telephone Operators, among others.

Addressing the media shortly after the election, Teniola assured Nigerians of the resolve of the newly elected excos to vigorously pursue broadband penetration and ensure that all Nigerians have access to broadband at affordable rate. “We need competition in the industry that speaks to the open access so that our Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and other industry operators can gain access to the right capacities and pricing so as to provide

affordable services to the consumers. This will drive huge data as required as well as provide access to broadband infrastructure for those outside Lagos,�

Teniola said.

Commending Globacom for the planned takeoff of Glo2, Teniola said it would help to advance broadband capacity to the hinterlands, outside of Lagos for easy access.

Pleased with the conduct of the election, Nnamani said the new excos would review the current ATCON policies, with a view to upgrading some of the policies that are still relevant in today’s digital era, and discard those that are not. “Digital technology and convergence have created some disruptions in the technology space, and we must align ourselves with the global realities of today’s digital era. Today we see a new set of technology activities from Value Added Service (VAS) providers and the FinTechs, creating new line of businesses that drives efficiency and profitability. The newly elected excos will address the new development and ensure that member companies benefit from them.

We will come up with new advocacy that will enhance members’ businesses and promote stable economy,�

Nnamani said.

Addressing the issue of multiple taxation in the telecoms industry, Nnamani said ATCON would continue to engage with the relevant authorities at the federal, state and local governments to arrive at a consensus on how best to levy telecoms operators and still make them competitive in their business.

at 28.2 degrees East, which broadcasters and content programmers will be able to leverage to increase their audience via our Nigerian TV platform. In addition, the results show that the hybrid

DTH/DTT approach is the winning strategy to deliver TV entertainment to the highest number of TV homes.�

While presenting the survey statistics, Vice President, Marketing at SES, Mr. Paul Freeman,

said in addition to the growth of homes reached in Nigeria, the study also showed that there was an increase from two million to four million homes reached in Ghana, Ethiopia, Uganda and Tanzania, which

were being included in the Satellite Monitor for the first year, account for an additional seven million homes reached by SES. According to him, SES has also expanded its reach to 30 million TV homes across Africa.

HONOUR WELL DESERVED

L-R: Assistant Business Development Manager, Priority Communications, Aanuoluwapo Agboola; Engineering Manager, Olujide Idowu and former Executive Vice Chairman, Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Dr. Ernest Ndukwe, at the BoICT Award, where Priority Communications was announced as IT Services Provider of the Year, which held in Lagos ... recently

Infinix Mobile Holds Smartphone Photography Masterclass Emma Okonji Following the recent release of its latest smartphone flagship device, the Hot S3, Infinix Mobile, last week, held a smartphone photography master class to share knew knowledge on the use of selfies to capture best moments.

The master class, which was well attended, validates existing facts that the brand is one of the biggest mobile brands in Nigeria that can be trusted to deliver every time there is a need for great invention in the mobile tech space.

The photography master class,

which held in collaboration with Deola Adebiyi of Omoge Mura, a blogger, explored latest trends on how to capture great moments with selfies.

Remarkably, Infinix mobile is among the mobile brands that are fully aware of how much selfies have become a part of our everyday existence as Nigerians.

Through the master class themed: “How A Selfie Focused Phone Can Help Lifestyle blogging,� Infinix has only gone on to re-echo the multiple possibilities that can be attained using its device in finding expression for business and style in a photo

centric society. She lectured participants on how to take quality selfies by finding the light, using grid lines and not being afraid to edit. “This is a welcome initiative other brands should emulate. I thought I knew it all when it comes to smartphone photography, but this master class has taught me that there are a lot of things I didn’t know about smartphone photography’ said,� Shola Adebiyi, an excited participant.

Also speaking at the master class was Infinix Hot S3 Product Manager, Andy Wang, who spoke on some of the amazing features of the new phone. They include

the amazing 20MP Low Light selfie with a bokeheffect and the beautify mode, 18:9 infinity display and a huge 4000mAh battery capacity. “The Infinix Hot S3 provides seamless multitasking with its huge 3GB RAM and can store a lot of data such as songs, HD movies, images with its 32GB ROM which is expandable up to 128GB. On the camera department, we have set this device up to compete with the best with it 20MP+13MP with bright flash which is at par with a professional camera. So, users have nothing to worry about,�

Wang said.

Organisations Overhauling IT Will Leapfrog Competition, Says Dell EMC Emma Okonji Dell EMC has announced the results of new research conducted by Enterprise Strategy Group (ESG) into the benefits of information technology (IT) transformation which validates that IT transformation can result in bottom-line benefits that drive business differentiation, innovation and growth.

Today’s business landscape is rife with disruption, much of it driven by organisations using technology in new or innovative ways. In order to survive and thrive in today’s digital world, businesses are implementing new technologies, processes and skillsets to best address

changing customer needs. A fundamental first step to this change is transforming IT, to help organisations bring products to market faster, remain competitive and drive innovation.

Vice Chairman, Products and Operations, Dell Technologies, Jeff Clarke, said: “Data is the new competitive edge – yet it’s become highly distributed across the edge, the core data center and cloud. Organisations realise they have to move quickly to turn that data into business intelligence – requiring an end-to-end IT infrastructure that can manage, analyse, store and protect data everywhere it lives. “We’re in the business of better business outcomes, giving our

customers the ability make that end-to-end strategy a reality, driving disruptive innovation without the fear of being disrupted themselves.�

ESG employed a researchbased, data-driven maturity model to identify different stages of IT Transformation progress and determine the degree to which global organisations have achieved those different stages, based on their responses to questions about their organisations’ adoption of modernised data centre technologies, automated IT processes and transformed organisational dynamics.

Vice President of Research, Enterprise Strategy Group, John McKnight, said: “Companies

today need to be agile to stay competitive and drive growth, and IT transformation can be a major enabler of that. It’s clear that IT Transformation is increasingly resonating with companies and that senior executives recognisse how IT Transformation is pivotal to overall business strategy and competitiveness.�

At Dell Technologies World, which holds April 30th to May 3rd, 2018, experts from Dell EMC will discuss these results and demonstrate how IT transformation creates a digital advantage that can help businesses become more valuable to customers and more competitive in their respective markets.

32

T H I S D AY ˾ MONDAY MAY 7, 2018

T H I S D AY ˾ MONDAY MAY 7, 2018

33

T H I S D AY ˞ ˜ MAY 7, 2018

34

BUSINESS/MONEYGUIDE

Afreximbank Urges Infrastructure Upgrade to Enhance African Trade Obinna Chima Africa must urgently upgrade its maritime and logistic infrastructure in order to successfully promote the continent’s trade, especially intra-African trade, the African ExportImport Bank (Afreximbank), has said.

In an address at the Africa Shipowners Summit in Seychelles recently, the Managing Director of Afreximbank’s Intra-African Trade Initiative, Kanayo Awani, who spoke on behalf of Bank’s President, Dr. Benedict Oramah, described weak maritime and logistic infrastructure as being particularly harmful to African trade.

Awani noted the continent currently has the world’s highest transportation and transaction costs.

She also pointed out that only a few of the African countries with access to the sea had established the right infrastructure for marine transport even though Marine transport accounted for 92 per cent of Africa’s external trade and 92 per cent of the continents imports were seaborne.

According to her, Africa currently handles only six per cent of global seaborne traffic, out of which 50 per cent of the volume was handled by Egypt and South Africa.

Lamenting that most African countries did not have national vessels, Awani said it was estimated that Kenya lost about $3 billion annually in money paid to foreign shipping lines.

She recommended incentives to encourage African businesses to support the development of local shipping lines and called

for investment in national/ domestic fleet through gradual and staggered vessel acquisition, terminal management, freight forwarding and logistics.

Opportunities also existed in inland waterways, cruise ship services, trans-shipment, container manufacturing and repairs, dry docking and other value addition services, such as sorting, arranging, packaging/ re-packaging, cold storage and distribution, she added.

The summit, organised by the African Shipowners Association, also featured the presentation of an Honorary Captain’s Award to Oramah by the organisers for Afreximbank’s contribution in supporting the Blue Economy and the Maritime Sector in Africa. Awani accepted the award on behalf of the President.

Access Bank Empowers 500 Female SME Operators Access Bank Plc has disclosed that its ‘W’ Academy, in partnership with the Enterprise Development Centre (EDC) of the Lagos Business School (LBS), recently organised a professional business capacity-building workshop for 500 female entrepreneurs in Port-Harcourt, Abuja and Lagos.

These capacity building initiatives across the three states took place in the last four months and served as the third, fourth and fifth editions of the Second season of the bank’s Womenpreneur Business Workshop training.

Speaking on the initiative, the Group Head, Product Sales of Access Bank Plc, Ope Wemi-Jones said, was quoted in a statement from the bank as saying: “Since 2006, the bank has maintained its commitment to drive women’s

economic empowerment in the nation. “The Womenpreneur Business workshop is intended to educate and enlighten Nigerian women on the fundamentals in business which will eventually help them attain their full potential.�

The Womenpreneur Business workshop, a flagship training of the ‘W’ Academy under its Access Bank’s ‘W’ initiative was designed to address the lack of access to entrepreneurial skills, finance, networking, and management skills; which are the key barriers to women’s economic inclusion. The objective of the Womenpreneur Business Workshop is to provide a discounted and practical capacity building programme that exposes female business owners to the nation’s

economic reality as well as help them simplify processes and hone the requisite skills needed to grow their businesses.

So far, over 2,300 business women in Lagos, Port Harcourt, Ibadan, Abuja, Kaduna & Enugu have benefitted immensely from the workshop with testimonials around increasing their business network, improving their business model and are thriving through the economic constraints with ease. This first of its kind workshop is highly discounted and targeted at small and medium scaled women entrepreneurs.

Wemi-Jones disclosed that plans have been concluded to hold the next editions of the workshop in Kano and Ibadan in July and August respectively.

Broad Street

MARKET INDICATORS MONEY AND CREDIT STATISTICS

(MILLION NAIRA)

AUGUST 2017 Broad Money (M2)

21,851,454.31

-- Narrow Money (M1)

9,890,813.10

---- Currency Outside Banks

1,523,239.91

---- Demand Deposits

8,367,573.19

-- Quasi Money

11,960,641.22

Net Foreign Assets (NFA)

9,732,990.89

Net Domestic Assets(NDA)

12,118,463.42

-- Net Domestic Credit (NDC)

26,821,446.81

---- Credit to Government (Net)

4,824,226.22

---- Memo: Credit to Govt. (Net) less FMA

7,834,536.74

---- Memo: Fed. and Mirror Accounts (FMA)

--3,010,310.52

---- Credit to Private Sector (CPS)

21,997,220.59

Participants Hail GTBank Food Fair

--Other Assets Net

--14,702,983.39

Reserve Money (Base Money)

5,486,804.65

Peter Uzoho

--Currency in Circulation

1,868,735.07

--Banks Reserves

3,268,266.17

The Food and Drink Fair recently organised by Guaranty Trust Bank (GTB) has received commendations from participants.

The fair, which took place in Lagos, attracted over 300, 000 participants including international chefs, vendors, parents and guardians, school children, pleasure-seekers, amongst others, who took advantage of the three-day show to make sales, transfer and update knowledge, market individual products and services, as well as networking.

Being the second in its series, the fair, which centred on promoting enterprise and showcasing unique African delicacies, had British awardwinning chef and TV presenter, Edd Kimber, as the headliner and accompanied by his professional colleagues including Lorraine Pascale, Scott Winston, Sunny Anderson, Muse Tahir, Siba Mtongana, Raphael Duntoye, and Elizabeth Solaru.

Masterclasses of different sessions were delivered for both old and young culinary artists and small and medium enterprises and school children who were taught the different cooking and baking skills, while food and vendors were offered ample opportunity to do business

and connect with new comers.

Commenting on their experiences at the fair, attendees said the bank provided a perfect place for fun, business and networking.

A vendor who deals on food stuff, fruits and vegetable, the CEO of Vegetalfoods, Mrs. Osaretin Okaro, said the fair enabled her to make more business contacts. “Thank God I didn’t fail to come to this fair. I made sales like never before. The most interesting thing is that it has made to add more contacts to the one I have�, she enthused. “You can see what is happening here, great business opportunity. People are coming here to patronise us. So I thank the bank for this opportunity. I urge them to continue doing this every year,� she added.

One of the food enthusiasts and fun-seekers, Agogo Edohor, said the programme was fantastic and amazing. “Oh my God, I feel like not leaving here again. This is so fantastic and amazing. I’m having great fun here, tasting foods and wines. “Look at the setting, so neat, so enticing. You have all you need right here. And they made it so convenient that you have different options for payment. I wish this could go on beyond the three years. I give thumbs

up for GT bank for packaging such an excellent fair,� she said.

The Food and Drink Fair, according to the bank, was designed to celebrate Nigeria’s vibrant food culture while promoting enterprise in the small business sector of the food industry, bringing together SMEs operators, global-renowned chefs and food lovers from across the world. The Chief Executive Officer of the bank, Mr. Segun Agbaje, said at a press conference before the commencement of the fair that alongside the unparalleled culinary experience, it showcased the richness of Africa’s food culture and the vibrancy of the small businesses involved in the industry. “Apart from the amazing experiences that we create for our tens of thousands of guests, it is the personal testimonials that we receive from participants that speak to the true value of the initiative,� he said.

Agbaje added: “Behind these small businesses are hardworking fathers, enterprising mothers and incredibly passionate youths who when they share their remarkable stories of record sales at the fair, we see not just the impact of our efforts at promoting enterprise but the immense capacity of our organisation as a platform to enriching lives.�

Ëž Ă™Ă&#x;ĂœĂ?Ă? Ě‹

Money Market Indicators (in Percentage) Month

August 2017

Inter-Bank Call Rate

22.63

Minimum Rediscount Rate (MRR) Monetary Policy Rate (MPR)

14.00

Treasury Bill Rate

13.35

Savings Deposit Rate

4.08

1 Month Deposit Rate

8.86

3 Months Deposit Rate

10.14

6 Months Deposit Rate

11.51

12 Months Deposit Rate

11.40

Prime Lending rate

17.69

Maximum Lending Rate

31.20

Ëž Ă™Ă˜Ă?ĂžĂ‹ĂœĂŁ ÙÖÓĂ?ĂŁ Ă‹ĂžĂ? Ě‹ ͯ͹Ϲ

OPEC DAILY BASKET PRICE AS AT THURSDAY MAY 3, 2018

The price of OPEC basket of fourteen crudes stood at $70.66 a barrel on Thursday, compared with $70.47 the previous day, according to OPEC Secretariat calculations.

The OPEC Reference Basket of Crudes (ORB) is made up of the following: Saharan Blend (Algeria), Girassol (Angola), Oriente (Ecuador), ZaďŹ ro (Equatorial Guinea), Rabi Light (Gabon), Iran Heavy (Islamic Republic of Iran), Basra Light (Iraq), Kuwait Export (Kuwait), Es Sider (Libya), Bonny Light (Nigeria), Qatar Marine (Qatar), Arab Light (Saudi Arabia), Murban (UAE) and Merey (Venezuela SOURCE: OPEC headquarters, Vienna

35

T H I S D AY Ëž Ëœ ÍľËœ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍś

MARKET NEWS

NAHCO to Pay N406m Dividend as Firm Records Improved Results Goddy Egene The Board of Directors of Nigerian Aviation Handling Company Plc (NAHCo) has recommended a dividend of N406 million for the year ended December 31, 2017. The dividend, which translates to 25 kobo per share, is expected to be approved by shareholders at the forthcoming Annual General Meeting (AGM).

NAHCo, which provides

aircraft, passenger and cargo handling services and other related services surmounted challenges in 2017 to end the year with higher profit after tax (PAT). The company recorded a turnover of N7.926 billion in 2017, compared with N7.956 billion in 2016. Finance cost was reduced from N545 million in 2016 to N213 million in 2017, while PAT rose from N581 million in 2016 to N776 million in 2017, showing an increase

P R I C E S MAIN BOARD

F O R DEALS

of 34 per cent. Earnings per share improved from 36 kobo to 48 kobo. Hence, the board of directors recommended a dividend payment of 25 kobo, which is higher than the 22 kobo paid the previous year.

In the same vein, NAHCo has started 2018 on a very bright note, recording significant growth in PAT for the first quarter (Q1) ended March 31, 2018. The reported a turnover of N2.188 billion in Q1 of 2018, up from

S E C U R I T I E S MARKET PRICE

QUANTITY TRADED

VALUE TRADED ( N )

N1.786 billion in the corresponding period of 2017.

Finance income improved from N30.916 million to N64.495 million, while the company was able to reduce finance cost to N44.536 million, from N55.715 million in 2017. Profit Before Tax jumped to N117.405 million in 2018, compared with N1.026 in 2017, while PAT followed similarly trend to hit N97.566 million, compared with N1.026 million in 2017.

T R A D E D MAIN BOARD

A S

The Q1 results are the first set of results produced by the Managing Director/CEO, Mr. Idris Yakubu, who was appointed in November 2017.

Stock market operators said with the Q1 performance, Yakubu, a former banker, who has an extensive experience in delivering agreed strategic business imperatives, is bringing his experience to bear in the company to the delight of all stakeholders.

Shareholders of NAHCo had last

O F

year commended the board and management for the improved results despite the challenging operating environment. They pledged their support for better future results and urged the board and management to sustain the performance.

Chairman of NAHCo, Usman Bello had informed the shareholders that in spite of the recession and the global weakness in the aviation sector, the company’s performance was commendable.

0 4 / 0 5 / 2 0 1 8 DEALS

MARKET PRICE

QUANTITY TRADED

VALUE TRADED ( N)

36

˜ Ϳ˜ ͺ͸͹Ͷ ˾ T H I S D AY

Nigeria Daily Stock Market Report: 'ůŽďĂů ƋƵŝƟĞƐ DĂƌŬĞƚƐ ZĞǀŝĞǁ ĂŶĚ KƵƚůŽŽŬ͗ dƌĂĚĞ tĂƌ hŶĐĞƌƚĂŝŶƟĞƐ ƚŽ ŝĐƚĂƚĞ 'ůŽďĂů DĂƌŬĞƚ ŝƌĞĐƟŽŶ ŝŶ ƚŚĞ EĞĂƌ dĞƌŵ 'ůŽďĂů ĞƋƵŝƚLJ ŵĂƌŬĞƚƐ ƉĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ ƚŚŝƐ ǁĞĞŬ ǁĂƐ ŵŝdžĞĚ ĂƐ ϴ ŽĨ ƚŚĞ ϭϲ ŝŶĚŝĐĞƐ ƵŶĚĞƌ ŽƵƌ ĐŽǀĞƌĂŐĞ ĐůŽƐĞĚ ŝŶ ƚŚĞ ƌĞĚ͘ tĞ ďĞůŝĞǀĞ ƚŚĞ ŝŶĐŽŶĐůƵƐŝǀĞ ĚŝƐĐƵƐƐŝŽŶƐ ďLJ h^ ĂŶĚ ŚŝŶĂ ŽŶ ƚƌĂĚĞ ĚŝƐƉƵƚĞƐ ǁĞŝŐŚĞĚ ŚĞĂǀŝůLJ ŽŶ ŐůŽďĂů ƉĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ ĞƐƉĞĐŝĂůůLJ ŝŶ ƐŝĂŶ ŵĂƌŬĞƚƐ ƚŚŝƐ ǁĞĞŬ͘ EĞǀĞƌƚŚĞůĞƐƐ͕ ƌĞƉŽƌƚƐ ŽƵƚ ŽĨ ŚŝŶĂ ƐƵŐŐĞƐƚ ƚŚĂƚ ƚŚĞ ƚǁŽ ƉĂƌƟĞƐ ĂƌĞ ƐƟůů ĐŽŵŵŝƩĞĚ ƚŽ ƌĞƐŽůǀŝŶŐ ƚƌĂĚĞ ĚŝƐƉƵƚĞƐ ƚŚƌŽƵŐŚ ĚŝĂůŽŐƵĞ͘ /Ŷ ůŝŐŚƚ ŽĨ ƚŚŝƐ͕ ǁĞ ďĞůŝĞǀĞ ƚŚŝƐ ĐŽƵůĚ ĐŽŶƟŶƵĞ ƚŽ ĚŝĐƚĂƚĞ ƉĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ ŽĨ ŐůŽďĂů ŵĂƌŬĞƚƐ ŝŶ ƚŚĞ ŶĞĂƌ ƚĞƌŵ͘ ůƐŽ͕ ŝŶ ƚŚĞ ĐŽŵŵŽĚŝƟĞƐ ŵĂƌŬĞƚ͕ Žŝů ƉƌŝĐĞ ƐůŝĚ Ϭ͘Ϯй tͲŽ Ͳt ƚŽ h^Ψϳϯ͘ϰϰͬď ;ĂƐ ŽĨ ǁƌŝƟŶŐͿ͘ EĞǀĞƌƚŚĞůĞƐƐ͕ Žŝů ƌĞŵĂŝŶƐ Ăƚ ŝƚƐ ŚŝŐŚĞƐƚ ůĞǀĞů ƐŝŶĐĞ ϮϬϭϱ ŵĂũŽƌůLJ ĚƵĞ ƚŽ KW ĂŶĚ ĂůůŝĞƐ͛ ĂŐƌĞĞŵĞŶƚ ƚŽ ĞdžƚĞŶĚ ƉƌŽĚƵĐƟŽŶ ĐƵƚƐ ĂƐ ǁĞůů ĂƐ ŐĞŽƉŽůŝƟĐĂů ƚĞŶƐŝŽŶƐ͘ /Ŷ ƚŚĞ ĚĞǀĞůŽƉĞĚ ŵĂƌŬĞƚƐ͕ ƚŚĞ E ^ Y ǁĂƐ ƚŚĞ ďŝŐŐĞƐƚ ŐĂŝŶĞƌ͕ ƵƉ Ϭ͘ϵй ǁŚŝůĞ ƚŚĞ h< &d^ ůů ^ŚĂƌĞ ĂƉƉƌĞĐŝĂƚĞĚ Ϭ͘ϴй tͲŽͲt ůĂƌŐĞůLJ ĚƌŝǀĞŶ ďLJ ƉŽƐŝƟǀĞ ĞĂƌŶŝŶŐƐ ĂƐ ǁĞůů ĂƐ ĂŶ ŝŶĐƌĞĂƐĞ ŝŶ D Θ ĂĐƟǀŝƟĞƐ͘ KŶ ƚŚĞ ŽƚŚĞƌ ŚĂŶĚ͕ ƚŚĞ h͘^͘ ^ΘW ϱϬϬ ƐŚĞĚ Ϭ͘ϲй tͲŽͲt ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞůLJ ĨŽůůŽǁŝŶŐ ƚŚĞ ƌĞůĞĂƐĞ ŽĨ ƐŽŵĞ ƵŶŝŵƉƌĞƐƐŝǀĞ ƋƵĂƌƚĞƌůLJ ƌĞƐƵůƚƐ ĂƐ ǁĞůů ĂƐ ŐƵŝĚĂŶĐĞ ďLJ ƚŚĞ h^ &ĞĚ ƚŚĂƚ ŝŶŇĂƟŽŶ ĐŽƵůĚ ƌŝƐĞ ĨĂƐƚĞƌ ƚŚĂŶ ĞdžƉĞĐƚĞĚ͘ /Ŷ ŵĂƌŬĞƚƐ ŝŶ ƚŚĞ ƵƌŽƉĞ ĂŶĚ ƐŝĂ ĐůĂƐƐŝĮĐĂƟŽŶ͕ ,ŽŶŐ <ŽŶŐ͛Ɛ ,ĂŶŐ ^ĞŶŐ ǁĂƐ ƚŚĞ ůŽŶĞ ůŽƐĞƌ͕ ĚŽǁŶ ϭ͘Ϯй ĂƐ ŝŶǀĞƐƚŽƌƐ ƚƌĂĚĞĚ ĐĂƵƟŽƵƐůLJ ĨŽůůŽǁŝŶŐ ƵŶĐĞƌƚĂŝŶƟĞƐ ŽĨ ƚŚĞ h^Ͳ ŚŝŶĂ ƚƌĂĚĞ ƚĂůŬƐ͘ EŽŶĞƚŚĞůĞƐƐ͕ Ăůů ŽƚŚĞƌ ŝŶĚŝĐĞƐ ŝŶ ƚŚĞ ƐĞŐŵĞŶƚ ƚƌĞŶĚĞĚ ŶŽƌƚŚǁĂƌĚƐ͘ 'ĞƌŵĂŶLJ͛Ɛ y dZ y ĂŶĚ &ƌĂŶĐĞ͛Ɛ ϰϬ ƌŽƐĞ ϭ͘ϵй ĂŶĚ Ϭ͘ϲй ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞůLJ tͲŽͲt ǁŚŝůĞ :ĂƉĂŶ͛Ɛ EŝŬŬĞŝ ϮϮϱ ĐůŽƐĞĚ ƚŚĞ ǁĞĞŬ ŇĂƫƐŚ͘ WĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ ĂĐƌŽƐƐ ƚŚĞ Z/ ^ ŵĂƌŬĞƚƐ ǁĂƐ ŵŝdžĞĚ ĂƐ ϯ ŽĨ ϱ ŝŶĚŝĐĞƐ ĚĞĐůŝŶĞĚ͘ ƌĂnjŝů͛Ɛ /ďŽǀĞƐƉĂ ƐŚĞĚ ϯ͘ϰй ŽŶ ƚŚĞ ďĂĐŬ ŽĨ ůŽƐƐĞƐ ŝŶ ƚŚĞ ĮŶĂŶĐŝĂů͕ ƌĞĂů ĞƐƚĂƚĞ ĂŶĚ ĐŽŶƐƵŵĞƌ ŐŽŽĚƐ ƐĞĐƚŽƌƐ͘ ůƐŽ͕ ZƵƐƐŝĂ͛Ɛ Zd^ ĂŶĚ /ŶĚŝĂ͛Ɛ ^ ^ĞŶƐ ĨĞůů ϭ͘ϴй ĂŶĚ Ϭ͘Ϯй ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞůLJ tͲŽͲt͘ KŶ ƚŚĞ ŽƚŚĞƌ ŚĂŶĚ͕ ^ŽƵƚŚ ĨƌŝĐĂ͛Ɛ &d^ ͬ:^ ůů ^ŚĂƌĞ ĂŶĚ ŚŝŶĂ͛Ɛ ^ŚĂŶŐŚĂŝ ŽŵƉ ĂƉƉƌĞĐŝĂƚĞĚ Ϭ͘ϯй ĂƉŝĞĐĞ ĨƌŽŵ ƚŚĞ ƉƌĞǀŝŽƵƐ ǁĞĞŬ͘ ^ŽƵƚŚ ĨƌŝĐĂ͛Ɛ ĞƋƵŝƚLJ ŵĂƌŬĞƚ ŐĂŝŶĞĚ ƚŚŝƐ ǁĞĞŬ ĨŽůůŽǁŝŶŐ ƚŚĞ ƐƵƐƚĂŝŶĞĚ ǁĞĂŬĞŶŝŶŐ ŽĨ ƚŚĞ ZĂŶĚ ĂŐĂŝŶƐƚ ƚŚĞ ŽůůĂƌ ǁŚŝůĞ ƚŚĞ ^ŚĂŶŐŚĂŝ ĐŽŵƉŽƐŝƚĞ ƐƵƌƉƌŝƐŝŶŐůLJ ƌĞĐŽƌĚĞĚ ŐĂŝŶƐ ĚĞƐƉŝƚĞ ŝŶǀĞƐƚŽƌ ĨĞĂƌƐ ƟĞĚ ƚŽ ƚƌĂĚĞ ǁĂƌ ƵŶĐĞƌƚĂŝŶƟĞƐ ĂƉƉƌĞŚĞŶƐŝŽŶƐ͘ ^ŝŵŝůĂƌůLJ͕ ĨƌŝĐĂŶ ŵĂƌŬĞƚƐ ǁĞƌĞ ďĞĂƌŝƐŚ ĂƐ ŽŶůLJ ŽŶĞ ŝŶĚĞdž ƵŶĚĞƌ ŽƵƌ ĐŽǀĞƌĂŐĞͲ 'ŚĂŶĂ͛Ɛ '^ ŽŵƉŽƐŝƚĞ ;нϬ͘ϰйͿ Ͳ ĂƉƉƌĞĐŝĂƚĞĚ tͲŽͲt͘ ŐLJƉƚ͛Ɛ 'y ϯϬ ĂŶĚ <ĞŶLJĂ͛Ɛ E^ ϮϬ ĨĞůů ϭ͘ϲй ĂƉŝĞĐĞ͕ ůĂƌŐĞůLJ ĚƵĞ ƚŽ ƉƌŽĮƚ ƚĂŬŝŶŐ͘ >ŝŬĞǁŝƐĞ͕ EŝŐĞƌŝĂ͛Ɛ ůů ^ŚĂƌĞ /ŶĚĞdž ƐůŝĚ Ϭ͘ϭй ĂƐ ŝŶǀĞƐƚŽƌƐ ŬĞĚ ƉƌŽĮƚ ŝŶ ƉƌĞǀŝŽƵƐ ĂĚǀĂŶĐĞƌƐ͘

Monday, May 7, 2018

THISDAY AFRINVEST 40 INDEX Fundamental Performance Metrics for THISDAY AFRINVEST 40 Index

Ticker

THISDAY AFRINVEST 40

Current Price

Previous Current Price Weighting Change

Price Change YTD

Price Change Index to Date

ROE

ROA

P/E

P/BV

Divinden Earnings d Yield Yield

1,739.07

0.01%

12.7%

73.9%

21.2%

7.7%

8.0x

1.0x

4.7%

1

Guaranty Trust Bank PLC

45.30

0.2%

21.1%

11.2%

11.7%

32.6%

5.2%

7.4x

2.5x

6.0%

13.6%

2

Zenith Bank PLC

27.50

-0.5%

12.4%

7.3%

6.1%

26.3%

3.6%

4.6x

1.2x

9.8%

21.7%

3

Nigerian Brew eries PLC

4

Nestle Nigeria PLC

5

Dangote Cement PLC

6

FBN Holdings Plc

11.8%

129.00

1.4%

7.7%

-4.4%

-4.5%

17.4%

8.3%

32.3x

5.5x

3.2%

3.1%

1,595.00

0.3%

7.3%

2.5%

2.5%

73.3%

18.9%

37.2x

23.7x

2.7%

2.7%

245.50

0.1%

5.9%

6.7%

6.7%

22.7%

12.0%

21.2x

4.9x

4.3%

4.7%

12.55

0.4%

7.0%

42.6%

42.8%

6.7%

0.8%

9.0x

0.7x

2.0%

11.1%

7

Access Bank PLC

11.30

0.0%

4.3%

8.1%

6.6%

12.7%

1.5%

5.6x

0.7x

5.8%

18.0%

8

United Bank for Africa PLC

11.70

-0.4%

4.4%

13.6%

12.4%

15.9%

1.9%

5.2x

0.8x

7.3%

19.3%

9

Ecobank Transnational Inc

20.55

-1.2%

3.5%

20.9%

26.3%

-14.6%

-1.3%

6.8x

0.8x

3.0%

14.7%

750.00

-2.0%

3.3%

19.8%

19.8%

22.3%

13.2%

3.9x

0.8x

2.4%

26.0%

10

SEPLAT Petroleum Development C

11

Stanbic IBTC Holdings PLC

49.50

0.0%

3.1%

19.3%

21.0%

28.9%

3.8%

9.4x

2.7x

1.0%

10.7%

12

Unilever Nigeria PLC

52.50

0.0%

2.9%

28.0%

30.6%

19.2%

8.0%

28.1x

3.8x

1.0%

3.6%

13

Guinness Nigeria PLC

103.50

0.5%

2.3%

10.1%

10.1%

15.4%

6.1%

19.7x

2.6x

0.6%

5.1%

42.00

0.0%

14

Lafarge Africa PLC

1.4%

-6.4%

-6.4%

-36.8%

-7.7%

2.3x

3.6%

-14.7%

15

Fidelity Bank PLC

2.42

-3.6%

1.1%

-1.6%

-6.2%

8.0%

1.1%

2.0x

0.3x

4.5%

49.9%

16

Oando PLC

8.35

-4.0%

1.6%

39.4%

39.4%

9.4%

1.4%

10.4x

0.6x

17

Dangote Sugar Refinery PLC

19.00

0.0%

1.0%

-5.0%

-6.7%

43.2%

19.8%

7.4x

2.9x

13.2%

13.5%

18

Okomu Oil Palm PLC

81.00

3.1%

1.2%

19.7%

19.7%

39.7%

29.4%

8.1x

2.8x

3.7%

12.4%

19

International Brew eries PLC

51.80

9.1%

0.7%

-5.0%

-5.8%

24.6%

7.4%

54.2x

12.3x

20

Flour Mills of Nigeria PLC

35.50

0.0%

0.7%

22.4%

22.4%

13.1%

3.0%

7.4x

0.9x

2.6%

13.5%

21

Transnational Corp of Nigeria

1.67

-2.3%

0.6%

14.4%

12.8%

11.2%

2.5%

10.2x

1.1x

1.2%

9.8%

22

UAC of Nigeria PLC

18.00

0.0%

0.5%

6.5%

6.5%

2.2%

0.8%

29.1x

0.7x

3.6%

23

Diamond Bank PLC

2.11

1.4%

0.7%

40.7%

34.4%

2.5%

0.3%

8.5x

0.2x

24

Total Nigeria PLC

222.20

0.0%

0.5%

-3.4%

-3.4%

25.0%

5.3%

10.7x

2.5x

7.7%

9.3%

2.56

1.6%

0.7%

62.0%

5.1%

0.8%

4.9x

0.3x

3.9%

20.5%

180.40

-5.0%

0.4%

-7.3%

-7.3%

30.8%

11.0%

6.5x

2.4x

9.6%

1.8%

3.4% 11.7%

25

FCMB Group Plc

26

11 PLC

ŽŵĞƐƟĐ ƋƵŝƟĞƐ DĂƌŬĞƚ ZĞǀŝĞǁ ĂŶĚ KƵƚůŽŽŬ͗ ƵLJ /ŶƚĞƌĞƐƚ ŝŶ DŝĚ ĂŶĚ >ĂƌŐĞ ĂƉ ^ƚŽĐŬƐ ƚŽ ƵŽLJ WĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ ŝŶ ŽŵŝŶŐ tĞĞŬ

27

Forte Oil PLC

43.00

0.0%

0.4%

-1.1%

2.4%

17.6%

1.6%

23.2x

3.6x

28

PZ Cussons Nigeria PLC

22.50

0.0%

0.4%

9.2%

6.4%

10.7%

5.0%

21.3x

2.2x

2.2%

29

Cadbury Nigeria PLC

13.15

0.0%

0.3%

-16.1%

-15.7%

2.0%

0.8%

61.4x

2.1x

1.2%

1.6%

30

Presco PLC

70.00

-0.7%

0.3%

2.2%

2.2%

39.7%

28.0%

2.9x

0.9x

2.9%

34.4%

31

NASCON Allied Industries PLC

21.40

4.4%

0.3%

15.7%

11.3%

54.6%

19.5%

10.1x

4.9x

7.0%

9.9%

32

UPDC Real Estate Investment Tr

10.00

0.0%

0.3%

0.0%

0.0%

0.8x

7.2%

33

Union Bank of Nigeria PLC

6.70

0.0%

0.3%

-14.1%

-10.8%

5.6%

1.2%

8.6x

0.4x

34

Julius Berger Nigeria PLC

28.05

0.0%

0.3%

0.2%

0.2%

17.3%

1.8%

7.8x

1.2x

3.6%

12.9%

35

Sterling Bank PLC

52.8%

46.0%

9.0%

0.9%

4.9x

0.5x

1.2%

20.2%

WĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ ŽĨ ƚŚĞ EŝŐĞƌŝĂŶ ĞƋƵŝƟĞƐ ŵĂƌŬĞƚ ǁĂƐ ůĂƌŐĞůLJ ďƵůůŝƐŚ ƚŚŝƐ ǁĞĞŬ ĂƐ ƚŚĞ ůů ^ŚĂƌĞ /ŶĚĞdž ; ^/Ϳ ĂƉƉƌĞĐŝĂƚĞĚ ŽŶ ϯ ŽĨ ϰ ƚƌĂĚŝŶŐ ƐĞƐƐŝŽŶƐ ŝŶ ƚŚĞ ǁĞĞŬ͘ ,ŽǁĞǀĞƌ͕ tͲŽͲt ƚŚĞ ďĞŶĐŚŵĂƌŬ ŝŶĚĞdž ƐŚĞĚ Ϭ͘ϭй ƚŽ ƐĞƩůĞ Ăƚ ϰϭ͕Ϯϭϴ͘ϳϮ ƉŽŝŶƚƐ ǁŚŝůĞ zd ƌĞƚƵƌŶ ƐƚŽŽĚ Ăƚ ϳ͘ϴй͘ ^ŝŵŝůĂƌůLJ͕ ŵĂƌŬĞƚ ĐĂƉŝƚĂůŝnjĂƟŽŶ ĚĞĐƌĞĂƐĞĚ ďLJ Eϵ͘ϱďŶ ƚŽ Eϭϰ͘ϵƚŶ͘ dŚĞ ǁĞĞŬ͛Ɛ ŶĞŐĂƟǀĞ ƉĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ ǁĂƐ ůĂƌŐĞůLJ ĚƌŝǀĞŶ ďLJ ƐĞůů ŽīƐ ŝŶ ůĂƌŐĞ ĐĂƉ ƐƚŽĐŬƐ ʹ E ^d> ;Ͳϭ͘ϮйͿ͕ E/' Z/ E Z t Z/ ^ ;ͲϬ͘ϴйͿ ĂŶĚ ^ W> d ;ͲϮ͘ϬйͿ͘ KŶ ƚŚĞ ĐŽŶƚƌĂƌLJ͕ ĂĐƟǀŝƚLJ ůĞǀĞů ŝŵƉƌŽǀĞĚ ĂƐ ĂǀĞƌĂŐĞ ǀŽůƵŵĞ ĂŶĚ ǀĂůƵĞ ƚƌĂĚĞĚ ƌŽƐĞ ϯ͘ϳй ĂŶĚ ϲ͘ϳй ƚŽ ϯϯϮ͘ϳŵ ƵŶŝƚƐ ĂŶĚ Eϱ͘ϯďŶ ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞůLJ͘ dŚĞ ǁĞĞŬ͛Ɛ ƚŽƉ ƚƌĂĚĞĚ ƐƚŽĐŬ ďLJ ǀŽůƵŵĞ ĂƌĞ h ;Ϯϭϳ͘ϬŵͿ͕ D E &/d ;ϭϯϮ͘ϱŵͿ ĂŶĚ ^^ ;ϭϬϴ͘ϰŵͿ ǁŚŝůĞ E' D ;Eϯ͘ϲďŶͿ͕ 'h Z Edz ;EϮ͘ϴďŶͿ ĂŶĚ h ;EϮ͘ϱďŶͿ ǁĞƌĞ ƚŚĞ ƚŽƉ ƚƌĂĚĞĚ ďLJ ǀĂůƵĞ͘ dŚĞ ůŽĐĂů ďŽƵƌƐĞ ƐƚĂƌƚĞĚ ƚŚĞ ǁĞĞŬ ŽŶ Ă ƉŽƐŝƟǀĞ ŶŽƚĞ͕ ĞdžƚĞŶĚŝŶŐ ŐĂŝŶƐ ĨƌŽŵ ƚŚĞ ƉƌĞǀŝŽƵƐ &ƌŝĚĂLJ ĂƐ ƚŚĞ ^/ ƌŽƐĞ ϲďƉƐ ŽŶ ƚŚĞ ďĂĐŬ ŽĨ ƉƌŝĐĞ ĂƉƉƌĞĐŝĂƟŽŶ ŝŶ Ͳ 'h Z Edz͕ E' D ĂŶĚ & E,͘ &ŽůůŽǁŝŶŐ ƚŚĞ ƌĞƐƵŵƉƟŽŶ ŽĨ ƚƌĂĚŝŶŐ ĂĐƟǀŝƟĞƐ ŽŶ tĞĚŶĞƐĚĂLJ͕ ƚŚĞ ďƵůůŝƐŚ ƌƵŶ ǁĂƐ ƐƵƐƚĂŝŶĞĚ ĂƐ ƚŚĞ ^/ ŝŶĐƌĞĂƐĞĚ ϵďƉƐ ĚƵĞ ƚŽ ŐĂŝŶƐ ŝŶ h E͕ ϭϭW> ĂŶĚ h ͘ ,ŽǁĞǀĞƌ͕ ŽŶ dŚƵƌƐĚĂLJ͕ ƚŚĞ ďƵůůŝƐŚ ƌƵŶ ǁĂƐ ŚĂůƚĞĚ ĂƐ ƉƌŽĮƚ ƚĂŬŝŶŐ ŝŶ ůĂƌŐĞ ĐĂƉ ƐƚŽĐŬƐ ĚƌĂŐŐĞĚ ƚŚĞ ďĞŶĐŚŵĂƌŬ ŝŶĚĞdž ϰϴďƉƐ ůŽǁĞƌ͘ dŽ ĐůŽƐĞ ƚŚĞ ǁĞĞŬ͕ ƚŚĞ ŵĂƌŬĞƚ ƌĞďŽƵŶĚĞĚ͕ ƵƉ ϮϳďƉƐ͘ WĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ ĂĐƌŽƐƐ ƐĞĐƚŽƌƐ ǁĂƐ ůĂƌŐĞůLJ ďĞĂƌŝƐŚ ƚŚŝƐ ǁĞĞŬ ĂƐ ϯ ŽĨ ϱ ŝŶĚŝĐĞƐ ƵŶĚĞƌ ŽƵƌ ĐŽǀĞƌĂŐĞ ĚĞĐůŝŶĞĚ tͲŽͲt͘ dŚĞ ŽŶƐƵŵĞƌ 'ŽŽĚƐ ŝŶĚĞdž ĚĞĐůŝŶĞĚ ƚŚĞ ŵŽƐƚ͕ ĚŽǁŶ ϭ͘ϵй tͲŽͲt ĚƵĞ ƚŽ ƉƌŽĮƚ ƚĂŬŝŶŐ ŝŶ E ^d> ;Ͳϭ͘ϮйͿ ĂŶĚ E/' Z/ E Z t Z/ ^ ;ͲϬ͘ϴйͿ͘ ^ŝŵŝůĂƌůLJ͕ ƚŚĞ Kŝů Θ 'ĂƐ ĂŶĚ /ŶƐƵƌĂŶĐĞ ŝŶĚŝĐĞƐ ƐŚĞĚ ϭ͘ϰй ĂŶĚ ϭ͘ϭй ĚƌŝǀĞŶ ďLJ ůŽƐƐĞƐ ŝŶ ^ W> d ;ͲϮ͘ϬйͿ͕ E D ;Ͳϭ͘ϴйͿ ĂŶĚ // K ;Ͳϭ͘ϰйͿ͘ KŶ ƚŚĞ ŇŝƉ ƐŝĚĞ͕ ŐĂŝŶƐ ŝŶ 'h Z Edz ;нϮ͘ϬйͿ͕ h ;нϬ͘ϵйͿ ĂŶĚ E' D ;нϬ͘ϮйͿ ďƵŽLJĞĚ ƚŚĞ ƉĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ ŽĨ ƚŚĞ ĂŶŬŝŶŐ ĂŶĚ /ŶĚƵƐƚƌŝĂů 'ŽŽĚƐ ŝŶĚŝĐĞƐ ϭ͘ϲй ĂŶĚ ϭ͘ϭй ŚŝŐŚĞƌ͘ /ŶǀĞƐƚŽƌ ƐĞŶƟŵĞŶƚ͕ ŵĞĂƐƵƌĞĚ ďLJ ŵĂƌŬĞƚ ďƌĞĂĚƚŚ͕ ƐƚƌĞŶŐƚŚĞŶĞĚ ƚŽ ϭ͘ϭdž ;ϯϱ ĂĚǀĂŶĐĞƌƐͬϯϭ ĚĞĐůŝŶĞƌƐͿ ĨƌŽŵ Ϭ͘ϴdž ƌĞĐŽƌĚĞĚ ƚŚĞ ƉƌŝŽƌ ǁĞĞŬ͘ dŚĞ ďĞƐƚ ƉĞƌĨŽƌŵŝŶŐ ƐƚŽĐŬƐ ƚŚŝƐ ǁĞĞŬ ǁĞƌĞ /> ^/E' ;нϮϵ͘ϱйͿ͕ hE/dz ;нϮϬ͘ϬйͿ ĂŶĚ EE ;нϭϵ͘ϱйͿ ǁŚŝůĞ E'&>KhZ ;Ͳϭϴ͘ϲйͿ͕ d ZE ;Ͳϭϯ͘ϬйͿ ĂŶĚ WZ ^d/' ;Ͳϭϭ͘ϴйͿ ǁĞƌĞ ƚŚĞ ǁŽƌƐƚ ƉĞƌĨŽƌŵĞƌƐ͘ /Ŷ ƚŚĞ ĐŽŵŝŶŐ ǁĞĞŬ͕ ǁĞ ĂŶƟĐŝƉĂƚĞ Ă ƉŽƐŝƟǀĞ ƉĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ ĂŶĐŚŽƌĞĚ ŽŶ ďƵLJ ŝŶƚĞƌĞƐƚ ŝŶ ůĂƌŐĞ ĂŶĚ ŵŝĚͲĐĂƉ ƐƚŽĐŬƐ ĨŽůůŽǁŝŶŐ ůĂƌŐĞůLJ ƉŽƐŝƟǀĞ Yϭ͗ϮϬϭϴ ĞĂƌŶŝŶŐƐ͘ ,ŽǁĞǀĞƌ͕ ǁĞ ĚŽ ŶŽƚ ƌƵůĞ ŽƵƚ ƚŚĞ ƉŽƐƐŝďŝůŝƚLJ ŽĨ ƉƌŽĮƚ ƚĂŬŝŶŐ ĚƵƌŝŶŐ ƚŚĞ ǁĞĞŬ͘

¯NjÞŘɚsǣǼ ǢsOȖNjÞǼÞsǣ ĵÞŎÞǼs_ ʹNJN ˥˟ˢ ˢˠˤʺ ʹ ^s ĶÞض ōsŎEsNj Ÿ¯ ǼÌs ŗÞ¶sNjÞ Ř ǢǼŸOĨ rɮOÌ Ř¶sʺ

1.65

-0.6%

0.3%

-0.4%

15.4% 4.3% 4.7%

11.7%

36

Dangote Flour Mills Plc

11.40

0.2%

-6.2%

-6.2%

61.6%

15.8%

3.7x

1.6x

1.8%

27.1%

37

GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Niger

24.00

0.0%

0.2%

11.1%

11.1%

61.2%

23.6%

37.9x

1.8x

31.4%

2.6%

38

Chemical and Allied Products P

38.75

0.0%

0.2%

14.0%

8.5%

66.2%

30.2%

18.1x

12.1x

5.3%

5.5%

39

Beta Glass PLC

83.20

5.0%

0.2%

62.2%

62.2%

18.4%

11.9%

11.7x

2.0x

1.3%

8.5%

40

Transcorp Hotels Plc

7.45

0.0%

0.1%

3.3%

3.3%

5.3%

2.9%

19.5x

1.0x

1.8%

5.1%

T o p 10 G a i n e r s T ic k er

T o p 10 T r a d e s b y V o l u m e

P ric e

P ric e C hg %

Vo lum e

P ric e C hg %

51.80

9.1%

A C C ESS

40.5

0.0%

C ILEA SIN G

1.80

7.8%

C ILEA SIN G

31.5

7.8%

VER IT A SKA P

0.33

6.5%

ST ER LN B A N K

25.2

-0.6%

IN T B R EW

T ic k er

LIVEST OC K

0.84

5.0%

UB A

17.1

-0.4%

B ET A GLA S

83.20

5.0%

F ID ELIT YB K

14.2

-3.6%

N A SC ON

21.40

4.4%

FB NH

12.4

0.4%

UN IT YB N K

1.20

4.3%

C UST OD IA N

12.3

-2.8%

M B EN EF IT

0.26

4.0%

Z EN IT H B A N K

11.8

-0.5%

WA P IC

0.53

3.9%

SKYEB A N K

11.5

1.2%

A GLEVEN T

0.57

3.6%

FCM B

11.2

1.6%

T o p 10 T r a d e s b y V a l u e

T o p 10 L o s e r s T ic k er M OB IL

P ric e

T ic k er

Value

-5.0%

D A N GC EM

1230.7

0.1%

460.0

0.0% -0.5%

P ric e C hg %

180.40

P ric e C hg %

CHA M S

0.42

-4.5%

A C C ESS

C ON T IN SUR E

1.52

-4.4%

Z EN IT H B A N K

325.2

P R EST IGE

0.45

-4.3%

ST A N B IC

260.3

0.0%

A B CTRA NS

0.46

-4.2%

UB A

199.6

-0.4%

OA N D O

8.35

-4.0%

GUIN N ESS

195.2

0.5%

ET ER N A

5.74

-3.7%

FB NH

155.6

0.4%

F ID ELIT YB K

2.42

-3.6%

WA P C O

145.7

0.0%

N IGER IN S

0.28

-3.4%

IN T B R EW

133.3

9.1%

WEM A B A N K

0.88

-3.3%

GUA R A N T Y

127.6

0.2%

ÝŘɚsǣǼŎsŘǼ NJsǣs NjOÌ

DNjŸĨsNj ¶s ɴŸ_sĠÞ rEŸ ʿ sEŸ˔ ¯NjÞŘɚsǣǼʳOŸŎ

NJŸEsNjǼ ŷŎŸǼȖŘ_s ʿ NjŸŎŸǼȖŘ_s˔ ¯NjÞŘɚsǣǼʳOŸŎ

DŸĶ ĠÞ ® ĠsŘɴŸ ʿ E¯ ĠsŘɴŸ˔ ¯NjÞŘɚsǣǼʳOŸŎ

ŷŎŸǼŸĶ EÞŎEŸĶ ʿ Ÿ EÞŎEŸĶ ˔ ¯NjÞŘɚsǣǼʳOŸŎ

37

˾ MONDAY, MAY 7, 2018

MARKET NEWS

Vetiva Distributes N23 Per Unit to DV Balanced Fund Investors Goddy Egene Vetiva Fund Managers Limited has announced a final distribution of N23.00 per unit of the DV Balanced Fund for the year ended 31st December 2017. This will be the fourth distribution made by the DV Balanced Fund since its launch in August 2014.

The DV Balanced Fund is an open-ended unit trust scheme, which seeks to invest in a range of securities, including quoted equities, fixed income securities and money market instruments.

Speaking on the distribution, the Director, Asset Management of Vetiva Fund Managers Limited, Mrs. Oyelade Eigbe, said: “The distributions are in line with the structure of the fund to remit distributions to unit holders annually.”

According to her, the fund employs an asset mix strategy which aims to achieve consistent growth primarily from a well-diversified portfolio.

“The asset mix also seeks to mitigate volatility associated with Nigerian equities market

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

by holding an appropriate allocation of the Fund’s assets in fixed income instruments.

The fund is targeted towards prudent investors with medium risk appetite who wish to achieve capital appreciation over time and require the fund manager’s professional asset allocation decisions and management,” she added.

The fund returned 30 per cent growth in 2017 largely supported by the stability in the macro-environment-that is the rebound in global oil prices and domestic production

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 03-May-2018, unless otherwise stated.

levels, decent money market rates and the stability in foreign exchange liquidity.

Vetiva Fund Managers Limited advised unitholders to update (where necessary) their bank account details with the Registrar, First Registrars Investors Services, to enable electronic transfers to qualifying unitholders.

Vetiva Fund Managers Limited is a subsidiary of Vetiva Capital Management Limited and is registered with the Securities & Exchange Commission to carry on

business as fund/portfolio manager. Vetiva also manages a series of Exchange Traded Funds, namely the Vetiva Banking ETF, Vetiva Consumer Goods ETF, Vetiva Industrial Goods ETF, Vetiva Griffin 30 ETF and Vetiva S&P Nigerian Sovereign Bond ETF. Vetiva Securities Limited recently launch of Griffin Mobile, a mobile App which enables individual investors to manage their stockbroking accounts on their smartphones and execute trades directly on the Nigerian Stock Exchange

(NSE).

According to the company the introduction of the mobile App is in line with its strategy to invest in technology that enhances retail investor access to the Nigerian stock market in a convenient and cost effective manner.

The key features of the mobile APP are the ability to trade stocks on the NSE, invest in treasury bills, view snapshots of stock prices, view portfolio valuations and processing of account withdrawals.

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 194.21 195.38 9.39% Nigeria International Debt Fund 245.02 246.23 6.17% 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 0.87 0.88 5.72% ACAP Income Funds 0.66 0.66 9.57% AIICO CAPITAL LTD ammf@aiicocapital.com Web: www.aiicocapital.com, Tel: +234-1-2792974 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn AIICO Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 13.80% 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 N/A N/A N/A ARM Discovery Fund N/A N/A N/A ARM Ethical Fund N/A N/A N/A ARM Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A 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 160.56 161.69 5.85% AXA Mansard Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 12.86% 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 13.91% Paramount Equity Fund 12.12 12.43 9.31% Women's Investment Fund 103.43 106.07 2.78% 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 14.02% 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 N/A N/A N/A Coronation Balanced Fund N/A N/A N/A Coronation Fixed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A FBNQUEST ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD invest@fbnquest.com Web: www.fbnquest.com/asset-management; Tel: +234-81 0082 0082 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn FBN Fixed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A FBN Heritage Fund N/A N/A N/A FBN Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A FBN Nigeria Eurobond (USD) Fund - Institutional N/A N/A N/A FBN Nigeria Eurobond (USD) Fund - Retail N/A N/A N/A FBN Nigeria Smart Beta Equity Fund N/A N/A N/A 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 1.41 1.44 8.04% Legacy Debt Fund 3.02 3.02 4.58% 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 N/A N/A N/A Coral Income Fund N/A N/A N/A 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 N/A N/A N/A 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 13.01% Vantage Balanced Fund 2.21 2.24 4.82% Vantage Guaranteed Income Fund 1.00 1.00 15.64% Kedari Investment Fund (KIF) 120.22 120.64 4.55%

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 1.18 1.20 3.06% Lotus Halal Fixed Income Fund 1,051.95 1,051.95 4.43% 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 N/A N/A N/A Meristem Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A 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 N/A N/A N/A PACAM Fixed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A PACAM Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A 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 132.10 134.66 2.66% 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 1.56 1.56 5.24% 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 2,404.14 2,424.90 7.20% Stanbic IBTC Bond Fund 185.37 185.37 5.06% Stanbic IBTC Ethical Fund 1.09 1.10 8.42% Stanbic IBTC Guaranteed Investment Fund 233.31 233.38 5.95% Stanbic IBTC Iman Fund 187.92 189.92 4.90% Stanbic IBTC Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 13.42% Stanbic IBTC Nigerian Equity Fund 10,367.97 10,507.75 7.21% Stanbic IBTC Dollar Fund (USD) 1.09 1.09 2.63% 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 1.36 0.76% United Capital Bond Fund 1.65 1.65 5.63% United Capital Equity Fund 0.98 1.00 7.47% United Capital Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 13.02% United Capital Eurobond Fund 105.56 105.56 2.59% United Capital Wealth for Women Fund 1.14 1.15 4.79% 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 13.47 13.68 7.31% Zenith Ethical Fund 20.03 20.03 49.96% Zenith Income Fund 13.96 14.13 -25.49% Zenith Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 14.07%

REITS NAV Per Share

Yield / T-Rtn

10.00 134.83

-11.35% 1.79%

Bid Price

Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

12.67 162.32 120.36

12.77 165.73 122.56

4.50% 13.63% 10.15%

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

N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A

N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A

N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A

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.

38

T H I S D AY Ëž Ë&#x153; ÍľË&#x153; Í°ÍŽÍŻÍś

CITYSTRINGS

Ă?Ă&#x17E;Ă&#x201C;Ă&#x2DC;Ă&#x2018; Ă?Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x17E;Ă&#x;Ă&#x153;Ă?Ă? Ă&#x17D;Ă&#x201C;Ă&#x17E;Ă&#x2122;Ă&#x153;Ë? Ă&#x2019;Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x153;Ă&#x2013;Ă?Ă? Ă&#x201D;Ă&#x;Ă&#x2DC;ĂĄĂ&#x2039; Ă&#x2014;Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x201C;Ă&#x2013; Ă?Ă&#x2019;Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x153;Ă&#x2013;Ă?Ă?Ë&#x203A;Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x201D;Ă&#x;Ă&#x2DC;ĂĄĂ&#x2039;ĚśĂ&#x17E;Ă&#x2019;Ă&#x201C;Ă?Ă&#x17D;Ă&#x2039;ĂŁĂ&#x2013;Ă&#x201C;Ă Ă?Ë&#x203A;Ă?Ă&#x2122;Ă&#x2014;

A Worthy Corporate Citizen To mark the World Malaria Day, Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company embraced a vulnerable rural community under its network, writes Peter Uzoho

Nursing mother receiving mosquito net from the IKEDC oďŹ&#x192;cials at the programme

W

hen a wise, smart corporate entity is out for business, it makes no mistake of toying with its chief success determinants: the customers and host communities. It takes into consideration the total well-being of its consuming population and comes up with initiatives aimed at affecting their lives in positive ways.

For such forward looking corporates, the health of their product users is paramount and this lends credence to an enduring clichĂŠ: â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;health is wealth.â&#x20AC;&#x2122; Without having sound health to work and earn, payment for product and services becomes a tall order, which falls short of an organisationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s bargain.

Against this backdrop, the Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company (IKEDC) has since its entrance into the Nigerian Energy sector, developed a number of programmes and projects intended to protect its teeming consumers and host communities against diseases. Every year, the organisation embarks on health outreach trips to communities within its network especially, the under-served and high prone areas as part of its corporate social responsibility undertakings.

Recently, in commemoration of the 2018 World Malaria Day and in line with its commitment to the prevention of malaria disease, IKEDC through its Agbule-Egba Business Unit, visited the people of Adiyan, a densely populated community in Ifako-Ijaiye Local Government Area of Lagos State.

Adiyan Community Multi-purpose Hall was full to the brim as men, women and youths trooped out in their numbers and were presented with insecticide treated

mosquito nets to help them prevent the spread of malaria infection in their community. The IKEDC team also used the occasion to enlighten them on the need to keep their environment neat to ward off mosquitoes around them.

Speaking at the event, Business Manager, Abule Egba Business Unit, IKEDC, Mr. Mohammed Abdulahi, said the visit to the

We are committed to providing insecticide treated mosquito nets to rural communities where we operate so as to stem the tide of malaria.

You can see that this community needs this kind of intervention. As an organisation, we take the health of our customers very seriously because when they are healthy and they are able to work, thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s when we will be assured that they can pay their bills

community was the organisationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s little way of giving back to the community under its network and that it was also a form of keying into the World Malaria Day celebration.

Abdulahi who was represented at the occasion by the Head, Commercial Services, Abule Egba Business Unit, EKEDC, Mr. Wole Oyeleye, said the distribution company recognised malaria as a disease that affects sub-Saharan Africa in a high magnitude. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It affects the overall productivity of the community; it affects children of the community who are one of the under-served communities. So we are committed to providing insecticide treated mosquito nets to rural communities where we operate so as to stem the tide of malaria,â&#x20AC;? Abdulahi said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;You can see that this community needs this kind of intervention. As an organisation, we take the health of our customers very seriously because when they are healthy and they are able to work, thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s when we will be assured that they can pay their bills. So affecting the lives of our customers and host communities is very paramount to us. As weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re doing it here, this is also taking place in other communities within our network. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Apart from distributing these mosquito nets, we are equally advising them to try and keep their environment neat and clean.

Mosquito thrives in a dirty environment, so to prevent malaria is to keep your environment clean,â&#x20AC;? he added.

Giving further insight into the programme, Supervisor, Health, Safety and Environment, Abule Egba Business Unit, IKEDC, Mr. Olaniyi Olayiwola, described malaria as a big deal across the world and one of the sicknesses that claim lives in large numbers.

He said their visit to the community was

to join the rest of the world and the World Health Organisation to enlighten people about malaria, its causes and preventive measures. â&#x20AC;&#x153;So as a responsible organisation, Ikeja Electric takes this enlightenment programme to our customers and communities around us. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s part of our act of giving back to the society. So celebrating with Adiyan people and giving these mosquito nets to them is our own way of helping them to prevent the effect of the malaria disease,â&#x20AC;?

Olayiwola said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Adiyan is one of the vulnerable communities in the state and you can see this from the terrain here. They live in an environment that is prone to malaria infection because of high presence of mosquitoes. So weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re here to try to encourage them to live healthy and protect themselves against malaria. So giving them the nets is one of the ways we can achieve that healthy living among them.â&#x20AC;?

According to him, the company takes advantage of opportunities provided by such gatherings to also talk to people about health and safety issues regarding the use of electricity. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We tell them why they should not build their shops or houses under a high voltage electricity; how they should guard against stealing and vandalism of our facilities; we talk to them about earthing their houses against electric surge; we tell them not to endanger their lives by going to cut tree branches that are under a high voltage electricity but to inform us instead. â&#x20AC;&#x153;So we enlighten them about all these and more just to make sure that they are safe and secure while using power. And when we do this we realise that the rate of third party death reduces drastically.

39

T H I S D AY Ëž Ë&#x153; ÍľË&#x153; Í°ÍŽÍŻÍś

CITYSTRINGS

As a matter of fact, we recorded only one third party death last year which is a significant improvement from what we recorded previous years,â&#x20AC;? he explained.

Meanwhile, before the distribution of the mosquito nets, members of the community who had large stock of grievances over poor services, seized the moment to ventilate them. The team who obviously, had anticipated such complaints before the trip, swiftly responded to all issues raised and assured them that all issues concerned were being taken care of.

The Manager in charge of Adiyan Undertaking, Abule-Egba Business Unit, Mr. Johnson Isuh, who addressed the receptive audience, explained the cause of the problem to them and efforts being made to rectify them.

He urged the members of the community to cooperate with the organisation by paying their bills as at when due, noting that that would enable them to have the needed fund to generate and give them power.

In their overwhelming joy and feeling of relief, members of the community who received the mosquito nets glowingly appreciated the company for their kind gesture.

Earlier in his welcome remark, Chairman, Customers Consultative Forum and chieftain of Adiyan Community Development Council, Mr. Tayo Adesokan, described the distribution of the nets as a commendable one and thanked them for selecting the community for its intervention. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We welcome you to our community. We were informed that you would be coming here today to create awareness on the malaria disease and its prevention as a way of commemorating the World Malaria Day which was celebrated yesterday (April 25),â&#x20AC;? Adesokan said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We really appreciate your coming and weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re particularly delighted to hear that you will be distributing free anti-malaria treated nets to our people. This is highly commendable. We the people of Adiyan express our heartfelt appreciation to the management and staff of Ikeja Electric for demonstrating high sense of responsibility and kind gesture in selecting our Community Development Council (CDC) as a beneficiary of this programme. Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re now assuring your management of our forumâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s continued support in terms of payment of bills and bringing in unity in our CDC,â&#x20AC;? he added.

Also expressing her joy and appreciation, Mrs. Felicia Olarewaju, said: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m very happy about what Ikeja Electric has done for us today. They gave us free mosquito nets and they advised us on how we can kick malaria out of our community. These nets will help us a lot because mosquitoes bite us a lot here. So I really thank them for this.â&#x20AC;?

She added: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Although we donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have light for some weeks now, but as they have explained to us what they are doing to address the situation we are hoping that they will make good their promise. And weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re also promising them that we will be paying our bills as long as they give us

Although we donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have light for some weeks now, but as they have explained to us what they are doing to address the situation we are hoping that they will make good their promise.

And weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re also promising them that we will be paying our bills as long as they give us light. So, I pray that God will give them all the resources they need to make sure that we enjoy light

L-R: External Communications Coordinator, Abule-Egba Business Unit,Ikeja Electric, Ijeoma Ezeolisah; Chairman, Customers Consultativs Forum, Adiyan Community, Mr. Tayo Adesokan; Commercial Manager,Abule-Egba Business Unit, Ikeja Electric, Mr. Oyewole Oyeleye; andChairman, Community Development Committee, Adiyan; Pastor Moses Adeleke, during the distribution of mosquito nets to residents of Adiyan Community, Lagos State, in commemoration of the 2018 World Malaria Dayâ&#x20AC;Śrecently

Oyeleye (middle) and other members of the IKEDC team presenting mosquito net to a kid from Adiyan, at the event

A cross section of participants at the event

light. So, I pray that God will give them all the resources they need to make sure that we enjoy light.â&#x20AC;?

On his part, the Secretary of Ireakari

Community Development Authority, one of the communities under Adiyan, Mr. Alaba Ajayi, said: â&#x20AC;&#x153;I use this opportunity to thank Ikeja Electric for giving every member of

our community mosquito treated net. What they did today is really a surprise and we pray that God Almighty will make the company grow.â&#x20AC;?

40

T H I S D AY MONDAY MAY 7, 2018

T H I S D AY MONDAY MAY 7, 2018

41

42

T H I S D AY MONDAY MAY 7, 2018

T H I S D AY MONDAY MAY 7, 2018

43

44

T H I S D AY ˾ ͵Ë&#x153; ͰͮͯͶ

T H I S D AY MONDAY MAY 7, 2018

45

46

T H I S D AY MONDAY MAY 7, 2018

T H I S D AY MONDAY MAY 7, 2018

47

48

T H I S D AY MONDAY MAY 7, 2018

CAVEAT EMPTOR Receivership on Properties Belonging to Borini Prono & Company Limited This is to notify members of the public that: A. Pursuant to two separate Deeds of Legal Mortgage registered as No. 82, at page 82, in volume 2032 at the Lagos State Lands Registry, Alausa, Ikeja, Lagos, and No 90, at page 90, in volume 2032 at the Lagos State Lands Registry, Alausa, Ikeja, Lagos respectively, which Deeds were executed in favour of Guaranty Trust Bank Plc (â&#x20AC;&#x153;the Bankâ&#x20AC;?) by Borini Prono And Company Limited, in respect of credit facilities granted by the bank to Borini Prono And Company Limited; and B. By virtue of a duly Registered Deed of Appointment, Guaranty Trust Bank Plc as mortgagee, on the 20th day of December 2017 and 16th February 2018, appointed Mr. Gani Gidado Abubakar Esq as Receiver of the block of Flats known as No. 32 Gerrard Road, Ikoyi, Lagos and No. 4 Forcados Road, Apapa, Lagos.

As such, the Receiver who has since taken physical possession of the mortgaged properties pursuant to the Order of court in suit NO: FHC/L/ CS/348/2018 confirming the said appointment, is the only person vested with lawful authority to deal with and/or grant any lease concerning or relating to the flats and/or premises that constitute the said properties.

The Receiver will take no responsibility for any loss arising from failure to heed this warning.

Gani Gidado Abubakar (Receiver/Manager) FORTBANC (Solicitors and Insolvency Practitioners) 160A Sinari Daranijo Street, Off Ligali Ayorinde Street, Victoria Island, Lagos State Tel: 01-2711069; 01-2711329 08030693999, 08055446638 Email: info@fortbancsolictors.com

T H I S D AY MONDAY MAY 7, 2018

ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ศ ศ ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย วก

/DG\ $ & 2NR\H ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย อ ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย วก อ อ อ อ วค

$QQLH &XQDQDQ 2NR\H ZDV D IRUPHU VWDII RI )&'$ 6KH ZLOO EH PLVVHG E\ IULHQGV DQG FROOHDJXHV 0D\ KHU JHQWOH VRXO UHVW LQ SHDFH LQ WKH %RVRP RI WKH $OPLJKW\ 6LJQHG 0DQDJHPHQW

49

50

T H I S D AY MONDAY MAY 7, 2018

T H I S D AY MONDAY MAY 7, 2018

51

52

T H I S D AY MONDAY MAY 7, 2018

T H I S D AY MONDAY MAY 7, 2018

53

54

T H I S D AY MONDAY MAY 7, 2018

T H I S D AY MONDAY MAY 7, 2018

55

56

MONDAY, MAY 7, 2018˾ T H I S D AY

INTERNATIONAL

email:foreigndesk@thisdaylive.com

Iran’s Rouhani Warns Trump of ‘Historic Regret’ over Nuclear Deal Says plans in place for any Trump decision on nuclear deal Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has warned that the US will face “historic regret” if Donald Trump scraps the nuclear agreement with Tehran, according to BBC. Rouhani was reported by Reuters as saying on Sunday Iran had plans to respond to any move by U.S. President Donald Trump on the 2015 nuclear agreement and the United States would regret a decision to exit the accord.

His comments come as the US president decides whether to pull out of the deal by a 12

May deadline.

Trump has strongly criticised the agreement, calling it “insane”.

The 2015 deal - between Iran, the US, China, Russia, Germany, France and the UK - lifted sanctions on Iran in return for curbs on its nuclear programme.

France, the UK and Germany have been trying persuade the US president that the current deal is the best way to stop Iran developing nuclear weapons.

British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson is travelling to

Washington on Sunday to discuss the matter with White House officials.

The UN also warned Mr Trump not to walk away from the deal.

However, he has threatened that the US will “withdraw” from the deal on 12 May the end of a 120-day review period - unless Congress and European powers fixed its “disastrous flaws”.

In remarks carried live on Iranian state television on Sunday, President Rouhani said: “If America leaves the

nuclear deal, this will entail historic regret for it.”

He warned Iran had “a plan to counter any decision Trump may take and we will confront it”.

Iran insists its nuclear programme is entirely peaceful and says it considers the deal non-renegotiable.

Last week, Israel revealed “secret nuclear files” which it said showed Iran had run a clandestine nuclear weapons programme before 2003, and had secretly retained the technological know-how,

in breach of the agreement.

Iran branded Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a liar and said the documents he produced were a rehash of old allegations already dealt with by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the UN’s nuclear watchdog.

But US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the documents were authentic and showed the 2015 Iran nuclear deal was “built on lies”.

Trump is already unhappy that the current deal only

limits Iran’s nuclear activities for a fixed period and does not stop the development of ballistic missiles.

He also said it had handed Iran a $100bn (£72bn) windfall that it used “as a slush fund for weapons, terror, and oppression” across the Middle East.

Economic assets frozen by sanctions were returned to Iran under the terms of the deal. Iran has consistently denied US claims that it sponsors militant groups.

57

MONDAY, MAY 7, 2018Ëž T H I S D AY

NEWS

Ă?ĂĄĂ? Ă&#x17D;Ă&#x201C;Ă&#x17E;Ă&#x2122;Ă&#x153; Davidson Iriekpen Ă&#x2014;Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x201C;Ă&#x2013; davidson.iriekpen@thisdaylive.com, 08111813081

Quest to Visit Lagos by British Tourists Rises by 96% Ranked 13th most visited non-European destinationÂ

Gboyega Akinsanmi The demand to spend summer holidays in Lagos State by British tourists and visitors has risen by 96 per cent between 2017 and 2018, according to a report

by KAYAK, one of the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s foremost travel organisations.

KAYAK, an independently managed subsidiary of Booking Holdings Inc, issued the report at the weekend covering searches made by British tourists and visitors for holidays beyond Europe in the last two years. Specifically, the report ranked Lagos, a widely acknowledged model megacity, 13th nonEuropean destination, thereby making the city-state Africaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s choicest destination, especially for British tourists and visitors.

Unlike previous years, as the report analysed, Lagos is more popular than Los Angeles, Las Vegas, San Francisco, Chicago, Boston, Ibiza and Prague, all of which had drastically fallen out of touristsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; favour.

However, touristsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; demand to spend summer holidays in Nairobi and Mombasa, both in

Kenya, respectively rose by 156 per cent and 181 per cent, the report ranked the former 15th non-European destination for Britons, two steps behind the city-state of Lagos. Â In an analysis that sampled the 2017 summer holiday searches, the report said Lagos â&#x20AC;&#x153;is not far behind by all standards. Searches for trips to the city-state of Lagos city have shot up 96 per cent, compared to 2017.â&#x20AC;?

When compared to previous summers, the report said Lagos â&#x20AC;&#x153;has also made huge strides, moving from 31st place to 13th when it comes to overall demand. And Johannesburg is up one place from 22nd to 21st.â&#x20AC;?

The ranking of Lagos might not be unconnected with a recent survey that showed a significant improvement in what tourism sector contributed to the stateâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s gross domestic product (GDP) in 2017.

At a summit fortnights ago, the state Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode, disclosed that tourism sector contributed $2.2 billion (equivalent to N800 billion) to

the stateâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s GDP in 2017, thereby representing 0.016 percent of the GDP. With the stateâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s increased spending on iconic infrastructure and resources being deployed in the sector, the governor hoped that the figure â&#x20AC;&#x153;will  double or treble in the next five years. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The enormous resources we have deployed in physical and social infrastructure across the state will begin to crystallise by December into mega structures that will support tourism and market our state as a smart destination.â&#x20AC;?

In the case of Kenya, however, the report revealed that Britons chose to spend holidays beyond the continent in July and August 2017, noting that the demands for trips to Nairobi â&#x20AC;&#x153;are up 156 per cent - and to Mombasa on the Kenyan coast by 181 per cent. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Nairobi had shot up the

rankings in popularity (judged by searches) from 48th in 2017 to 15th in 2018. Demand for trips to Mombasa have nearly tripled in just one year,â&#x20AC;? the KAYAK report disclosed.

According to the report, it is now Britainâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 44th most popular international holiday destination for this summer - just behind Cape Town - having previously not featured close to the top 100.

The report noted that the top three most popular nonEuropean destinations for Brits â&#x20AC;&#x153;are New York, then Orlando and in third place is Colombo in Sri Lanka, with its tourism boom continuing after decades of civil war. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Manila in the Philippines, meanwhile, has also stormed into the top 10 and is now the sixth most popular international holiday destination, with a yearon-year increase of 69 per cent.

India also saw solid gains in

demand, with Chennai up 57 per cent and Mumbai up 30 per cent.â&#x20AC;?

When it comes to Europe, the report said the two biggest trends for this summer â&#x20AC;&#x153;are the resurgence of Turkey and the increasing popularity of Eastern Europe. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Istanbul has seen demand increase by 114 per cent this summer compared to last year, rising from the 29th most popular European destination to eighth. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Meanwhile, Antalya in Turkey has seen demand increase by 92 per cent, climbing to 19th place, having previously been out of the top 50. Bodrum, on Turkeyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Southwest coast, has seen its demand increase by 45 per cent, placing it 39th overall,â&#x20AC;? the report said.

However, according to the report, the European destination

that has seen its popularity increase the most for this summer compared to last year is Bucharest in Romania, which has jumped from 46th place to 15th thanks to a huge increase in demand of 125 per cent.

Also in Eastern Europe, the report revealed that Tirana, the Albanian capital, â&#x20AC;&#x153;has seen demand soar by 76 per cent, moving up to 17th from 41. The strongest demand at Kayak. co.uk overall this summer in Europe has been for traditional favourites Alicante, followed

by Malaga and Faro. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The destinations that are falling out of favour include Ibiza (down 42 per cent), Prague (down 42 per cent), Los Angeles (down 32 per cent), San Francisco (down 35 per cent), Las Vegas (down 40 per cent), Chicago (down 33 per cent) and Boston (down 45 per cent).â&#x20AC;?

I Have No Plan to Dump APC, Ortom Restates Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State has again denied any plan to dump the All Progressives Congress (APC).

The denial was contained in a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Terver Akase, issued to journalists in Makurdi.

It said a media report on the governorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s purported plan to leave the APC was false, misleading and handiwork of detractors playing politics with the blood of the people. â&#x20AC;?We read a report in a national daily of today (yesterday) which named Benue State Governor, Ortom as one of the APC leaders planning to defect to another political party. â&#x20AC;?The report which is obviously sponsored is not only false but also misleading. The governor has no intention to leave APC for another party and has not consulted anyone on the matter.â&#x20AC;?

The statement stressed that Ortom, enjoys a cordial working relationship with other leaders of the party both at the local, state and national levels.

It said the main focus of the governor is to deliver greater benefits of democracy to his people including tackling the security challenges confronting them. â&#x20AC;&#x153;There is no cause to warrant his defection to another party,â&#x20AC;? the statement stated.

It explained that Ortomâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s stance of seeking justice over the invasion, killings and wanton destruction of property by suspected herdsmen was what any good leader ought to do.

The statement said the governor was appreciative

of the efforts being made by President Muhammadu Buhari in ending the conflicts in the state.

According to the statement, the governor was fully aware that the killings in Benue State began during the past PDP-led administrations in the state. â&#x20AC;?It must be noted that the killings predate the APC as a party and the present administration. The governorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s focus is on solving the problem in collaboration with other stakeholders.â&#x20AC;?

It added: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Fortunately, President Buhari has responded positively by sending troops and other security operatives to chase away the armed militia from Benue communities.â&#x20AC;?

The statement further dismissed insinuations that Ortom had fallen out of favour with other leaders of APC in the state, including Senator George Akume. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The report is aimed at creating acrimony between the governor and the senator. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Ortom was popularly elected to lead Benue State and he has demonstrated uncommon commitment and selflessness in justifying the confidence reposed in him. â&#x20AC;&#x153;He, will therefore, not be distracted by baseless reports and rumour of defection. â&#x20AC;?What is of greater concern to the governor now is how to stop the killings in the state and also tackle the humanitarian crisis that has displaced nearly 500,000 people.â&#x20AC;&#x2122;â&#x20AC;&#x2122; It stated that the government was collaborating with the federal government on the rehabilitation and resettlement of the displaced persons.

UNWINDING

L-R: Ogun State Governor, Senator Ibikunle Amosun, his wife, Olufunso; Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun; and Senator Daisy Danjuma, at the day-two of Lagos Bridal Fashion week 2018 in Lagos....weekend

Ishaku Differs with Buhari, Says Herdsmen are Gun-wielding Paul Obi Ă&#x201C;Ă&#x2DC; Ă&#x152;Ă&#x;Ă&#x201D;Ă&#x2039; Taraba State Governor, Darius Ishaku, yesterday differed with President Muhammadu Buhari on the statement that herdsmen do not carry guns. Ishaku spoke in Abuja when he received an award from the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) in Abuja on health care service delivery.

The governor explained that due to the continuing attacks

by Fulani herdsmen, the health sector in the state has been affected negatively.

Ishiaku maintained that herdsmen carry arms and not sticks as the president would want the whole world to believe.

Buhari had told his American audience during the bilateral talks with United States

President, Donald Trump, that the Fulani herdsmen that he knew did not carry guns, blaming the killings on returning militia who had been armed by the late Libyan leader, Mummar Gadaffi Ishaku observed that there must have been some contradiction, wondering if they donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t carry arms as claimed by the president, then who are the ones brandishing AK47 rifles and killing locals. Ishaku contended that Buhariâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s statement was â&#x20AC;&#x153;absolutely not correct.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;I mean who kills who? They cannot be imaginary. People are being killed with AK 47 rifles and we have to stand up and do something to stop it. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The insecurity has certainly put a lots of pressure on our

health care facilities, much more than we anticipated and we have almost 150,000 displaced persons â&#x20AC;&#x153;In the North-east, Taraba State used to be  relatively peaceful before now. We are having our own share of the herdsmen problem and that has added a lot of pressure on our health services. Which means we have to do more, we have to employ more doctors, nurses and specialists.â&#x20AC;?

Speaking on the NMA award, Ishaku said it would only motivate him and his administration to do more. â&#x20AC;&#x153;This award is very elevating, it is an award that will spur us to do more. You know we are on our first term, and this is my third year in office. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We are reconstructing or rehabilitating three hospitals in

the three senatorial zones of the state and we are putting some of the local government unit in shape. Most importantly, we are equipping them as much as we can with modern equipment. â&#x20AC;&#x153;So Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m surprised that the NMA has noticed so quickly what we are doing in just three years. We thank God and we will do more to keep our people healthy. Health is wealth,â&#x20AC;? he said. The governor alongside two of his counterparts, Governor Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto State and Ibrahim Gaidam of Yobe State, were among the dignitaries who received the awards.

Also, the wife of Kebbi State Governor, Dr. Zainab ShinkafiBagudu, received the NMA award for her contribution to health care service delivery.Â

MONDAY, MAY 7, 2018˾ T H I S D AY

58

NEWSXTRA

Don’t Turn to Propaganda Poster Boy, PDP Tells Osinbajo

Says Buhari’s Second term will further divide, impoverish Nigerians Secondus: EFCC out to tarnish my name

Onyebuchi Ezigbo ÓØ ÌßÔË The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has asked Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo not to belittle his high office by allowing himself to be used as poster boy to bandy figures and make unsubstantiated statements against the opposition.

PDP in a statement issued yesterday by its National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, said Nigerians, particularly the younger generation, were thoroughly disappointed in Osinbajo for allowing himself to be used to divert attention “from the impunity and corruption that saturate the All Progressive Congress APC-led federal government.”

While reacting to the comments made by the vice president at the APC ward congress in Lagos, PDP said as a professor of law, and an occupant of the exalted seat of the vice president of the country, Osinbajo should know better than allowing himself to be used to bandy figures and make unguarded statements at public events.

“We note that the vice president has refused to heed wise counsel and accord respect to his office by desisting from such unguarded comments only because he has been sucked in and entangled in the

propaganda, deception, impunity and sleazes that not only brought their administration to power, but have become its trademarks in the last three years,” it said.

PDP said Nigerians should note that all assertions by the vice president, especially on the performance of the President Muhammadu Buhari administration as well as his allegations and bandying of figures against the opposition, have remained unsubstantiated.

The party further said Osinbajo, in his ‘sanctimony,’ has been silent on the exposed corruption under the Buhari administration, including the leaked memo detailing N9 trillion corrupt oil contracts at the NNPC, exposed sleazes in oil subsidy deals, diversion of Internally Displaces Persons (IDP) intervention funds.

According to the PDP, other alleged sleazes under APC watch include the probe of a misappropriated N18billion in National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) under his direct supervision as well as other looting in government agencies such as the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS).

“The vice president is also ominously silent about the prevailing high-handedness and human rights violations and the aloofness of the government resulting in daily bloodletting in

various parts of our country,” it added.

Also, the PDP said if President Buhari is allowed by Nigerians to come back after a horrible first term, he will further divide and impoverish the people.

The opposition party said President Buhari’s first term score card showed anti-people policies and failure to serve the good of the ordinary citizens, contrary to what he would want Nigerians to believe when he spoke at the All Progressives Congress (APC) ward congress in Daura, Katsina State last Saturday.

It said it was unfortunate that the same President, who, in an interview with Voice of America (VOA) last week, could not present any agenda to justify his re-election bid, is

attempting to sway Nigerians with cosmetic patriotism.

“What President Buhari’s handlers fail to understand is that Nigerians, being direct victims of his misrule, are aware that the harsh and reckless policies of his incompetent administration, coupled with his body language, are expressly responsible for the untold economic hardship, ethnic division and daily bloodletting currently ravaging our nation,” it said.

According to the PDP, if indeed the president was out to serve, as he claimed at the APC congress, he should show any of his 2015 campaign promises that he has fulfilled or any development project initiated and implemented to

the benefit of the people in the last three years.

“President Buhari’s second term agenda is directly a quest to continue to enrich the presidency cabal, promote nepotism and protect cronies and corrupt members of the APC from the long arms of the law.

“President Buhari’s second term is also a quest to continue to ignore and destroy democratic principles; to continue trampling on the rights of citizens and persecution of opposition and perceived political opponents; to continue the derailing of democracy with manifest disdain for constitutional order; to continue with the intimidation and harassment of the legislature and the judiciary; perpetuation of

mediocrity in governance; de-marketing Nigeria at international fora and to blame everyone else but himself for manifest incapacity to govern.

Meanwhile, the Chairman of the party, Uche Secondus, has frowned at the action of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) which he said has continued to link him to have collected money from the former National Security Adviser (NSA), Col. Sambo Dasuki (rtd), when the matter is already before the court.

Secondus in a letter sent to the acting Chairman of the EFCC, Mr. Ibrahim Magu, complained bitterly of the continued linking of his name with collecting money from Dasuki when nothing of such ever happened.

Herdsmen-Farmers’ Clash: Okowa Makes Case for Ranching Delta State Governor, Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa, has said ranching will put to a stop clashes between Fulani herdsmen and farmers in the country.

He made the suggestion yesterday at the third session of the 12th Synod of the Diocese of Warri, Anglican Communion, held at St. Peter’s Anglican Church, Ekpan, Uvwie Local Government Area of Delta State.

According to the governor, “Herdsmen/farmers clash is a national problem, as a state, we are trying to bring the casualties to the barest minimum, as a country, we must go into ranching of our cattle.

“It is our hope that necessary actions will be taken for us to go into ranching, we cannot continue to allow our cattle to be roaming around.”

Okowa, who was accompanied to the service by the Speaker of the state House of Assembly, Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori; state Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Mr. Kingsley Esiso, among others, disclosed that machinery are in motion for any one who hides under the guise of youths to extort money from property developers and law abiding citizens to be prosecuted and jailed if found guilty.

“We have sent a bill to the Delta State House of Assembly

which will criminalise ‘deve’ (extortion) by youths and anyone who is found guilty will go to jail,” the governor stated, adding that, “any one who is caught causing trouble, no matter how highly placed you are or who your sponsors are, will face the wrath of the law, we like the peace we are enjoying in the state.”

The governor also called for collective efforts to ensure clean environment, observing that while it is the duty of local government councils to ensure clean council areas, it was the duty of all Deltans to dispose their refuse appropriately.

He lauded the theme for the Synod, ‘Work out your salvation with fear and trembling,’ stating that, “our God is holy, our call is holy, it is important for us to know that it is the one who does the will of the father that will enter His kingdom, we should use our lifestyle to carry out evangelism.”

Earlier, the Bishop of Warri Diocese of the Anglican Communion, Rt. Rev. Christian Ide, had commended the development strides of Okowa’s administration while Bishop Johnson Ekwe had in a sermon urged Christians to be prayerful not to fall into temptation.

PEER REVIEW VISIT

Group Managing Director/CEO, Access Bank Plc, Mr. Herbert Wigwe (left); and Managing Director/CEO, Development Bank of Nigeria Plc., Mr. Tony Okpanachi, during a courtesy visit by the Access Bank team to Headquarters of Development Bank in Abuja...recently

Rights Group Frowns at Arbitrary Arrest, Detention of Melaye’s Security Detail Yekini Jimoh ÓØ ÙÕÙÔË

Dino Melaye.

“Melaye’s orderly and The National Coordinator Justice policemen that were with him and Freedom Watch, Chief Segun have been held in custody since Owoeye, has frowned at the April 23, 2018, on the others arbitrary arrest and unlawful from above for no just reason. detention of Senator Dino “We were all aware of the Melaye’s orderly and his security brutal invasion of Melaye’s detail by the police. home in Abuja, where over This was contained in a 150 heavily armed fierce-looking statement issued yesterday and policemen laid siege in his home. made available to THISDAY in In the course of this display of Lokoja. force, a senior police officer came According to him, the to Melaye’s home and arrested continued anti-Melaye script the policemen on duty in his just to silence him at all cost house including his orderly did not spare even the police without any offence or justified security men attached to him reason. within the last two weeks and “It will interest Nigerians the display of lawlessness by and the entire world to the Nigerian Police. know that Melaye’s orderly “Our attention has been was supposed to have his brought to the arbitrary arrest ‘wedding engagement’ and unlawful detention of police yesterday, (Saturday) but has officers and orderly attached to been in detention since April the Chairman Senate committee 23, 2018, when they arrested on FCT and Kogi West senator, him alongside other policemen.

“He was denied completely the access to his family and to be his wife. This is a total mockery of our rule of law, human rights and constitutionalism.

“For what could they have done that even Melaye’s orderly who was to have his wedding engagement yesterday, but police kept him in detention for no reason,” he stated.

He said: “Up till this moment, no single offence has been communicated to them to show cause of there arrest, no single official statement has been made from Police Force Headquarters, Abuja, or by FCT police command, yet they were detained.”

The national coordinator added that desperation of the police under this government has demonstrated to Nigerians that they meant to frontally clamp

down on Melaye and every establishment around him under a supposed democratic government.

His words: “In view of the continued detention of the those officers, we therefore, demand their immediate release from unlawful detention camp.

“It is unacceptable, disgraceful and professionally deficient for police authorities to detain those officer who are only carrying out their official assignment without any valid justification or reason. “They have been in detention now for 14 days, Melaye’s alleged offence shouldn’t have led to their arrest if the police respect the law of the land.

“We call on the media, civil society organisations, NBA, Amnesty International, human rights partners and Nigerians to once again, rise up against this brazen lawlessness.”

59

MONDAY, MAY 7, 2018˾ T H I S D AY

APC WARD CONGRESSES…

APC WARD CONGRESSES…

Shoot Out at APC Ward Congress Meeting, Ngige Escapes Death Nwoye: I’ll not let minister hijack party in Anambra Our Correspondents

The Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige, yesterday escaped death at a harmonisation meeting of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Awka over the party’s ward congresses in Anambra State.

Ngige was whisked away by security personnel who repeatedly shot into the air to scare members of the party who charged at him over accusations of plots to hijack the congresses.

However, a member of the state’s ward congress committee, who was simply identified as Ali, was not so lucky as he was beaten to pulp and stripped naked over allegations that he was among those drafted to the state to rig the congresses.

The candidate of the APC in last year’s governorship election in the state, Dr Tony Nwoye, had accused Sen Ngige of plotting to hijack the party in the state.

At the harmonisation meeting held to address the discrepancies in the party’s ward congresses, Nwoye told Ngige that he was usurping the functions of the congress committee by stating that ward congresses held on Saturday when they did not.

Nwoye said he was refraining from speaking because he might be accused of being bitter because he ran and lost election on the platform of the party.

He said: “Some of you here worked against me during that election, but my joy is that I lost the election and they lost too, because they have not risen themselves.

“We have failed as a party because we do not have any position in Anambra, but it will not work for people to put this party in their pocket so that they can write election results in their houses.

“I will not let Ngige take the function of the panel.

We have a panel that is supposed to conduct that congress, and they just came here today (Sunday), whereas you are trying to tell us that elections have been held yesterday. How can Ngige be the one to conduct the congress when there is a committee.

“As at 7p.m. on Saturday, people were being denied the forms because thy want to contest for positions, and what that means is that the forms have been given out to those they like. We will not let that happen.”

Meanwhile, Ngige who took offence over what he described as an attack on his person by Nwoye, explained that there was no trouble in the party, describing it as a brotherly affair.

Ngige had also earlier explained: “We do not have trouble here and we are here to further the cause of the party.

“People were querying the guideline given by the NEC of the party, and I said no. The issue was over zoning of positions. We said go to the ward and if anyone resigns, we replace him, because this is brotherly contest.”

Some members of the party who spoke with THISDAY on condition of anonymity, said the attack on Ngige was premeditated.

“Nwoye and his people are still aggrieved over the role played by Ngige during the governorship election where he (Nwoye) lost.

“They also believed that he is still working to hijack the party and remain lord in the state. That is the main reason for the attack on Ngige.”

Adamawa APC Ward Congresses Greeted with Mixed Reactions The All Progressives Congress (APC) ward congresses in Adamawa State wereyesterday greeted with mixed reactions as party members were divided on the conduct of the elections in the state.

But while the turn-out was very impressive, some delegates were divided. Some claimed that the congresses were conducted peacefully while others protested, saying they never held in their places.

The councillor representing Nassarawo Ward, Yola North Local Government Area of the state, Hon. Sadi Rabiu, told THISDAY that the electoral committee did not show up at the venue of the congress in his ward at the Jimeta temporary stadium.

According to him, as an officer of the ward with the collaboration of the Independence National Electoral Commission (INEC) and security officers sent to monitor the conduct of the congress, he ordered that delegates should line up at the back of their choice candidates, adding that they counted the votes in the presence of the delegates and some APC stakeholders who were in support of the development.

He added that there were two contestants for the chairmanship in his ward, one Allaji Sabiu Mohammed who scored 6,770 votes while Alhaji Modibbo Usman scored 1,671 votes by their counting adding that when the supporters of Usman realised that their candidate did not win, they started trouble as they beat up an INEC staff in the process who was assigned to monitor the congress in their ward.

Rabiu said it took the intervention of security agents to rescue the INEC officials from Usman’s supporters.

At Wuro Hausa ward in Yola South, the delegates faulted the conduct of the congress in their wards but the coming of the former EFCC Chairman, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, who voted in the ward doused the tension that was about to erupt by addressing the problems with the congress committee.

Members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) waiting to cast their votes at the party’s rescheduled ward congress at Ward 11, Ibadan South-South Local Council Development Area, Molete-Odo Oba, Ibadan...yesterday The Chairman of the congress committee, Hon Musa Mahmud, said his team visited three wards and saw the exercise being conducted as arranged.

The Speaker of the state House of Assembly, Hon. Kabiru Mijinyaw, in an interview with journalists, said the exercise was conducted in a peaceful and rancourfree atmosphere.

Mijinyawa expressed reservation over the attitudes of some politicians who are just creating unnecessary tension by misleading their supporters on the conduct of the exercise.

A voter, Mallama Hauwa Ibrahim, who was visibly disturbed, lamented that the exercise was not conducted in her ward at Umaru Sanda ward in Yola town.

Wuro Hausa said the impunity the APC is accusing the PDP of is conspicuously in the ruling party, adding that if nothing is done to address it, they would be left with no option but join the PDP in before the 2019 elections.

“As the leader and father to all, I was able to douse the tension that enveloped the party secretariat on Saturday when our supporters were trying to outdo one another. All the APC leaders that came for the stakeholders’ meeting were well protected.

“I even shielded one of our honourable members from the House of Representatives from reprisal attack from those who attempted to assault him. APC is one large family. There may be diverse interests, but we are one.

“I will continue to sue for peace among our leaders and followers, because that is the cardinal programme and achievement of our administration. Our party and administration are known for peace and that must be sustained.”

The governor debunked some newspapers report, which claimed that the incident at the APC secretariat was a ‘bloody violence,’ describing it as exaggeration.

Oyo APC Congress Peaceful, Says Ajimobi

Okorocha Orders CP to Arrest Members over Missing Materials

There was palpable tension and confusion for several hours yesterday in Oyo State as the rescheduled ward congress of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) failed to take-off on time in many of the wards visited by journalists.

By mid-day, both camps of the state Governor, Senator Abiola Ajimobi, and the Unity Forum, the estranged group within the party comprising a serving Minister of Communications; Mr. Bayo Shittu and a senator for Oyo Central and few other lawmakers at the federal and state levels claimed victory in the areas where the exercise took place.

Last Saturday when the congress was supposed to hold, political thugs chased away politicians from the stakeholders’ meeting called by the Alhaji Musa Haliru-led Congress Committee in the state, necessitating its reschedule for yesterday.

The state governor has however, expressed satisfaction with the peaceful conduct of the rescheduled ward congress of the party held across the state, according to a statement by his Special Adviser, Communication and Strategy, Mr. Bolaji Tunji.

The Secretary of the Unity Forum, Wasiu Olatubosun, also said their members statewide conducted themselves peacefully throughout the exercise, adding that “the results are being collated by the congress committee.

It was successful, credible and free and fair”.

Haliru was however, not available for comment as calls made to his mobile were not answered as at the time of filing this report.

The governor in the statement described Saturday’s disturbances at the APC state secretariat which forced the postponement of the congress till Sunday as one of those things expected in a political gathering of highly placed political leaders with vested interests.

According to him, followers and supporters of such leaders have been known to instigate crisis in their bid to outdo one another and to impress their principals who often time were never in support of such violent conducts.

The governor said, “The reports I have heard so far across the state indicate that the congress went peacefully without any form of acrimony or rancour.

That is what we have been preaching and I am happy that the players have embraced peace.

“As the leader of the APC in the state, I’m also father to all and that informed my conciliatory moves. No good father will stand aloof while his children are at loggerheads. Thank God all have been settled now and we have had a peaceful outing.”

Following the alleged disappearance of sensitive materials for the Saturday, May 5, Ward Congresses of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Imo State, the governor Rochas Okorocha has directed the Commissioner of Police in the State, Mr. Chris Ezike to arrest and prosecute Mr. Ini Okorie and other members of the Congress Committee arrested in connection with the missing materials to court without further delay.

The governor specifically charged the Police in the State to set every machinery in motion for the arrest and prosecution of the man at the centre of the alleged incident that led to the missing materials Mr. Ini Okorie for escaping with sensitive materials.

He equally expressed regret over the dishonourable role of some leaders of the party in the state who were not able to divorce their local and personal political interests. He specifically condemned the role of Senator Osita Izunaso who he accused of not differentiating his official responsibilities as the National Organizing Secretary of a National Party from personal involvement.

Okorocha noted that if not that he played his role as a governor and as a father, to manage the situation, the unfortunate role of those people would have thrown the State into a very big crisis which nobody would have been in a position to imagine its outcome.

He remarked that, for the Organising Secretary of the Party Chief Izunaso to be arguing with Mr. Ini, originally sent for the conduct of the congresses, over who among themselves, was in custody of the congress sensitive materials in question was quite despicable.

And it showed they never wanted the Congress to be successful abinitio.

“It is also important to point out here that those who never believed that APC had prospect at the initial stage and who called Governor Rochas Okorocha all sorts of names including Alhaji in Government House and Okoro-Hausa must not be allowed to disturb the peace of APC in the State”, he said.

The governor reiterated his appeal to members of the party in the State to remain calm and ensure peace and assured that the anomalies would be corrected and the Ward Congress in the State, will hold accordingly.

When Thisday spoke with Senator Izunaso on phone, he dismissed the accusation leveled against him by the governor, stating that he would not talk on the issue because he was an “umpire.”

60

MONDAY, MAY 7, 2018Ëž T H I S D AY

NEWSXTRA

Buratai: Army Will Secure Nigeria Better With Good Policies and Laws

George Okoh Ă&#x201C;Ă&#x2DC; Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x2022;Ă&#x;Ă&#x153;Ă&#x17D;Ă&#x201C;

The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt Gen Tukur Buratai, has called on some state governments to take a critical look at some policies and law being implemented in their states and possibly make a review of them in order to resolve crises bedeviling the country.

He insisted that certain policy and law being implemented in some states needed to be reviewed to give everyone a sense of belonging.

Buratai stated this in Ugba, the headquarters of Logo Local Government Area of Benue State, where he undertook an on-thespot assessment tour of destroyed-communities invaded by Fulani herdsmen.

He added that some inter-tribal fight is also fuelling the crisis in Nigeria, stressing that if this policy and law is fundamentally reviewed, it

would enhance securities across the country.

The army chief also stated that the army would deploy more troops to cover the areas prone to crisis in the state, particularly those communities located along the riverbank and shared boundary with other states.

According to him, a place like Anyibe in Ayilamo, Logo council area that shares boundary with Taraba and Nasarawa States would be reinforced with the troops to guarantee the security and safe returns of the people already displaced. He said the lack of effective mobility on water route and other roads have continued to hampered troops to quickly move in and respond to cases of attack, noting that both the state and local government area needed to work out modalities for the provision of rural roads and other social amenities so as to enhance emergency and

quick operations. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The water route is what we are looking at very critically. I wish it can be improved. Already, there is a planning committee on ground from the defence headquarters who are working on this, and there are those of us that have been brought in for deployment in the water. â&#x20AC;&#x153;But as I said earlier, the overall security will depend on the number of factors.

Everybody is coming to play his role especially the state government, as well as the security agencies and the local government. The state and council areas has their roles in the provision of roads and other social amenities. They are quite fundamental and l hope they will look at it and see how they can improve on the terrain in terms of movement and provision of roads. You can see how difficult the terrain is for us to get into the affected areas in Anyibe, Ayilamo,â&#x20AC;?

Buratai explained.

Music, Tourism Can Generate Forex and Contribute to GDP, Says AMBON Ugo Aliogo, Esther Ehoche Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x2DC;Ă&#x17D; Judith Obaze Association of Music Band Owners of Nigeria (AMBON) has predicted that a combination of Nigeriaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s tourism and music potential if well harnessed, has the capacity to earn multimilliondollar foreign exchange and also contribute multi-billion naira in locally internally generated revenues. Speaking at the unveiling ceremony in Lagos, the President of the AMBON, Mr. Akin Tofowoma, said the association is an established body that collectively helps to develop, empower and organises the countryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;unorganisedâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; live music sector in Nigeria.

He said its efforts are to revive the culture of live band music in the country and to improve the quality of music and set a standard for the sector.

He pointed out that, â&#x20AC;&#x153;According to statistics in the United States, live band music ticket sales revenue will grow from $7.2 billion in 2015 to $ 9.1 billion in 2021.  To this end, AMBON intends to build a coalition and act as a solidarity with other organisations who shares its concern for social and economic justice in the Nigeria music sector.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;AMBON seeks to get to the level where a band is called upon to play for an event not because it offers lower prices than other bands, but because of its worthiness.  The dream of AMBON is to strive and get recognition both at national and international level.  â&#x20AC;&#x153;It has standards and expectations which have been

set by members in pursuit of common visions and it plans to support and follow the by-laws by actively by participating in the music industry of Nigeria.

The music industry is a big industry; we want to bring our own industry.

We want to see how we can collectively revive the industry. Music is a serious business; therefore, we actually have scientific skills.â&#x20AC;?

He also stated that the association is founded on the principles of humanitarian services, the spirit of excellence and dedication to duty, adding that the association remains committed to dictating the standards for the quality and timeliness of live band music.

Tofowoma further stated that the association would bring together Nigerian

artists who are unorganised and works together as an association and create a platform for them to be heard, stating that the association is set to treat all members with respect and dignity â&#x20AC;&#x153;without regard to ethnicity, age and race which are common problems among Nigerians.â&#x20AC;?

He added that through training, workshop, conferences, and seminars, the association would build highly motivated leaders at every level of the association who would reflect the membership in all its diversity.

He called owners of other music bands to join hands with AMBON in changing the face of music in the country, adding that their contribution would be very significant.

MONDAY, MAY 7, 2018˾ T H I S D AY

61

NEWSXTRA

Fayose’s Appointees Barred from Voting in Ekiti PDP Guber Primary Victor Ogunje ÓØ ÎÙ ÕÓÞÓ In compliance with the rules guiding the conduct

of primaries in the party, the national secretariat of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has barred Governor

Get Your Permanent Voter Cards, Senator Tinubu Tells Nigerians The senator representing Lagos Central senatorial district, Mrs. Oluremi Tinubu, has urged registered voters resident in Lagos State to ensure that they collect their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs), which is the key to participating in the forthcoming 2019 general election.

The call was made following revelations from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) that over 7,800,000 PVCs are yet to be collected nationwide. About 1,400,000 of these are from Lagos State alone.

Prior to the 2015 elections, INEC had introduced the use of smart card readers. This has necessitated issuance of PVCs as part of the identification and authentication process.

After the 2015 elections, about 12 million PVCs had remained in the electoral body’s custody.

“With previous elections, Nigerians developed voter apathy due to a distrust of the system. The 2015 elections taught us, however, that as individuals, our votes count.

Thus, we must rise up as citizens to fulfill our civic responsibility and ensure accountability in governance,” Senator Tinubu said.

Towards the 2019 elections, INEC has released modalities for ongoing continuous voter registration. These centres open from 9a.m. to 3p.m. daily. But Senator Tinubu has pleaded that the period should be extended; and should include weekends to allow people who are unable to visit the centres during work hours do so during the weekend.

In addition, she said INEC should ensure that it has adequate resources to make the process quick and easy.

Ayodele Fayose’s political appointees from voting in the governorship primary of the party holding on May 8.

The information to this effect was contained in the list of delegates released by the party’s national leadership which was signed by the National Organising Secretary, Col. Chris Akobundu (rtd), where names of the governor’s appointees have been expunged.

But the only serving and

former elected officials still in the camp of Fayose would have the right to vote at the shadow election scheduled for Tuesday.

Members of the Kolapo Olusola Campaign Organisation led by the Commissioner for Environment, Hon. Bisi Kolawole, has declared that they were not rattled by the decision.

They said Olusola, who has been anointed by Fayose, has majority of delegates behind

him and has no reason to fidget over that.

However, some party members are hailing the decision which they said would ensure fairness, transparency and credibility of the primary election.

In another development, the Prince Adedayo Adeyeye Movement (PAAM) has warned local government chairmen against sewing uniforms to be worn by delegates to the primary.

Speaking with journalists

yesterday, PAAM Director of Publicity, Niyi Ojo, said information at the group’s disposal showed that the council chairmen had been ordered to produce and sew “aso ebi” in favour of an aspirant to the primary.

Ojo said the action contravenes the provision of the Electoral Act, urging the Electoral Panel to disqualify any aspirant whose delegates wear clothes that run foul of the law to the primary.

Secondus Slams Buhari over Harassment of Melaye Onyebuchi EzigbÙ ÓØ ÌßÔË The National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Prince Uche Secondus has asked President Muhammadu Buhari to check the growing incidence of human rights abuses and harassment of opposition elements in the country.

In his reaction to the alleged harassment of Senator Dino Malaye and Senator Shehu Sani, the PDP boss warned the All Progressives Congress (APC) and President Buhari that Nigeria is not in military rule, but democracy.

Secondus while responding to questions from journalists recently in Abuja, added that “on Ekiti election, processes have began, we have done the three man committee, ward delegates.

On Tuesday there will be state congress to elect our candidate.

Thereafter campaign will start and you know the governor has done very well in that state. So we are sure that the state will still remain PDP state.

The PDP chairman lamented that, “the fear of everybody around the globe, not only Nigeria, is that Nigeria has turned to be a police state by the (APC) government of President Buhari and he has introduced some elements he used when he was head of state, arresting, harassing and intimidating people. You don’t do that in democracy, you allow the rule of law to reign.

Secondus said: “We are not in the military era. Look at how Senator Dino Melaye was treated. A senator should

be treated with all amount of civility. And we believe that if he has done anything wrong; let him be taken to court in a good manner and not like a common criminal. So you can see that more of things like this will be coming to the opposition, if they could treat their own persons like this.

“Remember when we raised alarm of the conspiracy theory of the APC, you know what is happening to distinguished Senator Shehu Sani, his being framed up and quite a number of people, they just pick them and charge them. It is not going to resolve the problem, don’t turn Nigeria into a police state, everybody is living in fear as if we are in Abacha’s regime, he lamented.

He revealed that, “this government is intimidating our people, but we will resist, we will not be afraid, nothing can intimidate us. Because our leaders, our founding fathers wrestle power from the military and brought this democracy, so we will maintain it despite all the harassment, media trial, media jailing and all sort of things that the ruling part have deployed against the opposition.

He urged members of the public to speak out against the APC, assuring them that their freedom of expression is guaranteed in the democratic system of government that we adopted and that his party is working day and night to bring like minds together, to a common front so that they can work together for the interest of the country.

NEW EATERY IN YOLA

L-R: Mr. Babalele Abdullahi; Adamawa State Commissioner of Health, Dr. Fatima Abubakar; Princess Rukaiya Abubakar, former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar; Aliyu Atiku Abubakar; and Mr. Adamu Atiku Abubakar, at the inauguration of the Chicken Cottage outlet in Yola, Adamawa State....yesterday

How Ekweremadu Nominated Yar’Adua for Nobel Peace Prize Tobi Soniyi ÓØ ËÑÙÝ Eight years after, facts have emerged on how the Deputy President of the Senate, Ike Ekweremadu, nominated the late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua for the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize.

The letter titled: ‘Nomination for the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize: Re: Alhaji Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, President, Federal Republic of Nigeria’ and dated January 6, 2009, was addressed to the Norwegian Nobel Committee, Oslo, Norway.

Ekweremadu predicated Yar’Adua’s nomination on the late president’s inclination for peace and justice for all, noting that although Yar’Adua had the option of full military operation in the Niger Delta, he chose the dialogue and amnesty option in resolving the militancy challenge in the region.

He wrote in part: “President Yar ’Adua is a man with natural inclination

for peace and justice. He has demonstrated an uncommon ability for achieving peace in his capacities as the President of Nigeria and the Chairman of the Authority of Heads of State and Government, Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).

“Situations in the Niger Delta region had already assumed monumentally grave proportions bordering on insurgency at the time the President assumed leadership of Nigeria on May 29, 2007.

“The youths of the region had mobilised into the creeks and taken up arms in their tens of thousands under different fronts to wrest the control of their resources from the Federal Government of Nigeria, kidnapping oil workers, and sabotaging foreign oil interests with direct impact on oil productions and revenues.

“Although the president had the usual option of total military

engagement to dislodge the militants, with attendant humanitarian consequences in the Niger Delta, he chose the peaceful options of dialogue and unconditional amnesty to all the militants.

“This has been nationally and globally acclaimed as an uncommon masterstroke and a huge success. Over 30,000 militants embraced the olive branch, denounced violence, and turned in their weapons. They are currently quartered in rehabilitation camps where they are also undergoing vocational trainings.

“Furthermore, the president has undertaken robust policy initiatives to deliver physical and human capital development in the region. He has practically committed billions of naira towards this in addition to the mandate of the existing Niger Delta Development Commission and a distinct Ministry of Niger Delta, which he created to directly oversee and speed up development in the

Niger Delta area. This has resulted in calm, safety of lives and property in the Niger Delta and the Gulf of Guinea.”

When contacted, the Special Adviser on Media to the Deputy President of Senate, Mr. Uche Anichukwu, who confirmed the authenticity of the letter, however, revealed that the former president did not know about it before his death.

However, a copy of the acknowledgement letter from Nobel Prize Committee was eventually transmitted to his widow, Hajiya Turai Yar ’Adua.

“Even though the prize was ultimately clinched by Liu Xiaobo, Ekweremadu was nevertheless happy that the former president’s name had gone down in history as a man naturally inclined to peace and justice and indeed a father to all,” he said.

Yar ’Adua died on May 5, 2010, after a protracted illness.

62

MONDAY, MAY 7, 2018˾ T H I S D AY

NEWSXTRA

Dogara Encourages Youth Participation in Governance Seeks life insurance for journalists James Emejo ÓØ ÌßÔË The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Yakubu Dogara, has challenged all youths to take full advantage of the ‘Not too young to run’ bill recently passed by the National Assembly with the aim of lowering the age requirements for elective offices in line with its commitment to youth participation in governance.

Dogara also called on media proprietors to provide improved welfare for journalists, stressing on the need to pay salaries and provide health insurance for their staff who are exposed to all sorts of risks while doing their jobs.

He said the lower chamber is committed to the enactment of youth friendly legislations that will aid the total development of our youths into productive citizens, encourage them to imbibe and sustain the spirit of commitment to civic obligations, Speaking at the 31st annual All Rotaract Multi-District conference in Abuja, he maintained that parliament is dedicated to ensuring the observance and appropriation of fundamental human rights of youths and full participation in governance though all the available opportunities under the law.

He said: “In a country with fast depleting values among the younger generation, which in my opinion, is a consequence of uninspiring leadership, I am persuaded that occasions such as this provide fertile environment for inspirational interaction with youth who have, by choice, dedicated themselves to the promotion of the enthronement of critical human values and possess the potential to massively replicate same.

“Rotary international of which Rotaract is an affiliate, remains one of the social organisations with the most noble objectives as well as operational culture.

The Rotary 4-Way Test, which is the scale for the determination of the integrity of human thought and action indeed constitutes a master key to a majority, if not all, of our existential conundrum.

In all human thoughts and actions, if the answers to these 4-Way test questions ,namely: (i) Is it the truth? (ii) Is it fair to all concerned? (iii) Will it build goodwill and better friendships? and (iv) Will it be beneficial to all concerned?, are in the affirmative, the risk of wrong is negligibly minimal.”

The Speaker, who expressed delight at double honours conferred on him by Rotaract by giving him the role of guest speaker and also conferring the prestigious merit award of exemplary leadership and humanitarian services on him, expressed confidence in them to restore the fast depleting values among the younger generation.

“While admonishing the young members to take full advantage of the invaluable leadership education Rotaract offers them, he praised Rotaract for creating reality through the practice of sound character development and the inculcation of the spirit of service and friendship, adding that he has no doubt that Rotaract, and indeed its sister minors club, the Rotary Interact ( for persons between ages 12 - 18), if well promoted, should become the Leadership bank of communities, nations and indeed the global community,” he said in a statement by his media aide, Mr. Hassan Turaki.

He added:”Rotaract provides for you in experiential form, the rudiments of ethical living in your prime and as you grow with this specialised knowledge and experience , you are sure to end up as dependable citizens with high ethical standard. I charge you therefore that the time to learn Leadership is now; the time to learn patriotism is now, the time to

Moghalu Appoints Jide Akintunde Spokesman The Managing Editor and CEO of Financial Nigeria International Limited, has been announced as the official spokesman for ‘To Build A Nation’, the transformation movement for 2019 presidential candidate and former Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Professor Kingsley Moghalu.

A graduate of the University of Lagos, Jide Akintunde is also the Director of Nigeria Development and Finance Forum (NDFF), a platform to directly provide country policy and financial market briefings to government representatives, private sector leaders, members of chambers of commerce, Nigerians in the diaspora, and the international

community annually.

As a writer, columnist and editor, he has interviewed high-level policymakers and business leaders across the world.

He has been published in several national and international media platforms, successfully developing Financial Nigeria magazine into a useful tool in policy management, corporate communications, and market entry strategies.

With the vision to transform Nigeria through action and a collective voice, ‘To Build A Nation’, a grassroots arm of Kingsley Moghalu’s presidential campaign, is centred on mobilising support and advancing the candidate’s policies and priorities among Nigerians.

learn nationalism is now; the time to learn commitment to community service is now and the time to set objective life goals towards national development is now.

Meanwhile, Dogara while speaking during a brief remarks at the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ) 2018 Press Freedom Awards night, said: “I will urge the NUJ to work towards implementing life insurance for journalists in Nigeria.

“I will call on all proprietors of media organisations to promptly pay the salaries of their staff.”

The speaker said: “I will also

like to urge media practitioners to be objective, fair and balanced in their reportage and editorial policies and decisions because we cannot have freedom without responsibility.

“The House of Representatives and indeed the National Assembly in general will continue to partner and support the media in guaranteeing free press including the safety of journalists through the instrumentality of the legislature, as practiced in other climes.”

Dogara said the

Distinguished Friend of the Media Award given to him by the NUJ will “motivate and spur us to continue to support and protect democracy and press freedom.”

He emphasised that as the watchdog of the society and fourth estate of the realm, the media plays a pivotal role in protecting and promoting democracy, human rights and the rule of law.

He, further urged journalists to ensure that they unreservedly monitor public office holders in order to stop all dictatorial tendencies and protect Nigeria’s hard-earned

democracy.

He challenged the press to “tell the right stories, especially those that promote unity, peace and harmony as well as stand up for the right to truth, especially now that we inch towards the 2019 general elections, according to a statement by his media aide, Mr. Hassan Turaki.

He, however, commended the Nigerian press for the role they played in the struggle for the restoration of democracy in 1999, while noting that many journalists paid the supreme price during military dictatorship.

HOPE WE ARE STILL TOGETHER?

Cross River State Governor, Prof. Ben Ayade (left); with Senate Minority Leader and former Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Senator Godswill Akpabio, during a visit to the rice seed and seedling factory in Calabar....recently

Herdsmen Killings: HURIWA Backs Move to Prosecute Miyetti Allah Leaders A non-governmental organi- decision of the Makurdi sation, Human Rights Writers High Court which okayed the Association of Nigeria prosecution of the leadership (HURIWA) has commended of the Miyetti Allah Kautal the order of the Benue State Hore and others over the High Court authorising the killings in the state must be prosecution of the leaders enforced “unless and except of the Miyetti Allah Cattle the presidency is the chief Owners Association for the sponsor of the attacks and spate of bloody attacks and will therefore jeopardise the killings of hundreds of local trial of these leaders of the farmers and Christians in the Miyetti Allah. state.

“The president must HURIWA has also warned demonstrate to Nigerians the Nigeria Police Force not to that he is the leader of undermine the constitutional all Nigerians by allowing authority of the High Court of the wheel of justice to the state by failing deliberately run smoothly and not be to enforce its lawful orders manipulated by the Nigeria that the leaders of the Miyetti Police to do the bidding of the Allah be brought to the High Miyetti Allah Cattle Owners Court to be prosecuted for Association who have always their roles in the series of bragged that the president is attacks and violence unleashed their Chief Patron, and so, on the people of Benue State. they can do whatever they The group in a statement like and get away with it by its National Coordinator, in flagrant breach of the Emmanuel Onwubiko, and Constitution of Nigeria.”

National Media Affairs HURIWA noted that Director, Miss Zainab Yusuf, Nigerians from all walks stated that the landmark of life must take interest to

see how the development in the Benue State High Court progresses especially the imperative of the neutrality of the policing institution which must be allowed to enforce the lawful orders of the high court which derives constitutional powers from Section 6 of the Constitution of the federal republic of Nigeria of 1999 (as amended).

“Nigerians must watch the level of compliance by the Nigeria Police which of recent have been converted to the foot soldiers of the presidency to an extent that the Inspector General of Police (IG) disrespected the National Assembly twice even after he was invited by the central legislative arm under their constitutional mandate to provide responses to some burning issues relating to the spate of attacks and killings of innocent Nigerians. We in the organised civil rights community are monitoring the judicial process to see

whether the hierarchy of the police will fail to carry out the lawful injunction of the competent court of law.

“Unfortunately, President Buhari has continued to shield the Miyetti Allah’s leadership from arrest and prosecution over their provocative media statements which directly instigated the killings following the passage of the anti-open grazing law by the Benue State House of Assembly. The civil society community should mount considerable pressures on the federal government to stop the ongoing conspiracy of silence and the refusal of President Buhari to take concrete and verifiable actions to initiate the declaration of Miyetti Allah as a terrorists group and to round up their leaders for prosecution over their roles in the killings in Benue State and across the North-central region of Nigeria,” the statement said.

63

T H I S D AY ˾ MONDAY, MAY 7, 2018

MONDAYSPORTS

Group Sports Editor Duro Ikhazuagbe Email duro.ikhazuagbe@thisdaylive.com 0811 181 3083 SMS ONLY

Iwobi Shines as Arsenal Gives Wenger Emotional Farewell Victor Moses provides assist as Chelsea edges Liverpool Duro Ikhazuagbe Super Eagles forward, Alex Iwobi, got on scorers’ sheet for the first time in nine matches yesterday to end his goal drought in the English Premier League as he scored Arsenal’s fourth goal in the 5-0 defeat of Burnley.

The Gunners’ victory was a perfect send-forth for Frenchman Arsene Wenger who ended his nearly 22 years reign at the North London club with his last home game yesterday.

Goals from Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette in the 14th and 45th minutes gave the Gunners a two-goal lead into the break.

Sead Kolasinac made it 3-0 in the 54th minute, firing in a shot from a tight corner after good work from Jack Wilshere. Iwobi made it 4-0 in the 64th minute when he rifled in a shot into roof of the net before Aubameyang scored his second goal of the emotional afternoon at Emirates to make it 5-0 for the Gunners who moved six points ahead of the Clarets.

Elsewhere, another Super Eagles forward, Victor Moses provided the assist that earned

Chelsea maximum points against Liverpool at Stamford Bridge.

The 1-0 victory now moves Chelsea with 69 points to within three points of third-placed Liverpool and two behind Tottenham Hotspur. Liverpool has only one game left while Chelsea and Spurs each have two.

Oliver Giroud headed into net Victor Moses’ perfect cross from the right flank in the 32nd minute. It was Moses’ third assist goal this season.

Moses was however cautioned by Centre Referee Mike Taylor in the 81st minute and seven minutes later the Nigerian international was subbed off for Davide Zappacosta.

Chelsea remains in fifth but move within three points of third-placed Liverpool.

With two games remaining to Liverpool’s one, Chelsea can move level on points with the Champions League finalists when they face Huddersfield on Wednesday.

But given Liverpool’s superior goal difference, the Reds would almost certainly ensure a topfour finish with victory at home to Brighton on the final day.

Wenger: Gunner for Life “I will miss you” Arsene Wenger told the Arsenal fans after being given a fitting farewell in his final home game in charge after 22 years with a 5-0 thrashing of Burnley yesterday.

On a day dominated by tributes to the Frenchman, both teams formed a guard of honour for Wenger, 68, before kick-off to a chorus of “there’s only one Arsene Wenger”.

All around a full house of 60 000 at the Emirates – in stark contrast to recent league games when fans have stayed away in protest at a poor season – fans sported red t-shirts emblazoned with “Merci Arsene” (Thank you Arsene).

“Thank you for having me for such a long time. I know that’s not easy but, above all, I am like you, I am an Arsenal fan,” Wenger said a post-match presentation on the Emirates turf. “I would like to finish by one simple word: I will miss you. Thank you all for being such an important part of my life.”

Before the game in his final programme notes, Wenger said he expected to be saddened by the occasion. “I expect today will be dominated by sadness,” he wrote. “It’s the end of a long

story for me at Arsenal. But I will also feel grateful for having led this club - that I cherish so much - for such a long time.”

Wenger won three Premier Leagues and a record seven FA Cups. His crowning glory coming in the 2003/04 season when Arsenal won the league without losing a single game.

He was presented with the special gold trophy given to the club for that achievement after the match by two Arsenal legends Bob Wilson and Pat Rice, who worked on Wenger’s coaching staff for many years. That “Invincibles” season was his last as a Premier League winner, though, and fans became tired of Arsenal’s inability to compete for Premier League and Champions League titles.

However, there was plenty for the supporters to shout about in a fitting finale for Wenger as Arsenal displayed the attractive brand of attacking football that characterised his most successful sides over the past two decades.

Defeat to Atletico Madrid in the Europa League semifinals on Thursday means Arsenal missed out on Champions League qualification for the second consecutive season.

Cardiff Back in EPL Four seasons after going down to the English Championship, Cardiff City won its promotion back to the Premier League yesterday.

It joins ailing Carl Ikeme’s Wolverhampton Wanderers (relegated from EPL in 2012), who had won the 2017/18

END OF AN ERA…

Arsene Wenger stepping out of the Turnstile to a befitting send-forth at Arsenal’s last home game of the season at Emirates Stadium after 22 years in charge of the North London Club… yesterday

CAF Confed Cup: Enyimba in Flying Start against Djoliba Isiaka Oladuntoye yesterday fired Enyimba to a perfect start in the CAF Confederation Cup group stage as the Peoples Elephant defeat Djoliba of Mali 2-0 at the U.J. Esuene Stadium in Calabar.

Oladuntoye got the opener three minutes after the first half break with a thumping shot following a corner kick.

Enyimba dominated the first

half but had no score to show for the effort- no thanks to Djoliba goalkeeper Adama Keita who was in excellent form.

Djoliba made spirited efforts to get back into the game after Oladuntoye’s goal but were unable to find a way past the Enyimba defence.

Enyimba however consolidated when they were

awarded a penalty 10 minutes to the end of the game when substitute Freedom Omofowan was tripped inside the box.

Another substitute, Stanley Dimgba, converted the penalty to take the game beyond the reach of the Malians.

Paul Aigbogun’s men next game is against CARA Brazzaville of Congo on May 15.

NPFL (MATCH-DAY 20 RESULTS)

Rivers Utd 0 -0 Abia Warriors Nasarawa 2 -0 El-Kanemi Katsina Utd. 1-0 Plateau Utd Heartland 1-1 K’ Pillars Lobi Stars 1-1 Sunshine Wikki 1-1 Rangers Ifeanyiubah 2 -1 Go Round Kwara Utd 2 -1 Yobe Stars MFM FC 3 -0 Tornadoes

Ecobank Commends Okpekpe Race over Silver Label Status Managing Director of Ecobank, Charles Kie, has restated why the bank is in partnership with Okpekpe International 10Km Road Race scheduled to hold on Saturday May 12, 2018 in Okpekpe, Edo State.

Speaking at the weekend, the Managing Director of Ecobank, Charles Kie, said that the objective of the organisers of the race matches that of Ecobank and assured stakeholders that the bank will continue to throw its weight behind the race as its Official Bank. ”I want to use this opportunity

to state here that Ecobank fully endorse this competition and will like to assure you that we will continue to be associated with the Okpekpe International Road Race,” he said.

He commended the organisers for the elevation of the race by IAAF to a silver label status, stressing that the competition brings together men and women from various parts of the world.

“I want to congratulate the organisers of the annual Okpekpe International 10Km Road Race for the elevation of the race to a silver labeled

status. We in Ecobank remain committed to our partnership with Okpekpe road race. It is always a great pleasure to be at the event,” observed the Ecobank chief executive.

Kie who registered online at the renewal of the partnership for the 2018 edition of the race, promised to race in the VIP category.

Race owner and Chief Executive Officer at Pamodzi Sports Marketing Limited, Mike Itemuagbor, thanked Ecobank for the continuous support for the Okpekpe, the only silver labeled

road race in West Africa.

“This year, we are bringing some innovations never ever witnessed in any road race in Nigeria. We are going to broadcast the race live on SuperSport on Saturday.

SuperSport is going to use three Outside Broadcast vehicles to take the competition to the door steps of millions of people around the world,” observed the Pamodzi CEO. Itemuagbo also revealed that medals are going to be presented to the first 1,000 runners to complete the race.

Championship title ahead of the final fixtures of the regular season yesterday.

Fulham, Aston Villa, Middlesbrough and Derby County all qualify for the playoffs that will determine the third team to be promoted to the topflight.

Football Family Unites for Ferguson Messages of support continued to pour in as legendary football manager Sir Alex Ferguson fought for his life on yesterday following emergency surgery for a brain haemorrhage.

Considered the most successful manager in the history of British football, Ferguson won 38 major trophies in just over 26 years in charge of Manchester United, including 13 Premier League titles and the UEFA Champions League twice. It is

a measure of the Scot’s success on the pitch, and his stature off it that tributes poured in from around the world of sport, and beyond, to wish the 76-year-old a speedy recovery after he underwent surgery on Saturday. “Everyone at AC Milan wishes Sir Alex Ferguson a full and speedy recovery,” said a statement by the seven-time European champions on their official Twitter page early Sunday morning.

L-R: Executive Director, Risk Management Ecobank Nigeria; Biyi Olagbami, Company Secretary / Chief Legal Officer, Ecobank Nigeria, Denike Laoye, Managing Director, THISDAY Newspaper, Eniola Bello; Managing Director, Ecobank Nigeria, Charles Kie, Chairman/CEO, Pamodzi Sports Marketing, Mike Itemuagbor and Executive Director, Corporate Banking, Ecobank Nigeria, Akin Dada, at the registration of Ecobank’s MD and other executive management for the 2018 Okpekpe International Road Race in Lagos…last Friday

Monday May 7, 2018

TR

UT H

& RE A S O

N

Price: N250

MISSILE Anyaoku to FG “...our country is currently drifting with decreasing respect for the sanctity of human life and as a result, has become number 13 in the Wikipedia list of the world’s fragile states.”

– Former Commonwealth Secretary-General, Chief Emeka Anyaoku making a case to the federal government on the need to restructure the country.

ALEXOTTI OUTSIDE THE BOX

alex.otti@thisdaylive.com

Curbing Human Trafficking Between Nigeria and the UK

E

xactly a week ago, on Monday, April 30, 2018, Dr. May Ikeora presented her book titled “Bilateral Cooperation and Human Trafficking, Eradicating Modern Slavery Between Nigeria and the United Kingdom”. The book presentation was hosted by the Deputy British High Commissioner in her residence in Ikoyi, Lagos. In attendance were The Governor of Edo State, Godwin Obaseki, Former Governor of Anambra State, Peter Obi and the representative of the Oba of Benin amongst other dignitaries. I was privileged to function as the book reviewer. I have taken liberty to publish my review of the book in this column today, hoping that you will enjoy it.

Just like Winston Churchill once remarked, this review would be like a lady’s skirt. Long enough to cover the subject, and short enough to create interest.

The 294 paged book sets out by reminding us that though transatlantic slave trade ended centuries ago, modern slavery is still very much around.

The major thrust of the study is to understand human trafficking, its causes and consequences and measures that would work in eradicating it.

In explaining trafficking, Dr. Ikeora adopts the United Nations Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime definition as follows: “the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of persons, by means of a threat or use of force or other forms of coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of deception, of the abuse of power or of a position of vulnerability or of the giving or receiving of payments or benefits to achieve the consent of a person having control over another person for the purpose of exploitation”.

In spite of the apparent clarity of this definition, the author concedes that sometimes it is difficult for law enforcement officers to build a strong case of trafficking because the trafficker’s intent can be disguised. The magnitude of human trafficking is so pervasive that it has become the second largest source of illegal income after drug trafficking.

Human trafficking occurs for several purposes, mainly for sexual exploitation, forced Labour, domestic servitude and organ harvesting.

In the year 2000, the Trafficking Protocol was adopted. This requires states to take necessary measures to Prevent, Protect and Prosecute (3Ps) in order to end trafficking.

I must at this point observe that this book is based on research involving fieldwork and interviews. The author therefore starts by formulating a research question thus: “to what extent have Nigeria and the UK cooperated to combat the prevalence of human trafficking across their borders?”

The book is organized into three sections and eight chapters.

In trying to understand and tackle human trafficking, a lot of perspectives are discernible . The author, however, adopts the human rights perspective to anti-trafficking. This perspective, according to the author, amongst other things, insists that victims have a right to be treated with dignity and are entitled to measures that ensure their well being and avoid revictimization. This approach also recognizes that victims may enter countries unlawfully and may face vulnerabilities as a result. They may also commit crimes under duress during the trafficking process which may result in their being arrested detained and even prosecuted. Criminalization of victims is frowned at by the human rights approach. The book highlights

Ikeora some of the drawbacks of the human rights approach and therefore extends the perspective to a human centered approach which basically says that rather than focusing on the state and its interest, the people’s interest should be paramount.

The importance of the human rights approach is its assumption that victims are vulnerable because of lack of socio economic opportunities in origin countries. This, in my opinion, is the most important part of this study. As quoted in the book, “human trafficking persists in part, when societies tolerate denials of the dignity and humanity of vulnerable individuals. This includes the denial of economic and social rights, discrimination and poverty”.

Having identified the above, the author posits that restrictive UK immigration policies, somehow result in very weak protection of victims of trafficking.

Once victims fear that they may be deported, they would rather remain in the UK at the mercy of their abductors. This is logical as the victims would rather not go back to the country from where they were coming for all sorts of reasons.

Because trafficking is mostly a cross border crime, there is need for cooperation amongst states if this scourge is to be contained. In this regard, the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime (UNTOC), ratified by at least 117 nations has remained the most universally accepted international legal framework specific to addressing human trafficking. Without the cooperation of states, successful prosecution of traffickers may just be a pipe dream. In reality, some states find it difficult to allow victims to enjoy immigration status, thereby criminalizing them and sometimes, prosecuting them for breaking Immigration and Labour laws or simply repatriating them without any reprimand of the real criminals, the traffickers themselves. The author took time to analyze several other legal frameworks and arrangements which I believe would interest readers.

Dr. Ikeora describes Nigeria as a source, transit and destination country for trafficking people and states that 92% of Nigerians trafficked to Europe are from Edo State. These are figures provided by UNESCO. She goes into details on the different stages of trafficking which starts with the recruitment stage through the transportation stage to the exploitation stage.

In the 5th chapter of the book, the author delves into the efforts that Nigeria had made to stem trafficking to the UK and the challenges militating against these efforts.

The traditional fostering and apprenticeship system which ordinarily is helpful to families and

communities in reducing pressure on the poor has also been fingered as responsible for the abuse of children and in some cases child trafficking.

In 2003, the National Agency for Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) act as amended was passed by the National Assembly. Its main purpose was to provide a comprehensive legal framework to prohibit human trafficking, protect victims and facilitate national and international cooperation to fight trafficking. One of the strongest points made by the author is that the best way to deal with human trafficking is to deal with vulnerabilities. Hear her “human trafficking preys on the vulnerability of people, which often makes it easier for traffickers to coerce and exploit them.

For instance, poverty and search for a better life have driven people into the hands of traffickers as seen in many cases of trafficking. In this regard, addressing the vulnerabilities of persons in Nigeria can serve as a preventive strategic option towards addressing human trafficking from Nigeria to the UK”. She insists that it is the responsibility of states to prevent the occurrence of wrongful acts of which human trafficking is one. For the state to effectively tackle the problem, it must address the root causes by creating an environment that reduces vulnerability and makes it difficult for traffickers to operate with impunity. From her study, she found that poverty, greed, and low level of education as against the ‘better life syndrome’ sold by traffickers and others alike, have been major factors driving the trade in Nigeria. In addition, social exclusion that appears in the form of forced marriages, inequality, traditional servitude, homelessness, family instability and domestic violence must be focused on to prevent trafficking. She identifies limited ‘successes’ made by a few trafficked individuals by way of sending money home, building houses, drilling of boreholes, purchase of fairly used vehicles and a few other community development efforts as contributing in the push-back by potential victims.

Some of the potential victims who in some cases, offer themselves to be trafficked and even when deported, willingly make efforts to be re-trafficked would insist that those who want to stop them do not mean well for them, their families and the community. She also fingered corruption as one of the reasons why anti-trafficking efforts have continued to fail.

The author also looks at the response of the UK to human trafficking and notes that there seems to be a lot more efforts through legislation to reduce trafficking. The major drawback identified is that the UK seems to be focused on immigration law than protecting the rights and interests of the victim.

The UK adopted the 3D (Detention, Deportation and Disempowerment) approach in a bid to rid the country of victims of human trafficking. Nigerian victims are usually in breach of UK immigration rules and therefore are subject to arrest, detention and subsequent deportation irrespective of the circumstances under which the victim accessed the country. Even in cases where the victim opts to remain in the UK for fear of harm in Nigeria by their more powerful traffickers or for fear of re-trafficking, the tendency is for the UK authorities to decline. The author is optimistic that the Modern Slavery Act, 2015 would be able to address all the sides to the hitherto ignored trafficking regulation issues. She, however, admits that the law is still too fresh to assess its effectiveness.

In 2004, Nigeria and the UK signed a bilateral agreement to work together to eliminate human

trafficking across their borders. It is instructive that the understanding of the two nations are not exactly the same. While the UK would like to collaborate with Nigeria as a source country, Nigeria would rather see itself as a destination country from other African countries and a source to few European countries. Compared to countries like Italy and The Netherlands, Nigeria feels that the UK is insignificant as a destination country from Nigeria. To the UK, Nigeria is a big challenge to anti- trafficking efforts within its territory, maintaining a position as top five source country for trafficking into the UK. Nigeria on the other hand, does not see UK’s case as serious given that it is not within the top five destination countries for trafficking from Nigeria.

In an interesting section she titled “Negotiating Rights or Negotiating Borders” the author contends that while on the face of it, eradicating human trafficking comes across as a common goal for both countries, border security, minimizing the cost of anti-trafficking and criminality seem to be the major focus of the UK over and above the human rights of the Nigerian victims. UK and some other countries believe that migration threatens national security and therefore regards human trafficking as an immigration problem which should be solved accordingly.

Like we pointed out earlier, Nigerian victims are most likely to take the risk of submitting themselves to their captors than come back to Nigeria to return to the same situation that they were running away from in the first place. Given the mismanagement of the Nigerian economy over time, living in Nigeria has become a nightmare for most people as they battle with extreme poverty and unemployment.

Over 70% of the population lives below poverty line. An environment like this cannot but support trafficking and migration, she posits.

She concludes by calling on both countries to wake up to their responsibilities for trafficking to be successfully fought and defeated. If Nigeria does not make its environment more conducive for its people, the fight against trafficking cannot be won.

While the fight is on, she advises the UK to pay more attention to the rights of victims rather than criminalizing them for crimes committed either unknowingly or under duress.

I must commend Dr. May Ikeora for such a great outing and for the painstaking manner in which she delivered the work. The style is attractive, the language simple and the logic, unassailable. Like every work of this nature, a few typographical errors were noticed. I will pass the ones I identified to her for correction in subsequent editions. While I must confess that the research was conducted professionally and conclusions were well founded, it is my belief that this exercise has also left room for further research. It may not be within the ambit of the present study, but I am of the opinion that knowledge would be aided if further research is able to establish the role of the current kidnappings particularly by Boko Haram, in human trafficking.

For instance, the abduction of school girls from Chibok. Is it possible that some of those girls could be or could have been trafficked? If it is what would be the destination countries?

Your excellencies, distinguished ladies and gentlemen, this book is a must read for everyone who can read and reason. Finally, it is interesting that some of the findings of Dr. Ikeora’s research were consistent with a piece I did recently in this column titled “If you travel, you’ll die, if you don’t, you’ll die” (THISDAY, March 12, 2018, Backpage).

Printed and Published in Lagos by Leaders & Company Limited . Lagos: 35 Creek Road, Apapa, Lagos. Abuja: Plot 1, Sector Centre B, Jabi Business District, Solomon Lar Way, Jabi North East, Abuja .

All Correspondence to POBox 54749, Ikoyi, Lagos. EMAIL: editor@thisdaylive.com, info@thisdaylive.com. TELEPHONE Lagos: 0802 2924721-2, 08022924485. Abuja: Tel: 08155555292, 08155555929 24/7 ADVERTISING HOT LINES: 0811 181 3086, 0811 181 3087, 0811 181 3088, 0811 181 3089, 0811 181 3090. ENQUIRIES & BOOKING: adsbooking@thisdaylive.com