SUNDAY 3RD JUNE 2018

APC Power-play Continues as National Convention Committee Secretary Resigns Ndoma-Egba replaces Uwajimogu Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja The All Progressives Congress (APC) continued to stew in crisis as the secretary of its National Convention Organising Committee, Senator Benjamin Uwajimogu, resigned yesterday morning,

following deepening intrigues occasioned by the battle for the soul of the ruling party. The resignation comes barely three weeks to the convention, where new leaders of the party would be elected, and two days to the repeat fire-fighting meeting between the Presidency and the

Dogara to lead nPDP delegation to presidency meeting

new Peoples Democratic Party (nPDP), one of the legacy groups that formed the APC in 2013.

The party, which had been trying to settle quarrels among members arising from the recently held congresses in the states, has, however, appointed former Senate Leader and Chairman of

the Board of Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Senator Victor Ndoma-Egba, as the new secretary of the committee.

THISDAY gathered yesterday that the National Working Committee of APC had approved the results of congresses in all the

states and the Federal Capital Territory, with the exception of Lagos and Bayelsa states. The NWC set up a three-member committee to look into the issues raised on the duo.

A member of the NWC who spoke to THISDAY on conditions of anonymity said the meet-

ing of the body held last Friday faulted the results from Lagos on grounds that the report contained results from 37 Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs) instead of the 20 Local Government Areas. But the source said instead of the outright cancellation of the Lagos State congress that the Na-

Nigeria’s Stock Market Loses N908 Billion in One Week

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Insecurity Compels Military to Keep Battle-Fatigued Soldiers in North-east DHQ: Nigeria running out of experienced fighters Senator Iroegbu in Abuja The Nigerian military authorities

have been forced to keep as well as recycle battle weary and disoriented soldiers in the ongoing counter-terrorism and counter-

insurgency operations against Boko Haram in the North-east, THISDAY findings have revealed.

THISDAY investigation has uncovered how soldiers, who have been battling the terrorists since 2015, have not had time to

rest because the military authorities have kept them on the frontline without relieving them.

According to knowledge-

able military sources, soldiers in battle fields are supposed to Cosntinued on page 8

Despite Military Presence, Killings Continue as Bandits fell 15 in Zamfara 7 in Kogi, 3 in Jos Mohammed Aminu in Gusau, Yekini Jimoh in Lokoja and Seriki Adinoyi in Jos About one week after 26 people were murdered in some communities in Zamfara State, at least 15 persons were killed on Friday by cattle rustlers in Zanuka Village, Anka Local Government Area of the state.

This was in spite of a heavy military presence following recent special operations launched to try to contain the activities of gunmen, who have killed hundreds of people in the state in the last three years.

The killers were also In Kogi State on Saturday morning, where they felled seven persons, including the son of the village head of Okpareke, in Kogi Local Government Area, where former Chief of Army Staff, Major-General Mohammed Chris Ali (rtd), hails from.

And in Plateau State, the police confirmed an attack yesterday on Kura Falls, a community in Gashish District, Barkin Ladi Local Government Area of Plateau State, which led to the death of three people.

A resident of Zanuka village, who spoke on condition of

anonymity for fear of being attacked, said the attackers invaded the village on Friday morning and rustled cows belonging to the villagers. He revealed that a vigilante group, popularly known as “Yansakai,” took on the rustlers and were able to force them out of the community. According to him, the bandits returned later and attacked the village, killing 15 people.

The Police Public Relations Officer in Zamfara State, Shehu Muhammed, a Deputy Superintendent of Police, confirmed the incident to THISDAY yesterday in Gusau.

Muhammed said, “This attack is purely a case of a clash between rustlers and members of the vigilante group in Zanuka village. Had it been the vigilante group informed the police in time about the cattle rustled by the criminals, an action would have been taken to prevent this attack.

“In fact, on receiving the reports of the attack, our men were mobilised to the village and they discovered 15 dead bodies, majority of who were members of the vigilante group.

Continued on page 8

" War against corruption is not just about prosecuting people that you have found to be corrupt. War against corruption starts by stopping people from being corrupt, and that is what the government has achieved"

GOVERNMENT’S MOUTHPIECE… Minister of Information, Lai Mohammed ...see full interview on pages 68-69

PDP Floors APC in Oyo By-election…Page 77

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ÍťËœ ͺ͸͚΀ Ëž T H I S DAY, T H E S U N DAY N E W S PA P E R

PAGE EIGHT APC POWER-PLAY CONTINUES AS NATIONAL CONVENTION COMMITTEE tional Legal Adviser of the party, Mr. Muiz Banire, SAN, who is also from Lagos, wanted, the NWC referred the matter to the committee that has the Deputy National Chairman (North), Senator Lawan Shuaibu, as chairman, and Vice Chairman, North West, Alhaji Inuwa Abdulkadir; and National Organising Secretary, Senator Osita Izunaso, as members, for resolution.

According to the source, "The NWC refused to give its approval to the results of congresses in Lagos until certain issues were clarified. Specifically, the NWC voted to refer it back to the congress committee and the Lagos State chapter to ensure that only results from 20 local government areas recognized by the constitution are compiled and submitted for approval."

The report of the committee, said the source, would determine the faith of the Lagos State congress.

The source also said the NWC after receiving reports of parallel congresses held in Bayelsa State, in which the chairman and secretary of the congress committee conducted congresses for the mainstream party and a splinter group, respectively, decided to cancel the exercise.

Confirming the appointment of Ndoma-Egba, in a telephone conversation, National Publicity Secretary of the party, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, said the party hierarchy had since accepted the resignation of Uwajimogu.

Abdullahi dismissed reports that the former secretary was forced to resign as a way of acquiescing to the demands of his state governor, Rochas Okorocha, who had threatened to dump the ruling party should his request for a new scribe be turned down.

"It is not a trade-off. To the best of my knowledge, the reasons he gave were personal and the National Working Committee has appointed somebody else, Senator Victor Ndoma-Egba. I do not know how that can be a trade-off because if it is so, I think his replacement should have been another person from Imo State. But the new appointee is from Cross River State,� said Abdullahi.

Addressing a press conference on Saturday in Abuja, Uwajimogu said he was quitting his job because of family commitments, which may clash with the business of the convention.

However, in another breadth, Uwajimogu, who along with other party stakeholders from Imo State, has been having a running battle with Okorocha, said he had to resign in order to clear the suspicion of the governor that he might work against his interest at the convention.

Uwajimogu claimed the Imo Sate governor had been stuck in Abuja in a bid to influence members of the convention committee. He dismissed reports in the social media that he was forced to resign over financial misappropriation, insisting that his resignation was to disabuse the

minds of the governor and his agents on the neutrality of the convention committee.

Dogara Leads nPDP to Meeting with Presidency Meanwhile, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Yakubu Dogara, will tomorrow lead the delegation of nPDP to another meeting with Vice President Yemi Osinbajo and the leadership of APC, in what other stakeholders have described as a defining engagement for the party. The meeting, which is designed as a smaller version of the two previous ones held, first with Deputy National Chairman of the APC, Shuaibu, and lately, Osinbajo, is also being described as a “technical committee� with the sole aim of pointedly addressing some of the concerns of the group.

While the nPDP side is to be made up of five members, namely Dogara, its former national chairman, Alhaji Kawu Baraje, and three others, the side of the Presidency/APC is expected to be made up of just three people, THISDAY gathered.

Baraje, who in an interview with THISDAY yesterday hinted at some of the details of the meeting, however, said nPDP would be attending basically to listen to what the APC and the President Muhammadu Buhari government intends to do for them, based on their requests and concerns, which necessitated the series of meetings in the first place. “The Monday meeting is a

small group. It is small because it is five from our side and three from them. It is a kind of technical committee meant to look at the concerns of the nPDP,� Baraje said, noting, “We are going to the Monday meeting just to listen to what they have to say to us. Our expectation is that they would look at the concerns and address them fairly.�

According to Baraje, his group was able to see ahead of time some of the things happening now in the party. “Our letter came before the congresses. We saw it coming and now, it has opened up a can of worms,� he stated.

Asked why it took his group so long to come out, Baraje explained, “When you are from a house and some people form a clique and exempt you from decision-making, what do you do?

We were waiting, waiting and waiting, hoping things would change, but they never did.�

He believed that if the nPDP had been carried along, the situation would have been different, noting that it is unfair for anyone to say that they are raising the objections for personal reasons. “We are here today because ahead of 2015, we fought injustice, impunity, lack of respect for the rule of law and demanded good governance. But we cannot be here and suffer same fate or even worse,� he said.

Concerns over Possible Defection by nPDP THISDAY learnt at the week-

end that there were growing concerns in APC about the implications of the ill-treatment nPDP members because, according to some worried members, similar developments had unsettled the Peoples Democratic Party ahead of the 2015 elections and paved the way for the APC victory. For example, APC sources noted with tepid reservation the fact that in spite of Buhari’s popularity and the staggering unity in the party in the countdown to 2015, he was only able to defeat former President Goodluck Jonathan with a paltry two million votes.

This fear, they reckon, is further compounded by the fact that the nPDP members are effectively in control of their respective states, mainly Sokoto, Kebbi, Kano, Bauchi, Kaduna, Adamawa, Benue, Kwara, Kogi and Gombe; 10 states in all. They are, therefore, worried that the APC leadership is approaching the development the same way Jonathan did before he realised the danger too late, concluding that an unpleasant history might be on the verge of repeating itself in the countdown to the 2019 polls.

The raging question, concerned APC members contend, is, how does the party or president make up for the two million votes, with a waning popularity and dwindling fortune of the party, citing the fact that states like Bauchi, Gombe, Adamawa and Taraba might be completely out of the APC kitty as a reality

that currently stares the party in the face.

In addition, they hold the view that the North-west is presently shaky for the APC, as states like Kano, Kaduna, and Zamfara are in serious crises, not leaving out the fact that the South-east and South-south are naturally unfriendly to the party.

It is for these reasons and more that concerned members hold the view that the APC leadership and government must take their discussions with nPDP seriously, because, according to them, while in the time of Jonathan, only the Speaker, Tambuwal, was in the opposition; today, both the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, and the Speaker, Dogara, are not happy with the party’s leadership.

Even more disturbing, APC sources say, is the fact that unlike Buhari’s rating at inception in 2015, his popularity has not only dropped, performance has remained a serious subject of debate. They note that he urgently needs to engage the nPDP and address their concerns.

APC sources maintained that they were not oblivious of the fact that even if the party relied on the weight of incumbency, a party or candidate can only manipulate the electoral process where he or she is popular since every politics is local. This is more so as the international community is not only watching but also interested in what goes on in the country before, during and after the polls.

According to the officer: "Ideally one year should be enough owing to battle stress. But a maximum of 18 to 24 months could suffice for a high intensity operation after which there will be high drop in their effectiveness.

"It's really unfortunate and a huge failure of leadership There is no how any professional will keep troops in battle for that long and expect them to have high morale and fighting efficiency. Worse of all is that there are units uncommitted that could be used to rotate them but the leadership refused making g it look like punishment."

Against this backdrop, the officer accused the military authorities of nepotism and preferential treatment, saying favoured officers and soldiers were posted to the Niger Delta (regarded as a cash-cow) while the not so favoured are allowed to engage in a life or death mission in the North-east with slim hope of being rotated as at when due.

He said, "Do you know that all the units in the Niger Delta could have been used to rotate the troops but not so because these units are now reserved as a settlement for the boys. The former Guards Brigade commander is the GOC Port Harcourt and all the godsons are the commanders in Nigeria Delta.

"I am telling you that Niger Delta has turned to settlement ground and openly at that... This is so unprofessional to have areas for the boys to go and make money. This is unbelievable my brother that to be a CO there, you have to be recommended by politicians or some Ogas to the COAS.....and that is why the units there can never be touched.

While those in the North East are under immense battle stress those in Niger delta are making money from oil companies duties and bunkering."

But these allegations have been dismissed by Agim, who in a chat with THISDAY noted that the fighting soldiers given special treatment and promotion as a result of their efforts.

According to him, those complaining are mostly fair weather military personnel who are averse to battle and only interested in being posted to peacekeeping missions abroad and other

easy operations.

The Defence spokesman stressed that all the available officers and soldiers are already engaged in one operation or the other, across the country, implying that those posted to the North-east could not easily be changed or rotated.

He also noted that the fact that the military is currently short of personnel, especially the fighting forces, explaining that newly recruited soldiers were not experienced enough to be deployed in the heat of battle against insurgents and terrorists.

Agim said: "Since 2015 up till now how many times have they gotten promotion. They are not telling you the truth. Those people that have been there for the past three years now have gotten promotion two times. So what is the duration of deployment they are talking about when we are just trying to increase the population of the force? So even when you are eventually redeployed from there, you are going to go for another operation, because there is no part of the country that we don't have something going on.

"As you are talking about North-east, are we not having operation in the North-central?

Are we not having operation in the South-south? I don't know of any place where soldiers are not in operation. Now particularly in the North-east, those people who are there receive promotion every other year. Soldiers receive those kind of promotion because of the operation that is going on there."

Agim further stressed that the military involvement in the internal security operations across the country is responsible for seeming lack of frequent rotation rather than the accusations of selective deployment.

He noted that no individual officers and soldiers were being targeted for deployment as they were being drafted in units. He cited the example of the ongoing Operation Last Hold against Boko Haram in the North -east where troops are being drawn from various units and formations.

INSECURITY COMPELS MILITARY TO KEEP BATTLE-FATIGUED SOLDIERS IN NORTH-EAST be relieved, at least, every year or at most two years to prevent them from becoming fatigued and battle weary. Many of the soldiers are said to have served on the battle field for three years or more THISDAY spoke to some officers and men in the operations in the North-east, who complained that they had been kept at the battle field for longer than necessary, complaining that they were fatigued and battle weary.

But the Director of Defence Information (DDI), Brig-Gen. John Agim, explained to THISDAY that experienced fighters are constantly deployed and rotated in and out of the North-east because of the intense involvement of the military in the vast internal security operations in the country.

At the last count, the military is involved in internal security operations in about 34 of the 36 states of the federation.

Agim told THISDAY, "They

(soldiers) want to rest, where would you get soldiers to take over from them now?

"We have soldiers that are involved in operations, all over the country. As they are finishing from this operation they are landing in another one. It is therefore, not as if they are keeping some soldiers somewhere."

Most of the officers and soldiers who spoke on the condition of anonymity, decried alleged lack of care and inability of the top military command to ease their burden of fighting in the battlefield for a long time.

They narrated how their appeal to be given a rest since the war was taking its tolls on them due to fatigue and trauma had fallen on deaf ears.

THISDAY found that that alleged sexual harassment and rising cases of rights violations by officers and soldiers could be traced to war-induced trauma and disorientation.

One of the soldiers said, "We

came to the theatre on the 17 October 2015 but they have never rotated since then, especially those of my colleagues in the 156 Task Force Battalion in Allagarno under the 29 Task Force Brigade."

The source further narrated how some of the units had been abandoned to wallow in battle fatalities while some other units were being given special treatment and rotated as at when due.

In the same vein, some soldiers lamented how the deaths of their colleagues and lack of proper treatment for the injured had left them demoralised.

"What I can tell you is that the Army has not been fair and ready to treat our soldiers who are wounded in battle. In some of the worst case scenario, we are the ones treating our self with our money," a soldier disclosed.

Buttressing this fact, a soldier narrated to THISDAY how the gunshot wound he sustained in

the battle against Boko Haram terrorists was allowed to fester at the 7 Division Army Headquarters, until he was transferred to the Tactical Headquarters at Benishiek, Borno State.

The soldier said, "Up till now I cannot stand well. At a point I had to spend money over my health because Army denied me adequate treatment. All they did was to just drop me at the 7 Division Hospital without proper treatment.�

Another soldier lamented, "They have kept changing other units but those of us from the Infantry under 3 Division have never been changed. The information I am getting is that they will not rotate us until we will complete three years. Can you imagine that?"

Also speaking to THISDAY on the issue, a concerned officer wondered why fighting troops would be kept in the battlefield for over two years, knowing the dangers of fatigue and trauma.

IN SPITE OF MILITARY PRESENCE, KILLINGS CONTINUE “But the situation is under control at the moment, as the police have deployed adequate security to the area to maintain peace and secure the lives of the people.�

The police commissioner appealed to residents of the state to continue to provide useful information to the police in order to combat crime and banditry. He promised that the police would do everything in its powers to apprehend the perpetrators and bring them to justice.

In an effort to root out the cattle rustlers and armed bandits terrorising Zamfara State, President Muhammadu Buhari launched a special military action, tagged “Operation Harbin Kunama� in Dansadau forest of the state on July 13, 2016.

Dansadau Emirate in Maru Local Government Area is one of the worse hit by the activities of armed bandits and cattle rustlers. The military conducted “Operation Harbin Kunama II� in December 2017 and “Operation Harbin Kunama III� this year.

THISDAY reliably gathered that the assailants, who attacked Okpareke in Kogi State on Saturday, had first invaded the

community in the early hours of Tuesday, shooting sporadically and killing some villagers. It was learnt that the casualties followed an attempt by the community to resist the attackers.

The attacks in Plateau State occurred on Friday night on Kura-Falls community of Gashish District in Barkin Ladi Local Government Area.

The spokesperson of the State Police Command, Mr. Terna Tyopev, an Assistant Superintendent of Police, confirmed the attacks in a telephone interview on Saturday evening.

Tyopev said, “We have received information this morning, at about 0700hrs that residents were attacked in Kura Falls yesterday (Friday) at about 2130hrs and early this (Saturday) morning by unknown gunmen which resulted in the death of three persons. “They are Dawala Bullet (30 years old), Fidelis Richard (31 years old) and Iliya Doro (60 years old), all male of the same address. We have mobilised to the District (Gashish District).

Investigation into the case is ongoing to track and arrest the perpetrators to face justice.�

Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) had in a statement signed by Nuru Muhammad Abdullahi alleged attacks on Fulani and rustling of their cattle by suspected youths from Berom ethnic nationality.

Abdullahi demanded that the government should as a matter of urgency “intervene and arrest the situation, investigate and prosecute the perpetrators and their sponsors and take any other appropriate action to avert further escalation.�

He said the attack on the Fulani cut across all the three local government areas occupied by the Berom, adding, “The recent attack on herdsmen in Jong village of Ropp District of Barkin Ladi LGA was particularly pathetic considering that Fulani were observing the Ramadan fasting.�

But the Berom, on the other hand, have dismissed the allegations by the Fulani, insisting that the Fulani had attacked and displaced several Berom from their ancestral homes.

Addressing the press in Jos, Berom Educational and Cultural Organisation (BECO) said over

33,000 Beroms had been rendered homeless following incessant Fulani attacks Vice Chairman of BECO, Chief Iliya Choji kim, while lamenting the wanton killings and destruction of property in Berom communities in May, called on the federal and state governments to do everything in their powers to ensure that the Berom reclaimed their homes and farms that had been forcefully occupied by the Fulani.

He said, “The native villages that are under occupation must be vacated for the people to get back to their ancestral homes to carry on with their livelihood just like any other law-abiding citizens of Nigeria. These natives are now squatting with relations and other good-spirited friends. “The killings in Barkin Ladi, Bokkos, Bassa and Riyom local government areas must be properly investigated to fish out those responsible for sanction.�

He added, “Despite that these herders/terrorists have visited our ancestral land with mayhem and are now arrogantly occupying a good number of villages, they are the ones who have the guts to cry foul.�

Read the concluding part on www.thisdaylive.com

T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JUNE 3, 2018

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SUNDAY COMMENT

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

THE CONVICTION OF JOLLY NYAME While the conviction of Nyame is reassuring, the EFCC has to do more in the crusade against corruption

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he Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) scored a major victory last week with the conviction by the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, of a former governor of Taraba State, Reverend Jolly Nyame. After a trial that lasted 11 years, Nyame was sentenced to 14 years’ imprisonment for criminal breach of trust and misappropriation of the sum of N1.64bn belonging to the state. It is a positive development that should buoy the anti-corruption agenda of the current administration that has been marred largely by tardiness and application of double standards.

While we congratuWhilewecongratulate late the EFCC for securtheEFCCforsecuring ing the conviction, we theconviction,we also urge the anti-graft agency not to relent in alsourgetheantiits bid to prosecute all graftagencynot the other former public torelentinitsbid officials, including toprosecuteallthe those who founded, or otherformerpublic have lately joined, the officials,including ruling All Progressives thosewhofounded,or Congress (APC). From havelatelyjoined,the the abandoned corruprulingAllProgressives tion case involving the suspended Secretary Congress to the Government of the Federation, Mr Babachir Lawal to the reinstatement and promotion of a dismissed civil servant, Abdulrasheed Maina, the joke in Abuja is that the broom, symbol of the ruling APC, was designed to sweep corruption under the carpet, especially for friends of the President Muhammadu Buhari administration.

However, the Nyame verdict is significant in several respects. It is a positive indication that treasury looters would no longer find it so easy to enter into “plea-bargain” and go home with just a slap on the wrist. It is also an indication that corruption cases will no longer take forever to decide upon. That will be a clear departure from the past when corrupt politicians usually employed the services of Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs) to frustrate their trials by rais-

Letters to the Editor

ing frivolous objections and deploying all manner of delay tactics. While our laws still provide that the burden of proof in criminal trials lies on the prosecution, and the right of fair hearing remains entrenched in the Constitution, the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015 (ACJA) has made criminal trial less cumbersome for judges.

M S U N DAY N E W S PA P E R EDITOR BOLAJI ADEBIYI DEPUTY EDITORS VINCENT OBIA, OLAWALE OLALEYE MANAGING DIRECR 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 DIRECTORS ERIC OJEH, PATRICK EIMIUHI ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR SAHEED ADEYEMO CONTROLLERS ABIMBOLA TAIWO, UCHENNA DIBIAGWU, NDUKA MOSERI DIRECTOR, PRINTING PRODUCTION CHUKS ONWUDINJO TO SEND EMAIL: first name.surname@thisdaylive.com

eanwhile, the anti-corruption agencies may also need to up their game.

In explaining why convictions were not easily secured, former Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Mr. Mohammed Bello Adoke, once argued: “Experience has shown that whenever our law enforcement agencies are stampeded to arraign suspects, the end result is usually the discharge of such suspects by the courts ostensibly for want of evidence.

Nigerians must therefore allow our law enforcement agencies to conduct painstaking investigations that will ultimately satisfy the standard of proof required in criminal cases.”

In taking on board that point, there should also be a strict adherence to the rule of law by the EFCC. Parading suspects who are still standing trial with placards carrying criminal inscriptions as was done last week to former Kaduna State Governor, Muktar Yero and a few other politically exposed persons, is not right and could compromise the integrity of the anti-corruption agency. It is also important for the EFCC to understand that it needs to do more work, especially in view of the acquittal last Friday by the Court of Appeal of a former Director General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Patrick Akpobolokemi, who had been charged with an alleged fraud of N2.6 billion.

We, however, recognise the challenge of the EFCC. At practically all levels, there seems to be a misconception about what governance is all about. The tragedy of that misconception could be seen in the manner in which pubic officials and their families now openly flaunt ill-gotten wealth. It is therefore no longer lost on Nigerians that corruption is fast becoming a way of life for those who claim to be serving them. And they can see a nexus between that and their growing poverty.

While the conviction of Nyame should send a strong message, we hope those in authority will recognise the urgent need for a comprehensive and effective anti-corruption strategy that takes into account the fact that the legitimacy of our government and that of critical institutions is gradually being eroded.

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

Correcting The Leadership Recruitment Template

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lumsy leadership selection or recruitment template is at the heart of the logjam we are in as a nation. The template operation cannot bring about the meaningful development that has eluded us for years.

In more ways than one, our wrong choice of political leadership across all levels of governance has stampeded our overall prosperity as a nation thereby making us a laughing stock before other nations. The success or otherwise of any society is largely determined by the calibre of individuals presiding over her affairs.

The truth is, given the array of cerebral minds and innovative people we parade as a country, we ought to have been competing with devel-

oped nations across the globe in terms of macro and micro economic developments. We keep making the mistake of allowing characters who are ill-prepared and lack basic leadership attributes to manage our affairs. Everything is wrong with our current leadership recruitment template.

Under this arrangement, it is easier for dubious characters to emerge victorious during elections. The way forward is to alter it.

In fairness to Nigerians, Nigeria is home to Africa’s brightest, hardworking and gifted people. A typical Nigerian has what it takes to survive and overcome any challenge. This is simply why we are often called the most resilient people on earth. Ironically, with these

sterling attributes, we are far from getting it right in terms of leadership selection. We hardly pick the best among us to preside over our affairs.

Instead, we queue behind people who are bereft of ideas and lack what it takes to bring about meaningful development that we so desire.

For obvious reasons, political leadership decides the fate of any society. This is why it is argued that political power supersedes economic power in any democratic set-up.

With this in mind, it behoves us to show more interest in who we present as leaders across all levels. Political leadership is too important a matter to be ignored. The power to hire and fire our elected representatives rests with us.

In our choice of leaders, the sterling attributes of integrity, competence, capability, patriotism, honesty and transparency should guide us.

Any aspiring leader who lacks the above attributes isn’t fit for leadership position yet. Also important in this regards is an aspiring leader’s antecedents. We must interrogate and probe the intentions of any aspiring leader.

In doing this, our focus should be on his or her brain power, antecedents, managerial skills and mind-power of such a person.

We should equally be interested in such individual’s record of service in the past.

The reworked template should de-emphasise money, certificates, connection and wealth as major requirements needed to aspire for public office. It should reflect more on an individual’s proven

and tested competence. It should dwell more on a person’s capacity to deliver on goals and objectives.

Questions such as, what leadership position has he or she held before? Did he or she perform well or bad? What are his or her selling points? These are very important.

The truth is that a faulty leadership recruitment process begets bad governance. Going forward, it is important that the electorate should always be vigilant to interrogate the process leading to the emergence of candidates such that dubious politicians who cannot be trusted are prevented from getting into public offices. 2019 is around the corner. Remember, let’s encourage and queue behind individuals with proven track record of excellence, honesty and accountability.

––Abdullahi Yunusa, Abuja

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JUNE 3, 2018 ˾ T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R

SUNDAYNEWS

News Editor Abimbola Akosile E-mail: abimbola.akosile@thisdaylive.com, 08114495306 (sms only)

Police Arrest Politician Fingered in Shooting at Ekiti APC Rally t Party alleges police complicity, suspends rallies t Akeredolu denies involvement t I’m recuperating, not in coma, says Bamidele Victor Ogunje in Ado Ekiti

The Ekiti State Police Command has arrested a politician (names withheld) who brought the policeman that fired the shot at the rally organised by All Progressives Congress (APC) for Dr. Kayode Fayemi on Friday.

Bamideleandfiveotherswere

shotattheAPCSecretariatlocated atAjilosunareaofAdoEkitiduringawelcomerallyorganisedfor Fayemi, the APC candidate for theEkitigovernorshippollbilled for July 14.

Bamidele,whowasshotinthe stomach, and those that were hit are currently receiving medical treatments in the hospital.

In a statement issued by the State Public Relations Officer, Caleb Ikechukwu in Ado Ekiti yesterday,thePoliceadmittedthat the policeman accidentally shot HonOpeyemiBamideleandfive others at the rally.

Ikechukwu however refused tomentionthenameofthepolitician in their custody. The police

spokesmanalsoclaimedthatonly twopersonswereshotcontraryto theAPC’spositionthatsixvictims were involved.

The PPRO said: “The policeman is attached to 20 PMF, Ikeja, LagosStatewherehewasposted onbankguarddutiessomewhere in Ikeja. The policeman came on illegal duty to Ekiti State.

FOR A BETTER ENVIRONMENT L-R: Special Adviser to the Governor on Environment, Babatunde Hunpe; Lagos State Commissioner for Environment, Babatunde Durosinmi-

Etti; General Manager, Wealth Management and Financial Institutions, Sterling Bank Plc, Moji Bakare; Director, Creative Arts Department, Lagos State Ministry of Tourism Arts and Culture, Babatunde Annan; and General Manager, Large Corporate, Sterling Bank, Gboyega Adegun; at the unveiling of the Recyclart Sculpture by Sterling Bank at Muri Okunola Park, Lagos...weekend

“A politician, who conspired andremovedthesaidpoliceman fromwherehewaspostedbyhis squadronCommanderandcame to Ado-Ekiti with him for an unofficial reason, has also been arrested.”

Ikechukwu said the victims of the policemen’s accidental dischargearecurrentlyresponding to treatment at the hospital, whiletheinjuredofficerisequally respondingtotreatmentinprotective custody.

Meanwhile, governor AkeredoluofOndoStatehasdenied having anything to do with the shootingattheAPCrallyinEkiti on Friday; while responding to allegationsmadebythecampaign organisation of the Peoples’ DemocraticParty,KolapoOlusola, linking him with the shooting which left five people injured with bullet wounds.

A statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Segun Ajiboye, said none of his security aides fired a shot at the scene as being alleged. The statement said the allegationsbythePDPcampaign were malicious, as the governor was only in Ekiti to give support toFayemi.“GovernorAkeredolu knewnothingabouttheidentity of the suspect. It is nothing but a wicked lie from the pit of hell,” the statement said.

“Governor Akeredolu was in

Ekiti State to show support for the APC and its candidate, Dr. Kayode Fayemi and none of the governor’s security detail fired a single shot throughout the rally in Ekiti.

“Meanwhile, the Ekiti State Police PPRO, Caleb Ikechukwu, hasdisclosedthatthepoliceman who handled the rifle was hired from Lagos. We hope this will puttorestdangerousallegation.”

The PDP campaign organisation had earlier claimed that Akeredoluwasmobilisingthugs and funds to Ekiti State to help win the election for Fayemi.

The statement denied that allegations that the governor was earmarking funds for the Ekiti election.

In a related development, the Ekiti State chapter of the APC yesterday blamed the shooting of five of its members, including Bamidele at the rally organised for Fayemi, on security lapses.

Thepartyhasalsosuspended electioneering campaign until the security agencies are able to guarantee their safety as they proceed to the July 14 election.

The party, through its State Chairman,ChiefJideAwealleged that the police were complicit in manyways,includingallowinga policeman from another state to providesecurityatthecampaign rally.

(See concluding part on www.thisdaylive.com)

Ghana Denounces Jonathan over Comment on Nigeria Ghana’s High Commissioner in Nigeria, Mr. Rashid Bawa, has denounced ex-President Goodluck Jonathan for misquoting President Nana Akuffo-Addo over the security situation in Nigeria.

HesaidonFridaythatJonathan “took the words of President Akufo-Addo completely out of context” when he quoted the Ghanaian leader of mocking Nigeria.

The High Commissioner said Jonathan misquoted Akuffo-

Addo’s speech delivered at the Oxford African Conference, according to a NAN report.

He recalled the exact words of PresidentAkufo-Addo:‘Formost of you in the audience today, it is probablybeforeyourtime.Butin thelate1970suptothemid-1980s, as a result of the discovery of considerablepetroleumdeposits, Nigeria was booming. It was the place to be.

‘WeGhanaians,whoweregoing through very difficult times

then, would arrive at Heathrow Airport, and be herded into a cage to be subjected to the full third degree by Immigration , and we would look on as our Nigeriancousinswouldbewaved through,witha‘welcomesir’and a ‘welcome madam’ .

‘The newspaper headlines in thiscountrywerefullofNigerians leaving or forgetting bundles of money in taxis and telephone booths. Nigerians were the preferred tenants for those who

had apartments to let. You could stop by any Thomas Cook shop onanyHighStreetinthiscountry andbuyorsellNaira,theNigerian currency, and you could do the same in New York, and I suspect in many other Western country cities. ‘I do not need to spell out today’s reality to anyone in this audience.Icitethisjusttomakethe pointthatthe“theoutsideworld” is well able to tell that there are separatesovereignnationsonthe African continent. But when the

Three Nigerians Found Dead in New Delhi Flat

Bauchi Gov Nominates Chief of Staff as Deputy

The Hindu newspaper of India has reported the death of three Nigerians in a rented accommodation in Uttam Nagar area of New Delhi.

The Nigerians, according to reports, were found dead on Friday, with the police recovering bottles of alcohol and soft drinks from the spot.

The Times of India said all the three men were found frothing in the mouth.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (Dwarka) Shibesh Singh said the deceased have been identified as David Christopher, Greece Ben, and David (I), all in their 30s.

While Greece used to live on the third floor of the rented accommodation, David used to reside on the second. David (I) had rented a house nearby

Governor Mohammed Abubakar of Bauchi State has nominated his Chief of Staff, Audu Sule, as the deputy governor.

UmarSade,stateCommissioner for Information, confirmed the nominationtotheNewsAgencyof Nigeria(NAN)yesterdayinBauchi.

“ThegovernornominatedAudu SuleKatagumasthedeputygovernorafterdueconsultationwith stakeholdersinthestate,”hesaid.

The former deputy governor, Nuhu Gidado, resigned his appointment last week.

The information officer of BauchiStateHouseofAssembly, LamaraChinade,alsoconfirmed to NAN yesterday that the name of Mr. Sule had been submitted for confirmation.

“Thenamewassubmittedlast week and the house may sit next weektoconfirmhisnomination,”

but used to visit the two often.

The bodies were found on the third floor of the rented accommodation.

“Greece and David were here on a business visa. Greece had come in March and David had come in April,” Mr. Singh said.

The police received a PCR call around 12.30 p.m. from the landlord of the deceased stating that a foul smell was emanating from the house, according to a NAN report.

“The whole building is inhabited by people from African countries. There is a common kitchen near floor three. A resident of the building passed by and knocked on the door because of the smell, but no one opened. He then called the landlord, who called the police,” the DCP said.

he said.

Gidado’sdeparturebroughtto threethenumberofhigh-ranking officials that have left Governor Abubakar’s cabinet.

InDecember2017,the Commissioner for Budget and Planning, Shehu Ningi, resigned from his position. Ningi stepped down a dayafterGovernorAbubakarpresented the 2017 budget estimates to the state’s House of Assembly.

The then commissioner said he left because the governor did not encourage members of his cabinet to offer advice on how to run the state.

Ningi explained that the environmentinwhichhewould have exercised his advisory role as member of the State Executive Councilwas“unaccommodating, debilitating and non-adviser friendly”.

news is not good, then Africa is treated as one entity.’

Bawa also disagreed with Jonathan’s reference to AkufoAddo’s purported disposition towards cattle-rearing.

“Theotherallegedremarkthat ‘GhanaisnotNigeriawherecattle can roam about anyhow’ has never been made by President Akufo-Addo.Thatisnothisway of speaking.

“President Akufo-Addo, in many of the speeches he has

made in Nigeria and elsewhere since becoming the President of Ghana, has described Nigeria as ‘a country I describe as my second home in the world’, and will never use Nigeria to make negative examples as the former President Goodluck Jonathan sought to portray.

“President Akufo-Addo enjoys a very good relationship with President Muhammadu Buhari, as he has with many other Nigerian leaders.”

Ortom Blames Challenges for Poor Delivery of Democratic Dividends George Okoh in Makurdi

Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State has blamed the numerous challenges that confronted the state in the last three years as the reason the state is unable to meet all the promises he made during his electioneering campaign.

The governor made the statement recently while briefing reporters in Makurdi, the state capital.

He said in the last three years, he had worked assiduously to keep the contract he had with the people of the state but due to some unforeseen challenges it became difficult to fulfil all the promises.

“Though many challenges and giants have stood in our

way to prevent us from delivering on the promises we have tried to provide dividend of democracy to our people.”

He said the State is faced with huge humanitarian crisis as a result of displacement of over 180,000 persons as a result of suspected Fulani herdsmen invasion and appealed for intervention from well-meaning Nigerian to assist them.

He said in three years, his administration has recorded achievements in the area in education in awarding contract for the rehabilitating and furnishing over 740 schools with only 400 completed, noting that those who failed to execute their contract, have had them terminated and asked to make refunds.

T H I S D AY SUNDAY JUNE 3, 2018

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R Ëž ÍťËœ ͺ͸͚΀

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NEWS Nigeria’s Stock Market Loses N908 Billion in One Week Kunle Aderinokun

Activities on the trading floors of the Nigerian Stock Exchange dropped by N908 billion or 6.38 per cent last Friday as the NSE All-Share Index and market capitalisation closed the week at 36,816.29 and N13.336 trillion, respectively. Apart from

the NSE ASeM Index, which closed flat, all other indices finished lower.

The NSE All-Share Index (which dropped to a six-month low) and market capitalisation fell further from the 39,323.62 and N14.244 trillion, respectively, which they depreciated to, having recorded 2.84 per

cent loss the previous Friday.

The weekly report from the stock exchange revealed that 25 equities appreciated in price during the week, which is higher than 14 of the previous week. On the other hand, 48 equities depreciated in price, lower than 61 equities that lost the previous week. Ninety-six

equities, however, remained unchanged, in contrast to the 94 that maintained their positions in the preceding week.

Trading sessions on the floors of the exchange only held for four days of the review week because of the May 29 public holiday declared to mark the Democracy Day

WILLING CONTESTANT L-R: Ex-Reps Member, Hon. Duro Meseko, receiving his nomination form for the post of the All Progressives Congress National Publicity Secretary from former Convention Secretary, Sen. Ben Uwajumogu, in Abuja‌recently

Minister: Ogoni Cleanup Starts Two Years After t IPPAM decries inconsistencies in climate policy drive Senator Iroegbu and Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja

Two years after the inauguration of the cleanup of Ogoniland in June 2016 by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, the Minister of Environment, Ibrahim Jibril yesterday revealed that the actual remediation exercise would commence by August ending.

The minister gave the hint in Abuja while addressing a press conference ahead of the World Environment Day (WED) coming up on Tuesday, June 5, with the theme, ‘Beat Plastic Pollution’.

Giving updates on the cleanup, Jibril said advertising was done in April and more than 400 contractors indicated interest in the remediation exercise.

According to him, “They are doing their analysis which is completed now and preliminary figures are giving us a figure of about 140 that are prequalified. These are the ones that when we finally get the figures we would invite them to submit their financial duty and that process would continue in the whole of June to July; and we hope that by August we should be able to get to the Federal Executive Council (FEC) to give approval for whatever remediation contract that would be given.�

Continuing, Jibril noted, “about three weeks ago, the Board of Trustees was able to sign an escrow agreement in presence of the Vice President.

All these are geared towards getting the escrow account to be opened and joint partners, the oil companies and the NNPC

are now at the last stage of populating their account with the amount that would be used for the cleaning process itself.

We are on good track and we expect to do the best we can within the framework of what we are doing now.�

Speaking further, the minister stressed that the theme of this year’s World Environment Day was apt for Nigeria considering the peculiar nature of the country on plastic and polythene disposal, stressing that it constitutes a major environmental concern that the country has been grappling with.

He said the present administration attaches much importance to the development of the environment, and because of that the Vice President would grace this year commemoration of WED, which would be held at the State House.

The minister also revealed that the federal government is presently working on a National Policy on Plastic Waste Management to regulate the use and disposal of plastics in the country.

He explained that the ministry in collaboration with critical stakeholders has developed a national strategy for the phase out of non-biodegradable plastics; while at the same time implementing a National Recycling Programme to establish plastic west recycling plants across the country in partnership with the State governments.

Jibril stated: “At present, a total of eight of such plants have already been completed and handed over to the States of local while 18 others are at

various stages of completion.

The federal government is also collaborating with States to establish plastic waste recycling plants under CommunityBased Waste Management Programme of the ministry. To this end, two plants have been completed in Ilorin, Kwara state, one in Lokoja, Kogi state, while work on another is ongoing in Karu, Nasarawa State. Other locations include Bala Jariin Bombs and Leda Jari in Kano State.�

On the issue of desertification, the minister revealed that there is a planned trip to Iran for eleven States that are at the frontline of desertification.

According to him, “the idea is to go there and see how they have prevented the sand move from encroaching into their land. So, we want to understudy that and be able to replicate it in this country.�

Corroborating the minister’s statement on Ogoni cleanup, the Project Coordinator of Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP), Dr. Marvin Dekil, stated that the federal government was absolutely committed to the clean-up, saying that the remediation of impacted sites would commence towards the end of August, starting with 26 sites as contained in the UNEP report.

Meanwhile, the Institute for Public Policy Analysis and Management (IPPAM) has warned that if an aggressive climate change policy is not put in place to sustain the socioeconomic development, the country will lose 11 per cent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to climate change by 2020.

celebration.

Further analysis showed that a total turnover of 2.699 billion shares worth N84.775 billion in 19,715 deals were traded this week by investors on the floors of the exchange, in contrast to a total of 1.372 billion shares valued at N16.022 billion that exchanged hands last week in 21,099 deals.

The Financial Services Industry (measured by volume) led the activity chart with 2.451 billion shares valued at N78.417 billion, traded in 11,403 deals; thus, contributing 90.84 per cent and 92.50 per cent to the total equity turnover volume and value, respectively.

The Conglomerates Industry followed with 76.845 million shares worth N126.358 million in 835 deals. The third place was occupied by Consumer Goods Industry with a turnover of 64.437 million shares worth N4.427 billion in 3,491 deals.

Trading in the top three equities, namely, Stanbic IBTC Holdings Plc, Access Bank Plc and Zenith Bank International Plc (measured by volume), accounted for 1.626 billion shares worth N70.285 billion in 2,882 deals, contributing 60.23 per cent and 82.91per cent to the total equity turnover volume and value, respectively.

Also traded during the

week were a total of 22,080 units of Exchange Traded Products (ETPs) valued at N393, 726.30, executed in 10 deals, compared with a total of 70 units valued at N1, 943.00 that was transacted last week in seven deals.

For bonds, a total of 6,433 units of federal government bonds valued at N6.599 million were traded this week in 12 deals, compared with a total of 10,754 units valued at N11.412 million transacted last week in five deals.

In its analysis, Afrinvest had attributed the downward movement of the market to the continued profit-taking activities of domestic and foreign investors in the equities market.

According to Afrinvest, “The weak performance of the domestic bourse was sustained all through May as investors continued to sell off on market bellwethers. Hence the All Share Index (ASI) fell 7.7 per cent in May (the largest monthly loss since January 2016). This performance is largely in line with the trend across emerging market equity indices as foreign investors continue to exit these markets. “Last week, the All Share Index fell below the 40, 000.00 points mark for first time since January and during the week, fell to a 6-month low of 36,816.29 points.�

T H I S D AY SUNDAY JUNE 3, 2018

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ÍąËœ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍś Ëž THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER

OPINION Reflections on Parenting in A Changing Society Raymond Nkannebe urges parents to pay more attention to the upbringing of their wards

A

n often overlooked social menace eating away into the fabric of contemporary Nigerian society is the waning influence of parents over their wards.

Children are growing up lately in a world utterly different from the world we used to know and a world changing with increasing rage, and many parents find themselves at their wits end on how to tighten the moral and cultural noose around

their wards.

In an age of mobile telephony, social media, the internet, Reality TV, You Tube, a booming entertainment industry dishing out illicit products, warts and all, parents are increasingly wielding the shorter end of the stick in terms of moral influence they have over their children and are fast losing ground to the obtrusive influence of society funnelled through the media, both new and old alike.

And so whereas the occasion of Children’s Day affords us an opportunity to celebrate children within childhood and youth, it is necessary that we reassess once again, the quality of parenting that the children of this age and time are receiving. This is to find out whether we are actually in control of our wards, morally, socially, spiritually, psychologically and otherwise at a very critical moment of their lives.

I watched with trepidation recently the MTN Nigeria “perfect gift for your children� commercials which invited parents to buy a smart phone worth N13, 000 for their wards to enjoy three months of data bonus. Apparently, a smart phone in the estimation of the influential telecomm giant was the perfect gift for a child of say, nine, 10, or 13 years. I am told many Nigerian parents fell for this, and the telecom outfit smiled to the bank from the commercial extravaganza.

Now, that supposed promo helps to put in context the extent to which many parents in Nigeria and elsewhere are losing out on the control of their wards. It accentuates the rather cavalier attitude of parents to the upbringing of their wards hence the exploitation of this worrisome attitude by the business community to make rain.

And we would not blame them, as there is no morality in trade and commerce.

I learnt recently to my befuddlement that many students in the primary and secondary schools between the ages of nine and 14 are all owners of smart phones ( perhaps “perfect gifts� from their parents), and have been expending data clicking away their lives on ‘censored’ websites that add nothing to their all -round development.

Being incapable of any serious or rigorous thought at this very tender stage of their lives as has been proven by psychological science, these young lads spend time binging on pornographic contents that tend to feed the curiosity of the sudden discovery of their sexuality and the biological language of their bodies.

At this stage of life when these young ones ordinarily should spend time making the rounds on Shakespeare, Achebe, Ekwensi, Emecheta to keep the list short, in order to develop their literary and cognitive alertness, resort to musical sites to download poorly incubated sounds mistaken for artistic works become the object of choice. Many of these kids unfortunately have since become “science students� even without having lab coats, on account of undue exposure to a so-called entertainment industry that has elevated moral decadence to a craft.

At a time when extra-marital childbirth has become too fashionable and coming from a segment of the society that play role models to our wards; at a time when a young man who goes on National, nay global TV to engage in illicit sexual trade is honoured by a certain state governor and decorated with the ‘epaulets’ of an education ambassador even when the showpiece struggles for educational utility; at a time when illicit show of ill-gotten wealth has become a rule of thumb made popular by the hush-puppies of this world; and all these in the full glare of our wards, we cannot help but shudder at the thought of what could be the multiplier effect on the minds of these young ones.

And so, it is all of these that parents on this occasion of the Children’s Day, must reflect upon to reassess themselves on how they have been faring in keeping their wards at arm’s length of this societal influence.

That said, it must be conceded that never has the problem of bringing up a child been so complex and difficult as it is today. In a period of harsh economic reality that has seen many parents relegate their bounding

It is necessary that we reassess once again, the quality of parenting that the children of this age and time are receiving. This is to ďŹ nd out whether we are actually in control of our wards, morally, socially, spiritually, psychologically and otherwise at a very critical moment of their lives

duties of the psychological, social, moral and spiritual growth of the child to nannies, house-helps and care-givers all in a bid to meet up with financial needs of their wards, society has found itself grappling with the opportunity cost of the all-round growth and development of the child that is often compromised in the mix.

But even then, the reality of the times should be the more reason why parents especially younger ones must be proactive in order not to lose their wards to the misleading standard often set by the media and entertainment industry. A sure way to start is to monitor the access of their wards to smart phones and the T.V. as the twin tools of the disorientation of the young. One would have thought that interest groups in the all-round growth and development of the child would have risen up in condemnation of some television commercials for being tacit accomplice in the erosion of the moral codes of the young. For I am still struggling to wrap my head around how a smart phone could be the “perfect gift� for a child of say 14 years or thereabout.

Yes, it could be argued that we live in an age of information and technology, but such argument overlook the virtue of doing right things at the right time. We do not usually feed a new born, with a dish of yam porridge simply because they are hungry. As a father, I’d think that availing my wards everything from “Chike and the River� to “Eze Goes to School�, “Things Fall Apart� to “I’ll Marry When I Want�; “Beggars Strike� to “Last Duty�; “The gods are Not to Blame down� to “This is Our Chance�, to name a few, would be the perfect gift for my child as against a smart phone. Not for a child still struggling to master his or her arithmetic table or one preparing for their mid-term examinations. That would be shabby parenting at the least.

Some commercials therefore are evidence of how the influential media briefed by mercantilist interests utilise the Hypodermic Needle Theory of mass communication to distort long held societal values and moral codes all in a bid to make sales and grow their balance sheets as is true of every capitalist venture.

On this occasion of the Children’s Day celebration 2018 therefore, parents must guide their loins and take the parenting of their wards even more serious. We live in an increasingly fast society spinning at a supersonic speed where every poor error of judgment made on the development of a child may not be repaired. –– Nkannebe, a legal practitioner and a public interest commentator, wrote from Lagos.

Pushing Frontiers of Medicare And Space Science ABUAD’s medical scheme signposts the direction which the public health system should navigate, write Tajudeen Kareem and Remi Adebayo

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odern science and research are increasingly giving man the chance to stay healthy and keep an ailment-free life as time could offer. In a clime like ours, where almost everything, including witches and wizards, could be blamed for bad health and frailties of the flesh, succour have come from different angles which are not limited to traditional, spiritual and medical solutions, either genuine, good, unsafe

or from quacks.

Ask those who daily throng prayer houses for cases that simple medical attention could handle, their fears have stemmed from unreliable public health system. When they turn to private hospitals, they are faced with costs beyond the capability of ordinary citizens, regardless of the quality of service.

Needless to reiterate that many precious lives have been lost to diseases and sicknesses that have been banished in most countries where governments make the provision of health care a priority service, devoid of myth and mystery obtainable in Nigeria.

However, for the limited class of the political elite and few affluent citizens that can patronise private hospitals, they have to go the extra length to access quality medicare; sometimes having to secure an air ambulance and journey through painful hours between continents before getting proper diagnosis and treatment.

More worrisome is the depletion of the country’s scarce foreign exchange. Former Head of State, General Yakubu Gowon, at the commissioning of the medical facilities of the Afe Babalola University, ABUAD, Ado-Ekiti, on Monday, May 21, advised that with massive investment in modern health care facilities, the nation could save about $2 billion expended on medical tourism yearly.

A medical doctor, Longwap Abdulaziz Saleh, in an article in Peoples’ Daily published in October, 2014, stated that, 47 per cent of Nigerians who visited India in 2012 did so to get medical help. Quoting from Business Day, Saleh said the 47 per cent amounted to 18,000 persons and they spent an equivalent of N41.6 billion. The figures are probably rising every year.

To close this gap, the eight-year old ABUAD recently attained yet another feat when it hosted two former leaders – General Yakubu Gowon and Chief Olusegun Obasanjo including former and serving helmsmen at the National Universities Commission, as it unveiled four projects, among them, facilities for medical and space research.

Executive Secretary of the NUC, Prof. Abubakar Rasheed was supported at the event by his predecessors, Prof. Julius Okojie and

Prof. Peter Okebukola, all praising the unrivalled investments in the institution as they emphasised that ABUAD has become a pride to the nation and a reference for higher education in its less than a decade existence as a private varsity.

At the launching of telemedicine equipment of the 400-bed multi system hospital, Dr Olukayode Akinlade, a consultant and facilitator, described the event as “the narrowing of gaps in technology and space.�Founder of the institution, Aare Afe Babalola gave an insight to the feat. He said the telemedicine equipment is “the first in Africa and will assist our hospital in the area of ‘tele-consulting’, ‘tele-diagnosis’ and ‘tele-management’. It will enable our partners in Dubai to join us in Ekiti in performing medical service at ABUAD by proxy.�

The equipment, donated by an Indian Hospital, Aster Healthcare, under a collaboration agreement with ABUAD, entails consulting, diagnosis and management of medical conditions simultaneously by doctors in Ado Ekiti, India and Dubai through a sophisticated transmission of data, online, real time. The partnership between the two hospitals also covers technical and managerial services as well as training of doctors, nurses and other medical support staff.

The facility parades a 1.5 resolution TESLIA MRI Machine, the best in this country; 3D digital mammography machine capable of three and four dimensional scan; Abbott Architect C4000 and I1000SR machine; 160 slice CT scanner; a modular operating theatre and a digital radiography unit.

The hospital’s lab is operated under a partnership arrangement with Afriglobal Medicare. It is configured for cancer detection and can perform a thousand tests an hour with best global network to transmit results around the world.

These superb scientific machines provide the world’s best diagnosis in ultrasound scan, echocardiography pulmonary function and electrocardiography, making it possible for the ABUAD Teaching Hospital to perform open heart surgeries seamlessly. Dr. Akinlade claims that the facility will largely reduce the incidence of sudden deaths linked to stroke.

Telemedicine with ECG technology is another peerless feat with the assembly of the best surgeons and experts in the US, India, Dubai, or anywhere in the world to simultaneously investigate, analyse and consult on any case for the purpose of saving life, time and resources.

Other units include a Bone Densitometer which is the only

functional one in Nigeria; Pet-Scan, Nuclear Medicine, Echocardiography, ECG and Treadmill Test and Function Test (PFT), among others.

The ABUAD multi system hospital, managed by world-class consultants and professionals, will serve as a training ground for medical students and will provide healthcare services that many affluent and hapless Nigerians search for in foreign countries.

The facility has key departments as Accident and Emergency, Surgery, Medicine, Pediatrics, Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Community Medicine, Physiotherapy, Dentistry, Fluoroscopy, Endoscopy, Colonoscopy, Gastroscopy, Bronchoscopy and Arthroscopy.

ABUAD’s medical scheme signposts the direction which public health system in Nigeria should navigate. It is a gradual manifestation of the vision of Aare Babalola that university education rests on a sound foundation of scholarship and research; to wit, building local universities that can produce students of international standards.

This therefore explains the interdependence of these modern medical services and world’s best equipment brought to facilitate life-saving interventions in the lives of patients in Nigeria and the whole of Africa and prevent avoidable deaths at reasonable costs.

Also inaugurated was the 18-metre fixed dome planetarium for space studies, the first in any Nigerian university for research and space study. Indeed, it is the only one in Africa with astronomical observatory and is one of the largest fixed planetariums in the world. Although he ruled out immediate adventure into the space, Aare Babalola said he would be most satisfied if humanity could take after space elements in their harmony, to learn to live in peace and collaborate to make the world a better place.

The university also inaugurated its multi-billion naira ultramodern College of Social and Management Science building; a N1.5 billion three-storey building completed within four months and the N2 billion postgraduate building and hall of residence.

Soon, a helipad will be added to enable patients have direct access to the hospital to facilitate quick response to emergency cases.

As observed by Prof. Rasheed, establishing a university transcends profit making. But with these huge investments in human capital and wellbeing of Nigerians, a passion that the legal giant has nurtured, one can only wish that his type is replicated in Nigeria, nay Africa. ––Kareem and Adebayo wrote from Abuja

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JUNE 3, 2018

LETTERS LAGOS’ FRESH IMPETUS FOR TOURISM DEVELOPMENT

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ourism can be clearly defined as the new socioeconomic game changer. The economic potential of tourism is remarkable, with direct and indirect impact on wealth creation. It is a good public relations device through which a city, state or country could attract needed foreign investments. Cities like Bangkok, London, Paris, Nairobi, Dubai and New York City are also top tourists’ destinations.

African countries like Kenya, Tanzania, Egypt and South Africa are vigorously tapping into the expansive global tourism market.

However, in Nigeria, tourism is still in its infancy. This is largely due to years of the oil boom and over dependent on the revenue from the sale of crude oil as well as weak infrastructure.

However, in Lagos State, the Ambode administration is creatively making efforts to tap into the enormous tourism potential of the state.

In a renewed bid to engender a tourism-driven economy in the state, a 15-20 years tourism master plan that will steer the tourism potential of the state has been developed.

The master plan that was designed by Messrs Ernst & Young focuses on culture and heritage, film, art and entertainment, business tourism, nature and adventure, medical and wellness and beach and leisure.

Ambode

Similarly, with a view to resourcefully explore the tourism prospects of the state, the state government recently organised a first-ever tourism summit with the theme, “Destination Lagos: Towards a Sustainable Tourism-Driven Economy”. The summit which had Governor Ambode and members of the State Executive Council in attendance attracted notable personalities such as former President of Ghana, John Mahama, who delivered the keynote address; the Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism, Alhaji Lai Moham-

med; Professor I. A. Ayodele, Professor Pat Utomi , James McGregor, Ikechi Uko, Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yoruba, Chief Gani Adams; the DirectorGeneral, Nigeria Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC), Folorunso Folarin Coker; President, La Campagne Tropicana Beach Resort, Ambassador Wanle Abimbola; Chairman NigerianBritish Chamber of Commerce (NBCC), Prince Dapo Adelegan; Hon. Desmond Elliot and a host of others. As fallout of the summit, a 2018 tourism calendar has been developed for the state.

Also, the state government recently held the 2018 Boat Regatta at Lagoon Waterfront, Oyinkan Abayomi Drive, Ikoyi. The festival, an annual cultural and entertainment funfair highlighting the state’s aquatic splendours, promotes Lagos’ aquatic custom and tradition. The ceremonial regatta held amidst glitz and glamour with entertaining boat parade, captured the thrills and frills associated with coastal festivals. Cultural performance by various troupes and safety tips on water transportation were also provided.

As part of plans to further advance the cause of tourism in the state, Lagos has a number of first-rated entertainment events such as Africa Movie Academy Awards (AMAA) which it hosted in July 2017.

Similarly, the state government endorsed and supported the hosting of the first Nigeria Beer Festival held between 25th September and 1st October, 2017 at Eko Atlantic, Victoria Island, Lagos. The event enabled the state showcase its cultural and socio-economic potential.

Globally, beer festivals are a key tourism driver with attendant social-economic benefits.

The Lagos Street Carnival, which was supported by the state government, also took place last December along the popular Oba Akran Road, Ikeja. The event, which is an improved version of the Lagos Street Party which was held in 2016, showcased the tourism

Democracy And The Buhari Years

F

rom all indications, it appears Albert the Great had Nigeria in mind when he defined a miracle as ‘a wondrous fact or event beyond the power of any creature and produced by the Almighty with the purpose of proving the truth of his existence’.

Nigeria becomes a fitting example of the above definition looking at the legion of challenges it had survived within the last three years.

Fresh in our memories is the harsh economic depression (or is it a recession) that was designed by yet to be established architects and its exit of the recession in a manner that analysts described as an unmerited success.

It’s not as if the government did not make any effort to move the nation forward within this space, as they were appreciably locked down by the hydra-headed challenge of dwindling economic fortunes prompted by the drop in the price of crude oil in the world market.

It is, however, an unhappy truth that contrary to this belief, especially when viewed from a wider spectrum, the vast majority of Nigerians with discerning minds are of the opinion that not too strong political will and unclear creative leadership strategy for tackling these problems remained the

fundamental factors responsible for this challenge.

Indeed, critical minds have pointed out that if we look honestly at the realities of our national life, it is clear that we are not matching forward but groping and stumbling; we are divided and confused; our moral values and our spiritual confidence sinks, even as our material wealth’s ascends’.

Obviously, a well-crafted argument that has as a consequence brought political, socio-cultural, security and economic difficulties while painting a picture of bleak future on our geography.

Without much labour, insecurity is identified as the most fundamental of these difficulties in the country, with the blood of innocent Nigerians used daily to irrigate our arid political land by herdsmen, Boko Haram and other ethnic militia.

And, standing as eloquent testimony of the masses displeasure over this current security challenge is the recent peaceful protest/ procession by the catholic churches in Nigeria where the church among other things explained that “the procession or the protest was necessitated by the inability of the government to act on the several verbal and written complaints by the church; with regard to insecurity and bad governance, with

the likes of His Eminence, Anthony Cardinal Okogie asserting that the president’s silence towards the killings showed that a cow in the estimation of the president has become more valuable than human lives.

Miserably as it is, this security challenge is made worse by our nation’s inability to meet up with the United Nations’ prescribed one policeman to 400 people ratio, while the hired policemen remained ill-equipped and police as a body underfunded.

As if these are not enough woes for the country, this period of our existence as a nation also signaled an era when the nation became more divided, when tribal loyalty is viewed stronger than the sense of common nationhood with different tribes/ethnic groups jostling to be more Nigerian than the other.

But if you think that this is the highest challenge currently confronting the country, wait till you cast a glance at this: the Joint Health Sector Union, the body entrusted with the management of the nation’s health sector has just called off a protracted industrial action over the failure of the government to meet their demands. Lamentable but expected, within this period of the industrial action, many

innocent Nigerians died from minor sicknesses.

Within this period, strikes in our educational and other sectors have become not just incessant but a regular trademark to the extent that before the dust raised by the ASUU strike will go down, that of the NASU is up.

Another contentious development is the orchestrated fight against corruption by the federal government.

The government may have created a cloud of opinion that views corruption as the enemy of the state. But doubt remained as the real fight only exists superficially; this state of affairs has precipitated knocks and lampooning from all quarters with that of the Transparency International {TI) as the strongest.

The group had through a statement on 28th May 2018 among other things complained that the federal government has in the run-up to elections expanded the use of opaque $670million –a-year- funds that fuels graft.

On the political sphere, a peep at the centre will reveal a not too impressive outing, with the squabble between the executive and the legislative arms which has refused to abate as the most telling evidence that the centre cannot hold.

–Jerome-Mario Utomi, Jeromeutomi@yahoo.com

and economic potential of concerts and leisure in the state as over 1000 accredited vendors had huge sales. The creative content of the event was provided by over 22 artistes.

Equally, the Lagos Grows Talent programme, which seeks to unearth, nourish and recompense outstanding and talented youngsters, took place between 19th December and 21st December, 2017 with 12,500 registered participants across the five divisions of the state. Winner of the competition, 13- year-old Ishola Idris (Opizzy) carted home N1. 5 million as prize money while first runner up, 23- year- old Onyekachi Alexander, got N1 million.

In 2016, Governor Ambode hosted an Evening of Jazz in commemoration of 2016 International Jazz Day. Equally, the City of Lagos beat other major African cities to the hosting right of 2016 AFRIMA. Lagos also recorded a remarkable showing at the 2016 and 2017 editions of Nottingham and Toronto Carnivals. At the Toronto Carnival in particular, eight films by Lagos State-based filmmakers were selected for red-carpet premieres and screenings.

This has given local filmmakers a great mileage in terms of publicity, business opportunities and exposure.

Also, the scope of the annual Lagos Countdown, an event with which the state government ushers in the New Year has been broadened. Now renamed One Lagos Fiesta (OLF) subsequent editions of the event which is now one week affair, had clearly lived up to expectations. Since 2015, the event has been holding concurrently across the five major divisions of the state viza -viz at Agege, Epe, Badagry, Ikorodu and Lagos Island. The plan is to guarantee that every part of the state is given the opportunity to have a taste of the stimulating experience. A major unique trait of the last two editions of OLF was the profound participation of the private sector.

Equally, the state government has continued to build, maintain and manage monuments such as Tinubu Square fountain, King Ado statue, Ma’ami statue (Muri Okunola Park, Victoria Island), Awolowo, Fawehinmi and Fela busts among others.

Likewise, the JJT Park which was conceptualised to become a prominent tourist site as well as relaxation hub in the state has since become one huge recreation hub in the state.

––Tayo Ogunbiyi, Lagos State Ministry of Information and Strategy, Alausa, Ikeja

POTENTIAL OF PALM OIL FARMERS IN EDO

R

aising productivthe importance of palm oil in ity of palm oil cooking and as an industrial smallholder farmers raw material, the commodity in Ovia North East, continues to be in very high Ovia South West, demand in Nigeria and Ikpoba Okha and across the 18 beyond. While the current local governments in Edo State is domestic production stands essential for strengthening food at 970,000 metric tonnes per ansecurity and reducing poverty in num, the demand is put at 2.7 Nigeria. But they face numerous million metric tonnes yearly. challenges of accessing finance, This means that, despite the training, equipment, and scarcity of foreign exchange, markets. Edo State Government the country has to get the is working to help address those shortfall through import. challenges in a comprehensive Available reports show that way. The cost of establishing a the country spent a whopping palm oil processing mill plant N116.3 billion importing about in Edo State is decided by many 450,000 tonnes of crude palm factors, including the palm oil oil last year. From controlling processing capacity, the quality the global market share of and quantity of palm oil process- 43 per cent in the early 60s, ing machines and equipment, Nigeria is now a bit part player, the palm oil suppliers and shamefully boasting just a more. These include palm fruit paltry 2.9 per cent of global reception and harvesting the palm oil production. This is palm fruit from the oil palm indefensible since she has the plantation, sterilisation, palm oil right weather and soil condithreshing, separating the palm tions suited to the growth of fruits from bunches by rotation oil palm. or vibration, etc.

The government has to More than 300,000 people come up with an innovative in Edo State build their lives policy to encourage a return around palm oil and its to the farms to produce oil derivatives, either directly or in- palm. Investors should be directly. These are some of the encouraged to take advantage reasons why our government of research findings of the should take special interest in Nigeria Institute for Oil Palm the oil palm industry, just as it Research in Benin City to is now doing with rice. Special access improved high yielding grants should be provided and, seedlings to be able to cultivate in a matter of less than 10 years, oil palm at plantation level Nigeria could become a world rather than the old methods leader once again. of the past. There are already It is sad that a country that plantations in Imo, Cross River, was once the world’s leading Rivers and many other parts of producer of palm oil has the country. become a major importer of the ––Inwalomhe Donald, same product. But because of Benin City

16

ÍąËœ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍś Ëž THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER

INTERNATIONAL

Issues in 1,096 Days of Nigeria’s Foreign Policy under President Buhari

O

n Tuesday, 29th May, 2018, it was three years of the President Muhammadu Buhari (PMB) administration and 19 years of sustained democracy in Nigeria. He took over power on May 29, 2015, considered by the Olusegun Obasanjo administration as Nigeria’s Democracy Day. On the basis of this, there were 1,096 days of Nigeria’s foreign policy to assess and discuss. Every elected president is necessarily the chief diplomat of his or her country while the Foreign Minister is only acting on the basis of the president’s delegated authority. This observation is necessary at this juncture because it took about six months before PMB appointed his Foreign Minister and other ministers. Before doing so, he was the President and also Minister of ForeignAffairs.

In fact, when he appointed the ministers in November 2015 and there was a substantive Foreign Minister, he still appointed himself as Minister of Petroleum Resources.

Put differently, the possible argument of non-appointment of a Foreign Minister in the first five and a half months cannot be suggestive of inexistence of state behaviour in international relations.

Hence, what was Nigeria’s foreign policy between May 29, 2015 and November 11, 2015 when his cabinet was sworn-in?

There is nothing big to write home about regarding Nigeria’s foreign policy for various reasons but there are many inherent critical issues to address. First is ‘change’ as dynamic of governance.

The PMB administration came up with an agenda of change in the political governance of Nigeria. Most Nigerians believed in the agenda.And true enough, the PMB administration took the battle against the main societal ill in Nigeria, corruption, very seriously.

However, it has been so selectively done that it has had little or no impact on foreign policy. In other words, what is there for foreign policy to project in terms of the anti-corruption struggle?

In this regard, for instance, Mr. Uwajeh, a member of the Special Investigation Panel on the Recovery of Public Property (SIPRPP), has explained, contrary to government claims of allegations against him in the court, why he was sacked from the panel. He said it was because of his refusal to engage in a one-sided investigation that was aimed at prosecuting the opposition elements while protecting the corrupt members of the ruling party.

As Uwajeh put it to the public and to the chairman of the panel, Okoi Obono Obla: ‘I told him that I would not be a party to onesided investigation to muzzle the opposition and persecute them.

I made my position known that I am ready to expose corruption and recover stolen assets as a professional but will not be involved in the politics of “pull them down� in Nigeria. My refusal to dance to the tune of the government and SIPRPP led to my disengagement’ (vide the DailySun of Wednesday, May 23, 2018, p.4).

Thus, there is no disputing the fact that PMB’s agenda of change in terms of issues to address and ending the systemic corruption in the country has now become a change of agenda in terms of objective and non-existence of any changed mania of doing things. The more efforts are made to change the ‘changes’ as issues, the more the ‘changes made’ renew the mania of the status quo ante which PMB purports to be fighting. This is where there is interconnection with the international community which is keenly interested in the conduct of Nigeria’s self-professed anti-graft war: the case of the steam accusing the kettle.

Asecond issue is the environment of foreign policy. It was generally inclement at three levels: the Ministry of ForeignAffairs; national domestic level; and international level.At the level of the Ministry of ForeignAffairs, foreign policy has, at best, been reactive since 2015 because it lacks any ideological focus. There was no inheritance of foreign policy legacies of the previous administrations, not to mention continuity of such policies. Who is bothered about the protection of black dignity or the black man in the world. What does Nigeria playing host to the biggest black population mean now a days? There was no articulation of any foreign policy focus.

The Foreign Ministry may not be partly held responsible for some reasons. The Minister, Geoffrey Onyeama, is more of an international functionary than a seasoned diplomat. The operational environment of an international functionary, where he came from is more multilateral than bilateral or plurilateral in character. There is no way his mania of doing things and thinking cannot but reflect more of the globalists than the Foreign Service Officers whose world views are a priori nationally orAfrican driven.

In fact, dealing with bilateral questions cannot but pose difficult

VIE INTERNATIONALE with

Bola A. Akinterinwa Telephone : 0807-688-2846

e-mail: bolyttag@yahoo.com

be articulated when some people are thinking while some others are militating against them. PMB can be held accountable but cannot be held responsible for the remissness of others, even if he chooses not to sanction anyone.

Perhaps more importantly, the insecurity in the country did not allow for much attention to be given to foreign policy at home and abroad, except in the area of seeking international help. The quest for help is in itself another burden for the Foreign Service Officers, especially in light of the fact of economic insolvency of most of Nigeria’s diplomatic missions. Foreign policy is expensive the word over but it is always poorly funded in Nigeria. In this regard, who is to blame for non-performance in the absence of adequate funding?

At the international level, the environment is more inclement and challenging. Economic laziness and recession, as well as maltreatment and protection of Nigerians in international relations are foreign policy questions that are raised but without answers. When PMB went to the United States, he described Nigerian youths as lazy. But in solidarity support for the second term bid of PMB and his achievements in the agricultural sector, on Tuesday, May 22nd, 2018, the Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service, Mr. HameedAli, said it is only the lazy Nigerians that can be hungry under the PMB administration.As he put it, ‘when people say we are hungry, there was never a time in Nigeria that food was dropped in the mouth of the people and there can never be.’Agreed, but if truth be told, it is precisely the hard working and honest Nigerians that are hungry and are made to suffer at the altar of political chicanery, religious bigotry, ethnic schizophrenia, perversion of justice, and subjectivity of purpose. To survive, all Nigerians will need to stop all engagements in the politics of self-deceit. This brings us to the more disturbing questions in Nigeria’s foreign policy in the past three years.

IssuesforNigeria’sForeignPolicy

Buhari

challenges to the Foreign Minister as a former functionary of an international organisation. This explains in part why the Foreign Ministry has been more identified with the issuance of policy statements of intention and preparedness to defend the national interest, but all to no avail. The unending mistreatment of Nigerians in South Africa, in spite of the bilateral agreement on the establishment of an early warning mechanism meant to prevent such mistreatments, is a good illustration of this point. Nigerians are always killed in different places but the regular answer is that Government is investigating. What happens after investigation is only known to the same Government.

At the national domestic level, foreign policy making suffers considerably from lack of research and intellectual input. Many foreign policy decisions are taken as a result of lack of knowledge.

There was the most unfortunate position of the Minister of Foreign Affairs supporting the application of Morocco’s membership of the ECOWAS under the considerations of potential economic gains but, most unfortunately, forgetting how such membership would undermine Nigeria’s strategic leadership in the region and the continent as a whole.

Powerful individuals simply come into the policy-making processes to direct on what to do and the Foreign Ministry is set aside. No serious country allows that type of situation to happen. In Nigeria, individuals are more powerful than institutions, even more than Nigeria. This is why PMB’s administration has been more of a burden than solution to Nigeria’s many problems.

In fact, there are too many centres of foreign policy making in Nigeria. Foreign policy institutions in the country are being killed precisely by the governing councils set up to grow and develop them. The example of the destruction of academic values of the Nigerian Institute of InternationalAffairs by the Ike Nwachukwuled Governing Council and under the watch of the Supervisory Authority, is a case in point. Good foreign policy or decision cannot

When PMB went to the United States, he described Nigerian youths as lazy. But in solidarity support for the second term bid of PMB and his achievements in the agricultural sector, on Tuesday, May 22nd, 2018, the Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service, Mr. Hameed Ali, said it is only the lazy Nigerians that can be hungry under the PMB administration. As he put it, ‘when people say we are hungry, there was never a time in Nigeria that food was dropped in the mouth of the people and there can never be.’Agreed, but if truth be told, it is precisely the hard working and honest Nigerians that are hungry and are made to suffer at the altar of political chicanery, religious bigotry, ethnic schizophrenia, perversion of justice, and subjectivity of purpose

One issue, perhaps the most critical with which Nigeria’s foreign policy has to grapple in the foreseeable future, is the emerging new Cold War. International politics is currently and gradually being fraught with a new Cold War in which the issue is not about ideological rivalry per se, but that of nuclear-driven ‘I tooism.’ The old Cold War was more of a struggle between the West and the East, between alliances, between the quest for supremacy of democracy and supremacy of dictatorship. In fact, it was about clash of civilisations.

The new Cold War is not yet a struggle between the West and the East but an intra- struggle within each side of the divide and also between the West, on the one hand, and the East, on the other.

For instance, at the level of the West, the United States and the EU countries are divided over the Comprehensive Joint Plan ofAction over Iran’s nuclearisation agenda. This is not only an intra-alliance disagreement but also an extra-African question that has serious implications forAfrica, in general, and Nigeria, in particular. How is Nigeria addressing this issue in light of her ties with theArab countries?

The deepening misunderstanding between the US of Donald Trump and North Korea of Kim Jung-un is also an expression of, and issue in, the new Cold War in the making. This particular case of misunderstanding between the two countries has the potential to precipitate a hot war, if not an unprecedented nuclear war. This is why Nigeria’s foreign policy calculations must be better articulated to prevent being caught unawares in terms of implications.An expatiation is necessary here.

The United States has been having a running battle with the nuclearisation programme of North Korea since the time of President George Bush. The US is opposed to any nuclear weapon development by North Korea, which is also claiming its sovereign right to legitimate self-protection and self-defence. Besides, North Korea is interested in the unification of the two Koreas, but in which the United States is partly interested. The main focus of the United States is denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula..

Most unfortunately, however, the newly found entente between North and South Korea, following the delegation of North Korea to the last winter Olympic Games in South Korea and which not also lessened the tension between the US and North Korea, but also paved the way for the planned June 12, 2018 summit between the leaders of the two countries in Singapore, has been cancelled. Several reasons can be adduced for the cancellation, which many observers argued it was at the instance of the United States but which we strongly believe is at the instance of North Korea.

There are two immediate considerations to support that the initiative of the visit came from North Korea. First was the attitude of North Korea to the working details of the visit. TheAmerican side had shown much concern as to the not-forthcoming cooperative attitude of the North Koreans on the meeting. It should be recalled that North Korean officials have not always kept official rendez-vous.

There was the time the Pyongyang authorities invited Mr Pence for tĂŞte-Ă -tĂŞte discussions when he visited South Korea for the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics but the inviting State, North Korea, cancelled the secret talks at the last minute.

In the same vein, North Korean officials failed to show up at the preparatory meetings of the June 12 summit. Probably too, this attitudinal disposition of North Korea might have informed the rationale for the second consideration: the statement of the US Vice President, Mike Pence.

(See concluding part on www.thisdaylive.com)

17

T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JUNE 3, 2018

BUSINESS

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

LAST WEEK Manufacturing

The Central Bank of Nigeria said the country’smanufacturingsectorgrewat a slower rate in May.According to the May edition of the CBN’s Purchasing Managers’ Index report, the manufacturing sector has been increasing for 14 consecutive months. “The Manufacturing PMI in May stood at 56.5 index points, indicating expansion inthemanufacturingsectorforthe14th consecutivemonth.Theindex,however, grewataslowerratewhencomparedto theindexinthepreviousmonth,”itsaid.

ThereportshowedthattheManufacturing PMI stood at 56.9 index points in April. The CBN said the PMI survey, which was conducted by its statistics department,hadrespondentsfromthe purchasing and supply executives of manufacturingandnon-manufacturing organisations in 31 locations in Nigeria.

PIGB

The Petroleum Industry Governance Bill suffered a setback two months after itwaspassedbytheNationalAssembly.

At the plenary on Wednesday, the Senate referred the bill back to the Conference Committee on the Petroleum Industry and Governance to consider the “fundamental issues” raised by the Legal Department of the NationalAssembly, which recommended a fresh legislative action. The Majority Leader, SenatorAhmad Lawan, moved a motion for the referral of the PIGB and the Climate Change Bill to the respective committees for review.

Surging crowd at the Nigeria Immigration Service recruitment test in 2014 in Abuja

Oil

Report: Intensive Investments in Services Sector Development Hold Key to Unemployment Reduction in Nigeria Vincent Obia Employment elasticity in the Nigerian economy is highest in the services sector, thus, to reduce unemployment and diversify exports, the country needs to boost investment in the expansion of the sector, so says leading professional services provider, PricewaterhouseCoopers Nigeria.

Employment elasticity measures the responsiveness of employment to growth in particular sectors of the economy or the total Gross Domestic Product.

PwC Nigeria says in a report published Thursday that, though, Nigeria has recorded considerable growth in major sectors, such as agriculture and manufacturing, employment generation by the sectors has been poor. It identifies services as an area capable of delivering high productivity jobs with great potential for income generation and poverty reduction.

The report titled, “Structural transformation and jobless growth in Nigeria,” says while industrialisation in most advanced countries followed a three-stage process of agriculture, industry, and services, Nigeria has tended to develop along the line of India, where structural changes boosted growth and employment through the expansion of high productivity activities within the services sector, particularly, Information Technology and Business Process Outsourcing services.

“Nigeria has evolved in this same

pattern, as declining shares of output and employment in agriculture have been absorbed by the services sector,” the report states. “In addition, estimates of employment elasticities suggest Nigeria’s services sector has the highest employment potential at 0.5, relative to agriculture’s -0.1 and manufacturing’s 0.3.”

PwC Nigeria stresses, “The services sector is the largest sector in the economy, with its share of GDP rising from 54.1 per cent in 2010 to 56.9 per cent in 2017. Although the sector accounts for the largest proportion of employment at 57.4 per cent, employment growth in the sector has been less than proportionate to its average annual real GDP growth of 7.8 per cent recorded between 2010 and 2014.

“Our analysis shows that a 1 per cent increase in services growth led to 0.5 per cent increase in employment. This is, perhaps, due to the dominance of the less productive traditional services sub-sectors, such as transport and trade, where scope to increase productivity is low.

“On the flipside, higher productivity sectors, such as financial services, real estate and professional services are crucial to increasing employment, given the relatively higher employment elasticity.”

High unemployment rate has remained a huge socio-economic challenge for Nigeria in the last decade, despite economic growth. Data from the National Bureau of Statistics puts Nigeria’s unemployment rate at 18.8

per cent as at the third quarter of 2017. In 2015, the unemployment rate was 9.9 per cent. Similarly, the underemployment rate reached an unprecedented 21.2 per cent, from 17.4 per cent, over the same period.

On the subject of economic boom amid high unemployment, the report observes that the Nigerian economy witnessed rapid expansion between 2000 and 2014, with an average annual growth of 7.6 per cent year-on-year. But within the same period, employment Though, Nigeria had recorded considerable growth in major sectors, such as agriculture and manufacturing, employment generation by the sectors had been poor growth was merely 1.2 per cent, markedly below the 2.9 per cent growth in the labour force. Consequently, the unemployment rate, which also mirrored underemployment at the time, increased from 13.1 per cent in 2000 to 24.3 per cent in 2014.

“This suggests that the responsiveness of employment to economic growth has not been large enough to reduce unemployment,” the report states.

To reverse the trend in a country projected to be the third most populous country by 2050, with a population of 410 million, PwC Nigeria states in

the report, “Implementing policies that will deliver inclusive growth and engender a productive labour force is imperative.”

However, it says despite the remarkable growth recorded in Nigeria’s services sector, there is ample room for improvement considering the progress countries like India have made in “modern and highly productive service sub-sectors, such as IT-BPO offshoring, telecommunications, real estate, and financial services.

“In Nigeria, traditional services, such as wholesale and retail trade, public administration, accommodation and food services, and transportation still dominate the services industry, with low employment, growth and export potentials. Like India, Nigeria can leverage its sizeable services sector to drive growth, promoting forward and backward linkages in other sectors that create opportunities for employment.”

PwC Nigeria stresses the need for structural reforms to lay the foundation for long-term sustainable growth in the broader economy and the services sector, in particular. It says, “Such reforms include business environment reforms, which are necessary to improve the ease of doing business, sustain macroeconomic stability, and attract investments. ”In specific terms, improving human capital development, providing enabling infrastructure and intellectual property rights are necessary to drive growth and productivity in the services sector.”

Oil prices steadied on Wednesday after slipping on concerns that Saudi Arabia and Russia will pump more crude in response to falling global crude inventories and rising consumer prices. Saudi Arabia and Russia have discussedraisingOPECandnon-OPEC oil production by one million barrels per day to counter potential supply shortfalls from Venezuela and Iran.

Brent crude was up one cent at $75.40 a barrel by 0619 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was up 10 cents, at $66.83 a barrel. OPEC-led supply curbshavelargelyclearedaninventory surplusinindustrialisedcountries,and stocks continue to decline.

NNPC

The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation complained about rising landing cost of petrol. The state-run oil firm lamented that the cost had exceeded N171 per litre while the pump price remained regulated at the maximum of N145 per litre. The last knownlandingcostoftheproductwas N171 per litre, which is an indication of N26 per litre under-recovery cost.

The prices of crude oil have recently risen to about $80 per barrel, which has a direct effect on the landing cost of petroleum products.

Stocks

The market capitalisation of the Nigerian Stock Exchange dropped to N13 trillion following losses recorded by Nestle and other highly capitalised stocks.MarketcapitalisationshedN153 billionor1.08percenttocloseatN13.984 trillion, compared to N14.137 trillion achieved on Monday. Also, the AllShare Index declined further to 38,000 points region barely one week after dropping to 39,000 points. The index opened at 39,028.51, lost 422.1 points or 1.08 per cent to close at 38,606.41.

FormerpresidentofAssociationofStock Broking Houses of Nigeria, Rasheed Yussuf, attributed the persistent lull in the stock market to exit of portfolio investors due to the country’s political situation.

18

T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JUNE 3, 2018

BUSINESS/ECONOMY

Despite Rising GDP, Hope of Better Living for Nigerians Remains Distant, Say Experts Except the country’s GDP growth reaches at least double the estimated population growth rate of 3 per cent, and inflation reduces to single digit, the aspirations of Nigerians for a better living would remain a mirage, say analysts. Bamidele Famoofo reports

W

hile it is not inappropriate for the citizenry of Africa’s most populous nation to celebrate its improving economic climate, it is certainly not time for them to begin to expect any immediate benefits from such.

“You cannot have a general wellbeing of the citizenry until the rate of inflation in the country attains single digit of below 10 per cent while the growth in GDP attains levels at least double the notional population growth of 3 per cent,” said Lagos-based economist and erstwhile banker, Dr. Boniface Chizea.

Data released by the National Bureau of Statistics showed that the Gross Domestic Product of Nigeria grew by 1.95 per cent year-on-year as at the end of March 2018, compared to a revised 2.11 per cent growth recorded in the last quarter of 2017. In the first quarter of 2017, the economy was still in recession, with GDP figure in the negative threshold of -0.91 per cent.

Projection The World Bank in its economic outlook said Nigeria’s economy was expected to expand by 2.1 per cent in 2018. The largest economy in Africa was initially billed to grow by 2.5 per cent, according to World Bank’s earlier estimations. The International Monetary Fund, in its World Economic Outlook presentation in April 2018, also affirmed that Nigeria might not be so lucky, despite growth projections by analysts. It said Nigeria would only be able to grow by 2.1 per cent in 2018 and 1.9 per cent in 2019.

The basis for the IMF’s growth projection for Nigeria was that many commodity exporters will not be so lucky in 2018, despite some improvements in the outlook for commodity prices.

Generally, projections for growth for Nigeria by major international financial organisations, like PriceWaterHouseCoopers, did not exceed 2.6 per cent.

Comments Financial pundits are of the opinion that the growth projections for Nigeria by the World Bank and other multilateral and private organisations for 2018 remain a far cry from what is considered reasonable to deliver a better living to its citizenry.

Chief Executive Officer of Financial Derivatives Company Limited, Mr. Bismark Rewane, warned that the growth in the economy might not make a difference in the life of the average Nigerian.

“It is impracticable to talk about attaining an improvement in the quality of life if the economy does not record rates of GDP well above double the rate of population increase, which means growing at over six per cent,” Chizea argued. He added that the GDP as at the first quarter of 2018 was still far below the targeted growth of three per cent and could not even approximate the rate of population increase.

Managing Director, Laramitch Vigor Consults Limited, Mr. Michael Kelikume, also lamented that strong economic growth recorded in the past in Nigeria had not been beneficial to the ordinary people. “Economic growth in Nigeria has risen substantially, with annual average of 7.4 per cent in the last decade. But the growth has not been inclusive, broad-based and transformational,” Kelikume said.

He added, “The implication of this trend is that economic growth in Nigeria has not resulted in the desired structural changes that would make manufacturing the engine of growth, create employment, promote tech-

A local market in Nigeria... many families groaning under high cost of essential commodities

nological development, and induce poverty alleviation.”

Kelikume noted that the unemployment level in Nigeria had increased in recent times as a result of non-inclusiveness of economic growth in the past.

“Available data from the NBS has shown that national poverty level has increased. Out of a total active labour force of 85.08 million people in Nigeria, about 16 million people were unemployed in the third quarter of 2017,” he said.

Labour Force Statistics in the third quarter of 2017 published by NBS in January also revealed that 18.02 million people were underemployed, as they worked for 20 to 39 hours a week, which is less than the 40 hours required to be classified among the workforce.

Concerns PricewaterhouseCoopers, a multinational professional services firm, said despite its expectation of stronger growth in 2018, prolonged delay in implementing overdue reforms in the economy will continue to drag growth.

According to PwC, “These include slow progress with the power sector reforms, absence of full deregulation of the downstream petroleum sector, and the multiplicity of exchange rates, which constrains investments and makes the economy vulnerable to shocks in the oil sector.”

PwC predicted that growth would remain considerably below the long-term economic and population growth rates of 6.7 per cent and 2.7 per cent, respectively.

Chief Executive Officer of Proshare, Olufemi Awoyemi, was concerned that the same factors that led Nigeria to recession (factors of oil production and oil price) were driving the current economic growth. Awoyemi emphasised the need for coherence in government policy

to drive the economy towards the path of sustainability.

On his part, Rewane believed the GDP growth in first quarter was good, but dangerous because it was predicated on oil, which meant that Nigeria was still an oil-dependent economy. He was of the view that Nigeria remained vulnerable to exogenous shocks, a position posited in a recent Moody report on the country.

Solution Experts believed there was an urgent need for the diversification of the country’s revenue

Economic growth in Nigeria has not resulted in the desired structural changes that would make manufacturing the engine of growth, create employment, promote technological development, and induce poverty alleviation

base through intensification of the drive to achieve massively improved revenue inflow from fiscal operations. They proposed that in the case of tax revenue, the focus should be to broaden the tax net to capture those who hitherto were inadvertently excluded from paying taxes.

Both Rewane and Chizea said all components of government must desist from paying lip service to budget implementation. “We would, of course, most certainly be postponing the much desired robust recovery of the economy as we continue to play dirty politics with budget approval. Budget 2018, which was presented by the executive on November 7, 2017 to the National Assembly, was only recently approved by the lawmakers. After such delays, some of us in good conscience still expect record implementation of capital projects as contained therein, which has the key to unleash the much desired rapid growth of the economy to jumpstart the availability of massive employment opportunities,” Rewane stated.

Besides, the Financial Derivatives CEO made a strong case for policy sustainability, which he believed was germane. He called on monetary policy makers to do a review of the interest rate regime in the country.

Meanwhile, Chizea says the milestones so far achieved in returning the economy to the path of growth must be celebrated, despite the fact that the journey to the Promised Land appears long.

“The extant trend of consistent improvement in the fundamentals of the economy is most welcome and should be celebrated, as we are beginning to view the glimmer of light at the end of the proverbial tunnel,” he said. “But it is certainly not yet uhuru for the debut of the desired prosperity for the citizenry of the country. But we should remain merchants of hope, the audacity of hope really.”

T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JUNE 3, 2018

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BUSINESS/ECONOMY

L-R: Lecturer, School of Media and Communication, Pan-Atlantic University, Dr. Mike Okolo; Managing Director, MultiChoice Nigeria, John Ugbe; Regional Director, M-Net West Africa, Wangi Mba-Uzoukwu; MTF, Academy Director for West Africa, Femi Odugbemi; and MultiChoice Talent Factory (MTF) Director for Africa, Cheryl Uys-Allie, at the launch of the MTF in Africa Magic/SuperSport Studios, Ilupeju, Lagos...recently

MultiChoice Boosts Local Content Production with Talent Factory The launch of Multichoice Talent Factory in Lagos last week, promises to enhance the production of local content in the country, writes Tunde Falola

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he African creative industry is set to soar higher. The propeller is the Multichoice Talent Factory (MTF), which was launched in Lagos on Wednesday. The MTF, a continent-wide programme, is conceived to create a conveyor belt of young and highly skilled professionals in television and filmmaking.

This is with a view to equipping the next generation of creative industry people across Africa with acumen to make them create wealth and jobs by being entrepreneurs as well. Speaking at the programme’s launch in Lagos, Managing Director, Multichoice Nigeria, John Ugbe, said the MTF will help mould young people in television and filmmaking into accomplished professionals via professional training in all the aspects of their craft.

“It is great to have passionate and young self-taught individuals, but we need to connect them to opportunities to acquire skills and experience to make it big in the industry. Others may have relevant qualifications but lack the practical experience and work readiness.

“Those with the skills and experience are hard to find, yet there are passionate and talented young people who cannot access skills development.

“The MTF, therefore, aims to make sure that those with the right skills and practical experience are easily accessible by the industry,” he said.

Ugbe also explained that the MTF is an

opportunity for African filmmakers to take advantage of the MultiChoice brand to tell the story of Africa to Africans and the world from an African perspective.

“The MTF is an opportunity to leverage the MultiChoice brand to create a platform for African film creatives to showcase their talent, access skills development opportunities and stay current with industry trends and developments.

“We need to tell African stories, made

by Africans for Africa”, he said.

The multi-level programme, which runs for two semesters, is open to applicants between the ages of 18 and 25 and kicks off on 1 October in three countries in three different African regions. Nigeria is the West African hub, while Kenya is for East Africa and Zambia for Southern Africa. Each academy will have 20 students and be headed by an accomplished local industry expert. It will also operate in partnership with recognized institutions to ensure credibility.

The academy for the West African region will be located in Nigeria and will feature 16 Nigerian students and four Ghanaians. It will have as director, Femi Odugbemi, an accomplished filmmaker and cinematographer.

The curriculum, which is currently being developed, will combine theoretical knowledge of production skills and management with practical experience. The academies will also function in partnership with local channels, studios and content providers, who are placed to directly impact

beneficiaries’ career development.

In addition to the academies, the MTF Portal is another component of the project.

The portal is designed to provide a platform for beneficiaries to showcase their works, access opportunities available and network in the industry. Among its functionalities are MTF Call to Entry (CTE), which kicked off on 30 May; individual/company profiles, skill-specific profiles, social media sign-on with Twitter and Facebook for sharing content and ‘refer a peer’ invitations, opportunities notice boards, regulatory profiles, industry news and new releases.

The third leg of the initiative is the MTF Masterclasses. These are workshops designed to equip established film and television personnel with advanced skills in cinematography, audio and storytelling. The MTF Masterclasses, as with the academies, will feature local and international producers, scriptwriters, directors, audio experts, MTF Academy Directors and MultiChoice staff.

They are designed to remedy the age-long challenge of accessibility and opportunity for under-represented communities on DStv and GOtv platforms.

“We are excited and inspired by the many stories yet to be told. As we prepare to welcome the most deserving, young emerging, passionate filmmakers into these academies, be assured that MultiChoice Africa remains committed to ensuring that quality storytelling and story making, contributes positively to the economies we serve. This is long overdue in Africa and MultiChoice Africa is proud to champion

this movement,” said Ugbe.

The MTF, explained MultiChoice, is part of the its new strategy of furthering its investments through creating shared value by using its core business resources, people, skills and networks to bring about positive societal changes that yield both ways-for the business and society.

For over two decades, MultiChoice has continued to invest in the development of original African programming and showcasing such on its DStv and GOtv platforms across 49 sub-Saharan African countries. It pioneered and popularised the African Magic channels in Nigeria and across Africa as well as making it known around the world. The company has facilitated the creation of stories into hit shows across the continent. These include Tinsel, Battleground, Hotel Majestic and Hush.

Aside from ensuring that African stories are told with fidelity and by Africans, MultiChoice’s investments in local content, as evidenced with the 2015 rebasing of the Nigerian economy, formed part of the 13 per cent contribution to the GDP by the entertainment industry.

In 2013, MultiChoice launched the Africa Magic Viewer’s Choice Awards (AMVCAs), the premium awards for filmmakers in Africa, to recognize outstanding achievements in the African film and TV industry.

The company, from time to time, organizes workshops conceived to share the best content production practice around the continent.

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JUNE 3, 2018

BUSINESS/MONEY

CBN Targets BDCs to Inject Liquidity and Curb Hoarding in FX Market Following the controversy over a directive by the Central Bank of Nigeria to Bureau De Change operators to henceforth access foreign exchange, particularly the United States Dollar, at least three times a week, Olaseni Durojaiye examines the issues in the debate and presents the views of stakeholders

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he recent directive of the Central Bank of Nigeria to Bureau De Change operators to buy the United State Dollars from money deposit banks thrice a week has set the apex bank and the BDC operators on a collision course. Both sides have taken different positions on the directive, which analysts see as a further interference by the CBN to safeguard the value of the naira against the dollar.

Many have expressed doubts about the capacity of the BDCs to comply with the CBN directive as well as the capacity of the apex bank to enforce compliance without rupturing the fragile balance in the country’s FX market.

Law of Demand and Supply The directive might have been aimed at ensuring availability and affordability of USD, especially as the summer season approaches, when many intending travellers would need the dollar for their travels. But some analysts say moral suasion would have been a better strategy by the CBN, as opposed to force or compulsion. Those who hold this view believe CBN’s tone of compulsion negates the spirit and law of demand and supply, which should rule the foreign exchange market.

Challenges The directive has also caused the BDCs to flag operational challenges. The BDC sector, findings reveal, is confronted with many challenges, such as multiple exchange rates, bank charges, value-added tax, and commission on turnover, among others.

There is also the threat posed by parallel market operators and illegal international money transfer operators. Findings show that activities of unlicensed money transfer agents have been on the rise due to certain transactional challenges in the country’s FX market. Many Nigerians in the Diaspora, particularly the United States, now patronise such unlicensed operators due largely to ease of transaction.

However, it could not be ascertained if the activities of such operators pose much threat to the operations of BDCs, as claimed by the BDC operators.

Meanwhile, the BDC operators have also identified the issue of rates disparity as a challenge to their operation. According to the BDCs, while they buy dollar from IMTOs at N360 per $1 and sell to end users at N361.5 per $1, the CBN sells to commercial banks at N357 per $1 and the banks sell to end users at N360 per $1.

Rejection The Bureau de Change Operators have kicked against the new forex purchase directive issued by the CBN. The CBN had, in a statement on Sunday, said banks must now attend to customers’ forex needs over the counter and BDCs must purchase forex three times a week.

The CBN statement read, “All BDCs shall henceforth access dollars from the CBN on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. It is compulsory that all BDCs access currency at least three times weekly.

“Any BDC that fails to access the FX window at least three times weekly shall have their license reviewed by the CBN. Compliance is compulsory.”

However, reacting to the directive, President of Association of Bureau De Change Operators, Aminu Gwadabe, was reported as saying that the directive will negatively affect the operations of the BDCs. Gwadabe also highlighted some of the challenges they faced.

“The CBN’s directive at this time of our operational difficulties is, no doubt, precarious and vague and was intended to emasculate a sector that has helped the system to stabilise and, thus, unacceptable,” he said.

The ABCON president noted that the BDCs were heavily regulated at the moment and any

CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele

further steps in that direction will not augur well for their operations.

Gwadabe stated, “The BDC sector is confronted with many challenges, such as multiple exchange rate, abnormal bank charges, value-added tax and commission on turnover, parallel market operators and illegal international money transfer operators (IMTOs), porous international borders, complex documentation requirements and poor capacity/ skills of operators “ABCON is, therefore, using this opportunity to appeal to the CBN to take urgent steps to

review the rate at which the dollar is sold to BDCs in order to boost on-going recovery of the naira against the dollar.”

Analysts Stakeholders have been reacting to the CBN directive. Chief Executive Officer of Cowry Assets, Johnson Chukwu, told THISDAY that the motive of the directive was to “inject liquidity in the FX market and depress the spread in exchange rates.”

Chukwu noted that prior to the intervention, the USD had appreciated against the naira to

the tune of N360, up from around N353 per $1.

Executive Director, Corporate Finance at BGL Capital, Olufemi Ademola, spoke in a similar vein, adding, however, that the directive comes with “mixed feelings.”

According to Chukwu, “The motive behind the directive was to inject more liquidity in the FX market and depress the spread by increasing supply, then compel the BDCs to bid for dollars at least three times a week. This creates a sense of urgency and increases the velocity to sell among the BDCs, as against hoarding it. This is an ingenuous way to force the BDCs to sell at the price that the buyers are ready to buy, as against the price that they are ready to sell.”

Ademola said, “The directive comes with mixed feelings. I believe the CBN does that to manage the spread in exchange rate and make it stable, especially with the approach of summer, when many people will require dollars for their travels.”

He added, however, “You don’t force people to buy, whether they are able to sell or not. It is a good thing for the CBN to say they could buy to encourage availability and affordability but it should not force or compel them to.”

Economist and senior research fellow at the Nigeria Economic Summit Group, Wilson Erumebor, told THISDAY, “Perhaps, what the CBN is trying to do is to increase access to FX. I think moral suasion, that is, persuading the BDC operators, would however be effective in achieving the above objective. In my view, there needs to be some dialogue between the BDC operators and the CBN to examine this issue.”

Erumebor said, “Another issue that needs to be discussed by both parties is the concern raised by some BDC operators on the disparity of rates in obtaining FX between the banks and the BDC operators. “ On the issue of rate disparity, Ademola said, “I don’t think that is a valid complaint. When the CBN sells dollar to banks, the banks sell at regulated price and to a controlled market then render accounts of how and who it is sold to, to the CBN. It is not the same with the BDCs. The BDCs sells their supply at the parallel market, where they could sell to anybody at whatever price.”

Four Annual Holidays We All Need to Schedule

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he idea of living in Lagos, as blissful as it sounds, comes with its own downsides. While the boisterous energy, the beautiful sounds and the proximity to the superstars serve as icing on the cake, the incessant traffic, insecurity, and recently, floods are some reasons you wish you could run (or fly) away.

Only a few cities in Nigeria give people this mixed feeling and of the few that make the list, Lagos comes top. Before we derail, this article isn’t exactly about Lagos but about why we should, as much as we can, take time off to visit other cities and regions to expand perspectives, learn about new tribes and places, get in touch with oneself, generally have a more robust understanding of life and hopefully, appreciate it a lot more.

A lot of people, without doubt clearly understand the need for these once-in-a-while-getaways. Several others at the start of the year while drawing up their to-do list, pen it down but sadly, fail to achieve the goal for several reasons, including finding the right time. If you, per chance, fall into this category and are unsure of how to fit your travel plans into what is left of the year, the good news is there are still a few more holidays you can take advantage of. Top on the list are the short weekend holidays, which comprise the Eid-el-Fitri celebration billed to hold on Friday, June 15, 2018 and the Independence Day celebration, which falls on Monday, October 1, 2018, both of which further extend the weekend and make a perfect

opportunity for a lovely, albeit short holiday.

July, August and September are arguably the most anticipated months in the year, for no other reason than summer. Popularly termed the “Summer Holiday”, this period affords people a chance to get away for an extended period of fun and relaxation. The annual Christmas/ New Year Holiday, which traditionally starts from December 20 and lasts till early January of the next year, is also another fantastic opportunity to jet off and relax somewhere far from Lagos and get away from the familiar hustle and bustle typical of Lagos.

In addition to these, three is the annual leave period, which, depending on the company’s policies, varies between 15 to 21 working days.

What can be done with these days is uncountable, travelling being one of them.

Now that we may have cleared the issue of timing, the next issue most times is how to cover the expenses, which is of a truth, no longer a bother with the packages offered by forward-looking financial institutions. Of particular interest is the Payday Loan offered by Access Bank, which enables loans to be available to salary earners, irrespective of what bank the salary account is domiciled. For those whose salary accounts are not domiciled with Access Bank to be eligible for the Payday Loan, they must be Remita customers. Nothing else – no collateral, no guarantors – is needed to be eligible besides being a Remita customer or having your salary domiciled with Access Bank.

To make it even better, a maximum of up to N500,000 can be borrowed with the minimum being N1,000. By simply dialling the USSD code *901*11# you can get access to instant loans to make purchases and visit all the fun sites you desire.

The Access Bank credit and debit cards also work with Visa and MasterCard thereby offering users a wider range to access cash, irrespective of the city they are in. The mobile and internet banking features of the bank also ensure that customers are able to access cash on the go. Access Bank has a variety of card products suitable for different demographics. The bank’s debit, credit and dollar cards are suitable for individual and corporate customers, and with its Mobile Banking services, you can do banking transactions from the convenience of your mobile phone any day, anytime and from any location. It is convenient, fast and secure.

Even during your holiday leave we know that bills might be piling up at home, there’s no need to worry, you can make your payments electronically through Bill Pay, a payment tracking system which provides an easy and secure way to guarantee bill payment and help manage your money safely and securely from your own computer or phone via the Access Bank online banking platform you control your finances at your convenience.

Now that you know the four annual holidays to schedule and you know that Access Bank has your back all the way, what are you waiting for?

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JUNE 3, 2018

BUSINESS/ENERGY

Gas Pipeline in Niger Delta

Conference Reviews New Measures to Stem Economic Losses in Niger Delta Chineme Okafor writes on the federal government’s new resolve to address issues behind agitations that often endanger the oil infrastructure in the Niger Delta

I

n a recent podcast he released in Abuja, Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, said but for the timely interventions of the federal government through backchannel consultation and open dialogue with militants who resumed bombing of oil facilities in the Niger Delta in 2015, Nigeria could have been crippled economically.

Kachikwu explained that at the height of the militancy, Nigeria’s oil production dropped to about 800,000 barrels per day, which he said was not enough to fund the country’s national budget or investments in infrastructure.

The minister stated that bombing of oil facilities in the region went on a stretch of 10 months within which period the integrity of the facilities, especially the pipelines, was compromised. According to him, the government realised that if it failed to act fast, the militants would cripple the oil industry and Nigeria’s economy, which is still heavily reliant on revenues that come from oil from the region.

“His Excellency, the President, was kind enough to appoint me to hold the twin positions of both the GMD of NNPC and the Minister of State for Petroleum. Niger Delta was a burning issue at the time, there was key unrest in the Niger Delta.

A huge amount of militancy activities going on, there were reductions in production volumes, a consistent loss that led to almost crippling of the oil industry,” said Kachikwu in the podcast.

He further noted, “The sheer amount of problems we inherited in the Niger Delta meant that literarily if nothing was done, the country was getting crippled. No money for investments, no money for infrastructures or to run the budget…

“Everybody basically watched out for when the next alarm bell was going to be. We moved in rapidly and dealt with three main fundamentals.”

Lingering Problem The key causes of the troubles in the Niger Delta are environmental degradation, deprivation, and economic exploitation of the people whose lands host the oil and gas production that generate the bulk of Nigeria’s revenue.

Poor stakeholder management and marginalisation of major stakeholders in decisions that affect them directly have also been identified as reasons for the intermittent tensions in the Niger Delta.

Kachikwu aide on Niger Delta affairs, Mr. Charles Achodo, disclosed at the 2018 edition

of the Sustainability in the Extractive Industries (SITEI) conference that about 11,000 of all the existing contracts awarded by the Niger Delta Development Commission went to companies and individuals from the region. Achodo, however, regretted that the contracts were hardly executed.

According to him, “From the government to the IOCs, to the people, there is lack of active citizenship participation in asking solid questions regarding how funding is deployed. The Niger Delta has become a cacophony of voices but without a purpose, it has also become a region with a cacophony of all kinds of projects.

“If you look closely from the past 10 years, up to $40 billion has been made available for that region and you can never tour the Niger Delta and see a N1 billion or a N500 million investment, but I am telling you, collectively, for the past 10 years, that was what has gone into that region,” he said.

Rethink Achodo said, “We have to review the way we deliver programmes in the Niger Delta. We have to change the institutional strategy that is being adopted in the delivery of development projects in the Niger Delta.

“Get organisations like Julius Berger, deploy them and release those resources for them to begin to build the region. That is an accepted way, provided the people in the region would not be angry that that money should be given to them. The institution and modality for delivering the development should be changed.”

According to him, the main challenge of the region is weak institutions, which includes government inability to provide security for IOCs there.

“It is unfair that we expect the oil companies to build roads for you, but oil companies do this because there is marked absence of government institutions to do them. You look at issues of security, oil companies have security. Why would oil companies have security? It is because the

security structure and institutions are weak,” Achodo stated.

Development Compact In his presentation at the SITEI conference, Achodo indicated that the government and oil companies in the region had agreed to do things differently to develop the region. He said between now and 2021, the government and oil companies will contribute up to N1.7 trillion for the development of infrastructure and social economy of the Niger Delta. This fresh funding would be used for short and medium term development projects in the region as part of a compact development plan for it.

“When you look at the Niger Delta Development Compact, which we have, which covered the short term, medium term, from now till 2021, you are looking at a total investment of N1.7 trillion that is earmarked for the region and that covered what the oil companies are putting into the region, what government agencies are putting into the region and all kinds of investments required in that region,” said Achodo.

Kachikwu in his podcast indicated that the government had a process that would address the issues holistically. He said the government took up the environmental and security issues in the region, within which it engaged key stakeholders and created the Pan Niger Delta Development Forum (PANDEF) to amplify its efforts. He also noted that thr clean-up of Ogoniland was the next issue it took up, as well as initiating a gas flare commercialisation framework to ensure that the immoral practice of gas flaring was tackled.

Modular Refineries Kachikwu said modular refineries had also been initiated to help the region’s communities get involved in productive activities. “Modular refineries concept was initiated. Ten had been approved, two are on ground constructing and could be ready in the next one year. Eight more

Ingraining transparency and accountability in all facet of activities in the extractive industries is the underlying bedrock upon which the pillars of peace and mutual understanding rests

are ready for financing,” he stated.

The minister said capacity development for communities in the region had been taken up by the government, but warned that more needs to be done to sustain peace in the region.

“A lot of work needs to be done. Sustained engagements, active exploration of opportunities to ensure that communities get benefits. Ogoni clean-up must continue and funds budgeted must be released on time to enable the clean-up move from the drawing board to the field,” Kachikwu said.

He also noted that communities would be involved in the protection and policing of oil pipelines in the region. According to him, the work done so far to keep the region stable would be sustained if the government remained focus, oil companies focus on their key social responsibilities in the areas, government agencies keep up with their intervention responsibilities and communities realise that destruction of oil platforms would always lead to confusion and mayhem.

Professional Perspectives Experts at the SITEI conference offered their views on how the country could overcome its challenges with the Niger Delta and other troubled extractive minerals destinations in the country.

They included Executive Secretary of NEITI, Waziri Adio; Executive Secretary of NCDMB, Simbi Wabote; Founding Director, HOMEF. Nnimmo Bassey; and founder, Stakeholder Alliance for Corporate Accountability, Fr. Kevin O’Hara.

The experts emphasised the need for constant and sincere stakeholder engagement in the pursuit of sustainable peace. They also called for fair sharing of extractive revenues, considering that host community members are now aware of the wealth that comes out of their land, and would most likely make trouble when they don’t feel its impact.

They also pointed out that the opacity and lack of accountability that enveloped the activities of operators in the oil sector often led to distrust among stakeholders, which in turn bred suspicion and trigger disagreement and violence.

“Ingraining transparency and accountability in all facet of activities in the extractive industries is the underlying bedrock upon which the pillars of peace and mutual understanding rests,” they explained.

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JUNE 3, 2018

BUSINESS/INTERVIEW

We Shall Restore Amnesty’s Original Focus for Niger Delta, Says Dokubo Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta and Coordinator, Presidential Amnesty Programme, Prof. Charles Quaker Dokubo, has a tall dream: To refocus the Amnesty Programme to its original mandate for sustainable peace, stability and economic development in the Niger Delta region. In this interview with editors, including Bolaji Adebiyi, in Lagos, he speaks on how he would achieve his objective

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ou are coming as an academic to a new role. What are challenges do you envisage?

This is a new office, a new challenge and a new environment. In the past, I have written about the Niger Delta and my position has always been that the Niger Delta people have been marginalized; that was my view. But with the coming of the Buhari administration, which I witnessed, there is a lot of commitment by this administration to Niger Delta in terms of funding, and in terms of looking for peace and security in that environment.

You mentioned information about the increase of oil production in the Niger Delta, I think that also testifies to the fact that without peace there will be no development and without development there will be no peace.

I will let you know about that office to which I have just been appointed, but the fact is that I don’t want to question or criticize my predecessor. Though I made inquiries of the situation of the office, my work was to immediately resolve issues; make it possible that the right people were employed at the right places and also put in all the efforts I can to do my best to make sure that the office works perfectly. For anyone assuming a new office, you know that there are a lot of problems; those who want things to be done the way it is being done before and those who like changes. These are the contesting ideas or contesting environment within which I found myself. But be that as it may, I put in a review committee to look at issues concerning the amnesty office and then, I saw a lot of things that I didn’t even know in the amnesty programme. I tried to make sure that the best people are employed in the programme and also look at the two pivotal issues of the Amnesty Programme: security, development and enhancement of the Niger Delta people. How far has it been? What is the way forward?

The programme started very well but with time, it was driven by other demands that made it not to be very impactful. What I am doing now is to refocus the amnesty programme so that it could positively impact those who are meant to be catered for by this programme and you know that on my own, I can’t do it. That was why I initially made an attempt to meet the critical stakeholders; that is the big five. I think it was the first time in the programme that the big five had come to sit down with me and agree that they are going to drive my programme. For me, that was the best thing I have ever done; that I could bring these big five, talk to them, listen to them, and put forward the programme that I have developed for the period that I’m appointed. They all bought into that idea and are willing to push it forward.

But it will not be complete without taking along members of the fourth estate of the realm. I believe that as I try to explain what I want to do with the programme, you will understand me and know where I am coming from and how you will respond to my demands; so it’s a two-way thing. There are certain things you will demand from me; Charles, what are you doing with this programme? I am ready as always; I’m willing to give you the way forward and then the way I have designed the programme so that it will meaningfully impact the people of Niger delta.

What do you mean by the big five?

Big five are those who helped to maintain peace and security in their areas in the Niger Delta.

Who are they, can you mention their names?

I don’t call them by their names; I see them as Niger Delta people that are interested in maintaining peace and security. They are stakeholders. They’ve been involved since the beginning of the programme and whenever there’s crisis in a particular part of the Niger Delta, we will always refer to them; they know the way to deal with it.

If somebody said that the programme is not sustainable, the person is not talking from my office and the person couldn’t have known the way the programme has been designed to move. But I know that this programme is sustainable. I know the environment; I know the security environment of the Niger Delta and how it has been sustained to this level where we have massive production of oil and all that.

We’ve also seen periods where we cannot even get a million barrels; now, we have more than that.

So, I know what the programme is going for and I know that after we have carried out enhancement, empowerment and also setting up clusters of farms and other training centres, we can sit back with satisfaction that we have done something.

Hitherto, there was a feeling of marginalization; that the Nigerian people had taken sides with the multinational oil companies so that the Niger Delta people could not be trained and will not be part of that oil that come from their place. But now, programmes are being done; we work with the oil companies, we also send our people to be trained.

There might be some trouble but surely, I know that with time, these people would be trained to a level that they could see themselves as co-equals to anybody in any part of Nigeria and could be employed to do the work. The alternative will be too ghastly to contemplate.

I see a complete disconnect in the agencies handling the Niger Delta, the Amnesty Office, the NDDC and the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs in terms of coalescing. The second is that I do not think that there is enough engagement with the people. I think you need to do more of such engagements with the communities to be sure that even what you are putting there, represents the needs assessments of the people?

Dokubo

And they are on your side?

They are now on my side, yes.

But I wonder if those people that are supposed to enjoy the benefits of the Amnesty Programme, how happy are they? Are they happy with what’s going on?

The fact is that most of them have undergone vocational training and most of them have been empowered to set up their own business. Some people have been sent abroad for schooling and all that, although I’m trying to put a stop to offshore training because of the amount of money that is expended on the training of one person. If we can have those people in Nigeria, I think it will be better for us to train them in Nigeria, because I see no reason why you send somebody to do political science in England, while most of the universities in Nigeria offer political science. We should have qualitative education, that is the most important thing because for me, sending someone abroad to go and do B.A or B.SC in political science when most Nigerian universities run political science programmes; so, why can’t they do it here? The amount of money you’re going to spend on one person going to United Kingdom or USA for a political science degree, we can use that money to train four, five people in Nigeria. And as far as I am concerned, my first assessment of that offshore education is to keep it as a discount. Those who are there will finish; but to get new people there, that I will not like to do.

You said you have a focus on two main things in the Niger Delta and I’m really concerned about them.You mentioned security, development and enhancement. Can you give us a few things you want to do in terms of

security and development? Can you mention some exact projects that you are working on?

The fact is that to maintain the existing peace in the region is quite important for our function. If there’s a crisis in the region, then, basically all we are putting in place will not work. So that’s why the security aspect of it is very important for me and in doing that, you have to pay like stipends to the boys who are working there, enhance their training and empowerment in the areas that we set up vocational centres. That is the most important thing because if you do that, then you know you have oil revenue increasing, and then you have the federal government having some money to pay more into the Amnesty Programme to also empower our people by training them and giving them the requisite skill to perform well in an economy that is open. If that is done, for me, I would have achieved all that I want in the programme.

Do you have anything focused on the ex-agitators in the region? You know they cause a lot of destruction to development.

Do you have any strategy focused on them?

Yes, by interacting with them; by trying to let them know that the region belongs to them. Blowing up pipelines does not affect those who are in Lagos or Kaduna. It affects the people there, the ones that you claim to protect, so please stop that. What else do you want? So that we can do all that it takes to satisfy your aspirations and ambitions of the Niger Delta people.

An aide to the Minister of State (Petroleum) said the Amnesty Programme is not sustainable and here you are, addressing journalists. I would have felt that you cleared the air on that sir. If the amnesty programme is not sustainable, are you working towards an alternative?

You said there is disconnect between the various agencies in the Niger Delta. I think it was so in the past but not recently. There have always been meetings between these three agencies for the Niger Delta.

We meet every week so that we don’t duplicate resources, we don’t work at cross purposes; we are engaging so that we can work together, and you also must bear in mind that in most of these peace building situations, it is always very difficult to get the right infrastructure in the institutions and all that. These are things we have to take in small doses and that bearing in mind the sensitivity of the people. Those of us who work in the system would know how security environment of the Niger delta is important and we are trying to work. You talked about reintegration. Reintegration is the final stage and that is what I said I want to do. Those who have been trained, how do you give them sustainable jobs? How do you link trainings to jobs?

We have situations where we sent our delegates for training with a promise of employment, and that’s what we’re doing now.

There are companies that are laying pipelines; we send our delegates, they learn how to do welding, and they also partake in the laying of the pipes by these companies that are doing it. For me, that’s a step forward.

How will your office manage the perception of the people of Niger Delta about the overwhelming presence of the military and that you’re not just here to collect oil?

Changing of perception is not something that you do overnight. The fact is that if there’s stability, these soldiers could be withdrawn. This place is owned by the people who live here, it is not owned by any security organization. But like I said, if we want to maintain peace and security, we try to question the security apparatus of the government, then we’re about to drag a wedge between the people and the government. see concluding part on www.thidaylive.com

T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JUNE 3, 2018

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TRAVEL Treasures in Beethoven’s Birthplace Edited by Demola Ojo Email demola.ojo@thisdaylive.com

Yinka Olatunbosun

T

he quiet courtyard in front of the yellow building was the point of entry into Beethoven’s birthplace in Bonn, Germany. Ludwig Van Beethoven, one of the most taught classical musicians in music classes is still a most sought-after figure at death as tourists arrive in thousands daily to experience this iconic museum called Beethoven-Haus.

It was a case of special guests in a special house.

The NRW Kultur secretariat led six music journalists, Thomas Rees (UK), Sebastian Scotney (UK), Joe Woodard (US), Patrick Spanko (Slovakia) Herbert Hopfl (Austria) and yours truly to see how this great artist is immortalized.

Earlier that morning, a quick walk ahead of others to window shop led to the discovery of Beethoven’s bust right at the centre of the market square. The way to Beethoven Haus ahead was paved with interlocking blocks that formed the “Walk of Fame’’. Beethoven is indeed the city’s pride. That was obvious from the Rhine River. After a group walk from the Italian restaurant overlooking the Rhine, the Beethoven ship was spotted near the shore.

A walk through a maze of Bonn’s landmark buildings wound up at the entrance door to Beethoven Haus. No one was allowed to go into the house with a large bag, perhaps big enough to cart away the few strands of Beethoven’s hair or other priceless articles of history kept safely in the house.

The pairs of watchful eyes around the house were piercing, almost rendering the security cameras unnecessary. Next, the guide recounted vividly every detail of the last years of Beethoven, his struggles with ear troubles and poor health with such accuracy of a bystander. But Beethoven died in 1827 -hence there was no chance that she could have met him.

Perhaps, the only late musician in Nigeria that his former residence currently serves as a musical museum is Fela. But touring Beethoven’s house was with a different taste. One is that there is a multi-lingual audio guide in headsets for every visitor to lead one through the two-storey house with 12 rooms. There was freedom to start the tour from any point. In the end, all visitors leave with almost the same information: Beethoven performed for the elite and his compositions are part of the most remixed songs in history.

On the first floor, there are oil paintings to document his family; his appearance at the court orchestra where he was employed at 12; the viola he played in Bonn before leaving for Vienna at 22 where he lived till death. There are portrait etchings showing Beethoven’s teachers in Vienna and on permanent exhibition is a valuable collection of woodwind instruments.

The bulk of Beethoven’s life in Vienna formed the content on the second floor. A bronze bust of Beethoven made in 1812 by a Viennese sculptor named Franz Klein is close to artistic truth because it was made from the life mask of the great composer.

An emotional tinge would run through the spine of any one who sees the “Conversation Books’’. These are notes written by Beethoven to communicate with friends and associates at the time he had difficulty with his hearing about the age of 30. His wit shone through the lines in his notes although he was reportedly depressed at the thought of being deaf as a musician. It was like losing the most important work tool. In addition to the notes, there were ear trumpets to aid communication and turning away from these articles was to see the magnificent piano presented to Beethoven in 1817 by the London piano builder, Thomas Broadwood. An object of Beethoven’s affection is the subject of the love letter addressed to “Immortal Beloved’’. It was no surprise to discover that such phenomenal musician had love interests, with portraits of these ladies on the wall as testimonials to his feelings at various periods of his life- yes, various was emphasized.

Remains of some of Beethoven’s manuscripts were seen- saved from fire or rain or other destructive elements such as rats. In the same room, his travel and normal desk laid. Before he was laid to rest, a death mask was made by Josef Danhauser about 12 hours after his death. This mask was placed beside his life mask by Franz Klein when Beethoven was 41.

The building where Beethoven died was demolished in 1904 but not his last moments. Captured in water colour painting by Franz Stober, the funeral cortege was witnessed by no fewer than 20,000 mourners.

Beethoven’s piano

Beethoven’s Bust Many of his friends scampered to cut strands of his hair as memorabilia and only a few was left.

When the six journalists arrived in Boon for the Jazzfest, their first dinner was served at Beethoven’s restaurant and the first concert they watched was at the Beethoven Orchestra. It was with reluctance that the lot received the news of leaving for this aspect of the tour in Bonn which is arguably the most important. The museum ranks among the very few 18th century residential houses that had been preserved.

The only part of Beethoven Haus that the guide didn’t lead us was the Digital Archive Studio which has Beethoven’s works such as audio letters, music scores and s digital reconstruction of his last home.

A wholesome consolation came from the museum shop on the ground floor loaded with interesting articles such as CDs, T-shirts, bags, snow globes, miniature piano and violin to take to one’s home country and sing, “I was here’’. There was no record of marriage or children but every piece in Beethoven Haus attests to a life of artistry well-spent and well-preserved.

Beethoven Haus

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MARKET NEWS

Investors Advised to Diversify Portfolios through Mutual Funds Goddy Egene Investors in the nation’s stock market have been advised to diversify their portfolios by investing in different asset classes through mutual funds.

The advice was given by speakers at one-day seminar organised by Pragmatic Shareholders Association of Nigeria (PSAN) in Lagos with the theme: “Portfolio Investments: Opportunities and Mounting Challenges for Nigerian Shareholders.�

According to them, the inability

of the market to commence trading in derivatives, which provides hedging instruments, makes the market more vulnerable to both external and internal shocks.

They, however, said investing through mutual funds is one of the best ways to successfully navigate the market. They noted that one of the major benefits of investing in mutual funds is the professional management of investors’ monies, where experts select stocks based on in-depth research that identifies unique opportunities to deliver consistent

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

returns without taking undue risk.

A mutual fund, also known as collective investment scheme(CIS) is a pool of money provided by individual investors, companies and other organisations and a fund manager is then hired to invest the cash contributed.

Instead of buying individual shares, investors are buying shares of mutual funds.

The Acting Director-General of Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Ms. Mary Uduk, who was represented at the event by an official from the commission, Effiong Ekpeyong,

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 31-May-2018, unless otherwise stated.

encouraged retail investors to embrace CIS “Nigeria is a mono product economy and this has made the stock market very volatile. To this extent, retail investors need to spread their demand for stocks in various classes by patronising mutual funds,� Uduk said.

According to her, the concept of buying mutual funds allows investors to outsource the management of their money to professional portfolio managers that would channel the money into investments in the appropriate selected assets based

on their investment objective, time horizon and tolerance of risk.

The Managing Director of Cowry Asset Management, Johnson Chukwu, explained that it is easier for a fund manager to switch portfolio in mutual funds than in equities. “If you have a good fund manager, the manager can actually switch on your portfolio when any of the portfolio risk is on the high side. Also, the monetary policy environment affects the direction of the equities market. If the interest rate is high, portfolio investors like you and

I will underweight our portfolio in equity than our portfolio in fixed income. “Conversely, if the interest rate is low, we will overweight in equities than in fixed income, so it is easier for a fund manager to switch your portfolio, but if it is an equity fund, you cannot switch to fixed income,� he said.

The National Coordinator of PSAN Mrs. Bisi Bakare, said the seminar was an avenue for shareholders to identify their challenges towards longterm savings through portfolio investments.

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 183.88 185.31 3.66% Nigeria International Debt Fund 244.81 246.28 6.14% 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 0.83 0.84 1.00% ACAP Income Funds 0.64 0.64 6.38% 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 13.20% 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 18.92 19.49 3.56% ARM Discovery Fund 402.40 414.53 3.43% ARM Ethical Fund 28.52 29.38 4.40% ARM Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 13.50% 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 153.10 155.10 1.23% AXA Mansard Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 13.37% 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 13.56% Paramount Equity Fund 11.90 12.21 7.35% Women's Investment Fund 102.82 105.46 2.18% 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 N/A N/A N/A CORONATION ASSEST MANAGEMENT investment@coronationam.com Web:www.coronationam.com , Tel: 012366215 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Coronation Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 13.14% Coronation Balanced Fund 1.14 1.17 8.96% Coronation Fixed Income Fund 1.12 1.15 7.99% 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 1,159.91 1,160.61 1.03% FBN Heritage Fund 145.98 147.21 4.70% FBN Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 13.78% FBN Nigeria Eurobond (USD) Fund - Institutional 113.41 113.83 0.39% FBN Nigeria Eurobond (USD) Fund - Retail 113.29 113.72 0.38% FBN Nigeria Smart Beta Equity Fund 170.08 172.67 6.00% 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 1.35 1.37 3.50% Legacy Debt Fund 3.04 3.04 5.51% FSDH ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD coralfunds@fsdhgroup.com Web: www.fsdhaml.com; Tel: 01-270 4884-5; 01-280 9740-1 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Coral Growth Fund 3,145.64 3,176.55 5.34% Coral Income Fund 2,619.70 2,619.70 7.05% 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 Nigeria Entertainment 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 12.99% Vantage Balanced Fund 2.18 2.21 3.48% Vantage Guaranteed Income Fund 1.00 1.00 15.51% Kedari Investment Fund (KIF) 0.00 0.00 -100.00%

LOTUS CAPITAL LTD ďŹ ncon@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 2.78% Lotus Halal Fixed Income Fund 1,070.87 1,070.87 6.21% 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 1.34 1.36 12.55% PACAM Fixed Income Fund 11.81 11.87 6.99% PACAM Money Market Fund 10.00 10.00 12.94% 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 125.31 127.53 -2.69% 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 1.58 1.58 6.42% 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 2,357.63 2,376.80 5.10% Stanbic IBTC Bond Fund 185.70 185.70 5.24% Stanbic IBTC Ethical Fund 1.05 1.07 4.95% Stanbic IBTC Guaranteed Investment Fund 235.58 235.64 6.97% Stanbic IBTC Iman Fund 182.82 184.73 2.04% Stanbic IBTC Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 12.44% Stanbic IBTC Nigerian Equity Fund 9,907.30 10,042.36 2.46% Stanbic IBTC Dollar Fund (USD) 1.09 1.09 3.16% 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 1.20% United Capital Bond Fund 1.67 1.67 6.79% United Capital Equity Fund 0.94 0.96 2.95% United Capital Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 12.79% United Capital Eurobond Fund 106.10 106.10 3.11% United Capital Wealth for Women Fund 1.13 1.14 4.24% 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 13.07 13.26 4.82% Zenith Ethical Fund 13.66 13.81 4.22% Zenith Income Fund 20.23 20.23 6.92% Zenith Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 13.15%

REITS NAV Per Share

Yield / T-Rtn

11.41 135.41 51.22

1.01% 2.23% 0.77%

Bid Price

Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

12.15 148.76 111.37

12.25 151.85 113.40

0.23% 4.13% 1.92%

Fund Name FSDH UPDC Real Estate Investment Fund SFS Skye Shelter Fund Union Homes REIT

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 GrifďŹ n 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

4.72 8.87 17.69 19.09 147.00

4.76 8.95 17.79 19.29 149.00

-0.39% -7.33% 1.03% -2.92% 7.31%

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.

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A

WEEKLY PULL-OUT

TALKING THE BUSINESS OF ENTERTAINMENT Ëž

Ë? ĂŁ Ă?Ă“Ă‹Ă˜Ă?Ä€Ă? ÚËãĂ? ÞÙ Ă?Ă?Ă? Ă—ĂŁ Ă?ÒÙå Riding on the success of an emerging entertainment brand, Gidi Fest, Chin Okeke, a law graduateturned promoter, tells Nseobong Okon-Ekong the importance of consciously nursing the economic value chain in the industry

03.06.2018

T

he exchange between us progressed smoothly.

Chin Okeke was full of fire, witty, knowledgeable and fun to be with until we broached the matter of his educational discipline. It was the first time during the interview that he appeared to be lost for words. At this juncture, the arguments from him did not tumble out in a rush. He considered the answer and sighed deeply before venturing forward with a response. “I studied Law, but I did not go to law school because I did not know where I wanted to live. At the time, I was in London. I didn’t know if I wanted to be in the UK or Nigeria.

I could not do law school in the UK and then come to Nigeria to start all over again. I don’t have that kind of time; so I moved to China to learn Mandarin for one year and then started working. By the time, I came back, Law was already a thing of the past, for me.�

Actually, the season of merry-go-round could have been avoided if he had listened to his heart. Instead, he wanted to follow in the footsteps of his father who worked for 30 years as a principal partner in the law firm of Ajumogobia and Okeke before retiring to chase his passion as a farmer.

The leading was there all along. At 15, he was promoting clubs in London. In the university, he was better known for supporting events. After his law studies, he went to work in banking, did some shipping and agriculture. One day, he decided that he did not want to wait 30 years like his

Continued on Pg. 55

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T H I S DAY, T H E S U N DAY N E W S PA P E R Ëž Íą, Í°ÍŽÍŻÍś

COVER

TALKING THE BUSINESS OF ENTERTAINMENT father to follow his passion. The desire to return to Nigeria was so strong. “I do not have to live here,� he told me. “I could be in Europe, America or anywhere else in the world earning a seven-figure pay. If you start a business in London, you can get a loan, you have the support of government.

You have infrastructure. You are protected by law. If you are able to do all of these without that kind of support system, there is satisfaction, there is a sense of fulfillment that you have been able to build regardless of not having that support. There is a sense of responsibility to do what you can within your sphere of influence to be part of that change. Not just talk about it.�

It’s been five years, since Chin teamed up with his partner, Oriteme Banigo to found a company known as Eclipse Live.

Talk about an agenda!

Chin had one in place from the beginning. “Ă? want to use the combination of music, art and culture to change the narrative and the way we see ourselves; music and festivals is a great way of representing who we are.

Everybody has a role to play in trying to turn this madness around. The system is broken (so much) that you cannot depend on government. I don’t think we have a music industry yet. We are still very much at the point of the development of the art. We are yet to get to the point where we understand that when you put money in, you get back your money with some extra. If you can guarantee that, then you have an industry.

We are still at the point of development on the creative side, whether it is about venue or policy, all of those need to be done to shape it. Until that is done, we are still very much trying to build our business into one that is profitable. We do not have financial institutions that are patient to see the longterm vision. The reality is that our business hasn’t broken even yet. I have already created my own system. You have to create a system outside the system.

Almost 10 years ago when Chin returned to the country, he bonded with the CEO of Seven-Up Bottling PLC. He was eager to put on record some of the outcome of that working relationship and how it has impacted the entertainment industry in Nigeria. “He wanted to replicate what Pepsi was doing globally with entertainment in Nigeria and did not know how to go about it. Globally, Pepsi was very much into entertainment, but in Nigeria, it only had the Pepsi Football Academy. I will never forget the conversation. He asked me to develop a music strategy for Pepsi. Initially, he wanted to do a record label-Jungle Records. I said to him, I think you have the resources to do much more. We started off with Lynxx and that was a four-year partnership. We then did the Lynxx and Friends Tour around Nigeria. He was the first artiste to have an album launch in Lagos, Accra and Abuja, which was a big risk, because they were not coming from the top. The idea was to grow with him. We did Ilorin, Ibadan and Lagos.

We did Nasarawa and Abuja. I produced that tour. Pepsi took a big risk. The idea was to diversify and then they decided to do a bigger female artiste, Tiwa. That relationship started when she came on tour with Lynxx; from there, they took on Wizkid and now the DJs.�

Though Chin is not producing the Pepsi shows anymore, he maintains good working relationship with those currently working there. Of course, the brand supported his flagship event, Gidi Fest when it debuted five years ago. The brand has grown with Gidi Fest in much the same way that it grew with Lynxx.

He was emotional about his relationship with Pepsi. It was probably the most important statement at the meeting. Said with so much modesty, its essence could have been lost. But we captured it. It was almost like he did not want to voice this milestone. “It makes me happy to see Pepsi in music in Nigeria; 10 years ago it was not music.�

From a little known celebration of what they conceived as the street essence of Nigeria’s most thriving commercial city, the festival which has situated itself on the cultural calendar of Lagos during the Easter holidays has grown remarkably in a very short time. Taking one of funky nomenclature of the city, sometimes called, called Las Gidi, Chin and his team have been decidedly deliberate in executing an unfolding contemporary cultural revolution.

The character of this big move can be identified to include determination and conviction.

Chin explained his personality in the success mix of Gidi Fest. “It is not only about knowing myself, but also knowing what I want to do. It is about the people I surround myself with. It is about my partner, Oriteme Banigo and our team. Nothing is accidental. It is all very intentional. I think there is an element of luck somewhere, but that is planning and opportunity. We have a number of events between now and the next Gidi Fest, produced by Eclipse Live. For instance in December, last year we produced two festivals; Nature Land and Palmwine Music Fest at the Muri Okunola Park in Victoria Island, Lagos, one week apart. Native Land is the one that had Skepta, a young UK-based artiste. It was a festival with 3000 people at Muri Okunola Park, one of the best shows I have produced. Palmwine Music Fest is a property of Show Dem Camp. That was the first year. We have promoted and produced our own concerts; Maleek Berry’s, Mayorkun and Simi at Hard Rock CafĂŠ; that was all in December.â€?

Gradually, the conversation moved to an area where Chin is eager to make a huge impression: The business of entertainment.

He loves to talk about the value chain in music. He is trying to change the dynamics of the business from its current state of being driven by artistes who want to make a lot of money. “That model is not sustainable for the simple reason it doesn’t add up if 5000 people are paying N5000, and therefore you can only make N2.5 million, where then would a promoter get N5 million to pay an artiste?�

He queried.

To find a way around this challenge, Chin has developed a system based on relationship and partnership in order to share the risk and the profit. He argued that it is the way it is done everywhere else in the world. “You have a minimum guarantee for your fee, we invest in the promotion and production and they bring the artiste, then we push it together.�

He disclosed the outcome of his recent promotions to buttress his claim. “For Maleek’s show we sold over 1000 tickets.

Interestingly, all three shows had different demographics. Very different types of music, different audiences because of the way we marketed them. They were within a week.

Simi was end of November. Then there was Mayorkun, first week of December, and Maleek before the Christmas rush. I was told that people would not have come back. There are 20 million people in Lagos, 11 months of the year. Why should I design my business around a few thousand people who come back in December? Otherwise, there is no point, I can live somewhere else and come back in December and make my money and go back. We are trying to change that. Last year, we were involved in Asa Live in May. We doing it end of this year, but in October.

Maleek was the highest selling one of the three. We charged the highest premium on him and he sold out.�

Chin may have helped to open the door to the next phase of growth in the Nigerian entertainment industry without making so much noise. He insists that the country is beginning to record sold out concerts. “The capacity for us in Hard Rock is 800. For Maleek, we had some tables and we had normal. We had an allocation of 40 complimentary ticket for media and friends of the house; everybody else had to pay.

Maleek sold out for over 1000 people. We had to open the doors. At 800, we were very in line with our safety procedure. We keep track of the numbers. That is the capacity within the building. We had to open to the terrace outside. We had to stop selling tickets, at some point I don’t have any problem sharing that data because we have developed our own ticketing solution over the last three years. It is called Seat Gate. It is a B2B integrated ticketing solution based on the premise that instead of sending people to different locations to buy tickets, we are bringing the tickets to you. It is a central system where you can sell your ticket through multiple platforms. For the little time I have worked in the tech space in Nigeria, what I have realized is that people create solutions that do not solve Nigerian problems. They just replicate what people have done abroad. Transparency is the main thing. We are not assuming that everybody is online. We know that the market is still predominantly offline. We want to convert offline to online. For instance, Flytime used Seat Gate for ticketing its Wizkid and Tiwa shows in December. They were surprised that they sold many tickets online. It is a simple system. In four clicks, you have bought your ticket. It is customer driven. It is what the customers need. Ideally, I want

Okeke

us to be able to integrate into other ticketing solution companies. I told them no one of you can sell all my tickets, you do not have the capacity.�

The last quarter of last year, we did 20000 tickets, if you look at the total for 2017, it was 30000 tickets and that is not exclusive. All the physical and online tickets are validated through the same system. It eliminates fraud.

It eliminates copying of tickets. All that touting of tickets is gone. There are events where they have the capacity for 3500, you come to the show and have 4500. Somebody else has sold 1000 tickets, but the promoter is not going to see that money.�

There is a point when Chin got a bit agitated. The fire in him could not be contained anymore. He just let it all out in one fit of bombardment. “I don’t believe the Mckinsey Report. I don’t believe any of them for the billions of dollars they say it is worth. Show me the value! Show me where that billions of dollars in the entertainment is. Nobody knows because it is not consumer driven. The fact is that in the event industry, one person is always footing the bill, whether it is one senator, one governor, your aunty-weddings, one person will pay; whether it is a party, one person will pay, whether it is a concert. If you look at the numbers, you can do 20000 people at N5000.

What is the cost of the production? That is not too much money. Over the last five years, people have started buying tickets.

That is live entertainment. It is tickets, not sponsorship. The same people in Lagos go to every show. Entertainment is the same as every other business. They will pay for it if they feel like there is value.

I give you a perfect example, Live Nation, the largest live entertainment company in the world did USD1.2 billion in the first quarter of this year. Out of that amount, sponsorship was USD74 million, that is not even up to 10 per cent. The rest is tickets. We are far behind. But we have to build towards it. I believe things have changed.�

Like everybody else, Chin comes under pressure from family and friends to give them complimentary tickets. Part of his

response to that question delivered the most damning statement. I thought it was too extreme, but he was unapologetic. “They know I don’t give tickets. My fiancĂŠe buys tickets to my shows. If you have a fashion business, do you give your family free clothes? If you own a bank, do you give them free loan? It is a business! Why should there be any difference when it comes to events. The problem is if you are a promoter and you are begging people to come to your show, you are not creating value. Every time I see somebody say, ‘Gidi Fest happened and you did not invite me’. I say does BeyoncĂŠ invite you? You fly to America, you buy a ticket, you go to the show, and you don’t even see BeyoncĂŠ, why should I be any different? I have done the work of marketing it. There are 6000 other people I do not know who paid to come. Why is it any different with the people who are close to me? “If anything that should be the more reason for you to support my business. We are a generation of people who don’t add or want to pay for value. Everybody wants to do the smallest work for the most amount of money. Create value. Add value. Watch.

People will pay for it. If you own a restaurant, do you ask people to come and eat for free?

People struggle to understand the dynamics of business when it is not traditional. We have over 200 million people in this country.

This is the next growth market after India and Russia. China has already gone, which means in the next 15 or 20 years. We are not far off. “Since we started the ticketing business in the last five years, for Gidi Fest, we have doubled and tripled ticket sales. This is the fifth year for Gidi Fest. We are not yet at the point where ticket is going to drive the business, but just by the fact that we are able to sell tickets and people are buying, you can grow from there. But we have to be honest with how many we are selling. What is the pricing? Who are we selling it to? A lot of people approach marketing wrongly.

They use one size fits all. Same billboard.

Same television, it means you are speaking to same audience all the time. No. Get creative.�

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FOCUS

Ibeji Dazzles at Maiden Concert Nsebong Okon-Ekong

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he African Artists Foundation, Victoria Island Lagos, was filled to capacity as retro-contemporary afro music artist, Ibejii, dazzled the audience at his maiden headline concert, ‘The Ibejii Live Experience’ (TILX).

The concert, which was infused with cocktails created from the big bold flavours of premium scotch Johnnie Walker Black Label, brought together lovers of alternative music from across the diverse demography of Lagos society, in a serene atmosphere, where they were regaled by tunes that fused the old and the contemporary, delivered live by the crooning, mysterious and enigmatic lover man, Ibejii.

From his ensemble, to his music and style of delivery, concertgoers couldn’t get enough of the artist who, in only two years in the Nigerian music industry, has already distinguished his craft.

To add further to an already packed and extraordinary experience, renowned singer and composer, Brymo, made a surprise appearance in support of TILX. Ibejii and the ‘Ara’ crooner dazzled the audience as they jointly performed ‘Alaigboran’, a retro-track off Ibejii’s maiden album, GreenWhiteDope001.

Brymo’s show at #TILX was presumably return favour for Ibejii’s stellar performance at

Ibeji on stage

Brymo’s own jaw-dropping concert at Terra Kulture Lagos last December 2017, where a then freshly unveiled Ibejii held the huge concert audience spellbound with his sterling

performance as guest artiste.

Guests at TILX were also serenaded by the exceptional performances of alternative music artists, ‘Dwin the Stoic, Celeste Ojatula and the

hugely talented performer, Aduke.

Slim & Chika, the dance artists, warmed up the evening with their highly choreographed dance repertoire.

A Commune of Brothers Solomon Elusoji

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hen Olusegun Obasanjo arrived at the open field of the Cultural Centre in Mokola, Ibadan, the sun was already in full bloom.

The jeep that brought him was swarmed by bodies jostling to get a view of the man whose decisions have, arguably, shaped the trajectory of Nigerian history more than anyone else.

Owu royal fathers, many of who had travelled from distant corners of the country to attend the 26th annual Owu National Convention, also stood from their seats to welcome the one-time military general. The music of drums rent the air and the arena was flooded with enthusiasm like a river.

The Owus have a special place in the Yoruba race, an ethnic group mostly found in south-western Nigeria. History has it that the first king of Owu Kingdom, Ajibosin, was one of the grandson of Oduduwa. As an infant, he once put on his grandfather’s crown and when it was removed, he wept continually until the crown was placed back on his head. “His mother was later told to keep the crown for the son as he seemed so anxious to have it,� Lola Tomori wrote in his book, ‘The Owu Factor in the History of Ibadanland’. Hence, Ajibosin was nicknamed “Asunkungbade�, he that cries to take the crown.

Although the original homestead of the Owu Kinngdom is disputed, in the 19th century, it was very prominent alongside the old Oyo empire. However, its wars with the latter broke up the Kingdom and set the stage for the migration of its people to distant lands, a phenomenon which has led scholars to compare and juxtapose the Owus with the Jews.

Today, the Owus can be found in various settlements, from Ogun to Oyo states and even outside Nigerian territory. Each settlement, usually, is headed by a King or under the supervision of a Mogaji. Every year, the people, led by their kings, hold an itinerant convention to rub minds together. In 2017, it was Ibadan. “This is an annual event in which people of Owu origin come together to discuss about their origin, their various challenges in their

Obasanjo with some of the Owu Kings at the 2017 convention

various locations and the way forward for progress and development,� one of the most prominent royal fathers of today’s Owu Society, the Olowu of Owu-Ijebu, Oba Segun Adesina told THISDAY at the 2017 convention. “It’s a well thought out activity of the Owu people because they come from at least 50 settlements; and these settlements are not limited to one state or region, and even cut across national boundaries. So this is a welcome association of brothers who come together to discuss their ancestry.�

However Oba Adesina noted that, going forward, the Owu people need to do more help each other. “We need to do more for our people wherever they are, especially when we find ourselves in positions of political authority,� he said. “We are not saying they should be partial, but where our people have excelled, they should not be deprived of the opportunity.�

The royal father also said the Ibadan edition had been a success with the help of OwuIjebu delegation, who have made invaluable contributions to the process. “We have made positive contributions to the Oba Council meeting which were well appreciated,� he said. “And our members at the council are doing very well, which makes us very proud.�

An Owu son and Otuba Atunluse of Owu-

Ijebu, Otuba Femi Adewunmi also spoke to THISDAY, reiterating that “Owu descendants are all from the same eventual lineage with shared common interest, so we must be our brother’s keeper.�

He also said he would like to see his people become a “strong pressure group to ensure advancement of all Owu communities – starting from my own stronghold, Owu-Ijebu.�

The finale of the 2017 convention was opened by the Head of Owu People in Ibadan, Teslim Abiodun Olugbode. In his welcome address, he noted that the convention made it 20 years when Ibadan had previously hosted the Owu community. He then called on all Owu indigenes, home and abroad, to strive for growth and development of the “great� Owu Kingdom. “As we all know, we require unity and togetherness to defend the legacy handed over to us by our ancestors,� he said. “We must work together for its development and the time is now.�

But the highlight of the day was when Obasanjo took to the stage, as the crowd hobbled around the podium, waiting to listen to Owu’s number one citizen.

It is not amiss to argue that the Owu convention would not have existed without Obasanjo. The idea for an umbrella body for

Owu people, the Royal Union of Owu People (ROUP), the brains behind the convention, originated from the late Chief Akin Olugbade, the then Balogun of Owu Kingdom in Abeokuta. He had a vision that after the war of 1821-1826 which caused the dispersal of Owu people from their homestead, efforts should be made to get them back together. He Identified some Owu sons and daughters under the chairmanship of Chief Afolabi Fadairo who was then the Oganla of Owu Abeokuta and they converged at a dinner in Gateway Hotel, Abeokuta, in 1986. But, after that dinner, not much was heard about it.

However, sometimes in 1992, Obasanjo invited some Owu sons to a lunch at his Otta Farm. There, he raised many pertinent issues concerning Owu People. Obasanjo said that one of the great achievements of Chief Olugbade was his attempt to unify the Owu People and that he would not like the idea to die.

At that lunch, which was attended by Owu leaders such as Dr Onaolapo Soleye, Prince Bola Ajibola, Bashorun Doja Adewolu, Alhaji M.Ola Yusuf and Arc Wale Adisa Odeleye, another tentative meeting was arranged.

Alhaji Yusuf took up the challenge to move round the Owu settlements and carry out the plan to bring the Owu People under one umbrella. He was supported by Some Prominent Owu Sons like The late Olusoji Idowu, Alhaji Adisa Adewolu, Alhaji Agboke, Alhaji Ganiyu Egbeyemi, Alhaji Tajudeen Egbeyemi, Baba Olede, Chief Femi Oketokun among others.

The Grand Finale of the Establishment of this Union was held in 1992 at General Olusegun Obasanjo’s House, Ita-Eko, Abeokuta. Many distinguished Owu Sons and Daughters all over the world present.

These include Hon. Justice Fakayode of blessed memory, Chief Omololu Olunloyo, Chief Duro Oluyemi, Prince Gbogboade, Prince A. Adewara, Prof. Joseph Mokuolu, Prof. Alani Fabunmi, Dr Onaolapo Soleye, Bashorun Doja Adewolu, Barrister Adisa Adewolu, Chief Mrs Adepate Ojesina, Chief Mrs Gbogboade, Chief Akin Ogunpola, Hon Gbolahan Ijaola.

(See concluding part on www.thisdaylive.com)

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ON THE COUCH

Iniobong Obinna-Onunkwo’s Uphill Task to Salvage Nigerian Culture Funke Olaode

What inspired you to start the Heritage Education forYouth?

My father is a diplomat and I moved around with him a lot. When you travel, you see monuments and edifices commemorating events that happened in those countries.

We don’t have such in Nigeria and I’m wondering how do you educate Nigerian children? The youths are not grounded in culture. Our culture is fast eroding as children can’t speak their languages. When I’m expressing myself, I do that first as a Nigerian and then as an African.

Coming back home, I thought I should do something to salvage the situation. How do we collate all these and let young people know we have a history and that we have an identity?

How do you convince the Nigerian child to embrace all things Nigerian?

There are so many things we plan to address with this campaign. Our objective is to educate and empower.

In this regard, parents will have a lot to do to change that perception.

I started off wanting my children

on Ogbunike cave in Anambra state just to show that something like this exists. When we talk about tourists places in this country, I’m not impressed. In other lands, they build shrines, people come and pay money to go see it and take photographs. Our own mini shrine is the Ogbunike cave. Why have they not set up hotels and mini markets around it? We got there and the whole place looked dead. But when we toured the place, it was fun.

to speak proper English. I realised that when we travel and I want to say something to my kids privately, I can’t. You see Arabs, Indians, they all speak their language. Your language becomes a thing of pride when you are outside Nigeria.

I think we should do a proper reorientation and embrace what we have. We did a short documentary

How do you hope to finance this?

I need a lot of help and support from people who truly believe that our culture is eroding. I’m just a lone voice trying to call us back to our heritage. Where are those places that remind us of our history? I think it is time for us to begin to appreciate and celebrate our culture.

At what stage did you develop passion for fashion particularly for children?

As a designer, I specialise in children’s clothes and I have done a couple of shows. When I get young models to wear my designs during shows, after the show, they don’t want to take it off. We need to build

Overscenes‌Happenings Around the Diaspora

the confidence of our children that they can wear Afrocentric clothes and still look good.

As a designer and culture advocate, what outfit projects our culture better?

It is the Ankara. There is something about Ankara and a denim. When they wear that simple up and down outfit in Ankara and you travel, people look at you like an African prince or a senator. You don’t look ordinary and people want to associate with you.

Cultures of the world really project what you trying to promote now?

The Arabs. I like their simple white regalia and the way the women dress. I like their kaftans, the designs and the hijab.

And for language?

I think the Yorubas are better with their language than any other tribe.

Every where they go, they speak their language and see what they have done with ‘aso ebi’ in Nigeria.

That culture has been exported to other tribes in this country and even abroad. Non-Yorubas where ‘aso oke’ and look happy in it. with LEKAN FATODU 08060140882

Watch out! Children Schooling Abroad Go! Germany Tightens Immigration May Be Getting High on Codeine, Others r5P SFQBUSJBUF /JHFSJBO NJHSBOUT

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resently the Nigerian authority is waging a spirited war against the abuse of codeine epidemic and other drugs and substances in the country.

This war, which many opine should have been fought long ago by the Nigerian government, sees the regulatory bodies and law enforcement agencies clamping down on makers and importers of medicine with codeine content. And we owe the whole governmental action to a recent BBC documentary that highlighted the danger of the abuse of codeine-containing syrup by mostly the youths across Nigeria.

Codeine is a substance used in treating pain and cough. But it’s also been discovered it can produce euphoric feeling when consumed excessively. Hence the abuse of cough syrup containing codeine among the youths to get high.

The abusive use of the substance by both male and female in the country is reported to be adversely affecting the behaviour of many youths across the country, the north especially where it’s been confirmed to be rampant and has taken control of a lot of citizens’ lives.

Meanwhile, to think the abuse of codeine and other dangerous drugs is limited to Nigerians living in Nigeria is to be grossly mistaken.

And this is where parents who send their wards to different countries abroad to study need to be more vigilant, particularly on the activities of their children who are far away from home.

Reports have indicated that many students who are studying in some of the best higher institutions in neighbouring African cities like Cotonou and Accra are also getting quite obsessed with the consumption of codeine and other harmful substances.

Similarly, their contemporaries who are sent by parents with huge sums to universities in Europe and North America are equally hooked on the bad trend. In fact, many Nigerian students in schools in the UK, America and Canada are said to be fond of cocaine and similar hard drugs.

Indeed, this must be a frightening wake up call for the parents; and very importantly, a moment to be more watchful and interested in the affairs of their children who are left to study in foreign lands.

ometimes ago it was Canada that was calling on the US embassy in Nigeria to toughen its visa rules to prevent some Nigerians from using a US visa after arriving in America to cross to Canada. Now, the Germans seem to be saying their country is too small to take more immigrants; and that some immigrants need to go.

As such, some top German officials have been calling for stricter immigration policies that would deter foreigners, nonEU citizens particularly, from accessing the country. Already, many Nigerians living in Germany have been observing some curious developments; and plans for more difficult changes any time soon which would make staying in the country far tricky and obtaining visa into Germany really onerous.

Meanwhile, nothing validates this unsettling development more than the comment made

by Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Geoffrey Onyeama, on Germany’s new repatriation process while receiving a delegation of the German government led by the security adviser to the German President, Dr. Jack Hecker. “They don’t have enough faith and confidence in the process that we have at the moment for the repatriation process. They want to propose a completely new process

of repatriation, known as Return and Readmission,� he said.

He further said that in the last two years only about 200 Nigerians had returned to the country out of about 30,000. �Germans were not happy that the system we have in place at the moment is certainly not working to their satisfaction,� he said.

According to him, the new process essentially entails that once all legal processes have been exhausted, Nigeria should trust them (Germany), to make the right decisions on who should be repatriated.

He added that once the decision was taken, Germany would bring the affected persons to Nigeria without the involvement of Nigeria’s mission in Germany. “They will bring them here to Nigeria and say we have gone through a process in Germany; these people are your nationals, they have exhausted all the legal processes, please take them. And it will be here on Nigeria territory that any possibility will then exist to say maybe that one is not or this one is not.

Onyeama, while describing the proposed process as a complete transformation of the current process, noted that Germany, aside from issuing travel documents to those to be repatriated, would also be responsible for their travels.

How Sola Fola-Alade Draws Visiting Nigerians to His New London Church

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t’s no longer news that the medical-doctor-turnedpastor, Dr. Sola Fola-Alade, has left the Trinity Chapel, a branch of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, which he led for over a decade and built to become one of the most attended Nigerian churches in London.

What is rather fresh is his establishment of a new church called The Liberty Church.And the new worship center is also gradually becoming a major attraction to many Nigerians and people of different nationals seeking a better place to grow in faith in the UK. Thus, and unsurprisingly, the charismatic preacher

has started welcoming good number of worshippers to the new church. And his sermons, which are said to be captivating and reassuring, are serving to reinforce positive beliefs.

Meanwhile, the knowledgeable preacher, also an author of several books on Christian life, leadership and business, is clearly looking beyond the London crowd as the only individuals deserving of powerful messages from the pulpit.

So, right from Nigeria, Fola-Alade has been deploying different creative means to draw more Christian faithful particularly Nigerians who are visiting or seeking to

live in London to his church programmes.

First, it was some beautifully designed banners with boldly written inscriptions about the church targeting Nigerian travellers to London that donned the lampposts of some major roads in Victoria Island, Lagos.

As a follow up, the UK-based pastor held some special services in Lagos which had popular speakers and Christian singers in attendance and also used the opportunity to inform the crowd on the far exhilarating and fulfilling moments that await them at his base in London.

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High Life

͎͎͜;ʹ͜͜ͳ;ͳͰ

...Amazing lifestyles of Nigeria’s rich and famous

Mummy Dearest...Governor Akinwunmi Ambode Celebrates Mother at 85

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he has gone through the motions of life with equanimity and grace.

Through the shrill clang of trials and pain, she emerged victorious as the roughhewn ore returns finer, like burnished steel from a steel forge. Thus as you read, Madam Christianah Ambode, the mother of Governor Akinwunmi Ambode, evolves as worthy inspiration to generations of family and friends alike. Some days ago, her son, the governor of Lagos State and his siblings threw a classy party at the Haven, GRA Ikeja, to celebrate as she clocked 85.

Mama is no doubt a pillar of trust, hope, compassion and support to everyone around her, particularly her family members. She never shies from giving them crucial and beneficial moral support in the most trying and pleasant moments. She is undoubtedly their guiding light through the wilderness of life and their interminable gust of calming wind on life’s stormy seas.

Expectedly, the guests were top politicians, businessmen and high net-worth dignitaries, thronged the venue in a circus of conformity. The event was indeed a memorable one; political associates, friends and family members of the Ambodes deserted the humdrum of their daily lives to celebrate with one of their own.

PAT AJUDUA RESURFACES The ignominy of what has befallen her husband in the last couple of years is enough to make any woman recoil permanently into a countryside cocoon where she would be far from civilization and any reminder of the past. Barrister Pat is the wife of alleged advance fee fraud kingpin, Fred Ajudua, who has been in detention for allegedly defrauding former Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Ishaya Bamaiyi of about $5.9m.

Despite all these travails, his wife, the mother of his only son, Bobo, has been thriving politically back in Delta State where she was, until

Gov Akinwunmi Ambode with celebrant, Madam Christianah Ambode, and wife, Bolanle

The celebrant’s heart of course was full of enchanting song. It pulsated pleasantly at the outward show of care and zealous love she encountered by the people. She could not help but lose the breath in her lungs momentarily. As the recently, minority leader in the House of Assembly. For a woman who held the social scene by the jugular, literally, Pat’s relocation to Delta State was not unexpected given Fred’s constant brushes with the law. In her husband’s heydays, the University of Lagos law graduate rocked the chic scene like she would never age. With so much money at her beck and call, she was the quintessential fashionista with so much to spend on the latest accessories and enjoyed a cheerleader followership among women who aspired to be like her. In the last couple of years, not much had been heard about Pat except those who keenly followed Delta State politics until she was sighted at a highbrow event in Lagos recently. Without the fanfare that always trailed her back in the days, Pat was almost anonymous except for a few people who recognized her and came to say hi or express their sympathy for her husband whose bail application on the grounds of ill health was turned down by the court recently.

LOST IN TRANSITION‌THE TITANS WHO BURNT OUT

Ëž ËŞ

Pat Ajudua

They are yesterday’s titans, men who piloted the trend when it was hip to be titan. But like all things mortal, their fortunes and name impaired to the ravage of unforgiving time. All that is left of them is the

night fell, the fireflies danced and twinkled with grace above the crew cut hedges of colourful flowers, yet nature stymied in shame and jealousy at the marvellous beauty of the love and loyalty shown to Mama by her children and loved ones, especially common dross that is always left of yesterday. Notwithstanding their apparent retreat into oblivion, they will be remembered as the pack that stood out of the island in-crowd.

They rocked Victoria Island, Ikoyi and Lekki in their boom time. Some of them ran night clubs, some ran fashion outfits and some were widely acknowledged as businessmen. Yet there were a few that didn’t have visible source of income, yet they were considered rich and jolly good men. They were close to the best babes and they rode the best cars that time. We are talking about Murphy Okojie, the owner Murphis Plaza, Biola Adegoke of Grotto, Solomon Arueya of Westside CDs opposite Oceanview Restaurant back then, Kennedy Alogaga of Luomo, Ojukwu of Wardrobe, Nasir Ado Ibrahim of Club Towers, and many more. Some of the guys have gone ultra-low profile way before the onset of the recession. Call it the wisdom of the streets.

WILL IBUKUN OSIFO EVER REMARRY? Six years after she tragically lost her husband, life for Ibukun Osifo, has remained a clouded landscape.

Ibukun’s husband, Osaze, was until his death in 2012, the managing director of FBN Capital, a subsidiary of First Bank of Nigeria PLC. Regarded as a brilliant financial adviser with a robust banking

the governor. It no doubt warmed the cockles of the host, Governor Ambode’s, heart to see dignitaries at the event smack their lips in pleasure as they devoured the sumptuous meals and drinks offered to them at the high-octane party.

Ibukun Osifo career, Osaze died in his sleep at the Transcorp Hotel, Abuja while on official assignment. He was just 45.

Ibukun was 44 then. Understandably, there is no longer poetry in her soul.

A part of her left with Osaze. Their two children, Adesuwa and Ehioze, are now her only source of joy, her constant companion during dark, lonely nights. Ibukun has shut her heart to any external intrusion. Now 49, Ibukun’s youthful beauty is still a pull for men and a muse for their poetic inclinations. But getting her to sit to listen to sugar-coated, kneeweakening rhapsodies from eager men has been as hard as convincing her to go out on a date. For her, the

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Bliss Activated...Top Socialites Party with Sir Shina Peters at 60 Ëž Ă–Ă‹Ă—Ă™Ă&#x;Ăœ Ă™Ă˜ ĂšĂ‹ĂœĂ‹ĂŽĂ? Ă‹Ă? Ă’Ă“Ă‘Ă’ Ă?Ă™Ă?Ă“Ă?Þã Ă?Ă?Ă–Ă?ĂŒĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ?Ă? Ă‹Ă?ĂœĂ™Ă”Ă&#x;Ă”Ă&#x; Ă—Ă‹Ă?Ă?ĂžĂœĂ™

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oy spreads like dandelions in full blossom, across the pastures of Sir Shina Peters. Ecstasy nestles in his heart; it flits astride his world, impregnating it with cheer and unrestrained gratitude for a life well spent. There is melody in the life of Sir Shina Peters. The progenitor of Afrojuju music genre attains the wonderful milestone of 60 with the shriek champions make at that point when their chests meet with the victory tape.

Even though the Afrojuju maestro may be past his prime, his lyricism and exploits remain worthy cornerstone of the Nigerian music industry. Shina is no doubt an accomplished artiste by whose exploits and under whose tutelage generations of ambitious musicians may yet prosper.

Realising the significance of his new age, Shina threw a lavish party in Lagos. It was a star-studded event last Wednesday, at the prestigious Federal Palace Hotel in Victoria Island, Lagos. In appreciation, Shina beamed with smiles and

heartily hobnobbed with dignitaries and friends at his star-studded birthday.

As the woofers belted out familiar, evergreen tunes, their hair stood on end and they tipped over in merriment - their joy spilling from their souls into the air and sky high. Enthralled, the guests moved in gaiety, tap dancing and swaying to the beat as if they meant to enact a madhouse jamboree with the tenacity and agility of veteran dance and music buffs. Shina’s birthday was no doubt a convergence zone for the high and mighty from different parts of the country. Guests at the party were treated to the choicest liquor and sumptuous meals made by the finest caterers.

You couldn’t have forgotten so soon how Shina brought together a new group of what we called yuppies in town, Aliko Dangote, Femi Otedola, Mohammed Gobir, Lanre Tejuoso, Segun Awolowo, Ayo Subair, Wale Otubanjo, Hosa Okunbo, Rotimi George-Taylor and many others. It was unlimited fun at the popular hangout in Stadium Hotel, Surulere, Lagos, back then.

only things deserving of her attention are her business, her husband’s foundation and her kids.

WILL CAROLINE DANJUMA FIND REPLACEMENT FOR TAGBO? Since Caroline Danjuma, former video vixen, spasmodic actress and estranged wife of Barrister Musa Danjuma, declared that her marriage to the money man was done and dusted, and that she was indeed dating late Tagbo Emeike, she has become the toast of many young men who believe she is within their reach after all. They didn’t come to this conclusion overnight; there is a background to the story.

Tagbo, a close friend of music star, Davido, died after a binge-gonewrong, Tuesday, October 3rd, 2017.

Incidentally, the day was his birthday.

As the story goes, Tagbo and Davido and other members of their posse had gone to a bar in Lekki, Lagos, to have fun. It was a public holiday and the following day was Tagbo’s

Caroline Danjuma

Sir Shina Peters

birthday. So, there was cause to let their hairs down in the way rich kids know how best to. Tequila was for starters and there was a N200, 000 bet on Tagbo drinking some rounds. In a viral video, a member of the crew could distinctly be heard telling the deceased ‘Tagbo, you no get body o’, translated to mean “Don’t drink much, you know you are lightheaded.’ Paying no heed to the concerned friend, Tagbo was, also, distinctly heard replying how much he would get if he gulped the Tequila. In yet another video, released this time by Davido to prove his innocence in Tagbo’s eventual death, Tagbo was seen swaying and flailing drunkenly while pushing everybody in his path. He was said to have been locked in his car where he passed out. The following morning, Caroline took to her Instagram account to call out Davido, asking him about the circumstances surrounding Tagbo’s death only stopping short of calling him the murderer. Caroline later took down the post but maintained that she wanted to know how the otherwise pale-looking Tagbo died. Caroline’s vehemence was what prompted posers as to her relationship with the deceased. She would confess, in an interview with a blogger, that she was indeed dating Tagbo. A couple of respondents went as far as alleging that she was seeing Tagbo before leaving Musa. The mother of three, however, denied he was the father of her last child, a girl. “I met Tagbo when I was legally divorced and out of my ex’ house to start a new life.

My daughter is three years old and I only met Tagbo last year, so it’s not possible that Tagbo is the father of Elizabeth,� she said. Since this confession, the half-caste beauty has been the target of many young boys

who feel that if she could have dated Tagbo, then, they stand a chance with her. And she has equally been receptive of the newfound attention by posting pictures of her droolworthy derriere on Instagram.

ALEX COLE: THE ULTIMATE ROCKER! Alex Cole is the younger brother of Tonye Cole, the MD/CEO of Sahara Energy, one of Nigeria’s foremost oil and gas companies.

Of course, he is also Ambassador Patrick Dele-Cole’s son. And he is a thoroughbred with sound education like all the Coles. But that is where the similarities end.

Unlike his easy-going billionaire brother, Alex is a man-about-town; a jolly good fellow who comes across as having no worries in life. Every day for him is Christmas, or, at least a day to celebrate with rounds and rounds of expensive drinks. A night crawler par excellence, Alex is a force on the social fixture of Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory.

Though an executive director in his brother ’s Energy Group where he serves as Managing Director of Sahara Trade, sobriety is reportedly not in his lexicon. His affinity with cognac and other expensive alcoholic drinks is well known, so bad that he reportedly goes to the office straight from the club as he always has a change of clothe in the trunk of any of his choice cars. A heavy spender, he has Abuja girls drinking from his generous palm. And they swarm round him like bees to honey.

When he clocked 40 last year, Abuja almost choked on his alcohol-fuelled party. And he has been like that for years, says his friends. No amount of family meetings can make him have a rethink about his lifestyle. And there is little any one can do because he

seems far too gone in his ways.

FORMER GOVERNOR GODSWILL AKPABIO’S WIFE, UNOMA, AND HER REGULAR GERMAN TRIPS If her recent close shave with death was nature’s way of warning Unoma Akpabio, wife of the former governor of Akwa Ibom State and Senate Minority Leader, Godswill Akpabio, about the transience of life, she has seen the light. And the darkskinned beauty has further hearkened to her doctor ’s advice to slow down considerably with her social and other such physically demanding activities.

That is why she is no longer a sight at society functions in Lagos, Abuja or Uyo where her very wealthy husband held sway as governor for eight uninterrupted years. Hardly does she even visit her native Enugu State.

These days, the 46-year-old former First Lady concentrates more on her kids and businesses while making regular visits to Germany where she was successfully operated on last year.

Unoma Akpabio

T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R Ëž ÍąËœ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍś

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HIGHLIFE

Before We Crucify Femi Gbajabiamila‌

I

t wouldn’t be hyperbolic to say that Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila suers the brute end of hasty generalisation. No thanks to a piece of information that he doled out a whooping N50 million, to purchase a Mercedes Benz G-Wagon for his wife, Salamatu, as a gift on her 50th anniversary, the lawmaker has become the butt of nasty jabs and ripostes, across new and traditional media.

In the corrupted currents of criticisms and wild oensives trailing his aectionate treat to his wife, the legislator representing Surulere 1 Lagos Constituency, at the Federal House of Representatives, is ummoxed at the turn of events.

While it is worthy of note that Gbajabiamila suers a curious case of misdirected angst, this is not to launder the image of the House Leader, but to assert the ďŹ delity and stoic perseverance of genius within the footholds of power and politics.

There seems to be a general consensus in the court of public opinion that Gbajabiamila goofed in presenting his wife such an expensive gift on her golden jubilee, at a period when the economy has just been barely pulled out of recession and his religion, Islam, expects him to be ascetic.

Such train of thought however, fails to take cognizance of the lawmaker’s noble exploits and antecedents as patriot-democrat and a man of the people.

Critics of Gbajabiamila will do right to acknowledge that his salaried income of over 15 years puts him in good stead to make such acquisition in honour of his wife. What lawmakers earn is another matter but the fact remains that such gift is very aordable to a man in Gbajabiamila’s position.

The four-time House of Representatives member has reacted in his quest to set the It would be recalled that in the wake of widespread rumours that Unoma had passed on, her husband was forced to declare, “During the cause of my wife having our children, she had caesarean child deliveries. Well, what we didn’t know was that for some reason, there was a devastating surgical error. In sewing back my wife’s womb, some surgeon sewed up her bowels to her skin. Not just in one place but in several places. My wife took ill. During investigation, doctors discovered this surgical blunder.

We were all shocked, including the doctors.� The corrective operation was done last year successfully and Unoma is back on her feet but not to her former life of frenetic activities.

WHY DAPO ABIODUN BOUGHT OVER JIMOH IBRAHIM’S FUEL STATIONS Dapo Abiodun, billionaire

records straight and disabuse the public mind against the notion created by the deliberately skewed news.

Gbajabiamila, whom many have acknowledged as one of the shinning lights of the 8th National Assembly and one of the most meticulous and committed legislators in Nigeria on the basis of his robust representation and ever-present empowerment programmes whose beneďŹ ciaries extend beyond his Surulere 1 Federal Constituency, took out time to render his stewardship on the one hand, and how he had been saving towards the event in appreciation of a wife who has been his loyal friend and stood by him through thick and thin.

According to the Majority Leader of the House of Representatives, the birthday celebration was not an impromptu event but one that had been anticipated and planned for over a couple of years, to convey his gratitude to a wife who has weathered all kinds of storm with him. “I could never have been half the man I am today without her support and unbelievable understanding. Truly, the monetary value of any gift real or imagined, pales in signiďŹ cance when I consider how much of a ‘rock and pillar’ she has been to me‌(it was) an expression of deep appreciation and love for my wife of almost 30 years, rather than one of amboyance,â€? Gbajabiamila said.

He explained that he was not unmindful of the pervasive poverty bedevilling the country, and especially the need to be conservative and ascetic in the month of Ramadan. He took these into consideration and decided to make the matter a private family aair witnessed by relatives and friends in moderate numbers.

Ordinarily, that kind of event would have attracted the crème de la crème due to Gbajabiamila’s clout and political network magnate, has given the breath of life to Jimoh Ibrahim’s comatose enterprise. Like the gust of breeze that ignites dying embers and cold hearths, the Heyden Oil boss is resuscitating Jimoh’s moribund petrol stations enterprise. He is doing so by buying up Jimoh’s dilapidated fuel stations; he has acquired Jimoh’s fuel stations till date. While Jimoh has been pawning off his oil assets, Dapo has been committing good money and resources to his peer ’s troubled stations in order to rescue him on one hand and actualize his kerosene and Premium Methylated Spirit (PMS) commercial enterprise on the other hand. Dapo intends to go full blast into the business hence his decision to buy up Jimoh Ibrahim’s failed fuel stations. Dapo started Heyden Petroleum Limited (HPL) as an independent Oil Trading Company (OTC) in Nigeria and in the United Kingdom on October 30, 2001. Its trading activities range from refined white products to semi-refined black products.

Heyden Petroleum also explores its formidable network structure to access and expand business relationships wherever profitable and feasible while promoting and sustaining professionalism. HPL is actively involved in the trading and distribution of Automotive Gas Oil, Diesel, Fuel Oils, Bitumen, Crude and some intermediate components within and outside Nigeria.

NIGERIAN GIRLS TURN DUBAI INTO PROSTITUTION DESTINATION Dapo Abiodun

Gradually, young Nigerian girls have found a haven for prostitution in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates.

Femi Gbajabiamila and wife, Salamatu

but he chose to make it a private aair, in sensitivity to social and economic realities of his immediate environment. Just one image and‌boom! The lawmaker’s act of love was misconstrued as a agrant insensitivity and disregard to his people’s plight. Such a stickler for robust legislative deeds and Being a tourist destination with an endless influx of visitors from all over the world, these desperate young ladies now find it more lucrative plying their ware in Dubai.

So commonplace have Nigerian prostitutes become that everywhere you turn, they swarm round you.

At the upscale restaurant and club, Kiza, these girls have a means by which they know when a new person just comes to town. Kiza is Dubai’s first African-fusion restaurant offering a wide range of authentic Africa cuisines. The ambience is chic and appealing and it is always the first port of call when you want to enjoy good home food in Dubai.

So, with this knowledge, Nigerian girls always throng the place from morning till Kiza closes shop.

Meanwhile, apart from the ease of connecting Dubai from Nigeria, another attraction for the girls is that visas are also fast-tracked here. A visit to the bar before was somewhat an experience and what was seen is better imagined. Nicely stacked ladies with the morals of alley cats whistling at men, overdressed and over made-up babes playing at hookers. Skimpily clad nubile creatures who‘ll give a vicar impish ideas and brings hot tears to eunuch’s eyes, itsy-bitsy beauties, sex sirens and vixens, shapes and curves mobile -literatures and babes displaying sheer attitude, you name it, Steam bar had the cream.

responsibilities couldn’t have been apathetic to prevalent realities.

Perhaps he should have been mindful of being misunderstood in his need to celebrate his virtuous wife. Discretion is the better part of valour and Gbajabiamila has certainly learnt the hard way. loving businessman and Chief Executive Officer of defunct Frontage Satellite Television (FSTV) first came into reckoning during the early days of the launch of his FSTV dishes, which he claimed then would soon become the number one payper-view bouquet. The next Nigerian heard was that his major competitor, DSTV, was doing everything possible to muscle him out of the business.

He didn’t reckon with the fact that like in war, all is fair. Over the years, Famuyibo has become more popular for his governorship ambition, which has seen him contesting for the Ekiti State governorship seat trice.

Many thought this year would have been his lucky year. That laughable gimmick was soon forgotten as more grounded candidates emerged and not even a whimper has been heard from Famuyibo.

WHERE IS OTUNBA REUBEN FAMUYIBO? Now that the political season is here especially in Ekiti State, perennial governorship aspirant, Otunba Reuben Famuyibo, has gone AWOL yet again. The attention-

Reuben Famuyibo

ARTS & REVIEW A

THE MYSTERY MAN BEHIND IBEJII PAGE 63

PUBLICATION

03.06.2018

A DECADE AFTER, ARTHOUSE REMAINS THE CATALYST...

An exhibition organised by Arthouse-The Space

EDITOR OKECHUKWU UWAEZUOKE/ okechukwu.uwaezuoke@thisdaylive.com

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JUNE ͱ˜ ͰͮͯͶ ˾ THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER

ARTS & REVIEW\\AUCTION

A DECADE AFTER, ARTHOUSE REMAINS THE CATALYST...

As Arthouse Contemporary Limited holds its 20th Auction of Modern and Contemporary Art in Lagos tomorrow and celebrates a decade of revolutionising the local Nigerian art scene. Okechukwu Uwaezuoke reports

B

lank walls, everywhere in the newly-built house, stared back at the occupants. It was as though they were begging to be filled up. That was when it dawned on Kavita Chellaram – an aficionado of Indian art – to adorn them with a lot of the art works brought along by her family to Nigeria.

But shortly after an auction held in India, the value of these works astronomically appreciated. Taking some of the works to the auction confirmed this fact. One thing led to the other before the penny dropped: she could replicate the auction here in Nigeria!

Back then, the Lagos art scene – though awash with talents – was benumbed by a fog of delusion. And because the pricing of the works were arbitrarily pegged, the artists really bargained hard with the handful of existing collectors to make what they thought were reasonable sales. Even then, getting these collectors to part with their hard-earned money was a daunting task. For they ultimately fixed the prices and the artists had to be content with whatever they were offered.

This scenario not only made the creation of a platform to showcase African art to the international scene imperative, but also inspired her to help make the contemporary Nigerian art scene more transparent.

So, Mrs Chellaram set to work. Soon, the babel of local artistic expressions that initially assailed her sensibilities began to resolve themselves into some form of coherence. Thus, her initial collection – consisting of two bead paintings by Twin Seven Seven of the informal Osogbo School fame – were acquired in 1977 and 1978. These were over the years gradually joined by more works by Nigerian artists. The process of acquisition, it turned out, was an arduous one since they were no standard galleries, internet or telephones. Also because their was a dearth of documentation on the artists, assessing art works and artists proved even tougher.

Fast-forward to April 2008, when the inaugural auction of her Arthouse Contemporary Limited was held at the Civic Centre in the Victoria Island neighbourhood of Lagos. She recalls selling a Ben Enwonwu for N1.5 million, which in those days was still a lot of money. She also reckons that the same work would, today, probably go for N20 million.

Meanwhile, the groundwork for that auction had seen her pay visits to artists in their studios and even meet with dealers to find old works.

Prior to all that, Mrs Chellaram had taken a coterie of Nigerian artists to India for a charity auction. That would probably explain why charity auctions consistently featured in the biannual Arthouse Contemporary Limited auctions.

Meanwhile, the Lagos-based international auction house’s 20th Auction of Modern and Contemporary Art holds tomorrow (Monday, June 4) from 6 pm at the Kia Showroom, along the upmarket Victoria Island neighbourhood’s arterial thoroughfare Adeola Odeku Street. This auction also marks the 10th year anniversary of its auctions.

Founded sometime in late 2007, this laudable endeavour set up by Mrs Chellaram focuses mainly on modern and contemporary art from West Africa. In the course of its decade-long existence, it has also featured a handful works

by East African artists alongside others in its past auctions. Leveraging on the recent performance of African art in the global art scene, tomorrow’s auction features such already acknowledged masters and leading contemporary artists as Ben Enwonwu, Bruce Onobrakpeya, Ben Osawe,

Kavita Chellaram

An Arthouse Contemporary Limited auction in session

Kolade Oshinowo, Ablade Glover, Chuks Anyanwu, David Dale, Ato Delaquis, Mavua Lessor, Uzo Egonu, Obi Enkwenchi, Okpu Eze, Lamidi Fakeye, Amos Odion, Abiodun Olaku, Muraina Oyelami, Jacob Afolabi, Susanne Wenger and Sam Ovraiti, who are easily the sub-region’s most celebrated.

Specifically, this edition features over 20 works culled from the collection of a prominent art collector.

These works include works by Ben Enwonwu, Tayo Adenaike, David Dale, Okpu Eze, Abayomi Barber, Jimoh Buraimoh, Solomon Wangboje, Abiodun Olaku, Dele Jegede, Ben Osawe, Kolade Oshinowo, Bruce Onobrakpeya, Sam Ovraiti, Twins Seven Seven, Simon Okeke, Obiora Udechukwu and Ben Osaghae.

Also among the front-line contemporary artists to be featured in the auction are El Anatsui, Peju Alatise, Rom Isichei, Sokari Douglas Camp, Ndidi Emefiele, Lemi Ghariokwu, Alimi Adewale, Duke Asidere, Chike Obeagu, Uche Okpa-Iroha, Oluseye/Lakin Ogunbanwo, Ade Adekola and Michael Soi. For the auction’s charity segment, four lots from Gerald Chukwuma, Lemi Ghariokwu, Reuben Ugbine, and Uchay Joel Chima will be featured. The proceeds from this segment will be used to support the Arthouse Foundation, which runs a non-profit artists’ residency programme in Lagos.

Already, works for tomorrow’s auction have been

on display at the Kia Showroom venue since Saturday, June 2, between 11 am and 6 pm and today, (Sunday, June 3), between 12 noon and 6 pm.

They will also be on display tomorrow, between 10 am and 1 pm.

As for the auction itself, it will as usual be led by the English-born auctioneer, John Dabney, who has been part of the biannual event from inception, and is being sponsored by Access Bank, Kia Motors, Veuve Clicquot, 7UP, Le Connaisseur, and Shiro, alongside its official media partner The Guardian. It is also being supported by Channels and Studio 53.

Besides its biannual auctions, the Arthouse Contemporary Limited also organises a series affordable auctions, which entered its third edition early this year. The auction, which targets young professionals and first time buyers, is part of its endeavour to build a new group of collectors for the rapidly growing local art market.

Right from its inception, the auction house has pioneered the promotion and development of the contemporary art market in Nigeria.

This has been through the creation of a viable secondary market and a transparent pricing

structure, which bolsters collectors’ confidence in Nigerian art as an investable asset.

Auction records have been set by works of such artists as Ben Enwonwu, Bruce Onobrakpeya and El Anatsui in the biannual event’s various editions.

Hence, it has so far sold over N2 billion worth of art from auctioning 1,750 lots.

Beyond the auctions, Arthouse Contemporary Limited has relatively recently expanded its operations to include organising exhibitions of contemporary art with Arthouse-The Space and artists’ residency programme with the non-profit Arthouse Foundation. Among the exhibitions held so far are solo projects by Peju Alatise, Diseye Tantua, Chidi Kwubiri, Eva Obodo, George Osodi, Victor Ekpuk and Emeka Udemba. It has also held an exhibition of the works of master artist Yusuf Grillo, featuring his oils and stained-glass works.

Arthouse-The Space has, in addition, featured its artists at such international art fairs as Art 14 in London and Art X Lagos.

The Arthouse Foundation offers artist residencies in three-month sessions in Lagos. The residency programmes have so far held workshops, open studios and artist talks, as well as final exhibitions.

This platform, according to a press statement by Arthouse, is meant to help artists “expand their practice and experiment with new art forms and ideas, offering live/work residencies throughout the year in three-month residencies.”

Since its creation three years ago, the foundation has hosted 16 artists for the programmes. It has also partnered with international art institutions to offer residency exchanges, including an exchange with the Matadero Museum in Madrid for Nigerian and Spanish artists and an exchange with the Goethe-Institut in Berlin for Nigerian and German artists.

Meanwhile, Arthouse moves into the next decade with the aim of expanding its growing online presence and building on its extensive client network. Just this year, it introduced the “Artist of the Month” on its website, offering artworks for sale on the internet. It “is also working to offer live bidding on its web platform and also aims to expand its international partnerships, bringing exhibitions of modern and contemporary Nigerian art across the globe,” the statement adds.

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THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER Ëž E 3, 2018

ARTS & REVIEW\\

THE MYSTERY MAN BEHIND IBEJII Yinka Olatunbosun

I

bejii, the multi-music genre artist and retro musician, was quite a mystery with his eye-concealing dark shades, thickened eyebrows and afro hair. He waltzed into the room in the Ikoyi neighbourhood of Lagos, where this reporter was waiting with warm smiles, no hairs.

Born in UK as a twin, Ibejii wouldn’t give up any other information about his past or personal life. Though the seat arrangement would suit a crossexamination, Ibejii only disclosed all that his fans and would-be fans need to know about Ibejii Live Experience.

It’s a live music concert that took place at African Artists’ Foundation building at Victoria Island, after sundown on May 29, which is Democracy Day in Nigeria.

Raised in a music-loving family, he had been listening to a variety of music genres. Drawing upon the rich elements of rock, funk, juju, electro, jazz and R&B, Ibejii’s music is a potpourri of classic vibes. “Ayanfe� may be the song with the highest number of airplays in his album but he has an incredible soft rock performance in “Onijekuje�, soul serenade in “Ibejii� and moral lessons in “Alejo lowo�. In this era of “Shaku Shaku� and “Segbeteri� music tradition, it is very unusual to stumble upon any new music in NIgeria that promotes moral values. That style was synonymous with music legends such as Ebenezer Obey, King Sunny Ade, Dayo Kujore, IK Dairo, Funmi Adams, Evi Edna Ogoli and the likes. That’s why his music is retro, not just in form but lyrical content.

Every one should be curious as to why he came to music just recently what with the roll call of musicians that he had understudied. “I have been on a long walk,� he said. “I have walked through deserts and river banks in search of meaning, love and purpose. Ibejii is influenced by all music styles. From Cuban music to Afro jazz to rock, pop and to bring it down to the contemporary dimension, a big influence is Fela. Others are Brymo, Asa and Marvin Gaye. Prince?

I am a big lover of prince.�

Of course, he showed that through his 70s styled-music and fashion. That period was significant in music for it birthed hip-hop, Afro-beat, disco and other genres that redefined global music trends. It was also a time music became very powerful in making socio-political statements, trailing after the effects of Vietnam war.

As humanity remains at war with itself, bad governance and corruption are some of the themes in Ibejii’s music. That patriotism is also reflected in his two albums titled “Green White Dope 001� and “Green White Dope 002�. “We have just finished work on the album and we expect to release it by September. The artist is a part of a bigger group. There is a band involved called the Ejires led by a chap called Tosin. We performed at the Brymo concert last December 9, it was our biggest concert appearance to a rave review. We had done two shows prior to that.�

If you’re wondering why retro music is the new pop music, it is simple.

Bruno Mars, Pharrell and Professor Green are toeing this line and it has brought them Grammys. But that’s not all. “I suspect that the world is going through a phase that is not familiar,� he added. “People are retreating to what will give them comfort. Music is a source of comfort. And there is no greater source of comfort other than

retro music. It is something that speaks to the value that we all hold so dear that motivate us to be better and greater people.’’ Ibejii’s interest in music is not just for commercial reasons but to reach as many people as possible with his message of love, chivalry, culture, politics and consciousness. “Each of the albums is a full project.

They have direction and purpose. 001 is Afro popish while 002 is settled in the jazz genre. 003 is very much afro electric. 004 is jazz, deep and meaningful. We released the first two albums in August 2017. We are looking at September for the next and the subsequent one will be released six months after that. Every producer that had worked on the album is a Nigerian. It is our own way of supporting Nigerian music industry.�

Ibejii will also perform in London in September, in a mini festival ambience.

This Ibeji Live Experience in Lagos is an annual event, three-hour long with great surprise performances for A-list alternative music stars.

Ibejii

The Inverted Pyramid; Adapted from a novel by Emeka Dike

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JUN ͱ˜ ͰͮͯͶ ˾ THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER

ARTS & REVIEW\\EXHIBITION

AT ALEXIS GALLERIES, IT’S A FAIR & SQUARE DEAL Stories by Yinka Olatunbosun

T

he beauty of women has always been the prominent subject matter in visual arts. This time, Alexis Galleries is showcasing contemporary artists who will appropriate this agelong subject in 24 paintings and five sculptures. The Ghana-based Togolese artist, Samuel Tete Katchan and Oluwole Omofemi, Nigerian artist based in Ibadan are the artists behind this show, which runs from June 2 till June 16.

Oluwole is showing 13 works, mostly large paintings using oil and acrylic. His first exhibition was in 2007 at a group show in Ibadan.

“I have been painting for 15 years,” he said. “I trained under Akinola Ebenezer.

I was inspired by Tope Fatunbi, Taiwo Fadare and Ebenezer who has a great influence on my colour and composition.

I started painting children and then historical figures.”

After enjoying art tutelage with the Ibadan-based artists, Oluwole proceeded to study Fine and Applied Art at The Polytechnic, Ibadan. This exhibition is his second exhibition of the year. At the recent preview of his works inside Alexis Gallery 2, he explained the concept behind his collection titled, Afro Series.

“I wanted to do something different,” he disclosed. “So, I started to do my own research. I started reading about the Afro hair as a symbol of identity and African-

Reglection by Oluwole Omofemi ism. I tried to add some conventional themes of fashion to it.”

In his painting titled, “Reflection”, he depicts a woman looking at her image in a mirror. The message in the work is philosophical as it speaks of human character. In the painting titled, “Peace Within”, realism projects the idea of finding peace in a chaotic situation.

On his part, Katchan is detailed in geometric curves. He was in the process of becoming a priest when he had a dream

to pattern his spiritual direction towards art. That orientation reflects in some of his works such as “Last Supper”.

“I tried to put my faith in my works. I am a Catholic.

I paint my children as well,” he said.

Katchan is a sickle-cell patient who puts much energy in his work to inspire others. He had participated in some of the group shows curated

by Alliance Francaise in Accra and Lagos. To get his grooming in the turf, he studied Baroque Art. Picasso is another major influence on paintings.

“My first time in Nigeria was in 2007 at Alliance Francaise. My works were sold at double the price,’’ he said while reminiscing on his participation at a six-artists in residence programme. He is a family-oriented artist who believes in the institution as societal bedrock.

His painting of his daughters in a large beautiful garden is titled “Anne-Marie and Marie-Michelle”.

The curator for the show, Patty Chadiac said it was such an honour to curate the show. As for her, bringing artists from different parts of the country to Lagos is a great move towards developing arts economy.

EXHIBITION

For Jaangu Drum’s First Quarter, It’s a Wrap

M

akoko-Bariga neighbourhood of Lagos is known for its proximity to the waterfront, higher institutions of learning and lately, talents in performing arts. In January 2018, Jaangu with Papa Project was launched in the community and many new drummers were bred.

Jaangu is a Korean drum; it is not affordable for many of these participants. Each Jaangu drum costs £500. For this reason, the Korean Cultural Centre provided no fewer than 11 Jaangu drums for this drum workshop that was wrapped up in April.

The graduation ceremony was held last week along St. Finbarrs College Road in a venue that was modified for performance.

Adire and Ankara fabrics were used as backdrop for the First Quarter Jaangu/ Samunori Graduation class in performance.

The workshop was facilitated by the master choreographer and drummer, Isioma Williams also known as Papa. He is a product of the Korean cultural exchange programme.

Founder, Crown Troupe, Segun Adefila who is the director of the Jaangu Bariga School Project was trained by Papa and in his opening remarks, he described Bariga as one of the biggest academic communities in Nigeria, adding that it was important to bring art to the fore.

“Art is the biggest tool for intervention,” Adefila said. “Art is not for lazy people. We should use the art to educate our children.

Education and literacy are two different things. We need more of education. We are losing artists to other commercial pursuits.

Parents should encourage children to pursue arts.”

The Excellence Award was given to 9-year old John Lakutu for exceptional performance while Adebayo Gboyega Promise received a Commendation Award.

The completion award was given to other members of the class namely Omoyele Oluwaseyi, Solomon Emmanuel, Adedoyin Olumide, Okundaye Adebowale, Ezekiel Abolade Gboyega, Ogbere Victor Ayanfeo-

PERFORMANCE

For Puchercos, Photography Is Living the Story Yinka Olatunbosun His grip on the camera tightened just as the tidal waves of the Lagos Harbour rushed against his feet.

Michel Pucheros was standing close to the residents of Ilashe, near Snake Island to capture a crucial moment in the marine life of the people. The natives had a large net cast into the lagoon and collectively they pulled at the heavy net.

This scenario is just one of many that the French photographer captured in his series of photographs taken in Nigeria and Kenya to make content for the recent show titled, Carnet De Voyage, that is Travelogue.

Guiding this writer through his pieces at Omenka Gallery, Pucheros shared his experience as he lived the story with his subjects. All his works are results of instant shots; none of the subjects posed for him.

That technique makes his visual storytelling believable as they communicate the actual mood and atmosphere of his subjects. Pucheros is intrigued by nature, which naturally runs through his landscape photographs. He is also fascinated by children, whether at play or in child labour. Through the Kenyan wilds, he sourced for his escapism into untold narratives of humanity; of the crispness of the mountain air, the sounds of the voices of the people.

In Lagos, Pucheros sought to use his lenses to project the irony of being a Nigerian living under difficult conditions but remains happy.

“Life is tougher here in Nigeria,” he said. “Although the conditions are tougher here than it is in privileged countries, the people are happy. This level of joy, creativity and energy regardless of the condition is a lesson for us.”

Pucheros has a large heart. The proceeds of the show will be donated to a charity organisation, Casa Alba.

This organisation teaches and supports vulnerable girls through skill-acquisition.

Founded in 1989 in Onitsha, by Focolare Movement, Casa Alba teaches young girls skills such as sewing and batik in a two-year programme to rehabilitate girls who are from less privileged homes.

POETRY PLATFORM On Every Street Under the Sun On every street under the sun, Time has scrawled its gore on your face Although you wear a drape of fog And you swear you Are not the ugliest of massacres.

That is perhaps true.

And the one choice is to love you.

So teach me how to love a massacre; A love song is burning on my lips.

Teach me how to love you

Jaangu Drums luwa, Okani Miracle and Taiwo Elijah.

The awards were presented by the President, Dance Guild of Nigeria, Dayo Liadi who also learnt Jaangu in Korea.

“It is not easy for a typical Nigerian to understand this drum language since we have our own,” Liadi said. “What Papa has done with it is to transit from the basic to make a statement. Drumming is not really my thing but I learnt to dance to Jaangu drum.”

For the Samulnori class, four instruments are essential. They are Bamboo mallet, Ging, Jaangu and boom. In the end, Chidera Promise Nwobodo received the award for Perfect Attendance while Jewoola Feranmi,

the Samulnori class captain was given the Excellence Award. The Completion Award was also presented to them as well as others in the class namely Oluwasoja Sam, Esther Uwenwojobi, Femi Adebayo Isreal, Adewale Ayodeji, Bode Oyewole Daniel, Ridwan Adisa and Awobajo Oluwaseun Olumide.

The comic relief for the day was from “Keggu” drum class who used yellow jerrycans in place of Jaangu drums to perform the same drum routine as Jaangu drummers but making chants in between the beats about snakes swallowing money and other matters in the polity.

As you drown your stars In a tide of ochre, As you strew their limbs on scarlet streets.

Teach me to love you, dear country, Before the love song wilts on my lips, Before I lose the lover’s fire in my groin, Before my heart turns a heap of ash.

-Obari Gomba ––Dr Gomba teaches literature and creative writing at the University of Port Harcourt

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JUNE 3, 2018

CICERO

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

IN THE ARENA

Buhari,Obasanjo’sFightGetsMessier With their differences being narrowed down to character debate, the ongoing feud between former President Olusegun Obasanjo and President Muhammadu Buhari gets messier, writes Shola Oyeyipo

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lowly but gradually, the relationship between former President Olusegun Obasanjo and incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari is deteriorating beyond repairs.

Though it is obvious that the two leaders, who share common backgrounds as retired military generals and one time military leaders were heading for a bout after Obasanjo advised Buhari against his second term ambition, no one expected that it would soon degenerate into personality attacks.

The trouble between the two former military presidents started on January 23, 2019, when Obasanjo wrote a lengthy and damning letter, in which he castigated the Buhari leadership and advised him not to seek re-election.

The federal government was, however, tactical in responding to Obasanjo. In fact, the two presidential spokesmen, Femi Adesina and Garba Shehu, were initially mute on the matter until the Minister of Information, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, issued a temperate statement, disagreeing with Obasanjo on the achievements of Buhari.

Mohammed said Obasanjo might have been too busy such that he could not keep track of the progress recorded by the Buhari administration.

When Buhari eventually commented on Obasanjo’s letter he simply called it “abusive.”

Apparently sure that Buhari would not heed his advice, Obasanjo set up what he called Coalition for Nigeria Movement (CNM), which was launched at the Shehu Musa Yar’Adua Centre, Abuja. The platform, according to him, could later metamorphose into a political party and oust the Buhari current leadership.

Obasanjo and his collaborators did not leave it at that, they have stepped up the ante ahead of the 2019 election. Already underground, there are widespread consultations, alignments and realignments. And anybody who has his or her ears close to the ground would have noticed that the gang-up against Buhari is thickening by the day. In an obvious attempt to demystify Obasanjo and address his holier-than-thou posturing, Buhari fired his own salvo. The president accused the former president of squandering $16 billion on power projects without concrete results.

Though he did not specifically mention Obasanjo, Buhari, in his jab, referred to those he said mismanaged the country’s economy in the past, through fraudulent electricity projects and misuse of revenue earnings from oil, saying they do not love the country.

But apparently referring to Obasanjo, he said: “One of the former Heads of State was bragging,” and from that point it became obvious that the last has not been heard of the fight.

Already, two civil society organisations, the Socio-Economic and Right Accountability Project (SERAP) and the Centre for AntiCorruption and Open Leadership (CACOL), have implored Buhari to probe the $16bn power projects and other perceived corrupt former leaders in the country.

According to SERAP Director, Adetokunbo Mumuni, “We have consistently maintained the position that previous regimes have misappropriated large sums of money on projects. What should happen is that the president must look into them.”

SERAP, therefore, urged Buhari to “urgently refer the allegations of mismanagement of $16 billion power projects between 1999 and 2007 to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) for further investigation.”

For Obasanjo, who has laid claim to incorruptibility as a leader, the tantrum thrown back at him was a big stain on his reputation.

He has maintained that he did not stain his hands with corruption.

Some years back, in a BBC interview, he stated emphatically that anyone with evidence of corruption against him should come

forward with it and that he was ready to defend himself.

Asked if he is prepared to face charges for allegations of corruption, Obasanjo said: “I am very much so. And if you have any evidence, please, show it to me and I will defend myself anywhere in the world,” adding, “I am the only leader in Nigeria that has been examined and reported upon by the anti-corruption agencies in Nigeria.”

Though there is evidence of the possibility of a fresh probe of his administration between 1999 and 2007, to exonerate himself from any wrongdoing, Obasanjo made the 2017 EFCC report on various allegations against him, including the allegedly mismanaged $16b power project funds, available to journalists in Abeokuta, Ogun State capital, a few days ago.

In the 20-page report, which was the outcome of an investigations based on petitions written by former Abia State governor, Orji Uzor Kalu, and the Coalition Against Corrupt Leaders (CACOL) and signed by its Chairman, Mr. Debo Adeniran, in 2005 and 2007 respectively, Obasanjo was cleared of any wrongdoing.

According to the EFCC, “In the period under review, a total of N10, 776,493,271:84; $69,808,942:70; Euros 12,853,883:40 and UKP 8, 987,322:00 were paid to the various contractors. However, outstanding payments for the contractors stand at N11, 520,669,195:53; $375,435,687:37; and Euros 7, 257,552:91 pending the completion of the project.

“Further investigations also revealed that National Integrated Power Project is currently apace in six zones of the country for which about N1, 230,949,066,528:99 was committed by the federal government. The projects are also at different levels of completion but as at the moment of this report, N360, 714,147,700:03 have been paid out to contractors, leaving a balance of N870, 234,918,828:06 yet to be paid pending the completion of the project.”

But that is not all, the messy part of it is that Obasanjo too, dug deep into Buhari’s past and the aim was to bring out his blemishes.

Amongst his regrets was that he did not expose Buhari’s mismanagement of Petroleum Trust Fund (PTF).

THISDAY, in an exclusive report, had said the original copy of a report by the Petroleum (Special) Trust Fund (PTF) Interim Management Committee, instituted on July 7, 1999 by Obasanjo contained many damming allegations that called to question, Buhari’s ability to manage the Nigerian economy and fight corruption.

In the report, the PTF under Buhari’s supervision was mismanaged. Though the report was not acted upon by the ex-president, the committee had advised Obasanjo to “set up a high powered judicial panel to recover the huge public fund and to take necessary action against any officer, consultant or contractor whose negligence resulted in this colossal loss of public funds.”

The report further disclosed that the sum of N25, 758, 532, 448 was mismanaged by the Afri-Project Consortium (APC), a company contracted by the PTF as management and project consultant when Buhari was the chairman.

It was noted that Buhari delegated powers of control to the Afri-Project Consortium in all appropriate projects requiring such power, which made them assume absolute powers to initiate, approve and execute all projects by the PTF. In summary, the mismanagement of funds under Buhari’s chairmanship of the PTF was allegedly carried out by the APC (the company) in their capacity as management and project consultants. It said both their management services fee and budget for various projects executed during the existence of the PTF were greatly overpriced.

The Committee made up of Dr. Haroun Adam as Chairman, and Alhaji Abdu Abdurrahim, Mr. Achana Gaius Yaro, Edward Eguavoen, Mr. T. Andrew Adegboro and Mr. Baba Goni Machina as members, while carrying out its obligations, engaged three management consulting firms to verify all payments made to PTF from inception to September 30, 1999.

The Committee during verification discovered that the consulting firms had overcharged PTF for their services to the tune of N2, 057, 550, 062. Also, while intervening on behalf of the PTF in the road and waterways, education, food, health, and other sectors, the company, according to the report, inflated all the prices.

For example, intervention in the health sector, was said to have amounted to N9 billion in total, and projects in this sector were said to have been executed by the APC and PTF in-house staff, where loss of billions of naira were recorded due to price inflation of products and services.

The committee also discovered that the APC (the company) bought spectacle frames, which could have been done locally at a price between N80 to N880, under the watch of Buhari, at an inflated price of N1, 900 each. Ambulances were said to have been purchased at N13 million per unit, instead of N3 million. And then price inflation of drugs was done to the tune of N1.5 billion.

The report further revealed that the PTF lost money to the tune of N3.5 billion from its bank account operations and that PTF operated its bank accounts under three different categories: Administration, Project and Treasury accounts, and the loss of money to these accounts were said to have been due to “overcharge on Cost of Turnover (COT), non-payment of interest on current account balances as stipulated by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), short payment of interest on deposited funds, and other various discrepancies.”

But the presidency which did not find the revelations funny, soon issued a statement, in which it said Obasanjo as civilian president toppled many state governors, using the police and the DSS. The kind of image the statement painted of the former president remains another slant to their filthy fight.

However, now that the two generals have returned to the trenches in what is building up as a fight to the finish, except something is urgently done to reverse the situation, it can only get dirtier with more revelations. But the fear is that hostilities between the two may end up having negative consequences on the country and her people.

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

Jega’s Dart on National Assembly

A

Jega

former National Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Attahiru Jega, recently stirred the hornet’s nest when he said the National Assembly was notorious for bribe-taking. Coming at a time the National Assembly has not been very well received by a section of the public, could it be that Jega was playing a populist card or advancing a particular cause?

Although Senate President Bukola Saraki has asked Jega to name the people he alleged demanded bribes,

the statement, as weighty as it is, might have been taken to be true by a majority of the people, coming from the former electoral body’s helmsman, one of the few individuals, who still wears the ‘face of integrity.’

But the points to note are: How true is this statement from Jega? Is he able to defend this in law, when challenged or is he playing some interest group’s card? Will the lawmakers just let this slide or take it up? Whatever it is the lawmakers choose to do about the allegation his statement remains a damaging dart on the image of the National Assembly until pushed back.

T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JUNE 3, 2018

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BRIEFINGNOTES

Nigerian Elders Forum members

Nigerian Elders Forum to the Rescue Elders from the North and South of the country met last week to form a new forum of senior citizens for the country. Will the Nigerian Elders Forum pull the country back from the slope? Asks Shola Oyeyipo “All of us who are concerned for peace and triumph of reason and justice must be keenly aware how small an influence, reason and honest good will exert upon events in the political field” Albert Einstein

T

he above words of German-born theoretical physicist, Albert Einstein, will most succinctly depict the overall expectation of Nigerians after the news that some eminent elders from the southern and northern divides of the country resolved to establish what they called Nigerian Elders Forum (NEF).

They are on the same page with a majority of Nigerians. These elders fear that the country is on the precipice. They opted to shelve their sectional agenda and come together, with their long standing experiences to proffer common solutions to some of the daunting challenges confronting Nigeria.

It is laudable and by every measure, a welcome development.

Really, at no other time in her national trajectory has Nigeria needed the wise counsel of elders than now.

Before, every section of Nigeria had its ‘elders’ forums’, but a technical committee set up by the Northern Elders Forum (NEF) and Southern Elders to discuss modalities to address some challenges confronting the country, met in Abuja and resolved to have a broadbased Nigerian Elders Forum that can intervene in crisis situations.

Nigeria has perpetually remained in a crisis situation. Not only is the country backward technologically, industrially, and economically amidst abundant human and mineral resources. Also, the palpable level of insecurity, sectionalism, increasing political tension and other negative indices have remained the clog in the wheel of her progress.

They needed to be holistically addressed.

So, to proffer solutions to the multifaceted problems plaguing the country are Dr. Yima Sen, Yinka Odumakin, Dr. Alfred Mulade, Senator Kofo Bucknor-Akerele, Senator Chris Anyanwu, Francis Doukpola and Dr. Chike Dike.

Others are Bello Suleiman, Senator Ibrahim Lame, Bala Sani, Sam Nda-Isaiah, Sheik Idris Hayatudeen, Senator Saidu Dansadau, Alhaji Falalu Bello, Doyin Okupe and Yerima Shettima.

While reliable feelers from foundation members of the forum have it that the two fulcrums on which the union stands are that Nigeria must become a productive nation and also that the structural defects setting the country backwards must be addressed before the 2019 elections.

In the words of Prof. Banji Akintoye, who spoke on behalf of the group of elders, the decision taken to coalesce various groups and persons into the NEF, which acronyms coincides with that of the Northern Elders Forum (NEF), is to deploy their wealth of experience in tackling the problems confronting Nigeria.

Akintoye said the country was faced with problems of governance and economy, which needed urgent attention of the elders, noting, “We are elders. Most of us are not active politicians. We have come together because we are worried about the condition of our country.

“Things are not well with our country. A lot of things are happening in our country that ordinarily should not happen. Ours is a land of promise, a land well-endowed by nature with a lot of wealth but we are not using the wealth to enrich our people but instead, we are going down, down and down in terms of prosperity and progress.

“So, we have decided to work together. That is the most important thing, because the problems are many.”

The protagonists of this agenda are obviously on point. If genuinely intended and well planned, the NEF is capable of helping Nigeria to safely navigate through its turbulent times. But a note of caution must be sounded; the initiative must be devoid of sectional agenda.Rather than the mutual distrust, suspicions and regional sentiments that usually characterise discourses on national development, it would be expected that being a group of elders, they should be able to speak truth to power irrespective of whose ox is gored, suggest far-reaching actions capable of changing the Nigerian narrative and should be able to find a common ground to enable them implement their suggestions. The last will be best achieved when the elders are able to sincerely carry the people in their regions along.

Before the advent of this new NEF, sectional groups like Afenifere (South-west), Ohaneze Ndigbo (South-east), Pan-Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF, South-south) and the Middle Belt Forum (North-Central), have insisted that the only option available to Nigeria was restructuring.

Aside the fact that the north has not been favourably disposed to some of these ideas, the demand for restructuring is not really ambiguous. The colonialists bequeathed Nigeria with a relatively structurally balanced nation.

By 1954, Nigeria had a federation. It remained so till independence. So, in 1960, Nigeria had the three regions of North, West and East. They were the federating units. The 1960 constitution shared powers between the central government and the regional government.

Though the creation of Mid-west made Nigeria have four regions, the Republican Constitution of 1963 retained those

fundamental principles of government and each region grew at its own pace until the military intervened and disrupted the system by introducing a unitary system that stagnated the country till date.

Therefore, the sustained demand for devolution of powers and functional fiscal federalism appears the only way to salvage Nigeria from imminent collapse. In fact, many highly opinionated Nigerians hold the view that poverty, insecurity, underdevelopment, unemployment and the likes would persist without restructuring.

Notable Nigerians, most of whom saw Nigeria evolving, like the leader of PANDEF, Chief Edwin Clark; Afenifere chieftain, Chief Ayo Adebanjo; National Chairman, Social Democratic Party (SDP), Chief Olu Falae; Publicity Secretary of Afenifere, Mr. Yinka Odumakin; President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Chief John Nwodo and many others, spearheaded calls for devolution of powers through constitution amendment.

Expectedly, these elders saw Nigeria when the regions were at their best and the misfortunes of a unitary system in a vast and intrinsically multi-ethnic Nigeria, they should be in the best position to advocate and canvas support for a restricted Nigeria as panacea for national cohesion and rapid development.

Recently, during the activities marking the 90th birthday anniversary of Chief Adebanjo, former Secretary-General, Commonwealth, Chief Emeka Anyaoku, underscored why Nigeria needed to be restructured.

He said, “In the Western Region then, Awolowo introduced free education and free health, while the Eastern part, late Michael Okpara revolutionised the agricultural system, and under the leadership of Ahmadu Bello in the North, the groundnut pyramid held sway.

“It was a structure that gave each region the opportunity to develop at its own pace. It was a structure that made citizens of those regions proud to belong to the bigger Nigeria. Unfortunately, we had lost that basic structure of governance.

“When we think of the progress we were making in those days, when you look at achievements that were truly first in nature in the South West, when Chief Obafemi Awolowo was there; the universal primary education that he introduced, the first television services in Nigeria and indeed in Africa, and the sage’s management of resources of Western Region, we cannot but say that those were days of healthy competition.”

Not a few Nigerians are elated about the resolve to create the forum of elders. Many are patiently waiting to evaluate how they hope to positively influence the scheme of things. Therefore, the leaders must consider their responsibility divine and timely. Positions must be taken for the sake of posterity and not on the basis of personal or selfish aggrandisement.

NOTES FOR FILE

Saraki’s Soothing Balm for IDPs

Saraki with kids at an IDPs’ camp in Benue

Senate President Bukola Saraki, during the May 27, Children’s Day celebration, paid an unscheduled visit to the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Benue State, a move that has been commended by all who see more than the optics of the gesture.

Although Saraki remains one individual, who has consistently introduced a decent human angle to politics in this dispensation, drawing more attention to productive and effective retail politics, what he did on Children’s Day

was a really good one, because it provided a great sense of belonging to the IDPs as a part of the social unit called Nigeria.

Without blowing this out of context, this is one of such gestures from a progressive mind that should be emulated often by other leaders at such times. For a people whose lives might have taken an ugly turn – hopeless and hapless – identifying with them at such a time is the biggest healer of their diseases. Thumbs up to the Senate President!

T H I S D AY SUNDAY JUNE 3, 2018

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ALL PROGRESSIVES CONGRESS (APC)

Katsina State Chapter

APPRECIATION ON THE CONDUCT OF THE WARD/LOCAL GOVERNMENT CONGRESSES IN KATSINA STATE The Katsina State Chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) on behalf of the registered members of our esteemed party, wish to thank the Katsina State Ward/ Local Government Congress Committee, which conducted the recent wards and local government congresses in the state, for diligently conducting a free and fair congresses in the state.

The entire leadership of the Katsina State All Progressives Congress (APC) is grateful that the exercise was smoothly conducted without any hitch across all the wards and local governments of the state.

The committee, consisting of seven (7) members, under the chairmanship of Mohammed T Zakari Esq. described the exercise conducted as generally peaceful and very successful.

capturing what transpired during these congresses, including some of the complaints received in some local government areas, which were quickly resolved as indicated in the under signed report by all the seven members.

The Katsina State Chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) wish to also thank the local Organizing Committee (LOC) for the Wards/Local Government Congress in the State for making sure everything was on ground before the arrival of the Congress Committee.

In addition, we would also like to thank the Stakeholders in the State for the support, understanding and cooperation accorded to the committee during the exercise.

Finally, our thanks goes to His Members of the committee Excellency, The Executive unanimously endorsed the Governor of Katsina State, report of the committee, Rt. Hon. Aminu Bello Masari which was submitted to for the unwavering leadership Headquarters of the All he provided throughout the Progressives Congress (APC) course of these congresses and rated the exercise as 95 which culminated in the conduct of a Free and Fair per cent successful. exercise as acknowledged We thank all the seven by all the seven members members of the committee of the Katsina State Ward/ for their maturity, hard Local Government Congress work, dedication and the Committee. commitment they exhibited during the whole recent The full report as duly signed congresses in Katsina State. by all the seven members of the Katsina State Wards/ The integrity of the members Local Government Congress of the committee is highly Committee is reproduced appreciated for accurately below.

Signed:

Shitu S. Shitu Chairman All Progressives Congress (APC)

Katsina State

Sani Ali Ahmed Secretary All Progressives Congress (APC)

Katsina State

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SUNDAYINTERVIEW

Mohammed

Buhari Won’t Spare Even His Children over CorruptionWar,SaysLaiMohammed The Minister of Information, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, says the achievements of the President Muhammadu Buhari administration in the past three years will make his campaign for second term very easy. He spoke with Iyobosa Uwugiaren, Onyebuchi Ezigbo, Senator Iroegbu and Chineme Okafor in Abuja

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hree years down the line, APC-led federal government is celebrating democracy. But, some people believe there is no cause for celebration.What is your take on this?

Anybody that believes there is no cause for celebration is just being negative. Where were we few years ago? Where are we today? Let’s talk about the issue of security; four years ago those of us in Abuja couldn’t sleep with both eyes closed because before we came in, security in Abuja was breached. United Nations Headquarters was attacked, with scores of lives lost; THISDAY Office in Abuja was bombed; the Police headquarters was attacked; the Nyanya motor park was attacked twice, and scores of lives were lost. Before we came in, churches had to draft soldiers and police officers so that they could hold services.

So even if you were not from the North East, in Abuja alone there was that palpable sense of lacks of security and peace.

Since we came in there have been no single breach of security in Abuja. Now let’s talk about the North East, where as I said before 2015 some communities were under the control of Boko Haram; schools were closed; banks couldn’t operate; roads were blocked; but today we can say with all sense of honesty that we have completely degraded Boko Haram; not a single inch of our territory is under their control. Schools have reopened; roads are reopened, and banks are now operating.

What kind of peace are we talking about when the numbers of people that have been killed in the last three years are more than the people that were killed during the five-year tenure of former President Goodluck Jonathan?

Is that not a statement of fact?

You see, nobody has come to say this is the number of people that have been killed until they bring out that figure; but I know for a fact that over one million people who have been

displaced have been resettled. We have freed about 16,000 people from Boko Haram’s captivity; but suggesting that more people have been killed in the last three years, I think that is not true.

I will just give you one example. One day, under Jonathan, we lost 7,000 lives in Baga in Borno State. Do you remember that Christmas period? We lost 7,000 people in Baga. In just one day, 7,000 lives were lost, but I am not going to go into that. Anybody that wants to make such statement let him come out and tell me this is the number of lives we have lost under Jonathan and this is the number of lives we have lost today.

For example, international humanitarian organisation, the Red Cross Society, came up with a figure recently that in the last three years the number of persons that had been displaced was about 3.8 million due to insecurity. Is that not a statement of fact?

Displacement was as a result of Boko Haram insurgency. Even when you recover a place before people can go back, you have to rebuild those places. I had a first-hand experience when I went to Bama, in Borno State on the 5th of December, 2015. Out of over 6,000 structures built in Bama, not one was standing; they were all destroyed. So, it is one thing to free a territory from Boko Haram insurgency and it is another thing for people to go back there. For them to go back you must rebuild and rebuilding is very expensive and it isn’t a thing you just do with the snap of the finger and that is why we are hoping that with presidential commissioning of the North East Initiative to rehabilitate the IDPs, things will get better.

You keep on making this statement that Boko Haram has been degraded; but the daily deadly activities of Boko haram in the last three years don’t suggest that the terrorist group has been defeated, especially in the North east part of the country. What is your take on that?

Anybody that has an understanding of what it was before and what it is today will, agree with me that it has been degraded.

Anybody who understands the phenomenon called insurgency will also understand that it is not the usual kidnapping or suicide bombing in the market places that determines if insurgency has been degraded or not. What determines it is whether they do hold any territory from which they operate, which is happening in other parts of the world -- where they are yet to be degraded.

They have their own empires from which they launch attacks.

The headquarters of Boko Haram in Sambisa forest was taken over by the military and they have been flushed out. You can find them in some areas in Lake Chad now but not one inch of area in Nigeria.

Another concern of the fight against insurgency is the scandal associated with it especially the ones that concern the IDP camps, how funds meant to get them out of the conditions they are have been diverted. Has it come to your knowledge that such scandals occur and how are they being addressed?

Unless you come out with specifics!

There have been several reports over the issue. And just yesterday the opposition PDP asked the APC-led federal government to account for N10 trillion allegedly misappropriated.

These people are jokers. What is the budget of Nigeria in the past three years? When you want to make allegations make sensible allegations; N10 trillion is our budget of 2015 and 2016 put together. When people don’t come up with specifics allegations I don’t comment on them. I deal with facts and figures. Come and tell me that specific amount of money is missing in this area then I will come and tell you what the federal government is doing about it. What I can tell you is that there is no corruption that

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SUNDAY INTERVIEW t ‘BUHARI WON’T SPARE EVEN HIS CHILDREN OVER CORRUPTION WAR, SAYS LAI MOHAMMED’tContinued from Pg. 68 is committed anywhere that the government knows about and doesn’t bring the culprits to book.

Tell us what you have done in the last three years, because most people believe that the war against corruption is failure.

It is unfortunate that we don’t even understand what war against corruption is. War against corruption is not just about prosecuting people that you have found to be corrupt. War against corruption starts by stopping people from being corrupt, and that is what the government has achieved. We are the only government that has faithfully implemented Treasury Single Account. This used to be the area where there were a lot of leakages and where different government organisations will have multiple accounts. As of today over N8.9 trillion has come into the TSA .

If you go to the public offices, government agencies, it appears that the war against corruption has trickle down to the public offices. It is generally believed that there is still corruption in the Police, the Customs, the Ministries, and that the process of awarding contracts is still done in secrecy and there is no transparency. Do you agree?

I have not heard that; unless you are talking about contracts under N100 million; for contracts above N100 million, it must be brought to FEC. They must be approved by the Public Procurement Bureau and they go through all kinds of processes and tests. You see, people make funny allegations about corruption. but I know that at the council every Wednesday, contracts that are were awarded follow the due procedures.

There are some people who have relied on the Freedom Information Act and requested for information concerning many contracts that were awarded but their requests were not granted, which shows they have some things to hide.

Why this lack of openness in government?

I have also read the Freedom Information Act and I think that there are also some restrictions, that is conditions under which you may not release certain information but I can tell you by and large that there is no request for FOI that has come here that we haven’t attended to and even many ministers; but if you can give me specific ones I can take it up.

The Attorney General of the Federation in his recent report to the National Assembly confirmed that over 96 of federal government agencies refused to comply with the requests for public information.

I don’t know about that. You said it and I don’t know about it.

What do you make of this assertion by a senior member of your party and senator from Kaduna state that your government appears to be fighting this corruption using insecticides against opposition elements and using deodorant when it comes to APC members?

I don’t think he is right. Our president is one person that even if you are his daughter or son and you are accused of corruption, he will not stop the relevant anti-corruption agencies from investigating you. Nigerians at times are not fair. The issue of naming of looters were as a response to the PDP’s challenge to the Vice President. The Vice President was in Lagos, he delivered a paper in which he said that in one day, $259 million was shared by the last administration -- few days to the election, and everybody challenged him to name the looters and I named them. So I was responding to a specific challenge. If you ask us today to bring the list of looters we will do so.

Recently the EFCC filed cases against the PDP leaders in some states over money given to them by their party for 2015 election funds, allegedly that the due process was not followed in releasing the money and accused them of money laundry. When are we going to see APC’s leaders being charge to court for same offences?

I know a politician who was charged to court for money laundry and what is money laundry? Money laundry is when you take money from an illicit source and you now try to launder it, make it clean. That is my own understanding of it.

Most of those that are being prosecuted today are either from the Dasuki fund. I don’t know who you are talking of, give me their names.

For example in Edo state, the governorship candidate of PDP in the last election, who was also former President Jonathan’s campaign director in the state, Pastor Ize Iyamu, is facing charges, along other leaders for receiving money from their party’s coffers and distributed it among members in all local government areas for logistic on the day of election. And there are similar cases in other states like Kaduna, Zamfara, and others. Is that not political persecution?

I have not seen the EFCC’s charges; but I think they are being tried for money laundry; unless you bring the facts to me.

What people are saying is that this government seems to be reluctant in ordering investigation, when such allegations are against its men?

It is not true.

Let’s look at the current crisis enveloping your party, APC, especially the recent outcome of the state, ward and local government congresses. There were a lot of parallel congresses in many states across the country. In your state for example, Kwara state, you conducted a parallel congress different from the one the governor and Senate President

Mohammed

Bukola Saraki conducted. What is responsible for this?

It is democracy in action.

But your party seem to be giving Nigeria a bad image in politics, as the ruling party?

There is no government that has been affected by any problem in APC. The government remains focused and committed.

Whatever they are doing; the party wrangling is purely party’s affairs; so it is wrong to say it is affecting governance. Which governance is it affecting?

The 2019 election is just few months away and there are critical projects that are yet to take off. Will this project take the back seat as politicking sets in?

Honestly, I wish you were at any of our Federal Executive Committee’s meeting. If anything, we are even more fired to ensure that we continue to invest in infrastructure. The cabinet is insulated largely from politics and we are committed to our promise to Nigerians and our agenda is increasing at every FEC’s meeting by the day.

The government you speak for had repeatedly claimed that it inherited 2,690MW, when it took over power on May 29, 2015. But these claims are at variant with peak generation figures from the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), which at that time, was 3,205MW. How come you keep talking about this figure, which by records comes incorrect?

I am quoting the minister of Power, Works and Housing, and I will rather quote the minister, who is the final authority. I still stand by this figure of 2,690 megawatts, and until the minister says he has made a mistake, I stand by the figure. I insist that I will rather take the figure of the minister than that of any organisation under him.

Can the minister know more than the operators of this system? They feed him this information and the figures are still there.

I will rather take the figure of the Minister than that of any organisation under him.

I also want to talk about the petroleum sector. We are seeing oil prices rising and that means government is going to have more money come to it and also the price of petrol that is used in Nigeria will also have to increase because we don’t refine products that we use, no subsidy in the budget, the NNPC is under recovery, how is the government going to balance this?

When you talk about under recovery that is actually saying that NNPC, my own meaning of under recovery, is that it cost x amount of money to bring in PMS but this is what we recovery from it and we don’t recovery the exact amount of money from it.

What it means is that the NNPC is spending money it should bring back to the federation’s account.

Are we not saying the same thing? I said if I bring in fuel at 150 and I have to sell at 130 have I not under recovered because I have to recover 150 million and I recover only 130 million.

Does this now mean that the NNPC will continue to operate at a lost because there is no such provision on the

budget?

Actually I am not aware of the subsidy policy at the moment but what I know is that the NNPC under recovery to me is just another way of talking about subsidy because whether it is under recovery or subsidy. Subsidy means every month we are supporting Nigerians with x million of naira, while under recovery we say that NNPC is losing money at the same time; we are buying fuel at a price, which is less than the cost price.

The president said in his Democracy Day’s broadcast that Nigeria is out of recession, but the ordinary Nigerians don’t feel this?

Let’s take the Nigerian Bureau of Statistics’ report released recently that says inflation had come down --- for the 15th consecutive month from 18.7 to 12.5. So, that is conclusive, that is the NBS. The latest figures from the NBS says inflation has fallen from 18.7 to 12.5 per cent; external reserves of $48 billion is the highest in five years; total export in 2017 was 59.4 per cent higher than 2016; 2017 agriculture export grew by 180.7 per cent; raw materials exports grew 152 per cent; solid minerals grew 154 per cent; export of manufactured goods grew by 26.8 per cent above the value in 2016. Let people make informed comments, and to answer your questions, certain goods like imported rice are cheaper than local rise because they are subsidized by their countries and dumped here. There is a full range of subsidy for rice production in India and Thailand, and of course the rice they bring here are rice that have mostly expired, which they will normally feed to their cattle and that is why government is putting together packages to give subsidy to farmers so that the landing cost of local rice will be competitive.

In specific terms, what will APC-led federal government be campaigning on in the 2019 election?

We would be campaigning on the fact that we have delivered on our promises of fighting insecurity, revamping the economy and fighting corruption and how have we done this?

We have done this like, I said, when we came in the North East was a strong hold of Boko Haram but today we have not one single community under Boko Haram and since we came in, peace has returned; schools have been rebuilt, even the El Karnams play their matches in Maiduguri after two years of relocating to Katsina state at the height of Boko Haram insurgency. Even the conflict in the North-Central areas is being robustly addressed.

In the area of the economy, we have not only come out of recession, we have continued to wax stronger. This last quarter, our economy hit the 1.9%. We have been able to double foreign reserve $48 billion, we have been able to attract foreign capital.

On the ease of doing business, we made 24 steps.

Our social intervention program has affected nine million lives directly; we feed 8.2 million pupils every day in Nigeria. We give continuous cash transfer to about one million people. We have employed 200,000 unemployed graduates; our Anchor Bar program has increased; the number of farmers from five million to 11 million and that will be able to reduce the pressure of rice and produce 44,000 metric tonnes per year. We have increased power to 7,000 megawatts and this is enough to campaign with.

These are what we have achieved. We have constructed over 6500 kilometres of road. Today, we have used all the monies we have gotten from bonds to invest in infrastructure. We have enough projects to campaign with and there is no zone in the federation that doesn’t feel our impact.

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CICERO/INTERVIEW

Owasanoye

Buhari’s Anti-corruption War is on Course, Says Owasanoye The Executive Secretary of the Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption (PACAC), Professor Bolaji Owasanoye, who is also the Chairman-designate of the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC), in this interview with Iyobosa Uwugiaren and Senator Iroegbu, reviews President Muhammadu Buhari’s fight against corruption and concludes that the president has not only expanded the frontiers of the battles against graft but has also remained focus despite all odds

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hat is your assessment of the anti-corruption war by President Muhammadu Buhari-led government in the last three years?

I think that the war against corruption has been fairly successful, there are still many gaps, but the challenge is far more than anticipated. But we knew it was deep but all things considered, I think if we look at the environment, the war against corruption has not been too bad. Firstly as everybody acknowledges, the government has made a huge success out of recovering stolen assets from quite a number of people, those within and outside the country. The government has succeeded in introducing major preventive mechanisms to diminish corruption in revenue and expenditure. For revenue, the Treasure Single Account (TSA) was introduced, which was a policy we inherited, but because of the lack of political will, it was never enforced. The TSA policy ensures that revenue earning agencies deposit what they earn into the federation account; this government has successfully done that and of course complementary to that is the BVN, which is designed to prevent corruption in expenditure outlets including the discovery of ghost-workers and the elimination of that phenomenon in different ways. Everybody

knows that Nigeria’s revenue dipped, everybody knows that price of oil for 2015 to 2016 was very bad; it was only in 2017 it started moving up a bit, but in spite of that, for far less revenue, the government has been able to escalate improved expenditure in capital projects. The federal government does not owe salaries and all that.

So, I think that if you look at a number of these issues, one cannot but agree that the government has made some progress. The biggest gap is with sanctions and enforcement and that, we are talking about prosecutions specifically which is what would appear to resonate with the people, because they believe that if you don’t put thieves in jail, you are not yet fighting corruption, but that itself is not the fault of government. It’s a process, and we all subscribe to that process. That same process protects you as journalists, protects me as a public servant and protects the ordinary Nigerians, that if there is an allegation -- that you have done something wrong, it’s has to be proved in court, but of course you as a journalist, if you were alleged to have done something wrong, you would do everything to defend yourself. You would request time to get to your evidence, you would request time to prepare for defence, that’s exactly what we are saying.

Although, we recognize that there are various areas in which the process is being manipulated by people who are not interested in fighting

corruption, and again, we are responding to all of that; working with all the arms of government especially with the judiciary. So on the whole, the fight against corruption is going on well, in spite of the cynicism of a few.

Your perception about how President Buhari is fighting corruption does not tally with Transparency International’s recent report, which shows that corrupt practices have increased in the past three years?

Just recent, the Board Chair of Transparency International, Ms. Delia Ferreira Rubio, was in this office and we had a meeting with her. As the index itself suggests, it is a perception index, and perception they say, can be stronger than reality; so I admit that you need to deal with perceptions as well. That report does not reflect the reality on the ground in many areas. It would interest you to know that the CPI is a aggregation of various other reports, which Transparency International puts together. In seven of those eight reports, Nigeria either improved or stabilized.

In other words, if we were 20 the previous year, we remain 20th this year. It’s only in one that Nigeria went below and the kind of questions that were being asked, who exactly were the respondents? For example, does Nigeria have a budgetary process? Are there special funds that are kept somewhere that can be spent without

anybody knowing about it? Very apparent and obvious things. Is there still mismanagement going on in public funds? Of course most people will say there is still mismanagement, and I will say there is some level of mismanagement as well, but you know it’s not at the same grand level as it used to happen before. So if you look at the kind of questions that were asked, you would wonder who the respondents were. Who responded to those questions? Are they people who are familiar with the governance structure in Nigeria, because, for example, as you and I are speaking now, the budget is yet to be passed because it’s with the legislature and they have their own rigorous process to run through the budget to ask questions, to demands answers before the budget is passed. So, when you ask in a perception index questions like, do you have a budgetary process? What sort of response do you expect someone to give? It is baffling to us, but in spite of that, the government does not see Transparency International as an antagonist.

We believe that the government needs to work better on communication mechanism to explain better what it is doing, to explain better its own challenges, its own failure and its own successes.

So, that’s the way we took it, and the meeting with the board Chair was a very good meeting.

There is this noticeable lack of transpar-

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JUNE 3, 2018

CICERO/ONTHEWATCH/INTERVIEW

Ibeshi Makes His Bid for Cross River’s Top Job Ugo Aliogo writes on former National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Emmanuel Ibshi’s, bid for the governorship of Cross River State

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o live up to its name, the People’s Paradise, Cross River State, needs more than just an ambitious politician or a political jobber, especially at this point in time when the state is anything but a paradise. It needs someone with clear vision, undiluted acumen and a leader par excellence. Incidentally, all these qualities are embedded in one man that lives and breathes Cross River, a man that has tactfully been part of the state’s progress since the dawn of democratic rule in Nigeria.

That man is no other than Honourable Emmanuel Ibeshi, a man who can be aptly described as one of the founding fathers of modern Cross River State. Armed with a clear vision which he has nurtured over four decades, Ibeshi has now taken up the gauntlet to challenge the incumbent Governor in the coming elections. And this is not without reason.

Here is a state endowed with so many natural resources, a boisterous youthful population, a welcoming environment that appeals to all from home and abroad, almost incomparable natural habitats, including the last rainforest still available to West Africa, and a most accommodating people, which makes tourism a natural revenue earner; at this point the state, therefore, needs a man with the temperrament, wealth of experience and vision like Ibeshi to Ibeshi steer its ship.

The Man Ibeshi Hon. Emmanuel Awhan Ibeshi is a Faculty of the Haggai Institute in Hawaii USA, (2006 to date). He teaches LEADERSHIP in the prestigious faith-based institute. He is a distinguished Fellow of the Institute of Corporate Administration of Nigeria.

His leadership qualities first manifested in 1984 at the University of Lagos where he did his National Youth Service. He served as STAGE MANAGER at the CENTER FOR CULTURAL STUDIES, UNILAG where he co-

founded Theatre 15, a foremost workshop in the Centre for Cultural Studies that has metamorphosed into a full-fledged Department of Creative Arts in the University of Lagos.

He was the first National Treasurer of the International Christian Chamber of Commerce (ICCC) headquartered in Sweden; a chamber of commerce founded by a Swedish gentleman, Gunner Olson who had a passion for Christian ideals laced with leadership qualities in the marketplace.

He had a brief stint in the banking industry where he served in the Federal Mortgage Bank as Corporate Affairs

Manager. His relentless zeal for quality leadership and ethical values led him into the murky waters of politics in 1992. He was elected into the Federal House of Representatives in 1992. He served as the House Committee Chairman of Banking and Currency until the military coup of 1993 that scuttled the 3rd Republic.

In 1994 he was elected first National Publicity Secretary of then ruling Party, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP). In 2000 Hon. Ibeshi astounded the Nigerian public by refusing to support an amendment in the PDP constitution by the National Working Committee (NWC) to extend their tenure from 2 to 4 years without going through constitutional referendum even though he was to be a beneficiary. Based on his strong belief in the rule of law and tenacity to democratic ideals, he opposed it even though alone. He wound up taking his party to court insisting on the right thing to be done. The court ruled in his favour and the ruling party was forced to comply with constitutional provisions of the party and the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

This became the first record in the annals of the Nigerian political discuss that a high standing political official could deny the perquisites of office and hold tenaciously to his ideals to enthrone democratic principles to his detriment.

This action earned him an expulsion from the party which he challenged in court. He was eventually restored to his office when the court determined the case in his favour and he served out his tenure in 2001.

He was the Governorship Candidate of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) in 2007. The result of the 2007 election is only too well known in Nigerian history as the precursor of the fall of the PDP that eventually led to its eventual defeat in 2015 due to lessons that are now being learnt the hard way.

Hon. Ibeshi holds a Theatre Arts degree from the University of Calabar and a Master’s in Communication Arts from Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan.

He was born on August 14, 1961, in Obudu Local Government, Northern Senatorial District of Cross River State, Nigeria.

He has facilitated many leadership and management courses, workshops and seminars in the US, Europe, and Africa. He is widely travelled. He plays golf, guitar and loves swimming.

t ‘BUHARI’S ANTI-CORRUPTION WAR IS ON COURSE, SAYS OWASANOYE’ t Continued from Pg. 70 ency and accountability in the way government conduct their businesses. There is still that culture of secrecy that fuels the perceptions that government is not ready to be open.

For example look at the Freedom of Information Act that was passed during Goodluck Jonathan, they just submitted the report recently, stating that nearly 90 percent of public offices still deny access to public information. Are you not concerned in this area? How can we solve that problem?

I think we need to understand that some of these challenges are deeply rooted; they are historical, and some partly cultural. Historical, because the civil servants, and the structure itself were based on Official Secrecy Act; see no evil, hear no evil, don’t talk!, don’t say anything! Okay? And, the Freedom of Information Act is designed to reverse that trend, in order to put transparency into governance.

That’s number 1. Breaking that culture will demand more than just passing a legislation; we need to do far more than passing a law. We need to use technology to make things and information automatically available to the public. Some of those measures are going on. Before I lose that trend of thought I will give you an example. Some few weeks back, we were with our partners, as I said we do back channel consultation with very critical agencies, we spent hours with the Bureau for Public Procurement to discuss our own ideas, the things that were said and what they are doing.

Before the end of the year, very likely, there is going to be an open contracting system up there on the internet that gives journalists like yourselves access to who is getting what contract, at what amount and so on and so forth; because that is the only way to break some of the challenges. They are already working on it; and you can see indeed, this was part of the report that was given as part of Nigeria’s commitment to the Open Governance Partnership (OGP) some few weeks ago. President Buhari was committed when we joined OGP that he was going to open up the space for more information to be available and that while some of these things are being done. PACAC is represented in the OGP Steering Committee, and we make inputs. So, some of those steps are already on-going to open up the space. The second thing of course is that there must be a structure that enables information to be shared with the public; because the public has a right to know. Sin thrives in secrecy, so the more you cover up and you don’t open up, the more iniquity that goes behind. So, we are in support of that.

Indeed, when we got into office, one Civil Society Organization made an FOI request on PACAC, saying where you are people getting money, how much are you spending? And we responded within the statutory period and the fellow was very surprised. He said, because they have made many request to National Assembly, to government agencies and nobody replies. Now, the FOI structure is situated within the Ministry of Justice, so there is need for more interaction, and education and capacity building to break

the existing mind-set of civil servants -- that in spite of FOI, they are not supposed to share information. Once it’s not security related and will not threaten the stability of the country, why shouldn’t you share it? Every Nigerian has a right to know that. So it’s a process and it will take time to break that culture. It is a challenge for example, as an academic, I face this kind of frustration, when I’m doing research and one of my areas is international Economic law and commercial Agreement. Nigeria signs an agreement with a company and I go to Ministry of Justice and I ask, can I get a copy of this agreement to review and see, they say ‘oh! We can’t give you. Because I was focused on international financial agreements at that time, if it’s with The World Bank, I would go to the World Bank and a copy of the thing is there with the World Bank’s library.

And l got a copy from the World Bank’s library. Sometimes, I will even make a photocopy and I go back to Ministry of Justice and tell my friends there, well, since you said you didn’t have a copy or you can’t give me, here, take a copy I have got one. They will say where did you get i? I will say from the World Bank, it’s there, open source. It will take time to break this culture and mind-set; but we support open governance, we support the openness of information, it is the way to go. It’s an anti-corruption measure because if you succeed in knowing who is getting contract, which companies are getting contract and all that, you are are able to fight corruption better.

You worked closely with the EFCC, and there is that perception among many Nigerians, that EFCC is persecuting the opposition members in Nigeria, and that in the true sense of it, the agency is not fighting corruption. What is your take on that?

You know this is an accusation and a perception that would be recurring. When this government finishes its term, if another government comes, the same allegation will be made. We hear it all the time that the fight against corruption is one sided. If you, my dear brother, take over in THISDAY today as the Managing Director or the Chairman, you will start reviewing from the immediate past, the way things were being done, somethings you want to change, and you will be accused, why you are not looking at so and so. These allegations would always come, but there is no substance in it. If you profile people who are being prosecuted, both by the EFCC and ICPC, they include people who are in APC. They certainly include people who are in PDP and recently President Buhari said that those who are corrupt, no matter how long it takes, they will be brought to book. Let’s assume for whatever reason that EFCC does not get to you under this regime does that mean that you are free? It doesn’t make, things can change and they will still come after you. I think that the decision about where to start from is often that of the prosecuting or the law

enforcement agency. On an average day, let’s say 100 complaints may come to a police station about crime that has been committed in an average. Do the police follow through all of them? They don’t even have the capacity to follow all. It does not follow through all of the; it decides which one it will follow through, follow up the investigation and from there, decide whether or not it is going to prosecute or not to prosecute. It is not for the suspect to say ah, you investigated 10 of us, why is it only me that you want to prosecute.

The second thing that I say when people raise this argument is that if you accuse me of corruption or any other crime, which I have not committed, it is in my interest to prove innocence. My best defence is not to say, why I am the one you are prosecuting, that cannot be my defence; that defence cannot stand. My defence is I am innocent. This is my proof that I am innocent. I think that it will serve the purpose better for those who are complaining to go to court and say I am innocent; Are we to believe that corruption is still very pronounced in the country?

There is still corruption. There is no country that does not have corruption, but it is not at the same level as you heard it before.

And I will give you examples: when people make general statements like oh! There is also lot of corruption in this administration, the question I always ask is: can you bring proof? Some people will write us petition that there is corruption in the housing sector, just a general statement, then you say thank you, but can you be specific?

No feedback! People don’t come back; they just make general statements out of anger, out of frustration, out of annoyance, out of bias. It doesn’t matter they make general statements. Take a look at the present government, as I said, some of the measures that government has introduced automatically reduced the ability and capacity for corruption. Unless you don’t want to be honest; go and talk to civil servants, whether it’s the same way that money is being stolen before that they are having it now. You need to do that. I am not saying that Nigeria is corruption free; no, we are far from that.

But, as to whether the government has succeeded in diminishing corruption significantly and to an extent, it has.

Somebody said that in the past corruption was democratised and now it has been privatised. In other words, few people who are very close to the power are the ones involved in the current corrupt practices. Do you share that?

If people have information on all those allegations you heard of them each time, they can bring it with evidence. Look, if you can help us, since you have that information, the identity of the person will be protected; the security of the person will be safeguarded.

You need to help the system by putting that information on the

Continued on Pg. 73

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ UNE 3, 2018

PERSPECTIVE

Ekiti: INEC’s Acid Test for 2019 Michael West

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hat President Muhammadu Buhari declared his interest to run for second term in office is neither accidental nor a response to any pressure for continuity. It has been a grand plan from his first day in office. His health challenges and age, however, are signals to him that he should consider stepping down in 2019.

The appointment of Prof. Mahmud Yakubu as chairman of the Independent Electoral Commission, INEC, lends credence to the opinion in some quarters that Yakubu’s appointment is tied to an agenda of perpetuating the Buhari administration in office. More so, some high-ranking chieftains of the ruling All Progressives Party, APC, at an informal parley averred that Yakubu’s appointment was in response to a colossal error by former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan who, despite indications that Prof. Attahiru Jega had been compromised against his aspiration in 2015, kept him in office. His attempts to remove Jega much later became an issue of blackmail as the opposition portrayed it as part of desperate moves to manipulate the outcome of the elections to achieve a sit-tight-in-office plan. Thus, Jonathan backed off and he was cheaply eased out of power.

Under this administration, the commission has not proven it has the capacity to conduct free, fair and credible elections. Most of the re-run, gubernatorial and by-elections it has conducted so far were either inconclusive or marred with malpractices and characterized by violence in response to allegations of compromise

by INEC officials. It got to a point that the Yakubu-led INEC became stigmatized in the public space for always conducting “inconclusive” elections. The commission now seems to have overcome its inconclusiveness.

As the Ekiti State governorship poll draws nearer, the election appears to be resplendent with the trappings of what would be the most keenly contested election ever in the history of the state. Simultaneously, there is the possibility that it might be volatile, combative, explosive and combustive. Reason: every indication that subverted the will of the people of Edo State in the 2016 governorship election is already emerging on the horizon. Appropriating the so-called ‘federal might’ to impose the APC candidate if he is not duly elected by the Ekiti electorate may backfire. Unlike Edo State, Ekiti people will not condone electoral arms-twisting against their wish.

Both Dr. Kayode Fayemi of the APC and Prof. Kolapo Olusola of the People Democratic Party, PDP are illustrious sons of the “Fountain of Knowledge.” Head or tail, it is still the same Ekiti interests at play. Both candidates have influential ‘godfathers’ at different levels. While Fayemi has his backbone in Abuja, Olusola has his right at the helm of affairs in the state. If Ekiti electorate is allowed to vote their conscience, the outcome of the poll is easily predictable.

In a retaliatory power play somewhat, Fayemi’s

Yakubu, INEC Chairman candidature is buoyed by the penchant for a ‘return match’ over his defeat under the last PDP-led federal government which allegedly facilitated Governor Ayodele Fayose’s victory in 2014. I dare say that Fayemi is emboldened to challenge the current political potentate of Ekiti and his continuity agenda not because he is sure he could win if the contest is allowed to be free, fair and transparent but, I believe, like many other analysts do, that Fayemi is throwing his hat into the ring to challenge Fayose simply because he has the backing of Abuja.

Today, the ‘federal might’ is readily available to Fayemi.

I am persuaded to revisit the 2014 Ekiti governorship election and dispel some wrong notions being held so far about it. The national leader and chief promoter of the then Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN, who is now a topmost chieftain of the ruling APC, Senator Bola Tinubu, has a realistic approach to virtually all his electoral contests. Before going into any major election, Tinubu usually conducts field surveys to know his chances and to decide the winnable strategy to employ before venturing into the contest.

Tinubu contracted a research and marketing firm in Lagos to do same ahead of the 2014 governorship poll in Ekiti. The result gave Fayose the victory based on the would-be voting pattern, opinions and other factors. The outcome of elections projected by the firm for Tinubu has always been accurate. So, Tinubu approached Fayemi with the result of the survey, which Fayemi discarded with a wave of hand. He reportedly told Tinubu that “We are solidly on ground in Ekiti. There is no cause for alarm” he was quoted as saying. The rest, people do say,

is history.

Truth be told, the military deployed in Ekiti in 2014 did not harass or influence the electorate. The voting was very peaceful and the results collated from the polling units duly reflected at the central collation centre. I guess that was why Fayemi initially conceded by congratulating Fayose before his party kicked against the outcome and headed for the court. In Edo, the reverse was the case. Independent observers and media technically rejected the results in their reports because it was too glaring that the exercise was a wholesale electoral banditry.

Back to the July 14, 2018 governorship poll in Ekiti, the arrangement being put in place by the INEC calls for vigilance and caution if it must conduct a free, fair and credible election. The body language of the commission seems indifferent to the opinions questioning its neutrality. It appears the electoral body is more passionate about doing the bidding of the President than serving the overall interests of Nigerians. Otherwise, why has it remained silent since Governor Fayose cried out that the Edo fraudulent template is being surreptitiously put in place for Ekiti gubernatorial poll?

Until the INEC debunks Fayose’s claims, every move by the commission will remain suspect. If indeed Professor Kayode Soremekun, Vice Chancellor of the Federal University of Oye Ekiti, who superintended the Edo electoral debauchery, is being considered for a role in the Ekiti poll, then, there’s the likelihood of shenanigans in the offing. At least, there are several other Vice Chancellors in the South West or across the country who can discharge the duty meritoriously. I want to appeal to the INEC to stop dragging Soremekun into compromised assignments. He is a brilliant scholar who still has a lot to achieve with his integrity intact. Likewise, Soremekun should either reject the call or be ready to be unbiased regardless of threats and the consequences of his action. Good name, the holy book says, is much better than filthy lucre, silver, gold and diamond all put together.

If they were able to succeed in other places, Ekiti will be different. All that Nigerians are asking for is that INEC should truly be an unbiased umpire. I know Buhari is interested in Ekiti for two major reasons: one, to feel the pulse of the people on how his electoral chances would likely be in the South West region in 2019 and, two, to silence his most vocal and untiring critic, Fayose. Defeating Olusola, who is regarded as the governor’s alter ego, actually means humiliating Fayose himself.

Anybody can win or lose election but subverting the popular wish of the people of Ekiti will be counter-productive even for Mr. President in 2019. Plots to recruit students rather than Youth Corps for ad hoc electoral duties whereby non-students would be conscripted to perpetrate fraud should be discarded. This election should not be a do-or-die affair. Let us normalize our checkered democracy for the survival of our nation.

–––West, a Media Consultant, wrote via mikeawe@yahoo.co.uk

Catholics’ Protest and the Rest of Us Moses Fajana

O

n May 22, Catholics from across the country headed to Benue State.

Their mission at the Se Sugh U Maria Pilgrimage Centre, Ayati Ikpayongo was to bury two priests and 17 faithful.

Rev. Father Joseph Gor, Rev. Father Felix Tyolaha and the 17 faithful had been killed on April 25 by suspected herdsmen at Quasi Parish Ukpor, Mbalom in Gwer East local government area of the state. It was a solemn but vintage burial reportedly attended by representatives of the Pope. Also in attendance was Vice President Yemi Osinbajo who must have been there to show that the Federal Government stands with the Catholic faithful in their moment of grief. The chief mourner, Governor Samuel Ortom, was also there. The burial was not the only event involving Catholics on that day. In many states across the country, the faithful, led by their leaders, same day, took to the streets.

The action was in deference to the directive by the Catholic Conference of Bishops which, about a week earlier, ordered the faithful into the streets to protest the April 25 unfortunate attack on the Quasi Parish Ukpor, Mbalom. The protest must have been carefully planned to coincide with the burial of the fallen priests and faithful to achieve maximum impact. And significantly, the protest came barely two weeks after a similar action ordered by the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN).

Meanwhile, one week after the Catholics protest, the action has remained topical. This is understandably so because this is a country where issues that border on religion are sensitive.

Ours is a nation where the moment the President is from one religion, no matter how much he means well in his actions, adherents of other religions will hold him in suspicion.

For instance, there are those who believe that the Catholics acted within their right to carry out the protest. According to them, the faithful acted in line with their emotion that fellow Catholics had been killed and government did not appear to be doing much to assuage their feeling. On the other side are those who say that Catholics went too far in endangering the polity with the May 22 action. Those in this school of thought argue that had the Catholic leaders carefully considered the grave implication of the protest, reason would have prevailed and the action would have been shelved.

According to them, the church leaders ought to have given sufficient thought to the fact that it is not only Catholics that have been victims of attacks in the country over the past few years. Whereas Christians of other denominations have been killed, Muslims have also borne the brunt of the attacks. The bottom line is that it is preposterous for Catholics to embark on the protest to give the impression that only those that belong to their denomination have been singled out for murderous attacks across Nigeria.

And the action, according to many analysts, may have sent the wrong signal to other Christian denominations in Nigeria and members of other religions. In essence, some precedent has been set. Some Christian or Muslim denomination can wake up tomorrow to say their members have been killed in some terror attacks and take to the streets in protest just like Catholics did. If this happens frequently, this may compromise security.

We were lucky that the Catholic protest went smoothly and produced no casualty but you never can tell when hoodlums will strike during a protest and turn it into a mayhem. The

other side of the protest the Catholic bishops possibly didn’t consider while ordering it was the chances that politics could be read into the action.

This is not the first time a Catholic Church in the country has come under terrorists’ attack and parishioners killed. On Christmas Day in 2011, terrorists attacked St. Theresa Catholic Church, Suleja, Niger State, killing scores of parishioners among others.

The deadly attack took place under a Christian president, Dr Goodluck Jonathan. Not long ago under the present administration, precisely in August 2016, suspected herdsmen attacked

Attakwu Akegbe Ugwu community in Nkanu West council area. In the attack, a Catholic Church seminarian, Lazarus Nwafor, was killed.

The fact that the 2011 and 2016 attacks took place and did not generate emotions and a mass burial like it happened on May 22 in Benue, and the attendant protest in some parts of the country, has led to the point being made that Catholics may have acted the way they did in the latest incident because President Muhammadu Buhari is a Moslem and to put him in a bad light. To be honest, the Buhari administration has shown adequate concern about the killings going on in parts of the country regardless of whether the victims are Christians or Moslems or even atheists. As long as those killed are human beings, a responsive government must care. And that is the reason the president has visited such hot spots to commiserate with the bereaved communities while equally deploying the security apparatus to prevent reoccurrence. The only way well-meaning Nigerians can help is to support the Federal Government in stemming the tide of the killings and not exacerbate it the way Catholics seem to have done.

––Fajana, a lawyer, wrote from Akure, Ondo State

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JUNE 3, 2018

PERSPECTIVE

Buhari, APC Congresses and Issue of Leadership Abu Quassim

T

he recent congresses of the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC) have kept me thinking about how low we have gone in this country in many sectors. In an unprecedented manner, the political party which controls the Presidency, 60 percent of the two chambers of our bi-cameral Federal legislature, 24 of the 36 State Governorship and Houses of Assembly, had parallel congresses conducted in 22 of its 36 state branches.

In some of the 14 states where the APC did not record parallel congress, it was because some of the aggrieved leaders decided to ‘sidon look’. Surprisingly too, the forces behind 70 percent of the parallel congresses are serving ministers.

What this signifies is that the plot to disorganize the ruling party is being plotted and directed from the Federal Government which is controlled by the same party. This is akin to partisan civil war. Each time one ponders over the developments in APC, it beats my imagination whether such level of indiscipline, disunity and apparent rudderlessness was possible in the two political parties which have ruled Nigeria since we adopted the American Presidential system of government in 1979.

In the Second Republic between 1979 and 1983 when we first experimented with the Presidential system, the National Party of Nigeria (NPN) which was the party in power had an arrangement that provided cohesion between the executive, legislature and the party, since they were all controlled by its members.

The NPN devised a Caucus arrangement. Every Monday, a meeting in the Marina State House was held. Two topmost members from each of the chambers of the National Assembly met with the President, Vice President, two members of the Federal Executive Council and four party leaders to discuss government policies, programmes, projects, appointments and party issues. At that meeting, each of the three units presented perspectives from their branch on all issues put up for discussion.

An agreement would be arrived at and each of the leaders was expected to go back and sell the ideas and decisions to their colleagues.

The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) had a similar Caucus headed by the President in the 16 years it ruled between 1999 and 2015. More importantly, the PDP never pretended about the convention that the President of the country, when he is a member, is the leader of the party. The President under PDP had always found a way to rally other party leaders behind a decision they felt strongly about.

The APC was formed from amalgamation of legacy political parties, all of which had electoral strengths in different regions of the country. It became a platform which was used to successfully push out a party that has been in power for 16 years. Since then, it has manifested the symptoms of a party which won power but is unable to manage the resultant success.

Members of the party who are in control of the legislature are most of the time not in agreement with the executive. The party leadership has been in slumber since the present government came to power. The party leadership has never been in a position to mediate between the executive and the legislature when there is disagreement. The President and his ministers have serious contempt for the legislature. and no respect for the party organs.

In fact, the party has struggled unsuccessfully for four years to set up a Board of Trustees. There is no proper consultation, engagement and discussion. What you have are different arms of government going in different directions with allegations that the executive arm which control all apparatus of state are deploying state powers to oppress and victimize other party leaders.

It is a surprise that the number four man in the APC administration could not participate in the party congresses from the local government level in his home state. Speaker Yakubu Dogara

Buhari was so pissed off that he headed for the courts seeking for a declaration that the entire congress in Bauchi State be declared a nullity.

In the course of the APC Congresses, a court of record in Rivers State was sacked by thugs. Yet, the court has boldly given a verdict nullifying the crisis-ridden congresses in the state. A few lives had been lost in different places. Many individuals were maimed. And as at today, the APC has become a threat to the survival of democracy, even though, it should be the biggest stakeholder in the political process .

The biggest surprise is the loud silence that is coming from the leader of APC, President Muhammadu Buhari. It is an incontrovertible fact that the leader of APC is Buhari. Yet, with all the negative developments, the President has claimed that he will not intervene in party affairs. However, the presidential policy of non-interference does not extend to the decision that former Governor of Edo State, Adams Oshiomhole is the official candidate of the Presidency for the national chairmanship at the coming national convention.

The silence of the President where it matters and when it is needed to maintain even peace, decorum, discipline and internal democracy in the APC has given rife to speculations that the President actually know about the parallel congresses and see nothing wrong in them. It is believed the perceived impending implosion of the APC is part of the re-election strategy of the Buhari group within the party.

Some have said the only pre-occupation of the President is his re-election in 2019 and that it does not matter whether there is peace in the party on whose platform he is seeking re-election. What all these translate to, therefore, is that the problem with APC is that of leadership. Where the party should derive strength, cohesion and unity, emptiness is the answer the members get.

The problem of the APC is lack of leadership, more than any other thing. When the President who should be the force

pulling every other units together adopted the ‘Sidon’ look approach and decided to do no evil, see no evil and prevent no evil, the various other divisive forces begin to fester and prosper. The party has therefore refused to grow beyond being a special purpose vehicle (SPV) for removing the PDP and Goodluck Jonathan from office.

Up till now, members of the party continue to analyse all appointments made by Buhari in terms of which of the legacy parties is being favoured. It is widely believed in the APC that President Buhari favoured more the two legacy parties on whose platform he had unsuccessfully contested for the Presidency between 2003 and 2011 - that is the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) and the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP). Just recently, members of the new Peoples Democratic Party (nPDP) in the APC re-organized themselves and expressed their grievances to the party leadership and the Presidency over the injustice, imbalance in sharing of offices and lack of discipline in the party.

One wonders whether President Buhari is actually enjoying the impending implosion in the APC on whose platform he hopes to contest the 2019 polls. Otherwise, how difficult can it be for the President to pull his weight, call Speaker Yakubu Dogara and Bauchi State Governor, Alhaji Mohammed Abubakar and order them to resolve their differences and work together? What will it cost Buhari to resolve the problem between Governor Umaru Ganduje of Kano State and his predecessor, Sen. Rabiu Musa Kwakwanso? Except the President is, in a cavalier manner, calculating that the fight between these two political gladiators will help to decimate the Senator.

Is it not expected that the President should be able to call his latter day protege, Nasir el-Rufai, to order with a view to stopping the war of attrition going on between him and the Senators from Kaduna State? However, instead of being a conciliator, we saw the President on national television hailing el-Rufai for arbitrarily demolishing the house of a serving Senator who is also a member of the party. The “Bulldozer”, as the President hailed the Governor, has continued to tear apart the unity of the party in that key North-west State.

In Zamfara State, two key Buhari loyalists, Governor Abdulazeez Yari and Senator Kabiru Marafa have been at each other’s throat. Yet, the President seems to be waiting for them to destroy each other while the winner gets the trophy.

With all these scenarios in APC, President Buhari and his strategists still believe nothing will stop him from being re-elected. I guess the permutations are that the 2019 general elections would be conducted in the same manner the APC congresses were conducted. In that case, it will be a game for strong men, officialdom, confusion, unlawful deployment of state resources to achieve partisan objectives and other methods that are less than civil.

If the President wants to win next year’s election in a transparent, free, fair, peaceful and credible manner, we have to start seeing the sign that he is puttting his house in order. His party must be properly organized and the rancour there must be reduced to the barest minimum. He must stop behaving like a General who went to the war and won decisively, only to return home and stoked the battle in his backyard. President Buhari must provide political leadership in APC and rein in the centrifugal and centripetal forces tearing apart the ruling party.

If there is no peace in APC, the 2019 elections will be bedeviled with many crises. Prof. Attahiru Jega, former national Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) told President Buhari so at the Democracy Day lecture, though he chose to generalize his comment instead of hitting the nail on the head. However, it is clear that the only party whose congresses recently witnessed so much violence and indiscipline is the ruling party.

––––Quassim writes from Abuja

t ‘BUHARI’S ANTI-CORRUPTION WAR IS ON COURSE, SAYS OWASANOYE’ t Continued from Pg. 71 table; it is not good enough to make the allegation to say, look those who are corrupt are those who are close to government, this is what they are doing. So, to that the extent that you have that information, you have a duty to put it on the table otherwise how is government going to be able to deal with it?

Corruption is also an abuse of power and many people believe it is well pronounced in this government. Can you deny that?

When you say that corruption and abuse of power is pronounced in government, I will give you another example. Recently, a certain section of the country was saying that they were marginalized in appointments and stuff like that.

So the government asked for an audit of some sort of all the appointments and said look, let’s even map out geopolitical zones, the appointees in the government and where they come from, and when the data was presented to the leaders from that section of the country, to say this is the existing position, if you disagree with it, please point it out. They never said a word. It showed in the data that was supplied that they actually had an edge and that all of the things they had been feeding the media was not correct. There is no

time that we were told that this is happening and we ignored it. We would go back to the source and say give us something we can work with, I’m not going to mention your name, but since you’ve asked I will ask for discreet investigation to be done, 99% of the it’s unfounded.

There is a strong argument that for us to be able to fight corruption, we need to re-structure the institutions. The recent report by the NJC confirmed that most of the anti-corruption agencies for example, the EFCC lacks the capacity to do its job -- in terms of prosecutions. So what should be done in order to be able to correct that?

I think there is no doubt that there is merit in that observation -- that given the level of corruption in the country, it is epidemic and systemic and anti-corruption agencies are not coping well.

The focus is on EFCC and ICPC at the moment; but, indeed, there are other agencies that are not able to fight corruption as well like the Police. The police is the biggest and the most wide spread, but also under resourced; as you know, there is a recruitment drive going on even right now as we are speaking for the police. The EFCC has recently increased its own manpower but beyond

that you also need training for them, you also need to provide infrastructure, you also need to fund the agencies very well because you see, the key and critical factor in any anti corruption effort is in the investigation. The capacity to investigate, to be able to trace the source and ultimately to be able to block it; because as they say, prevention is better than cure. Basically, what we have is that anti corruption agencies right now are only able to respond. In my view they are only able to respond to just a small percentage of the problem that we have however, that is not to say that that small percentage cannot add value or make impact.

When you focus on the big issues in the short to medium term, because ultimately, you got to make the anti corruption effort a people’s effort -- that is what will help us fight and diminish corruption.

Are you not worried that the institutions for example or the personnel within the anti corruption institutions that are supposed to be fighting corruption have become parts of the problem -- rather than fighting corruption?

There is no doubt that there are bad eggs in every institution and we have had some of the complaints and reports -- that anti-corruption

agencies themselves are corrupt or have been compromised; it has to be dealt with, and when those reports come up and we give them these feedbacks they do take measures.

From your interrogation with the system, what is your perception about this government in terms of transparency and accountability?

To be honest with you, speaking for myself and perhaps people on the committee, I wouldn’t be in government if I didn’t think that this government meant well and was determined without being immodest. I have been offered place in government before now but I didn’t accept it. I didn’t accept it because I was not sure that there was the determination and the political willingness to make changes, no matter how small. I think that the government means well and the government is determined. I think the government is doing well and corruption is not at the same level at which it was in the past, unless we want to be uncharitable. Corruption is not at the same level, indeed some of the people who are highly critical of government, they are critical today because a number of the avenues that they used to feast on government, have been closed.

74

JUNE 3, 2018 ˾ THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER

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T H I S D AY SUNDAY JUNE 3, 2018

75

76

T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R Ëž JUNE 3, 2018

IMAGES

T

heburialceremonyof Madam Ezinne Esther Ugwu-oju, the mother of the founder of Nigeria and Entrpreneurship: Summit & Honors (NESH), Emeka Ugwu-Oju took place on Thursday, 31 of May, 2018 at St Patrick Catholic Church, Amogu Aku, lgbo Etiti L.G.A, Enugu State. The entertainment of guests follows immediately thereafter. Here are the faces of some of the personalities that attended the event.

Photosgraphs by Abiodun Ajala

L-R: Mrs. Nnena Ugwu, Lady Theresa Nwankwo and her husband, Sir Victor Nwankwo

L-R: Mr. Uzama Okpalaeke and Lady Ada Chukwudozie

L-R: Mr. Nuhu Yakubu, lsaac Okoroafor and Chike Okoroafor

L-R: Nebo Emodi and a guest

Mr. Emeka Ugwu-Oju and his wife, Nkechi

L-R: Mr. Ejike Amunnadi, Dr. Charles Ugwu-Oju and Kalu Onuma

L-R: Denzle Kentebe and Collins Chikeluba

L-R: Chief Albert lyorah and Mr. Emeka Ene

L-R: Andy Wabali and Hon. Malachy Agbo

L-R: Bonny Ezeaka and Emeka Osondu

77

T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JUNE 3, 2018

NEWSXTRA Guinness Record Holder: Producing My Song Cost Only N200,000 Nseobong Okon-Ekong Gospel artiste, Donatus Chikadibia Nwaogu, popularly known as St. Chika who was recently listed in the Guinness World Records for the ‘longest Officially Released Song’ has revealed that

the song which has fetched him global recognition cost N200,000 to produce.

Nwaogu also argued that officials from the Reference Book did not have to be physically present to verify his achievement.

The record for the ‘longest

officially released song’ was previously held by PC III Label Pipe Choir from USA in 2015, but was most recently broken by Dominican Republic rapper Henry G with a 3 hours 26 minutes 22 seconds long song.

Nwaogu set a new world

record with his 4 hours, 2 minutes 4 seconds long song titled ‘Power in the Name of the Lord’, breaking the previous record with over 36 minutes.

Writing in an email, Nwaogu said, “you can break a Guinness World Record

INVESTMENT FORUM L-R: Former Deputy Governor, Central Bank of Nigeria, Tunde Lemo; acting CEO, Heritage Bank, Dr. Jude Monye; and Member of Faculty, Lagos Business School, Dr. Franklin Ngwu, at the International executive development programme for investment bankers from South Africa at the LBS...recently

and send evidence to them for verification. My record is quite easy to verify because it involves publishing the song on digital stores for it to be regarded as officially released.

The World Record isn’t just only recording the song but being able to release it. That is why it is called ‘Longest Officially Released Song’ and not ‘Longest Song.”

The artiste said he initially hoped to record a gospel single, which would be 3hrs 30 minutes 50 seconds long but decided to go much longer.

The song which features 64 verses was released on digital stores like iTunes, Spotify, Amazon, Deezer, Google Play, Soundcloud and YouTube. The record breaking song will also be released on blogs later in the month.

Nwaogu said his attainment was inspired by the widely reported description of Nigerian youths as lazy

by President Muhammadu Buhari. According to the 28-year-old Physics graduate of the University of Lagos, “this is an effort to change such ideology. Nigerian youths aren’t lazy. We are determined, dedicated and most importantly industrious. This song is a souvenir that Nigerian youths are not lazy. I also want to use this to get more Nigerian youths interested in positive things and shun all forms of negative habits. I also want to promote gospel music

amongst Nigerian youths.”

The song was produced by Crisace Andrea and Nwaogu.

It was recorded at House of Ace Studio in Lagos, Nigeria between May 20 and 24, 2018.

Nwaogu was lead vocalist, while back-up vocals was provided by Andrea. For the most part, the song which is a repetition of chorus and hooks is targeted at any worshiper.

Nwaogu said further that he wants people to “know that worshiping God with a single song for four hours is possible and it isn’t even enough. I wish I could do this for 24 hours. Worshiping Jesus should come easy to us as breathing.”

Nwaogu began his gospel music career last August with a debut album, ‘Feel the Gospel’ with the hit single ‘Higher, Higher’ which received four award nominations. He said his career began with him sending voice notes of his performance of one of his hit songs ‘Praise Him’ to his WhatsApp contacts and they encouraged him to record it at a studio.

The new Guinness World Record holder who began singing, playing the instrument and writing his own songs at the age of eight said he intends to use his new status “to launch the brand St. Chika globally. Every artist needs a break and I intend to use this as my big break.”

Why Innoson Chairman Didn’t Appear in Court, By Aide Kasie Abone

Media Manager of Innoson Group, Mr. Cornel Osigwe, has said his principal and Chairman of Innoson Group, Dr. Innocent Chukwuma, has not appeared in court following a suit filed against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission because

the case amounts to abuse of court process. Osigwe alleged that the case instituted by EFCC at the Lagos State High Court was already before two federal high courts.

Osigwe said Chukwuma was innocent of the charges, stressing that he is a lawabiding citizen who will not be avoiding court appearance de-

liberately. He traced the origin of the case to a failed business transaction that involved Innoson, saying, “EFCC felt slighted and angered by Innoson’s refusal to accept its reconciliation contained in its letter of 20th September 2012. In December 2013, EFCC filed Charge No. ID/197C/2013 against Innoson and two others at the

Lagos State High Court, Ikeja.

Later, in 2014, the charge was struck out. However, Innoson, through his counsel, appealed against the order and as well filed a motion on notice at the Court of Appeal, Lagos Division, praying, among others, that EFCC be restrained from filing a further charge in respect of the same subject matter

until determination of the Appeal Nos: CA/L/1328CM/17, CA/L/1329CM/17 & CA/L/1330CM/17.”

Innoson was accused by EFCC of forging a shipping document, which he used to obtain a loan. But the company insisted that there was no forgery as all documents relating to its transactions were received

and signed in a register. But an affidavit deposed to by an Internal Control Officer, Mr. Akpobome Usiakpo, claimed that a fire had burnt the register.

Chukwuma failed to appear in court for the fifth consecutive time on May 25, when the matter came up at the Ikeja high court.

PDP Floors APC in Oyo Bye-election

Obaseki Frets over Poor Execution of Projects

Olota Advocates House of Chiefs’ Resuscitation

Ademola Babalola inIbadan

AdibeEmenyonuinBeninCity

Femi Ogbonnikan inAbeokuta

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) yesterday declared the candidate of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP), Adebo Ogundoyin as the winner of the byeelection for Ibarapa East State Constituency.

The seat became vacant following the death of the All Progressives Congress (APC) representative of the constituency who was also the Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Michael Adeyemo on April 27 this year.

Amidst tight security, the election was generally peaceful as the PDP candidate polled 6,277 as against his closest rival and brother to the late Speaker, Kunle Adeyemo of the ruling APC who scored 4,619. An Accord candidate came third with

2,859.

The 31-years old Adebo is the son of the late Eruwa-born philanthropist, Adeseun Ogundoyin who died 27 years ago.

He hailed from Eruwa with six wards as against Lanlate-born Adeyemo with four wards that make up Ibarapa East local government.

The governor, Abiola Ajimobi who won the elusive second term as Governor of the state had lost two consecutive bye-elections within one year.

This was in addition to similar re-run election way back in 2012 which the then Action Congress of Nigeria lost to the PDP in Oke Ogun area of the state.

The governor’s party lost Oorelope/Irepo/Olorunsogo federal constituency in 2012; Oorelope State Constituency in 2017 and Ibarapa East State constituency in 2018.

The Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, has expressed dissatisfaction with the poor handling of projects executed by the Edo State Oil and Gas Producing Areas Development Commission (EDSOPADEC) in the last six years.

Obaseki expressed his dissatisfaction when he received the Engineering Audit of EDSOPADEC’s projects from 2011 to 2017, noting that it was discouraging that the commission failed in its mandate to utilise funds to ameliorate developmental challenges in oil producing communities.

“I am not happy that of the funds for projects made available to the commission only 30 per cent was put to use, while similar commission at the regional level had only expended 10 per cent of funds for project execution,”

Obaseki said.

He explained, “These commissions that were supposed to build alternative economies and assist oil and gas producing communities to prepare for a time when crude oil resources would be exhausted, have not done enough for the communities. “This is unacceptable. Hence, we will not constitute new board for EDSOPADEC until we clean up the system. We will invite contractors who abandoned projects and where there is need for the contractors to return funds meant for projects we will not relent until such funds are fully recovered.”

Obaseki mandated the permanent secretaries in the state’s ministries of Infrastructure and Urban & Regional Planning, to review the audit report submitted by the Development Engineering Konsult Limited and develop a white paper thereafter.

The new Olota of Ota, Ogun State, Oba Adeyemi Obalanlege, has called for the resuscitation of the House of Chiefs as a bicamera legislature in each of the states of the Federation as the only way to assign roles to traditional rulers in the country, instead of accusing them of dabbling into partisan-politics.

The monarch contended that doing so would halt heaping unnecessary blames or degrading the traditional institution of any wrongdoing in the course of their assigned roles.

Besides, while fielding questions from newsmen at a recent get-together organised by committee of friends in his honour as the 14th Olota of Ota, the monarch who was a trained journalist, promised that his reign would witness a massive empowerment

of unemployed youths within his domain as a measure to curb young men taking to crimes. Also, he promised to ensure that youths within his Ota domain benefit immensely from industrialisation his community is endowed with.

According to him, “I am ready to engage youths with employment as a measure to take them off the streets from joining bad gangs. So, this is the time to liberate them.

“Though we appreciate people coming from outside to contribute to the industrial growth and development of our community but I can’t imagine Ota, being the industrial hub of the country and our teeming unemployed youths can’t benefit from the industrialisation our various communities within Aworiland can’t benefit from, because we can see people coming from outside the community to get jobs here.”

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ UNE 3, 2018

NEWSXTRA ICAN Installs Jaiyeola as 54th President Olaseni Durojaiye

MY CHAIR! L-R: Osun State Peoples Democratic Party governorship aspirant, Dr. Akin Ogunbiyi, with the party state Chairman, Hon. Soji Adagunodo, after his arrival at the state party secretariat, Osogbo, where he declared for the contest...recently

Nigeria to be Africa’s Biggest Digital TV Market, Says Osinbajo Demola Ojo

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has said efforts by the federal government regarding broadcasting will soon make Nigeria the leader in the African digital TV market.

“The digital switchover ensured by the National Broadcasting Commission and other stakeholders will make Nigeria the biggest digital TV market in Africa,” he revealed at the launch of Hi-Impact TV in Lagos recently.

Represented at the launch

by Director General of the Nigeria Tourism Development Corporation, Folorunsho Coker, Osinbajo lauded the epochmaking event and described the station as revolutionary within the Nigerian broadcast, entertainment and media industry. It will encourage government’s resolve to carry out reforms in the sector and grow the economy by leveraging on the potentials of the creative sector to showcase Nigeria’s

rich culture, he remarked.

Expectations are high as Solution Media & Infotech Ltd owners of the Hi-Impact brand – launch Hi Impact TV. Touted as Nigeria’s first High Definition free-to-air TV station, Hi-Impact TV started broadcasting Friday, June 1, coming on board a few days after a launch ceremony on Democracy Day. Osinbajo continued that the launch of Hi-Impact TV is a revolution “since it promises to be the very first TV channel in Nigeria to transmit all its programmes completely in full High Definition.”

The landmark achievement

by Hi-Impact supports government’s resolve to carry out reforms in the sector and grow the economy by leveraging on the potential of the creative sector and providing sustainable platforms to ensure real growth, the Vice-President continued.

“This will contribute to increasing the Nigerian GDP. Actors, producers, directors, cameramen will all be gain-

Two Nigerian-born Pharmacists Indicted in $9.6m Prescription Drug Scheme Two Nigerian-born pharmacists have been indicted by a US court for their involvement in the illegal distribution of addictive drugs, according to a report in the Cable online.

Both Enitan Sodiya-Ogundipe, 42, and Abiodun Fabode, 56, were said to have conspired with Amir Rafi, another pharmacist, and Vasan Deshikachar, a medical doctor, to distribute more than 344,737 dosage units of Schedule II opioid prescriptions to vendors who sell them on the streets. The controlled drugs were said to have a street value in excess of $9,600,000. The scheme ran from January 2015 through March 2018.

Deshikachar is accused of prescribing oxycodone and oxymorphone, two of the most addictive opioids, to vendors who would take the fake patients to pharmacies owned by Sodiya-

Ogundipe, Rafi and Fabode where the drugs are dispensed.

Commenting on the case, Jeff Sessions, US attorney-general, said: “It’s incredible but true that we have seen that some of our trusted doctors, pharmacists, and medical professionals have chosen to violate their oaths and exploit our unprecedented drug crisis for profit.

“Last summer, I sent a dozen of our top federal prosecutors to focus solely on the problem of opioid-related health care fraud in places where the epidemic was at its worst - including Eastern Michigan.

“In this case, three pharmacists and one doctor allegedly conspired to distribute nearly $10 million worth of opioids into the community, potentially spreading addiction and causing untold damage to Michigan families.

fully employed directly or indirectly,” Osinbajo said at a well-attended event held at HiImpact Planet, an amusement park at Ibafo, Ogun State (on the Lagos-Ibadan expressway), where Hi-Impact TV broadcasts from.

The Alake of Egbaland and paramount ruler of Egba kingdom, Oba Adedotun Aremu Gbadebo III, was among many dignitaries at the occasion.

Osinbajo further said HIimpact TV would provide the country another opportunity to showcase its rich culture and engage the creative talents to provide content for production and increase the number of channels available to viewers nationwide. He also expressed hope that the station would benefit the host community.

Welcoming guests to the launch, Chairman Solution Media, Prince Adeyanju Lipede, said the TV station will be ‘edutainment-based’, focusing mainly on education, entertainment and family.

He stressed that the station will assist children excel in examinations conducted by WAEC, NECO as well as the Joint Matriculations Exams (JAMB), with its educative programmes.

The company’s Managing Director, Prince Adeleye Lipede, added: “We have engaged professional teachers to take subjects offered by secondary school students and JAMB to complement what they (students) are taught in school.”

Marketing Executive Victoria Odimba explained that the culture at Solution Media is to solve problems encountered in the course of work. “We found out that we needed to drop the quality of our adverts to air on many TV stations,” she explained. “Dropping quality from High Definition to Standard definition was frustrating after putting so much work in.

It was the genesis of the idea to set up their own station”, she added.

In line with statutory practice of over five decades, the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) has recorded a change of baton in its leadership, with the investiture of Alhaji Razak Jaiyeola as its 54th president.

His ascension to the office concluded activities that commenced on March 29 with his election by council members of the institute, and a revalidation of the election on the eve of the investiture.

The new ICAN president was reputed for championing capacity building among members including advocating the deployment of modern Information Technology into accounting practice.

Besides, Jaiyeola represented ICAN in many working committees both within and outside Nigeria including the committee that reviewed Presidential Executive Order on Ease of Doing Business. He also stated that the institute under his leadership will partner the federal government in the fight against corruption.

Inhispostinvestitureremarks, he recalled that the journey to becoming the 54th ICAN president started with his election as the second Deputy Vice President of the institute.

“Since then, I have had the greatest exposure into the sophisticated governance system of our great institute,” he stated adding that “Without doubt therefore, this 3-year tutelage, has prepared me eminently for the huge responsibility of providing leadership to over 45,000 seasoned professionals and the tasks that lay ahead.”

He promised that the institute’s impact would be felt more than before. He also stated that ICAN was at a threshold of history, adding that practitioners must aspire to make their impact felt in public governance and argued that doing so has implications on the ability of operators in the private sector to continue to create wealth.

“By this investiture, the banner of integrity will be lifted higher both within and outside the profession.”

11 PLC Launches LP Cooking Gas in Nigeria Sunny Okobi and Kehinde Lawal In order to satisfy liquefied gas consumers, bring their product closer to the users and sustain its development in the country, 11 Plc (former Mobil Nigeria) has launched its Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) in Nigeria.

Speaking at the gas event in Lagos, the representative of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Mr. Henry Obih lauded the idea of Double One decision to bring LPG to the country, noting that the consumption usage of LPG in the country is almost 600,000 metric tonnes, compare to what it was in 2007 and 2019 which were 50,000 and 70,000 metric tonnes respectively.

The Group Executive

Director/COO of NNPC Downstream said: “In 2007, we were consuming about 50,000 metric tonnes of LPG in a year, in 2009 it was 70,000 metric tonnes while in 2017, we were almost 600,000 metric tonnes of LPG consumables in Nigeria, we are convinced that the potential usage is even much more than that and if you look at the World Bank Statistics, which says Nigeria potential is about 3.2 million tonnes a year, consumed within Nigeria LPG.” He noted that NNPC has a presidential mandate to grow the use of LPG in Nigeria, and part of the objective as an institution arm and agency of government is to work with other players within the sector, to encourage them to invest in LPG which will also support business growth initiatives.

Pipeline Vandalism: Air Force Vows Omo-Agege, Ogboru OuttoDestroy to Flush out Militants in Lagos APC in Delta, Says Emerhor Chiemelie Ezeobi

Following the recent resurgence of militants-cum-pipeline vandals in creeks bordering Lagos and Ogun States, the Nigerian Air Force has vowed to flush them out indefinitely.

The Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar, made this disclosure at the inauguration of some buildings for its personnel at 041 Communications Depot Shasha, Lagos.

Stressing that the Air Force would take advantage of its aerial power, he said they would continue to flush them out just like they have been doing in the past.

He said, “We have been in Lagos, Taraba and other states in the country. Very soon something is going to be worked out which will involve not only the Air Force but all military formations.

“Our commanders are giving us all the inputs. Just like

we flushed them before, we are going to continue to flush them with the support of other security agencies”, he added.

On the recent quarters built for airmen the CAS said the force had brought in 7,000 personnel in the last three years, thus necessitating the need for adequate quarters.

He said, “Professionalism is not just about equipment and training but most importantly about the human beings because human being is the most important resource. The whole essence is to ensure Nigeria and Nigerians are secure and be able to go about his or her business without fear.

“Thus, we embarked on massive construction of new accommodation as well as remodelling of old ones to address the infrastructural deficit of the past.

This is thereby gradually solving the accommodation challenges of the NAF.

Omon-Julius Onabu in Asaba

As the crisis rocking the Delta State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) took a dramatic turn with the decision of a faction of the party loyal to Senator Ovie Omo-Agege to swear in members of its executive committee, the Senator and Chief Great Ogboru have been accused of allegedly trying to destroy the party in the state.

The state leader of the APC, Olorogun O’tega Emerhor, told newsmen in Asaba that the action of the Omo-Agege and Erue group was an exercise in futility because it was done in total disregard to the guidelines of the National Working Committee of the APC. The APC governorship candidate in Delta State in 2015 also decried the recent activities of Senator Omo-Agege and fourtime governorship candidate in the state, Chief Great Ogboru,

accusing the duo of being intent on destroying the party in the state.

According to Emerhor, “Jones Erue cannot usurp the functions of the National Working Committee of the APC and swear himself in.

We understand NWC is currently reviewing the report of the Congresses Appeal Committees and plans to swear in chairmen that are dully validated. Anyone swearing himself in as an executive committee member is engaging in exercise in futility.”

On the claim by Erue that he had taken over the functions of the state APC chairman, Emerhor observed, “How can I usurp the function of the State Chairman? As a leader I’m free to meet APC stakeholders in my place to strategise on moving the party forward. How does that turn my place into the State Secretariat?

T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JUNE 3, 2018

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SUNDAYSPORTS

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

Slack First Half Costs Eagles, Lose 2-1 to England Demola Ojo

A

n improved second half performance was not enough to paper over a sloppy first half as Nigeria’s Super Eagles fell to a 2-1 defeat against England’s Three Lions at Wembley Stadium, yesterday.

Both teams started the game with their best sides based on availability; Wilfred Ndidi was the only certain starter for Nigeria to miss out due to fitness concerns. His trademark tackles and interceptions were sorely missed as both Joel Obi and Ogenyi Onazi failed to plug gaping holes in Nigeria’s midfield.

Onazi was especially culpable as his general sluggish play cost the Eagles dear when yet another misplaced pass led to England’s second goal rifled in by captain Harry Kane in the 39th minute.

Chelsea captain Gary Cahill had earlier scored with a toweringheaderfromacornerkickintheseventhminute to set the ball rolling for England as they took control of the match, spraying passes around with confidence, with the Eagles struggling to gain a footing in the game despite captain Mikel Obi being the most experienced player on the pitch.

There were loud cheers for the Nigerian team whenever they showed any intention of having a go at their hosts; the 70,000 at Wembley certainly included a very large Nigerian contingent who directed their ire at DeleAlli.

The England midfielder was jeered at every touch of the ball for choosing to play for England, despite his father being Nigerian.

His teammate in England’s junior ranks, Alex Iwobi, took the opposite route and switched allegiance to play for Nigeria at senior level. Iwobi it was, who popped up early in the second-half to stroke the ball home after Odion Ighalo’s effort rebounded off the post.

Iwobi’s 47th minute goal was the first for Nigeria against England in three internationals. The Eagles had earlier lost 1-0 in 1994 at the Old Wembley before forcing the three Lions to a 0-0 draw at the 2002 World Cup. Iwobi’s goal was evidence of a much improved second halfperformanceduetotacticalreshufflingandpersonnel change as Eagles coach Gernot Rohr showed his ability to read a game and make adjustments.

The formation change from a 4-2-3-1 to a 3-5-2 gave

Iwobi (left) scored Nigeria’s first ever goal against England the Eagles a foothold in the game and ensured Iwobi influenced proceedings from a more central position.

The second half was much more of a contest with the Eagles showing desire and effort that was non-existent in the first half. It will give Eagles fans hope that despite defeat, the team has what it takes to go toe-to-toe with more illustrious opponents

in the shape of Croatia and Argentina.

The loss was the latest in a series of uninspiring results in pre-World Cup friendlies this year. The loss to England follows a drab 1-1 draw against the Congo DR on Monday, and a 2-0 loss to Serbia a couple of months ago. The only highlight was the 1-0 win over Poland a few days before the Serbia game when a Victor Moses penalty proved decisive. It was

the only shot on target from the Eagles in the game.

However, experience from previous World Cups show that the Super Eagles shouldn’t be judged on the results of friendly games. The 1998 team contrived to lose 1-0 to Germany and 3-0 to Yugoslavia before a scandalous 5-1ndefeat to the Netherlands a few days to their opening match against Spain which they won 3-2 on the way to topping their group.

French Open: Williams to Play Sharapova in Fourth Round Returning three-time champion Serena Williams set up a highlyanticipated French Open last-16 match against long-time rival Maria Sharapova by beating Germany’s Julia Gorges. Williams, playing her first Grand Slam since giving birth, won 6-3 6-4 against 11th seed Gorges.

Earlier yesterday, Russian twotime winner Sharapova beat sixth seed Karolina Pliskova 6-2 6-1. Williams, 36, and Sharapova, 31, will meet in the fourth round tomorrow.

Williams eased to victory over 29-year-old Gorges, who reached the world’s top 10 for the first time this year, in just one hour and 15 minutes.

The match between two of the sport’s biggest stars - with 28 Grand Slam titles between them, plus personalities and marketability which have helped them transcend tennis - was one of the most eye-catching permutations when the Roland Garros draw was made last week.

Spiky exchanges between the pair over the years have fuelled the narrative of a rivalry which, on court, has never been much of one.

Williams, a 23-time Slam champion, has won 19 of their 21 previous meetings on tour - both of Sharapova’s wins coming back in 2004. “Any time you play against Serena you know what you’re up

against,” Sharapova said. “You know the challenge that is upon you. You know, despite the record that I have against her, I always look forward to coming out on the court and competing against the best player.

“I think there is a lot of things in her game that she’s done much better than I have. Numbers don’t lie.”

Sharapova is competing at Roland Garros for the first time since 2015, having been refused a wildcard entry in 2017 after serving a doping ban.

Williams, who was playing just her seventh match after returning from having a baby, has so far played down her chances of winning a joint-record 24th Grand Slam singles title.

But against Gorges she underlined her credentials, dominating from the start with a break in the fourth game and she took the first set with an emphatic smash. She got an early break in the second set too before the German staged a brief fightback to level at 2-2, but another Williams break in the next game put the match out of Gorges’ reach.

“It’s really special to be here again,” said Williams. “This time last year I was pregnant and I was having a tough time and then I had a tough birth so every match at this stage of my return is a bonus.”

SerenaWilliams

Wales’ Williams Punctured Lung in Game against Mexico CaptainAshley Williams has revealed he suffered a punctured lung which then collapsed during Wales’ goalless draw with Mexico on Tuesday.

Williams, 33, also suffered “multiple breaks” on two ribs after colliding with Javier Hernandez and was substituted after just 20 minutes. It was the Everton defender’s first match in almost three

months.

“Look forward to flying home and resting up now before the new season,” Williams wrote on Facebook.

“However after coming off after 20 minutes with multiple breaks on two ribs, I went to hospital and found out I had punctured my left lung which led to it collapsing.”

Germany Lose to Austria in Neuer Comeback Germany captain Manuel Neuer’s comeback ended in defeat by Austria in a friendly delayed by 105 minutes because of heavy rain in Klagenfurt. Goalkeeper Neuer, out since September with a broken foot, returned just 15 days before his country’s World Cup defence begins against Mexico.

Mesut Ozil pounced on a goalkeeping error to give Germany the lead.

But Martin Hinteregger equalised with a superb angled volley before Alessandro Schopf steered in the winner.

It ensured Austria their first win over Germany in 32 years and maintained Franco Foda’s 100% record since becoming their coach last November.

Germany head coach Joachim Low rested Bayern Munich pair Thomas Muller and Mats Hummels, along with Real Madrid midfielder Toni Kroos, in order to give them time to recover at the end of a demanding club season. It looked for a while as if the rest of Low’s squad would be given the night off too as a downpour put the game in doubt.

Czech referee Pavel Kralovec carried out a number of pitch inspections - with the kick-off put back three times - before finally deciding that play could start.

Sunday June 3, 2018

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MISSILE

Niger Delta Youths to FG ”Today, things have worsened in the region and as we address you now, the Igbomorotu corridor in Southern Ijaw as well as the Akasa flank on the Atlantic fringe of Brass have continued to be a major hub of illicit operation and is now virtually taken over by crude oil criminals.”

– Protesting Niger Delta youths calling for the removal of the Commander of Joint Task Force for allegedly compromising the security of the region

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Hurting on the Inside

I

n my teenage years, there was a song I loved very much: On the Inside, by the Mary Jane Girls, the American R&B group mentored by the mercurial Rick James. To be exact, the reggae version by Sammy Levi was part of my daily diet. I must have listened to Levi’s version a million times – or more. The song talks about falling in love with someone who keeps hurting your feelings. As I became more politically conscious, it meant more than a love song to me. With the 2019 elections beginning to dominate the airwaves, this song has come back to play in my head again and again. Nigerians have become adept at falling in love with politicians every election year -- but the heartbreak never seems to stop.

For the purpose of this article, I have deliberately abridged the lyrics thus: “Here I go again/Falling back in love with you for the second time… Here I go talking out of my head again/Feeling like a stranger to my heart/I believe that we could fall in love again/But you keep stepping on the one that loves you/Anyone could know the pain and misery… hurting on the inside…

Here we go again/Starting off a romance/That will surely end in pain/I have tried time after time/To keep our love together/But still I find you’re playing games/There I go talking out of my head again/Feeling like a stranger to my heart/I think that we could fall in love again/ But you keep stepping on the heart that loves you…”

I have nothing but pity for us Nigerians: we keep renewing our hopes and keep getting hurt by the choices we make all the time. My first recollections of elections in Nigeria were those of 1983. I was holidaying in Lagos at my aunt’s place.

I read every newspaper and watched the nightly Verdict ’83 on NTA. The signature tune – “verdict eighty-threeee” – rings in my head till this day.

So also do the allegations of massive rigging in the “moonslide” victory of then-ruling National Party of Nigeria (NPN). We had been promised all sorts by NPN, including cheap food, but we got hyperinflation and untold hardship instead.

Quite a lot of Nigerians were glad to see their backs when the military came calling.

We were never to see civil rule again until 1999.

It was the beginning of a new era. Government of the people by the people for the people! It sounded so lovely. Under the military, we did not have a right; we did not have a voice. We did not put them in power and we had no right to any expectations. The military did not owe us anything, not even fundamental human rights.

With democracy, we had legitimate expectations.

We expected our elected leaders to make us the centre of their policies and programmes. We expected that making our lives better would be their priority. We started hearing the phrase, “dividends of democracy”, and we fell madly in love again.

I recall the enthusiasm that welcomed President Olusegun Obasanjo to power. Even his political opponents fell in love with him. Most of our governors were young; some of them in their 30s.

We voted for legislators at both national and state levels, all of them promising to legislate for the good of Nigerians. They promised us sunshine.

None of them promised to break our hearts.

All was set for “dividends of democracy”. But what did we get? The president started saying he needed a new presidential jet, even once taking a commercial flight to blackmail us. The federal lawmakers started throwing tantrums over furniture allowance. It was no longer about us. It was all about them.

To worsen matters, the governors began to go berserk. We started hearing of how they were swooping on the black market every month – specifically a day after the arrival of federation

Obasanjo allocations. The naira always lost value against the dollar after the sharing of allocations. The monies were growing wings and flying abroad, mostly under the guise of looking for foreign investors. Governors were buying multimillion dollar houses all over the world. We started producing political billionaires. Governors were setting up militias to harass and eliminate their opponents, both real and unreal. They became tin gods, worshipped and feared in equal measure.

Democracy was no longer about us.

As the ruling class continued to pillage the country, giving us toothpick for the price of toothpaste (apologies to the late Senator Chuba Okadigbo), we did not surrender. After all, democracy is about choices -- using your thumb to make a statement. We were hard pressed on every side, but not crushed. We were perplexed, but did not despair. We were struck down, but not destroyed. Another round of elections came.

We heard new promises. We renewed hopes.

Here I go talking out of my head again/Feeling like a stranger to my heart/I believe that we could fall in love again/But you keep stepping on the one that loves you/Anyone could know the pain and misery. It goes on and on and on and on…

I am very glad that our democracy has survived for 19 years non-stop, even though it always felt like we were one step away from another military coup. Having tasted military regimes and civil rule, I will vote for democracy anytime any day anywhere. But the time has come for the Nigerian political elite to start taking a look at themselves. They need to start asking themselves sincerely if they have been fair to the rest of Nigerians. They are more at home chattering aircraft for political meetings while the public transport system rots. They are more excited about building “befitting” governor’s residences while slums are growing around them. They collect billions in severance pay while pensioners languish.

Check the statistics. Over 60 million Nigerians do not have access to clean water, according to WASHwatch. By the structure of Nigeria, potable water is provided by the state and local governments. WHO/UNICEF estimate that 122 million Nigerians do not have access to basic sanitation – a proper disposal system for human waste -- and most of them are the poor people in rural areas and urban centres. Combine lack

of clean water with poor sanitation and the end results, in case you are wondering, are water-borne diseases as diarrhoea, cholera, dysentery and Hepatitis A and B. Every year, we have cholera outbreaks in Nigeria. Is this the romance the poor Nigerian voters signed up for?

Not so long ago, Prof. Timothy Nubi of the Housing and Urban Regeneration Department of the University of Lagos (UNILAG) alerted us to the chronic housing shortage in our country.

The slum population, he said, is estimated at 70 per cent with an annual growth rate of 4.55 per cent – all as a result of poverty. He illustrated it thus: “As stagnant water is to mosquitoes, so are slums to criminal activities.” It is generally estimated that housing deficit in Nigeria is 17 million units, and more than half of our population are essentially homeless or living as squatters.

These are the people that queue up come rain or shine to declare their love for these politicians.

Is this what they deserve?

I will deliberately avoid talking about the hospitals. Nigerians are still dying from diseases that have been eradicated or contained in other African countries. There is never bed space at public hospitals. We do not have enough doctors either, and the ones we have are poorly paid, compared to the overfed guys ruling over us and collecting millions in allowances every month. Many young people want to become medical doctors, but we do not have space for them at medical schools. The ones we train here at enormous costs have little incentive to stay.

Patients are heartlessly extorted at government hospitals, totally dehumanised and humiliated by those who should care for them.

Ordinary Nigerians feel jilted and are hurting on the inside with a sense of helplessness. Their hearts are being trampled upon by those who rode to power on the claim of loving them.

I think our leaders need to have a genuine conversation with their consciences. As they bask in the sunshine from the balconies of their yachts, they need to ask themselves if this is the reward for our love. As they lavish billions of naira to arrange weddings for their sons and daughters and designer cars for their wives, they need to examine their consciences. The reckless display of wealth in the midst of poverty is an insult on injury. Nigerians are justified to expect the dividends of democracy.

It is not as if it has all been bad news for the past 19 years. Give or take, a few leaders have sought to improve the lives of our people. But given the enormous resources they have collected and the results we can see, it is quite glaring to all that our politicians and their allies have been the biggest beneficiaries, not the ordinary Nigerians who are supposed to reap the benefits of democracy. Unfortunately, democracy is at risk when people are pushed to the point that they can only see politicians and their allies as the winners. That puts all at risk, including the politicians themselves. In the case of a reversal, they stand to lose.

Thank God for democracy, another general election is around the corner. There will be wonderful manifestoes and breathtaking posters.

They will tell us what we want to hear. They will whisper sweet nothings to our ears. They will play on our emotions, tell us how bad their opponents are and how great their own plans for us. We will start off another romance that, unfortunately, may end in pain. Some will turn around and blame us for voting the wrong people into office, as if we had the power to know tomorrow. When are we going to unanimously agree that it is the leaders who claim to love us that are trampling on our hearts all the time?

For how long are we going to be hurting on the inside?

And Four Other Things…

JOLLY IN JAIL There was a time in my life when I used to grumble, week in week out, that Nigerian politicians were never going to be jailed for corruption, that only Oshodi pickpockets face justice. Gradually, things are changing. Rev. Jolly Nyame, former governor of Taraba state, has just been sentenced to 14 years in prison “for financial recklessness and brazen display of executive power without following due process”. People are grumbling that it is only PDP and nPDP members that are facing the anti-corruption fire, but maybe there is consolation somewhere: when you set something in motion, you cannot predict the end. Something is telling me the wheel of justice will still go round. It’s a matter of time. Expectant.

KINDRED KENYANS I had goose bumps on Friday when I saw the video of the Kenyan National Prayer Breakfast. President Uhuru Kenyatta and opposition leader Raila Odinga offered apologies to each other over the fractious 2017 presidential campaign. “We have campaigned against each other, we have said nasty things against each other, and we have hurt each other. My brother Raila, I ask you for forgiveness, and I tender my apology,” Kenyatta said, and hugged Odinga.

My heart melted. This is the kind of politics I love. Kenyans are as politically divided as Nigerians. We would realise one day that we can only make progress if we don’t allow bitterness and bigotry to build mansions in our hearts. Reconciliation.

NOT TOO YOUNG One of the miracles of our time is that the Not Too Young To Run bill, which reduces the age qualifications for elective offices in Nigeria, has swiftly become law. It is amazing. It’s either the political elite think allowing the youth to run for office is nothing to worry about or they actually mean well for our young people. Whatever the case may be, Mr. Samson Itodo, the executive director of YIAGA Africa and convener of the Not Too Young To Run movement, and his team deserve our accolade. Although I fundamentally believe that our problem is not the age of our leaders but the age of their mentality, I am quite positive that this law will promote youth inclusion in our politics. Progress.

AND FINALLY… Here comes the “gossip tax”. The Ugandan parliament has passed a law to impose taxes on citizens using Facebook, WhatsApp, Viver and Twitter. President Yoweri Museveni once complained that the use of these platforms “encourages gossip”. Either to discourage gossip or commercialise it, the government has now decided that from July 1, 2018, gossiping will cost 200 shillings ($0.05) daily. That comes to $18 yearly. Although there are different kinds of gossip, all gossips will be granted equal status. All gossips “forwarded as received” will not be exempt. One more gossip: according to David Bahati, minister of state for finance, the tax increase will help Uganda pay off its national debt. Shhhhh!

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