WEDNESDAY 4TH JULY 2018

Despite Rising Borrowing, FG without Debt Management Strategy We are working on it, says Oniha Obinna Chima in Lagos and Omololu Ogunmade in Abuja Despite rising debt profile of the nation, the federal government has been unable

to develop a fresh debt management strategy, seven months after the expiration of the Debt Management Office’s (DMO) five-year Third Strategic Plan.

Nigeria, France sign $475m loan agreement

Nigeria’s total public debt increased by 4.52 per cent in the first three months of 2018, the DMO had revealed, stating that the country’s debt increased from N21.73

trillion in December 2017 to N22.71 trillion at the end of the first quarter of 2018.

Yesterday, the prospect of the debt portfolio became higher as Nigeria signed an

agreement with France for $475million loan facility for some projects in Lagos, Kano and Ogun States.

The agreement was sequel to the visit of the French

President, Emmanuel Macron, to President Muhammadu Buhari at the State House, Abuja yesterday.

Continued on page 9

US Investigates Glencore over Alleged Corruption in Nigeria, Others… Page 8 Wednesday 4 July, 2018 Vol 23. No 8476. Price: N250

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House Designates Plateau Killings as Genocide Dogara: Nigerians losing faith in security system Seven policemen, two others killed in Abuja James Emejo and Senator Iroegbu in Abuja

Fresh from its three-week recess, the House of Representatives resumed

yesterday passing farreaching resolutions, including one that declared the killings in Plateau State as genocide.

It also directed the federal

government to immediately run orphanages in areas affected by recent killings, which had turned many children into orphans in order to ameliorate their

sufferings.

Condemning the killings and massacres in the strongest terms, the lower chamber urged government to take decisive steps to

stop the killings and secure communities that had been under persistent attacks.

The designation of the massacre as genocide was largely to court the sympathy

of the United Nations to take special interest in the deteriorating security situation in the country.

Continued on page 8

Kwankwaso, Others Pull Out of APC Say Baraje, Saraki-led nPDP tied down with endless talks with APC To sign MoU with PDP Iyobosa Uwugiaren in Abuja Apparently unable to deal with the Alhaji Kawu Barajeled new Peoples Democratic Party’s (nPDP) slow pace of talks with the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and other smaller political parties in forming a coalition against the All Progressives Congress (APC), another group known as ‘Reformed APC’ has emerged from the aggrieved group within the ruling APC. Led by former Governor of Kano State, Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso and other top members of the APC, especially at the National Assembly, the new group were formally

announce its departure from the ruling party by Friday.

A member of the group told THISDAY in Abuja yesterday, “It appears Baraje and Senate President Bukola Saraki and their group are tied down by their endless discussion with APC.’’ According to the source, one of the leaders of Kwakwansiyya, a political group of Kwankwaso, “I don’t think many of us are comfortable with the slow pace of their political activities.

So we have decided to move on. We have less than seven months to the general election and we cannot engage in an Continued on page 8

A FRUITFUL VISIT… Macron: France Can’t Solve President Muhammadu Buhari (standing right) and French President Emmanuel Macron witness the signing of Letter of Intent to Nigeria’s Insecurity Problem… Page 10 participate in the implementation of Nigeria's Blue Print Land Degradation Neutrality Project by Governor Ibikunle Amosun of Ogun

State and General Manager of In Vivo, Rachel Kolbe, during Macron's visit to the Presidential Villa, Abuja… yesterday godwin omoigui

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US Investigates Glencore over Alleged Corruption in Nigeria, Others Kachikwu: Buhari has never asked for oil block allocation, contract NNPC heading to capital market to fund new projects, says Baru Ejiofor Alike in Lagos and Chineme Okafor in Abuja with agency reports The United States authorities have demanded the US arm of Glencore Plc to hand over documents relating to its business in Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Venezuela.

The Swiss-based commodities trader and miner said yesterday, that it received a subpoena from the US Department of Justice requesting documents and records on compliance with the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and US money-laundering statutes.

Glencore, a major exporter of Nigerian and Venezuelan crude oil, was among the 50 local and international oil traders that won NNPC’s crude oil lifting contracts that would run from July 1, 2018 to June 2020.

Each of the 50 companies would lift 950,000 barrels of crude oil in the two-year contracts.

The documents requested by the US authorities from the subsidiary Glencore Limited relate to the group’s business in the three countries from 2007 to 2018, Glencore was quoted as saying, adding it was reviewing the subpoena.

The US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act makes it a crime for companies to bribe overseas officials to win business.

Glencore accounts for

more than a quarter of the world’s cobalt output, most of it from Congo, which itself is the source of around 60 per cent of global supplies.

Reuters reported that Washington had slammed sanctions on 13 “human rights abusers and corrupt actors” in December last year, including Israeli billionaire, Dan Gertler, who was Glencore’s former partner in the DRC and is a close friend of Congo’s president.

Glencore said last month it had agreed to pay Gertler royalties it still owed in euros instead of US dollars after litigation threats.

In May, Bloomberg reported that Britain’s Serious Fraud Office was investigating Glencore’s activities in the DRC. Separately, the US Department of Justice has been investigating bribery plots involving payments to Venezuela’s state oil firm, PDVSA and charged five individuals last year.

Washington has also been progressively adding individuals close to Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro to its sanctions list and has weighed broader penalties to hit the OPEC country’s oil industry.

Glencore’s founder, Marc Rich, was indicted in 1983 for exploiting the US embargo against Iran, tax evasion, fraud and racketeering.

He reportedly fled to Switzerland, where he

also been a key pivot led by the President,” the minister said, adding, “One of the reasons why we have done so well is the fact that quite frankly, in my three years of serving as petroleum minister of state, I haven’t received a single call from the president urging me to do an allocation to somebody or give a block to somebody, I have not received such a call.”

He noted that the latest numbers released by the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) suggested the country’s oil sector was doing well, although he acknowledged a lot of work were still required to get it to deliver the kind of value that would transform Nigeria’s entire economy.

According to him: “The oil industry is at a very critical stage in its life cycle, and don’t worry about all the nuances you hear about oil going out of stock. The reality even when people point at electric cars, they still represent only two per cent of the instrument of mobility today.

“When we talk of other forces coming to replace oil, the truth remains that oil demands continues to increase. More oil continues to be found by the day.

“In Nigeria, our own numbers as released by the DPR point to figures in excess of 39 billion barrels of oil which will at the current consumption rate last over 50 years.”

“So, there is enough reason to feel that oil will be there for a long time, but the reality is that the performance within the oil sector will differ. It is not how long it lasts, but what value it brings to the populace – the owners of the resource. How we are able to utilise whatever we find.”

Baru, who also spoke at the conference, had stated that the NNPC had signed about $2.5 billion alternative funding arrangements in 2017 to undertake joint venture (JV) projects.

“We plan to be in the capital market to raise more finance for new oil and gas projects such as the NNPC/NAOC JV Idu-Redevelopment; South Gas Project; North Gas Project and Central Gas Project,” he said.

He further stated: “We intend to sanction the multibillion dollar Bonga South West/Aparo (BSWA) project as soon as we conclude an agreement on the heads of terms with SNEPCO on the various pending PSC arbitration disputes. This will jump start the resolution of all the other PSC arbitration disputes.”

Baru also explained that Nigeria’s demand for gas was growing at an unprecedented rate, and that the corporation intended to take advantage of the growth by increasing its gas production.

“In terms of gas production, the domestic demand for gas in Nigeria is unprecedented, with a current daily realistic

gas demand of 4,000mmscfd which is expected to grow exponentially to about 7,500mmscfd in the next five years.

“However, within the next three years, with our JV partners, we are committed to increasing natural gas availability from the current 1.5bscf/d to about five billion standard cubic feet per day in 2020.

“Consequently, the government will supply enough gas to generate up to 15GW (15,000 megawatts) of electricity to the power sector by 2020 and stimulate gas-based industrialisation,” he explained.

According to him, development of gas infrastructure and firm supply agreements will continue to be prioritised with the World Bank Partial Risk Guarantee (PRG) expected to remain in place to provide securitisation for gas revenues.

Meanwhile, the Secretary General of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), Dr. Mohammed Barkindo, has said that high and low oil prices have negative impacts on producer and consumer countries of oil, and as such, the global oil market must continue to strive for a balance in oil prices.

Barkindo, who delivered a paper at the NOG, said both developments affected consumers and producers differently, but that the market eventually ended up a loser.

Assembly should immediately revisit the constitution review exercise to empower states to establish state police for effective community policing and maintenance of law and order as the federal security architecture has failed to bring an end to violent attacks across the federation.

Gyang had in his debate expressed worry that the attacks had a pattern where once a community was attacked, it was cleansed by killing the native inhabitants, the houses burnt and destroyed and the vacated land taken over for occupation, noting that the cycle is a repeated and replicated in what had clearly manifested as a land

grabbing agenda.

He noted that virtually all the theories known to peace building and dialogue had been experimented on Plateau without success to stop the attacks.

Hon. Idris Abdullahi Wase (APC, Plateau) in his contribution to the debate, opened a can of worms when he fingered some politicians whom he claimed are sponsors of the killings, adding that he had documentary evidence to support his position.

He said he would be willing to surrender the documents to support his claim even though he was aware of the attendant danger to his life.

The lawmaker urged those

who fan the embers of violence to immediately stop the act.

However, given the weight of his submission, the lower chamber okayed a request by the Leader of the House, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila (APC, Lagos), for Wase to be accorded state protection.

On her part, Hon. Nnenna Ukeje-Elendu (PDP, Abia) said United Nations should see to killings in the country.

She also took exception to a recent television interview by Femi Adeshina stressing that he appeared to be insensitive to the killings in the country.

She said there appeared to be no direct integration policy by the government, adding that effort should be made to

curtial proliferation of small arms as a way of addressing the continuing killings.

Hon. Baba Isa Kaita (APC, Katsina) blamed fake news for some of the killings, adding that some had been based on rumours and false video releases which had fuelled public apprehension about the situation in the country.

But his position was aptly challenged by Hon. Mark Gbillah (APC, Benue) who said the killings he had personally witnessed in Benue as well as herdsmen wielding AK47 assault weapons could not be said to be the handiwork of fake news.

a late night meeting on Monday to determine the way forward.

Among those said to have met included, Saraki; Governor of Sokoto State, Alhaji Aminu Tambuwal, and about 50 lawmakers from both chambers of the National Assembly.

Members of the group appeared to be divided over which party to move to. While majority of them agreed they should move straight to the PDP, others were said to have suggested that they should first and foremost form a coalition with SDP and others before they negotiate with PDP. THISDAY gathered that the outcome of the conversation by the group was to be made

known before Friday, with about 20 APC senators and many members of House of Representatives defecting.

Kwankwaso was in Ado-Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital last week, to inform Governor Ayo Fayose about his resolve to return to PDP. He also met with former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar on the same issue.

Members of the former nPDP bloc within the APC had addressed a letter dated April 27, 2018 to the then Chairman of the APC, Chief John OdigieOyegun, where they informed the party of their grievances and expectations from both the party and President Muhammadu

Buhari.

Following the development, the party invited them and they met with the leadership of the party.

But following the escalation of hostility by the federal government against leading members of the bloc, including Saraki, Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed, Senator Jonah Jang and Senator Peter Nwaboshi, who were confronted with criminal allegations by state security agencies, the nPDP pulled out of the peace initiatives.

Last week, Baraje said in a statement that the bloc would make its decision on its future with the APC known this week.

remained a fugitive pursued by the Department of Justice until he was pardoned by then-president Bill Clinton in 2001.

Kachikwu: Buhari never asked for oil block allocation, contract.

Meanwhile, the Minister of State for Petroleum, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, has stated that President Muhammadu Buhari has never called him in the last three years to discretionarily allocate oil blocks or contracts to any of his associates.

The minister spoke yesterday as the Group Managing Director, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Dr. Maikanti Baru, said the corporation would be heading to the capital market to raise more funds to execute new oil and gas projects it had scheduled in 2018 and beyond.

Speaking at the ongoing 2018 edition of the Nigeria Oil and Gas (NOG) Conference and Exhibition in Abuja, Kachikwu said he had been able to undertake several restricting efforts in the country’s oil industry because Buhari had never interfered or tried to influence him negatively.

He equally disclosed that Nigeria’s gas reserves had increased by 7 trillion cubic feet (TCF) to 199TCF, up from 192TCF he said it was previously.

“A lot of work has been done in restructuring of NNPC, started by me, continued by Dr. Baru. Transparency has

HOUSE DESIGNATES PLATEAU KILLINGS AS GENOCIDE The resolution followed a motion of urgent public importance on the massacre of over 215 persons in the state and sponsored by Hon. Istifanus Gyang (APC, Plateau) and four other members.

Also, in their resolution on the issue, the lawmakers further tasked the federal government to recover over 52 villages currently under illegal and forceful occupation in Barkin Ladi, Riyom, Bakkos, Bassa, and Mangy Local Government Areas and the displaced owners be resettled on their ancestral land.

It said failure to effect the recovery was akin to allowing a criminal to retain the proceeds of crime.

The green chamber further demanded that the masterminds and perpetrators of the attacks and massacres be arrested and prosecuted, adding that there should be a Coroner's inquest and forensic examination of the weapons and ammunition used to determine the cause of deaths, calibre and source of the weapons used.

Among other things, the lawmakers urged President Muhammadu Buhari to go beyond verbal condemnation of the attacks and take decisive and practical steps to give effect to Section 14 (2) (b) of the 1999 constitution as amended.

The House said the National

Continued on page 9

KWANKWASO, OTHERS PULL OUT OF APC endless talk with APC. “The new group, the Reformed APC being led by Kwankwaso and others, has decided to set up an interim committee with representatives from other parties like the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and other smaller parties to sign Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with PDP.’’ He disclosed that the emerging political group has completed the constitution of its interim committee and would be announced before Friday and early next week.

Asked whether the Baraje-led group has backed out of the conversation to form a coalition against APC or not, the close

political associate of the former Kano State governor said, “I do not think so; we just noticed that they are too slow. And we do not have time on our side. They might still come to negotiation table with us and PDP, under the platform of nPDP. “At the end of the day, we will all end up in PDP, with a strong understanding on how we should relate to defeat APC in the 2019 general election. But on our part, we have gone far with PDP, and the outcome of our discussion will be made known in the next few days.’’

THISDAY reported yesterday that members of the Baraje-led nPDP, an aggrieved group within the ruling APC, held

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PAGE NINE HOUSE DESIGNATES PLATEAU KILLINGS AS GENOCIDE He said: "It's not fake news or social media hype that 200 people in Plateau were killed as well as killings in other parts of the country. It's no fake news that herdsmen brandish AK-47 assault rifles."

Hon. Aliyu Madaki (APC, Kano) said the issue should be debated objectively, adding that "We must criminalise any tribe in our debate. Being a Fulani man should not be seen as a crime."

He had stepped in to correct the impression that Fulani herdsmen were responsible for the killings.

Meanwhile, the Speaker of the Speaker of the House, Hon. Yakubu Dogara said history will be hash to the present administration if it fails to stop mass killings of innocent Nigerians.

Speaking at the resumption of plenary yesterday, he said whatever achievement being recorded by the government will not be remembered if the orgy violence and mass killings of innocent Nigerians continue unabated.

According to him, “History will have a harsh verdict for us as a government if we fail to live up to this responsibility and it won’t matter if we succeed in other areas. Unfortunately, the stark reality now is that our citizens are fast losing confidence in our security system. “The stark reality now is that our citizens are fast losing

confidence in our security system. This must not be the case. Before we ebb to the realm of anarchy, we must rise up as true representatives of the Nigerian people to salvage the situation and defend our hard-won democracy.�

The Speaker argued that the unresolved issue of rampant killing of defenceless people, including innocent and vulnerable children and women, in various parts of the country, calls for a sober reflection adding that more concerted efforts by the National Assembly to exploit all our constitutional powers and privileges to ensure the protection of lives and property in the entire country by the security agencies.

Police Arrest 17 Suspects The Nigerian Police Force (NPF) has arrested 17 suspects in connection with the killings in the North-central states of Benue and Plateau.

The Force Public Relations Officer (PRO), Moshood Jimoh, at a briefing in Abuja yesterday, paraded the six suspects from Benue State, while 11 others from Plateau State are said to be in "police custody."

Jimoh said that on June 27, 2018, the IG Intelligence Response Team (IRT) deployed to Benue State acted promptly on actionable intelligence and other information from

concerned members of the public, trailed and arrested the six suspects in their hideout in a hotel in Naka village, Benue State and recovered the arms and ammunition listed above from their possession.

He listed the suspects to include: Victor Ganabe, 35 yesars – native of Gwer West, Naka, Benue State; Daniel Kyase, 33 years– native of Mbaku, Makurdi, Benue State; Alhaji Adajo Tomza, 28 years – native of Tse Egbe, Gwer West, Benue State; Msugh Teraki, 23 years - native of Sengv, Naikpe, Gwer West, Benue State; Julius Avaan, 49 years - native of Ikpayongu, Gwer East, Benue State; and Terkula Udeh, 37 years- native of Gwer West, Benue State.

He stressed that the arrest of the five suspects led to the apprehension of Benjamin Bagugba Tivfa, 32 years, who is a serving Councillor of Fidi Council Ward, Makurdi, Benue State.

According to Jimoh, "The bandits confessed that the councillor is a member of their gang and responsible for supply of arms and ammunition including money to finance their operations. The councillor admitted to have bought 15 rounds of AK47 ammunition from the last suspect, Sunday Cheche, 34 years – native of Guma LGA, Benue State and also confessed to have provided money to finance the operations of the gang."

He said that the "bandits" admitted to have carried out several killings and armed robbery attacks on innocent people in different locations in Benue State.

He said that investigation is in progress to arrest other members of the bandits at large, adding that they will be arraigned in court on completion of the investigation.

The Force PRO also gave an update on Police Investigation into the killings of innocent people in Plateau State, saying that since the Inspector General of Police (IG), Ibrahim Idris visited and assessed the security situation, things "has improved, peace and normalcy has been restored in the affected areas in the state."

To this end, he said the Police Special Investigation Team, comprising the Intelligence Response Team (IRT), Special Tactical Squad (STS) and Technical Intelligence Unit (TIU) led by Commissioner of Police, IG Monitoring Unit deployed to Plateau State have commenced investigation and had recorded significant progress in getting to the root of the killings of innocent people.

Jimoh listed 11 suspects who he said, are now in police custody with the exhibits recovered from them.

He said they are assisting the police investigation team with useful information in the further investigation into the incident.

The suspects are: Biliaminu Abdullahi; Samaila Saleh; Muhammadu Kabiru; Aminu Mohammed; Alhassan Saidu; Abubakar Adam; Gazali Isah; Hamza Inusa; Yahuza Yau; Dahiru Ahmed; and Friday Musa, while the exhibits include five AK47 rifles and two live cartridges.

He assured the people of Plateau State of adequate security of lives and property in the state and hereby implored them to support the police personnel deployed in their localities to sustain the peace that have been restored to the state.

He, however, urged members of the public in the state in distress or with information for the Police Special Intervention Force and the investigation team can use the following numbers: 07059473022, 08038907662, 08075391844, and 09053872296.

Gunmen stormed Galadimawa roundabout area of Abuja yesterday, killing seven policemen and two civilians.

Eyewitnesses told THISDAY yesterday that the deadly men carried out the attack around 8.30pm on Monday night sending everyone around the area scampering for safety.

According to one of the hawkers who spoke on

condition of anonymity, the gunmen specifically came for the police officers stationed at the junction.

He said civilians were not targeted except a Gwari man who was killed by a stray bullet.

He noted that while the police officers died instantly, the other man received a gunshot wounds and later died in the hospital.

According to the witness, "They came and gunned down the Policemen immediately, about seven of them. We were scared and everything happened so quickly that before we could recover they have zoomed off. “I was able to see one of the Policemen in his pool of blood but we were afraid to go closer so that we wont be arrested as one of the suspects.�

Another witness who was selling a roasted corn when gunmen came said that the suspects came with two cars and a motorbike, a Toyota Camry and Gulf, killing another man at a Petrol Station in Galadimawa.

He said the gunmen also carted away several guns and sped off.

Efforts to reach the Force PRO, Anjuguri Manzah, did not yield any result as he neither picked calls nor replied text message as at the time of this report.

a public transport network combining quality service, efficiency, accessibility, reliability, safety, reduction of polluting emissions and socio-economic and financial sustainability.

Other aims of the project as listed by AFD are: giving 1,500,000 inhabitants access to quality transportation system; limiting road congestion; reducing an emission of 14,900 tonnes of CO, equivalent annually and thus improving the quality of the air; and creating stable jobs and initiating the professionalisation of the informal operators of transport (the artisanal transport).

It added: "Finally, this project has a strong potential for capitalisation of experience and replication to other cities in Nigeria and the sub-region."

In the same vein, the release on Kano project said: "The Agence Francaise de Development supports Kano City to improve water coverage in Northern Nigeria by signing credit facility agreement of the equivalent of EUR 75 million in USD. "During the official visit of the President Macron to Nigeria and his audience with President Buhari, the Agence Francaise Development CEO, Mr. Rey Rioux and the Minister of Finance of Nigeria, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, signed a credit of Facility Agreement the equivalent in EUR 75 million USD in order to improve water supply in Kano City.

"This concessional loan was awarded by AFD to the federal government of Nigeria to allow Kano State to develop an effective and sustainable water supply service.

The key objectives of the project are: (I) improve access to drinking water and quality of water service in greater Kano; (ii) to improve financial viability of Kano State Water Board by increasing its revenues and (iii) to enhance the governance framework of the water sector.

"The project mainly comprises of the following activities: rehabilitation and densification of the network; rehabilitation of the main water production facilities; supporting consumer awareness campaigns in particular sanitisation promo and hygiene sensitisation; technical assistance to Kano State Water Board and to the State Ministry in charge of Water Resources.

"First, activities will start in the coming months and are scheduled for a period of six years - it will contribute to improve the competitiveness of and increase the drinking water availability in greater Kano for approximately 1.5 people."

However, the agreement on Ogun State project was signed on behalf of France by Kolbe and the Managing Director of the Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA), Uche Orji, on behalf of Nigeria.

"The Ogun agreement is a letter of intent to participate in the implementation of Nigeria's blueprint and land degradation project in Ogun State. Uche Orji, Managing Director of the Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) signed for Nigeria while Rachel Kolbe signed for the French government," the release stated.

Seven Policemen, Two Others Killed in Abuja

D E SPITE RIS ING BORR OWIN G, FG WITH OU T D EB T M AN AGEM E N T ST R AT E GY According to a circular issued by the DMO, the increase in the nation’s debt was largely as a result of the increase in the domestic debts of states, and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.

The agency added that the $2.5 billon Eurobond issued in February 2018, with its proceeds still being deployed to redeem maturing domestic debt, was also responsible for the increase in the total public debt.

The share of the country’s “external debt stock in the total public debt rose to 30 per cent as of March 31, 2018, compared to 17 per cent in 2015, 20 per cent in 2016 and 27 per cent in 2017; a decline in market interest rates from 13 to 14 per cent per annum in December 2017, to 11 to 13 per cent per annum in the first quarter of 2018 due to the redemption of N279.67billion of Nigerian Treasury Bills using some of the proceeds of the $2.5billion Eurobond issued in February 2018,� the DMO had explained.

Findings by THISDAY showed that in spite of the upward movement of the country’s debts, since the debt office’s 2013 to 2017 Strategic Plan expired last December it has not been able to develop another one.

In response to THISDAY’s enquiries, however, the DMO said it was working on the very important document, even as it did not specify when it would be ready. “We (DMO) are actively working on it. We needed to do a Strategic Plan that incorporates the government’s evolving needs and expectations of investors and

financiers,� said Ms. Patience Oniha, the Director General of the DMO, in a text message to THISDAY. Oniha was appointed exactly a year ago, after the retirement of the former Director General, Dr. Abraham Nwankwo.

Section 6(c) of the DMO Establishment Act 2003 states that the agency must, “prepare and implement a plan for the efficient management of Nigerian's external and domestic debt obligations at sustainable levels compatible with desired economic activities for growth and development; and participate in negotiations aimed at realising those objectives.�

Owing to its very important role in the economy, the DMO, since inception, has always operated with a strategic plan. Its last strategic plan that expired last December, was the third since the creation of the agency that manages the country’s debts by former President Olusegun Obasanjo.

Its Second Strategic Plan, 2008-2012, followed the successful implementation of the First Strategic Plan, 2002-2006.

The expiration of the Second Strategic Plan, coupled with the need to consolidate on the gains of the previous plans, explore new areas and maintain a steady focus on the delivery of its mandates made it necessary to develop the last five-year plan.

The debt office had explained that the strategic objectives of the last plan were premised on the need to, among other things, achieve a better balance between domestic and external debt components in the public debt stock; re-focus attention on

cost-risk analysis and trade-offs and develop innovative means of borrowing at minimal cost and prudent level of risk.

Others included to introduce innovative debt instruments that will have positive impact on the public debt stock and ensure its sustainability; sustain activities and execute new initiatives to further deepen the domestic bond market in order to ensure that it remains a reliable source of funding for all economic agents, and retain, as well as, enhance the recognitions received for the FGN Bond Market from international financial institutions.

Buhari Receives Macron, Signs $475m Loan Agreement Meanwhile, French President, Emmanuel Macron, yesterday visited President Muhammadu Buhari in the State House, Abuja. The visit was accompanied by the signing of $475 million loan facilities agreement by both countries for the implementation of different projects in Lagos, Kano and Ogun States.

The agreement was signed by the Nigerian Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun on behalf of Nigeria; Rachel Kolbe and the Chief Executive Officer of the Agence Francaise Development (AFD), Mr. Rey Rioux, on behalf of France.

The signing was witnessed by both Buhari and Macron.

The agreement consisted of $200 million loan facility grant to Lagos for the execution of transport projects by AFD, another $200 million loan for land degradation project in Ogun State and $75 million

for the execution of water projects in Kano State.

Details were contained in different releases issued later

by AFD on each project.

On Lagos, the release stated that "On July 3, 2018, Mr. Macron, the French President, and President Buhari of Nigeria, witnessed the signing of a letter of intent for the financing of the urban mobility improvement programme initiated by the Lagos State Government.

"This letter or intent of the equivalent in Eur of 200 million USD is related to a potential loan by AFD to the federal government of Nigeria.

It was signed by the Agence Francaise de Development CEO, Mr. Remy Rioux, and the Minister of Finance of Nigeria, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, in presence of Mr. Denys Gauer, the Ambassador of France in Nigeria."

The release also listed the project for execution in Lagos to include: development of eight priority bus corridors connected to the mass transit network (urban train and high-level service bus) with a total length of 41 kilometres); creation of two multimodal interchange hubs and functional integration of four public transport modes (urban train, high-level bus service, water transport lines and bus lines) and planning and management capabilities of the transportation system.

It added that the project which follows the successful urban development of the second Lagos bus rapid transit (BRT) project, that is already funded by AFD, aims at: contributing to Lagos sustainable urban development through the deployment of

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ĂœĂ™Ă&#x;Ăš Ă?ĂĄĂ? ĂŽĂ“ĂžĂ™Ăœ Ejiofor Alike Ă—Ă‹Ă“Ă– Ejiofor.Alike@thisdaylive.com, 08066066268

France Can’t Solve Nigeria’s Insecurity Problem, Says Macron Reveals why he’s visiting African Shrine Says Africa needs to change its narrative Nseobong Okon-Ekong, Vincent Obia Ă“Ă˜ Ă‹Ă‘Ă™Ă?Ëœ Omololu Ogunmade Ă“Ă˜ ĂŒĂ&#x;ÔË Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Vanessa Obioha French President, Emmanuel Macron, yesterday bluntly said his country cannot help Nigeria and Africa solve the problem of insecurity but would intervene, especially, in the fight against terrorism.

Macron who visited President Muhammadu Buhari in the State House, Abuja, encouraged the Nigerian president and other African leaders to provide enabling economic and political environments for young people.

The French president, who stated this while answering questions on what assistance France could render to Nigeria over the violence being unleashed on citizens by herdsmen, said even though France would intervene in some of the challenges facing African countries especially in the war against terrorism, it is not the responsibility of his country to solve African problems.

According to him, it is very important that African countries organise themselves in the fight against terrorism and get rid of Islamic jihad.

He said: “First of all, I think the main plan is an African plan and France is not the one to solve or fix African situations.

So, what we want to do is that we will intervene and make our presence in Africa and Sahel to fight against terrorism especially in Mali and in the region. And we will stay as long as it is requested by our friends especially Mali. “We discussed yesterday (Monday) about this issue. But what is important to me is how the different African governments organise themselves to fight against terrorism and get rid of these people and especially jihadism. “That’s is why I do accompany and promote the G5/Sahel Initiatives, and I think as far as we are organised, Nigeria, Niger, Chad, and Cameroon are very important against Boko Haram,� he said.

Macron also said it was imperative for African leaders to know the reason young people join different terrorist groups and put machinery in place to address it. “Now, we have better understanding ISIS, why many people are convinced to join these jihadists and these terrorists. That was what we discussed and

this is the second part of your question, because sometimes, it is economic and ethnic crisis. And that is why it is very important to build not just the security approach but the stabilisation approach at the same time, to provide new opportunities to these people and convoy two massages. “Your governments will take care of you. I mean provide security and secondly, your governments can provide opportunities for you. And the best support is not to join crazy people and buy a bunch of guns and do crazy things. It is not opportunity to have any more opportunities. I think is very

important. “That is why I want to accompany different governments and leaders whose main objective is precisely to provide economic projects. I would say inclusive economic and cultural projects, where you provide the way for your young people to get education, jobs as well as to be proud of what you are. I think its extremely important. “Because in a certain way, what we are experiencing today in Europe is also threatened by terrorism. That is moral crisis.

That is cultural crisis. So, not just the issue about security, that for me, is the way to proceed,� he said.

In his briefing, Buhari said they discussed issues bordering on security in the Sahel and thanked France for its support in the fight against terrorism.

Meanwhile, President Macron has explained the rationale behind his decision to visit the African Shrine in Lagos last night, describing it as an “iconic place for African people and culture.�

The French president disclosed that having worked in Nigeria for about 15 years ago, his return to the country this time as a president which he never imagined at that time, was an emotional come-back for him.

According to him, this visit was a good opportunity to return to

the African Shrine, noting that apart from the personal pleasure derivable from it, the African Shrine showcases the importance of African culture.

He said he had fond memories of African Shrine. According to him, Fela and his sons, Femi and Seun, are famous names not only in France but also in the entire Europe.

Macron said: “First, because I wanted to find a good occasion to come back there, I know the place and I have some memories.

I have to confess that at a time that there will be no president around, I hope I will not spoil

Cont’d on Pg 52

Anti-Budget Padding Protesters Storm N’Assembly Deji Elumoye Ă“Ă˜ ĂŒĂ&#x;ÔË Hundreds of protesters under the auspices of Citizens Action to Take Back Nigeria (CATBAN) yesterday stormed the National Assembly as it resumed sitting.

The protesters carrying placards blocked the entrance of the National Assembly with a lorry as early as 9.30a.m. thereby denying both the lawmakers and workers access to the National Assembly premises.

The protesters made up mainly of youths of both sexes sang solidarity songs and carried placards questioning the rationale of the National Assembly leadership and members to pad the 2018 budget with constituency projects.

The placards read: ‘Constituency project is now corrupted, it must be formatted’; ‘Are you for the people and constituency or are you for the projects and contracts’; ‘Insertion of thousands of projects in the budget is tantamount to hijacking of the budget’.

The National Convener of CATBAN, Ibrahim Wala, told journalists that his group was worried about the padding of this year’s federal budget through the insertion of constituency projects by the legislators.

He wondered why the National Assembly continues to use the budget as their conduit pipe to siphon people’s resources.

Wala therefore called for the resignation of the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, and Speaker of the House of Representatives,

Hon. Yakubu Dogara, “as they have shown that they lack the requisite credibility and moral capacity to hold those positions of authority.�

The protesters who were given enough security backing by armed policemen, were later dispatched with teargas by the same policemen when some of the protesters attempted scaling the gate that was kept under lock and key by the National Assembly security unit.

The protest ignited immediate debate from the senators and was the first issue to be discussed at plenary yesterday after a close- door session that lasted from 11a.m. to 11.55a.m.

Senator Barnabas Gemade (Benue North East) opened the floodgate of discussions when he said those who organised the protest were ignorant of the basis for inserting constituency projects in the budget.

According to him, introduction of constituency projects made it easier for federal projects to reach every nook and cranny of the country.

This step, he said, ensured that projects are located in all constituencies across the country. “This noble idea made it easier for legislators to reach out to their constituents with prove that projects are sited in their areas Gemade added that constituency projects don’t enrich the pockets of lawmakers, saying: “We don’t even know the contractors so why this unnecessary protest.�

PROMOTING AUTOMOBILE

L-R: Head, Corporate Development and Strategy, UBER, Mimi Omokri; Senior Advisor, ACTIS, Simon Harford; CEO, Deloitte Africa, Lwazi Bam; Chairman, Volkswagen Group, South Africa, Thomas Schaefer; Vice President Yemi Osinbajo; Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Okechukwu Enelama; Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun and General Manager, Sub-Sahara Africa, Nissan Group of Africa, Liz Segal, during the meeting the federal government held with world-class automobile manufacturers at the State House, Abuja...yesterday

Alleged Prejudicial Comment: Abang Directs FG to Prosecute Three Journalists Sets aside own order closing Metuh’s case Alex Enumah Ă“Ă˜ ĂŒĂ&#x;ÔË Justice Okon Abang of the Federal High Court, Abuja, yesterday directed the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) to prosecute three journalists working for Channels Television for alleged prejudicial comments on the court proceedings.

The journalists are Chamberlain Usoh, Gimba Umar and Nneota Egbe.

The judge has also set aside his earlier ruling closing the defence of the former Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Olisa Metuh, in his alleged N400 million money laundering charges before the court.

The judge, who gave the order on the journalists after listening to a recorded television programme aired by the television station, involving the ongoing trial of Metuh, also

ordered the prosecutor to refer one of Metuh’s counsel, Benchux Nwosu, to the Disciplinary Committee of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), for alleged professional misconduct.

The arraignment of the journalists, which should be in any court of competent jurisdiction, according to the Abang, is to enable the court decide whether the statements made by the TV presenters and their guest on Sunrise Daily, aired on May 22, 2018 were prejudicial or contemptuous. “It is clear that the statement of the programme was aired outside the court, not within the court; therefore, I have no jurisdiction to determine whether the statements are prejudicial to this court’’, he said.

The judge also asked the office of the AGF to institute a case of alleged prejudicial comments against a lawyer, Nwosu, representing Metuh.

The judge, however, failed to include a lawyer representing the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Johnson Ojogbane, who spoke through a telephone conversation to the station during the aired programme. “The court has listened attentively to the video recording of Channels Television Sunrise Daily of April 2018. I noticed that Benchux Nwosu was also on the programme. I heard what he said about the trial going on in this court; if he was in court before me. I would have known what to do. I thought he had the courage. He ought to have appeared before the court.� “It is clear that the statement of the programme was aired outside the court not within the court; therefore, I have no jurisdiction to determine whether the statements are prejudicial to this court,� the judge said.

Abang said though he had

no jurisdiction to declare that the statement made by the three persons, representing Channels TV constituted prejudicial discussion, “I have jurisdiction to refer this matter to the body that can determine such.�

The judge then ordered that the matter be referred to the disciplinary committee of the NBA. He also directed that the prosecution (EFCC) file copies of compliance to the judgement within 30 days.

Part of what the prosecution is expected to comply with is the arraignment of the three journalists along with Nwosu in a court of law.

Setting aside the order, in a ruling he delivered yesterday on Metuh’s application seeking reopening of his defence, he held that the order closing Metuh’s case was made in default -- as Metuh was not heard before his case was closed.

WEDNESDAY, JULY 4, 2018˾ T H I S D AY

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NEWS

Senate Backs State, Community Police To Fast-track peace, reconciliation commission bill Saraki asks lawmakers to remain focussed Deji Elumoye ÓØ ÌßÔË The Senate yesterday reviewed the security situation in the country in the wake of recent massacre of over 200 people in Plateau State, with a resolution to amend the constitution to accommodate creation of State and Community Police.

It has therefore mandated the Constitution Review Committee headed by the Deputy Senate President, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, to come up with a draft amendment to the section of the constitution relating to state police within two weeks.

Senate President, Dr Bukola Saraki, who summarised the resolutions of the Senate after an exhaustive debate on the level of insecurity in the country, said the upper chamber of the National Assembly, in condemning the recent mass killings in

Plateau State, has directed the Ekweremadu-led committee to put machinery in motion towards amending the constitution to make room for state and community police.

While urging the Executive to overhaul its security apparatus towards providing adequate security for all Nigerians, the Senate also agreed to expedite action on the Police Reform Bill earlier presented before it went on recess in June, by the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Police Affairs, Senator Abu Ibrahim(Katsina South).

The Senate further directed the Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters, headed by Senator David Umaru, to come up with a Bill for the creation of Truth, Peace and Reconciliation Commission, within two weeks.

The Senate also advised the Executive to undertake the

DSS Storms School, Arrests Two Officials over Alleged PVC Scam

rehabilitation of all displaced persons and communities in Plateau “while those who sponsored and perpetrated the killings should be brought to book, no matter how highly placed the person is”.

Senator Jonah Jang (Plateau South), had earlier, under matter of national importance, raised the issue of the recent killings in some part of his state.

He recalled that over 155 people lost their lives in Mangu and other neighbouring villages in Jos South and called on government to probe the killings and bring perpetrators to book.

Contributing, Ekweremadu, said the Plateau killings had clearly shown the inability of the police to address security challenges across the country.

He, therefore, reiterated his call for creation of state police as a way out adding that “ by tomorrow I will bring State Police Bill before the Senate.”

Other Senators like Ahmad Lawan(Yobe North), Adamu

Aliero (Kebbi Central) and Olamilekan Adeola (Lagos West) condemned the Plateau killings and canvassed for review of the country’s security apparatus.

Saraki had earlier implored his colleagues to remain focused in carrying out their legislative mandates, despite the forthcoming 2019 general elections.

He made the call while welcoming Senators from their three-week break, adding that any divided attention in view of the pending elections would not be in the interest of the country.

“We must not be distracted. It is incumbent on us, therefore, to not allow politicking get in the way of our first duty to the Nigerian people, as Senators of the Federal Republic,” Saraki said “On this note, I charge us all to fasten our seatbelts and power on with the work we have been tasked to do.

Posterity is watching, and history will vindicate us if we do the job with diligence

and in truth.”

According to him, though the Senate clocked three while on break, there was no celebration given the sombre mood of the nation.

“As we hit the home run, therefore, it is important we do not pack-pedal or slow down; we must intensify efforts towards doing all that we are sworn to do for the electorate that voted for us as their representatives,” Saraki said.

He also urged the Executive to expedite the release of funds for budget implementation, since the 2018 budget has been assented to “so that our people can begin to see the positive impact in their lives without delay.”

“The work is not done. We as the Senate must continue to exercise our oversight functions to ensure successful implementation and value for money,” he said.

“Naturally, we continue to work towards reforming the budgetary process. Clearly, it

is necessary for the Executive and the Legislature to work towards a more robust engagement on the need for a better budget environment and process, going forward.”

He said despite the sterling achievements of the Senate in the past three years, it must be prepared to tackle all emerging national challenges and see to improvements in he security of lives and property in the country.

“We are resuming plenary today under a pall of national anxiety and apprehension over the state of insecurity in the country,” Saraki said.

“We have been alarmed at so many senseless killings of Nigerians, with the high number of casualties in Plateau being among the most egregious of late. Let me reassure Nigerians that we are as concerned as they are in the face of this challenge; and we continue to hold government accountable, in order to see to improvement in this area,” Saraki said

Victor Ogunje ÓØ ÎÙ ÕÓÞÓ

He promised to get back to THISDAY when he was briefed Acting on a tip off from the on the matter. members of the public, In a related development, operatives of the Department of a teacher at Aaye Oja State Services (DSS) yesterday Grammar School in Moba stormed a popular secondary Local Government Area school in Ado-Ekiti, Ola Oluwa (LGA) of the state has been Muslim Grammar School, and summoned by the Teaching arrested some ministry officials Service Commission (TSC) for found collecting Permanent allegedly refusing to submit Voter Cards (PVCs) from her PVC. teachers.

The woman (names The DSS operatives besieged withheld) was invited to face the school around 9.00 a.m. a panel on why she reportedly and arrested the culprits. refused to submit her PVC as However, the school directed by the TSC authorities.

Principal, Mr. Sunmonu The letter summoning her Olaoye, did not make himself to face the panel, ordered her available throughout the time to appear at TSC chairman’s the DSS operatives were in office at9.00 a.m. yesterday. the school.

The letter read: “I am Reliable sources said directed by the chairman security men arrested one of TSC to invite you for a Mrs. Olagbemi, Secretary to chat tomorrow,July 3, 2018, the Principal, and one Mrs. at chairman’s office by 9.00 Ogunrinde, Office Assistant a.m. Kindly treat as urgent to the Principal. please.”

The police spokesman, Caleb The letter was signed by Ikechukwu, said he had not one Akande J. on behalf of been informed of the arrest. the TSC chairman.

THANK YOU VISIT

Speaker,House of Representatives,Hon. Yakubu Dogara, (second right); Chief Whip, House of Representatives,Hon. Alhassan Ado Doguwa (second left); Chairman,Conference of Speakers of State Legislatures of Nigeria, Hon. Abdulmumini Ismaila Kamba ( left ) , and Chief Whip, Kano State House of Assembly, Hon. Baffa Danagundi (right), during a “Thank You Visit” to Dogara by the Speakers’ Conference at the National Assembly...yesterday

FG Distributes N10bn to 300,000 Poor Nigerians PDP Mocks APC over Southeast Rally Doles out N43.5m grant to 121 innovators

Adedayo Akinwale ÓØ ÌßÔË áÓÞÒ ËÑÏØÍã The federal government has since 2016 disbursed N10 billion to no fewer than 300,000 beneficiaries through its Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) programme.

This is as the federal government yesterday awarded a grant of N43,500,000, to 121 Nigerians in the informal sector who have distinguished themselves in creativity, inventiveness and innovations.

The National Programme Coordinator of the CCT, Temitope Sinkaye, disclosed this to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on the sidelines

of the National Cash Transfer Programme Mid-year Review in Ilorin yesterday.

She said that the programme started in 2016 with eight pilot states that met the condition set by the federal government.

The condition, Sinkaye explained, was just for states to provide offices, personnel and equipment for the take off of the programme.

“All states are eligible to participate in the programme but upon fulfilling some conditions.

“So currently, we have only 20 states that have fulfilled the conditions.

“As at 2016 when we started the programme, only eight

states met the condition and as at today, we have 20 states and we are still counting.

“The condition is that states will provide the programme with office, staff and equipment while the federal government takes it up from there.

“Once the state is done with that, the federal government takes up from there and train the personnel on what the programme is all about,’’ she said.

On the modality for selection of beneficiaries, the national coordinator said that they were selected through a process known as “community based targeting.’’

Onyebuchi Ezigbo ÓØ ÌßÔË The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has described yesterday’s South-east zonal rally of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Owerri, the Imo State capital, as a mockery on President Muhammadu Buhari by the members of his party.

The party said Nigerians had a comic relief as each speaker at the rally made a mockery of the president by ascribing non-existent projects, as well as those initiated by others, particularly, the PDP, to him in furtherance of APC’s renewed attempt to beguile Nigerians ahead of 2019 general elections.

In a statement issued by its

National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, PDP said even the rented crowd showed and expressed a vote of no confidence on the ill-performed president and his party, as they refused to brandish the now famished APC brooms or respond to the party’s slogan, a development that signposts the rejection of the APC in the zone and of course, in other parts of the country.

“Is it not pathetic for President Buhari or the APC to, in anyway, think that they can suddenly enchant the people of the South-east by false claims like those made about the Second Niger Bridge, Enugu-Onitsha Express way, Akanu Ibiam Airport, Enugu, among other

projects, when the reality in the zone remains a bold testament of maltreatment, official disdain and government’s insensitivity?

“Is it not also a height of foolery and political delusion for APC to think that the people of the southeast will suddenly churn out five million votes and deliver same to a party that overtly relegated them as mere “five percent”?

“Worse still, all the APC leaders, who spoke at the rally, were all ill at ease, had no clear message, but dwelt only on empty sloganeering without regard to the sensibilities of the people, who had been subjected to the worst kind of relegation by their party in the last three years,” PDP said.

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WEDNESDAY, JULY 4, 2018˾ T H I S D AY

NEWS

Buhari, Tinubu, Oshiomhole Incapable of Stemming Implosion in APC, Says Shehu Sani New party chairman chides ‘frequent defectors’ Onyebuchi Ezigbo ÓØ ÌßÔË As the All Progressives Congress (APC) grapples with the threat of possible defection of its members, one of the aggrieved stakeholders in the party, Senator Shehu Sani, has said from all indications, the crisis in the party has defied the efforts of President Muhammadu Buhari and the party’s National Leader, Bola Tinubu.

This is coming as the new National Chairman of the party, Adams Oshiomhole, has chided those he described as frequent defectors, saying they have

shown that they have no regard for principles and values Sani who is representing the people of Kaduna Central Senatorial district in the Senate, noted that efforts by various committees so far set up to arrest the situation by the party leaders have become futile.

He also said that due to the accumulated nature of the issues involved, the new National Chairman, Oshiomhole, will find it beyond his capacity to resolve.

However, Oshiomhole has chided those he described as frequent defectors, saying they have shown that they

House Investigates Varied Cut-off Marks into Unity Schools

have no regard for principles and values.

Speaking during the launching of a book on the former Kaduna State Governor, Mallam Abdulkadir Balarabe Musa, titled: ‘The Voice of The Masses’, Sani expressed the fears that the accumulated crisis in the party may be beyond the capacity of Oshiomohle to address.

While congratulating the new APC national chairman, Sani said: “ Adams Oshiomhole has inherited a party in cold war, civil war but I wish him well.

“First of all I believe in Oshiomhole, a true comrade but Chief Oyegun left behind unexploded bombs in the party, which certainly may be beyond the capacity of Oshiomhole to address.”

Speaking on the crisis in the Kaduna State chapter of the APC, Sani said Governor

Nasiru El-Rufai has converted the party into his own personal franchise.

He said there were no congresses in the state but that rather, the governor simply removed people who have different opinion other than his own and planted his loyalists.

“He unleashed reign of terror on members of the party. The governor has destroyed the very basis and foundation of the party in that state,” he said.

According to Sani, El-rufai has shown disrespect for the leadership of APC and the presidency by shunning peace efforts initiated by both the presidency and the party.

“As you can see, Tinubu’s attempt to reconcile members of the party was simply naturalised and abandoned. So we are not slaves to continue to be in that party.

According to him, El-rufai does not have respect for the leadership of APC and the presidency.

“It is also very clear to us that even President Buhari is incapable of tackling the menace of the governor of Kaduna State. How can a governor openly call for a violence against Senators and not a statement came from the seat of power cautioning such a governor, or how can a governor of a state moved bulldozer and demolished a house of a fellow party member, the one who has helped him to be where he is, and there not even a statement from the presidency,” he added.

On his part, Oshiomhole who spoke briefly at the event before leaving for Imo State to attend yesterday’s South-east mega rally in Owerri, the state

capital, described Balarabe Musa as a highly principled politician.

He said the former Kaduna State governor sacrificed his office in defence of his principle.

Oshiomole threw a jab at some of the APC stakeholders threatening to quit the party, saying: “We now compare this tradition to where we are today, where people decamp in the morning, and before they get registration card in the evening because they have done new calculation, they again decamp back or they just keep on decamping. “ If they want to contest for an office, if they don’t win, the next thing they decamp to another party. If they don’t win again, they decamp to another party and if they don’t win, they just keep on decamping,” he said.

James Emejo ÓØ ÌßÔË

Brown further expressed worry that some students who The House of Representatives have to meet a cut-off mark of yesterday passed a motion 60 percent will be expected to mandating its Committee on end up in the same university Basic Education and Services and study the same courses as to investigate the basis for the their contemporaries that had cut-off marks set by the National to meet up the cut-off mark of Common Entrance Examination 14 percent for males and 12 Board (NCEEB) for admission percent for females respectively. of pupils into Nigerian Unity He said if the situation is Schools and report back within not reversed, the Nigerian four weeks for further legislative educational system would action. gradually collapse while the The resolution was consequent country would remain largely upon a motion moved by Hon. underdeveloped.

Randolph Oruene Brown (PDP, The lawmaker further drew Rivers) on the need to probe attention to the fact that the the development.

Child’s Rights Act, 2003, already He expressed concern that the places is a duty on government trend of discriminatory cut-off to provide free compulsory and marks for students who ought universal basic education for to study the same courses in every Nigerian child, hence the future and practice the same the importance of education professions is dangerous for cannot be undermined. the country’s already epileptic Brown warned that the falling educational system, and will no standard of education in any doubt affect the development country is like an epidemic which of the county in the long run. all relevant authorities must He said most of the consciously work towards compromised cut-off marks do redeeming the situation. not make up to 50 percent of He added that the quality the requisite 100 percent, while of education in the country in some cases, the marks not has dropped to an alarming make up to even 20 percent of rate which portends great the requisite percentage. danger for the future.

PROJECT INAUGURATION

L-R: Deputy Governor, Ipalibo Harry Banigo; Rivers State Governor, Nyesom EzenwoWike; Sokoto State Governor, Hon. AminuTambuwal, and Pro-Chancellor of Rivers State University, Justice Iche Ndu (rtd), during the inauguration of the College of Medical Sciences building at the university by Tambuwal... yesterday

Ekiti Election: Court Dismisses Suit Seeking to Bar Fayemi Buhari Asks Senate To Confirm Alex Enumah ÓØ ÌßÔË APC and the state government by the National Assembly only be indicted by court of had argued among others, through the first alteration law after fair trial, adding Shonubi as CBN Dep Gov An Abuja High Court sitting that Fayemi’s indictment by a of the 1999 Constitution and that even if the white paper

Deji Elumoye ÓØ ÌßÔË

President Muhammadu Buhari has sought Senate’s confirmation of Mr. Folashodun Shonubi as the Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

Buhari had in June nominated Shonubi for the same position.

The president’s letter was read on the floor of the Senate yesterday by the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, after a one-hour closed-door session shortly after its resumption from a three-week break.

The letter read in part: “Dear Distinguished Senate President, in accordance to the provisions of section 81 (2) of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Establishment Act 2007, I have the pleasure to present Mr.

Folashodun Adebisi Shonubi for confirmation as Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria.

“Find attached a copy of his Curriculum Vitae.

“While looking forward to your usual expeditious consideration, please accept, Mr Senate President, the assurances of my highest regards,” the letter said.

The Senate had in March confirmed the appointments of Mrs. Aishah Ahmad and Mr. Edward Adamu as deputy governors of CBN. It also in June confirmed the nomination of three of the four members of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the apex bank sent to it

by President Buhari .

in Bwari, has dismissed a suit seeking to bar the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr. Kayode Fayemi, in the Ekiti State Governorship election slated for July 14.

The Court also quashed Fayemi’s indictment for fraud, abuse of office and the 10 years ban from holding public office imposed on him by the Ekiti State Government.

Delivering judgement yesterday in the suit filed by the Action Peoples Party (APP), the presiding judge, Justice Oathman Musa, dismissed the suit on the grounds that it was frivolous, baseless and without merit.

The APP, in the suit instituted against Fayemi,

commission of inquiry, set up by the Ekiti state government to probe his administration, and the white paper issued by the state based on the indictment, disqualified Fayemi from holding public office by virtue of Section 182(1)(i) of the Constitution.

But the judge quashed the purported indictment by the commission of inquiry and the white paper on the grounds that the process leading to the report and white paper was tainted with bias as Fayemi was not accorded fair hearing.

In dismissing the suit, the court held that Section 182(1) (i) of the Constitution, on which the suit was based, was no longer in existence having been deleted in 2011

as such, no Nigerian citizen can be disqualified from the section.

Justice Musa who answered the two questions posed by the plaintiff in the negative, refused all its prayers and declared that Fayemi was eligible to contest the next governorship election and that the APC was at liberty, under the law to field him as its candidate.

Besides, the judge said that by virtue of several Supreme Court decisions, mere indictment and white paper are mere administrative decisions and cannot be used to disqualify any citizen from holding public office.

The Abuja high court further held that citizens can

and the section 182 were not deleted, the process leading to the commission of enquiry report was tainted with bias because there was no evidence that Fayemi was invited as an accused person to defend himself from the corruption charges by the tribunal.

The judge held that from the available evidence, Fayemi a former governor of Ekiti State, was invited as a witness to assist the tribunal with information and that the tribunal set aside the objection raised by Fayemi but did not go further to issue another invitation to him to appear as an accused person as required by law.

T H I S D AY ˾ WEDNESDAY JULY 4, 2018

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T H I S D AY Ëž Ëœ Ͳ Ëœ 2018

COMMENT

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

MANY WOUNDS TO CROSS

The continent is afflicted with loads of baggage, writes Okello Oculi

T

he late Dr Yusuf Bala Usman, a historian with a hurricane of physical and intellectual energy was dedicated to socialist ideals and politics of Mallam Aminu Kano and Saad Zungur. In1993 he supported Chief M.K.O Abiola as politically more progressive than Alhaji Bashir Tofa.

Abiola as a former executive for International Telegraph and Telecommunication (ITT) in the Middle East and Africa would, like Singapore, promote quality education to train workers and make Nigeria attractive for investments by multinational corporations.

Fela Anikulapo Kuti had mocked Abiola as an agent of an “International Tief-Tief’’. Socialists, however, support capitalism for promoting economic growth while feudalists consume surpluses.

Bashir Tofa had a more limited experience and allegedly enjoyed favours by powerful military friends.

Dr Y.B.Bala mobilised a team at Ahmadu Bello University’s Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences (FASS) to develop radio messages for supporting Abiola’s campaign. There were also opinion monitors for cultural blocks to jingles by Abiola’s campaign teams. It was found that rural communities in Kaduna State, for example, were bitter about political, bureaucratic and commercial leaders abandoning their welfare after the death of Sir Ahmadu Bello as Prime Minister of Northern Nigeria. This offered hope for creative jingles. Abiola would defeat candidate Bashir Tofa in his own home turf: Kano State.

Abiola had come into the campaign with two toxic loads. In the South West he was criticised for using his newspapers to throw dirt over Chief Awolowo by doubting his claims to primary devotion to the welfare of the common people. This was regarded as the work of a “guided missile’’ serving Hausa-Fulani politicians. In the North the late Alhaji Umaru Dikko had caustically told Abiola that NPN’s presidential candidature “was not for sale’’ to the highest bidder.

These two loads made it imperative to directly touch hearts of ordinary voters.

In victory his Yoruba critics embraced him as their warrior severely wounded by Umaru Dikko’s camp: with a declaration that “the Yoruba race’’ must never rule Nigeria. Their rage both gave anchors of steel to Abiola’s mandate while cutting off the national spread of his political wings. His daring to defy their blessing had to be squashed into a steel anchor for combative hearts and wills.

His northern voters were left shell-shocked for suddenly being declared as enemies who were implicated in the military regime’s outrage. Their widespread celebration of freedom from shouting from behind religious walls - by voting for “Muslim-Muslim ticket’’ - was thrown into dust. It became drenched with the blood of NADECO protestors in the South-West. The flower of a novel Political Nation was again thrown behind ethno-regional glass walls. It waits for its own apology from River Oduduwa to a violated Lake Nigeria.

This “capture’’ of a national electoral mandate was in 1966

IN ALGERIA, THE CANCELLATION IN 1992 OF ELECTORAL VICTORY BY ISLAMISTS, LED TO HORRENDOUS VIOLENCE: KILLING OVER 200,000 CIVILIANS AND SOLDIERS. IN TOGO, THE MONOPOLY OF MILITARY POWER BY NORTHERN ETHNIC GROUPS FUELS VIOLENT PROTESTS

manufactured by President Jomo Kenyatta in Kenya against Jaramogi Oginga Odinga. Having discovered that Kenyatta was being held in contempt by younger Gikuyu leaders secretly recruiting fighters for a war against European grabbers of their land, British officials arrested and detained Kenyatta at Kapenguria Prison in the semi-desert north. The colonial governor encouraged Odinga to break ranks with Kenyatta but he refused to run for prime ministership and demanded Kenyatta’s release from prison to assume that role. The governor prophesied that Odinga would live to regret his decision.

The young revolutionaries lost the Mau-Mau war. Kenyatta promised not to seize land from British farmers for re-distribution to land-hungry masses. Oginga’s protests led to his dismissal as Vice President. As a graduate in Anthropology from London University, Kenyatta directed his district officers to haul busloads of Gikuyu to Government House at Gatundu to take oaths to defend power always remaining in “the House of Mumbi’’ – their mythical ancestor. The combination this ethnic ritual with the detention of Odinga intimidated his followers among the Gikuyu. His Asian legal adviser, Pio Gama Pinto, was assassinated in his garden.

The subsequent combination of the manipulation of ethnic identity with Gikuyu, Embu and Meru elites monopolising access to contracts, land and leadership of key government ministries and agencies provoked so much resentment among outsiders that they exploded into horrendous violence following the 2007 general and presidential election believed to have been won by Odinga’s son Raila Odinga. Although reconciliatory constitutional referendum of 2010 endorsed “restructuring’’ budgets to regions, the ruling triumvirate was still forced to vigorously rig the 2015. Opposition protestors were shot at with live bullets. A democratic “free and fair election� remains blocked; while opposition increasingly veers towards armed debate.

In the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Bakongo - whose anticolonial religious protest organisation “Kibanguism’’ led nationalist consciousness - have, since independence 1960, been denied top leadership of the country. In Uganda, the Baganda - who were most privileged by colonial authorities with the location of primary, secondary schools and Makerere University College - have felt bitter that since independence in 1963, leadership has eluded them.

Their increasing electoral rejection of President Yoweri Museveni has met the Kenyan pill.

In Algeria, the cancellation in 1992 of electoral victory by Islamists, led to horrendous violence: killing over 200,000 civilians and soldiers. In Togo, the monopoly of military power by northern ethnic groups fuels violent protests. Ethiopia’s ruling coalition has opened the glass roof to the majority Oromia. There are many wounds to cross and heal

DEMOCRACY AND THE NIGERIAN FACTORY Temitope O. Stephen argues the need to ‘upgrade’ our democratic practice

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emocracy has been simply and rightly defined as the government of the people by the people and for the people. The people are supposed to be the entire populace or the community or the country or the defined territory as the case may be. The universal concept of democracy is that of a social contract whereby the people submit or give their mandate or authority for leadership or ruler ship to elected representatives, who are expected in return for the mandate bestowed on them, to meet the social needs of the people by providing security, education, health needs, jobs and facilities for the social wellbeing of the people.

This essay is not in any way meant to castigate anyone but rather to give a review of the ideal and provoke reactions and suggestions about the way forward in our democratic practice in Nigeria.

Are we practising democracy the way it ought to be in the moment? The answer lies within us and we do not need a prophet to tell us what is happening in the country. We do know that the concept of democracy some people argue is adaptable to any locality based on their peculiar political arrangement and thereby give room for people to develop what can be referred to as home grown democratic governance or grass root democracy as the case may be.

Part of the ingenuity for which our dear country is renowned is the ability to import and reinvent any concept or product that is alien to us and refabricate it to meet our own standards which are not necessarily universal standard.

I believe that is the same experiment we have attempted with democracy but unfortunately have ended up with a very defective product.

There are products which are easily adaptable or rather very easy to pirate or copy without any problems of their acceptance in the market they

have been produced for because, you will hardly distinguish the original from the copy. Unfortunately, democracy is not one of such product that can be varied, reinvented or reproduced without a clear and apparent recognition of the deviation from the original product and its defects.

The way we have manufactured and practiced democracy in our Nigerian factory calls for a lot of questions because the end product is not only defective but a clear departure from the original in many respects for many obvious reasons. There is no need for example to argue that in our country today, most of us do not understand leadership concept nor understand that accountability goes with the concept of leadership. Common logic dictates that if I entrust you with my right or mandate as the case may be in democracy, you are expected to give accounts of your service.

We know the ideal situation and if we do pretend not to know, it is not too late to make a change and learn from the countries that have successfully institutionalised the practice of democracy to near perfection. It is time for us to change our present so that we can reap a better dividend in the future for our sake and the sake of our children and the unborn generation.

It is a popular saying that Rome was not built in a single day and also that, the journey of a thousand year begins with a step in the right direction.

What went wrong with our leadership quality we used to possess in this country? Where is the missing link? We need to retrace our steps to find out where things veered in the wrong course or direction. A look at the vision of the fathers of the nation will tell us that things are not well with our nation at the moment unless we want to deceive our self. Certainly, this is not the vision of the Nigeria conceived by our pioneer political leaders like Tafawa Balewa, Obafemi Awolowo, Nnamidi Azikiwe and a host of others who were desirous

of building an egalitarian society where peace, security, equality, and where the welfare of the people is paramount .

Our leadership model has continued to amaze me in the sense that nobody is accountable to anyone. People amass wealth in an unconstitutional and illegal means and yet no one ask questions.

Even where questions are asked, no right of answer is enforceable. People embezzle and loot public funds only to be rewarded with honours. It is only in this country that constituency allowance ends up in the pocket of the representative with no project or any visible development recorded in the constituency. I recall in the United Kingdom some years ago where members of parliament voluntarily resigned or forced to resign from political office for mismanaging ÂŁ200 or less from the votes meant for their constituency project.

When are we going to change our mindset in this country because the problem we have is that of our mindset. In a country where everyone aspires to a political office at all cost not because of the love of the people but for their personal greed and enhancement of their financial status, we have a long way to go unless we are determined to begin to make a change of our mindset. We may not achieve the desired change immediately but a step towards the right direction is needed to get the country out of the mess we have all put our self.

I ponder and wonder at times how people can feel comfortable or pretend that nothing is wrong when they live in affluence and ignore the reality of the abject poverty of the people they claim to serve around them when it takes very little effort to make the difference, given the resources God have blessed this country with.

Our roads are not motorable, our educational system is not up to standard in terms of what is obtainable elsewhere in the world; we do not have rail networks or develop enough waterways

to facilitate a better productive economy and create access for the people to link anywhere in the country without necessarily having to embark on mass migration to the urban area.

We do not encourage our farmers nor do we encourage research and innovative ideas that can transform this country; we rather choose to tie ourselves to the apron strings of our colonial masters. One of the worst diseases our political class seems to suffer from today appears to be that of mental slavery of wanting to please the western world and conform to global standards of civilisation. There is nothing wrong in embracing good standards of the western civilisation if we are going to embrace everything all the way, but our problem is that of pick and choose, while we forget that everything is all-embracing and built on a system that is meant to harmonise every segment of the economy and society.

It is sad to know that people are not reaping the dividends of democracy in this country, people give away their mandate on the basis of buying and selling, then wait for another four years to make a change if they can really effect one. The level of poverty is so abject that it is easy for the highest bidder to get into a political office by mere offer of pittance to the populace or people who are not well informed of their right or the power they possess in terms of not casting their votes for the representative they do not trust.

Perhaps it is time we work out arithmetic of simple dividend on our investment on the political class to see if we have to adopt another system to ensure everyone benefits from the “money crazy� we practice in the name of democracy.

May be the law of demand and supply should become applicable if we are not willing to make a change, maybe we should also determine the value of our mandate and make appropriate asking price if we do choose to sell.

Stephen wrote from the United Kingdom

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T H I S D AY WEDNESDAY, JUNE 4, 2018

EDITORIAL THE OMINOUS THREAT FROM ISIS The security agencies should ensure that the Islamic terrorists have no base in the country

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n apparent response to reports that the battle-hardened members of the Islamic State terrorist group from Syria were sneaking into our country, the Minister of Defence, Mr Mansur Dan- Ali said last week that the issue topped the agenda of the recent meeting of the Ministers of Defence of the Community of Sahel Saharan States in Abuja. The risk posed by the tactically astute extremist jihadists deserves no less attention as we urge the authorities to up their game, if they are to contain the national security threats posed by these dangerous elements.

The Sun newspapers, published in the United Kingdom, had reported that leaders of ISIS were furtively bringing in the brutal jihadists into Nigeria to recruit and train terrorists for possible attacks in Britain while some Boko Haram insurgents would be trained and sent to the Middle East in a macabre exchange programme. The report further said ISIS would exploit the strong links between Abuja and London using the regular flights between both countries to export terrorism and wreak havoc across the world.

Against the background that in THE MILITANT GROUP WITH PERHAPS THE MOST 2016, the Ali Barnawi faction of Boko BRUTAL VERSION OF Haram pledged ISLAMIC RULE MUST NOT allegiance to ISIS, it BE ALLOWED TO GAIN A will be foolish for the FOOTHOLD IN NIGERIA Nigerian authorities to treat this informaOR ANYWHERE ON THE tion with levity.

CONTINENT The military and the security agencies must see it as a lead to work upon rather than another information to dismiss as some have already done, albeit in a cynical manner. Only last week, the Department of State Services (DSS) said that it had arrested two commanders of the Islamic State in West Africa (ISWA) in the suburb of Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory and another one in Bauchi, a month earlier. “The suspects were discovered to have concluded plans to not only perpetuate the ideals of

the movement in the areas, but to, in collaboration with Boko Haram, carry out heinous violent attacks on innocent persons,” it said.

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

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 BOLAJI ADEBIYI, PETER IWEGBU, ANTHONY OGEDENGBE DEPUTY DIVISIONAL DIRECTOR OJOGUN VICTOR DANBOYI SNR. ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR ERIC OJEH ASSOCIATE DIRECTORS PATRICK EIMIUHI, SAHEED ADEYEMO CONTROLLERS ABIMBOLA TAIWO, UCHENNA DIBIAGWU, NDUKA MOSERI DIRECTOR, PRINTING PRODUCTION CHUKS ONWUDINJO

he ISIS is an extremist group reputed to be one of the most deadly Islamic jihadists in history, dwarfing Osama bin Laden’s al-Qaeda in organisation and exportation of terrorism across the world. It is a movement noted for sectarian hatred, unbridled savagery, beheadings and mass executions and uses relatively weak and lawless territories as base to launch its global jihad. The well-provided-for organisation gained international notoriety in 2014 when it drove Iraqi government forces out of some key cities, including Mosul, the country’s second largest city. A United Nations Commission of inquiry on Syria discovered in 2016 that the Islamic group had no scruples in using any deadly weapons available including cluster bombs, chemical and biological weapons on innocent civilians to achieve its aim of an Islamic caliphate.

In the face of pushback from its present areas of operations, the extremist group is looking for territories where it could establish a base to further carry out its dastardly international terror. This underlines the importance of military reinforcements and intelligence sharing from across the region and indeed the continent to try and contain the jihadists advance. The militant group with perhaps the most brutal version of Islamic rule must not be allowed to gain a foothold in Nigeria or anywhere on the continent littered with angry millions of youths bereft of opportunities.

Already, many countries in the sub-region, particularly those sharing borders with Nigeria, are weighed down by the activities of Boko Haram, a militant Islamic group with roots in Nigeria. This is why we enjoin the forthcoming conference of the heads of state and government to strategise a regional and proactive response to the spread of terror, an issue that could further destabilise the region.

The ISIS must not be allowed to get a base in Nigeria for terrorist activities.

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LAGOS’BUILDING CODE AND REGULATION

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n accordance with the provision of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, one of the fundamental objectives and directive principles of state policy is the security and welfare of the people. This explains why governments enact laws and imposes regulatory control to protect their citizenry on all spheres of human endeavours.

One of such is the building codes and regulations for the purpose of protecting the health, safety and general welfare of the building users.

In Nigeria and the United State of America, the regulatory law on building is called building code. To some countries such as the United Kingdom, it is called building regulations/ building bye laws.

In spite of the existence of the code, most houses and other structures in Nigeria are built without the state permit and in contravention of the building code. Sites are developed contrary to approval granted and without site board, indicating the mandatory information required e.g. client, type of structure and building professionals involved in the development as required by law. In many streets across the country, houses are built without set-back from the road and provision for parking of cars thereby creating nuisance and distress to residents as well as other road users. Non-adhering to building code is also the major cause of flooding and building failure/collapse in most instances.

Given building collapse trend in Lagos State over the years, the government is now more ever determined that people sought approval before erecting building structures in the state.

Rightly, Lagos State has a statutory agency and instrument which set out the minimum requirements for the design, construction and maintenance of buildings. The building control code or law has always been with us but it is the failure to decisively enforce and comply with it that has been responsible for varied building failure and collapse in the state.

As part of commitment of the Governor Akinwunmi Ambode administration to improve both the quality of government services and citizen welfare, infrastructural facility will no longer be allowed to be carried out arbitrarily. Going by the plan of the Lagos State Building Control Agency (LSBCA), the state government will no longer allow the construction of any property without permit.

However, it is imperative for all to understand that the role of government, professionals and the general public in building production are complimentary. Government enact laws and impose regulatory control on buildings so as to ensure that they are located, designed, constructed and maintained in such a way that is conducive to good health, safety and welfare of the citizens. While on the other hand, professionals make sure that the implementation of such laws achieves the desired objectives or result, by making sure that they follow, strictly, the relevant provision of the code in their professional practice, draw attention to any deficiency in the appropriate laws, with a view to making suggestions for essential improvement. In their own interest, good citizens comply with state regulation.

The Ambode administration has used every given opportunity to explain and demonstrate that the greatest resource Lagos

State has is its people. With this in mind, the administration’s plan of going all out to implement building code needs the cooperation of everyone especially when it is considered that despite the state development plan of emerging as a smart city, about 90 per cent of people in the state have no building permits and have not built right. This is obviously a minus for the state’s ambition.

It goes without saying that government has put on ground measures to make obtaining of building permit seamless for both owners of old structures and persons seeking to build a new one. Lagos State government now accepts family receipt as condition to erect structures across the state. Recently, the State Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Planning, Mr. Ogunleye stated that between March 1 and August 31, 2018, government would not charge any penalty for those who had erected their structures on their land without a building permit, as government purposely created that six months grace period for landowners to obtain their building permit. He said approval had been made easy as anyone who went through the process would get his or her building approval within 28 days.

The approval process of 28 days is now standard but there is also a fast-track system for those that wish to get it faster. But the days may be extended especially when the drawing is not cleared for not adhering to rules. For clarity purpose, LASBCA does not give permit, LASPPPA does but everything, including tax compliance must be completed and up to date.

Rasak Musbau, Lagos State Ministry of Information and Strategy, Alausa, Ikeja

T H I S D AY ˾ WEDNESDAY JULY 4, 2018

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T H I S D AY • WEDNESDAY, 4 JULY, 2018

MIDWEEKPOLITICS

Group Politics Editor NSEOBONG OKON-EKONG Email nseobong.okonekong@thisdaylive.com 08114495324 SMS ONLY

THE NEWSMAKER

A Little Cold Water in His Face Nseobong Okon-Ekong andDajiSaniwritethatEmmanuelBello,agovernorshipaspirantinAdamawa State has recovered from a temporary setback to resume an earnest pursuit of his goal.

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n a short time, Chief Emmanuel Bello has attained many targets that he set for himself in his home state, Adamawa.

Having climbed the rungs of public office so fast, his eyes are set on the highest office in the state.

At first, the assumption was that he rode on the back of General Halidu Hannaniya, the influential former boss of the Federal Road Safety Commission who is one of the kingmakers in the politics of Adamawa State. There was some merit in this supposition owing to the fact that he had no experience in public service at the time he entered the fray. From nowhere, Bello became the man to beat in Gombi/Hong, a political constituency considered a hot spot, with diverse political interest. The area had the likes of the former Minister of State for foreign Affairs, Dr. Aliyu Idi Hong. This, however, did not stop Bello’s quick trajectory.

In fairness to him, Bello had an enviable educational background and exposure, having travelled far and wide, crowning it with a stint in the media. A graduate of the Harvard Business School, he became a member of the House of Representatives on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). To his credit, many remember his years as a federal legislature in glowing terms. Given the fact that he was a fresher, majority of his constituents gave him a pass mark for representing them well.

Apparently, some political bigwigs were not comfortable with his rising profile. He was too independent-minded to be any one’s errand boy.

This autonomous disposition cost Bello the chance of returning to the House of Representatives.

The choices became so narrowed that he could not contest the election on the platform of the PDP for a second term due to strong opposition, impunity and lack of internal democracy in the PDP. He was forced to leave the PDP to the APC to contest the governorship election in Adamawa state in 2014.

Bello struggled against the incumbent governor for the governorship ticket of the APC in 2014, but was defeated. He linked his defeat to impunity, favouritism and misconduct in the APC. Ahead of the 2019 general elections and knowing that the stalwarts that ensured his defeat in 2014 are still running the affairs of the party, Bello resigned from APC last March and moved with his teeming supporters across the state to pitch his tent with the Social Democratic Party, SDP, in order to achieve his governorship ambition in the forth coming election.

Boasting of thousands of supporters across the 21 local government areas of the state, Bello’s defection is no doubt a major set back to the APC. He told journalists in Yola, at a recent SDP rally that he exited the APC because the ideals of the party were bastardised by some dominant forces.

But it seems like controversy follows Bello like a shadow. Already, his presence in the SDP has shaken the party to its very roots. No sooner he arrived the SDP than he was slammed with a suspension over alleged attempt to muzzle other party aspirants. It was reported that while the text of Bello’s suspension was being read at the party’s secretariat, thugs allegedly loyal to Bello attacked Ibrahim Bebetu and Dr. John Njiling, the State SDP Chairman and his Secretary respectively. The party executives accused Bello of unauthorized membership drive through fake party membership register and membership cards which he printed and distributed at wards and local government levels without the party’s consent at the state.

A former member of the House of Representatives, representing Gombi/Hong Federal Constituency of Adamawa State, Bello has boldly announced his entry into the governorship race against the incumbent governor of the state, Senator Mohammed Jibrilla Bindow.

In Adamawa State and beyond, Bello is

Emmanuel Bello

popular for creating jobs, encouraging skills acquisition and entrepreneurship. This strategy remains his tested and successful solution to insecurity and the humanitarian crisis caused by the Boko Haram insurgency and herdsmen

Apparently, some political bigwigs were not comfortable with his rising profile. He was too independent-minded to be any one’s errand boy. This autonomous disposition cost Bello the chance of returning to the House of Representatives

attacks bedeviling the state. His people-oriented projects in his constituency include renovation of hospitals, building of clinics, empowerment projects through skills acquisition programs for women and youths and rebuilding of dilapidated primary schools in his constituency before the advent of the Boko Haram insurgency.

His supporters at the rally commended Bello’s response to humanitarian crisis in his constituency which was under the control of the Boko Haram insurgency and his recent visit to villages attacked by the herdsmen to donate relief materials.

Narrating his experience in the APC, Bello concluded that he had no choice than to seek his political fortune elsewhere as the APC in Adamawa State had become characterised by confusion, lack of cohesion, impunity and misconduct. He said his hope to to better the lot of the people in the state was truncated by impunity in the APC, adding that he envisaged then that moving from the PDP on whose platform he was elected as a member of the National Assembly to the APC would help him.

“I was a member of APC. We mobilised

for the good people of the state. Our effort is still being talked about as a watershed mass mobilisation of the people of the state by a political movement, but it was unfortunately thwarted by some dominant forces in the state.

I have decided to move out of confusion in the APC with my one hundred thousand supporters across the 21 local government areas of the state to graciously join the Social Democratic Party to actualize my desire for our people.”

Bello has registered with the SDP at his ward in Garkida, Gombi local government area of the state. He said “My decision was informed after due consultation with my supporters and my political associates across the state. We agreed to move to SDP because the party’s manifesto represents our philosophy, ideals and our fundamental political position. I am satisfied with the manifesto of the SDP. It is a blueprint l will like to implement in Adamawa state and by extension by an SDP President for Nigeria in general.”

According to the National Youth Leader of the SDP, Iliyasu Mohammed Maina the coming of Bello and his supporters to join the SDP has rejuvenated the party in the state.

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T H I S D AY • WEDNESDAY, 4 JULY 2018

ONTHEWATCH

PERSPECTIVE

Tackling the Menace of Killer Herdsmen

By Edward Onoja

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he killings by suspected herdsmen across the North Central and elsewhere in Nigeria are tragic and worrisome at the same time.

Tragic because no one should have to lose his or her life or loved ones to such cowardly attacks in our nation; worrisome because we have left the common enemy to fight one another along political, ethnic and religious lines. The stories and images coming out of Plateau State since last weekend are not good. To be candid, they are heart-rending, the stuff of nightmares. There are simply no words to describe the sight of dozens of citizens murdered in cold-blood right in the sanctuary of their own homes. These attacks are security breaches of the worst kind. We must go beyond mere outrage and condemnation to deliberately crafted preventive measures. This must be the last one. We cannot afford another.

Since containment is more difficult once attacks begin, the best approach is prevention. It means if we get the security right, we can stop the attacks. They can and must be nipped in the bud at nascent stages. The sort of pre-emptive security measure which can defeat this sort of large-scale criminality require combined efforts.

Those who consider security the job of only the President, governors, service chiefs, or security agencies miss the point. It is precisely the sort of narrative that makes us lose sight of the target, and lulls the security infrastructure into resigning to preventable fate instead of taking proactive measures to defeat the attacks.

No doubt the buck stops at Mr. President’s table because he is the leader of the nation.

The governors and security chiefs cannot also escape blame when citizens are killed under their watch. Still, beyond policing and military ordnance, it takes a hive mentality, everyone thinking and acting alike, to effectively secure a community and her people from armed marauders of any description. If I have learnt anything from my job as Chief of Staff to a governor who was confronted with the worst security challenges possible on assumption of office only to successfully resolve them within months, it is that security is a 24/7 synergy between government and every citizen. The requirements include a governor committed to his duty as the Chief Security Officer of his state, security agencies which do not joke with their job or subjugate it to parochial considerations and a citizenry that is paranoid about the communal wellbeing, refusing to let threats it to pass unchallenged. This is the winning formula any day. Such a localised hive of like minds, working together for their own mutual safety will unravel most attacks before they ever get off the ground. The more the people realise that insecurity anywhere is a threat to security everywhere, and only by being one’s brother’s keeper can one himself be kept, the more they supply the information which the agencies can act on to dismantle conspiracies.

This is why citizens of developed nations call the police on one another all the time, often at the very first hint of suspicious behaviour. They feel a civic compulsion to report crime and criminality of any kind.

The citizen is the best security resource available to law enforcement. There is a citizen somewhere who has the intelligence to prevent the next massacre, armed robbery, kidnapping or whatever crime.

It is the duty of the government to facilitate access to the state for that citizen. Government achieves that by facilitating access for all citizens to feed her actionable intelligence in a safe and timely manner. Sadly, our experience in Nigeria is that once a security event occurs, especially at the national level, everyone disengages from the overall community mindset and congregates along smaller interest groupings characterised by shared blood, tongue or faith.

Distrust, and more associated conflict, fester in this atmosphere. Then, while everyone jealously guards their little corners, the overall national interest suffer, ensuring everyone is hurt in the long run. Intelligence is the first line of defence followed by prompt, preemptive action. This is important. If the citizen cannot pass on his intelligence because the lines of communication are nonexistent or not open, citizens soon stop trying. Conversely, if the intelligence is communicated but not acted

President Buhari

upon, or used to endanger the source, a crisis of confidence develops against the leadership or law enforcement and security suffers. In retrospect, it does appear like the events of last weekend in Plateau State in which armed herdsmen slaughtered and sacked whole villages were preventable. The signs were all there.

The precursors were glaring everyone in the face. Even though it is always a hopelessly unequal fight when one side has automatic weapons and the other only their wits and rudimentary implements, still, it is our experience that a little ingenuity might just have helped. The killers are not wraiths who appear and disappear and are beyond human touch.

They bleed also, and have families they want to return home to. They can be deterred to an extent by making real the prospect that every outing could be their last. It is not about pitched battles now, but the total foiling of the element of surprise by a standing militia of vigilantes and the prospect of stiff, if unequal, resistance.

My boss has always maintained that securing a state is as serious as a World Cup finals, and requires a similar strength of strategy. To him, the security architecture which will work must be bottom-up and patterned after a football team. The analogy is straightforward and will drive home my point: The frontline or strikers composed of traditional rulers, chiefs and community leaders and members of their respective traditional cabinets and communities. The midfield made up of the local government administrative structure as the chief security officers at the third tier of Government. The defenders are the state government headed by the governors who are the Chief Security Of-

Accusing Mr. President of sending the herdsmen to attack his citizens because he is Fulani like the herdsmen is monumentally unfair. It adds a dimension to the crises that is frankly dangerous. It divides the citizens along sectarian lines and can even detract the President and the security chief from their genuine efforts to end the carnage

ficers of their states and assisted by the state heads and apparatuses of the various security agencies.

The goalkeeper is the Federal Government of Nigeria headed by Mr. President as Commander-in-Chief and assisted by all the service chiefs and heads of paramilitary agencies. For a goal to beat the goalkeeper and land in the net, that means for a successful attack to be launched on any part of the country, all the players from must have failed, not once but consistently. The president is the Chief Security Officer of the nation, true, but the governors of the states are primarily responsible for the day-to-day security decisions which make or mar the peace and security of the state. The president coordinates the security agencies for both internal and external security, but mainly the external. It is arguable, but the only way the President can take over day-to-day security oversight of any state is by declaring a State-of-Emergency. This is an outcome that most governors will not accept.

It is also a process which that requires inputs from the National Assembly, which might be positive, but given the mood of the nation, more likely to be negative. I humbly submit that it is unfair to blame the president for every security breach in a state unless it has been proven that he has somehow supplanted the governor’s authority and taken over the policing duties. If that is not the case, questions should also be asked of the authorities in closest proximity to the conflict. It stands to reason then that we must pay greater attention to the teamwork needed to secure our communities. There is need to look beyond the goalkeeping squad to the strengths of the defence, midfield and strike force. Under our existing laws, and without placing too much extra stress on the financial resources of our states, we must make use of one stone to kill several birds.

Security requires manpower. Every state is battling with how to find gainful employment for an army of unemployed people, especially youth. Each state can recruit at least 5000 ablebodied men and women for local vigilante services and add them to the payroll. They do not need to carry arms. Even in the police, military and paramilitary agencies, it is not every officer who is armed. Security requires money. The recruits must be provisioned with communication, mobility and defence gadgets.

They must receive training in intelligence gathering and basic self-defense. They do not need to be posted away from their communities to provide watch services, but they must be paid. They can also continue their usual livelihoods to some extent to augment their monthly stipends. It is not enough to simply embed vigilantes in a community they know very well. They must be enabled to be effective early warning systems for the regular security agencies. This system can only work if the state government through the office of the governor

has worked out a rapid response system which receives intelligence in real time from vigilantes in the hinterlands, processes it rapidly and moves armed regular operatives to location with alacrity. Once the tip-off is received from the community watch, everyone from the governor down is on the clock.

A small 12-man community watch squad in each community gives the governor political mileage for providing employment, and if armed with firearms for their security functions, even those as rudimentary as dane guns, they can prevent a community, no matter how far-flung, from becoming a hopelessly soft target to murderers and bandits.

In real life, the vigilantes are rarely called upon to engage with armed attackers even when armed with licensed firearms.

Any state that provides firearms for her vigilantes must precede it with strict screening, including biometrics. The vigilante and whatever weapons he is issued must thereafter must be frequently monitored to discourage criminal misuse. An armed squad of vigilantes can put up some fight to delay attackers and reduce human deaths pending the arrival of the regular agencies. Security requires accountability. It is not enough to simply embed vigilantes in a community they know very well.

They must be enabled, them monitored, to be effective early warning systems for the regular security agencies. Security requires collaboration.

The governor must stand for zero excuses and excesses from the heads of the various security agencies posted to his state. He must accept nothing but best efforts from them and their men. He must spend huge amounts on them till he gets something close to the semblance of operational effectiveness he desires to secure his territory. They can be insubordinate sometimes, especially if buoyed from ‘headquarters’, but a good governor knows to play the headquarters, and Aso Villa, politics too.

Security requires quick responses. A Joint Task Force that is properly ‘motivated’ should never fail to provide physical, forceful help within a couple of hours to any part of the state. The success rate for sudden attacks falls by at least 80% where there are armed vigilantes. Even further where the killers know that a rapidly moving, well-armed force will be on ground not later than a few hours from the moment the first call or radio message for help is made by any vigilante. The killers love life too and often lose the will to engage if there is any form of concerted resistance. They will not tarry to commit genocide. They will tarry even less if they know the security forces, once alerted, will stitch the state tight, cutting off all escape routes. The attitude of always turning to the goalkeeper for every ball or blaming him for every goal is the real problem militating against finding of a holistic solution to the problem. Accusing Mr. President of sending the herdsmen to attack his citizens because he is Fulani like the herdsmen is monumentally unfair. It adds a dimension to the crises that is frankly dangerous. It divides the citizens along sectarian lines and can even detract the President and the security chief from their genuine efforts to end the carnage. There is militancy in the Niger Delta, armed robbery and kidnapping all over, cult and ritual killings everywhere.

There are truly infamous examples like the Offa Armed Robbery Case in which about 42 lives were lost. Others include the New Year Day’s Massacre in Port Harcourt, the Ikorodu cult killings and the suicide bombings in Maiduguri and other parts of the North East. These are some of the equally serious crimes confronting the nation but nobody thinks to say the President is behind those because they are not traceable to any Fulani. My call is for every governor to squeeze himself harder in terms of funds and efforts and make the sacrifice necessary to recruit, train and equip at least 5000 vigilantes and border guards to beef up the security infrastructure in their states. I am also calling on the President to urgently arrange a Special Security Fund for the more vulnerable states to assist in this regard.

Edward Onoja writes from Lokoja. He is the Chief of Staff to the Governor of Kogi State NOTE: Interested readers should continue in the online edition on www.thisdaylive.com

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WEDNESDAY, JULY 4, 2018 • T H I S D AY

FEATURES

Group Features Editor: Chiemelie Ezeobi Email chiemelie.ezeobi@thisdaylive.com 07010510430

Wholesome Support for Education Sector Peace Obi writes that the Total School Support Seminar and Exhibition, an annual educational event that kicked off some 10 years ago to address problems in Nigeria’s education sector, has grown in leaps and bounds

L-R: Head, One Education, Sterling Bank Plc, Mrs. Ibironke Akinmade; Business Manager, Sterling Bank Plc, Ilupeju Branch, Mrs. Olabisi Omole and an education consultant, Mrs. Funmi Tella

F

or marketing communications expert, Yinka Ogunde, the effective liberating tool for building a better and brighter future for Nigeria and most importantly blaze a path for upcoming generations to follow, can only be education. According to her, education is a liberating tool when rightly applied to build up the mind and bring about the development of the society.

Ogunde strongly believes that through education, hidden talents are discovered, nurtured and prepared for the future, adding that with access to quality education, the children of the lower class can be dusted, transformed and packaged into being a sought-after resource, occupying key positions in the society.

Birth of TOSSE Interestingly, the pursuit of the vision to provide a wholesome support to the nation's education sector signalled the birth of an annual educational event tagged, Total School Support Seminar and Exhibition (TOSSE). Succinctly, part of what TOSSE was set to achieve, was to address some problems in the nation's education sector, provide a platform that will bring all key stakeholders in the education community to chart the way forward.

Ten years down the line, the annual educational event that kicked off on a very modest scale at Sheraton Hotel, Lagos with less than 30 exhibitors and about 300 guests has metamorphosed into an international

If you build the classrooms and do not train the teachers, we are not going to get anywhere. So, it is the whole educational system that I believe that we actually need to look at and think of how to plot our way out of this situation

conference, attracting participants from different parts of the world. Today, the once national event has become a global educational conference with regular exhibitors from UK, Togo, Kenya, South Africa; leading school owners and key officials from associations like Association of Private Educators in Nigeria (APEN), Association of Christian Schools International (ACSI), National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools (NAPPS), World Organisation for Early Childhood Education and Care (OMEP), among others.

Testimony Described as an educational Mecca for stakeholders in the education space, the Principal Consultant, Ogunde said that the impact of TOSSE on the nation's education sector as well as in other climes has been awesome. According to her, the deluge of participant's testimonies speaks for itself.

Continuing, Ogunde said the assessment of TOSSE impact is better portrayed by the participants' testimonies.

She said, "You need to read the testimonials, how people said if not for TOSSE. Some said that when they wanted to start their school, it was TOSSE they came in to and that it opened their eyes to so many things. There are some schools, you will

see them arriving on buses even at TOSSE because they are unable to train their staff and TOSSE offers free seminars."

For students of the Alvan Ikokwu University of Education, Owerri, the quality of speakers at TOSSE and the serenity of the conference arena were things that kept participants enthralled.

Sharing her experience, Treasure Uto Ochojila said, "At the beginning of each year, when I write down seminars for personal development, TOSSE is one of the seminars that top my list. I have attended for the past seven years and each year, Mrs. Yinka Ogunde and her team raise the bar. TOSSE has shaped my thinking in ways I cannot explain and I look forward to attending this year's edition."

Another participant, Rotimi Eyitayo said beyond what TOSSE represents within the landmark of education, its 10th edition was super packed with sessions delivered by education's finest. According to him, "I consider this event as a time out to explore and expose yourself, organisation and team to the best from sessions to products and services, etc. The networking opportunities are something to look forward to and also the free coffee.

"You would get dazzled by the amazing coordination of the Edumark team. New

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• T H I S D AY WEDNESDAY, JULY 4, 2018

FEATURES books, CDs, technologies, brands, the list is endless. Speakers like Taiwo Akinlami, Rhoda Odigboh, Adedoyin Adesina, Helen Essien, Babatunde Kolade, Nike Adegoke, Funmi Tella, Bunmi Lawson and others would definitely place icing on the cake of the event. For music lovers, the closing ceremony is one you must not miss."

For Wapic Insurance Plc, it's was an eye-opener and 'an avenue to meet and interact with different people and sell my organisation's products to people who have never heard of same'.

Value of stakeholders At TOSSE, Ogunde underscores the importance of stakeholders. She said, "I remember the year we ran 26 seminars and we were running from pillar to post, even to pay seminar speakers. It was that value that kept people coming, and some will say 'even if I don't attend any other seminar in a year, I must attend TOSSE'.

"At least if I get there, I will learn something new that I need to know about in the education sector so that my school is not left behind. And even if I am unable to afford it, at least I will be able to say, I saw this, I saw that. So, TOSSE has become a Mecca of a sort."

Noting that TOSSE has continued to grow by leaps and bounds, Ogunde said that a new addition to its numerous foreign exhibitors came from Finland - a Nordic country that is renowned for its quality of education. She hinted that about three educational companies attended even as the Ambassador of Finland to Nigeria delivered the keynote address. She added, "Because we have been circulating so many things about Finland education, let's hear from Finland.

She further hinted that because TOSSE is all about education, it considers all key stakeholders in the sector very important, adding that while the focus has been on the policymakers, school owners, principals/ administrators and the teachers, another key segment is the parents and the students.

"In order for us to get it right in the education sector, parents and students will play a key part, because if the parents are not available to compliment school's effort, there will be a disconnect and we are not going to have a good outcome. There is a need to engage all stakeholders, even the students and TOSSE has the provision for that," she noted.

Heroes Past According to Ogunde, the 2018 edition will be looking at the area of Nigeria's history.

"We are looking at creating a spot whereby we feature a particular part of our history or personality in our history. This year, we are focusing on Obafemi Awolowo and we have also given Obafemi Awolowo a free exhibition stand so that any child or school that wants to learn about Awolowo can go there.

"Next year, we may go to Nnamdi Azikiwe, another year we may go to Tafawa Balewa.

So, we are featuring that personality like 'know your history or fall in love with your heroes, the labours of our heroes past' or something like that. So, we are having a planetarium people will be watching throughout TOSSE," she posited.

Building Capacity For greater impact, Ogunde is optimistic that with government's support, will and commitment, a lot can be done and achieved in the nation's education space. "That is why I said that public education is an area we need to revisit,” she said. “If you take Lagos State, for example, I was grieved in my spirit when somebody put the figure of new schools built in the state within the last 20 years to about eight.

"That is frightening because it does not show planning, it does not show vision, it does not show that we are actually looking at how we can reform this sector. I am sure that if you go to other states, the story may not be entirely different. The governments are not building new schools. So, where are we going to put our children? They have to go into private schools where the good ones are not affordable and the not so good ones are doing whatsoever they like.

"And then, where does the child of a common man go? The child of a common

Participants at an exhibition stand

An exhibitor explaining things to some students

man has to settle with whatever that is available or else we trust organisations like the Bridge Foundation and other international organisations to come and rescue us."

Multidimensional Solution While acknowledging the fact that the nation's education sector is bedevilled by myriad of problems, Ogunde said the multidimensional approach will go a long way in fixing them. According to her, the solution should go beyond building

We should stop toying with the future of our children. We should stop toying with the future of Nigeria. We have played so many games and education is a dangerous one to play with. We have played the game of religion, tribe, but we shouldn't play the game of education

classrooms or the donation of classrooms by corporate organisations.

She said, "If you build the classrooms and do not train the teachers, we are not going to get anywhere. So, it is the whole educational system that I believe that we actually need to look at and think of how to plot our way out of this situation. And what is the place of technology in all of these things we are saying?

"You can monitor what is going on in your classrooms, you can improvise even in villages; you can bring the world to our villages, but it will require us having to sit down and plan these things as well as having the will to take it beyond just discussion and policy to make it work.

"That is why at TOSSE, we train people who can make things to happen. We actually need that in the education sector because if you don't have people who have that commitment to make it work, we can see that we are sitting on a keg of gunpowder.

We are going to have problems.

"So, a lot of people are passionate about having the nation's education repositioned for the proper training and efficient manpower development. TOSSE is one of such platforms, WATFON is another and many other countless passionate Nigerians that are doing things every day.

Community Acceptance Attributing the successes recorded so far to the acceptance of the TOSSE project within the education community, she noted that there are people who for the past 10 years have not missed any edition. "They embraced TOSSE and they made it their own. So, the acceptance by the education

community has been key to the success of TOSSE. And, of course, the acceptance of our exhibitors, because they saw it as something that is adding value to their businesses. We in return always look at what value we can add for all these school owners, school administrators, educators to be coming in every year," she noted.

Stating that the TOSSE team has remained dynamic in its offerings, she said the 10th edition offers hope, tenacity, determination, and focus, adding that when you are 10, it speaks of a history of consistency, which she said is lacking in Nigeria.

According to her, "It is lacking in the world of government. It is lacking in the sense that if a governor begins a programme or project and there is a change of baton, what happens to such projects is well to you and me. In this 10th edition, we are showcasing that with consistency you can grow as a people. We are showcasing that despite all the challenges, once you have the will, you can always achieve your dreams."

Charge In her charge to government, she said, "We should stop toying with the future of our children. We should stop toying with the future of Nigeria. We have played so many games and education is a dangerous one to play with. We have played the game of religion, tribe.

"We shouldn't play the game of education.

We should be serious about it; we should see education as a way to rescue the human capital in this country. We should see it as a way to transform Nigeria; we should see it as a unique chance to build the kind of Nigeria that we want."

22

IMAGES

L-R: Managing Director/CEO, Bank of Industry (BoI); Olukayode Pitan; Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo; Vice Chancellor, University of Lagos (UNILAG), Prof. Oluwatoyin Ogundipe and Group Managing Director/ CEO, Access Bank Plc, Herbert Wigwe, during the official launch of the Access Bank Student Innovation Challenge 2018, in Lagos……recently

L-R: former Managing Director, THISDAY Newspaper Group, Mr. Ide Eguabor; Gruop Assistatnt Photo Editor, Mr. Kola Olasupo and fomer Saturdaty Editor and current National Publicity Secretary, All Progressives Congress (APC), Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, during the 14th graduation ceremony of Bridge house college Ikoyi, Lagos.....recently OLAJIDE OLASUPO

T H I S D AY • WEDNESDAY, JULY 4, 2018

Photo Editor Abiodun Ajala Email abiodun.ajala@thisdaylive.com

L-R: General Manager, AMG.Africa, Spiros Esculudes; General Manager, AMG Italy, Gennaro Persico; General Manager, AMG Nigeria, Tony Owee Ubah; General Manager Marketing AMG Italy, Alessio Persico and Director, PHD.Electronics, Massimo Rinaldi, at the showcasing of its wind solar energy Synchronization, in Lagos......recently

L-R: Member of Committee, Yaba Deanery Family and Human life unit (YDFHLU), Lagos Archdiocese, Dr. Felicia Okoli; Chairman of the Occasion, Prof. Emeiwo Biakolo; Guest Speaker, Dr (Mrs) Franca Attah and the Coordinator, Dr. Micheal Adelabu, during the 1st edition family conference of Deanery Family, in Lagos......recently ETOP UKUTT

Parents and Student’s of Nigerian Tulips International College, Abuja, in a celebration mood, during the 15th annual graduation ceremony of the College, at International Conference Centre, Abuja.....recently

L-R: 1st Vice President, Institute of Marketing of Nigeria, Dr. Umar Musa Mustapha; President of the Institute, Mr. Tony Agenmonmen; Vice President of Nigeria, Yemi Osinbajo (SAN); and 2nd Vice President of the Institute, Prince Femi Oyewole, during a courtesy visit of the Institute to the Vice President Office, in Abuja.......recently

L-R: National Chairman, APC, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole; NLC President. Comrade Ayuba Wabba and former Deputy President, Comrade Isa Aremu, during a visit of NLC leadership to the National Chairman of APC , in Abuja……..recently KINGSLEY ADEBOYE

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T H I S D AY Ëž Ëœ Í˛Ëœ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍś

BUSINESSWORLD R A T E S MONEY MARKET OBB OVERNIGHT

A S

A T

REPO 3.67 % 4.25 %

CALL 1-MONTH 3-MONTH

5.33% 7.67 % 8.67%

J U N E

Group Business Editor Obinna Chima Email obinnachima@thisdaylive.com 08024557078, 08091152219

1 4 , 2 0 1 8

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

357.5 % 0.30% -0.13%

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

0.33 % 8.51%

EXCHANGE RATE N305.86/1US DOLLAR* *AS AT LAST FRIDAY

Quick Takes RenCap Announces New Appointments

FOR CONSUMER PROTECTION

L-R: Director, Consumer Aairs Bureau, Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Felicia Onwuegbuchelam; Executive Commissioner, Stakeholders’ Management, Sunday Dare; Executive Vice Chairman/CEO, Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta; Director, Policy Competition and Economic Analysis, Josephine Amuwa and Prof. Felicia Monye of the Department of Commercial and Property Law, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Enugu Campus, during the telecoms consumer parliament in Abuja...recently

10 Banks Facilitate N52tr on Investment in Fixed Income Securities, Currency Goddy Egene Stanbic IBTC Bank Plc, Access Bank Plc, and the United Bank for Africa Plc led the top 10 banks that facilitated investment in fixed securities and currency valued at N69.16 trillion on the FMDQ OTC Securities Exchange between January and May 2018, according to data made available to THISDAY. Specifically, the 10 banks accounted for 74.7 per cent or N51.67 trillion of the total investment in five months.

However, the top three banks (Stanbic IBTC Bank, Access Bank and UBA) accounted for 45.2 per cent or N31.28 trillion.

Apart from the three banks, others among the top 10 banks

CAPITAL MARKET were: Standard Chartered Bank Limited, Ecobank Nigeria Limited, CitiBank Nigeria Limited, Union Bank of Nigeria Plc, First Bank of Nigeria Limited, Zenith Bank Plc and First City Monument Bank Limited.

A breakdown of the transactions showed that treasury bills contributed the largest to overall turnover, accounting for 40.86 per cent (N28.26 trillion) of the market.

Also, forex market transactions (Spot FX and FX Derivatives) accounted for 36.64 per cent whilst Repurchase Agreements (Repos)/ Buy-Backs product categories recorded 15.25 per cent and Bonds and Unsecured Place-

ments & Takings representing 6.54 per cent and 0.71 per cent respectively.

As part of efforts to make the market more efficient and attractive, FMDQ with the support of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the dealing members (banks) recently deployed a fixed income market straight through process (STP) settlement solution.

The settlement solution was deployed through exchange’s proprietary market system – FMDQ’s Q-ex – a customised fully-integrated multi-asset trading system with post-trade services capabilities. “FMDQ’s Q-ex has been integrated with the CBN’s Scripless Securities Settlement System (S4) to provide STP ca-

pabilities for efficient settlement in the fixed income market, improving the efficiency of the trading, reporting and settlement processes, whilst further developing, in no small measure, the Nigerian financial markets,� FMDQ OTC the exchange explained.

The exchange said with integrity being one of the key ingredients for a successful market, as adjudged by global counterparts, the achievement of STP in the fixed income market via the integration of Q-ex and the CBN’s S4 could not have come a moment too soon.

Commenting on development, the Managing Director/ Chief Executive Officer of Continued on page 24

Insurers Secure Tax Refund of N1bn from FG, States Ebere Nwoji The Nigeria Insurers Association (NIA) said it secured a tax refund of over N1 billion and realised a total of N500 million as contributions from all its members in 2017.

The immediate past Chairman of the association, Eddie Efekoha, disclosed the figures during his valedictory speech to the media.

Efekoha, who is the Managing Director of Consolidated Hallmark Insurance Plc piloted the affairs of NIA for two years before handing over the baton of leadership of the association to Mr. Tope Smart of NEM Insurance Plc. He said the funds realised from tax refunds and contributions from members, which amounted to N1.5 billion

INSURANCE was being ploughed into the construction of NIA Towers.

According to Efekoha, construction has commenced for the seven storey new secretariat building and it will cost the association a total of N1.5 billion to complete in the next two years. “We are delighted that the building construction has taken off. We will continue to work hard to make sure the building is completed in the next two years. I thank members for their support morally and financially in making the building Project realisable.�

He pointed out that the two years of his leadership with the theme “Sustainable “Market Development Through

Stakeholders engagement�, were very productive, adding that four critical areas in line with the theme were significantly addressed.

According to him, the theme was strategically chosen to address the observed information gap that exists between the insurance profession/industry and the insuring public/other stakeholders.

Speaking on his administration’s achievements, Efekoha, said: “In the last two years we have been able to engage stakeholders constructively. We have productive relationships with the regulator, the National Insurance Commission and I will continue to appreciate the commissioner for insurance for his support in the past two years and for making my tenure more productive.

“We engaged the commission in the area of corporate governance issues and policy issues as it affects the industry. “We also engaged the National Assembly as regard some bills being proposed by some members of the house.

We were able to engage them by educating them on how the insurance industry works.�

He said his tenure was able to engage the Federal Ministry of Finance and Federal Inland Revenue Services (FIRS) to see how the tax regulation details can be worked out. “We have equally reached some level of understanding with the leadership of FIRS to reduce the friction between them and some of our members. Our target is to seek

One of the leading emerging and frontier markets investment bank, Renaissance Capital (RenCap), has announced the appointment of a new Vice President, Investment Banking, Adedapo Akinpelu in Lagos.

The company in a press statement, noted that Adedapo had over eight years’ combined experience, oering investment, equity capital-raising and mergers & acquisitions advisory services to businesses.

Prior to joining Renaissance Capital, he had worked with QG Investment Africa Management and was responsible for the origination and execution of private equity (direct) investments, covering Healthcare & General Industries Investments across Sub-Saharan Africa. He also worked at Standard Chartered Bank for over six years, where he focused on equity capital raising and mergers & acquisitions in the FMCG, Agriculture, Healthcare, Telecoms, Industrials and Oil & Gas space in Africa.

He will be working in close collaboration with Renaissance Capital’s well-grounded investment banking team across the continent and widerEMEA.TheChiefExecutiveOďŹƒcer,WestAfrica,TemiPopoola said: “We are committed to ensuring we provide best-in-class advisory services to our existing clients and potential investors in Nigeria and across the continent. Adedapo’s extensive experience and track record makes him a perfect ďŹ t for this.â€?

Soklin Sponsors Distributors to Russia SoKlin, one of the leading detergent brands in the Nigerian market, has rewarded 11 of its outstanding trade partners an all-expense paid trip to Russia 2018 World Cup. The Head of Operations for Euro Mega Atlantic Limited, the major distributor of SoKlin, Mr. Manuel UY, recounted, “The Russia 2018 World Cup is indisputably the biggest sporting event in the world this year. We didn’t want to lose out on the passion and frenzy associated with a sporting spectacle of this magnitude. “Hence we desired to give our Top Ten Distributors a World Cup experience that will be memorable. They remain “our backbone partners� and we are committed to keeping our word to them. “Ahead of this event, we had instituted a 4-Level faceted promotion/ competition for our distributors between January and April, 2018, tagged, ‘GO FOR GOLD’ and tied to the Russia 2018 World Cup tournament. “Apart from the all-expense paid trip for our Top Ten winners, several other category winners will go home with Business Support Tools like Panel Vans, Multi Cabs and Tricycles.�

Also, the Head of Marketing (Soklin), Mrs. Abimbola Alabi, said the company chose the platform to reinforce the premium quality of the SoKlin brand and its uninching integrity in delivering on its promise. “This gesture is a demonstration of our consistency as a brand; you may recall that Soklin also took distributors to the World Cup tournament held in June 2014 in Brazil.

Heritage Bank Partners NANTA Heritage Bank Plc recently partnered the National Association of Nigeria Travel Agencies (NANTA) to launch the Nigeria Travel Practitioners IdentiďŹ cation Card (NTPIC).

The Head of Corporate Communications of Heritage Bank, Mr. Fela Ibidapo, said the bank went into the partnership with the travel agencies in a bid to help to sensitise and sanitise the industry.

He said in an industry with unconďŹ rmed member list of about 60,000, the bank felt it could help create a platform that would enable them to provide better services to their clients in a bid to separate the genuine agents from the fraudulent ones.Ibidapo said the initiative would help the bank to put in place services that could help the genuine operators and the economy in the long run.

Also speaking, the President of NANTA, Mr. Bernard Bankole said the idea of the identiďŹ cation card was birthed by the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) and other stakeholders in the industry becauseoftheneedtosanitiseanddecontaminatethedownstream sector of the industry. He said the initiative became imperative because the travel business in Nigeria had become one for all and sundry with absolute disregard for professionalism, adding that the global nature of the business has been adulterated by fraudulent people who have little or no regard for the business.

The president said the development has become worrisome with the level of default to the airlines as well as passengers losing their hard-earned money to the duplicitous travel agents.Bankole noted that this appalling act has continued for several years, undermining the professionalism of serious minded consultants within the industry.

“Whereas China is pursuing new transportation linkages throughout the Eurasia region and Africa to boost trade; Africa must key in to develop her port infrastructure, maritime assets financing and create jobs for her people.�

DG, NIMASA

Dakuku Peterside Continued on page 24

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10 BANKS FACILITATE N52TR ON INVESTMENT IN FIXED INCOME SECURITIES, CURRENCY

FMDQ OTC, Bola Onadele.

Koko, said: “The development of FMDQ’s Q-ex and its subsequent linkage to the CBN’s S4 is one of the key medium- to long-term initiatives of FMDQ, aimed at making the Nigerian financial market operationally excellent – delivering on the “O� in FMDQ’s GOLD Agenda. With the continued collective efforts of the CBN, the Securities & Exchange Commission and indeed, other key regulators and stakeholders, we at FMDQ, are confident that the potential of our domestic markets, acting as a catalyst to propel economic growth, shall be realised. To build and sustain a well-functioning market, it is hoped that all hands remain on deck even as FMDQ continues to re-affirm its commitment to promote a world-class financial market operating in alignment with international best practices.�

INSURERS SECURE TAX REFUND OF N1BN FROM FG, STATES

amendment of the necessary tax laws to avoid multiple taxation which affects what accrues to our stakeholders.

We need to tackle it to enable us to make profit and remain in business,� he stated.

On insurance rebranding project embarked by the industry, he assured stakeholders that the association was committed to the rebranding project.

He said: “We are on course.

Most member companies are still contributing towards the rebranding project. NAICOM has already paid its own portion. The rebranding has commenced and am optimistic that this is just the beginning for the Industry.�

The former NIA chairman, also said the association, under his tenure engaged the services of KPMG to develop a 10-year agenda for rapid and sustainable development of the insurance industry in Nigeria in harmony with the various segments of the market.

He applauded members of the association, media and other stakeholders for the support given to his administration.

NCDMB Invests $10m in 5,000bpd Modular Refinery Ejiofor Alike The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) has signed a $10 million equity investment agreement with Waltersmith Refining and Petrochemical Company Limited for the construction of a 5,000 barrels per day modular refinery to be located at Ibigwe, Imo State.

The Executive Secretary of NCDMB, Mr. Simbi Kesiye Wabote and the Director of Finance and Personnel Management, Mr. Isaac Yalah, signed on behalf of the NCDMB in Lagos as the weekend, while the Chairman of Waltersmith, Mr. Abdulrasaq Isah and the Executive Vice Chairman, Mr. Danjuma Sale, signed for the company.

Under the Shareholders Agreement and the Share Subscription Agreement, the NCDMB took 30 per cent equity in the modular refinery.

Wabote, said the investment decision was in line with the board’s vision “to be the catalyst for the industrialisation of the Nigerian oil and gas industry and its linkage sectors.�

The board was also keen, he added, to support the federal government’s policy on modular refineries and meet the key objectives of the petroleum industry’s Seven Big Wins launched by President Muhammadu Buhari in October 2016, as well as the Economic Recovery and Growth Program (EGRP).

According to him, “we have our exit strategy in place to ensure that the refinery reverts back as a fully owned, privately run modular refinery as our role is clearly defined

as a catalyst.�

He also commended Waltersmith for developing a bankable proposition, stating that “they sorted out the project feasibility, regulatory approvals, and other pertinent details before reaching out to the Board with the value they are bringing to the table and a clear definition of the support they seek.�

Wabote, confirmed that NCDMB in line with its mandate in the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Act 2010 and as part of the Nigerian Content 10-year strategic roadmap would intervene and fund projects and activities directed at increasing Nigerian Content in the oil and

gas industry, especially those that utilise available resources in-country, add value and create jobs locally. “Establishment of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) depots, resuscitation of abandoned or establishment of new LPG cylinder manufacturing plants, partnerships on minipetrochemical plants, and several others fall into the pack of interventions we are willing to look at,� he said.

He advised project sponsors and promoters of modular refineries seeking the board’s support to study the checklist of requirements hosted on the Board’s website.

He restated his belief that at

least 10 percent of Nigeria’s oil production should be refined using modular refineries, assuring that the Board would be willing to consider proposals that meet the guidelines.

On his part, Isah explained that the modular refinery project was originally conceived to mitigate the incessant vandalism of the company’s crude oil pipelines, but feasibility studies later indicated that it could be a viable business because of the significant demand for refined petroleum products.

He disclosed that the refinery would be sited close to the firm’s oil field at Ibigwe, and the refined products would be distributed to consumers within

40 kilometer radius of the plant.

He expressed optimism that the project would support the federal government’s plan to substitute imported refined petroleum products and as well as the strategy to use the establishment of modular refineries to address the menace of pipeline vandalism, illegal refining and other social challenges prevalent in the oil producing region.

He commended the leadership of the NCDMB for supporting the project and assured that the company would do everything within its power to make it a success. “This is landmark in the history of the NCDMB and we pride ourselves as the first beneficiary of this initiative.�

PROMOTING INVESTMENT

L-R: British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Paul Arkwright; Lord Mayor of the City of London, Alderman Charles Bowman; President, Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote; CEO, Commonwealth Enterprise and Investment Council (CWEIC), Richard Burge and Minister forTrade & Investment, Okey Enelamah, at an event organised by CWEIC in Lagos‌recently.

Industrial Discord: TCN Union Knocks National Leadership Over Suspension Chineme Okafor in Abuja The industrial disagreement brewing between the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) Branch of the Senior Staff Association of Electricity and Allied Companies (SSAEAC) and its national leadership, has taken a different twist with the TCN branch taking a swipe at the national executives for suspending it from the umbrella union.

Suggesting that it was suspended for standing up to the national executives which it accused of highhandedness in its management of the union’s affairs, the branch said it would rather

recall Mr. Chris Okonkwo, whom it claimed it supported to become the president of the union, than have him misrepresent the ideals of the TCN unit of the union.

The TCN-SSAEAC Branch spokesperson, Mr. Amiji Gabriel, in a statement sent to THISDAY in Abuja, alleged that Okonkwo had abused his office and because the branch stood up to him, he decided to suspend it.

Gabriel said: “SSAEAC TCN Branch is saddled with the responsibility of the association in Transmission Company of Nigeria as contained in our constitution. “We are known for integrity and respect for constituted author-

ity as well as our higher labour organs, we are always armed with facts. What does a union stand to gain for false dissemination of information, especially when the target audience is the general public? “We do not intend to join issues affecting the TCN management but as staff on ground in the field in various work locations across the country, we are at least privy to facts on ground. Available proof of cleared containers so far by TCN management is not less than 655; 144 containers not yet cleared; while 75 containers are being processed. These facts are verifiable.�

He further explained: “On suspension of check off dues by management, it was at the instance of our members that the TCN Branch executive to write management to do so.

We would not fail to mention that it’s one of the contentious issues with the national as she failed to remit to her members at the branch and chapters in TCN their dues after collecting 100 per cent from source. “It should be noted that before now it has been 70, 20 and 10 per cent to national, chapters and branch respectively, Mr. Okonkwo stopped the arrangement as soon as he took over. It took the branch

more than three months to beg, plead and write an undertaken to Mr. Okonkwo for him to pay TCN Branch up to May, 2017 in two instalments, but has since refused to remit our due from June, 2017 to date, amounting to about six million.�

According to him: “Our demand for it remain one of the branch’s offence. The national owing of over 11 months has crippled union activities of SSAEAC in TCN and we have been bleeding and groaning in pain and frustration. Now, we have suspended our deductions for less than two months and the national is wild in anger.

ARFESPON Wants FG’s Intervention in Payment of 12 Months Pension Arrears Ebere Nwoji Group Business Editor

Obinna Chima

AgriBusiness/Industry Editor

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Comms/e-Business Editor

Ă—Ă—Ă‹ Ă•Ă™Ă˜Ă”Ă“ Capital Market Editor

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Senior Correspondent

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The Association of Retired Federal Senior Public Officers of Nigeria (ARFESPON), Lagos Chapter, has decried the nonpayment of outstanding 12 months pension arrears owed to its members despite several calls on President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration to look into their plight and effect immediate payment of the pension arrears.

ARFESPON, also urged government to ensure that illegal deductions on their pension entitlements by any group who claims to represent their interests especially the National Union of Pensioners(NUP) are stopped with immediate effect.

The Chairman Lagos State Chapter of ARFESPON, Mr. Olufemi Odewabi, made the appeal at the association’s 4th anniversary held in Lagos recently.

Odewabi said federal government, under the Goodluck Jonathan’s administration was owing the pensioners arrears of 20. 4 per cent being what the committee set up by the administration to look into increases effected on civil servants salaries which by law is supposed to be effected on pensioners’ monthly entitlement cut off and recommended for 33 per cent increase instead of 53 per cent.

He explained that federal government had during the

Jonathan’s administration effected 53 per cent increase in salaries of workers and by Nigerian constitution, government supposed to effect the same increase in pensioners’ entitlement.

He said when pensioners complained, the administration resolved to listen to their plight and set up a committee to look into it.

He said instead of the committee to recommend the increase, cut it down by 20.3 per cent, saying it is for tax and housing fund whereas the constitution said pension rights are not taxable and their set of pension which is under the old defined benefit scheme, is not included in housing scheme deductions

like those under contributory pension scheme.

According to Odewabi, in December 2014, after much complaints by the pensioners, 12 months arrears were paid, and when further appeal were made in July 2016, another arrears were paid up till May 2017 while the outstanding 12 months arrears of the 33 percent is yet to be paid.

He said Buhari’s administration cannot say it has addressed the problem of unpaid pension arrears when the said 12 months is still hanging.

He called on government to effect immediate payment of the arrears and be free from the pensioners’ distress calls. “We are pressing for that

outstanding 20.4 per cent that reduction is illegal because constitutionally pension doesn’t attract tax, now they take 10 per cent for tax, housing funds 10 per cent. This accumulated to the 20.4 per cent we are asking government to pay which is very illegal according to section 173 sub-section 1-4 and surprisingly the members of the committee that was set up to look into it comprise representative of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP), Salary/ Wages Commission Office of the Secretary to the government, it was as if none of them has seen the constitution of Nigeria before that they arrived at their decision,� Odewabi lamented.

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TEXEM to Hold Training for Executives Nume Ekeghe An international training institution, TEXEM, has said its upcoming program is targeted at enhancing efficiency in organisations in order to improve the socio-economic landscape in Nigeria.

In a statement made available to THISDAY, the firm stated that the programme was designed to equip executives with the requisite skillsets to develop relevant, essential and actionable frameworks for driving organisational and people capabilities, which will, in turn, facilitate innovation as well as enhance financial and operational performance.

It also stated that facilitators to drive the programme include a Visiting Professor from Harvard, Insead and IESE and Chair of Intrabond Capital, Prof. Rodria Laline, who had been CEO of global research and development collaborations with IBM, ING, Hewlett-Packard, Digital Equipment Corporation, Honeywell Bull, Elsevier Science, Oracle Corporation, Siemens, and Philips.

She was also a Co-founder of the Global Chipcard Alliance and Board member of the Open Software Foundation and developed the intellectual property that is used on every ATM card globally.

The programme which is titled, “Developing and Leading High-Performance Organisations for Superlative Results,� is slated to hold on July 18th & 19th 2018, at Eko Hotel and Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos.

Commenting on the training, Laline said: “Participants are assured of geometric return of investment via enhanced social capital through networking with other impressive leaders and future partners both during the executive development programme and after. “Furthermore, leaders will have the opportunity to challenge and debate with the faculties who have a wealth of applicable theoretical and practical leadership experience. “For example, at the risk of being accused of being selfasserting, permit me to say that I have delivered executive

development programmes in almost every continent in the world and for participants from over eighty countries through my work at Harvard, Insead, IMD and IESE. “I have practical senior executive and board-level experience and I have advised many boards across Europe, America, Asia, and Africa.

Specifically, upon completion of this programme you will be more self-aware and equipped with critical and relevant strategies on how to propel your leadership trajectory for improved capacity to inspire your organisation to deliver results in a resource-constrained operating landscape.�

Furthermore, she said: “Other vital takeaways include actionable learning outcomes such as improved leadership quotient on how to bridge differences and explore synergies more effectively, via case studies translate leadership concepts into action, and being more adept at articulating goals to increase individual, organisational as well as industry influence and impact�.

Wema Bank Launches ‘Enovate’ Wema Bank Plc has launched a new blog called ‘enovate’, offering stories about innovation, with staff and customers as main contributors.

The bank explained that the aim of the blog was to encourage discussions on innovation and the use of technology to make the lives of the Bank’s customers better and improve the society. “We’re branding Wema Bank as an integral part of the lives of our customers and stakeholders,� a statement quoted the Head of the editorial team at the bank’s Brand and Marketing Communications department, Abiodun Aderibigbe to have said. “There are local innovations that are constantly solving local problems and making lives better. We want to be

sure that our customers are aware of such. We also want to encourage discussions about innovation, beyond just techled innovation. “There is a misconception that if it is not tech-led, it is not innovation. True innovation is about doing something new, improving existing processes, products and services. Innovation can be a new technology, but it can also be just a new idea,� Aderibigbe added.

Also commenting, the Head of Brand and Marketing Communications at Wema Bank Funmilayo Falola noted that conversations about innovation are already ongoing. “We want to be part of that conversation. We also to start conversations about innovation as it affects our stakeholders and the public. We started the conversation about branchless

banking and launched ALAT. “With ALAT, we have been able to redefine simplicity and reliability in banking.

We intend to do more in our core. However, every conversation on innovation that may affect our customers in anyway, we intend to be part of it. Remember, we asked to be part of their lifestyle,�

Falola said.

According to the bank, content for enovate will be generated internally.

However, customers with story ideas and firsthand information about innovative ideas being put to use in their locality will also be encouraged to contribute, it added, saying new content would be published at least once a week and pushed out on Wema Bank’s social media platforms.

Rite Foods Targets Expansion Femi Ogbonnikan in Abeokuta In a bid to expand its market share, Rite Foods Limited has disclosed plan to spread to the neighbouring countries.

Speaking at the official presentation of the certificate of the ISO 9001:2015 to the organisation at its factory located at Ososa, Ijebu Ode, Ogun State recently, its Managing Director, Mr Seleem Adegunwa, said his company has overcome the challenges that could impede its growth in the market. “Once we conquer the Nigerian Market we are set to move to the neighbouring West African countries to cash in on the opportunities that are abound. “We are striving for excellence because we believe everybody is capable of achieving rare feats. We will succeed. “Rite Foods has the highest standard and a world class.

And we would strive to be the world class in food processing. It is a culture for achieving certification process because we see the benefits in it. So, we are taking it to the next level because we are working everybody to be recognised. We have the heritage that we will be proud of. “It is no secret that Rite Foods has one of the highest standards of quality when it comes to food production and safety processes, and we are glad to stamp on it till today to mark what has always been our standard.

We have the best production facility amongst all its competing brands on the continent�, said Adegunwa.

In his speech, Mr Osita Aboloma, Director General (DG)/Chief Executive, Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), stated that the Rite Foods, on its quality management, has

demonstrated commitment to customer satisfaction, as well as adhered to statutory and regularity requirements in Nigeria which has earned it the certification.

According to the DG, who was represented by Mrs Mojisola Kehinde, Director, Laboratory Services, urged the management of the Rite Foods of the quest for excellence as an unending requirement to ensure that the quality of the company is a moving target. “Our challenge to you today is to ensure that the system remain effective and up to date to reap the benefits of ISO approach to quality management.

We already have in place a process of receiving information from your customers on the performance of your system, to assure us that you are living up to their expectations and improving continually�, declared Aboloma.

ELEVATING TO THE NEXT LEVEL Marie-Therese Phido

Knowing You AreWorking At Your I was awake last night working with my website designer for one of my business websites. We exchanged emails based on my reviews till 4:30am. But, did I notice the time flying by. I did not! We started talking at 1:30am and stopped at the time above and it seemed like 30 minutes to me.

Same happened on Sunday. I came back from church and spent the whole day working on the social media sites of one of my company’s publications and spent the better part of Sunday doing this.

It did not feel like work at all. It was something that had to be done to enable me achieve the objectives I wanted and needed to achieve.

During the course of my career, I have felt like this many times. Where work and doing what I was doing was where I needed to be and what I wanted to do.

I remember once at the early stage of my career being given an administrative role and one of which amongst many in this capacity was reviewing and overseeing the travels department in the organization.

One day, one of my of my ogas needed travel information and I was not satisfied with what the implant travel agent was telling me. Going to the airport from Ikoyi to get the information I required, at 7pm, was just the regular thing to do, because at that time, making sure that the whole travel system in the office was revamped and overhauled was a calling.

Nothing was too much work. Many people questioned the stress I put myself into that night, especially in view of the traffic and the rowdy nature of the airport at the time I went there, which is when many flights arrive.

But, when I really knew my calling was when I was moved to the marketing and sales department. I reveled in this role, because it provided me with learning opportunities. Every day, there was something new to learn. It was not a routine job. To understand the job, you had to understand all of the services that an international professional services provided. This is not an easy feat and it is where many people fail, but I enjoyed it, because it was challenging, different and stretched your intellectual capacity.

In view of the rigorous nature of the job, we had to sleep many times in the office because of the deadlines. In fact, to ensure I succeeded, I stopped thinking about when I would close for work and it was just the natural thing to do. We worked in a pressure cooker environment, but I enjoyed it. I could use my skills and I saw the clear correlation between my job and the success of the firm. Many people did not understand how a married woman with children could cope with the pressures. But, for me, it was the thing to do. I usually, did not understand what they were talking about.

So, how do you know that you are working at your calling? I have given you some of my personal experience above, but will also like to add some from Peter Economy’s article, titled “10 Sure Signs You Are In The Right Job�. Peter’s article resonated strongly with me, because it described who I was for 27 years and who I still am today. Peter goes on to say: You wake up energized each morning Are you typically excited and enthused to get up in the morning, get your day started, and head to the office? Believe it or not, many people are. It’s simple, really.

When you love what you do the excitement comes naturally--even at ungodly hours.

You look forward to tackling your to-do list each day

Whatever the day brings, you’re excited and ready to take it on. Tackling your to-do list and being able to fill it with a new collection of to-dos for the next day exhilarates you.

(Okay, that’s an exaggeration, but you get what I mean.) People who love their jobs accept and embrace the day-to-day routine of what they do, knowing that the little things have to be done first to get to the big things.

You exude happiness Some people walk into the office and have a happy air about them, an emotion that tends to rub off on the people around them.

These happy people are extremely important to keep in a business, as they have the ability to change the entire environment of an office space in seconds. Are you one of them?

The day seems to y by Instead of being one of those people who is constantly watching the clock, you instead feel that there aren’t enough hours in your workday--in the good sense. You wish you had more time to accomplish tomorrow’s tasks and get even farther ahead of the game.

You enjoy time spent in the office Your family or friends may not understand it, but you actually like being at work. When you’re in your element doing what you love, you feel at your best.

You are eager to take on new projects You aren’t racing the clock or trying to get ahead of others, you simply look forward to the next big thing you can tackle, and you work hard on your current projects so you can get to the next ones.

You are optimistic If a deadline is coming fast and your team seems to be lagging, you’re the person cheering everyone on and motivating them to get things done. When other people get overwhelmed you are the one that is making the light at the end of the tunnel seem a lot closer than it appears.

You see the company’s goals as your own personal goals You dream about it. You envision it on your drive home. You know that if you hit that goal at work you will feel good, and in doing so you’ll be well on the way to achieving your personal goals. People who internalize their work goals go far in life, and especially far in their line of work.

You are helpful and genuine to your coworkers While most may regard their coworkers in a competitive light, you truly want to help everyone you can. Coworkers know that they can come to you for help or questions and that you will always make an honest attempt to assist. You are kind and your genuine nature shines through, which makes people want to work with you.

Your positivity ows over to your personal life People who love their jobs are more likely to have fulfilling personal lives outside of work. Whether they’re traveling, in a sports league, or lounging at home, their positivity inspires others and magnetically attracts other people toward them.

The key thing to note is, when you stop feeling like Peter has described above, it is time to make a change. At a point in my career, I stopped feeling the way Peter described above and work became the last place I wanted to be and left a nauseous feeling in my gut. At that time, it was time to go and I needed to make that change.

The mistake many of us make is that we are too scared to make that change. Your personal well-being is too precious to stay in a job that destroys your soul. Know what you are called to do and

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Optimism amidst Marginal Growth Operators are upbeat that despite recording 0.09 per cent growth in the first half of 2018, the capital market will end the year higher, writes Goddy Egene After the nation’s stock market recovered from a two-year decline to gain 42.3 per cent in 2017, many stakeholders remained bullish that the positive performance would be sustained in 2018. They hinged their bullish outlook on the fact that most of the factors that propelled the 2017 growth were still prevalent coupled with favourable macro-economic environment.

In line with the positive projections, the market began 2018 with an unprecedented rally that saw the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) All-Share Index record a year-to-date (YtD) growth of 17.9 per cent in 14 days in January. Although the positive performance was sustained, profit-taking set and pared most of the gains recorded earlier. Consequently, the market ended the first quarter (Q1) with a growth of 8.5 per cent. However, the bears took control of the market in the second quarter (Q2) leading to a marginal gain of 0.09 per cent at the end of the first half(H1) of the year.

Early optimism Operators had said the market would remain bullish in early part of 2018, given the positive developments in 2017. They added that many investors would take position ahead of positive results and dividends expected from companies for the year ended December 31, 2017.

For instance, analysts at Meristem Securities Limited, said positive sentiments dominated the Nigerian equities market in 2017 as investor confidence was restored following release of impressive financial scorecards, alongside developments such as the increase of Nigeria’s weighting in Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) Frontier Market Indexes and the introduction of the Investors’ and Exporters’ (I&E) FX window in April which increased the participation of investors in the equities market.

Then, they had projected that the factors would remain attractive to investors for most part of 2018 and had therefore expected a sustained bull market.

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

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

They said they therefore expected the factors that drove the equity market in 2017 to support the market rally in 2018. “We observed a strong correlation between the historical movements in the NSE ASI and the crude oil price (Bonny Light). The current consensus is that the average price of crude oil will be marginally higher in 2018 than 2017. The inflation rate should decline further in 2018.

FSDH believes the expected drop in the equity market in first quarter (Q1) 2018 is an opportunity for strategic investment in the market ahead of the expected rally in second quarter (Q2).

The following sectors should perform well in 2018: Banking; Building Materials; Consumer Goods and Agriculture,� FSDH said.

On their part, Cordros Capital Limited (CCL), another investment banking firm, said the 2018 economic outlook favour the equities market.

Although the firm made a strong case for equities upside potential, it also considered the number of possible risks that could trigger a bear market.

The Head, Research and Strategy, CCL, Christian Orajekwe, said the first scenario assumes that equities will return excess of 40 per cent in 2018. “We have considered five possible triggers of the rally. The probability of the triggers is low to moderate. The possible triggers, in order of importance to Nigerian equities are: significantly favourable macroeconomic and political backdrop; strong corporate earnings growth; strong portfolio inflows; mergers and acquisition (M&A) activities; and strong moderation of fixed income and treasury yields,� he said.

The second scenario assumes about 10 per cent to 15per cent equities return in 2018. “We have considered four possible triggers of the rally. The probability of the triggers is moderate to high. The possible triggers, in order of importance to Nigerian equities, are: moderate improvement in the macroeconomic environment, as widely envisaged; stable to modest corporate earnings growth; modest improvement in portfolio inflows over 2017; and marginal moderation of fixed income and treasury yields,� Orajekwe added.

According to him, the last scenario assumes equities will deliver between 20per cent to 25per cent negative return in 2018. “We have considered four possible triggers of the sell-off. The probability of the triggers is very low to moderate. The possible triggers, in order of importance to Nigerian equities, are: macroeconomic and political shocks; poor corporate earnings; MSCI delists Nigeria from its emerging market index; and foreign portfolio investors flee naira assets,� he noted, adding: “Though our projections are not static and as scenarios unfold, we will continue to adjust our projections.�

CCL said the downside risks to equities

We have considered four possible triggers of the selloff. The probability of the triggers is very low to moderate

market return in 2018 will be more weighted in the second half (H2). This will be more pronounced in the fourth-quarter (Q4) when it is expected that most investors (particularly contestants during elections) will begin to sell down equities for election spend.

Enter the bears Although it was expected that Q1 corporate results of companies would lift the market in the months that opened the second quarter (Q2), the bears remained in firm control, reducing the gain for the year to 7.91 per cent at the end of April. And by the close trading at the end of Q2, the market has suffered a decline of 7.7 per cent. However, because of the Q1 gains, the H1 performance recorded a marginal growth.

But the negative sentiments that prevailed in Q2 did not come as a surprise to many operators and analysts.

According to them, they had expected profit taking by investors in most stocks that had been overbought in the beginning of year.

Also, analysts said the bear run was fuelled by the exit of foreign from emerging and frontier markets and political uncertainties in the country.

The foreign investors were said to be moving their funds into Western countries, especially United States, following rate hike.

Analysts equally cited the panic created by the outcome of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) primaries as another factor that led to cautious trading in the market.

At the end of the H1, the ASI stood at 38,278.55, down from a peak of 45,092.83 on January 19, 2018, while market capitalisation fell to N13.866 trillion, compared with a peak of N16.154 trillion in the same date.

Operators’ Optimism Despite the low performance in H1, operators and analysts are upbeat that the market will still close the year with significant growth. Although they said developments in the political environment would play a major role in the second part of the year, they projected a positive close for the market.

While Vetiva Research cut its economic growth forecast for 2018 to 1.9 per cent from 2.4 per cent, it said the equities market would grow by five per cent. Vetiva Research expects pre-election activities to steer the economic environment for the rest of the year, with

election spending boosting the economy but also inducing greater inflationary pressure.

Chief Economist of Vetiva Capital, Michael Famoroti noted that there are uncertain times ahead. “Impending elections are also likely to induce greater economic uncertainty and distract policy and governance at the tail-end of the year, neither of which is positive for confidence or investment,�

Famoroti said.

Speaking on the fixed income market, he said that the late budget passage, pre-election spending, and food price pressure could induce higher inflation at year-end. “Despite an improving macroeconomic environment and a semblance of policy stability, Nigeria’s financial markets would likely be steered by the fallout of electoral activities and rising global interest rates,� he said.

However, the firm projected a positive outlook for the Nigerian equities market the various pronounced impact the coming general elections would have on the economy notwithstanding. “Comparable multiples with peers suggest the Nigerian equity market remains undervalued.

We maintain a strongly positive post-election outlook on Nigerian equities,� it said.

Vetiva Research also revisited its top “10 High Conviction Stocks� presented at the beginning of the year, which represent key stocks on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) that are expected to outperform the market by year-end.

Olabode said: “These high conviction stocks have so far outperformed the broad market index by 1.5 per cent on a market cap-weighted basis and 7.0 per cent in simple average returns, and maintain these stocks as key picks for 2018.�

In the opinion of the Head, Equities, Head, FBNQuest Capital Bunmi Asaolu, the market would recover the lost ground and end the year with a minimum growth of 10 per cent.

According to him, the macro economic outlook is still supportive with all prices remaining firm. “Our view is that the macro outlook is still supportive, with oil prices remaining firm, and that this should offset potential uncertainty stemming from political risk going into H2 2018. Although we do not expect consensus earnings estimates to see significant upwards revisions through the rest of the year, valuations are yet to fully capture earnings outlook expectations, especially among the Tier 1 banks. As such, we expect the index to recover lost ground, with a minimum of 10 per cent gain by the end of the year,� Asaolu said.

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Banks and Sustainability Principles Obinna Chima examines efforts by banks to promote the Nigerian Sustainable Banking Principles As part of efforts to ensure that the ecosystem is preserved, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had, few years ago, rolled out guidelines on the Nigerian Sustainable Banking Principles (NSBP).

The NSBP guidelines are aimed at integrating environmental and social policies into decision making processes in commercial banks, discount houses and development finance institutions.

The guidelines were also aimed at minimising or mitigating negative impacts of financial institutions’ operations on the environment and local communities where they operate.

The NSBP consists of nine over-arching principles for managing environmental and social risk in business decisions; managing the banks’ own environmental and social footprint; safeguarding human rights; promoting women’s economic participation/empowerment; promoting financial inclusion of communities and groups with limited or no access to formal financial sector; meeting the imperatives for good governance, transparency and accountability; supporting capacity building in the sector; promoting collaborative partnerships to accelerate sector progress; and reporting to take stock of sector progress and attendant needs.

According to the regulator, for the successful implementation of the principles, financial institutions would be required to develop a management approach that balances the environments and social (E&S) risks identified with the opportunities to be exploited through their business activities.

The CBN stressed that the adoption of the principles would not only help banks in mitigating the E & S risks associated with their business operations and those of their clients, but also help them to achieve greater efficiencies and better position them to take advantage of opportunities in the global market place where environmental and social issues are becoming increasingly important.

Besides, the central bank said the banks would also enjoy higher productivity, higher staff morale, lower turnover and absenteeism due to strong employee relations and workplace practices.

CBN Governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele, assured them that the central bank would continue to work towards the implementation of the Nigeria Sustainable Banking Principles, the achievement of the United Nation’s sustainable development goals and the Paris Climate Change Agreement.

Also, the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) recently urged banks to consider also other issues around sustainability, before lending.

Managing Director of NDIC, Umaru Ibrahim said banks should ensure that activities of companies that pollute the environment were not financed. He said the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), through its UNEP Financial Initiative on the Environment and Sustainable Development at the Earth Summit in 1992, placed it as pertinent concern for financial systems across the world.

According to him, sustainable banking in Nigeria, therefore, should focus on energising the influence of the banking sector (being financier of economic and social activities) towards transforming the longer term interest of environmental preservation and societal balancing into key parameters for allocation of capital.

Green Bond Programme Speaking at a recent launch of Nigeria’s Green Bond market development programme, which is also part of efforts to promote the sustainability principles, the Group Deputy Managing Director, Access Bank, Roosevelt Ogbonna said the initiative would contribute significantly to the economic growth of Nigeria and the broader African continent “We recognise that a better and prosperous future is linked to the well-being and health of our planet. Thus, the protection of the environment is relevant to us. This encourages us to continue to invest in innovative technologies and techniques that promote the efficient use of resources and address sustainability issues when managing risk. “We continue to impact lives positively and responsibly in communities across Africa. Through this, we are able to continually contribute to the socio-economic development of these communities and help to achieve the new Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Over the years, our areas of focus in community investment have included gender equality, women empowerment,

entrepreneurship, leadership, education, health, arts, and sports.�

The launch was one of the major events that took place during Green Bonds Week, which saw local and international stakeholders gather in Lagos to discuss the impact of climate risk on investment portfolios, the role of regulators in developing the local market and growing green bond issuance.

Lagos State Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode, while addressing guests at the formal launch of the programme said that the initiative would present profitable investment opportunities to stakeholders and investors, adding that the finance would help to reduce greenhouse emission and mitigate harsh effects of climate

Sustainable banking in Nigeria, therefore, should focus on energising the inuence of the banking sector (being ďŹ nancier of economic and social activities) towards transforming the longer term interest of environmental preservation and societal balancing into key parameters for allocation of capital

change in the State.

Ambode, who was represented by Lagos State Deputy Governor, Oluranti Adebule, assured stakeholders that his administration would take maximum advantage of the opportunity embedded in the Green Bond Market to reverse the current harsh trends of climate change.

He expressed optimism that the green bond would enhance the execution of projects to mitigate the effects of climate change in Lagos, while asserting that the success achieved during the N10.69 billion Green Bond issued by the Federal Government of Nigeria last year was a testimony to the fact that climate bond investment is a viable option for promoting sustainable growth in the environment.

Also, the Climate Bonds, Director of Market Development, Justine Leigh-Bell, described the Nigerian Green Bonds Market Development Programme as a big step towards unlocking the full potential for domestic issuance while developing a pipeline of green investment opportunities and engaging with local and international investors.

Sustainable projects covered under the green bond programme were: renewable energy, energy efficiency, sustainable waste management, sustainable land use (forestry and agriculture), biodiversity, clean transportation and clean water.

Their structure, risk and returns are otherwise identical to those of traditional bonds.

Banks’ Efforts To the Group Managing Director/CEO, Herbert Wigwe, the bank sees sustainability as providing innovative solutions to support global efforts in addressing social, environmental and economic challenges.

He explained that corporate sustainability is entrenched on three pillars: profit, planet and people and these pillars have been embedded into how the bank carries out its business across various locations. “This comes with a vision to be the most sustainable and respected bank in Africa, financing and facilitating brighter futures for all of our stakeholders through innovative services and

best in class operations,� he said.

He pointed out that the bank’s sustainability footprints are grouped into four units- economic development; environmental responsibility; sustaining societies; collaborations & partnerships.

In terms of disclosures, Access Bank said it benchmarked its performance against the nine Nigerian Sustainable Banking Principles and produces at least annually, a public Equator Principles report, on transactions that have reached Financial Close and on its Equator Principles implementation processes and experience.

According to Access Bank, every year, one per cent of its profit before tax is allocated to sustainability initiatives incorporating environmental, social and governance (ESG) rating as part of lending criteria. It has also introduced a financial inclusion strategy and developed a USSD platform as fallout to bring the unbanked population into the financial system.

The bank’s efforts in this regard over the past few years, Wigwe added, had resulted in improvement in environmental footprints.

For instance, waste reduction initiatives form a key part of the bank’s cost reduction strategy.

In terms of gender balance, the bank said its board composition was above the CBN regulation of 30 per cent. It carried out early branch closure policy to cut down electricity costs and introduced employee volunteering scheme to provide employees with a platform for giving back to society.

The bank has also created an inclusive and empowering environment for its employees through various initiatives. One of such initiatives is the introduction of sustainability as a part of the ‘W initiative’ targeted at women empowerment, whereby it has educated 55,000 women so far, through W Academy.

Also, First Bank of Nigeria Limited recently held its corporate responsibility and sustainability (CR&S) Week in over 3,000 secondary schools across the country to improve financial literacy and inclusion among students. The scheme, which involves career counseling session, is part of activities marking the second edition of the bank’s CR&S Week for this year.

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Fatokun: We are Making Efforts to Curtail e-Banking Fraud Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Director, Banking and Payment System, Mr. Dipo Fatokun, who is also the chairman of the Nigerian Electronic Fraud Forum in this interview spoke on efforts to improve the country’s payment system. Nume Ekeghe presents the excerpts: on Point of Sales (PoS) fraud. What is responsible for that?

When they use PoS at gunpoint telling you to put your pin, what they want to confirm is your pin. There is no way a PoS would dispense cash, it is not an ATM. The system we have for PoS in Nigeria is offline confirmation of pin.

So, when armed robbers accost someone they want to confirm the pin on the card is actually accurate because if they asked the owner of the card he or she might tell them the wrong pin. So once the pin is okay they can now go ahead to withdraw. What we have done is to collaborate with the banks to ensure that there is proper profiling in the people they give POS to. They give it to only genuine merchants and they profile them to know that these merchants are genuine merchants.

The other side is that someone who has fallen victim, it might be because the person was not aware of the immediate steps they should take. If the armed robbers do not lead you to an ATM what stops the card owner from making an immediate report. Some would say they were calling and the bank’s lines were engaged. You can send an email which would minimise your loss. I have had cases of people saying the theft occurred on a weekend and they waited till the following working day and at that time a lot of money would been taken away from the account. So, when it happens, make sure you give instant report to you bank and when that happens, your card would be hot listed immediately and the damages would be minimised. So, the management of CBN has actually directed that the banking and payment system department to look into this and to come up with strategies to ensure that this is totally eliminated.

What are the efforts by Nigerian Electronic Fraud Forum (NeFF) to tackle electronic frauds which appears to be on the rise?

The CBN in collaboration with the NeFF, which as you know is a forum encompassing many stakeholders including the law enforcement agencies, the banks, switches and all payment systems providers. And what we have done is to identify various types of frauds that have evolved and then bring out mitigants to curb them. Remember that sometimes ago, precisely last year, the forum held a meeting in which the issue of ransomware was discussed and shortly after, that became a global problem. But because we had seen the problem coming, CBN had issued a guideline on what to do. And that was why none of the banks in Nigeria was affected. Also, one of the steps we have taken to curtail fraud, which is that framework on USSD, which is a channel that is very prominent for banking transactions. Any channel that is prominent, fraudsters would also follow the channel. So, in order to curtail fraud in that angle, we have issued a framework which would become effective from October 1st. So, the issue of stability of the payment system, trust in the payment system are very close to the heart of the management of the CBN. And each time the Board of Governors come together, they discuss it and issue guidelines just as we have been doing.

You mentioned guideline for ďŹ ntechs, how soon would we see that?

Financial technology (fintech) companies and the new players in the payment industry and in some quarters, there is this fear that fintechs would take the over the roles of the banks. But we believe that, would not happen because banks would continue to play their roles. However, some activities would have to be ceded to these fintechs. Because of the importance of these fintechs, the CBN is drafting guidelines that would enable their regulation and supervision to be put in place. Currently, we already have guidelines for their licencing and we already have guidelines on what they are expected to do and what they not expected to do but because we know technology keeps on revolving so new guidelines would also be issued from time to time to look at areas that are not currently captured. It is an on-going process and it is not a one-size-fits all. As events unfold, then guidelines and circulars would also come out to ensure that the payment system is very safe and secured.

Fatokun

The report on fraud in the system seems to contradict each other as there are different ďŹ gures being reported. How can that be rectiďŹ ed?

The figures coming from NeFF has to with fraud relating to electronic payments. But you know that electronic fraud is not the only type of fraud you have in the banking system. You have the credit fraud and check fraud which are not electronic payments. So, it depends on what you are looking at. So, if you look

Dangote Cement’s African Expansion Drive Strategic, Says Makoju The Group of Managing Director of Dangote Cement Plc, Engr.

Joseph Makoju has said investments by the cement company and its expansion drive across African countries were very strategic to contribute to Africa economy and make its products the most preferred by consumers.

He stated this recently, during a plant facility tour by top officials of the Standard Organisation of Nigeria (SON) to the Ibese Cement Plant of the company in Ogun state.

The Cement GMD said that the Dangote Cement was way ahead of competition in quality, volume production size and production automation saying these are parts of the results of continuous investments by the management.

Makoju who was represented by the Dangote Cement National

Sales and Distribution Director, Adeyemi Fajobi stated that besides the investments in expansion to ramp up volume, such investments had added value to the economies of the African countries where the company has presence.

To date, he disclosed that Dangote Cement operates in 14 countries in Africa with efforts on to expand to other three within the next few months to make its presence felt in 17 countries.

The aim, he stated was to help other African countries to attain self-sufficiency. “In the last ten years, Dangote cement has embarked on aggressive expansion drive which has seen it having an annual production of cement to the tune of over 29 million in its three production plants in Ibese, Obajana and Gboko thus effectively eliminating importation of cement.

at electronic payment fraud, the figures we issue on the volume and value of fraud in the industry comes from the database of electronic fraud which is the anti-fraud portal we have at NIBBS. So, banks and other system players or system participants are expected to report their fraud figure to that portal and NIBBS collate and issues the figure on a quarterly basis, half year and on yearly basis. So, there can be no contradiction.

There has also been some complaints

Sahara Group Moves to Boost Achievement of SDGs Sahara Group has appointed Zuriel Oduwole, a globally acclaimed Girl Education advocate as ambassador in its bid to accelerate the achievement of the triad of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that focus on improving the access of children (especially girls) to education, fostering gender equality and creating more opportunities for girls across Africa.

The energy conglomerate’s partnership with Zuriel’s ‘Dream Up Speak Up Stand Up’ (DUSUSU Foundation), is targeted at the SDGs 4, 5 and 10, that seeks to enhance access to quality education, gender equality and reduced inequalities by 2030.

Globally, there are 31 million fewer girls than boys in primary school.

According to the UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2016), over 9 million girls of primary-school age are out of school in subSaharan Africa. The partnership

seeks to promote access to education and economic empowerment through film-making and other activities.

Owing to this, Sahara Group’s Head of Corporate Communications, Bethel Obioma, was quoted in a statement to have said the project would be driven by Sahara Foundation, the Group’s Corporate Responsibility vehicle. “This represents another major step for us at Sahara Group towards promoting the SDGs in Africa and across the globe.

We believe the foundation for sustainable development rests on empowerment and access to equal opportunities for all children,� he said.

Speaking at the presentation of Zuriel as Sahara’s Ambassador in Accra, Ghana, the Manager, Sahara Foundation, Seyi Ojurongbe, said the partnership reinforces Sahara’s unwavering commitment to promoting equitable and inclusive quality

Also, one of the steps we have taken to curtail fraud, which is that framework on USSD, which is a channel that is very prominent for banking transactions

Custodian Launches Nigeria’s First Insurance Chat box Ebere Nwoji Custodian Investment Plc, the parent body of Custodian and Allied Insurance Limited and Custodian Life Assurance Limited recently launched an interactive digital platform tagged ‘Max.’ Speaking on the platform, the Executive Director, Operations, Custodian Life Assurance Limited, Ngozi Nlebemuo, said: “The device will enable insuring public interact and buy the company’s products anywhere they are without hassle.

According to him, the device which is deployed on the firm’s Website and Facebook will help bridge communication gap as the

insuring public can interact and obtain information via the device 24 hours.

He said the public can start and conclude their insurance purchases through the platform and also report claims.Also speaking, Head, Retail Division, Custodian and Allied Insurance Limited, Oladele Akinsanya, said Max chatbox, is a first of its kind in the Nigerian insurance industry, adding that with Max, the insuring public can purchase majority of custodian’s products and services in the comfort of their homes.

He urged the public to leverage the platform to procure products that would help them mitigate their risks.

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Boost for ERGP Jonathan Eze examines the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan’s Focus Labs that was recently launched by the federal government During the launch of the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) Focus Labs recently

by President Muhammadu Buhari, it was indicated that the initiative would be targeting an initial $25 billion in investments from the private sector.

The initial labs targeted investments in the agriculture, transportation, manufacturing, processing, power and gas sectors.

Also, when Vice President Yemi Osinbajo visited the labs, he was particularly impressed by the level of commitment, enthusiasm and interest shown by participants in accepting to lock themselves up for six weeks, all in a bid to fast track the growth and development of the country.

He noted that even though regulatory processes were necessary to protect institutions and streamline activities, government appreciates the fact that it is necessary to limit bureaucratic bottlenecks so that they do not get in the way of progress; which was why government decided to embark on the labs to address any challenges that stand in the way of investments.

To underscore his observation during the gallery walk of the labs, the Vice President said the leader of the Malaysian consultants working with the ERGP Implementation Team on the labs hinted him that going by his experience in other parts of the world, the ERGP focus labs had already achieved about 80 per cent success in the three weeks so far.

At the inaugural level, the Minister of Budget and National Planning, Senator Udoma Udo Udoma, said the country cannot continue to do things the old way and expect different results; hence the many initiatives embarked upon by the federal government to fast track the changes it is set to achieve.

On how the Focus Labs will work, Udoma said, “Potential and existing investors both foreign and Nigerian, who may be interested in investing in any of the three areas we are focusing on are to attend the closed-door sessions. “The Focus Labs will involve stakeholders from the public and private sectors working together in a single environment to think out practical and workable solutions for delivering the kind of result Nigeria needs.�

Continuing, he said the central objective of the Labs would be to bring in private capital to finance projects across the country. “Our aim is to raise the level of productivity in Nigeria. We want more things to be grown in Nigeria. We want more things to be made in Nigeria. We want more opportunities created for Nigeria to be able to work. We are also inviting officials of state governments to participate. At the labs, we will also be able to identify new opportunities that investors may wish to exploit, or develop,� he added.

Around the world, the value of manufacturing has been on an upward trajectory as demand for goods rise with growing population.

On the average Nigeria’s population rises by five million annually and demands for goods continue to be met by importation. This is because the country’s immense potential in the manufacturing and processing sector is yet to be realised. Manufacturing remains the backbone to driving non-oil growth, a focal agenda for the current and previous administrations.

The abundant availability of raw materials, labour, land, market access, and strategic location in the Gulf of Guinea makes Nigeria an ideal manufacturing hub.

Despite being Africa’s most populous country, manufacturing contribution to the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is lower than Morocco, Kenya, Egypt, Mauritius and South Africa. Growth in the sector is crucial to achieving a diversified, sustainable and inclusive economy.

Other than agriculture, it is the sector that has the most capacity to create massive job as it currently employs only 12 per cent of the labour force. Also, the processing sector is largely made up of mining, which suffers a similar fate as manufacturing.

Mining as a sub-sector has contributed less than six per cent to GDP over the past 10 years, despite proven deposits of over 40 minerals in commercial quantity.

Processing these minerals into finished goods for export will retain significant value for the economy and will feed raw materials into the manufacturing, agricultural and allied sectors. However, growth is hindered by poor infrastructure, unstable power, insecurity and

unattractive government policies.

The influence of policy on the manufacturing and processing sectors is particularly acute. The high cost of accessing finance and regulated pricing has created low policy perception for investors.

Manufacturing associations have thus decried a dearth in local and foreign investments, with most banks refusing to lend to them or charging exorbitant interest rates. This is not surprising, as investments into the sector remain extremely high risk with manufacturing recording a decline in productivity of about N30 billion in the first quarter of 2018.

Focus Lab The federal government through the Ministry of Budget and Planning conducted the ERGP Focus Labs to develop solutions to these challenges.

The focus labs were designed to identify projects that can drive economic growth and create jobs through mobilising private investments in three vital sectors of the economy.

The initiative took place over a six-week period between March and May 2018 and involved 180 organisations including ministries and government agencies.

Over 300 private sector companies participated, out of which 164 projects were ultimately selected. The results of the Labs were recently showcased at an open day with participation from public and private stakeholders.

The labs set a target of $9.25 billion for private sector investments into manufacturing and processing which would create over three hundred thousand jobs across the six geopolitical zones by 2020. This will be backed by over $400 million in public investments, which the government has committed to.

This would be injected into investments in six entry point projects: food manufacturing, textiles, minerals, petrochemicals, general manufacturing and the construction of a new industrial park.

Reacting to the ERGP Focus Labs, the Head

of Corporate and Government Relations at OLAM Nigeria, Mr. Ade Adefeko said, “These Focus Labs will indeed provide a valuable platform for the private sector to tap into the huge opportunities in these sectors on the one hand and on the other, it provides the government with a focused approach to accelerating quick wins in private sector investment to create jobs and truly stimulate broad-based economic development. “As a nation in a hurry to industrialise, we need to create the necessary infrastructure to support manufacturing and other critical sectors as enunciated in the blue print.�

The Food processing industry in particular stands to benefit from these investments, as it is the largest sub-sector in manufacturing.

Foods like tomatoes, cassava, palm oil, nuts, and diary are cultivated abundantly in Nigeria, yet by-products like powdered milk, cooking and cosmetic oils, flour and sauces are imported in tonnes.

However, a local manufacturer, Chief Kingsley Okoh, lamented that local manufacturing was unable to meet the growing local demand and struggles to compete with the quality and prices of imported goods.

According to him, tackling domestic demand was the first target of the project developed with the long-term goal of exporting within the region and then around the world.

He added, “The textiles and leather industries are also in dire need of investments.

The increasing population, made up of mostly young persons, creates a ready local market.

While Nigeria produces plenty of leather and cotton, this is often exported and finished goods like clothes, shoes, bags, and furniture are imported. “The situation is even more troubling because indigenous manufacturers are plagued by the inability to find consistent and high quality inputs. Thus raw cotton is exported, and clothes’ manufacturers import processed cotton to produce clothes.�

Petrochemical industries suffer similar fate.

Nigeria imports a significant percentage of

petrochemicals to meet burgeoning industrial demand while the natural resources required to make them are readily available.

Operators in the fertiliser sector often import inputs to create their blends due to inability to source them locally.

The Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment and the Ministry of Agriculture will jointly execute projects developed at the Labs to plug the gaps between raw material producers and manufacturers.

The production of high quality cassava flour (HQCF) was facilitated between local farmers and manufacturers. This supply of cassava will be used to produce glucose syrups, industrial alcohol, adhesives and baked goods.

The labs facilitated collaborations between manufacturers to ease sourcing of raw materials and granted the renewal of exploration licences. Projects were also able to access funding from the International Finance Corporation, an arm of the World Bank.

Towards strengthening collaborations between manufacturers and raw material producers, a reliable source told THISDAY that a petrochemical project conceived at the lab has been granted gas allocation by the Ministry of Petroleum Resources. A gas cylinder manufacturing factory was also linked with a 20 Mega Watt power plant which will form part of a newly established Industrial park.

The projects developed in the Lab will be implemented through a delivery unit of the Ministry headed by the Permanent Secretary of the relevant Ministries. This will be done in collaboration with the state governments where the projects are situated alongside the ERGP team. All projects will be supervised by the Steering committee chaired by Vice President Osinbajo.

This clearly showed that Nigeria’s growth is existentially tied to the growth of the private sector. Therefore, enhancing collaborations between various actors in the manufacturing value chain presents a giant opportunity for significant growth for the sector and the Nigerian economy.

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NPA Set to Dredge Escravos Channel Leading to Warri Port Srories by Eromosele Abidun In a bid to attract bigger vessels and encourage importers and exporters around the South-south and South -eastern part of the country to the Warri Port, the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) has concluded plans to dredge of Escravos channel leading to Warri Port.

The Managing Director of NPA, Hadiza Bala-Usman gave this indication when she paid a courtesy call on the Olu of Warri,Ogiamen Ikenwoli II, in Warri, Delta State.

Speaking during the visit, she expressed appreciation to the monarch for persuading the federal government to approve the dredging of the channel and also facilitating the project.

Bala-Usman, who was represented by the Executive Director, Marine and Operations, Dr. Sekonte Davies said the NPA was committed to creating enabling environment for businesses to thrive.

In his response, Ikenwoli said he was happy that there was hope for revival of the Warri Port which had been inactive for years.

He said: “I have two ports, Warri and Sapele ports and I am not happy that these ports are not working, but I am happy that now there is a ray of light.

When the ports were working, there was a lot of progress and improvement in the living condition of our people. “I was happy when the president approved the dredging of the ports. Lagos is currently suffocated with activities while other ports in the nation remain idle. “Government has invested a lot of money and resources to establish these ports and I do

not understand why they are left to waste while one port is drowning.�

He promised to assist the agency in every way possible to make the task of dredging the port successful.

Specifically, he stated: “I want to hear that ocean liners are coming to Warri to berth.

If this happens, everybody here and beyond will calm down, restiveness will cease because people will be gainfully employed. People are restive because they are idle.�

In his welcome address during the Delta Port second quarter stakeholders’ forum, the Port Manager, Delta Port, Mr. Simon Okeke, remarked that Warri was the number three port in the nation until the challenge of the channel prevented bigger vessels from coming to berth.

He noted that the port had continued to witness enhanced and improved business environment since keying into the executive order of the federal government.

The port manager said:“We are proud and happy to acknowledge that Warri Port has never had it better than now. This is reflected in what this management has done to improve operational efficiency.�

He said tug boats had been provided for the port and contract awarded for the repairs of more tug boats.

He stated, “From all indications, these boats will be commissioned in August this year.�

In addition, he stated that the entire port was fully illuminated, documentation and payment processes had improved owing to e-payment and other facilities put in place by the management, thereby reducing human interface and blocking revenue leakage.

NLNG to Boost Domestic LPG Supply with New LPG Vessel Nigeria LNG Limited (NLNG) is planning to reinforce the domestic liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) market with a new LPG vessel, which will boost volume and availability, as well as consolidate the company’s contributions to deepen the domestic industry and increase consumption of the clean gas.

The new LPG vessel will be built by E.A Temile and Sons Company Limited, a wholly Nigerian company, under a contract with Hyundai Mipo Dockyard, South Korea and chartered to NLNG. At a contract signing ceremony between E.A Temile and Sons Limited and Hyundai Mipo Dockyard in London, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of NLNG, Tony Attah, remarked that the signing ceremony was groundbreaking for NLNG because it supports the company’s aspiration, firstly, to further help develop the DLPG market and to promote the growth of indigenous companies and Nigeria’s economy.

He said: “NLNG remains the single largest supplier of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG)

(over 50 per cent) in Nigeria and looks to enable its expansion in future. We produce the LPG in our Plant in Bonny, Rivers State, Nigeria, and transport it by sea to Lagos from where it is distributed to every part of the country. “This assures the product availability, accessibility, and affordability which is central to us as a company. NLNG’s domestic LPG intervention scheme aligns with its business focus of bringing energy to the world and helping to build a better Nigeria. “A World Health Organisation (WHO) Report on Household Air Pollution and Health published in May 2018, affirms that, about 4 million people die prematurely annually from illness attributable to air pollution from inefficient cooking practices using solid fuels and kerosene. “And local data suggests that about 100,000 women and children die in Nigeria annually from the same causative factors.

We believe that the expansion and strengthening of the DLPG market can help to stem this tide in Nigeria.�

On NLNG’s contribution to

Nigerian content, he stated: “We work closely with the Nigeria Content Development Monitoring Board to ensure compliance with the Nigeria Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Act 2010, consequent upon which we signed a Business to Business Service Level Agreement (SLA) with NCDMB in June 2017, the first of its kind in the relationship between the oil and gas industry operators and NCDMB in Nigeria. “Examples of our Nigeria Content initiatives implementation include BGT Plus Project where over 80,000 metres of cable, manufactured in Nigeria

by Nexans Kabelmetal, as well as 9,000 pieces of anodes, produced by Metec WA, were exported to South Korea for utilization in the construction of 6 new Dual Fuel Diesel Engines (DFDE) LNG carriers. “PCMN/Berger Paints Nigeria Limited exported over 400,000 litres of Paints and Coatings and IO Furniture/Vina produced and exported movable furniture to South Korea, all for the construction of the LNG carriers. In addition, Nigerians

were involved in the project at the Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) and Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) shipyards in South Korea. “The benefitting indigenous companies, some of whom were exporting their products for the very first time, earned revenues in excess of $10 million and international reputation as exporting companies. “All these are testaments that great things can truly happen once we set our minds to achieve them– same way we believe and are working assiduously towards achieving the FID for NLNG T7 which in addition to raising our LNG production capacity by 36 per cent, from 22,000 million tonnes per annum to 30,000 million tonnes per annum, also has capacity for 1.0 MTPA in the DLPG market.�

In his speech, the Executive Secretary of NCDMB, Simbi Kesiye Wabote, remarked that the signing ceremony was a manifestation of the local content journey in the LPG sector, adding, “I commend NLNG for this bold endorsement of our local capacities and capabilities.

Former CRFFN Chairman Denies Planning to Re-contest Election The immediate past Chairman of the Governing Council of the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN), Hakeem Olanrewaju has said he was not planning to run in the forthcoming elections into the Governing Council of CRFFN. However, he said, that does not foreclose that he is not interested in the electioneering processes, “knowing that the future of my profession will be in the hands of those who gets into the council.�

He advised the would-be governing council members to be objective in the services to the council and the profession, so as to avoid possible pit falls. “I have interest to decide with my vote as well as that of other practitioners, I am interested in the integrity and professional versatility and commitment of our professional colleagues (men and women) who intend to reshape the freight forwarding in Nigeria, once elected into the council. “Second, you recall that, as enshrined in the CRFFN Act 16 of 2007 and midwife by the Nigerian Shippers’ Council, the first governing council had transitional four years tenure (2008 to 2012) for the elected 8 freight forwarders then, while ministerial appointees had two years on geopolitical zones rotation basis. Subsequently, governing council members had only two years tenure.

It is important to note that,

between 2012 to date 2018, makes it Six years that the CRFFN had functioned and been administered without a formally constituted governing council. “Implying that for six years, our CRFFN has been administered by the supervising ministry of transportation in collaboration with our employed administrative officer (the Registrar). So we had four years during which our council had structures, became institutionalised and formulated initial regulations, sadly, we also and six years of retrogression,� he said.

He added that the forthcoming election is critically important to the well-being of our profession, “as it opens up yet another window for us to take over our profession from the ministry of transportation and to demonstrate our willingness to show professionalism and ability, which will engender capacity building via professional training and retraining in the freight forwarding sub-sector of our economy.� “Third, take note that, if the enforcement of the Practitioners Operating Fee ( POF) commences, as a key revenue component of the council, automatically the fee will be paid directly into the Treasury Single Account ( TSA) by the forwarders either at the point of releasing the cargo or at the point of exit. “The Governing Council of

BREAKFAST MEETING

L-R: Manager, Social Performance and Planning, Chevron Nigeria, Mr. Debo Lukanmbi; President, Nigerian-American Chamber of Commerce (NACC), Oluwatoyin Akomolafe and Asst. General Manager, Nigeria Export Processing Zones Authority, Mr. Richard E. Obianu, at the NACC’s breakfast meeting held in Lagos‌recently

NCS MMA Command Charges Stakeholders to Comply With NICIS II The Area Controller of Murtala Mohammed Airport Command of the Nigeria Customs service (NCS), Jayne Shoboiki has implored stakeholders to embrace the new Customs clearing process, Nigerian Integrated Customs Information System II (NICIS II) that was launched in the Command by the Technical Team Unit Abuja on the 28th of May 2018.

The NICIS II, she added, is an upgraded version of NICIS that is made up of the ASYCUDA++ processing and risk management system.

Shoboki, who was quoted in a statement added: “Those incorporated into the NICIS

system include modules for E-Manifest, E-payment, an electronic form ‘M’, Risk Assessment Reports (RARs) now Pre Arrival Access Report (PAAR) and Passenger Baggage Entry Declaration. “One of the huge benefits of NICIS is its ability to interface with other Government Agencies and Private Stakeholders who are still working toward upgrading their systems in ways conducive to eventual creation of fully integrated e-trade platform. “However, NICIS II has an increased automation, with increased use of Risk Management and reduced rate of physical examination of goods. NICIS II has the capacity

of streamlining clearance by introducing a Trade Portal Manager (TPM) used by Traders to capture declaration from any point with their Phones, Ipads, and Laptops etc and an automatic triggering of release after payment. “With the introduction of this NICIS II platform at the MMA Command, the Customs Area Controller enjoined the Command’s Stakeholders to cooperate with the Nigeria Customs Service as the upgraded platform will improve the clearance processes and facilitate regional trade using Nigeria as a hub for goods in transit to other countries.�

The Customs Area Controller

noted with concern the teething problems the stakeholders are passing through at the initial stage and implored them to bear with the system as the technical team unit from Abuja and webb fontaine are still around to resolve all the initial problems and put Stakeholders through before leaving the command.

While thanking all stakeholders for their usual understanding and corporation, the CAC wishes to inform them that she has met with the terminal operators and sought their understanding in the area of demurrages as all necessary measures are been put in place to resolve all challenges.

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T H I S D AY ˾ Ͳ˜ ͰͮͯͶ

ADVERTORIAL

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T H I S D AY • WEDNESDAY, JULY 4, 2018

EDUCATION Need for Entrepreneurial University Entrepreneurial university is one of the latest development initiatives in tertiary education globally. The idea behind the initiative is to train students to go a step further and turn their scholarly research into business ventures which ensures that they don’t become job seekers, but job creators to develop the economy. Ugo Aliogo reports The falling standard of education in the country has remained an issue of concern among stakeholders. Their argument is that over the years successive governments have paid lip service to the revival of the sector, especially in terms of sufficient budgetary allocation, building of skilled manpower through training and re-training to boost sectorial performance and equipping of graduates with the needed skills sets to make them become successful entrepreneurs, rather than job seekers.

The stakeholders further argued that the country’s university education has remained largely theory-based than more practical oriented; adding that it has not evolved despite growing trends in tertiary education internationally “and does not give the graduate sufficient skills to compete favourably in the marketplace.”

In the 21st century, university education has evolved from the theory- based approach to what is known as entrepreneurial or innovation university. It is a new development that is emerging globally to change the trend of universities churning out graduates that cannot find jobs and increase the unemployment growth index. This new university education places emphasis on innovation and entrepreneurship.

It takes the graduates through the rigours of running a business.

According to Africa Renewal, hastened by globalisation and increased competition, the industrial mode of production has run out of steam in many countries and the same applies to post-secondary education, with its emphasis on theory over practice. Far more emphasis is needed in practical experience.

It also stated that this entrepreneurial phenomenon is not limited to business schools, but also occurs in universities specialising in fields such as agriculture, science, medicine and information technology.

The Africa Renewal noted that Stanford University is one of the US universities quick to embrace the innovation and entrepreneurship model; and in 2015 the university opened two centres in Ghana and Kenya to offer internship programmes to young entrepreneurs. Others include Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Harvard University, the University of California and the University of Wisconsin.

Brazil, China, Europe and North and Latin America and newly industrialised countries have embraced the entrepreneurship education.

“One of the objectives of the Africa Union’s (AU) agenda 2063, which is Africa’s development blueprint for the next 50 years is to reposition the continent as a strategic player in the global economy through improved education and the application of science and technology in development. Achieving these objectives will require aligning education, research and innovation with long-term socioeconomic objectives. So far, only a couple of universities in Africa have embraced innovation and entrepreneurship. Stellenbosch University, South Africa has built and launched a satellite as one of its innovations.”

A Senior Lecturer, Harvard Kennedy School of Practice International Development Practice, Professor, Calestous Juma, was quoted as saying that innovation universities benefit not only students, but also the institution.

He explained that creating such university would broaden the base for funding innovation by enabling specialised actors and industry to design and operate new universities using their own budgets, adding that it would reduce the need to rely on funding from ministries of education.

According to Africa Renewal, “the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology pioneered in tissue culture bananas. Tissue culture is a method whereby plants are produced from roots, leaves or stems in a laboratory in great number to increase yields. The university

There is need to invest in entrepreneurship education also recently created the Nairobi Industrial and Technology Park in a public-private partnership with the Kenya’s Ministry of Industrialisation and Enterprise Development to facilitate uptake of university research results by industry players.

It will also provide a shopping mall space to incubated firms started by the students.”

Back home in Nigeria, some tertiary institutions are embracing the entrepreneurial university in order to respond to local needs and challenges, one of such is the American University of Nigeria (AUN), a development university that aims to improve the country’s entrepreneurship drive in the School of Business and Entrepreneurship.

In an interview with THISDAY, the Dean, School of Business and Entrepreneurship, Professor Attahir Yusuf, said the institution is development oriented and places emphasis on practical through entrepreneurship. Therefore he said the students are given the basics to be entrepreneurial.

He added that the university trains the students in the subject of entrepreneurship and uses its teaching methodology to encapsulate varieties of systems, adding that apart from the class work, the students are given case studies and simulation which reflect marketplace situation, “then we go to the next stage of encouraging them to set up and run a business.”

Yusuf explained that annually, the students develop business plans, and the school organises a competition to select the best two business plans, thereafter the university provides seed capital for the two selected business plans.

He said there are a lot of success stories with some individuals running their businesses in town, adding that individuals approach the university to buy some of the business ideas in order to start running them.

“Apart from setting up a business, we also have a course known as Managing a Growing Business, so the students that graduate from that course take over that business and then run it. This is how we bring entrepreneurial orientation into our students because we are developing students here not to go and work for somebody, but to think of working for

themselves because we believe that working for yourself is how the economy grows and jobs are created, then society is impacted.

“We emphasize on equipping our students to have the capacity of working for themselves.

We have a lot of success stories and some are running their businesses in town. Some people approach us that they want to buy these businesses, then they buy and start running them.

“As a university, we don’t only provide knowledge but to also develop a good understanding and provide resolution systems through research. We have students who have projects and businesses they are involved in.

These students also go to communities to research on businesses and find out the type of problems businesses have, debate among themselves, consult with us, and develop a solution for these types of businesses. They take up those businesses and mentor them.

Our students see problems in businesses and with our support they have the capacity to develop solution mechanisms. They go back and apply those lessons on those businesses.

Yusuf added: “A lot of our small businesses here don’t have the fundamental understanding of professionalism.

As part of efforts to assist these small businesses, we bring them into our campus sometimes and organise a business seminar for them and try to make them understand professionalism in business. We give our students elements of planning, marketing and finance management; but most importantly the human resources and management of their organisation so that they can organise their businesses. We receive positive feedbacks from them.

“For us as a university, what we need to do is to develop people that have agriculture business orientation they would be in position to run a farm as a business. We provide enlightenment of business management, financing and understanding of what agriculture is and how to manage agriculture businesses. That is why we are introducing a degree programme known as Agriculture-Business Management.”

Also lending his voice to the discourse is

the founder, Universal Learn Direct Academic Limited, Mr. Gbola Oba, who noted that most graduates lack the requisite middle level skills set which successful societies are built on.

He argued that it would be imperative to fundamentally identify some relevant skills sets especially from the university system which would make the society to function better, adding that there is need for proprietors of private universities to ensure that their students acquire some important computer software development certification to ensure that they are able to compete favourably in the marketplace.

Oba explained that beyond acquiring skills in software development, there is also need for students to acquire skills in plumbing, carpentry, electrical installations and other areas. “Once a student is acquiring these skills, he/she is using them at free labour to build equity.”

He stated that conventional university education can be placed side-by-side with a well-structured programme on entrepreneurship; therefore the federal government should take a cue from other countries where the practice is in vogue.

“Skills acquisition is very important in tertiary education because any skilled human being is a potential entrepreneur and this can trigger an entrepreneurial value chain. The idea is very sustainable. In the last few years, policy makers in the education sector have emphasised the need for graduates to be more entrepreneurial minded because there are no jobs in the marketplace.

Some universities such as University of Ife, University of Lagos and Lagos State University (LASU) have created a department dedicated to the study of entrepreneurship.

“These universities have also ensured that students are groomed in basic entrepreneurship subjects that will help them have an understanding of an entrepreneur and how to succeed as an entrepreneur. In Lagos State, there is the Ministry of Wealth Creation which primary duty is to groom young unemployed graduates to acquire skills and empower them.

We need to be more aggressive about the issue of entrepreneurship in secondary schools and universities.”

T H I S D AY • WEDNESDAY, JULY 4, 2018

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EDUCATION

Ezekwesili Harps on Value-based Leadership, as Greensprings Graduates 73 Uchechukwu Nnaike A former Minister of Education Dr. Oby Ezekwesili has stressed that the country can only make progress when the right kind of people with the selflessness and the sense of sacrifice and service become leaders.

Ezekwesili, who was the guest speaker at the graduation ceremony of the class of 2018 of Greensprings Secondary School, Lekki, Lagos, said “society has a way of losing its moral compass, when it loses its moral compass, the leaders must arise from among us and mobilise everybody towards a new direction, meaning a new normal because a society that normalises aberrant behaviour

as its code of conduct will be a society in crisis.”

The former Vice-President of the World Bank, who described institution as values that underpin the building of the way a society runs, said: “If we do our things through vices, we won’t have institutions; if we do our things through values, we will have institutions and the gap between where we are and where we need to be is available to be filled by quality leadership and that quality leadership will be leaders who have character, leaders that are competent, and leaders who have made an effort to use knowledge as a basis to know how to solve different problems that are around them.”

As the election year approaches, she advised Nigerians to say no to status quo leaders, who are so obsessed about themselves that they have no time for what the rest of society needs.

“We need leaders who are inclusive, who are able to manage our diversity well, we need leaders who are selfless; they do not care about what benefits them, but what benefits the rest of society. We need leaders who have character, who are competent and who have capacity. Leaders with character

are incorruptible, leaders with competence are 21st century leaders; they know everything that the world of technology is saying to nations and people.

“Leaders of capacity will not be daunted by the sheer scale of problems that they have to fix. So we need leaders with character, value-based leaders, who live their values, not the ones who speak it alone and they will take us to a new normal and remove us from this normalised sense that vices are rewarding.”

To the graduands, Ezekwesili

said the world they belong to is not a small or local world, but a global world and that they are global citizens to the extent that they can see that their skills and competences must be global in nature and that they can hold their own when put side by side their contemporaries from other countries.

She also reminded them that today’s world of technology gives them a totally different dimension of problem-solving than that of their parents.

The Executive Director of the

school, Mrs. Lai Koiki said the graduands have been well prepared as the school gave them holistic education, adding that the future is bright for them.

She stressed the importance of thinking skills, among other social skills that the school instils in its students because “because the world is just changing and we don’t have the blueprint of what they will be experiencing and so the best thing to give them is skills to cope with anything that they come across and that is what we have done and I am confident.”

Niger: Free Education for Tertiary Institution Students no Longer Possible Laleye Dipo in Minna The Niger State government has said it is no longer possible to give free education to its students in tertiary institutions within and outside the country.

The government said its decision was based on the economic situation of the state coupled with dwindling finances and other contending demands.

Governor Abubakar Sani Bello disclosed this while reacting to the demand for free education and scholarship awards by students at the second combined convocation ceremony of the Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida University, Lapai.

Bello, who was represented by the Deputy Governor, Alhaji Ahmed Ketso said: “In view of the huge funds needed to run education, especially at the tertiary level, parents must also take some responsibilities, hence the payment of school fees by our students.”

The governor did not respond to the request for the payment of scholarship by the students, but said the government would set up a special fund for education in the state through which vari-

ous shortcomings in the sector would be addressed.

Bello advised the students “to shun cultism, indiscipline and other activities bedevilling the nation’s education, especially acts of indiscipline,” adding that whoever is found wanting would be dealt with according to the law. “Don’t say because you are the son of the governor or the deputy governor, you will misbehave, we will not spare anybody that is found wanting” He also admonished them to complement the efforts of the government and the school authorities by safeguarding the infrastructure provided, promising that government would continue to look into the welfare of students and staff of the institution.

The Vice-Chancellor, Professor Nasir Maiturari had earlier said the institution elevated 37 out of the 104 academic staff to professors in the last three years, while 558 staff made up of 197 senior and 361 junior staff were also promoted to various ranks adding that promotion of all categories of staff “has been very regular.”

LPSS Performs Lion King to Promote Arts, Music Students of the Lagos Preparatory and Secondary School (LPSS), recently performed a show-stopping production of the famous Lion King musical to celebrate and promote drama and music.

The event, which was open to members of the public, provided an opportunity for both entertainment and inspiration.

In a statement, the school said: “The students in year six, some of whom will be progressing to boarding schools abroad, perform a musical each session and this year was no exception.

The students will be graduating from the primary school, though many of them will continue their secondary education at LPSS. A musical production is part of the ‘graduating tradition’ to reflect a culmination of all they’ve learnt particularly in the area of music and drama during their time at LPSS.” “This year’s event was special

because the PTA subsidised the cost of the show to enhance the production values and support the fine work put in by the students. This was important as it was performed to members of the public outside the LPSS community and hopefully inspired them to implement similar performances in their own communities,” the statement added.

The school said this was one of the many ways the PTA has partnered with it in recent times.

“They have supported science by donating a fume cupboard, a Van de Graaff generator and an accurate measuring balance; encouraged sports by purchasing over 25 boxes of sporting equipment for the children and aided IT by providing numerous tablet computers to be used by the children in the school.

This production has given the PTA an opportunity to extend its generosity to the public.”

A cross section of graduating students of Greensprings Secondary School, Lekki, Lagos during their graduation ceremony… recently

Winners Emerge in Lagos Shun Academic Corruption, Osun Tells Students Governor’s Quiz Contest Funmi Ogundare and Kehinde Lawal Winners of the season IX Lagos State Schools Governor’s Quiz Competition have emerged, as Lagos State Senior Model College, Kankon defeated Epe Senior Grammar School to clinch the star prize.

The competition, aimed at developing the minds of the students by creating a healthy rivalry among students in public and private primary, junior and senior secondary schools across the state, saw Idimu Junior High School, Alimosho and Military Nursery/Primary School, Yaba defeating Community Junior High School, Debojo and Araromi Primary School, Gbagada to win the junior secondary and primary schools categories prime trophies. Speaking at the event, the Deputy Governor of the state, Dr. Oluranti Adebule announced that Governor Akinwunmi Ambode has approved a cash reward of N100,000 for all participating students to motivate them and their colleagues. Their teachers and schools also received cash prizes ranging from N100,000 to N250,000. She commended the participants, while expressing satisfaction about their display of knowledge in science and technology, business studies, humanities, art and craft, as well as current affairs.

She said the competition

has broadened the horizon of students resulting in noticeable improvement in the results of terminal examinations like BECE, NECO and WAEC. “It has also groomed them such that they now win various quiz competitions with relative ease.”

Adebule revealed that public school students have in the last one month won the PZ Cussons Chemistry Challenge and NNPC National Science Quiz Competitions with Fatai Tadese of Abibat Mogaji Senior School, Iloro winning the star prize at the PZ Cussons, while the NNPC competition’s state final was won

by Franklin Ezeunala of Meiran Community High School. She advised all students in public and private schools to devote more time to their academic pursuit, invest their youthful energy and intellect to create job opportunities rather that roam the streets and embrace social vices like internet fraud, hooliganism, rape, examination malpractice, alcoholism and drug abuse.

In her remarks, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Education, Mrs. Adebunmi Adekanye said the quality of the quiz competition has been growing progressively. “The standard of questions that are posted to the students and the ease with which they answered them is a testimony to the quality of education that the state provides.”

Sunday Okobi The Osun State Government has charged students in the state to shun academic corruption as it is capable of destroying their future and the country, urging them to face their studies squarely so as to succeed in school and after.

The Commissioner for Education, Mr. Omotunde Young gave the advice in Ilesa, Osun State during the first spelling bee competition organised by the Olasunkanmi Cicero Foundation, in conjunction with Good Leadership Promotion Network and Hope Alive Initiative.

Young, who was represented by an official from the state Ministry of Education, Mrs. Aluko, said if the students are committed to their academic pursuit, they would become useful assets to themselves and the society.

Echoing the state government’s stance on academic excellence, the guest speaker, Dr. Wale Bolorunduro said the place of education cannot be underestimated in the development of the country, adding that a country cannot have a sustainable goal if its education system is not improved.

He said no country can maintain development properly at certain points or modules if the education base is fluid or nebulous, adding that the

ability of any country to maintain radical development is one of the yardsticks used in measuring the level and quality of education.

“The quantum of development in any country depends solely on the rate of its education system, either formal or informal. A country which votes much of its resources in education has nothing to fear about development because it will serve as a catalyst to high rate of development.”

Bolorunduro called on the government to give education the priority it deserves by following the United Nations General Assembly Declaration 2005-214 UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development in which UNESCO leads the decade and has developed an International Implementation Scheme for the decade educational sustainability.

He commended the organisers of the competition and encouraged them to do more in the area of supporting the Sustainable Development Goals and urged the students to focus solely on their studies as this would take them to great height in life.

The coordinator of the competition, Olaniyi Odina congratulated the winner, St. John Comprehensive School 1, Ilesa for defeating other competitors to clinch the trophy.

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T H I S D AY • WEDNESDAY JULY 4, 2018

EDUCATION

Stakeholders Harp on Good Parenting, Foundational Education at Pace Setter’s Graduation With the widening gap between education and character among the youth, stakeholders at the recent graduation ceremony of Pace Setter Academy, Wuye, Abuja believe that good parenting and foundational Launch and Navigate Your education are key to grooming the young ones. Paul Obi reports Child’s Learning Over the last three decades, the challenge of Nigeria ensuring that quality education transcends mere qualification to better citizens has remained a topical issue. Constantly, the gap between education and character among Nigerians has continued to widen beyond comprehension. To many, the quality of education ought to be seen in the character of those who have gone through rigorous learning process.

Stakeholders argued that education should go beyond the walls of classroom to other critical areas of human existence. They stressed that good moral upbringing, character and patriotism should be the basics of foundational education in Nigeria. At the recent graduation ceremony organised by Pace Setter Academy, Wuye, Abuja, speakers identified good parenting as the best strategy to educate young Nigerians in today’s modern world.

They observed that good parenting, provided as rudimentary education has the capability to be sustained with several benefits. It was observed that most of today’s challenges confronting young Nigerians cannot be adequately addressed solely by classroom teaching. A lot, they stressed falls under the

responsibility of parents at home. They maintained that if good parenting at the home front is embraced, the young ones would seamlessly inculcate better form of education both in character and learning.

According to the guest speaker and Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Most Rev. Mathew Kukah, a lot of foundational education can be attained through good parenting at home. “Teachers cannot be responsible for the formation of your children.

They will do their best. These children are leaving here now and from what we see, increasingly, more and more parents are sacrificing the emotional welfare of their children for money.”

Kukah stressed that “men will say, we are working very hard to put food on the table, but it will be of no use because the young people who are going about killing other people suggest very clearly that they were not properly brought up. You can send your children to the most expensive school, but parenting has to be part of the formation of every child and the home is the first school for every child.”

However, the bishop said despite the charge on parents to make an impact on their

children at the early stage through good parenting and sound foundational education, the government must also provide the enabling environment and platform for the young and children to thrive.

Kukah stated that society can be enhanced and improved upon only when the potential of the youths are tapped. He added that there is an urgent need for government to show commitment in that regards.

He called for dedication in the grooming of the young, stating that, “because as we heard from these little children, the quality of what they had to say suggest very clearly that we have brilliant young people, so there has to be a country for them to excel.”

A former Speaker of the House of Representatives and guest speaker at the event, Rt. Hon. Ghali Umar Na’Abba counselled the graduands to remain focussed on their aspirations, particularly in education, adding that learning remains the best human development strategy. He said by going through the process of educating themselves, the graduands are setting up a sustainable platform for their future. According to him, given that “education

is a necessary component of human development,” all forms of education, including foundational education and good parenting should also be part of the whole package for educating the young ones.

Na’Abba further commended the management of Pace Setter Academy for the many giant strides the school has attained.

He observed that with the school prioritising the idea of human capital development above profit making, the benefits to students and parents would be enormous.

The Chairman of Pace Setter Academy, Kenneth Imansuangbon on his part said the prospect of the graduands was geared towards conquering the world in their various endeavours, adding that the quality of education obtainable at the school is to enable students “conquer their world.

“The Nigeria that will emerge in their time is the Nigeria of brains. At that point, it won’t matter whose son or daughter you are, but what you can offer to Nigeria and the world. Let them be passionate about the country and themselves. We have trained them for the future. We have trained them to be hard working and be industrious,” Imansuangbon said.

You may erroneously believe that structured activities outside the school or classroom environment are not of much importance. You couldn’t be more wrong. Research suggests that children pick up some of their most important skills from programmes and activities outside a school’s pedagogical environment. That is why children who do not participate in any extracurricular activities are generally slow and less vibrant. The learning environment that you enrol your child in outside of his or her school’s activities must however contribute to the overall development of your child. It must be as disciplined and as functional as that found within the school. This is especially true of educative out-of-school programmes and activities.

A well resourced place of this nature should teach the child important skills like time-management and goal setting. Time-management is a vital skill, but it is not achieved easily. Time management is a skill that is learnt and imbibed over a length of time; children need to experience the discipline that is needed to finish a task and the happiness of finishing the allotted work within a specific time span. Children look for different things in learning settings, be it formal or recreational.

Your chosen environment should be attractive, colourful and informative. Teachers or organisers must use charts, pictures, posters and drawings to liven up a class. Age appropriate audio-visual and other sensory aids should also come into play. Additional resources that are not easily available in the school may make your teaching and learning sessions arresting and interesting. For instance, when teaching a biology lesson, allow the child to, for instance: see through a microscope, see slides of bacteria, see live insects and animals (safely). This direct experience with nature adds to his knowledge and also makes him more enthusiastic about his learning.

Discipline should be upheld as a must in school and recreational activities. In fun or sport-based activities, it is easy for children to step out of line and create havoc.

While children should be allowed to have fun, they should be curtailed from displaying unacceptable behaviour. The best way to practise discipline is to lay down the rules at the very beginning. Let the children partake in listing out what is unacceptable, right at the beginning. They should also democratically list out penalties for derailments.

Rewards are an important aspect of any learning process.

The reward can be a simple pat on the back or a token of appreciation. Motivate your children to aspire for higher attainments by rewarding their achievements. Holding competitions or sport activities where the children can show their proficiency is a reward in itself.

Children do get bored easily, during educational and structured programmes. The main thrust of an academic programme is to repeat what has been taught in class and to allow the child to learn it quickly. It is difficult to pique the child’s interest a second time, especially when the child is already tired of one dose of the same lesson. You must quickly twick boredom by using creative techniques like an impromptu activity like: a quiz; a slideshow or a game.

Omoru writes from the UK

Osiobe Foundation to Award Scholarships to FCT Students Udora Orizu in Abuja

L-R: The Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Mathew Kukah; Director, Pace Setters College, Mrs. Kate Imansuangbon; former Speaker, House of Representatives, Alhaji Ghali Na’Abba; Chairman, Pace Setters College, Mr. Kenneth Imansuangbon; and former INEC Chairman, Prof. Maurice Iwu, during the graduation/prize-giving ceremony of the school in Abuja… recently JULIUSATOI

Sammdebby Music Hosts 10th Joint Children Musical Concert Ugo Aliogo Sammdebby Music has hosted the 10th Joint Children Musical Concert and the official launch of the phase IV project Steelplan Drums.

Speaking at the event in Lagos, the convener, Sammdebby Music, Obashola Shina, said it is an avenue to bring children together

from various schools and churches, adding that they underwent the three series of their dress rehearsals and that the children were taught separately, therefore it is an avenue for them to compete with their mates in an orchestra.

He said music concert has helped parents a lot especially in the areas of education, so

they come out en mass to celebrate their children, while calling on government to invest in the development of music at the grassroots level.

While emphasising the importance of music in nation building, Shina said it is a practice that government should encourage especially at the grassroots level. “If government realises

the importance of music, I think they should encourage further than this.”

He stated that most of the trainings the children are getting are of international standard, pointing out that it would help them develop better and compete globally.

“We have schools that we are teaching and we also have our music training here in Gbagada.

A non-governmental organisation, Ane Isiobe International Foundation has revealed plans to award scholarships to students of public primary and secondary schools in Abuja, in a bid to encourage and motivate them.

The President, Dr. Stephen Osiobe, who made this known at the group’s outreach at Pilot Science Primary School, Gwagwalada, said the scholarship programme would cover the expenses for common entrance examination for those in primary schools and for school certificate examination and NECO for those in secondary schools when they apply online.

He said the aim of the outreach was to motivate the students and let them realise that they are cared for. The foundation donated over a thousand books to over 300 primary five pupils in the school. “You are at the starting line of life journey and will meet with lots of people on this great journey called life. One of the fundamental wisdom to hold on to is that every action has its opposite reaction and life is 10 per cent of what happens to you and 90 per cent of how you react. If you apply yourself to the task before you; follow the right path seriously and uprightly without allowing anything to distract you, you will achieve your goal and live happily.”

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T H I S D AY • WEDNESDAY, JULY 4, 2018

EDUCATION

HIIMAUnveilsChairman’sEmpireGametoTeachEconomics,Entrepreneurship Uchechukwu Nnaike To simplify the study of economics and to teach students at all levels the rudiments of business, HIIMA International Educational Services, Edutainment has introduced the Chairman’s Empire board game.

Introducing the new product to journalists in Lagos recently, the Managing Director, Dr. Mariam Agunbiade-Etiebet said: “Our modern day reality shows that job opportunities are

drying up, that is why you see many graduates still roaming the streets in search of jobs many years after graduation.

“A child brought up with the idea that he could establish and run a business of his own may just have his mind attuned to being his own boss after his university education, instead of searching for non-existent jobs.”

She described the Chairman’s Empire as a thrilling board game that can be played by

two or more people and takes players through the nitty-gritty of modern business practise.

“It is designed to be enjoyed by both adults and children of seven years old and above.”

According to her, the game helps players to understand the dynamics of doing business, including the relationship between buyers and sellers.

“It is recommended for all aspiring entrepreneurs as it teaches them the fundamentals of investment, when to invest

and what to invest in to create greater values. It also teaches how to make and multiply profits and grow the returns on investment.” Other benefits of the board game she said include teaching financial discipline, planning and management and helps players to develop entrepreneurial, creative and innovative mind-sets to see possibilities and opportunities.

Like a typical MBA curriculum, Agunbiade-Etiebet said the game is designed

to teach business tactics and strategic thinking and the fundamentals of maintaining a healthy cash flow in order to avoid bankruptcy.

“The game is designed to act as a guide on how to invest big to reap big and become the chairman of a vast business/economic empire and inspire and contribute to your world through engagement in corporate social responsibility projects.

“The game set up is structured like a typical business with players/investors who ply different sectors of the economy.

It also has a central bank or the banks from which players obtain loans/credit for invest-

ment. The ‘investor’ must be careful to invest in sectors with low risk, but with potential for higher returns on investment.”

The managing director added that the game is targeted at inculcating the entrepreneurship spirit in children aged seven and above as it excites their young brains, enables them interact with their peers thereby building self-confidence, social skills and a sense of responsibility.

While recommending the game for schools, she said it is also a must-have for homes because both the old and the young, experienced and new business entrepreneurs learn from it.

Institute, British Council Commence CFA Exams in Nigeria

L-R: The CEO/President, CFA Institute, Paul Smith; Country Director, British Council Nigeria, Lucy Pearson; Country Exams Manager, British Council Nigeria, Marniee Nottingham; and President, CFA Society Nigeria, Banji Fehintola, at the first CFA exams in Nigeria held in Lagos… recently

Lagos Promotes Reading through ‘LagosReads’ Initiative Funmi Ogundare As part of efforts to improve the reading culture of Lagosians through enabling, facilitating and ensuring reading programmes and activities in schools, as well as public and private libraries across the state, the Lagos State Library Board, under the supervision of the Office of the Special Adviser on Education, has inaugurated the LagosReads Initiative.

Speaking at the inauguration ceremony recently, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Education, Mr. Obafela BankOlemoh expressed delight about the initiative, saying that he is passionate about it.

Under the initiative, he said the state would promote reading programmes in its libraries and also encourage book reading clubs and competitions. “The initiative will be open to organ-

isations and private book clubs.

Through the library board, the competition will bring together book lovers of all ages.”

He said the competition will open in July 1 and that all book clubs need to do is to go online and register their clubs on lagosreads.com. “The competition will run in August this year. We want to make reading fun; we are committed to doing it and also going to be creating online culture to keep people reading. There would prizes to be won for it. The governor has already approved funds to run this programme for the next one such that reading becomes cool,” Bank-Olemoh said.

He added that the programme would be managed by a committee that would run it for two or three editions and within the period, it will also unveil its book ambassadors

that would further promote it.

“For us in Lagos, it is work in progress, we have revamped our school libraries and we have students who are reading and also opening their libraries.”

In his remarks, the Director of the State Library Board, Mr. Asimiyu Oyadipe expressed concern about the decline in reading among students in primary and secondary schools; saying that the trend needs to be addressed urgently by ensuring that programmes and activities to inculcate the reading habit into them at a tender age are given prominence.

He described the initiative as a foundation for a good and healthy reading habit.

“It is believed that when you read, you know and when you know, you try to exhibit what you have learnt by putting it

into practice, which is active knowledge.”

He noted that aside just improving the reading culture and promoting programmes and activities, it would also reward readers through Lagosreads quiz competitions, which would be achievable through joint efforts of teachers, librarians, parents, authors, publishers, among others.

The Lagos State Chairperson, Nigeria Library Association, Dr. Rachel Odunlade commended Governor, Akinwummi Ambode for the initiative, saying that it will help the youths articulate their words and ensure that they use the right words at the right time.

“Our youths these days are not reading; we need to advise them on the approach. The initiative is already a success; the sky will not be a limit to the youths.”

The Chartered Financial Institute, in conjunction with British Council Nigeria, has commenced CFA examinations in the country to enable Nigerian professionals work, study and build career prospects in the finance industry.

The examination which is the first in Nigeria, held in Lagos recently with over 800 candidates.

The institute is one of the leading professional bodies for the global investment management industry and it awards the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) credential which is held by over 150,000 professionals around the world. In Nigeria alone, there are over 2,000 chartered financial analysts who got their certifications from neighbouring countries.

Speaking at the event, the Country Director, British Council Nigeria, Lucy Pearson said “through our examinations, we provide educational, professional and life-changing opportunities using globally recognised qualifications.

These will enable people work, study, build career and promote personal development. We make a positive impact in people’s lives and communities, delivering over 103,000 examinations in the last year.

“Our partnership with a global examination institute like CFA enables us to achieve these huge ambitions. The British Council currently administers CFA examinations in about 40 countries globally and in Sub-Saharan Africa.

We have centres in Ghana, Kenya, Mauritius, Namibia, Zimbabwe and Nigeria.”

According to her, the British Council has long-standing

expertise delivering highquality examinations in over 90 countries worldwide with highly trained and experienced personnel that meet the council’s examination board standards, work with qualified examiners and provide carefully selected venues and well equipped facilities.

The President, CFA Society Nigeria, Banji Fehintola, described the commencement of the CFA examination in the country as a welcome development, adding that it would save the country huge foreign exchange lost when Nigerian professionals travel outside the country to write such examination in the past.

He said by making Nigeria a centre for such professional examination, it further shows that the country’s challenge in terms of negative image is changing for the better.

Fehintola called on the government to provide the needed favourable environment to attract further investment and goodwill to the country The British Council also offers reliable and secure invigilation services across all its offices in Lagos, Abuja and Port Harcourt and administers examinations on behalf of professional boards, universities and colleges globally.

These services offer students the opportunity to take supervised examinations, tests and other assessments from professional institutions in the UK and Europe, Canada, Australia, Africa and the rest of the world. With experienced and trained invigilators across Nigeria, adherence to examination test day policies and integrity is maintained.

The vice-chancellor also sacked the Students’ Union Government for what he described as under performance, adding that he has the statutory responsibilities as enshrined in the University Law. “The dissolved Students’ Union Government executives henceforth seize to be

representatives of the students in any matter affecting the running of the university.

“For the purpose of smooth and effective running of the university, a Student Representative Committee (SRC) will soon be constituted and inaugurated to address matters of interest of all students of the university.”

Kano Varsity Imposes Fine on Students over Vandalism Ibrahim Shuaibu in Kano The Kano University of Science and Technology, Wudil has imposed a fine on its students for their role during the rampage that led to the destruction of property worth millions of naira.

In the ensuing mayhem that occurred in May, about

than 21 areas were allegedly vandalized by the students, which forced the school authority to shut the school.

The students had on May 2 thrown the institution into chaos following the drowning of their colleagues at Wudil River.

Speaking with journalists in Kano on Monday, the

Vice-Chancellor, Professor Shehu Alhaji Musa said the institution would reopen on July 9, but “each student will pay a penalty of N13,000 and medical screening charges of N4,000.

Musa, who announced a staggered resumption timetable, said all students would be screened by their

respective faculties, adding that all cleared students are expected to report to the hostel on August 5 in readiness for commencement of lectures.

He said the decision to levy the students was reached by the senate at its 84th meeting after due consultations with relevant stakeholders.

36

T H I S D AY • WEDNESDAY JULY 4, 2018

CITYSTRINGS

Group Features Editor: Chiemelie Ezeobi Email chiemelie.ezeobi@thisdaylive.com 07010510430

A Family's Nightmare Chiemelie Ezeobi writes on the dilemma of the Famojuro family, whose three-year-old son and driver disappeared at the scene of the recent tanker explosion on Otedola Bridge in Lagos, fuelling suspicion of kidnapping, and anger about the recklessness of articulated vehicle drivers

A

t the home of the Famojuro's a bed lies empty. It belongs to their three-year-old son, Eyitayo. The little boy and his twin sister, Eyitoke, alongside their mother and family driver, simply identified as Joseph, were among commuters caught up in the tragedy on Otedola Bridge, in the Ojodu-Berger area of Lagos last Thursday, when a petrol tanker fell and caught fire. The matriarch of the family had gone to pick the twins from their school at Ikeja GRA. They were on their way back home when the tragedy struck.

Suspicion The disappearance of the toddler and the family driver has spiked fears of abduction.

Eyitayo was said to have vanished into thin air with the family driver after the explosion. According to a family member, Funmi Balogun, the missing boy was with his mum, his twin sister, and the driver in the car when the fire started.

Balogun posted the boy's picture on her Instagram page, fabrics_n_more, and wrote, “This boy in this picture is a three-year-old named Eyitayo. He was involved in the unfortunate tanker accident with his mother, twin sister and the driver at Otedola Bridge yesterday (Thursday) evening. They were a few cars away from the tanker when the explosion occurred. The driver (Mr. Joseph) carried Eyitayo while the mother escaped with Eyitoke (Eyitayo's twin).

“The whereabouts of Eyitayo and Mr. Joseph is still unknown as all attempts to trace them at the scene of the accident proved abortive. Anyone with information should pls call 08033148161 or approach nearest police station.”

When contacted, Balogun had declined to state if they had gone to the Emergency and Trauma Centre at the old toll gate to look for the duo. She also declined to divulge whether they had reported the case to the police so the driver's number can be tracked. She, however, stated that as at 3pm, they were yet to know their whereabouts, as neither the driver nor the boy were back home.

However, the family was prevailed upon to share the picture of the driver to aid easy identification, and they obliged to release the picture that has since gone viral.

On Saturday morning, hope loomed following information that the boy had been found. But that was soon debunked by the family with another post calling for people to disregard the information.

Although many had urged the family to check with the emergency workers who had revealed that a minor was part of the dead, a check by THISDAY revealed that the minor among the dead persons was possibly a seven-year-old, thus could not be Eyitayo.

The suspicion on many minds is that the driver might have capitalised on the chaos to flee with the boy. But the state Police Public Relations Officer, Chike Oti, a Chief Superintendent of Police, said the police had not received any report of missing a person from the family, adding that only five persons have gone to the division to report that their cars were among the burnt ones.

Explosion It was exactly 5.30pm that Thursday, June 28, when the tanker fully laden with fuel fell while navigating the steep Otedola Bridge.

The contents began to spill on the ground.

In panic, motorists began to reverse as they attempted to zoom past. That however was their undoing. The fuel contents on the ground caught fire and spread like wildfire.

The exploded tanker at Otedola Bridge

By the time emergency workers arrived, no fewer than nine persons were dead and 54 vehicles, including a tricycle, were razed.

As expected, pandemonium was the order of the day after the tanker, which was fully laden with petrol, exploded and engulfed virtually all the cars around it and some of the occupants. While nine bodies were recovered as at press time, several others with varying degrees of injury were rescued and taken to the Accident and Emergency Centre for treatment. Some of the injured persons, who had experienced third degree burns, were given first aid treatment before they were rushed to the accident centre.

Eyewitness Although some motorists who were near the fallen tanker succeeded in fleeing before the explosion occurred, some others were not fortunate. Samson Ojo, an eyewitness told THISDAY, "I was driving inwards Lagos from Berger and was approaching the Otedola Bridge when the explosion went off.

"My first emotion was sheer panic as the

They were a few cars away from the tanker when the explosion occurred.

The driver (Mr. Joseph) carried Eyitayo while the mother escaped with Eyitoke (Eyitayo's twin).

The whereabouts of Eyitayo and Mr. Joseph is still unknown as all attempts to trace them at the scene of the accident proved abortive. Anyone with information should please call 08033148161 or approach nearest police station

entire axis shook as balls of flame erupted into the sky somewhere down the road. Like other motorists, I parked and came out to ascertain what happened. When some of us bravely made our way down, we saw people fleeing dell their cars as the fire was roaring. The screams of those in pain is not something I will forget in a hurry.

“We tried to do the little we could do to help put out the flames but nothing worked until the fire service trucks came and started dousing the flames one car after another. " Another eyewitness, Kehinde Osamor, said the casualty figure was less because people abandoned their cars and escaped. He said, "We were all trying to navigate the bridge when this same tanker driver tried to climb it. We don't know what happened but he suddenly started rolling back.

"Our immediate thought was to ensure he didn't roll over any of us and surprisingly, the tanker fell sideways and its content started spilling on the road. Some of us immediately left our cars and ran. Some people stayed put.

The next thing we heard was an explosion and cars caught fire. It was a race of the fittest."

Effect Meanwhile, the effect of the accident was not limited to the lives lost. It caused a heavy traffic jam that spilled over to virtually all major roads in Lagos, especially the ones leading to the bridge, on that day. Traffic spilled over from the bridge all the way down to Third Mainland Bridge and Oshodi Expressway and even major parts of Ikeja and Airport Road. When contacted that day, the RRS Commander, ACP Olatunji Disu, said preliminary investigation revealed that the tanker had difficulty in driving up the bridge.

Although he declined to give statistics on the casualty figure, he said several persons were injured and others dead.

Similarly, General Manager LASEMA, Adesina Tiamiyu, said the tanker was exiting Lagos when he lost control and fell on the bridge. He said, "The content spilled and it exploded. All the vehicles behind it caught fire and exacerbated the explosion.

"We got the distress call at our command center and quickly deployed to the scene. In collaboration with other emergency workers, we succeeded in rescuing four injured persons. While two out of the four were critically injured, the other two who were also injured received first aid treatment from LASAMBUS before they were rushed to the Accident and Emergency Centre along that axis to stabilise them."

While the injured were given first aid treatment before they were rushed to the hospital, the bodies of the deceased persons were taken to the morgue.

Crowd Control Immediately news of the fuel tanker accident broke, emergency agencies, including the Rapid Response Squad (RRS), the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), Lagos State Ambulance Services (LASAMBUS), Lagos Fire Service, Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA), and other secondary responders stormed the scene. While the emergency responders set out to rescue as many as they could, they literally picked up some of the dead bodies of the deceased persons, who had attempted to flee, on the ground. However, according to the emergency workers, one of the major challenges they had was the issue of crowd control, as the teeming crowd made rescue work extremely difficult. The rescue team had swung into action immediately but the curious crowd surged in too with their cameras, turning into citizen journalists.

Speaking on anonymity, one of the emergency workers said, "So instead of carrying out rescue operations and saving lives, we were forced to try to disperse the crowd first.

Although some of them genuinely wanted to help, others were more concerned about taking pictures, while there were yet those who came to scavenge amongst the death. It took the combined effort of the police from the division and the RRS to get a semblance of sanity before we swung into proper rescue work."

Fresh Accident Barely 22 hours after the Otedola Bridge accident, another accident happened in the same vicinity, involving two commercial vehicles. No fewer than 10 people sustained varying degrees of injury and were rushed to the hospital by emergency responders at the scene. Fortunately, no life was lost.

The commercial bus drivers, a yellow bus and a white Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) assisted mass transit bus, were said to be riding in opposite directions when their vehicles collided. Given last Thursday's explosion, the emergency workers and traffic agencies had blocked a section of that road to enable them cart off the carnage of the 54 burnt vehicles and a tricycle.

With that blockade, motorists from inward Lagos who were heading to outside Lagos and vice versa were directed to drive on one

37

T H I S D AY • WEDNESDAY JULY 4, 2018

CITYSTRINGS section of the road. Although the movement of cars on one lane expectedly caused a huge traffic snarl, the traffic agencies were able to control it. According to eyewitness account, the two drivers were impatient and attempted to pass at the same time and it resulted to a head-on collision. However, the impact of the clash affected the yellow commercial bus more than that FGN transit as it recorded more casualties. At the scene were emergency responders from the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Rapid Response Squad (RRS), the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), Lagos State Ambulance Services (LASAMBUS) and Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA).

Memory Lane Last Thursday’s tanker explosion was not the first of such accidents on Otedola Bridge.

About eight years ago, on August 25, 2010, a massive tanker explosion at the Otedola Bridge claimed 15 lives. The explosion also claimed an infant and left 18 others with varying degrees of injury, with 20 cars burnt beyond repairs. The multiple fatal motor accident was, allegedly, caused by policemen who had mounted an illegal road block on the highway. But this was denied by the police who said if there was actually a road block, the policemen on duty at the time of the accident would have formed part of the first victims of this carnage. But many eyewitnesses said the reckless driver of a trailer belonging to Dangote had suffered a break failure and lost control, and consequently rammed through a long line of vehicles before going up in flames.

With the furore the accident had aroused, roadblocks were then declared illegal.

Interestingly, eight years after the accident, no implementation of the coroner's inquest has been reported. The coroner had stated that the Dangote truck was at fault for not slowing down on the bridge, just as it blamed the police for mounting a roadblock, which made it impossible for vehicles to flee.

According to THISDAY's earlier report, one of the recommendations put forward by the coroner was that there should be a ‘slowdown sign’ along the bridge with distinct lane demarcations, where they would merge at the end of the bridge. But as it turned out, none of the recommendations has been taken seriously or put to use by the authority.

Pains of Relatives When accidents of such nature occur, it is usually the family members of the victims that bear the brunt. Given the culture of silence often surrounding such cases, it is often hard for the relatives of get accurate or even civil information from the authorities.

To even track the whereabouts of the injured and dead persons was Herculean task as the emergency responders withheld the information. After visiting several likely hospitals and meeting a brick wall, THISDAY was lucky to have stumbled into some of the relatives of the injured at Gbagada General Hospital. Although officials at the Trauma Centre and LASUTH claimed neither the dead nor injured victims were brought to their premises, it was learnt that five injured persons were actually transferred from the former to Gbagada General Hospital. While two men were moved to the emergency ward on Thursday night, a woman, Mrs. Ade Shittu, and a bus driver, Wasiu Olaitan, and another unidentified man were transferred to the hospital. Shittu, whose body was covered in bandages at the female ward, said the explosion occurred in less than a minute.

According to her, she was burnt while trying to run away from the scene.

She said: "I am a civil servant and had closed from work. I was in a commercial bus going home when the incident occurred.

I cannot really say what happened but we heard a loud noise and people were running.

"I got burnt while I was running from the bus. I thank God that I am alive. We were five that were brought to this place this morning.

I do not know where the other four are."

One of the relatives who besieged the hospital recounting the hours of horror said he trekked from Berger to the Trauma Centre in search of his family member. He said, "Yesterday was a terrible day but I thank God my wife survived it. I trekked from Berger to Trauma Centre and back.

"I cannot say the number of people that died to be honest. Most of the bodies were

Joseph, the driver (left) who disappeared with Eyitayo (right)

One of the victims of the blast

dismembered. Others have been burnt and turned to small objects. Those escalation equipment were carrying up charred bodies which makes it pretty difficult to put a figure to the dead bodies."

The wife of the bus driver, Mrs. Fadiat Olaitan, said her husband sustained minor burns on the arm, adding that she was yet to see him. Another relative, who spoke on conditions of anonymity, lamented that as at Friday evening, she was not allowed access to her husband. She said: "We have been in this hospital since morning that they

All tankers and containers coming into Lagos State from henceforth are directed to obtain the Ministry of Transportation Certificate of Road Worthiness at any of or centres within the next 30 days, while new centres along the LagosIbadan Expressway will be established to quickly to cope with the expected demand for this service

brought them here but the workers did not allow us in. They were brought in from the Trauma Centre. My husband was seriously burnt. At the Trauma Centre, they took care of them before bringing them here. You can see the number of people outside. We have not been allowed in."

On the possibility of mass burial, one of the relatives at the Gbagada hospital said they were told the dead were burnt beyond recognition, while a good number were dismembered by rescue equipment. However, a government source said ordering a DNA to ascertain their identities was not impossible.

Uncontrolled Tanker Operation As with many traffic regulations, the ban on tankers from plying the roads at certain hours of the day has been continually flouted with security agencies generally turning a blind eye.

But the Lagos State Government at the weekend clarified the section of the Road Traffic Law 2012 which restricts trailers and long vehicles from plying the metropolis between the hours of 6am and 9pm. The government said while Section 2 of the Traffic Law restricts movement of trailers and long vehicles, only petrol tankers and long vehicles used in conveying passengers were allowed to travel within the metropolis between the stipulated time. It also stated that vehicles with more than one real axle or six tyres are hereby restricted between the hours of 6am and 9pm with the exemption of the following in accordance with Section 2 and 38 of the Road Traffic Law 2012.

These exemptions were tour bus/passenger buses, fire service trucks, rescue and recovery trucks, patrol trucks, perishable farm products trucks, refuse collection trucks, cement mixer trucks, tractors and refrigerated trucks.

New Measures The Lagos State government has announced some stringent measures that restrict the movement of fuel tankers to designated trailer routes.The government also said it was now mandatory for all articulated trucks coming into Lagos to obtain the Ministry of Transportation’s Road Worthiness Certificate at any of the designated centres within the next 30 days.

Addressing a joint press briefing at the Bagauda Kaltho Press Centre in Alausa after meeting with the relevant stakeholders including Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG), Association of Maritime Truck Owners (AMATO), Petroleum Tanker Drivers (PTD), National Association of Transport Operators (NATO), Container Truck Owners Association of Nigeria, among others, the state’s Commissioner for Transportation, Ladi Lawanson, said the decision became necessary following preliminary investigations into the incident which revealed a combination of vehicular defect and human errors.

Lawanson said, “As an immediate response to the latest incident, the Lagos State Government hereby announces the following measures: fuel tankers are hereby directed to ply the designated trailer route, that is, Apapa-Oworonshoki Expressway via Ogudu to Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.

“All tankers and containers coming into Lagos State from henceforth are directed to obtain the Ministry of Transportation Certificate of Road Worthiness at any of or centres within the next 30 days, while new centres along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway will be established to quickly to cope with the expected demand for this service.”

He listed the 10 centres currently available to process the applications to include Berger, Ojodu; Odogunyan, Ikorodu; Agric/Ishawo Road, Ikorodu; Worksyard, PWD, Shogunle; NCI, Gbagada; VIS Yard, Oko-Afo, Badagry; VIS Yard, Ayobo-Ipaja; Test Centre, Badagry; VIS Yard, Epe; and VIS Yard, Oko-Oba Abattoir.

Lawanson, who addressed the briefing alongside heads of government agencies and the stakeholders, said preliminary investigation revealed that the affected tanker which exploded was registered in Nasarawa Local Government, Kano State, with registration number NSR 888 YC, and had changed ownership 13 times since purchase. He said further investigation into the current ownership of the tanker and other related details were progressing.

He said, “It (the tanker) was manufactured in 1999 by Mack Trucks Inc at its assembly plant in Winnsboro, United States. This truck was designed as a 14,959kg (approximately 15 ton) drilling rig with low bed, but it was converted in Nigeria from a drilling rig to fuel tank carrier to carry 30 tonnes. From this preliminary investigation, the truck should not have been loaded to the weight of 30 tonnes, which is twice its pulling capacity."

On suggestion of restriction of operation of tankers to certain hours, the commissioner said having critically examined the issue especially considering the fact that imported petroleum products are pumped from import jetties at Atlas Cove through pipelines to Ejigbo Depots in Lagos, Mosimi (Ogun), Ibadan (Oyo), Ilorin (Kwara) and Ore (Ondo), and due to pipeline vandalism, any restriction of such would undermine supplies and threaten the wellbeing of the Nigerian economy since there is high demand for petroleum products across the country.

“This position has also been canvassed by the authorities in charge of the distribution of petroleum products in the consultations which followed the incident and at a time of great expectations for our economy to fully bounce back from recession, we believe that ensuring unhindered supply of petroleum products is indeed a patriotic contribution by Lagos State to the nation’s economic survival,” Lawanson said.

He, however, disclosed that the state government was already exploring alternative modes of transportation of petroleum products to separate passenger traffic from cargo movements within the metropolis in the interest of the public safety and order.

He also said that government, in partnership with all the stakeholders, would set up joint-enforcement of the operating laws, while barriers would be installed on bridges in Lagos to prevent articulated trucks including Ojuelegba, Mobolaji Bank Anthony, Ekodeso, Abule-Egba, Lekki-Ajah, among others.

T H I S D AY ˞ ˜ JULY 4, 2018

38

BUSINESS/MONEYGUIDE

‘Inserted Projects in 2018 Budget Will Derail ERGP’ Ugo Aliogo BudgIT, a civic organisation yesterday warned that the projects inserted into the 2018 budget by members of the National Assembly are fragmented, difficult to track, adding that the action will derail the federal government’s Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP).

The organisation noted this in a statement made available to THISDAY yesterday.

According to BudgIT, the 6,529 new projects valued at N579.08 billion that were inserted into the 2018 budget, cannot be directly linked to the medium-term aspirations of the government as highlighted in the ERGP. Furthermore, the group pointed out that the inserted projects showed that N63.64 billion or approximately 11 per cent of the new projects added by the National Assembly would be spent on various training and capacity building programmes in 2018.

According to BudgIT, given

that the budget would be largely funded by borrowings as highlighted in the 2018 fiscal plan, it was disheartening to discover that most of the identified line items therein showed a significant disconnect from the developmental goals of government, as stated in the ERGP. It also expressed displeasure over the number of microprojects added by the NASS that may not fall within the core scope of the federal government.

The body also noticed that the new projects inserted into the budget were fragmented, “and budget line items are accompanied with vague descriptions that would prove difficult to monitor in physical and auditing terms.�

They added, “It is equally essential for the National Assembly to explain the rationale behind the increased allocations to itself as such cannot be justified given the abysmal distribution to the education and health sector, considering that NASS increased its budgetary allocation from N125 billion to

N139.5 billion. “We also observed that projects valued at N13.16 billion were cancelled altogether without detailed explanation by the national assembly. Some of the critical projects removed from the 2018 budget included N200.3 million meant to settle arrears under the national telephony programme; N100 million allocated for the establishment of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) University and the N1.2 billion allocated under the proposed budget for the construction of the Zauro Polder Irrigation project. “Equally shocking is the fact that allocations to over 4,621 projects were reduced by approximately N318.89 billion without citations. BudgIT welcomes the addition of N55.15 billion to the health sector under the National Health Act. While the amount falls short of the one per cent consolidated revenue fund (above N70bn), we see the allocation as the critical starting point and urge Nigerians and critical stakeholders to monitor its implementation.

L-R : FBNQuest Merchant Bank oďŹƒcial, Ngozi Abraham-Jumbo; Head, Port-Harcourt Business OďŹƒce, Sunday Omoniwa; Matron, Port-Harcourt Children’s Home, Mrs. Gift Eke and FBNQuest Merchant Bank’s Ola Okoya, during a visit by FBNQuest Merchant Bank to the organisation in Port-Harcourt...recently

MARKET INDICATORS MONEY AND CREDIT STATISTICS

Elumelu, Macron Meet African Entrepreneurs The President of the French Republic, Emmanuel Macron, who is in Nigeria on a working visit, will today be interacting with more than 2,000 budding entrepreneurs from Africa.

These entrepreneurs are alumni of the Tony Elumelu Foundation(TEF) Entrepreneurship Programme.

The session will be chaired by the Chairman of the United Bank for Africa (UBA) and Founder TEF, Mr. Tony Elumelu, and will give African entrepreneurs a platform to closely engage with Macron and garner ideas from his experience as one of the youngest Heads of State in recent times.

According to a statement, the session would also provide a platform where participants can

network and forge partnerships with French and African business leaders and policymakers who will be in attendance.

Speaking ahead of the event, Elumelu was quoted as saying the collaboration between the French President and TEF was a result of Macron’s acknowledgement that African entrepreneurs remains key to the continent’s economic transformation, and his desire to connect with and elevate the voices of future leaders.

Elumelu added: “We welcome President Macron of France to meet our entrepreneurs, over 2,000 of them from across Africa. Macron is a new kind of leader. He brings the discipline of the

private sector and understands the social obligations of the state. He speaks to Africa as a strategic partner and most importantly, he is a champion of entrepreneurship. “I, alongside, President Macron, will engage with these entrepreneurs in an interactive session, where we will discuss challenges of business in the private sector and solutions to create more benefits for the success of entrepreneurship. It promises to be an inspirational session,� Elumelu added.

The TEF Founder’s $100 million commitment to identify, train, mentor and fund 10,000 entrepreneurs from across Africa has touched the lives of over 4000 African entrepreneurs thus far.

Again, CBN Intervenes with $210m In line with its desire to ensure liquidity in the foreign exchange market as well as to meet customers’ requests in various segments of the market, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) yesterday injected another sum of $210 million into the interbank foreign exchange market.

Figures obtained from the bank indicate that the CBN offered $100 million to authorised dealers in the wholesale segment

of the market, while the small and medium scale enterprises (SMEs) segment received the sum of $55 million. Customers requiring foreign exchange for invisibles such as tuition fees, medical payments and Basic Travel Allowance (BTA), among others, were also allocated the sum of $55 million.

The bank’s Acting Director, Corporate Communications Department (CCD), Mr. Isaac

Okorafor, confirmed the figures and reassured the public that the central bank would continue to intervene in the interbank foreign exchange market in line with its quest to sustain liquidity in the market and maintain stability.

Meanwhile, the naira continued its stability in the foreign exchange market, exchanging at an average of N360/$1 in the BDC segment yesterday.

NDIC Partners Uganda Deposit Protection Fund on Capacity Building The Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) is assisting the Uganda Deposit Protection Fund (DPFU) to develop capacity to implement the Deposit Insurance System (DIS) in the East African country.

A statement yesterday revealed that the corporation recently hosted a five-member delegation from DPFU who arrived Nigeria to understudy the activities of the NDIC. “The NDIC has been the destination of choice for several

sister agencies and central banks from across the African continent eager to understudy the activities of the corporation and learn from its rich experience in deposit insurance – a subject on which it is recognized as a leader in Africa,� it added.

The Ugandan team was only the latest delegation from several Africa countries to visit the corporation for capacity building, the statement added.

The NDIC had previously hosted delegations from the

Reserve Bank of Malawi, Reserve Bank of Lesotho, Deposit Protection Fund Board of Kenya, Deposit Insurance Board of Tanzania, Commission Bancaire del’Afrique Centrale (COBAC) of Cameroun, Delegates from Banque Centrale Des Etats De L’ Afrique De L’ Ouest (BCEAO) in Senegal all of whom the NDIC assisted build the capacity for the implementation of the Deposit Insurance System (DIS) in their various jurisdictions.

(MILLION NAIRA)

MARCH 2018 Broad Money (M2)

24,303,049.86

-- Narrow Money (M1)

10,912,604.10

---- Currency Outside Banks

1,668,378.21

---- Demand Deposits

9,244,225.90

-- Quasi Money

13,390,445.76

Net Foreign Assets (NFA)

15,619,134.18

Net Domestic Assets(NDA)

8,683,915.68

-- Net Domestic Credit (NDC)

26,267,136.53

---- Credit to Government (Net)

3,823,345.45

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

5,433,209.43

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

-1,609,863.98

---- Credit to Private Sector (CPS)

22,443,791.08

--Other Assets Net

-17,583,220.85

Reserve Money (Base Money)

6,746,646.49

--Currency in Circulation

1,668,378.21

--Banks Reserves

4,357,551.58 Ëž Ă™Ă&#x;ĂœĂ?Ă? Ě‹

Money Market Indicators (in Percentage) Month

March 2018

Inter-Bank Call Rate

15.16

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

14.00

Treasury Bill Rate

11.84

Savings Deposit Rate

4.07

1 Month Deposit Rate

8.82

3 Months Deposit Rate

9.72

6 Months Deposit Rate

10.93

12 Months Deposit Rate

10.21

Prime Lending rate

17.35

Maximum Lending Rate

31.55

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

OPEC DAILY BASKET PRICE AS AT MODAY JULY 2, 2018

The price of OPEC basket of fourteen crudes stood at $75.28 a barrel on Monday, compared with $75.69 the previous Friday, according to OPEC Secretariat calculations.

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

39

T H I S D AY Ëž Ëœ Í˛Ëœ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍś

MARKET NEWS

Equities Market Remains Bearish on Continuing Negative Sentiments Goddy Egene The bearish run continued on the stock market yesterday, depressing market the indicators further.

Specifically, the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) All-Share Index fell 0.90 per cent to close lower at 37,605.12, following the persisted negative sentiments among investors. The decline for the second day has pushed the year-to-date(ytd) decline of

the market to 1.6 per cent.

In all, 28 stocks depreciated, while 13 appreciated. Market analysts attributed the negative performance to losses suffered by heavy counters such as Dangote Cement Plc, Zenith Bank Plc, GTBank Plc, FBN Holdings Plc among others.

However, Jaiz Bank Plc led the price losers with 10 per cent, followed by Omoluabi Mortgage Bank Plc with 9.8 per cent. Cornerstone Insurance Plc

P R I C E S MAIN BOARD

F O R DEALS

shed 9.3 per cent, while May & Baker Nigeria Plc and A.G Leventis Nigeria Plc went down by 8.8 per cent and 6.1 per cent respectively.

Other top price losers included: Fidelity Bank Plc (5.9 per cent); Cadbury Nigeria Plc and Honeywell Flour Mills Plc (5.3 per cent) Flour Mills of Nigeria Plc and Honeywell Flour Mills Plc, which have released their full year results ended March 31, 2018 were also among the

S E C U R I T I E S

MARKET PRICE

QUANTITY TRADED

VALUE TRADED ( N )

price losers.

In its results, Flour Mills of Nigeria Plc grew its revenue by a marginal 3.5 per cent to N542.670 billion, compared with N524.64 billion in 2017. But profit before tax improved from N10.473 billion to N16.546 billion, while profit after tax settled at N13.615 billion in 2018 compared with N8.836 billion in 2016. The board of directors recommended a dividend of 100 kobo per share.

T R A D E D MAIN BOARD

A S

For Honeywell Flour Mills Plc, revenue rose by 34 per cent to N71.476 billion from N53.228 billion in 2017.

However, profit before tax stood at N5.469 billion, compared with N4.872 billion, while it ended with a profit after tax of N4.427 billion as against N4.305 billion. The board recommended a dividend of N476 million, which is six kobo per share and the same paid last year. Despite the announcements of the results,

O F

the stocks closed among the price losers yesterday.

On the positive side, Prestige Assurance Plc led with 9.4 per cent as investors went bargain hunting in insurance sector. Royal Exchange Plc trailed with 9.0 per cent, just as Redstar Express Plc and Custodian Investment Plc chalked up 7.4 per cent. Mutual Benefits Assurance Plc and Beta Glass Plc and Unilever Nigeria Plc garnered 5.8 per cent, 4.8 per cent, 4.7 per cent in that order.

0 3 / 0 7 / 2 0 1 8 DEALS

MARKET PRICE

QUANTITY TRADED

VALUE TRADED ( N)

WEDNESDAY, Ͳ˜ ͺ͸͹Ͷ ˾ T H I S D AY

40

Nigeria Daily Stock Market Report: Wednesday, July 4, 2018

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

Ticker

1

THISDAY AFRINVEST 40 1,564.87

-1.07%

39.60

-1.0%

20.5%

24.00

-2.4%

12.0%

-6.4%

113.90

0.7%

7.5%

-15.6%

1,510.00

-4.1%

7.7%

-3.0%

222.80

-0.6%

5.9%

ROE

ROA

P/E

P/BV

Divinden Earnings d Yield Yield

1.4%

56.5%

19.4%

7.0%

7.5x

0.9x

5.3%

10.9%

-2.8%

-2.3%

32.6%

5.2%

6.4x

2.2x

6.8%

15.6%

-7.4%

26.3%

3.6%

4.0x

1.0x

11.2%

24.9%

-15.7%

17.4%

n

28.6x

4.8x

3.6%

3.5%

-3.0%

73.3%

18.9%

35.2x

22.4x

2.8%

2.8%

-3.1%

-3.1%

22.7%

12.0%

19.3x

4.5x

4.7%

5.2%

2

Zenith Bank PLC

3

Nigerian Brew eries PLC

4

Nestle Nigeria PLC

5

Dangote Cement PLC

6

FBN Holdings Plc

10.50

-0.9%

6.5%

19.3%

19.5%

6.7%

0.8%

7.6x

0.6x

2.4%

13.2%

7

Access Bank PLC

10.35

0.0%

4.4%

-1.0%

-2.4%

12.7%

1.5%

5.1x

0.7x

6.3%

19.6%

8.2%

8

United Bank for Africa PLC

10.30

-1.9%

4.3%

0.0%

-1.1%

15.9%

1.9%

4.6x

0.7x

9

Ecobank Transnational Inc

20.00

-0.2%

3.8%

17.6%

22.9%

12.9%

1.0%

6.6x

0.9x

10

SEPLAT Petroleum Development C

650.00

0.0%

3.2%

3.8%

3.8%

22.3%

13.2%

3.3x

0.7x

2.8%

30.0%

52.05

0.1%

3.6%

25.4%

27.3%

30.8%

4.1%

9.9x

2.7x

1.0%

10.1% 3.4%

22.0% 15.1%

11

Stanbic IBTC Holdings PLC

12

Unilever Nigeria PLC

55.00

4.8%

3.4%

34.1%

36.8%

19.2%

8.0%

29.4x

4.0x

0.9%

13

Guinness Nigeria PLC

99.05

0.0%

2.4%

5.4%

5.4%

15.4%

6.1%

18.9x

2.5x

0.7%

5.3%

14

Lafarge Africa PLC

39.45

-3.7%

1.4%

-12.1%

-12.1%

-36.8%

-7.7%

2.2x

3.8%

-15.6%

5.2%

15

Fidelity Bank PLC

2.08

-5.5%

1.0%

-15.4%

-19.4%

10.4%

1.4%

1.6x

0.3x

16

Oando PLC

6.45

-2.3%

1.4%

7.7%

7.7%

10.3%

1.5%

8.0x

0.5x

17

Dangote Sugar Refinery PLC

18.15

-4.5%

1.0%

-9.3%

-10.9%

45.0%

20.0%

5.4x

2.0x

13.8%

18.5%

18

Okomu Oil Palm PLC

92.00

0.0%

1.5%

35.9%

35.9%

39.7%

29.4%

9.2x

3.1x

3.4%

10.9%

19

International Brew eries PLC

42.35

0.0%

0.6%

-22.3%

-23.0%

24.6%

7.4%

44.3x

10.1x

20

Flour Mills of Nigeria PLC

32.75

-0.2%

0.7%

12.9%

12.9%

13.1%

3.0%

7.2x

0.8x

3.1%

14.0%

21

Transnational Corp of Nigeria

1.33

-0.7%

0.5%

-8.9%

-10.1%

11.2%

2.5%

8.1x

0.8x

1.5%

12.3%

22

UAC of Nigeria PLC

14.00

0.0%

0.5%

-17.2%

-17.2%

1.5%

0.6%

22.8x

0.6x

4.6%

23

Diamond Bank PLC

1.38

0.0%

0.5%

-8.0%

-12.1%

-5.8%

-0.7%

24

Total Nigeria PLC

210.00

0.0%

0.5%

-8.7%

-8.7%

25.0%

5.3%

2.08

-1.0%

0.7%

31.6%

5.8%

0.9%

4.0x

0.2x

4.8%

25.2%

190.00

-5.0%

0.5%

-2.4%

-2.4%

38.8%

15.7%

6.8x

2.3x

4.2%

14.7%

5.1%

2.3%

0.1x 10.2x

61.2% 12.5%

4.4% -53.0%

2.4x

8.1%

9.8%

25

FCMB Group Plc

26

11 PLC

27

Forte Oil PLC

29.00

-2.2%

0.3%

-33.3%

-31.0%

17.6%

1.6%

15.6x

2.4x

28

PZ Cussons Nigeria PLC

20.70

0.0%

0.4%

0.5%

-2.1%

10.7%

5.0%

19.6x

2.0x

2.7%

29

Cadbury Nigeria PLC

12.10

-6.9%

0.3%

-22.8%

-22.4%

2.0%

0.8%

56.5x

1.9x

1.3%

1.8%

30

Presco PLC

75.10

0.0%

0.4%

9.6%

9.6%

35.8%

24.8%

3.1x

1.0x

2.7%

32.1%

31

NASCON Allied Industries PLC

22.75

0.0%

0.4%

23.0%

18.4%

52.3%

19.7%

10.7x

4.8x

6.7%

9.3%

32

UPDC Real Estate Investment Tr

10.00

0.0%

0.3%

0.0%

0.0%

0.8x

7.2%

33

Union Bank of Nigeria PLC

6.00

0.0%

0.3%

-23.1%

-20.1%

5.3%

1.1%

8.6x

0.6x

34

Julius Berger Nigeria PLC

28.05

0.0%

0.3%

0.2%

0.2%

17.3%

1.8%

7.8x

1.2x

3.6%

12.9%

35

Sterling Bank PLC

10.7%

1.0%

4.2x

0.4x

1.4%

24.0%

1.3x

2.0%

1.39

-0.7%

0.3%

28.7%

23.0%

10.00

-1.0%

0.2%

-17.7%

-17.7%

6.4%

11.6%

36

Dangote Flour Mills Plc

37

GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Niger

19.00

0.0%

0.2%

-12.1%

-12.1%

4.4%

2.8%

30.0x

1.3x

39.5%

3.3%

38

Chemical and Allied Products P

35.00

0.0%

0.2%

2.9%

-2.0%

66.2%

30.2%

16.4x

10.9x

5.9%

6.1%

39

Beta Glass PLC

90.45

4.8%

0.2%

76.3%

76.3%

17.7%

11.5%

11.0x

1.8x

1.2%

9.1%

7.45

0.0%

0.1%

3.3%

3.3%

5.3%

2.9%

19.5x

1.0x

1.8%

5.1%

40

Transcorp Hotels Plc

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

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

P ric e

P ric e C hg %

0.58

9.4%

T ic k er

P R EST IGE R OYA LEX

0.36 6.50

8.3%

C UST OD IA N

5.50

7.4%

M B EN EF IT

0.36

5.9%

B ET A GLA S

90.45

4.8%

UN ILEVER

55.00

N EM UN IT YB N K H M A R KIN S

0.0%

Z EN IT H B A N K

1 6.5

-2.4%

GUA R A N T Y

1 3.0

-1 .0%

A C C ESS

1 2.9

0.0%

FB NH

1 0.8

-0.9%

N EM

8.5

4.6%

4.8%

H ON YF LOUR

7.1

-5.3%

3.40

4.6%

UB A

6.3

-1 .9%

1.10

3.8%

D IA M ON D B N K

6.2

0.0%

0.29

3.6%

F ID ELIT YB K

5.5

-5.9%

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

P ric e

P ric e C hg %

0.63

-10.0%

T ic k er

J A IZ B A N K C OR N ER ST

P ric e C hg %

1 00.0

T o p 10 L o s e r s T ic k er

Vo lum e

M ULT IVER SE

9.1%

R ED ST A R EX

Value

P ric e C hg %

GUA R A N T Y

516.0

-1 .0%

D A N GC EM

481.3

-0.6%

Z EN IT H B A N K

403.3

-2.4%

NB

227.0

0.7%

N EST LE

1 73.5

-4.1 %

0.29

-9.4%

M A YB A KER

2.05

-8.9%

A GLEVEN T

0.46

-6.1%

F ID ELIT YB K

2.07

-5.9%

C A D B UR Y

12.30

-5.4%

A C C ESS

1 33.0

0.0%

H ON YF LOUR M OB IL

N EST LE

(A Dealing Member of the Nigerian Stock Exchange)

Price Price Previous Current Change Price Weightin Change Index to YTD g Change Date

Guaranty Trust Bank PLC

SKYEB A N K

Afrinvest Securities Limited (RC 603 315)

Current Price

1.96

-5.3%

FB NH

1 1 4.0

-0.9%

190.00

-5.0%

UN ILEVER

91.8

4.8%

0.66

-4.3%

UB A

66.0

-1 .9%

1510.00

-4.1%

ST A N B IC

65.9

0.1 %

Investment Research

Brokerage Ayodeji Ebo | aebo@afrinvest.com

Robert Omotunde | romotunde@afrinvest.com

Bolaji Fajenyo | bfajenyo@afrinvest.com

Eronmosele Aziba | eaziba@afrinvest.com

41

˾ WEDNESDAY, JULY 4, 2018

MARKET NEWS

Honeywell Flour Posts Marginal Profit Growth on High Financing Cost Goddy Egene The jump of 64 per cent in financing cost affected the profitability of Honeywell Flour Mills Plc(HFMP) for the year ended March 31, 2018. Although the company recorded a growth of 34 per cent in revenue, it ended the year with a marginal growth of 2.8 per cent in profit after tax.

However, the board of directors recommended a dividend of N476 million, which translates to six kobo per share.

An analysis of the audited

results of HFMP showed that it recorded a revenue of N71.476 billion in 2018, up by 34 per cent from N53.228 billion in 2017. In line with the high cost of doing business in the country, cost of sales increased from N40.5 billion to N55.422 billion. Gross profit stood at N16.052 billion, up from N12.713 billion the previous year.

Other income fell from N1.212 billion to N202 million. The company tried and reduced administrative expenses from N2.243 billion

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

to N2.059 billion. However, finance cost jumped by 64 per cent from N2.792 billion to N4.605 billion.

Consequently, profit before tax stood at N5.469 billion, compared with N4.872 billion, while it ended with a profit after tax of N4.427 billion as against N4.305 billion. The board has recommended a dividend of N476 million, which is six kobo per share and the same paid last year.

Addressing shareholders last year, the Chairman of HFMP, Oba Otudeko, said

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 2-July-2018, unless otherwise stated.

the improved performance for 2017 year stemmed from relentless focus on lower cost sourcing for raw materials and foreign exchange and increased efficiency in manufacturing.

“Our results show continued growth and a substantial step-up in profitability despite the volatile economic environment. It was achieved largely through improved efficiency. Our manufacturing function drove further efficiencies through continuous improvement projects that enhanced engineering and

plant maintenance processes and ensured higher levels of production efficiency,”Otudeko said.

He assured shareholders of the board and management’s dedication, diligence and commitment to the company’s mission, which is to produce consistently good quality flour and other wheat based products for the complete satisfaction of its highly valued customers and consumers.

Also speaking, Managing Director of the company, Mr. Lanre Jaiyeola, noted that

the company was making significant changes to its business in order to lay a better platform for the years ahead.

“In FY2018 and on the heels of an improving economic environment, we expect to record further improvements in performance, reigniting our growth agenda and extracting increased efficiency and cost reduction through a recently launched company-wide transformation and continuous improvement programme,.”

Jaiyeola said.

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 185.51 187.25 4.67% Nigeria International Debt Fund 250.77 252.56 8.73% 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 0.84 0.85 2.11% ACAP Income Funds 0.64 0.64 6.89% 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 13.00% ARM INVESTMENT MANAGERS LTD enquiries@arminvestmentcenter.com Web: www.arm.com.ng; Tel: 0700 CALLARM (0700 225 5276) Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn ARM Aggressive Growth Fund N/A N/A N/A ARM Discovery Fund N/A N/A N/A ARM Ethical Fund N/A N/A N/A ARM Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A AXA MANSARD INVESTMENTS LIMITED investmentcare@axamansard.com Web: www.axamansard.com; Tel: +2341-4488482 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn AXA Mansard Equity Income Fund N/A N/A N/A AXA Mansard Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A 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 N/A N/A N/A Paramount Equity Fund N/A N/A N/A Women's Investment Fund N/A N/A N/A CORDROS ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED assetmgtteam@cordros.com Web: www.cordros.com, Tel: 019036947 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Cordros Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 12.69% 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 12.24% Coronation Balanced Fund 1.15 1.18 10.10% Coronation Fixed Income Fund 1.14 1.17 9.69% 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 1,168.13 1,168.93 8.08% FBN Heritage Fund 147.83 149.10 5.61% FBN Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 12.22% FBN Nigeria Eurobond (USD) Fund - Institutional $112.33 $112.50 1.72% FBN Nigeria Eurobond (USD) Fund - Retail $111.91 $112.08 1.67% FBN Nigeria Smart Beta Equity Fund 176.55 179.14 9.82% 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 1.39 1.42 6.64% Legacy Debt Fund 3.08 3.08 6.56% FSDH ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD coralfunds@fsdhgroup.com Web: www.fsdhaml.com; Tel: 01-270 4884-5; 01-280 9740-1 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Coral Growth Fund N/A N/A N/A Coral Income Fund N/A N/A N/A GREENWICH ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED assetmanagement@gtlgroup.com Web: www.gtlgroup.com ; Tel: +234 1 4619261-2 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Greenwich Plus Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A 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 12.66% Vantage Balanced Fund 2.17 2.19 2.83% Vantage Guaranteed Income Fund 1.00 1.00 14.18% Kedari Investment Fund (KIF) 120.69 121.04 4.93%

LOTUS CAPITAL LTD fincon@lotuscapitallimited.com Web: www.lotuscapitallimited.com; Tel: +234 1-291 4626 / +234 1-291 4624 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Lotus Halal Investment Fund 1.20 1.22 4.56% Lotus Halal Fixed Income Fund 1,078.71 1,078.71 6.94% 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 1.35 1.37 13.28% PACAM Fixed Income Fund 11.82 11.87 7.01% PACAM Money Market Fund 10.00 10.00 11.88% SCM CAPITAL LIMITED info@scmcapitalng.com Web: www.scmcapitalng.com; Tel: +234 1-280 2226,+234 1- 280 2227 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn SCM Capital Frontier Fund 133.48 135.88 3.66% SFS CAPITAL NIGERIA LTD investments@sfsnigeria.com Web: www.sfsnigeria.com, Tel: +234 (01) 2801400 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn SFS Fixed Income Fund 1.60 1.60 7.82% 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 2,392.38 2,412.59 6.67% Stanbic IBTC Bond Fund 186.58 186.58 5.74% Stanbic IBTC Ethical Fund 1.05 1.06 4.46% Stanbic IBTC Guaranteed Investment Fund 239.87 239.92 8.92% Stanbic IBTC Iman Fund 186.05 188.16 3.89% Stanbic IBTC Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 12.26% Stanbic IBTC Nigerian Equity Fund 9,861.88 9,996.10 1.99% Stanbic IBTC Dollar Fund (USD) 1.10 1.10 3.71% 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 N/A N/A N/A United Capital Bond Fund N/A N/A N/A United Capital Equity Fund N/A N/A N/A United Capital Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A United Capital Eurobond Fund N/A N/A N/A United Capital Wealth for Women Fund N/A N/A N/A 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 13.16 13.37 5.17% Zenith Ethical Fund 13.93 14.08 5.56% Zenith Income Fund 20.46 20.46 8.10% Zenith Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 12.82%

REITS NAV Per Share

Yield / T-Rtn

N/A 136.51 N/A 51.30

N/A 3.06% N/A 0.92%

Bid Price

Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

12.32 151.60 111.92

12.42 154.75 113.96

1.63% 6.11% 2.42%

Fund Name FSDH UPDC Real Estate Investment Fund SFS Skye Shelter Fund Nigeria Infrastructure Debt 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 Griffin 30 Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva Industrial Goods Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva S&P Nigeria Sovereign Bond Exchange Traded Fund

funds@vetiva.com Bid Price

Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

4.69 9.23 17.82 19.78 145.16

4.73 9.31 17.92 19.98 147.16

-1.01% -3.57% 1.76% 0.55% 6.08%

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.

42

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T H I S D AY ˾ WEDNESDAY JULY 4, 2018

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Ë&#x153; ÍźË&#x153; ͺ͸͚͜ Ëž T H I S D AY

47

FOREIGN/DIPLOMATIC AFFAIRS

Foreign/Diplomatic Editor: VINCENT OBIA vincent.obia@thisdaylive.com 0805 468 1757

In Brief Pompeo, Lavrov Call U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, in a call on Tuesday, discussed the upcoming meeting between President Donald Trump and President Vladimir Putin as well as Syria and North Korea, the U.S. State Department said in a statement.

Trump and Putin plan to meet on July 16 in Helsinki.

Malaysia Ex-PMâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Arrest

US President Donald J. Trump and British Prime Minister Theresa May participate in a joint press conference in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC, USA, 27 January 2017.

Photo credit: EPA-EFE

Independence Day: July 4 Means Something Very Different When Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Celebrated in Britain Sam Edwards

T

his yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s July 4 celebrations will come freighted with rather more complexity than usual, and on both sides of the Atlantic too. 2018â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s commemoration of independence from British rule will take place just nine days before Donald Trump crosses the Atlantic for talks with his British counterpart, Theresa May. The two will follow the annual celebration of severance with a performance of togetherness: as Independence Day makes way for the special relationship.

Given Trumpâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s remarkably poor grasp of history â&#x20AC;&#x201C; this is a man who recently asked if the Canadians had burned down the White House in 1814 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll quite probably be oblivious to any such tensions between the upcoming events of July 4 and those of July 13 (the date of his visit to London). But if his advisers take a glance at the history books to think through this coincidence of timing, they might be pleasantly surprised. While many Americans unambiguously celebrate July 4 as a national event marking independence from the â&#x20AC;&#x153;mother countryâ&#x20AC;?, in Britain the day has long been a chance to celebrate Anglo-American ties. How can it be both?

It all comes down to exactly how you understand the origins and cause of the American Revolution. For many Americans, the War of Independence was a righteous conflict against a tyrannical and perfidious enemy, the narrative of independence famously celebrated in films such as The Patriot. In this view, the founding fathers were exceptional and exemplary Americans, leading heroic yeoman farmers in the cause of national independence from the British Empire.

The problem with this idea is that it wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t until relatively late in the day, towards the middle of the 1770s, that colonial American leaders actually set themselves firmly on the cause of full independence. And even when they did, many still found it difficult to shed completely their identities as â&#x20AC;&#x153;Englishmenâ&#x20AC;?

overseas, while a significant proportion of the American population remained either loyal to the Crown throughout, or tried to avoid choosing a side for as long as possible.

Hence those leading the revolution were initially so keen to claim that they fought for the legitimate rights of â&#x20AC;&#x153;Englishmenâ&#x20AC;?: not to be taxed without consent, the right to rule by elected representatives. Even George Washington, commander-in-chief of the Continental Army and later the first president, thought himself a loyal Englishman until well into the 1770s.

In later years, such ideas faded from view.

Washington was elevated to the status of American demi-god, and during the 19th century, July

4 developed its modern form and function: an assertive national ritual which celebrated American difference and distinction. Even so, the older idea that independence was originally an â&#x20AC;&#x153;Englishâ&#x20AC;? cause lingered here and there, embedded in the much celebrated language used by Thomas Jefferson in the Declaration of Independence (which suggested his schooling in certain ideals of â&#x20AC;&#x153;Anglo-Saxonâ&#x20AC;? rights), in the structures of the US Constitution (including the two-house political system), and in the judicial systemâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s roots in English Common Law. This all meant that when the US and Great Britain later developed increasingly close diplomatic connections, July 4 was ripe for re-interpretation.

The Best of Friends

T

he key moment came on July 4, 1918, as Americans and Britons fought as allies on the Western Front. In London, various influential figures took the opportunity to revisit the history of American independence. For instance, Winston Churchill, later the most famous advocate for a â&#x20AC;&#x153;special relationshipâ&#x20AC;?, delighted in telling an audience of Anglo-American dignitaries that Britons were now â&#x20AC;&#x153;glad to know that an English colony declared itself independent under a German kingâ&#x20AC;?. As he gave this speech, government buildings across London and the British Empire proudly flew the Stars and Stripes.

British claims on American independence continued in the years that followed. In 1921, Lord Curzon, the foreign secretary, happily proclaimed Washington a â&#x20AC;&#x153;great Englishmanâ&#x20AC;? while dedicating a statue of the first president in Trafalgar Square. Much the same sentiment was heard a few days earlier when a gathering of politicians and diplomats opened Washingtonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ancestral home in Northamptonshire, Sulgrave Manor, as an Anglo-American shrine.

By the time of the bicentennial of American independence in 1976, the British political elite were well prepared to meet the challenge of celebrating July 4. In a masterstroke of political

symbolism, the government gifted to the US a copy of the Magna Carta. The message was clear: while Jeffersonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s famous text appeared to mark a moment of transatlantic severance, in actual fact it revealed the deep history of the Anglo-American bond. The Declaration of Independence stood with the document signed at Runnymede in 1215 in the pantheon of English constitutional history.

Will a similar claim on American independence surface in the pronouncements and performances linked to Trumpâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s visit to Britain this July? May will surely follow precedent and celebrate the ties of the â&#x20AC;&#x153;special relationshipâ&#x20AC;?; Trump will likely bluster, reciprocate, and talk about his Scottish roots. But Trumpâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s brand of nativism has little time or space for expansive Anglophilia, and he and May have yet to find an ideological or personal affinity of the sort enjoyed by Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan. This Independence Day, the special relationship may lose out. rEdwards is Senior Lecturer in History at the Manchester Metropolitan University, in the United Kingdom. He has previously received funding from the ESRC, the United States Army Military History Institute, and the US-UK Fulbright Commission.

Former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak was arrested in Kuala Lumpur in connection with a probe into alleged theft and money laundering at the 1MDB state investment fund, state media reported Tuesday. Najibâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s family lawyer said the former leader would be charged for his role in the 1MDB scandal the next day. Earlier on Tuesday, Malaysiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s anticorruption agency questioned the stepson of Najib and a Hollywood film producer, Riza Aziz. The alleged corruption at the 1MDB fund was partly behind the unexpected defeat of Najibâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s coalition in the May 9 polls. The new government reopened investigations that had been stifled while Najib was in office. The stateowned 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MBD) company was set up in 2009 soon after Najib became prime minister for the purpose of development investment to aid the countryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s economy.

Mali Election Organisersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; IndeďŹ nite Strike Election workers in Mali extended their strike on Tuesday, casting further doubt on an election this month meant to chart a way out of six years of political unrest and jihadist violence. Reuters reported that the governmentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ability to secure the July 29 vote had been thrown into question by repeated attacks by Islamist militant groups and tit-for-tat violence between rival ethnic groups in the centre and north of the vast West African nation.

Last week, Islamist militants raided the headquarters of a regional military base in central Mali, leaving at least six people dead.

Four civilians were also killed on Sunday by a car bomb that targeted French troops in the north. Two unions representing local administrators, whose tasks include distributing voter cards, extended their seven-day strike on Monday, Olivier Traore, secretary-general of the National Syndicate of Civil Administrators, told Reuters.

Medics with Thai Boys in Cave Twelve boys and their football coach trapped in a flooded cave in Thailand received their first food and medical treatment for 10 days on Tuesday. Seven divers, including a doctor and a nurse, joined the group inside the caves in the north of the country after they were discovered alive on Monday, BBC reported. Rescuers were considering how best to bring the group to safety. There were fears that more heavy rain could see water levels rise and threaten the air pocket where the group had taken refuge.

The boys were found nine days after they entered the caves in Chiang Rai province following a football training session and became trapped by rising waters caused by heavy rainfall. On Tuesday, Thai officials told reporters that rescuers were providing health checks and treatment, and keeping the boys entertained, adding that none of those trapped were in a serious condition.

Lavrov, Pompeo

48

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WEDNESDAY, JULY 4, 2018˾ T H I S D AY

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NEWSXTRA

Nigeria Records $32bn on Foreign Investment in ICT Osinbajo harps on skills acquisition Onyebuchi Ezigbo ÓØ ÌßÔË Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has said the country recorded over $32 billion in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) over the last 15 years as a result of revolution in the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector.

Osinbajo spoke yesterday in Abuja at the opening of a oneday conference with the theme; “Africa-China Cooperation in ICT and Digital Economy” organised by the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs in collaboration with the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in Nigeria

and Huawei Technologies Company (Nigeria) Limited.

He said such investments inflow came in form of infrastructural development that has created an ICT backbone that powers various critical sectors of the economy such as banking, e-commerce, insurance, and oil and gas.

Osinbajo said there was the need to leverage more on ICT skills to achieve industrial revolution through emphasis on digital economy.

He added that improving on skills and refocusing the country’s priorities would help to reap more benefits from the ICT sector.

Prostitution: Court Jails Three Human Traffickers 41 Years A Federal High Court in Lagos yesterday convicted and sentenced three women to 41 years imprisonment for trafficking in person.

The convicts are Precious Owoh, a.k.a. Ejiro, 32, Blessing Gabriel, a.k.a. 28, Precious, and Rose Gabriel, 28.

The three convicts, were given the jail terms by Justice Babs Kuewumi, after pronouncing them guilty of charges leveled against them by National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP).

The three convicts who are residents of 15, Adewunmi Adeogesun Street, Ajah, Camp 4, Block 10, Room 7, Ojo Military Cantonment, Ojo, all in Lagos

State, were arraigned before the court sometimes in October 2015, on a four-count charge bordering on recruit, trafficking, export, promote and facilitate the prostitution of one Udeogu Ann Ugochi, 27 years, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, for prostitution.

They were said to have committed the act with one Otubo Nicole, who is said to be at large, between October 2014 and July, 2015.

The offences are contrary to and punishable under Sections 13(1)(2)(b), 13(4)(a)(c), 14(b) and 18 of the Trafficking In Persons (Prohibition) Enforcement and Administration Act, 2015.

Osinbajo, who was represented by his Special Adviser on ICT, Mr. Lanre Osibona, stated that there is an urgent need to overcome challenges facing the country to leveraging ICT to fuel the fourth industrial revolution that

brings about digital economy.

“Africa must develop its skills.

We must know how to scale workforce and move away from business base outsourcing to knowledge base outsourcing.

Data is the future and new hope. For us as a country we

must invest heavily in capturing data,” he said.

In his remarks, the Minister of Communication, Adebayo Shittu, restated that Nigeria’s revolution in the ICT sector accounts for well over $32 billion in foreign direct investment over the last

15 years.

He advocated the need for all stakeholders to strengthen the technology and innovation ecosystem by supporting the development of innovation hubs in partnership with the private sector.

Malami Denies US Court’s $6.59bn Default Judgment against Nigeria The Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami has denied media reports that a United States District Court granted $6.59 billion arbitral judgment against Nigeria.

A default judgment is delivered when a party in a suit fails to defend his case.

Malami said in a statement signed by the Solicitor-General of the Federation and Permanent

Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Justice, Mr. Dayo Apata, that no such award was made in favour of P&ID and against the federal government as reported.

The statement said, “The ministry wishes to state categorically that no default judgment was entered against Nigeria in the enforcement proceedings by P & ID. The federal government through its foreign solicitors, Messrs. Curtis,

Mallet-Prevost, Colt & Mosle LLP, has commenced the process of challenging and defending the enforcement proceedings.

“It needs to be stated that what is being taunted as a default judgment was actually a default entry made by the Court Clerk.

“Under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act, a defendant has up to 60 days period to answer to a petition filed against it.

“Where no response is entered

for the defendant, the Court Clerk upon application by the petitioner makes a default entry, which in this case was made on June 5, 2018.

“It is to be noted that under the FSIA, a default judgment cannot be entered against a foreign State like Nigeria unless the presiding judge determines so after the petitioner/claimant must have established its entitlement to a default judgment,” he said.

Emmanuel Preaches Unity in Diversity Nseobong Okon-Ekong Governor Udom Emmanuel of Akwa Ibom State has expressed the need for Nigerians to remain unity, irrespective of tribal and party affiliations.

The governor made the remarks at the Second Quarter 2018 Forum of Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SFG) with Secretaries to State Governments (SSGs) held in Uyo, the state capital.

He urged Nigerians to use such opportunities to “engender a new conversation in our country,” adding that politicians should see themselves first as Nigerians and later, as politicians.

Emmanuel noted that “Politics and politicians will come and go but the soul, spirit, abiding tenets and values of the Nigerian enterprise will endure.”

He said it was time, “politics of growth and development should be emphasised over politics of attrition, self-destruction and zero-sum game.”

According to him, “this wonderful and inspiring optics of unity, of bi-partisanship and synergy between different layers of government is what our nation desperately needs at this time of heightened ethno-religious and partisan tensions.”

“I stand here as a governor elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), hosting the SGF of an administration that is headed by President Muhammadu Buhari of the All Progressives Party (APC). Seated here are secretaries to the state governments of both the PDP and APC states. What a wonderful celebration of our unity across political divide,” he said.

He also noted that when the conveners of the forum selected his state as the next host at the close of the last edition in Yola, Adamawa State, “they did not look at Akwa Ibom State as a PDP state; they did not see Udom Emmanuel as a die-hard partisan. If they had looked at issues strictly thorough the narrow prism of partisan politics they could have chosen an APC state.”

He commended the SGF, Boss Mustapha for creating the Forum, acknowledging it as a good platform for the best of Nigeria irrespective of ethnic backgrounds or party affiliations.

In the face of current security challenges, Emmanuel said Nigeria needs such a forum to chart a common course for her development.

SIGNED AND SEALED

Governorship Candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Ekiti State, Dr Kayode Fayemi (left), being presented a document by the State Chairman, Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT), Samuel Olugbesan when Fayemi met with the leadership of the union at the Teachers House, Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State…yesterday

Ibadan Disco Gets Reprieve over NERC’s Suspension Order Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company Limited (IBEDC), yesterday got a reprieve from the order given to it by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) to dissolve its present Board of Directors within 21 days as a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has ordered the parties to maintain a status quo.

Ruling on the matter brought before the court on suit no: FHC/ABJ/CS/665/18 between Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company Plc (IBEDC) & eight others Vs NERC, the presiding Judge, Justice Nnamdi Dimgba, ruled that the parties should maintain the status quo prior to the NERC order of June 19, in order to maintain the res of the matter.

Justice Dimgba further ruled that there shall be accelerated

hearing to hear the merits of the matter.

With this ruling, NERC’s earlier order that IBEDC should dissolve its board within 21 days, is now temporarily on hold until the court comes to a final ruling on the matter.

The matter has now been adjourned to October 15, 2018 for the hearing of the last substantive suit.

It will be recalled that NERC had on June 19, directed IBEDC to put machinery in motion for the dissolution of its current Board within a 21-day period, citing alleged default in the recovery of what it described as an inappropriate shareholder loan of N6 billion granted to Integrated Energy Distribution and Marketing Group (IEDMG) Ltd by the utility company.

The IBEDC Board, however,

responded to the allegation, contending that it has lived up to its financial commitment to IBEDC, adding that as at June 14, 2018, it had paid its monthly commitment up to date.

The Company Secretary of IBEDC, Mr. Seye Alayande, had said in a statement that the company and the regulatory agency had agreed that the repayment of over N5.7 billion and the interest would be made from the refund of the sum due from the federal government on the stalled Yola Electricity Distribution Company transaction.

According to Alayande, this position was to the knowledge of the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE).

“The understanding from BPE, which was conveyed to NERC was that the

refund which had been due to IEDMG as far back as 2015, could only be made after the 2018 Appropriation Bill is signed into law.To demonstrate commitment and good intention,IEDMG reached an understanding with NERC to pay 150 million monthly to IBEDC beginning from January 2018, while awaiting the refund from BPE in respect of Yola transaction. It is true, as NERC claimed, that as at April 20, 2018, the payment for January February and an additional 130 million had been effected. More importantly, however, is the fact that as at June 14, 2018, IEDMG had made all outstanding payment up till May 2018, in respect of the monthly 150 million commitment,” Alayande explained.

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Ekiti Election: Fayose in Face-to-Face Confrontation with Security Chiefs Fayemi slams governor over debt burden Victor Ogunje ÓØ ÎÙ ÕÓÞÓ The Governor of Ekiti State, Mr. Ayodele Fayose, yesterday confronted the state Commissioner of Police, Mr. Ahmed Bello and the Director of the Department of State Services(DSS), Mrs. Promise Ihenacho over what he described as the deployment of compromised operatives to the state to perpetrate rigging and illegal arrests.

This is coming as the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and security has assured that the Ekiti election slated for July 14 will be free, fair and devoid of any form of malpractices that could vitiate the process.

The assurance was also given

by INEC commissioner in charge of Ekiti, Oyo and Osun States, Mr. Solomon Soyebi, the state Police Commissioner and the DSS Director at a town hall meeting organised by Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room in Ado Ekiti, the state capital.

The Chairman of the civil society organisation, Mr. Clement Nwakwo, said the essence of the meeting was to extract assurances from INEC and the security agencies that

the coming election would be credible.

But Fayose alleged that the ex-Chief Security Officer (CSO) to Fayemi, Hakeem Abiola and his former Aide –De- Camp (ADC), Adeyemi Ajayi , have been clandestinely brought to the state to lead policemen to conduct illegal arrest of members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and harass the electorate.

The atmosphere at the Afe Babalola Civic Centre, where the event was held became charged, as party members inside the hall threw all manners of jibes at the DSS boss as she made efforts to respond to the allegations.

In his speech, the Chairman of the state Council of Traditional Rulers and Oloye of Oye Ekiti, Oba Oluwole Ademolaju and the Attah of Ayede, Oba Abdulmumin Orisagbemi, told the security chiefs to redeploy the two men out of the state in the interest of peace.

But Ihenacho confirmed that the former Fayemi’s CSO was in the state, but not as a leader of a unit as alleged by the governor, and her confirmation further provoked the audience to become uncontrollable until Fayose intervened and brought the situation under control.

At this point, the police commissioner quickly intervened, saying any police officer that has political affinity with any of the interested party would not be used for the election.

“I have built a career going to 35 years in the police and I won’t want anybody to bring me down, not even any politician or even Fayose will ask me to rig election and I will comply.

We are going to give equal opportunities to all the parties and the issue you have raised will be looked into, because there are procedure we must follow , even if they are going to be

redeployed”, he said.

But the governor accused the DSS boss of allegedly acting like a chieftain of the APC by ordering the arrest and detention of PDP members and some teachers.

Fayose also tendered a video evidence to INEC chiefs at the event to confirm the alleged preloading of the smart card reader by a political party in Akure, Ondo State capital.

“Free and fair election can only come when security did the right thing. On the day of election, I want all my security details to be withdrawn. But let me say

that DSS have started arresting people but this will be resisted.

“You can’t be expecting a free, fair poll when people were being harassed and detained illegally and a police officer and DSS operative attached to a former governor were secretly drafted to head a detachment of force comprising about 63 men.”

In another development, the Kayode Fayemi Campaign Organisation has raised the alarm over the latest figures released by the Debt Management Office (DMO) putting Ekiti State’s debts at N117 billion, up from N56 billion figure it released few

months ago.

A statement by the Director of Media and Publicity of the organisation, Wole Olujobi, accused Fayose of profligacy, saying the governor is deliberately piling up debts to help himself while the state remains under the bondage of suffocating debts.

He regretted that despite huge debts owed by Fayose, there is nothing to show for them except an over-priced 800-metre singlelane flyover that cost Ekiti people N17.5 billion in official records, though quoted at N6 billion to Ekiti people to escape public anger.

Olubadan Faults Ajimobi’s Stance on New Ibadan Kings Ademola Babalola ÓØ ÌËÎËØ The Olubadan of Ibadan land, Oba Saliu Akanmu Adetunji, Aje Ogungunniso 1 has advised the public to perish the thought that the controversial approval of the beaded crowns by the Oyo State Government to Ibadan High Chiefs and Baales was irreversible, as the case against the state government was still pending.

Apparently reacting to a statement credited to Governor Abiola Ajimobi while distributing cars to 36 traditional rulers, Oba Adetunji recalled that a judgment delivered by Justice Aiki of the Oyo State High Court had declared the whole chieftaincy reform illegal, null and void.

“Afterwards, the Oyo State Government decided to file an appeal at the Federal. My position is that if a case is in

court, it is no longer open for discussion as this statement is automatically subjudice. If it is not reversible, why did the two parties have to go to court?” he said.

Oba Adetunji also faulted the statement that the hue and cry, which greeted the controversial crowning of the traditional rulers was political, pointing out that the issue raised is customary and traditional in nature.

The Olubadan stated that he was not opposed to provision of cars for traditional rulers by the State Government.

He appealed to Ajimobi to prevail upon the controversial kings to release the eleven months salaries of palace staff which they have been withholding along with Olubadan’s salary cheques, even when the allocations for traditional councils have been released.

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AMCON Sets to Publish Names of Debtors Ugo Aliogo The Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) has expressed its readiness to publish in widely read daily newspapers, specific and detailed list of all erring debtors and directors where applicable, that have failed to reach or refused to reach settlement resolution with the corporation.

The corporation stated that there would be no more room for negotiation with its debtors, noting that the corporation is set for a new stage.

This new stage according to

AMCON would involve complete take-over of the assets of its chronic debtors.

The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of AMCON, Mr. Ahmed Kuru, who disclosed yesterday in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja said the N5.4 trillion debt owed the corporation had lingered for too long.

He also disclosed that going forward, in cases where the registered assets of a company that is indebted to the corporation was not enough to clear their obligation, AMCON would go after the directors and their private

companies.

Kuru, said AMCON had gotten tired of obligors (debtors), coming to its office and telling lies about wanting to embark on a staggered payment which they ended up never complying.

He said most part of the N5.4 trillion had been with the banks for five years before AMCON bought over the bad loans, adding that after seven years of the companies’ operations, the obligors were yet to pay.

“Resolutions through staggered plans have never worked. Let us not forget that before those loans were transferred to AMCON

they have been with the banks for over five years.

“Now, AMCON is almost seven years, so the facility has been running bad for 12 years. It is not easy to recover those kinds of facilities.

“So now we have changed our strategy from sitting down and drinking tea and the obligors telling us lies and we pretend that we don’t know you are telling us lies.

“There is no more time for lies because we have a sunset period.

So now our focus is on recovery.

We do not want to hear anything, you cannot come and tell me you are going to pay me in the next

six years, I do not have that time.

“If you cannot pay me the money now then give me my assets because the assets belong to AMCON so that we can sell it.”

He said as part of the new strategy of AMCON, directors of companies would now be sought after so that they would be forced to take part in repaying the loans.

“We are training our people more to see that they become more efficient.

“Most fundamentally we have changed our strategy. Before our strategy had been only resolution: you come, you give us a payment

plan and we respect it.

“But we have realised that more than 80 per cent of AMCON’s recoveries are as a result of either forfeiture or taking over of businesses or outright cash payment.

“My law allows me to not only go after the assets that are served as collateral but I can also go after the directors of companies. I can go after the assets that have not been served as collateral.

“This is where we are now heading to because the law had anticipated this situation that we are now in,” he said.

FG Reiterates Commitment to Complete Lagos -Ibadan Railway Line Sunday Okobi, Kehinde Lawal ÓØ ËÑÙÝ ËØÎ Kasim Sumaina ÓØ ÌßÔË In a bid to ensure the completion of 156.65 kilometres LagosIbadan rail line by the China Civil Engineering Construction Company (CCECC) before the end of 2018, the federal government has intensified its supervision of the project in order to necessitate timely completion.

Speaking while inspecting the rail project in Ibadan at midweek, the Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, noted that the laying of rail tracks has commenced while other environmental challenges confronting the project are being resolved.

Amaechi also warned the company that its agreement with Nigeria is not to build the railway and monopolise labour but build and handover to Nigerians who will then maintain it.

The minister, who was not happy about the slow pace of the construction work, frowned at the small number of labourers on site, and ordered for more hands to ensure speedy completion.

According to him, “Go and employ more hands, and I want to see more of qualified Nigerian civil engineers by the time I come back on July 23. You are not to construct and stay, you are to construct and hand over and leave the country because you are stealing our jobs.”

Before embarking on the inspection tour of the 156.65 km railway line and rising from threehour technical meeting with the company and the management of the Nigeria Railway Corporation (NRC), Amaechi reiterated the federal government’s commitment to complete the project in December 2018.

He, however, having expressed disappointment over the delay

being caused by the rainy season, noted: “I am not impressed about the delay on laying of the tracks, this is because we agreed for 11 kilometres during our last month meeting and they have done only three.

“They have apologised and said by the next meeting which will take place by July 23, they would have done 10 kilometers plus the already three which will bring it to 13 km.”

Still on the reason for the delay, Amaechi told journalists that reasons given by the company during the earlier technical meeting was rain that slows down civil works, “but they are human beings and they make mistakes too that is why they are trying to manage the situation until dry season comes.”

The minister said he was impressed with the level of cooperation by the water cooperation and the committee “we have put in place to identify problem; they are our heroes.

“If you could remember, we said we had a problem of 24 km water shortage and the committee argued saying we cannot be sure until we go to the site, and they went and discovered it was only two km that was short, and we directed CCECC to commence construction at the affected areas.”

Ameachi also expressed the federal government commitment to deliver the project against all odds by the end of the 2018, just as he has said the problem is all about inadequate funding.

Speaking about the federal government commitment on the job, he observed that all Nigerians know that it is committed to do so “and that is why I said earlier that I’m fortunate to be the minister of transportation because if you tell the president that the minister of transportation wants to see him, I’m immediately allowed to see him.”

STOCK TAKING

Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, (right), and the CEO, Shippers Council of East Africa, Gilbert Langat, at the Annual General Meeting (AGM), of African Transporters in Abuja...yesterday

Delta: Uduaghan Set to Leave PDP for APC Segun James Following disagreements between him and Governor Ifeanyi Okowa over his ambition to represent Delta South senatorial district in the National Assembly, former Delta State governor, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan, is set to dump the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the All Progressives Congress (APC).

THISDAY gathered through a source close to the former governor who pleaded anonymity, that Uduaghan is angry with the governor over his insistence to honour an agreement between PDP governors and the party to ensure the mass endorsement and return of all National Assembly members elected on the platform of the party.

Uduaghan, according to the source, is unhappy with the decision which would secure an unprecedented fifth term for Senator James Manager to the chagrin of other stakeholders in the district who felt he should allow others take their turn.

The THISDAY source disclosed that the Delta South district is made up of the Ijaw, Isoko and Itsekiri ethnic nationalities, who have been rotating the slot among them following a gentleman’s agreement.

However, following the election of Manager in 2003, the agreement was jettisoned and he has held the position for four consecutive tenures and already angling for a fifth term.

It was also gathered that Uduaghan and Governor Okowa have not been close

to each other following the refusal of the former governor to endorse his successor for the state governorship in 2015, a situation that generated bad blood between them.

It was gathered that this was the reason why Uduaghan had no single representation among the over 1,500 political appointees in Okowa’s government.

“In fact, he had no knowledge of how his brother was appointed a commissioner,” the source hinted confirming the cold war pushing the former governor out of the PDP. A source in Governor Okowa’s office however said Uduaghan’s action is not unexpected as he had been “one leg in, one leg out of the party for some time.”

He disclosed that the reason the former governor is angry

with Okowa is because he (Okowa) refused to endorse him for the senatorial seat contrary to the practice in the party.

He stressed that the demand

by Uduaghan to avoid primaries by seeking the governor’s endorsement is unrealistic as the move might offend the people who assisted Okowa to power.

On the report that former Governor James Ibori is aggrieved with Okowa and is also contemplating leaving the PDP, the source said that this is not true as both the governor and Ibori are in good terms.

He insisted that Ibori is particularly close to former vice president, Atiku Abubakar, who is running for the president under the PDP, adding that leaving the PDP is not in Ibori’s agenda.

it’s a place of terrorism. The two messages are true at the same time. Africa is a young continent and I believe it is possible to change. All we need is to let African people speak about Africa. You always use a biased approach to tell your story. What we need is your generation of artists, journalists, civil servants to speak and explain about Africa.

This is the way to change and make a new Africa. European

leaders cannot lead Africa.

Africans have to build their own future here.”

The president who has a history with the continent, said he has a different view from other European leaders because he respects the zeal of African youths, especially Nigerian youths He lauded the Kutis for their commitment in promoting the Nigerian culture through the activities in the shrine.

FRANCE CAN’T SOLVE NIGERIA’S INSECURITY PROBLEM, SAYS MACRON the party.

“First, I think that it is such an iconic place for a lot of African people and African culture. And I think very often, when you speak of the African culture in Europe, those who are successful in Europe and in France, which is different most of the times are not dramatically very famous in Nigeria or in Africa. And there is a bias because you know people are absolutely not the same.

“I mean Fela, Femi, Seun Kuti are obviously very famous in France and Europe, I mean they are big successes but the Shrine is a cultural hub, an iconic hub and it is very important for me, first on a personal level, and that is why I want to say with a lot of humility that I recognise the importance of this place. I recognise the place of culture in this current environment.”

Meanwhile, in Lagos last

night, Macron challenged African leaders to change the negative image of the continent by providing a new narrative.

This, he said, is the only way the continent can move forward.

“We have to build together a new narrative that is not based on what is important to Europe but what is important for Africa.

How the continent want to import their culture,” he said.

The French president however,

pointed out that to achieve this, Africans must first of all reconcile with their past.

He added that the history of Africa is a complicated one because of the image projected outside.

While not totally agreeing that the image is always negative, he however said that it was possible to correct that image.

“Some people say Nigeria is unique, some other people say

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$15.5m Fraud: Court Dismisses Application to Reverse Patience Jonathanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Companiesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Guilty Plea A Federal High Court in Lagos yesterday dismissed an application by four companies, which pleaded guilty to laundering $15.5million allegedly belonging to former First Lady, Dame Patience Jonathan.

The companies -Â Pluto Property and Investment Company Limited, Seagate

Property Development and Investment Company Limited, Transocean Property and Investment Company limited and Globus Integrated Service Limited, had prayed the court to reverse their guilty plea and nullify the previous proceedings because those who represented the companies were not

Court Upholds Ministerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Power to Refer Labour Disputes to Industrial Arbitration Panel Davidson Iriekpen Justice Simisola Adeniyi of the National Industrial Court in Abuja has struck out the suit filed by the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) against Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited (MPN), seeking to quash the powers of the Minister for Labour and Employment to refer industrial dispute between the parties to the Industrial Arbitration Panel.

In her judgment on the originating motion filed by PENGASSAN, challenging the instrument of referral of the dispute, which emanated in 2016 between PENGASSAN and MPN to the Industrial Arbitration Panel (IAP).

Counsel to MPN, Professor Fabian Ajogwu (SAN)Â in response to the suit of PENGASSAN filed

by Mr. Rudy Ezeani, seeking a judicial review of the instrument of referral of the minister, had argued that the process of judicial review by way of an order of certiorari or prohibition enables a superior court review the record of an inferior judicial or quasi-judicial authority to determine the legality of a decision reached by such an authority.

Counsel further submitted to the court that the prerogative writs could not apply in the circumstance as prayed by PENGASSAN, as the powers of the minister conferred by section 9 of the Trade Dispute Act

are unqualified executive powers and not judicial or quasi-judicial powers.

He contended that the exercise of same cannot be subject to the process of judicial review.

The court agreed with the submissions of counsel to MPN and dismissed the suit holding that the act of the minister in referring the trade dispute to the Industrial Arbitration Panel was done in due exercise of statutory powers conferred on him by the Trade Dispute Act and the Trade Dispute (Essential Services) Act and was not an exercise of judicial or quasi-judicial powers.

The court further held that the PENGASSANâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s contention that its right of fair hearing was breached by the minister in the exercise of his statutory powers was misconceived and inapplicable in the circumstance as the minister has the unfettered right to make such referrals without recourse to parties. All of PENGASSANâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s prayers in its originating motion dated May 25, 2017 were refused and the matter was dismissed.

Consequently, the Industrial Arbitration Panel retains jurisdiction in the matter and PENGASSAN must abide by the subsisting order of the panel against strikes and lock-outs.

Messrs. Mathew Echo, and Genevieve Osoka, thanked the court for its well considered judgment.

authorised to do so.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had arraigned them with a former Special Adviser on Domestic Affairs to President Jonathan, Dr. Waripamo Dudafa, a lawyer, Amajuoyi Briggs, who is the companiesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; secretary, and a banker, Adedamola Bolodeoku with Skye Bank Plc. Unlike the companies, Dudafa, Briggs and Bolodeoku pleaded not guilty to the 17-count charge.

The companiesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; lawyer Chief Mike Ozekhome (SAN), told Justice Babs Kuewumi, that his clients were not given a fair trial before their conviction because they had no legal representation of their choice.

Ozekhome said he was briefed to represent the companies after its directors pleaded guilty despite not being authorised by the board to do so.

Moving his motion seeking

to set aside the companies conviction, Ozekhome said they were convicted â&#x20AC;&#x153;in gross violationâ&#x20AC;? of the 1999 Constitution, which he said occasioned a miscarriage of justice.

He prayed that the trial be done afresh and that the previous proceedings be declared null, void and unsustainable in law.

The application, he said, was on the grounds that the court failed to pass a sentence on the convicted companies, as the judge reserved sentence until end of the other defendantsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; trial.

Besides, Ozekhome said the companies were denied the right to cross-examine the purported directors who purportedly pleaded guilty. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re just busybodies and interlopers who were pressure to come and plead guilty. They had no mandate to do so,â&#x20AC;? he said.

But, prosecuting counsel,

Rotimi Oyedepo, urged the court to refuse the application for being an abuse of court process.

According to him, it amounted to asking the judge to revisit his ruling and to assume the position of an appellate court He denied that the directors who pleaded guilty were not authorised to do so, saying there was evidence that they were indeed the companiesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; directors from the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) and from the companiesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; bank accounts.

At yesterdayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s proceedings, the companies were represented

by Mr. Oluigbo O, who held the brief of Chief Mike Ozakhome (SAN), Mr. Ademola Adefolaju, who stood in for Gboyega Oyewole (SAN), for Dudafa, and Ige Asemudara, who represented Briggs.

Ruling on the application, Justice Kuewumi held that a

lower court can only reserve himself in exceptional cases where there is â&#x20AC;&#x153;a serious procedural irregularityâ&#x20AC;? or where the court lacks jurisdiction. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The main issue to be addressed in this application is whether this court can revisit its earlier decision whereby the applicants were convicted. Once a court gives an order or judgment, it has no legal competence to reverse itself or set aside its previous order. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Considering the circumstances of this case, I have not been shown any valid reason to make me revisit my decision.

This court is already functus officio. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m in agreement with the prosecution that this application is incompetent. It is hereby refused and accordingly dismissed,â&#x20AC;? the judge held.

The matter has been adjourned until October 17 for hearing.

TECHNICAL MEETING L-R: Vice Chairman, Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), Mr. Sanusi Garba; Managing Director, Mojec

International Limited, Ms. Chantelle Abdul; Chairman, NERC, Professor James Momoh, and Chairman, Mojec International Limited, Mrs. Mojisola Abdul, during a courtesy visit by NERC to the Head OďŹ&#x192;ce of the company in Lagos...yesterday

Ugwuanyi Approves over N1.8bn for New Projects Oyo 2019: Oluyole Adopts Olaosebikan as Committed to the effective and approved free artificial that the councilâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s decision efficient dispensation of justice limbs for 300 persons with was also borne out of the Gubernatorial Candidate in Enugu State, Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi has approved the award of contracts for the construction of 14 new court buildings in the judicial divisions and magisterial districts across the state.

The state government also awarded contracts for the rehabilitation of the access road leading to the dump site of the Enugu State Waste Management Authority (ESWAMA) at Ogui Nike, Enugu North Local Government Area (LGA), which is currently being evacuated by the state government for the first time in the past 12 years.

Also approved was the construction and rehabilitation of Ebeano Estate road and John Nwodo Close by Otigba junction, Enugu. The three projects will cost the state government the sum of N452,001,262.95.

The administration equally

amputated limbs in partnership with a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO).   Briefing newsmen after the state Executive Council (EXCO) meeting, the commissioner for works and infrastructure,  Greg Nnaji, explained that court buildings spread across the three senatorial districts of the state, include eleven magistrate courts of various types, two open court registries and a High Court, adding the projects were awarded at the cost of N1, 390, 272,622.13.  Nnaji stated that  Ugwuanyi has always shown outstanding commitment to the growth and development of the Judiciary through his administrationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s numerous programmes, disclosing that the last time new courts were constructed in the state was over 11 years ago.

The commissioner noted

governorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s vision to reposition the Judiciary to maintain its pride of place as the last hope of the common man. He added that the structures were carefully designed and will be provided with state-of-the-art facilities to effectively serve the purpose of a modern court.

On the ESWAMA dump site, the works commissioner further explained that the road project was considered and awarded to create access for the transportation of refuse to the site, stating that the engineering design provided for â&#x20AC;&#x153;drainage and complete remediation and re-generation.â&#x20AC;? Â He also added that the infrastructural development at the site will open up the area for investment as investors in waste management would be able to access and exploit the waste and transform it into wealth for the economic benefit of the state.

Ademola Babalola Ă&#x201C;Ă&#x2DC; Ă&#x152;Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x17D;Ă&#x2039;Ă&#x2DC;

The contest for the gubernatorial ticket of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Oyo State recorded a milestone in Ibadan, the state capital, yesterday as the Oluyole chapter of the party formally adopted a journalist turned politician, Alhaji Kehinde Isiaka Olaosebikan as its candidate for the 2019 gubernatorial race.

The Member representing Oluyole Constituency in the state House of Assembly, Hon. Abiodun Muideen Wahab Ademolu  moved the motion for the adoption at the weekly general meeting of the party held at Community Primary School, Olomi.

The historic motion was seconded by the Executive Chairman of Oluyole Local Government Area (LGA), Prince Ayodeji Abass Aleshinloye and it was unanimously carried by the entire members of the party

in the local government amidst pomp and pageantry when the party chairman, Alhaji Waheed Akinleye put the question to the house.

Consequent upon this adoption, Olaosebikan has become the first gubernatorial aspirant to be unanimously endorsed and adopted by the grassroots with the votes of an entire local government already in his kitty.

Speaking while moving the motion, Hon. Wahab Ademolu disclosed that his findings after wide consultations on Olaosebikan showed clearly that the former local government chairman was affectionately loved by not just only the politicians, but by all the segments of the society, including the youths, local government workers and traditional rulers.

While urging the people of the local government to rally round Olaosebikan,  Wahab said he was very optimistic that the adopted

candidate would win the APC ticket and emerge victorious at the polls.

Prince Abass Aleshinleye who described Olaosebikan as his long standing friend said the local government was fully behind the aspiration of Olaosebikan and that he would rally his fellow chairmen to see that Oluyole produces the next governor of the state in the person of Olaosebikan.

The leader of the party in the local government who is also the State Deputy Chairman, Hon. Lekan Adeyemo also spoke glowingly of Olaosebikan maintaining that the adoption by the local government was the first step towards victory for Olaosebikan and Oluyole LGA. Adeyemo told the gathering that with Olaosebikan as the governor of the state, a better future is assured for all and sundry as he posited.

54

WEDNESDAY, ͼ˜ ͺ͸͹΀ ˾ T H I S D AY

WEDNESDAYSPORTS

Group Sports Editor Duro Ikhazuagbe Email duro.ikhazuagbe@thisdaylive.com 0811 181 3083 SMS ONLY

WORLD CUP 2018…

JUNE 14 TO JULY 15

PA O B I K I D N A P S A G A . . .

I was Traumatised before the Clash against Argentina, Says Mikel Obi Femi Solaja While millions of optimistic Nigerians are looking forward to Super Eagles qualification ahead of favorites, Argentina, into the knockout phase at the ongoing World Cup finals in Russia, team’s captain John Mikel Obi early yesterday disclosed that he was in trauma but had to carry on with the burden of of 180 million to play in the 1-2 loss at Saint Petersburg last month.

Yesterday, it was widely reported that the Nigerian Police had been able to rescue Pa Micheal Obi from his adopters and has since returned home to reunite with his family.

But Nigerians were shocked that the time of the kidnap coincided with the day Super Eagles played the crucial last group D match against former World Champions, Argentina.

In his narratives yesterday, the former FC Chelsea midfielder disclosed that” following various speculators about recent occurrence with my father, I can confirm I had to suppressed emotional trauma to lead Nigeria out against Argentina last Tuesday 26th June in Saint Petersburg.

“Four hours before kickoff, I received a call from Nigeria that my father Pa Michael Obi had been kidnapped for the second time while he was on his way to a funeral in South-eastern Nigeria from Jos when he was abducted along the Makurdi-Enugu expressway.

“I was emotionally distraught but had to make a decision about whether l was mentally ready to play the game.

“I was confused and did not know what to do, but in the end I knew that I could not let 180 million Nigerians down, I had to shut it out of my head and go and represent my country first.

“I could not even inform the coaches or NFF staff, and only a very tight circle of members my friends knew “I was told that they would shoot my dad instantly if I reported to the authorities or told anybody and I did not want to discuss it with the coach because It may become a distraction to the coach or the

rest of the team on the day of such an important game. “So as much as I wanted to discuss it with the coach, I could not do it. Thankfully he is now safely released less than seven hours ago(Monday afternoon) I thank the Police authorities for their rescue efforts and support from friends and family members,” narrated yesterday morning.

Thisdaysports recalled that, it was the second time that Senior Obi will suffer similar fate after the first time in 2011 within Jos metropolis while Mikel Obi was still plying his trade with Chelsea in London.

It was also observed that, the Super Eagles captain was closed to tears in a post match interview with the tournament official television as he wipes his face continually and was not coherent during the short interview. Most observers would have thought the player was only reacting to the disappointment of the team not been able to hold on to the game advantage with less than four minutes left to play.

In a related development, the Minister of Youth and Sports, Solomon Dalung has condemned the kidnap saga.

Dalung noted that the emotional and psychological trauma caused the player and his father is unimaginable.

The Minister commended the former Chelsea star for his show of patriotism during the match following his courageous display of loyalty to the country despite the sad news of his father’s abduction.

He described Mikel as a brave player who did not allow the sad news to distract him from putting in his best for the country while thanking the Nigerian Police for rescuing the father.

“It is very unfortunate that on the night Mikel Obi was playing for Nigeria, kidnappers decided to emotionally traumatise the young man by kidnapping his father.

I can imagine what was going on in his mind while he was playing for the country knowing that his father was unsafe somewhere in the kidnappers’ hideout.

It is disheartening to know that on the night the players

were putting in their best to qualify Nigeria for the second round of the World Cup, evil men had in captivity, the father of one of the team’s greatest players.

“We salute Mikel Obi for his courage during the game and pray for the father’s quick recovery and stability from the trauma.

“I also thank the Nigerian Police for their quick response to the incident and their prompt rescue of Pa Michael John Obi,” Dalung said.

Super Eagles captain, John Mikel Obi, in contest for the ball with Argentine veteran, Mascherano, some hours after the news of his father’s kidnap was broken to him during the last group D match in Saint Petersburg abiodun ajala

Husband’s Celebration of Super Eagles’ Defeat to Argentina Breaks Russian Couple A Russian couple has fallen apart over disagreement on the better player between Portugal and Real Madrid’s

Cristiano Ronaldo and Argentina and FC Barcelona’s Lionel Messi.

As fate will have it, both

players and their teams crashed out of the World Cup on the same day last Saturday.

Sack or No Sack, Pinnick on Duty at Russia 2018 EFCC invites embattled NFF boss President of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) and Member, Executive Committee of Confederation of African Football, Mr. Amaju Pinnick, is unfazed by happenings at home.

As a member of FIFA’s Organising Committee, the former Chairman of Delta Sports Commission has been appointed as the Match Commissioner for Friday’s quarter-final clash between France and Uruguay at the Nizhny Novgorod Arena.

Earlier, he was in-charge of the group phase encounter between European champions Portugal and Iran in Saransk penultimate Monday as well as the Group G match between Tunisia and Panama in the same city on Thursday. Portugal and Iran drew 1-1 while Tunisia, one of Africa’s five flag-bearers, edged Panama 2-1.

Pinnick was also in charge of the Round of 16 encounter

that pitched Sweden against Switzerland at Saint Petersburg on Tuesday July 2.

The NFF President will also take charge of the first semi final match, scheduled for Saint Petersburg’s Zenit Arena on Tuesday, 10th July, as well as the third place match at the same venue on Saturday, 14th July.

Since becoming a Member of the CAF Executive Committee on March 2017, Pinnick has facilitated the appointment of several Nigerians into FIFA and CAF Committees.

A former Chief Judge of Lagos State, Justice Ayotunde Philips is a Member of the FIFA Disciplinary Committee (Adjudicatory Chamber) while Shehu Dikko, NFF 2nd Vice President, is a Member of the FIFA Football Stakeholders Committee.

NFF 1st Vice President Seyi Akinwunmi is a Member of the CAF Committee for Youth Compeitions; Shehu Dikko is a

Member of the Club Competitions and Club Licensing System Committee; Ibrahim Gusau is a Member of the CHAN Organizing Committee; Yusuf Ahmed Fresh is a Member of the CAF Technical and Development Committee; Obinna Ogba is a Member of the Futsal and Beach Soccer Committee; Dr. Peter Singabele is a Member of the CAF Medical Committee and; Chisom Ezeoke is a Member of the CAF Women Football Committee.

A Senior Advocate of Nigeria, A. U. Mustapha is the President of CAF Appeal Board and Samson Adamu is now the Director of Competitions of CAF. Pinnick has now been nominated for the CAF 1st Vice Presidency following the resignation of Nyantakyi – a big step towards his being elected as a Member of the FIFA Council, the most powerful group in world football.

Meanwhile, the crisis in the

NFF may have gone beyond mere power tussle as the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) yesterday invited its embattled Pinnick.

Pinnick who is still in Russia as Executive Member of FIFA has been informed about the invitation and is expected to jet in soon.

A source in position to know, confirmed the commission has been inundated by weighty petitions which only the CAF Executive member can provide answers to.

The invitation is coming less than 24 hours after the football fraternity across the globe woke up to behold a change of guard at the Nigerian football Federation Secretarial popularly known as the Glass House in Abuja with Ambassador Chris Giwa now firmly in charge in compliance with court order and directive from the Minister of Sports, arrister Solomon Dalung.

Although the content of the petitions and the petitioners cannot

be ascertained as at now, there are hints that the issues raised could include but not limited to issues of due process, financial transactions and administrative actions among others.

The world cup in Russia which kicked off on June 14 will be rounded off on July 15 and Executive members of the World soccer ruling body will be expected to stay put till the end and even attend a closing meeting before departing Russia.

Aside from that Pinnick has been appointed match commissioner for Friday’s 2018 FIFA World Cup quarter final match between France and Uruguay in Nizhny Novgorod.

The former Delta State FA chairman will also take charge of the first semi final match, scheduled for Saint Petersburg’s Zenit Arena on July 10, as well as the third place match at the same venue on July 14, an indication that he may not return till the end of the World Cup.

According to Russian newspaper, Argumenti I Fakti, the couple from Chelyabinsk – Arsen and Lyudmila – had a brawl when the husband celebrated Argentina’s win over Super Eagles of Nigeria.

The husband filed for divorce first thing next morning. Lyudmila, the wife, had repeatedly insisted that Ronaldo is better than Messi, so Arsen decided to pack his things and leave.

But it wasn’t enough for him as he filed for divorce next morning.

The paper reports that that was the latest in a long series of arguments the couple had about the two football greats.

Arsen also told the news outlet that their marriage goes back to 2002 when they met in the bar while watching the World Cup. “Since the beginning of the World Cup, she mocked Messi and said he couldn’t even score a penalty against Iceland,” he also revealed.

“I could not contain myself and told her what I thought about the vain Ronaldo, the Portuguese national team and all the clubs she likes. Then I took my belongings and left her forever.”

T H I S D AY ˾ WEDNESDAY, JULY 4, 2018

55

WEDNESDAYSPORTS

W O R L D C U P 2 0 1 8 … JUNE 14 TO JULY 15

England players celebrating their win over Colombia… yesterday

WORLD CUP 2018…

abiodun ajala

England Breaks Penalty Shootout Jinx with Colombia Win England’s new generation late Tuesday night banished the ghost of penalty shootout after a remarkable win over Colombia and reached the quarter final stage of the the World Cup for the first time since 2006 finals in Germany.

Eric Dier scored the winning kick after Jordan Pickford’s brilliant save from Carlos Bacca’s attempt, with England’s first ever World Cup shootout win setting up a meeting with Sweden in Samara on Saturday.

Gareth Southgate’s side had been seconds away from the last eight during normal time, with Harry Kane’s penalty after he was fouled by Carlos Sanchez in the box - his sixth goal of the tournament - looking as though it was going to send them through.

But deep into injury time, Colombia threw everyone forward for a Juan Cuadrado corner, including goalkeeper David Ospina, and Yerry Mina headed a dramatic equaliser at

the Spartak Stadium.

Kieran Trippier was standing on the line but could not keep out the Barcelona centre-back’s third headed goal of the World Cup. The Three Lions had been on top for most of the 90 minutes but appeared understandably deflated in extra time - although Danny Rose and Dier missed late chances to win the game and avoid a shootout.

Henderson had a penalty saved by Ospina in the shootout but Mateus Uribe smashed the

following kick onto the crossbar to pave the way for Pickford and Dier to be England heroes.

No previous world champions stand between England and the final. The winners of their quarter-final will face either Croatia or hosts Russia for a place in Moscow on 15 July.

The game itself had been a bad-tempered affair, with eight players booked in total - six Colombians, including Wilmar Barrios, who was lucky to avoid red for a first-half headbutt on

D U R O ’S R U S S I A N OT E . . .

NIGERIA’S FAMILIAR POST WORLD CUP BLUES How can one begin to explain to foreigners that what is going on in our country about the purported sack of Amaju Melvin Pinnick through Sports Minister, Solomon Dalung’s interpretation of the Supreme Court judgment has become a ritual every four years at the Nigeria Football Federation? Since the story hit the airwaves, some of the African journalists here in Russia for the World Cup have been asking Nigerian sportswriters what was going on in our country? Are we ashamed? Of course, we are not only ashamed of the developments back home but no longer know what to say each time we come in contact with these our colleagues.

There is this particular Ghanaian reporter who came in from the USA for the Mundial but is equally feeling bad that Nigeria like her country, Ghana has become the butt of jokes amongst our colleagues from Europe who we all hang out in the same section of the Media Centre of the St Petersburg Stadium.

“Every four years since 2006, Nigeria is always in the news for the wrong reason. Each time your team returns from the World Cup, it is always, war, war, war. Are you people never tired of playing politics with your football?” queried the lady as none of us have any answer to her query. How do I begin to tell her that instead of genuine football administrators, what we have in Nigeria are men (and women) who think of their stomach alone?

Though she admitted that Ghana has problems with Kwesi Nyantakyi who has been forced to step down from the GFA job but quickly stressed that what made the CAF vice president to quit was no related to the kind of intrigues that have plaqued Nigerian football since 2005 when Ibrahim Galadima was forced out of the Glass House for dare telling stakeholders that Eagles qualification for the 2006 World Cup was not a birthright but through hard work. Ever since, Nigeria football has known no peace since then as new personnel are always (forced?) on the Glass House immediately Super Eagles return from a misadventure at the Mundial. It was like that in 2010, 2014 and now 2018. Instead of doing a post-mortem of why

Eagles failed to achieve the dream of 180million Nigerians, a tiny fraction of the stakeholders who have access to the seat of power in Abuja, always seize the rein of office from incumbent NFF presidents through trumped up charges to force their exits. It was like that in the case of Galadima (Eagles never made it to Germany 2006, anyway), Sani Lulu Abdullahi (2010), Aminu Maigari (2014) and now Pinnick (2018).

To answer my Ghanaian colleague here in Russia on her inquiry on whether our stakeholders will never get tired of intrigues, I want to say here that so long as we have never fully abrogated the NFA Decree 101 that makes the federation an arm of the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports and by extension, the sitting minister the ‘Oga in Charge’ there will never be peace. And also, so long as the government keeps appointing men who do not know how many players make up a basketball team as sports ministers, we will keep having the type of situations we now finds ourselves after Russia 2018.

It is no ordinary that the NFA bill has been ‘stuck’ in the National Assembly for decades. The will to take Nigerian football away from government interference is lacking in the country. Football is seen as the ‘king of sports’ and that the Ministry of Sports will become uninteresting for whosoever that is appointed to oversee the place without football. The money in football is too tempting for any minister not to get involve in the

affairs of football.

Instead of seeing football as business and allow the Beautiful Game to flourish as it is happening in saner climes, only ‘politically corrected’ elements are fostered to govern it. For once, an individual like Pinnick who has brought some elements of business into the administration of the NFF by attracting multi-nationals and big corporate players to partner it, is been hounded out of the place through unnecessary litigations. I truly share the sentiments of those angry that Eagles failed to fly in Russia despite the quantum of support extended to the team. I am also of the opinion that unless we allow the structures put in place now to take proper roots, Nigeria may never truly realize her potentials in global soccer. A change of guard now will not only take our football back by over a decade, we may just be on the edge of a lengthy sanction from the world governing body, FIFA. And the rest of the world will not wait for Nigeria to do the catch up. Who wanna take a bet that this situation will play out again (that is if Eagles qualify) when we return from Qatar 2022 World Cup? GRIEZMANN, A TRUE BLEU WITH URUGUAYAN AFFINITY

He never goes out without his maté (a tea-like infusion popular in South America), speaks perfect Spanish, and has a daughter whose godfather is a Uruguayan central defender. But if you think we are

talking about a Celeste player, then you would be wrong.

The man in question is France striker Antoine Griezmann, who spoke to us about the upcoming quarter-final between the two sides, an occasion that is sure to be an emotional one for a player who describes Uruguay as his “second country”.

Just hours after helping France beat Argentina to move into the last eight at the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia, the Bleus front man was marveling at Uruguay’s defeat of Portugal. “I’m very emotional about them qualifying because I love the country and the people,” explained Griezmann. “I’ve got a lot of friends there. It’s going to be a great game to play in and a really emotional experience too.”

The France man, who even describes his style of play as “Uruguayan, not unlike Cavani”, began his love affair with the country of three million at Real Sociedad, where his coach was Martin Lasarte.

Thrown in at the deep end by the former Uruguayan player, Griezmann was taken under the wing of another Charrua, team-mate Carlos Bueno.

It was the ex-Paris Saint-Germain man who introduced Grizou to maté – which the Frenchman now takes with him on every trip – and who made him fall in love with another of his former clubs: Penarol.

Griezmann is such a diehard, in fact, that he never misses a match and knows all the fans’ songs.

“I’ve always had at least one or two Uruguayans at my clubs,” said Griezmann, who hung out with Diego Ifran at the San Sebastian club and then Christian Rodriguez on his arrival at Atletico Madrid, where he has also formed close friendships with Jose Gimenez and Diego Godin.

“Diego is a great friend,” continued the France forward.

“I’m with him every day, on and off the pitch, and that’s why he’s the godfather of my daughter. He made me want to sign for the club.”

Discussing the Frenchman’s love of all things Uruguayan, Godin said: “He loves who we are, our customs and our music, and he drinks more mate than me.”

Maradona Offers to Handle Argentina for Free Diego Maradona wants to return to the position of Argentina coach and is willing to work for free, as Jorge Sampaoli faces pressure to resign following their World Cup travails.

Speaking on his “Hand of God” television show, the 57-year-old Maradona, who coached Argentina for two years from 2008-10, said it was painful to see the current state of the national team.

“I would return to leading the national team and I would do it for free, I wouldn’t ask for anything in return,” Maradona said on his programme, which runs on Venezuelan channel Telesur.

Sampaoli is resisting intense pressure to resign following Argentina’s 4-3 defeat to France on Saturday during a World Cup campaign that was fraught with tension and disputes.

The coach is believed to have lost the support of his players with some claims attributing team selection and tactics to captain and star Lionel Messi.

Sampaoli, though, has another four years to run on his contract, meaning the Argentine Football Association (AFA) would have to pay a reported $15 million (12.9 million euros) to sack him.

“Hopefully God will give me the strength to return to the bench,” said Maradona,

whose own World Cup coaching campaign in 2010 ended in an ignominious 4-0 thumping by Germany in the quarterfinals in South Africa.

“I’m 57, watching my country, which was beaten by a team that isn’t one of the best in the world – it really hursts to see everything that we’ve built destroyed so easily.”

Maradona was a genius as a player, leading Argentina to World Cup glory in 1986 and again to the final four years later.

But his coaching career has been far less glamorous despite his stint in charge of the national team, in which he presided over a record-equalling 6-1 defeat to Bolivia.

His last two jobs were in the United Arab Emirates, most recently failing to guide Fujairah to promotion from the Emirati second division last season.

RESULTS Sweden 1-0 Switzerland Colombia 3-4 England Q’FINAL FIXTURES Friday 6th July Uruguay Vs France 3pm Brazil Vs Belgium 7pm Saturday 7th July Sweden Vs England 3pm Russia Vs Croatia 7pm

Vice Chancellor of Obafemi Awolowo University, Prof. Eyitope O. Ogunbodede (right) and CEO Astroturf 2000, Prince Aderoju Ademoroti at the finals of the recently concluded Inter- faculty Sports Festival at OAU Sports Ground... recently

ITTF Appoints Tandoh Tournament Director of Nigeria Open Executive Chairman of Lagos State Sports Commission, Dr. Kweku Tandoh has been appointed the tournament director of the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) approved Challenge Seamaster Nigeria Open.

This year’s Nigeria Open will be held from 9-13 August inside Molade Okoya-Thomas Indoor Sports Hall of the Teslim Balogun Stadium in Surulere, Lagos.

Chairman of the Local Organising Committee (LOC) of the annual competition, Mr. Wahid Enitan Oshodi said that the ITTF took into consideration a number of factors before arriving on the choice of Dr Tandoh as the

Tournament Director for the 2018 edition of Nigeria Open.

“Lagos State holds a starring role as usual. The support of the state in terms of the infrastructure, transportation, hospitality and human resources they put at our disposal is massive. Their staff who work on this project with the Nigeria Table Tennis Federation (NTTF) continues to acquire the knowledge that is so important for hosting top class events.

“Lagos has over the years continued to develop its capacity in this regard and it is well on its way to fulfilling the vision of the government to be a major player as one of the world’s top sports tourism destinations.

TR

Wednesday July 4, 2018

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& RE A SO

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Price: N250

MISSILE Dalung to Pinnick “This is a court order and not from Dalung. I will not want to go Kuje Prison because of disobedience of court order. Therefore, I hereby comply with the court orders of June 5, 2018, while Mr. Amaju Pinnick and others are also directed to comply with the same.”

– The Minister of Youth and Sports, Solomon Dalung, compelling the President of Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), Amaju Pinnick, to comply with the Supreme Court orders of April 27, 2018 which restored the orders of the Federal High Court setting aside the September, 30, 2014, election into the Executive Committee of the football.

KAYODEKOMOLAFE THE HORIZON

W

kayode.komolafe@thisdaylive.com

0805 500 1974

Time for Reason

hen politicians and social commentators say that this country has never been so divided, they are actually being euphemistic. The reality is indeed grave. For some forces appear hell- bent on setting this country on the path of destruction. Nigeria seems to be en route to Mogadishu with a stopover in Kigali.

Rwanda’s capital, Kigali, became a metaphor for genocide when in 1994 estimates of between 500, 000 and 1 million persons (mostly Tutsis) were killed within 100 days in the violence of the Hutus against the Tutsi. Hate speech was the fuel for that conflagration that drew universal horror.

The good news, however, is that the dark chapter of Rwandan history is closed and the country is today a model of reform under a visionary leadership of President Paul Kagame. Unlike Rwanda, Somalia has hardly recovered from the civil war, which broke out in the country in 1988 and the subsequent overthrow of the dictator, Siad Barre, in 1991. By the way, there is no multiplicity of ethnicity in Somalia. The country is often cited as an example of a failed state under the rule of clannish warlords. The world is still waiting for the good news from Mogadishu, the troubled capital of Somalia.

Rwanda and Somalia are both instructive and sobering African stories.

Historically, there is probably no immunity against the failure of the state and the consequent national disintegration. That is why nation building is always a work in progress. Those cosy places to which members of the ruling class escape in moments of crisis are still being built by the leaders and people of the respective nations. Since the days of Plato and Aristotle, competent governance has always been a requirement for the state to maintain its integrity. A crisis-ridden country should, therefore, watch out for the signs of a failed state so that it would not unconsciously be on the road to Mogadishu, as they say.

The objective climate of insecurity in Nigeria is being subjectively worsened by the purveyors of hate in the public sphere. Lies, prejudice and hate are the effective weapons of mass manipulation.

For some persons, Nigeria has simply ceased to exist subjectively even though they still operate within it objectively. Some of these elements still make billions from the poverty-stricken political economy. Yet, they speak of the country only in negative terms. These desperate forces perceive the forces of integration as naïve; whereas the real naivety is in assuming that there can ever be a bloodless disintegration of Nigeria. It’s not clear if some of the gladiators sometimes pause to do a proper scenario - building of what they wish for this country. Unfortunately, these forces of disintegration appear to be having the edge over the forces of integration. The voices of the prophets of doom are becoming more resonant.

Here lies the real danger of the moment.

Now, there is hardly any dispute about the imperative of making the Nigerian federalism work better by restructuring. Over centralization of items is simply not working. No rational person can question the elements of equity, fairness, efficiency and effectiveness as the condition for the union to last for generations. But the debacle seems to set in when you ponder the politics of restructuring. In other words, the real question is this: how exactly do you bring about restructuring? This question inexorably cropped up last Thursday in a quality colloquium in Lagos. It was organised by a highly reputable segment of the Yoruba elite, the Voice of Reason (VOR), whose motto is Agba kii wa l’oja k’ori omo tuntun wo (wise men do not stand by when things go wrong in the land). The VOR’s roll of

President Muhammadu Buhari honour is unquestionably inspiring for the young men and women seeking role models. The tone and tenor of the discussion were elevated even if sometimes provocative and reckless. Significantly, these members of the Yoruba elite invited the perspectives of the elites of other ethnic groups.

In fact, the VOR has demonstrated the seriousness of the group about its purpose by coming up with an attempt at a draft constitution to articulate its position on restructuring. The document, which VOR modestly describes as a “work in progress,” is entitled A Constitutional Framework for a MultiCultural Society.

However, the drawback of the occasion was that the severe limitation of the politics of restructuring was patently on display. Some of the suggestions were utterly tactless and, disappointingly, these views came from those who should know better

by the virtue of their experience. A lot of historical distortions and misinterpretations were freely peddled. The emotion shown by a few was indeed frightening. Perhaps, this was what prompted the wise intervention of a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Olisa Agbakoba, who challenged the gathering to the fact that the objectives of the advocates of restructuring might be impaired by the “harsh” tone of some of the southern participants in the debate when referring to their compatriots in the north.

Agbakoba suggested in the alternative a robust engagement among elements from the various parts of the country. In this respect, reason, and not hate speech, would serve the purpose.

After all, what is federalism if not a continuous negotiation among the federating units and between the units on the one hand and the centre on the other?

Even if restructuring is accomplished today as defined by the contemporary, future generations of Nigerians might still have cause to restructure the federation to serve their own purpose.

Maybe, no one could envisage the future purpose now. That is why decent advocates of restructuring such as the VOR should be wary of the merchants of hate and practitioners of anarchy. You cannot go far on the road to restructuring with a penchant for insulting people of other ethnic groups. That is not the way of decent negotiation. And you simply cannot restructure without being imbued with the spirit of negotiation in a complex setting such as Nigeria. It is only reasonable to learn how to play the politics of restructuring right.

So those who play with the fire of the faultlines of ethnicity and religion are doing a great disservice to the cause of restructuring. A peaceful restructuring cannot be achieved by the cynical manipulation of religion and ethnicity.

In this respect, President Muhammadu Buhari should seize the moment by giving a coherent

and illuminating response to the groundswell of opinions on restructuring. Buhari should simply go back to the manifesto of his party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), to be properly equipped on how to engage the nation amidst the seemingly unstoppable momentum of restructuring. That is what good leadership demands of the President.

The reflections should also focus on the factor of governance. The present and real danger of insecurity enveloping the nation is an issue of proper governance. No matter the structure of the federation that is eventually agreed upon, governance will still be a factor on its own. To derive the benefits from the proposed devolution of power to the federating units, state police and fiscal federalism, the country will still need to be properly governed at all levels. It would be illusory to imagine otherwise.

More fundamentally, it is important to explode the myth that the primary contradiction in Nigeria today is the distortion in the structure of the federation. Federalism, true or false, is not the primary issue. The primary contradiction in Nigeria is class-based. The primary contradiction is neither ethnic nor religious in nature. It is manifested in mass poverty and misery as recent findings by think tanks and international agencies have only confirmed. The primary contradiction is between the poor and the rich exploiters. The point at issue is that the vertical restructuring of the federation without the horizontal transformation of the social structure of inequality will not solve the problem fundamentally. The social structure of inequality traverses all ethnic groups, regions, zones and religions. And restructuring the federation will not automatically eradicate poverty in the land.

So, it is important that the restructuring advocates should also raise their voices against the worsening social inequality plaguing the land in the interest of social justice and peace.

Life of Integrity Femi Falana

T

he reality of a life of integrity is a mirage in any country where the majority of the people have been sentenced to a life of poverty. To ensure that the people of Nigeria live happily, honestly and decently the Government shall harness the resources and promote national prosperity by controlling the national economy. Accordingly, the economic system is not operated in such a manner as to permit the concentration of the national wealth or the means of production in the hands of a few people or a group. Since the primary purpose of government is to guarantee the welfare and security of the people the State shall direct its policy towards ensuring that suitable and adequate shelter, suitable and adequate food, reasonable national minimum living wage, old age care and pension and unemployment and sick benefits as well as the welfare of the physically challenged people are provided.

The Constitution has imposed a duty on the Government to eradicate corruption and abuse of office. To this effect the mass media shall promote public accountability and transparency in the affairs of the government. All citizens are required to assist the law enforcement agencies in the performance of their duties. In Dododo v. Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (2013) 1 NWLR (PT 1336) 468

the Court of Appeal held that every citizen is under a legal obligation to report allegations of corruption to the anti graft bodies. Once corrupt public officers are exposed while public funds are channeled towards infrastructural and human capital development the Nigerian people will be in a position to live a life of integrity. But if citizens are poor, frustrated and disenchanted they will engage in criminality to the detriment of law and order in the society.

The aforementioned duties of the government and the rights of citizens to live in prosperity and happiness have been outlined in Chapter 2 of the Constitution. However, successive governments have failed to carry out their constitutional responsibilities to the people due to alleged lack of resources. It is our submission that the resources of the nation have been concentrated in the hands of a few people and groups by the government.

Mr. Bill Gates, the co-chair of Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation was a guest of the federal government at the recently concluded expanded meeting of the National Economic Council in Abuja. In his wellpublicised address at the forum Mr. Gates criticised the neo-liberal foundation of the economic programme of the Government of Nigeria. While reeling out facts and figures on the state of underdevelopment of the nation the special guest made a strong case for increased investment in the welfare of the Nigerian people by all the chief executives of the

federal and state governments. In particular, he urged the governments to make the people the corner stone of its economic programme by investing in education, health and other social services.

Not a few people including some former public officers have commended Mr. Gates for speaking truth to power! But far from it, the speech was a friendly admonition to the members of the ruling class in Nigeria. Having invested $1.6 billion in promoting the health of the most vulnerable segment of the population since 2006 the locus standi of Mr. Gates to challenge the economic programme of the Government cannot be questioned. Gates has put his money where is mouth is, as they say.

His solidarity message was a critical commentary on the economic programmes of the previous and current governments which have abandoned the welfare policies enshrined in the Fundamental Objectives and Directive Principles of State Policy embodied in the Chapter II of the Constitution of the Republic. Therefore, Mr. Gates’ criticism of the economic programme of the Buhari administration is valid for all the economic programmes of the previous governments, which have handed over the national economy to market forces at least in the last 35 years.

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