TUESDAY 15TH JANUARY 2019

Two Years After, AMCON Yet to Get Buyer for Arik Chinedu Eze Almost two years after Arik Air was taken over by the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) on February 9, 2017 and put up for sale, no investor has indicated interest to acquire

the airline, which was then the biggest domestic operator in the country, THISDAY’s investigation has revealed.

THISDAY has also gathered that there are strong indications that the team AMCON set up to manage the airline may find it increasingly difficult to

sustain the operations of the airline going forward.

Reliable sources in both the AMCON and the airline told THISDAY that substantial revenue generated by the airline was allegedly being spent on foreign trips of the management personnel,

emoluments, other allowances, as well as other recurrent expenditure.

One of the sources who pleaded to remain anonymous added, “The airline is in a very bad state. There is no operating fund and there is too much vetting to the extent

that it is difficult to buy spares and other consumables.

“The frequency of overseas trips and courses is high.

When an airline is in such financial straits, you only attend the courses that are compulsory. The airline has only three operating aircraft.”

A source at Arik Air told THISDAY that the only hope the airline has now is its acquisition by investors, otherwise it would go under.

The source noted that out of 26 aircraft inherited by Continued on page 9

Onyema Explains Withdrawal of N606bn from Equities Market… Page 9 Tuesday 15 January, 2019 Vol 23. No 8672. Price: N250

www.thisdaylive.com TR

TODAY'S WEATHER

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Challenging Tribunal’s Jurisdiction, Onnoghen Stays Away from Arraignment CCT orders fresh service of summons, adjourns till Tuesday Two courts halt trial CJN must face prosecution, says APC Iyobosa Uwugiaren, Shola Oyeyipo and Alex Enumah in Abuja The much advertised arraignment of the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Walter Onnoghen, for alleged non-declaration of assets did not happen yesterday as the CJN stayed away in protest, challenging the jurisdiction of

the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) to try him.

Leading lights of the legal profession, including Chief Wole Olanipekun, SAN, Chief Adegboyega Awomolo, SAN, Dr. Yusuf Alli, SAN and 45 other silks, stood in defence of Onnoghen and were ready for legal foot walks before the Continued on page 6

Cabal in the Presidency After Me, Ortom Cries Out

George Okoh in Makurdi

Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State has raised the alarm over what he described as an attempt by certain cabal within the presidency to pit him against President Muhammadu Buhari, who he alleged did not act on time when two Fulani socio-cultural groups threatened and carried out attacks and killings in Benue State.

Ortom made this known yesterday while campaigning in Konshisha Local Government Area of the state.

He stated that he has never attacked the personality of the president as insinuated by the spokesman of the president, Mallam Garba Shehu.

Shehu had alleged that Ortom, who is presently campaigning for his re-election, Continued on page 9

Buhari, APC Desperate over General Elections, Says PDP... Page 6

BONDING WITH THE PEOPLE...

Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, with party enthusiasts during his rally in Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State… yesterday

Two Years After, AMCON Yet to Get Buyer for Arik Chinedu Eze Almost two years after Arik Air was taken over by the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) on February 9, 2017 and put up for sale, no investor has indicated interest to acquire

the airline, which was then the biggest domestic operator in the country, THISDAY’s investigation has revealed.

THISDAY has also gathered that there are strong indications that the team AMCON set up to manage the airline may find it increasingly difficult to

sustain the operations of the airline going forward.

Reliable sources in both the AMCON and the airline told THISDAY that substantial revenue generated by the airline was allegedly being spent on foreign trips of the management personnel,

emoluments, other allowances, as well as other recurrent expenditure.

One of the sources who pleaded to remain anonymous added, “The airline is in a very bad state. There is no operating fund and there is too much vetting to the extent

that it is difficult to buy spares and other consumables.

“The frequency of overseas trips and courses is high.

When an airline is in such financial straits, you only attend the courses that are compulsory. The airline has only three operating aircraft.”

A source at Arik Air told THISDAY that the only hope the airline has now is its acquisition by investors, otherwise it would go under.

The source noted that out of 26 aircraft inherited by Continued on page 9

Onyema Explains Withdrawal of N606bn from Equities Market… Page 9 Tuesday 15 January, 2019 Vol 23. No 8672. Price: N250

www.thisdaylive.com TR

TODAY'S WEATHER

ABUJA 25°C-33°C

MAIDUGURI 31°C-31°C

UT H

& RE A S O

ENUGU 25°C-28°C

N

KANO 27°C-33°C

LAGOS 24C-27°C

PORT HARCOURT 20°C-30°C

Challenging Tribunal’s Jurisdiction, Onnoghen Stays Away from Arraignment CCT orders fresh service of summons, adjourns till Tuesday Two courts halt trial CJN must face prosecution, says APC Iyobosa Uwugiaren, Shola Oyeyipo and Alex Enumah in Abuja The much advertised arraignment of the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Walter Onnoghen, for alleged non-declaration of assets did not happen yesterday as the CJN stayed away in protest, challenging the jurisdiction of

the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) to try him.

Leading lights of the legal profession, including Chief Wole Olanipekun, SAN, Chief Adegboyega Awomolo, SAN, Dr. Yusuf Alli, SAN and 45 other silks, stood in defence of Onnoghen and were ready for legal foot walks before the Continued on page 6

Cabal in the Presidency After Me, Ortom Cries Out

George Okoh in Makurdi

Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State has raised the alarm over what he described as an attempt by certain cabal within the presidency to pit him against President Muhammadu Buhari, who he alleged did not act on time when two Fulani socio-cultural groups threatened and carried out attacks and killings in Benue State.

Ortom made this known yesterday while campaigning in Konshisha Local Government Area of the state.

He stated that he has never attacked the personality of the president as insinuated by the spokesman of the president, Mallam Garba Shehu.

Shehu had alleged that Ortom, who is presently campaigning for his re-election, Continued on page 9

Buhari, APC Desperate over General Elections, Says PDP... Page 6

BONDING WITH THE PEOPLE...

Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, with party enthusiasts during his rally in Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State… yesterday

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TUESDAY, ÍšÍ˝Ëœ ͺ͸͚Π˞ T H I S D AY

PAGE SIX

Buhari, APC Desperate over General Elections, Says PDP Appoints Ekweremadu, Makarfi, others technical advisers 140 aggrieved PDP support groups return to Atiku Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja The Peoples Democratic Party Presidential Campaign Organisation (PPCO) has accused President Muhammadu Buhari and the All Progressives Congress (APC) of desperation to rig the forthcoming election, predicating its accusation on the current attempt to forcibly remove the Chief Justice of the Nigeria, Justice Walter Onnoghen, and other undemocratic activities by APC-led government.

Also, the presidential candidate of the party, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, and the National Chairman of the party, Prince Uche Secondus, at two separate presidential rallies in Ekiti and Ondo States yesterday, urged the people to be ready to vote PDP and defend their votes.

The Director of Media and Publicity, Mr. Kola Ologbondiyan, in a statement yesterday in Abuja, said it was despicable that rather than retracing their steps from the ignoble act against the CJN, after

the spontaneous public outrage that trailed the ‘’shameful act’’, the APC and the Buhari presidency are attempting to blackmail Nigerians, who condemned the assault on the judiciary, as being sympathetic to corruption.

He stressed that it was now crystal clear to all Nigerians that apart from failing woefully in all its promises, the APC and its presidential candidate, Buhari, are beginning to manifest their autocratic attributes.

According to him, “It is important to restate that the Buhari presidency is now a refugee camp for known and well-advertised faces of corruption. From the factional National Chairman of the APC, the co-chairman of the Buhari campaign Organisation, the Director General of the Buhari Campaign, the zonal directors and to the recent entrants from Bauchi and Gombe States, all leaders of the APC and Buhari campaign structure are all candidates of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).�

Ologbondiyan noted that the presidency and APC, in this venture, have exposed their desperation to subdue and annex the judiciary, particularly, following increasing agitation

by Nigerians for the prosecution of President Buhari’s cronies and APC leaders over exposed corruption.

He stated, “The Buhari presidency and APC in turning around to fight Nigerians have further exposed their desperation to replace Justice Onnoghen with a pliable CJN, who will execute their plots to use the courts to detain opposition leaders, as well as vocal members of the civil society during the elections. “The Buhari presidency is not only corrupt but has become an asylum for corrupt people. The PDPCO therefore challenges the APC and the Buhari presidency to name one APC member that has been investigated, prosecuted or arraigned before any court of competent jurisdiction in the last three and half years in spite of their humongous corruption. “If for anything, President

Buhari has encouraged corruption in our nation more than any president that had the privilege of governing our country, Nigeria.�

Atiku, while addressing the party supporters at the Ado Ekiti Sports Stadium, and M.K.O. Abiola Democracy Park, Akure, said the people should resist any attempt to steal their votes.

He stated, “They stole your votes here, and in Osun States last year and we are still in court, don't allow them repeat it again this time. After stealing their job, APC is now planning to steal their votes, but they must not allow it.

"They are not talking to you, they are not campaigning because they have nothing to show but they are planning to steal your votes and you must not allow them.�

Also speaking at the rallies, the National Chairman, Prince Uche Secondus, said that APC must be voted out because the president is sleeping in the Villa while the country is collapsing.

He stressed, "The economy is collapsing, no food on the

table for the hardworking Nigerians, insecurity all over the place because the president is sleeping, working only three of the 24 hours in a day.

"The president has sourced out the presidency of the country to college of selfish persons operating as cabals and who are only interested in their private gains.�

Meanwhile, party yesterday named a former governor of Jigawa State, Mallam Sule Lamido, former PDP National Chairman of PDP, Senator Ahmed Makarfi, Speaker of House of Representatives, Hon. Yakubu Dogara and the Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, as Technical Advisers to its presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar.

The main opposition party also named Lamido as the Chairman of Elder’s Council for the campaign, while Alhaji Kawu Baraje has been appointed Technical Adviser to the Director General of the campaign, Senator Bukola Saraki, while Dr. Doyin Okupe is named the Media Adviser to the Director

General.

In another development, 140 out of the 145 support groups that withdrew their support to the Atiku have returned to the PDP after a brief foray in the APC. The Coalition of Atikulate Leaders Forum, at a press conference held at the party’s presidential campaign headquarters, Abuja, yesterday announced their return to the party and their collective resolve to end their support for the APC and its presidential candidate, President Buhari.

Its National Coordinator, Mr. Franklin Eze and National Secretary, Mr. Oyegoke Olawale, said that the coalition has resolved to put their grievances behind, explaining that the ruling party and its government have no respect for democratic institutions The coordinator dissociated the coalition from what he described as self-serving activities of a few members who may still be working for the ruling party despite the retreat.

CHALLENGING TRIBUNAL’S JURISDICTION, ONNOGHEN STAYS AWAY FROM ARRAIGNMENT tribunal adjourned hostility till Tuesday so that the CJN could be properly served the processes.

By the time Olanipekun concluded the defence team’s preliminary objection to the trial, two courts, the National Industrial Court and Federal High Court, sitting in Abuja had stopped the arraignment all together. But in spite of the groundswell of opposition to the failed arraignment, the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) insisted on the prosecution of the CJN, claiming that fight against corruption is the substantive issue to be tackled.

At the tribunal sitting at Abuja High Court, Jabi, Abuja, lawyers and other protesters, who blamed the federal government for Onnoghen’s predicament, stormed the premises to register their disapproval over the manner the CJN was to be arraigned.

The tribunal, following an application by the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB), had scheduled yesterday for the arraignment of the CJN. The federal government is prosecuting the CJN on a six-count criminal charge, bordering on non-declaration of his assets.

However, when the matter was called up at 10a.m. yesterday, Onnoghen was not present in court for the arraignment.

Olanipekun, who led the defence team, informed the tribunal Chairman, Mr. Danladi Umar, that the defendant had filed an application challenging the jurisdiction of the tribunal to entertain the suit.

Olanipekun also informed the court that the defendant was not in court because he had not been served with the summons of the tribunal.

Although the prosecution counsel, Mr. Aliyu Umar (SAN), argued that service was effected on the CJN, claiming that the registrar of the court informed him that the CJN directed his personal secretary, one Sunday O. to accept service on his behalf.

But Olanipekun insisted that in a criminal charge, service must be made personally on the defendant, adding that the CJN opted not to appear before the tribunal in protest. “The law is well settled, where the defendant is challenging the jurisdiction in a criminal

matter, he does not have to appear. The non-appearance is on protest. We are not yet on the matter of arraignment,� he said, stressing, “The tribunal should uphold the dignity and sanctity of the law.�

The chairman of the tribunal had initially argued that there was no law that allows a defendant to say he is not appearing because he is protesting.

He, however, in conceding the defectiveness of the service, urged the court to redirect service on the defendant with a directive that the service be made personally on the CJN. Subsequently, the tribunal adjourned the matter till Tuesday, January 22 for the arraignment of Onnoghen and the hearing of all applications relating to the matter.

The CJN in the application, which would be taken at the next adjourned date, is asking the tribunal for an order striking out or dismissing the suit against him in its entirety as constituted in charge number: CCT/ ABJ/01/19.

The defence counsel said their request was predicted on the grounds that the applicant is a judicial officer, a Justice of the Supreme Court of Nigeria and, presently the Chief Justice of Nigeria, saying the constitution makes ample provisions for the appointment and removal of judicial officers, particularly a justice of the Supreme Court, and more particularly, the CJN. The defence in the application further noted that no allegation of any misconduct whatsoever has been made against the applicant by the respondent, and none (allegations) has been referred to the National Judicial Council (NJC) by the respondent.

In addition, the defendant said no address supported by 2/3 majority of the Senate has been presented to the President of Nigeria for the discipline or removal of the applicant from office.

Amidst heavy presence of security personnel at the tribunal, the venue of the scheduled arraignment was condoned off as early as 8a.m. by security operatives, who carried out screening of persons going into the premises of the tribunal.

No fewer than 50 Senior Advocates of Nigeria, alongside

dozens of other lawyers, attended the proceedings in line with the call by the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) President, Paul Usoro, SAN, to show solidarity with the CJN. One of the charges read: “That you, Justice Walter Nkanu Onnoghen, CJN, GCON between June 8, 2005 to December 14, 2016 being a public officer, serving as a Judicial Officer of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as a Justice of the Supreme Court of Nigeria failed to declare and submit a written declaration of all your assets and liabilities within the prescribed period of (3) months after being sworn-in as a Justice of the Supreme Court of Nigeria on the 8 day of June, 2005 and you thereby contravened the provisions of section 15(1) of the Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act Cap 15 LFN 2004 and punishable under section 23(2) a, b and c of the same Act.�

Onnoghen was also accused of falsely declaring his assets by omitting to declare funds in his domiciliary accounts as well as an e- saving accounts both in local and foreign currencies, all in Standard Chartered Banks, Wuse, Abuja.

Massive Solidarity for Onnoghen Over 400 protesters from the South-south region, including members of the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) and a group of young lawyers, under the auspices of Advocate for Peoples’ Right and Justice (APRJ) registered their grievances with the legal procedure, alleging that it was an orchestrated attack on the judiciary and the South-south region.

Leading the APRJ protesters, Mr. Pelumi Olajengbesi said their angst is that the case against the CJN was being spurred by some forces somewhere.

He said, “There is a finger from somewhere, not just trying to deal with the CJN but the entire judiciary. Our protest is to send a signal to the Nigerian government that Nigerian lawyers disapprove of any attempt to intimidate the judiciary and that it will be resisted. “It is clear that this case is geared to achieve a premeditated objective, which is to embarrass

the CJN out of office without following the laid down procedure stipulated by the law.

And we urge every Nigerian to reject this ploy in its entirety.�

The aggrieved lawyers carried placards with inscriptions such as: “Nigerians want independent judiciary,� “Restore confidence in the law,� “No assault, intimidation and desecration of our democracy,� “No to tyranny and election manipulation,� “Save our judiciary."

Though they were disallowed from accessing the premises of the tribunal, the outraged citizens carried placards with inscriptions such as ‘Ijaw youths say no to the intimidation of the judiciary,’ ‘Let the rule of law prevail,’ ‘Government: Is it South-south vs. North?’ ‘Southsouth says no to intimidation,’ stayed outside the venue to vent their obvious angers.

Lawyer and presidential hopeful on the platform of All Grassroots Alliance (AGA), Mr. Chuks Nwachukwu, who spoke with THISDAY was particularly elated that members of the NBA stood in solidarity with the CJN. “From what I can see, from the proceedings, I am glad that the bar came to support the CJN. They stood solidly behind him.

Everybody knows that this is about the profession, rule of law and the administration of justice in Nigeria. “If the CJN is taken down on an improper application, it is not good for our judicial system. It is the first time we are seeing such thing,’’ he stated.

Describing his understanding of the proceedings in the court, an Abuja -based lawyer, Mr. Chris Makpu, said, “The tribunal and the prosecution are on the same page, playing the script of the government with a bid to achieve their ill-motivated purpose and, which if allowed, will not only take us a step backward in our democracy but will also be a slap on the judiciary.�

Meanwhile, Justice Maha of the Federal High Court, Abuja yesterday temporarily halted the arraignment of Onnoghen, before CCT. In a short ruling on two separate ex-parte applications brought before the court, he ordered parties to maintain status quo, pending the hearing and determination of the exparte motion.

The judge, before adjourning

the matter till January 17, also ordered that the defendants to be served with all the processes – filed, and appear in court at the next hearing.

In the suit marked FHC/ ABJ/CS/27/2019 and filed by incorporated trustees of the Centre for Justice and Peace Initiative, the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami; the Chairman of CCT, Umar; the National Judicial Council, the Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Ibrahim Idris, and the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki were joined as defendants.

The other suit marked FHC/ ABJ/CS/28/2019 and filed by the incorporated trustees of the International Association of Students Economists and Management, has as defendants, Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Malami; the CCT, the CCB, the Chairman of CCT, Umar; and the Inspector-General of Police, Idris.

While the ex parte application in the suit FHC/ABJ/ CS/27/2019 was moved by Mr. R.A Lawal-Rabana, SAN, before Justice Maha on Monday, the ex parte application filed in the suit marked FHC/ABJ/ CS/28/2019 was moved by Mr. Jeph Njikonye.

The CJN will also be challenging the jurisdiction of the CCT to entertain the suit, when the matter resumes on January 22.

SERAP Asks AGF to take complaints against Onnoghen to NJC An anti-corruption group, the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), has urged President Muhammadu Buhari to instruct the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami, SAN, to immediately withdraw the charges against Onnoghen and refer any allegations of breach of asset declaration to the NJC for investigation.

The organisation said, “Mr. Malami should then request Justice Onnoghen as the Chairman of the NJC to recuse himself, so that the next most senior justice at the Supreme Court can preside over the process and set up a panel

to investigate the allegations against Justice Onnoghen to ensure fairness and justice in the matter.’’ In a statement today by SERAP senior legal adviser, Mr. Bamisope Adeyanju, the organisation said, “We believe that enforcing asset declaration provisions would help to prevent corruption and abuse of office and ensure transparency in public officers, including judges. But the government should follow due process of law, and allow the NJC to consider the allegations against Justice Onnoghen first before pushing for prosecution, should there be any relevant admissible evidence. This would help to accord Justice Onnoghen his entire rights through laid down process.�

Onnoghen Must Face Trial, Says APC At a news conference yesterday in Abuja, APC wondered whether there is an unholy alliance between the PDP and the CJN, accusing the PDP of always being quick to defend corruption.

The party said in a statement Continued on page 9

TOP GAINERS FIRSTALUM UNIEDCAP MUTUALBENEFITS ROYALEXCHANGE DIAMONDBANK TOP LOSERS LINKAGE WAPIC NAHCO

NGN NGN 0.03 0.36 0.15 2.98 0.01 0.21 0.01 0.22 0.07 2.09 NGN 0.06 0.59 0.04 0.40 0.29 3.21 RESORT 0.03 0.34 JAIZBANK 0.03 0.50 HPE Nestle Nig Plc â‚Ś1,401.10 Volume: 132.408 million shares Value: N1.085 billion Deals: 2,542 As at yesterday 14 /1/19 See details on Page 31

% 9.0 5.3 5.0 4.7 3.7 % 9.2 9.0 8.2 8.1 5.6

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TUESDAY, ÍšÍ˝Ëœ ͺ͸͚Π˞ T H I S D AY

NEWS

Onyema Explains Withdrawal of N606bn from Equities Market Goddy Egene The Chief Executive Officer of Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), Mr. Oscar Onyema, yesterday said foreign investors pulled out N605.54 billion from the Nigerian equities market in 2018 because of a shift to higher yielding assets with lower risks in developed countries, coupled with the perceived political risks in the forthcoming general elections.

The stock market fell by 17.8 per cent in 2018 after recording a growth of 42.3 per cent in 2017.

Giving a recap of the stock market performance in 2018 and outlook for 2019 during a media briefing in Lagos, Onyema said the outflows last year was 50.53 per cent higher than the N402.26 billion repatriated by foreign investors the preceding year.

However, he said most of the foreign investors would still return considering the fact that the Nigerian market has potential to deliver high returns.

The CEO, who said the market need foreign investors the way retail domestic investors are needed, assured that the exchange was working on ways to deepening the participation of retail investors in the market going forward.

He expressed optimism that the market will bounce back in the second half (H2) of this year. “Domestically, we believe market sentiments in the first half (H1) of the year will be driven by uncertainty in the oil prices as well as the 2019 general elections.

Accordingly, we anticipate volatility in equities market in H1 in 2019 with enhanced

Onyema stability post-elections. We believe swift approval and implementation of the 2019 budget may have a positive impact on the companies’ earnings as well as consumer spending. Therefore, we anticipate a return of listings during the year with an uptick in market activity during the

H2 of 2019,� he said.

Speaking on the protection of domestic investors, Onyema assured that the exchange would ensure that listed companies stick to listing requirements for the benefits of shareholders.

He said the stock exchange was also working closely with listed companies to assist them to be able to comply with the listing requirements, saying that delisting by some companies should not be a cause of worry.

He said that to enhance the exchange’s listing prospects, “we have strengthened our government engagement efforts on privatisation and listing of state-owned enterprises, and we expect to take advantage of opportunities within this space during the year. We also intend to maintain our collaborative

efforts with public and private sector stakeholders to advocate for market friendly policies, and cater to infrastructure financing needs as well as other capital requirements necessary for sustainable economic growth.

The exchange intends to work with the private sector as well, to catalyse the listing of more companies,� Onyema explained.

He disclosed that a search for an alternative asset class opposed to equities led to an increase of 11.7 per cent in the NSE fixed income market capitalisation to N10.17 trillion from N9.10 trillion in 2017.

Turnover, he said, also increased by 22.34 per cent in 2018, compared to 2017.

Onyema added that the NSE’s Exchange Traded Fund(ETF) market witnessed

reduced activity on the back of reduced risk appetite in the market. “The best performing ETF was the Stanbic Pension ETF as it returned 16.37 per cent, indicative of the effect of the recently implemented multifund structure for pension fund administrators,� he said.

Looking ahead, Onyema said, the exchange was working on the final stages of the demutualisation process since the bill has been signed into law and assented to by President Muhammadu Buhari.

He added that NSE has completed required technological enhancements for the launch of derivatives products. “Rulebook has been created and is currently undergoing approval process alongside on boarding of dealing members,� the NSE boss added.

ASUU Replies FG Today as Members Reject Tokenism Kuni Tyessi in Abuja The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) is set to submit its reports today to the federal government in response to the proposal made by the latter to the union on Monday last week.

National President of the union, Prof. Biodun Ogunyemi, who disclosed this yesterday in an exclusive interview with THISDAY, said the national leadership took the federal government’s offer to its members, who have turned down the offer, insisting that they would not accept tokenism.

Ogunyemi, who queried

the refusal of the federal government to commit itself to a full tranche of the payment for revitalisation, which is N220 billion, and spread it for a period of five quarters in order to show commitment, said the proposal of over N34 billion is too low to be accepted when compared to N1.1 trillion.

While insisting that a timeframe for payments must be attached to further agreements being made by the federal government with the union, the national president also said evidence of payment must also be made, adding that all that have been done are mere verbal speeches.

He said,"Yes, we took the proposal to our members and we are preparing feedback reports and by tomorrow (today), the federal government will get the union's response.

"Our members said the amount is just too small and far from what was expected or envisaged. Our members are willing to shift grounds concerning the strike but they emphasised that they will not take tokenism.

"Is what we are asking for too much? What we are asking for is not too much.

Why can't the government give us one tranche of the five outstanding tranches for revitalisation? Why can't the

government pay the sum of N220 billion in each quarter and spread it over a period of five quarters? Remember that the issue of the Earned Academic Allowance is there.

"We are asking for a collaboration and confirmation of payment when it is done because evidence of payment is necessary. Government has been failing in its promises and so, we are calling for a timeline as regards payment.

What we even have so far is a verbal statement as we are yet to see evidence of payment.�

On the issue of reversing its agreement on the participation of its members in the forthcoming general

elections, Ogunyemi said there was no reversal whatsoever as members are permitted to join in the preparations.

He, however, said that the union, contrary to past arrangements, will not be able to recommend its members to the electoral body but have permitted them to participate based on personal discretion, as the union stands for democracy and its tenets.

"There was no u-turn to the agreement that members are free to participate in the general elections. What we said is that ASUU will not recommend people but members are free to participate.

We will not be able to do for

them what we were doing before.

"We didn't stop our members from working with INEC. They are free to do so but on their own decision and freewill.

That means personal discretion will be applied. After all the strike is not against INEC, neither is it against democracy or against the country. We will do everything possible to support the elections.�

While empathising with Nigerian students over the negative effects of the strike, Ogunyemi disclosed that once the federal government does what is expected of it, the strike will be called off within days.

should respect the law, I should respect the law, everybody should respect the law. That is the only way we can preserve this country because Nigeria belongs to all of us. “All of us are stakeholders and we cannot fold our hands and see things being destroyed by individuals. I have no time for that, Garba Shehu should go and concentrate on his job and he should stop trying to create hatred between me and the president, because I have

no issues with the president.

"I talk about issues of the campaign. And if you talk about hate speech they should go and arrest FUNAM and Miyetti Allah members who made that statement and going around doing all sorts of illegal things, creating hate and confusion among Nigerians and nobody is out to say anything, rather you hear agents of government come out to give backing to Miyetti Allah.

"Why should I keep quiet?

I will not keep quiet unless justice, equity and fairness are done by the federal government.

It is my responsibility to the people of Benue State to make laws as long as it does not conflict with the provisions of Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

"But it is also the responsibility of the federal government to enforce any law whether by the states or federal government, so what is my offence?"

CABAL IN THE PRESIDENCY AFTER ME, ORTOM CRIES OUT was alleged to have claimed that Buhari was trying to islamise Benue State.

However, Ortom while fielding questions from journalists at Tse Agbaragba described Shehu's statement as unfortunate, stressing, "I'm not sure it's coming from Mr. President but from the presidency."

"In my campaigns I have never insulted President Buhari, I have never made any hate speech against him at any given time. If I talk of Miyetti Allah claiming responsibility for the killings in Benue State, it came from them and it was before the media and everybody knew about it.

"If I talk about Fulani Nationality Movement (FUNAM), which did a press conference in Kano and proclaimed that the killings in Benue State were a continuation of 1804 jihad, it didn't come from me, it came from them.

"I called for the arrest of these people because they were making hate speeches and

displaying impunity over this country and I reported them to security agencies. I expected that these people should have been arrested. And I was just repeating that.

"Garba Shehu cannot tell me where I'll go and do my campaigns. If I am in the church I will also go to the mosque and respect the Muslims for who they are, and I respect the church, that is the background I come from, I am a Christian.

"Can Garba Shehu come and tell me where to campaign? He doesn't have the right, he is from APC and I am of the PDP and I am campaigning to win election for my party and my presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, because I believe he will not keep a cabal in the villa.

"I am a man, I am not a woman, that is why I respect the wife of the president who called all of us to come back that 'where are the men in this country.

"Should we allow the cabal in the Villa to ruin this country? I

am not a coward; it is a coward that will die 20 times before his actual death. Time has come for us to say the truth in this country. Whether it is going to be with our lives, we should say it in order to save the country and save our democracy."

Ortom who also commented on the arraignment of the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Walter Onnoghen at the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT), said "Look at what is happening, looking at the issue of arraigning the CJN, this is impunity at its highest level. I always say that we must respect the rule of law, that is the only way we can preserve ourselves and even the positions we hold.

"Anything outside that will result in impunity and when there is impunity you are inviting anarchy and when there is anarchy you don't know where it will lead us to.

"Look, nobody should be above the law, we should respect the law, the presidency

CHALLENGING TRIBUNAL’S JURISDICTION, ONNOGHEN STAYS AWAY FROM ARRAIGNMENT by its National Publicity Secretary, Malam Lanre IsaOnilu, “Following the notice of the charges preferred against the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Walter Onnoghen, by the Code of Conduct Bureau at the Code of Conduct Tribunal, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has been on overdrive vituperating over an issue that should at best be left to the judiciary to resolve. “While we would not want to be lured into discussing issues

that are presently before the courts and for, which any respectable political party hoping to hold positions of responsibility should restrain itself, we regret to suggest that the PDP’s attempt to hoodwink Nigerians into believing that there is a political motive behind the allegation brought against the CJN might itself be indicative of some unholy alliances.

APC added that while it would not be drawn into

debates on the legality and sponsored conspiracies of the CCT trial, the democratic and constitutional institutions must be allowed to operate without interference and undue pressure from partisan and sundry interests.

The ruling party said that the CCT trial is a legal matter, and the law must run its course, advising the CJN to go through the instrumentalities of the courts, more importantly as an institution he represents.

the airline along with Aero Contractors was an ongoing process, saying they had been handed over to a Transaction Adviser who is expected to make recommendations to the corporation. “The offload of Arik Air and Aero Contractors is an ongoing process. We depend on what the Transaction Adviser tells us. “Any portfolios we divest from we hand it over to Transaction Advisers and depend on them for directives,� he said.

Also, Head of Communications of Arik Air, Mr. Adebanjo Ola, who admitted to THISDAY that the future of

the airline could be threatened, said the current management of the airline is not meant to be there forever.

He said that Arik Air exists today and maintained existing workforce was because of the intervention by AMCON. He said if AMCON did not take over the airline when it did, it would have gone under in 2017.

The Arik Air spokesman commended the Managing Director of the airline, Captain Roy Ilogbodu, whom he said has made prudent management of the resources of the carrier to sustain its operations so far.

Another official of the airline

also dismissed the allegation that the airline could be sold “through the backdoor�, noting that without the consent and approval of the owner, Sir Joseph Arumemi-Ikhide, the airline cannot be sold.

Investment and aviation lawyer, Mr. Emeka Nwigwe, who has been monitoring Arik Air since it was taken over, told THISDAY that the aviation sector in Nigeria does not hold any promise in terms of financial returns and noted that AMCON could sell Arik Air’s assets but not Arik as an airline because the shares of the company are not with AMCON.

TWO YEARS AFTER, AMCON YET TO GET BUYER FOR ARIK AMCON, the team appointed to manage the airline has not been able to put more than eight aircraft on service at any point in time.

According to the source, some aircraft are at maintenance facilities overseas, while others are at the Arik Air hangar at the domestic wing of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) in Lagos.

THISDAY also learnt that out of the four Bombardier CRJ 900 owned by the airline, none was operating.

It was also gathered that only two out of four Bombardier Q400 are in service, while out of eight Boeing B737-700 and

four Boeing B737-800 only one was operating.

So, overall, the airline has three operating aircraft out of 26 in the fleet when it was taken over by AMCON two years ago.

AMCON-appointed management was to manage the airline for one year, but the period was extended to two years, which expires on February 9, 2019, but still the fortunes of the airline instead of growing, have been shrinking in terms of the number of aircraft on its fleet.

An official of the airline, who did not want his name on print, told THISDAY, “The airline

is on its way out. Last week we had two Boeing aircraft in operation, one broke down and we took one to Owerri but it also broke down. They were able to put the two aircraft back into service. As at today, we have one Boeing aircraft and two Bombardier, Q400. “However, the management does not owe us; it pays promptly but the place is being run like a government agency.

There is a lot of complacency; so, many people have resigned and there is fear that the company can go under at any time.�

When contacted, spokesman of AMCON, Mr. Jude Nwauzor, told THISDAY that the sale of

TUESDAY JANUARY 15, 2019 ˾ T H I S D AY

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Group News Editor Ejiofor Alike Email Ejiofor.Alike@thisdaylive.com, 08066066268

Babangida Urges Military to Evolve New Counter-insurgency Strategies Laleye Dipo in Minna As terrorists continue to unleash havoc in some parts of the country, the former military President, General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida (rtd), has called on the military to evolve new combat strategies to check the menace.

Babangida made the suggestion in a statement issued yesterday to mark this year’s Armed Forces Remembrance Day, which was made available to journalists in Minna, Niger State.

“It is pertinent for the top echelons of our military to speedily evolve new combat strategy to bravely confront the callous terrorists who have continued to hold many parts of the North-east, and by extension, Nigeria to ransom,” Babangida said.

The armed forces remembrance day will be celebrated today across the

country.

“As we prepare to celebrate this year’s Armed Forces Remembrance Day, we should not be oblivious of the fact that our military is presently faced with horrific challenges in the crucial counter-insurgency war, and activities of other blood-thirsty armed groups. To say the least, these ugly circumstances are not only heartrending, but unacceptable”.

The former military president added that time has come for the country to “seek to consolidate our gains and also fortify our combat strength.

This is necessary as our army is undeniably a professional military establishment that has over the years achieved remarkable successes in protecting our country’s territorial integrity”.

Babangida paid glowing tributes to “some of our gallant troops who have been

incapacitated while at the theatre of war in the restive parts of the country.

“I salute the uncommon bravery of our lion-hearted fallen heroes who paid the supreme price in their quest to defend our fatherland.

“Let me also commend our Armed Forces for their resilience over the years in

maintaining peace in Nigeria, United Nations Missions, African Union and regional interventions. I urge all Nigerians to support our military at all times”.

He noted that “the 2019 edition of the Armed Forces Remembrance Day is coming at a critical period, when teeming Nigerian electorate will go to

the polls next month to elect their new leaders at various levels of government.

“In recent times, elections have tested our unity as a people, while also posing threats to our socio-cultural diversity and challenging our common destiny. “ Nevertheless, I have a strong conviction that our

Armed Forces will remain apolitical prior, during, and after the general elections, while focusing only on discharging their constitutional responsibility of safeguarding the country either from the aggression of internal rebels in the guise of Boko Haram insurgents, or from external retrogressive forces”.

Buhari: 40m Victims of Drying Lake Chad Pose Security Risk Omololu Ogunmade in Abuja

President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday in Abuja called for more commitment aimed at redirecting water to the Lake Chad, noting that about 40 million population in the region will pose adverse migration and security challenges to the world.

Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina, said the president made the remarks while receiving Letters of Credence from the High Commissioner of Canada to Nigeria, Philip Baker, at the Presidential Villa.

According to him, Buhari said the tragedy of the shrinking Lake Chad would continue to fuel more illegal migrations, banditry and provide willing hands for terrorism since majority of the people have lost their means of livelihood.

He quoted him as saying, “In 1920’s, an academic rightly predicted that except there’s a redirection of water to Lake Chad, it will dry up.

“Now whenever I go for any global meeting or visit a country, I will always draw the world’s attention to the adverse effect of climate change on the lake, and the resulting negative effects.”

He said Buhari urged the Canadian government to support the ongoing efforts to divert water from the Congo River to the lake.

“Canada has the capacity to help us. The lake is now less than 10 per cent of its normal size. A redirection will help our people from getting into the Mediterranean Sea,’’ he was further quoted.

According to the statement, the president said Nigeria and Canada had good relations dating back to the early 1960’s when Nigeria gained independence and commended the country for “its vast resource utilisation and solid political

background.’’

The statement also quoted the Canadian High Commissioner, in his remarks, as commending Buhari for providing leadership in the country, and championing the cause of replenishing Lake Chad Basin.

The envoy recalled that the Canadian Governor General, Julie Payette, had presented a picture taken from space of the vanishing lake to the president when she visited recently.

The statement added that Baker disclosed that more than 11, 000 Nigerians were studying in Canada, with many residing in the country, assuring the president that majority of the students return to build and invest their knowledge in the development of Nigeria.

“The Canadian High Commissioner said he would work towards improving relations between both countries on migration, education, entrepreneurship training, mining, renewable energy and Information Technology,” the statement added.

The statement also disclosed that Buhari received letters of credence from the new British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Catriona Wendy Campbell Laing, and Ambassador of Argentina to Nigeria, Maria Del Carmen Squeff.

According to the statement, Laing promised that Britain would continue to support Nigerian troops in the North-east as well as the people affected by insurgency, assuring Buhari that more attention would be given to non-oil trade exchange and strengthening of political ties.

The statement further revealed that in her response, the Ambassador of Argentina noted that both countries must move beyond the level of signing agreements to the level where trade, sports, investments and agriculture get practical follow up for mutual benefit.

DEMOCRACY ON TRIAL...

L–R: Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs), Chief Wole Olanipekun; Chief Adegboyega Awomolo; Mallam Yusuf Ali; and Chief Chris Uche, at the Code of Conduct Tribunal,during the hearing of the case of Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Walter Onnoghen, in Abuja …yesterday GODWIN OMOIGUI

Buhari Set to Name AIG as New IG Hammed Adedeji Barring any last- minute change in decision, President Muhammadu Buhari is set to name an Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG), Abubakar Adamu Mohammed, as the new Inspector General of Police (IG) to replace Ibrahim Idris.

Idris reportedly met with the president at the State House yesterday afternoon, a visit police sources said has become a tradition for outgoing IGs in recent years.

“We have a new police IG,” a senior officer told Premium Times yesterday night. “Ibrahim Idris has gone

home to move his things from the official quarters and we are now waiting for a formal handing over.”

The source spoke to Premium Times under anonymity to avoid being castigated as disclosing crucial information before formal announcement.

He is also known within police circles as Adamu Mohammed Lafia, in reference to his place of birth, which is the Nasarawa State capital.

Mohammed was born on November 9, 1961. He enlisted in the police in 1986. He has a bachelors degree in geography.

He was at one time a director of peacekeeping operations. He

is a former police commissioner in Enugu State and was an AIG in charge of Zone 5.

He is currently a directing staff member at the National Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies, Kuru, near Jos, Plateau State.

Mohammed has also served with Interpol, the international law enforcement outfit that has Nigeria as a prominent member. He was at the headquarters of the agency in Lyon, France, for several years.

Sources familiar with his career described him as a “diligent and unruffled” police officer.

His elevation might see

several DIGs retired from service, an exercise that would be reminiscent of how Buhari sacked DIGs when he named Idris as IG in June 2016.

Idris, who retires today on age grounds, was an AIG when he was appointed.

Idris’ controversial tenure was capped with widespread insinuations that he might remain in office beyond the period permitted by Nigerian laws.

The former IG was accused of corruption and brutality, although he denied wrongdoing and regularly praised himself as a fine law enforcement officer.

Jonathan’s Former Aide, Okupe, Gets N100m Bail Sunday Okobi A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja yesterday granted bail to Dr. Doyin Okupe, a former Senior Special Assistance to ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, in the sum of N100 million.

Okupe, who was dragged to the court by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), is facing a 59-count charge bordering on money laundering involving several millions of naira.

Justice I.L Ojukwu, who granted the bail, ordered the suspect to produce one surety in like sum.

The judge ordered that the surety must have landed properties within the jurisdiction of the court.

He also ordered that the accused person must deposit his international passports with the court’s Registrar.

Granting the defendant’s application for bail, Justice Ojukwu held that the court possessed the discretion in granting bail, which must

be exercised judicially and judiciously.

Ojukwu then adjourned the case to February 27, 28 and March 6 for trial.

The accused had pleaded not guilty to the charges when it was read to him.

According to the details of charges the accused had, between August 3, 2012, and October 8, 2014, in Abuja, allegedly used different companies to commit the offenses.

After the change sheet was read ,counsel to the defendant,

Tolu Babaleye, in application, prayed the court to grant the accused bail on liberal terms since he was still presumed innocent.

Objecting to the bail application, counsel to the EFCC, Ibrahim Audu, argued that the court should not grant the accused bail because he had jumped bail when he was granted administrative bail by the commission in 2016.

He said Okupe was later tracked to his country home in Lagos State last year by the commission.

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Ekweremadu: I Will Stand by PDP No Matter What Happens Urges FG to withdraw charges against Onnoghen Deji Elumoye in Abuja The Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, has reacted to the rumour that he has abandoned the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), saying he would not abandon the party as he and others are currently working on how to oust the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the forthcoming elections.

Ekweremadu has also urged the federal government to withdraw the non-declaration of assets charges levelled against the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Walter Onnoghen, at the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) and apologise to the country’s judiciary over the development.

The senator’s commitment to PDP has been in doubt since

the presidential candidate of his party, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, appointed a former Governor of Anambra State, Mr. Peter Obi, as running mate.

But Ekweremadu laid the matter to rest yesterday in series of posts on his social media handles, @iamekweremadu.

“My attention has been drawn to the orchestrated attempts by some characters to create the impression of a divided house in Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), in the coming presidential election. Such characters dish out fake and divisive stories without source on a daily basis and attribute same to me.

“While I refuse to be distracted by such cheap blackmail, smear campaign, and extreme propaganda, it is important to

reassure our supporters that the PDP is united and focused on wrestling power from the All Progressives Congress (APC).

“After the PDP lost the presidency and majority status at the National Assembly in 2015, I made it clear that I would stand by the party, no matter what.

It took other party stakeholders and I a lot of efforts, sacrifices, soul-searching, and painstaking negotiations to hold the party together and rebuild it.

“If I did not abandon the PDP at its darkest hour, it does not make the slightest sense to say that I abandoned it now that its sun is rising again,” he posted on his Facebook page.

The lawmaker added that he is working with Obi and others to ensure the victory of PDP in the elections.

He urged his supporters to discard the rumour of his disloyalty.

The post reads further: “Meanwhile, I have held separate meetings with our vice presidential candidate, Peter Obi and the Chairman, South-east Governors Forum, Dave Umahi, to work out strategies for the success of our party and candidates in the coming elections.

“We are also setting up a meeting of South-east PDP stakeholders by weekend to continue to strategise on the coming elections. I have no doubt that the South-east leaders will deliver the region overwhelmingly to the PDP and I expect that other leaders will also do the same in their respective geopolitical zones.

“Therefore, I urge our

supporters not to be distracted by such propaganda as we approach the critical stages in the coming elections. We should rather focus on delivering the votes to ensure the success of our party.”

Ekweremadu is seeking re-election to the Senate in his Enugu West constituency in the National Assembly election slated to hold on March 2.

The deputy Senate president has also described the charges against the CJN as extremely dangerous for Nigeria’s democracy, and emphasised the need to eschew every form of intimidation against other arms of government, especially their leaderships, to enable them play their constitutional roles in the overall interest of the country.

“I consider the charges against

the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Walter Onnoghen, as ill-advised and dangerous, especially after similar attempts at the leadership of the National Assembly failed.

“This is extremely dangerous for democracy and can only divide the country further as well as alienate us as a country very low in upholding the rule of law and independence of the judiciary”.

He, therefore, advised the Attorney General of the Federation to immediately withdraw the charges “and apologise to the judiciary as we certainly can’t travel this road”.

The Senator noted that the integrity of the Nigerian judiciary remained intact despite obvious constraints.

PDP, Atiku Biggest Threat to Democracy, Says Aisha Buhari’s Campaign Group Insists presidency zoned to South, not South-east Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja The All Progressives Congress (APC) Women and Youth Campaign Council has accused the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, of trying to deny the southern part of the country its assumption to power in 2023.

The campaign group led by First Lady Aisha Buhari also waded into the controversy over which zone gets the APC’s presidential ticket in 2023, saying as far as they are concerned, the contest is open to all regions in the South.

Addressing a press conference yesterday, the Director of Media and Strategic Communication of the Women and Youth Presidential campaign team, Hon. Abdulmumini Jibrin, alleged that the biggest threat to the stability of the country is the PDP presidential candidate, Atiku, and the Director-General of the Atiku Campaign and Senate President, Bukola Saraki, who he said were taking Nigerians for granted by muting the idea to incite the North not to support power transfer to the southern part of the country “after President Muhammadu Buhari completes his second term.”

He said the refusal of the former vice president to commit himself to one term in office is a clear attempt to short change the southern part of Nigeria.

“No wonder the PDP presidential candidate has refused to commit to returning power to the southern part of the country after 2023. This is even after concerted pressure by many of their stakeholders.

This is already heating up our polity with a combined negative consequence on our economy, security and general development.

“So, if we are talking about the politicians who are threatening the foundation of the peace and security of our country, the cap fits Saraki and Atiku,” he said.

Speaking on the conflicting positions being canvassed by leaders of the APC on the issue of the zoning of presidency to the Southeast, the campaign spokesman said as far as the party is concerned presidency can go to any region in the South.

According to him, “Yes we all know that power should and will go back to the South in 2023. But then every region in the Southern part of the country is entitled to vie for the presidency, so it depends on who contributes most; your ability to negotiate, it is whether you are able to bring victory on board that will determine where power goes.”

Jibrin said it is only in the APC that Nigerians can feel a sense of justice and fairness, adding that by 2023, power will go to the southern part of the country.

While speaking on the campaign strategy being adopted by the group, Jibrin said the Aisha Campaign Council would embark on grassroots mobilisation for votes to help return President Buhari to office.

“May I use this opportunity on behalf of my committee to unveil operation ‘Lashe Akwatuna’.

“Operation Lashe Akwatuna is a voter mobilisation and awareness project by Media and Strategic Communications Directorate of the Women and Youth Presidential Campaign team under the chairperson of her Excellency, wife of the President, Aisha Muhammadu Buhari.

“The project is a one-day voter mobilisation and awareness campaign in the 119,937 polling units across the country concurrently for President Buhari and All APC candidates,” he said.

Jibrin said the operation Lashe Akwatuna would cover all segment of voters in a unit which comprises supporters, undecided voters and opposition voters.

He said the operation would also carry its campaign to the doorstep of all segment of voters in polling units across the country on the same day and at the same time.

HOMAGE TO KABIYESI…

L-R: Vice President Yemi Osinbajo; Oloworo of Oloworonsoki Kingdom, Oba Bashir Oloruntoyin Saliu; and governorship candidate of All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lagos State, Mr. Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu, during a visit to the leaders and elders of the community at the Palace of Oloworo by Osinbajo and Sanwo-Olu, in Lagos…yesterday

Buhari Saddened by Ekiti Truck Accident Omololu Ogunmade in Abuja President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday in Abuja said he was profoundly saddened by last weekend tragic truck accident which claimed lives of several Nigerians at Iworoko Ekiti in Ekiti State.

A statement issued by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina, said Buhari, on behalf of the federal government, extended sincere condolences to the family, friends and colleagues of victims of the tragedy, which he said had

brought great grief to the local communities.

“The president joins the Ekiti State Government and the people in mourning those who lost their lives in the accident.

“He appreciates the efforts of the state government in bringing timely succour to

the victims in the aftermath of the disaster, and assures them of the federal government solidarity.

“President Buhari’s prayers and thoughts are with those affected by this tragedy as he wishes the injured speedy recovery,” the statement added.

INEC: Collection of PVCs to Stop February 8 Laleye Dipo in Minna The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has declared that the collection of the Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) will end on February 8, few days to the presidential and National Assembly elections.

Also, INEC has said it would from January 16 commence the distribution of PVCs to their owners at the ward level, an exercise that would last till January 21.

INEC National Commissioner, Professor Anthonia Simbine, who disclosed this while addressing traditional rulers in Niger State

at the opening of a one-day stakeholders session in Minna, said the commission would return the collection of voter cards to its offices in the local government headquarters after January 21.

Simbine said the commission would use the Smart Cards readers to determine the genuineness of voters, disclosing that the incident forms had been abolished.

According to him, “We have enhanced the Smart Card readers.

The Smart Card reader of 2015 is not the same as the one we have today.”

Similarly, she disclosed that photographing of any form ‘very

close’ to the polling box is illegal just as she added that all efforts would be made to ensure that vote buying does not take place during the election.

She warned that nobody should use another person’s PVC during the election, saying apart from the rejection of the PVCs by the card readers, the proxy could be arrested and prosecuted.

Professor Simbine further announced that the register of eligible voters made up of 84,004,084million was distributed to all the registered political parties last week, adding that of the total registered voters, 2,390,035 voters

are from Niger State. $The Commission, she stated, “was diligently implementing its timetable, adding that nine out of 14 activities have been implemented, and we will implement other activities from this week.

“We are not involving state institutions in the electoral process because state officials can be influenced by state governments using subtle threats.”

Simbine further said the governorship election would hold in 29 states of the federation, conceding that “build up to the election is tasking, but with you (traditional rulers) support, we will succeed.”

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COMMENT

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

BUHARI AND THE ESAMA HYPOTHESIS Ik Muo argues that the President has not achieved much in office

E

verybody, or almost everybody, reading this piece ought to know His Excellency, Sir, Chief, Dr, Gabriel Osawaru Igbinedion, CON, CFR, LLD, D.Litt, GCKB; The Hon. Chancellor, Chairman Board of Regents and proprietor of Igbinedion University, and The Esama of Benin. I hope I succeeded in assembling all his titles and I apologise if his appellation has taken 10% of this article. He is a colourful and flamboyant entrepreneur, known in those days for Okada Air (commercial motorcycles got their alias-okada-from his airline), Canada-Dry soft drinks, Igbinedion hospital, etc. However, beyond all this, very few people still remember the Esama Hypothesis, which is where my interest is today.

Lucky Igbinedion, a member of the class of ’99 had the singular “honor� of being the first member of his class to be convicted for corruption. Never mind that the sentence was laughable as he was sentenced to six months imprisonment for money laundering and through plea-bargaining, ended up paying a fine of N3.5m! Back to the main issue, he sought a second term but his chances were bleak because of his woeful performance. When Chief Igbinedion was campaigning for his re-election in 2003 and Edo people told him that his son didn’t do well in office, he declared that ‘Pickin wey no do well for one class must repeat that class’ (if a child fails a class, he must repeat the class). In effect, he admitted that his son did not do well but used the fail-repeat analogy to plead that his son be re-elected despite his woeful performance in office. The people agreed with him or their votes were manipulated and the lucky Lucky spent two terms. That is the Esama hypothesis, which states that a failure should be given a second chance. Of course, the Esama said so because that was what he knew then or what was convenient to him. I don’t think he will support that hypothesis today because as the proprietor of Igbinedion University, he knows that when a student fails so badly, he is ‘advised’ to withdraw or as one man in neighbouring village once said, to ‘park and went’! That is why his declaration could not be elevated to a theory because it is not true in all circumstances.

On December 12, 2018, President Buhari met with the 36 governors and the key take away from that meeting, according to Governor Abdulaziz Yari, Chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, the president told them that the economy was still in a bad shape and that he also urged Nigerians to still tighten their belts and prepare for tougher times ahead! This is PMBs self-assessment. We all know that PMB and APC made 1001 promises, which Lai Mohammed eventually reduced to three, with the economy as NUMBER One. It is obvious

that the Nigerian economy is still in a bad shape but what is more interesting is that the president admitted so. In any case, I don’t think he has much option. An economy that was growing at 7% in 2015 is now struggling at 1.8% and that is against APC promise of making it one of the fastest growing emerging economies with growth rate of 10-12%. Now, Nigeria has become the poverty capital of the world, (91m in extreme poverty as at December 12, 2018 as against 87m six months earlier, and that was while global poverty level is declining); has the 5th highest level of unemployment across the globe (22.7% as against 8.5% in 2015, and 43% when underemployment is included) and a misery index of 35% (from 17 in 2015). So, PMB has scored himself F in the management of Nigerian economy. And according to Channels TV analysts on January 1, 2019, there is not much hope because 2019 promises a cocktail of fear, anxiety and uncertainty.

I DON’T THINK CHIEF IGBINEDION WILL SUPPORT THAT HYPOTHESIS TODAY BECAUSE AS THE PROPRIETOR OF IGBINEDION UNIVERSITY, HE KNOWS THAT WHEN A STUDENT FAILS SO BADLY, HE IS ‘ADVISED’ TO WITHDRAW

The matter would have rested there had the president not gone ahead a few days later to reawaken the Esama Hypothesis. As he marked his 76th birthday, his request from Nigerians was to ‘pray for me, understand my intentions and give me more time’! The president who agreed without any prodding that he had failed on the economic front turned around a few days later to ask for more time and thus holding on to the Esama hypothesis. And we are to give him more time based on his intentions! He has forgotten that the hypothesis could not be elevated to a theory because it is not universally applicable and one instance of this is the university environment in which serial failure is rewarded by expulsion. In any case, Tony Momoh had asked us to stone the APC if it failed to perform within two years and we are almost four years gone. So, what do we do to somebody who promises heaven on earth, admits that he has failed and asks us to give him more time?

Other Matters I wish to thank all those who felicitated with me on my birthday on January 1, 2019. As usual, the federal government declared a public holiday to ensure that nobody had any excuse for not attending the party, which took place in the cloud! I am tracking all those who neither attended nor sent in their apologies. The EFCC will soon start work on that. I wish all men of goodwill the best of 2019 and I pray that the federal government will drop its keep-them-talking approach to the ASUU crisis and approach it with all the seriousness it deserves.

Dr. Muo is of the Department of Business Administration, OOU, Ago-Iwoye

ONNOGHEN: CURING THE MISCHIEF OF TWO WRONGS The NJC’s investigation is a precondition for prosecution of judicial officers for offences while in office, writes Sufuyan Ojeifo

P

erusing the plethora of reactions to the arraignment of the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Walter Nkanu Onnoghen, before the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) on allegations of false declaration of assets by the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB), it is obvious the matter has spawned considerable emotion. Reports that filtered in as I was writing this piece indicated that the trial had been adjourned to Tuesday, January 22, 2019.

The Onnoghen matter is a prickly one. And, whereas, we should have witnessed dispassionate responses, the converse has been the case.

For instance, a vast majority of members of the bar have been unanimous and vociferous in their argument that the CJN or any sitting judicial officer, for that matter, cannot be tried by the CCT or the courts without the National Judicial Commission (NJC) first investigating allegations levelled against such officer and recommending concomitant sanctions.

The judicial precedents cited in respect of the position supra are Nganjiwa vs. FRN (2017), a subsisting Court of Appeal decision and FGN vs. Justice Sylvester Ngwuta (2018), a High Court decision. The positions of the courts in the two cases were grounded on Section 158 (1) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, which vests the NJC with powers to deal with matters pertaining to allegations of misconduct and discipline of judicial officers.

It is the outcome of the investigation that will activate the prosecution of the officer by the relevant agencies of government at the CCT, courts or otherwise, depending on what the findings of the investigation are. Therefore, NJC’s investigation is a precondition for the prosecution of judicial officers for offences committed in the course of their official duties.

Significantly, the provisions of the constitution do not in any way approximate to or confer immunity on judicial officers. But there are exceptions. Judicial officers are not exempted from direct prosecution for such

cases as murder, culpable homicide, et al, not being offences that are committed in the course of their official duties.

The clear breach of the legally-recognized procedure of exposing the CJN to sanctions for alleged offences committed by him without prior investigation by the NJC has precipitated a rash of criticisms against the CCB, an agent of the executive arm of the federal government.

The critical concern expressed by lawyers and many other Nigerians is not much of opposition to the prosecution of Onnoghen but more about the adoption of a wrong procedure to achieve that.

The CCB was wrong to have sidestepped the procedure for dealing with the issue of alleged false declaration of assets by the CJN. It is not in the place of the CCB to appropriate the powers to act on a petition by a civil society group, the Anti-Corruption and Research-Based Data Initiative (ARDI), and to proceed to file a six-count charge against the CJN at the CCT. Indeed, what the CCB should have done was to have forwarded the petition to the NJC for investigation. If the outcome was damning, it could then be sent to the relevant agencies that would prosecute the matter at the CCT or to the Senate by the president in line with the provisions of Section 292 of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, to activate his removal.

The point must be clearly made that no one is above the law of the land. If Onnoghen had breached the Code of Conduct for public officers on asset declaration, he should not be insulated from prosecution; and, if found guilty, he should be appropriately sanctioned.

There must be more to the issues of alleged non-declaration of some domiciliary bank accounts in foreign currencies, according to the petitioner, than meets the eye. Could details of those deposits have been the reason for their alleged non-declaration? Can’t it therefore be argued that the non-declaration of those accounts was strategic?

Now, a line must be drawn between

the failure of the CCB to follow laid-down procedure - a wrongful act in itself - and the offences allegedly committed by the CJN. Sanctioning Onnoghen cannot be done by the wrong quarters and in a fashion that is against the law.

Essentially, the mischief of the alleged wrong committed by Onnoghen cannot be cured by the CCT or any court trial, until the NJC has carried out its investigation into the alleged offences and come out with its findings and recommendations. The second wrong was committed by the CCB, which charged the CJN before the CCT that has no jurisdictional powers to entertain the matter. The mischief of these two wrongs cannot be cured through the application of the wrong procedures.

Onnoghen did not appear before the CCT on Monday, but his lawyers were there to protest the manner of his arraignment. The team of lawyers knows its onion and how to get round the issue that is gradually unfolding and assuming its own life in the ramifications of law and politics. This brings me to the politics of his trial. Some persons have conjectured that Onnoghen’s debacle is politically-motivated.

They argue that since he has an important superintending role to play in the adjudication of presidential election petition(s) that may arise from the February 16 poll; it is politically strategic and wise for the All Progressives Congress (APC)-led federal government to clear the path to a second term in office of possible obstacles.

Onnoghen, a forthright and disciplined judge who, for instance, was one of the three justices that ruled in favour of Buhari in his petition against the 2007 presidential victory of Umaru Musa Yar’Adua in a verdict that ended 3-4, is one of the speculated obstacles. The imaginary fear is that he could not be trusted to compromise if he is needed to do so. Therefore, removing him would be in pari materia with the original plot.

Remember also that the Supreme Court is

sui generis in the matter of hearing presidential election petition. It is a court of first and final instance. To take chances with Onnoghen might not be a good idea to forces supposedly angling to indict him. Could that be their reason to demonize, demoralize, discredit and force him to either resign or recuse self from adjudicating the presidential election petition?

This is a prognosis that is well understood.

It could as well be dismissed as a conspiracy theory. Whether it is a prognosis or a theory, I have refrained from climbing on the bandwagon of partisan bias and dialectic in the frenzy to condemn the CBB action in the manner many lawyers, except Professor Itse Sagay (SAN), have done. I recognize that both sides - CCB and Onnoghen- have committed some mistakes, which must be corrected.

And, perhaps, it bears mentioning here that if the objective of the imaginary powers-that-be is to remove Onnoghen and replace him with another CJN that could be trusted to do their bidding, arraigning him before the CCT, which is bereft of jurisdictional power, is not going to promote the achievement of that goal. It is wrong to subject the CJN to the ignominy of stepping into the dock at the CCT when the needful has not been done.

Section 292 (1)(a) and (b) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, supplies the best cure for this egregious mischief. Aside from the NJC recommending sanctions against a judicial officer to the President or State Governor, the President can cause the CJN, as adumbrated supra, to be removed, acting on an address supported by two-thirds majority of the Senate.

But then in the present circumstance, that may be impossible to achieve. It is common knowledge that there is feud between the executive and legislature and that will problematize the process and the Senate cannot seamlessly be deployed in the removal of Onnoghen. Period!

Ojeifo, a journalist, contributed this piece via ojwonderngr@yahoo.com

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EDITORIAL The Questionable Trial Of The CJN The government must work within the law

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he decision of the federal government to drag the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Walter Onnoghen before the Code of Conduct Tribunal over his assets declaration could not have been taken in promotion of public good. This is obvious for many reasons. One, the procedure stipulated by the law leading to the filing of the charges was not followed. The Code of Conduct Bureau is enjoined to seek clarification from any erring public official before referring him to the tribunal and this was not done.

Two, it cannot be right for the federal government to surreptitiously leak the charges to the media only to come to court yesterday to admit that the CJN had not been properly served. Three, the government also knew that the case was dead on arrival given what is already established by the Court of Appeal in a suit brought by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) against Justice Hyeladzira Nganjiwa, a judge of the Bayelsa Division of the Federal High Court, who was accused of SINCE OURS IS A unlawfully receiving COUNTRY OF LAW, $260,000 and N8.6 WE OUGHT TO APPLY million through THE PRINCIPLE OF his bank account DUE PROCESS IN between 2013 and THE CONDUCT OF 2015.

It is instructive GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS that when the federal government charged Justice Nwali Sylvester Ngwuta, also of the Supreme Court, before the tribunal for alleged non declaration of assets, the case was quashed after he cited the above Court of Appeal’s decision. The Nigerian legal system is based on the doctrine of judicial precedent otherwise known as ‘stare decisis’ - meaning that a lower court is bound to follow and apply the decision of higher courts.

The question therefore is, if the Code of Conduct Tribunal cannot try Justice Ngwuta, where will it

Letters to the Editor

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 TO SEND EMAIL: first name.surname@thisdaylive.com

derive the jurisdiction to try the CJN? Besides, the CJN is the Head of the Judiciary, the third arm of government and chairman of the National Judicial Council (NJC) and the Federal Judicial Service Commission, two important executive bodies established by section 153 of the 1999 Constitution. As the law stands in Nigeria today, the NJC is the only organ that can discipline Judges whose trials can also only be after leaving office by reason of dismissal or retirement.

What makes the case against Onnoghen more unfortunate is that it has brought back the drama which started with his nomination as acting CJN by President Muhammadu Buhari on 10th November 2016. The debate that dominated his eventual nomination and confirmation by the Senate was about the politics of North and South with insinuations that cannot advance the cause of our democracy and national cohesion. That dichotomy has resurfaced with the South-south governors meeting and issuing a resolution asking Onnoghen to disregard the CCT summons. Yet, in the application of law in a secular state, justice should be blind to which section of the country a judge hails from. It should be about the protection of the rights and liberties of citizens and the promotion of the rule of law.

However, there is a need to state clearly that this is not saying that the CJN is above the law. As we have repeatedly re-echoed in our previous editorials, the judiciary is not just any institution, it is an important arm of government that knits human society together. So to that extent, Judges must be above board and should be seen to be so. The point is that if the federal government is genuinely interested in holding Justice Onnoghen accountable for any wrong doing, it ought to follow the laid down procedure for doing so and not resort to blackmail and witch-hunt. The good news is that it is never too late to do the right thing.

Since ours is a country of law, we ought to apply the principle of due process in the conduct of government affairs. To do otherwise is to invite anarchy.

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

WHY IBRAHIM IDRIS TENURE SHOULD BE EXTENDED

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he controversy over whether the Inspector-General of Police Ibrahim Kpotum Idris should go or remain just few weeks to the nation’s general elections is borne out more of sentiments than sincerity of purpose. In such critical moments that national decisive events like elections are approaching, people engage in desperate fault-finding over issues that would have been non-issue at normal times. Nigerian politicians are, own their own, quarrelsome, vindictive and pessimistic. Some of them are too garrulous and bombastic, ever ready to politicize and trivialize issues.

The IGP’s case is a matter of concern in reality. His tenure has ended. As the civil service rule stipulates, public servant must retire after 35 years of service or at the attainment of the age of 60. Idris was appointed by President Buhari on March 21, 2016. He replaced Solomon Arase, who retired from the Nigeria Police Force on June 21, 2016 after reaching statutory age of 60. The guidelines in the Nigeria Police Service Commission stipulate that an IGP is entitled to a pre-retirement leave before clocking age 60. Idris was 60 on Monday January 14, 2019.

The truth is that he was appointed by Buhari as enshrined in the Nigerians constitution, not out of personal volition. The same constitution gives the president the right of dismissal on very concrete grounds or even extension of tenure. I do not know why this controversy is rising. I have seen President Buhari extend the tenures of many appointees in his government some of whom were appointed by the opposition, the

Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on the eve of handover in 2015. PDP has remained the greatest beneficiary of the Buhariled government which retained most of the appointees by the PDP government.

That fact being as it is, it cannot be refuted that the tenure extensions of all the appointees by the president is basically on merit or national interest. Former President Olusegun Obasanjo extended the tenure of Sunday Ehindero as IGP by 12 months.

Former President Umaru Yar’Ardua extended the tenure of Mike Okiro as IGP. So, why have the opposition found it as a national quagmire? Why did the PDP and other opposition parties plan to stage a protest to demand Idris’ effective retirement? Is the extension of IGP’s tenure in Nigeria a novel happening? The question is: Why are they trying to influence Buhari’s decision?

Two things come to fore in this connection. Extension of tenure can be on merit. Merit here refers to the performance of the appointee which demands that more time is granted him or her to conclude national activities at hand. Yes, there are actions that are like perishable goods. There are others that need time to actualize. In all the cases, the actions must be to achieve desired goals. On the other hand, every new appointee requires time to perfect the mastery of the new environment, more so when the environment is as large as the Nigerian landscape.

Provision of security to nearly 200 million people is not a child’s joke. It is more than paper work. It is more than a one day arrangement. It is not what a new appointee can just

takeover and fully take control of. Nigerians, being a very hard species of mankind, the job of security leadership is very tasking, risky and also very diplomatically confrontational. How more could it be now that a very difficult event is approaching in the country – the general elections? Some of the politicians are already perfecting plans to cause trouble if they receive the opposite results of their expectations. It is not hidden the fact that change in a leadership definitely affects the whole system.

The security of Nigerian citizens during the general elections must not be compromised. The police have recorded tremendous improvement under IGP Idris. So, on merit he deserves extension if the president deems it necessary.

The second reason for extension makes it even more necessary for the president to extend the tenure. This is because the national interest is at risk. It is about one month to the all-important Presidential and National Assembly polls. For national interest, it may be a colossal disaster to appoint a new person to head the Nigeria Police. It will amount to mortgaging the lives of the citizenry. I must not be understood to belittle the powers of any appointee to deliver. The reality is that the new person will be jittery in surmounting the heavy pressure from politicians and their uncanny attitude during elections.

IGP Idris is used to such pressures. He has mastered how to handle them, because records show that he had overcome several ugly cases and situations stage-managed by some of these politicians.

Muhammad Ajah, Abuja

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T H I S D AY ˾ TUESDAY JANUARY 15, 2019

POLITICS

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

TRENDING NEWS

How Rivers APC Shot Itself in the Foot Davidson Iriekpen writes that at the heart of the crisis rocking the Rivers State chapter of All Progressives Congress is the famous legal precedence that when a case is pending before a court, parties are to stay action until the issues are resolved

Wike

Abe

Amaechi

Cole

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which included the direct primaries conducted by the Abe faction. He said both the Abe and the Amaechi factions have no leg to stand in view of the judgment, hence both factions were disqualified from participating in the elections.

The court held that the APC in Rivers State had no power to nominate and sponsor any candidates for the general elections.

In another suit filed by the state chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) asking the court to compel INEC to obey the judgment of the Rivers State High Court nullifying all Rivers State APC primaries and congresses, the court granted an injunction stopping all candidates of the APC in Rivers State from parading themselves as candidates for the general elections. He said the Rivers APC would not participate in the governorship, Senate, House of Representatives and House of Assembly elections holding later this year.

The judge re-affirmed his directive in the suit between Abe and others versus Rivers APC that INEC cannot recognise any candidate presented by the APC for the general elections.

While the two factions of the APC which the judgments were against promised to appeal the verdicts, the state Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) which benefited immensely from the verdict has been jubilating. Its Campaign Council said the ruling was a victory for the rule of law and the people of the state. In a statement by its Director of Information and Communications, Emma Okah, the PDP noted that the verdict would douse tension and promote peace in the state as the APC’s past involvement in elections had been characterised by recurring violence, rigging and breakdown of law and order.

Okah noted that the local government council elections were peaceful because the APC did not participate. He posited that the judgment has diffused fears in the minds of the voters as the PDP in Rivers State has been under fresh threat of the combined weight of the INEC and security agencies in collaboration with the APC

which may be unleashed in the 2019 general elections.

Trouble started for the APC when it could not solve the power tussle between Rotimi Amaechi and Abe for the soul of the APC. The senator wanted to run for the governorship of the state on the platform of the party but Amaechi, a former governor of the state and current Minister of Transportation, who controls the recognised party structure in the state refused. As a result, Abe and his faction were excluded during congresses held across the state.

Consequent upon this, one Ibrahim Umah and 22 others on behalf of the senator, approached the Rivers State High Court in Port Harcourt with an application urging it to restrain the party from conducting the state congress which produced the current state chairman of the party, Ojukaye Flag-Amachree, who is Amaechi’s ally. The order was granted by the presiding judge of the court, Justice Chinwendu Nwogu. But before the judge could deliver judgment on the case, the FlagAmachree-led executive apart from appealing the decision at the Court of Appeal, defied the court’s order and proceeded with the primary elections which produced Mt. Tonye Cole as the APC governorship candidate, among others.

While the case was pending, the Flag-Amachree faction filed a case before an Abuja High Court, a court of coordinate jurisdiction.

Following the APC’s decision to proceed with the primaries in the state, Justice Chiwendu Nwogu, on October 10, 2018 declared null and void, the nomination of Cole as the governorship candidate of the party. He also voided the party’s nominations for Senate, House of Representatives, and House of Assembly for the 2019 elections in the state. He held that Cole’s nomination was a function of illegality and unconstitutional acts.

Justice Nwogu noted that the ward congresses of Rivers APC were illegal because they were not conducted in line with the APC guidelines and constitution, saying that all those who purchased nomination forms for the ward congresses were

entitled to contest the ward congresses of May 19, 2018, but were unjustly excluded by the party.

He said: “The rule by might must be checked by the rule of law. We must restore the hope of the common man in the justice system.”

In questionable circumstances, the Court of Appeal in Port Harcourt unturned the restraining order of Justice Nwogu by ordering a stay of execution. This angered Umar and 22 others.

They filed an appeal at the Supreme Court, contending that the appellate court engaged in judicial rascality by refusing to abide by Supreme Court decisions on the issue of stay of execution of valid court orders.

The appellants told the apex court that the appellate court violated the principle of stare-decisis (judicial precedents) and accorded favourable ruling to the APC, even when it was “in grave disobedience to two orders of the lower court.”

But in a ruling that was delivered by Justice Centus Nweze, the Supreme Court faulted the appellate court for halting the execution of a Rivers State High Court order that barred APC from going ahead with its planned congress, pending the determination of a suit that was entered by Umar and the 22 others. It noted that the high court had on the basis of the said suit, issued injunctive reliefs that expressly forbade the APC from conducting congress in the state.

According to the Supreme Court, Justice Nwogu gave the interim order of injunction on May 11, the same day that some hoodlums loyal to a faction of the party, besieged the high court premises in Port Harcourt. It observed that despite the attack and the restraining order from the high court, which was further reaffirmed on May 13, the APC which was a respondent in the matter, went ahead and conducted its ward, local government and state congresses on May 19, 20 and 21.

he crisis in the Rivers State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) worsened recently when a Federal High Court in Port Harcourt restrained the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from recognising all its candidates for the general elections. The court also ordered the commission to remove the names of all the party candidates from the ballot and other electoral materials. It declared illegal, null and void the direct and indirect primaries conducted by factions of the APC in the state The court took the decisions in its judgments in two separate matters brought before it. In the suit brought before the court by Senator Magnus Abe and 48 others against Rivers APC, the presiding judge, Justice Kolawole Omotosho, declared that both the indirect and direct primaries conducted by factions of the APC were illegal as both took place during the pendency of the matter before the state high court. He said the APC must bear the consequences of its disobedience of the law.

According to the court, the APC conducted the indirect primaries in gross disrespect of the pending suit before Justice Chinwendu Nwogu of the Rivers State High Court. It noted that the judgment of Justice Nwogu nullifying the primaries of the APC in Rivers State was yet to be set aside by an appellate court, hence it remains valid.

The court, therefore, held that the names sent by the faction of the APC controlled by the Minister of Transportation, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi and the National Working Committee (NWC) of the APC to INEC for the general elections were illegal and should be disregarded. It also said the direct primaries conducted by the Senator Magnus Abe faction were illegal because the NWC of APC did not monitor or participate in the processes.

Justice Omotosho added that Justice Nwogu was clear when he nullified all primaries and congresses held during the pendency of the suit,

NOTE: Interested readers should continue in the online edition on www.thisdaylive.com

OSUN GOVERNORSHIP ELECTION TRIBUNAL UPDATE

APC Fails to Stop Tribunal from Admitting Pictures, Video Evidence

By Our Reporter It was the turn of Labour party (LP) and African Democratic Congress (ADC) agents to testify before the Osun State Governorship Election Tribunal Monday.

The two witnesses during the course of their cross examination stood their ground and were adamant that the supplementary

election was marred by series of violence.

Spirited attempts by the respondent’s lawyers to throw them off balance was stoutly rebuffed by the witnesses.

However, the main drama of the day started when the All Progressives Comgress (APC) lawyers tried to prevent the tribunal from admitting picture evidence showing how one of the Peoples

Democratic Party (PDP) supporters from Ife South was brutalised by agents of the APC whose names he subsequently gave to the tribunal. The pictures were later admitted as evidence by the tribunal.

The drama did not end there as APC lawyers in their unanimous decision again decided to stop the tribunal from allowing PDP legal team to tender and play a

video evidence in support of their claims that the run-off election was marred by violence. But after series of arguments by the lawyers from both sides, the tribunal took its stand and admitted the video.

Though the petitioners were unable to play the video tape, arrangements for the video evidence to be played at tomorrow’s (today) sitting.

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T H I S D AY ˾TUESDAY JANUARY 15, 2019

NEWS

Agbakoba Banks on Progressive Forces to Deliver Olawepo-Hashim as President Nseobong Okon-Ekong National Chairman of the Peoples Trust (PT), Mr. Olisa Agbakoba (SAN), has said that the progressive forces in the country have resolved to deliver the presidential candidate of the party, Mr. Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim at the February 16, presidential polls.

Agbakoba, told a large gathering of party faithful at the Old Parade Ground in Abuja at the flag off of its presidential campaign that the progressives have decided to rally against the present set of leaders the same way they rallied against the military during the battle to regain democracy.

Agbakoba, who spoke briefly to declare the campaign open said that the progressive forces were united under the umbrella of the PT. He said, “We took a resolute decision to form this movement we are seeing today. We have reunited under a broad platform called Third Force and by God’s grace and power, we will win. Let us go together.

According to him, in the years past, progressive forces including Chief Gani Fawehinmi, Femi Falana and himself among other resolutely fought the military to a standstill, adding that today, the same progressives, who are alive have resolved to change the current order by delivering Olawepo-Hashim as President.

Olawepo-Hashim, who addressed the crowd said that the current administration had worsened the security situation of the country, adding that 11 out of 19 northern states are already groaning under the scourge of insecurity.

He said, “This is a turning point in the history of Nigeria.

We are at a point where we will exchange instability for security.

We are at a point where we will dump poverty for prosperity, we are at a point where we will stop the wave of violence and hatred

and build a truly united Nigeria; where the live of every Nigerian will count.

“Today, 11 out of 19 states of northern Nigeria have literarily been overrun by bandits from across the border and violence caused by agents of disunity and destruction. The southern states have literarily been overtaken by kidnappers, robbers and all sorts of violence induced by the present state of the economy of the country.

“At the bottom of these massive upheavals in the land is youth unemployment, which has climbed to about 36 percent. We have more youths that are unemployed than youths that are gainfully employed.

The national unemployment average has also climbed to 24 percent of the population.

“Our resolve is to build a new economy that will guarantee jobs for our teeming youths, empower our women with the capital to take their place in the society.

“We are resolved to expand our economy to a $4trn economy within 10 years. We will restructure the way power is organized between the states and the federal government by devolving power to the states as presently constituted so that they can mobilise more local resources to address problems.

“We will empower the states to have their own police side-by-side with the federal police, so that the internal security can be enhanced.

We will create a national guard as an intermediate force between the Army and the Police so that we can restore internal security rapidly to the country.

“We are a party that is determined to build a better Nigeria. We want to put an end to the poverty squalor and underdevelopment that have been the hallmark of the incumbent government. We will fight corruption in a way that it would be done scientifically. It will be multi-various. It is not just going to be a police action”.

Foundation Urges Nigerians to Curb Electoral Irregularities Udora Orizu The Mike Omotosho Foundation has urged Nigerians to imbibe the values of integrity in order to curb electoral irregularities such as vote buying and electoral violence during elections.

The Convener of the Foundation, Dr Mike Omotosho, who gave the advise at the 4th Mike Omotosho Annual Lecture in Abuja, themed: ‘Our Core Values, An invaluable Springboard for National Development’, said that Nigeria had seven core values of integrity which are discipline, patriotism, self reliance, social justice, dignity of labour and religious cooperation, yet many people were not aware; let alone practice them.

He stressed that without the core values, the civil roles of people will not matter.

According to him, “You don’t need to sell your vote. If we are able to live by the core

values, the issues of poverty and food insecurity will be by-gone issues; even youths will have the courage to begin to understand that if they live by them, they will solve all the problems we have.”

He appealed to the citizens to look for the rightful person who will be more patriotic to vote into power, adding that if you have the interest of the nation at heart then that will be paramount.

Similarly, the Police Force Public Relations Officer, Mr Jimoh Moshood, said it was time Nigerians inculcated the culture of the seven core values for a better Nigeria.

Moshood said that discipline which was one of the values was necessary because it was the key thing and it would make people do only the right things.

He said that the police had the responsibility to protect the people and that it is their duty to continue to cooperate with

CUPP Describes Ruling on Onnoghen as Victory for Democracy Udora Orizu The Coalition of United Political Parties (CUPP) has applauded the ruling of the Federal High court presided over by Justice Evelyn Nkeonye Maha which restrained the Code of Conduct Tribunal from proceeding with the arraignment of the Chief Justice of the Federation, Walter Onnoghen describing it as victory for democracy and rule of law.

Justice Maha ruled at the Federal High Court on Monday that no steps should be taken in respect of the trial until January 17 when all parties to the two suits should return to court for the hearing of the plaintiffs motion on notice.

CUPP spokesperson, Ikenga Ugochinyere, stated that President Muhammadu Buhari and the All Progressives Congress (APC) want the CJN out to give them room for a dubious judge

who will constitute the 2019 election panel that may be used to affirm rigged results after the 2019 polls.

According to CUPP, “Buhari and APC plot to force CJN out of office has suffered a huge set back as court restrains Code of Conduct Tribunal from arraignment of the CJN. The Buhari and his APC led administration is out to crash all institution of governance in a bid to rig 2019 election.”

The coalition called on Nigerians to remain vigilant and resist any move aimed at crippling the various arms of government.

“We call on men and women of good will to speak out and resist any move aimed at crippling arms of government or individuals who are not ready to be used to do the dirty job of returning Buhari to power without going through a free and fair process.”

MOVE TO ENSURE FOOD SUFFICIENCY

Akwa Ibom State Governor, Mr Udom Emmanuel (middle) unveiling the plaque to commission Ibom Integrated Farm at Awa Ndon, Onna Local Government Area. He is flanked by his Deputy Mr. Moses Ekpo (left), Secretary to the state Government, Dr. Emmanuel Ekuwem (right), Paramount Ruler of Onna LGA, His Royal Majesty Edidem Raymond Inyang (2nd left) and wife of the Paramount Ruler Obongawan Unwaowo Inyang (2nd right).

NANS Endorse Seyi Babaeko, UPN Candidate for Kogi Assembly The council of zonal coordinators for the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) led by Comrade Farouk Lawal has endorsed the candidacy of Comrade Oluwaloseyi Solomon Babaeko, the Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN) candidate for the Kogi State House of Assembly.

The students who gathered at the Comrade Oluwaloseyi Solomon Babaeko campaign office in Kajola Kabba, commended his noble role in the students movement, used the opportunity to honour him as the ICON of nation building.

The NANS warned the State Governor, Alhaji Yahaya Bello, the Speaker of the Kogi State House of Assembly, Prince Yomi Kola who is also seeking reelection as candidate for the All Progressives Congress (APC) against any attempt to rig the forth coming election, especially in Kabba/Bunu constituency.

The over 30,000 000 strong student body promised to mobilize 5000 Nigerian students to monitor the March 16 election to forestall rigging, which maybe an invitation to anarchy. Other speakers at

the events were comrades Dare, Sunday Eseyin and Ojo Victor.

The Director General of the Campaign Organisation, Comrade Segun Awuto thanked the noble association for the deserving award.

In his message, Babaeko thanked the Nigerian students for the endorsement and the award. He dedicated the award to his brother, Mr. Steve Babaeko, the Vice President of Association of Advertising Agencies of Nigeria, for giving him a qualitative education both at the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU)

and a Masters degree in Conflict, Development and Security from University of Leeds UK., the Emir of Kastina who facilitated his admission into OAU, the suffering masses of Kabba/ Bunu Constituency, the oppressed, revolutionary leaders across the globe, and to fallen heroes like Moses Osakede, Donald Onakogu and other martyrs.

He used the opportunity to appeal to President Muhammad Buhari to upgrade the Ahmadu Bello College of Agriculture to a university. Babaeko further appealed to the President

Rivers AA Guber Candidate Receives Youth Support Nseobong Okon-Ekong The Action Alliance (AA) party governorship candidate in Rivers state, Mr. Larry Tamunotonye Allison has called on the people of Rivers to be discreet in exercising their franchise in the forthcoming elections.

He made this remarks at his country home in Bonny Kingdom.

He also stressed the need

for peace, understanding and diplomacy amongst the people of Rivers state, stating that the victory of any candidate is not worth the bloodshed of any person.

According to Allison, the “Let the Masses Live” mantra is a campaign for democratic dividends, whereby every Rivers state indigene can easily access good education, healthcare, power, state government

grants, employment opportunities, amongst others.

A cross-section of youths from Rivers State under the umbrella of Federation of Rivers Youth in Port Harcourt have thrown their supports behind the candidacy of Chief Larry Allison, stating they believe he is the man to ensure effective deployment of the resources of Rivers state.

On the behalf of the

youths, Samuel Abiye insisted that, they support the mantra of Allison, stressing that the campaign for the Action Alliance candidate will commence in Port Harcourt soon.

Allison is popular with the youths of Rivers state for instituting several empowerment projects for youths, women and educational programmes for children.

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FEATURES

Group Features Editor: Chiemelie Ezeobi Email chiemelie.ezeobi@thisdaylive.com, 08152252325

Celebrating the Armed Forces Remembrance Day Chiemelie Ezeobi writes that as Nigeria marks the annual Armed Forces Remembrance Day, which is set aside to celebrate fallen heroes who died in the line of duty, there is an increasing clamour for the government to truly ensure the welfare of officers and men of the force

President Muhammadu Buhari at the wreath laying ceremony to mark the 2018 Armed Forces Remembrance Day

Photo credit: GOOGLE

Veterans of the Nigerian Legion

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he 10th line of Nigeria's National Anthem reads thus; 'the labours of our heroes past, shall never be in vain'.

Given this, one would expect that indeed the heroes on whose blood, sweat and back this nation was built, would not be forgotten. The opposite however, seems to be the case.

Nonetheless, the Armed Forces Remembrance Day (AFRD), is marked every year, on January 15, as a day set aside to celebrate the fallen heroes, who died in the line of duty while fighting to ensure the territorial integrity of the nation, whether on land, air or water is not breached or tampered with.

This year is no different. As the nation makes the remembrance today, one thing remains the crux- the welfare of soldiers and men, who are at the forefront in the war against insurgency in the North-east, herdsmen killings in the Middle-belt, Militancy in the South-south and other pockets of violence that has been rocking the nation simultaneously.

History According to Wikipedia, in Nigeria, the Armed Forces Day, also known as Remembrance Day, is celebrated every January 15. It was formerly celebrated on November 11 of every year to coincide with the Remembrance Day (Poppy Day) for the World War 11 veterans in the British Commonwealth of Nations, but it was changed to January 15 in Nigeria in commemoration of the surrender of Biafran troops to the federal troops on January 15, 1970, thus concluding the Nigerian Civil War that sought to tear apart the unity of Nigeria.

SigniďŹ cance The Armed Forces Remembrance Day celebration as an annual event organised to honour members of the Nigerian Armed Forces who fought for the nation, and those who served or are still serving in various peace support operations worldwide, as well as those who fought in the Nigerian civil war, is quite significant.

This is because the day is mapped out to celebrate both the dead and the living heroes, including all those who suffered various deprivations as a result of wars. Annually, this national day celebrates military personnel including the Nigerian Army, the Nigerian Navy, the Nigerian Air Force and the Nigerian Legion. They all converge on different centres across the nation to celebrate the day and give honour to the fallen and living heroes who risked and continue to risk their lives for the territorial integrity of the nation.

The event is held at the federal, state and local levels where either serving military officers reside or where living ex-service men occupy.

Symbolisms In commemorating the day, several military traditions are strictly adhered to. Whether marked at the federal, state or local level, some symbolisms are sacrosanct and they include the release of pigeons to symbolise peace, placing of wreaths, playing of the last post, Remembrance Day parade, shooting of guns. Besides the above listed, the

event also witnesses religious services in both mosques and churches nationwide.

At the parades, the military personnel are usually kitted in diverse colours typical of their services be it navy, air force, army or ex-service men.

Preparations A while back as October 2018, the federal government set the ball rolling in preparation for the event. Accordingly, the Ministry of Defence (MOD) had last year inaugurated a 25- man national planning committee as part of preparations to celebrate the 2019 AFRD celebration.

The Permanent Secretary MOD, Mrs. Nuratu Batagarawa, while inaugurating the committee, had explained that the event was in honour of members of the Armed Forces of Nigeria who had laid down their lives in the defence of territorial integrity.

Batagarawa said the servicemen and women were also being honoured for promotion of global peace as well as those who had suffered setbacks as consequence of their participation in war.

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FEATURES The Armed Forces Remembrance Day forcefully reminds one of the resolve of the citizens to remain in one united country, Nigeria. It also points out the fact that we had been through a bitter and unfortunate war that led to the loss of millions of our compatriots and the need to do all within our powers to avoid a reoccurrence of war Prelude Also the Minister of Defence, Mansur Muhammed Dan-Ali in a press conference had outlined the activities lined up for today's commemoration.

After the press briefing which he held to herald the 2019 AFRD, the next line of action was the Nigerian Legion Humanitarian Day, which held on October 19, 2018 at the Legion House, Area 3 Garki Abuja and legion offices in all states of the federation.

The event involved community service by the veterans as well as empowerment of widows and orphans of fallen heroes.

On October 30, 2018, the emblem launch was done by President Muhammadu Buhari, at the Council Chambers, State House, Abuja.

The launch set things off in motion as the sale of the emblems was done across the country.

Proceeds of the sale of the remembrance emblem are deposited to the Nigerian Legion, a body of veterans.

From then to January of 2019, underground preparations were in full swing, which culminated into the Jumma’at Service on January 11, 2019 at the National Mosque, followed by an interdenominational service at the National Christian Centre, Abuja on Sunday January, 13, 2019. All these events took place simultaneously in all the states.

The wreath laying ceremony, which is the peak of the celebration, will see the president and other dignitaries lay wreath at the National Cenotaph in Abuja, today. This will also be done simultaneously by governors in their respective states.

President Muhammadu Buhari while speaking on the prelude of the AFRD said it forcefully reminds one of the resolve of the citizens to remain in one united country, Nigeria.

He said: "It also points out the fact that we had been through a bitter and unfortunate war that led to the loss of millions of our compatriots and the need to do all within our powers to avoid a reoccurrence of war."

While expressing regret on the recent murder of two young and promising aid workers; Saifura Khorsa and Hauwa Liman by Boko Haram terrorists, he added, "it is painful that this happened despite all the efforts of government to effect release of the two victims. We condemn the callous and cowardly act in its entirety and call on all citizens and friends to forge a united front against this common enemy of our destiny.

Once more, I extend the heartfelt condolences of the government and people of Nigeria to the families and friends of these martyrs."

The Nigerian Legion One of the highpoints of each AFRD is the prominence given to the Nigerian Legion, an association of ex-servicemen, i.e former members of the army, navy and air force.

The legion was established for the veterans because after retirement, they often discover that there are no jobs for them. Thus, the legion helps them to integrate into society. The law also backs them to operate certain businesses in order to raise money for its members, or serve as security guards at government establishments or raise money through the sale of AFRD emblems.

Addressing the Demands Still at the prelude of the d-day, Buhari had lent his voice in clamouring for support not just for the armed forces but also for the legion. He had called on other corporate organisations to borrow

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo (middle)!and others at the inter-denominational service to mark the 2019 Armed Forces Remembrance Day

Troops of the armed forces a leaf from the noble initiative as government alone cannot satisfy all the needs, given her limited resources.

He said: ‘‘Some airlines operating in Nigeria offer discounts to members of the Armed Forces.

This gesture is commendable and in line with my call for recognition, consideration and appreciation of our Armed Forces.

I urge more business ventures to chip in by assisting the security forces in whatever way they can. ‘‘As Grand Patron of the Nigerian Legion

In virtually all the areas where soldiers are battling the Boko Haram insurgency, the main complaints have been inadequate welfare packages, obsolete weaponry, weak tactics and strategy, amongst others. Unsurprisingly, this has led to low morale among troops, especially with the recent resurgence of Boko Haram, whose stock in trade now is to invade military bases and units

(Veterans), I wish to pledge my continued support and that of the Federal Government to the organisation. My appreciation goes to state governors who are patrons in their respective states for the support they are giving to the legion.

I enjoin them not to relent but improve on this."

On what his ministry is doing to improve the lot of families of fallen heroes, the minister of defence was recently quoted to have said that he has inaugurated a Defence and Security Think Thank Committee to analyse and advice the government on how best to address, threats as well as critically evaluate the security agencies in handling emerging scenarios.

Outlining the policy reforms embarked on by the ministry to improve the lives of serving and ex-service men he said they include the review of the 'Nigerian Legion Act’, which he said the ministry has forwarded a bill for the review.

According to him, the bill has provision for institutionalising the provision for welfare needs of the veterans in line with International best practices.

On ‘Pension Administration’ he said that at the root of catering for the welfare of the veterans was the payment of monthly pensions, adding that to this end, the Military Pensions Board had continued to deliver on regular pensions, adding that the periodic verification exercises carried out by the board is to ensure that sharp practices are reduced to the barest minimum.

Speaking on the ‘Defence Health Insurance Scheme’ he said the Defence Health Maintenance Limited has continued to provide health insurance service for veterans, widows and eligible dependants of the fallen heroes.

On the collaboration between the Nigerian Legion and National Personal Asset Acquisition Scheme (NAPAAS), a private sector driven scheme, he said it would afford the legionnaires the ability to purchase both household and agricultural

commodities at affordable and discounted prices within a flexible and structured repayment plan across the country.

Welfare of Troops Another burning issue that the AFRD usually throws up is the welfare of soldiers, especially those deployed to the battle front. Each day, reports filter out about the increasing disenchantment of soldiers in the war front.

In virtually all the areas where soldiers are battling the Boko Haram insurgency, the main complaints have been the inadequate welfare packages, obsolete weaponry, weak tactics and strategy, amongst others. Unsurprisingly, this has led to low morale among troops, especially with the recent resurgence of Boko Haram, whose stock in trade now is to invade military bases and units.

Expectedly, with the recent wave of terrorists who seemingly have more sophisticated weapons than the troops, cases of soldiers going awol abound. From past reports, the soldiers had often complained that the terrorists have night vision goggles, rocket-propelled grenades and bomb-resistant armoured personnel carriers and trucks.

Sadly, in most attacks on military bases, these terrorists often make away with military equipment and even weapons to boost their armoury.

Another major demands by the soldiers is that of their sleeping conditions and food. According to them, they often sleep in the open air because of the inhabitable nature of their make-shift tents.

On the quality of meals, they lamented that it was poor to state the least, in addition with the lack of potable water they are forced to drink.

In all these, they noted that they might have made do if only their allowances are paid as at when due, a claim that the military authorities have refuted countlessly.

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IMAGES

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Photo Editor ĂŒĂ“Ă™ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă˜ ÔËÖË Email Ă‹ĂŒĂ“Ă™ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă˜Ë›Ă‹Ă”Ă‹Ă–Ă‹ĚśĂžĂ’Ă“Ă?ĂŽĂ‹ĂŁĂ–Ă“Ă Ă?Ë›Ă?Ù×

R-L: Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode; Project Manager, Hi-Tech Construction Company, Engr. Willie Barkhuisen and Deputy Managing Director of the Company, Mr. Danny Abboud during the Governor’s inspection of the ongoing construction of the Oshodi-International Airport Road,...recently

L-R: Member of Celestial Church of Chriist Board of Trustees, Superior Senior Evangelist Pius Olanrewaju; Ooni of lfe, His Imperial Majesty, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi and Reverend Esther Ajayi at the Annual Christmas Convocation of Celestal Church of Christ in lmeko, Ogun State...recently Photo: ABIODUN AJALA

L-R: Dean, Archbishop Vining Memorial Cathedral, Ven. Goke Agara: Bishop, Diocese of Lagos West, Anglican Communion, Bishop James Olusola Odedeji and Chairman, Election Committee, Diocese of Lagos West, Ven. Gbenga Oniye, during a media brieďŹ ng on the diocese forthcoming election debates for Lagos Governorship candidates, in Lagos....recently PHOTO: KOLA OLASUPO

L-R: PDP Vice Presidential Candidate, Peter Obi, Speaker, House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Yakubu Dogara,PDP Presidential Candidate, Alh. Atiku Abubakar and PDP National Chairman, Prince Uche Secondus at the PDP Presidential Rally in LaďŹ a, Nasarawa State...recently

Kwara State APC Governorship Candidate, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq[right] visited an APC member attacked

by PDP thugs in Ilorin...recently

L-R: Oyo State Governor, Senator Abiola Ajimobi; popular Gospel Musician, Mr Yinka Ayefele; and his Publicist, Mr David Ajiboye, presenting a ‘thank you’ portrait to the governor for assisting him to rebuild his Music House, which was partially demolished last year for contravening the town planning laws, at the Governor’s OďŹƒce, Ibadan... recently

National President, Nigerian Union of Journalists, Chris Isiguzo (R) and Adebayo Boddurin of AIT at the 1st Quarter 2019 Consultative Meeting with the Media held in Abuja...recently PHOTO: JULIUS ATOI

President of the Senate, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki during a sympathy visit to Mr. Afeez Olayeri - a retired Custom oďŹƒcer from Agbaji quarters in Ilorin who was among those attacked by thugs loyal to the All Progressives Congress (APC) at the Ilorin General Hospital ...recently

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WEEKLY PULL-OUT

CJN’S CCT TRIAL: DICTATORSHIP TURNING FULL CIRCLE?

15.01.2019

Chief Justice of Nigeria, Walter Onnoghen, GCON

2/DASHBOARD

15.01.2019

Action for Declaration of Title to Land: Onus of Proof PAGE 4

Alleged Fraud: AGF, NPA, Others Dragged to Court over Dredging Contract PAGE 5

Lawyer Eulogises Late Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Chief Frank Akinrele PAGE 5

QUOTABLES ‘.....The Chief Justice of Nigeria can only be removed by the President, upon receipt of an address supported by two-thirds majority of the Senate.’

– Chief Afe Babalola, SAN

‘Does a Government that flouts court orders, have the moral right to ask others to obey court orders?....The Government has a greater responsibility to demonstrate fidelity in the rule of law.’

– Femi Falana, SAN, Human Rights Activist

‘I think the disobedience of court orders, has increased under this administration....Politicians like the President and people like him, don’t want to respect the rule of law, and therefore, they are driving people into the rule of force or the law of rule, as I like to call it. And they have driven people to that, through the disobedience of court orders.’

– Dr Chidi Anselm Odinkalu, Legal Practitioner, Former Chairman, National Human Rights Commission

Lack of Uniform Maritime Law is Causing Delays in African Trade, says Shippers’ Council Boss PAGE 6

‘Law is Not a Profession for the Lazy and Mediocre’ PAGE 6

A Tribute to Sir Otunba Yomi Oshikoya PAGE 7

COLUMNISTS DR. MIKE OZEKHOME, SAN, OFR, FCIARB, PH.D, LL.D Constitutional Democracy, means a system of government, in which political and governmental power, is defined, limited and shared by a grundnorm called the Constitution, which provides inbuilt checks and balances.

This column seeks to fiercely discuss constitutional, legal and political issues, with a view to strengthening, deepening and widening the plenitude and amplitude of democracy and good governance, without fear or favour.

The writer of this column, Dr. Mike Ozekhome, SAN, is a Constitutional Lawyer, Human Rights Activist, Pro-Democracy Campaigner, Notary Public and Motivational Speaker. He cofounded the Civil Liberties Organisation (CLO), Nigeria's pioneer human rights league, on October 15,1987, the Universal Defenders of Democracy (UDD), in 1992, and with Chief Gani Fawehinmi and others in 1998, the Joint Action Committee of Nigeria (JACON), to push out the military. In his early days, he lectured at the University of Ife. Dr. Ozekhome is an author of many books. He is also a Special Counsel at the International Criminal Court (ICC), at The Hague.

ABUBAKAR D. SANI Abubakar D. Sani holds a Bachelors degree from the University of Maiduguri, and has been in active private legal practice since he was called to the Nigerian Bar in 1987.

He is the Principal of Abubakar D. Sani & Co., which has offices in Abuja and Kano. " INSIGHT" aims to unravel, analyse and proffer solutions to numerous anomalies in Nigerian law and practice, particularly statutes, vis-avis the Constitution, International Treaties and Conventions to which Nigeria is a signatory, Judicial Precedent and other relevant statutes and issues.

ONIKEPO BRAITHWAITE EDITOR JUDE IGBANOI DEPUTY EDITOR AKINWALE AKINTUNDE REPORTER TUNDE BUSARI GROUP HEAD OCHI OGBUAKU II ART DIRECTOR

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Onnoghen, Fake News and Free Speech

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News and Fake News he definition of news is “newly received or noteworthy information, especially about recent events; information not previously known to (someone)”. On the other hand, the Cambridge Dictionary defines ‘fake news’ as, “false stories that appear to be news, spread on the internet or using other media, usually created to influence political views or as a joke”.

In the Nigerian context, it is usually created to influence political views, discredit and pitch the people against the incumbent government. Did you know that, in 2017, ‘fake news’ was named the word of the year?

I certainly agree that, fake news is dangerous and can lead to extremely unpleasant consequences, even cause a world war if care is not taken, as the Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, SAN pointed out. Depending on the content of the fake news, it can polarise a society, or even cause tension between countries. One wonders about the mindset of those who manufacture falsehood and disseminate them, just to cause trouble and disaffection amongst people, and heat up their polities. I have quickly learnt, not to immediately forward any message I receive, without first seeking confirmation of its veracity.

I think we should all make this, a habit.

The CJN When on Saturday morning, I started receiving messages on what’s app, saying that His Lordship, the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Honourable Justice Onnoghen (CJN) would be arraigned before the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) for charges of false or non-declaration of assets, I thought it had to be ‘fake news’. I immediately contacted the NBA President, to verify the information.

As the day went on, I was horrified to see that it was ‘real’ news.

I am not saying that the CJN is above the law, but as Lawyers, we know that, like it or not, there is a process for dealing with judicial officers, which is that, the National Judicial Council (NJC) by virtue of Sections 153(1)(j) and 21(b) Part 1 of the third schedule to the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) (the Constitution), is the body empowered with the function of disciplining them. Therefore, any proceedings against the CJN at the CCT, will be null and void ab initio, as the CCT presently lacks the jurisdiction to try his Lordship Madukolu v Nkemdilim 1962 2 SCNLR 341. The NJC must dispense with the matter first Nganjiwa v FRN 2017 LPELR-43391 (CA). That is the condition precedent. Surely, the provisions of the Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act, are not superior to those of the Constitution (Section

1(1) and (3)).

But, how can the Attorney-General of the Federation (AG), a Senior Advocate of Nigeria for that matter, knowing the position of the law, make this kind of embarrassing ‘boo boo’, or allow it to happen under his watch? Lawyers are beginning to wonder whether he is the AG of the Federation, or AG of CPC and APC! In a civilised country, the AG would have been sanctioned by his Bar Association a long time ago, for allowing the administration which he serves, to trample so badly, upon the rule of law. The AG and others Lawyers, like the one who filed this case against the CJN at the CCT, who aid Government in illegality, should be sanctioned by the NBA. This action against the CJN by Government, portrays us as a Banana Republic, to the world.

It shows how crude, primitive and desperate Government is. What can I liken this latest action to? Perhaps, driving one-way on 3rd Mainland Bridge, in broad day light (which is senseless)? The CJN doesn’t need 150 SANs to defend him, because even a ‘Baby Lawyer’ fresh out of Law School, knows the position of the law on this matter! The Petitioner should do the right thing, which is to petition the NJC. Amina Zakari Last week, at the height of the debate about INEC and Amina Zakari, people started publicising on social media, a photograph of the first lady, Aisha Buhari, and another lady whom they held out to be Amina Zakari, making some finger/hand signs. The first thing I did when I received the photo, was to google photographs of Amina Zakari, in order to compare them with the photo I had been sent. The only similarities which I found between the two ladies was that, they both adorned some form of hijab, and they were both wearing prescription eye glasses. Next, I sent the photograph to a friend of mine who moves in the political circles, to make enquiries. A few minutes later, he reverted and said the person in the photograph, is a lady called Hajjo Sani, and not Amina Zakari. People were already up in arms about the Amina Zakari/INEC/ Buhari saga. What purpose did it then serve, to disseminate a lie about the identity of the person in the photograph with Mrs Buhari, to worsen an already bad situation?

Again, last Thursday, it was alleged that one of the leaders of the National Union of Road Transport Workers, Alhaji Musiliu Akinsanya aka MC Oluomo, had died as a result of stab wounds which he received at an APC rally held in Lagos, last week. It took MC Oluomo’s daughter, to go on social media, to dispel the rumours of her father’s death. With the threat of eruption of violence in Lagos, what purpose

Chief Justice of Nigeria, Hon. Justice Walter Samuel Nkanu Onnoghen

does it serve, when the status of MC Olumo’s health is unclear, to further fuel his already embattled supporters’ quest for revenge for this attack, by circulating news of his death, which as of today, has not been confirmed?

Freedom of Expression Does our right to freedom of expression, as guaranteed by Section 39(1) of the Constitution, extend to people being able to spread lies and fake news, which only serve to cause chaos, and even violence and bloodshed?

Those who believe in the absoluteness of freedom of expression, argue that freedom of expression must not be derogated from, as any attempt to do so, can devalue it or result in gagging/authoritarianism by the State. They also argue that, the law has ample provisions for punishing those who partake in this kind of activity. They make a distinction between ‘untruths” and ‘lies’, saying that the former could be a mistake which can be corrected, while the latter is a known deception; and that, for example, laws like those of libel and defamation of character, allow a complainant to seek redress in court, against those who have spread lies about or maligned him or her.

Or is the right to freedom of expression (when it becomes spreading of dangerous inflammatory false information), limited by the provisions of Section 45(1)(a) of the Constitution, which restricts fundamental rights in the interest of, inter alia, defence, public safety and public order? Dear Readers, what do you think?

‘Honourable’ Minister Rotimi Amaechi Did you hear the audio recording, purportedly of Minister Rotimi Amaechi? The one that trended on social media last week? The one in which the speaker was heard making so- called uncomplimentary remarks, about President Buhari (Baba)? I don’t think that was fake news, for two reasons. First, the voice sounded exactly like Rotimi Amaechi’s, and secondly, there is nothing false about the statements which were made on that recording!

Naturally, when people are caught out like that, they say the recording was doctored!

To be candid, I did not see the comments as disparaging at all. The speaker was simply telling us what most right thinking Nigerians already know - the truth!

The speaker started off by saying “The President is not listening to anybody. He doesn’t care. Does he read? If he reads, he will laugh. He will say, ‘come and see, they are abusing me here’ ”. Are these statements about Baba, not a confirmation of what millions of Nigerians, especially those of us in the South and parts of the North Central, believe about the President?

When people were being slaughtered by Herdsmen in Benue State between 2016 and 2018 for example, how long did it take Baba to visit Benue? If Baba was listening or reading, he would certainly have heard the Benue people’s cries for help and of pain, and endeavoured to do something to curtail the crisis. When Baba eventually got to Benue State in March 2018, did he visit the scenes of any of the massacres or the IDP camps? If my memory serves me well, did Baba not only attend a townhall meeting in Makurdi, the State capital, which he left abruptly to return to Abuja to meet Rex Tillerson, the then American Secretary of State? A President left a visit to a crisis ridden area in his country, to go and meet the equivalent of a Minister of another country, when we have a corresponding Minister who could have received him? Indeed, it shows a lot of care on the part of the President and his handlers (forgive me for being sarcastic).

And when the cry of the Benue people and indeed, that of many Nigerians, became too loud to ignore, Baba eventually instructed the Inspector General of Police (IG) to relocate to Benue. Instead of relocating, the IG visited for one day, and the ‘caring’ Baba failed to sanction the IG for gross insubordination and disobedience, claiming that he was unaware that the IG did not follow his instructions. His lack of knowledge about the IG’s inactions (and practically everything else, including this

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THE ADVOCATE onikepo.braithwaite@thisdaylive.com onikepob@yahoo.com

“BUT, HOW CAN THE ATTORNEY-GENERAL OF THE FEDERATION (AG), A SENIOR ADVOCATE OF NIGERIA FOR THAT MATTER, KNOWING THE POSITION OF THE LAW, MAKE THIS KIND OF EMBARRASSING ‘BOO BOO’, OR ALLOW IT TO HAPPEN UNDER HIS WATCH? LAWYERS ARE BEGINNING TO WONDER WHETHER HE IS THE AG OF THE FEDERATION, OR AG OF CPC AND APC!”

latest attempt to force the CJN out of office), indicates quite clearly, that he does not read or listen, since the Nigerian media was awash with this information, and indubitably, he does not care, at least, not enough to keep abreast with what measures were being taken to curtail the heinous activities of the Herdsmen in Benue.

The speaker on the audio recording, went on to say “Three years of Buhari, everyone is crying. Farmers are crying. Workers are crying.

Politicians are crying. Students are crying. Three years o! The rate of poverty is very high. People are hungry”. As we say in Hausa, “I mana, kwarai da gaskiya” (yes, indeed, exactly the truth). It is true that, Nigerians are in agony.

I was particularly nauseated by the recording, because for one, the speaker found the terrible situation in which Nigerians find themselves, extremely amusing, as he laughed almost hysterically, throughout the recording.

It is unfortunate, but the truth of the matter is that, in essence, apart from the fact that we have a President who has failed to feel the pulse of the majority of Nigerians, totally disregarding the objectives of Government as provided in Chapter 2 of the Constitution (amongst many other provisions), he is aided by a cabinet mostly comprised of people like the speaker in the audio recording, who have no sincerity of purpose, no belief in what they are doing, lack the knowledge and capacity to perform, and sadly, do not believe in the Nigerian project.

I say this because, the speaker concluded by saying “Nigeria will divide. Nothing will change in this country, unless everybody is killed. This country is going nowhere. I’m not joking”. Whether the speaker on that audio recording is Minister Amaechi or whoever, let me respond the way a Yoruba person would, to your last statement about ‘unless everyone is killed’- “Iwo ni won ma pa, la i se awa omo Nigeria ” – it is you that they will kill, not us, children of Nigeria.

“Eni ba je gbi, lo ma ku gbi” – it is those that have partaken in nonsense, that will die for the nonsense they partook in, not the innocent.

4/LAW REPORT

15.01.2019

Action for Declaration of Title to Land: Onus of Proof

T Facts

he 1st Appellant claimed to be the original owner of the land in dispute, known as Ogbomoso Farm Settlement. The 2nd to 9th Appellant, are Allottees of land in the Farm Settlement. The 1st Respondent is the Traditional Ruler, the Onipetu of Ijeru, in Ogbomoso South Local Government Area of Oyo State. It was the case of the Appellant, that the Premier of the then Western Region and the Baale of Ogbomoso, approached the 1st Appellant’s family in 1948 for the release of land for the establishment of a Farm School on the basis of a “Negotiated Acquisition”, as no compensation was paid to the family. Upon the acquisition, the Farm School was established. The Government subsequently, acquired another portion of the land from the family, and this acquisition was published in the Western Region of Nigeria Gazette No. 3 Vol.9. The family of the 1st Appellant was paid the sum of £460, as compensation for the second acquisition. The 1st Appellant stated that, after the demise of his Predecessorin-title and upon assuming the position of the Traditional Ruler of Ijeru, the 1st Respondent sought (in writing) from the Government of the Western Region, the release of the Old Farm School land, and allegedly trespassed on the land by selling portions to third parties. The 1st Respondent was also alleged to have destroyed the Farmers’ crops, in a bid to sell the land. Notwithstanding protests from the 1st Appellant’s family and the Farm Settlement Officer against the act of trespass, 55% of the land was released to the 1st Respondent, while the government retained 45% without consideration for the interests of farmers who were granted portions of the land by the government, upon payment of prescribed fees as Ground Rent.

The Appellants consequently filed an action at the High Court of Oyo State claiming inter alia against the Respondents, a declaration that the purported transfer or grant of the land in dispute by the Oyo State Government to the 3rd Respondent is illegal, unconstitutional, unlawful, irregular, null and void.

The trial Judge visited the locus in quo at the close of the defence, and after considering the address of Counsel, entered judgement in favour of the Appellants, granting all their reliefs. The 1st Respondent being dissatisfied with the decision, successfully appealed the decision at the Court of Appeal, where the judgement of the trial Court was set aside.

The Appellant therefore, appealed to the Supreme Court.

Issues for Determination The issues adopted for determination of the appeal were: 1. Whether considering the avalanche of evidence, both oral and documentary, led by the parties before the trial court, the court below was right in allowing the 1st Respondent’s appeal and setting aside the judgement of the trial Court.

2. Whether the Court of Appeal was right, when it held that the 2nd to 9th Appellant pleaded that the land in dispute belongs to the 1st Respondent’s family, and that the case put up by the 1st Appellant was inconsistent with the case of the 2nd to 9th Appellant.

3. Whether the Court of Appeal was right, to have set aside the award of Damages and Order of Injunction made by the trial Court against the Respondents.

Arguments For the Appellants, it was submitted that, the 1st Appellant gave cogent evidence through PW1, PW5 and PW9 as to how the land devolved to his descendants. He argued that, though the 1st Respondent pleaded that his family owned the land by way of settlement, he failed to adduce any evidence in support of his assertion. It was argued that, the 1st Respondent’s ownership of adjacent land to prove title, was a mere presumption which was rebuttable by superior evidence such as traditional evidence, acts of ownership and acts of long possession. It was also argued that, given the provisions of Section 125 of the Evidence Act, proof of fact may be by oral evidence, and need not be by documentary evidence alone, and so, the lower Court was wrong to have disregarded the oral evidence of PW1 and PW9 on acquisition of the land.

Counsel for the Respondents, on his part, reiterated the five ways of establishing ownership of land and argued that, where evidence is at variance with a party’s pleading, it cannot be relied upon by the Court. He argued that, the 1st Appellant did not adduce any evidence in proof of payment of compensation to his family in respect of the Farm Settlement, and that the land originally belonged to the Ijeru Chieftaincy family who relinquished their rights in the land upon payment of compensation by the government.

Counsel submitted further that, the 1st Appellant failed to prove his assertion of Negotiated Acquisition.

Court’s Judgement and Rationale

Hon. Kudirat Motonmori Olatokunbo Kekere-Ekun, JSC

In the Supreme Court of Nigeria Holden at Abuja On Friday, the 6th day of July, 2018 Before Their Lordships Musa Dattijo Muhammad Kudirat Motonmori Olatokunbo Kekere-Ekun Chima Centus Nweze Amiru Sanusi Ejembi Eko Justices, Supreme Court SC.273/2013 Between Chief James Adebayo Oyewusi (For himself and on behalf of Ikolaba Ayoola Chieftaincy family) & 8 Ors .........

Appellants And Oba Sunday Olagbami & 2 Ors. ............Respondents (Lead Judgement delivered by Hon. Kudirat Motonmori Olatokunbo Kekere-Ekun, JSC)

In its judgement, the Supreme Court noted the position of law that where a party seeks declaratory reliefs, he must succeed on the strength of his own case and not on the weakness of the defence, and that such relief must be proved to the satisfaction of the Court, notwithstanding default of defence or any admission in the Defendant’s pleading. DUMEZ NIG. LTD. v NWAKHOBA (2008) 18 NWLR (Pt. 1119) 361. Where the Defendant does not file a Counter-claim, the burden

“....WHERE A PARTY SEEKS DECLARATORY RELIEFS, HE MUST SUCCEED ON THE STRENGTH OF HIS OWN CASE, AND NOT ON THE WEAKNESS OF THE DEFENCE, AND THAT SUCH RELIEF MUST BE PROVED TO THE SATISFACTION OF THE COURT, NOTWITHSTANDING DEFAULT OF DEFENCE OR ANY ADMISSION IN THE DEFENDANT’S PLEADING”

is heavier on the Claimant, to prove his title to land in dispute. Further, parties and the Court, are bound by the pleadings filed in a particular suit; parties cannot go outside their pleadings to introduce evidence, nor can the court go outside the pleadings, to decide the issues in controversy in the matter. The five established ways of proving title to land, were enunciated in the case of IDUNDUN v OKUMAGBA (1976) 9-10 SC 227. In the instant case, the 1st Appellant relied on traditional history and documentary evidence. There was no documentary evidence of the “Negotiated Acquisition” of 1948. In his evidence, PW1 testified that after acquisition, the government built silos for storing grains, offices and an underground structure for repairing vehicles, amongst other uses. Also, that the government used the land for farming, but that the 1948 acquisition was expanded in 1960, where the family was paid £460 as compensation for the expanded portion.

Conversely, PW9 testified that the land was leased between the Baale of Ogbomoso and the government for 99years, and not acquired. The Court noted that the evidence of PW9 on lease at a nominal rent, was at variance with the Appellants’ pleading and goes to no issue. Exhibit 32A and 32J (letters dated 1947 and 1951), had nothing to do with the Appellants, but it referred to compensation which the 1st Respondent had testified that his family received in respect of farm settlement.

On the second Issue, the Court held that while a fact may be proved by oral or documentary evidence, documentary evidence is the hanger upon which oral evidence is measured. Exhibits 32 – 32N show that, the government of the Old Western Region was meticulous in keeping records. Thus, if the land was acquired by the 1st Appellant’s family, same would have been documented.

The evidence of PW9 was inconsistent with the case put up by the Appellants, and so, the findings of the Court of Appeal that there was no proof of the 1948 acquisition, is unassailable.

Exhibit 30 was also at variance with the contention of the Appellants in their pleading, that the land originally belonged to the 1st Appellant’s family. The Apex Court aligned with the position of the Court of Appeal that, while the 1st Respondent had pleaded and led evidence of payment of compensation in respect of land adjacent to the land in dispute, there was no evidence from the 1st Appellant to support the claim of “Negotiated Acquisition”. It follows that, the Appellants failed to discharge the onus of proving their entitlement to the declaratory reliefs sought.

Regarding the third Issue, the Supreme Court reiterated the position that a claim in trespass is rooted in exclusive possession, and all the Claimant needs to prove is that, he has exclusive possession of the land in dispute.

Once a Defendant claims ownership of the same land, title is put in issue, and for the Plaintiff to succeed, he must show a better title than that of the Defendant. AMAKOR v OBIEFUNA (1974) 1 NMLR 313 at 336. The foundation of the claim of the 1st Appellant, was that the land was acquired from his family by the Western Region Government, and that he was entitled to the reversionary interest, if it was no longer required for the purpose for which it was acquired. The 1st Appellant having failed to prove the said acquisition, as well as better title than the 1st Respondent, he was not entitled to an award of damages for trespass.

The 2nd to 9th Appellant also failed to prove better title than the 1st Respondent, as the 2nd and 3rd Respondents whom they claimed had given them their leasehold interest testified that the land belongs to the 1st Respondent, and that their lease period had expired due to effluxion of time.

Their Lordships agreed that, the existence of government structures during the visit to the locus in quo by the trial court, revealed that the 2nd to 9th Appellant were not in possession of the land to warrant an award of damages for trespass in their favour.

Conclusively, the Court found that the appeal was devoid of merit. Accordingly, the decision of the Court of Appeal setting aside the judgement of the trial court, was affirmed.

Appeal Dismissed.

Representation: Yusuf Ali, SAN, with Prof. Wahab Egbewole; Kunle Sobaloju Esq.; Yakubu Dauda, Esq. and Dr. M.T. Adekilekun, Esq. for the Appellants.

Olugbenga Ogunniran Esq., with Oluwole Babatope; Mercy Ojene and Najib Shaibu for the 1st Respondent.

Oluseun Abimbola Esq., Hon. A-G of Oyo State, with A.W. Gbadegesin (S-G Oyo State) and Olubunmi Ogunniran Esq. (DCL Ministry of Justice, Oyo State) for the 2nd and 3rd Respondents.

Reported by Optimum Publishers Limited (Publishers of the Nigerian Monthly Law Reports (NMLR))

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NEWS/5

L-R: Hon. Justice Babajide Candide-Johnson, Lagos State Chief Judge, Hon. Justice Opeyemi Oke, Admin Judge, Ikeja, Hon. Justice Doris Okuwobi and Hon. Justice Taofiquat Oyekan-Abdullahi at the Valedictory Session held in Honour of Late Chief Frank Odunayo Akinrele, SAN at the High Court Foyer, Igbosere, Lagos, last week

Lagos State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr. Adeniji Kazeem, SAN at the Valedictory Session

Alleged Fraud: AGF, NPA, Others Dragged to Court over Dredging Contract Stories by Akinwale Akintunde

to Dredging International Company Ltd, a company whose Directors are already in The Attorney General of fiducial relationship with the FederThe Attorney-General of NPA, by virtue of their memFederation (AGF), the Nigerian bership of the same board of Ports Authority (NPA) and Bonny Channel Company Ltd, Dredging International Services without first disclosing same Ltd, have been dragged before to other participants in the a Federal High Court sitting bidding process, constitutes in Lagos, over the award of a clear breach and conflict contracts of the dredging of of interest and public trust reposed in the NPA. the Warri Channel.

In addition, the Claimant In the suit instituted by The Incorporated Trustees of Cadrel wants the court to declare Advocacy Centre, the Claimant that by virtue of Sections 57(9) is asking the court, to direct the a, 57(9)b and 57(12)b of the AGF and NPA (1st and 2nd Public Procurement Act, the Defendants) to withdraw the award of the contract for the letter awarding the contract to dredging of the Warri Chanthe 3rd Defendant, Dredging nel by NPA to the Dredging International Services , a International Services Ltd. Hinging its prayers on the on company whose Directors are ground that the contractor, which already in Fiducial relationship is a sister company to another with the NPA by the virtue company (Dredging International of their membership of the Services, Cyprus), was convicted same board of Bonny Chanof fraud and financial impro- nel Company Ltd, without priety, the Claimant submitted first disclosing same to other that, the two companies shared participants in the bidding the same Directors with both process, constitutes a blatant of them owned by the DEME breach and conflict of interest Group Belgium, and same not and public trust reposed in legally qualified to execute the NPA. The Centre also wants contracts in Nigeria.

The Claimant also prayed the the court to declare that, court, to declare that by virtue the certificate of no objecof Item 8 of the Expression of tion issued by the Bureau Interest Document of the bid of Public Procurement (4th released by NPA, the award of Defendant) to the NPA to the contract for the dredging of enable her award the contract the Warri Channel by the NPA on remedial works of Escravos

Channel-Replacement of Aids to Navigation and Minor Dredging at Delta Ports Warri to the 3rd Defendant at the sum of $44,861,596.66, was issued in flagrant violation of the provisions of Section 16(8)(e) and (f) of the Public Procurement Act 2007 and Item 8 of the Expression of Interest Document of the bid released by the NPA and Sections 57(9)a, 9(b) and 57(12)b of the Public Procurement Act. While praying the court to make an order forthwith nullifying the certificate of no objection issued by the BPE to the NPA to enable her award the contract to the 3rd Defendant, the Claimant also wants the court to direct the NPA to withdraw the letter awarding the contract of the dredging of the Warri Channel, and all other ancillary documents issues in furtherance of the contracts thereof, issued by the NPA to the dredging company, on the ground that it is not qualified to execute contracts in Nigeria.

The Claimant also wants the court to direct a refund to the coffers of the Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, all the monies already paid by the NPA to the dredging company in furtherance of the execution of the contract, for the dredging

of the Warri channel.

The Claimant equally prays the court, to compel the AGF to prosecute the Managing Director of the NPA for perjury, having lied on oath about her relationship with the dredging company during her presentation at the various House of Representatives Committees Investigating the matter.

The Centre also prayed for an order of court compelling the AGF to prosecute Mr. Bert Willie, a Director in the Dredging Company, for perjury, having lied on oath that, neither he nor the company had a relationship with the Dredging International Cyprus, during his presentation at the Joint House of Representatives Committee investigating the matter.

In addition, the Claimant is also praying for an order of perpetual injunction, restraining the AGF and NPA, from further dealing or executing any contract with the Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

The Claimant also wants the court to make an order of perpetual injunction, restraining the dredging company from further ever dealing or executing any contract with the Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Court is yet to fix date for hearing.

Lawyer Eulogises Late Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Chief Frank Akinrele Mr. Olumide Braithwaite, son of late jurist, Dr. Tunji Braithwaite, has eulogised late Chief Frank Akinrele, SAN, describing him as a man who impacted lives effortlessly, through his immense contributions to national and international law.

Braithwaite said this last Friday, at the funeral service of the late SAN. According to Braithwaite, late Akinrele played a key role in his legal career and other Lawyers, by constantly exposing them to administrative responsibilities.

“He was a reserved man, modest in his outward appearance, but possessed something rather conservatively regal about him.

“It wasn’t until I started working in his law firm, that I fully knew how professionally accomplished he was, especially in criminal law, which was one of his specialties”, Braithwaite said, reliving memories of Akinrele.

“For example, a memory etched in my mind was of him and my father sitting side by side on our front lawn sometime around 1978, when the late Fela

Anikulapo-Kuti would come and give open air concert performances in Elias Close.

“Fela was of course, my father’s client, during that infamous Unknown Soldier case”, Braithwaite said.

He noted that Akinrele possessed an admirable trait, which was the ability to gain the loyalty and trust of his workforce, both in the office and at home.

The late SAN began his legal career at Thomas, Williams & Kayode, a law firm established by Chief Bode Thomas, Chief F.R.A. Williams, and Chief Remi Fani Kayode.

Akinrele established his own law firm, F.O Akinrele & Co. in 1962. He was a Barrister and Solicitor of Supreme Court of the Federal Republic of Nigeria for over 60 years.

He was a former President and Patron of the Nigerian-American Chamber of Commerce, a former President of Rotary Club International, and Trustee of the Lagos Motor Boat Club.

He was also a member of the Council for the Nigerian Institute of Advanced Legal Studies (NIALS), and former member of Nigerian Body of Benchers.

Akinrele died on December 25, 2018 at the age of 88, and was interred on Friday, January 11, 2019.

Court Remands Two Persons in Prison over Bribery Allegation Justice Mojisola Dada, of a Special Offences Court sitting in Ikeja, has ordered that the President of Path of Peace Initiative, Dandy Eze and Solomon Johnson, be remanded in prison custody for allegedly collecting a bribe of N50 million to withdraw a petition against Wahum Nigeria Limited from Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

The Judge gave the order, following their arraignment on a four-count charge bordering on

conspiracy to commit a felony, and acceptance of bribe to the tune of over N50 million.

The Defendants, however, pleaded not guilty to all the charges preferred against them by the EFCC. Following their plea, the prosecution counsel, George Chia-Yakua prayed the court for trial a date, and urged the court to remand the Defendants in prison custody.

He objected to the remand of the Defendants, in EFCC

custody.

In his response, Defendant counsel, Mr. Terry Adeniji, told the court that he had just been briefed; he had not filed any applications before the court.

He prayed the court for a short date for him to file their bail application, and urged the court to remand the Defendants in EFCC custody.

Justice Dada refused Defendants’ counsel request

of remanding Defendants in EFCC custody. She ordered them, to be remanded in prison custody. She adjourned the matter to February 14 and 15, 2019, for hearing of the bail application and commencement of trial.

The charge sheet reads in Part, "Dandy Eze, being the President of Path of Peace Initiatives and Solomon Johnson on or about the 23rd November, 2018, at Lagos within the jurisdiction of this

Honourable Court, solicited for the sum of N50,000,000 (Fifty Million Naira Only) as bribe, in order to facilitate the withdrawal of a petition written against Wahum Nigeria Limited from the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC)".

The prosecution alleged that the Defendants accepted the sum of N1,000,000 only as part payment of the bribe, through the account operated

by Solomon Johnson.

The Late Chief Frank Akinrele, SAN

6/

15.01.2019

Lack of Uniform Maritime Law is Causing Delays in African Trade, says Shippers’ Council Boss Akinwale Akintunde The Executive Secretary, Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC), Mr. Hassan Bello, has stressed the need and importance of uniform laws and processes among African countries, to facilitate trade in the sub-region.

Bello said lack of uniform laws, is causing serious delays in trade among the African countries, adding that the creation of a legal framework will help eliminate barriers to trade in the sub-region.

“We need to have uniformity in rules, so that it will boost trades among ourselves.

If Cameroon operates a law which is different from Ghana, and Ghana operates the one different from Nigeria, you find that there is no uniformity in the laws, and this could cause serious delay. In fact, it is dissenting to trade. So, what we are going to do after at the Union of African Shippers Council (UASC), is to bring all the laws so that at least we can have regional laws, uniform law. I know there would be some legal problems, because some are Commonwealth countries like Nigeria and Ghana, that are common law countries, while some are civil law countries like the French speaking countries. But, for trade, there is need for unification and we have started discussion on that.”

Speaking in Lagos, the Shippers’ Council boss, who is a Lawyer, noted

that Nigeria has plethora of laws, even within the maritime industry, like the Cabotage Act. “The Cabotage Act is being implemented. We need capacity, because the Act is anchored on three things – the ship must be built, owned and crewed

by Nigerians. We are trying to boost the capacity, of indigenous ship owners. There could be hitches here and there, but I know that Cabotage is being implemented. And that is what NIMASA is doing now, to tweak the Act. NIMASA is pushing for the amendment of the law, to make it more effective.

On whether the Cabotage Act and its Guidelines are the only Nigerian Law and Guidelines regulating coastal and inland shipping trade in Nigeria, Bello said, “No. Of course there are other laws and regulations governing different aspects of Nigerian costal and inland shipping trade. They are complementary.

But, the main law, the one that drives it, is the Cabotage Act. And as I’ve earlier said, the Cabotage Act is now under review, it has been sent to the National Assembly by NIMASA, so that we will increase its effectiveness and then get the desired results.

He also spoke about the effect of the Cabotage Act on the application of other Nigerian Laws relevant to coastal and inland shipping trades in Nigeria, adding that the Cabotage Act is trade within the brown waters, as opposed to trade

Hassan Bello

within the blue waters, that is the ocean.

“It’s to boost indigenous ownership of our trade. We need to have indigenous participation, in Nigeria’s trade. So, many laws will apply to it, but Cabotage

Law will preserve the provisions of the laws and regulations in force prior to its commencement”, he noted.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 15

Legal Personality of the Week Olaitan Adeboye

‘Law is Not a Profession for the Lazy and Mediocre’ containing my wig and gown. This must have been due to the difference in my mode of dressing as a Lawyer compared, with that of other passengers. Also, he must have thought it contained some money.

Surely, he would have been disappointed when he later discovered that all I had in it, was my wig and gown. At the end of the day, the bank client requested that we should hands-off the matter, without a thought of remuneration. Their veiled reason was that, the court was not fast enough on their matter. That had taught me a lesson that, no client is worth dying for as a Lawyer.

Please, give a brief introduction of yourself My name is Olaitan Adeboye. I am a Notary Public. Currently, I am the Principal Partner of Olaitan Adeboye & Co., a law firm that has as its areas of interest in Maritime, Insolvency and Arbitration practices. I hold a degree in English Language from the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, an LL.B (Hons) from the University of Lagos, and also an LL.M from the same University of Lagos. I am a member of a number of professional bodies including the African Bar Association, Certified Institute of Auctioneers of Nigeria, Chartered Institute of Ship Brokers, U.K and Chartered Institute of Arbitration and Business Recovery and Insolvency Practitioners Association of Nigeria, among others. Besides, I also hold a Certificate of Business of Shipping of the Association of Ship Brokers and Agents (U.S.A) Inc. Have you had any challenges in your career as a Lawyer, and if so, what were the main challenges?

Its not whether I have had any challenge as a Lawyer, but whether the challenge still persists. Yes, I have. The problem still occurs on regular basis, and its always encountered by the average Nigerian Lawyer. Ours is a society where an average citizen does not appreciate the value of a Lawyer early enough, till matters almost get out of hand. Maybe due to the poverty level around us, people first think of self-help and patronage of quacks, before they think of consulting their Lawyers, and when they do, they prefer to offer peanuts as fees. A client who is in custody of the law enforcement agents, would prefer giving out a huge sum of money to bribe his way out, even when the offence is bailable, than engage the services of a Lawyer. A man having spent so much in purchasing a property, rather than engaging professionals skilful in legal drafting for his deeds, would resort to “cut and paste”, or give a paltry sum to the quacks for their deeds. Though

Olaitan Adeboye

much had been achieved by the NBA in stemming this tide, through mandatory use of the stamp and seal on all legal documents prepared by Lawyers, but I believe more can still be achieved in this regard.

What was your worst day as a Lawyer?

My worst day as a Lawyer, was the day I had a broad day robbery attack along Lagos-Ibadan Express Way, between Ogere and the Shagamu interchange. I was on my way from Ibadan on that fateful day, after a court session in a matter involving a corporate client of mine, when suddenly a group of young armed robbers interrupted the free flowing traffic on the high way at about 1:45 p.m. to be precise, and asked all of us to come out of the vehicle. This we did, without hesitation as we laid face flat on the tarmac. After a moment of searching through our luggage in the public vehicle, the one that attracted the gun wielding robber most, was the bag

What was your most memorable experience as a Lawyer?

My most memorable experience as a Lawyer, was the day I successfully crossexamined a witness in court, as a new wig.

This was regardless of the intimidating posture of his Senior Advocate Lawyer.

As a matter of fact, my Principal, Chief Olu Daramola, who was to travel out of the country for his annual leave, then felt that I was not experienced enough for the venture. However, thanks to the Judge who insisted that he wanted me to come and display my inexperience that day, and that he would adjourn the matter for the day fixed, particularly knowing that my principal would be away. The experience of that day, contributed in building my confidence in my subsequent appearances in court.

Who has been most influential in your life?

With every sense of pride, my life had been mostly influenced by the Lord Jesus Christ. My belief in him, has tremendously influenced my world view and way of life.

Why did you become a Lawyer?

Having studied law as a second degree, it will not be proper of me, to attribute my choice of it to certain influences from my parents or some other individuals. As a mature student, my choice of law as a profession, was based on my conviction of

it as an instrument of social engineering.

The dynamism of law, keeps abreast with that of the societal development. This cannot be said of some other professions that lose relevance, with advancement in modernisation and technology. This, as a result, endeared the legal profession to my heart, and influenced my choice of it as a career.

What would be your advice to anyone wanting a career in law?

My advice to anyone aspiring to be a Lawyer, is that he or she should be prepared to work hard. Law is not a profession, for the lazy and mediocre. As a Lawyer, you are the custodian of lives and means of livelihood of your clients, and as such, you cannot affordtobenegligentwithyourcalling.

Aslight inefficiencyof a Lawyer, for instance, can make his client spend longer day in prison as it is in criminal matters, cost them their lives at times, or in the case of improperly drafted deeds, cost them huge sum of money. So, a Lawyer should be analytical in his thinking, versed in the current position of law, meticulous in his dealings, and given to details in his approach. These, of course, are in addition to his integrity and good moral standing.

Nigerian Lawyers need to give their practices, an international outlook. The world is already a global village, and as so no one can afford to be an island any longer.

If you had not become a Lawyer, what other career would you have chosen?

If I had not become a Lawyer, I would have chosen to be a Journalist.

Where do you see yourself in ten years?

Within the next ten years, I hope to have successfully carved a niche of specialty for myself in my chosen areas of maritime and insolvency practices, and of course, fulfilled the normal aspiration of any litigation Lawyers, which is that of taking silk.

15.01.2019

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A Tribute to Sir Otunba Yomi Oshikoya 1933 -2018: Nigeria’s Foremost Aviation Lawyer Stephen Kola-Balogun pays tribute to his father-in-law, a former Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Lagos State and foremost Aviation Lawyer, Sir Otunba Yomi Oshikoya, age 85, who went to be with the Lord on December 26, 2018 (Boxing Day). May his soul rest in peace. Amen

S

Educational Background ir Otunba Yomi Oshikoya who died on Boxing Day at the ripe age of 85years, was Nigeria’s foremost aviation Lawyer. Born in Lagos on 4th September, 1933, he attended Holy Cross Catholic School and Eko Boys High School, both in Lagos, before proceeding to England for further studies.

While in England, he attended North Western Polytechnic London and later Holborn College of Law, London where he obtained his LLB (Hons) degree, as an external student of the University of London. He was called to the English Bar in 1963, as a Barrister-at-law of the Inner Temple.

On completion of his legal studies, he was engaged as a tax officer at the Surtax Office Hinchleywood, Surrey, England and as a Legal Assistant in the Legal Department of the Ministry of Housing and Local Government, White Hall London, England, before he returned to Nigeria in1966. Upon his return to Nigeria in 1966, he enrolled at the Nigerian Law School and was called to the Nigerian Bar as a Barrister and Solicitor of the Supreme Court of Nigeria, that same year.

Legal Career Back in Nigeria, he first worked for British Petroleum (now AP), as an assistant Legal Officer and Property Superintendent. He later moved to Nigeria Airways Limited, and rose to the position of Company Secretary and Director of Legal Affairs respectively, between 1974 and 1985. He also acted as Managing Director of the defunct airline. Upon leaving Nigeria Airways, he became actively engaged in mainstream legal practice, having previously set up the law firm of Yomi Oshikoya & Co. in 1984. In 1992, he was appointed the Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice of Lagos State, under the regime of the late Sir Michael Otedola.

While in public office he was: i. A member of the Lagos State Judicial Service Commission ii. Chairman of the Lagos State Council of Prerogative of Mercy iii. Member and Occasional Chairman of the Lagos State Government Tenders Board and iv. A member of the Body of Benchers Professional Practice Upon completing his assignment as AttorneyGeneral of Lagos State, Otunba Oshikoya once again returned to active legal practice, specialising particularly in Aviation matters, having garnered extensive exposure and experience in civil aviation matters, during his time at Nigeria Airways. He started to build his practice by excelling himself as

“THE EXTENT OF HIS DOMINATION OF THE AVIATION SECTOR IN LEGAL PRACTICE, IS REFLECTED IN THE FACT THAT OUT OF ABOUT TWENTY (20) AIRCRAFTS ACCIDENT IN NIGERIA IN RECENT YEARS, YOMI OSHIKOYA & CO. HAS HANDLED EIGHTEEN (18) OF THESE AIRCRAFT ACCIDENT CLAIMS”

Sir Otunba Yomi Oshikoya

a resource person, and presenting several papers on aviation law and practice. He then tapped into and built upon, the several relationships he had already established with international affiliates in the aviation business abroad. Within a short period of time, whenever these affiliates needed an opinion or Lawyer to act for them in Nigeria, Yomi Oshikoya & Co. became their first port of call. The extent of his domination of the aviation sector in legal practice, is reflected in the fact that out of about twenty aircrafts accident in Nigeria in recent years, Yomi Oshikoya & Co. has handled eighteen of these aircraft accident claims.

Some of the Aircraft Accident Claims handled include the Bellview Airlines accident of 22nd October, 2005 at Lisa Village, Ifo Ogun State and that of the Dana Airlines accident of 3rd June, 2012 at Iju Ishaga, Lagos State.

Otunba Yomi Oshikoya also attended several seminars and conferences in the UK, USA, Europe, Middle East and in Nigeria, on a wide range of aviation related legal matters. He was also one of Nigeria’s Principal Consultants in the sale and lease of aircrafts, including negotiating and preparing documentation with regard to such transactions. In many respects, Otunba Yomi Oshikoya was a victim

of his own success. His high sense of integrity meant that many of the aviation accident claims he handled, were eventually settled at the High Court level, and as such, he was denied the opportunity of prosecuting these claims at the Appellate Court, which is a major requirement for obtaining the prestigious title of SAN (Senior Advocate of Nigeria).

Social Life Otunba Yomi Oshikoya was also honoured and conferred with several chieftaincy titles, and was until his passing, the Chairman of the Council of Honourary Otunbas in Ikorodu. He was a devout Christian, who was also a member and former President of the Men’s Christian League, Hoares Memorial Methodist Cathedral, Yaba, as well as a member of the Wesley Guild.

He leaves behind his wife of many years Lady Princess M. F. Oshikoya (the daughter of His Royal Majesty, Late Oba Moses S. Awolesi). The marriage is blessed with six (6) children, three (3) of whom are Lawyers and Partners in the law firm which he successfully built over the years.

May His Gentle Soul Rest in Perfect Peace. Amen.

Stephen Kola-Balogun, Legal Practitioner, Son in-Law

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CJN’s CCT Trial: Dictatorship Turning Full Circle?

Is the nation’s Judiciary on trial? This is the question that is being asked in several quarters in Nigeria, as the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Walter Samuel Nkanu Onnoghen, was to be arraigned before the Code of Conduct Tribunal yesterday, on charges of incomplete declaration of assets. For many, it goes beyond this. Recall that in 2016, early in the life of this administration, armed DSS operatives raided the homes of some judicial officers, including a Justice of the Supreme Court, arrested and detained them for alleged criminal enrichment. The bid to arraign the CJN yesterday, using a faulty legal process, is seen by many as a confirmation that the siege on the third arm of Government, is highly political, and orchestrated to intimidate the opposition and cow the Judiciary into pliability, in the hearing of elections matters emanating from the forthcoming national elections. The NBA President, Paul Usoro, SAN, Dr Mike Ozekhome, SAN, Femi Falana, SAN, Dr. Ayodele Akenroye, Abubakar Sani and Joseph Otteh interrogate the issues in this highly volatile unfolding saga

Keeping the Judiciary Honest and Honourable: Hon. Justice Walter Onnoghen and the CCT

Assault, Intimidation and Desecration of the Judiciary Must Stop Paul Usoro, SAN

N

igerians have witnessed again, the targeted assault on the Judiciary by agents of the Federal Government of Nigeria (“FGN”) epitomised by today’s media trial of the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Honourable Mr. Justice Walter S N Onnoghen, GCON (“CJN”). According to media reports which have now been validated by the Statement of the Code of Conduct Tribunal (“CCT”) that was released today, an application was “filed by the Code of Conduct Bureau to the CCT Chairman yesterday for the trial to commence against the Chief Justice of Nigeria on six count charges” and that the CCT “will commence the trial on Monday, 14th January, 2019”. The Nigerian Bar Association unequivocally condemns this assault, intimidation and desecration of the Judiciary by FGN agencies, and demands that it be stopped immediately.

In Nganjiwa v Federal Republic of Nigeria (2017) LPELR-43391(CA), the Court of Appeal made it very clear that, any misconduct attached to the office and functions of a judicial officer must first be reported to and handled by the National Judicial Council (“NJC”), pursuant to the provisions of our laws. Only after the NJC has pronounced against such judicial officer, can the prosecuting agencies of the Federal Government proceed against him.

As the Court pointed out, these requirements of the law, are anchored on the overriding principles of separation of powers between the Executive, the Judiciary and the Legislature, and on the need to preserve, promote and protect the independence of the Judiciary. Our respective liberties and the rule of law, are best protected and preserved, if the Judiciary remains independent and shielded from intimidation and assault, by the other arms of the government.

In Nganjiwa v FRN (supra), the Court of Appeal made reference to Rule 3 of the Revised Code of Conduct for Judicial Officers of February 2016 (“Code of Conduct for Judicial Officers”), and held that, the said Rule 3 “makes provision in relation to fidelity to the Constitution and the Law”. The provisions in regard to assets declaration as they apply to all public officers, including the CJN, are contained in both the Constitution and the Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act

1991, the enabling law that establishes both the Code of Conduct Bureau (“CCB”) and the CCT. The fidelity which judicial officers therefore, owe “to the Constitution and the Law” pursuant to Rule 3 of the Code of Conduct for Judicial Officers, encompasses compliance with the provisions relating to assets declarations as contained in the Constitution and the Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act. Any infraction in that regard by a judicial officer, as the Court of Appeal rightly held, constitutes a misconduct by the judicial officer, and becomes the subject-matter for discipline by the NJC, as a condition precedent to any possible prosecution of the judicial officer by any of the FGN’s prosecuting agencies.

Why has FGN decided to embark on this anomalous course of charging the CJN before the CCT, without first presenting whatever facts it purportedly has against His Lordship to the NJC for its deliberation and determination?

The Petition that triggered the CCB action was on its face received by the Bureau on 09 January, 2019 and the Charge was promptly drafted and is dated the following day, 10 January 2019 – giving the CCB a record 24 hours for completion of its investigation and the drafting of the said Charge and ancillary processes! If one contemplates the fact that the CCT arraignment is scheduled to take place on 14 January, 2019, we have in total a record number of 3 (three) working days between the receipt and processing of the petition, investigation, preparation of Charge and ancillary processes, and the arraignment!

Such unprecedented speed and efficiency in Nigeria’s criminal justice administration! It is clear, given the rush with which this matter was conducted by the CCB, that the NJC was not privy to it, and did not conduct its mandatorily required disciplinary processes, prior to the filing of the Charge before the CCT. We still wonder why the FGN choose to deviate from the laid down and explicit provisions of the law as expounded in Nganjiwa v FRN (supra). Could it be that, it was misadvised?

Or is this a naked show of power and force by agencies of the FGN? And why embark on the media trial of the CJN? This, unfortunately, is a predilection of the FGN’s prosecuting agencies, with the possible exception of the Federal Ministry of Justice. As the NBA pointed out in its International Anti-Corruption Day Statement that was issued on 09 December, 2018 “media trial of persons charged with corrupt practices . . . amount to corruption itself. Indeed, those orchestrated media trials degrade and corrupt the justice administration system, quite apart from the incalculable (but

Ayodele Akenroye

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Sitting L-R: Chief Wole Olanipekun, SAN, Asiwaju Adegboyega Awomolo, SAN, Yusuf Ali, SAN, Chief Chris Uche, SAN and Kanu Agabi, SAN, defending the CJN at the CCT yesterday

obviously intended) damage that it does to persons who may ultimately be discharged and acquitted. In point of fact, it is corrupt practice to use as licence or hide under the cover of the fight against corruption, to recklessly destroy the names, characters and reputations of persons who have not been found guilty of corrupt practices by competent courts, and who may ultimately be pronounced innocent of such charges.” These media trials, must, alongside the on-going desecration and assault of the Judiciary, cease forthwith.

There are two final issues that we must touch upon in this Statement, albeit, briefly.

First, could it possibly be a coincidence that the current assault on the Judiciary, is taking place only weeks to the 2019 National Elections? Apart from the conduct itself being wrongful and deplorable, its timing is condemnable. FGN will find it difficult to convince any reasonable person that its assault against the CJN, and by extension, the Judiciary, is not aimed at emasculating that arm of the government and intimidating our Judges ahead of the 2019 National Elections. In our afore- referenced International

Anti-Corruption Day Statement, the NBA had deplored “conducts that qualify as . . . political non-accountability, absence of transparency and impunity in public service”. The FGN’s conduct in this instance qualifies, amongst others, as “impunity in public service”.

“....MEDIA TRIAL OF PERSONS CHARGED WITH CORRUPT PRACTICES . . . AMOUNT TO CORRUPTION ITSELF....IT IS CORRUPT PRACTICE TO USE AS LICENCE OR HIDE UNDER THE COVER OF THE FIGHT AGAINST CORRUPTION, TO RECKLESSLY DESTROY THE NAMES, CHARACTERS AND REPUTATIONS OF PERSONS WHO HAVE NOT BEEN FOUND GUILTY OF CORRUPT PRACTICES BY COMPETENT COURTS, AND WHO MAY ULTIMATELY BE PRONOUNCED INNOCENT OF SUCH CHARGES”

As a final point, it is also difficult for a disinterested observer, not to see a pattern of consistent assault by agencies of the FGN on the heads of the two independent arms of government, to wit, the Legislature and the Judiciary, starting with the prosecution of the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, before the CCT, and now, the ill-fated prosecution of the CJN before the same CCT. The impression must not be created, that the agencies of the Executive arm of the FGN are interested in destabilising and laying prostrate the other arms of the Government, and in the process eliminating and destroying any and all voices of dissent and checks and balances. That is not desirable for the democracy that we strive to build, neither is it good for the image of the Government. We urge restraint on the part of Government, and demand that the CCB follow due process in proceeding against the CJN, by complying with Nganjiwa’s judgement (supra) and other similar judicial precedents.

This continuing attack on the justice sector, must cease forthwith. FGN and its agencies, must desist from debasing the rule of law.

Statement by Paul Usoro, SAN, President, Nigerian Bar Association, 12 January, 2019

n January 12, 2019, breaking news all over the media revealed that, the current Chief Justice of Nigeria – Honourable Justice Walter Onnoghen (“The CJN”) - has been charged to the Code of Conduct Tribunal (“CCT”), for failure to declare his assets as a judicial officer in Nigeria. Specifically, the charge sheet indicated that, the CJN maintained several domiciliary accounts in Nigeria with Standard Chartered Bank (Nig.) Ltd. The CJN responded to the allegations, by admitting that he forgot to declare some of his assets, and he did not include the funds his domiciliary accounts, because he believed the accounts were not opened during the period covered by his declaration.

As would be expected, several commentators argued that the filing of the charges against the CJN was politically motivated, done ahead of the presidential elections in February, bears grave consequences for the politic, and the charges should be withdrawn immediately. Other Lawyers in Nigeria took the route of technicality, arguing that the charge against the CJN was not validly filed, as the Code of Conduct Tribunal does not have the authority to try active judicial officers in light of the Court of Appeal decision in Nganjiwa v. FRN (2017) LPELR 43391. Others have argued that, the CJN is deemed innocent until proven guilty. Curiously, none of the commentators closely considered the allegations against the CJN, and whether it amounts to judicial

misconduct that could further impinge on the integrity of the judicial system in Nigeria, and undermine the administration of justice. Public confidence, is very critical to the administration of justice.

Advantages of Asset Declaration Asset declarations by public officials, including judicial officers, have numerous advantages which include preventing abuse of power, revealing and deterring cases of illicit enrichment and conflicts of interests, increasing public accountability, public trust in institutions and government legitimacy.

The Nigerian Judiciary, like other arms of government, is a potential site of corruption, and indeed, has suffered from rampant judicial corruption. In recent times, several Judges have been relieved of their duties due to allegations of corruption, on the recommendations of the National Judicial Commission (“NJC”), which ironically, the CJN is the current Chairman.

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime made a call more than a decade ago, that “rigorous obligations should be adopted to require all judicial officers to publicly declare the assets of the judicial officer concerned, and of his or her parents, spouse, children and other close family members.

Such publicly available declarations, should be regularly updated. They should be inspected after appointment, and monitored from time to time by an independent and respected official.” Furthermore, Article 11 of the United Nations Convention Against Corruption stresses the need for signatory countries, such as Nigeria, to strengthen judicial integrity and prevent opportunities for corruption by judicial officers. Article 15 of the Code of the Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act (“The Act”) requires all public officials to declare all of their assets, his or her spouse’s assets, and those of his or her

“IF THESE ALLEGATIONS AGAINST THE CJN ARE FOUND TO BE TRUE, HE SHOULD TAKE THE HONOURABLE PATH OF RESIGNING, IN ORDER TO MAINTAIN THE INTEGRITY OF THE JUDICIARY, AND SAVE PUBLIC CONFIDENCE IN THE ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE” unmarried children under the age of eighteen immediately after taking office, at the end of every four years thereafter; and at the end of the public official’s term of office.

Most income and assets declaration regimes require public officials - including judicial officers - to declare where all their income comes from and where it is invested, such as in real estate, corporate stocks or bonds or a savings accounts. This helps to check illicit enrichment. It is imperative for the CJN to provide a credible explanation to the Nigerian populace, as to the origins of the substantial funds deposited in his various domiciliary accounts at Standard Chartered Bank (Nig.) Ltd, by showing the fullest picture possible of cash flows, both incoming and outgoing.

Rule 1(1) of the Code of Conduct for Judicial Officers in Nigeria provides that: “A Judicial CONTINUED ON PAGE 11

Withdraw the Charges Against Justice Walter Onnoghen Femi Falana, SAN

“T

he Federal Government’s move to press charges against the Justice Walter Onnoghen, Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), is faulty.”

The Federal Government had earlier asked Onnoghen to vacate his office, over his failure to declare his assets, as required by the

law, and has moved to arraign him at the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT).

“The charge against the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Walter Onnoghen, ought not to have been instituted at the Code of Conduct of Tribunal in view of the case of Nganjiwa v FRN (2017) LPELR-43391(CA), wherein the Court of Appeal held that a judicial officer who has not been investigated by the National Judicial Council and sanctioned for misconduct, cannot

be arraigned in any criminal court in Nigeria.

“As all authorities are bound by the Court of Appeal verdict, the case should be withdrawn by the Attorney-General of the Federation without any delay, because it is likely to be a prosecutorial misadventure.

“The Petitioner should be advised to address his petition to the NJC.” Femi Falana, SAN, Human Rights Activist

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Onslaught on the Judiciary: Nigerians Must Rise Up to Defend Democracy Mike A. A. Ozekhome, SAN

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strong Judiciary, is one of the irreducible fundamental platforms for any meaningful constitutional democracy. If you terrorise, intimidate, harass and humiliate the Judiciary, using a strong hand and brute force, it is a stage set for bidding democracy farewell.

The President Buhari Government, has been very intolerant of any credible dissenting voice in the country. From the crude break – in and invasion of Judges’ houses in October 2016, by masked DSS operatives, to the horrific siege laid on the NASS and the residences of the Senate President, Dr Bukola Saraki, and his Deputy, Dr Ike Ekweremadu, it is clear that this Government, which protects its own members, however corrupt and despicable, has blown into full maximum dictatorship, totalitarianism and absolutism. Nigerians must say no, to fascism.

The latest onslaught is against the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Walter Nkanu Onnoghen, a man of great nobility, erudition and lucidity of thought. It has come to light that, the Government has hurriedly filed charges against Onnoghen, even with a motion (most curiously and unusually), that he should recuse himself from his Chief Justice-ship, until the case filed against him is finally determined by the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT). This is to force him out of office. The phoney and ridiculous charges are that Onnoghen failed to declare his assets, and that he also maintains domiciliary accounts, contrary to the provisions of the Code of Conduct Bureau Act. It is clear to any objective observer, that the charges are highly political, and designed to intimidate the Judiciary ahead of the 2019 presidential election and force out Onnoghen, who, as the CJN, will constitute the Presidential Election Tribunal that will entertain disputes arising from the presidential election.

Many facts bear this simple deduction out. The Petitioner, an NGO, actually committed the Freudian slip, by anchoring its petition on “bearing in mind the imminence of the 2019 general elections and the overwhelming role of the judicial arm both before and after...”.

The second fact is that, even after the recommendation of Onnoghen as CJN by the NJC on 13th October, 2016, it took VP Osinbajo the courage to appoint him as CJN on 1st March, 2017, after protests and outcry by an overwhelming majority of Nigerians, and at a time PMB was actually abroad on medical vacation. Third, Onnoghen became the first Southerner to be made CJN in 30 years, after the last Southerner, Honourable Justice Ayo Irikefe, occupied that exalted office in 1987. Fourth, Onnoghen has been CJN for well over a year. How come the Executive suddenly woke up from a deep slumber, and discovered his operation of domiciliary accounts years before he was appointed CJN, which accounts, according to the petition, had been in existence since

President Muhammadu Buhari

2011, a period during which the CJN had already been a Justice of the Supreme Court since 2005?

When have Nigerian security agencies optimised and displayed such efficiency that a petition written by an NGO on 7th January, 2019, received by CCB on 9th January, 2019, was acted upon with such “automatic alacrity”, that by 11th January, 2019, charges had been filed against Onnoghen? And wait for it, he will be arraigned on Monday, 14th January, 2019, all within one week! What of the provisions of the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) and Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) Act, which prescribes certain necessary steps that must be taken, before a charge is filed?

Statutory Duty of the CCB to Fulfill a Condition Precedent Before Arraignment It is apposite to state here that, the CCT shall not have jurisdiction to try a suspect until a fundamental condition precedent is first met. The condition precedent is provided for in the proviso to Section (3) (d) of the CCBT Act, which provides as follows: 3 The functions of the Bureau shall be to(d) receive complaints about noncompliance with or breach of this Act and where the Bureau considers it necessary to do so, refer such complaints to the Code of Conduct Tribunal established by Section 20 of this Act in accordance with the provisions of Sections 20 to 25 of this Act. Provided that, where the person

“IT HAS COME TO LIGHT THAT, THE GOVERNMENT HAS HURRIEDLY FILED CHARGES AGAINST ONNOGHEN, EVEN WITH A MOTION (MOST CURIOUSLY AND UNUSUALLY), THAT HE SHOULD RECUSE HIMSELF FROM HIS CHIEF JUSTICE- SHIP, UNTIL THE CASE FILED AGAINST HIM, IS FINALLY DETERMINED BY THE CODE OF CONDUCT TRIBUNAL (CCT). THIS IS TO FORCE HIM OUT OF OFFICE”

concerned makes a written admission of such breach or non-compliance, no reference to the Tribunal shall be necessary.

Consequent upon the above provisions, it is a condition precedent to first invite the alleged offender to either make or refuse to make a written admission of the con-compliance. This must be satisfied to cloth the CCT with requisite jurisdiction to try such offender. This provision was tested when Bola Tinubu, former Governor of Lagos State, sometime in November, 2011, was charged before the CCT for operating foreign accounts between 1999 to 2007. The case was dismissed, mainly because, aside from the fact that the charges were defective and shoddy, the accused had not been invited or confronted with the complaints, and was consequently, not afforded the opportunity of admitting in writing, any non-compliance, which ordinarily robbed the CCT of its jurisdiction to try him. I see the same scenario playing out in the Onnoghen case, on the issue of jurisdiction.

The position of the law is that, a suspect must first be confronted with the allegations by the CCB and be given an opportunity to reply them. Facts available in the public domain, are that an NGO petitioned against the CJN on 7th January, 2019, and same was received by the CCB two days later, on 9th January, 2019. By 11th January, 2019, charges had been filed and arraignment fixed for 14th January, 2019. Everything thus, took place in one week! When did prosecutorial agencies in Nigeria become so efficient, as to accomplish this 8th wonder of the world within such a short time? More significantly is the case of Nganjiwa v FRN (2017) LPELR-43391(CA), where the Appellate Court held that Sections 153(1) (i) (2), 271 (1), 292(1) (a) (ii) and Paragraph 21 of Part 1 of the Third Schedule to the 1999 Constitution, must be read together to mean that any judicial officer accused of an offence, must first be subjected to investigation and disciplinary action by the National Judicial Council (NJC). It is after this, that such a judicial officer can be arraigned in court. It is obvious that this fundamental step that can clothe the

CCT with jurisdiction, has been ignored by an Executive too much in a hurry to intimidate Onnoghen and undo the Judiciary, having unsuccessfully tried to intimidate the Legislature (NASS).

The last time I checked, the criminal justice system in Nigeria is Anglo- Saxon based, making it accusatorial. This means the innocence of an accused person is presumed. It is different from the inquisitorial French model, where the guilt of an accused is presumed. Section 36 of the 1999 Constitution, has carefully enacted this and given it constitutional imprimatur.

The most shocking aspect is that the NBA and Nigerian Lawyers that should serve as conscience of the nation, are silent on these acts of constitutional harakiri capable of derailing our hard won democracy. Unknown to these hawks in government, the CJN can never, by a mere motion filed before the CCT, be forced out of office, or be compelled to recuse himself as CJN. This is clearly settled by the provisions of Section 292 (1) of the 1999 Constitution, which state that the CJN can only be removed from office by the President acting on an address supported by two-thirds majority votes of the Senate.

Will the Senate be brow-beaten into acceding to this diabolical machination? I think not.

This onslaught is to finally cow and annihilate the Judiciary, the last hope of the common people. Nigerians now appear to live in bondage of dictatorship and absolutism. Citizens now talk in whispers, afraid of even their shadows. Only those who support the Government, however corrupt, find peace. Like Naaman the leper, who was dipped into River Jordan seven times and became cleansed of his leprosy, all that a corrupt politician needs to do to be washed clean of his political leprosy (as white as snow), is to decamp to the ruling APC. He will be embraced immediately, given a front pew, inducted into the hall of fame, and put in charge of leading Buhari’s presidential campaign.

Some Nigerians are still playing the Ostrich in the full glare of this clear and present danger, behaving like the “Chichidodo” bird talked about by the Ghanaian author, Ayi Kwei Armah, in his epic novel, “The beautiful ones are not yet born”. The bird hates human faeces, but paradoxically feeds on maggots that wriggle out of such excreta. Some people are bent on breaking up Nigeria.

First, it was a selected class of Judges, then SANs, then NASS, then Media, then the NBA President, and now the entire Judiciary. Impunity now reigns supreme, strutting about proudly like a peacock.

But, these historical revisionists must be reminded of the immortal words of Martin Niemoller, a German Theologian and Lutheran Pastor, who opposed the Nazi regime in the 1930s: “First they came for the communists, and I did not speak out - because I was not a communist; Then they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out because I was not a socialist; Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out - because I was not a trade unionist; Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out - because I was not a Jew; Then they came for me - and there was no one left to speak out for me”.

Nigerians, gird your loins and defend our hard won democracy. Judiciary, close down all courts of law across Nigeria, until this blatant mischief and madness against the Judiciary are removed. This Government should at least, leave Nigerians in peace, if it cannot provide them with good, responsible and accountable governance.

Dr Mike A. A. Ozekhome, SAN, OFR, FCIArb., Ph.D, LL.D., Constitutional Lawyer and Human Rights Activist

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The CJN’s CCT Trial: Wrong Idea, Wrong Law? Abubakar D. Sani

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Introduction n a move widely interpreted as motivated by either political desperation or ruthless Machiavellism, the Presidency, through the Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, SAN, on Monday, charged the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Hon. Justice Walter Onnoghen, before the Code of Conduct Tribunal, Abuja allegedly for falsely declaring or failing to declare his assets, contrary to Section 15(2) of the Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act. The six-odd charges are as follows: i. That the CJN failed to submit a written declaration of his assets within 3 months of becoming a Justice of the Supreme Court in June 2005; ii. That on assuming office as CJN in December 2016, His Lordship failed to declare a US Dollar account which he maintained with Standard Chartered Bank since 2011; iii. That on assuming office as CJN in December 2016, His Lordship failed to declare a Euro Domiciliary account which he maintained with Standard Chartered Bank since 2011; iv. That on assuming office as CJN in December 2016, His Lordship failed to declare a British Pounds Domiciliary account which he maintained with Standard Chartered Bank since 2011; v. That on assuming office as CJN in December 2016, His Lordship failed to declare an e-Saver account which he maintained with Standard Chartered Bank since 2011; vi. That on assuming office as CJN in December 2016, His Lordship failed to declare a Nigerian Naira account which he maintained with Standard Chartered Bank since 2011 Is there more to the Charges than meet the eyes?

The timing of the charges, a few weeks to the Presidential election next month, has predictably elicited a storm of public reaction, mostly negative.

Public perception seems to be that, the President has decided to go for broke, thereby confirming a long-held suspicion that he is not altogether comfortable with Hon. Justice Onnoghen as the head of the Judiciary. If this is correct, it is not inconceivable that, as part of a grand strategy, President Buhari’s advisers have reasoned that his re-election might be imperilled by a legal challenge, which would culminate in an appeal before an Onnoghen-led Supreme Court. To forestall this, they have probably reasoned that the best way out would be to get the CJN out of the way willy nilly, by forcing him to recuse himself from the panel of the Apex Court which will handle any such challenge. While this might seem speculative, it is certainly not far-fetched.

I intend to steer well clear of such speculations or even any consideration of the merits or otherwise of the charges against the CJN, as it would be grossly inappropriate to do so, for obvious reasons; the CJN himself admonished all of us against doing that (commenting on matters which are sub judice) almost a year ago to the day. Accordingly, I shall confine myself to a discussion of what I perceive to be the legality or otherwise of the law under which the charges have been laid, namely the Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act. For

Chairman, Code of Conduct Bureau, Dr. Muhammad Isah

reasons which will shortly follow, I believe that they should have been laid under the provisions of the Code of Conduct for Public Officers contained in Schedules Three and Five of the 1999 Constitution.

The Code of Conduct for Public Officers This is the subject of Section 153, Paragraphs 1 – 4 of the Third Schedule and the entirety of the Fifth Schedule to the 1999 Constitution.

Whist the first establishes the Code of Conduct Bureau, the second sets out the powers of the Bureau, whilst the last contains the Code itself, as well as the powers of the Code of Conduct Tribunal. I believe that a critical study of both the Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act, as well as the aforesaid constitutional provisions, will reveal that both sets of provisions are almost identical.

To start with, Section 153(1)(a) of the Constitution which establishes the Bureau, is the same as Section 1(1) of the Act; Paragraph 1 of the 3rd Schedule to the Constitution is the same as Section 1(2) of the Act, whilst Section 3 of the Act which sets out the functions of the Bureau, is replicated in Paragraph 3 of the 3rd Schedule to the Constitution, with the notable omission of the proviso to Section 3(d) of the former in the latter. This was the subject of much public debate when the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, was charged before the Tribunal a couple of years ago.

Paragraph 4(2) of the Act is similar to Paragraph 3(f) of Part 1 of the Third Schedule to the Constitution, which empowers the Bureau to hire and exercise disciplinary control over its staff. Sections 5 to 14, inclusive, of the Act, are repeated verbatim in Paragraphs 1 to 10 of Fifth Schedule to the Constitution, whilst Section 15 of the Act, under which the CJN has been charged, is similar to Paragraph 11 of Part 1 of the Fifth Schedule to the Constitution, the only difference being the minimum ages of the unmarried children of public officers, which is 21 years under the Act and 18 years under the Constitution.

Sections 16 and 17 of the Act are similar to Paragraphs 12 and 13 of the 5th Schedule to the Constitution, with their subject matters given as “allegations of breach of the Code/ Act” and “Agents and Nominees”, respectively.

Section 18(1) of the Act, is similar in content to Paragraph 14(b) of Part 1 of the 5th Schedule titled ‘Exemptions”; however, whilst the former empowers the President to exempt any cadre of public officers from its provisions, the Constitution confers that power on the National Assembly, but only in respect of Paragraphs 4 and 11 of the Code. In addition, Paragraph 14(a) of the 5th Schedule exempts Legislators from the provisions of Paragraph 4 of the Code.

Sections 20 to 23 inclusive of the Act, are similar to Paragraphs 15 to 18 of Part 1 of the 5th Schedule to the Constitution titled “Establishment of the Code of Conduct Tribunal”, “Staff”, “Tenure of office of Chairman and members” and “Powers of the Tribunal”, respectively. A notable omission from the Constitution, are the provisions of Sections 24 and 25 of the Act titled, “Rules of Procedure and Institution of Proceedings” and “Power to Issue Search Warrants”, respectively.

Notwithstanding this, I believe that to the extent that both the Act and the Constitution cover virtually the same ground as far as a Code of Conduct for Public Officers is concerned, the Constitution is deemed to have covered the field. Accordingly, the provisions of the Act can no longer be used to charge a public officer such as the CJN, for any alleged violation of the Code. This principle was reiterated by the Apex Court in ATTORNEY- GENERAL OF ABIA STATE v ATTORNEY-GENERAL OF THE FEDERATION (1002) 6 NWLR pg. 264 @ 369, where the court opined thus: “The doctrine of covering the field, can conveniently be extended to apply to a situation where the Constitution has covered the field vis-à-vis a Federal or State legislation. Such legislation is not void simpliciter, but will be inoperative in view of the provisions of the Constitution. However, if the legislation is inconsistent with the provisions of

KEEPING THE JUDICIARY HONEST AND HONOURABLE: HON. JUSTICE WALTER ONNOGHEN Officer should respect and comply with the laws of the land, and conduct himself at all times in a manner that promotes public confidence in the integrity and impartiality of the Judiciary”. The CJN took a judicial oath of office to faithfully uphold the Constitution of Nigeria and all laws, including the Act. The facts show that contrary to Section 15 of the Act, the CJN failed to declare all his assets as a Judicial Officer in Nigeria. This failure to declare all of his assets, strikes at the core of that judicial oath of office, and has the capacity to weaken the integrity of the Judiciary and grossly undermine public

confidence in the administration of justice in Nigeria. The action of the CJN will have ripple effects on other judicial officers, by providing a precedent for other judicial officers to ignore laws, and this does not augur well for a very crucial institution that is fundamental to our democratic governance.

Conclusion If these allegations against the CJN are found to be true, he should take the honourable path of resigning, in order to maintain the integrity of the Judiciary, and

Chairman, Code of Conduct Tribunal, Danladi Umar

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save public confidence in the administration of justice. The extraordinary power invested in our judicial officers, demands a high standard of behaviour. Deviations from this high standard of behaviour, should not be condoned under any circumstance, least of all, under the guise of ethnicity and political sentiments.

Ayodele Akenroye, Ph.D. (McGill), Anti-Corruption Expert, Canada. Research Fellow with the International Anti-Corruption Academy, Vienna, Austria. Qualified Lawyer in Nigeria, Manitoba and Ontario Canada

“THE TIMING OF THE CHARGES, A FEW WEEKS TO THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION NEXT MONTH, HAS PREDICTABLY ELICITED A STORM OF PUBLIC REACTION, MOSTLY NEGATIVE. PUBLIC PERCEPTION SEEMS TO BE THAT, THE PRESIDENT... IS NOT ALTOGETHER COMFORTABLE WITH HON. JUSTICE ONNOGHEN AS THE HEAD OF THE JUDICIARY” the Constitution, then the legislation is void to the extent of the inconsistency” The Apex Court further held in the same decision that: “Where the provision of the Act is within the legislative powers of the National Assembly, but the Constitution is found to have already made the same or similar provisions, then the new provision will be regarded as invalid for duplication and/or inconsistency, and therefore, inoperative. The same fate will befall any provision of the Act which seeks to enlarge, curtail or alter any existing provision of the Constitution. The provision will be treated as unconstitutional, and therefore, null and void”.

Conclusion As previously advised, the foregoing commentary, is limited by the rule against discussing the merits of a pending litigation. But, for that, certain moral judgements ought to have been made. Be that as it may, the State ought to take note of the remarks of the Apex Court on the impropriety of taking cognisance of, and even acting under a statute which is either inoperative or is outrightly inconsistent with relevant provisions of the Constitution, on the ground that the Constitution has already covered that legislative field. Needless to say, any such action or proceedings will be an exercise in futility.

On a parting note, those agitated by the unprecedented spectacle of an incumbent CJN facing a criminal or even quasi-criminal trial, should calm down. To the extent that the heads of the Executive (the President/Vice- President, State Governors and their Deputies) enjoy constitutional immunity from such proceedings, a good case can be made for amending the Constitution to extend that cover to not only the CJN, but the heads of the Legislature as well. After all, what is good for the goose, ought to be sauce for the gander.

Abubakar D. Sani, Esq., Legal Practitioner, Kano

12/COVER

15.01.2019

Justices of the Supreme Court sitting

Prosecution of CJN Now: Raises Red Flags for the Independence of the Nigerian Judiciary Joseph Otteh

O Introduction

n 12th January, 2019, while many were still trying to clear the cobwebs after the holiday break and settle into the business of the year, the ground beneath shook with a little tremor. The Code of Conduct Bureau was charging Chief Justice of Nigeria, Walter Onnoghen GCON, with violations of the Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act. According to the Code of Conduct Tribunal, the charges were filed on Friday, 11th January, 2019 and border on alleged failures of the CJN to declare his assets/update assets declaration since his appointment as Justice of the Supreme Court/Chief Justice of Nigeria.

The Chief Justice of Nigeria? At first, this all sounded like the “fake news” machine was reaching for a pie in the sky. But, it turned out to be true. Yes, it’s early doors at this time, and information is not yet available to unpick the intrigues surrounding this breaking story of the year, or even develop a clear perspective around it. Yet, the context provides much for us to chew on, and to fear for. The prosecution is being conducted by the Code of Conduct Bureau – technically an independent agency – but it is merely, if the truth must be told, the false hand of Esau! On this, as well as many other cases, it is flying the flag of convenience for the government.

This prosecution, for the record, is unprecedented.

No Chief Justice of Nigeria, before now, has been charged in a court of law for any offences. So, this is a major landmark for Nigeria’s legal history, and it is open to debate what the implications of this landmark mean. Yet, it is important, for all who are zealous of the rule of law, to exercise some vigilance over the development, and be sure that the motives behind this unprecedented and history-making action are clean and pure. Chief Justice Walter Onnoghen is head of the Nigerian Judiciary, and any attack against the head of a Judiciary, if the lessons of history will teach us something, is a red flag.

Pakistan Let’s recall, in this context, what happened in Pakistan a few years ago with Pakistani Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry, when General Pervez Musharaff was in power. General Musharaff – who himself appointed Chief Justice Chaudhry to office - soon demanded his resignation on perceiving that Chief Justice Chaudhry could resist his idea of perpetuating himself in power, but the Chief Justice declined to resign. General Musharaff thereafter, suspended Chief Justice Chaudhry from office, and referred charges of alleged misconduct against him to the Supreme Judicial Council. The story ended quite well though: the Pakistani Bar mobilised against President Musharaff, and when he was removed from office, Chief Justice Chaudhry was reinstated to office.

The Coming Elections and Dynamic of Electoral Adjudication as Incentives Nigeria holds general elections next month, and, as with most elections, the results are likely to be challenged, and, in the case of presidential elections,

the cases will likely go up to the Supreme Court for a final decision. The importance of the offices of Chief Justice of Nigeria and President of the Court of Appeal, which make far-reaching decisions about the composition of election petition panels or courts, are magnified beyond measure at this time.

If an incentive is needed for anyone getting their claws into the higher echelons of the Judiciary, the up-coming elections provide one!

Fears that this is a Stage-managed Process Without going into the merits of the alleged charges against the Chief Justice, we are concerned about the unnerving coincidences around the matter. First, general elections, as have been said above, are round the corner. Why is the prosecution taking place at this time? One of the orders being sought by the Code of Conduct Bureau, is that Justice Onnoghen be relieved of acting in his capacity as Chief Justice of Nigeria pending the determination of the case against him. If the Government’s motive is to fight corruption alone, why is it keen on asking the Court to make orders targeting the functions of the Chief Justice of Nigeria, when the charges, given their nature, have very little to do with the execution of the functions of his office?

In any event, the National Judicial Council has adopted a practice of suspending Judges who face corruption trials during the pendency of those trials. Why does Government need this order from a court, rather than the Council? Will the Court provide an extra layer of guarantee, for the achievement of an important or politically strategic purpose?

And, by the way, the Code of Conduct Tribunal did recently abort the trial of a serving Supreme Court Justice, Hon. Justice Ngwuta on the ground that, based on the decision of the Lagos Division of the Court of Appeal in Nganjiwa’s case, a complaint against a judicial officer must first be laid before the NJC. That decision, as inherently disagreeable and self-serving as it is – and we say this respectfully – will, as has been noted, force the Code of Conduct Tribunal to discharge judicial officers brought before it, where a prior complaint to the NJC has not been made. How then can the Government – or the Code of Conduct Bureau – cognisant of the precedent being followed by the Tribunal, bring another such case before the Tribunal, without first taking it through the corridors of the National Judicial Council? Would it not plumb the depths of political desperation, or be seen as an act of gratuitous professional foolishness and a

“THIS PROSECUTION, FOR THE RECORD, IS UNPRECEDENTED. NO CHIEF JUSTICE OF NIGERIA, BEFORE NOW, HAS BEEN CHARGED IN A COURT OF LAW FOR ANY OFFENCES. SO, THIS IS A MAJOR LANDMARK FOR NIGERIA’S LEGAL HISTORY....”

waste of scarce resources, to bring charges against anyone – not least a sitting Chief Justice - that is patently ill-fated? A project that is dead on arrival, and a no-brainer for that matter! Only a consuming and implacable obsession with a fanciful pursuit, can create the kind of blindness and stupefaction that has characterised this prosecution. The Government should not take us, on this wanton and reckless ride.

Another red flag, is the facility that appears to have been provided the protagonists in the complaints against the Chief Justice to access sensitive private information related to the Chief Justice’ affairs, even information that could, all things being equal, only have been available by the Code of Conduct Bureau. Who enabled access to all that information? Possibly, agencies of government that had access to the information. Alongside this, is the fact of the incredible haste with which the Code of Conduct Bureau acted on the petition, and proceeded to file charges against the Chief Justice. A screen shot of the stamp placed on the petition to the Code of Conduct Bureau by the Petitioners, as reported by The Nigerian Lawyer news site, showed that the petition dated 7th January, 2019, was received on the 9th of January, 2019. How could the Bureau have prepared charges against the Chief Justice based on that letter by the 11th of January, 2019, barely 48 hours later, if it was not acting hand in glove with the authors of the petition? There are too many hair-raising, credibility gaps in the entire story, and much of what has transpired beggars belief.

Conclusion Everything about how this case was orchestrated and put forward, smells foul – the alleged links between the Petitioners and the President, the amount of personal information made available to the Petitioners, the implacable, possibly, unprecedented haste with which the Code of Conduct Bureau acted on the petitions, giving no reasonable time to conduct credible forensic investigations on the allegations - all point to a conclusion that sticks out a mile, i.e. the pursuit of a plan that has more to do with getting Chief Justice Onnoghen out of the way, in preparation for whatever may fall out from the elections, than to redress whatever infractions the Chief Justice may have allegedly committed. Apparently, that agenda has the backing of the echelons of power. The motive is corrupt from the word go, and will pitch many of those who want to see a more transparent Judiciary against the move. Overall, this prosecution will be cast as an invidious effort to undermine judicial independence, and interfere with the adjudication of election cases, which, really, is what it appears to be, more than anything else.

This case – like those before it – is also a wake-up call for the Judiciary. Nigeria’s Judiciary has made a very poor job of safeguarding the rule of law, and pursuing a people-centred philosophy of law and justice; it has been, overall, to borrow from the words of a judgement, more executive-minded than the executive. But, there are no lasting comforts with the executive, and, when the stakes are high enough, Judges are also expendable people. Our Judiciary has sold itself short over the course of many years, and is now paying the price.

Joseph Otteh, Convener of Access to Justice, a civil society group defending the rule of law and rights of unobstructed access to justice institutions

15.01.2019

/13

TALKING CONSTITUTIONAL DEMOCRACY DR. MIKE OZEKHOME, SAN, OFR, FCIARB, PH.D, LL.D

SMS only to 08098898888

A Holding Charge is Patently Illegal Under the Constitution (Part 2)

T Flash Back

wo weeks ago, we discussed some of the reasons, why a holding charge is patently illegal under the 1999 Constitution. We demonstrated how some Justices and Lawyers hold the erroneous view that Sections 293 – 299 of ACJA, gives an open cheque to Magistrates to remand a suspect or accused person, for two weeks, in the first instance, (which is renewable), under the pretext of investigation by government agencies. We dealt extensively on individual liberties, as guaranteed under Section 35 (1) of 1999 Constitution, to the effect that the constitutional right to personal liberty of a person is sacrosanct, even for an accused person. Thereafter, we began an x-ray of why a holding charge, constitutes an anathema to our corpus juris. We now conclude this topic.

Holding Charge Constitutes an Anathema to our Laws (Continues) The 1999 Constitution proudly proclaims its supremacy in Section 1(1), in the following words: “this Constitution is supreme and its provisions shall have binding force on all authorities and persons throughout the Federal Republic of Nigeria”. The Supreme Court of Nigeria has upheld the supremacy of the Constitution in a plethora of cases, including: Abacha v Fawehinmi (2000) 4 SC (PT. 11), PAGE 1; AG Abia State v AG Fed. (2002) 6 NWLR (PT. 763) 204; AG Ondo v AG Fed. (2002) 1 NWLR (PT. 772) 222; Balonwu v Gov. Anambra State (2009) 18 NWLR (PT. 1172) 13.

Indeed, the intermediate court in NJIKOYE v MTN (2008) 9 NWLR (Part 1092) 339 at 369, illuminated on the impossibility of a statute limiting, regulating, or redefining powers already donated by the Constitution. “...the courts would disregard any statute that seeks to regulate and obliterate their judicial powers conferred on them by the express provisions of the Constitution, the supreme and grundnorm of Nigeria. .....

An enactment will therefore, be considered opposed to the constitutional provisions vesting judicial powers in a court if: it ... purported to remove judicial powers vested in the court or redefine it in a way as to whittle it or limit the extent of the power vested or conferred on the court by the Constitution.”

The cases so far cited are extant and subsisting, and constitute the present law in Nigeria, as interpreted by the appellate courts. The above offending Sections of the ACJA are therefore, null and void for their inconsistency with the Constitution, in accordance with Section 1(3) thereof.

The pronouncement by the Apex Court, has further underpinned this in INEC v MUSA (2003) LPELR-1515(SC), where AYOOLA, J.S.C., held that: "The acknowledged supremacy of the Constitution and by which the validity of the impugned provisions will be tested.

First, all powers, legislative, executive and judicial, must ultimately be traced to the

Constitution. Secondly, the legislative powers of the legislature cannot be exercised inconsistently, with the Constitution. Where it is so exercised, it is invalid to the extent of such inconsistency. Thirdly, where the Constitution has enacted exhaustively in respect of any situation, conduct or subject, a body that claims to legislate in addition to what the Constitution had enacted, must show that it has derived the legislative authority to do so from the Constitution. Fourthly, where the Constitution sets the condition for doing a thing, no legislation of the National Assembly or of a State House of Assembly can alter those of the Constitution in any way, directly or indirectly, unless, of course the Constitution itself as an attribute of its supremacy expressly so authorised."

The ACJA Act has breached every single pronouncement in the above cases, and Section 35(4) and (5) of the Constitution. In ABACHA & ORS. v FAWEHINMI (2000) LPELR- 14(SC), the Apex Court adumbrated, Per ACHIKE, J.S.C, that: "The Constitution is the supreme law of the land; it is the grundnorm. Its supremacy has never been called to question in ordinary circumstances”.

It is therefore, submitted that, by virtue of the above extant and unreversed decisions of courts of the land, especially the Apex Court, and the robust provisions of Section 1(3) of the Constitution, Sections 293-299 of the ACJA are patently unconstitutional, null and void, to the extent of their inconsistency with Sections 35(4), (5) and 36(1), (4) and (5) of the Constitution.

To argue otherwise, is to insist that the, tail can wag the dog, or that a Baale can strip his superior Oba of his kingly powers.

In our criminal jurisprudence, it is axiomatic that no court (the least, a Magistrate court), is permitted to ascribe its own meaning to the clear wordings of a statute, so as to bring it in line with, and to conform with, its own whimsical views of what the law ought to be. See the cases of A-G, FEDERATION v SODE (1990)1 NWLR (pt 111) 500; A-G, LAGOS STATE v DOSUNMU (1989) 3 NWLR (PT 111) 552.

Conclusion It is inconceivable, and is, indeed, sacrilegious, for the ACJA, to purport to empower a Magistrate Court to detain a Nigerian citizen for a clear 28 days, when the very supreme law of the land, the grundnorm, which is the Constitution, has specifically provided for 48 hours (2days) maximum period of detention. May such judicial hara-kiri, never occur in Nigeria.

Those angry with the Constitution, should first seek its amendment under Section 9 thereof.

They should not attempt to undermine its provisions, with a mere Act of Parliament.

Oh, no, I have a better idea. Those who feel so inebriated and incensed by the assumed “corruption fight”, should not merely stop at clamouring for abridgement of citizens’ fundamental rights in a constitutional democracy, so as to “hasten” justice. They should go further, genuflectingly, on the selective shrine of the “anti- corruption” gods and goddesses, to request that any Nigerian accused of acts of corruption, should simply be lynched or shot on sight, without even the

“FROM JANUARY 3, 2019, IDRIS BY EFFLUXION OF TIME, AUTOMATICALLY CEASED TO BE A “SERVING MEMBER OF THE NIGERIA POLICE FORCE”. WEARING THE UNIFORM OF A POLICE OFFICER FROM THAT DAY, IS PATENTLY UNCONSTITUTIONAL, ILLEGAL AND UNLAWFUL. IT AMOUNTS TO IMPERSONATION AND PASSING OFF”

Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris

need for arraignment and trial. They should insist that those not lynched or shot on sight, should be detained indefinitely in their dungeon till kingdom come! In fact, let them reinvent the wheel of our criminal justice system which has always been accusatorial (Aglo-saxon) and not inquisitorial (French model), so as to presume a person guilty before trial. Let them abolish our cherished God-given freedoms, liberties and fundamental rights. Let them enthrone the rule of might and the Hobessian rule of the thumb.

What is more, let the all-powerful Government, dissolve the hapless people and elect or appoint another more pliant people.

The Unconstitutionality of IGP Idris’ Continued Stay in Office Africans like to sit tight in power! No matter what. To them, power (even though ephemeral), is an aphrodisiac, an inebriating liquor. Some Nigerians cannot understand why President Buhari insists on keeping Ibrahim Idris, the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), even after the expiration of his tenure by effluxion, in accordance with constitutional provisions and Civil Service Rules. But, many others perfectly understand why. They believe it is to make him the engine room, to perpetrate fraud during the February, 2019 presidential elections. They readily point at the Edo, Ekiti and Osun States governorship elections, all of which turned out to have been held under a militarised fascist Police State.

The Facts: On January 3, 2019, Ibrahim Idris Kpotum from Kutigi, Lavan, Niger State, completed his 35 years service as a Public Servant (Police Officer). He is said to have enlisted into the NPF on 3rd January, 1984. He is therefore, deemed to have retired automatically on January 3, 2019, having attained the milestone of 35 years of service. Today, January 15, Idris has also attained the statutory mandatory retirement age of 60 years, also going by the provisions of Rule 020810 of the extant Federal Public Service Rules in Nigeria. Thus, both by biological age and longevity of service, Idris has come full circle to retirement. So what is the problem?

The Law: By Rule 020810 of the Federal Public Service Rules, an officer shall compulsorily retire from service if he has spent 35 years in service, or if he has turned 60 years, “whichever comes first”. The 3rd of January, 2019, comes first. To wait till January 15 is already unconstitutional, because the law says “whichever comes first”, not both. Public Service Rules have since been

given judicial imprimatur by the Apex Court in Shitta-Bay v FRSC (1981) 1 SC. 26. It is true that by Sections 46 and 47 of the Police Act, “the President may make regulations on the recommendations of the Police Service Commission (PSC) with respect to appointments to offices in the Force, promotion, transfer, dismissal and disciplinary control of officers”.

Under Section 47 (1) (b), the President is also permitted to make standing orders with respect to the above matters after consultation with the PSC; and “such standing orders shall be binding on all Police officers”.

The catch here is two-layered: first, the regulations and standing orders only apply to the rank and file officers who are under a COP; not to officers of the rank of COP and above.

The second challenge is that by Section 215 (1) (a) of the 1999 Constitution, which PMB and Idris swore to defend, an IGP can only be appointed from the corps of serving Police officers, not from retired ones. The section provides laconically, “there shall be an Inspector-General of Police who, subject to Section 216 (2) of the Constitution, shall be appointed by the President on the advice of the Nigeria Police Council from among serving members of the Nigeria Police Force”. This section is too clear, to admit of any ambiguity- It says “from among serving members of the Nigeria Police Force”. The said Section 216 (2) above referred to, provides that the NPF shall be under the command of the IGP, whilst Police in States shall be under a Commissioner of Police.

From January 3, 2019, Idris by effluxion of time, automatically ceased to be a “serving member of the Nigeria Police Force”. Wearing the uniform of a Police officer from that day, is patently unconstitutional, illegal and unlawful.

It amounts to impersonation and passing off.

This is a serious constitutional and statutory matter. It is not one for sentiments, emotion, political brinkmanship, or lachrymal effusion.

Mr. President Sir, let IGP Idris go. There are other equally competent Nigerians. After all, he was only a Commissioner of Police in Kano State during the 2015 presidential elections in which PMB “won” a landslide, nay, moonslide, of the votes. To pave way for Idris’ emergence as IGP, 21serving officers ranging from CPs, AIGs, DIGs, to IGP, had to be prematurely retired. In one fell swoop! Seven whole DIGs included. Nigeria, we hail thee.

14/

15.01.2019

INSIGHT ABUBAKAR D. SANI

xL4sure@yahoo.com

SERAP’S Suit on Dariye’s Allowances: Well-intentioned, but Misguided?

T Introduction

rail-blazing nongovernmental organisation, the Socio-Economic Rights Advancement Project (SERAP), raised the bar of public interest advocacy yet again, two weeks ago, when it went to court to challenge the continued payment of salaries and allowances to Senator Joshua Dariye, notwithstanding his conviction and imprisonment for corruption. In the suit which it filed at the Federal High Court, Lagos, against the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, Dariye and National Assembly Service Commission, SERAP claimed that since Dariye’s conviction, he has still been receiving from the Senate, monthly salary and allowances in the sums of N750,000 and N13.5million, respectively.

As a result, according to SERAP, the State has so far paid Senator Dariye the sum of N85.5 million.

The Reliefs For the foregoing reasons, SERAP has asked the court to make the following pronouncements: - A declaration that to the extent that Senator Dariye’s conviction and imprisonment has caused him to be absent without just cause from meetings of the Senate for more than one third of the total number of days (since June 12, 2018), which he is constitutionally required to attend such meetings, his Senate seat has automatically become vacant; - An injunction restraining the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki and the National Assembly Service Commission, from continuing to pay Senator Dariye any further allowances or salaries while he serves his term of imprisonment, and - An order compelling Senator Dariye to refund all the salaries and allowances which he has received so far as a Senator, since his conviction on the 12th day of June, 2018.

The Legal Premise According to SERAP, the scenario violates the provisions of Sections 66(1) (c) and 68(1)(b)&(f),(2)&(3) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999. They are all set out, seriatim, below: - Section 66(1)(c): No person shall be qualified for election to the Senate or the House of Representatives, if he is under . . . a sentence of imprisonment or fine for an offence involving dishonesty or fraud (by whatever name called) or any other offence imposed on him by such court . . .”

- Section 68(1): “A member of the Senate or of the House of Representatives shall vacate his seat in the House of which he is a member if – - (b) any other circumstances arise that, if he were not a member of the Senate or the House of Representatives, would cause him to be disqualified for election as a member; - (f) Without just cause, he is absent from meetings of the House of which he is a member for a period of amounting in the aggregate to more than one-third of the total number of days during which the House meets in any one year” - Section 68(2): “The President of the Senate or the Speaker of the House of Representatives, as the case may be, shall give effect to the provisions of sub-section (1) of this section, so however that the President of the Senate or the Speaker of

Former Governor of Plateau State, Joshua Dariye

the House of Representatives or a member shall first present evidence satisfactory to the House concerned that any of the provisions of that sub-section has become applicable in respect of that member”; - Section 68(3): “A member of the Senate or of the House of Representatives shall be deemed to be absent without just cause from a meeting of the House of which he is a member unless the person presiding certifies in writing that he is satisfied that the absence of the member from the meeting was for a cause” The Reaction The Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki has since debunked SERAP’s claim. Reacting through his spokesman, Mr. Yusuph Olaniyonu, he asserted that SERAP should have directed its angst at the AttorneyGeneral of the Federation (AGF), who in his view, is saddled with the constitutional responsibility of officially requesting the Senate to cease paying Senator Dariyes’ allowances following his conviction, given that the AGF prosecuted him in the first place.

Is SERAP Misguided?

Is Senator Saraki’s position, that the requisite procedure antecedent to declaring Senator Dariye’s seat vacant, has not been complied with, correct? While it will be inappropriate to comment on the merits or otherwise of the case, without running foul of the ‘sub judice’ rule, suffice it to say that, the Constitution does

not give any role to the AGF to play in the process of declaring the seat of a Senator vacant by virtue of his/her conviction and/ or imprisonment, as in Senator Dariye’s case.

On the contrary, from the letters of Section 68(2) of the Constitution, it appears that only two persons – the Senate President or another Senator – possess the capacity to invoke the provisions of Section 68(1) against any Senator by asserting, in Senator Dariye’s case, that not only would his conviction have disqualified him, ab initio, from being elected as a Senator, his continued absence from the Senate since June 12, 2018 has exceeded one-third of the period during which the Senate meets in a year.

According to Section 68(2), either of these two people may initiate the process, by first presenting to the Senate satisfactory evidence that the circumstances/factors stipulated therein exist in relation to a convicted or absentee-Senator, before the conclusions envisaged by those provisions can definitively be reached. Even though Section 68(3) of the Constitution appears to modify the exclusivity of these provisions vis-à-vis SERAP, one wonders whether they do not constitute conditions precedent to seeking the reliefs claimed by SERAP in its suit. Do they rob SERAP of the requisite locus standi to maintain the action? Once again, we shall say no more, as to do so, would run foul of the sub judice rule.

“....TO THE EXTENT THAT SERAP’S CASE CHALLENGES THE PAYMENT OF SALARIES AND ALLOWANCES TO A CONVICTED SENATOR DARIYE, THE NATIONAL INDUSTRIAL COURT IS THE PROPER FORUM FOR LITIGATING IT”

What about Jurisdiction?

This appears to be the area where one may exercise some latitude in terms of commentary, if that, indeed, is the case. If it is, then it is doubtful if the Federal High Court possesses the requisite jurisdiction over SERAP’s claim.

Jurisdiction refers to the legal competence or authority of a court to entertain a claim by reference to its subject matter, as well as the parties therein. It is entirely statutory, as it cannot be presumed or assumed by default. Any adjudication in the absence of jurisdiction, is a nullity.

As far as the Federal High Court is concerned, Section 251(1) of the Constitution empowers it to exercise jurisdiction over any civil cause or matter which involves the Federal Government or any its agencies, within the circumstances stated in that provision.

In SERAP’s case, it is clear that, with the exception of the National Assembly Service Commission, none of the other parties is either the Federal Government or any of its agencies. Certainly not the Senate President, Dr. Saraki.

As for the reliefs sought therein, it seems that to the extent that they seek a declaration and two injunctive orders which challenge the on- going practice (of at least National Assembly Service Commission) of continuing to pay the emoluments of Senator Dariye, notwithstanding his conviction and absence from the Senate, they “affect the validity of an administrative action” by an agency of the Federal Government within the contemplation of Section 251(1)r of the Constitution.

Assuming that this argument justifies the filing of the suit at the Federal High Court, I humbly submit that, Section 254C(1)(k) of the Constitution completely belies it. It provides, inter alia, that notwithstanding the provisions of Section 251 of the Constitution, the National Industrial Court shall have jurisdiction to the exclusion of any other court, in civil causes and matters “relating to or connected with disputes arising from payment of salaries, wages, allowances, benefits or any other entitlements of any political or public office holder or a civil or public servant and matters incidental thereto”.

If the provisions of Section 254C(1) (k) are interpreted liberally (as they are required to be, given that they are constitutional provisions), it is obvious that they apply to Senator Dariye, given that, as a Senator, he is “a political or public office holder or a civil or public servant” within the contemplation of the provision. Accordingly, in my humble opinion, to the extent that SERAP’s case challenges the payment of salaries and allowances to a convicted Senator Dariye, the National Industrial Court is the proper forum for litigating it.

Conclusion Ordinarily, Section 22(2) of the Federal High Court Act ought to save SERAP’s case, as it provides that a matter wrongly filed in that court, should be transferred to the appropriate State High Court. Therein lies the dilemma: that provision doesn’t mention the National Industrial Court. Whatever SERAP does in the circumstances, is up to it, of course.

Suffice it to say that, regardless of the merits of the case, it has already endeared itself to many defenders of civil liberties and public interest advocacy, as a champion - without equal - of both causes.

15.01.2019

THE LIGHTER SIDE/15

LEGAL HUMOUR

We Hold Your Brief JUDE IGBANOI jude.igbanoi@thisdaylive.com Dear Counsel, Kindly, help with the relevant information on this worrisome situation.

I am the Secretary of Scrap Dealers Association in my Local Government, and we presently have a huge problem with the Police, who have arrested and detained nine of our members, since November last year. We had a small argument with the owner of the plot of empty land we use to sort out our scrap metal, before selling. We gather money from members every month, and pay him rent. But, because business was down towards the end of 2018, we couldn’t meet up with the monthly rent from about September. Then, the land owner started threatening that he will call the Police, if we do not pay up the three months outstanding.

Despite our pleading and even offering to give him part payment, he brought in the Police to arrest some of our members, claiming that we illegally occupied his land. At the Police Station, we had to show several past receipts of payment, to prove that we are not illegal occupants.

Please, what can we do to secure the release of our remaining two members, who are still in detention?

Mr K.E., Idu, Abuja.

Dear Mr K.E., You will require the services of a Lawyer, to urgently go to court to apply for the enforcement of their fundamental rights. There was absolutely no reason for the Police to have detained your members, in the first place. It is totally wrong and illegal to arrest and detain anybody, to recover debt or rent. Authorities abound on the issue of the Police not being a debt recovery agency, and therefore, must not be used as such.

Section 8 (2) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act provides that “a suspect shall not be arrested merely on a civil wrong or breach of contract”. It has become the past time of many Nigerians with the connivance of law enforcement agents, to use their powers to harass citizens where contracts fail or loans are unpaid. The Court held in A.C (O.A.O) Nig. Ltd. v. Umanah (2013) 4 NWLR (Pt. 1344) 323 that “the statutory duties of the Police under the Police Act, is to maintain peace, law and order in the society. Debt collection or loan recovery, is not within the purview of the statutory duty and powers of the Police”.

Brief a lawyer to quickly, to file a motion for their fundamental rights enforcement in court.

Merry Christmas (From a Lawyer) Please, accept without obligation, express or implied, these best wishes for an environmentally safe, socially responsible, low stress, non addictive, and gender neutral celebration of the winter solstice holiday, as practiced within the most enjoyable traditions of the religious persuasion of your choice (but with respect for the religious or secular persuasions and/or traditions of others, or for their choice not to practice religious or secular traditions at all), and further for a fiscally successful, personally fulfilling, and medically uncomplicated onset of the generally accepted calendar year (including, but not limited to, the Christian calendar, but not without due respect for the calendars of choice of other cultures).

The preceding wishes are extended without regard to the race, creed, colour, age, physical ability, religious faith, choice of computer platform, or sexual preference of the wishee(s). ˾˾˾ A Recruiter and his divorce Lawyer go into a neighbourhood bar for a New Year’s Eve drink. The Lawyer, lawyerishly pondering all the possibilities and unable to stop thinking like a Lawyer for even a moment, says to the bartender, “I’ll take half of whatever my client gets”. The recruiter, mulling over how to counter, hems and haws, but, thinking like a recruiter, says, “If he’s buying, let me keep the tip for bringing him in”.

The Bartender, realising that he’s dealing with a couple of dithering tightwads, replies to the Recruiter, “How about, like your Lawyer, I bill you by the hour, rather than by the drink?” ˾˾˾ * Good News: A busload of Lawyers ran off a cliff. The bus was destroyed and there were no survivors.

Bad News: There were three empty seats.

LACK OF UNIFORM MARITIME LAW IS CAUSING DELAYS IN AFRICAN TRADE, SAYS SHIPPERS’ COUNCIL BOSS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 6 On whether the Cabotage Act is anti-foreign investment in Nigerian Cabotage Trade, the NSC Executive Secretary said, “the accusation is that, it is actually a protectionist. That means it is reserved for Nigerians, as opposed to liberalisation and many other things.

But the truth is that, a country has to protect its interest and Nigeria is not the only one in this. The biggest capitalist country in the world is America, and it operates the Cabotage Act”.

While evaluating the domestication of some of the principles of international admiralty laws into Nigeria, Bello said, “Domestication of the principles of international admiralty law agitated the minds of jurists, Lawyers and stakeholders, at the last maritime seminar for Judges. Incorporation of international laws into the municipal laws of Nigeria, is a constitutional provision. Section 12 of the Constitution says that, any treaty between Nigeria and a country must be, for it to be effective, incorporated into the municipal laws of Nigeria through a legislative process. So, if we have an international convention, the fact that we have ratified it, does not mean that it is automatically

a law.

“We operate what is called, the dual system. In other countries, it is monastic, in the sense that once you ratify a convention, it is incorporated automatically.

So, you could see that one of the reasons for the delay is the dual processes. For a convention to come into play, it will require a signature, which is already provided in that international convention. After that, then it becomes effective. So, Nigeria, like every other country with dual system, the processes are slow.

“However, the most important thing, which Nigerian Shippers Council has always insisted on, is to involve the parliamentarians right from the outset, when you are negotiating the law. We have the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Carriage of Goods Wholly or Partly by Sea Act, which is called the Rotterdam Rules. Right now, it is a new carriage regime, and it is very good for Nigeria, because of our vast hinterlands. This is so that the responsibility of the carrier could be covered from overseas, up till the time when the goods are handed over to the shipper, either in his house or in his warehouse. It

is a modern convention. It incorporates electronic commerce and door-to-door delivery of cargo.

“Even though Nigeria had agreed to the Convention, it will still need to bring it to the parliament.

Fortunately for us, the Nigerian parliament has been involved in the negotiation of the Rotterdam Rules. They have attended colloquium, which was organised by Comite Maritime International (CMI). I know we went to South Africa, Canada, France and many other countries with members of the National Assembly. So, they are fairly conversant with it. If it comes, it needs not to be treated like a new thing.

“I think there is a Committee set up by the Federal Government under the Ministry of Transport, headed by the Legal Adviser, looking at the conventions.

It is a very important Committee, and its members are NIMASA and one or two other agencies. So, the Committee’s mandate, is to look at the proper conventions to adopt, because we cannot adopt all. We adopt a convention if we are involved in the negotiation, so that Nigeria’s interest will be protected.”

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(Culled from Social Media)

15.01.2019

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BUSINESSWORLD

Group Business Editor Obinna Chima

Email obinna.chima@thisdaylive.com 08024557078, 08152447875

ÍŻ ÍŻ Ëœ Í° ÍŽ ÍŻ ͡ MONEY MARKET OVERNIGHT OBB

REPO 22.50% 20%

CALL 1-MONTH 3-MONTH

22.50% 17.75% 17.88%

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

357.98% 0.14% 0.28%

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

0.28% 0.28%

EXCHANGE RATE N306.90/1US DOLLAR* ĚŠ

Quick Takes Hero Rewards Consumers

Herolager,abeerbrandfromthestableofInternationalBreweriesPlc, a proud part of the AB InBev family, has rewarded over 500 consumers with cash prizes worth over N90 million and gifts through its national consumerpromo,taggedHEROnairesMegapromo,whichranforthree months. The promo which began on October 14, 2018, was aimed at rewarding consumers above the legal drinking age of 18 with N1 million weekly wins for 17 weeks. The promo also oered other consolation prizes including cash prizes of N50, 000 each to other winners.

TheconsumerpromotionwasalsoapartofHero’seortstoconnect with its loyal consumer base, especially as the year end is a season for spreadingloveandcelebratingwithfamilyandfriends.“ForInternational Breweries, Christmas represents a perfect time and season for giving back, gifting and rewarding its loyal customers for their patronage all through the year,â€? said Marketing Director, International Breweries, Tolu Adedeji “The ‘HEROnaires Mega’ promo underlines the company’s commitmenttoimpactingthelivesofitscustomersforgoodandputting smiles on their faces. “In this time of the year, a simple act of kindness can make a huge dierence.What better way to salute our customers than to create opportunities for them to become millionaires through the reward scheme, particularly in this season of sharing, caring and giving,â€? she added. Numerous winners from dierent walks of life and parts of the country were rewarded with various cash prizes, and many expressed joy and excitement over their good fortune.

FINANCIAL INCLUSION

L-R: Director Lagos Business School (LBS) Sustainability Centre, Prof. Chris Ogbechie; Publisher/CEO BusinessDay Media Limited, Mr. Frank Aigbogun and General Manager/Group Head, Business Development, BUA Group Limited, Mr. Tajudeen Ahmed, at the LBS/ BusinessDay International Financial Inclusion Conference held in Lagos...recently

NERC Sidesteps Gencos’Complaints of Poor Settlement, Unfair Practices Stories by Chineme Okafor in Abuja The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has said it will not be involved in the constant demand by power generation companies (Gencos) in Nigeria’s electricity market to ensure the market recognises and include capacity charges in their monthly bills for payment to the market.

It said, the Gencos have power purchase agreements (PPAs) with the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Plc (NBET), which contains payment for capacity charges, insisting that on the strength of this, it would not get involved as it understood the sanctity of such contracts

ENERGY must be respected.

The Gencos, through their association, the Association of Power Generating Companies (APGC), recently alleged that the NERC had connived with the electricity distribution companies (Discos) in the market to deny them of payment for capacity charges.

According to them, even though capacity payments were global norms in the electricity supply industry and play critical roles in enabling the Gencos to optimise their power generation capacities, they were yet to receive the payment and would want it paid for.

But in an e-mailed statement

by NERC made available to THISDAY, the regulator stated that payment for capacity charge under an effective power purchase agreement was a contractual issue between the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Plc and power generation company.

It added: “The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission believes in the sanctity of contracts and therefore does not issue orders or regulations that are in conflict with valid subsisting contracts.�

The Gencos in their claims had said that every PPA nominated capacity, metered energy and deemed capacity were amongst the must-occur events in any

electricity market transaction, adding that nominated capacities are also paid for by the market. “The Genco makes its day-ahead declaration of how much it can generate (available capacity) for that given date and the System Operator (SO) nominates the capacity it can dispatch/transmit. In every electricity market, this nominated capacity is paid for and with consideration for the suppressed capacity as prompted by System Operator’s instructions; a reasonable return on capital invested in the business is a critical incentive for continued improvement in technical capacity as well as quality of service,� it said.

Continued on page 24

RegulariseYour Operations, DPR Warns Illegal The Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) has given operators of illegal downstream facilities in Nigeria such as petrol stations and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) plants, three months to regularise their operations.

The directive would elapse by the end of this quarter.

The DPR stressed that at the expiration of the deadline, it would clamp down on the operations of the illegal operators.

DPR’s Abuja Zonal Operations Controller, Mr. Abdul Abba, said this at an annual general meeting of stakeholders in the country’s oil industry which was recently organised by the DPR in Abuja.

Abba, who explained that the meeting was meant to bring major players in the downstream oil and gas sector together to review the operational challenges

ENERGY of the industry in 2018, and set out new plans for it in 2019, noted that the new measures would keep illegal downstream retail outlets from operating in the market. “I must however stress here that a time frame has been set to first quarter of this year for owners of illegal outlets - filling stations and gas plants, to regularise their facilities. “DPR will take all necessary measures within the ambience of the law on any illegal retail outlet that fail to regularise after the expiration of the grace period,� said Abba in his remarks.

According to him: “We have seen where lack of compliance to the statutory regulations with respect to depots, filling stations

and LPG outlets has led to huge losses in investment, lives and degradation of environment. “This forum was therefore set up as part of DPR’s continued efforts of sensitising stakeholders on safe operations of petroleum handling facilities and guidelines governing their operations, so as to have zero accidents to humans and the environment.�

Similarly, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) said at the meeting that compliance to regulations by operators in the industry was its biggest challenge.

NNPC’s Group Managing Director, Dr. Maikanti Baru, who was represented by the Chief Operating Officer (COO) Downstream of the corporation, Mr. Henry Ikem-Obih, specifically stated that a lot of operators

would prefer to sidestep obedience to regulations and rather disrespect laws governing the industry.

He said: “The theme of today’s workshop is extremely important because regulatory compliance is a veritable tool for safe and efficient operations in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector, and in deed in the global industry. “We all remember that over the years we’ve learnt from a lot of very regrettable mistakes that led to incidents that transformed the way we do business in this industry. It is important that we always remember that one mistake in the oil and gas industry is sufficient to wipe out the entire business. It is as bad as an aircraft crash.�

Continued on page 24

Uganda Sanctions Power Distributor

Uganda aims to impose ďŹ nancial penalties from March, on its sole power distributor, Umeme Limited, for any frequent and prolonged supply outages, the regulator said. The public has long complained about high taris and long power cuts, while unreliable supplies add extra costs to businesses, which often run costly stand-by generators to keep operations going during outages.

The Electricity Regulatory Authority (ERA) said in a notice published onitswebsitethatitintendedtosettargetsfor“reliabilityandqualityâ€?of power supplied by Umeme, which secured a 25-year licence in 2005 to bethesoledistributor. “Frequentandlongpoweroutages/interruptions imposeacostonconsumersintermsofthecostofenergynotsupplied,â€? the notice said. “The licensee will incur a ďŹ nancial penalty for failing to achieve the targets.â€? It did not give details of the proposed penalties.

ERA spokesman, Julius Wandera, said the regulator planned to impose the new terms in March, after a public consultation. “Underthecurrentsystem,itwasjustususingthecarrotandbegging them to reduce outages. Now we are introducing the stick,� Reuters quoted him to have said. Umeme is majority owned by the statecontrolled pensions fund NSSF, while South African funds including Allan Gray, Kimberlite Frontier Africa Master Fund and Investec Asset Management Africa Fund also have stakes. The East African country’s grid now reaches just 23 percent of the population of 40 million.

Umeme has said it plans to spend $1.2 billion over seven years to expand and upgrade the grid to cope with additional supplies from new dams being built that will double the nation’s generation capacity from about 800 megawatts now.

Airtel to Raise Tanzania’s Stake

India’sBhartiAirtelhasagreedtogivepartofitsstakeinAirtelTanzania tothegovernment,raisingtheEastAfricannation’sholdinginthemobile phone operator to 49 per cent from 40 percent, the president’s oďŹƒce said on Friday. The announcement followed talks in Dar es Salaam between President John Magufuli and Bharti Airtel Chairman Sunil Mittal to resolve a dispute over ownership of the Tanzanian mobile operator. According to Reuters, Bharti Airtel would retain a 51 percent stake in the company, the president’s oďŹƒce said, without giving a value for shares being transferred to the government. Airtel Tanzania had no immediate comment on the announcement.

Magufulihadsaidin2017thatstate-runTanzaniaTelecommunications CompanyLtd(TTCL)ownedthelocalsubsidiaryofBhartiAirteloutright but had been cheated out of shares. Bharti Airtel had disputed this, saying it received all the required approvals from the state when it bought a 60 percent stake and had complied with all government rules.

“Passenger movement will continue to increase and this is even buttressed by ICAO and IATA predictions. It is predicted that in developing countries passenger movement would double by 2030�

MD, Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria

Saleh Dunoma

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BUSINESSWORLD NERC SIDESTEPS GENCOS’ COMPLAINTS OF POOR SETTLEMENT, UNFAIR PRACTICES

It further noted that the NERC in 2015 as part of its preparation for the Transitional Electricity Market (TEM), came up with an obnoxious new capacity definition entrenched it in the TEM Supplementary Order No. NERC/15/0011 dated 18th March, 2015.

According to the Gencos, the NERC in the order, stated that GenCos without effective PPAs shall be paid for their delivered energy and delivered capacity by NBET which in this regards represented the capacity equivalent of the energy delivered at the Gencos bus bar.

It added that the regulatory directive thus brought down the actual billable mobilised Gencos capacity, thus leading to the Discos been billed less. “In lay man terms, this redefinition of capacity by NERC means that if a Genco declares 500MW as available on any day and the grid or TCN only nominates to take 100MW, which to a large extent is based on what the Discos want to take and distribute, that Genco will only be paid energy and the capacity equivalent of 100MW, while the Genco is left to bear the capacity cost of making available the remaining 400MW REGULARISE YOUR OPERATIONS, DPR WARNS ILLEGAL OPERATORS

Baru, further stated: “So, as operators we have a responsibility to support the efforts of agencies like DPR, PPPRA (Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency), PEF (Petroleum Equalisation Fund) who daily drive compliance in the industry.�

He equally explained that it was important for regulators to always ensure that they enforce regulations, because without enforcement they will never achieve full compliance. “The responsible operator will comply, whether you are there to visit their facility or not, but a lot more of the operators will not comply. This is because the cost of non-compliance is cheaper than complying with regulations.

Group Business Editor

Obinna Chima

Capital Market Editor

NEWS

Report Calls for Cautious Investment in Nigeria’s Oil Industry Chineme Okafor in Abuja Analysts at Agusto & Co, a credit rating and research company have urged investors in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry to be guarded in their investments in the sector, following recent rally in oil prices and a somewhat stability in oil production in the country.

The report which was obtained by THISDAY indicated that though certain favourable conditions could continue to exist in the industry in the near term, investors should avoid excessive leveraging in their commercial commitments to the sector, adding that this could help them withstand possible shocks from price changes and other uncontrollable factors.

The experts explained that Nigeria’s oil industry sustained a healthy margin from recoveries it made in 2017. It added that the industry posted some good results in the year ended 2017 and that most industry operators grew their top lines. “We are of the opinion that the current rally in crude oil prices as well as the relatively stable operating environment in the Niger Delta should continue in the near term. “In addition, the regulatory uncertainty which has stalled capital investments especially in offshore exploration and development is being addressed with the eventual passage of the PIGB. “However, industry players should be cautious in engaging in over-investing and excessive leverage, which might make it difficult for them to withstand any shocks in oil prices and other uncontrollable factors highlighted,� said the report.

It further stated: “All things considered, we are hopeful that the performance momentum in the upstream industry should be sustained in the short term to medium term.�

Detailing the performance of the industry in past year, it explained that: “After the challenging operating environment that dotted 2016, the Nigerian oil and gas (upstream) industry has rebounded, posting relatively better results in the financial year ended 31 December 2017 (FYE 2017).

“This was quite evident in the fact that most industry players grew their topline in 2017 on the heels of the depressing results of 2016. The change in the fortunes of most operators was attributed to the rally in crude oil prices in 2017 after the global oil price crash of 2014 to 2016. For instance, one of the key players in the Nigeria oil and gas (upstream) industry, Seplat Petroleum Development Company Plc grew its turnover by 106 per cent year-on-year (YoY) to $417.4 million in 2017.

“In the same vein, Oando Plc grew its exploration and production (E&P) business to N103.5 billion in 2017, representing a 34 per cent YoY rise over prior year. The scenario also plays out for the global oil majors such as Shell, ExxonMobil and Total, who equally recorded relatively exciting results over the last one year.�

It added that these players rode on the momentum in 2018 to post also impressive nine months’ results. “Seplat’s turnover rose by 104

REWARDING CUSTOMER LOYALTY

Shop Manager, Gloworld, Wuse 2, Abuja, Adebayo Daniyan, winner in the Glo social media talent competition, Madubuike Chisom and Regional Manager, Secondary Sales, North Central Region, Mohammad Abdullah during the presentation of prize to the winner in Abuja‌recently

PPPRA Puts Average Daily Petrol Usage in Three Years at 51m Litres Chineme Okafor in Abuja The Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) has disclosed that between 2016 and 2018, a period of three years, Nigerians consumed an average of 51 million litres of petrol every day.

It explained that the consumption figure which was based on its daily petroleum products truck-out saw an increase from 50 million litres in 2016 to 53 million in 2018.

According to the PPPRA, the NNPC provided most of the

volumes of petrol used in the country because oil marketing companies (OMCs) in 2017 stopped supplying products on account of unfavourable business terms. “Based on PPPRA truckout figures, the PMS (Petrol) national average daily supply for the year 2016 and 2017 was around 50 million litres while the estimated average for the year 2018 was about 53 million litres,� the PPPRA explained in a statement.

It further explained the PPPRA wanted to clarify that

it was not aware that another agency had taken over its duties of determining subsidy claims amongst others.

According to the statement, the Petroleum Support Fund (PSF) Scheme which supports the country’s subsidy regime had ended in December 2015, and there was no provision for subsidy in the national budget of the year 2016, 2017 and 2018.

It said that based on this development it did not compute subsidy claims in the three years but instead administered the Price Modulation Mechanism

(PMM) for the period of January to May, 2016. “Presently, the scheme managed by PPPRA since May 2016 is the Appropriate Pricing Framework (APF). Under this scheme, the Agency regulates petroleum products supply and distribution through issuance of Quantity Notification (QN) and LAYCAN to NNPC and OMCs. It also monitors discharges at various facilities nationwide,� the PPPRA noted.

It explained that due to the challenges of petrol pricing in the fourth quarter 2017, OMCs

AgriBusiness/Industry Editor

SON Destroys Substandard Products in Kano

Comms/e-Business Editor

Jonathan Eze

Senior Correspondent

Over N8 million worth of substandard products have been destroyed by the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) at Yankatsari Yangongon in Kano.

SON said the move was to serve as warning to recalcitrant producers and merchants of substandard products in the Kano/Jigawa States axis.

The details of the products

Goddy Egene Jonathan Eze Emma Okonji

Raheem Akingbolu (Advertising) Correspondents

Chinedu Eze (Aviation) Linda Eroke (Labour) Eromosele Abiodun (Cap Mkt) Ejiofor Alike (Energy) James Emejo (Nation’s Capital) Chineme Okafor (Energy) Ebere Nworji (Insurance) Reporters

Nume Ekeghe (Money Market) Nosa Alekhuogie (e-Business

per cent YoY to $568 million for the nine months ended 30 September 2018. As a result, Seplat posted an impressive gross profit margin of 54 per cent in nine-month 2018 and profit before tax margin of 37 per cent on the back of a loss before tax margin of 0.9 per cent recorded in the corresponding period of 2017. “Similarly, Oando Plc’s E&P turnover grew by 56 per cent year-on-year in nine month 2018. “Movements in oil price volatility remain the single most

include 83 bags of 25kg expired foreign rice, 257 bags of substandard mosquito coil, 190 cartons of fake Dorco brand of shaving sticks, 96 rolls of fake NOCACO electrical cables; six bags of sub-standard fertilisers, 146 trays of substandard automobile break fluid; and seven Vails of empty sacks of rice.

The SON Regional Coordinator, North West, Alhaji Abba

Adamu; Bauchi and the Kano/ Jigawa States Coordinator, Alhaji Yunusa Muhammed, on behalf of the Director General, SON Osita Aboloma, coordinated the destruction of the substandard products. Briefing journalists before the exercise, Muhammed disclosed that patriotic Nigerians, including genuine manufacturers and consumers assisted in apprehending the substandard

products through provision of classified information.

In addition, SON market surveillance activities and the cooperation of market associations like the Singer market and Kano Electrical Dealers Association (KEDA), provided other avenues to the substandard products, he said. He acknowledged their cooperation and collaboration as well as those of security and

withdrew from importation of petrol and NNPC being the supplier of last resort stepped in to bridge the supply gap, adding that it has since then continued to do same.

Furthermore, the PPPRA said: “According to NNPC, PMS import price differential resulting in under-recovery is being managed by the corporation in line with the Act that establishes it. Most of the cargoes brought

by NNPC, are under the Direct Sale Direct Purchase (DSDP) contract which is not governed by the PSF regime.

sister regulatory agencies in apprehending the life-endangering and substandard products.

According to him, necessary laboratory tests and analysis were carried out on all the products to ascertain and confirm their quality status as being substandard and life endangering, while necessary approvals have been secured to destroy the items in line with the provisions of the SON Act 14 of 2015.

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BUSINESSWORLD

ENERGY

Weighing Gencos’ Grievances Chineme Okafor highlights the complaints of the electricity generation companies in Nigeria and the need for the government to address their grievances For months now, the electricity generation companies (Gencos), that produce the power that goes into the distribution lines that extend to homes and offices in the country have steadily grumbled about their growing challenges in the market which could lead to operational shutdown.

In their appraisal, the market has remained unfair to them, and instead of rewarding their claims of best productivity in a troubled sector, it has rather deprived them.

Amongst the complaints, the Gencos have maintained that they sell electricity to the grid at rates that are not commercially rewarding; do not even get paid adequately for volumes they send to the grid; often barred from producing up to their capacity levels because the distribution networks are allegedly weak; and do not get adequate protection from the market regulator – the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC).

Additionally, the Gencos have through their trade platform – the Association of Power Generating Companies (APGC), questioned the governance processes of the market as well as the independence of NERC which it lately accused of regulatory partiality especially with regards to enforcing market rules and contracts.

They even claimed the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Plc (NBET), a government-owned bulk power purchaser which buys power from them, sells to Discos and remit commensurate proceeds back to them have often short-paid them because the Discos often underpay the market.

These, the Gencos said were signs to show the country’s electricity market is in deep trouble and likely not going to inspire growth but further decline.

A market operating on conjecture Key amongst the complaints of the Gencos is the execution of the market’s Transitional Electricity Market (TEM) which was declared in 2015, and within which commercial interactions between operators should be backed with contracts such as the Power Purchase Agreements (PPA), Ancillary Agreements, Gas Supply Agreements (GSA), and Vesting Contracts amongst others.

In their estimation, the Gencos claimed the TEM does not exist, adding that at best, the country’s electricity market is been run on conjecture, as against using enforceable commercial terms.

Their association - APGC, explained that even though provisions in the TEM assured they would get full payments for power they supply to the national grid, they were yet to get full payments of their invoices to the market.

In a note, the Executive Secretary of APGC, Dr. Joy Ogaji, had stated that there were no binding contracts in the market at the moment, thus, indicating the market is perhaps on a free-fall. “Under the Electric Power Sector Reform Act (EPSRA) 2005, the electricity market in Nigeria would be administered by a number of industry contracts and market rules. The investment on generation is at the instance of the off-taker (in this case NBET). “TEM was declared on 1st February, 2015.

The declaration of the Transitional Electricity Market (TEM) would signal the commencement of all contracts but contrary to the TEM promise, the conditions for declaring it are still far away. “Without effective contracts – Power Purchase Agreements (PPA), Ancillary Agreements, Gas Supply Agreements (GSA), Vesting Contracts between Discos and NBET and other industry contracts, TEM cannot be said to have taken off,� the Gencos claimed.

The non-operation of the TEM, they further explained had placed on them huge financial burdens and barred them from expanding their operations.

According to them: “The TEM promise of 100 per cent Genco invoice settlement by NBET failed, placing a big financial burden on the Gencos. The promise provoked some additional investments by Gencos with its attendant high cost of capital, increased regulatory risk, increased debt profile. “The Gencos were made to bear the brunt of this lack-lustre performance on the part of NBET and other market participants. The power sector is yet to attain a contractual market status.

One of the notable functions of a contract is to facilitate forward planning and to make provision for future contingencies.�

In their estimation, the current market situation, “gives room for conjectures, no contract is binding, and all are on best endeavour.�

For instance, they stated that the absence of effective contracts to backstop gas supply agreements in terms of bankability, currently puts them in a tight corner, adding: “Instances abound where Gencos have had to resort to other means other than the electricity market to support the gas and other services just to put power on the grid.�

On the imperative of the guarantee for the Gencos, they noted that the role of guarantees in the power value chain was important for their operations, and would want this to be rectified. “With the existence of an enhanced payment security, Gencos will be able to fund working capital and raise capital expenditure to upgrade their operations in order to meet the electricity demands of Nigeria. Gencos requires adequate payment security from NBET as per the PPA to back stop payments due under the PPA,� they stated.

Subjective market practices Further, the Gencos complained the market has continued to tolerate alleged arbitrary practices of Discos, to the detriment of their operations.

They claimed the Discos now arbitrarily determine how much electricity Nigerians can enjoy every day, as against how much they (Gencos) can generate and put on the grid for distribution, adding the practice was against the rules guiding the market’s operations.

The Discos, they alleged, indulge in the arbitrary practice with the knowledge of the regulator – NERC, which by the way had refuted the claims.

The Gencos were made to bear the brunt of this lack-lustre performance on the part of NBET and other market participants.

The power sector is yet to attain a contractual market status. One of the notable functions of a contract is to facilitate forward planning and to make provision for future contingencies

The Gencos however said the NERC had in connivance with the Discos included in the TEM Supplementary Order of 2015, terms that limited the volume of electricity they can put on the grid and be paid for.

Ogaji, again explained to THISDAY that the reduction in the Gencos’ billable generation capacity was instigated by the Discos and approved by the NERC without considering their thoughts and impacts of same.

According to the Gencos, the practice meant that Discos determined what the power system could take and not what Gencos are willing and available to sell, adding that NERC, went on to direct that metered energy be converted into capacity for billing. “This regulatory directive, on a monthly basis, brings down the actual billable mobilised Gencos capacity, leading to the Discos billed less. It is believed that this reduction of capacity during billing was instigated by the Discos and the regulator approved of it. “The current state of the market, where a generation company is short-changed for the benefit of other market participant negates the tenets of the Multi-Year Tariff Order (MYTO),� said the Gencos.

They noted: “The result of the foregoing is that, Gencos have not been receiving full payment for the electricity supplied by them, while the gas suppliers have also not been receiving full payments for gas supplied to the Gencos. “This has accounted for the sub-optimal growth, inefficient operation and the current dire situation of the Gencos, which has huge negative impact on the entire power sector. The current NESI, completely negates the tenets of the MYTO as a model to incentivise prudent operators.�

According to them: “In summary, the current tariff is calculated for the Discos based on the actual generation, meaning what each Disco actually receive on monthly bases as dictated by themselves in line with their load rejection and allowed by the regulator (this can be verified from NERC). “This clearly implies that the power on the grid is determined purely by what the Discos decide to take and not what is declared as available to be supplied by the Gencos or documented by the System Operator.� “If this is the case, we do not see how the Discos whose abysmal performance is responsible for the state of the market cries wolf and foul.

It is akin to the story of the millipede and the person who stepped on the millipede. The NESI should move past this attention seeking behaviour to a reality and solution seeking mode,� the Gencos added.

Regulatory risks, undefined commercial terms Again, the Gencos in their many complaints,

also said they do not have absolute confidence on the ability of the NERC to optimally regulate the power market. They as well questioned the terms of Nigeria’s sale of electricity generated by them to some West African countries.

With regards to the NERC’s governance of the sector, the Gencos alleged the NERC had been fragile in the past, and currently has no control of developments in the market.

They claimed the Nigerian government takes power from them and sell to countries in West Africa under the West African Power Pool (WAPP) not on commercial but diplomatic terms, adding that this has remained opaque because they often do not know the monetary value that is due to them from such sales.

According to them, the NERC currently do not have a means of independently validating the Aggregate Technical, Commercial and Collection (ATC&C) loss reduction figures of the 11 Discos, and that the sector is currently faced with lots of regulatory risks occasioned by regulatory uncertainties; government’s continued influence in the affairs of the regulator; and NERC’s ineffective regulations. “Arguably, since the completion of the privatisation process, NERC has, in our view, been ineffectual in discharging its regulatory functions.

The power sector is still faced with regulatory risks arising from regulatory uncertainties, government’s continued influence in the affairs of the regulator and ineffective regulation of the sector by NERC. “The technical and operational capabilities of NERC need to be further strengthened to address obvious gaps in the Commission’s regulation of the power sector so far, which can be described as being reactive rather than proactive. For instance, NERC has no means of independently validating ATC&C loss reductions achieved by Disco (if at all),� said the Gencos.

They added: “Regulatory independence is key to private sector confidence in the power sector and has a significant effect on the ability of government to attract and sustain investments in the power sector. NERC pursuant to the provisions of the EPSR 2005) sections 32 and 96, has the mandate to provide leadership and coordination. “Currently, there is lack of coordination and consistency across industry stakeholders leading to overlap of responsibilities and unclear boundaries among organisations; regulatory uncertainty related to NERC decision and tariff setting; capacity and skills constraints across the industry; scarcity of capital; lack of accountability due to absence of corporate governance.�

On Nigeria’s daily export of about 300 megawatts (MW) electricity to African countries, the Gencos explained that the agreement does not coincide with the Multi Year Tariff Order (MYTO) upon which they also produce power.

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BUSINESSWORLD

INDUSTRY

Awolowo:Nigeria Must Develop Alternative Sources of Forex Revenue The Chief Executive Officer of Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), Segun Awolowo, in this interview, among other issues, speaks on the need to boost activities in the country’s non-oil sector. Jonathan Eze presents the excerpts: How would you access Nigerian outing at the recently held Intra African Trade Fair?

It was to showcase to the world that Nigeria is ready for business, so we had a very good message starting with our Minister, Dr. Okechukwu Enelamah, in his goodwill message demonstrating to Africa that Nigeria is ready for business especially with the reforms we are carrying on the Ease of Doing Business (EOB). I am also elated with the fact that Vice President Yemi Osinbajo was able to grace the occasion and we also had the goodwill message from President Muhammadu Buhari. We also had a very good message too from the African Trade Commissioner who represented the African Union and of course to cap it all the presentation of the documentary which was masterly packaged showcasing the progress we had made as a country and the need for the world to think Nigeria as a destination of choice.

It was indeed a fantastic event, which also enabled us showcase our culture laced in dynamic energy and our creative industry brought to fore the fact that Nigeria is not just about oil at all and that’s what we demonstrated. The musical performances by Dbanj, Tuface Idibia, Omawunmi and the Kalakuta crew were just few among what Nigeria exported to Egypt that delighted Africans and the world. flThe exhibitors we spoke with, many of them expressed satisfaction with the role Nigeria Export Promotion Council (NEPC) played in bringing them to Cairo, Egypt. We had so many products as you have seen yourself. So in total, we had about 140 companies and I think we were the biggest by far in the trade fair event.

Even Egypt, the host country could not match us, a pointer to the fact that Nigeria of course is the biggest economy in Africa and that we have so much to offer. We must continue to embark on this kind of trade mission in order to promote our businesses particularly the SMEs that have no international partners outside, the big companies are well connected so they really don’t need anything, apart from the companies that clustered with us, clustered with the Bank of Industry, we had independent companies all from Nigeria all around the exhibition halls that was just amazing so we just must continue showing them what the competition is.

You also know that it wasn’t a seller’s market and not a buyers’ market. It was basically a trade fair and in trade show, you come, you show what you have and at the end of it, you get some business meetings, people that come around get to say oh! You have this in Nigeria then they start talking to you and make the connection, for trade really is building trust so this set a platform for trust to be built and then you can go back home scale up and start your export.

What about the export trading company you proposed to Central Bank of Nigeria?

Yes, I had the honour of addressing the Bankers committee chaired by the Governor of Central Bank (CBN) and it was interesting the topic they chose which had to do with non-oil export and we had been looking for that opportunity to engage them and we got it and it was a brilliant one. We had the Managing Director of all the banks in Nigeria and the CBN Governor in attendance. We put it out to them. One, we were looking at the Anchor Borrowers Programme for export and we were also looking at establishing an export trading company, not in the mood of the old boards, commodity board and the idea is to have a powerful company. So, at the end of the meeting, the CBN Governor constituted a committee made up of NEPC, NEXIM and the Business Development department of the CBN and I think with two other commercial banks. The Committee is chaired by the MD of UBA. So, we have till February to come up with what will work and that’s perfect for us because before, we were working with the NEC committee on export promotion which

Awolowo the CBN is also a member of, but we were working in isolation. But now we can easily get a commercialised private sector, I think that will help us. We recently had a problem with our cashew in Vietnam, we couldn’t sell off.

I think we had 30,000 metric tonnes that we couldn’t sell because they crashed the price.

They had some issues in Vietnam, it had nothing to do with us, nothing to do with quality, everything was perfect but they had some crisis that they couldn’t receive funding there again so the price had to crash, we knew because cashew was so good then and we knew it will get to a stage where the price would have to fall, we knew the trade zone we had i think was $1,100 but it was trading at $1,800 and people made money.

But Vietnamese could not absorb it again so

If we have 90 per cent of our foreign exchange in oil, and oil prices go down we will not have foreign exchange. So if we do not provide an alternate source of foreign exchange then we are going to be in trouble and that’s why we said Nigeria must scale up production

we had a crisis but low and behold, we now set up a meeting to meet up with the Vietnamese in Dubai. Nigeria, Côte d’Ivoire, Tanzania, and other countries that deal in cashew, so we all went to the meeting then we realised that Côte d’Ivoire was stocked with 500 metric tonnes that they couldn’t offload, ours was just 30,000, when you add that we are looking at $30 million or so. That, an export trading company can take up so the cashew farmer doesn’t have to suffer.

If the export company is heavily funded, they can afford the risk mitigation. Meanwhile, our farmers can’t sell off 30,000 metric tonnes. So, are they going to grow it again next year If they can’t sell off? So we have to start looking into it and what is going to happen again is that we are able to buy off then we can start processing, there is much to process. We can encourage processing so the company can buy more processing machines and am happy that AFREXIM Bank is thinking along this line which is perfect for us because if u really want to compete, you have to scale up your productivity.

For instance, if you want to be a major player in Cocoa and you are still producing 250,000 tonnes, how can you make it?

With the MoU you signed with Afreximbank for export promotion programme, what is for small businesses?

The agreement is major because you are able to loan money at a subsidised rate and there is even money to loan. This is not a grant, in fact the modern world is frowning at grants, and grants are for training and capacity development, not for funding of companies. You must structure your business to be profitable, if it is not profitable then, leave it, go into something else. Don’t wait all year round for grant. Businesses don’t work that way. What Afreximbank

is doing is to promote intra-African trade which we all know is the lowest continental trade in the world, we don’t just trade with ourselves so in order to promote that, there is a grant.

Afreximbank says let’s give you $1bilion you can use for export companies, scale up production, improve quality, have better packaging, that’s what the money is meant for. So companies that are looking good in scaling up will be pushed towards that. They can borrow money at a very low rate and then, the money is available so they can scale up production.

You talked about increasing trade volume

by N10 billion per year in the next seven years how do you hope to achieve this?

You are talking about my zero oil plan. What we did is that, we gave you total of about 22 sectors where we think Nigeria must scale up production in order to achieve this figures that we are talking about. We have seen another funny play on oil prices and this is exactly what happened three years ago and we are going back to that. If we have 90 per cent of our foreign exchange in oil, and oil prices go down we will not have foreign exchange so if we do not provide an alternate source of foreign exchange then we are going to be in trouble and that’s why we said Nigeria must scale up production. These are the areas that are thriving, these are the areas you can earn huge foreign exchange. We picked Petrochemical for example and you see Alhaji Aliko Dangote that has a petrochemical plant, when that comes on stream, we are going to be generating maybe in the first year some $3bilion and it is going to increase. Our total non- oil export now is over $2 billion dollars. So, on one product you rake in $3 billion and later $10 billion and that’s how to get there.

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BUSINESSWORLD

SMALL BUSINESS SOLUTION

Investing in Quality Soap Manufacturing, Packaging Godwin Uba The importance of establishing manufacturing industries in Nigeria cannot be over emphasised.

Through the establishment of manufacturing industries, jobs will be created, there will be increase in GDP, generate products for local consumption as well as export market to generate foreign exchange.

Despite the epileptic supply of electricity in the country, there are some investments in this area that have high consumption rate that the turnover rate can withstand with any overhead costs. Soap production (both Laundry and bathing soap) is an essential commodity used in every household, industries and institutions. It is used to keep the environment clean. Dry cleaners and industrial cleaners apply soap in washing and sanitation practices.

There are different brands of laundry soap (both bar and tablets) in the Nigerian market today.

However, not all of them possess the quality that the general public wanted. Only few of the products are of the required standard, and the quantities available in the market cannot meet the growing demand. It becomes imperative that more serious investors are needed in this business of production of high quality soaps.

Research has indicated that the supply is still far from the demand, considering the huge market and the rapid increase in population of Nigeria.

Raw Materials Requirements This project is considered worthwhile because all the raw materials are locally available. Also, the required technologies are locally made and the required human resources are also available. The raw materials required are basically vegetable oil, perfumes, caustic soda, salt or soda ash and water. These are all available in all major Nigerian markets.

Plants and Machinery Requirements: The machinery and equipment include mixer boiler, measuring tanks, moulds, soap slicing machine, stamper, cutter, plastic container, jars, hydrometer and scales. These machines are fabricated locally. There is also imported machinery. The choice and selection is left to the investor, and on the size of the investment.

Production Capacity: The plant under consideration is to produce between 250 cartons per day and each carton will contain about 30 pieces of bar soap. Tablet

soap measuring between 3’’ x 2’’, 15’’ x 12’’ The machines for the soap are locally available. These machineries have been tested and found to be very reliable, standard and durable and will be made available to prospective investors on request.

are then wrapped and packed into cartons for the marketing.

Note that packaging is very important. Therefore there is need to ensure that quality packaging is maintained with very attractive packs.

Production Technology: The entire production process consists of three simple steps. These include the cold, semi-boiled and fully boiled processes.

Production process involves first and foremost, making of caustic soda and soda ash solution using dry clean plastic containers, measured in specific concentration using the hydrometer.

Secondly, the solutions are reacted with a chosen vegetable oil. The third stage is to add sulphuric and foaming agent. The resultant liquid soap is then allowed to congeal into solid soap using cooling moulds.

For detailed information contact the writer.

Whatever method of production that is applied, the final product is cut into slabs in the form of bars form tablets. The trade mark of the manufacturer is then engraved on the products. The products

Financial Analysis: The project can be started on a small scale.

For a medium and fairly large laundry soap production plant, the total cost for start-up is between N10.7million and above, depending on the proposed location Projected financial benefits are attractive and realistic. At full capacity, the proposed medium scale production plant will produce 250 cartons of soap (both tablets and bar) per day. Operating for 250 working days a total of 62,500 cartons is to be produced in the year. At a factory price of about N900 per carton, market selling price of about N1200 per carton, a total of over N56.2 million sales revenue is to be recorded I the first year of operation. Gross Profit of over N56.2 million is to realize in the same first year of operations.

Cost Estimates (N’000)

Preliminary expenses 300 Prepaid rent for two years 2,500 Plant & machinery 5,300 Furniture & fittings 250 Working Capital (N’000) Raw materials (2 month) 2,000 Packaging 1,500 Labour 1,200 Operating costs (1 month) 1,800 Total 10,750 For details on preparation of comprehensive & bankable feasibility studies/ report, sourcing & installation of quality & durable machines, Recruitment & Training, Sourcing of Investment funds please contact the writer Uba can be reached on 08023664368 or ubagodwin@ yahoo.com

Stanbic IBTC Offers School Fees Payment Solutions Stanbic IBTC Bank, a member of Stanbic IBTC Holdings Plc, has reassured parents and guardians of the bank’s readiness to help minimise the financial burden of paying their children/ wards fees as well as ensure stress free payment process through its e-solution offering.

The bank said it has a bouquet of educational payment solutions which includes Short Term Loans that are quick and easy to get, Salary Advance (SALAD) for salaried workers as well as its credit cards that parents can take advantage of at minimal cost.

Others are its international money transfer solutions for payment of school fees and allowances abroad and the digital payment options. It added that its prepaid cards are available to load pocket money for children/wards, while the credit cards, which currently offer a 55-day interest moratorium, can be used to seamlessly pay school fees. The school fees payment solutions according to the bank, underlines the importance it attaches to education. Executive Director, Personal and Business Banking, Stanbic IBTC Bank, Mr. Wole Adeniyi, was quoted

in a statement to have said a prosperous future for the family and the nation is hinged on the educational development of children, and that the bank is keen to offer the needed support to parents/guardians to ensure they bequeath their children this important legacy. “Stanbic IBTC appreciates the fundamental role education can and do play in transforming a society, which is why we have developed these products tailored to the needs of our customers to help them provide quality education for their children/wards,� Adeniyi said.

“Stanbic IBTC will continue to develop products and services to support the attainment of quality education.

The array of personal loan products is a fast, simple and convenient way by which customers can meet their short term financial obligations to educate their children. And the repayment terms are very convenient,� he added.

Other benefits of the school fees loans, according to Adeniyi, include low interest rates, access to a revolving line of credit, flexible repayment terms, and the opportunity to access credit up

to 100 per cent of the customer’s income. With schools resuming for a new term, the school fees loans will help to alleviate the financial burden parents and guardians may face in paying school fees.

To access the loan solutions from the bank, according to Adeniyi, the beneficiary only needs to be a salary account holder with Stanbic IBTC Bank or a customer who has investments with any of the group subsidiaries and then he/she can walk into any branch of the bank and apply for any of the smart loans in a few easy

steps. The application is then processed and the customer is contacted with feedback.

For customers with children/ wards studying overseas, he disclosed that the bank is ready to assist them access the needed foreign exchange, which it offers at very competitive rates, in making school fees payment seamless and painless. “Stanbic IBTC Bank will continue to leverage the expertise of the Stanbic IBTC Group to provide services and develop products that address the specific needs of our customers,� Adeniyi said.

LCCI Seeks Improved Business Environment for OPS Jonathan Eze The president, Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), Babatunde Ruwase, has called on policy makers in Lagos State to improve the business environment for the organised private sector (OPS), maintaining that the sector is vital for job and wealth creation.

He made the call in a private sector interactive forum with

governorship candidates of Lagos State organised by the LCCI at the weekend.

Ruwase, said Lagos is very strategic to the Nigerian economy, pointing out that the private sector in the state is a major stakeholder having regard to its contributions to the state’s internally generated revenue, job creation and general advancement of the economy of the state.

He added that the engagement with the governorship candidates of Lagos State was crucial, stating that the quality of political governance has profound implications for the quality of investment environment.According to him, without a conducive environment for businesses, there cannot be any meaningful economic progress.

This, he said could impede the capacity of the private sector to

create jobs and support revenue growth of government. “Democracy is about choice, and the value it bestows. The engagement of the candidates would give exposition that would guide our electoral choices,� he said.

The Governorship candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Jimi Agbaje, said if he is elected, his administration would deploy a leadership style where

power would be about service.

He added that he would also get private sectors to partner with his government to develop the nation’s health, infrastructure, improve the revenue base of the State, while also addressing multiplicity of taxes.

He pointed out that the way out of Nigeria’s poor power situation was to adopt what he termed embedded power, saying that his administration

would prioritise developmental efforts towards boosting power supply in the state. On his part, the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Babjide Sanwo-Olu, said that a wellthought out regulatory and legal framework is strategic to driving Public Private Partnership (PPP) operations in the state, stressing that when elected, he would deploy global best practices in the engagement of the OPS.

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T H I S D AY ˾ TUESDAY JANUARY 15, 2019

PROPERTY & ENVIRONMENT ‘Lafarge Africa is Only Company in Nigeria to Burn Biomass as Alternative Fuel on a Large Scale’ Lafarge Africa, a member of LafargeHolcim Group with global network presence in more than 50 countries on all continents, recently launched Geocycle services, a waste treatment and management activity that preserves natural resources and plays an important role in reducing the carbon footprint of the Group’s manufacturing plants. Geocycle is Nigeria’s first full-fledged alternative fuel business, and Lafarge Africa is the only company in Nigeria that burns biomass as alternative fuel on a large scale, Folashade Ambrose-Medebem, the Communications, Public Affairs and Sustainability Director, Lafarge Africa, tells Bennett Oghifo

W

hat is the significance of Lafarge Africa’s launch of Geocycle, as published recently in your company’s Sustainability Report?

Geocycle is the waste treatment and management activity of the LafargeHolcim Group, which has a global network that is present in more than 50 countries on all continents.

Geocycle services preserve natural resources and play an important role in reducing the carbon footprint of the Group’s manufacturing plants.

Geocycle is Nigeria’s first full-fledged alternative fuel business, and Lafarge Africa is the only company in Nigeria that burns biomass as alternative fuel on a large scale. The launch of Geocycle in Nigeria is a demonstration of Lafarge Africa’s commitment to Circular Economy as part of our Group, LafargeHolcim’s sustainability strategy, known as The 2030 Plan. Our ambition is to become the biggest private sector contributor to sustainable production, waste management and reduction of air pollution in Nigeria. The Geocycle brand therefore demonstrates our commitment to the sustainability of our planet’s future. As our Geocycle business grows, we contribute to cleaning our cities, maintaining the health of Nigerians and creating more jobs.

Tell us more about the recently published Sustainability Report The publication reveals vital indices on our sustainability performance in the country and our innovative contributions to its economy. It reports comprehensively on our specific contributions to Nigeria’s development through our numerous Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) projects under four pillars: Health and Safety, Education, Shelter/Infrastructure, and Economic/Youth Empowerment, as well as the four pillars of our Group Sustainable Development strategy - the 2030 Plan: Climate, Circular Economy, Water & Nature, and People & Communities. Apart from covering our major strides in creating a sustainable future, such as the Geocycle and quarry rehabilitation projects, it also captures testimonials from our host communities about the impacts of our social investment in their community. In 2017 for example, Lafarge Africa created the Cement Professionals Training Programme (CPTP), a programme aimed at helping youths with entrepreneurial spirit achieve their goals in the fields of technology, engineering, cement manufacturing, instrumentation and automation. With just a year into the programme, more than 30 youths have been impacted. We are also currently supporting more than 300 undergraduates with bursaries in host communities.

Lafarge Africa won four awards in the 2018 SERAS CSR-Africa Awards, the largest number received by any organisation. What are you doing differently or better than other organisations?

At Lafarge Africa, sustainability is

Folashade Ambrose-Medebem

an important part of our business strategy and our commitment to the development of our host communities is central to how we operate. Every year, we work with stakeholders including our host communities to identify Corporate Social Responsibility projects that will make the most impact and we execute them. Over the years, we have constructed school buildings, equipped health centers, provided educational bursaries for hundreds of indigenes and empowered youths with tools and resources to facilitate the economic development of their families and communities.

The Company also encourages employees to invest work hours in giving back to communities through the Friends of Community, Lafarge Africa’s volunteering programme.

This year alone, we have dedicated 4,150 hours to improving communities across Nigeria.

You recently concluded the 5th edition of the Lafarge Africa National Literacy Competition.

Why did Lafarge Africa decide on a literacy competition?

Aimed at improving literacy in public primary schools across Nigeria, the initiative since its inception 5 years ago, has impacted over 600,000 pupils from 886 public primary schools in 544 of the 774 local government areas in Nigeria. A few years ago, Nigeria

made news for being the country with the highest number of out-of-school children. This is worrying because an educated population is the foundation of any economy. Literacy has human, cultural, social, economic and political benefits and is increasingly crucial in the 21st century where economies are knowledge-based and lifelong learning is essential for long term development. This explains why countries work hard to educate their citizens. Responsible companies too, recognise the importance of education of which literacy is a key component.

At Lafarge Africa, our corporate interventions in education include building and renovating classrooms, awarding scholarships, bursaries and grants, donation of desks, chairs and stationery, and of course the Lafarge Africa National Literacy Competition.

The National Literacy Competition sits under the People and Communities pillar of LafargeHolcim’s 2030 Plan and Goal 4 (Quality Education) of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals with our objective being to bridge the literacy gap in Nigeria.

Literacy is indispensable to sustaining future generations of Nigerians and because sustainability is a core value of Lafarge, this is important to us.

Your record states that over 600,000 primary school pupils across Nigeria have been impacted

since 2014. Tell us how the National Literacy Competition works The Lafarge Africa National Literacy Competition is a very strategic literacy intervention designed to support the government’s efforts as it helps to improve reading, spelling and writing abilities of children in public primary schools. It is targeted at the most disadvantaged in the society and aims to bridge the literacy gap while also drawing attention to its scale and the need for curricular and co-curricular interventions from the public and private sector. The competition is run with the support of implementation partners including the Federal Ministry of Education, the Universal Basic Education Commission, State Universal Basic Education Boards (SUBEB), the Ovie Brume Foundation, British Council, Oando Foundation and UNESCO. To give a sense of the impact in 2017 alone, 3,912 pupils from 886 public primary schools in 544 of the 774 local government areas in Nigeria took part in 142 run-offs with support from 479 staff of SUBEB. Within this period, 202,390 pupils were provided with materials to improve their literacy with the help of 762 teachers. We are especially pleased that the competition was endorsed this year by the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) and the Federal Ministry of Education (FME) for the impact it has made across Nigeria.

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T H I S D AY ˾ TUESDAY JANUARY 15, 2019

PROPERTY & ENVIRONMENT

FIABCI Nigeria to Introduce Property Scorecard into Annual Awards Bennett Oghifo The Nigerian Property Scorecard, an assessment of the growth-rate in the nation’s real estate landscape, will be a new component of the Nigerian chapter of the International Real Estate Federation’s annual recognition of players in the sector.

FIABCI is the French acronym for “Federation Internationale des Administrateurs de Bien-Conselis Immobiliers”, which means “The International Real Estate Federation”. In its 61 years of existence, 47 years in Nigeria, FIABCI has built an enviable reputation. It represents the world’s real estate professions through its Special Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) of the United Nations Organisation.

FIABCI’s role in the United Nations is to make recommendations and provide advice on matters such as property rights, housing for the poor and money laundering.

With chapters currently operating in more than 60 countries, including Nigeria, FIABCI represents every discipline in the industry and links thousands of real estate professionals worldwide.

Members of FIABCI, in all the countries they exist, organise World Prix D’excellence

Awards annually during which the unique award is given to the real estate projects that embody excellence in all disciplines involved in their creation.

President FIABCI-Nigeria, Mr. Adeniji Adele, at a press conference, said they have resolved to include in their World Prix D’excellence Awards a session for the presentation of the nation’s real estate scorecard.

Thus, he said this year’s forum, which is slated for January 25, with the theme ‘Ease of doing business’, would have a morning session for discussions and presentation of the Nigerian Property Scorecard, which Adele said was designed after the International Property Markets Scorecard methodology, as developed by the Centre for International Private Enterprise and IHC Global.

Adele, who had with him the Vice President, Gbenga Ismail; Secretary General, Ayodeji Odeleye; and Treasurer, Akin Opatola, said they would discuss the property component of the ease-of-doing-business in Nigeria.

He added that FIABCI Nigeria would present the property scorecard in Nigeria continually until professionals in the industry did the right thing as a rule.

L-R: Secretary General, International Real Estate Federation (FIABCI) Nigeria, Ayodeji Odeleye; FIABCI Nigeria President, Adeniji Adele; FIABCINigeria Vice President, Gbenga Ismail; and Treasurer, Akin Opatola, at a press briefing on their annual assessment of the nation’s housing sector… recently

Another aspect to be discussed at the forum is the importance of attracting off-shore funds to local projects, according to the Vice President, Mr. Gbenga Ismail.

He said, “The scorecard will give us the core elements that Nigeria must score high on.

In spite of the challenges of doing business here, there are

a lot of opportunities. We just need to change out mind set.

“The core elements of the scorecard have financial transparency because we have to fight for financial stability too. It will help us to raise questions to the policymakers who will be present to address investors’ confidence.”

He said the Senior Special

Assistant to the President on Industry, Trade and Investment in the Office of the Vice President, Dr Jumoke Oduwole, would be the guest speaker while the Lagos State Commissioner for Housing, Mr Gbolahan Lawal, would be the special guest of honour.

Chairman, Honeywell Group, Dr. Oba Otudeko as

well as the World President, FIABCI International, Mr. Assen Makedonov, among others would also be in attendance.

The award categories are in affordable housing, hotel, retail, sustainable development, mixed use, residential housing both mid-rise and high-rise, office and industrial development among others.

AfDB Group Approves Investment in Climate Investor One’s Construction Equity Fund The Board of Directors of the African Development Bank Group has approved a USD 32.5 million equity investment in Climate Investor One’s (CIO) Construction Equity Fund (CEF), a platform that uses a unique blended finance approach, and targets the entire asset lifecycle to deliver viable renewable energy projects to the market.

According to a statement by AfDB, CIO will provide capital and technical assistance for

early stage project development to ensure that bankable energy projects are delivered to the market; invest equity for the construction of projects; and provide debt at competitive terms. The Bank’s participation will be limited to investments within Africa.

The Bank’s investment in the CIO’s CEF will be managed

by Climate Fund Managers (CFM), a joint venture between Netherlands Development Finance Company (FMO)

and Sanlam InfraWorks. The Fund’s focus on investing in early stage project development will also assure the timely implementation of well-prepared projects.

Speaking at the Board meeting, Amadou Hott, the Bank’s Vice President for Power, Energy, Climate Change and Green Growth said, “Significant investments are required to close the infrastructure gap and meet energy access goals. The Bank’s investment in the Fund

will complement its operations in the energy sector, and unlock at least an additional USD 40 million dollars of investments into Africa. With nearly 600 million Africans without access to energy, there is a huge market for the Fund to invest and generate a return for its investors.”

Wale Shonibare, the Bank’s Director of Energy Financial Solutions, Policy & Regulation, added that the Bank would be playing a key role

as knowledge repository for Africa, “enabling CFM to better gauge investment opportunities while ensuring that the highest environmental and social standards are applied to the CEF’s projects.”

Climate Investor One aligns with the Bank’s New Deal on Energy and the High 5 priorities to ‘Light up and Power Africa’, and ‘Improve the quality of lives of Africans’. It is also consistent with the Bank’s Climate Change Action Plan II

which supports infrastructure development and prioritizes the power sector and private sector development, and with the Bank’s 10-year strategy for 2013-2022, including the transition to green growth.

The CEF will have a measurable social and environmental impact by supporting the establishment of clean energy projects in developing markets, by creating jobs and providing access to electricity in an under-developed market.

NCF Holds the 17th Chief Builders Show: When Wood Falls Short, Steel I-Beams S. L. Edu Memorial Lecture Do the Trick The Nigerian Conservation Foundation (NCF) holds the 17th edition of the annual Chief S.L. Edu Memorial Lecture this week, on Thursday, 17th January, at Bankers’ House, Victoria Island, Lagos.

This year’s lecture with the theme “A Quiet Revolution – Faith and the Environment” will be delivered by Martin Palmer, Secretary General, Alliance of Religions and Conservation (ARC), Bath, United Kingdom, according to a statement by NCF’s Director General, Dr. Muhtari Aminu-Kano.

Chief S.L. Edu Memorial Lecture is an annual event organised by NCF in collaboration with the S.L. Edu Family and the support of Chevron Nigeria Limited aimed at bringing environmental issues to the fore of national discourse while articulating solutions.

Speakers from diverse backgrounds ranging from academic, conservation, government, corporates and more have delivered lectures on environmental conservation, policies and other topical issues.

Some of the topics and guest speakers in its 17-year history include: Environmental Management: Imperatives in Africa’s Sustainable Development – Prof. Charles Okidi, University of Kenya; Environmental Policy and Performance: a Sustainable Development Agenda for Nigeria – Chief (Dr.) Ernest Shonekan, former Head of Interim Government in Nigeria; Decline of Vultures: Consequences of Human Health and the Economy” - Ms. Amina Mohammed, former Minister of Environment, Nigeria, and currently Deputy Secretary General of the United Nations.

As the International Builders Show, slated for Las Vegas, USA, next month, draws near, manufacturers of construction systems are dishing out tips on what they have to offer.

Here is something nice about the use of steel beams when wood becomes insufficient.

If you are an experienced builder and a skilled carpenter, working with steel is a reasonable leap. If it were a choice, we would always choose to install wood beams over steel I-beams. Wood options are less expensive and easier for us—a bunch of carpenters—to work with.

But wood beams can only span so far before they will fail to do the job for a number of reasons. A flush wood beam that needs to span a long distance may need to be too deep to be concealed in the floor system it is intended

to support. Or, the required depth and width may be too chunky to look proportionate if installed under the floor system and wrapped with trim. And wood simply has limits. As wood beams are made larger and larger for greater spans or heavier loads, its strength does not increase proportionately. So, a wood beam will eventually fail under its own weight.

In these situations, we use steel I-beams.

What is tricky about installing a steel I-beam is the weight of the beam. In some cases, you may need a crane to hoist it into place.

Or even if you could do it without a crane, it may still be a worthwhile option to keep your job moving along.

Because our work is mostly remodeling, we have never had the luxury of a crane to

help us set a steel I-beam.

Often, we have to bring them right in the front door, or through a window. We use ramps and steel bars to roll the beam into position and a jack and cribbing to lift it, little by little, into place.

If it were being used as part of a first-floor system, a steel beam may be set on the foundation, but when it is set within a wood-framed wall, it is typically set on steel posts as well. Like all beams, a steel I-beam needs a continuous load path to the foundation.

Of course, if you are working with a steel I-beam, there will be an engineer involved in your project who will make sure that the entire structure meets code and has integrity.

The posts’ flanges and the I-beam flange will be predrilled for bolts, to join them together and to connect the

posts to the framing or to the foundation.

If the beam will be below the floor system, with joists landing on top of it, you can install a 2x plate on top of the beam for the joists to fasten to. If you are installing a flush I-beam—that is, the beam is to be concealed in the floor system with the joists connecting to the side of the beam—the space between the flanges gets packed out with wood and the joists are attached with joist hangers, as usual.

Steel is brutal on drill bits.

You can have the beam predrilled for the bolts you need to pack it out with wood, but keep in mind that the engineer needs to know exactly how the beam will be loaded. This will likely make a difference in the beam’s dimensions or the gauge of the steel.

30

T U E S DAY Ëž JANUARY 15, 2019

BUSINESS/MONEYGUIDE

Moody’s Foresees 2.3% Growth for Nigeria in 2019 Obinna Chima Moody’s Investors Service has predicted Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth of 2.3 per cent for Nigeria in 2019, slightly higher than an estimated 1.9 per cent in 2018.

The global rating agency stated this in a report titled: “Sovereigns -- Sub-Saharan Africa: 2019 outlook negative as fiscal, external challenges persist despite easing pressures,� made available to THISDAY yesterday.

Moody’s expects Africa’s gradual economic recovery of 2018 to continue this year, with regional real GDP growth anticipated to accelerate to 3.5 per cent in 2019, from an estimated 2.8 per cent in 2018.

The region’s two largest economies - Nigeria and South Africa – were expected to recover slowly, but growth in these two countries would remain well below levels seen in the first half of the decade, it stated.

In general, it stated that subsaharan African sovereigns’ negative outlook for 2019 reflects credit challenges that stem from fiscal and external vulnerabilities amid tightening global liquidity conditions and rising global

trade tensions, despite gradually improving growth prospects.

According to the report, going into 2019, 15 of the 21 sovereigns that Moody’s rates in the SubSaharan Africa (SSA) region have a stable outlook, while six hold a negative outlook. “Our negative outlook for sovereigns in Sub-Saharan Africa is driven by persistent credit challenges related to their ongoing fiscal and external vulnerabilities,�

Assistant Vice President -- Analyst and author of the report, Daniela Re Fraschini said.

Fraschini added: “That said, we expect credit pressures to ease relative to previous years, despite a more challenging external environment, as credit profiles display some resilience at their lower rating levels.�

In South Africa, Moody’s projected that real GDP growth would reach 1.3 per cent in 2019, from an estimated 0.5 per cent in 2018. “Most governments across the region plan further fiscal consolidation this year, although progress remains gradual amid still soft growth conditions in some cases. The presence of IMF programs throughout the region supports the fiscal outlook and reform impetus for 2019,�

it added. “With few exceptions, Moody’s expected government debt ratios to deteriorate only marginally or stabilise in 2019, reflecting ongoing fiscal consolidation and the positive impact of higher growth rates on the denominator of debt-to-GDP. Furthermore, it stated that debt trajectories for a number of sovereigns were expected to remain vulnerable to lowerthan-expected growth, exchange rate depreciations and contingent liability risk from weak state-owned enterprises. Debt affordability will continue to weaken in a number of countries, it added. “Exposures to tightening global financing conditions vary across the region. Sovereigns with large current account deficits, high external debt repayments and large shares of foreign-currency debt are likely to continue to experience external pressures. “Political risk remains a key credit constraint for several SSA sovereigns. The sources of political risk -- ranging from domestic civil unrest, conflicts, succession risk, or simply from policy unpredictability -- and their credit implications vary across the region,� it added.

Banks Unlikely to Post Larger Profits in 2019, Says CMB Coronation Merchant Bank Limited (CMB) has predicted that commercial banks in the country will be unlikely to post large gains in profits this year.

The investment bank which stated this in its 2019 Macroeconomic Outlook released yesterday, also anticipated that the banks would be unlikely to experience much loan growth, given the weak economy and the fact that they can benefit from high treasury bills yields.

Providing insights into the report, the Head of Research, CMB, Guy Czatoryski, pointed out that if interest rates come down later in the year and the market conditions improve, then there could be a sharp rally in bank stocks later in the year.

In addition, the bank predicted an average of $58 per barrel of oil for 2019, adding that an average price below it would mean that the Central Bank of Nigeria would have to keep rates very high and

could even challenge the naira/ dollar exchange rate. “An average much about $60 per barrel means the CBN will feel confident about the currency and will be able to cut rates later in the year, in the fourth quarter, less likely in third quarter. “The current rate of N365.48/$ is likely to prevail this year. The CBN’s policy is to defend the rate and with reserves at $43 billion, it is in strong position to do so.

We think the CBN will supply US dollars to the FX markets at an average rate of $500 million per month during 2019. This is compatible with maintaining a strong reserve level. “If, as we think, the oil prices will average $58/bbl this year, then we think the CBN will want to keep interest rates high. It will do this through its open market operations (OMO). We think OMOs will be issued in a range of 17 per cent to 19 per cent and that treasury bills rates will be

very close to this level during 2019,� Czatoryski explained.

According to him, if oil trades at substantially above $60/bbl in 2019, then foreign investors in treasury bills would be encouraged and the CBN might well be in a position to cut rates in Q4 2019, or even in Q3 2019 He added: “This could be helped by a downtrend in inflation. Inflation has proved stubborn and has trended at around 11 per cent over the past few months. But if inflation trends, in 2019, towards the CBN’s target band of six to nine per cent, then it will help the CBN cut rates in order to stimulate the economy. “We are agnostic on politics.

However, there is some evidence that in the period after general elections (2011 and 2015) yields in the T-bill market tend to fall.

This might help persuade the CBN to cut OMO rates later in the year.�

CBN Moves to Boost Financial Inclusion National Financial inclusion stakeholders in Nigeria, led by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) will this Thursday and Friday gather for the launch of key policy documents aimed at facilitating the attainment of the financial inclusion target of 80 per cent by 2020.

The event would hold in Abuja.

Policy documents to be unveiled at the conference expected to attract over 400 delegates are the Revised National Financial Inclusion Strategy (NFIS 2.0); the Financial Literacy Framework; the Consumer Protection Framework and the Consumer Education framework.

According to details obtained from the CBN, the conference also aims to ensure that new comers into the financial inclusion bracket are adequately

protected and educated in line with the provisions of the policy documents.

Other objectives of the twoday conference to be declared open by the CBN Governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele, are to update participants on the growing sophistication of the financial market, the competitive environment in which financial services providers operate, and the benefit and value of providing access to financial services among others.

While hoping to enhance consumer confidence and trust in the financial services to facilitate progress towards achieving 80 per cent financial inclusion target by 2020, the CBN and other stakeholders also seek to obtain customer feedback on how best to implement the financial

inclusion policies.

Latest figures released by Enhancing Financial Innovation and Access (EFInA) indicate that 36.6 million Nigerian adults, representing about 36.8 per cent of the Nigerian adult population, do not have access to formal financial Services.

To achieve its financial inclusion target, Nigeria, through the National Financial Inclusion stakeholders, seeks to cut the exclusion rate down to 20 per cent by the year 2020, hence various public and private organisations under the auspices of National Financial inclusion stakeholders have been working assiduously since the launch of the first National Financial Inclusion Strategy in 2012 to achieve the objective of 80 per cent inclusion by 2020.

Chief Technical OďŹƒcer, Digital Jewels, Mobolaji Odumosu; International Standards (ISO) Lead Auditor, Exchange Telecommunications Limited(ETL), Olukorede Olukoya; Managing Director/Chief Executive OďŹƒcer, Digital Jewels, Adedoyin Odunfa; ISO Project Lead, ETL, Oluwatoyosi Adebakin; ISO ISMS and BCMS Manager, ETL, Eboojor Ogoh and Chief Marketing OďŹƒcer, Digital Jewels, Adenike Akinlade at the ETL awards ceremony held in Lagos‌recently.

MARKET INDICATORS MONEY AND CREDIT STATISTICS

(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 FRIDAY, 11 JANUARY 2019

The price of OPEC basket of fourteen crudes stood at $60.00 a barrel on Friday, compared with $59.46 the previous day, according to OPEC Secretariat calculations.

The OPEC Reference Basket of Crudes (ORB) is made up of the following: Saharan Blend (Algeria), Girassol (Angola), Djeno (Congo), 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), Arab Light (Saudi Arabia), Murban (UAE) and Merey (Venezuela).

SOURCE: OPEC headquarters, Vienna

31

T U E S DAY ˾ JANUARY 15, 2019

MARKET NEWS

Broker Calls for Collaboration to Attract More Investors to Market Goddy Egene A former Chairman of Association of Stockbroking Houses of Nigeria (ASHON), Mr. Emeka Madubuike, yesterday called on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) and other stakeholders to collaborate more in a bid to attract more retail investors to the nation’s capital market.

Speaking at the exchange in Lagos, during the NSE

Chief Executive Officer’s 2018 Market Recap and 2019 outlook presentation, Madubuike, who is the Managing Director of Compass Investment and Securities Limited, said rather than working in silos, the NSE, stockbroking community and other stakeholders should work together and attract more investors to the market.

“Despite assurances of reaching out to more retail investors, the NSE has not done much. I

P R I C E S MAIN BOARD

F O R

DEALS

believe the NSE should work with intermediaries such as stockbrokers and organise outreaches throughout the country to get more investors to the market,” he said.

Responding, the CEO of NSE, Mr. Oscar Onyema said while there was the need for collaboration in the market, he said there are better ways to reach the investors using technology.

Meanwhile, reviewing the performance of the stock marketin

S E C U R I T I E S

MARKET PRICE

QUANTITY TRADED

VALUE TRADED ( N )

2018, said equity market started the year on a high, with the All Share Index (ASI) reaching a 10 -year peak of 45,092.83 in January.

“This was largely driven by the positive performance of the ASI in 2017 which emerged the best in Africa. As we approached the second quarter, political risks, oil price volatility and rising global yields resulted in bearish sentiments that saw the ASI and equity market capitalisation fall by 17.81 per cent and 13.87 per

T R A D E D MAIN BOARD

A S

cent to close at 31,430.50 and N11.73trillion respectively.”

According to him, while listing activity remained relatively low during the year, (one listing and four delistings) equity turnover remained relatively stable, marginally declining by 5.45 per cent to N1.20 trillion.

“Turnover velocity inched up 0.91 percentage points to 10.25 per cent and likewise, the size of volumes traded in the period increased by 0.96 per

O F

cent to 101.43billion with the Financial Services sector being responsible for the highest traded volume and value. In the year under review, foreign portfolio investments outpaced domestic participation by 1.73 per cent, accounting for 50.87 per cent of total transactions, while domestic transactions accounted for 49.13 per cent. Within Domestic Institutional order flow was 56 per cent while retail order flow was 44 per cent.”

1 4 / 0 1 / 2 0 1 9 DEALS

MARKET PRICE

QUANTITY TRADED

VALUE TRADED ( N)

˾ TUESDAY, JANUARY 15, 2019

32

Tuesday, January 15 2019

THISDAY AFRINVEST 40 INDEX

Thisday Afrinvest 40 Index Up 0.28% Yesterday, the Thisday Afrinvest 40 Index rose 28bps to

Fundamental Performance Metrics for THISDAY AFRINVEST 40 Index

ĐůŽƐĞ Ăƚ ϭ͕ϯϵϴ͘Ϭϴ ĂƐ ƉƌŝĐĞ ĂƉƉƌĞĐŝĂƟŽŶ ŝŶ DANGCEM (1.7%), Ticker

FBNH (1.4%) and UBA (0.7%) weighed most on the index. dŚĞƐĞ ƐƚŽĐŬƐ ĐƵŵƵůĂƟǀĞůLJ ĂĐĐŽƵŶƚ ĨŽƌ ϭϴ͘ϱй ŽĨ ƚŚĞ ŝŶĚĞdž͘

Price Price Previous Current Change Change Price Weighting YTD Index to Change Date

THISDAY AFRINVEST 40 1,398.08

0.28%

ROE

ROA

P/E

P/BV

39.8%

20.6%

7.7%

5.6x

0.7x

5.4%

14.1%

-2.8%

-2.9%

34.1%

5.6%

5.0x

1.9x

8.1%

20.0%

3.7x

0.9x

12.6%

26.7%

18.8x

4.0x

5.8%

5.3%

19.7x

3.4%

3.9%

Guaranty Trust Bank PLC

33.50

0.0%

19.5%

21.80

-0.2%

12.3%

-5.4%

-5.4%

23.7%

3.4%

180.00

1.7%

8.9%

-5.1%

-3.2%

20.1%

9.8%

1,401.10

0.0%

8.0%

-5.6%

-5.0%

85.8%

26.3%

25.3x

2

ŽŵĞƐƟĐ ŽƵƌƐĞ Opens Trading Week WŽƐŝƟǀĞ͙ ^/ ƵƉ

3

Dangote Cement PLC

0.4%

4

Nestle Nigeria PLC

5

Nigerian Brew eries PLC

6

FBN Holdings Plc

78.00

0.0%

5.8%

-8.8%

-0.4%

13.8%

6.4%

26.1x

3.7x

4.8%

3.8%

7.50

1.4%

5.2%

-5.7%

-6.3%

6.6%

0.8%

5.4x

0.4x

3.3%

18.6%

3.4x

0.5x

11.5%

29.8%

0.6x

3.2%

39.8%

11.5%

7

United Bank for Africa PLC

7.40

0.7%

4.4%

-3.9%

-5.1%

15.4%

1.8%

8

International Brew eries PLC

31.00

0.0%

3.7%

1.6%

-1.6%

-23.8%

-3.2%

FBNH (+1.4%), and DIAMOND (+3.9%) drove the All Share

9

SEPLAT Petroleum Development C

576.00

0.0%

3.3%

-10.0%

-10.0%

25.9%

15.3%

Index 0.4% higher to 29,964.79 points. Consequently, YTD

10

Access Bank PLC

11

Ecobank Transnational Inc

ǁĞĞŬ ŽŶ Ă ƉŽƐŝƟǀĞ ŶŽƚĞ ĂƐ ŐĂŝŶƐ ŝŶ DANGCEM (+1.7%),

return moderated to -ϰ͘ϳй ǁŚŝůĞ ŵĂƌŬĞƚ ĐĂƉŝƚĂůŝƐĂƟŽŶ ƌŽƐĞ ďLJ EϱϬ͘ϬďŶ ƚŽ Eϭϭ͘ϮƚŶ͘ KŶ ƚŚĞ ŽƚŚĞƌ ŚĂŶĚ͕ ĂĐƟǀŝƚLJ ůĞǀĞů ǁĞĂŬĞŶĞĚ ĂƐ ǀŽůƵŵĞ ĂŶĚ ǀĂůƵĞ ƚƌĂĚĞĚ ĚĞĐƌĞĂƐĞĚ ϯϱ͘ϴй ƚŽ

Divinden Earnings d Yield Yield

-9.4%

1

Zenith Bank PLC

dŚĞ ĚŽŵĞƐƟĐ ďŽƵƌƐĞ ŽƉĞŶĞĚ ƚŚĞ ĮƌƐƚ ƚƌĂĚŝŶŐ ƐĞƐƐŝŽŶ ŽĨ ƚŚĞ

Current Price

7.6x 2.5x

5.65

0.0%

2.9%

-16.9%

-13.1%

14.1%

1.7%

2.4x

0.3x

13.50

0.0%

2.9%

-3.6%

-5.6%

12.1%

1.0%

4.2x

0.5x

-1.1%

42.5% 23.7%

12

Stanbic IBTC Holdings PLC

46.15

0.0%

2.7%

-3.8%

-3.8%

35.7%

4.6%

6.8x

2.2x

2.2%

13

Unilever Nigeria PLC

37.00

0.0%

2.5%

0.0%

0.0%

24.7%

11.5%

17.2x

2.6x

1.4%

5.8%

14

Lafarge Africa PLC

12.50

2.0%

1.8%

0.4%

4.2%

-53.7%

-7.9%

0.8x

11.4%

-50.4%

14.6%

15

Guinness Nigeria PLC

66.00

0.0%

1.3%

-8.3%

-8.3%

8.8%

5.0%

17.7x

1.6x

2.8%

5.6%

ϭϯϮ͘ϰŵ ƵŶŝƚƐ ĂŶĚ ϲϬ͘ϱй ƚŽ Eϭ͘ϭďŶ͘ dŚĞ ƚŽƉ ƚƌĂĚĞĚ ƐƚŽĐŬƐ

16

Okomu Oil Palm PLC

82.00

0.0%

1.5%

7.6%

7.6%

39.3%

29.7%

7.8x

2.7x

3.8%

12.8%

by volume were DIAMOND ;ϱϬ͘ϭŵ ƵŶŝƚƐͿ͕ ACCESS ;ϭϲ͘ϱŵ

17

Total Nigeria PLC

200.20

0.0%

1.3%

-1.4%

-1.4%

34.6%

7.5%

7.0x

2.3x

8.6%

14.3%

184.00

0.0%

1.3%

-0.8%

-0.8%

38.0%

16.8%

6.1x

2.1x

4.3%

16.3%

19.30

0.0%

1.0%

-16.5%

-13.1%

7.6%

2.3%

6.6x

0.5x

5.3%

15.1%

5.5%

38.3%

18

11 PLC

units) and ZENITH (12.3m units) while the top traded stocks

19

Flour Mills of Nigeria PLC

by value were ZENITH (N268.6m), GUARANTY (N177.4m)

20

Oando PLC

4.30

0.0%

1.0%

-14.0%

-10.4%

10.9%

1.7%

3.6x

0.3x

21

Fidelity Bank PLC

2.00

0.0%

1.1%

-1.5%

-1.5%

11.3%

1.5%

2.6x

0.3x

22

Transnational Corp of Nigeria

1.30

0.8%

1.0%

-1.5%

0.8%

13.6%

3.0%

6.2x

0.8x

1.5%

16.2%

23

Dangote Sugar Refinery PLC

14.00

0.0%

0.9%

-8.2%

-5.4%

32.6%

16.4%

5.6x

1.6x

12.0%

17.9%

-3.7%

-2.3%

-5.8%

-0.7%

-5.6%

8.4%

1.2%

2.2x

0.2x

5.8%

and GUINNESS (N126.3m).

ĞĂƌŝƐŚ ^ĞĐƚŽƌ WĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ WĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ ĂĐƌŽƐƐ ƐĞĐƚŽƌƐ ǁĂƐ ďĞĂƌŝƐŚ ĂƐ ϰ ŽĨ ϱ ŝŶĚŝĐĞƐ under our coverage closed in the red. The Industrial Goods index was the lone gainer, up 1.1% due to price ĂƉƉƌĞĐŝĂƟŽŶ ŝŶ WAPCO (+2.0%) and DANGCEM ;нϭ͘ϳйͿ͘ KŶ ƚŚĞ ŇŝƉ ƐŝĚĞ͕ ƚŚĞ /ŶƐƵƌĂŶĐĞ ĂŶĚ Kŝů Θ 'ĂƐ ŝŶĚŝĐĞƐ ƐŚĞĚ ϭ͘ϱй ĂŶĚ Ϭ͘ϯй ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞůLJ ĚƌĂŐŐĞĚ ďLJ ůŽƐƐĞƐ ŝŶ LINKASSURE (9.2%), LASACO (-3.3%) and FORTE (-ϯ͘ϱйͿ͘ ůƐŽ͕ ƐĞůů pressures in ZENITH (-0.2%), WEMA (-8.3%) and GUINNESS (-ϭ͘ϱйͿ ǁĞŝŐŚĞĚ ŽŶ ƚŚĞ ĂŶŬŝŶŐ ;-0.1%) and Consumer Goods (-0.1%) indices.

24

Diamond Bank PLC

2.10

4.0%

0.8%

25

FCMB Group Plc

1.70

0.0%

0.6%

26

UAC of Nigeria PLC

8.70

0.0%

0.5%

-10.8%

-8.9%

0.4%

0.2%

68.4x

0.4x

7.5%

1.5%

27

Sterling Bank PLC

1.97

-0.5%

0.5%

3.7%

3.7%

10.6%

1.1%

5.2x

0.5x

1.0%

19.3%

ĚĞĐůŝŶĞ ƌĂƟŽͿ ǁĞĂŬĞŶĞĚ͕ ĂůďĞŝƚ ƐƚƌŽŶŐ ƚŽ ϭ͘Ϭdž ĨƌŽŵ ϲ͘Ϭdž recorded the previous trading session consequent on 11 ƐƚŽĐŬƐ ĂĚǀĂŶĐŝŶŐ ƌĞůĂƟǀĞ ƚŽ ϭϭ ĚĞĐůŝŶŝŶŐ͘ dŚĞ ďĞƐƚ performers were FIRSTALUM (+9.1%), UCAP ;нϱ͘ϯйͿ ĂŶĚ

9.1%)

and

NAHCO

(-8.3%)

led

laggards. Although

62.00

0.0%

0.4%

-3.1%

-3.1%

37.0%

24.8%

2.4x

0.8x

3.3%

40.8%

29

18.00

0.0%

0.4%

0.0%

0.0%

47.0%

17.5%

9.4x

4.2x

8.3%

10.7%

30

Forte Oil PLC

29.00

0.0%

0.4%

1.0%

3.6%

84.6%

8.3%

11.9x

2.2x

8.4%

31

Union Bank of Nigeria PLC

6.05

0.8%

0.4%

8.0%

8.0%

5.3%

1.0%

11.0x

0.6x

9.1%

32

Julius Berger Nigeria PLC

28.40

0.0%

0.4%

41.3%

28.5%

33

PZ Cussons Nigeria PLC

12.00

0.0%

0.3%

-0.8%

-2.4%

34

Chemical and Allied Products P

31.50

0.0%

0.2%

-9.6%

-9.6%

66.2%

30.2%

35

Wema Bank PLC

0.55

-8.3%

0.2%

-12.7%

-12.7%

6.6%

0.8%

36

Beta Glass PLC

67.00

0.0%

0.2%

-1.9%

-1.9%

17.7%

11.5%

37

Dangote Flour Mills Plc

6.30

0.8%

0.1%

-8.0%

-4.5%

ƐĞƐƐŝŽŶƐ ĂƐ ŝŶǀĞƐƚŽƌƐ Ŭ ƉƌŽĮƚ ĂŶĚ ǁĂŝƚ ŽŶ ƚŚĞ ƐŝĚĞůŝŶĞƐ Ɵůů ƉŽƐƚ-ĞůĞĐƟŽŶ ƐƚĂďŝůŝƚLJ ŝƐ ĞƐƚĂďůŝƐŚĞĚ͘

14.7x

9.8x

6.6%

6.3x

0.4x

8.1x

1.3x

1.8%

0.8x

3.2%

12.7%

6.8% 15.9% 12.3%

Cement Co Northern Nigeria PLC

20.00

0.0%

0.1%

3.1%

3.1%

34.2%

19.6%

4.8x

1.5x

6.2%

6.10

0.0%

0.1%

0.0%

0.0%

6.9%

3.8%

11.9x

0.8x

2.1%

8.4%

40

AXA Mansard Insurance PLC

1.80

0.0%

0.1%

-1.6%

-1.6%

10.5%

3.3%

9.4x

0.9x

3.3%

10.6%

P ric e

P ric e C hg %

0.36

9.1%

D IA M ON D B N K

50.1

3.5%

UC A P

2.98

5.3%

A C C ESS

16.5

0.0%

T ic k er

Vo lum e

P ric e C hg %

M B EN EF IT

0.21

5.0%

Z EN IT H B A N K

12.3

-0.2%

R OYA LEX

0.22

4.8%

T R A N SC OR P

9.8

0.8%

D IA M ON D B N K

2.09

3.5%

UB A

6.7

0.0%

FCM B

1.74

2.4%

GUA R A N T Y

5.3

0.0%

12.50

2.0%

FB NH

4.9

0.0%

180.00

1.7%

WEM A B A N K

3.8

-3.3%

6.05

0.8%

UC A P

2.9

5.3%

0.8%

ST ER LN B A N K

2.6

-0.5%

WA P C O

UB N D A N GF LOUR

20.7%

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

F IR ST A LUM

6.30

T o p 10 L o s e r s

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 %

T ic k er

Value

P ric e C hg %

LIN KA SSUR E

0.59

-9.2%

Z EN IT H B A N K

268.6

-0.2%

WA P IC

0.40

-9.1%

GUA R A N T Y

177.4

0.0%

NA HCO

3.21

-8.3%

GUIN N ESS

126.3

-1.5%

R ESOR T SA L

0.34

-8.1%

D IA M ON D B N K

103.6

3.5%

J A IZ B A N K

0.50

-5.7%

A C C ESS

92.4

0.0%

28.00

-3.4%

UB A

49.9

0.0%

WEM A B A N K

0.58

-3.3%

NB

45.4

0.0%

LA SA C O

0.29

-3.3%

D A N GC EM

42.0

1.7%

65.00

-1.5%

FB NH

36.2

0.0%

1.97

-0.5%

N EST LE

28.0

0.0%

GUIN N ESS ST ER LN B A N K

(A Dealing Member of the Nigerian Stock Exchange)

3.6% 1.3%

Transcorp Hotels Plc

FO

Afrinvest Securities Limited (RC 603 315)

1.2x 1.1x

38

T ic k er

ĂŶƟĐŝƉĂƚĞ ŶĞŐĂƟǀĞ ƉĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞƐ ŝŶ ƐƵďƐĞƋƵĞŶƚ ƚƌĂĚŝŶŐ

7.9x

39

ƉĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ ŚĂƐ ďĞĞŶ ƉŽƐŝƟǀĞ ŝŶ ƚŚĞ ůĂƐƚ ƚŚƌĞĞ ƚƌĂĚŝŶŐ sessions, we believe this trend would be short lived. We

45.0%

Presco PLC

D A N GC EM

MBENEFIT ;нϱ͘ϬйͿ ǁŚŝůĞ LINKASSURE (-9.2%), WAPIC (-

-33.4%

NASCON Allied Industries PLC

T ic k er

Investor ƐĞŶƟŵĞŶƚ ŵĞĂƐƵƌĞĚ ďLJ ŵĂƌŬĞƚ ďƌĞĂĚƚŚ ;ĂĚǀĂŶĐĞͬ

0.2x

28

T o p 10 G a i n e r s

/ŶǀĞƐƚŽƌ ^ĞŶƟŵĞŶƚ tĞĂŬĞŶƐ

27.9%

Investment Research

Brokerage Ayodeji Ebo | aebo@afrinvest.com

Robert Omotunde |

Bolaji Fajenyo | bfajenyo@afrinvest.com

Jolomi Odonghanro | jodonghanro@afrinvest.com

romotunde@afrinvest.com

T H I S D AY Ëž Ëœ ÍšÍ˝Ëœ ͺ͸͚͡

33

MARKET NEWS

Meristem Complies with Global Investment Performance Standards Goddy Egene Meristem Wealth Management Limited (MWML) has emerged the first indigenous Nigerian asset manager to claim compliance with Global Investment Performance Standards (GIPS).

GIPS are guidelines created by the Chartered Financial Analysts (CFA) Institute to provide ethical framework for the calculation and presentation of the performance history of

investment management firms.

Having fulfilled all the requirements of the GIPS through its asset management division, MWML has emerged the first to claim compliance with GIPS. Commenting on the development, Managing Director of MWML, Mr. SulaimanAdedokun, he said: “Becoming the first and only Nigerian Asset Management firm to claim GIPS compliance is simply Meristem Wealth

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

Management Limited living out its brand promise to grow wealth for our clients’ in good time and an atmosphere of transparency.�

According to him, MWML is a high performance-driven and transparent firm through and through. “Claiming compliance with GIPS is no mean feat but it’s worth achieving for the investment terrain in Nigeria and for the sake of our treasured clients who have given us the

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 11Jan-2019, unless otherwise stated.

privilege to serve them. We constantly seek to be open and transparent in all our dealings with our clients, they have our best assurance as we have successfully walked our talk in becoming the first and only GIPS compliant firm in Nigeria,� he added.

He explained that what they do in investment management industry revolves around developing investment plans for clients, executing such plans and finally providing feedback

by way of reporting to clients on their investments performance.

According to him, the reality is that in making such presentations, same performance can be reported in different ways to show different performance levels because various managers adopt different methods of calculating and presenting performance reports to the extent that a non-performing manager may present reports as if he were doing better.

All these make comparison of managers performance difficult and in an attempt to avoid these issues, the CFA Institute in 1999 published a set of standardised to provide an ethical framework for the calculations and presentation of the performance history of investment management firms,�

Adedokun said.

He said MWML decided to comply with GIPS to reinforce its value of professionalism and integrity.

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 N/A N/A N/A Afrinvest Plutus Fund N/A N/A N/A Nigeria International Debt Fund N/A N/A N/A 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 -0.25% ACAP Income Funds 0.61 0.61 10.58% 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 12.98% AIICO Balanced Fund 2.22 2.24 0.00% 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 97.98 98.67 -3.17% AXA Mansard Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 12.66% CHAPELHILL DENHAM MANAGEMENT LTD investmentmanagement@chapelhilldenham.com Web: www.chapelhilldenham.com, Tel: +234 461 0691 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Chapelhill Denham Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 14.11% Paramount Equity Fund 11.36 11.65 -2.99% Women's Investment Fund 99.97 102.53 -2.53% 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 12.24% Cordros Milestone Fund 2023 95.74 96.02 Cordros Milestone Fund 2028 98.40 98.72 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 12.13% Coronation Balanced Fund 0.82 0.83 Coronation Fixed Income Fund 1.13 1.13 0.59% EDC FUNDS MANAGEMENT LIMITED mutualfundng@ecobank.com Web: www.ecobank.com Tel: 012265281 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn EDC Nigeria Money Market Fund Class A 100.00 100.00 12.62% EDC Nigeria Money Market Fund Class B 1,000,000.00 1,000,000.00 12.10% FBNQUEST ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD invest@fbnquest.com Web: www.fbnquest.com/asset-management; Tel: +234-81 0082 0082 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn FBN Fixed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A FBN Heritage Fund N/A N/A N/A FBN Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A FBN Nigeria Eurobond (USD) Fund - Institutional N/A N/A N/A FBN Nigeria Eurobond (USD) Fund - Retail N/A N/A N/A FBN Nigeria Smart Beta Equity Fund N/A N/A N/A FIRST CITY ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD fcamhelpdesk@fcmb.com Web: www.fcamltd.com; Tel: +234 1 462 2596 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Legacy Equity Fund 1.18 1.20 -3.64% Legacy Debt Fund 3.26 3.26 0.34% Legacy USD Bond Fund 1.03 1.03 0.15% 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 2,912.23 2,940.00 -2.43% Coral Income Fund 2,770.58 2,770.58 1.17% GREENWICH ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED assetmanagement@gtlgroup.com Web: www.gtlgroup.com ; Tel: +234 1 4619261-2 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Greenwich Plus Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 12.42% Nigeria Entertainment Fund 106.52 106.84 5.80% 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 100.00 100.00 12.95%

Vantage Balanced Fund 2.12 2.14 -1.21% Vantage Guaranteed Income Fund 1.00 1.00 15.28% Kedari Investment Fund (KIF) 119.63 119.81 -4.24% LOTUS CAPITAL LTD ďŹ ncon@lotuscapitallimited.com Web: www.lotuscapitallimited.com; Tel: +234 1-291 4626 / +234 1-291 4624 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Lotus Halal Investment Fund 1.21 1.23 -0.57% Lotus Halal Fixed Income Fund 1,103.45 1,103.45 0.36% 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 10.95 11.04 -4.78% Meristem Money Market Fund 10.00 10.00 12.51% PAC ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD info@pacassetmanagement.com Web: www.pacassetmanagement.com/mutualfunds; Tel: +234 1 271 8632 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn PACAM Balanced Fund N/A N/A N/A PACAM Fixed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A PACAM Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A SCM CAPITAL LIMITED info@scmcapitalng.com Web: www.scmcapitalng.com; Tel: +234 1-280 2226,+234 1- 280 2227 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn SCM Capital Frontier Fund 119.65 120.14 -0.92% 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 1.72 1.72 0.45% 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 2,294.34 2,308.06 1.31% Stanbic IBTC Bond Fund 191.33 191.33 1.94% Stanbic IBTC Ethical Fund 0.92 0.93 -2.63% Stanbic IBTC Guaranteed Investment Fund 247.85 247.89 2.30% Stanbic IBTC Iman Fund 161.04 162.84 -1.29% Stanbic IBTC Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 12.72% Stanbic IBTC Nigerian Equity Fund 8,255.47 8,354.70 -0.99% Stanbic IBTC Dollar Fund (USD) 1.11 1.11 2.90% UNITED CAPITAL ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD unitedcapitalplcgroup.com Web: www.unitedcapitalplcgroup.com; Tel: +234 803 306 2887 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn United Capital Balanced Fund 1.19 1.20 -0.59% United Capital Bond Fund 1.60 1.60 0.22% United Capital Equity Fund 0.70 0.71 -2.10% United Capital Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 13.20% United Capital Eurobond Fund 107.34 107.34 0.08% United Capital Wealth for Women Fund 1.08 1.08 -1.45% 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 10.84 10.98 2.71% Zenith Ethical Fund 12.22 12.34 2.23% Zenith Income Fund 20.85 20.85 8.26% Zenith Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 12.35%

REITS NAV Per Share

Yield / T-Rtn

6.60 140.01 51.76

-32.85% 0.01% 0.03%

Bid Price

Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

10.13 111.42 84.77

10.23 113.76 86.36

-3.99% -5.03% -4.39%

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

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

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

funds@vetiva.com Bid Price

Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

3.82 7.01 14.04 11.84 143.93

3.86 7.09 14.14 12.04 145.93

-4.60% -8.00% -6.07% -4.15% 0.27%

NAV Per Share

Yield / T-Rtn

107.13

17.03%

INFRASTRUCTURE FUND Fund Name Chapel Hill Denham Nigeria Infrastructure Debt Fund

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.

34

TUESDAY JANUARY 15, 2019 ˾ T H I S D AY

INTERNATIONAL

Brexit in Peril, May Warns Ahead of Vote on Her Deal British Prime Minister Theresa May warned on Monday that UK’s planned exit from the EU could be derailed, a last-ditch effort to win over Brexit-supporting lawmakers .

The lawmakers have repeatedly said they will vote down her divorce deal.

The fate of the United Kingdom’s March 29 exit from the EU is deeply uncertain as parliament is likely to reject May’s deal on Tuesday evening.

This will open up the outcomes ranging from a disorderly divorce to reversing Brexit altogether.

Amid the deepest crisis in British politics for at least half a century, May and EU

leaders exchanged letters giving assurances on her withdrawal agreement.

However, there was little sign of a change of heart among rebel lawmakers.

May used a speech at a China factory in the leave-supporting city of Stoke-on-Trent in central England to say that lawmakers blocking Brexit altogether was now a more likely outcome than Britain leaving without a deal.

“There are some in Westminster, who would wish to delay or even stop Brexit, and who will use every device available to them to do so,” May said.

“While no-deal remains a serious risk, having observed

Congo Under Mounting Foreign Pressure to Recount Vote Democratic Republic of Congo faced growing pressure from African neighbours and beyond on Monday for a recount of its contested presidential election in a dispute that threatens more violence in the volatile nation.

The December 30 vote was supposed to herald Congo’s first democratic transfer of power in six decades of independence and a new era after President Joseph Kabila’s chaotic 18-year rule.

But monitoring groups noted widespread irregularities including faulty voting machines and poorly run polling stations, overshadowing talk of democratic progress in the vast country of 80 million people.

Second-place finisher, former Exxon Mobil executive Martin Fayulu, says he in fact won by a landslide with over 60 per cent of votes and that the official winner, opposition leader Felix Tshisekedi, struck a deal with Kabila to be declared the victor.

Tshisekedi and Kabila deny this.

The International Conference of the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR), a 12-member body including Kinshasa allies Angola and Republic of Congo, expressed “great concern”.

“We suggest that the competent structures consider counting the votes in order to guarantee the transparency of the results,” it added in a statement.

Pressure on Kabila has built since the vote, in part because Congo’s influential Catholic Church said tallies by its 40,000-strong monitoring team show a different winner to that announced by the electoral

the events at Westminster over the last seven days, it’s now my judgment that the more likely outcome is a paralysis in parliament that risks there being no Brexit.”

As the world’s biggest trading bloc tried to brace for an unpredictable ride, Spain said the EU could agree to extend the deadline for Brexit, but not beyond elections for the European Parliament due in May. As part of the effort to get the deal approved by the British parliament, the EU and May set out some assurances in a choreographed exchange of letters on Monday.

The EU told May that it stood by commitments to find ways to avoid triggering the controversial “Irish backstop” in their Brexit deal and that this pledge had legal weight.

In a joint reply to questions from May, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and European Council President Donald Tusk, said the EU stood by its commitment to try and reach a post-Brexit trade deal by the end of next year in order to avoid using the unpopular backstop.

While stressing that nothing in their letter could be seen as changing or being inconsistent with the draft treaty agreed with May last month, they said a commitment to speedy trade deal made by EU leaders had “legal value” which committed the Union “in the most solemn manner”.

However, even if the target date were not met, they wrote, Britain would have the option to extend a status-quo transition period to avoid triggering the backstop, which is meant to avoid a hard customs border for Northern Ireland.

“If the backstop were nevertheless to be triggered, it would only apply temporarily, unless and until it is superseded by a subsequent agreement that ensures that a hard border is avoided,” they said.

May said the assurances might not go far enough for some lawmakers and the small Northern Irish party that props up her government said it was insufficient.

“The letter isn’t legally binding,” Democratic Unionist Party deputy leader Nigel Dodds told BBC radio.

But with her deal facing opposition from all sides in the lower house of parliament, the House of Commons, the letters are unlikely to change the fundamental outcome of the vote.

Though May is weakened, the executive has significant powers, especially during times of crisis, so it was unclear how parliament would be able to take control of Brexit.

If May’s deal is defeated and the government is unable to have any amended version passed in the next three weeks, one suggestion is for senior lawmakers who chair parliamentary committees to come up with an alternative Brexit plan.

“We’re in the very, very final stages of the end-game here,” said Nick Boles, one of the Conservative lawmakers behind the plan, who said he would vote for May’s deal.

“What we need to do is find the solution, and if the government can’t find the solution — and we want the government to find the solution, and we’ll be voting for her solution — but if it can’t

then parliament needs to,” he told BBC radio Meanwhile, May on Monday made a last ditch effort to convince rebel lawmakers to back her Brexit divorce deal, warning them that Britain’s exit from the EU is now in peril from politicians seeking to thwart it.

She would also set out new assurances from the EU that it does not aim to sever Northern Ireland from the rest of Britain under the deal’s most contentious term – a “backstop.”

The British premier also required EU rules in the province until a better free trade plan emerges.

The fate of the UK’s March 29 exit from the EU is deeply uncertain as parliament is likely to vote down May’s deal on Tuesday, opening up outcomes ranging from a disorderly divorce to reversing Brexit altogether.

May will use a speech in the leave-supporting city of Stokeon-Trent in central England to say that lawmakers blocking Brexit is now a more likely outcome than leaving without a deal.

commission.

France, Belgium, the United States and Britain have all expressed concern. But perceived criticism from inside Africa could hold greater sway, with approval from regional partners critical for the legitimacy of president-elect Tshisekedi.

The CIRGL statement late on Sunday echoed the Southern African Development Community (SADC), which contains allies of Kinshasa like South Africa and Angola.

Government spokesman Lambert Mende, however, told Reuters it was up to the Constitutional Court to decide on a recount.

“It is not up to an organisation, a foreign state, to tell a judge how to draw his own conclusions,” he told Reuters. “Recounting the votes is a verification technique that only a judge can decide.”

Fayulu has gone to the court alleging fraud and the Catholic Church has also weighed in.

“We recommend that (electoral commission) CENI recount votes to reassure all stakeholders,” said Donatien N’shole, secretary general Newly-appointed President of the Treasury Board, Jane Philpott (middle), flanked by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau; and Governor General of Congo’s Catholic bishops Julie Payette, during Trudeau’s cabinet shuffle, in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada…yesterday conference.

Isolated post-election violence in Congo has many fearing a return to the kind of conflict and upheaval that Uganda has intensified Ebola Kampala are screened of Ebola. Automated Temperature Scanners Health Organisation, the highly killed millions since the 1990s screening at Entebbe International Previously, the medical people at the airport to screen passengers contagious Ebola virus causes a and destabilized the region. Airport to prevent the disease at the airport have been screening mainly coming from DRC. range of symptoms including fever, Congo is the world’s from spreading from the passengers on direct flights from According to Ayinebyoona, vomiting, diarrhea, generalised leading miner of cobalt, a neighbouring eastern Democratic DRC. the screening at the different pain or malaise and in many mineral used in electric car Republic of Congo (DRC).

“We realised that some border entry points between cases internal and external bleeding. batteries and mobile phones, Mortality rates of Ebola fever, Emmanuel Ainebyoona, passengers from DRC were Uganda and DRC is still ongoing. and Africa’s biggest copper ministry of health spokesperson, using connecting flights from Uganda is on an Ebola alert according to the global health producer. It also mines gold told Xinhua by telephone on other airport on their way to as parts of neighbouring eastern body, are extremely high, with and diamonds.

DRC are facing an outbreak of the human case fatality rate ranging Monday that all passengers Entebbe,’’ Ainebyoona said. from 50 per cent to 89 per cent, In September 2018, the the deadly hemorrhagic fever. arriving through Entebbe airport, According to the World depending on viral subtype. about 40 km south of the capital, east African country installed

Uganda Intensifies Ebola Screening at International Airport

Canadian Sentenced to Death in Trump Threatens Turkey with Economic Devastation over China for Drug Smuggling handed down the death January 14, 2019 3:01 attacks on Syrian Kurd Militia pm by abiodun.oluleye penalty,’’ the court said in a - China -Sentence Beijing, Jan. 14, 2019 (Reuters/NAN) A Chinese court on Monday sentenced a Canadian man to death for drug smuggling after prosecutors said an original 15-year sentence announced in November was too lenient.

“Dalian Intermediate People’s Court in the northeast province of Liaoning retried Robert Lloyd Schellenberg and

brief statement on its website.

The case is likely again to test relations between Beijing and Ottawa, which has been tensed since Canada’s arrest of a Chinese executive at the request of the U.S. in December.

The arrest was followed

by China’s detention of two Canadian citizens on suspicion of endangering state security.

United States President Donald Trump threatened Turkey with economic devastation if it attacks a U.S.-allied Kurdish militia in Syria.

“Will attack again from existing nearby base if it reforms. Will devastate Turkey economically if they hit Kurds. Create 20 mile safe zone…Likewise, do not want the Kurds to provoke Turkey,” Trump wrote on Twitter.

The lira slid as much as 1.6 per

cent to 5.5450 against the dollar.

Turkish presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said Trump should respect Washington’s alliance with Ankara.

“Mr @realDonaldTrump It is a fatal mistake to equate Syrian Kurds with the PKK, which is on the U.S. terrorists list, and its Syria branch PYD/YPG,” spokesman Ibrahim Kalin wrote on Twitter.

“Terrorists can’t be your

partners & allies. Turkey expects the U.S. to honour our strategic partnership and doesn’t want it to be shadowed by terrorist propaganda,” he said on Monday.

Trump gave no details about the safe zone proposal.

He announced last month he would withdraw U.S. forces from Syria, declaring they had succeeded in their mission to defeat the Islamic State group and were no longer needed.

The threat weakens the Turkish lira and prompting sharp criticism from Ankara on Monday.

Relations between the two NATO allies have been strained over U.S. backing for the Kurdish YPG, which Turkey views as an extension of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK).

The PKK is waging decadeslong insurgency on Turkish soil.

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Agbakoba: Buhari Aware of Onnoghen’s Charges To challenge CCT’s action in court Segun James Maritime lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Dr. Olisa Agbakoba, has stated that President Muhammadu Buhari can’t absolve himself or pretend that he is not aware of charges filed by the federal government against the Chief Justice of the Nigeria (CJN), Justice Walter Onnoghen.

Speaking yesterday on Arise News, a sister broadcast arm of THISDAY Newspaper, Agbakoba said he would challenge the federal government in court, adding that the head of the courts is entitled to certain immunity different from the immunity granted the president and governors by Section 308 of the constitution.

The senior advocate of Nigeria stated that the insinuation in some quarters that Buhari was not aware was tantamount to what former presidents of the United States of America were doing during the inglorious days when the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) agents went killing people around the world and the president would claim not to be aware of it.

While advising the government to withdraw what he described as “rubbish case,” Agbokoba said the belief that the president does not know about

the case is not tenable, adding that what the president is doing is “plausible deniability,” just like the president of the US always denies knowledge of actions of the CIA. He hinted that President Buhari is very much aware of every action against the CJN, hence he has not spoken out about it.

The human rights advocate further said the way the arraignment of the CJN was handled smack of political interference by the executive on an issue that should otherwise have been handled by the National Judicial Council (NJC), adding that what made this worse is the speed at which it was handled. It was all done within three days, he added.

The legal expert wondered how efficient the Nigerian judicial system is that the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) would receive a petition on Wednesday, framed charges on Thursday and get it signed by the chairman of the CCB on Saturday, adding that “that shows a super-efficient federal government.”

He said the government shot itself in the leg by bringing the case in such a hurry, a situation which is responsible for the untidiness in its filing.

Agbakoba also opined that the move against Onnaoghen

may not be unconnected with the feeling in certain circles in the government that the judiciary may have been anti-All Progressives Congress (APC) because of its rulings in recent times.

The lawyer cum activist, who said he would file a case before the court on the issue, stressed that it is only the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria that can deal with such case, and that what the executive arm of

government has done is inferring in the activities of another arm of government which has equal jurisdiction.

He insisted that the CJN, like the president, the governor and their deputies, also enjoys official immunity which ordinarily has been violated by the action of the federal government.

Agbakoba stressed that due process was not followed by the government in Onnoghen’s case because the National Judicial

Council (NJC) should have been approached first in dealing with the case or the Senate, adding that by bypassing the process, the government case cannot stand.

“Only the NJC has the authority to investigate any infraction by any judicial officer,” he stressed.

Agbakoba warned that unless the right thing is done by the government in this case, the situation might lead to a

constitutional crisis, which might find all people involved in the judicial process in the country downing tool to ensure that justice is served.

“We are strong and resolute that this rubbish will not happen; it will have the gravest consequences, so I appeal to the federal government to withdraw the charge, and in the event that it has a case against the CJN, to proceed to the Senate to file a charge,” he insisted.

Kashamu Retains PDP PROMOTING LOCAL PRODUCTS… Guber Ticket as Court L-R:Managing Director , Advanced Manufacturing Technology Programme (AMT-P), Jalingo, Prof. Mohammed Dauda; Governor Ifeanyi of Enugu State; Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr. Boss Mustapha; and Minister of Science and Technology, Strikes out Adebutu’s Suit Ugwuanyi Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu, during the inspection of locally manufactured products at the Technology and Innovation EXPO’ 2019 in Enugu…

Alex Enumah in Abuja

Justice Ajoke Adepoju of an Abuja High Court yesterday dismissed the suit filed by a member of the House of Representatives, Hon. Oladipupo Adebutu, challenging the nomination of Senator Buruji Kashamu as the governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Ogun State for the March 2, 2019 governorship election.

Justice Adepoju in dismissing the suit held that the plaintiff, who was nominated by the National Working Committee (NWC) of PDP for the governorship election, cannot maintain his suit against the defendants because the primary election that produced him was conducted in violation of a subsisting court judgment.

Delivering judgment in the suit filed by Adebutu challenging the refusal of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to accept his candidacy, the judge held that the PDP National Working Committee acted in bad faith by disregarding a subsisting judgment of a Federal High Court to produce the candidate.

The court said that since PDP was a party in the judgment of the Honourable Justice Ibrahim Buba, the judgment of the court was binding on it and must be obeyed and respected so as to protect the sanctity of court in the interest of the rule of law.

Justice Adepoju while stating that it was the National Working Committee of the party (PDP) that reserves the power to conduct primary election for

nomination of candidates for the 2019 general election, however said that the National Working Committee must not do so in violation of any court judgment.

Justice Adepoju held that the PDP National Working Committee cannot not hold valid primary election without a recourse to the Ogun State chapter of the party or outright approval of the party until the judgment against it by Justice Buba has been set aside by a higher court.

Justice Adepoju said that Hon. Adebutu’s case cannot be maintained to declare him a governorship candidate because the PDP National Working Committee which conducted the primary election that produced him as a candidate last year did so in violation of a judgment of a Federal High Court delivered

by Justice Ibrahim Buba.

The judge said that she arrived at the conclusion because of the need for sanctity and judgments of courts to be protected by parties or individuals, adding that PDP did not do well by disobeying the judgment of Justice Buba with the way it conducted its primary election in Ogun State last year.

Justice Adepoju said that although Adebutu was able to establish that his own primary election was conducted by the appropriate organ of PDP but that he was not entitled to be declared the candidate because of the circumstances that surrounded the conduct of the primary election in breach of a judgment that has not been set aside.

yesterday.

Lawyers in C’River Accuse FG of Plotting to Remove CJN Bassey InyanginCalabar The Calabar, Ikom and Ogoja branches of the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) in Cross River State have accused the President Muhammadu Buhari-led federal government of attempt to remove the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Walter Onnoghen, through the backdoor.

The three branches of the NBA in the state leveled the accusation against the federal government yesterday in Calabar when they joined other groups and individuals across the country to condemn

moves by the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) to try Onnoghen over allegations that he did not declare some of his assets as demanded by law.

Addressing journalists at the premises of the state high court in Calabar, the Chairman of the Calabar branch of the NBA, Mr. Emmanuel Egbe Idaka, who read a communiqué on behalf of the three branches, said: “We are aware that these attempts are intended to precipitate the unlawful removal from office of The Honourable Justice of the Federation, Walter Samuel Nkanu Onnoghen, as the

CJN, which position they originally did not want him to occupy.”

The lawyers, who spoke after they rose from a joint emergency meeting of the branches, warned the federal government not to take the judiciary for granted, saying in its fight against corruption, the federal government should not intimidate and desecrate the judicial arm of government.

The lawyers said rather, the federal government should follow due process in handling its fight against corruption and the moves to arraign the CJN. The groups said: “We condemn

in its entity the unlawful manner in which the federal government and its agencies have assaulted, ridiculed and degraded the revered office of the Chief Justice of Nigeria and indeed the judiciary in the country by the orchestrated media trial of CJN, Onnoghen.

“While not condoning corruption in all its ramifications, we insist that the rule of law must be followed by the federal government in its avowed fight against corruption, especially as it has to do with the proposed arraignment of the CJN or any other judiciary officer in the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”

CJ Transfers NBA President’s Case to Another Judge Davidson Iriekpen The trial of the President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Mr. Paul Usoro (SAN), has been transfered to another judge by the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Justice Adamu Abdu-Kafarati.

Usoro was arraigned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over an alleged N1.4 billion fraud.

It was learnt yesterday that following Usoro’s letter to the CJ, his case has been withdrawn from Justice Muslim Hassan of the Federal High Court in Lagos and re-assigned to Justice Chuka Obiozor of the same court.

The EFCC had on December 18, 2018, arraigned Usoro on 10 counts before Justice Hassan, who

admitted him to a N250million bail on the same day.

Before the arraignment, Usoro, through his legal team, led by Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN), had informed Justice Hassan of a December 17, 2018 letter, which he wrote to the Chief Judge seeking the transfer of his case to another judge for an undisclosed reason.

Olanipekun said Usoro would want the case transferred to either Uyo, the Akwa Ibom State capital, or Abuja or that if the case would remain in Lagos, it should be transferred to “any other honourable judge apart from my noble Lord.”

Olanipekun described Usoro’s request as innocuous, arguing that he had a right to make the request.

He urged Justice Hassan to wait for the decision of the CJ on

Usoro’s request before proceeding with the case.

However, the prosecuting counsel for the EFCC, Mr Rotimi Oyedepo, opposed Olanipekun, describing his request as a temporary stay of proceedings, which, he said, Section 306 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015 had outlawed.

“My Lord cannot act in anticipation of a yet-to-be-taken administrative decision of the Chief Judge to keep this matter in limbo,” Oyedepo argued.

In his ruling, Justice Hassan agreed with Oyedepo and ordered that Usoro be arraigned.

After pleading not guilty to the charges, Justice Hassan admitted the NBA president to bail and then adjourned till February 5, 2019 for trial.

In the charges, the EFCC claimed that Usoro converted and laundered N1.4 billion in connivance with Governor Udom Emmanuel of Akwa Ibom State.

Emmanuel was, however, not listed as a defendant in the charge, as the EFCC indicated that he is “currently constitutionally immune against criminal prosecution”.

Also mentioned in the body of the charges were one Nsikan Nkan, described as Commissioner for Finance, Akwa Ibom State; one Mfon Udomah, described as the Accountant General of Akwa Ibom State; one Uwemedimo Nwoko, described as the Akwa Ibom State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice; and Margaret Ukpe, all of whom were said to be at large.

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61 Political Parties Ask Court to Bar INEC from Using Current Election Guidelines Udora Orizu in Abuja The aggrieved chairmen of the 61 political parties have formally dragged the Independent Electoral Commission (INEC) to court asking the court to bar the electoral body from using the 2019 election guidelines to conduct the forthcoming elections.

INEC Chairman, Prof Mahmood Yakubu is the defendant in the suit FHC/ABJ/ C5/31/2019 before the Federal High Court, Abuja, where the party chairmen are seeking for an injunction preventing him from proceeding with the use of the document to conduct the elections.

The suit, which was filed by the Chairmen of Action People Party (APP) Ikenga Imo Ugochinyere; Kenneth Udeze of Action Alliance Party (AA); Dr. Sam Eke of Green Party of Nigeria (GPN), and Nsehe Nseobong of Restoration Party of Nigeria (RPN), is expected to be heard today.

The plaintiffs are seeking for an injunctive order restraining INEC from giving further effect to 2019 election guideline document.

Ugochinyere, who is the spokesperson for the political parties’ chairmen opposing the

guidelines, called on Yakubu to exhibit neutrality and save the elections from total credibility crisis by “removing the illegal, unpopular and anti-free and unfair insertions in the guidelines and produce a guideline which reflects the yearnings of key stakeholders”.

He said the party chairmen similarly expected that since the matter is before court, the INEC chairman should desist from going ahead with his plan to secretly release the guideline contrary to the objection by the major key stakeholders.

In a veiled accusation he said Yakubu had been shunning an emergency meeting called by the party stalwarts in the past five days to resolve the questions surrounding the guideline before its release, saying that the INEC chairman also switched off his phone and refused to see the political parties.

“This shows that he might have more vested interests in the guideline going by his lockedup and dictatorial method of taking sole actions without key stakeholders’ input. We must let Nigerians know that the election has been programmed to fail with the flawed guideline and the plan to reverse the usual separate accreditation and voting system for an unpopular accreditation and vote- and- go

method which will make the polling unit scanty and easy to be overrun,” Ugochinyere added.

He further stated that the

decision to declare INEC chairman a persona nongrata is still alive and will be unleashed once he proceeds to unilaterally use the manipulated

guideline.

“The decision to shut the door to the genuine demand for accreditation figure announcement and issuance

to party agents before commencement of voting is a clear indication that INEC is not ready for free and fair polls.”

Atiku Group Rejects New Lagos CP SegunJames The Coalition of Ethnic Nationalities for the Atiku Agenda (CENTAA) has expressed its opposition to the decision of the Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, to replace the Lagos Police Commissioner, Mr. Edgal Imohimi, with Mr. Kayode Egbetokun, a former Chief Security Officer (CSO) to the National Leader of All Peoples Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu.

The group said in a statement by

its President, Adeoye Jolaosho, that the move was worrisome because Tinubu is also the co-Chairman of the APC Presidential Campaign Council.

CENTAA stated that the new posting was like part of a grand plot to unduly favour the ruling APC in the coming polls.

The group said Egbetokun’s background of close affinity with chieftains of the ruling party could not guarantee that he would not influence his subordinates against subjugating a free, fair and credible

poll on March 6.

“While we concede that the top police hierarchy has the prerogative to deploy and assign portfolios to its personnel as it deems fit, we, however, believe that such a power must and should be exercised with caution in a manner that would give confidence to all segments of the society,” the statement read.

“While not taking anything away from the new commissioner, we must, however, express our opposition to this posting because

the officer involved was at one time the CSO to a chieftain of the APC, former Governor Bola Tinubu, between 1999 and 2007.”

CENTAA faulted the decision to redeploy the former Police Commissioner, Mr. Edgal Imohimi, whose performance it commended.

“There was no basis for the redeployment of the former police commissioner, who, by all standards, performed professionally and enjoyed the confidence of all stakeholders,” Jolaosho added.

FG, China Unveil Satellite TV Scheme Olawale Ajimotokan in Abuja The federal government and the Chinese government have launched a Satellite TV Project for 1,000 villages in Abuja.

Minister of Information and Culture Alhaji Lai Mohammed, yesterday unveiled the scheme at Kpaduma Village, Abuja, which is part of the Chinese government-sponsored ‘Access to Satellite TV for 10,000 African

Villages Project’.

Under the project, each of the 1,000 selected Nigerian villages will receive two sets of solar powered projector television systems and one set of solar 32-inch digital TV integrated terminal system.

Chinese President, Xi Ji Ping, had during the 2015 Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in Johannesburg, South Africa, announced the ‘Access to

Satellite TV For 10,000 African Villages’ .

Mohammed commended China for the project which, he said, will undoubtedly strengthen the already very cordial SinoNigeria relations.

He also said 20 recipient families with TV in each village will be provided with 20 sets of direct broadcast satellite terminal system free of charge, adding that viewers in each village provided

with the projector TV system will enjoy 21 satellite channels free of charge, while each of the 20 recipient families will have access to 33 satellite TV channels free of charge for two months.

After the expiration of the two months, he said, viewers can continue to enjoy access to the 33 channels by paying N900 per month, or enjoy limited access without payment.

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ÍšÍ˝Ëœ ͺ͸͚Π˞ T H I S D AY

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Group Sports Editor Duro Ikhazuagbe Email duro.ikhazuagbe@thisdaylive.com 0811 181 3083 SMS ONLY

Pinnick: Winning AFCON 2019 is Major Target this Year Duro Ikhazuagbe

President of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), Amaju Melvin Pinnick, has said that his main target this year is for the Super Eagles to win the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations to be hosted by Egypt in summer.

Nigeria has won the African football showpiece three times, the last one was in 2013 in South Africa under the watch of the late former player and captain of the Super Eagles, Stephen Keshi.

Speaking at the weekend in Lagos, Pinnick who also doubles as the 1st Vice President of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) insisted that a fourth AFCON title is long overdue for Nigeria, a power-house in the beautiful game globally. “There are so many competitions this year and we intend to, as usual, put our best foot forward in each and everyone of them. The target always is to emerge victorious. However, the very big one that we do not want to miss is the AFCON title. We have won it three times but we want it for a fourth time so that we can close the gap with the likes of Egypt and Cameroon,� observed Pinnick who is also President of CAF’s

Organising Committee.

To achieve these lofty heights, the NFF chief stressed that the Super Eagles as well as all the national teams going for continental and global competitions will need better preparations. “The NFF will work with the technical crew to achieve an excellent preparation of the Super Eagles for the tournament. Everything legitimate would be done to ensure the Super Eagles triumph in Egypt. “The NFF will equally give the Super Falcons all the support to perform excellently at the World Cup,� he restated.

Egypt has won the Africa Cup of Nations title seven times while Cameroon emerged champions on five occasions with Ghana having four titles to her credit.

The CAF Executive Committee on Tuesday last week voted for Egypt, hosts of the 1959, 1986 and 2006 editions of the competition, to host the first –ever 24-nation finals scheduled for between June 15th and July 13th this year.

The Super Eagles, like they did in the qualifying race for last year’s FIFA World Cup finals in Russia, have earned a ticket to the finals with a match to spare, following a

1-1 draw with South Africa in Johannesburg on 17th November 2018.

They will take on Seychelles in a purely ceremonial session in Asaba on March 22 to conclude the campaign. “The match against Seychelles will serve as the beginning of our preparations for the AFCON 2019, to be followed four days later by a friendly against the Egyptian national team at the same venue. “The team would likely play two matches during its final training camp before the AFCON finals,� Pinnick hinted.

The Draw Ceremony for

the four-week, 24-nation championship is expected to be done at the end of March.

Nigeria won her first AFCON title on home soil in 1980, when Olusegun Odegbami scored two of the goals in a 3-0 whiplash of Algeria in the Final at the National Stadium, Lagos on 22nd March 1980.

The second title came in Tunisia in 1994. Emmanuel Amuneke scored both goals in a 2-1 comeback defeat of Zambia at the Stade El Menzah in Tunis on 10thApril 1994.

In 2013, Sunday Mba got the only goal of the final against Burkina Faso at

Soccer-city, Johannesburg on 10th February 2013 to give the Super Eagles their third African title. Thereafter, Nigeria has failed to qualify for the last two editions of AFCON. Apart from the AFCON, Nigerian teams would this year be involved in the Africa U20 Cup of Nations (from where the Flying Eagles expect to qualify for the FIFA U20 World Cup).

Other competitions Nigeria has qualified to feature in include; Africa U17 Cup of Nations (from where the Golden Eaglets expect to qualify for the FIFA U17 World Cup), FIFA Women’s

World Cup finals and the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup. There is also qualifying series for the Africa U23 Cup of Nations, qualifying series for the All-Africa Games football tournaments, qualifying series for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics football tournaments, qualifying matches for the 2020 African Nations Championship, qualifying matches for the 2020 FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup, qualifying matches for the 2020 FIFA U17 Women’s World Cup and the preliminary round for the 2022 FIFA World Cup finals.

Super Falcons off to China for 4-Nation Tourney African champions, the Super Falcons of Nigeria have flown to China for a 4-Nation Tournament as they kick-start their preparations for the 8th FIFA Women’s World Cup taking place in France this summer.

A delegation comprising of 16 players and nine officials departed Nigeria aboard an Egypt Air flight from the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja on Monday afternoon and was expected to arrive in the Chinese city of Meizhou, in the Guangdong province of the world’s most populous nation this evening.

Four other players, namely defender Faith Michael, midfielder Rita Chikwelu and forwards Ini-Abasi Umotong and Chinaza Uchendu will fly direct to China

from Europe to join the team.

Hosts China, Romania and Korea Republic are the other teams taking part in the fourday invitational starting on 17th January.

FALCONS FOR CHINA Goalkeepers: Tochukwu Oluehi; Christy Ohiaeriaku; Chiamaka Nnadozie Defenders: Glory Ogbonna; Faith Michael; Onome Ebi; Osinachi Ohale; Ugochi Emenayo; Josephine Chukwunonye Midfielders: Amarachi Okoronkwo; Ngozi OkobiOkeoghene; Rita Chikwelu; Halimat Ayinde Forwards: Anam Imo; Rasheedat Ajibade; Francisca Ordega; Chinaza Uchendu; Chinwendu Ihezuo; Ini-Abasi Umotong; Alice Ogebe

NPFL Hotshot, Junior Lokosa, Joins Esperance African champions Esperance have pulled off a transfer coup with the signing of Nigeria international Junior Lokosa.

The Egyptian club announced this good news on their website yesterday.

Lokosa, who has one cap for the Super Eagles A team, has inked a two-and-a-half year deal with Esperance following a successful medical, two days after he arrived in Tunis.

He put himself in the shop window after finishing as top scorer in last season’s Nigerian

Professional Football League.

The 25-year-old underwent trials with PFC Ludogorets Razgrad (Bulgaria), SK Brann (Norway) and Heilongjiang Lava Spring FC (China) in 2018.

Julius Aghahowa, Izu Azuka, Bernard Bulbwa, Emem Eduok, Emeka Emerun, Michael Eneramo, Garba Lawal, Ganiyu Oseni previously represented Esperance.

Esperance presently occupy the second position in the table after 11 games in the Tunisian Ligue 1.

Andy Murray saying goodbye to Australian Open fans after ďŹ rst round loss of 6-4 6-4 6-7 (5-7) 6-7 (4-7) 6-2 to Spaniard Roberto Bautista Agut‌ yesterday

Murray Loses Farewell Match at Australian Open Andy Murray yesterday produced a superb fight-back in what might have been his final match but eventually lost in five sets to Roberto Bautista Agut in the Australian Open first round.

The Briton, who is hoping to play at Wimbledon, battled brilliantly before losing 6-4 6-4 6-7 (5-7) 6-7 (4-7) 6-2.

Murray, 31, struggled early on but had the Melbourne Arena crowd roaring as he took the third and fourth sets. “If this was my last match, it was an amazing way to end,� he said. “I gave everything I had - it wasn’t enough tonight.�

Murray, a three-time Grand Slam champion, said on Friday he would retire this year because of a chronic hip problem.

However, he did suggest in his on-court interview that there was still a chance he could return to Melbourne. “Maybe I’ll see you again. I’ll do everything possible to try,� said an emotional Murray after an epic match which lasted four hours and nine minutes. “If I want to go again, I’ll need to have a big operation, which there’s no guarantee I’ll be able to come back from anyway, but I’ll give it my best shot.�

Following Friday’s news conference at Melbourne Park when Murray broke down in tears, many expected the Scot would struggle against a player he had beaten in their three previous meetings.

There were signs in the opening few games that the two-time

Wimbledon champion could provide a tough contest. Having initially positioned himself nearer the back of the court, Murray moved further forward by the eighth game and earned a break point, which he could not convert.

Spaniard Bautista Agut went on to break his opponent in the next game before taking the set.

Watched on by brother Jamie and mother Judy, Murray’s grimaces were growing in number.

He was broken again in the fifth game of the second set as Bautista Agut produced a smash winner, and then served out for a two-set lead. The 22nd seed seemed on course for a routine victory.

Murray, typically, had other ideas.

Those inside the arena must

have believed they were about to witness one of Britain’s greatest sportspeople play his final set of tennis at this tournament and, perhaps, his career.

After the Spaniard broke to 15 in the third game of the third set, it seemed the inevitable was imminent.

But Murray’s career has been built on his doggedness, durability and refusal to give in. To use an analogy from one of his favourite sports, the Briton beat the count and punched back by breaking in the next game with a superb backhand down the line.

Another stunning shot helped him save break point in the eighth game and he was close to taking the set in the ninth, only to strike a forehand into the net.

Betway Kicks off 2019 with Special ‘Money Back’ Offer International sport betting platform, Betway has launched a new ‘Money Back’ promotion to reward customers this January.

Betway, Official Principal Sponsor of English Premier League side West Ham United and Sponsor of the first ever Five-a-Side Football League in Nigeria remains the betting platform of choice for

sport fans in the country.

It said in a statement yesterday that throughout the ‘Money Back’ promotion, Betway will reward its customers by refunding 1% of their bet amounts on all bets placed daily. “Every time a customer bets, 1% of their bet amount will be deposited into their accounts as cash

and will be ready to use the very next day. This promo applies to all sports (pre-game or live betting), casino, betgames, virtuals and Jackpot bets,� the statement stressed.

To qualify for this promotion, it said customers only need to bet any amount on any product and get 1% of their bet amounts back in cash.

Speaking on the promotion, Betway Country Manager, Lere Awokoya said, “The ‘Money Back’ promo is the perfect way to start the New Year. January can be a tough month for many people, so we decided to support Nigerians by giving them money back on every bet they place daily on the Betway platform.�

TR

Tuesday January 15, 2019

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MISSILE Dogara to FG “Nigeria is a country governed by laws with clearly spelt out procedures and processes for their activation and not the dictates of men. It is important that people in authority should exercise power with decorum and not plunge the nation to needless crises as Nigeria is not a banana republic” –Speaker of the House of Representatives Hon Yakubu Dogara, calling for caution in the charges filed against the CJN, Justice Walter Onnoghen, by the federal government.

TUESDAY WITH REUBENABATI abati1990@gmail.com

Ogun Politics: My Encounter with Violence

I

once had a taste of political violence during the 2015 Presidential campaigns. In Bauchi, our convoy was stoned. In Katsina, restless youths wielding stones and long sticks threatened to attack us. It didn’t matter that it was a Presidential convoy. But nothing in those two places is comparable to what I experienced in Sagamu, Ogun State on Sunday, January 13.

The PDP Gubernatorial candidate in Ogun State, Senator Buruji Kashamu and I accompanied by our spouses, had gone to attend the 2019 edition of the Annual Thanksgiving church service organized by former Governor of Ogun State, Otunba Gbenga Daniel. We arrived at the church – Abraham’s Tabernacle – when the service was well under way. For a while, the service was disrupted as the people kept shouting: Buru-ji Kash-amu! Kashamu! Kashamu!

The Senator acknowledged the cheers, greeted the dignitaries in attendance and took his seat.

The event was more of a political get-together, and that is understandable. Otunba Gbenga Daniel, our host is a leader of the PDP in the South West and a Director of the Atiku-Obi Presidential campaign. Outside the church, from the entrance to the main street, even beyond the church: there were posters on display promoting Atiku, Buruji Kashamu, Gboyega Nasir Isiaka, and Hon. Ladi Adebutu (the House of Representatives member contesting Senator Kashamu’s candidacy along with the candidacy of all persons whose names the Adebayo Dayo-led executive committee submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). Every elective office-seeker at the event obviously tried to outshine the other with billboards, campaign vehicles, posters and the number of supporters in attendance. Others displayed theirs, we too displayed our own.

I had no reason to suspect that the day would further expose me to yet another dirty underbelly of Nigerian politics: in this instance, violence and the attendant threat to lives and property.

I had hardly taken a seat, close to the entrance in the North Eastern part of the church, when I suddenly noticed some commotion. The whole incident didn’t take up to two minutes.

“What happened?”, I asked the guy standing close to me.

“Lado has left the church in annoyance.”

Lado is the nickname of Hon. Ladi Adebutu.

“How? Why?” The gentleman who was giving me the information, started pointing over my head and said: “It is that man” “Which man?”

“He is sitting somewhere behind you” “What happened?”

The man didn’t finish his story properly, when he bent down a little and told me to leave where I was seated, and go and find somewhere else within the church.

“Why?”, I asked. I really didn’t see why I should start going up and down inside the House of God, when I am not a church worker.

“Egbon, you don’t know me? . I lived in your father’s house in Abeokuta. Trust me. Leave this place where you are sitting. Lado’s boys have entered the church premises. They are threatening to come inside to attack Kashamu’s people.”

You needed to see the speed with which I jumped up and went far inside the church.

Meanwhile, there were sounds of heavy gunshots outside, and commotion. I wanted to go outside the church to see what was going on. Another man pulled me back and told me not to step outside because Lado’s people were looking for Kashamu and his people. He said he was going to inform Otunba Gbenga Daniel to quickly

Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris intervene and see what could be done to take control of the situation. I felt as if I had become a trapped rabbit. I called my Personal Assistant who was waiting outside the church with the drivers who brought my campaign vehicles and some of our supporters from Abeokuta. I could hear sounds of the mayhem in the background.

“Ki lo nse le, nita. What is going on outside?

What is all that commotion all about?”

“Sir, awon boys Lado ni o. They are looking for Kashamu. They are threatening to kill him and D.G.” “Hello. Hello” “Sir, they are vandalizing all our campaign vehicles” “Tell the drivers to go and quickly move the vehicles to somewhere safe,” I instructed.

I could hear the P.A. telling the drivers: “Oga says you people should go and move the vehicles quickly away from here.” One of them shouted back at him: “Oga says we should go and move vehicles. I can’t move any vehicle. Do you want those boys to kill me? Can’t you see the kind of guns they are carrying?”

I could hear the gunshots. I couldn’t blame the rebellious driver. A few minutes later, the PA called back frantically.

“Sir, sir, sir” “Yes?,” I responded “They have vandalized our own vehicles.

They have smashed the windscreens of our campaign vehicles.”

“How many vehicles did you bring?”

“Three sir.”

“Did I not tell you to bring only two? See what you have caused?”

“One of the drivers managed to escape with his own vehicle sir. They beat him up but he managed to jump into the car and ran away with it.”

“What of the Touareg, Egunje brought from Lagos?”

“That one is not branded sir.”

“Tell Egunje to move that car away right now. He must not be sluggish. Where are the boys threatening to attack us now?’”

“The police have started confronting them sir. The police have arrived. They are driving them back now but they are threatening that they will regroup and come back.”

The only thing that was ringing in my head was the disclosure that they were looking for Kashamu and DG. I am oftentimes referred to by our party members as DG or Deputy. The only other person who goes by the name of DG is the Director-General of the Kashamu/ Abati Campaign Organization, Chief Remi

Bakare. I have not had any confrontation with anybody since our campaign began. I saw no reason why anyone should threaten to harm me. I thought of going out of the church to go and sit in one of the vehicles parked inside the church premises. I couldn’t summon the courage to do so – my face is emblazoned on all our branded campaign vehicles, billboards and posters all over the state. What if the enemy outside recognized me? I started calling Hon. Segun Seriki, who is an experienced politician to advise me on what precaution could be taken under the circumstances. His phone kept ringing.

He didn’t pick.

I could see that the women in our entourage were worried. I was more than worried, my heart was pumping heavily. This was the state I was in when someone came to me and said, we would leave the church immediately after the service, but we should all go out together at the same time, and stay very close and be vigilant. The man added: “if those Lado boys are able to grab just one person, we can’t predict what will happen.” I told myself that it would indeed be a good idea for anyone in that situation to be vigilant. I was no longer listening to whatever anyone was saying, not even the church choir. The only thought in my head was how to get back home in one piece.

The service soon ended. We filed out of the church, bonding together. One of our men wrapped his body around me as as if he was a human towel. He told me not to allow anybody to bump into me. You never know who is holding a knife. I had actually seen one or two persons wielding knives inside the church and they were not wearing any identifiable uniform. We were practically smuggled out of the church by security agents, shooting persistently in the air and chasing the hoodlums. We were lucky we made it to Otunba Gbenga Daniel’s residence.

As the bullets rushed out of guns, my wife’s friend who was sitting in the same vehicle with me, tried to duck under the dashboard. She said someone had once advised her that this is the best way to avoid stray bullets. I couldn’t afford to laugh. I just grinned.

The moment I sighted Hon. Seriki, I turned on him.

“Egbon, I was calling your phone. You didn’t pick”.

“Sorry. My phones were in silent mode” “But where did you go?”

“Ha, my brother, in this game, self-preservation is the first law of survival. Sagamu is the headquarters of cultists in this part of the state.

Those boys are deadly. It is a volatile zone.”

“They vandalized two of my campaign vehicles.

They assaulted one of my drivers who tried to run away with one of the vehicles.”

“Actually, they vandalized all our campaign vehicles. Look, my brother, in politics things like this happen. It takes only a small incident, and you will have people being killed. This is the reality of politics in the Third World. ” I asked him further if the window screens of the vehicle in which we were both seated were tinted.

“My brother, I see you are new in politics. I have been in politics for years. In politics, you must always be prepared” “This is not politics. This is madness. We are trying to mend fences and make peace.

And now people are threatening to kill us. So what will now happen to all the efforts being made to ensure reconciliation with the Hon. Adebutu group?”

Two weeks earlier, the leaders of the Peoples Democratic Party in Ogun State had initiated reconciliation talks between the supporters of both Senator Buruji Kashamu and Hon. Ladi

Adebutu. Meetings had been held in Yewa North, in Ado Odo Ota, Abeokuta and across the wards in Ogun East. I attended one of the meetings. Senator Kashamu had also instructed his supporters and followers to reconcile with members of the Adebutu group to ensure the party’s victory in the coming elections in Ogun State, whatever may be the outcome of the cases in court over candidacy. In Ado Odo Ota, there was actually a unification rally by both groups.

I was concerned that all of that effort had just been jeopardized.

What transpired at Abraham’s Tabernacle, Sagamu,, on that day as later reported in bits and pieces, was that when Senator Kashamu arrived, he made an effort to greet Hon. Ladi Adebutu but he was rebuffed. The Director General of our campaign then went to Hon. Adebutu, who is very well known to him, and advised him to go and greet Senator Kashamu and embrace him in the spirit of reconciliation.

Only God knows how the Devil put a foot into that encounter. Hon. Adebutu left the church, we gathered in annoyance. Only God knows how this became a matter for thugs who decided this was enough reason to attack Senator Kashamu, his supporters and campaign vehicles.

We were able to catch our breaths after being smuggled to Otunba Gbenga Daniel’s residence under heavy police protection. The remaining challenge was then how to leave Sagamu without running into the thugs who had threatened to waylay us. Instead of going through the main streets, we had to take a winding, back route.

As we navigated through this route, some boys on motorcycles soon caught up with us and they moved close to the vehicle carrying Mrs Kashamu and my wife. One of the motorcycles targeted Senator Kashamu’s vehicle (by now, he had switched vehicles). The boys on motorcycle tried to pull something out of the nylon bags they were carrying. Somehow, the drivers swerved and tried to run into them, forcing them to speed off. Senator Kashamu asked the convoy to stop. Within minutes, we were joined by more gun-wielding policemen. The moment the policemen arrived, many members of our convoy rushed down and started peeing up and down. I was pressed too, but I chose to sit inside the vehicle. What if the thugs suddenly came back?

When we finally managed to get onto the expressway, some people asked to be allowed to pee again. Eventually, Senator Kashamu rearranged the convoy. He also took the steering wheel himself, and decided to drive in front of the convoy. I joined him. Sitting beside him in front was Senator Ben Murray Bruce who was part of our entourage. Every other vehicle was instructed to drive behind, with Senator Kashamu as the lead driver. He told everyone not to panic; he would lead us home safely.

Senator Bruce offered to drive, insisting that he is a better driver than his friend. Senator Kashamu refused and as we made our way out of danger zone, he kept receiving situation reports from members of our group who left Sagamu for other parts of the state, while keeping an eye on the convoy. When we finally reached his home three and a half hours later, some people rushed quickly to the toilet, others headed for the bathroom. I did too. When we reviewed the situation, we were relieved that no lives were lost. The policemen in the Sagamu Division, as well as members of the Civil Defence Corps, and the Vigilante Group in Sagamu proved to be our saving grace. I commend them for the courage that they displayed and for preventing the loss of lives. This thing called politics should not be turned into warfare. There should be life after elections.

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