TUESDAY 5TH MARCH 2019

Buhari Faces Hard Choices on Economy, Says Report Obinna Chima As President Muhammadu Buhari begins to wind down his first term in office and prepares for his second tenure, pan-African rating agency, Augusto & Co, has

said the president will be faced with “hard choices with no easy way out.”

The firm stated this in a report titled: ‘Buhari Version II (2019—2023): Economic Perspectives,’ made available to THISDAY yesterday.

The president’s second term, which would commence on May 29, 2019, is expected to terminate same day in 2023.

However, the report noted that Nigeria is currently in “a dire fiscal strait and the

numbers are quite grim,” adding that despite the positive spin about Nigeria’s benign debt to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) currently around 20 per cent, interest payments as a percentage of revenue are

of nominal GDP is a meagre 2.1 per cent which pales in comparison to Angola (seven per cent) and Kenya (7.6 per cent).

“However, with a

over 60 per cent.

“Other fiscal indicators also put Nigeria at the bottom of the rung even among sub-Sahara African peers. Nigeria’s five-year average of capital expenditure as a percentage

Continued on page 6

Oil Price Rebounds to $66 on US, China Deal … Page 8 Tuesday 5 March, 2019 Vol 24. No 8731. Price: N250

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PDP to Petition UN, Others over Military’s Role in Presidential Poll Insists on challenging Buhari’s victory in court Adedayo Akinwale and Udora Orizu in Abuja The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has stated its resolve to petition the United Nations and other global democratic institutions over the role of the military in the February 23 presidential and National Assembly elections.

The National Publicity

Secretary of the party, Mr. Kola Ologbondiyan, revealed this yesterday while addressing journalists after the expanded caucus meeting of the party.

He stressed that the military orchestrated killings and the number of deaths recorded during the election must not go unanswered for.

Continued on page 8

Violence Persists in Zamfara, Bandits Kill 40 in Fresh Attacks Hamid Ayodeji Gunmen yesterday killed 40 persons in two communities in Shinkafi and Anka Local Government Areas (LGAs) of Zamfara State.

The killing is coming barely two days after the police in the state disclosed that 29 people were killed on Saturday by suspected bandits in Shinkafi LGA.

The latest attack also came less than 24 hours after the state Governor, Abdul Aziz Yari, swore to deal with the attackers.

The governor had ordered security agencies to deal ruthlessly with bandits before the latest attack.

The gunmen, who moved in large numbers Continued on page 6

Court Sacks Kano PDP Gov Candidate ... Page 6

THE PRESIDENT GETS ANOTHER CAKE… L-R: The president’s nephew, Master Modie Arslan; President Muhammadu Buhari; and Group General Manager, Public Sector, Aiteo Group, Ms. Samira Buhari, when Samira went to deliver Aiteo's congratulatory message to the president in Abuja…yesterday

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Court Sacks Kano PDP Gov Candidate Orders for fresh primary election Ibrahim Shuaibu in Kano Barely five days to the governorship election, a Federal High Court in Kano yesterday nullified the governorship primary election conducted by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP,) which produced Mr. Abba Kabir-Yusuf as the PDP’s flag-bearer in the state.

The cancellation of the primary election followed a suit filed before the court, by

one of the party gubernatorial aspirants, Alhaji Ibrahim Ali-Amin, who challenged the legitimacy of the process which produced Kabir-Yusuf as candidate.

Al-Amin alleged that the PDP during the primary election “sidelined and booted him out� of the race.

Delivering a ruling, Justice Lewis Alagua, nullified the election on the premise that the party had no incontrovertible reason to deny the plaintiff

participation in the primary election because he formally bought his expression interest and nomination forms.

Alagua also held that denying the plaintiff the right to participate in the primary election contravened the provision of the Electoral Act 2010 as altered.

The judge ruled that the PDP did not conduct governorship primary election in Kano State.

He also declared the candidature of Yusuf null

and void.

He ordered for a fresh primary election before the forthcoming governorship election on March 9.

Earlier, the plaintiff, AliAmin, prayed the court to nullify the election on the ground that it was grossly flawed given the manner he had been sidelined with no justifiable reasons to legitimise such an act.

He said he was blatantly denied participation in the primary election, in spite of

the fact that he had brought his expression of interest and nomination forms.

It was, however, the contention of the plaintiff that there was also the need for the court to interpret whether the party could go ahead to field a candidate for the election in Kano State without conducting the primary election or not.

In his submission, counsel to the plaintiff, Mr. Kabir Usman, said the judgment effected had become legally expedient, since his client

had been denied the right to contest the election.

He said with the cancellation of the primary election, the governorship slot is now vacant, pending when a fresh and valid primary election is held.

In his remarks, counsel to PDP, Mr. Bashir Yusuf, said the verdict did not affect Abba Kabir-Yusuf as a candidate but PDP as a party, pointing out they would appeal against the judgment.

IG: Police Arrested 323 Electoral Offenders during Presidential Election Alex Enumah in Abuja The Acting Inspector General of Police,(IG) Mohammed Adamu, has disclosed that a total of 323 persons were arrested in states across the country in connection to various electoral infractions committed during the February 23 presidential and National Assembly elections.

Adamu who disclosed this at a meeting with strategic police managers of the 2019 general election in Abuja, assured that all those found culpable after investigation would be prosecuted in line with the law.

Adamu, while commiserating with the families and relations of officers and men who lost their lives during the election, noted that the deceased paid the supreme sacrifice for the nation's democracy.

"It is noted that updated statistics resulting from presidential and National Assembly elections, shows that a total of 323 offenders have so far been arrested for various electoral offences and sundry crimes across the country. Two officers also paid the supreme sacrifice, while some others were assaulted and injured.

"In appreciating the sacrifice made towards the advancement of the democratic journey of our country, I wish to send my heartfelt condolences to the families of officers and men who lost their lives during the exercise and I also sympathise with those who were injured or assaulted. I assure them that the perpetrators of these acts will be fished out and brought to deserved justice no matter their socio-political status.

"For those arrested for various electoral infractions, I have directed the special electoral offences team of the force to undertake detailed

commitment of the police to work closely with INEC and sister security agencies towards guaranteeing a peaceful and secure space for Nigerians to exercise their electoral franchise.

"I must, however, reemphasise that just as in the recently concluded presidential and National Assembly elections, the Nigeria police shall remain civil, firm, optimally professional and apolitical in the discharge of our duties in the March 9, 2019 elections.

"We shall, nonetheless, deploy all lawful assets and assert our statutory

powers to deal decisively, firmly, and promptly with any person or groups that may attempt to disrupt the process.

"Therefore, all political actors who might be preparing to threaten the peaceful conduct of the exercise are hereby firmly warned to play the game of politics by the rules as stipulated in the Electoral Act and to appreciate that national interest overrides their personal ambitions. “Doing otherwise shall attract the full and appropriate response from the Police and other security agencies", he added.

village were ambushed by suspected armed bandits, while coming back from Shinkafi Market. “The police quickly responded by leading a joint team of PMF/CTU and military to the scene of the incident with a view to ascertaining the authenticity of the report and take action that will restore normalcy in the area and its environs and further arrest the perpetrators of the dastardly act.�

He stated further that, on getting to the scene, 13

corpses were found, while 16 other corpses, mostly members of civilian JTF were later discovered as the surrounding bush was combed by the joint security operatives.

He also said normalcy had been restored in the area, following an improved deployment of joint police and military personnel to the area, to complement the existing security emplacement. “The state Commissioner of Police, Mr. Celestine Okoye, while condoling the

government and people of the state over the unfortunate incident assures all residents of the state that, the police will continue to collaborate and partner with other security agencies and all relevant stakeholders to ensure security, safety and peace of Zamfara State at all times. “Members of the public are enjoined to continue to support the security agencies in their efforts to rid the state of criminal elements,� Shehu said.

about the president’s statist economic ideologies. “Without a doubt, the effects of the currency crisis did send Nigeria into its first recession in 25 years,� the report added.

It noted that the calls for adjustment of exchange rates, electricity tariffs and petrol prices, to reflect market fundamentals, were largely ignored by the president.

This, it noted left the country with a burgeoning fiscal deficit. “The second argument to demonstrate the statist stance of this administration would be the abortion of its own reform programmes. “For instance, the planned concession of the major international airports in Lagos, Kano, Port Harcourt and Abuja by this administration and the cold trail of the process buttress this argument.�

Continuing, the report stated: “The reform-lite approach of the Buhari

administration in the first term implies that it has an extensive to-do list in the second and final term. “Some of the big issues that will make or mar Buhari’s economic records will be the management of subsidies and other cost unreflective tariffs being stifled by price controls. “These reforms will require the removal of subsidies on the pump price of petrol, allow market forces to determine the domestic price of natural gas, allow electricity tariffs that enable operators earn margins on their costs and also ensure exchange rates reflect fundamentals. “These reforms could help stimulate investments across board and unlock economic growth. The Buhari administration will also need to adopt a private sector growth approach. “Overall, we believe that Nigeria cannot sidestep reforms without severe consequences that could last

an entire generation. History beckons on Buhari to prove the naysayers wrong.�

and conclusive investigations into all the cases with a view to liaising with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in ensuring their prosecution", he said.

The IG said the purpose of the meeting was to undertake a comprehensive evaluation of the police performance during the presidential and National Assembly elections as well as perfect plans and allocate operational tasks towards the governorship and state assembly elections scheduled for March 9, 2019.

He reassured the country and the international community of the unwavering

VIOLENCE PERSISTS IN ZAMFARA, BANDITS KILL 40 IN FRESH ATTACKS on motorcycles, were said to have attacked Danjibga and other communities in the two LGAs. The Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) in the state, Mr. Muhammad Shehu, refused to confirm or deny the casualty figure in the latest attack when contacted.

He, however, said further information would be provided at a press briefing later.

But when contacted on phone, Army spokesman of Operation Sharar Daji, Major

Clement Abiade, confirmed the two incidents.

He said the casualties and extent of damage in the attacks would be released later, adding that the operation commander in charge of the operations had arrived at the area to provide security and get on- the- spot assessment of the attack.

The police in the state had on Saturday disclosed that 29 people were killed by suspected bandits in Shinkafi LGA of the state.

The police spokesperson, Shehu, said the victims, in a convoy of vehicles conveying traders from Shinkafi market on their way back to Kwari village in the local government area on February 28, were ambushed by the armed bandits.

He said: “On February 28, 2019 at about 23.45 hours, a Divisional Police Officer (DPO) in charge of Shinkafi received a distress call that on the same date those vehicles conveying traders from Shinkafi to Kwari

BUHARI FACES HARD CHOICES ON ECONOMY, SAYS REPORT projected budget deficit of N3.8 trillion in 2019, capital expenditure as a percentage of nominal GDP could decline further to 1.1 per cent this year. “The implication of this burgeoning deficit is that in 2019, Nigeria will have to borrow to meet its obligatory spendings interest payments, transfers and payroll - projected at about N5.4 trillion with a revenue of about N4 trillion. “This implies a cash crunch for capital expenditure. Thus, with this fiscal backdrop, macro reforms that will improve the revenue position of the government and pare back the deficit by cutting spending are nonnegotiable,� the report predicted.

According to Agusto & Co, Buhari in his second term would have to work to raise revenue while also restructuring government spending.

This, they noted would

require politically unpopular “but inevitable choices.�

For instance, the report pointed out that Nigeria’s current fuel subsidy regime indicates the country may have readopted opaque practises of the past that not only create a huge fiscal hole but a morass as well. “With subsidy payments probably in the range of N1.2 – N1.3 trillion annually, the country is obviously haemorrhaging especially amidst the steep opportunity costs. “Buhari will not only have to stop this fiscal haemorrhage but also muster the political will to deregulate the downstream petroleum industry once and for all times,� it added.

It recalled that Buhari’s victory of 2015 was largely greeted with euphoria by a business community expectant of badly needed macro reforms. However, long-term watchers of the president were quite dismissive of his inclinations

towards macro-reforms, it stated.

It noted that, “middle of the ground analysts buoyed by some of the bold pro-market reforms in the Economic Recovery Growth Plan (ERGP), had hoped for some form of Damascene moment for the president that would get him to expend some of his political capital on tough and politically unpopular macro reforms. “The 68 per cent rise in the pump price of petrol to N145 in May 2016 from N86.50 and the feeble response from the oft anti-reformist labour unions had given a bit of hope to these middle of the ground analysts that Buhari did intend to expend some of his political capital to pursue unpopular reforms. “However, Buhari’s rhetoric on exchange rate policies which may have driven the central bank into adopting a demand management stance on the currency, cleared doubts

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TUESDAY, Í˝Ëœ ͺ͸͚Π˞ T H I S D AY

NEWS

Oil Price Rebounds to $66 on US, China Deal IOCs drag FG to court over tax claims

Ejiofor Alike with agency reports Crude oil prices rose yesterday, buoyed by reports that the United States and China are inching closer to a deal on a tariff row that has slowed global economic growth.

This is coming as the international oil companies (IOCs) operating in Nigeria have dragged the federal government to court over its claims that the oil firms owed Nigeria billions of dollars of unpaid oil and gas-related taxes.

The output cuts deal by the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to remove excess inventory in the global oil market has also supported oil prices as supply from the producer-group fell to a four-year low in February.

Brent crude futures were up 1.07 cents at $66.14 per barrel as at the last trading, the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were up 55 cents at $56.35 per barrel.

Reuters reported that the United States and China appear close to a deal that would roll back US tariffs on at least $200 billion worth of Chinese goods, as Beijing makes pledges on structural economic changes and eliminates retaliatory tariffs on US goods, a source briefed

on the negotiations said on Sunday in Washington.

Hopes of an end to the trade spat between the two world’s biggest economies added support to the oil market that has been rallying for the past two months on cuts to production.

Supply from OPEC fell to a four-year low in February, a Reuters survey found, as top exporter Saudi Arabia and its allies over-delivered on the group’s supply pact while Venezuelan output registered a further involuntary decline.

In the US, there are signs that the oil production boom of the past years, which has seen crude output rise by more than 2 million bpd since early 2018 to more than 12 million bpd, may slow down.

US energy firms last week cut the number of oil rigs looking for new reserves to the lowest in almost nine months as some producers follow through on plans to cut spending despite an increase of more than 20 percent in crude futures so far this year.

IOCs Drag FG to Court over Tax Claims Meanwhile, the IOCs operating in Nigeria have dragged the federal government

Minister of State for Petroleum, Ibe Kachikwu to court over its claims that the oil firms owed Nigeria billions of dollars of unpaid oil and gas-related taxes.

The federal government had given the IOCs operating in Nigeria’s deep offshore and inland basin a 14 day-ultimatum to pay all outstanding revenues on Production Sharing Contracts (PSCs), estimated at over $20 billion.

The government said the revenues were as a result of

the Supreme Court judgment last October, which had noted that the IOCs are in default of adjusting the revenue accruals in accordance with the provisions of section 16(1) of the Deep Offshore and Inland Basin Production Sharing Contracts Act, Cap D3, Laws of the Federation, 2004.

In one of the letters written by the federal government’s consultants/recovery agents, the government had threatened that any IOC which refused to pay would have its PSC terminated.

Also in another letter sent to the companies, the government had claimed that Royal Dutch Shell, Chevron, Exxon Mobil, Eni, and Total owed about $5 billion each.

The government had also threatened to file a complaint against such defaulting oil firm at international fora under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act in the United States of America and other related international protocols for failing to observe the mandatory obligations under Section 16(1) of the Deep Offshore and Inland Basin Production Sharing Act. Following a suit filed by the Attorneys-General of Rivers, Bayelsa and Akwa Ibom States, the Supreme Court had in a landmark judgment on October

17, 2018, ordered the federal government to adjust its share of proceeds from the sale of crude oil whenever the price exceeds $20 per barrel.

To give effect to the Supreme Court judgment, the federal government, THISDAY gathered had written to the affected companies demanding payment of between $5 billion and $2.5 billion from each of the multinational energy firms.

THISDAY, however, learnt that the IOCs have dragged the federal government to a Federal High Court in Lagos challenging the legality of the claims.

A source in one of the major multinational companies told THISDAY that the companies have filed court action to challenge the figures. “The IOCs have filed a suit in a Federal High Court in Lagos but no date has been fixed for hearing. The companies are ready to negotiate with the government on the issue but the figures (amount of money) they are asking the oil firms to refund are not realistic. The government and their consultants did not get the numbers right. This issue calls for negotiation to reach a win-win situation and not a unilateral decision of one party. For the government

to unilaterally determine the figures is not right. It sends a wrong signal to investors,� the source explained.

The Supreme Court had in a unanimous ruling, ordered that the 13 per cent derivation that was due to the oil producing states be paid upon recovery, in accordance with Section 162 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).

The seven-man panel of the apex court, which included the now suspended Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Walter Onnoghen, also ordered that effect should be given to the provisions of Section 16(1) of the Deep Offshore and Inland Basin Production Sharing Contracts Acts Cap, Laws of the Federation, 2004.

The said Section 16(1) of the Act reproduced hereunder for your reference states, “The provisions of this Act shall be subject to review to ensure that if the price of crude oil at any time exceeds $20 per barrel, real terms, the share of the government of the federation in the additional revenue shall be adjusted under the production sharing contracts to such extent that the production sharing contracts be economically beneficial to the government of the federation.�

it will not turn the economy around, rather we will nosedive and go deeper and deeper in the situation we find ourselves,� he said.

Secondus also demanded the immediate release of Atiku’s lawyer, Uyiekpen Giwa-Osagie, and his son-in-law, Alhaji Babalele Abdullahi, who he said have been politically detained.

He noted, “The son-in-law to our presidential candidate was arrested for no justification. He’s been detained and not released.

His personal lawyer has been detained without justification, he hasn’t been released. ‘’And the leaders of the country are keeping quiet; the peace committee is keeping quiet; everyone here is keeping quiet; what you have now is a full blown dictatorship, that is what we are getting. “We asked for the release of our candidate’s personal lawyer, his son-in-law, because they are all in political detentions.

They have been held hostage by the government of the day who doesn’t believe in the rule of law.’’ Those in attendance include; Atiku, Deputy Senate president, Ike Ekweremadu, Senator Dino Melaye, Senator Philip Aduda, former deputy Senate president, Ibrahim Mantu, PDP BOT chairman, Wali Jibril, former governor of Kogi State, Idris Wada and other members of the PDP National Working Committee.

Those absent include: Senate President, Dr Abubakar Bukola Saraki, Speaker House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, running mate to the party's candidate, Peter Obi and all the governors of PDP

controlled state.

PDP TO PETITION UN, OTHERS OVER MILITARY’S ROLE IN PRESIDENTIAL POLL He stated: “Caucus commended Nigerians for refusing their intimidation, their harassment, the militarisation of the electoral process and participating in the election, but noted that the mandate of the people that was freely given to our candidate was stolen.

And as such, the party and the candidate jointly resolve to go to the tribunal and reach the end of what is permissible within our legal system to get back our mandate, and we do this on behalf of Nigerians. “Caucus further noted the role of the military in February 23 election and resolved that we will report the actions of the military through a petition to the United Nations, as well as other global democratic institutions on the role of our military in the February 23 election.�

Commenting on a group of political parties urging Atiku not to go to court, Ologbondiyan said: “We are aware, in fact, the information came on Saturday that the Buhari presidency and the APC have paid some of the smaller parties to come out and urge Atiku not to go to the tribunal, and today (yesterday) stating that he should not go to the tribunal. If it is true that President Muhammadu Buhari and the APC won this election, what is scaring them? What are they afraid of coming to the tribunal? They should come to the tribunal and present to the justices how they won the election. “For us in the PDP and for our candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, our lawyers have been properly briefed and as we speak they are set to file our case at the tribunal and we will surely do that.

Nobody can intimidate our party, nobody will intimidate our candidate not to follow what the law provides for, and we will do everything within the law to make sure that this stolen mandate is retrieved.�

Ologbondiyan stressed that the caucus reviewed the situation in Kano State, particularly as it concerned the court decision and noted that an appeal has been filed against the judgement, noting that the party would continue to study and follow the situation as it unfolds.

The caucus also lamented the harassment, intimidation and cajoling of its members by the Buhari presidency as well as the All Progressives Congress (APC) to intimidate Atiku, on his resolve and the resolve of the PDP to go to the court. “We insist that our party and our candidate have resolved to seek legal redress in the stolen mandate.�

On the absence of some party members at the meeting, the party spokesperson said, “They were not absent; to say they were absent is to say there were no apologies.

First and foremost, I want to emphatically say that many of our governors are in the election coming up on Saturday and they have slated rallies ahead of the election and as such they sent their representatives to participate in this meeting because they are out on campaign, even the president of the Senate is campaigning in Kwara, we have no issue about participation. “Caucus essentially is different from National Executive Council (NEC)

meeting, even on a normal caucus day we don’t have more than 15 to 20 people participating, so what we had today was an expanded caucus not an expanded NEC. The fact that we have an election on Saturday there are some candidates that cannot stop their campaign, for instance, our candidate in Oyo State, Mr. Seyi Makinde was here, so I don’t think there is any issue about the participation.�

Meanwhile, the PDP may file its suit in court today, challenging the victory of Buhari in the recent presidential election.

Also in Abuja yesterday, the Coalition of United Political Parties (CUPP) raised the alarm over an alleged on-going move

by Buhari and the APC to buy legitimacy by offering money to over 20 political parties and presidential candidates to call a press conference this week to endorse the outcome of the presidential election and pressure Atiku not to go to court.

The Independent National Electoral Commission had on Wednesday, February 27 declared Buhari as winner of the election.

But Atiku had on Thursday, February 28 rejected the result, citing several malpractices including the use of the military to perfect voters’ intimidation/ suppression of voters in the PDP strongholds, connivance of INEC officials, security agents and the ruling party to manufacture bogus figures and outright falsification of the returns from some polling units.

Atiku had, last week, inaugurated his legal team headed by Dr. Livy Uzoukwu (SAN), to challenge the

outcome of the presidential election.

Speaking at the expanded national caucus meeting of the party yesterday, the National Chairman of PDP, Prince Uche Secondus, said no matter the propaganda of the ruling APC, the main opposition party would seek justice up to the Supreme Court.

He said: “The decision to go to court has been finalised and agreed and the process is on. The lawyers have been assembled. We may be in court today (yesterday) or tomorrow (today). No one can stop us. “We believe justice will be done and the God Almighty will give us justice. They are celebrating criminality; they are celebrating evil. Our leaders are not talking and if you don't speak against evil, it will consume everybody.�

The national chairman stressed that with what happened on the 23rd February 2019, where the entire military force was used by an incumbent there might not be election in 2023.

According to him, “In fact in 2023 there may not be election, it could be announced because if you have the military on your side, you don’t need the people, you don’t need to campaign. All you need to do is to put the figures together and announced. Is that what is going to happen again on the 9th March? This has never happened before; they must have a rethink.�

Secondus lamented that INEC and its officers and adhoc officers were intimidated and everybody was kept quiet. “This country is so sentimental, I can tell you emotions and sentiments will not bring food on your table,

CUPP Accuses Buhari, APC of Bribing 20 Parties for Endorsement Meanwhile, CUPP said they have in possession, detailed information that in their desperate bid to force President on the country some government officials led by the Attorney General have started moves to compromise some political parties and presidential candidates.

The spokesperson of CUPP, Ikenga Ugochinyere in a statement issued in Abuja, alleged that there was a meeting hosted by the Attorney General of the Federation with some presidential candidates of political parties, particularly those who mortgaged their interests for a fee. He said, "The Attorney General agreed on behalf of the presidency that each candidate would receive the sum of N40million only and would attend a joint press briefing where they would collectively ask the rightful winner of the election Alhaji Atiku Abubakar to accept defeat and not go to court.

"We learnt authoritatively that the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, is spearheading this move meant to force opposition consensus candidate in the election, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, to accept the result and stop his plan, which is already at advanced stage to contest the result in court."

Ugochinyere further said that the groups like the NANS, NYCN and socio-cultural youth groups like Arewa Youths, Ohanaeze youths and Odua youths are also penciled down for financial mobilisation so as to get them all to march and ask Atiku not to go to court.

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TUESDAY MARCH 5, 2019 ˾ T H I S D AY

NEWS

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

INEC Robbed APC, Akpabio of Victory, Buhari Alleges Okon Bassey in Uyo President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday alleged that the votes of the people of Akwa Ibom

State were stolen during the recent presidential and National Assembly elections, vowing that they would be reclaimed through proper channel.

Court Dismisses Suit Seeking Disqualification of Adamawa Gov, Bindow Alex Enumah in Abuja Justice Olukayode Adeniyi of a High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) in Apo yesterday dismissed a suit seeking the disqualification of Governor Mohammed Bindow from contesting in the March 9 governorship election in Adamawa State.

Justice Adeniyi, in a Judgment delivered yesterday in the suit filed by the Incorporated Trustees of Kingdom Human Rights Foundation International, dismissed the suit on the grounds that the court lacked the territorial jurisdiction to entertain the matter in the first instance.

The foundation had last year dragged Bindow to court over the allegations that he (Bindow) supplied false information to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in his INEC Form CF001 by purporting to have sat for the West African Examination Council (WAEC), in June, 1983 and posses General Certificate of Education (GCE) issued by the examination body.

In the suit, marked FCT/ CV/518/2018, the foundation prayed the court to disqualify Bindow, for falsely declaring his educational qualification and date of birth for the purpose of nomination/election into the office of Governor of Adamawa State for the 2019 general election.

Delivering judgment in the suit, the judge partially upheld the preliminary objection raised against the suit by the governor and declined jurisdiction.

Justice Adeniyi held that the High Court of the FCT lacked

the territorial jurisdiction to inquire into whether or not the information submitted by somebody who seeks to contest election in Adamawa State were false or not.

Justice Adeniyi said since the information Bindow supplied to INEC were published in Adamawa State, as required under Section 31(3), the cause of action could be said to have accrued in Adamawa.

He said it was an abuse of court process and an act of forum shopping for the plaintiff to have travelled all the way to the FCT to challenge an alleged infraction that took place in Adamawa State, where available courts could have safely dealt with issues raised.

The judge agreed with the plaintiff that it possessed the necessary legal right to institute the suit, although it is a corporate personality.

He added: “It is therefore my position that the capacity of the claimant to pursue this case is provided in Section 31(5) of the Electoral Act, which says ‘any person,’but did not define the word ‘any person.’

Relying on Section18(1) of the Interpretation Act, the judge said: the court is not in doubt that the claimant (plaintiff) qualifies as a corporate personality,” and proceeded to “hold that the claimant is vested with the legal capacity to institute this suit.”

He, however, noted that there was a lacuna in the provision of Section 285(14) of the 4th Alteration to the Constitution, which limits the class of people, who can file pre-election cases to an aspirant and a political party.

Speaking yesterday through the Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, at a town hall meeting held by the elders and stakeholders of the All Progressive Congress (APC) in Uyo, the state capital, the president called on the electorate in the state to defend their votes during Saturday’s governorship and State Assembly elections in the state.

Buhari said it was doubtful that the former Senate Minority Leader, Senator Godswill Akpabio lost the election, alleging that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) robbed Akpabio and the APC of victory at the polls.

He maintained that all the wrongs done during the presidential and National Assembly elections would be addressed through proper channel.

“What happened on February 23 was robbery. The votes of the people were stolen but we are not deterred. The president sent me to thank you today. We are going to make sure that everything that was stolen on the February 23

would be restored.

“It is not possible that Senator Godswill Akpabio lost. We are in no doubt that Senator Akpabio is the elected senator of Akwa Ibom North West senatorial district.

I and Adams Oshiomhole, the National Chairman of the party have been in the opposition for long and we cannot be defeated anymore. “Everyone of you should go out to vote on Saturday and defend your votes; we cannot be cheated; not only you but tell your neighbours to vote for Obong Nsima Ekere and all APC candidates. Wait for your votes to be counted. It is the duty of the federal government to provide security and we will do that. We will recover every one of our votes.

Also speaking, Oshiomhole said the party was not in the state to lament but to thank the people of the state for doing their jobs and voting President Buhari.

He alleged that INEC colluded with some of the electoral officers to deny the state of its electoral victory on February 23, even though he claimed that the

people voted for the party.

“We have not come here to brag that our mandate was stolen last week. We have come to thank you that you voted for President Buhari, and all members of the party. You did your job but some armed robbers in INEC stole your votes. “You think that those who stole your votes will have peace?

We have come to reaffirm our commitment with democracy.

We have come to affirm that no robber will go unpunished but when an electoral umpire is corrupt and collude with the opposition, we have the witnesses and we have lawyers to deal with that.

“On Saturday we are not going to wait for them to steal out votes.

We call on Akwa Ibom people to protect their votes. We must maintain our sanity even in this hour of provocation. Those who committed democratic abortion would be brought to book,” he said. In his speech, the APC governorship candidate in the state, Nsima Ekere encouraged the people not to be deterred by the February 23 elections but to

go out and vote during the March 9 elections, saying the party is sure of victory.

He said the people of the state were in need of change and proved it during his campaigns across the 31 Local Government Areas (LGAs) of the state.

Ekere assured the president that after March 9 elections, the state would not be in the opposition but would be reunited with the centre “Thank you for what you are doing for APC. The people voted for you; that vote is a revalidation of what the people want. You put Nigeria’s economy back on track.

“We are here because we have faith in you and Mr. President.

The opposition and INEC have no choice than to give us back our mandate. Whosoever shall attempt to work against the collective will of Akwa Ibom people, we shall collectively resist.

“We send a message to the electoral umpire and the other party that they must respect the votes of the people, every vote must count. Akwa Ibom people love APC”.

CAUCUS MEETING…

Presidential candidate of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar; Publicity Secretary of the party, Mr. Kola Ologbodiyan; National EFCC Releases Atiku’s Son-in- L-R: Chairman, Prince Uche Secondus; and National Secretary, Alhaji Ibrahim Tsuari, during the expanded caucus meeting of the party at the National law, Arrests Former Presidential Secretariat,Wuse,Abuja...yesterday 36 Presidential Candidates Beg Atiku Not to Challenge Aspirant, Turaki Alex Enumah in Abuja The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has released Babalele Abdullahi, son in-law to the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the just-concluded presidential election, Atiku Abubakar.

Babalele was arrested last Saturday by operatives of the anti-graft agency after a search conducted at both his office and home in Abuja.

The arrest was believed to be part of efforts at dissuading Atiku from pursuing legal action against the alleged rigging of the presidential election by the All Progressives Congress (APC) that saw him lost to the incumbent President

Muhamadu Buhari.

However, following calls by the PDP and others, it was learnt that the commission has released Babalele, who is also the finance director of a group of companies owned

by Atiku.

However, THISDAY gathered that while Atiku’s son-in-law was released, Turaki, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) and PDP presidential aspirant in the 2019 general election was arrested and detained at at the Idiagbon House, Wuse office of the commission.

When contacted, acting spokesperson of the EFCC, Tony Orilade said he was not privy to the information but would get back to us today.

Buhari’s Victory in Court The Forum of Presidential Candidates and Political Parties for Good Governance, has appealed to the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, not to challenge the outcome of the recent presidential election in court.

The forum made up of chairmen and candidates of 36 political parties, who contested the election with the winner, President Muhammadu Buhari, specifically urged Atiku to disregard the advice of those asking him to challenge the outcome of the poll in court.

In a statement read on behalf of his colleagues at a press conference in Abuja yesterday, the chairman of the forum, Mr. Shittu Kabir, said the group had

started a robust discussion with Buhari and the leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) with a view to being magnanimous in victory by setting up a government of national unity.

Kabir said, “We have advised the government to be magnanimous in victory.

I believe that will be done.

We have urged them that irrespective of political party or religion or tribe, the government should pick the best brains across the land and those who can contribute to the development of the country across the nation.”

He noted that Atiku, who has already set up a formidable team of legal experts for the judicial battle ahead, has the right to approach the court but

added that he should forget the litigation option in the interest of peace.

He said, “We strongly urge Alhaji Abubakar to drop the legal option in expressing his grievances. This is consistent with the counsel of many wellmeaning Nigerians including Chief Olisa Agbakoba.

“We also believe that the former vice president has made a mark among Nigerians of means who have positively impacted their communities. We think he has a lot more to contribute to developing humanity and promoting peace and progress in our nation, even without holding any political office.

“At his age, he should now avoid any action and utterances capable of fanning the embers

of discord, disagreement and violent conduct. Nigeria is greater than any personal or class interest.

“Atiku has his right and nobody can infringe on his right. That is why we have not said he cannot go to court but we are saying he should not go to court.

“Instead of wasting that time and maybe draw our developmental stride backwards, let us give our nation time for development and let the government be focused on providing good governance.

“We need to get the country out of the wood and address national issues instead of diverting the attention of the government by going to court.”

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NEWS

Senate Leadership: APC to Agree on Zoning Next Week House members await party’s decision Deji Elumoye and Shola Oyeyipo in Abuja The leadership of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) is expected to meet in Abuja next week to agree on a zoning formula for the six presiding and principal officers of the Senate ahead of its inauguration in June.

This is coming as some APC ranking members in the House of Representatives have claimed that they are looking up to the party for guidance in evolving a new leadership for the 9th House.

The APC won 65 senatorial seats as against 40 seats secured by the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the February 23 National Assembly polls as announced by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

One ranking APC Senator and a senator-elect in separate interviews told THISDAY that the APC leadership would convene a meeting of stakeholders, including the senators-elect early next week to agree on how the presiding and principal offices will be shared among the senators from the six geo-political zones.

The offices include two

presiding officers namely Senate President and Deputy Senate President, while the four principal officers are Senate Leader, Deputy Senate Leader, Senate Chief Whip and Senate Deputy Whip.

The two senators emphasised that the meeting was shifted from this week to next week to allow all the senators-elect be part of the governorship and State House of Assembly elections in their various states and ensure victory for the ruling party.

The duo expressed confidence that the proposed meeting will be able to address the issue once and for all so that the party can forge ahead in its drive to provide purposeful leadership at the legislative arm of government in the 9th National Assembly billed for inauguration in June.

According to the senator-elect from South-west “there is no problem about the issue as the party leadership is handling the matter and will meet with us next week; although there had been meetings of various groups among the senators-elect since last week but the major meeting will be that of next week”.0 THISDAY however gathered

that APC leadership may likely zone the Senate Presidency to the North-east due to the party’s inability to produce a ranking senator from the South-east, which was initially favoured to clinch the position.

Sources further said that the South-west is also being considered in the event that the idea of the coveted seat going to North-east zone did not get the endorsement of all stakeholders.

The office of Deputy Senate President, it was learnt, may go to the South-south zone and two ranking Senators- Ovie Omo-Agege (Delta North) and

Senate Deputy Whip, Francis Alimhekena (Edo North) are highly favoured and are reported to have started reaching out to their colleagues in this regard.

This much was corroborated

by Mr. Benjamin Atu, the Special Assistant to Senator Alimhekena, who confirmed his principal’s ambition but said he was not desperate about it.

Atu described Senator Alimhekena as a loyal party man that is not desperate for power who will wait for the party to zone the offices “but that does not mean he does not desire to be Deputy Senate

President”.

Some re-elected APC members of the House of Representatives emphasised that the party will have the majority seats in the 9th House with the results announced so far by INEC. They therefore submitted that the leadership of the party will properly guide the House in the election of the presiding and principal officers.

On his part, Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Media and Publicity, Hon. Abdulrazak Namdas representing Jada/Ganye/ Mayo Belwa/Toungo federal constituency of Adamawa State,

said the APC has a full grip on who the next Speaker will be, adding that the members are all willing to abide by any position taken by the party.

According to him, “In the ninth assembly, we are loyal party members; whatever the party decides that is what we are going to do.

“But every zone is lobbying to have the speakership. We are making our cases. For example, we feel that the North-east is the most impoverished. We have only had the speakership for four years and we want to have it for eight years so that we can consolidate.”

FG Inaugurates Special Panel to Probe Looting of Amnesty Programme Ndubuisi Francis in Abuja The federal government has inaugurated a six-member special investigative panel to unravel the circumstances and masterminds of the recent looting of virtually all movable assets in the stateof-the-art Presidential Amnesty Programme’s Training Centre in Kaiama, Kolokuma/Opokuma Local Government of Bayelsa State.

The Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta and Coordinator, Presidential Amnesty Programme, Prof. Charles Dokubo, who inaugurated the panel chaired

by Brig-Gen. S.A. Songonuga (rtd) in Abuja, yesterday vowed to unmask the perpetrators as well as their sponsors and prosecute them accordingly.

Dokubo assured that the perpetrators of the nefarious act who also vandalised property at the training facility about three weeks ago, deserve severe punishment in accordance with the nation’s laws.

He expressed shock at the conduct of the army of invaders who overwhelmed the military and other security personnel on guard and also brazenly embarked in an orgy of looting of items meant for distribution to residents of communities impacted during the Niger Delta crises, on the eve of the inauguration of the world-class facility.

According to him: “Preliminary findings have since shown that items carted away by these mindless looters included assortment of equipment procured and already installed in the centre for the seamless training of ex-agitators enlisted in the Amnesty Programme and other youths in the Niger Delta in such areas as carpentry, hotel and catering management, tailoring, shoemaking, welding and fabrication, event

planning and decoration as well as hair dressing.

“Our initial findings also revealed that post-training empowerment start-up packs warehoused in sections of the Vocational Training Centre in Kaima, were completely looted by these persons. The plunderers even proceeded to thoroughly vandalise the completed lecture halls, administration block and other structures in the Vocational Training Centre.

Sadly, the looting went on unabated for almost three days, including on February 14, the day slated for the actual inauguration and activation of this facility.

“As I eventually gathered, there were almost 3000 persons gathered at the place at any particular time for three days. So, even if the soldiers and other security forces deployed had decided to shoot at the persons involved in this wanton looting, how many people would they have killed or how many persons would have survived?” he queried.

Dokubo noted that but for an instruction passed by the authorities to the security forces against shooting at the invaders, several lives would have been lost, giving the opposition an opportunity for incitement of communities in the Niger Delta to violence a few days to the presidential and national assembly elections.

He asked the panel to truly appraise the roles played by the military and other security agencies in Kaiama on the subjectmatter, even as he dismissed the conspiracy speculations making the rounds on the incident, expressing optimism that the panel which was set up after due consultations with the highest level of the nation’s security services, would unravel the truth and identify the perpetrators and their sponsors.

PEACEFUL ELECTION ON THEIR MINDS…

L-R: Acting Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Adamu; Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG), Operations, Mr. Abdulmajid Ali; DIG, Jibrin Yabubu; and DIG, Mr. Taiwo Lakanu, during the police evaluation meeting on the just-concluded presidential and National Assembly elections in Abuja ...yesterday

Court Terminates Charges against Badeh, Convicts His Company over Alleged N3.9bn Fraud Alex Enumah in Abuja Justice Okon Abang of the Federal High Court in Abuja, has terminated charges against the late Chief of Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh, but convicted a company, Iyalikam Nigeria limited, connected to him for corruption and money laundering charges.

Justice Abang, in a judgment delivered Monday in the suit filed against Badeh and his company, upon conviction, ordered that all properties of the company listed in the charge be forfeited to the federal government through the Economic and Financial

Crimes Commission (EFCC).

Late Badeh and his company were standing trial on a 14-count charge of criminal breach of trust, and money laundering, among others.

However, Justice Abang terminated the charges filed against the late Air Chief, just as he ordered the winding down of Iyalikam Nigeria Limited.

The court’s decision was however predicated on a plea bargain reached by both the defence and prosecution counsel.

The court in its judgment found Iyalikam Nigeria Limited who is standing trial with Badeh, guilty of the charges

and ordered that all properties in line with the 10-count amended charge be forfeited to the federal government, through the EFCC. At the resumed trial yesterday, prosecuting counsel, Oluwaleke Atolagbe said that the business of the day was for the second defendant to open defence since the first defendant (Badeh) was now deceased.

Atolagbe, however, informed the court that in view of an agreement reached between the prosecution and the defence, a further amended charge of 10 counts had been filed as well as a plea bargain

agreement.

“My Lord, there is a development; the prosecution met with the defence and we have been able to reach an agreement. We filed a further amended charge dated March 1 and filed March 4 and we also filed a plea bargain agreement with regards to provisions of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, (ACJA),” he said.

Consequently, he urged the court to direct that the new charge be read in the open court and in view of the plea bargain agreement, a guilty plea be entered for the defendant (Iyalikam Nigeria Limited), by the court.

Islamic State Sacks Al-barnawi, Boko Haram’s Factional Leader The Islamic State has sacked Abu Mus’ab Al-barnawi as the leader of Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), a faction of the Boko Haram insurgent group.

Ahmad Salkida, a journalist known to have access to the leadership of the group, disclosed this last night,

according to TheCable.

According to him, the new leader of the group is Abu Abdullah Ibn Umar Al-barnawi.

Salkida said no reason was given for the development.

“The Islamic State has sacked Abu Mus’ab Al-barnawi as the leader of its West African affiliate (ISWAP),” Salkida wrote

on Twitter.

“The new Wali, according to an 18:13 audio recording, is Abu Abdullah Ibn Umar Al-barnawi. No reason was given for the sack of Abu Musab (Habib).”

Musab is the eldest surviving son of Mohammed Yusuf, founder of Boko Haram, who

was killed in 2009.

He was the spokesman of Boko Haram before the group pledged allegiance to Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).

Boko Haram joined IS in 2015. It, however, split from the group in 2016 over leadership issues.

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NEWS

Saudi’s $100bn Investment in India Threatens Nigeria’s Oil Export Peter Uzoho In the wake of growing uncertainty in the price of crude oil, Nigeria faces the challenge of losing its market in Asia as Saudi Arabia has concluded plans to invest $100 billion in India, Nigeria’s major oil

importer, thus threatening future importation of the country’s crude by India.

The move by Saudi Arabians is said to be aimed at capturing the entire Asian market for its oil, especially with its position as the 14th largest country in the world, covering around

two million square kilometres, making it the second largest member of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), with a population of over 32 million.

The opening up of new markets is expected to enable Saudi Arabia that also possesses

Appeal Court Judges Withdraw from Cross APC Guber Suit Bassey Inyang in Calabar A three-member panel of the Court of Appeal in Calabar, Cross River State, yesterday recused themselves from the cases before it on the leadership of the State Executive Committee (SEC) of the All Progressives Congress (APC), the issue of who is the party governorship candidate as well as candidates for other elective positions pursuant to the 2019 general election.

The cases before the panel of judges were suits No CA/C/62/2019 and No CA/C/70/2019.

At the last hearing of the cases on February 26, the panel headed by Justice A M. Owoade, had granted a formal ‘Stay of Execution Order’ which reaffirms the candidacies of Senators John Owan-Enoh,

Ndoma-Egba and others of the APC in the state earlier published by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

The Appeal Court had frowned at what it described as INEC misinterpretation and misinformation of the public on its earlier order of February 20 which directed that parties in the matter should maintain ‘Status Quo Ante’ pending the determination of the substantive case.

A judgment of the Federal High Court in Calabar delivered

by Justice Simon A. Amobeda on February 11 in the case filed

by Etim John and two others challenging the legitimacy of the current State Executive Committee of the APC in the state led by late Sir Mathew Achigbe who is now being represented in acting capacity

by his deputy, Sir John Ochala, declared that Etim John and other members of his factional executive committee of the APC in the state be taken as the legitimate state exco of the party.

The judge also went further to pronounce that other candidates from the list submitted by Etim John should be recognised by INEC. The Federal High Court judgment prompted the appeal for which the stay of execution has been granted.

At the last hearing of the matter before the appellate court, the panel had reminded the parties to the suit that the matters before it would be granted accelerated hearing, and therefore directed the counsel to parties in suit No CA/C/62/2019 to summit their addresses not later than March 1 before adjourning the matter for March 4.

around 18 per cent of the world’s proven petroleum reserves generate adequate foreign exchange for its development.

Providing details about the planned investment, the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman was

quoted to have stated: “The investment covers projects in areas such as energy, refining, petrochemicals, infrastructure, agriculture, and manufacturing.

Saudi expects the opportunities targeted in the various areas to exceed $100 billion dollars in the coming two years.”

However, OPEC in its recent report, stated: “The oil and gas sector accounts for about 50 per cent of gross domestic product, and about 70 per cent of export earnings. Apart from petroleum, the Kingdom’s other natural resources include natural gas, iron ore, gold, and copper.”

FIRS Generates N12.6tn Revenue in Three Years The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) yesterday said it generated N12.62 trillion revenue from tax in the last three years.

FIRS said this in a document on its achievements, a copy of which was made available to THISDAY by the Head, Communications and Servicom Department of FIRS, Mr. Wahab Gbadamosi in Abuja.

The breakdown of the amount showed that N3.3 trillion was generated in 2016, N4.02 trillion in 2017 and N5.32 trillion was realised in 2018, making it the highest revenue generated in the last three years.

According to the document, the FIRS under the leadership of Babatunde Fowler designed initiatives to ensure a robust tax administration that is beneficial

to all stakeholders.

The organisation said non-oil tax revenue increased to N2.149 trillion in 2016, N2.5 trillion in 2017 and N2.852 trillion in 2018.

The document quoted Fowler as saying: “the achievements mentioned above also demonstrate the diversification of the Nigerian economy by the federal government.

“This does not mean that we have left behind the oil tax revenue. It grew from N1.15 trillion in 2016 to N1.52 trillion in 2017 and N2.52 trillion in 2018. Non-oil tax revenue is still over in excess of the oil tax revenue.

“We also do collect four per cent in terms of cost of collection but only for nonoil revenue collected. On oil revenue collection, we do not get any commission and we

have been able to make sure that our services are more efficient and convenient to taxpayers.

“This has brought about a considerable reduction in the cost of collection of actual taxes.

“In 2016, it was 2.6 per cent, 2017, 2.49 per cent and 2018, 2.14 per cent, meaning that our actual cost of collection is heading downwards based on the efficiency and technology that we are deploying to tax collection.

“Some of the ICT initiatives that we have continued to build on are the e-payment channels which makes it convenient and easy to pay taxes anywhere in the world and to also download receipts of payment from any point one so desires,” he said.

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COMMENT

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

LAGOS IGBO CRISES: A TIME TO BE COUNTED No one should be intimidated in the name of elections, writes Anthony A. Kila

T

here are moments and events in history where being aloof or confused is not only wrong but ultimately dangerous. The current crises in Lagos wherein electioneering has shifted to sounds of threat, actions of intimidation, rumours and feeling of insecurity and clannish division is one of those sad moments and we must be clear, sooner than later, history will judge us all for the roles we play or do not play during such crises. Truth be told, all these could and some of it has happened elsewhere, but for it to happen in my own Lagos is really sad and it is a grave sign of retrogression. This is not my Lagos. This is not our Lagos.

The Lagos we know and love is a metropolitan and cosmopolitan space where all, from everywhere in the world regardless of their race, gender, ethnic background or ideological inclination, can find a house to turn to home and corner of work to trade and thrive. Though, with no apology to anyone, we do not and should not write “Welcome to Lagos� on billboards at our boarders, we are conscious and proud of the fact that Lagos is a place where all can see that everyone has the right and the peace of mind to give their dreams a shot. We are also the capital of owambe and though too many have not had the graciousness and the intellectual honesty to acknowledge it, we know we taught many how to party and how to dress in Nigeria and beyond.

The milieu that has made and continues to make Lagos what it is now is beyond the space of Lagos: It is a concept.

It is an idea that has allowed ethnic and religious diversity to grow hand in hand with creation of wealth, job and general prosperity for all. The Lagos we know and love could have helped all in Nigeria if some of those that have ruled Nigeria had possessed the clarity of mind and courage of voice to say “let us build a Nigeria like Lagos�. It is still not too late for such but now there is a risk.

The Lagos that turns electioneering to physical threat and widespread feeling of fear and intimidation is therefore alien to us and it is not our Lagos. It is even sinister for it degrades us to the level of other violent states in Nigeria, this Lagos that targets a specific part of its residents (Igbo) and send them message of fear just because there are prone to voting an opposition party is not our Lagos. Elections will come and go; amongst politicians, some will lose and others will win after which most of them will disappear only to come back for votes in four years’ time. During that time, as citizens, you will probably see them again when on the roads and at events, they obstruct you and infuriate you with their sirens.

Before and after elections though, we the people are and remain neighbours, colleagues and partners. So why, I ponder,

THE LAGOS THAT TURNS ELECTIONEERING TO PHYSICAL THREAT AND WIDESPREAD FEELING OF FEAR AND INTIMIDATION IS ALIEN TO US AND IT IS NOT OUR LAGOS

should anyone with some sense and that has earned things that matter in life risk a limb or scare another fellow for the sake of a politician?

At times like this, those who have the grace need to find the courage to remind others that elections are not about you and me but simply about choosing or better still employing some people to manage our collective affairs.

It does not make sense therefore to hate our old selves for a new few. It is too risky to be quiet, we all need to be counted on this issue and we must let others know that they need to be counted too. Everyone that counts needs to say something and act accordingly.

The police need to treat matter of violence and any other form of intimidation very seriously. A police commissioner or any security officer that cannot assure the security of his residents is not fit for purpose. Those directly and physically committing these atrocities like all violent atrocities are never in their thousands. Election is a test and all actors will be graded. Security officers are warned, if for any reason people are intimidated or forced to stay away from voting, the commissioner of police should be ready to be seen as incompetent and maybe even face a formal query.

All candidates need to come out in a very clear and strong way to publicly denounce violence and any form of intimidation. They need to show us proof that they have an understanding and respect for the process of democracy that is giving them the chance to be considered candidates and eventually elected into office.

Across the country, the role of most ethnic and religious leaders has been more shameful than glorious in election period, we shall come back to them another day. In the meantime, for the sake of lives today and history tomorrow, it is important that Yoruba leaders come out with a clear voice to condemn any form of intimidation against the Igbo in the name of elections.

In a country where we all agree that there is no distinctive ideologies between political parties, it is legitimate to wonder why majority of Igbo people will consistently (and I add legitimately) vote for the PDP when in and outside Igboland, but the answer is not violence or intimidation.

Igbo leaders of thoughts and other influencers of Igbo origin have to be counted in this discussion, beyond playing victims and defenders of fellow Igbo people, they need to share with the rest of us the ethics and etiquettes of living as non-indigenes in a developing country highly moulded by ethnic clays.

Kila, a Jean Monnet professor of Strategy and Development, is currently Director of Studies at the Centre for International Advanced and Professional Studies

GOING FOR THE THROAT Joe Adiorho writes that the chairman of the APC, Adams Oshiomhole, should be circumspect in his criticisms

T

he ex- Governor of Edo State, Mr. Adams Oshiomhole’s verbal wars of attrition during the campaigns for the just concluded presidential election appear to be enjoying a truce of

a sort.

The Almighty God had adequately endowed him with power of oratory, but some of it has not been put to good use.

His battle fields are many and varied and he is widening them every passing day. Oshiomhole is emboldened to forge ahead with the wars because it appears that he is winning in all fronts. For instance, as a labour leader he took on President Olusegun Obasanjo in the fuel price imbroglio and helped to manoeuvre the pump price from N15 of Abacha era to over N64 per litre. He fought his predecessors in office, Mr Lucky Igbinedion and Professor Oserheimen Osunbo and he took on the former Peoples Democratic Party’s (PDP) Board of Trustee Chairman, Mr Tony Anenih. Of course those were old wars.

Of current are fields he opened in Zamfara, Imo and Ogun States, against Governors Abdulaziz Yari, Rochas Okorocha and Ibikunle Amosun respectively.

He told Nigerians that some of them were trying to establish dynasties and another was an emperor seeking to create an empire, and that he would not help them to establish such in the entity called

Nigeria. He became brave because almost all those he took on were not rolling out tanks and opening their war chests for epic wars. They tried to maintain decorum.

At the moment he is focusing on institutions and he has picked on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for a start and as far as he is concerned INEC Chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, is a very incompetent person. He announced to the world during the All Progressives Congress (APC) emergency council meeting in Abuja that Yakubu had sold out. Standing beside the nation’s president, he said that the INEC chairman has joined the PDP for it was not within the realm of his imagination that the electoral body could postpone an election in the country and the president of the nation was not aware of it. He demanded that the president must wield the hammer over INEC and on Yakubu.

He then turned his attention to the INEC Resident Electoral Commissioners and he picked on one Michael Igini, the Akwa-Ibom REC, accusing him of collaborating with PDP to rig the state election and calling for his either removal or redeployment. It was a move I know he is regretting right now because Igini’s integrity spoke and the whole world including some elements in the APC rose up in his defence. Everyone in one voice stated that Igini’s integrity is unimpeach-

able.

The Vice Chairman of APC and the former chairman of the Conference of Nigerian Political Parties (CNPP) in Cross River State, Mr. Cletus Obun, in what sounded like a testimonial, averred that “Igini is one of the most honest and transparent public servants in the country.� He added that those accusing him must have probably tried unsuccessfully to infiltrate and induce him only to come up with the unsubstantiated allegation to impugn on his integrity. “He is one of those who are like the brain box in INEC.�

Painfully, Oshiomhole does not study his targets in his quest to denigrate them.

If he does, he would have realized that some of them possess background and credentials that are unassailable. For instance Mahmood Yakubu he thinks is incompetent holds a first class degree from Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto and a doctor of philosophy (PhD) degree of the prestigious Oxford University at aged 29. On scholarship, he studied at both the Cambridge and Oxford Universities in England and his outstanding intellectual artistry at the Cambridge further earned him the scholarship of the Cambridge Commonwealth Trust.

A former lecturer in the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA) Kaduna and a winner of the Overseas Research Studies (ORS) Award by the London-based com-

mittee of Vice Chancellor of the United Kingdom (UK) Universities, Yakubu is a professor of Political History and International Studies and an expert in guerrilla warfare, terrorism and counter-terrorism.

He had delivered in all other numerous positions he had held in Nigeria.

On his part, Michael Igini is a brilliant lawyer and holds a Master’s Degree in law. He does not flaunt it and he had never hung it in his office or at home and not even pasted it in the internet.

During MKO Abiola’s political era, while Adams Oshiomhole was trying to set up a Mass Transit Bus Company for Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) that was later mired in controversies, Igini was standing tall with Nigerians in an active activism aimed at creating acceptable political identity for the country. He contributed immensely to restoring today’s democracy.

He was the only REC in 2015 that was honoured with valedictory party for a job well done by all the parties in Edo State where Oshiomhole was the governor. And in his reply to Adams, he stated that, “my devotion to free, fair and credible elections has not waned or diminished hence I cannot deny the people of Akwa Ibom the service I had faithfully rendered to Edo people.�

How true!

Adiorho wrote from Lagos

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T H I S D AY TUESDAY, MARCH 5, 2019

EDITORIAL Proliferation Of Political Parties The present size of political parties is counterproductive

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f there is any lesson from the Presidential and National Assembly elections, it is that Nigeria does not need 91 political parties. Aside the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) majority of the other parties were on the ballot just to make up the number. In several constituencies, many of these parties had no candidates for elections while their presidential candidates ended up scoring ridiculous number of votes. At the end the question remains as to why billions of public funds were wasted just to accommodate those who merely exploit the weakness of the law to entertain themselves.

Defending the election budget before the National Assembly in July last year, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Chairman, Prof Mahmood Yakubu, said the cost of conducting the general election in the country had risen considerably because 91 political parties would be on the ballot, a figure he added could rise as the commission still had 140 pending applications for party registration.

A SITUATION WHERE Yet, a situation where EVERY POLITICIAN parties come into existence only at BELIEVES THEY MUST election seasons and HAVE THEIR OWN disappear afterwards, POLITICAL PARTY IS as is often the case, can ANTITHETICAL TO THE hardly advance the GROWTH OF GENUINE cause of democracy or DEMOCRACY IN OUR contribute to national development. Nor can COUNTRY such parties that are not founded on any ideals or ideas become instruments of national stability let alone tolerable governance.

More worrisome is the cost implications and knuckledown effects on our democracy of the growing farce in which every politician now establishes their own political party. As we saw in the election of Saturday 23rd February, an unwieldy number of parties is also a source of confusion and distraction to the electorate. Besides, given the manner some of these presidential candidates and party

operatives were endorsing candidates of other parties, it was obvious the whole idea is mercantile.

We are not opposed to a liberal law that, at least on the surface, encourages popular participation. But it is important for all the relevant stakeholders, including the media, civil society and National Assembly to understand the full implications of having too many political parties on the ballot in an environment such as ours. Beyond the logistical nightmare of administering such elections without creating room for endless litigation, there is also the small detail that a largely illiterate electorate will find it difficult making informed choices in a situation where too many parties and candidates are on the ballot.

O 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

rdinarily, INEC schedule for elections is already hectic: A presidential election; governorship elections in 36 states; senatorial elections in 109 districts nationwide; House of Representatives election in 360 federal constituencies; State Houses of Assembly election in over a thousand constituencies aside six area council chairmanships and 62 councillorship positions. Since most of our politicians rely on technicalities to win at the court what they lose at the polls, INEC has been burdened with repeat elections that are needless and that trend can only multiply as the number of political parties and candidates increase.

Under what is termed “unlawful exclusion”, for instance, elections can be nullified for so many things, including a wrong spelling of names, even if such candidates are electoral no-hopers.

Even if people have the right to form political parties, proliferation is counterproductive to our democracy, especially when they are not built around any ideology or interest group, but more as “business ventures”. And from past experience, many of them are unlikely to exert any remarkable influence good enough to win elections.

That then explains why the nation must recover its senses and we urge the National Assembly to begin to look at the enabling laws. A situation where every politician believes they must have their own political party is antithetical to the growth of genuine democracy in our country.

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

Letters to the Editor

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THE IGBOS AND LAGOS

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agos is situated in the South West region of Nigeria with a population of over 16 million people. Lagos is the most populous state on the African continent and one of the fastest growing cities in the world with an internallygenerated revenue of N34 billion monthly.

The origin of Lagos has its roots to the ancient Benin Kingdom domiciled in Edo State today. Lagos has been the home of different tribes, ethnic groups who have lived in peace for centuries.

Virtually every area in Lagos has an historic origin with an Oba (King) who rules over the areas and the Eleko of Eko (Oba of Lagos) being the Chairman of the Council of Chiefs and Obas. Various traditional festivals happen in almost every area of Lagos; the Eyo festival is the most prominent of festivals. Prominent Obas in Lagos include the Olu of Epe, Akran of Badagry, Olofin of Isheri, the Ayangburen of Ikorodu, the Olu of Ikeja, Oloto of Otto kingdom and a host of others. They are the custodian of the culture and tradition of their people. To then say, Lagos is a no man’s land, is utterly incorrect.

The Igbo people are an ethnic group domiciled in the present day south central and south eastern part of Nigeria. Geographically, the Igbo homeland is divided into two unequal sections by the Niger River. The Igbos are known to be business people and are excellent traders in any sector they find themselves. They dominate the market space and it is said that, there is no market in the Nigerian hemisphere that you won’t find an Igbo man trading successfully.

Elections season brings a lot of drama and idiosyncrasies. Why is it that the Yorubas and Igbos are always at each other’s throat during election season in Lagos? The APC had shown tolerance to other tribes by one time appointing an Igbo man as a commissioner and the APC spokesman in Lagos has been Igbo for several years. So, what

then is the problem?

In my point of view, population equates political strength. Numbers are very important on who emerge victorious in an election. The Igbos have strategically dominated some certain areas in Lagos and often determine who wins elections in those areas due to their population and the Yorubas see this as a dangerous trend in their land. The Igbos have legitimately occupied those areas by owning properties and contributing immensely to the growth and revenue of Lagos. The argument thus, is that the Igbos do not accommodate other tribes such as the Yorubas to own properties or settle in Igbo land because most land are ancestral, and Igbos deeply hold their cultural beliefs.

The Yorubas are known to be very accommodative and I sincerely do not see that changing. If a man comes into your house and dominates your house, you are to be blamed. The world is globalized and that is why we can travel to the United States and one day become citizens, bestowed with all the possible benefits citizenship entails. Obama who is originally from Kenya became the president of the most powerful nation in the world. The Yorubas should strengthen the relationship with the Igbos, make them understand the Yoruba culture and way of life and the Igbos should also accommodate Yorubas in Igbo land. Peaceful cohesion is possible, we all need each other to move forward. Tribes and ethnic groups division will further degenerate Nigeria and not strengthen it. After the just concluded presidential election, the I am North slogan trended on social media, which is a way to further separate Nigerians. Can the North do it alone, I ask? We all need each other.

Nigeria should be united and not always divided along ethnic or religion lines.

Dr.Folawiyo Kareem Olajoku, Development Economist, Osun

PREVENTING ELECTORAL JUNGLE PRACTICE

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o nation can prosper if it is an unjust nation.

And no unjust nation can be peaceful.

Without peace, no nation can prosper.

Any nation not fully governed by the rule of law is a nation on its way to perdition because if citizens get away with violation of the laws of the land, then, the rule of man replaces the rule of law.

That is why nations must jealously guard their judiciary so that in return the judiciary as the custodian of the constitution will jealously protect and defend the constitution at all costs.

Unfortunately, the sanctity of our judiciary and our constitutional democracy is being eroded as politicians have been allowed to bring in politics into such apolitical institutions like the judiciary. We can’t agree more with the Chief Justice of Kenya Justice Maraga whose Supreme Court annulled Kenya’s Presidential Election ruling that it was marred with irregularities, that “The greatness of a nation lies in its fidelity to the constitution and the strict adherence to the rule of law.

From this, certainly Atiku’s legal team should focus on reminding the justices of the Supreme Court that should the Feb 23 elections be allowed to stand, then, obviously in no distant time our electoral democracy will be turned into an electoral jungle, where those with superior brute force will always win.

If the justices fail to jealously protect the judiciary and the constitution from the prevailing crisis, then who else will take that noble task of protecting the judiciary and the justices?

Odilim Enwegbara, Abuja

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5 ) * 4 % ": t TUESDAY, MARCH 5, 2019

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T H I S D AY ˾ TUESDAY MARCH 5, 2019

POLITICS

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

TRENDING NEWS

In Ogun, Amosun Struggles to Inflate His Special Purpose Vehicle Nseobong Okon-Ekong writes that with the rug removed from his feet, while he is yet struggling to find appropriate support system for his collapsing pack of cards, the Allied Peoples Movement, Governor Ibikunle Amosun of Ogun State is hemmed in on all sides by severe trouble

Amosun

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t the beginning of the week, a photograph emerged of Governor Ibikunle Amosun of Ogun State grinning from ear-to-ear in a handshake with President Muhammadu Buhari.

Apparently, it was an uncluttered hint that he still had the President’s ear, for those who may harbour doubts arising from his suspension from his party, All Progressives Congress (APC), the previous day.

Amosun’s grandstanding over the control of the APC in Ogun State, particularly following the ill-fated primaries in which the governor failed to position his favourites for different offices, particularly for the governorship contest that will produce his successor.

Having failed to railroad the NWC and the elders of the party in the state to accept his bid to give the party’s gubernatorial ticket to Hon. Adekunle Akinlade, his annointed candidate, Amosun unabashedly attempted to tear the APC in Ogun state into shreds. Although he has been partially successful in using a combination of threats and barefaced violence to hold down a sizeable number in his net, the majority of APC faithful have opted to live under the governor’s heavy hand, refusing to drink from his poisoned chalice.

A little while ago, the impression was given that anyone who did not follow Amosun to his proxy party, the Allied Peoples Movement (APM) was doomed.

By openly supporting an opposition party that is fronting Akinlade as its governorship candidate, Amosun was playing a delicate gamble, that may yet eclipse his political sun, that is already being dimmed with the result of the Presidential and National Assembly elections and has further become overcast with his indefinite suspension from the APC. Every stakeholder in politics has identified lack of internal party democracy as one of the bane our democratic experiment. Add the seeming impotence of political party hierarchy to discipline erring members and we have the pervading disaster in all the political parties. In an ideal situation, Amosun and anyone who displays similar destructive tendencies should have been called to order by his party long ago.

Abiodun The fact that Amosun was allowed to carry on for this long, nearly wrecking maximum damage against his political family nurtured the notion that he was a sacred cow. At every turn, Amosun held up his friendship with the President like a badge of honour, but when Buhari was stoned and disgraced at a political campaign, ostensibly under the governor’s watch, he became tongue tied to explain what went wrong. Indeed, there is no precedence of the Presidential stoning incident in Ogun in the annals of Nigerian politics. A few days after, Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo was treated to a similar spectacle of dishonour supervised by Amosun’s acolytes.

It is not clear which of these despicable actions earned Amosun suspension from the APC. What seems to be emerging is that the leadership was perhaps hesitant to strike the hammer of justice against Amosun because it was unsure of how deep the virus he emitted had eaten

The impression was given that anyone who did not follow Amosun to his proxy party, the Allied Peoples Movement (APM) was doomed. By openly supporting an opposition party that is fronting Akinlade as its governorship candidate, Amosun was playing a delicate gamble, that may yet eclipse his political sun, that is already being dimmed with the result of the Presidential and National Assembly elections and has further become overcast with his indefinite suspension from the APC

Akinlade into the fabric of the party. Having been convinced with the outcome of the Presidential and the NASS elections, in which the party bagged the three senatorial slots and six out of the nine federal constituencies, it moved against Amosun with a decisive action that clearly reestablished the supremacy of the party.

With the remaining three federal constituencies in Ogun state shared one each by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), African Democratic Congress (ADC) and the APM, no one is left in doubt that the APC and its governorship candidate, Mr. Dapo Abiodun, may be coasting to victory, all things being equal. Already, Hon. Titi Oseni-Gomez former Speaker of the Ogun state House of Assembly who contested the Ogun Central senatorial seat on the ADC platform, but lost to Amosun has collapsed her structure in favour of Abiodun. In Ogun East, Mr. Deji Ashiru who also made a bid to become a senator on the ticket of the ADC has taken a similar course as Oseni-Gomez. It is difficult to say why the influence of the ADC governorship candidate, Mr. Gboyega Nasiru Isiaka is dwindling. It is not unlikely that self-preservation may have informed their action. In the days ahead, there is a good chance that the Abiodun camp may increase in number from members of both factions of the PDP who may want to join the APC political train that seems to have gathered greater steam.

From the result of the NASS elections, it does not look as if Amosun and Akinlade were able to communicate the distinction between the APM and APC to their followers. The APM had adopted Buhari as its presidential candidate.

And it was at this instance that the President made, what has since become an infamous statement to the effect that the people were at liberty to vote any candidate of their choice, though he raised Abiodun’s hand as candidate of the APC. The confusion in the mind of the people as they cast their vote was apparent as 10300 votes were recorded for the APM in the senatorial contest, in which Amosun, the chief sponsor of the APM contested on the platform of the APC. Those votes were supposed to be delivered to the APC if the people were properly schooled.

The woeful performance of Amosun supporters who vied to become federal lawmakers on the ticket of the APM is instructive. In Ifo, Mr. Leke Adewolu, Commissioner for Special Duties did not only lose, the APC recorded one of the highest votes in this constituency.

Mr. Rotimi Rahman, Chairman of Ogun Local Government Service Commission failed in his bid for a seat in the House of Representatives on the platform of the APM. In Sagamu, Hon. Yinka Mafe, a serving member of the Ogun State House of Assembly who contested for a House of Representatives seat on the ticket of the APM lost. The example of the serving member of the HoR, Hon. Micky Kazeem, representing Obafemi/ Owode is very pathetic. He was defeated

by Hon. Olumide Osoba even in his Wasinmi Polling Unit. Kazeem recorded an uninspiring two votes against 237 votes for Osoba.

There is no doubt that the APM was a Special Purpose Vehicle to play a spoiler role against the APC, particularly in Ogun state. Of the about 36000 recorded by the party presidential and national assembly elections, 33000 came from Ogun.

With the rug removed from his feet, while he is yet struggling to find appropriate support system for his collapsing pack of cards, the APM, the governorship contest in Ogun state this weekend, which was too close to call not too long ago has unexpectedly become predictable. In Ogun West, the homestead of the ADC governorship candidate, Isiaka, Chief Tolu Odebiyi has already become senator-elect. He is from Yewa. The people are mainly Yewa/ Awori. With Odebiyi, Yewa already has the senate slot. Meanwhile, the APC governorship aspirant Abiodun’s running mate, Alhaja Noimot Oyedele-Salako is from Ota-Awori, a people who have never had a shot at such a high office. That axis also has the people of Agbara/Atan who despite contributing the highest IGR were neglected by Amosun.

Unfortunately for Amosun it seems to be raining trouble from all quarters.

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has been at loggerheads with the governor over unpaid salaries to Ogun workers.

It is hardly the kind of opposition one should be faced with close to a make

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T H I S D AY ˾TUESDAY MARCH 5, 2019

STATE OF THE POLITY

Will Governorship Aspirants Respect Imo Charter of Equity?

Amby Uneze writes that a group of respected senior citizens from Imo State have put their weight behind a rotational arrangement starting from the 2019 governorship contest that offers equal opportunity to candidates from the three senatorial zones, beginning from Owerri. But it does not look like aspirants from Orlu and Okigwe are about to bury their ambition

Ihedioha

Araraume

Ohakim

Nwosu

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This august body, after due consultation and brain storming has adopted the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) Governorship candidate, Rt. Hon. Emeka Ihedioha as its governorship candidate for March 9 governorship election in Imo State.

This adoption was in fulfillment of an item on the Imo Charter of Equity which the Elders felt was overdue and should henceforth take off from Owerri zone, where Chief Emeka Ihedioha of the PDP, incidentally comes from.

The Council enjoined all Imo citizens to vote Ihedioha as the next governor because it found the manifesto of the party more appropriate to recover and rebuild the economy of the state.

However, the elders did not say if they were able to dissuade the likes of former Imo governor, Ikedi Ohakim of Accord Party, Senator Hope Uzodinma of the All Progressives Congress and Senator Ifeanyi Araraume of the All Progressives Grand Alliance, who are strong contenders in the governorship race to abandon their aspiration to govern the state. There is also Hon. Tony Nwulu of the United Peoples Party and Mr. Uche Nwosu, the son in-law of Governor Rochas Okorocha.

The Imo Charter of Equity stands a chance of heralding a new dawn of understanding and peaceful coexistence in the state only

if these gentlemen are ready to walk away from the prized crown.

A four-page communique signed by leaders of the council as well as its key conveners revealed that having consulted, interviewed and evaluated candidates from different political parties and their respective manifestoes, the council resolved to adopt Ihedioha.

According to elders, the manifesto presented by the candidate of the PDP, Emeka Ihedioha in the opinion of the council, best satisfies the aspirations of Imo State. Therefore, we endorse and adopt him as the candidate of choice for Imo state.

The council called on the people of Imo state to vote for Ihedioha of the PDP on Saturday, March 9, 2019, while urging them to protect the integrity of the electoral process against miscreants.

The communiqué however, appealed to the various security agencies, particularly, Army, Police and DSS to allow the citizens choose their governor instead of aiding and abetting some leaders to manipulate the system and thwart the wishes of the people.

The elders had observed that the absence of peace, stability, development and good governance in the state created political rascality and irresponsible government, lack of respect for the rule of law and the traditional

institution; deterioration of good morals and educational attainment, which the state was not known for.

“By reason of the foregoing; criminality has become prevalent and basic infrastructure and healthcare are near primitive standards.

Cognizant of the benefits of good governance, justice, equity and good conscience, the Council is of the strong opinion that the issue of rotation of elective political offices (particularly the office of the Governor of Imo state) must be strictly adhered to; commencing now with Owerri zone being giving the opportunity to produce the governor of the state come March 9, 2019.”

Those who jointly signed the communique for Owerri zone were; Dr. Okechukwu Aguwa, Chief I. D. Nwoga, Maj. General C. R. U. Ihekire (rtd), Chief Dr. J. C. Odunna, Col. Lambert Ihenacho (rtd), Chief Analyn Nwaneri, Sir Ambrose Ejiogu and Sir Levi Oguike.

For Okigwe zone, those who signed were Chief Tony Emeruem, Prof. Obioma Iheduru, Barr. M. I. Ogwuegbu, Chief Ebere Udeagu, and Rt. Hon. M. I. Duru.

Those who represented Orlu zone included Chief Chris Ejike Uche, Chief S. Durukwaku, Martin Ejiogu, Rt. Hon. Chuma Nnaji, Anthony Alinor, Ogbuagu Kenn Obieke, Dr. Douglas Acholonu, and Engr. Chime Nzeribe.

he Imo State Advisory Council of Elders is only one indivisible body with no parallel organization. It is a body of elder statesmen representing the three senatorial zones of the state-Okigwe, Orlu and Owerri.

The organization is so unique that all the zonal umbrellas such as the Orlu Council of Elders, Okigwe Council of Elders and Owerri Council of Elders decided to converge for the good of Imo State. The elders, who are no longer active in politics, but are highly respected and revered due to their antecedents and excellent service to their fatherland, as well, as having contributed immensely to the overall unity and development of the state decided to carve a new beginning for political development of the state, starting from 2019, by inaugurating the Imo Charter of Equity.

The conveners of Imo State Advisory Council of Elders include Professor Francis Dike (SAN) representing Orlu Council of Elders (for Orlu Zone), Engr. Charles Ugwu (former Minister of Industries) representing Okigwe Council of Elders (for Okigwe zone) and Air Commodore Luke Ochulor (rtd) - first Military Administrator/Governor of Delta state, representing Owerri Council of Elders (for Owerri zone).

A Nod for Ugwuanyi’s AnticipatedVictory Samson Ezea

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n many ways, the March 9 Enugu Governorship/State Assembly elections is a referendum for Gov. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi’s administration, but one that the outcome is known before it is conducted. This is not complacency or over confidence, but an obvious statement of the realities and facts on ground. To the majority of voters in the state, the March 9 governorship/ state assembly elections is nothing, but a conclusion of the referendum they started for Gov. Ugwuanyi’s administration on February 23, when they voted massively for Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the Presidential/ National Assembly elections, basically because of Ugwuanyi’s stellar performance in office. The PDP victory in the NASS election was not only massive and impressive, it has shown that PDP is the favoured party on ground in the state and that the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidates, who are mainly defectors from the PDP lacked political relevance in the state.

So, Nigerians shouldn’t be surprised to see the massive voters’ turnout and the number of votes they will cast for Ugwuanyi and PDP House of Assembly candidates in the Saturday Governorship and House of Assembly Elections in the state. It is a fact that since Ugwuanyi assumed office in 2015, he has built a cult followership for his government with his inclusive and transparent leadership style that has endeared him to the people. This is not

a happenstance. It is by dint of the governor’s sheer hard work and total commitment to his responsibilities as the governor of the state, coupled with his outstanding performance in the face of obvious daunting challenges.

This is why to the church leaders, the less privileged, traders, students, artisans, children, parents, youths, entrepreneurs, rural dwellers, Muslims, Christians and even the opposition parties, Ugwuanyi is an outstanding leader, who cares much about his people’s wellbeing, carries them along and treats them equally.

The governor is seen and described by many within and outside the state as water that has no enemy at all. He is not only available.

He is easily accessible, accommodating and humane. That is why the nickname name Gburugburu has become a movement in the state today and almost every resident is now a member.

Apart from these, Ugwuanyi’s administration, while improving and expanding basic infrastructure in the urban areas, has taken massive development to the rural areas that were hitherto abandoned for years. This include the hitherto impassable Nkalagu-Eha Amufu road in the agrarian community of Eha-Amufu in Isi-Uzo Council Area which was abandoned for more than three decades, but is presently being reconstructed by Ugwuanyi’s administration. Already completed and in use now is the Agbani-Amurri road that links Nkanu East and Nkanu West council areas. The road has been unattended to by successive governments for

many decades. Also initiated and completed is the Ogonogoeji-Ndiagu-Akpugo road from Atavu bailey bridge to Afor Onovo. That is the first state government project in Akpugo since the creation of Enugu State.

Across the state, especially in rural areas, more than 700 kilometer roads have been constructed and rehabilitated by the present administration in the state since coming into office. The workers in the state have not only experienced prompt payment of salaries, they have enjoyed 13month salary in December every year. The people’s darling club East of the Niger, Enugu Rangers Football Club broke the jinx of not winning silverwares for decades under Gov. Ugwuanyi’s administration. Buoyed

by Gov. Ugwuanyi’s unflinching support, the Club has won both the National League and FA cup in a spectacular and miraculous manner in last three years plus.

Across the length and breadth of the state, Gov. Ugwuanyi’s remarkable and verifiable achievements stare everybody in the face.

There is no denial of this fact by the people of Enugu East, West and North senatorial zones. Their eyes have seen and tongues have confessed in unanimity that Gov. Ugwuanyi has done very well in office and deserves second term to continue his good work. Unlike in the other states, where governance took back seat immediately political campaigns took off, the situation is quite different in Enugu since the campaigns took off. Despite the hectic and distracting nature of campaigns,

governance is ongoing in the state smoothly and unhindered, courtesy of Gov. Ugwuanyi’s administrative ingenuity, love for the people and vision for good governance.

Apart from holding the weekly exco meeting, the governor creates time to visit sites of ongoing projects in the state. He works into the wee hours of the morning to ensure that all issues that affect the state are properly addressed and attended to urgently. He draws a parallel line between governance and politics. Just two weeks ago, the governor gave approval for the recruitment of additional 1000 unemployed youths to clean up the state under the Enugu Clean Team Project. This is in addition to the 1000 youths that had been earlier recruited into the project on the approval of the state government under Gov. Ugwuanyi’s watch. This, happening at a time most state governors are busy struggling to get money to pay workers’ salaries, contest election and attend to other government’s financial obligations, says a lot about Gov. Ugwuanyi’s personality and what he represents in public office. It is this uncommon gesture of the governor that spurred the beneficiaries of the scheme to recently celebrate a mass at the Holy Ghost Cathedral Enugu for the governor’s reelection and more successes in his future engagements.

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

T H I S D AY Ëž ÍłËœ Ͱ͎ͯ͡

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FEATURES

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

Tackling Migration, Gender Issues To tackle migration and gender issues, the French Government simultaneously through its Alliance Francaise office in Lagos and 69 other nations globally, held its first ‘Night of Ideas’ in Nigeria.

Sunday Ehigiator reports

L-R: Cultural AttachÊ for the French Embassy, AurÊlien Sennacherib; Cultural Entrepreneur, Ugoma Adegoke; France Ambassador to Nigeria, JÊrôme Pasquier; Cultural AttachÊe, Institute Français du Nigeria Christelle Folly, and Economist and Writer, Tancrede Voituriez

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t was not a usual night. The occasion was the first ‘Night of Ideas’ organised by the French Government simultaneously through its Alliance Francaise office in Lagos and 69 other nations. At the event, two prominent issues mirrored to be bewildering Africa took center stage, which was addressed by expert guest speakers, who took guests through the ideas crossfire sessions in a very interactive manner.

In his opening remarks, the Convener, a Cultural AttachĂŠ for the French Embassy, Mr. Aurelien Sennacherib, said it was a first of its kind night, as observed in over 70 countries all over the world and over a hundred places globally.

According to him, “the French government had thought it wise of how best we can further address global issues, and therefore, decided to start this initiative, which would serve as a platform were ideas that can turn global problems around, can be shared. “For this maiden edition, two global issues have been identified, namely; gender and migration issues, which is a predominant issue in the African narrative. And we have outlined expert speakers to take us through them. The Ambassador of France to Nigeria would likewise be here to observe the session, and we believe this is the beginning of a major progress in Africa�.

Nexus Between Development

Migration

and

Speaking on the relationship between migration and development, French Research Analyst and economist based in Nigeria, Tancrede Voituriez said people always assume that when a country becomes less poor, that migration would be on the decrease, but it is the other way round.

According to Voituriez, “I work for three French research centre’s in Abuja and I present on the relationship between migration and development. The truth is that, there is a misunderstanding on this relationship between migration and development. What is assumed is that, when a poor country grows and become less poor, there will be less migration from that country to richer countries. But what we have observed is exactly the opposite which is pulsing. “What we observed is that when poor

countries become less poor, migration raises and until the country reaches a level of roughly 6000 dollar per capital annually, which is very high; which means that development and migration do not conflict one another. “But development and migration strengthens one another and when there is more development there is more migration so the issue is not to prevent migration generally but to prevent illegal and irregular migration, then support safe migration, legal migration and voluntarily migration. And what is fascinating is that, African countries and African Union in particular is really at the forefront of free movement of person. “They are really leading the game there.

They are more progressive and taking care of people, protecting the right of migrants.

The European Union is a bit more focused on short time management of migrant while Africa Union is for long term free movement of people. For Europe, it is about more protection and management of the boarder to prevent migration from Africa. “And we think it’s a wrong reading of the fact, because migration challenges are here to stay so are the opportunities for development.

So it’s good to take this into account and with both strategies; both focuses on short term to manage crisis since something needs to be done. They must be on same horizon as African countries and think about long term prospect of development, and migration should be part of the picture. So there should be clear promotion from the EU on legal migration�.

Voituriez ended by identifying the quest for better life, greener pastures, investments, societal menace, amongst others as factors promoting migration in Africa, noting that if these factors can be addressed, it can be curtailed to voluntary migration, which according to him, “is the uninfluenced kind of migration�. He said.

Gender Issues In her summary notes on gender issues, Cultural entrepreneur, Mrs. Ugoma Adegoke said, “It is important we think of ourselves as human first. We looked at the history of the subjugation of woman; we need to understand how we got to this place where women have to struggle for their rights. But of course, the reason for this is that things evolved and people

may decide to do things differently. However in my own point of view, irrespective of gender, we are all half women and half men. “I believe it takes guts for a man to engage in topics that concern women. We talk about anger, rage etc. relating to gender. All these are natural because if there was no issue, you won't have anger or rage or abuse. “We talked about the effect of Western education, colonialism and the dynamism between men and women, and one of us spoke on the effect of corruption, specifically spoke on why more unfair practices have become the order of the day; why there is joblessness and there is the celebration of inequity; all these combined become a source of gender disparity. “We also identify the fallout of corruption and the failure that became the norms. This was buttress on the need for churches, or dependent on religion as it has created more corruption.

We also have Colonial influence, westernisation, Christianity as influencers of corruption.

I don't mean only Christianity, but Islam, and other external religion imposed on our society inclusive. What they created; the need for women to be hyper male, to create unnecessary twist. “We also talked about the role of the educator and education which is not just formally but informally. Of course, teachers are very important to the upbringing of young ones.

Young ones of the system of oppressive male to the female; or female to male has to do with the way they are raised. “So proper education is needed in order to give birth to children who are empathic, sensitive and who are interested in improving their skills and abilities so that they can participate in conversation based on what they can do. “The role of mothers, great grandmothers, and the fact that we have positive and reinforcing stories when you talk about strong women also matters. We have to go back to the systems that are fair, with communal respect for everyone.

And there is the need to go back to our basic culture and its attendance. “There is also the role of fathers in enabling women, female children to fly. That has led to the tragic contribution on the system where women are not necessarily respected because they aren’t boys. This has contributed to the kind of chaos we are seeing now. “How do we go forward? Of course more

forums have to continue because there is the need to continue the conversation. And we must realise that all of us have a responsibility in the fight for gender equality “I see the world moving forward when we see more gender parity. We are a world that is progressive, based on amazing skills and greatly enhanced by the human of the world; progress beings forged by women and the attention to change the culture�.

The Ambassador’s Delight In an interview with THISDAY, French Ambassador to Nigeria, JÊrôme Pasquier, expressed great delight at the participation level of the attendees and ideas shared on the global issues highlighted.

According to him, “I am very happy to listen to them, to hear from them. It was a very great exchange. In the area of illegal migration, there is a problem of poverty but not all poor people want to migrate. We have to go further if we want to explain migration and see how to regulate migration to have positive migration and not have negative migration. “As a country (France), we try to do this but it is very complicated. It’s a thing of number.

When migration goes slow it is quite easy to regulate and deal with it. Now it is the biggest number we have at the face of the capital, which is more complicating. “People in Europe are troubled when they see too many foreigners arriving, so we have to displace them, and explore other positive aspect we can use to change the narratives and we also have to take care of the reasons why migrant are coming to Europe and see if we can also help them to stay and have a good life in their countries. The biggest number of migrants is from Africa and between African countries. It’s something we have to remember.

What is important is to treat everyone with respect and create same opportunities for male and female. “On gender issues, I think education plays a very big role for us to be able to change this narrative. With education for boys and girls we can try to explain the need to have more equality between genders, but it will be a long fight. Boko Haram is against education for girls but education creates opportunities for girls,� he said.

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T H I S D AY Ëž ÍłËœ Ͱ͎ͯ͡

FEATURES

Poised for Innovation, Growth

Following the successful recapitalisation of 9mobile, Nume Ekeghe appraises the rebound progress made so far in its recent positive brand building initiatives

L-R: Company Secretary, Ore Olajide; Chief Financial OďŹƒcer,Phillips Oki; Non Executive Director,Asega Aliga;Non Executive Director, Mohammed Edewor all of 9mobile;Chairman, 9mobile, Alhaji Nasiru Ado Bayero ,Executive Vice Chairman, NCC, Professor Umar Danbatta; Ag. MD, Stephane Beuvelet and ED, Regulatory and Corporate Aairs, Abdulrahman Ado both of 9mobile during a courtesy visit by members of the 9mobile board to the NCC

T

he successful recapitalisation of 9mobile and its recent positive brand building initiatives including major acknowledgements by the industry regulator and a leading newspaper are pointers to the fact that the telco is set to retake its pride of place and reckoning as a significant player in the Nigeria’s telecommunication industry.

Already, key players in the telecom industry are watching with keen interest the positive signposts emanating from 9mobile and what advantage the firm can turn the positive indices into, because of its reputation as an innovative and a resilient operator.

Having surmounted a major obstacle that resulted from a loan facility it obtained from a banking consortium in 2003 to carry out network expansion, the successful recapitalisation of the business in the last quarter of 2018 and the inauguration of a new board of directors and management, have been widely acknowledged as proofs the telco is on rebound.

The new directors and management comprise consummate technocrats and professionals including Nasiru Ado Bayero(Chairman); Non-executive Directors, Asega Aliga, Mohammed Edewor and Winston Ndubueze Udehrespectively; Executive Director, Abdulrahman Ado and Acting Managing Director, Stephane Beuvelet.

The new Board Chair, Alhaji Bayero, gave the earliest assurance that it would be a rapid upward trajectory for the operator with a promise to staff members and subscribers that, “we will justify your confidence in our brand by making significant investments that will improve the value you get for using 9mobile.�

Beuvelet corroborated this by assuring 9mobile customers and other stakeholders of an exciting future in his New Year goodwill message to Nigerians, disclosing that several opportunities would be explored.

He said, “We are not only ready but better positioned and for a good reason too, to kick start a strategic new direction with bold initiatives that guarantee optimum value

to you, our esteemed customers, as we recover previously ceded grounds. We will continue to expand our 3G and 4G networks to bridge mobile broadband service gap, delivering cloud-enabled services to support SMEs and financial inclusion capabilities, and deploy an array of innovative brand loyalty reward programmes.�

To this end, the telco has rolled out a campaign dubbed ‘9nniversary’ with two loyalty reward schemes ongoing to commemorate its 10th anniversary and to celebrate and reward customers for their loyalty. The initiative also affirms its reputation as a caring network committed to the welfare of its customers.

The first promo - Northern Promo is exclusive to 9mobile’s loyal customers in Adamawa, Bauchi, Borno, Gombe, Jigawa, Kano, Katsina, Yobe and Taraba states with mouth-watering prizes including airtime, smartphones, cash prizes and the grand prize of a brand-new car with just a minimum of N100 recharge.

Three lucky customers will also get one million naira while one customer will drive in a brand-new car over the three months promo period.

The second is Magic Hour Promo in which millions of both new and existing 9mobile customers stand a chance to win fabulous prizes including free airtime, smartphones and cash prizes running into millions of Naira over the next three months.

The promo, which began on February 11 and to run till May 10, 2019 also entail raffles holding across key Nigeria cities. One winner will get the N20 million grand prize at the end of the promo, while one lucky customer will win N5 million cash in each of the three months duration of the promo.

That’s not all. One lucky customer each day will get N250,000 throughout the 90-days promo duration while five customers will win N50,000 cash each daily for 90 days.

Other fantastic prizes are five smartphones per week to be won during the 90-days promo.

Though the fourth entrant into Nigeria’s telecommunications industry, 9mobile emerged as the operator with the best

quality voice and data offering in just 10 years of operation. The telco focused on empowering customers with cutting-edge technology in the mobile broadband data space, launching its blazingly fast 3G data service in 2011 and following up with the unveiling of the 4G LTE in 2016.

Consequently, customers can enjoy faster internet browsing and downloads, video calling, live video streaming, interactive online games and live online music streaming.

They could also enjoy HD video streaming without buffering and crystal-clear video calls.

Fittingly, its enormous contributions to revolutionising the telecoms sector have won significant awards the newest of which is the ‘Telecom Company of the Year 2018’ award conferred by Leadership Group Limited, publishers of Leadership newspaper in recognition of the telco’s resilience and stability in the face of challenges from which the company pulled through over the past two years.

Speaking while presenting the award to 9mobile during an awards ceremony held on Thursday, February 7, 2019 inAbuja, Group Managing Director of Leadership Group Limited, Abdul Gombe commended the telco for emerging stronger from tests including the challenging operating environment, strict regulatory requirements, threat of take-over by a banking consortium and post-acquisition realities. “In the face of all these, 9mobile has maintained its relevance and its 9ja brand heritage within the Nigerian telecommunication space. For your resilience, the selection board found you most suitable for this prestigious award,� Gombe said.

Apart from rewarding customers, the operator has also affirmed its commitment to promoting cordial stakeholder relations by paying a courtesy visit to the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) in Abuja. On the visit were Board Chair Bayero, the Non-Executive Directors: Aliga, Edewor and Udeh, Ag. MD Beuvelet and ED, Regulatory & Corporate Affairs, Ado as well as Chief Financial Officer, Phillips Oki and Company Secretary, Ore Olajide.

During an interaction with the executive management team of the NCC led by the Executive Vice Chairman/CEO, Prof. Umar Danbatta, Bayero commended NCC for its immense support alongside the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in ensuring smooth and successful completion of the 9mobile acquisition process.

He assured that the new board will uphold excellence as the gold standard across all operations of 9mobile and that significant investments would be made to ensure that customers get value for choosing 9mobile.

Attesting to the ongoing rebound of 9mobile, Danbattadisclosed that even during its darkest hours, the operator never failed to deliver excellent service and meet some key performance indicators. “Every time we measure the KPIs for all the companies, 9mobile comes up top. And I am not stating this as a marketing stunt for 9mobile. I am saying this arising from the figures we have consistently recorded; 9mobile has one of the best networks in the country, that I can attest to, based on the result of the KPIs characterising Quality of Service�, he said.

An investment analyst, Atoyebi Olaomi, commended 9mobile for the steps taken so far to win the confidence of stakeholders as well as reward the loyalty of customers, noting that it was the right move.

He said, “I commend the strategic initiatives of the new owners of 9mobile, Teleology Nigeria Limited to continue to enjoy stakeholder cooperation and support as well as reward customers. I didn’t expect less from them because they needed to reposition the brand and I’m happy they have hit the ground running. “That’s the spirit to making the rebrand reclaim its spot in Nigeria’s ultra-competitive telecoms sector. I do hope that they won’t relent or be weary as they chart the new course for the much-beloved telco, the clear leader in data.�

As the telco continues efforts to reposition itself and maintain its resurgence with the key steps it is taking, industry analysts are hopeful that it won’t be long before it fully regains lost ground and continue to delight Nigerians with various exciting offers.

22

5 ) * 4 % ": t TUESDAY, MARCH 5, 2019

A

WEEKLY PULL-OUT

05.03.2019

FEBRUARY 23 ELECTIONS:

SHAM OR LEGITIMATE?

President Muhammadu Buhari receiving his certificate of return with the Vice-President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, SAN flanked by Mrs. Aisha Buhari (left) and Mrs. Dolapo Osinbajo (right)

2/DASHBOARD

05.03.2019

Essential Requirements for Compounding an Offence under Section 14(2) of the EFCC Act PAGE 4

‘Rapid Expansion of ADR May Soon Replace Litigation in Civil Matters’ PAGE 5

Court Orders Arrest of Nollywood Actress, Monalisa over Tax Evasion PAGE 5

QUOTABLES ‘It is an alibi for incompetence, when people are afraid of technology....I think we must embrace technology.....

So, you won’t be afraid of ballot box snatchers....If you want to live in the past, you should not complain when things go awry.... By the time you have exit polls, electronic voting and all sorts of things that make democracy work, we won’t be bellyaching and making melancholic statements about the situation.’

– Professor Akin Oyebode, Professor of International Law and Jurisprudence

‘The politics of the country unfortunately, is now devoid of ideology or principle. Hence, you could be in one party in the morning, be in another one in the afternoon, and return to base before you go to bed.’

- Femi Falana, SAN, Human Rights Activist

Court Fixes May 7 to Hear Suit Seeking to Stop Review Audit by Exxon Mobil PAGE 6

‘Relevance in the Legal Market, requires more than knowledge of the Law’ PAGE 6

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 co-founded 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.

DR. KUBI UDOFIA Dr. Kubi Udofia holds a Doctorate degree in Law from The University of Nottingham, a Certificate in International Risk Management from the Institute of Risk Management, London, a Masters degree in Corporate Law from University College, London and a Bachelors degree from University of Uyo in Nigeria.

Called to the Nigerian Bar in 2007, Dr Udofia is the Head of the Corporate and Commercial Law Practice Group, at Fidelis Oditah & Co. He is an acknowledged expert in Insolvency and Restructuring Law in Nigeria.

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

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Presidential Election Blues

I

Which Political Party do I Support? felt somewhat amused the other day, when someone commented that, from one of my pages, it seemed as if I have PDP sympathies. I wondered what would be the reason for my political leanings, if I had any? In civilised countries like the UK and USA, preferences are based on shared or common ideology with political parties. So, for example, in USA, the Democrats are liberal, while the Republicans are conservative in their beliefs.

You may therefore, find that people who are pro-abortion and pro-gay marriage, are more likely to be Democrats. But, we are all aware that, in Nigeria, our political parties, whether the APC, PDP or XYZ, have no ideology whatsoever, as they are simply platforms for realising political ambitions – so, for instance, if I was running for an elective position in Katsina, I would probably be better off in the APC, while if it was in Delta State, PDP. Since I am not a politician, nor am I running for any elective office, preferring one platform to the other, does not even arise.

Another reason for my political leanings, could be where I have the most friends. While I have a few friends in the PDP, I have a large number of friends in the APC. So, if I was looking for some advantage or the other, I am probably better off with the APC. Luckily for me, whether the APC or PDP, my friends can bear me witness to the fact that, I have never been to any of them, to seek any personal favours. Rather, I try to keep my distance, until they have completed their terms.

My point? If anything, I should support APC, the party in which a considerable number of my friends are not just members, but hold elective offices. Another reason for my political leanings would be performance, and I do not think that I have hidden the fact that, I am not particularly impressed with the performance of this administration, so far. Whether the APC or PDP or whoever, if they do not perform well, I will make my observations, no matter how distasteful they may come across to some.

The truth of the matter is that, I am ‘AGIP’- ‘Any Government in Power’, as long as we have good decent governance that prioritises the development of the country, the welfare of the people, and respects the rule of law. In short, a government that delivers the dividends of democracy, to the people. Sadly, I cannot say with the utmost conviction, that President Muhammadu Buhari (Baba)’s government has done this.

Storming of the Bastille

1789: The French Revolution As a student in the UK in the early 1980’s, we did the French Revolution in our History class. The storming of the Bastille (a representation of royal authority, a fortress and symbol of tyranny and the nobility’s cruelty to the plebeians) on July 14, 1789, left an indelible mark in my mind. It was the onset of the French Revolution, which led to the downfall of Louis XVI. What I took from that event, was that, if there are 100 people in a country, and only five of them are wealthy and living in opulence, while the other 95 are wallowing in poverty and misery, eventually the 95 dissatisfied and disgruntled people who form the majority, will overwhelm the five, kill them if necessary, and take over their possessions. Every wise ruler, therefore, must take the feelings of the generality of the people into consideration, and not just a privileged few, whichever way these privileged few are chosen - whether by tribe or religious beliefs. After all, the preamble to the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended)(the Constitution) states thus:”....a Constitution for the purpose of promoting the good government and welfare of all persons in our country on the principles of freedom, equality and justice....”, while Section 14(2)(b) makes the welfare of the people, the primary purpose of government.

February 23 Elections: The Anomalies The first set of elections, have come and gone, and with the ‘victory’ of Baba, the Government has put on a facade of popularity. Is this really the reality? Is the Government as popular, as it is making out to be? I acted as an election observer from the front of my television (after having voted of course), and here are some of my observations.

Firstly, I find the fact that someone who is not just a card carrying member of the ruling APC, but an APC candidate in the election, being responsible for supplying the equipment utilised for the elections, unacceptable, especially in our Nigeria of today, where dishonesty, insincerity and corruption reign.

Disenfranchisement Sections 77(2), 132(5) and 178(4) of the Constitution, as well as Section 12(1) of the Electoral Act guarantee the right of every Nigerian citizen who has attained the age of 18 years, who is registered to vote, and is not subject to any legal incapacity preventing them from voting, to exercise their franchise. However, we

all saw on television, video clips of people in several different parts of the country, like for instance, in Lagos, in Ago Ikota, Isolo and Aguda Surulere, areas considered to be PDP strongholds because they are inhabited predominantly by people of Igbo extraction, being prevented from voting by ‘thugs’, while in some cases their cast ballots were burnt, destroyed, and thrown into gutters and open drains. I wondered why the ‘shoot on sight’ soldiers whom the APC Campaign Council Spokesman, Festus Keyamo, SAN boasted about, were not on hand to descend on the thugs and mow them down. Instead, they were left to run amok. Were these disenfranchised people, eventually allowed to vote? If not, how would INEC have been able to declare a reliable result in Lagos, without their votes being among?

Ladies in Nembe, Bayelsa State, were also shown on television, voter cards in hand, protesting that they were not allowed to vote. This state of affairs, was corroborated by my friend, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, who went home to Nembe to vote, but was unable to exercise his civic duty, because Friday night cum early Saturday morning of the elections, APC hoodlums were shooting through the night. People ran helter skelter, for the fear of being gunned down, and the next morning, they were afraid to come out to vote, for fear of reprisals, if they made the mistake of voting for the wrong party. The Army who were on hand, looked the other way, and did nothing to protect the people. Again, the people were disenfranchised. My friend was not given an opportunity to vote, yet a result was declared in that area.

Duress In my 36 years of being a voter, for the first time in history, “na sha mamaki” (I was amazed), when I watched a Senatorial election returning officer, proclaim on television that he was declaring the election results under duress, and proceeded to announce Governor Rochas Okorocha as the winner of Imo West Senatorial election!

There was intimidation and threat to the lives of INEC officials in Rivers State, who reported attempts by soldiers to seize election results and perpetrate other acts of violence.

Voter Inflation and Suppression Again, rather amazing was the number of people that were said to have voted in Borno State; between APC and PDP, over 900,000 votes? In the wake of a Boko Haram attack in Maiduguri on the morning of the election, with a fierce exchange of gunfire? With the terrorists, Boko Haram in the vicinity, who in their right mind, would risk coming out to vote, when one does not need to be Einstein, to conclude that the reason for the attack, was to frustrate the elections in that area? The insurgency ridden Borno State, had almost as many voters as Lagos, which has the highest number of registered voters. Incredible!

Which brings me to another anomaly – voter inflation in many areas that President Buhari won, and voter suppression in places where Alhaji Atiku Abubakar won. I was perplexed with the results of Benue State, where even though Alhaji Abubakar won, it was with an extremely thin margin. I wondered how plausible it was, that in a State where the people have been slaughtered like cattle by Herdsmen, so many people have witnessed the deaths of their neighbours, and Government’s lack of response to the situation, that people there would still vote for Baba with such gusto and aplomb!

I found it strange that where Alhaji Abubakar won, the total number of votes cast were not impressive (voter suppression) and the margin of defeat

ONIKEPO BRAITHWAITE

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

“....FOR THE FIRST TIME IN HISTORY, “NA SHA MAMAKI” (I WAS AMAZED), WHEN I WATCHED A SENATORIAL ELECTION RETURNING OFFICER, PROCLAIM ON TELEVISION, THAT HE WAS DECLARING THE ELECTION RESULTS UNDER DURESS, AND PROCEEDED TO ANNOUNCE GOVERNOR ROCHAS OKOROCHA AS THE WINNER OF IMO WEST SENATORIAL ELECTION!”

between Alhaji Abubakar and Baba was low, allowing Baba to get the 25% spread all over, even in places where he lost.

On the contrary, in most places where Baba won, the total number of votes cast were fantastically high (voter inflation), and the margin of defeat between Baba and Alhaji Abubakar, was high. It is obvious that from all the reports, that there was a very deliberate systematic approach and orchestration to election malpractice in some areas, either with the collusion or intimidation of INEC staff, using law enforcement as allies.

There were many situations where the smart card reader failed, but people voted anyway, unreliability in the collation of results, discrepancies between the accredited voters and votes cast.

During the presentation of results in the Situation Room, one of the party agents openly made this observation to the INEC Chairman – that the number of votes cast between the PDP and the APC in Kogi State, was higher than the total number of accredited voters. The arrival of two bullion vans at the National leader of APC, Senator Bola Tinubu’s house the day before the election, lends credence to the suspicion that, there was a massive amount of vote buying. The response by Senator Tinubu that it was his money and not Government’s money, and therefore, nobody’s business how he spent it, was not only hilarious, preposterous and bizarre, but incongruous to the fight against corruption and vote buying.

In light of all this and more, can the just concluded elections, truly be said to have been free and fair? What do you think, my dear Readers?

4/LAW REPORT

05.03.2019

Essential Requirements for Compounding an Offence under Section 14(2) of the EFCC Act

I

Facts n 2005, the Appellant received a Petition against Chief DSP Alamieyeseigha, a former Governor of Bayelsa State. During the investigation, it was discovered that the former Governor, through his company known as Herbage Global Services, bought a certain Chelsea Hotel in Abuja from Panasonic Industries Ltd (a company owned by the Respondent) for the sum of N1,500,000,000.00 (One billion, five hundred million Naira), with funds belonging to the Government of Bayelsa State. Following the Charge against Chief Alamieyeseigha and his company, the Appellant obtained an Order of Temporary Forfeiture against the properties of the accused persons. However, while the forfeiture was pending and after the Governor was impeached, the Respondent allegedly entered into another agreement with the new Government of Bayelsa with the aim of re- transferring Chelsea Hotel to the Bayelsa State Government and in the process, misled the Government that he sold the property for N2,000,000,000.00 leaving a balance of N500,000,000.00.

This led to a fresh agreement between the Respondent and Bayelsa State Government for the sum of N400,000,000.00, after which a cheque was issued in favour of the Respondent for the stated sum. The Respondent was consequently, invited for an interview by the Appellant and charged for tampering with a property in respect of which Temporary Forfeiture Order had been obtained. The Respondent was said to have offered to refund the N400,000,000.00, and deposited a cheque for the sum of N100,000,000.00 as part payment.

The Respondent, on his part, disputed the facts as narrated by the Appellant, stating that he offered the property for sale for the sum of N2,000,000,000.00 and that the sale agreement was made in two batches of N1,500,000,000.00 and N500,000,000.00.

Both agreements were prepared and executed on the same date, but the Respondent held on to the title document, pending payment of the balance for the purchase. The Respondent stated that, he was detained by the Appellant for more than thirty days, with various threats to his life. He was later granted an Administrative bail, after signing a bail bond and issuance of the cheque in question for the sum of N100,000,000.00. Upon his release on bail, the Respondent wrote several letters to the Appellant for refund of the money collected from him under duress, but the request was not honoured.

Consequent upon the foregoing, the Respondent commenced an action by way of Originating Summons seeking a Declaration that the forfeiture of his Standard Chartered Bank Cheque for the sum of N100,000,000.00, is a violation of his right to own property as guaranteed by the Constitution. He therefore, sought a Mandatory Order of Injunction, directing the Appellant to release the cheque. The trial Court heard the Summons and dismissed the Respondent’s claim, for failure to prove same.

The appeal to the Court of Appeal was partly successful, and the Appellant was directed to release the Respondent’s cheque.

The Appellant, who was dissatisfied with the decision of the lower Court, approached the Supreme Court to set aside the decision of the Court of Appeal.

Issues for Determination The issues adopted for determination were: 1. Whether having regard to the facts and the issues submitted for determination, the Court of Appeal was right when it held that, the Appellant collected the Standard Chartered Bank Cheque for the sum of N100,000,000.00 on behalf of the Bayelsa State Government, and that the collection was contrary to the provisions of Section 14(2) of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (Establishment) Act, 2004 (EFCC Act).

2. Whether the Court of Appeal was right to have held that, there was no agreement to compound the offence alleged against the Respondent, and that the Appellant violated the Respondent’s right by collecting the money as against prosecuting the Respondent.

Arguments The Appellant argued that, neither the Respondent nor the Appellant raised the issue of illegality of collecting the money from the Respondent, and that nobody said the money was collected on behalf of the Bayelsa State Government. The issue of collecting money on behalf of the Government was raised suo motu by the Court of Appeal, and the Court failed to invite parties to address it on the matter. Counsel posited that, the lower Court gave a narrow interpretation to the provisions of Section 14(2) of the EFCC Act, by suggesting that only offences in which the Federal Government of Nigeria is the Complainant can be compounded, as the money belonging to a State Government cannot be paid into the Consolidated Revenue Fund. Counsel stressed that, the power to prosecute for an offence, is not determined by the ownership of the property allegedly stolen or misappropriated.

The Respondent on his part, submitted that, the issue from the trial Court was that the Appellant had no power to unilaterally collect the cheque for the sum of N100,000,000.00 without a

Hon. Justice John Inyang Okoro, JSC

In the Supreme Court of Nigeria Holden at Abuja On Friday, the 14th day of December, 2018 Before Their Lordships Walter Samuel Nkanu Onnoghen, CJN Musa Dattijo Muhammad John Inyang Okoro Amiru Sanusi Sidi Dauda Bage Justices, Supreme Court SC.444/2011 Between Economic and Financial Crimes Commission .... Appellant And Chief Patrick T. Chidolue ............Respondents (Lead Judgement delivered by Hon. John Inyang Okoro, JSC)

court order, and, as such, cannot be an issue raised suo motu by the lower court. Also, that the ratio of the judgement of the lower court, was that the collection of the money was not in accordance with the provisions of Section 14(2) of the EFCC Act, and that the mention of Bayelsa State Government in the judgement was an obiter. Counsel submitted that, an agreement is essential for compounding an offence, and such was not present in this instance.

Court’s Judgement and Rationale Deciding the issue, the Supreme Court reiterated the trite principle that, it is not a function of any court to raise suo motu,

“....THE POWER OF THE APPELLANT TO COMPOUND AN OFFENCE, HAS TO BE DONE WITH AN AGREEMENT, WHICH SHOULD SHOW THAT AN OFFENCE WAS COMMITTED; THE ACCUSED AGREED TO SAME; THE OFFENCE IS PUNISHABLE UNDER THE EFCC ACT; THE ACCUSED AGREES TO PAY A CERTAIN AMOUNT TO THE EFCC, WHICH AMOUNT MUST EXCEED THE MAXIMUM SUM HE WOULD HAVE PAID HAD HE BEEN CONVICTED”

issues not canvassed in the proceedings, save for the issue of jurisdiction - LEADERS & COMPANY LTD & ANOR v MAJOR GENERAL MUSA BAMAIYI (2010) 18 NWLR (Pt. 1225) 329.

It is against the principle of fair hearing, for a court to raise an issue suo motu and decide on it without inviting parties to address it on the matter. In the instant case, the central issue was the legality of the collection and the forfeiture of the Respondent’s cheque for the sum of N100,000,000.00, being part of the transaction fee. Thus, when the Respondent filed the matter, the contention was that the collection of the money was not in accordance with Section 14(2) of the EFCC Act, and that the cheque be returned to him. Hence, the assertion of the Appellant that the issue was raised suo motu, is incorrect.

Their Lordships observed that by Section 14(2) and (3) of the EFCC Act, the Appellant is empowered to (i) Compound any offence punishable under the EFCC Act (subject to the provisions of Section 174 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria) as amended; (ii) accept such sums of money as it thinks fit; (iii) such money must exceed the maximum amount to which that person would have been liable if he had been convicted of that offence, and that such money shall be paid into the Consolidated Revenue Fund of the Federation.

Where a complaint is made to the EFCC about fraud and the EFCC in the process of its investigation makes some financial recoveries, such recoveries belongs to the Complainant and ought to be paid to the Complainant. This does not form part of the money contemplated under subsection (3) which is to be paid into the revenue fund, and it was in this context that the lower court and the trial court described the N100,000,000.00 paid by the Respondent to the Appellant, as money belonging to the Bayelsa State Government.

To determine whether the N100,000,000.00 collected from the Respondent was part of the N400,000,000.00 allegedly paid to the Respondent, the Court examined the definition of Compounding offence and came to the conclusion that to compound an offence by the EFCC, the following must co-exist: (1) the accused must not only have knowledge of the offence, there must be the actual commission of crime; (2) there must be an agreement not to prosecute, (3) there must be a receipt of consideration i.e. sums of money exceeding the maximum amount to which that person would have been liable if he had been convicted of the offence and (4) the offence must be punishable under the EFCC Act. In the instant case, although the Respondent was arraigned and detained for over 30days by the Appellant, there was no evidence that the Respondent accepted that he committed the offence. The Respondent was never tried in court. The lower court also held that, there was no evidence of an agreement between the Appellant and the Respondent on the issue of compounding the crime for which the Respondent was to be charged. By the decision in ROMAN NIG. LTD v FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA (2014) LPELR – 22759 CA, parties cannot expect the court, to act on an imaginary agreement. The Court noted that the money collected from the Appellant was not for compounding offence, but part of money belonging to the Government, and if the Respondent had paid the entire N400,000,000.00, same would not have been paid into the Consolidated Revenue Fund.

Thus, the money contemplated by Section 14(2) was for a fine which the Respondent would have been liable to, had he been convicted, because conviction takes place in court, and not at the EFCC. There was also no evidence that the money was returned to the Government, or paid into the Revenue Fund.

On what could have been the maximum amount the Respondent would have been liable to, had he been convicted in view of Section 14(2), the court found no evidence of same. Their Lordships added that, the power of the Appellant to compound an offence has to be done with an agreement, which should show that an offence was committed; the accused agreed to same; the offence is punishable under the EFCC Act; the accused agrees to pay a certain amount to the EFCC, which amount must exceed the maximum sum he would have paid had he been convicted.

The conclusion ought to state that, the accused paid the said sum which has been paid into the Consolidated Revenue Fund, and a receipt attached thereto with a signature of both parties.

These steps were lacking in the instant case, and court held that the Appellant did not collect the N100million from the Respondent in accordance with Section 14(2).

Conclusively, the Supreme Court resolved the two issues against the Appellant, and accordingly dismissed the appeal for being unmeritorious.

Appeal Dismissed.

Representation: M.D. Adebayo, Esq. with O.A. Atolagbe, Esq. for the Appellant.

Hameed Ogunbiyi, Esq. for the Respondent.

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

05.03.2019

NEWS/5

L-R: Chairman of the Ocassion/Odu of Onitsha, Chief Arthur Mbanefo, Authors of the book, Chief ( Mrs) Tinuade Oyekunle and Chief Bayo Ojo, SAN and Book Reviewer, Professor Paul O. Idornigie, SAN at the public presentation of the book last Thursday, at the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs, on Kofo Abayomi, Victoria Island,Lagos

L-R:Book Presenter, Sir Olu Okeowo, Mrs. Joke Okeowo, Chairman of the Ocassion/Odu of Onitsha, Chief Arthur Mbanefo, Authors of the book, Chief ( Mrs) Tinuade Oyekunle and Chief Bayo Ojo, SAN

‘Rapid Expansion of ADR May Soon Replace Litigation in Civil Matters’ Stories by Akinwale Akintunde The rapid expansion of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) around the world, might one day replace litigation in civil matters.

This is the view of two of Nigeria’s most excellent in the field of arbitration, Mrs. Tinuade Oyekunle and Chief Bayo Ojo, SAN, in their book ‘Handbook of Arbitration and ADR Practice in Nigeria’.

The book was formally presented to the public last Thursday, at the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs, on Kofo Abayomi, Victoria Island, Lagos, under the chairmanship of Chief Arthur Mbanefo, the former Nigerian Permanent Representative to the United Nations.

In his remarks, Chief Mbanefo commended the authors for their contributions to the education and knowledge of ADR, by documenting it in a book.

He decried the death of writing and reading books in the country, and urged educated Nigerians, especially

those in the academia, to write textbooks to support learning in their respective fields.

Mbanefo said the handbook, “is such book intended to project Nigerian application of relevant laws and jurisprudence.

“The importance of this book becomes clear, when one considers the current growth in the practice of commercial arbitration and ADR in Nigeria.

“Educated Nigerians, particularly those in the academia, have consistently shied away from writing books, especially text books to support the subject they profess.

“The result is that, it has become rare to find textbooks in matters of noble and international applications to document the Nigerian experience and relevance”, he said.

Mbanefo said that the National Education Policy, should stress the need to write more books.

“I recommend that this book be adopted by all

institutions of legal studies and practice in Nigeria, as a standard text book for arbitration and ADR practice in Nigeria, as well as a useful book for reference purposes”, Mbanefo said.

The book reviewer, Prof.

Paul Idornigie, SAN, in his review of the book, said the title of the book had been a subject of debate among academics.

“There is a huge debate among academics, practitioners and users of ADR, as to whether arbitration is part of ADR”, he said.

He described the authors, Mrs. Tinuade Oyekunle and Chief Bayo Ojo, SAN, who is a former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, as the first and second Chartered Arbitrators in Nigeria.

Idornigie, however, said while conciliation and mediation were consensual, arbitration was both consensual and adjudicatory.

The Professor said the authors of the book were of the view that, the rapid expansion of ADR around

the world, might one day replace litigation in civil matters.

According to Idornigie, Government support is imperative.

He also said that, ADR should be adopted from strictly commercial transactions to other social and domestic arrangements, as obtains in England.

According to him, more training, accreditation and professionalism, coupled with standardised regulatory framework, should be injected into ADR spectrum.

He analysed what all the 24 chapters of the book were all about, and explained the aspects of arbitration law as treated in it.

Sir Olu Okeowo, Chairman, Gibraltar Holdings Nigeria Ltd, presented the book.

Present at the event include; Justice Folasade Ojo of the Court of Appeal, Dr. Wale Babalakin, SAN, Ms. Funke Aboyade, SAN, Mr. Tunde Busari, SAN, Mr. Ayodele Akintunde, SAN, amongst other notable legal luminaries.

Court Orders Arrest of Nollywood Actress, Monalisa over Tax Evasion Justice Adedayo Akintoye of the Lagos High Court sitting in Igbosere, has ordered for the arrest of a Nollywwod actress and producer, Monalisa Chinda Coker, over a tax evasion charge.

The Judge issued the bench warrant to arrest the actress, following an application by the Lagos State Ministry of Justice, alleging that Coker had repeatedly failed to honour a court summons.

The Lagos State Ministry of Justice had filed a twocount charge against Coker, accusing her of a six-year failure to file annual tax returns, and failure to pay income tax in respect of her company, Monalisa Code Productions, which carries on its business from Lekki in Lagos.

Prosecution counsel, Y. A. Pitan told Justice Akintoye that, Coker had not appeared in court since 2017, when the charge was filed against her.

"The Defendant has been served with hearing notice.

The proof of service is in the court's file”, Pitan said, while making an application for the bench warrant.

Granting the application,

Justice Akintoye adjourned further proceedings till February 2.

But, on February 2, the court heard that the bench warrant was yet to be effected.

It ordered that, the warrant should continue and adjourned to April 1.

Count one of the charge, marked LD/5712c/2017, reads in part: “Failure to furnish and file annual tax returns for the purpose of personal income taxation with the Lagos State Internal Revenue Service (LIRS), contrary to Section 94(1) of the Personal Income Tax Act 2004 (as amended)."

The particulars of the count stated that Coker "of Monalisa Code Productions, being a taxable person in Nigeria and carrying on business at...

Lekki... failed to furnish and file tax returns on your personal income for the years 2011 to 2016”.

Count two reads: "Failure to pay income tax, contrary to Section 56 of the Lagos State Revenue Administration Law of 2006."

Court Declares Deportation of Cameroonians from Nigeria, Illegal Justice A.I Chikere of the Federal High Court, Abuja has declared illegal and unconstitutional, the deportation of Cameroonians from Nigeria.

The Cameroonians were arrested in Abuja on January 9, 2018, on the instruction of the National Security Adviser, MajorGeneral Babagana Monguno.

They were detained in an underground cell, at the headquarters of Directorate Intelligence Agency, Abuja.

Human Rights Lawyer, Mr. Femi Falana, SAN however, filed a suit on their behalf praying the court amongst others for; “a declaration that the arrest of the Applicants without warrant of arrest, is unconstitutional and contrary to Sections 34 & 35 of the 1999 Constitution as amended, and Article 5 & 6 of the

African Charter of Human and Peoples Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act. “A declaration that the detention of the Applicants in an underground prison by the 1st Respondent, is a violation of their right to personal liberty “A declaration that the detention of the Applicants without access to their Lawyers or family, is a violation of their right to fair hearing.

“A declaration that the arrest and detention of the Applicants, is a violation of their right to freedom of assembly and association.

“An order of the court, ordering the immediate release of the Applicants.

“Pay the Applicants the sum of 200 million Naira

each, as compensation for the damages and hardship which they suffered.

“An order of perpetual injunction, restraining any further violation of the rights of the Applicants by the Defendant or any of its agencies”.

Even though the Respondents did not file a counter affidavit, they nonetheless, raised a preliminary objection hinged on the following grounds of objection: “The court lacked jurisdiction, to entertain this matter.

“That this case does not fall within Chapter IV of the 1999 constitution as amended, so cannot be commenced by way of Fundamental Human Rights enforcement proceeding.

“That the Applicant failed to file a competent affidavit to support their claim, since the affidavit was not deposed to by the Applicants, and the person who deposed to it failed to state why the affidavit was not personally deposed to by the Applicants”.

In arguing the preliminary objection, the Respondents' Counsel, Mr. D. Suleiman urged the Court to dismiss the case, on the ground that it was brought under the Fundamental Rights (Enforcement Procedure) Rules 2009.

But, Mr. Falana countered, by arguing that the arrest and detention of the Applicants who are refugees and asylum seekers, constituted a breach of Section 35 of the Constitution and Article 6 of the African

Charter on Human and Peoples Rights.

However, Justice Chikere declared the arrest and detention of the 12 Applicants, illegal, as the Federal Government did not controvert the affidavit of the Applicants and awarded N5 million damages to each of them.

On the deportation of the 12 detainees and 35 others from Nigeria to Cameroon on January 26, 2019, the Judge dismissed the preliminary objection of the Federal Government, as lacking in merit.

Justice Chikere agreed with the submission that, the Applicants were expelled from Nigeria in utter violation of the legal obligations under the National Refugee Commission

Act, Section 35 of the Constitution and Article 12 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights, which have prohibited Nigeria from expelling or deporting refugees and asylum seekers from Nigeria.

Consequently, the Judge declared the deportation of the Applicants, illegal and unconstitutional, awarded N200,000 to each of them, and ordered the Federal Government to ensure that they are brought back to Nigeria forthwith. And granted an order of perpetual injunction, restraining the Respondents from further violating the fundamental rights of the Applicants in any manner whatsoever and howsoever, upon return to Nigeria.

6/

05.03.2019

Court Fixes May 7 to Hear Suit Seeking to Stop Review Audit by Exxon Mobil Akinwale Akintunde Justice A.N Ubaka of the National Industrial Court in Lagos, has fixed May 7, for the hearing of a suit filed by General Manager of the Public and Government Affairs Department (P & GA) of Mobil also known as Exxon Mobil, Mr. Paul Arinze, against the oil company.

Arinze had dragged the oil company to court, praying it to suspend a "Special Review" Audit by Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited, to probe the affairs of the Public and Government Affairs Department (P&GA) of the company, pending conclusion of a routine audit.

The Claimant averred that, the “Special Review” has been the all-purpose vehicle, used by the Defendant to "flush" out Nigerians from positions of authority in the company, and have them replaced by foreigners.

In his suit marked NICN/LA/659/2018, the Claimant is challenging the said audit, and calling for a review by an independent auditor.

Arinze is seeking among other declaratory reliefs, that the mode of operation of the existing Audit Team, is in breach of the rules of natural Justice and an infringement on his fundamental rights, as enshrined in the 1999 Constitution.

When the matter came up before the court yesterday, Mr. Abayomi Osinbajo announced appearance for the claimant while Mr. Charles Edosomwan, SAN appeared for Mobil.

The Claimant counsel then informed the court that the case was supposed to be for hearing of his application for interlocutory injunction, but informed the court that the claimant had already been issued a notice of retirement by defendant, even while the case was pending in court.

He described this as bad faith and urged the court to view the action of the defendant, adding that same was not duly done.

Counsel also informed the court that this morning, he was served with the defendant's notice of preliminary objection and a counter affidavit in opposition to the motion for interlocutory injunction.

In response, defence counsel, argued that the question in issue is whether the court could intervene and stop the ongoing internal audit of Mobil, adding that a company reserves the right to dismiss an employee.

In its remark, the court pointed out that although the case ought to be for hearing, some of the processes were not yet in the court's file.

She accordingly, adjourned the case until May 7, for hearing, by which time the claimant would have responded to the defendant's counter affidavit.

In his statement of material facts, the Claimant avers that he filed the suit, following the irreparable harm he continues to suffer in the course of his employment, as a result of what he calls "gross violations" of the rules of natural justice by the Defendant, in the internal audit of his department.

He said that, by a letter dated April 20, 2018 signed by the Defendant’s then Area

Audit Manager, and copying its Managing Director, (MD), the Defendant instituted an internal audit of its Public and Government Affairs Department, headed by him.

He said that his unit duly participated in the audit, with the belief that the audit team would operate within the defined scope, and comply with international applicable standards of best practices, Labour Laws, as well as the Constitution of Nigeria.

According to him, he realised sadly, that in the course of the audit, the Defendant repeatedly violated its defined scope, and failed to provide the Claimant with an impartial audit proceeding, adding that it had no consideration for resolution of potential conflicts of interest.

The Claimant said that time lines were constantly violated, as the audit which was billed to begin in July 2018, actually began in May 2018, and its end date which was slated for August 2018, continued into December 2018, even after the field's exit meeting had been held in September 2018.

He said this was in a bid to "nail" him, at all cost.

He avers that when it became apparent that no significant infraction had been uncovered by audit to entrap him, the Defendant set up the “Special Review”, which he said was a "grossly irregular and hostile parallel investigation".

He said that the rationale for this Special Review, was not communicated to his department, and its scope was inherently unlawful, having been made to cover ten years, while an ongoing audit covered only

three years.

According to him, the local wing of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN), wrote two letters to the Defendant when it noticed that the “Special Review” panel it usually sets up, was only geared at getting rid of Nigerian workers.

He, therefore, seeks an order, that the existing Audit Team set up to probe the affairs of his department, be recomposed and replaced with impartial and unbiased auditors, who have no conflict of interest.

He, also wants an order, for the report of the recomposed Audit Team, to be reviewed by an external and independent assessor.

Besides, the Claimant is asking for the payment of aggravated damages by the Defendant, at a quantum to be determined by the court, for the stress and trauma caused him by its discrimination.

Meanwhile, in its counter affidavit, the defendant avers that every department of the company undrgoes an internal audit once every three years, adding that there were audits in the years 2012, 2015, and 2018.

It said that it is a standard routine process of the defendant to check the effectiveness of its controls and internal processes, and where necessary, make recommendations for improvement.

Besides, in its notice of preliminary objection, the defendant is urging the court to dismiss and strike out the suit in its entirety, for being incompetent and for lack of jurisdiction.

Legal Personality of the Week Michael Adeniyi Abiiba

‘Relevance in the Legal Market, requires more than knowledge of the Law’ Please, give a brief introduction of yourself My name is Michael Adeniyi Abiiba. I am a Senior Associate in the Dispute Resolution, Shipping & Oil Services practice group at Bloomfield Law Practice (BLP). BLP is a Nigerian full-service law firm, with offices located within the commercial nerve centre of Lagos.

I had my primary education at Tender Age Children School in Ebute Metta, Lagos, and thereafter, I attended CMS Grammar School, Bariga Lagos for my secondary education. I obtained a Law degree from the University of Lagos, and I attended the Nigerian Law School, Agbani Campus, Enugu.

I am affiliated with a number of professional bodies, including the Chartered Institute of Arbitration (UK).

Prior to joining BLP, I worked with the dispute resolution team in a commercial law firm, where I garnered significant experience and provided invaluable services to a spectrum of domestic and international clients.

which very few ever get to understand.

Have you had any challenges in your career as a Lawyer, and if so, what were the main challenges?

I recall that back in the University, one of my lecturers often said law practice is a “meal ticket”. I think I initially misconstrued that saying to mean that, once you get out there, the lines begin to fall in pleasant places.

My early practice experience, witnessed an atmosphere where the principals believe that you are a student, and should ordinarily even pay for learning. You should then be grateful to receive a stipend, that makes little or no room for any luxury. This initially discouraged my interest in continuing in the career path, but over time, I began to understand and relate with the fact that, learning precedes earning, and money often follows adding value. I must also say that, law practice, like any other going concern, is a business that has peculiar trade secrets,

What was your worst day as a Lawyer?

Until attainment of the rank of a Senior Advocate, you are expected to take your turn in court, except you are indulged.

The court goes through its cause list, and you conduct your case when it is called.

Ahead of a contentious application, which I was to argue in court, I had burnt the midnight candle getting ready. As usual, I arrived court quite early (at about 8:15am) to take a convenient space, and wait for the business of the day. My matter was the last on the list, and so I had to wait all day long.

At almost 4:21pm my matter was finally called. With no precise reason, the Judge indicated that the court will not be able to take my matter, and that the case would be adjourned for hearing of the application.

While it is customary to say “as the court pleases”, I unconsciously said it is not fair.

I was almost held in contempt of court.

What was your most memorable experience as a Lawyer?

While I was at one of my previous employments, I inherited a particular problematic file. No one believed in the case, and it was almost a disaster waiting to happen. By providence, I got a unique insight into the matter and somehow, there was a twist in the plot. After the trial of the case, I prepared and adopted the final written address in court. Although, I had left the firm when judgement was delivered in respect of the matter, I was truly glad to have received a call from the firm, notifying me of the remarkable success in that case.

Michael Adeniyi Abiiba

Who has been most influential in your life?

I will say my both parents have, and continue to play very unique roles, to influence my life positively. I look to my father as a mirror of courage, hope, integrity and honesty. My mother remains a model of spirituality, perseverance and humility.

These, among other things, are my core values in life.

Why did you become a Lawyer?

Although, it was a cliché back then as a child, I had always said I wanted to become a Lawyer. You know that, somehow, the forces of nature conspire together to bring our confessions to reality. Growing up as a child, I had an unusual courage to speak up when others were timid, and I was often seen as the peace maker. It became a passion to speak on behalf of others, help people resolve matters amicably, and generally proffer solutions or options when others threw in the towel. With this growing passion, it became clear that a Lawyer was in the making, and so when it was time to make the call, it was a sermon preached to an already converted soul.

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

Law is a noble profession, with high standards. From the onset, an aspiring Lawyer must know that, there are no short routes to success in the profession. Dedication, hard work, and integrity, are the major currencies with which successful Lawyers trade. So, you must be prepared to be held accountable to these standards. Having said that, it is important to mention that, the knowledge acquired in school does not often accommodate the realities encountered outside school. It will therefore, be useful to take on internships right from school, especially with full-service law firms. This creates exposure to various aspects of law practice, and also helps solemnise theory and practical experience. While I will also advice making good grades in school, you must know that good grades alone may not call the shots. You should participate in as many useful extra-curricular activities, which can effectively project your skills and create visibility. You should deploy technology to your advantage, in order to create or associate with innovations that can positively influence your career path. Trust me, you need to offer more than the knowledge of law, to stay relevant in this market space.

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

Perhaps I would have become a Banker.

In fact, I was already studying Banking and Finance at the Lagos City Polytechnic, and I was leading the class with a distinction.

However, the urge to become a Lawyer, was irresistible. I had to answer that altar call.

Where do you see yourself in ten years?

By God’s grace, I should be a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, with recognisable impact on domestic and global legal affairs.

I aim to be a renowned international dispute resolution expert, and a world standard, in my area of practice.

05.03.2019

/7

TALKING CONSTITUTIONAL DEMOCRACY DR. MIKE OZEKHOME, SAN

SMS only to 08098898888

The 2019 Selection Without Election

I

Introduction have witnessed elections in Nigeria, since I was a child in the early 60s. Some were bad and ugly.

Some others were rigged. We remember “Operation Wetie”, and the 1983 Ajasin/Akin Omoboriowo imbroglio. But, never has Nigeria witnessed an election that was simply not worth that name, “election”. The 2019 presidential election was nothing but, selection.

Democracy is a system of government by the majority of the people, typically through elected representatives. In simpler terms, it is, as declared by Abraham Lincoln in his 1863 Gettysburg speech, the government of the people, by the people and for the people.

From its definition, it is generally taken that, the principles and practice of democracy are adopted, in pursuit of the welfare of the generality of the people. The practice of democracy differs from place to place, and no two countries have the exact same template. While majority of countries practice democracy for the political, social and economic benefit of the generality of its people, Nigeria, amongst other third world countries, has curiously branded her democracy as government of a few, by the few and for the benefit of the few. The recently conducted “elections” (selection more appropriate), is the greatest evidence of this misshaped, malformed and tyrannising brand of Nigeria’s brand of democracy. It was sordid, cheap and ignoble.

INEC Chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu

INEC- A Biased Umpire The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is the body that is statutorily saddled, with the singular responsibility of conducting elections in Nigeria. The 2019 elections attracted the highest electoral financial budget in the history of Nigeria, with the approved budget of N234.51 billion of the N242.45 billion, submitted to the National Assembly. This reflects the most expensive election ever conducted in Nigeria, costing N69 billion more than the 2015 elections.

INEC had four {4} calendar years to prepare for this election. Yet, the preparations made by INEC were shoddy, tawdry, stale and grossly below average. Nigerians were visited with postponement of the elections at 2.43am, few hours to the earlier scheduled date 16th February, 2019, with the INEC citing Logistic challenges. An INEC already notorious for conducting Inconclusive elections in the last four years, ensured that Nigerians who had travelled long distances to cast their votes, were disenfranchised by the postponement. This is because, residents in the cities who had registered in their various States, returned to their base to continue with their jobs. They could no longer travel back to their respective States on the rescheduled date, and so were denied the opportunity to cast their votes for candidates of their choice.

“Logistic challenges” is not one of the reasons envisaged for postponing elections. Nigeria was not at war, nor its territory occupied, under Section 105 of the 1999 Constitution, such as to invoke NASS’s powers to pass a resolution postponing the elections. Nor, was there any possibility of an outbreak of a serious breach of peace or violence on account of disaster or other such emergencies, such as to cloth INEC with the legitimacy of postponing the elections under Section 26 of the Electoral Act. The presidential election thus, took place on 23rd February, 2019. After three spine-chilling days of collating results, President Muhamadu Buhari, the candidate of the APC, was finally “declared” the winner on 27th February, 2019, with a total of 15,191,847 votes, as against that of his closest opponent, Atiku Abubakar of the PDP, who allegedly scored 11,263,951 votes. This was a

very sad day for Nigeria, though not for the “winner”, PMB, and many of his gloating followers. No. It was a sad day for the Nigerian masses, the majority of Nigerians who have been yoked with PMB’s dictatorial, but clueless rule, for four years. It was a sad day for Nigerians who were promised a free and fair election, blindly believed same (I never did), but were presented with a fully militarised and murderous election. It was a sad day for democracy, as the elections clearly questioned the concept of democracy, as midwifing a people’s government. After the 2015 presidential elections, Nigerians from all works of life were happy. They sang and danced on the streets.

Some walked, from Lagos to Abuja. One young man, rode a bicycle from Kaduna to Abuja. Compare this, with the just concluded elections. Not even the “winners” could sing, celebrate or dance. They know full well, that they are holding on to a stolen mandate.

The Presidential and NASS elections were neither free, fair, transparent, nor imbued with integrity and credibility.

Soldiers went on rampage, killing innocent voters. No election in Nigeria, has ever witnessed such mayhem and death of so many people. Opposition’s votes were either outrightly cancelled or incredibly downgraded in their strongholds, while APC’s votes were outrageously inflated in areas of their strength. Where the opposition may have actually won, INEC studiously ensured that the victory margin was slim. On a day that Boko Haram even struck, to underline the continued insecurity in the North East, the geo-political zone posted humongous votes that can only come from Ali Baba and the 40 thieves, a fairy tale from planet Mars. The ruling party’s armed thugs, in collaboration with INEC officials and security forces, especially the military, brazenly snatched ballot boxes, beat up opponents, terrorised the populace, wantonly stole votes, and in some cases, arrested and detained INEC officials whom they forced to announce results at gun point. Never before in Nigeria’s electoral process (not even during the “operation ‘wetie’” days), did we behold such a malevolent, despicable and crude use of power, to subjugate and subvert the Constitution and the people’s will and mandate. That is why Nigerians are crying, nay, mourning, rather than celebrating. It is like a grave yard, for many.

“.... THE INCUMBENCY FACTOR WAS BRAZENLY AND CRUDELY USED TO MURDER DEMOCRACY, DISENFRANCHISE NIGERIANS, UNDERMINE CONSTITUTIONALISM, AND ENTHRONE A REGIME OF FEAR, TERROR, AND NEEDLESS SUSPENSE”

The Atiku Abubakar Challenge Some people have surprisingly been “advising” Atiku Abubakar (the could be custodian of the stolen mandate), to call and congratulate President Buhari. They say, it is to maintain peace. Peace is the product of justice.

Before the elections, Atiku had consistently maintained he would congratulate Buhari, if he (Buhari) won in a free, fair, transparent and credible elections. On the contrary, Buhari never for once expressed such a desire if he lost.

He maintained he could, and would never, lose. He said he would congratulate himself. His followers clapped, and said Buhari could never be defeated. With this mindset of invincibility and unconquerability, it became clear that the APC in conjunction with INEC (the presumed independent, but biased umpire), would work from the question to the answer, to ensure their “prediction” came true.

The 2015 elections in which President Goodluck Jonathan congratulated Buhari, were generally adjudged

free and fair, even with large scale rigging. The scenario was therefore, different. This time, the elections were so violent, brazenly rigged with votes clearly doctored to meet prepared answers. We saw children “voting” in the North East. Card readers were not used. Results were brazenly falsified. To deepen democracy, Atiku should, and must, head for the tribunal. It is incredible to see where an insurgency – ravaged geo-political zone, post the most humongous results, while peaceful areas did not.

There is history, in favour of Atiku challenging the results in court. Buhari had himself gone before the tribunals in 2003, 2007 and 2011, albeit unsuccessfully.

Some people believe his descending on the Judiciary (with masked DSS operatives in 2016) and baying for CJN Walter Onnoghen’s blood in 2018, were carefully crafted and designed to create fear in the minds of Judges who would eventually handle the election petitions, he knew would definitely arise from his near “moonslide” victory.

Even current APC chieftains, has had achieved their ambitions and reclaimed their mandates from the tribunals. Adams Oshiomhole, APC National Chairman, had dethroned Professor Osarienhen Osunbor to reclaim his Edo State governorship seat. Rotimi Amaechi, the DG of Buhari’s campaign organisation, reclaimed his Rivers State mandate from Celestine Omehia; while Rauf Aregbesola snatched his from Olangunsoye Oyinlola, at the tribunals.

Some of the cases took years to decide, but justice was eventually served.

It was glaring during the last presidential elections, that contrary to Prof. Mahmood Yakubu (INEC’s Chairman)’s refrain that only card readers would be used for the elections while manual voting was disallowed, the reverse was clearly the case. In the southern part of Nigeria, card readers were actually employed to disenfranchise many voters. Some were physically prevented from voting through use of brute force. In some places, votes cast in favour of PDP were either discounted or publicly burnt, as many online videos showed. It was so ugly.

On the contrary, in the Northern parts of Nigeria, particularly in the North West, North Central and North East, manual voting (rather than card readers) were mostly used. This template was prevalent, not isolated.

Most voters there simply “voted” without any form of accreditation, contrary to electoral guidelines and INEC Chairman’s serial promises.

With incontrovertible evidence of unearned jumbo votes, especially in States like Bauchi, Borno, Kano, Benue, Kebbi, Katsina, Zamfara, Sokoto, Yobe, Nasarawa, Kaduna and even Rivers States, it is clear that Atiku will reclaim his stolen mandate. The journey will be long, tortuous, rough and energy-sapping. But, it is worth the travails. Otherwise, democracy would have been completely murdered in Nigeria. Both Buhari and Atiku, having satisfied Section 131 and of the Constitution, and Section 69 of the Electoral Act, can only now hold on to, or reclaim the presidential mandate by plurality or majority of votes.

Were there International Observers?

The so called international observers we saw, were obviously not up and doing or afraid for their lives.

What with threats of “body bags” against them, and clear warnings not to “interfere” in our electoral process? They rather sat quietly in their cozy hotels, “pepper- souping” “goat-heading” and “big-stouting” (apologies to Igodomigodo, Patrick Obahiagbon). It is only local observers that cried foul, both in their interim and final reports, that this election was the worst ever in the chequered history of Nigeria. The clear lesson from this is that, those relying on so called International Observers to midwife a credible election, should forget it. They neither observe, see, nor hear or talk election. Some of them were even caught on camera, helping to rig, not to observe. It is all so shameful.

Incumbency as a Factor There has always been incumbency, as a factor to be considered in an election. But, this time around, the incumbency factor was brazenly and crudely used to murder democracy, disenfranchise Nigerians, undermine constitutionalism, and enthrone a regime of fear, terror, and needless suspense. Nigerians are therefore, sleepwalking, somnambulistically, not sure of their tomorrow.

The change that was promised them four years ago, has become a frightful nightmare, an apparition whose ugly visage they want exterminated.

Can the Judiciary, in spite of its obvious travails in the hands of the present government, hold its head high and do pure and undiluted justice, as its blind-folded woman symbol shows? Only time will tell. But, Nigerians should be hopeful of the truth emerging eventually, from the phoenix of dashed hopes and aspirations.

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President Muhammadu Buhari receiving his certificate of return with the Vice-President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, SAN flanked by Mrs. Aisha Buhari (left) and Mrs. Dolapo Osinbajo (right)

February 23 Elections: Sham or Legitimate?

The just concluded Presidential and National Assembly elections, have remained contentious, as it has been trailed by claims and counterclaims of rigging, vote buying, voter and INEC Official intimidation, security challenges, violence and deaths. In the face of predictable logistics challenges and failure of the smart card readers, the Coordinator of the Coalition of Civil Society Election Monitors, and the Convener of the Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room, Clement Nkwankwo gives a comprehensive and dispassionate report of what transpired on Election Day, February 23rd, 2019

NIGERIA CIVIL SOCIETY SITUATION ROOM’S PRELIMINARY STATEMENT ON THE 2019 GENERAL ELECTIONS

F Concerns

ollowing assurances by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of its readiness to conduct the Saturday’s polls, the Situation Room is concerned by the reports it has received, that election materials are being delivered to wrong locations. We expect INEC to conduct all elections across the country simultaneously, and in a very organised manner devoid of the logistics challenges that have characterised elections in the past. This is the minimum expectation, from Nigerians. Situation Room wishes to remind INEC that, Nigerians will not accept staggered elections in the prevailing circumstance, as this would be

divisive and explosive and would only serve to undermine the credibility of the elections.

Situation Room is concerned about the invitations issued for the interrogation of INEC officials, even if those invitations were later withdrawn. The optics of

“ACCORDING TO VARIOUS REPORTS FROM MEMBERS OF THE SITUATION ROOM ACROSS THE COUNTRY; OVER 260 NIGERIANS HAVE BEEN KILLED SINCE THE COMMENCEMENT OF CAMPAIGNS FROM OCTOBER 2018 TO DATE”

the invitations, does not bode well for the independence of INEC, and may amount to undue pressure. Situation Room is also concerned about statements emanating from various political parties that aim to undermine the credibility of INEC, and thus, infringe on its constitutionally guaranteed independence.

Situation Room is deeply worried about the spike in politically motivated killings, in the period leading up to the elections. According to various reports from members of the Situation Room across the country; over 260 Nigerians have been killed since the commencement of campaigns from October 2018 to date. The outlook is further compounded by recent statements by the President, ordering Military and Police officers to deal ruthlessly with anybody who snatches ballot boxes or disturbs the voting system. It is noteworthy that, Section 129(4) of the Electoral Act 2010 (as amended) already stipulates a 24- month imprisonment term for the

offence of ballot box snatching, and the Act prescribes various punishments for all range of electoral offences.

Warning Situation Room would like to warn that, Military and other security personnel who carry out unlawful orders would under international law, be held accountable.

Under Section 29(3) of the Electoral Act, the Nigerian Military are specifically excluded from direct involvement in the elections. Regulation 341 of the Police Act (LFN 2004) confers personal liability on any police officer who employs excessive force in the exercise of his powers as a police officer. Similarly, Article 5 of the United Nations Code of Conduct for Law Enforcement Officials 1979, does not recognise superior order as a defence for the use of excessive force by law enforcement officials.

Call Situation Room encourages Nigerians to defy the challenges and difficulties

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COVER/9 serious logistics problems. The sheer number of political parties contesting the elections appeared to have overwhelmed INEC’s logistics capabilities, including its ability to carry out timely procurement.

Situation Room observed challenges related to procurement, deployment and adequacy of materials. Reports were received, of sensitive election materials being sent to wrong locations. Although, some of these problems were later corrected, it contributed to the delays witnessed with commencement of polls.

In addition to these, Situation Room received reports from Nasarawa, Rivers, Oyo and Anambra States, of incomplete election materials.

occasioned by the postponement of the elections and come out en masse to vote freely for the candidates of their choice, and prepare to protect their votes and ensure that their votes count and are counted.

Situation Room also calls on INEC, to ensure all personnel involved in election duties are well catered for, including security officers, ad-hoc staff and National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members.

Situation Room calls on all stakeholders to give their utmost in ensuring that the polls on Saturday go smoothly and peacefully, and that the sanctity of our electoral process, is preserved.

Clement Nwankwo, Executive Director, Policy & Legal Advocacy Centre, and Convener, Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room INTERIM STATEMENT BY THE NIGERIA CIVIL SOCIETY SITUATION ROOM ON THE COMMENCEMENT OF THE FEBRUARY 23, 2019 ELECTIONS ISSUED: 3:00PM SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 23RD, 2019 The Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room has observed the commencement of the Presidential and National Assembly polls throughout the country, today, Saturday 23rd February, 2019.

Reports from across the country indicate worrying amounts of challenges that require the attention of INEC and security address, as polling sets to close.

INEC Chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu

Logistics Challenges The Situation Room notes with disappointment, the impact of INEC’s logistical lapses on the elections. Several parts of the country report late opening of polls.

According to YIAGA Africa, South East and South South recorded the lowest number of early poll openings. About 27 percent of polling units had opened as at 10 am in the South East. In the South South, it was only 21 percent. The average across other parts of the country, was about 45 percent as at 10 am. The late arrival of materials and ad-hoc staff, account for much of the delay in polls opening across the country. In some places, voting started around 11 am. The delay in the commencement of voting will certainly affect the collation process, which is now feared to extend well into the night, with attendant security risks and further logistic concerns.

Smart Card Reader Failures Reports of smart card readers’ failure, are significant in this election. Situation Room received reports of several instances of smart card reader failure which have necessitated INEC officials resorting to manual accreditation. This was reported in Binji Local Government Area in Sokoto State, and Owerri North LGA in Imo state. States where card reader challenge is prevalent also include, Imo, Lagos, Ogun, Abia, Nasarawa, Kebbi, FCT and Kaduna. The Situation Room restates, strongly, that there should be no voting without proper card reader authentication.

Conduct of Security Personnel Situation Room has received isolated reports of security personnel acting in an overreaching manner in some States, particularly Rivers, Akwa Ibom, Delta and Kogi States.

Reports of Violence and Deaths The Situation Room notes, with concern, the rising incidences of violence and reported deaths in some States of the country. At the time of this statement, Situation Room has received reports of about 16 deaths across eight States: Borno – 2, Bayelsa - 2, Rivers - 6, Yobe - 2, Kogi -2, Ebonyi – 2, Lagos – 1, and Zamfara – 1. In Lagos State, there are reports of disruption of voting by suspected political thugs who have shot in the air in some places, and set ballot boxes and paper on fire in others. In the Okota, Isolo and Oshodi suburbs of Lagos, there are reports of violence, some caused by non-arrival of INEC officials and materials. Situation Room calls on INEC and the security agencies to respond swiftly

to these issues, and arrest culprits as promised by the Inspector General of Police.

Incidences of Vote Buying The Situation Room has received reports of incidents of vote buying across Lagos, Niger, Edo, Kwara, Kano and Katsina States. The Situation Room calls on INEC and security agencies to nip this practice in the bud, before it undermines the sanctity of the vote. We also wish to highlight the inadequacy of security personnel, in some polling units. We note that, in some polling units there was only one police officer, while in others, in addition to the prescribed three per polling unit, there were other security personnel totalling up to 10.

Conclusion Nigerians have defied various challenges to exercise their civic responsibility, we call on INEC to do everything to ensure that voters are not disenfranchised, and to quickly address outstanding logistical challenges.

The Situation Room calls on voters to continue to be law abiding and to report through the appropriate channels, challenges with the process.

Clement Nwankwo, Executive Director, Policy & Legal Advocacy Centre, and Convener, Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room THIRD INTERIM STATEMENT

BY THE NIGERIA CIVIL SOCIETY SITUATION ROOM ON THE CONDUCT OF THE FEBRUARY 23, 2019 ELECTIONS ISSUED: 9:00AM MONDAY, 25TH FEBRUARY 2019 Introduction Following from its observation of the 2019 Nigerian Presidential and National Assembly elections, the Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room (Situation Room) received field reports from more than 8000 of its deployed observers and networks, across the country. Situation Room hereby makes the following interim observations: General Situation Room notes the resilience, dedication and patriotism of Nigerians in the conduct of the Presidential and National Assembly elections held on Saturday, 23rd February, 2019. They are the shining light, in this election.

The Nigerian youth under the National Youth Service Corp, were exemplary in their work under very difficult

“HOWEVER, REPORTS WERE RECEIVED OF INCIDENTS INVOLVING THE MILITARY IN RIVERS STATE, AND IN ANOTHER INCIDENT, MILITARY PERSONNEL OBSTRUCTING THE PASSAGE OF ELECTORATES INTO THEIR POLLING UNITS” conditions. Situation Room will also like to commend Nigerian and International Observers who made sacrifices to observe the elections, despite the earlier election postponement and challenges of mobilising additional resources.

Situation Room is however, disappointed by the serious lapses observed in the conduct of the Presidential and National Assembly elections held on Saturday, February 23, 2019. Despite the elections being conducted against a background of an earlier postponement on February 16, 2019, on grounds of logistics challenges, it still suffered from major logistic lapses. Additionally, the election was marred by violence, security lapses, and instances of overreach.

Other challenges include, compromised INEC officials, as well as partisan security operatives. Conduct of major political parties was disappointing.

Commencement of Polls Throughout the country, voting was delayed. The average starting time of voting at most polling units across the country, was 11am. It appeared however, and as reported by Situation Room partner organisations, that the delay in commencement of polls was especially pronounced in some States across the South-East and South-South geopolitical zones of Nigeria. There were even reports of polling commencing at 4pm in some areas such as PU 001, Ward 5, Methodist Boys High School, Oron, Akwa Ibom State. The delay in the commencement of voting, impacted on the timely completion of the collation process.

Logistics Preparations for the elections The election, was confronted with

Election Security Situation Room notes with profound sadness, the election related violence that led to the death of at least 39 Nigerians over the last 48 hours of the elections: Borno State– 4, Bayelsa State - 4, Rivers State - 16, Yobe State- 2, Kogi State-2, Ebonyi – 2, Lagos – 1, Oyo- 1, Delta- 2, Zamfara – 1 and Taraba State- 4. In Lagos State, there were reports of disruption of voting by suspected political thugs who were shooting in the air in some places, and set ballot boxes and paper on fire in others. In the Okota, Isolo and Oshodi suburbs of Lagos, there were reports of violence, some caused by non-arrival of INEC officials and materials.

Situation Room reiterates that no election in Nigeria should cost the life of any citizen, and condemns in the strongest of terms, the lack of empathy, concern and sensitivity by the political class regarding these events. These recorded deaths, follow a trend of serious electoral violence since the beginning of campaigns in October 2018. As at February 23, 2019, Situation Room has documented more than 260 politically motivated deaths.

From reports received by Situation Room, it appears that the deployment of security officers in some instances, did not take into consideration areas that required more security deployment. According to reports by CLEEN Foundation, there was multi-agency deployment of security personnel, noting 39% of polling units had three or more security personnel.

Reports were also received that 27% of the polling units were under-policed.

Reports also largely showed that, security personnel conducted themselves professionally, however, there are cases of police overreach in Imo, Abia and Rivers States where an INEC official was shot by security agents. CLEEN Foundation documents that, 12% of the polling units observed security officers were somewhat partisan.

Despite the Police’s stated preparedness with deployment and adequacy of security, there were shortfalls and gaps, with attendant implications for election security. For instance, there was disruption of polls in Abia, Lagos, Rivers, Bayelsa, Akwa Ibom and Ebonyi States, amongst others. In Okota, Lagos State, voters were chased away and ballot boxes destroyed. In Oriade, Osun State, ballot papers and boxes were destroyed, at the INEC office.

Involvement of the Military The Nigerian Military, was deployed for the 2019 elections. It is unclear the extent of deployment of the military, although the Army launched what it called Operation Python Dance, which saw soldiers being sent across the country, supposedly to provide security for the election.

Additionally, the Army created its own Situation Room and announced that it would obey President Muhammadu Buhari’s instructions, to deal ruthlessly with ballot box snatchers. President Buhari had before the elections, warned that persons that snatch ballot boxes risk paying with their lives – a statement that became controversial and was widely criticised, as encouraging security personnel to carry out extrajudicial killing of electoral offenders, who should ordinarily be apprehended and charged to court to face punishments of fine or imprisonment, if convicted.

Under Section 29(3) of the Electoral Act, CONTINUED ON PAGE 10

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NIGERIA CIVIL SOCIETY SITUATION ROOM’S STATEMENTS ON THE 2019 GENERAL ELECTIONS

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 9

security personnel can only be involved in electoral duty as requested by INEC. The Act specifically states: “PROVIDED that the Commission shall only request for the deployment of the Nigerian Armed Forces only for the purpose of securing the distribution and delivery of election materials and protection of election officials” However, reports were received of incidents involving the military in Rivers State, and in another incident, military personnel obstructing the passage of electorates into their polling units.

Situation Room had deployed Observers in all 8,809 Electoral Wards across the country, and received reports of Observers being restricted from several Ward Collation Centres. For instance, our Observers were denied access to 10 Ward Collation Centres in Abia State, 7 in Lagos State and 5 in Akwa Ibom and Ogun States, respectively. Other reports received, indicate that there was no collation in some Wards; rather, polling unit results were directly collated at Local Government level, raising questions about violation of the collation process.

Issues with Smart Card Readers Situation Room observed significant challenges, with the smart card readers.

Received reports showed several instances, which necessitated INEC officials resorting to manual accreditation. This was reported in Binji Local Government Area in Sokoto State and Owerri North LGA in Imo state. States where card reader challenge was prevalent, include Imo, Lagos, Ogun, Abia, Nasarawa, Kebbi, FCT and Kaduna.

Conclusion Situation Room urges Nigerians to be peaceful and law abiding, as the results are being collated. Situation Room also calls on political parties and candidates who are aggrieved with the electoral process, to ensure that they utilise legally recognised channels to seek redress.

Clement Nwankwo, Executive Director, Policy & Legal Advocacy Centre, and Convener, Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room

Conclusion and Recommendations Situation Room notes that, INEC has not managed the election efficiently, and significant shortcomings have been recorded. The election has been a step back, from the 2015 General Election, and actions should be taken to identify what has gone wrong, and what can be corrected. Situation Room urges voters and stakeholders to exercise restraint, to avoid further loss of human life and to seek legal redress where aggrieved.

In the light of the above-identified issues, the Situation Room makes the following recommendations: 1. That there should be an independent inquiry into the poor management of the electoral process by INEC, with a view to determining the following: r 5IF VOEFSMJOJOH DBVTFT GPS MPHJTUJDT lapses, with a view of itemising operational deficiency that led to the initial postponement of elections of February 16 and logistical challenges with the rescheduled elections on February 23, 2019.

In addition to this, INEC is expected to inquire into the activities of its staff with respect to late arrivals to polling stations; lack of understanding of processes by ad hoc staff; and the allegations of collusion between staff and politicians. r 5IF GBJMVSF PG UIF TNBSU DBSE SFBEFST in identified polling units should be interrogated, with a special audit of the results of polling units where 5% card reader incidence failure was recorded.

2. The Situation Room calls on INEC and security agencies, to ensure accountability for acts inimical to the integrity and credibility of the polls, especially individuals complicit in the burning of INEC offices, election materials, snatching of ballot boxes and other electoral offences.

Particular instances of contrived and voter suppression due to violence, must be thoroughly investigated and perpetrators and their sponsors punished to the fullest extent of the law. These allegations must be thoroughly investigated, to restore faith in the process and address lingering social fractures that reinforce feelings of exclusion.

3. The Situation Room calls on the Inspector General of Police, to urgently investigate allegations into Police overreach in identified locations in the country. We ask that, such officers, be held personally accountable for infringing on the rights of citizens in the exercise of their franchise. In the same vein, Situation Room also calls on the IGP to carry out investigations on all political actors who have instigated or perpetrated

Acting Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Abubakar Adamu

violence leading to the needless loss of lives.

4. Inter Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security, should deploy security personnel in line with security risk findings, taking into consideration major flashpoints in future elections.

5. A major risk factor in this election, has been impunity and rascality of the political class. INEC cannot deliver free and fair elections, without committed support by the political class. The level of violence, hate speech and general toxic political environment, contradicts the commitment to the Peace Accord signed by political parties and candidates, prior to the elections. Politicians should commit to respecting the rules of the election, and under the current circumstance, ensure that their followers do not act outside of the law with respect to election returns.

6. Absence of robust enforcement of election rules, incentivises impunity.

Nigeria should urgently undertake the process of strengthening the framework, for electoral accountability. The National Assembly should fast track the process, of passing the Electoral Offences Commission Bill.

7. Call on the international community, to continue to lend their voices in defence of the integrity of the result. In particular, we urge the United States and the United Kingdom to follow through on their earlier statement that they will sanction individuals whose actions undermine the election, or have led to the death of citizens.

Clement Nwankwo - Executive Director, Policy a& Legal Advocacy Centre, and Convener, Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room FOURTH INTERIM STATEMENT

BY THE NIGERIA CIVIL SOCIETY SITUATION ROOM ON THE COLLATION AND ANNOUNCEMENT OF THE 2019 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION RESULTS ISSUED: 8:00PM TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2019’ Introduction The Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room (Situation Room) has been observing the national collation and announcement of the Presidential election results for the election conducted on February 23, 2019. We are compelled to make the following observations: Vote Tallying Some of the numbers/votes announced so far by State Returning Officers at the INEC National Collation Centre in the ongoing collation process, are raising concerns. Considering that there was simultaneous accreditation and voting,

“SITUATION ROOM NOTES THAT, INEC HAS NOT MANAGED THE ELECTION EFFICIENTLY, AND SIGNIFICANT SHORTCOMINGS HAVE BEEN RECORDED. THE ELECTION HAS BEEN A STEP BACK, FROM THE 2015 GENERAL ELECTION....”

Chief of Army Staff, Tukur Yusuf Buratai

a careful look at some of the figures of accredited voters and the total number of votes cast, show discrepancies. As at 6:47pm Tuesday February 26, the discrepancy was a total of 513,214, in 27 States including Nasarawa, Kogi, Adamawa, Edo States, and the FCT. Situation Room calls on INEC to transparently address this confusion. before the completion of result tabulation. There is a lack of clarity, in the rationale for cancellation of polls. We have recorded 1,084,358 cancelled votes across 1175 polling units, in 18 States. The pattern of this cancellation requires some close interrogation, to show fairness and objectivity. The reasons provided for the cancelled votes include, over voting, card reader malfunction and violence. Situation Room demands that, INEC provide clarification on rationale and compliance with its Guidelines, regarding cancellation of polls. Accusation that these cancellations may have been contrived to suppress votes, needs to be taken seriously and addressed before the close of tabulation. Situation Room calls on INEC to address the discrepancies in the vote tally, and provide cogent explanations for the rejected votes, and clearly clarify what amounts to cancelled votes.

Claims of Duress by INEC Officials Situation Room observed that INEC officials and ad hoc staff serving in varying capacities, have alleged harassment and intimidation in the course of the collation process, and undue pressure in the announcement of results.

Notable has been the Returning Officer for Imo West Senatorial District, Prof.

Francis Ibeawuchi, who disclosed that threats were made to his life, to ensure the return of the incumbent Governor of Imo State, Rochas Okorocha, as the winner of the Senatorial election in the district.

In Ikwerre Local Government of Rivers State, the Electoral Officer, Mary Efeture Imawuya alleged that Army Personnel invaded the RAC Centre and held her hostage, in a bid to seize the election results. While in Emohua Local Government of Rivers State, the Electoral Officer, Kenneth Etah claimed that military personnel invaded the local INEC office and commenced shooting, thereby creating an environment too violent for the collation process to be carried out.

Situation Room notes that INEC has failed to publicly acknowledge the occurrence of these incidents in the past few days, and owe it to its staff and Nigerians, to express concern over these threats and acts of violence and take necessary steps to ensure the security of INEC personnel. Furthermore, the implication of this on the sanctity of the ballot, must be transparently dealt with.

Situation Room calls on INEC, to give immediate attention to the issue of its officials who were forced to announce inaccurate results and also take steps to ensure their safety.

Transparency at Ward Collation

FIFTH INTERIM STATEMENT

BY THE NIGERIA CIVIL SOCIETY SITUATION ROOM ON DECLARATION OF THE 2019 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION RESULTS ISSUED: 10:00AM - WEDNESDAY, 27 FEBRUARY 2019 The Situation Room notes the declaration of the INEC returning President Muhammadu Buhari, as the re-elected President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Situation Room, congratulates President Buhari on his re-election.

Situation Room also congratulates all the other candidates in this election, and commends the people of Nigeria for turning out and casting their vote.

Situation Room acknowledges that there are candidates, political parties and indeed, citizens, who are aggrieved with the processes and outcome of the elections. Nigeria’s constitutional and legal frameworks, have provided avenues to ventilate and seek redress.

Situation Room has closely followed and observed the electoral process, from the beginning to this moment. We had issued a Threshold Document, clearly stating the standard to which we will hold this election. We note that, a lot of the expectations in the Threshold Document were not met. We believe that, there are sufficient reasons to demand an urgent convening of stakeholders to examine the lessons from these elections; identify evident shortcomings and lapses; and review, to enshrine much needed reform of our electoral system. We also reiterate our call for effective mechanism of accountability, for electoral offences.

While we acknowledge the efforts of INEC to conduct this election, we would like to emphasise that, there were lapses in this election that did not need to happen, and INEC would need to immediately work on correcting those lapses ahead of the March 9 2019 Statelevel elections.

Situation Room calls on all Nigerians to prepare peacefully and come out and vote on March 9, 2019 for the candidates of their choice Clement Nwankwo, Executive Director, Policy & Legal Advocacy Centre, and Convener, Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room The Situation Room is made up of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) working in support of credible and transparent elections in Nigeria, and includes such groups as Policy and Legal Advocacy Centre (PLAC), CLEEN Foundation, Action Aid Nigeria, Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD), Proactive Gender Initiative (PGI) Enough is Enough Nigeria, WANGONET, Partners for Electoral Reform, JDPC and YIAGA Africa Others are Development Dynamics, Centre for Citizens with Disabilities (CCD) Stakeholders Democracy Network, Human Rights Monitor, Reclaim Naija, CITAD, Nigerian Women Trust Fund, Alliance for Credible Elections (ACE), CISLAC, and several other CSOs, numbering more than seventy.

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On Thursday, February 28, 2019, the Epiphany Azinge Foundation held its maiden 2019 Colloquium titled, “Women’s Inheritance: Breaking the Barriers of Gender Discrimination”, at the Shehu Musa Yar’Adua Centre, Abuja, under the Chairmanship of Mrs. Onikepo Braithwaite, Editor, This Day Lawyer.

Here are some of the personalities that were in attendance..photos: Godwin Omoigui

L-R: Executive Secretary, National Human Rights Commission, Mr. Tony Ojukwu, Editor, THISDAY LAWYER and Chairman of the event, Mrs. Onikepo Braithwaite and the Chief Convener, Professor Epiphany Azinge, SAN

Hon. Justice Adekunle Lawal of the Customary Court of Appeal, Professor Epiphany Azinge, SAN and Asiwaju Adegboyega Awomolo, SAN

L-R: Mrs. Victoria Awomolo, SAN, President, International Federation of Woomen Lawyers , Rhoda Tyoden and a guest

Professor Adebambo Adewopo ( left) and Mr. Ogwu. J. Onoja, SAN

Chief Convener, Professor Epiphany Azinge, SAN (left) and Senator Peter Nwaboshi

Mr. Tony Ojukwu and Mrs. Onikepo Braithwaite

Professor Nnamdi Aduba

Representative of the Minister of Women Affairs, Mrs. K.V. Lar and Mrs. Rita Chris–Garuba

Mrs. Rhoda Tyoden (left) and Guest Speaker, Professor Joy Ngozi Ezeilo

Lady Vicky Okoroanyanwu and Chief Ekene Ebuzeme

Irene Lawale (left) and Dr.(Mrs) Valerie Janotte Azinge, SAN

Mrs. Ijeoma Okwu (left) and Mrs. Ifeoma Agumadu

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INSOLVENCY DISCOURSE DR. KUBI UDOFIA

k.udofia@live.com

Establishing Corporate Insolvency: The Balance Sheet Insolvency Test

C

The Primary Insolvency Tests ash flow and balance sheet insolvency tests, are the two predominant means of determining insolvency. A company is cash flow or commercially insolvent, if it is unable to pay its debts as they fall due. Balance sheet or technical insolvency, occurs where the value of a company’s assets, is less than the amount of its liabilities, taking into account both contingent and prospective liabilities. The term liabilities is broader than debts, as it encompasses liquidated and unliquidated liabilities arising from contracts, tort, restitution etc.

Commercial insolvency, is clearly the more prominent of the tests. In its analysis of resolving insolvency in assessing ease of doing business in Nigeria in 2019, the World Bank Group stated the basis for insolvency proceedings in Nigeria, as being inability to pay debts as they mature. This typifies a widely held misconception, that technical insolvency is not recognised under Nigerian law.

Establishing commercial insolvency, is comparatively easier. Commercial insolvency may be established, by the neglect of a debtor to pay a single due debt. In the context of restructuring, a creditor’s immediate concern, is often the debtor’s ability to make payments as they mature, as opposed to whether its assets are sufficient to meet its present and future liabilities. Unsurprisingly, virtually all reported cases of winding-up of companies for inability to pay debts, are premised on commercial insolvency under Section 409(a) of the Companies and Allied Matters Act 1990 (CAMA).

Despite its seeming obscurity, the balance sheet insolvency test, is commonly employed in commercial transactions as an event of default. This provides counterparties with early warning signs in ongoing or long-term contracts, where there are no avenues of making demands capable of triggering commercial insolvency.

Statutory framework for technical insolvency Section 409(c) of CAMA embodies the technical insolvency test. A company will be technically insolvent if “the court, after taking into account any contingent or prospective liability of the company, is satisfied that the company is unable to pay its debts”. This provision is rooted in, and similarly worded as, Section 223(d) of the erstwhile English Companies Act 1948. The leading English case law on technical insolvency is, BNY Corporate Trustees Services Ltd v Eurosail-UK 20073BL Plc [2013] UKSC 28, where the UK Supreme Court considered whether a company was technically insolvent pursuant to Section 123 of the Insolvency Act 1986. The provision deems a company to be technically insolvent, if “the value of the company’s assets is less than the amount of its liabilities, taking into account its contingent and prospective liabilities”. This decision and other English decisions on Section 223(d) of the 1948 Act are useful guides to the interpretation of Section 409(c) of CAMA.

Insolvency Although a commercially solvent company has a greater prospect of satisfying the technical insolvency test, a company which is commercially solvent, may be technically insolvent. Such commercially solvent company, may have long-dated liabilities (e.g. pension deficits) which its assets may be incapable of reasonably meeting. A technically insolvent company, may pay its due debts from its assets or with assistance from third parties. In Re a Company [1986] BCLC 261, the debtor company paid its debts through loans it received from associated companies. Nourse J. held that, the company was not commercially solvent notwithstanding its recourse to loans for payment of its due debts. In contrast, a commercially insolvent company, may be technically solvent: Wema Bank Ltd v Bioku Investment & Property Ltd [1987] FHCLR 275 at 293. Commercial insolvency may be due to a company’s cash being locked-up in investments, and not immediately realisable to pay due debts.

Although, the company may be unable to pay due debts, the value of its assets may be sufficient to meet its liabilities.

A technically insolvent company which borrows to pay due debts, merely burrows deeper into technical insolvency. Each borrowing increases the company’s liabilities, as it will incur further debts prospectively due to the lender(s). Although, commercially solvent, such a technically insolvent company, is like a pyramid scheme. In a pyramid scheme, contributions by new “investors”, are used to repay old “investors”. Although, repayments may be made on due dates, in reality repayments are made with the contributions of new investors. The pyramid scheme will inevitably collapse, when there are no new investors/ contributions. Likewise, a technically insolvent company relying on third parties to stay commercially solvent, is merely postponing its doomsday

Link between Technical and Commercial

“A TECHNICALLY INSOLVENT COMPANY WHICH BORROWS TO PAY DUE DEBTS, MERELY BURROWS DEEPER INTO TECHNICAL INSOLVENCY....RELYING ON THIRD PARTIES TO STAY COMMERCIALLY SOLVENT, IS MERELY POSTPONING ITS DOOMSDAY ALBEIT TEMPORARILY”

albeit temporarily.

Evaluating Assets and Liabilities in Technical Insolvency Technical insolvency cannot be established, by a simple snapshot of a company’s balance sheet.

There is no linkage between Section 409(c) and CAMA’s provisions on companies’ balance sheets.

In BNY Corporate Trustees case, Lord Walker observed that, whilst audited accounts portraying true and fair view of a company’s financial position have “real force", they are merely the start of the valuation exercise, as audited accounts will inevitably be historic and often conservative.

Consequently, even where a company’s audited balance sheet shows a net deficit, it may be technically solvent.

Only present assets are considered, in evaluating technical insolvency. Prospective assets such as debt or equity funding which a company expects to receive, are excluded from the evaluation.

In Byblos Bank SAL v Al-Khudhairy [1986] 2 BCC 99,549 Nicholls LJ ignored evidence of the debtor’s prospect of receiving £1.6m cash.

Nicholls LJ rightly stated that, any expectation of receiving assets in future without an accompanying right to the assets, made them prospective assets. Accordingly, a company’s uncalled capital constitutes a permissible asset: Byblos Bank SAL v Al-Khudairy (supra) at 99,562-63. In contrast, a company’s claim for repayment of dividend unlawfully paid to shareholders, hence recoverable at insolvency, constitutes a contingent asset: Evans v Jones [2016] All ER 36. The repayment of the unlawful dividend is contingent on the (i) company’s insolvency, (ii) unlawful dividend being discovered, and (iii) the liquidator pursuing the recovery.

In evaluating a company’s liabilities, a company’s contingent and prospective liabilities must be taken into account. Only contingent and prospective liabilities from existing obligations are assessed: Re William Hockley Ltd [1962] 2 All ER 111 at 113. Liabilities which may be incurred in future under new transactions, are outside this purview.

A contingent liability, is one that is dependent on the possible occurrence of an event in future: Akono v C-P.M.B. Ltd [1996] FHCLR 269 at 278. An example is, an insurer’s liability under an insurance policy, created by issue of the policy, but dependent on the occurrence of the event against which the cover is given.

Another example is, a guarantor’s liability, created by a guarantee agreement, but effectuated CONTINUED ON PAGE 13

05.03.2019

THE LIGHTER SIDE/13

LEGAL HUMOUR

We Hold Your Brief JUDE IGBANOI jude.igbanoi@thisdaylive.com Dear counsel, I have just been released on bail, after my Landlord brought the police to arrest me in my new apartment.

I stayed in a 2-bedroom apartment, which I rented from him for three years, without any disagreement whatsoever. The problem started when he issued me with a Quit Notice, that I should vacate the flat with 14 days.

He claimed that, he needed the space for his son who just finished his NYSC. I pleaded with him and he refused, and insisted that I leave within 14 days. Eventually I vacated the apartment peacefully. But, he later came up with a claim that, I owed him three months’ rent. Although, I was actually a month in arrears of the rent, he brought the police to my house, which is just a short distance from his house. I spent a night at the station, and the police made me write an undertaking that I will pay him arrears of three months rent.

I had to do this, to regain my freedom.

What should I do? What I owe as rent, is actually one month. He even added accumulated light bill and security bill, which was after I had left. I don’t feel like paying the money, although I signed an undertaking with the

police to pay within three months.

Kindly, advice me on what to do.

Mr E.S., Abuja.

Dear Mr E.S., I will strongly advice that, you don’t pay the claimed arrears of rent or any utility bills, as estimated by your former landlord.

Only pay what you owe. Get a Lawyer to write to the police, explaining these facts.

In the alternative, you may file an action against your landlord in court for harassment.

The Administration of Criminal Justice Act, strongly prohibits arrest in civil and contractual cases. Section 8 (2) of ACJA provides that “a suspect shall not be arrested merely on a civil wrong or breach of contract”. In the past, many Nigerians with the connivance of law enforcement agents, harass fellow citizens over failed contracts or unpaid loans.

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”.

Criminal Mistakes A man charged with drug possession in Pontiac, Michigan claimed he’d been searched illegally. The police said they saw a bulge in his pocket that could have been a gun. As he was wearing the same jacket in court, still with its bulge wasn’t a gun; unfortunately for him it was a bag of cocaine. ˾˾˾ In Oklahoma City, a man who was accused of armed robbery made the mistake in court of losing his temper when he was identified by the store manager, saying that he should have blown her head off. Needless to say, he was found guilty. ˾˾˾ A peeping Tom in Virginia, left lip prints on a window. When he returned a few days later, he was arrested and a positive lip match sent him to prison. ˾˾˾ A man who robbed a supermarket in Long Beach, was later arrested at home.

He’d filled out a credit application form earlier at the same supermarket, and was recognised. ˾˾˾ Narcs and Noses The word ‘narc’, meaning an officer of the law specialising in drugs cases, has an obvious derivation from ‘narcotic’.

However, the word was also used to refer to a police informant or indeed a policeman in Britain in the 1890s. It derives from the Romany word ‘naak’ meaning ‘nose’ – in other words, an informer or an officer, is someone who sticks their nose into other people’s business. There was an equivalent in Cockney rhyming slang, which was ‘norze’, which itself stood for ‘Noah’s Ark’.

The contemporary American and older British terms, are unlikely to be related

ESTABLISHING CORPORATE INSOLVENCY: THE BALANCE SHEET INSOLVENCY TEST CONTINUED FROM PAGE 12 on a principal debtor’s default. A prospective liability, is one which will become due in future, either on a pre-determined date or on a date to be determined by reference to future events: Stonegate Securities Ltd v Gregory [1980] 1 Ch 576 at 579. An example is, liability for payment for work in progress. A further example is, a lessee’s liability for payment of future rents in a long-term lease. Identifying and attributing value to prospective and contingent liabilities, is a difficult task. This difficulty increases, where there are long-dated liabilities. Further, except for publicly available information, a company may be reluctant to provide information to a hostile creditor.

The requirement to take account of contingent and prospective liabilities, goes beyond merely aggregating such liabilities on their face value with present liabilities: Re a Company [1986] BCLC 261 at 263-4. Giving Section 409(c) of CAMA a literal interpretation, would render several companies, especially those in cyclical industries, technically insolvent. In BNY Corporate Trustees, Lord Walker expressed the view that, it would be hard to discern any conceivable policy reason why

a company should be wound up, simply because the aggregate value of its liabilities exceeds that of its assets. Lord Walker rightly stated that, many companies in such position are successful and creditworthy, and cannot, in any way, be characterised as being “unable to pay their debts”.

Accordingly, the balance sheet insolvency test, requires a commercial evaluation of the company’s assets and liabilities. For instance, it would be contrary to commercial reality, to attribute the same value to a liability to pay $100,000,000 in 2019 and a liability to pay $100,000,000 in 2029.

The former liability has a higher present value, than the latter. Assuming the legislative intention was a simple aggregation of present and future liabilities, Section 409(c) would have expressly stated so. “Taking into account” prospective and contingent liabilities, will involve consideration of relevant commercial realities, such as the future liability’s due date, inflation rate, exchange rate fluctuations etc.

Postscript In BNY Corporate Trustees, the English Supreme Court stated that, the balance sheet

insolvency test required a court to be satisfied that, on the balance of probabilities, a company has insufficient assets to meet its liabilities, taking into account prospective and contingent liabilities.

In reality, this is easier said than done. As has been rightly observed by Professor Roy Goode, a leading insolvency expert, the valuation of assets and liabilities is not an exact science, but a matter of judgement as to the amount a willing buyer would pay in the market when dealing with a willing seller. Accordingly, the valuation process may understandably be laborious, detailed and complex. Courts may not be capable, of effectively dealing with such intricacies. Counterparties desiring to use the technical insolvency test in commercial transactions as a trigger for an event of default, may be well advised to adopt customised balance sheet insolvency test, rather than simply adopting Section 409(c) of CAMA. A party may negotiate for a financial covenant requiring the counterparty to maintain a specified net asset, a breach of which, will constitute an event of default. Alternatively, an event of default may be structured, with reference to a counterparty’s audited balance sheet.

14/IMAGES

05.03.2019

Last Thursday, February 28, 2019, former AttorneyGeneral of the Federation, Chief Bayo Ojo, SAN, CArb and Chief Mrs Tinuade Oyekunle, CArb, held the presentation of their book “Handbook of Arbitration and ADR Practice in Nigeria”, at the Institute of International Affairs, Victoria Island, Lagos under the Chairmanship of Chief Arthur Mbanefo, CON. The book was presented by Sir Olu Okeowo. Here are some of the personalities that were in attendance..... photos: Kolawole Alli

L-R: Book Author, Chief Bayo Ojo, SAN, Book Presenter, Sir Olu Okeowo, Chairman of the ocassion/ Odu of Onitsha, Chief Arthur Mbanefo, Co-author of the book, Chief ( Mrs.) Tinuade Oyekunle and Book Reviewer, Professor Paul O. Idornigie, SAN

L-R: Dr. Sarah Alade, Justice Folashade Adedeji Ojo and Oyefunke Oyewole

L-R: Mrs. Oyinkan Badejo-Okusanya, Mr. Chidi Ilogu, SAN and Mr. Yemi Adefulu

L-R: Mrs. Joke Okeowo, Mrs. Funke Adesuyi and Mr. Oladele Oyelola

L-R: Prince Adetunji Oyeyipo, SAN, Mrs. Funke Adekoya, SAN and Mrs. Olabisi Soyebo, SAN

Former Managing Director, Nigeria Airways, Alhaji Jani Ibrahim (left) and Dr. Wale Babalakin, SAN

Engr. Tomiwa Bayo-Ojo (left) and Charles Edosomwan, SAN

Mr. Segun Ogundajubo and Justice Bola Okikiolu-Ighile

Mr. Sheni Ibiwoye, SAN (left) and Tunde Busari, SAN

Mrs. Dorothy Ufot, SAN and Mr & Mrs. Dele Shodimu

Chairman, Asset Management Company of Nigeria (AMCON), Dr. Muiz Banire, SAN and Permanent Secretary, SGF office Abuja, Mrs. Segun Adekunle

Justice Moji Olatoregun (left) and Mrs. Folashade Alli

05.03.2019

/15

Recovery of Costs of Legal Representation under the 2019 Lagos State High Court (Civil Procedure) Rules: A Review of Chris Baywood Ibe & Anor v Bonum Nigeria Limited In this article, Elvis Asia reviews the Court of Appeal decision in Chris Baywood Ibe & Anor v Bonum Nigeria Limited, to the effect that claims for Counsel representation, must be pleaded and claimed as a cause of action, citing reasons why he believes it is an unrealistic decision, especially in the face of Order 53 of the Lagos State High Court (Civil Procedure) Rules 2019, which stipulates that the award of costs being a statutory requirement, need not be pleaded

T Background

he decision of the Court of Appeal (CA) in Chris Baywood Ibe & Anor v Bonum Nigeria Limited on 6th February, 2019 (2019) LPELR- 46452, has again brought to the fore, the need for a reasonable resolution of the question of how the costs of legal representation can be claimed in Nigeria.

In cases like Ihekwoaba v A.C.B Ltd 1998 10 NWLR Part 571, Guinness Nig. Plc. v Emmanuel Nwoke 2000 15 NWLR Part 689 and Christopher Nwanji v Coastal Services (Nig.) Ltd 2004 11 NWLR Part 885, the courts held surprisingly, that a claim for counsel representation was impossible and even unethical. This position is strange, and contrary to earlier decisions in the 1960s and WACA years.

In Rewane v Okotie-Eboh 1960 1 NSCC 135 for example, the Supreme Court per Ademola CJF, indicated that recoverable costs included costs of engaging a Queen’s Counsel, where there was no local expertise available in that specialised area of law.

Though later decisions have jettisoned the view in Ihekwoaba, Guinness Nig. Plc and Nwanji cases, parties still rely on these decisions as authorities in support of the assertion that the claim for cost of legal representation, is not maintainable. The other problem is that, the decisions that are pro- award of costs of legal representation which dominate current judicial thinking, equates costs of legal representation to special damages that must be specifically pleaded in the claim. See Drilling Nig. Ltd v New Genesis Executive Security Ltd and Naude v Simon, Tinuade Akomolafe-Wilson and Michael v Access Bank Plc, Divine Ideas Ltd v Umoru, and International Offshore Construction Limited & 3 Ors v Shoreline Liftboats Nigeria Limited.

Unrealistic Decision In Chris Baywood Ibe & Anor v Bonum Nigeria Limited (supra), the CA re-affirmed the position that, claims for counsel representation must be pleaded and claimed as a cause of action. In determining the issue, reference was made to Order 49 Rule 1 of the Lagos State High Court (Civil Procedure) Rules, 2012 (old Rules) which is re-enacted in Order 53 Rule 1 (1)(a)(3) and (4) of the Lagos State High Court (Civil Procedure) Rules, 2019 (LCPR).

The summary of LCPR is that, recoverable costs include legal representation and assistance for the successful party, and that the court shall deal with it summarily. This means that, it need not be pleaded in the claim. At the time of delivering judgement, application can be made for it, but the court must be satisfied that the claim is reasonable. Where the Judge is unable to determine it summarily, the issue shall be referred to an assessment officer, who will then make the assessment.

It is submitted that, the decision of the CA in Baywood Ibe’s case, refusing a claim for legal representation on the premise that it was not claimed as a cause of action, is contrary to the provision of the above rules and unrealistic, given the peculiar dynamics of litigation in our courts. The authorities to the effect that costs of legal representation must be pleaded, ceased

to apply to Lagos State High Court in 2012, when the old Rules were made.

Why the Baywood Decision is Unrealistic The above interpretation, is more plausible for many reasons. In the first place, the Rules used the term ‘summarily’. Claiming the costs of counsel representation as a cause of action to be determined in a full trial, cannot by any stretch of imagination be ‘summarily’.

Secondly, the court cannot refer a cause of action specifically pleaded, to an assessment officer under the Rules.

The procedure of either a summary determination of costs by the Judge, or reference to assessment officer, is similar to the procedure in the United Kingdom (UK). Part 44 of the UK Court Procedure Rules (CPR) deals with costs generally. Part 44.6 which provides for the procedure for assessing costs, is similar to Order 53 Rule 1 (3) and (4) of the LCPR. It provides that, the court may assess costs summarily or order a detailed assessment before a costs officer. A costs officer means a costs Judge, District Judge or authorised court officer. In practice, the successful party applies for costs, by filling out the costs assessment forms after judgement. The Judge that delivered the judgement, may either assess the costs or refer it to a special costs Judge. There is no requirement, that the costs must be claimed as special damages.

Thirdly, the Rules refer to costs of legal representation, and assistance of the successful party. The tone of the Rules suggests that, it is the costs incurred during the course of the proceedings. It is illogical and speculative, to fix it at the time of filing the action. We are talking about costs that may span, in some cases, five years or more. Whatever determination is made, cannot be truly reflective of work done, and in many respects, may violate the Rules of Professional Conduct for Legal Practitioners and the Legal Practitioners’ Act, which mandates a legal practitioner to prepare a bill of charges before claiming professional fees. A bill of charges prepared before the work is done, cannot meet the requirement of the law, because the bill is intended to itemise the work done.

Furthermore, what happens if the litigant eventually expends more costs on legal representation than claimed in the pleading,

“.... THE DECISION OF THE CA IN BAYWOOD IBE’S CASE, REFUSING A CLAIM FOR LEGAL REPRESENTATION ON THE PREMISE THAT IT WAS NOT CLAIMED AS A CAUSE OF ACTION, IS CONTRARY TO THE PROVISION OF THE ABOVE RULES AND UNREALISTIC, GIVEN THE PECULIAR DYNAMICS OF LITIGATION IN OUR COURTS”

will it be in the interest of justice and fairness for the right to be lost? What about the time value of money? The truth of the matter is that, litigants cannot accurately determine the costs of litigation at the time of filing the action, for the purpose of specially pleading it. For example, the costs of legal representation include appearance fees, and professional fees, which will invariably depend on the complexity of the case, the nature and time expended on it.

Fourthly, the other provisions of Order 53 are consistent with the conclusion that, costs are intended to be determined not as a cause of action as held by the Court of Appeal. For example, Order 53 Rule 2 of the LCPR states that, if a party rejects an offer of settlement, but subsequently obtains judgement or is awarded orders which are not in excess of the offer of settlement, he shall pay the costs of the losing party from the time the offer of settlement was made, up to the time of judgement. The costs include costs of legal representation and could not have been determined at the time of filing the action. Also, the argument that costs of legal representation under the LCPR must be pleaded would presuppose that other costs recoverable under the rules which have not been incurred at the time of preparation of the action, must also be pleaded. This is an impossible expectation.

Finally, the award of costs of legal representation being a statutory entitlement under Order 53 of the LCPR, is not required to be pleaded.

Entitlement to costs of legal representation, is similar to post judgement interest provided for in various rules of court. In Amber Resources (Nig.) Ltd v Century Energy Services Ltd decided in 2018, the Court of Appeal held it need not be pleaded.

It is accordingly submitted that, a claim for legal representation should not be defeated in Lagos, on the basis that it was not pleaded.

The decision of the Court of Appeal in Chris Baywood Ibe & Anor v Bonum Nigeria Limited, can only be justified on the later finding that the award of legal costs of N22.8million would be granting the Appellants an unwarranted bonus, and unjustly mulcting the equally successful Respondent in costs. This is in accord with Order 53 Rule 1 of the LCPR, under which costs is awarded in favour of the successful party. Where both parties succeeded in some respect, it will be unreasonable to award costs under the Rules.

It is hoped that, sooner rather than later, the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court will settle this issue because of its importance in dispute resolution and justice administration.

The grant of cost of legal representation, is a fundamental strategy in dispute resolution all over the civilised world, and it is necessary to compensate litigants for the ordeal of litigation, particularly within the present dynamics of the court system in Nigeria. It is also a way, of ensuring sanity in the system. A party who knows that the costs of litigation may be more than the claim against him, will not insist on a trial simply to take undue advantage of the delays in justice administration, as is presently the case.

Such a party, will be willing to settle instead.

Most importantly, indigent litigants will not be denied access to justice, if the costs of legal representation are readily granted by the court.

This is because, legal practitioners will readily take up their cases once they are reasonably sure of success. This is a public policy consideration, that will spur a revolution in justice administration in Nigeria. It is in this light, that the Rules of other High Courts, should take a cue from the LCPR. Elvis Asia, Senior Counsel, Chief Rotimi Williams’ Chambers, Lagos

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05.03.2019

WORDS OF WISDOM

(Culled from Social Media)

23

T H I S D AY Ëž ÍłËœ 2019

BUSINESSWORLD R A T E S MONEY MARKET OVERNIGHT OBB

A S

A T

REPO 17.42 % 16.33%

CALL 1-MONTH 3-MONTH

15.50% 14.25 % 15.38%

M A R C H S & P INDEX INDEX LEVEL 1-DAY MONTH-TO-DATE

1 , 381.99% 1.03% 4.74%

Group Business Editor Obinna Chima

Email obinna.chima@thisdaylive.com 08024557078, 08152447875

2 0 1 9 S & P INDEX 1/4 TO DATE YEAR TO DATE

7.01% 7.01%

EXCHANGE RATE N306.85/1US DOLLAR* ĚŠ

Quick Takes NACC Leads Trade Mission to US

COURTESY VISIT

L-R: Director General, Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), Mr. Segun Ajayi; MD, SKG Pharma Limited, Dr Okey Akpa; President of MAN, Engr. Mansur Ahmed and immediate past Chairman, MAN Ikeja Branch, Felix Oba Okogie, during the visit of MAN to SKG Pharma in Lagos‌recently

Report: Oil Sector Contributes 92.9% of Illicit Financial Flows Stories by Chineme Okafor in Abuja A report by the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) and Trust Africa has disclosed how companies and persons doing business in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector contribute 92.9 per cent of the total amount of illicit financial flows (IFFs) the country records every year.

Presented recently in Abuja, at a workshop, the report titled: ‘Averting Illicit Financial Flows in Nigeria’s Extractive Industry,’ stated that while it was generally difficult to measure IFFs as a result of their illegality; types of activities and data challenges, Nigeria’s oil and gas sector contributes the most to the illegality through various methods.

It explained that out of the 92.9 per cent contribution of the sector to IFFs in Nigeria, oil bunkering accounted

ENERGY for about 35 per cent; while commercial transactions by multinationals that dominate the sector contribute more than 60 per cent.

According to the report, these multinationals often resort to tax evasion, money laundering and transfer pricing in their practice of IFFs. Further, the report noted that Nigeria’s oil industry has remained vulnerable to the thriving practice of IFFs because the country itself depends on the sector to survive economically.

The sector, it added is equally highly influenced and controlled by the political class as well as technically and structurally complex. It listed Nigeria’s reliance on cash-based economy as another reason why IFFs thrives in the country.

While referring to another report published by the High Level Panel (HLP) of the African

Union Commission and United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (AUC/ECA) in 2015, the IFFs report on Nigeria’s extractive sectors stated that Nigeria accounted for 30.5 per cent of all IFFs outflows from Africa, which is $217.7 billion, between 1970 and 2008.

It stated that opportunities for IFFs through fraud and money laundering in Nigeria’s oil industry generally starts as administrative control failures by those expected to exercise statutory and regulatory frameworks in the industry, adding that such results to high politicisation of discretionary powers, inadequate corporate governance, regulatory capture, political interference, conflict of interests, tax evasion and bribery.

On how to check the practice, the report indicated that mitigating the risks of criminal activities; increasing scrutiny and accountability of

processes; promoting effective demand-side accountability platforms; getting signed on to channels and platforms that discourage trading in illegally exploited minerals, enforcing laws and taxation instruments as well as automating service delivery processes, would go a long way in cutting down IFFs practices.

Speaking on the significance of the report, the Executive Secretary of NEITI, Mr. Waziri Adio, stated that the level of IFFs in Nigeria meant the country needed to move from asking how much it was paid or not, to how the payments are made to it.

Adio said: “Everybody is talking about illicit financial flows, it is one of the buzzwords now, and there are all kinds of reports out there about how countries are bleeding from this. There is a report published by One Continued on page 24

Power Sector Records 4.9% Rise in Generation, Income Shortfall Nigeria’s power sector recorded a 4.9 per cent increase in average generation in February, when compared to its January output, data obtained from the Advisory Power Team in the office of the Vice President, Prof.

Yemi Osinbajo has disclosed.

The data obtained by THISDAY, equally disclosed that between January and February 2019, the sector equally recorded a 7.2 per cent rise in the amount of revenue it lost to various sources of operational constraints.

This is just as a former Managing Director of the Nigeria Bulk Electricity Trading Plc (NBET), Mr. Rumundaka

ENERGY Wonodi, has advised the federal government on how best to get the sector working in the next four years of President Muhammadu Buhari’s tenure.

The data explained that in January average power generation was 3,952 megawatts (MW) while that of February was 4,148MW, indicating an increase by 196MW or 4.9 per cent.

It further explained that in January, the sector lost N41.371 billion and N44.383 billion respectively, indicating a difference of N3.012 billion

or 7.2 per cent.

It added that the total volume of power that could not be generated in the sector on account of various constraints for the two months were 2,780MW for January and 3,302MW for February.

Meanwhile, Wonodi, has asked the government to take decisive steps in aligning its leadership and policy pursuits in the sector.

Wonodi added: “Policies must be consistent with the reform agenda most importantly, the rules and contracts as intended.

For example, the government cannot wash its hands from NBET responsibility to Gencos

on the PPAs by saying that it will no longer support the payment assurance. “It must because that is the premise of the reform and NBET PPA. Another example is the cannibalisation of the Discos through some controversial micro-grid implementation,� said Wonodi.

He further stated: “Investment in transmission. This has to be huge and inspirational.

We must aim for the heavens and work exceedingly hard such that when we fail, we be stuck at the clouds. We need a backbone transmission network Continued on page 24

The Nigerian-American Chamber of Commerce (NACC) is set to lead delegates on a ďŹ ve-day trade mission with the theme: ‘Turning PromisestoAction,’totheUnitedStates.TheeventholdsbetweenApril 28 and May 3, 2019, at the Silicon Valley. This annual commitment of the NACC, according to a statement, was geared towards promoting trade,commerce,investmentandindustrialtechnologicalrelationships between the public and private sectors of in Nigeria and the United States. It added that the trade mission would attract businesses in informationtechnology,banking,agric-tech,cloudtechnologysolutions, artiďŹ cial intelligence, robotic process automation, blockchain, smart contracts, amongst others. Delegates are expected to leverage on the chamber’s initiative to meet new international buyers and distributors, expand into new markets, exchange market knowledge, network, gain insight from industry experts and promote their businesses across border further generating new business for their companies. The NACC has been organising trade missions to the United States. Last year, the Chamber led delegates to Washington DC, USA, where they recorded success stories in new deals and investments. “This year, the Chamber in fulďŹ lling its objective of linking businesses in Nigeria to global enterprises will not only create business opportunities for participating delegates but is prepared to lead a movement of many more success stories,â€? it added.

Edcon Gets $191m Recapitalisation

South Africa’s Edcon has secured 2.7 billion rand ($191 million) in new cash and rent deductions as part of a plan to recapitalise the struggling department store chain. The owner of Edgars and stationary retailer, CAN, has been grappling with its debts for several years, after troubles in its credit business in 2014 coincided with an economic slowdown and weak consumer spending. According to Reuters, in January, Edcon’s chief executive Grant Pattison, said it needed three billion rand ($226 million) in ďŹ nancing over the next three years to allow it time to â€œďŹ xâ€? its business. Edcon, which vies for market share withTFG,Truworths and international chains such as Zara and H&M, is one the biggest names in South African retail, employing more than 14,000 full-time sta in over 1,100 stores. It has been in talks with lenders and other investors about injecting money, while asking landlords to reduce rents inexchangeforequityinthecompany. “ThisisasigniďŹ cantstepforward towards ensuring the restoration of our balance sheet and putting the company back on the path to success,â€? Pattison said of the deal with Edcon’s secured lenders, the government pension fund and landlords. “It will provide management with a suďŹƒcient time-frame to implement the store estate restructure and focus on returning the business to proďŹ tability.â€? Edcon said the recapitalisation will result in the removal of all of its interest-bearing debt and also introduce a new group structure and set of shareholders. Once all conditions have been ďŹ nalised, the shareholders will consist of Edcon’s existing lenders,thePublicInvestmentCorporationandparticipatinglandlords of Edcon, as well as Edcon’s employees, it said. The Southern African Clothing and Textile Workers’ Union welcomed the announcement.

US, China Close to Deal

The United States and China appear close to a deal that would roll back US taris on at least $200 billion worth of Chinese goods, as Beijing makes pledges on structural economic changes and eliminates retaliatory taris on US goods, a source briefed on negotiations said on Sunday. US President, Donald Trump and Chinese President, Xi Jinping could seal a formal trade deal at a summit around March 27 givenprogressintalksbetweenthetwocountries,theWallStreetJournal reported on Sunday. In an eight-month trade war, the United States has imposedpunitivetariffson$250billionworthofimportsfromChina,while Beijinghashitbackwithtariffson$110billionworthofUSgoods,including soybeansandothercommodities.Theactionshaveroiledfinancialmarkets, disrupted manufacturing supply chains and reduced US farm exports.

Trumpadministrationofficialshavesaidtheyexpectthetwopresidentsto “close�adealatasummitincomingweeksatTrump’sMar-a-Lagoestate inFlorida. Thesourcebriefedonthetalkssaidthatnodatesforasummit hadbeendetermined,butthatBeijinghadreserveda10-daywindowfrom around March 20 for a possible summit.

“We look forward to deepening of all processes particularly the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan. There has to be an evaluation on performance, lapses and the involvement of a monitoring process that is inclusive of both the private and public sectors�

DG, MAN,

Mr. Segun Ajayi-Kadir

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BUSINESSWORLD REPORT: OIL SECTOR CONTRIBUTES 92.9% OF ILLICIT FINANCIAL FLOWS

Campaign in 2014 about how developing countries lose about $1 trillion annually from this, and you can imagine what that would do for these countries. “But, it is not just about talking about these studies and the figures but how these illicit flows are actually depriving countries of their resources. “Some of these reports have also focused on Nigeria and when you look at the latest estimate from the Thabo Mbeki-led HLP, Africa loses about $50 to $60 billion every year to IFFs and it is estimated that Nigeria accounts for 30 per cent of that loss, that means Nigeria is losing between $15 to $18 billion every year to IFFs and that is not a small amount money.� “We have done a lot of work at NEITI in focusing on financial transparency, and these are very important piece of works, but you know, it is also very important that we go beyond focusing on how much companies pay, we should also be looking at if that is how much they should pay because that is where Illicit financial flows come in,� he added.

POWER SECTOR RECORDS 4.9% RISE IN GENERATION, INCOME SHORTFALL

and it is time to bring about the transmission network development fund, a fund that will be market based. “Its projects must be proposed by the ISO (independent system operator) and approved

by NERC in consultation with stakeholders and the stakeholder advisory panel (SAP). “It is important project identification is taken away from sole control of the TCN. The ISO or at least the functions of the MO and SO need to come under the control of NERC and market participants.�

Continuing, Wonodi, noted: “There is an urgent need to expand and enhance Disco distribution capacity. Capital can come through recapitalisation of the companies using government equity. This to my mind is the greatest challenge to sector. Cost reflective tariffs must also come into place.�

NEWS

MAN Seeks Backward Integration to Encourage Local Raw Materials Sourcing Jonathan Eze

pens on a continuous basis the economy will grow because the economy is the aggregate of products of services.

Mansur, said the exhibition which would hold between March 12th and 14th, 2019, in Lagos, was being organised in partnership with RMRDC to promote the manufacturing sector in Nigeria by encouraging the improved use of raw materials in the country.

The expo is expected to make significant impact on the Nigerian economy by providing opportunity for

over 3,700 manufacturers and manufacturing equipment distributors to evaluate the latest manufacturing equipment, machine tools, technologies, spare parts and manufacturing raw materials that are on display by over 120 leading local and international suppliers from France, Italy, Germany, Canada, Indonesia, South Africa, India and Nigeria.

The event, targeted at Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and intending entrepreneurs would equip them with information on new processes

and ways of boosting their production output, supply chain, improving product quality, reducing cost and manufacturing for new markets.

According to the MAN President, the overall goal of the exhibition was to promote agriculture, mining, manufacturing and pharmaceuticals in Nigeria as well as promote raw material research conducted by the federal government to advance local processing of raw materials into finished goods.

Also speaking at the event, the Director of Investment and

Consultancy Services, Department of the Raw Materials Research and Development Council, Dr. Zainab Hamanga, said the interest of RMRDC in the exhibition was to see improvement in import substitution in the country as some of the raw materials being sourced abroad abound in Nigeria.

Hamanga said some locally sourced materials are of superior quality compared to the imported ones but noted that Nigerians have more taste for imported goods than locally sourced ones.

The President, Manufacturers association of Nigeria (MAN), Ahmed Mansur, has stressed the need for backward integration policies to encourage manufacturers to locally source for their inputs.

This, he said would reduce cost in the supply chain and support the federal government’s drive for economic diversification.

Addressing a press conference in collaboration with Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC) and Clarion Event West Africa (CEWA) on the 2019 Nigeria manufacturing and equipment expo, MAN urged stakeholders, the organised private sector and global suppliers along the value chain in the raw material sector to synergise and trade directly with its industrial aspirations.

Mansur noted that “Although the Nigerian economy has been largely dependent on oil, the latest report from the national bureau of statistics recorded greater growth from the non-oil sector in terms of addition to the economy than we saw in the oil sector in terms of growth rate,� while urging manufacturers to reduce the cost of production by locally sourcing for raw materials and make their products competitive, efficient and L-R: Commissioner for Health, Cross River State, Dr. Inyang Asibong; Commissioner for Commerce and Industry, Mr. Peter Egba; Deputy, largely productive.

Governor, Prof. Ivara Esu; Governor, Prof. Ben Ayade and General Manager, Paradise Toothpick, Mr. Ignatius Atsu, during the commissioning He added that if this hap- of a tooth pick factory in Ekori, Cross River State‌recently

FACTORY UNVEILING

EEDC Invests in Anambra, Imo to Enhance Power Supply Electricity consumers in Awka, Anambra State and Owerri, Imo State will soon begin to enjoy improved power supply going by the level of investments the Enugu Electricity Distribution Plc (EEDC) has made towards improving its electricity infrastructure in the two states.

These investments include the construction of a 1 x 7.5MVA Injection Substation at ABS, Awka, and upgrading of the 7.5MVA Injection Substation at Agu Awka to a 15MVA; while in Imo State, approval has been obtained for the construction of a new Oguta 33KV line valued at over N140 million, which will radiate from Egbu Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) station.

The Head, Communications, EEDC, Mr. Emeka Ezeh, who made this known in a statement, explained that the projects were necessitated by the challenges of poor electricity supply within the areas due to over loaded feeders.

The 1 x 7.5MVA Injection Substation at ABS, Awka, which would be ready for inauguration within the first quarter of the year, was expected to improve electricity supply to Okpuno, Isuaniocha, Mgbakwu, Urum and Amanuke communities and the university community.

The upgrade of Agu Awka injection substation was expected to address the electricity supply challenges and boost supply to Awka Industrial Layout, Ifite, Agu-Awka GRA, and parts

of Nkwere Awka, UNIZIK, Amansea, Ebenebe, Ugbenu and Ugbene communities.

Also in Owerri, work would soon commence on the new Oguta 33KV line which would take care of customers in New Owerri, World Bank, Concord Hotel area, Irete community and industrialists within the area. Effort has equally been made to radiate a dedicated feeder to improve availability to Alex Aluminum and other industrialists within the cluster.

The EEDC had last year delivered major network enhancement projects ranging from de-loading of feeders, deployment of relief transformers and replacement of

failed transformers. In Enugu, the company completed and inaugurated the 1 x 7.5 MVA Nike lake injection substations at Nike, which greatly improved electricity supply to the entire Nike area and parts of Abakpa.

In a related development, EEDC constructed three feeders to improve supply to her customers in Nsukka, they are the UNN 33KV, Nru 33KV and Wilson 11KV feeders. This has significantly improved power supply to the area and resulted to the deloading of Eha Amufu 33KV line.

According to Ezeh, the company x-rayed its network; identifying areas that needed critical attention with a view to strategically address them.

“It is not possible to attend to all the challenges at the same time, but there is a conscious effort by the business to deal with them and that has informed the investments in the network. “These investments underscore our organisation’s commitment to strategically addressing the power supply needs of our customers, we are therefore hoping that they will reciprocate this gesture by ensuring they pay their electricity bills as and when due. “It is also hoped that they join hands with the EEDC in safeguarding the power installations serving them from being vandalised, and desist from acts such as meter bypass and energy theft,� he added.

NERC Approves 121 Third-partyVendors to for Meter Supply Group Business Editor

Chineme Okafor in Abuja

Capital Market Editor

The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has granted certificate of ‘no objection’ to 121 metering firms to procure and install electrical meters to yet-to-be metered power consumers in Nigeria through its Meter Assets Providers (MAP) scheme, THISDAY has learnt.

This was disclosed in a recent document on the MAP released by the NERC in Abuja, and in which 121 firms were approved by the NERC to participate in the third-party meter finance and installation scheme.

Obinna Chima Goddy Egene

AgriBusiness/Industry Editor

Jonathan Eze

Comms/e-Business Editor

Emma Okonji

Senior Correspondent

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

According to the document, the number of participants in the MAP scheme has continued to rise, from 115 private firms the NERC approved in late in 2018 to participate in procuring and installing meters to electricity consumers in Nigeria, to now 121.

Recently, NERC disclosed that six in every 10 users of grid generated electricity supplied by the 11 electricity distribution companies (Discos) in Nigeria have remained without meter.

It stated that the nonavailability of meters to this number of power users was sustaining the Discos’ practice of

estimated billing and indicated it was about to introduce a regulation to cap estimated bills given every month to consumers by the Discos.

It equally noted that in the regulation which it has called for stakeholders’ input, consumers who reject meters installed at their premises by Discos would be cut off from electricity supply.

In the consultation paper on capping of estimated bills posted on NERC’s website, the commission said the 11 Discos with a customer base of 8,292,840, have been able to provide meters for just 3,591,168, while 4,701,672 have not been

unmetered as at August 2018.

NERC explained that the percentage of unmetered customers was 57, adding that the practice of estimated billing by the Discos have resulted in payment apathy.

It stated that in order to cap estimated billing by Discos, it was considering options such as a cap on estimated billing based on the projected average monthly consumption of each tariff class in the Multi Year Tariff Order (MYTO) model; application of the average consumption of each tariff class within a franchise area as the cap for estimated billing of unmetered customers; and capping the estimated bill

of consumers within a business unit to the average vending of the same tariff class within the area.

Similarly, in a new schedule of ‘no objection’ on the MAP it recently released, the commission had stated that 121 firms have had their applications to participate in the scheme reviewed and approved.

The firms would participate in the scheme NERC expects would take off from first quarter of 2019. The commission has equally mandated the Discos to conduct fresh enumeration of consumers under their network within the end of March.

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BUSINESSWORLD

ENERGY

Finally, NERC Arbitrates on NBET’s Management Crisis The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission has stepped in to stop an internal management crisis at the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Plc, writes Chineme Okafor After months of upsetting internal management crisis at the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Plc (NBET), a government-backed bulk power purchaser in Nigeria’s privatised electricity market, the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) last week moved in to use its regulatory power to stop the situation from further deteriorating.

Investigations by THISDAY on the internal activities of the NBET had uncovered a couple of disturbing developments which at that time rocked the operations of the agency.

The unwholesome development perhaps started in 2016, with top officials at the NBET fighting each other for supremacy.

In the centre of this battle for supremacy which eventually escalated into other unsavory acts including allegations of process abuses, were the Managing Director, Dr. Marilyn Amobi and two other top officials of the agency – Mr. Waziri Bintube, who once headed the finance department of NBET and Mr. Abdullahi Sambo, also headed NBET’s audit department.

And, because of the central role the NBET plays in the electricity market, the crisis at some point threatened to render it rudderless with the country’s electricity market worst for it.

How the crisis started According to documents obtained by THISDAY then as well as sources spoken to on the development, the genesis of the management crisis allegedly started with the appointment of Amobi in 2016 by President Muhammadu Buhari, to run the affairs of the agency after the tenure of NBET’s former head, Mr. Rumundaka Wonodi, was abruptly terminated.

But before Amobi was appointed, Bintube, had served in an interim capacity for few months.

His appointment was however not confirmed by the government, and this allegedly did not go down well with him. This, allegedly fueled an opposition to Amobi.

Furthermore, from three complaint letters Amobi wrote in 2016 to the ministry of power of an alleged physical assault on her on November 9, 2016 in the presence of the staff of the agency by one of the general managers, THISDAY gathered that the operational situation in NBET had by then become tensed.

According to sources, the assault complaints to the ministry did not get any attention, and when THISDAY called the Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Mr. Louis Edozien for clarification of this, he declined to comment.

Following this, the crisis continued and in June 2017, reached a new height when a restructuring exercise was done at the NBET, and Bintube was moved from his position as chief financial officer, alongside Sambo, who was the auditor.

This, according to documents sighted by THISDAY did not also sit well with the two officers who reportedly petitioned two religious groups alleging a conspiracy against them by Amobi on the basis of their religion. This was after they were suspended by Amobi for allegedly staying away from work for up to six months and then their salaries and emoluments equally suspended.

Likewise, officials of the NBET who were close to the development also told THISDAY then that the issues relating to Bintube and Sambo bothered on basic organisational discipline and respect for rules governing the actions of government officials.

They explained that both officials left their duty posts when the office of the Accountant General of the Federation seconded two of its officials to the NBET to help the agency attain a self-accounting status.

That exercise, they noted required some management reshuffling and Bintube and Sambo were thus moved to head new departments.

This, they alleged did not go down well with them and they subsequently left their duty posts for up to six months in disregard of both the government and NBET’s rules of engagement.

Accordingly, both officials rejected their new postings and reportedly petitioned a non-existent board of the NBET with the insistence that Amobi had no right to redeploy them to new departments.

It was further alleged that between June and December 2017, when this happened,

Amobi Sambo reportedly claimed a six-month salary worth N11.276 million and N1.355 million car maintenance expense without reporting to work, but that Amobi in December stopped his salaries until when the non-existent board determined his petition.

Similarly, Bintube was reported to have been paid a six-month salary worth N16.488 million, as well as car maintenance allowance of N626, 123, even though he didn’t report to work as well.

Ethno-religious slant introduced into crisis THISDAY further gathered that a religious slant was subsequently introduced into the leadership crisis as complaints from Bintube and Sambo against Amobi were sent to two Muslim groups – the Muslim Media Watch Group and Abuja Muslim Forum, which then petitioned the NBET and equally accused Amobi of injustice and religious victimisation of both officials.

The groups accused the NBET under Amobi, of religious intolerance and unconstitutionally depriving both officials of their salaries and emoluments which they said had been in arrears.

In their petitions, they claimed Amobi exhibited acts of executive lawlessness despite interventions from the power ministry in the management struggles between her and the duo.

The petitions were signed by Nasir Balogun who is the national secretary of the Muslim Media Watch Group for it, while L. J Ahmad, president of the Abuja Muslim Forum signed for it.

According to the groups then, Amobi unjustly moved both officials from their positions and subsequently suspended them from the NBET for their failures to report to the new posts. They said her acts were motivated by the religion and ethnicity of the two officials.

In the centre of this battle for supremacy which eventually escalated into other unsavory acts including allegations of process abuses, were the Managing Director, Dr. Marilyn Amobi and two other top ofďŹ cials of the agency – Mr. Waziri Bintube, who once headed the ďŹ nance department of NBET and Mr. Abdullahi Sambo, also headed NBET’s audit department

Momoh Going further, the Abuja Muslim Forum, which specifically stated that it represented the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA) and Jama’atu Nasril Islam (JNI) amongst other Islamic organisations, called for the reinstatement of both officials unconditionally.

To prevent a potential religious fracas or crisis at the NBET, Amobi, it was learnt reportedly called the attention of the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar and Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II, to the development been that they are both president and vice president of the NSCIA. Allegations of N2 billion diversion In addition, the two officials in a letter dated September 28, 2018 to the minister of finance with a whistleblowing report, had alleged there was a N2 billion fraud perpetrated at the NBET

by Amobi.

While calling for an investigation and perhaps prosecution of anyone liable in the alleged fraud, the complainants alleged there was a monthly over-invoicing of about N2 billion to Olorunsogo and Omotosho power Gencos contrary to NERC’s order on capacity payments.

They equally claimed the NBET under Amobi paid Olorunsogo and Omotosho these monies while other Gencos were subjected to the NERC order, adding that officials of the agency were working with Amobi to perpetrate the alleged over-invoicing. ‌And NERC steps in Following repeated calls by industry stakeholders for the NERC to step in and arrest the situation at the NBET, the commission finally took up the challenge and investigated especially the N2 billion over-invoicing claims of Bintube and Sambo.

It also made public its findings last week, and cleared the Amobi-led NBET of unwholesome practices as alleged by both Bintube and Sambo.

It explained that in line with its regulatory powers, it had to investigate the N2 billion overpayment claims to Oloronsogo and Omotosho because it wanted to amongst other objectives, maintain the integrity of the electricity market.

According to it, its overriding objective was to provide clarity to investors, lenders and other stakeholders on whether the management of NBET engages in fraudulent or inappropriate practices in the discharge of its statutory responsibility to the country’s electricity market as suggested by the claims of both officials. “The independent investigation conducted by the Commission focused on the allegation of corruption relating to the purported over invoicing of about N2 billion in the monthly market settlement payments due to the aforesaid two power plants on 18th and 19th February 2019. The board of NBET has been requested to refer other allegations to relevant agencies for review. “The Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI) is a very technical industry that is dependent on

back-to-back intra-industry agreements between the various tiers of the value chain and back-toback inter-industry agreements that exist between the upstream tier of thermal generators and gas suppliers,� said NERC in the report detailing the outcome of its investigation.

In conducting the investigation, NERC explained that it interviewed top management of NBET who were involved with the management of Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) of the Gencos, as well as Bintube and Sambo over a period of two days. “The findings of the Commission’s investigation are as follows: All payments made by NBET to the two power plants were in accordance with the terms of the PPAs. NBET and the two power plants executed appropriate waivers in accordance with the terms of the PPAs to address condition precedents. “Payments made by NBET to the two power plants were done in compliance with the NERC TEM (Transitional Electricity Market) order pursuant to the provision that sanctity of existing agreements be maintained. “Payments to the two power plants, in compliance with the terms of the PPAs, were effected

by Mr. Rumundaka Wonodi during his tenure as the Managing Director of NBET, Mallam Waziri Bintube during his tenure as Acting Managing Director of NBET and continued by Dr. Amobi upon her assumption on duty as Managing Director of NBET,� said the NERC. The NERC further stated that Bintube provided legal justification for the payments to the two power Gencos through an email he sent to Edozien on August 17, 2016.

It added that: “Mallam Waziri Bintube and Mallam Abdullahi Sambo were unable to substantiate any claims of over invoicing to the tune of N2 billion each month by NBET in the payments to these two power plants; and they refused to admit that raising false allegations which they could not substantiate of over payment of N2 billion each month by NBET to the two power plants, constituted a crime during their interviews; and could also not provide further evidence to substantiate any form of inappropriate payments being made to these two power plants as they had alleged. “These unfounded allegations by Mallam Waziri Bintube and Mallam Abdullahi Sambo have brought NESI into disrepute and weakened investor confidence in a sector where different agencies of government have been working collaboratively to address sector issues for the overall public good and in the interest of Nigeria.�

Putting paid to the allegations, the report said: “The Commission hereby confirms that capacity payments to the Olorunsogo and Omotosho power plants by NBET are in line with the power purchase agreement executed between the contracting parties and the provisions of the supplementary TEM order by the Commission.

The public is therefore advised to discountenance the allegations of inappropriate payments to the Omotosho and Olorunsogo power plants.�

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Exploring Opportunities in Cashew Kernels’Business Jonathan Eze writes on the need to increase export of cashew kernels.

Nigeria currently exports raw cashew nuts to Vietnam, China and India. There are opportunities for increasing the export of cashew kernels to consumer markets like Germany and Netherlands.

Estimated potential might increase further when the processing of cashew increases in Nigeria.This is against the backdrop of a recent revelation by the National Cashew Association of Nigeria, NCAN, that Nigeria earned N144.7 billion ($402 million) from the export of raw cashew nuts to Vietnam and other countries last year. The spokesperson for the association, Mr. Sotonye Anga, said in an interview recently that 220,000 tonnes of raw cashew nuts were exported to Vietnam, India and China between February and December. “The latest development has been interesting because just last week, we got Nigeria’s final export position from Vietnam, which was quite revealing. Out of the 220,000 tonnes of exported raw cashew nuts, Vietnam accounted for 181,753 tonnes, while 38,247 tonnes went to India, China and other countries in the last 11 months,� he said.

Anga, stressed that cashew is a consistent foreign exchange earner and an international crop with huge economic value. “These figures have shown the potential of the cashew and with increased crop growing; we have seen a reverse trend of urban to rural migration. Many urban dwellers are now going back to villages to take up farming and a lot more jobs have been created,� he added.

However, the challenge as pointed out by stakeholders is that Nigerian cashew processors are operating below 30 per cent of their combined installed capacity. This was attributed to high cost of procuring raw cashew nuts, among other factors. A cashew trader, Wilberforce Kanu, said that the cost of cashew nuts now sells at between N170,000 to N200,000 per tonne, and that it has added to the problem of job loss and closing down of some processing plants.

According to him, “In the 2015 cashew season alone, many cashew processors in Nigeria operated below 30 per cent of a combined installed capacity of 48,000 tonnes due to high cost of raw nuts. “Selling at between N170,000 and N200,000 per tonne, high cost of doing business and zero incentive, all these put together led to massive job losses and cashew factory shutdowns in the country. Cashew processors, at the moment, are endangered and there is need to protect and strengthen them,� He said.

It is believed that the sub-sector needs government’s support that would encourage competitiveness among the cashew processors.

According to him, “Strengthening cashew processing in Nigeria is a step that will contribute to the nation’s economic development. We call on the Nigerian Government to approve an investment incentive of $260 per tonne for cashew

Cashew Kernels processing in Nigeria. We need to understand that cashew farmers need guaranteed markets to remain in business. “Whenever a cashew processor processes a metric tonne of raw cashew, it translates to over 200 jobs. In Nigeria, more than 70 per cent of workers in cashew processing facilities are women, who are trained to de-shell the cashew. They also delicately peel and pack the cashew kernels and get them ready for the export markets,� he said.

Nigeria, presently has seven cashew processing plants. These are Olam, Foodpro, Esteema Diamond, Abod success, KD Foods, ACET Nigeria and Valency and they are members of the NCAN. It was also reported that the association had privately invested N12 billion into cashew processing in Kwara, Kaduna, Ogun and Lagos, but the cashew processors were selling to the same markets, hence the need for government to protect cashew processors. “There is need for the government to protect cashew processors and make them better competitors globally,� Anga was quoted to have said, adding that ‘irrespective of where you process your cashew from, we all sell under the same price regime and to the same markets in United Kingdom, Netherlands and Germany.� “United States of America, Canada, Australia, United Arab Emirate, Saudi Arabia, Japan, and most recently China. So, the countries that offer the best investment incentives, to cashew processors, rule in the cashew world,� he said.

A former Managing Director of NEXIM, Mr.

Robert Orya, had said the Nigerian cashew industry has continued to operate below its potential, explaining that the industry is challenged with a myriad of problems ranging from old/low yielding plantations to inadequate processing facilities and low level of access to finance.

He said the inability of Nigerian local producers to process their products meant that about 95 per cent of the annual production was exported as raw commodities with attendant low prices and inability of producers and exporters to receive commensurate reward for their efforts.

This, according to the former NEXIM boss has economy-wide implications for increased export revenue, development of the industry and increased job creation in line with the transformation agenda of the federal government.

To address some of these challenges, he said the African Cashew Alliance, and the USAID West African Trade Hub launched the Nigerian Cashew Cluster Finance Scheme in 2012, through which NEXIM disbursed about N150 million under the pilot scheme and cumulatively disbursed about N1billion to the sub-sector.

He challenged the stakeholders to present quality applications, supported by good business plans and off-take arrangements to facilitate increased funding intervention to the sector, especially towards enhancing value-added processing, reiterating commitment to grow and develop the cashew industry.

On his part, the Executive Director, Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), Mr. Olusegun

Awolowo, said Nigeria lost more than $100 billion of national export revenues between 2015 to 2017 due to the crash in oil prices. “The recent recession was due to a $30 to $40 billion annual deficits in Nigeria’s foreign exchange earnings. “Nigeria must replace these lost export revenues in order to sustain economic growth, stabilise the naira, sustain federal and state government income and boost employment,’’ he said.

Awolowo, said the council’s goal was to grow Nigeria’s non-oil export revenues from N1.5 trillion per annum to N5 trillion within three to four years and more than N10 trillion over the longer term.

He said the council was collaborating with Centre for the Development of Imports (CBI) to stimulate Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in low and middle-income countries to gain more access to the European market.

Awolowo said CBI Export Competency Development Programme (ECD) was also to offer SMEs the capacity to add value to their products to attract higher margins and ability for their supplies to be more in line with European demand. According to him, adding value to raw materials does not only create higher margins but also generate more income and jobs.

He said that the collaboration started in 2016 after identifying three sectors – cocoa, cashew and sesame – as those with immense potential in the European market.

Gokada Celebrates OneYear in Transport Business Sunday Okobi and Oluchi Chibuzor As Gokada, a tech-enabled motorcycle taxi start-up in Lagos celebrates its one year in transport business, the management of the company has said it is strategising on how to provide reliable alternative means of transportation in Nigeria.

The two-wheeled transport company, which also opened its corporate office to serve as a training centre for its teaming corporate riders in commemorating its one-year anniversary, said it has positioned itself as the future of reliable transport in Nigeria.

The Chief Executive Office of Gokada, Deji Oduntan, who disclosed this to journalists at a media briefing in Lagos recently, said the need for

safety and solution to traffic congestion in Lagos necessitated the establishment of company and the consequent training centres for riders on their platforms.

According to Oduntan, “We are here because we want to celebrate one year in business and we are using this opportunity to also launch our new office. “The reason behind this is because we see ourselves as the future of reliable transport here in Nigeria.

We understand that there are several transportation options for people in Lagos, however what we noticed is that there is a huge problem of traffic which Lagosians have faced for many years. “Thinking about how to solve this problem, we asked ourselves how do we move

people around Lagos quickly without them being hindered by traffic, which was difficult for us because motorcycle riders are associated with high level of accidents and crime but we knew that coming into this market, we wanted to change the narrative, we wanted to give people the service they can use quickly and safely, here we are today.�

According to him, “In one year, there have been a few things we have been able to achieve, and I think it has been an awesome year for us for us to be able to launch a new office in one year. “In this one year, we have been able to create a very strong affection for our products, we have thousands of customers who have downloaded our apps and want to use our service to different

places. I think in one year, there is a strong demand for our product.�

He added: “Looking at the speed and safety, we felt well positioned to solve traffic problems as user can connect with the riders at ease from anywhere close to them using the app from their mobile phones.�

He said Gokada is just not a motorcycle platform, saying, “we just started with motorcycle because that is the immediate need of customers.� “Beyond motorcycles, we feel we are capable to provide multiple services to the average customers in Lagos. We are also going to explore other avenues like ferries.�

The Gokada boss said because of the nature of the business, they have put in several measures that would

mitigate risks and improve their acceptance in the market, as they are in the transport industry for a serious business.

Oduntan, further noted that the firm has insurance package built into their operation for every rider and customer who uses their services. “On our platform, users are able to connect to the nearest drivers who we do standard background checks, guarantor checks and verification that reinforce the safety element of our business,� he stated.

The tech-enabled motorcycle taxi start-up, which also conducts a psychological assessment, oral interview and a riding assessment, said they have recorded 0.01 per cent accident rate within the period, adding: “There is a comprehensive insurance

package so that if there is an accident, Gokada will stand in for them.�

However, just like every Small medium Enterprise (SME), Odutan said finance had been a challenge to further expand in term of acquiring more bikes to cope with the demand, appealing for funding partners to consider investing in the business “Basically, we are looking for financial partners who can help us acquire more bikes and we operate and pay them some amount in return. This would be a great deal, and we hope by 2019, we would be able to get the right financing partners to help us get more bikes in order to offer great services to our customers in Lagos and beyond,� he said

27

T H I S D AY Ëž ÍłËœ 2019

BUSINESSWORLD

NEWS

Jeon: Why Local Content Matters in Nigeria’s Oil and Gas Industry The Managing Director of Samsung Heavy Industries Nigeria (SHIN) Limited, Mr. Jejin Jeon, in this interview speaks on his company’s accomplishments in the area of local content in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector. Oluchi Chibuzor presents the excerpts: What is your assessment of the local content legislation in oil and gas industry?

It’s fair to say that ‘local content’ regulations don’t sound like the most interesting topic in the world. Any manager of any oil or gas project is going to be focused on hitting their targets, and rightly so. Time is money, and in the energy sector this is particularly the case. With this target mindset, it’s easy to dismiss local content regulations as additional bureaucracy or a box to be ticked to win the tender.

of human capital. By understanding this dual nature of shipbuilding, we were able to design a local content programme that delivered opportunities to Nigeria, whilst delivering cutting-edge technology. This blend of global and local has proven to be perfectly suited to delivering on customer needs, satisfying local content requirements and creating a sustainable platform for long-term growth.

And when Samsung says long-term, it means long-term. Building a welding school today means opportunities today for our impressive local workforce, skilled welders such as Chinonye who are learning skills and sharing knowledge. But it also means looking to the next decade and beyond, understanding the potential of Nigeria to be a focal point for fabrication and integration for the whole of Africa.

We have proven that responsible investment, powered by a belief in people, unlocks potential that can drive real change. Our fabrication and integration yard in Lagos is the start of our journey in Africa, and it’s a journey that will deliver jobs, opportunity and economic prosperity for the country and beyond.

How did you cope with this piece of legislation?

I think that Samsung Heavy Industries Nigeria could have fallen into this trap too. After all, we were a new arrival in Nigeria, eager to prove ourselves and to win business for our company.

Thankfully though, although we are new to Nigeria, we are by no means new to shipbuilding in a developing economy.

It might seem difficult to remember this today, but when our first shipyard was being constructed in 1974, Korea was a very different country. We too had to deal with the twin challenges of undertaking immense economic growth whilst improving the standard of living for our citizens. We learnt that you had to be agile and adapt to a fast-changing world, and that you have to keep transformation at the core of what you do.

You have a reputation as a global shipbuilding giant. What gives you a competitive edge over your competitors in the Nigerian environment?

Shipbuilding has two faces like Janus,

Jeon the Roman god. On the one hand, it is a high-tech, innovative business which

What is your vision for the future?

Our vision is a future of extraordinary growth and opportunity, building on our now-proven model for heavy involvement of local companies and local workforce talent.

The combination of Korean efficiency and expertise, fused with Nigerian talent and passion, presents limitless possibilities for a future repairing, maintaining and building demands the best. On the other hand, it high value ships to serve needs in Africa requires hard work, and an intense level and beyond – just watch this space.

CanYour Infrastructure SupportYour Innovation Journey?

Temitope Osunrinde Branch networks in premier business districts, traditionally believed to measure the stature of financial providers are being replaced with internet banking, payment apps and short-code banking. Technology has enabled non-traditional financial players upend branch networks typically dominated by large financial providers; with newer, nimbler entrants such as Interswitch and Paystack processing more online transactions than Nigeria’s biggest banks. A report by the Nigerian Interbank Settlement System (NIBBS) indicates that Nigeria’s ePayment services recorded N38.5 trillion transactions in the first half of 2018, a 38.4 percent increase from N27.8 trillion in the corresponding period of 2017. NIBSS Instant Pay, PoS and Mobile transactions led the pack with the highest growth in value and transaction volume.

With the banking regulator now giving mobile network operators a leg up by granting them payment banking licenses, this will enable them to gain unprecedented advantages with the promise of branchless banking, delivered on smartphones and feature phones. Financial institutions, especially Nigerian banks will then have no choice but to respond better to disruption by reassessing strategies, operating models and risk frameworks.

Non-traditional banking operators enter the industry by leveraging technology to innovate in the banking services sector.

Disruptive start-ups are taking a slice from the financial services action and mopping up unbanked, low income earners by providing them financial services. With their lean structures, low cost of operations and lack of branch overhead, fintech players are trumping the traditional operators. In an era of fast online and mobile payments, traditional banks still adopt a three-day wait

policy for third-party cheques. eCommerce sites now have wallets for customer’s, which further whittles the hold of banks of customer pockets as technology companies and retailers look to build a presence in the banking sector by tapping into a prodigious appetite for new and innovative banking services.

The industry dynamic has changed with banking now depending more on good infrastructure than how many branches you have. As such, banking operators must stay competitive by re-inventing processes on a lean, asset-light business model. To emerge leaner and more agile, outsourcing specific technology or business process functions has proven effective in reducing both capital and operating costs. This enables banks to transfer significant capital expenditure in technology infrastructure, to lower cost services so they can adapt quickly to fastpaced changes in the marketplace while increasing profits, adding scale, flexibility, and advanced technology capabilities to their businesses.

For too long, financial providers have been held back on their digital transformation journey by legacy technology and processes.

In the bid for direct management of their mission-critical IT assets, banks have continued to invest and own data centres to host critical applications. But running a data centre adds minimal value to today’s core banking activities where customers would rather do business online rather than go into bank branches. So, when banking institutions experience failures or system outages that result in downtime, the impact is truly widespread with heavy financial loss and sometimes reputational damage with customers in far flung locations.

How can Nigerian banks improve IT performance and reliability while balancing risk management and cost considerations?

They need to focus on providing robust

customer experiences by removing the distractions of physical infrastructure operations. This will enable a refocusing of their technology efforts on optimizing software and applications to deliver better customer experiences, rather than worrying over diesel generators and cooling in server rooms. These banks have the opportunity to embrace outsourcing their primary and secondary data centre environments to established service providers focused on maintaining infrastructure uptime and committing to rigorous SLA requirements. These colocation environments also provide the banks with a multiplicity of connectivity options to enable reach to a wider range of customers which would have been inherently unavailable in their own environments.

There is need for Chief Information Officers, Chief Technology Officers and other C-suite executives to aim to achieve the right balance between the technologies they want to keep in house and the ones that can be outsourced. Outsourced data centres as an example provide banks with the ability to focus on the application layer running in outsourced data centres which enable them routinely implement critical applications without the downtime capable of affecting their customers.

A few Nigerian banks have already outsourced their colocation requirements in line with regulatory and requirements from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) which are benchmarked to global standards.

Out of the top 25 banks currently operating, 16 per cent have fully outsourced their primary and disaster recovery operations, 44 per cent have outsourced only disaster recovery, 36 per cent currently run primary operations from outsourced facilities.

Driven by its commitment to becoming Nigeria’s foremost end-to-end financial services institution, Stanbic IBTC, one of Nigeria’s leading and most innovative

banks embraced colocation with MainOne for the deployment of private colocation and workspace for the bank within its data centre, MDXI. After a comprehensive technical and commercial build-versus-buy assessment, the bank outsourced its data centre environment, to MainOne and was able to quickly achieve regulatory compliance, increased efficiencies without the weight of OPEX and CAPEX challenges.

Stanbic IBTC CIO, Gboyega Dada asserts that outsourcing their data centre has drastically reduced the company’s operational and capital expenses as well as enhanced its flexibility and agility. “We have been able to streamline our IT Operations, outsourcing most of what is not core to our business so we can focus on true banking. It has become a lot more cost effective for us because we have saved significantly on capital outlay�, he said.

Business analysts say on-premise hosting is more expensive compared to outsourcing which offers between 20 – 50 percent ownership cost reductions over a three-year period. Thus adopting outsourced data centre services by Nigerian banks could save them between 20 and 50 per cent of their total IT budget while remaining competitive, flexible and deliver better performance.

In 2019 and beyond, data centre uptime will remain key to staying competitive in this industry and even a minute of downtime will not be tolerated by customers when alternate solutions are only a download away. It is expedient for Nigerian banks to resolve downtime issues, which affects reputation and eventually leads to churn and impacts the business bottom-line. Financial providers need to take advantage of worldclass colocation service providers so they can focus on providing more efficient and lower financial services to their customers, delivered from always-on infrastructure.

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T H I S D AY ˾ TUESDAY MARCH 5, 2019

PROPERTY & ENVIRONMENT UNODC: Nigeria Risks Evolving into Transit Hub for Illicit Trade in Wildlife Products Bennett Oghifo

T

he commemoration of the 2019 World Wildlife Day, on March 3, has brought to fore the activities of trans-border criminal gangs in what is believed to be a booming multimillion Dollar illegal trade in wildlife.

March 3 every year, is dedicated by the international community to raise awareness of the world’s wild animals and plants. “It is also a day to review our actions as individuals, communities and governments aimed to protect our planet’s wildlife and to collectively find solutions to the challenges we face,” according to the United Nations.

In its statement released in celebration of the Day in Nigeria, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), said, “It appears that Nigeria might risk to

evolve rapidly into a transit hub for illicit wildlife products, including pangolins, elephant tusks and other protected species, destined for countries in Asia, as well as Europe, the Middle East and North and South America.”

The statement, signed by Mr. Sylvester Atere, Outreach and Communications Officer, UNODC Nigeria said, “Late January this year, more than US$8 million worth of elephant tusks and pangolin scales were confiscated by Hong Kong customs from a shipping container coming from Nigeria, making this the biggest seizure of pangolin scales, by value and weight, ever in the city. “Another incident back in October 2018 led Vietnamese authorities to intercept more than eight metric tons of pangolin scales and ivory, also arriving from Nigeria.”

Over the past 12 months, a total of 25 tons of ivory and pangolin scales were seized in

Asia which allegedly originated from Nigeria, while 13 tons of pangolin scales were seized in Nigeria, the statement said.

“This marks a sharp increase from the almost eight tons of pangolin scales seized by States parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) in 2016 and 2017.”

According to UNODC’s World Wildlife Crime Report (2016), “whole pangolins in Nigeria can range in price from US$7 to US$15 while their scales alone would sell for as much as US$250 per pangolin in the destination markets.

“Pangolins smuggled to Asia are unlikely to originate from Nigeria as the species is near extinction in the country.”

Regardless, Pangolins are believed to be the world’s most trafficked mammal and are being hunted for various purposes, including for food, traditional medicines, fashion

accessories and are considered a delicacy in many parts of Asia.

While international trade in pangolins was banned in 2017, after the animal received the highest level of protection against illegal trading by CITES, high demand for such products in Asia continue to make it a very profitable illicit business for wildlife traffickers, the statement said.

Solution The UN agency said, “Tackling this phenomenon is complex and requires the cooperation of multiple stakeholders within and beyond Nigeria, including Customs, Police and National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESRA), as well as the World Customs Organization, Interpol and the CITES secretariat. Building up the specialised detection and investigation capabilities within the relevant law enforcement agencies takes time and is

resource intensive. “Bringing the legal framework into full compliance with CITES requirements is another challenge.

Moreover, understanding fully the role of transnational organised crime in the illicit trade of wildlife and forestry products is crucial both from a policy and operational perspective.”

With a view to assisting countries in this urgent endevour, UNODC said it launched in 2014 its Global Programme for Combating Wildlife and Forest Crime. The Programme is designed to support States to more effectively prevent, identify, investigate, prosecute and adjudicate wildlife and forest crime.

“To date, UNODC has provided support to more than 40 Member States, conducted research to better understand trends and patterns of wildlife crime and developed tools, such as a Guide on Drafting Legislation to Combat Wildlife

Crime. As a member of the International Consortium on Combating Wildlife Crime (ICCWC) - a collaborative effort of five intergovernmental organisations – UNODC also supports Member States in assessing the effectiveness of their preventive and criminal justice responses, drawing on ICCWC Toolkit and ICCWC Indicator Framework for Combating Wildlife and Forest Crime.”

Revelation of the booming illicit trade in wildlife shocked Nigeria’s Minister of Environment, Suleiman Hassan Zarma, who stated “It was very unsettling when information was received that the Vietnamese Customs made the discovery in concealed containers declared as ‘consigning knocked wood’…..

More disturbing is the fact that Nigeria was mentioned as the source in spite of our laudable conservation efforts which informed our leading the war against Illegal Wildlife Trade in the West African Region.”

UK-based Foundation Plans Training Institute for women Empowerment in Nigeria Global Women Network Foundation, a United Kingdom-based Nongovernmental Organisation with roots in other parts of Africa, has held the first phase of its Fund Raising/Network Cocktail in London to raise funds for the establishment of a training institute for women empowerment in Nigeria.

A statement by its officials said the Foundation picked Nigeria because of the affinity the major founders have with the country. “They are business professionals whose business interests cut across the globe and wish to give back to the communities that have in one way or the other contributed to their success.”

Mrs. Roni Akins, one of

the founders and organisers of the event, told participants how she conceived the idea of starting a foundation for the empowerment of women.

According to her, the idea emanated from a disappointment she experienced when she visited Nigeria to do business.

Roni Akins, a key player in real estate, said the experience was so devastating that she began to imagine how graduates without jobs cope and what happens to widows with intelligent children who had to stop education because of the death of a father.

“I was so grateful to God and I thought myself, we have so much to give back and help even if it is five

girls a year.

“I spoke to a few of friends who didn’t hesitate to come on board, considering the fact that they do not have to go to Nigeria to experience all the stuff I experienced,” she said.

Mrs. Roni said she believed that God allowed her to go through everything so she could have empathy and the strength to set up an empowerment centre.

Appreciating her friends who joined in making the fundraising a huge success, she said “it was amazing how God brought like minds together for such a noble cause and urge them to also start working on causes they are passionate about because the world needs them.”

Some participants at the fund raising event in London… recently

APON to Improve Productivity by Creating Order in Habitable Spaces

L-R (Front to Back): Olohita Iribhogbe; Cresta Durojaiye; Olusola Oguche-Agudah; Oghomwen Ogbonmwan; Tosin Ajayi; vohkeh Osusuluwa; Adaobi Ofoche; Ini Ibe; and Elizabeth Okonofua, all pioneer members of the Association of Productivity and Organising Professionals in Nigeria (APON), at the launch of the association in Lagos… recently

People struggling with clutter in their homes, offices and other valuable spaces can now heave a sigh of relief with the launch of the Association of Productivity and Organising Professionals in Nigeria (APON).

The association, which was officially launched in Lagos, recently, was formed to help people live quality lives by de-cluttering their spaces, creating order and increasing efficiency and productivity, according to a statement by its initiators.

The statement said the launch of APON was a dream come true for its founders, Cresta Durojaiye, the Chairperson and Sola Oguche-Agudah, Vice Chairperson, who came together in 2014 with a dream to start a productivity and professional organising business, which was a new business terrain

in Nigeria, according to the statement.

The association is the umbrella body for all persons in the productivity and professional organising industry.

The APON body aims to create an environment for its members to rub minds, share ideas, learn together and build successful organising businesses that promote more productive lifestyles, starting with Nigeria and spanning outwards, aiming to put Nigeria on the global map, through productivity and professional organising, the statement said.

At the launch were wellknown productivity and organising professionals in the Nigerian industry, who will be starting the association as its pioneer members.

APON’s immediate objective is to host trainings

for existing and upcoming productivity and organising professionals and also roll out solutions to help its members scale up their businesses and implement strategies to counter challenges currently faced by productivity and organising professionals in the country, the statement said.

The major highlight of the day was the official flag-off ceremony of the association, symbolised by the joint cake-cutting session with the association’s executives and its pioneer members, amidst fireworks and loud cheers.

Officials said the Association “is a space we must watch and look out for, they have hit the ground running and are driven to positively highlight Nigeria on the global map, through their productivity and professional organising industry.”

29

T H I S D AY ˾ TUESDAY MARCH 5, 2019

PROPERTY & ENVIRONMENT

Fashola Urges Lagos Estate Community to Access Solar Power Bennett Oghifo Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola has advised residents of Iponri Estate in mainland Lagos to organise themselves properly if they are serious about enjoying interrupted power supply through solar energy.

The residents informed the minister of their desire to use solar energy which is being used by owners of shops at the Iponri market in their neighbourhood.

“They have seen what we have done in the market close to them by electrifying 450 shops and we are going to electrify the whole market and they are saying can’t we benefit from it. We say they can. What our government has done there is to create an opportunity for business; we are not the ones who pay for the system. We went to the market, spoke to the market women who said they didn’t have enough energy, and asked them if they were ready to contract to private services and they said yes. We did the audit, shared the document with businesses and one of them said they were interested in doing this.

“We met with the leaders of the market and they signed the contract and 450 of them now have uninterrupted power from solar panels. They got a fan,

energy saving bulbs and they told me that they are happy with what they are getting. Instead of paying N1000 or N2000 per day for a few hours, they have energy the whole day from morning to evening.

“This estate wants it, so I said put yourselves together as a group, we will come and conduct the audit if you have agreed and we will look for business men who can do this.”

This policy, he said has a job creation advantage because new people are doing business and people are getting employed.

While seeking the support of his constituents in Ward G3, Fashola appealed to the residents not to sell their votes, adding that he embarked on the neighbourhood consultation to meet people he described as influencers in their own rights.

“Everyone of these people we have come to meet here are also influencers in their own rights; they are influencers in the market unions, in youth football clubs, Churches and Mosques and in allied societies. This is an election about making sensible choices, so there are no emotions anymore.

He urged them to vote the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the 2019 general elections, explaining to them the new voting process of

Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola at a townhall meeting with shop owners on solar electricity at Iponri market in Lagos… recently

accreditation and voting immediately rather than do the accreditation and go home to return later to vote.

He also said if anybody had an issue with the card reader, she or he could still vote provided their name is on the voters register and they have their PVC. All they need do is to thumb print against their name on the register.

The Minister explained to

them that the encumbrances that made people waste time at the polling units while trying to cast votes in the past had been removed.

He said that government had also put in place a maintenance framework to ensure roads stay in good, motorable condition.

The Chairman of the Iponri Residents Association, Mr. Tayo Ogunlade, drew the attention of the minister to some dilapidated

infrastructure and some parts of the estate that was sinking.

Other residents during the interactive meeting took turns to thank the Buhari administration for construction of some major routes leading into the estate.

The minister also held a similar meeting with residents of Ward G2 in Alaka Estate, where he reminded them of the road

projects being done across the country, particularly in Lagos and their neighbourhood road that have been inundated by trucks and tankers.

He said the issue was be addressed with the construction of rail lines and that the contractor handling the Olorugun Michael Ibru Boulevard (former Creek Road) to Mile 2 was mobilized about 10 days ago.

Ghana to Kick-start Year of Ambition at Africa Climate Summit The provisional programme for Africa Climate Week 2019, which is being hosted from 18–22 March in Accra, Ghana, has now been published online – showcasing a dynamic schedule of activities that will demonstrate enhanced ambition across the continent. Full details concerning topics and speakers will follow in due course.

Hosted by the Government of Ghana, the event arrives in the wake of the COP24 international climate negotiations, which concluded with the successful finalization of the ‘Katowice Climate Package’ on 15 December –also known as the Paris Agreement Work Program.

It therefore represents the first major climate-orientated event in 2019 that will promote the Program’s

‘guidelines’ as the underpinning to practically implement the Paris Agreement.

The timely completion of these operational elements – and the ramping-up of national ambition relating to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, adapting to the inevitable impacts of climate change and support for developing countries to take climate action – will be critical to achieving net-zero emissions by 2050 and, ultimately, keeping the global average temperature rise to as close as possible to 1.5°C. In terms of climate action, 2019 is already being hailed as the year of ambition, since the world has until 2020 for countries to come back to the table to revise their national climate action plans

(also known as Nationally Determined Contributions, or “NDCs”. This is why United Nations SecretaryGeneral António Guterres is convening a landmark Summit in New York this September to spur global leaders to pledge stronger commitments to reduce emissions and strengthen resilience.

In acknowledgment of this Summit as the ‘headline event’ of the year – and recognizing that the Regional Climate Weeks are the obvious stages to precipitate momentum in developing countries in the lead-up to September – Africa Climate Week has firmly aligned itself with the New York event – firstly, by matching its overarching theme “Climate Action in

Africa: A Race We Can Win” with that of the September Summit and, secondly, by selecting three of the Summit’s six ‘transformational areas’ as the focus of its thematic sessions on 21-22 March: Energy Transition, Nature-Based Solutions, and Cities and Local Action. The other three areas of the New York Summit will be Climate Action and Carbon pricing; Reducing Emissions from Industry and Building Resilience.

Meanwhile, the high-level segment, which takes place on Wednesday, 20 March, will bring together Ministers and senior leaders – including UN Climate Change Executive Secretary Patricia Espinosa – and focus on areas such as: visions for Nationally Determined

Contributions (NDCs) enhancement and implementation; carbon pricing and markets, as well as the operationalization of the ambition cycle in the Africa region.

Governments, private sector and other non-Party stakeholders will gather in Accra throughout this Climate Week – which also incorporates two days of affiliated events throughout 18-19 March – to promote the critical work under the three transformational areas via the three levers of policy, technology and finance.

The Africa Climate Week is the first of three annual regional climate events this year – the latter two being the Latin America & Caribbean Climate Week and the Asia Pacific Climate Week

– information around each of these events will be released shortly. The Africa Climate Week is being orchestrated by a number of core partners, including World Bank Group, African Development Bank, West African Development Bank, CTCN, UNEP, UNEP DTU Partnership, UNDP, IETA, Marrakech Partnership and UN Climate Change.

Broadly speaking, the collective goal of these Climate Weeks is to support the implementation of countries’ NDCs under the Paris Agreement and climate action to deliver on the Sustainable Development Goals. In so doing, they bring together a diverse array of international stakeholders in the public and private sectors around the common goal of enhancing climate action.

Global Women Network to Hold Fundraising, Cocktail for Skills Development Programmes

First Global Assessment of Land Degradation for Presentation, Review

Bennett Oghifo

Bennett Oghifo

Global Women Network, a United Kingdom based Nongovernmental Organisation with roots in other parts of Africa, is organising a series of Fund Raising/Network Cocktail in the UK and Nigeria to raise funds for the establishment of training institute in Europe (UK) and Africa (Nigeria).

Mrs. Roni Akins, the Chief Executive Officer of the Network made this known to newsmen

during a press briefing in Abuja, recently.

“When the institute is set up, participants would pass through a training and mentorship programme to acquire hands on skills in Facilities Management; Residential Estate Agent; Lettings and Management; Business Set up Essentials; Telecommunications; ICT Security-Cyber Security and Forensic Cyber Security; Hospitality; Travel and Tourism; Beautification and the like,” she

said.

Mrs. Akins further said, on completion of any of the training, the Global Women Network would help successful participants to set up a business enterprise and mentor them until they can stand on their own.

The Fundraising cum Networking Cocktail is scheduled to hold at the Holiday Inn, Carbuton Street, London, W1W 5EE, United Kingdom 16th February, 2019 by 4:00 pm prompt.

The first global assessment of land degradation based on Earth observation data reported by governments will be presented and reviewed at the Seventeenth Session of the Committee for the Review of Implementation of the Convention (CRIC 17) to be held on 28-29 January 2019 in Georgetown, Guyana.

The assessment, conducted

by reporting countries using a harmonized approach, shows trends in land degradation between 2000 to 2015. It is based on data gathered from 145 of the 197 countries that are party to the Convention. This is the most extensive compilation of official data on this subject since world governments agreed to tackle the problem of land degradation in 1994, and then adopted a binding

agreement – the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification – in 1996.

The assessment is expected to provide the baseline for assessing progress in the reduction or reversal of land degradation globally, going forward. It will also contribute to country efforts to achieve land degradation neutrality (LDN), which is Sustainable Development Goal target 15.3.

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T H I S D AY Ëž ÍłËœ 2019

BUSINESS/MONEYGUIDE

DMO Opens Offer for Savings Bond Nume Ekeghe The Debt Management Office (DMO) has opened subscription for the federal government’s savings bond for the month of March, issuing two and three year instruments at lower rates, compared to auctions held in January and February this year.

The debt office issued the two and three year for the month of March at 11.62 and 12.26 per cent, lower than the 12.05 per cent and 13.05 per cent the two-year and three-year instruments issued in February.

According to the offer circular obtained from the DMO website yesterday, the two-year bond would be due in March 2021, while the three-year bond would mature in March 2022.

It, however, did not state how much was offered, but added that the maximum subscription was N50 million at N1, 000 per unit, subject to minimum subscription of N5, 000 and in multiples of N1,000 thereafter, subject to a maximum subscription of N50,000,000 The debt office had in January this year, issued the two-year

bond due January 16, 2021 at 12.125 per cent, lower than 12.402 per cent which it issued it last month, while the threeyear bond is being issued at 13.125 per cent lower than 13.402 per cent in December last year Average yields on the FGNSB had declined from 13 per cent to 11 per cent this year as the amount raised at each auction declined progressively. At the debut auction, the DMO had raised N2.06 billion through the two-year bond

BudgIT Charges Buhari to Prioritise Oil Sector Reform Nume Ekeghe Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ugo Aliogo BudgIT, a civic organisation has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to focus on oil and gas sector reforms in his second term.

The call was made in a statement yesterday.

President Buhari had last August declined assent to the Petroleum Industry Governance Bill (PIGB) passed by the National Assembly.

The statement noted that the PIGB would liberalise the governance structure of the oil industry, strengthen institutions and entrench transparency, “for these critical reforms, we ask that the Bill should be reconsidered.� “Also demanding dire attention is the issue of beneficial

ownership. BudgIT notes that a lot of oil companies seem to operate under fake identities. A lasting example is the case of Malabu Oil Scandal in which Dan Etete, petroleum minister under the Abacha regime, acquired ‘OPL 245’ through Malabu Oil and Gas Limited, a camouflage of his personal company, to perpetuate one of the biggest frauds in the history of Nigeria’s oil sector,� the statement said.

Akorede in the statement said from the analysis of the organisation, it was revealed that NEITI’s last audit report showed losses arising from crude oil theft and sabotage in the upstream and downstream sectors amounted to $869.02 million and $3.55 billion respectively in 2016.

The Principal lead, BudgIT noted that if the sector was

properly structured, the whopping amount that goes down the drain, courtesy of these lapses, would contribute to the economic recovery and growth plan of the government.

The statement further noted that lack of transparency and accountability has remained the biggest challenge in the sector, adding that addressing the challenge, ensures building capacity and development of effective business models that are profit-driven, and calls for decisive reforms can no longer be ignored. “More so, we strongly believe that the reforms will go a long way in enhancing good governance and processes that are flexible to the peculiarities of Nigeria’s oil and gas industry,� the statement added.

ABCON Sets Exchange Rate Agenda for President The Association of Bureaux de Change Operators of Nigeria (ABCON) has set N250 to dollar exchange rate agenda for President Muhammadu Buhari in his second term in office.

ABCON President, Alhaji (Dr) Aminu Gwadabe, who disclosed this in a statement, said achieving a lower exchange rate for the economy would benefit the common man and lift businesses.

The naira exchanges at N362 to dollar at the parallel market and N358 to dollar at the Bureaux De Change (BDC) while the local currency exchanges at N306 to dollar at the official rate.

The ABCON boss also said such lower exchange rate would improve the transaction volume for BDCs by enabling operators to buy and sell more dollars from their available cashflow.

He said a lower exchange rate against the greenback would

stabilise the local currency, raise investors’ confidence, improve Diaspora remittance flow and entrench fiscal discipline.

Continuing, he said a stronger naira will raise Internally Generated Revenue, help in the implementation of the restriction of foreign exchange access to 42 items that can produced locally and improve BDCs capabilities to thrive.

Gwadabe, therefore advised the federal government to constitute new economic management team and review government’s performance in the last four years.

He added that such review would give room for better performance in the second term of this administration which commences in May 29, 2019.

He said the committee members should have deep knowledge of the economy, and be ready to access information on how these

sectors have worked effectively in other countries in order to deploy similar strategy in the interest of the local economy.

Gwadabe said that by now, government should know where the complaints over its performance in the last four years came from and give priority to tackling unemployment, fixing road infrastructure, creating better investment opportunities for the people and companies as well as strengthening the financial sector, of which BDCs are key players.

The ABCON boss said: “It is only when the economy is buoyant, that they people will be able to save, and that provide enough liquidity for banks to lend and fuel the economy. The other sub-sectors including the bureaux de change sector will equally be positively impacted y a thriving economy�.

Sterling Bank Reaffirms Pledge for Sustainability Nume Ekeghe Sterling Bank Plc, has become a participatory member of the United Nations (UN) Global Compact, the world’s largest sustainability initiative, with more than 9,000 businesses and non- business participants in 135 countries.

The Global Compact is a voluntary initiative to promote sustainable development and good corporate citizenship, a set of values based on universally

accepted principles, a network of companies and other stakeholders as well as a forum for learning and exchange of experiences.

The UN Global Compact Office said in a statement that as a participant, Sterling Bank has committed to set in motion changes to its business operations so that the UN Global Compact and her 10 principles become part of its business strategy, day-to-day operations and organisational culture. Sterling Bank is expected to advocate the UN Global

Compact and her ten principles via available communication channels and communicate annually with its stakeholders on efforts to implement the UN Global Compact principles and post this Communication on Progress (COP) on the UN Global Compact website. The bank is also expected to take actions in support of the UN goals and issues, including the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and to communicate efforts made in achieving these goals.

Chief Executive OďŹƒcer, Baobab MicroďŹ nance Bank, Dr. Kazeem Olanrewaju; Managing Director, House of Flourish Nigeria Limited. Mr. Adeyemi Ade-Flourish and the Chief Client OďŹƒcer, Baobab MicroďŹ nance Bank, Mr. Bamba Fall, at the bank’s customers’ forum held in Lagos‌recently

MARKET INDICATORS MONEY AND CREDIT STATISTICS

(MILLION NAIRA)

NOVEMBER 2018 Money Supply (M3)

31,794,803.44

-- CBN Bills Held by Money Holding Sectors

6,333,064.28

Money Supply (M2)

25,461,739.17

-- Quasi Money

14,773,076.98

-- Narrow Money (M1)

10,688,662.18

---- Currency Outside Banks

1,711,763.59

---- Demand Deposits

8,976,898.59

Net Foreign Assets (NFA)

18,990,400.78

Net Domestic Assets(NDA)

12,804,402.66

-- Net Domestic Credit (NDC)

26,062,986.22

---- Credit to Government (Net)

2,980,229.66

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

7,093,619.43

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

-4,144,571.43

---- Credit to Private Sector (CPS)

23,082,756.56

--Other Assets Net

13,258,583.57

Reserve Money (Base Money

6,811,192.37

--Currency in Circulation

2,100,129.91

--Banks Reserves

4,366,259.05

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 ËœÍŻ Ͱ͎ͯ͡

The price of OPEC basket of fourteen crudes stood at $65.32 a barrel on Friday, compared with $65.28 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 H I S D AY Ëž ÍłËœ 2019

MARKET NEWS

Renewed Buying Interest in Bellwethers Lifts Market by 0.95% Goddy Egene The equities market opened the month of March on a positive note as bellwether stocks lifted the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) All-Share Index (ASI) by 0.95 per cent to close higher at 32,129.94, while market capitalisation added N112.9 billion to close at N12.98 trillion yesterday.

The market had closed last week with a decline but renewed buying interest in bellwethers

such as Guaranty Trust Bank Plc, Zenith Bank Plc Dangote Cement Plc, United Bank for Africa Plc, Access Bank and International Breweries Plc buoyed the positive performance yesterday.

In all, 25 stocks appreciated compared with 10 others that depreciated. McNichols Plc led the price gainers’ table with 9.8 per cent, followed by Cutix Plc with 9.7 per cent, while NPF Microfinance Bank Plc garnered 9.7 per cent. Wema Bank Plc

P R I C E S MAIN BOARD

F O R DEALS

and Sovereign Trust Insurance Plc chalked up 9.0 per cent and 8.7 per cent respectively.

Zenith Bank Plc and Dangote Cement Plc, which have declared dividends for 2018 financial year, were also among the price gainers. Equally, Access Bank Plc and Diamond Bank Plc, whose shareholders are to meet today to endorse the merger of the two financial institutions appreciated in price yesterday.

It is believed the combination

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

QUANTITY TRADED

VALUE TRADED ( N )

of the two banks provides an exciting prospect for all stakeholders in both businesses and will create a financial institution with the scale, strength and expertise to capitalise on the significant opportunities in Nigeria and sub-Saharan Africa more broadly.

Meanwhile, PZ Cussons Nigeria Plc led the price losers with 9.6 per cent, trailed by Livestock Feeds Plc with 8.9 per cent. Consolidated Hallmark

T R A D E D MAIN BOARD

A S

Insurance Plc shed 7.1 per cent, just as Law Union and Rock Insurance Plc, United Capital Plc and UAC of Nigeria Plc went down by 5.4 per cent, 2.9 per cent and 2/.9 per cent respectively.

However, activity level reduced as volume and value traded dipped 33.0 per cent and 30.3 per cent to 227.8 million shares and N2.6 billion respectively. The most traded stocks by volume were Diamond Bank (33.0 million shares), UBA (31.1 million

O F

shares) and Zenith Bank Plc (28.9 million shares) while the top traded stocks by value were Zenith Bank (N703.1 million), Dangote Cement (N510.8 million) and GTBank (N391.0 million).

In terms of sectoral performance, three of five sectors tracked closed in the green. The NSE Banking Index rose 2.7 per cent, while the NSE Consumer Index and NSE Industrial Goods Index advanced 0.4 per cent and 0.3 per cent respectively.

2 6 / 0 2 / 2 0 1 9 DEALS

MARKET PRICE

QUANTITY TRADED

VALUE TRADED ( N)

Ëž TUESDAY, MARCH 5, 2019

32

!

Thisday Afrinvest 40 Index Gains 178bps

# "

Yesterday, the Thisday Afrinvest 40 Index gained 178bps to close at 1567.52 due to gains in GUARANTY (4.8%), ZENITH (2.3%) and DANGCEM (0.2%). These stocks

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were DIAMOND (33.0m units), UBA (31.1m units) and

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traded dipped 33.0% and 30.3% to 227.8m units and

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skewed, as 3 of 5 stocks under our coverage closed in the

(+2.3%). Similarly, the Consumer and Industrial Goods indices posted moderate gains, advancing 0.4% and 0.3% Ć&#x152;Ä&#x17E;Ć?Ć&#x2030;Ä&#x17E;Ä?Ć&#x;Ç&#x20AC;Ä&#x17E;ĹŻÇ&#x2021; Ä?Ä&#x201A;Ć?Ä&#x17E;Ä&#x161; ŽŜ Ć&#x2030;Ć&#x152;Ĺ?Ä?Ä&#x17E; ĆľĆ&#x2030;Ć&#x;Ä?ĹŹĆ? Ĺ?Ĺś INTBREW (+8.0%), DANGFLOUR (+5.1%), DANGCEM (+0.2%) and WAPCO ͞нϏÍ&#x2DC;ϴКͿÍ&#x2DC; KĹś Ć&#x161;Ĺ&#x161;Ä&#x17E; Ĺ&#x2021;Ĺ?Ć&#x2030; Ć?Ĺ?Ä&#x161;Ä&#x17E;Í&#x2022; Ć&#x161;Ĺ&#x161;Ä&#x17E; /ĹśĆ?ĆľĆ&#x152;Ä&#x201A;ĹśÄ?Ä&#x17E; Ĺ?ĹśÄ&#x161;Ä&#x17E;Ç&#x2020; Ä?ĹŻĹ˝Ć?Ä&#x17E;Ä&#x161; Ĺ?Ĺś Ć&#x161;Ĺ&#x161;Ä&#x17E;

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33

TUESDAY, MARCH 5, 2019 ˾ T H I S D AY

MARKET NEWS

ASHON Chairman Lists Benefits of Mutual Funds Trading Platform Goddy Egene The Chairman, Association of Stockbroking Houses of Nigeria (ASHON) ,Chief Patrick Ezeagu has said the Mutual Funds Trading Platform recently launched by the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) is the simplest way investors can achieve a

reduction in risk through portfolio diversification.

The NSE in collaboration with ASHON, Fund Managers Association of Nigeria (FMAN), and the Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc launched the NSE Mutual Fund trading platform last month.

Speaking on the advantages

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

of the platform, Ezeagu said: “It is the simplest way to achieve a reduction in risk by way of diversification of one’s portfolio. Investors will enjoy the expertise of a professional fund manager without paying extra for the service. It affords them the opportunity to enjoy economies of scale which is

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 1-Mar-2019, unless otherwise stated.

achieved through the pooling of other peoples funds to increase bargaining power. They have the opportunity of easy entry and exit which this platform further provides. It also encourages the financial inclusion of the retail investors.”

The ASHON boss said rather than get discouraged by

the volatility the stock market has witnessed in recent times, investors should have faith and hope in the market. “What the elections had done to the market, it did to all other sectors of the economy. The elections will come and go, they (investors) should not take panicky decisions. They should also always use the services of

stockbrokers who are professionals in accessing the market,” he said.

Speaking on the protection of the stock market and economy, Ezeagu said there are a lot that the government should do. He stressed that the basic thing is to provide the enabling environment, ensure economic stability and intervene where necessary.

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 160.21 160.69 1.30% Afrinvest Plutus Fund 100.00 100.00 11.00% Nigeria International Debt Fund 279.27 279.84 2.32% ALTERNATIVE CAPITAL PARTNERS LTD info@acapng.com Web: www.acapng.com, Tel: +234 1 291 2406, +234 1 291 2868 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn ACAP Canary Growth Fund 0.85 0.86 1.20% ACAP Income Funds 0.62 0.62 11.85% AIICO CAPITAL LTD ammf@aiicocapital.com Web: www.aiicocapital.com, Tel: +234-1-2792974 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn AIICO Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 13.28% AIICO Balanced Fund 2.27 2.30 2.33% 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 16.91 17.42 1.90% ARM Discovery Fund 362.79 373.73 1.73% ARM Ethical Fund 29.20 30.08 3.41% ARM Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 13.58% AXA MANSARD INVESTMENTS LIMITED investmentcare@axamansard.com Web: www.axamansard.com; Tel: +2341-4488482 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn AXA Mansard Equity Income Fund N/A N/A N/A AXA Mansard Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A CHAPELHILL DENHAM MANAGEMENT LTD investmentmanagement@chapelhilldenham.com Web: www.chapelhilldenham.com, Tel: +234 461 0691 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Chapelhill Denham Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 13.69% Paramount Equity Fund 12.07 12.17 2.19% Women's Investment Fund 105.77 106.29 2.07% CORDROS ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED assetmgtteam@cordros.com Web: www.cordros.com, Tel: 019036947 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Cordros Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A Cordros Milestone Fund 2023 N/A N/A Cordros Milestone Fund 2028 N/A N/A CORONATION ASSEST MANAGEMENT investment@coronationam.com Web:www.coronationam.com , Tel: 012366215 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Coronation Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 13.30% Coronation Balanced Fund 0.84 0.85 Coronation Fixed Income Fund 1.16 1.16 3.61% 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 N/A N/A N/A EDC Nigeria Money Market Fund Class B N/A N/A N/A FBNQUEST ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD invest@fbnquest.com Web: www.fbnquest.com/asset-management; Tel: +234-81 0082 0082 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn FBN Fixed Income Fund 0.00 0.00 -100.00% FBN Heritage Fund 144.69 146.00 0.89% FBN Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 14.23% FBN Nigeria Eurobond (USD) Fund - Institutional 115.93 116.34 1.79% FBN Nigeria Eurobond (USD) Fund - Retail 115.87 116.27 1.99% FBN Nigeria Smart Beta Equity Fund 151.18 153.40 0.79% 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 1.22 1.24 -0.20% Legacy Debt Fund 3.31 3.31 1.95% Legacy USD Bond Fund 1.04 1.04 0.79% FSDH ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD coralfunds@fsdhgroup.com Web: www.fsdhaml.com; Tel: 01-270 4884-5; 01-280 9740-1 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Coral Growth Fund 3,006.04 3,037.24 0.74% Coral Income Fund 2,816.82 2,816.82 2.84% 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 12.98% Nigeria Entertainment Fund 108.59 109.16 2.25% 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 13.64% Vantage Balanced Fund 2.16 2.19 0.76% Vantage Guaranteed Income Fund 1.00 1.00 15.00% Kedari Investment Fund (KIF) 123.36 123.60 -1.23%

LOTUS CAPITAL LTD fincon@lotuscapitallimited.com Web: www.lotuscapitallimited.com; Tel: +234 1-291 4626 / +234 1-291 4624 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Lotus Halal Investment Fund 1.17 1.19 1.86% Lotus Halal Fixed Income Fund 1,092.91 1,092.91 2.17% 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 11.63 11.73 1.08% Meristem Money Market Fund 10.00 10.00 11.46% PAC ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD info@pacassetmanagement.com Web: www.pacassetmanagement.com/mutualfunds; Tel: +234 1 271 8632 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn PACAM Balanced Fund 1.38 1.40 7.74% PACAM Fixed Income Fund 12.41 12.47 1.68% PACAM Money Market Fund 10.00 10.00 12.08% 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 126.01 126.66 4.40% 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 1.02 1.02 2.44% 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 2,372.53 2,386.96 2.54% Stanbic IBTC Bond Fund 194.84 194.84 2.47% Stanbic IBTC Ethical Fund 0.98 0.99 3.68% Stanbic IBTC Guaranteed Investment Fund 251.70 251.73 1.83% Stanbic IBTC Iman Fund 168.68 170.59 3.40% Stanbic IBTC Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 13.25% Stanbic IBTC Nigerian Equity Fund 8,653.74 8,757.93 1.94% Stanbic IBTC Dollar Fund (USD) 1.12 1.12 1.01% 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 1.20 1.21 0.42% United Capital Bond Fund 1.62 1.62 1.69% United Capital Equity Fund 0.71 0.72 -0.35% United Capital Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 13.15% United Capital Eurobond Fund 108.15 108.15 0.83% United Capital Wealth for Women Fund 1.10 1.10 0.53% QUANTUM ZENITH ASSET MANAGEMENT & INVESTMENTS LTD service@quantumzenithasset.com.ng Web: www.quantumzenith.com.ng; Tel: +234 1-2784219 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Zenith Equity Fund 11.34 11.50 7.40% Zenith Ethical Fund 12.47 12.59 4.00% Zenith Income Fund 21.02 21.02 9.14% Zenith Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 11.92%

REITS NAV Per Share

Yield / T-Rtn

5.95 119.16 51.94

-39.35% 0.13% 0.01%

Bid Price

Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

10.80 114.31 89.79

10.90 116.78 91.48

2.34% -2.53% 1.28%

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 Griffin 30 Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva Industrial Goods Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva S&P Nigeria Sovereign Bond Exchange Traded Fund

funds@vetiva.com Bid Price

Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

4.11 7.27 14.88 12.66 152.90

4.15 7.35 14.98 12.86 154.90

2.67% -4.58% -0.47% 2.45% 6.48%

NAV Per Share

Yield / T-Rtn

107.24

17.42%

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.

TUESDAY MARCH 5, 2019 ˾ T H I S D AY

34

INTERNA TIONAL

May Accused of Bribing Labour Lawmakers to Win Brexit Support The opposition Labour Party on Monday accused Conservative Prime Minister Theresa May of attempting to “bribe” lawmakers into supporting her Brexit deal,

after she promised extra funds for economically deprived areas of England.

May announced a 1.6-billionpound (2.1 billion dollars)

US Merges Embassy and Consulate in Jerusalem The United States consulate and embassy in Jerusalem will merge into a single diplomatic mission, the US State Department confirmed on Monday.

The Trump administration’s December 2017 decision to move its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem upended decades of US policy towards the contested city and enraged Palestinians.

The Jerusalem embassy officially opened in May and in October the US announced the merger plan.

The consulate was Washington’s main diplomatic mission to the Palestinians and the move was criticised by them as a sign the US was no longer working for a two-state solution.

On Sunday, deputy

“stronger towns fund” for parts of northern and central England less than four weeks before Britain is scheduled to leave the EU on March 29.

Most of the initial one billion pounds will go to communities in the English north and Midlands, where many Labour-held parliamentary constituencies returned a majority for Brexit in the 2016 referendum.

Labour said the initiative “smacks of desperation from a government reduced to bribing MPs to vote for their damaging flagship Brexit legislation.”

May said economic prosperity in Britain had been “unfairly spread’’ for too long.

“Communities across the country voted for Brexit as an expression of their desire to see change, that must be a change for

the better, with more opportunity and greater control,’’ she said.

May has sought support among lawmakers from the biggest opposition party since she suffered a crushing defeat in a vote on her Brexit deal in mid-January.

She plans to hold a second vote on the deal coming week after promising to seek changes to a controversial “backstop’’

arrangement to guarantee and open Irish border after Brexit.

“The reason our towns are struggling is because of a decade of cuts, including to council funding and a failure to invest in businesses and our communities,’’ John McDonnell, Labour’s shadow chancellor said.

According to him, no Brexit bribery stable investment where it is most needed.

spokesman, Robert Palladino, the State Department insisted the move did not “signal a change of US policy on Jerusalem, the West Bank, or the Gaza Strip’’.

“As the president has stated, the United States continues to take no position on final status issues, including boundaries or borders.’’

According to him, the specific boundaries of Israeli sovereignty in Jerusalem are subject to final status negotiations between the parties.

“The administration remains fully committed to efforts to achieve a lasting and comprehensive peace that offers a brighter future to Israel and the Palestinians,’’ Palladino added.

...Reinstates EU’s Diplomatic Ranking Following Downgrade The United States has reinstated the European Union’s diplomatic ranking in Washington, its Brussels representation announced on Monday.

The reinstatement followed an unexplained downgrade that lasted several months at a time of strained trans-Atlantic relations.

“The EU is a uniquely important organisation and one of America’s most valuable partners in ensuring global security and prosperity,’’ U.S. Ambassador to the EU Gordon Sondland said in a statement.

The statement noted that the EU representation in Washington will, with immediate effect, be placed on a par with national embassies.

In recent months, the EU delegation had been

ranked as an international organisation, giving it a lower status for occasions such as invitations and seating at events, protocols that can Students protesting against Abdelaziz Bouteflika’s plan to extend his 20-year rule…yesterday have great significance in diplomatic affairs.

The move came at a time when Washington and Brussels are at odds over topics ranging from trade and tariffs to the U.S. withdrawal from an Students determined to aging revolutionary stalwarts protests keep growing. international deal to curb pursue Algeria’s biggest of the 1954-62 independence His opponents say he is Iran’s development of nuclear anti-government protests war against France. no longer fit to lead, citing weapons. in years boycotted classes A former Algerian his ill health and what they “From generating jobs and on Monday to denounce an government minister resigned call chronic corruption and a economic growth, to setting offer by President Abdelaziz as a lawmaker and member lack of economic reforms. The international standards, to Bouteflika to run in elections of the ruling FLN party president, who has rarely been keeping destabilising regimes next month but not to serve a on Monday, a rare sign of seen in public since a stroke in discontent within the ruling 2013, appeared in a wheelchair in check, the U.S. and the EU full term if re-elected.

Hundreds of protesters elite, which is coming under in Algiers in April last year are a strong force when we but is now reported to be in work together,’’ Sondland said. staged small demonstrations in unprecedented pressure.

Sidi Ferroukhi, who has a Swiss hospital.

The decision came as several cities outside the capital, Shops were open in Algiers Stavros Lambrinidis, the footage posted online showed, served as agriculture minister, EU’s former human rights continuing almost two weeks did not address Bouteflika on Monday but students did representative, takes up his of marches and rallies against in a statement on Facebook, not show up for classes at Bab the 82-year-old leader’s plan saying only that Algeria was Ezzouar University in Algiers, to seek a fifth term. going through exceptional the biggest in the oil-producing Bouteflika’s offer, made circumstances and change.

North African country. on Sunday, appeared aimed Bouteflika’s political survival Several other university at undermining the wave of may hinge on how the ruling campuses in Algiers were youthful opposition against his elite, made up of members of deserted.

20-year rule and shore up an his FLN party, the military “We are not going to study, establishment dominated by and business tycoons react if this is a decision we have taken two new cabinet ministers, an ambassador and five new police commissioners that he appointed last week.

The British royal family Charles’ sons, Prince William and wife of William.

“The police force should published social media and Prince Harry.

British tabloid newspapers do away with its practice of guidelines on Monday, warning It asked people to avoid have also run many intrusive transferring to its headquarters people, who post racist, sexist comments that are “obscene, reports and much royal gossip police officers, who fail to and other abusive comments offensive, threatening, abusive, in recent weeks, often focusing deliver at their work stations that they could be blocked or hateful, inflammatory or on Meghan’s relationship with and instead such officers should have their messages deleted promote sexually explicit estranged family members in be sacked outright,” said the from channels used by the material or violence.” the U.S. and on alleged friction president. royals.

The move comes amid between the Sussexes and the The Head of State, who Buckingham Palace said the reports of growing abuse on Cambridges. doubles as commander-in-chief guidelines are to “help create royal social media accounts, “We ask that anyone of Tanzania’s armed forces, a safe environment’’ on social particularly against Meghan, engaging with our social media also implored the police to media channels run for Queen 37, the duchess of Sussex and channels shows courtesy, reassess their performance in Elizabeth II; her son and heir to wife of Harry; and Kate, also kindness and respect for some incidents that created more questions than answers. the throne, Prince Charles; and 37, the duchess of Cambridge all other members of our

Tanzanian President Orders Police Chief to Sack Corrupt, Negligent Officers Tanzanian President, John Magufuli, on Monday instructed Inspector-General of Police (IG), Simon Sirro, to sack police officers, who were implicated in negligence and corruption.

The instruction was in a statement issued by the Directorate of Presidential Communication at State House in the business capital Dar es Salaam.

The statement quoted President Magufuli as also directing the police chief to propose to him the appointment of diligent police officers.

Magufuli was speaking at the swearing-in ceremony of

Algerian Students Protest against Bouteflika’s Offer to Shorten New Term yesterday,” Amina, a 21-yearold student, told Reuters.

“Together we are the world and the system is nothing,” a said a message posted by activists on social media.

Bouteflika’s campaign manager said on Sunday that the president would run in the April 18 elections, defying calls for him to quit at the end of his current term.

The announcement, read out by Abdelghani Zaalane on Bouteflika’s behalf, said the president pledged that if he won he would organize a national conference to discuss reforms and then call early elections in which he would not run. Ennahar TV said the fresh vote would be held within a year.

British Royal Family Issue Social Media Plea Amid Rising Abuse social media communities,” Buckingham Palace stated.

Harry and Meghan married at Windsor Castle in May. In 2016, before the palace had confirmed their relationship, Harry complained of a “wave of abuse and harassment” against Meghan in British newspapers and social media.

He highlighted “the outright sexism and racism of social media trolls and web article comments.”

5 ) * 4 % ": t TUESDAY, MARCH 5, 2019

35

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TUESDAY MARCH 5, 2019 ˾ T H I S D AY

NEWSEXTRA

Buhari in Warri to Garner Support for APC PDP not intimidated by zero-hour visit, says party

Omon-Julius Onabu in Asaba President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday visited Warri, Delta State, to garner support for the All Progressives Congress (APC).

This is as a party chieftain in the state, Chief O’tega Emerho, said there was nothing wrong for the president to visit the state.

He was reacting to the allegation by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) that Buhari’s visit to Warri was to perfect the APC’s rigging plans in the state ahead of the March 9 governorship and state House of Assembly election.

However, the state chapter of the PDP has described Buhari’s visit to the oil-rich city of Warri

as being in ‘bad taste’, and not in the interest of the overall good of the state.

PDP made the allegation yesterday in a statement signed by the party’s Publicity Secretary, Dr. Michael Osuoza.

On his part, Emerho said the president’s visit was a move in the right direction to strengthen the party structure and reposition it to take over power from the PDP, which he said had been on ground in the state for the past 20 years.

“It is not a crime that the president is in Warri to garner support for the APC; this is election period. ”We are still campaigning,

Tension Mounts in Bayelsa as Shot Govt House Photographer Dies EmmanuelAddehinYenagoa A Bayelsa State Government House photographer, Mr. Reginald Dei, who miraculously survived after he was thought to have been killed by yet-to-be unidentified assailants in the February 23 election died yesterday.

Dei, who is just above forty, was said to have been shot by men decked in Nigerian Army uniform in Oweikorogha, Southern Ijaw Local Government Area of the state along with a Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chieftain in the area, Mr. Seidougha Taribi, who died immediately after the attack.

His death occurred even as tension continued to mount in Nembe and Brass over reports that rampaging thugs had sacked the mobile policemen and the operatives of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) deployed in the area.

Reports stated that the rampaging thugs dug military fashion trenches in Bassambiri with barricades allegedly to harass PDP members in the community and prevent those who fled the community from returning.

However, the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state in a

statement by Doifie Buokoribo, noted that rather than being tagged the aggressors, the APC members in the state are actually victims of the violence in both Nembe and Brass.

On the late photographer, a statement issued by the Director of Communications, Governor’s Office, Chief Nathan EgbaOlogo, stated that Dei died after battling to survive the lethal wounds from the gunshots in a Yenagoa hospital last Sunday night.

He said the duo of Dei and Taribi were waiting for the outcome of the election in their ward at the politician’s residence, when they were shot without any form of resistance.

“While Dei who was initially taken for dead survived the attack until Sunday night, Taribi died on the spot. We therefore call on the relevant security agencies to investigate the activities of the various agencies in order to bring the culprits of the dastardly act to book.

“While the state was mourning the unfortunate murder of Taribi and Dei as a result of the brigandage that rocked the parts of the state during the presidential election, thugs working for APC chieftains have been allowed to wreak havoc in Nembe Bassambiri,” he said.

campaigns will end on Thursday and the president has the right to go to places where he feels that people will be excited to see him and support him.

“In 2015, we did not contribute much to electing the president, but this time, we went to town tell the people that he is our president, he has done well and for the first time, we gave him massive support.

“Delta is a tough state, but we gave over 25 per cent of the votes to the president. So, we are very excited that he has been returned for four more years to continue to move the country to the next level.“He has set up a strong foundation, and in the next four years, Nigeria will really progress.

“When you have a PDP in the state for 20 years and they never allowed elections to hold; for the first time, election will hold because the state is tired of PDP and want to join the mainstream APC,” he stated.

Meanwhile, the state’s APC Chairman, Jones Erue, said Buhari

was not visiting Warri for partisan politics, but was visiting because of the demands of the people of the state.

Erue said he would not ordinarily respond to PDP’s allegation against the president, because it was an insult for anyone to query his movements; and it was pertinent to set the records straight.

According to him, “Ordinarily, I shouldn’t have responded or reply the state PDP chairman because I have called on him repeatedly that we should have a national debate and talk about issues that affect our state.

“To start attacking the President because he decided to visit a state; is an insult, it is a joke carried too far and that is not politics, it is disrespect.

“He is the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the president-elect; he chooses to visit were he wants to go, it is not the duty of any Nigerian to choose where he should visit.”

At the interval, the state chapter of the PDP yesterday described

the visit to the oil-city of Warri

by President Buhari as being in ‘bad taste’ and not in the interest of the overall good of the state.

The party warned that Buhari’s visit, the second to Warri in about two months, though apparently intended at intimidating members of the PDP and the people of the state through alleged planned manipulation of INEC and security agencies, would not change the people’s resolve to elect Governor Ifeanyi Okowa again next Saturday.

The state PDP said: “We say this because of the March 9, 2019, governorship and state House of Assembly elections because we have it on good authority that Buhari’s trip is not altruistic, and has nothing to do with the good and progress of the state. ‘’Already, the entire state is abuzz with claims and insinuations, and it is being openly said the president and indeed the whole gamut of well-known election manipulators and hatchet men in the national APC leadership, are visiting Delta

State ostensibly to perfect an APC rigging plan and subvert the electoral process as well as the ultimate democratic decisions of Deltans who have sworn to return Okowa for a well-deserved second term and vote for all the PDP candidates in the March 9 state assembly elections. ‘’It is indeed a thing of shame that President Buhari will ignore other very important and urgent state matters to come to Warri to be at the head of a despicable scheme to manipulate and swing votes in favour of the unpopular APC and its candidates. ’We condemn the president’s insensitivity to the sensibilities of the people of the state who have taken PDP as their party.

We also decry the shameful, slimy drive of Buhari and his detestable mission to use the power of state to secretly get the various agencies of the federal government to intimidate and harass PDP supporters, voters and subvert their democratic will and foist on the state an unpopular APC and its candidate.

NEWEST RESTAURANT IN TOWN...

L-R: Hajiya Abba Folawiyo; Managing Director, Sunny Motors, Mrs. Ireti Asemota; Guest of Honour, Mrs. Folorunsho Alakija; and host, Senator Florence Ita-Giwa, during the grand opening of Echoes of Calabar Restaurant to mark 73rd birthday of Ita-Giwa in Lagos...weekend MUBO PETERS

I Won’t Discriminate against Igbo Traders, Women, Enyo to Boost Investments in Alli-Macaulay Reassures Downstream Sector Hamid Ayodeji A retail and supply oil and gas company, Enyo, has announced the launch of its pioneering technology driven retail and supply service which it said would boost the quality and services provided to customers in Nigeria’s downstream oil and gas sector.

The technology driven initiative will help the company monitor the sales of its fuel and renewable energy products to customers, ensuring quality fuel products are sold at the right quantity and price at all times.

Disclosing this in a media briefing in Lagos yesterday, the Chief Executive Officer of Enyo, Mr. Abayomi Awobokun, stated that the company’s aim is to set the pace for the technological growth of the oil

and gas downstream sector.

Awobokun, also explained that new technologies and digital services play a positive role in the quality of services provided to customers and development of the downstream sector. This he said was already influencing positive changes in the downstream sector.

He added: ‘’Our customers can be rest assured that whichever Enyo station they visit, they will get quality fuel products at the right quantity and price.

“We are pleased that our customers already refer to our stations using the term, ‘their litre is always a litre’.

And we intend to build on this by continuing to invest in training for our staff and equipment for all our stations.’’

Ugo Aliogo The All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate of the Lagos State House of Assembly for Amuwo-Odofin constituency 1, Mrs. Mojisola Alli-Macaulay, has assured Igbo traders, youths and women in her constituency of quality representation if elected in March 9 gubernatorial and state assembly elections.

Alli-Macaulay, who disclosed

this in a statement made available to THISDAY yesterday, also lauded the National leader of the APC, Bola Tinubu, for providing the needed leadership to all the party candidates in the state. The former staff of TVC Lagos promised to treat all the constituents equally if given the chance.

According to her, “Our people in Amuwo-Odofin constituency 1 deserve better representation

than what is obtainable at the moment. As a woman, I have a feeling of what our women are going through in the area of meeting family needs especially in supporting their husbands to raise a family.

“By the grace of God, women and youth empowerment will be given special priority if I am elected. I will also use my position to attract projects that have direct and positive

bearings on the traders and inhabitants of my constituency.

I will definitely surpass all the past representatives in AmuwoOdofin constituency 1.

“Women all over the world have proven to be better manager of positions and resources. I will uplift Amuwo-Odofin constituency 1 to a position of preeminence in the comity of other constituencies in Lagos State.”

NIS Postpones Rollout of Proposed e-Passport Kuni Tyessi in Abuja The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has announced the postponement of the proposed 10-year enhanced e-Passport earlier scheduled to be rolled out in March 2019.

The Comptroller General (CG) of the Service, Muhammad Babandede,

said the new 10-year enhanced e-Passport has been rescheduled to April, 29,2019 to finalise the integration of the National Identity Number (NIN) with the new Passport.

In a statement issued yesterday by the NIS’ Public Relations Officer, DCI Sunday James, in Abuja, the CG who regretted the postponement,

said the price of the current passport still remains, encouraging applicants to visit the Service’s website for more details and payment.

The Comptroller General of Nigeria Immigration Service, Muhammad Babandede, regrets to inform the general public that the rollout of the new 10 year

enhanced e-Passport has been rescheduled to 29th April, 2019 to finalise the integration of the National Identity Number (NIN) with the new Passport.

“Consequent upon this, the price of the current passport still remains the same and applicants are encouraged to visit the agency’s website.

TUESDAY MARCH 5, 2019 ˾ T H I S D AY

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NEWSEXTRA

Reject APC-sponsored Violence, Wike Tells Rivers People Ernest Chinwo in Port Harcourt As tension continues to mount ahead of Saturday’s governorship and House of Assembly elections, Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, has charged the people of the state not to be part of the violence allegedly being planned by the All Progressives Congress (APC) to disrupt the elections.

He also called on the people to overwhelmingly vote for all candidates of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and ensure they defend their votes.

This is as the leaders of Rivers South East senatorial district reaffirmed their endorsement of the governor for a second term.

Addressing a town hall meeting with leaders of Rivers South East senatorial district in Bori yesterday, Wike urged the people to be peaceful and vigilant to ensure that their votes count.

He said: “Just be vigilant and protect your votes. We have no security with us, but we have the Chief Security Officer of the world on our side.

“If they like they should bring

police army and thugs from all over the world, we are quite confident that we shall smile on March 9, 2019. Come out and vote for people you can vouch for”.

Wike insisted that nobody can foist any person as governor on the people, stating: “Rivers State is not like any other state.

We will not allow a godfather to operate here. Our only godfather is God.” He urged Rivers people to adopt a peaceful disposition all through the governorship and State Assembly elections, adding that those who plan to use security forces to kill Rivers people should know that the security personnel would come and go, but Rivers State will remain.

“You are not participating in the elections. Why are you killing our people? You should allow the will of God to prevail.

Talk to our children to avoid being used for violence.

“Reject violence as being propagated by the APC,” he said.

He wondered why the APC leadership should resort to the

promotion of electoral violence, when they ostracised themselves from the political contest.

“Those who want to shed blood in Rivers State will never succeed. I don’t know why they are plotting to destroy the state. We never caused any problems in the APC. APC fought themselves and pushed themselves out of the race. Now they want to kill everyone in the state. What is the offence of Rivers people that we must all die because the

APC excluded themselves from the ballot?

“Where are the children of the APC leaders preaching violence in Rivers State,” he said.

The governor said nobody in the state ran for the post of president and Vice President on February 23, 2019, yet the APC visited deaths on the people of the state.

He berated the Minister of Transportation for playing a politics of lies and failed promises. He said that the

minister said that he believes in the rotation of positions, yet he nominated himself as minister, sacked an Ogoni man as the Executive Director of Finance and Administration of NDDC and replaced him with his kinsman from Ikwerre LGA and also facilitated the appointment of an Ikwerre LGA indigene as a member of Federal Revenue Mobilisation and Fiscal Commission.

The governor commended the people of the senatorial district

for voting for all PDP candidates during the presidential and National Assembly elections.

He urged them to step up their votes as his administration will site projects in each of the seven local government areas that make up the district.

Wike also called on the security agencies to perform their duties in line with the rules governing elections. He advised them to conserve their energy to fight Boko Haram and violent crime.

Civil Society Groups Protest against Buhari’ s Re-election Olawale Ajimotokan in Abuja A coalition of civil society groups, yesterday embarked on a street protest against the declaration of President Muhammadu Buhari as the winner of the presidential election held on February 23.

The coalition, known as #OccupyNigeria, has protested against the declaration at a rally held at the Unity Fountain, Abuja.

It condemned the presidential and National Assembly elections, saying they were heavily rigged in favour of Buhari.

The co-convener of #OccupyNigeria, Okpanachi Jacob, said the group was bothered by the reports of the suppression of voters and violence in some parts of the country during the election.

“We are once again set to demand the correction of the electoral anomalies carried out

in the just-concluded presidential elections,which were visibly marred by outright rigging and extreme violence that reduced the process to an affair of a balance of terror rather than an election,” Jacob explained.

He berated the INEC for glaring lapses, noting that the election did not reflect the wishes and expectations of Nigerian electorate.

Jacob also observed that the election was a remarkable detour from the effort to restore integrity to the electoral process, stressing there is an immediate need to redress it so as to earn the confidence of Nigerians.

He similarly demanded for the withdrawal of the military from future elections in the country, while those responsible for the violence that disrupted the election in Rivers State should be made to account for their crimes.

KEEPING EYES ON THE BALL... ...

L-R:Deputy governorship candidate of All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lagos State, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat; Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode; and APC governorship candidate, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, during a road show across the state...yesterday

Tough Decisions by Buhari in Nigeria’s Interest, Says SGF The Secretary to the Government of Federation (SGF), Mr. Boss Mustapha, has stated that the tough decisions President Muhammadu Buhari will take during his second term, will be in the interest of Nigeria.

Mustapha made this known in an interview with journalists in Yola, Adamawa State capital yesterday.

He allayed fears expressed in some quarters following a statement by the president that his second term would be tough.

He described the president

as a good man, who had the trust of ordinary Nigerians and would like to see improvement in their lives, while the nation moved to the next level.

“When we came to power in 2015 about 27 states couldn’t pay salaries; we had to take tough decisions like giving them bail-out and Paris Club refund.

“These are tough decisions,” Mustapha said.

He also identified the ban on rice and fertilizer importation as one of the tough decisions

taken by the government and which yielded positive results by boosting local production, among other things.

“By such tough decisions we are able to raise the number of rice farmers from 4 million to 12 million and we are about 98 per cent self-sufficient in rice.

“Due to the establishment of many fertilizer blending plants after we banned the importation of fertilizer, the product is now available and the prize is going down,” Mustapha added.

The SGF explained that

anti-graft institutions such as Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission as well as the Code of Conduct Bureau were being strengthened to tackle corruption.

He said that the strengthening of such institutions, corruption would be nipped in the bud.

“It’s better to prevent it (corruption) instead of spending a lot of money prosecuting corruption cases,” Mustafa said

Governor Adegboyega Oyetola has enjoined residents of Osun State to vote for All Progressives Congress (APC) candidates in Saturday’s House of Assembly election.

The Osun State governor said for his administration to be properly established for good governance and smooth running, there was the need for an APC majority in the House of Assembly.

Oyetola added that President Muhammadu Buhari’s re-election had vindicated the resolve of the APC-led federal government to raise the bar of good governance, sustain steady development in the country and put Nigeria to the path of progress and

prosperity.

The governor spoke yesterday during a ‘Thank You Tour’ to Ilobu, Ifon, Erin-Osun and Ede in Irepodun, Orolu, Ede-North and Ede-South Local Government Areas.

The tour was to appreciate the people for supporting President Buhari and other candidates of the APC in the presidential and National Assembly elections He lauded the courage displayed by the electorate to ensure victory for the APC in the February 23 elections.

Oyetola who described the Assembly election as important for entrenching democratic government, called on the electorate to vote all APC

candidates in Saturday’s elections.

He said the decision to elect APC candidates to the House will give his administration the opportunity to actualise all its planned policies and programmes.

According to the governor, the House of Assembly election is as important as other elections as it defines how the structure of government will be formulated.

“We embark on this ‘thank you tour’ to appreciate our people who came out in large numbers to reelect our President and other candidates of our party- the All Progressives Congress (APC).

“We have taken a noble decision to sustain continuity and steady development in

Nigeria with the re-election of President Buhari as this will help to engender more development and transformation for Nigeria.

“As we are commending you for voting for us in the last Presidential and National Assembly elections, we are appealing to you to replicate similar gesture to ensure victory for all our candidates to the House of Assembly.

“House of Assembly election is keyed to democratic government and good governance. Since the strength of good governance in any state could only be justified by the unification of the members of the House of Assembly, hence the need for us to have majority in the House.

AtikuObi Vanguard Urges Atiku to Challenge Buhari’s Victory in Court Oyetola Solicits Votes for APC Candidates The AtikuObi Vanguard Nigeria 2019 has called on the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, to challenge the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declaration of President Muhammadu Buhari as winner of the February 23 Presidential election.

President of the group, Hon. Oby Nwaogu stated this in a statement made available to journalists in Abuja.

According to her, the group supports the move

by Abubakar to retrieve his stolen mandate freely given to him by Nigerians.

“We are aware Nigerians voted massively for our principal until INEC surreptitiously connived with the All Progressives Congress (APC) and security agencies to subvert the wishes of the generality of Nigerians as freely expressed in the ballot penultimate Saturday.

“As a group we condemn in strongest terms those asking our principal not to approach the courts for redress. Just like our principal, we believe strongly in the tenets of rule of law and as such we pledge our unalloyed support to him till he achieved his victory,” she added.

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TUESDAYMARCH 5, 2019 ˾ T H I S D AY

NEWSEXTRA

Ijaw Leaders Condemn Killings in Bayelsa, Rivers Women seek postponement of elections in Nembe Emmanuel Addeh in Yenagoa Ijaw leaders have condemned what they described as the “senseless killings” in Ijawpopulated communities of Rivers and Bayelsa State during the just concluded Presidential and National Assembly elections.

Addressing a press conference in Yenagoa, the interim Spokesman of Embasara Foundation, umbrella body of the leaders, Chief Ayakeme Whisky, warned that unless the presidential order “to shoot ballot box snatchers” is retracted, there might be more election related killings in Ijawland.

“We wish to express our utter consternation and angst over the senseless killings, an action that

has put the sleepy Abonnema community in Akuku Toru LGA of Rivers State in particular and other Ijaw towns (especially Oweikorogha town in Southern Ijaw LGA of Bayelsa on edge.

“We have it on good authority that the primary cause of this ugly episode was the reckless infiltration of Abonnema community with political thugs, aided by the military to gain advantage during the presidential elections of February 23, 2019.

“The aftermath of that thoughtless act was the killing of innocent Ijaw boys, some of whom took laws into their hands to engage the military in armed confrontation that led to the death of an army lieutenant. The

soldiers then went on a reckless rampage and killed scores of Ijaw youths in retaliation. This is incomprehensible and totally condemnable” the group said.

It added: “As responsible people, we unequivocally condemn the act of killing agents of government who were merely discharging their legitimate duty. This unfortunate and callous act has now brought untold apprehension, tension and unease to innocent women, children and men of Abonnema community.

“We also condemn the recourse to killings of innocent people that are ordinarily presumed sacred in the name of politics and elections.

“We are gravely appalled at the unrestricted importation and stockpile of arms in Ijaw communities. No individual’s ambition is ever worth the blood of anybody.

“Except there is an urgent intervention by the Federal Government headed by President Buhari and retraction of the presidential order “to shoot ballot box snatchers,” we cannot guarantee that there would not be more election related killings in Ijawland.

“As we speak, nobody can predict the scale of extra-judicial killings the Ijawland could witness in the name of chasing political thugs if President Buhari doesn’t act swiftly.

Ijawland cannot and shall not accept further bloodletting and killings.”

Meanwhile, women in Opu Nembe in Nembe Bassambiri have cried out to President Buhari and the Independent National Electoral Commission to suspend the forthcoming election in the troubled community.

Spokesperson of the Women, Mrs. Sotonye Samuel-Johnson, said in a statement that the call to postpone the election in the violence ridden community was necessary to safeguard the lives and properties of women and children in the area.

Samuel-Johnson said that women and children who

fled the community to nearby Ogbolomabiri and Yenagoa have not been able to return to their community because of the violence being perpetrated by thugs backed by the Army allegedly led by Major A. Modibbo Commander of JTF in Nembe.

She urged the President to direct urgent investigations to the activities of the thugs and their Army collaborators which according to her had assumed a frightening dimension.

She stressed that it had become clearly unsafe for the women folks and their children to return to Nembe Bassambiri during the tensed election period.

Tinubu Denies Plotting to Ban Ajimobi from APC Campaigns The National Leader of All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu, has denied plotting to ban Governor Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State from APC campaigns, saying that both of them are partners, and not rivals.

In a statement issued yesterday by his media office, Tinubu clarified that his intervention in Oyo APC is to engender genuine reconciliation and not to hide or supplant the governor.

The APC leader was reacting to a report alleging that he was moving to ban Ajimobil from leading APC campaigns in Oyo State because of his intervention in the state, where he has been holding discussions with some notable leaders and bringing back to the party’s fold former governor Adebayo Alao-Akala.

Tinubu described Ajimobi as an excellent governor and

a faithful member of the APC. “He has brought progress to the state and in serving two consecutive terms, Ajimobi made history in Oyo. He is instrumental to anything the APC can achieve in Oyo”.

Tinubu’s Media Adviser, Tunde Rahman, who issued the statement, added that the former Lagos State governor was only lending his support to the governor’s and APC’s efforts in the state. “They are partners not rivals,” Rahman said. Tinubu described the allegation as another excursion into falsehood.

“This report goes beyond a lie. It is a vindictive attempt to sow discord because the writer is angered by the APC’s success in the presidential election. Thus, the writer has cast truth aside in his angry desire to inflict some kind of electoral wound on the APC,” he said.

FAAN Denies Planned Takeover of Lagos Airport Chinedu Eze

and the agency.

The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), has denied engaging in any plan with the Ministry of Transportation to takeover Murtala Muhammed Airport Two (MMA2) from Bi-Courtney Aviation Services Limited (BASL) on May 7, 2019.

BASL built the facility on Build, Operate and Transfer (BOT) on government, private sector partnership.

The General Manager, Corporate Affairs, FAAN, Mrs. Henrietta Yakubu, told THISDAY that FAAN was not aware of any plans to take over the operations of MMA2 and remarked that someone might be trying to be mischievous, hence the report.

An online medium has reported that a source close to the Ministry of Transport, Aviation Unit, said the Ministry had given the management of FAAN the approval to take over the terminal on the expiration of the 12 years consensual agreement between BASL

It was learnt that the 12 years would elapse on May 7, 2019, which was the exact date the terminal commenced operations with flight service by the rested Chanchangi Airlines from the terminal followed by Aero Contractors.

The report also alleged that the planned takeover of the terminal was causing instability among the workers of BASL, who were already looking elsewhere for alternative jobs in case the threat by the government comes to fruition.

The report added that the Chairman of BASL, Wale Babalakin, was making frantic efforts through some of his contacts in the Presidency to frustrate the takeover of the terminal on the due date, claiming that the concession agreement between the two was for 36 years, but FAAN was adamant to take possession of the terminal as spelt out in the agreement on May 7, but THISDAY learnt this was not true.

WELCOMING DEFECTORS… ...

L-R: Chairman, Esan South East Local Government Area, Hon. Victor Emuakhagbon; Secretary, Edo State Chapter of All Progressives Congress (APC), Mr. Lawrence Okah; Chairman, Edo State APC, Anselm Ojezua; Dr. Andrew Ojiemhenkele; Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Hon. Magdalene Ohenhen; at the APC Secretariat to receive defectors from Peoples Democratic Party in Esan South-East LGA, in Benin City…yesterday

Military Pensions Board, Civil Defence Explain Shortfall in Election Duty Allowance, Pensions Kingsley Nwezeh in Abuja Following complaints over shortfall in the payment of pensions to retirees, the Military Pensions Board (MPB) yesterday said it had commenced the payment of newly approved Revised Gross Consolidated Armed Forces Salary Structure (CONAFSS).

The payment is coming after it corrected the shortfall in the January payment, which it attributed to “system migration”.

In the same vein, the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) has explained the shortfall in the payment of election duty allowance of

N15,000 to members of staff who participated in the presidential and National Assembly elections that took place last Saturday.

The military board said it commenced the new payment structure after it noticed that some retirees were short-paid, prompting a stakeholders’ meeting where the matter was resolved.

“The fact is that the Military Pensions Board has commenced the payment of the newly-approved Revised Gross consolidated Armed Forces Salary Structure (CONAFSS) for pension purposes by the federal government.

“The implementation took

effect on January 2019 for payment of pensions and gratuity to retirees of the Nigerian Armed Forces and death benefits to the next-ofkin of deceased personnel.

Before commencement of the payment, leaders of various veterans’ bodies were properly enlightened on the process.

“Also after the January payment, due to system migration to the new platform, some individuals were shortpaid and upon noticing that, stakeholders’ meeting was called by the board Chairman, Major General AB Adamu and explanation was given on the issue. The good news

is that during the payment of February pension, the discrepancy was corrected and their arrears of January payment was also paid.

“The board has commenced the payment of gratuity arrears based on the new scale and has also paid all the arrears of death benefits of processed files as regards to the new scale.

All the process and procedures for this implementation has been communicated to retirees and next -of- kin of deceased personnel through various means,” a statement signed by the spokesman of the board, Flight Lieutenant Obasi Okorafor, said.

Sanwo-Olu Group Inaugurates 600 Foot Soldiers Hamid Ayodeji A Babajide Sanwolu Campaign group has inaugurated 600 Sanwo-Olu campaign foot soldiers in Epe Local Council Development Area, (LCDA) with the aim of conducting campaigns and sensitisation programmes for the residents at the grassroots.

The group’s core objective would be to sensitise residents of Epe about the All Progressive Congress

(APC) party’s gubernatorial candidate, Babajide SanwoOlu’s manifesto.

Disclosing this during a recent interview with THISDAY, the state coordinator for the Sanwolu-Olu campaign foot soldiers, Akin Ibesanmi noted that the group was created by Babajide Sanwo-Olu to compliment other campaign forums organised by the party.

Ibesanmi said: “We have three foot soldiers positioned in each polling unit of the LCDAs.

We feel this will help us get enough information from the grass root, which will help the Sanwo-Olu administration serve the people better at all levels if he eventually emerges as the Governor of Lagos state.

“My expectation from the people will be for them to come out in large numbers with their PVC and vote for every APC candidate considering the performance of Governor Akinwunmi Ambode.’’

On his part, the State Coordinator of the group, Adebayo Razak said, “Campaigns in Nigeria are usually done in crowds, whereby the candidate and his campaign team goes from one LCDA to another.

However the economic impact of campaigning strategically is very high; here in Epe the way we have simplified the economy of campaigning is effective in reaching the grassroots.

T H I S D AY ˾ TUESDAY MARCH 5, 2019

39

TUESDAYSPORTS

Group Sports Editor Duro Ikhazuagbe Email duro.ikhazuagbe@thisdaylive.com 0811 181 3083 SMS ONLY

Rohr Drops Iheanacho, Invites Ighalo, 22 Others for Seychelles, Egypt Duro Ikhazuagbe

Super Eagles’ Technical Adviser, Gernot Rohr yesterday rolled out his list of invited 23 players for the dead-rubber 2019 Africa Cup of Nations clash with Seychelles and the international friendly against Egypt with Kelechi Iheanacho one of the biggest names left out of the squad.

Both matches are scheduled to hold on March 22 against the Pirates of Seychelles and four days later with the Pharaohs of Egypt at the Stephen Keshi Stadium in Asaba.

Iheanacho who fortunes have dipped at Leicester City since arriving at the Kings Power Stadium from Manchester City is increasingly finding it difficult breaking into the Foxes first XI this season.

The 22-year old U-17 World Cup winner with Nigeria at UAE in 2013 has only made just nine Premiership starts from a possible 29 games. Top marksman, Jamie Vardy is well above him in the pecking order of attackers at the club.

It therefor did not appear as a surprise that Iheanacho is left out of an almost inconsequential fixtures against Seychelles and Egypt.

The case of skipper John Mikel Obi not invited for the two matches is understandable as the former Chelsea stalwart is just picking up form at Middlesbrough after his sojourn in the Chinese Super League with Tianjin Teda.

Both Watford’s Isaac Success and Porto loanee Mikel Agu not invited for the two games have similar poor form like Iheanacho.

Topping the list of those invited is Saudi Arabia-based stand-in captain Ahmed Musa and in-form CD Leganes of Spain defender Kenneth Omeruo.

Other usual suspects in

Rohr’s list include; Leon Balogun, Abdullahi Shehu and William Ekong.

Invited midfielders and forwards include; Oghenekaro Etebo, Wilfred Ndidi, Odion Ighalo, Alex Iwobi and Moses Simon.

The Franco-German gaffer also named Flying Eagles and Enyimba’s defender Valentine Ozornwafor, as well as former Under-17 World Cup winner, Victor Osimhen and Denmarkbased Paul Onuachu.

The Super Eagles will confront Seychelles in a largely-ceremonial session at the Stephen Keshi Stadium on Friday, 22nd March, starting from 4pm, and then tackle the Pharaohs of Egypt at the same venue in a prestige international friendly four days later.

According to NFF’s Director of Communication, Ademola Olajire, “all the invited players, alongside technical and backroom crew, are expected to report in the Delta State capital on Monday, 18th March 2019.”

THE FULL LIST Goalkeepers: Francis Uzoho (Anorthosis Famagusta, Cyprus); Ikechukwu Ezenwa (Katsina United); Daniel Akpeyi (Kaizer Chiefs, South Africa) Defenders: Olaoluwa Aina (Torino FC, Italy); Abdullahi Shehu (Bursaspor FC, Turkey); Valentine Ozornwafor (Enyimba FC); Chidozie Awaziem (Caykur Rizespor, Turkey); William Ekong (Udinese FC, Italy); Leon Balogun (Brighton & Hove Albion, England); Kenneth Omeruo (CD Leganes, Spain); Jamilu Collins (SC Padeborn 07, Germany) Midfielders: Semi Ajayi (Rotherham United, England); Wilfred Ndidi (Leicester City, England); Oghenekaro Etebo (Stoke City FC, England); John Ogu (Hapoel Be’er Sheva, Israel) Forwards: Ahmed Musa

Falcons Crash Out of Cyprus Women’s Cup rBeaten 1-0 by Belgium in Larnaca Nigeria will not contest the final and third place playoff at the Cyprus Women’s Cup after suffering a narrow 1-0 defeat to Belgium, their second of the group stage, at the Neo GSZ Stadium in Larnaca yesterday evening.

The African champions played against a higherranked opponent in the FIFA Women’s ranking, with Belgium occupying the 21st position and the Super Falcons 39th.

Goalkeeper Tochukwu Oluehi returned to the starting XI for the Super Falcons after missing out of their last game due to a suspension.

The Red Flames of Belgium nudged themselves

in front after just seven minutes through Elena Dhont following a swift attacking move from the Europeans.

The team struggled to deal with the attacking impetus of their rivals particularly in the first half and was lucky not to concede more goals.

After the restart, Thomas Dennerby threw on fresh legs with the likes of Anam Imo, Alice Ogebe, Ngozi Ebere and Chinaza Uchendu as they sort to turn around the game but unfortunately came up short.

The Super Falcons finished third in Group C, with one win to their name and three points.

(Al Nassar FC, Saudi Arabia); Victor Osimhen (Charleroi SC, Belgium); Moses Simon

(Levante FC, Spain); Henry Onyekuru (Galatasaray SK, Turkey); Odion Ighalo

(Shanghai Shenhua, China); Alex Iwobi (Arsenal FC, England); Samuel Kalu

(Girondins Bordeaux, France); Paul Onuachu (FC Midtjyland, Denmark)

Kelechi Iheanacho (left) chasing Ever Banega during the group phase clash of the 2018 World Cup between Nigeria and Argentina in St Petersburg, Russia. Eagles lost 2-1 to the Albiceleste

Yakmut Appointed 12th All Africa Games Chief De Mission A former Director-General of the National Sports Commission (NSC), Mallam Alhassan Yakmut has been appointed Team Nigeria’s Chief de Mission to the 12th Africa Games in Rabat, Morocco later in the year.

The Minister of Youth and Sports, Solomon Dalung who made the appointment said it was in recognition of his contributions to sports in the country.

According to Dalung, the sports family will gain much by tapping into Mallam Yakmut’s wealth of knowledge.

“The appointment of Mallam Alhassan Yakmut as Chief de

Mission to the Africa Games in Morocco in June is in recognition of his wealth of experience in sports administration and his contributions to sports.

“I believe that one of the challenges of sports development is what I refer to as the ‘Theory of abandonment’. Once you are out of the system you are not associated with the sports family but once in a while, your experience is tapped into for the benefit of sports development.

“So I came up with the policy thrust of appointing former sports administrators and former ministers to serve in such capacity

so that we can benefit from their wealth of experience.

“This is to give them a sense of belonging and also recognising their contributions,” Dalung said.

Last year, a former Director-General of the then National Sports Commission Otunba Gbenga Elegbeleye was appointed to lead Team Nigeria’s delegation to the Winter Olympics in Pyongyang, South Korea.

Dalung said other former administrators will also be considered for such roles, as the opportunity avails in future.

The Chief-de-Mission is the

Game’s delegation operational leader, Team Manager and the Liaison person between the host country and Nigeria.

Mallam Yakmut is a former professional volleyball player and a board member of the Volleyball Federation of Nigeria.

He is currently the Director, Civil Defence, Fire, Prison Service & Custom Board, Federal Ministry of Interior.

The 12th Africa Games will take place from August 24 to September 3, 2019 in Rabat, Morocco. This will be the first time that the Africa Games will be hosted by Morocco.

UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

Ronaldo’s ‘Ghost’ Haunts Real Madrid as AjaxVisits Tonight Real Madrid’s failure to replace Cristiano Ronaldo’s goals has contributed to their struggles this season, says midfielder Luka Modric.

Real, chasing a fourth European title in a row, host Ajax in the second leg of their Champions League last-16 tie

TODAY B’Dortmund v Tottenham R’ Madrid v Ajax

WEDNESDAY FC Porto v Roma PSG v Man Utd

tonight having won 2-1 in Amsterdam.

But they come into the game on the back of three consecutive home defeats - including two

by Barcelona last week.

“Given what he did for us and this club, we miss Cristiano,” said Modric.

Ronaldo was top scorer, or joint top scorer, in the past six Champions League seasons. He scored a club record 450 goals in nine years before his £99m summer move to Juventus.

But they failed to sign a big-money replacement and only three of their players have

scored more than five goals this season - Karim Benzema (20), out-of-favour Gareth Bale (13) and centre-back Sergio Ramos (11).

They have lost three of their last four games, 2-1 to Girona, 3-0 to Barcelona in the Spanish Cup semi-final second leg and 1-0 to Barca in La Liga to leave them 12 points off top.

“The club wanted the other players to make up for what Ronaldo did, divided between the strikers and that is not easy,” Modric said.

“Cristiano scored 50 goals and you can’t find someone today who scores that many. Some of

us have to take a step forward and, while not scoring 50, what we need is two or three players who score 15, 20, or 10 goals and we don’t have that.

“That is our biggest problem this year. For example against Barca in the cup we had many chances and when you don’t take advantage your opponent punishes you.”

Real captain Ramos starts a two-game ban for “for clearly receiving a yellow card on purpose” during the first leg - which the Spanish side were fortunate to win, while midfielder Marcos Llorente is injured.

France 2019: FIFA, CAF Hold Integrity Workshop in Cairo World football-governing body, FIFA and its African confederation, CAF recently at the CAF headquarters in Cairo, Egypt hosted the first Regional Integrity Workshop on the upcoming FIFA Women’s World Cup finals (France 2019).

The interactive workshop, attended by integrity officers of

nine Member Associations of FIFA across three confederations, was the first of a planned three sessions ahead of the finals in France, with two more scheduled to be co-hosted by CONCACAF and the Spanish Football Association this month.

The Nigeria Football Federation was one of the nine Member

Associations represented in Cairo, with its integrity officer, Barrister Okey Obi, making a presentation on integrity matters in Nigerian Football. There were presentations, group discussions and practical sessions with the aim of preventing any method such as match manipulation or corruption, which might

jeopardize the integrity of the game.

FIFA, thereafter, released a statement saying the workshop provided an opportunity to work hand in hand with the integrity officers of the participating MAs and Confederations on measures aiming at protecting the integrity of the competition.

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Tuesday March 5, 2019

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Price: N250

MISSILE Abe to Cole

“When the former President Goodluck Jonathan’s government was chasing APC people around, Cole was comfortably doing business with the same government. He never uttered a word against the hell that these people went through. He cannot simply turn up now with police and army by his side and begin to accuse the same people of working for the PDP, the same PDP he just finished working with.” – The senator representing Rivers South-East senatorial district in the National Assembly, Magnus Abe, advisingTonye Cole to stop raining abuses on the judiciary and Nigerian judges over the unfortunate situation the party in the state finds itself.

OKEYIKECHUKWU EDIFYING ELUCIDATIONS

okey.ikechukwu@thisdaylive.com

Nigeria: Ejindu Cometh!

A time comes in the life of a people when a conspiracy of circumstances heralds a new era. This usually happens when no one is expecting it; and also when all principal actors are occupied with their private schemes. So did it happen in Obodo Mmehie, after decades of suffering and failed promises by various factions of the confiscators of the commonwealth. The suffering of the people and the total disregard for the principles of natural justice, equity and good conscience led to the coming of Ejindu, the Young Man of Valour. Until Ejindu’s emergence, the people looked up to the self-recycling leadership elite for a radical transformation of their lives. They did not know that conflicts between the various factions of the consumption-driven leaders were always about power and privileges, rather than service. Watch them fight over portfolio allocation after electoral victories and you will be reminded of vampires scrambling over which of them would get the juicier bodies to suck blood from.

It was therefore natural the Ejindu should come upon any land where genuine morality had left and where the supposed custodians of the law were making cheerful displays of unlawful plunder. It is natural that an Ejindu visitation should dawn on any land that routinely condoned aggravated misconduct and undermined the people’s sense of the sacred. It is natural that there should be a comprehensive redemptive intervention when the high priests, leaders and titled men who were supposed to be the guardians of all sublime values of the community put their imprimatur on profanity everywhere – and with impunity.

The dawn of the new era in Obodo Mmehie began one day with an innocuous incident in the Village Square during a New Yam Festival. A gangling old man who had witnessed the decay in the land mutter to himself in disgust: “Should decent people always step back just because the depraved are without compunction?

Apparently there is no young man in this village who can say ‘Eji ndu eme gini’ and put an end to this nonsense.”

Beside him was a tall young man, named Eji Ndu Eme Gini, who turned to stare at the old man in surprise. But the latter took no notice of him at all, but instead got up and found his way out of the Village Square. Perplexed, the young man later narrated his strange encounter in the Village Square to his grandfather and asked the old man the meaning and implication of his name.

His grandfather replied: “The words in your name cannot be easily explained, translated or interpreted, my son. Your name actually asks the question: ‘Of what value is one’s life if it is not spent in the service of what is good? This name is for people who easily act out of conviction

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and concern for truth and justice, because they want what is right. Such people will always find it difficult to live for nothing, or keep quiet while the land rots.”

“How could things be made right again in this village?” was the only thought in Ejindu’s head afterwards.He recalled how the elders used to be the living symbols of the tradition, law, values and pristine wisdom of the land. But he could now see that these Standard Bearers of right and wrong for the community had embraced the profane. The women and the maidens who once embodied flawless grace and womanly dignity had become something for which he could not yet find a name.

The young men and the children who were once very diligent and industrious had become the victims of an older generation that glorified distribution and consumption.

Neighbouring villages no longer admired and respected their village. The fertile lands and lush vegetation were still there, but the human beings in Obodo Mmehie had made the community bad.

But no one seemed to know, or was willing to admit, the source of the problem plaguing the now-sick land. The young ones blamed the elders, while the elders blamed the titled men.

The titled men, in turn, said it was the fault of the kingmakers who made a wrong choice. Not to be outdone, the kingmakers declared that it was the fault of the King, who would not listen to anyone. So misery, despondency and weariness of the spirit soaked the land through and through. It was horrible, because people who could not lead, advise, nor admonish, anyone were in charge everywhere.

Desire for cheap and immediate material rewards was the focus. The few good ones among them lost their voice after repeated unsuccessful attempts to show the way.

Others had their voices strangulated by the favours they had received, and continued to receive, from various quarters. Thus is the leaders cease to be the Standard

Bearers for right and wrong for the people in Obodo Nmehie.

Ejindu was angry at first. Then his anger changed into the desire to eliminate everything that stood in the way to a better society. That led him to develop a plan by means of which he would disrupt the alliance of a questionable elite that was the root of all the problems. So he sought out other like-minded people. Behold the Handmade of Providence had come!

Ejindu planned, held meetings, consulted and created a small team with a strong moral backbone. All the while he was also sharpening his Obejili, with calm dignity.

Finally he decided that it was time to strike. The precipitating circumstance was the selection of new members for the Council of Elders, shortly before a New Yam Festival. Ejindu came to the Village Square with his Obejili and struck one telling blow.

And what a blow it was! There was a mythical story in the village about Ejindu’s Obejili: that if he struck the air with his machete, the air on both sides of the dreaded Obejili would stand still for minutes before coming together again!

What a machete! What a swordsman!

Many false priests, servants of fake oracles, elders without pedigree, reprobate leaders and their collaborators were sort out wherever they were and struck. Obodo Mmehie witnessed a great cleansing, after which Ejindu summoned the people. As he stood before them, he remembered a story his father once told him about a great seer who once warned a new king of their village thus: “Your new position was given to you so that you would grow into it with the help of many gifted people in this village. You are not to be guided by only your own ideas, because the people are to learn and grow with you to a new form of responsible leadership that uses diversity to strengthen itself. That is why you are their King today.” The same seer also said to the people: “The gods have given all heads of households the duty to protect legacies and guide the unwary.

Responsible farmers and householders do not eat, or ruin the seed yams meant for the next planting season. Elders and leaders who mislead the people are like householders who are eating the seed yams of the next planting season. They are like springs bringing out dirty water and progressively poisoning the entire community. The gods would want such leaders to change – or be visited with their wrath.”

With this at the back of his mind, Ejindu began to address every segment of the community. First he spoke to the women and pointed out how they could have been more effective as custodians of value. He asked them whether any man would continuously bring home stolen goods, if his wife constantly raised the necessary queries. He even blamed them for allowing their husbands to travel so

far on the wrong road that turning back became difficult, and even impossible, for many of them. He then turned to the men and showed them how most of them had become incapable of clear thinking, because they only kept bad company; and had become too stiff-necked to take the genuine concerns of some of the women seriously.

He did not spare the elders, leaders and priest of various shrines and proprietors of oracular pronouncements who survived the cleansing. To them he said: “Most of you now look cheap and ridiculous because your kind betrayed the people entrusted to them and wrongly humoured evil. You failed to stand up for truth, natural justice, equity and good conscience.

Look at you today. Would anyone in your position have died of hunger or thirst if you did not get any of the gifts and favours that cheapened and scandalized you before the people?

The misfortunes of many of you are only just beginning, because you are primarily responsible for the evil in the land today. Not quite done with them, Ejindu thundered further: “Have you asked yourselves why many people can now look the elders, leaders, priests and titled men in the face and say: “Do not push us around, after all several of you were drunk yesterday and the day before.”

Can you still guide, control, frighten or rebuke anyone by asking, ‘Do you want the custodians of value to hear about your behaviour?’

Then Ejindu paused. Looking into the far distance, but at nothing in particular, he continued: “Should I be the one to tell you that it takes maturity, a broad and free spirit to lead others? Should a sensible cassava farmer not know that a cassava tuber that was harvested prematurely and left in the village stream to ferment would lose its sap in the water and become a tasteless pulp, after losing its essence?

Chaff would be left of the cassava and those waiting to eat from it would go hungry; making the cassava and the people joint losers. Do we not all know that the Ijele, that great embodiment of the highest of all that is noble and royal, doe not dance for money; or lend itself to cheap approbation in narrow and recondite neighbourhoods? Should leadership be defined by reprobate self-presentation?

Should ignorance be granted a faculty building and declared a School of Thought in a citadel of learning? Mbanu! No! Now that the APC is back in power under controversial circumstance and the PDP is battling with a misfortune it brought upon itself, the various power blocs are quarrelling. But their unmitigated myopia and selfishness may soon be their undoing.

There are wrongs to be reversed by the religious, traditional and political leaders.

The question is whether they still have enough time – before Ejindu comes.

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