THURSDAY 7TH MARCH 2019 by THISDAY Newspapers Ltd

Emefiele: CBN-backed MFB will Provide Funds at 5% Interest To spur competition, check abuses

James Emejo in Abuja The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr. Godwin Emefiele, has disclosed that the NIRSAL Micro Finance Bank (NMFB)

will provide loans to Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) at five per cent interest rate for about seven years tenor, as well as a two-year moratorium. NMFB, a brainchild of

the Bankers’ Committee, the Nigeria Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agricultural Lending (NIRSAL) and the Nigerian Postal Service (NIPOST), was set up with an initial

capital base of N5 billion and designed to boost credit to small businesses by removing identified problems. Emefiele, who said the emergence of the institution would significantly boost access to credit for

SMEs, however, allayed the fears expressed by existing microfinance institutions that the emergence of NMFB could be a ploy to crowd them out of business. The CBN governor argued

that it would help create some form of competitive landscape to checkmate the excesses of existing institutions particularly in the areas of Continued on page 6

NEITI Unveils Oil Blocks Owners by January 2020 ... Page 8 Thursday 7 March, 2019 Vol 24. No 8732. Price: N250

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Court Sacks Taraba APC Gov Candidate ... Page 6

Turn Out En Masse on Saturday to Vote, Buhari Appeals to Nigerians Pledges to work harder in second term Omololu Ogunmade in Abuja President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday in Abuja urged Nigerians to troop out en masse to cast their votes at the governorship and Houses

of Assembly elections holding on Saturday. The president, in a statement he personally signed, commiserated with families that lost their loved ones at the February 23 presidential

and National Assembly polls, and encouraged all eligible voters not to be complacent on Saturday, but should rather view the governorship and assembly elections as important as the last presidential poll.

Giving reasons why the electorate should troop out to vote on Saturday, Buhari said governance at the state level is closer to them than the federal government and hence, the need for them to

be involved in the process of electing politicians who will govern them in the next four years. Buhari, who canvassed votes for governorship candidates of his party, the All Progressives

Congress (APC), during Saturday election, counseled against ballot stuffing, ballot snatching and other acts that may be inimical to the conduct Continued on page 6

Atiku Gets Tribunal’s Order to Inspect Electoral Materials Alex Enumah in Abuja The Presidential Election Petition Tribunal yesterday granted former vice president, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) permission to inspect and obtain Certified True Copy (CTC) of election materials used in the conduct of the February 23 presidential election by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). The tribunal also ordered INEC to make available all documents and electoral materials used for the election for the purpose of the inspection.

However, a request by Atiku and the PDP to carry out forensic audit on materials and polling documents was declined by the tribunal. Delivering a unanimous ruling on the ex-parte motion filed by the PDP presidential candidate, Atiku, and the party, Justice Abdul Aboki, held that the applicants’ prayers for scanning and forensic analysis of the election materials run contrary to the provision of section 151 of the Electoral Act. The court also refused to direct INEC to make available all polling documents for forensic analysis as requested Continued on page 8

Again, UK Threatens Visa Ban on Sponsors of Electoral Violence … Page 6

DIVIDEND OF DEMOCRACY… L-R: Orodje of Okpe Kingdom, Felix Mujakperuo, Orhue I; former Delta State Governor, Chief James Ibori; Governor Ifeanyi Okowa; and the state Chairman, Peoples Democratic Party, Mr. Kingsley Esiso, during the inauguration of the newly dualised Sapele-Warri Road, in Sapele…yesterday

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Again, UK Threatens Visa Ban on Sponsors of Electoral Violence Ejiofor Alike The United Kingdom has again warned that those who incite violence in Saturdayâ€™s governorship and state Houses of Assembly elections, even on social media, may face visa ban, and urged all the stakeholders to ensure that the remaining elections are peaceful and credible. In a statement issued yesterday by the British High Commission, the UK promised again to field observer teams across Nigeria in the elections as part of its efforts to support Nigeriaâ€™s democracy. While urging Nigerians to come out and vote on Saturday, the statement warned that those, who incite violence, even on

social media, may face visa ban. The statement read: â€œThe British High Commission encourages Nigerians to turn out and vote on Saturday, March 9, in elections for state governorships and state Houses of Assembly. These elections are an important opportunity for citizens to exercise their democratic rights and choose their leaders. â€œWe hope that the causes of logistical issues on the February 23 election have been identified and addressed. We commend INEC staff and the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), who play a critical role in the delivery of elections, often in difficult circumstances. We hope that they will be given every support and protection

necessary to ensure the smooth and peaceful delivery of elections free from fear of intimidation or interference in the electoral process. â€œWe were concerned by reports of high levels of violence in some states across Nigeria during the recent presidential elections, including reports of violent clashes involving the military in Rivers State. We condemn all acts of violence and call for those responsible to be brought to justice. We call on all actors, including political parties and security personnel, to work together to provide a peaceful environment for Nigerians to vote on March 9. We remind all actors that anyone involved in violence or inciting violence, including

on social media, could face restrictions on their ability to travel to the UK. â€œThe UK will again field observer teams across Nigeria on 9 March as part of our efforts to support Nigerian democracy,â€? the statement added. Before the presidential and National Assembly elections, the UK and the United States of America had issued similar warning that there would be consequences for any attempt by individuals or group to interfere with the elections in the country. While both countries threatened to place a travel ban, including the refusal of visas on alleged election riggers and their family members, the UK in addition said it would

pursue the prosecution of any culprit of election violence under international laws. â€œWe will not hesitate to consider consequences â€“ including visa restrictions â€“ for those found to be responsible for election-related violence or undermining the democratic process. Under US immigration law, certain violations may also lead to restrictions on family members,â€? the US reportedly said. The UK on its part had assured that it would continue to provide significant support to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and to Nigerian civil society to help them deliver credible elections. â€œOur monitors will in

particular be looking out for any attempts to encourage or use violence to influence the elections, including on social media. We would like to remind all Nigerians that where the UK is aware of such attempts, this may have consequences for individuals. These could include their eligibility to travel to the UK, their ability to access UK based funds or lead to prosecution under international law,â€? UK had said. However, despite the killings allegedly perpetrated by the military and political thugs in Rivers, Bayelsa and several states in the presidential and National Assembly elections, none of the two countries has announced visa ban on the sponsors of these killings.

Court Sacks Taraba APC Gov Candidate Wole Ayodele in Jalingo

A Federal High Court sitting in Jalingo has disqualified the All Progressives Congress (APC) gubernatorial candidate in Taraba State, Alhaji Sani Danladi, from contesting Saturday's election in the state. The presiding judge, Justice Stephen Pam, also restrained the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and APC from recognising, accepting or treating Danladi as the candidate of APC in the governorship election. The plaintiffs in the suit,

Usman Udi; Joshua Paaku; George Geoffrey, and Tanko Muslim Munkaila, had through an originating summons dated January 9, 2019, sought for the disqualification of Danladi on the grounds that the information contained in the affidavit he swore to support his personal particulars was false. The defendants in the suit are Abubakar Sani Danladi, who is the 1st defendant; APC and INEC, which are the 2nd and 3rd defendant, respectively. The court held that information contained in the affidavit that Danladi was born

on February 14, 1968 was in conflict with his date of birth contained in the West African Senior School Certificate he submitted to INEC, which indicates that he was born on April 3, 1977. Justice Pam further declared as false, the information given by Danladi in the affidavit supporting his personal particulars in the INEC Form CF 001 submitted to INEC. The court thus disqualified Danladi from contesting the gubernatorial election in the state scheduled to hold on Saturday, March 9, or any subsequent date

to be slated based on the false declaration of age. The court went further to prohibit Danladi from parading himself as the candidate of APC in the governorship election but did not make any order regarding costs. It said: "That the 3rd defendant (INEC) is hereby restrained from recognising, accepting or treating the 1st defendant as the candidate of the 2nd defendant (APC) in the governorship election for Taraba State slated for March 9, 2019 or any other subsequent date to be slated.

"That the 2nd defendant (APC) is restrained from recognising, holding out or treating the 1st defendant as its candidate in the governorship election for Taraba State slated for March 9, 2019 or any subsequent date to be slated. "That the 1st defendant is hereby prohibited from parading himself as the candidate of the 2nd defendant in the governorship election for Taraba State slated for March 9, 2019 or any subsequent date to be slated." But reacting to the judgment, the APC in the state urged its

supporters to discountenance and disregard any issue or rumour regarding the eligibility of Danladi to contest the election. In a statement signed by its state Publicity Secretary, Mr. Aaron Artimas, the party described the judgment as mischievous and a desperate attempt by the PDP to escape defeat in the election. The APC, however, noted that it has already taken legal steps to set aside the judgment just as it called on its members to continue with their campaigns and preparations towards the election.

"This is my last lap. I will try and work even harder than I have done. I assure you that I will not let you down. I pray that my best will be good enough," he quoted the president as saying. The statement added that the president thanked leaders of ACF for what he described as their consistent and dogged support as well as their goodwill. According to the statement, the Chairman of ACF's Board of Trustees, Mallam Adamu Fika, recalled some strategic projects being implemented by Buhari's administration, which he said were important to both the North and the country, listing such projects to include: the Baro Dry Port and Mambilla Hydro Power station.

He quoted Fika as saying: "It is pleasing to note that since then, the Baro Dry Port has been commissioned, while some other projects have been reactivated and are now being implemented. "We pray that those organs of government charged with the responsibility for the implementation will double their efforts to ensure that these projects are executed fully to their logical conclusion within reasonable time."

TURN OUT EN MASSE ON SATURDAY TO VOTE, BUHARI APPEALS TO NIGERIANS of credible polls. Claiming that he had pledged to conduct credible polls and was committed to his promise, Buhari implored Nigerians to ensure that Saturday's election is better than February 23 polls, advising them further to ensure the emergence of the best candidates at the election. He said: "The second and final phase of the 2019 general election comes up on Saturday, March 9, with Nigerians voting for governors and members of Houses of Assembly in the states. Let me once again extend my condolences to the families of those who lost their lives or sustained injuries as a result of accidents or criminal violence during the elections. "The onus is once again on qualified people to turn

out in large numbers to exercise their civic rights. With the presidential poll behind us, let us not become complacent, and fail to vote in the gubernatorial poll. The forthcoming elections are as important for good governance as that of the presidency and the National Assembly. "Indeed, governance at the state level is closer to us, and should touch our lives more directly. That is why it is vital for us to participate in the choice of who governs us at the state levels. I, therefore, urge you to troop out massively on Saturday to elect your governors and state lawmakers. "As a member of the All Progressives Congress, I recommend those standing on the platform of the party to you, as we are guided by

progressive ideals, and we will not disappoint you. Equally, I urge you to comport yourself properly, as you turn out for the election. "Avoid all deviant behaviours like ballot stuffing, ballot snatching, and any other action that does not conform to best electoral practices. I assure you that the security agencies will be on hand to protect voters, and ensure that the process is not undermined in anyway. "Letâ€™s make the gubernatorial polls much better than the presidential, which local and International observers have adjudged to be free and fair. May I repeat my appeal to our young people: do not allow yourselves to be used to cause violence or to break the law or otherwise disturb the peace. "I have pledged a decent and

credible electoral system for our country. I stand by that promise. â€œLet us together do the right thing on Saturday, so that the best hands can emerge at the states, and take us faster to the Next Level." Also speaking at an event in Abuja, the president pledged to work harder in his second term to consolidate his administration's activities on security, economy, job creation, fight against corruption and upgrade of infrastructure. According to presidential spokesman, Malam Garba Shehu, in a statement, the president made the promise while hosting leaders of the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), whom he said paid him a courtesy visit in the State House.

EMEFIELE: CBN-BACKED MFB WILL PROVIDE FUNDS AT 5% INTEREST exorbitant interest charges. Speaking to journalists in Gwagwalada, Abuja, shortly after a facility tour of a model NIRSAL MFB, which will soon be formally inaugurated, Emefiele urged microfinance institutions to be fair in their dealings with their customers. He said: â€œThe existing microfinance institutions are doing their best and I must say that I have heard some of them say that this is an attempt to crowd them out. â€œIt is not an attempt to crowd them out but it is also an attempt to complement

their services and also see to it that whatever services that is being provided by these microfinance institutions which are in their own right also banks- that they should be seen to be fair to their customers.â€? The CBN boss added: â€œAnd when we say being fair, it also leads to what pricing are you charging for the loans you are granting? â€œI also know of the rural communities where the microfinance institution charge very prohibitive interest rates, sometimes we hear about five per cent flag, ten per

cent flag, but here we are talking about making loans available at very low interest rates to these people. â€œI think it (NMFB) will help create some form of competitive landscape so that those kinds of practices where itâ€™s as if â€œyou take it or leave itâ€? will no longer arise. Because if you are unable to provide them the kind of finance and interest which they think it is right, then they should be able to have access to our own microfinance institution support as well.â€? However, commenting

further on the single-digit credit provision to SMEs, Emefiele said: â€œYou will find that if someone takes a loan of about N1 million and he has moratorium of about two years, and comes back to say for the next five years he is going to pay back the loan, the amount he is going to pay will be so paltry and the person would have really stabilised in his business and begin to earn a living to be able to survive and pay the loan.â€? He said: â€œI am happy that with the establishment of this microfinance bank which would be in at least

local government all through the federation- we are talking about 774 locations all through the country, we would have been able to really set up a financial institution that will help deepen financial inclusion, making it easy for people to access credit, particularly the small and unbanked people because we have always said these are the very weak along the chain, so we are going to use this to really improve access to credit.â€? According to him: â€œThe Continued on page 8

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NEITI Unveils Oil Blocks Owners by January 2020 Buhari approves NNPCâ€™s operations budget for 2019 Chineme Okafor in Abuja The Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) yesterday disclosed that it would unveil the owners or holders of Nigeriaâ€™s crude oil blocks by January 2020. NEITIâ€™s disclosure coincided with President Muhammadu Buhariâ€™s approval for the 2019 operations budget of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC). NEITI also clarified that the $20 billion oil and gas tax backlog said to be owed the federal government and the states by the International Oil Companies (IOCs) accrued from the non-review of expired terms in the 1993 Production Sharing Contracts (PSCs) the country signed with the IOCs. Speaking yesterday at a press briefing in Abuja on the recent award of a satisfactory status to Nigeria by the global Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) on the implementation of transparency and accountability principles in its extractive industry, the Executive Secretary of NEITI, Mr. Waziri Adio, explained that the agencyâ€™s push for the implementation of the â€œbeneficial ownershipâ€? practice in the sectors was on course. The Stolen Assets Recovery Initiative (STAR) of the World Bank and United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), had described beneficial ownership as the natural person who ultimately owns or controls a customer or the natural person on whose behalf a transaction is being conducted. The beneficial ownership

guides are intended to help public authorities or other interested parties looking to find information on such entities incorporated under the laws of a country concerned. STAR explained that the guides would provide basic information to assist what steps to take to ascertain the identity of beneficial owners and other related parties. Adio explained that NEITI planned to meet a January 1, 2020 deadline on it, after which the agency would make public the register of everyone holding oil blocksâ€™ licences and solid minerals rights in Nigeria. â€œEverybody is talking about beneficial ownership now. If you are aware of the Paradise and Panama Papers, people hide behind anonymous companies to perpetrate all kinds of things, deny countries of revenues, do money laundry, commit crimes, including serious crimes like terrorism, drug financing and all others. This is an existential issue for most countries especially countries like our own where we need all the monies that we can get. â€œThis is something that beyond the EITI, Nigeria is committed to. At a London anti-corruption summit, countries made commitments and Nigeria made a commitment that we are going to have a register of beneficial owners of the companies that operate in Nigeria. The president came back and one of the commitments he made was that we are going to join the Open Government Partnership (OGP) and in December that year, we joined the OGP and one

Adio of our commitments in the national action plan for OGP is that we are going to have a register of the beneficial owners of companies that operate within Nigeria, that is on the larger scale,â€? said Adio. He further explained: â€œOn the micro level, we also have a commitment under the EITI that we are going to have a register of all the companies operating in the extractive sector in Nigeria by January 1, 2020. I want to tell you that whether it is under EITI or commitment under OGP, there is political will and support at the highest level â€“ this is a commitment the President (Muhammadu Buhari) made himself. Different agencies are working on this. We are leading the one on the extractive sector, and our hope is that we are working with regulators in the extractive sector â€“ the MCO (Mining Cadastral Office) in the solid minerals sector, the DPR (Department of Petroleum Resources) in the oil and gas sector, and some others.â€? â€œWe hope to beat the deadline. We hope we are going to have a register of beneficial owners before the

end of this year. It will not be a perfect register, but it will be a good place to start,â€? he added. When asked if the governmentâ€™s recent claims that IOCs owed the country over $20 billion in tax debts was not captured in NEITIâ€™s past audit reports of operations in the oil and gas sector, Adio, stated that the debt may be from the 1993 Production Sharing Contracts (PSCs) the government failed to review and update its expired terms. â€œIf you remember, there was a ruling of the Supreme Court that the federal government should work with the state governments of Rivers; Bayelsa and Akwa Ibom, to recover some money based on the fact that 1993 PSCs stated that when the price of oil goes beyond $20 per barrel, the term should be negotiated, and we did a report on Sunday which also focused on the second part of that same law which looks at 15 years after. â€œMy sense is that the money that the companies are asked to pay is on the account of that $20 threshold which the Supreme Court has ruled on. The 1993 PSC were put in place at a time when the prices of oil was very low and technologies for offshore production of oil were very expensive and uncertain, and for us to boost our production, we needed to give all kinds of incentives to the companies,â€? he suggested. On the EITIâ€™s latest ranking of Nigeria, Adio stated that only seven countries including Nigeria, have achieved the highest status, and that the recognition meant well for

Nigeria. â€œEITI Validation is a major achievement that did not come easy. We are very proud of this milestone. All Nigerians should, from the president down to the ordinary person on the street. Our country hardly gets in the news for the right reasons. Our ranking on most governance and development indexes, even when improving, leaves much to be desired. â€œAs a country, we get constantly beaten up and we also beat ourselves up a lot. But this is an area we are doing very well, and a very important area too,â€? he stated.

Buhari Approves NNPCâ€™s Operations Budget for 2019 Meanwhile, President Buhari has approved the 2019 operations budget of the NNPC, the Group Managing Director of the corporation, Dr. Maikanti Baru, has disclosed. Though, Baru did not give the financial details of the corporationâ€™s budget for 2019, he, however, stated that Buhari was gracious to approve it early enough. He was, however, silent on whether or not the corporation would submit the budget to the National Assembly for legislation in line with the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2007, which provides that federal revenue generating agencies must submit their budgets to the National Assembly even when some of their boards have powers to approve same. According to a statement issued yesterday by NNPCâ€™s

Group General Manager, Public Affairs, Mr. Ndu Ughamadu, the NNPC boss said the corporation would move against any of its staff or management found guilty of taking any action that contravenes the provisions of the Public Procurement Act (PPA) in the award of contracts. He said there would be severe penalties for any of them found to have violated the PPA in award of contracts. Baru who was quoted as giving the warning at a supply chain management workshop for NNPCâ€™s procurement managers which held at its corporate headquarters in Abuja, also cautioned staff against contract splitting and accumulation. He revealed that such acts are deliberately done by procurement managers to subvert due process in the procurement process. He restated the corporationâ€™s commitment to transparency in every aspect of its operations, stressing that all procurements and contract awards in the corporation under his watch so far had been carried out in conformity with the PPA. To further deepen the culture of transparency in the corporation, Baru directed the supply chain management division of NNPC to step up its level of monitoring of the various tender boards within the corporation for full compliance. Commending Buhari for the early approval of NNPCâ€™s budget, he stated that as Nigeriaâ€™s chief revenue earner, the corporation was committed to the economic policies of the federal government.

ATIKU GETS TRIBUNALâ€™S ORDER TO INSPECT ELECTORAL MATERIALS by the applicants. Justice Aboki said: "After a careful examination of relief sought by the applicants, Electoral Act and cases decided by this court, it is hereby ordered that leave is granted to bring the application before the pre-hearing session. "The first respondent is ordered to allow the applicants leave to inspect and obtain CTC of polling documents to enable them institute and maintain the petition. "Prayers 3 to 6 are hereby refused." The court in addition refused to order the electoral body to permit forensic experts of applicants to examine form EC48 and other relevant forms used for the election. It noted that the applicantsâ€™ lawyer had rightly based his argument on a previous decision of Election Petition Tribunal, but observed that the decision which permit applicants to inspect, to scan for forensic analysis has been overruled by this court because it confer undue advantage to the applicant. Justice Aboki in addition said in the case of Hope Uzodinma and Osita Izunaso, where similar request was granted, the order was made during the trial and not before. The court had earlier adjourned to deliver its

ruling after listening to the submission of counsel to the applicants. It also ordered the applicants' lawyer to furnish the tribunal with relevant authorities in support of his argument in the case. The respondents in the motion ex-parte dated March 4 and filed March 5 include INEC, President Muhammadu Buhari and the All Progressives Congress (APC). The petitioners had through an ex-parte motion prayed the court for an order compelling INEC to allow them inspect election materials used in the conduct of the presidential election for the purpose of instituting and maintaining their petition at the tribunal. In arguing the motion, lead counsel to Atiku and the PDP, Chief Chris Uche SAN, said the purpose of the motion is to help the petitioners institute and maintain their petition at the tribunal. Uche said while the first prayer in the motion supported by a 12 paragraph is seeking for leave of the court to bring the application before the pre-hearing session, the second to six prayers are seeking for an order of the tribunal to compel INEC to allow the petitioners access to as well as inspect, scan and

make photocopy of materials for forensic analysis. It also prayed the court for an order directing INEC to allow their forensic experts carry out audit and analysis of ballot papers, ballot boxes, card readers, computer servers amongst other polling documents. Uche said the application was brought pursuant to section 151(A & B) of the Electoral Act. When asked if a Certified True Copy (CTC) from INEC would not suffice as there is possibility for the scanned documents to be manipulated, the senior lawyer submitted that the scanned documents are same documents with INEC and at any rate, the electoral body has right to object to any documents presented by the applicants that is at variance with theirs. Uche, however, cited several authorities particularly of the Court of Appeal, where similar prayers to scan INEC materials for the purpose of instituting the plaintiffs petition, adding that in one of such cases the Court of Appeal held that the respondent can equally make same request if it so desire. At this stage, the panel then directed the counsel to supply it with relevant authorities cited in support of the motion. The Independent National

Electoral Commission (INEC) had declared President Buhari and his party, APC winner of the February 23 poll having scored 15, 191, 847 as against 11, 262, 978 by Atiku and the PDP. The former vice president and his party dissatisfied with the conduct and outcome of the election vowed to approach the election petition tribunal to ventilate their grievances as

well as reclaim their alleged stolen mandate. In the ex-parte motion with no: CA/A/P/EPT/1/2019, the petitioners are praying the tribunal to compel the electoral body to allow their agents to scan and make photocopies of vital documents used in the last presidential election for the purpose of proving their case at the tribunal. The application supported

by a 12 paragraph affidavit was deposed to by one Colonel Austin Akobundu (rtd.), Director of Contact and Mobilisation for the Atiku Abubakar Presidential Campaign Council. Both Atiku and the PDP are claiming that they won the presidential election but were short changed by INEC during the collation and announcement of the results.

EMEFIELE: CBN-BACKED MFB WILL PROVIDE FUNDS AT 5% INTEREST

technology that will be used here- you are not going to see too much of cash: it is going to be a fintech technology but the important thing is that we have already set a target for ourselves to say that by the year 2020 which is just next year- about 20 months- the rate of financial inclusion in Nigeria must increase to 80 per cent from about 48 per cent about a year and a half ago. â€œSo, this is just part of our initiative to make sure that we deepen financial inclusion in Nigeria.â€? Emefiele further explained that issues bordering on collateral to access the facility had been addressed. â€œWe know that those who are weak in terms of being unable to access credit- the big issue for them is also the inability to provide collateral. So what are we saying here?

They will be able to access credit without necessarily providing any collateral. â€œThe asset that we are financing for them, like the poultry business will act as the collateral â€“ that collateral will be registered in the National Collateral Registry as something that is eligible to serve as collateral or security for a loan that has been taken.â€? Meanwhile, the Bankersâ€™ Committee provided the set up equity capital and owns 50 per cent of the bank, while NIRSAL and NIPOST own 40 per cent and 10 per cent respectively. One of the bankâ€™s cardinal objectives is to expand available options and empower Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) across the country with structured microcredit to help them establish and expand their

businesses. The institution plans to utilise extant structures to reach the most financially excluded Nigerians in rural communities by working with all relevant partners, stakeholders and players to achieve its objectives. NMFB is expected to be launched simultaneously across the six geopolitical zones in the country as well as at the flagship branch in Gwagwalada, Abuja, while other pilot locations include Bauchi, Ibadan, Kaduna, Enugu, Port Harcourt and Lokoja NIPOST offices. The roll out is expected to continue in other parts of the country eventually covering all 774 local governments. Emefiele had inspected one out of the first set of seven NMFBs with plans to scale it up to 50 in the next phase before the end of the year.

THURSDAY MARCH 7, 2019 ˾ T H I S D AY

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

Army Probes Alleged Misconduct of Soldiers in Bayelsa, Oyo, Ogun Alleges plot by politicians to disrupt March 9 polls Kingsley Nwezeh in Abuja Following allegations of misconduct against some soldiers in the recent presidential and National Assembly elections, the Nigerian Army yesterday said it has launched a probe into the allegations of unprofessional conduct against its personnel. Speaking yesterday at a

meeting with Principal Staff Officers (PSOs), General Officers Commanding (GOCs) and Operatinal Commanders (OCs) in Abuja, the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Tukur Buratai, disclosed that the governors of Bayelsa, Oyo and Ogun States had lodged a formal complaint against some soldiers with the Army Headquarters.

South-south APC Lobbies Buhari for Senate Presidency Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja The leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the South-south has indicated its interest to produce the next senate president in the incoming National Assembly. A statement issued yesterday by the National Vice Chairman of APC - (South-south), Ntufam Hilliard Etta, said zoning the coveted position of the senate president to the geo-political zone will rejuvenate the goodwill the government is currently enjoying from the people and help ensure political stability. The South-south APC said it had considered so many factors before deciding to indicate interest for the senate presidency position, adding that such an opportunity will enable the zone to play critical and pivotal roles in helping Nigeria achieve and realise all its inherent potentials. The statement said that in the days ahead, the party will be meeting to equitably distribute offices to all the zones of the country. While seeking the support of President Buhari, the South-south APC said that as a major stakeholder in the project

Nigeria, the zone was ready to work with him to ensure he continues to deliver democracy dividends to Nigerians. It also drew attention to the Second Republic when a South-south man, Senator Joseph Wayas held sway as the Senate President whose tenure, it said, witnessed a harmonious working relationship between the executive, legislature and the judiciary, to the benefit of all Nigerians. “South-South zone wishes to therefore call on Nigerians from all walks of life to support the zoning of the office of the Senate President to the South-south geopolitical zone,” he said. While urging all Nigerians to support the aspiration of the zone to produce the next senate president, he said the move will rejuvenate the goodwill the government and the people are currently enjoying and ensure equity. According to the South-south APC, the youths from the zone have reciprocated the good gesture of President Buhari, by embracing peace, as the panacea to the continuous development of the region in particular, and the country in general.

IG Deploys DIGs, 227 CPs for March 9 Elections Ahead of Saturday’s governorship and state Houses of Assembly elections, the acting Inspector-General of Police (IG), Mohammed Adamu, has deployed seven Deputy Inspectors-General of Police (DIGs) in the six geopolitical zones across the country to supervise election security. He has also dispatched 10 Assistant Inspectors-General of Police (AIGs) to the police zonal commands and 277 Commissioners of Police (CPs) to complement the efforts of the CPs in the 36 state commands and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). With this deployment, each command now has additional three CPs posted to the three senatorial districts in their respective states of assignment. A statement in Abuja yesterday by the Force spokesman, ACP Frank Mba, disclosed that this would form part of the security management base for the command CPs.

However, based on security assessment earlier carried out by the force, the police said some local government areas in Plateau, Benue, Imo and Taraba States would have one Commissioner of Police deployed in the councils to coordinate security. “Each of them is expected to work with the Command CP and ensure that no stone is left unturned towards emplacing adequate security, including the supervision of security personnel deployed in each of the senatorial districts under their watch,” the statement said. It further announced that new CPs had been posted to Anambra, Bayelsa, Edo and Sokoto state commands for the purposes of the election. The IG assured that just as in the recently concluded presidential and National Assembly elections, “the Nigeria Police Force shall remain civil, firm, optimally professional and apolitical in the discharge of our duties in the March 9, 2019 elections.”

Buratai was, however, silent on Rivers State that recorded widespread violence and killings in the last election. Buratai has also raised the alarm over alleged plot by some unnamed politicians to disrupt the forthcoming governorship and state Houses of Assembly elections and carry out assasinations. Also, the army chief warned that those behind the killing of soldiers during the polls would be tracked down and brought to justice. He said the army has inaugurated a high-powered committee to look into the allegations of unprofessional conduct levelled against its personnel during the last election. “There have been reports of

alleged compromises by some personnel during the elections. We have received complaints from some stakeholders, major political parties, Governors of Bayelsa, Oyo and Ogun States of allegation of misconduct as well as unprofessional conduct by some of our personnel. “Unfortunately, some other states have gone to the press with unsubstantiated allegation without resort to the Nigerian Army leadership. “Nonetheless, all these complaints are noted and will be addressed appropriately. A high-powered committee had been convened and instituted to investigate all cases of alleged misconduct by troops arising from the 2019 general election. “This is aimed at ensuring that all cases are thoroughly

looked into for the purpose of dispensation of justice and to uphold Nigerian Army’s credibility, professionalism and apolitical stand,” he said. Addressing the officers on the conduct of soldiers in the coming elections, he warned them against hobnobbing with politicians, to guard against surprise attack and to be ready to deal ruthlessly against any post election violence. “Commanders must ensure robust and extensive patrols are carried out to cover all flash points; enforce the nomovement restrictions and carryout thorough searches of vehicles and persons. “Commanders must deal decisively with any electoral crime or action such as electoral thuggery, snatching of ballot

boxes, illegal possession of electoral materials and firearms as well as other crimes that would mar the smooth conduct of the election. “There must be no military escort for any politician or retired military personnel until after the elections”, he directed He further ordered that “commanders must ensure that no retired military officer is allowed to use service weapons hitherto authorised for their personal safety during the period of the election. “Commanders must ensure that troops remain on ground to counter and deal ruthlessly with any post-election violence. “Commanders must work in conjunction with the police Cont’d on page 51

CONGRATULATORY VISIT...

President Muhammadu Buhari (centre), and visiting members of the Arewa Consultative Forum at the Presidential Villa, Abuja …yesterday GODWINOMOIGUI

Atiku will Face Uphill Task at Tribunal, Agbakoba Insists Davidson Iriekpen Less than 24 hours after a human rights lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Mr. Femi Falana, said the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the February 23 election, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, would face insurmountable legal obstacles at the Presidential Election Tribunal, a former President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) and National Intervention Movement Cochairman, Mr. Olisa Agbakoba (SAN), has predicted that the former vice president will face an uphill battle in his bid to overturn Presidential Muhammadu Buhari’s victory at the tribunal. According to Agbakoba, it has to be proven that there were electoral irregularities and that they affected the election results. Agbakoba, a Life Bencher

who chairs the Peoples Trust Party (PTP) and the “third force political parties,” said he was misquoted in his earlier statement to say that Atiku would lose at the tribunal. “That is far from the truth. I meant the former vice president will face an uphill task, given the circumstances of challenging the election results. “My initial decision to charge the former vice president not to go to court is based on the fact that President Buhari has subverted the Supreme Court by the removal of the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Hon. Justice Walter Onnoghen, and the appointment of the Acting Chief Justice of Nigeria. “My perception is that we need to resolve the status of the Supreme Court. I wonder what is taking the National Judicial Council so long. “I am also worried about the historical precedent, as no

petition on presidential election result has ever succeeded. “As one of Nigeria’s experienced election petition lawyers, I know that the burden of proof to succeed in an election petition is unfairly huge. “We first have to prove that there are electoral irregularities and in my view, once you prove this, you should succeed. “Unfortunately, even if you prove electoral irregularities you will have to show how that affected the results of the election. “Remember that the gap between Atiku and Buhari is about four million votes,” Agbakoba said. The former NBA president believes the presidential election results were “manifestly riddled” with electoral irregularities. He, however, emphasised that Atiku is constitutionally

entitled to approach the tribunal. “My personal advice has become irrelevant. I fully support and wish Atiku every success,” Agbakoba. In the earlier statement urging Atiku not to challenge Buhari’s victory, Agbakoba said: “I understand the PDP is aggrieved about the outcome of the election and alleged massive irregularities. But, I urged Atiku not to approach the Election Petition Tribunal. “He might have moved backwards by his loss but he should not lose sight of the legacy and greatness that lies in front of him. He is in a strong position to take up the mantle of a statesman. “He can build a new Nigeria movement from the motley of small parties, third force actors, change actors and millions who are desperate for a strong, united Nigeria.

THURSDAY MARCH 7, 2019 ˾ T H I S D AY

NEWS

Buhari, APC Plotting to Manipulate Election Results in 24 States, PDP, CUPP Allege Steer clear of N’Niger, opposition party warns ruling party Adedayo Akinwale and Udora Orizu in Abuja The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has raised the alarm that President Muhammadu Buhari and the All Progressives Congress (APC) manipulate Saturday’s gubernatorial election results in 24 states to secure victory by the use of force. The main opposition party has also warned the ruling party to steer clear of all PDP strongholds, particularly the Niger Delta region, ahead of the March governorship and state assembly elections, in order to avert widespread crisis in the country. PDP’s warning is coming as the Coalition of United Political Parties (CUPP) has raised the alarm over alleged plan by President Buhari and his APC-led administration to unleash mayhem on Saturday and return 24 states to the APC at the governorship and houses of assembly elections. The PDP, in a statement issued yesterday by its National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Kola Ologbondiyan, said that the party’s position

was predicated on the ongoing heavy deployment of security forces and armed thugs into PDP strongholds, particularly the Niger Delta region, with a view to suppressing voters and manipulating the March 9 electoral process in favour of the APC He said: “As a result, the APC is desperate to unleash violence in oil-rich Akwa-Ibom, Rivers, Cross River, Delta, Bayelsa, Abia, as well as Benue, Taraba, Gombe, Sokoto, Enugu, Ebonyi, Kwara, but these states and all other strongholds of the PDP, spanning across our nation, remain impregnable.” The main opposition party said it has full information on various secret locations in AkwaIbom State, including hotels and other camps, where the APC has quartered thugs ahead of Saturday’s elections. Ologbondiyan noted, “We note that the police have refused to evacuate these thugs; but let it be known that the people of Akwa Ibom State will never allow them to operate.” “Since the robbery of the

PDP’s presidential mandate, which Nigerians are determined to reclaim at the tribunal, the APC has been jittery over the escalated public support for the PDP not only to retain our states but also to ensure a sweeping victory for PDP in APC states across the country. “The PDP therefore cautions the APC as well as its compromised INEC and security officials to bear in mind that Akwa-Ibom and all Niger Delta states are incontrovertible PDP strongholds; that the APC do not have any genuine followership in these states and that anybody attempting or supporting any forceful takeover of any PDP stronghold should be aware that he or she is doing so at his or her own peril,” he warned. .........The party advised the Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo and APC National Chairman, Adams Oshiomhole, to perish APC’s thought of using thugs to muscle the Akwa-Ibom governorship and state assembly elections, as the people have been fully rallied

for a firm resistance on Saturday. PDP urged Nigerians to note how Osinbajo, on Tuesday, at a town hall meeting in Uyo, Akwa-Ibom State, boasted that himself and Oshiomhole would ensure that the APC will never be defeated and how thugs, loaded in over 50 buses, who confessed to have been contracted by Oshiomhole, were later intercepted on their way from Edo State to AkwaIbom to cause mayhem during Saturday’s election. The PDP warned that Nigerians are still livid over the rigging of the February 23 presidential election, which it claimed, was clearly won by Atiku Abubakar, stating that any further attempt to test their collective will on March 9 is capable of sparking off a huge civil restiveness across the nation. Meanwhile, the CUPP has also alleged a plot by President Buhari and his APC-led administration to unleash mayhem on Saturday and return 24 states to the APC at the governorship and houses

of assembly elections. The opposition parties said its alarm was predicated on the fact that they intercepted part of the secret wireless signal of deployment of ‘Police Mobile Squads to States of Interest’. In a statement issued by CUPP spokesperson, Ikenga Ugochinyere, the coalition alleged that from the signal intercepted, Nasarawa, Akwa Ibom, Sokoto, Anambra, Rivers, Taraba, Abia, Gombe and Delta States would be flooded with Mobile Police officers from various parts of the country specifically for the purpose of helping the APC rig the elections and return the states to the APC. “Zamfara, Borno, Yobe, which until a couple of days ago witnessed attacks and killings did not get extra deployment of security. Likewise, Kaduna, Katsina, and Plateau States where killings and reprisal killings have occurred since the completion of the presidential polls did not merit extra security deployment rather hitherto peaceful states with

no reported threats are getting massive security deployments,” CUPP said. It added that the entire mobile police units of Mopol 3 Enugu, 12 Minna, 21 FCT, 25 Azumini/ Iwukem, and 45 FHQ Abuja are to move to Nasarawa State and Mopol 22 Ikeja, 49 Epe and 23 FHQ Annex Lagos are all moving to help the APC rig Sokoto State. “Furthermore, Mopol 2 Keffi Street Lagos, 5 Benin, 17 Akure and 20 Ikeja are to relocate to Akwa Ibom to be under the command of the cousin of Senator Godswill Akpabio who is the SARS Commander in Akwa Ibom State to rig elections in the state. “Gombe State will receive their own rigging machine from Mopol 52 Chalawa and 58 Lafia, while the rigging squads to Abia State are to be moved from Mopol 29 Awka, 31 Asaba and 33 Ado-Ekiti. Delta State will be Mopol 19 Port Harcourt and 55 Aba, while Anambra State will be militarised by Mopol 28 Umuahia, 51 Oghara and 63 Ikorodu,” CUPP said.

Ignore Rumoured Threats to Lives in Ogun Governorship Election, Osinbajo Reassures Femi Ogbonnikan inAbeokuta Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has dismissed the rumour of premeditated attacks to be carried out by the powerthat-be at the state during the coming governorship and state Houses of Assembly elections in Ogun State. While addressing traders and mammoth crowd yesterday at Kuto, Itoku, Lafenwa and Panseke markets in Abeokuta, the state capital, respectively, during a mega APC rally, Osinbajo said that security reports reaching the presidency indicated that some people in a position of higher authority in the state have been threatening fire and brimstones to unless mayhem thereby, discouraging the electorates from coming out in the coming Saturday, March 9 governorship and State House of Assembly elections in the state. He urged the people of the state to discountenance such threat, stressing that it is only the federal government that is saddled with the exclusive preserve in the provisions of security for the protection of lives and property. According to Osinbajo, “we will do all humanly possible within the ambit of the law to provide adequate security for all and sundry on and after the coming governorship and state Houses of Assembly elections in the state. “So, don’t panic as we are up to the task ahead. “The coming governorship election in Ogun State is very crucial and we should all come out and vote. “And you are to cast your votes for Prince Dapo Abiodun as the Ogun State governor. Also, vote for all House of Assembly candidates

of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the election. “By and large, ensure your votes are counted in your presence before you leave the polling booths. “Don’t let us turn our back at the APC, because it is the only party that can take us to the next level. And we should not cast our votes for any other party than the APC”, Osinbajo advised. Also, former governor of the state and a national leader of the party, Aremo Olusegun Osoba, enjoined the people of the state to cast their votes for Abiodun as the next governor of the state. He said the Vice-President who was a representative of the President for the mega rally had brought good tidings for the people of the state and also to express appreciation for the electoral victory of the President Muhammadu Buhari/Osinbajo joint ticket in the Saturday, February 23, 2019 polls. In the same vein, the Governorship Candidate of the APC, Abiodun who was flanked by his running mate, Mrs Noimot SalakoOyedele, the Lagos West Senator, Solomon Adeola and a host of other chieftains of the party, courted the people of the state to come out en-masse on Saturday and cast their votes for him as the governor of the state and the party’s House of Assembly candidates. “We won’t promise what we would not do. But with your support during the polls, victory is sure for us in the APC. “Come out and cast your votes for the APC. Your votes are to make Ogun state greater”, said Abiodun

CONGRATULATIONS…

President/Chairman of Council, Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN), Dr. Uche Olowu, (right), presenting the CIBN Corporate Crest to Managing Director/CEO, NIBSS, Mr. Adeniyi Ajao, during stakeholders’ engagement with NIBSS in Lagos...yesterday DAN UKANA

Guber Election: Ekiti Police Read Riot Act to Voters Fayose’s aide, ex-SUBEB boss defect to APC Victor Ogunje in Ado Ekiti Ekiti State Police Command has advised Ekiti residents and voters to be orderly and peaceful in next Saturday’s assembly election. The state Police Commissioner, Asuquo Amba, stated in Ado Ekiti last Tuesday that Ekiti residents contributed largely to the success of the presidential and National Assembly elections with their peaceful conducts on election day. Amba, who spoke through the Command’s spokesman, DSP Caleb Ikechukwu, said his men are battle ready for the success of the election.

He warned those harbouring sinister intentions to desist from them, saying his men are well mobilised to deal with trouble makers. “We are ready for the assembly election. We are going to retain the structures we used for the presidential poll, which were two personnel across the each of the 2,195 polling units across the state. “Our Special Protection Squad and Special Tactical Squad will be operational. We also have other special squads that will dress in mufti and other sister agencies shall join us to make the election successful,” he said. Meanwhile, Special Assistant

to ex-Governor Ayo Fayose on Local government affairs, Mr. Ayodeji Adu, and Chairman of State Universal Basic Education, Senator Bode Ola, have dumped the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for APC. Adu , Fayose’s kinsman, defected to APC alongside hundreds of the PDP supporters in Afao Ekiti, when the campaign train of the APC assembly candidate in Irepodun/ Ifelodun state constituency II, Hakeem Jamiu, hit the town yesterday. Ola said his decided to return to APC was because of his ardent belief in the progressives. The duo said they were captivated by Governor Kayode

Fayemi’s sterling leadership qualities in taking the decision. Adu said: “This decision to dump PDP for APC was borne out of patriotism and it is for the betterment of my state and country. “Afao despite producing the governor of the state for eight years is still in shambles without meaningful development, hence the need to embrace the right ideas that can take the town out of the current economic and social despondency. “I pledge my commitment to the success of the APC candidate in Afao-Ekiti. I want to assure the people that the APC would have a block vote in the town next Saturday.”

5 ) * 4 % ": t THURSDAY, MARCH 7, 2019

T H I S D AY Ëž Ëœ ÍľËœ 2019

COMMENT

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

WILL HISTORY REPEAT ITSELF? Turaki Hassan urges Bauchi people to protect their votes

n 1942, a group of young progressive intellectuals from the north congregated in Bauchi, among whom were Saadu Zungur, Malam Aminu Kano, Dr. R. K.B. Dikko, Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa and Malam Yahaya Gusau, all of blessed memories. Although young, they were statesmen, patriots and visionary leaders who saw tomorrow and felt the urgent need to chart a new course for the future of the region. They saw the need to arouse the consciousness of the plebians to stand up for their rights. That meeting birthed the famous Bauchi Consultative Forum which became the intellectual springboard for popular resistance and mass mobilisation of the Talakawas that was propounded by the highly revered Malam Aminu Kano. It was that singular meeting which metamorphosed into the founding of the Northern Element Progressive Union (NEPU) and then later, the Peopleâ€™s Redemption Party (PRP) in the second republic. NEPU, it was, that challenged the elitist Northern Peopleâ€™s Congress (NPC) founded by Sir Ahmadu Bello and Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa on many policies and programmes which were seen as anti-masses. Significantly, from then on, Bauchi became the epicentre of popular resistance against injustice, and the people have always risen to defend their rights in every epoch. Fast forward to 2007, former Governor Ahmadu Adamu Muazu was ousted by the people when they overwhelmingly voted Malam Isa Yuguda of the defunct All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) as his replacement. Muazu, a sitting governor then, lost his bid to move to the Senate and impose a successor as governor. History repeated itself in 2015, when the same Yuguda, who succeeded Muazu, met with the anger and wrath of the people who also gave him the Muazu treatment. The beneficiary of this was the little known Mr. Mohammed Abdullahi Abubakar who joined the All Progressives Congress (APC) exactly 40 days to the primaries and whose only contribution to his election was the sum of N400,000 he gave to the party for each of the 20 LGAs, totaling N8 million. Overwhelmed by his seeming easy victory, the then governor-elect, Abubakar, said prophetically, â€œAlâ€™ummar Bauchi dama â€˜yan adawa ne, in ka musu ba daidai za su zo su tumbuke komin karfin ka, komin mulkinkaâ€?, which literally means, â€œBauchi people are naturally rebellious, if you donâ€™t treat them well, they will reject and remove you, no matter how powerful or strong you are.â€? Four years down the line, a similar fate is awaiting Gov Abubakar as he rightly predicted in 2015. Right from the day he won his election in 2015, Abubakar started fighting imaginary enemies and battles. He became paranoid and instantly transmuted into an emperor, a despot and dictator and rules with an iron hand like Pharaoh. He continues to fight on all fronts. It is said that a wise general chooses his battle but Abubakar has fought the masses, fought the elites, fought the traditional rulers, fought the civil servants, embarked on endless salaries verification for over one year without paying civil servants in a poverty- stricken state, deposed about 1000 traditional rulers, awards contracts arbitrarily and then bring the papers to the State Executive Council for ratification; he has refused to conduct local government elections in violation of Supreme Court judgment, jets out of the state at will and has no sense of accountability on how he spends the stateâ€™s finances. He became arrogant and listens to no one. He runs solo, such that when he isnâ€™t in Bauchi, governance is stalled. In fact, the governor even said on radio last year that leave grant is not backed by law and him, being a lawyer, will not pay the stateâ€™s civil servants

BAUCHI PEOPLE ARE NATURALLY REBELLIOUS, IF YOU DONâ€™T TREAT THEM WELL, THEY WILL REJECT AND REMOVE YOU, NO MATTER HOW POWERFUL OR STRONG YOU ARE

their leave grant as it is just a privilege and not a right. Few days into office, before the inauguration of the State House of Assembly, Governor Abubakar collected a N4 billion bank loan without due process. The case is pending before the courts. He collected Paris Club refund and frittered it away. Four years after, Abubakar cannot boast of commencing and completing a single project in Bauchi state except maybe the much talked-about 4km Federal Lowcost-CBN roundabout that has dragged on since 2015 after gulping over N4 billion. And then the shocker. Former governor Malam Isa Yuguda appointed 4000 political appointees which jerked up the stateâ€™s payroll to N2.6 billion per month but on assumption of office, Abubakar fired them all. Since then, there has been no fresh recruitment into the civil service but miraculously, the Bauchi State monthly payroll is now N5.6 billion. Weeks ago, the Pandoraâ€™s box was opened when Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Yakubu Dogara, obtained a top-guarded document which detailed how ghost workers are used to fritter away the stateâ€™s resources. The document revealed how over 2500 non-existent workers were added into the payroll in July 2015, three months in the new administration. They were all employed on the same day and will disengage in July 2023, after working for eight years and all their salaries and allowances are paid into one, same and single bank account with the same Bank Verification Number. It is now revealed that over N212 billion local government funds, and over N200 billion state government funds amounting to over N400 billion accrued within the period have been diverted using ghost workers. The state is leading as the poverty capital of Nigeria with the highest number of out-of-school children in the country now hitting 1.5 million. Schools are without facilities: no chairs, no desks and no instructional materials for teaching. Many have no roofs and pupils/students canâ€™t go to school when it rains. Sadly, the state, in the last four years, has performed woefully in national examinations- WAEC and NECO- coming last in both. The Economic Confidential Annual State Viability Index (ASVI) 2017 Ranking of States by Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) compared to Federation Account Allocation (FAA) in 2017, show that whereas the state received N85 billion from the federation account for the period under review, it only generated a paltry 5.13 per cent which came from PAYE deducted at source from salaries of civil servants, thus placing the state in last position in Nigeria, a high indication of a dysfunctional government. This is the unfortunate state Bauchi has found itself- battered, debased, desecrated, dehumanised and its people enslaved and thrown into excruciating penury, squalor and poverty. But all hope is not lost, Bauchi and its people shall rise again, although they might have been enslaved but not conquered, they are still in full and total control of their minds and destinies. Already, the ever politically sophisticated Bauchi people have hinted on how they will vote on March 9th when they overwhelmingly voted for candidates of the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) in Bauchi, Katagum and the Rt. Hon. Speaker got reelected with a landslide victory despite all plots to snatch his victory by Governor Abubakar. It now behooves on the people to stand strong, vote, protect their votes and resist attempts to snatch their ballots using thugs that have been imported into the state and armed with assault rifles and other dangerous weapons by the state government. Hassan is the Special Adviser (Media & Public Affairs) to Speaker Dogara

ETHNIC STRAIN AS ELECTION WEAPON Lagosiansâ€™ interests will be better served by the APC, writes Tunde Rahman

or Lagosians, this Saturdayâ€™s governorship election promises to be decisive. It will put many issues finally to bed. One of the issues that must be put to rest is the chasm that some are trying to create and exploit between Yoruba and Igbo people in Lagos. Even among brothers within the same family who love and care for each other, differences arise at times. No two people can see eye to eye on all things. But because of the bonds of affection, shared interests and common objectives, brothers usually mend their differences and this process can even evoke a stronger, more empathetic relationship. The same holds true for the relationship between the two tribes. The relationship is a complex, multidimensional one running the full gamut of socio-cultural and political interaction and exchange. This means there will be points of harmony and convergence of interests as well as points where interests diverge. This is but a function of human nature and thus should generate no unique animus between the two groups. Truth be told this same dynamic is at work within each group. Neither Yoruba nor Igbo are entirely monolithic. Subdivisions and divisions exist within the groups that are as profound and telling as those between the two groups. The real issue is not that there are differences. The more pertinent issue is how we treat those matters. Do we allow these differences to enflame ethnic passions? Or do we resolve these differences as Lagosians seeking to resolve matters in a way that benefits us all as citizens of the same Lagos? Lagos has been very accommodating because the people and the government in the state are cosmopolitan and broad-minded in outlook. The

Lagos model has been a very good one. On a functional, day-to-day basis, we have tried to minimize the harsh distinction many places draw between indigene and others. We want people to function and see themselves as Lagosians. With the inclusion of Igbo in appointments as commissioners and chairmen of agencies in the state, which began during the Asiwaju Bola Tinubuâ€™s era as governor, Lagos has set a standard of ethnic inclusion in the governance of this state. The prism through which we view Saturdayâ€™s governorship elections has been altered by the results of the presidential election. Prior to the presidential contest, the PDP doused the nation with fulsome boasting that the election was already in their hands. They were celebrating victory before the players had even taken the field. Then reality came. They lost and lost by a great margin. Buhari won over 15 million votes. Barely clearing 11 million, Atiku Abubakarâ€™s and the PDPâ€™s defeat was a resounding one. They can shout as loud and as long as they want, they lost and they know they lost. The reality of this loss has set them on the path of desperation. Being rebuked from the seat of federal power, they have become adamant that they must conquer Lagos. They crave Lagos because they need access to government funds to maintain themselves and their party. They are still not accustomed to being the party in opposition. The funds they amassed after 16 years with their hands in the federal purse have been sorely depleted. If they canâ€™t have access to federal money for another four years, then tapping into the Lagosian treasury is the next best thing in their estimation. If they cannot eat of the fruits of Lagos as their electoral consolation prize, they fear

they will collapse from political starvation. Additionally, a sense of revenge motivates them to attack Lagos. Lagos is the home of the APC National Leader Asiwaju Tinubu. The PDP understands the pivotal role Tinubu played as the co-chairman of the winning presidential campaign council. He was at the heart of the campaign planning and strategy that culminated in the deracination of the PDPâ€™s presidential hopes. So, in an act of desperate revenge, the PDP and many of its key personalities have shifted their angry attention and dwindling resources to Lagos in a bid to capture the state. They pledged to themselves that they would stop at nothing and let nothing stop them in this mission of misplaced revenge. PDP Presidential Candidate Atiku, outgoing Senate President Bukola Saraki, who also succumbed by tumultuous defeat, and their agents have committed themselves to this spiteful objective. The PDP hopes to stoke the embers of Yoruba-Igbo animosity in order to accomplish their aim. The PDP believes Igbo were the bulk of the vote that Atiku achieved in Lagos during the presidential poll. The PDP has misread this as a sign of a great divide between Yoruba and Igbo in the state. Thus, the PDP now weaponises the divide and frames the governorship election as some sort of battle between the Igbo and Yoruba. This is far from correct but close to reckless. Part of the dynamics at work during the presidential election has much to do with the presence of former Anambra State governor, Peter Obi, on the ballot as running mate to Atiku. Thus a vote for the PDP in the presidential election was a vote for a popular fellow Igbo and not a vote

against Yoruba or an indictment of the present state of relations between the two groups. Again, we must remember that the relationship is a complex one with many points of interaction. Some will be in unison but some will be different. Just as the Yoruba may understandably gravitate toward the APC because of VP Osinbajo, Igbo may have favoured the PDP ticket because of Obi. Yet, this should not be construed for animosity. It is a point to develop greater understanding of each other for such is the way of human nature. Contrary to the prejudiced wagging of PDP hired tongues, Igbo in Lagos have fared well. Many important businesses and investments in Lagos belong to them. Ethnicity is not used as a bar to prevent anyone from realizing their dream and seeking their fortune in Lagos. No one is denied school, medical care or housing because of their surname. The Igbo who live here are fully Lagosians. They have a stake in the state and the state is better because of their contributions and the contributions of all who live here. Having invested in Peter Obi in the February 23 vote, many Igbo will likely vote for Sanwo-Olu as governor, not due to any ethnic factors but simply because he is the most qualified and prepared candidate and because the PDP is not a viable alternative in Lagos since the PDPâ€™s designs on Lagos are to drain the state resources and not to use those resources for the people. In the end, people are wise enough to vote for their daily interests and those interests are better served by the APC and not by being coerced into a game of ethnic rivalry that has no victors. Rahman, former Editor, THISDAY on Sunday, is Media Adviser to Asiwaju Tinubu

T H I S D AY THURSDAY, MARCH 7, 2019

EDITORIAL INEC And The Governorship Polls After the last one, INEC should be able to conduct a more sensible election

wo weeks after the presidential and national assembly elections, Nigerians will again return to the polls on Saturday to elect governors in 30 states and the house of assembly members in all the 36 states. It is important for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to learn from the numerous challenges that blighted both the voting and collation of results in the last elections and put adequate measures in place to guard against a repeat of such flaws come Saturday. INEC must understand the imperative of conducting elections which conform with international standards and best practices. In that regard, the commission must also appreciate that the conduct of February 23 presidential and national assembly elections has, to put it mildly, left many Nigerians disappointed. In several places across the country, the exercise was characterised by ballot box snatching, militarisation of the process, intimidation of voters, inflation and suppression of votes and violence, among other vices. FOR PROF. YAKUBU, For instance, the SATURDAY’S ELECTION ECOWAS-Election Observation Mission PRESENTS AN (EOM), led by former OPPORTUNITY TO President RESTORE THE TRUST OF Liberian Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf NIGERIANS NOT ONLY IN reported that even HIS STEWARDSHIP BUT though the campaigns ALSO IN THE CAPACITY were largely peaceful, OF HIS COMMISSION TO the elections were DELIVER ON CREDIBLE marred by violence, prompting the group to ELECTIONS raise certain rhetorical questions: “Which incidents? Which deaths? How did they occur? Who were responsible? These are specific questions that election observers have opted to couch in very vague language, and these issues are precisely the dynamics of Nigeria’s problems in the foreseeable future.” The report further noted that “the smooth flow of the process was disrupted by the malfunctioning of smart

card readers (SCRs) in a number of polling units,” adding: “In some cases, this situation caused agitation among the voters who had been waiting in queues for long hours, forcing some polling officials to resort to manual accreditation.” The flaws inherent in the election got to a head when a presiding officer in Imo State, a university professor, disclosed that he declared Governor Rochas Okorocha as winner of a senatorial election “under duress.” What this confession revealed very clearly is that Okorocha did not win the election yet INEC disregarded the testimony of its own official and proceeded to validate the fraudulent result. We hope the commission will guide against such actions on Saturday.

M 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

eanwhile, against the background of the ethnic-related violence witnessed in some parts of Lagos during the presidential and national assembly elections, we urge all critical stakeholders in the state to rein in their supporters. In an era where our citizens are getting appointed (some even elected) into political ofﬁces in several countries across the globe, no Nigerian should face discrimination anywhere in the country or be threatened on how to exercise their franchise either as an individual or member of a group. The leaders at all levels should strive to promote only the things that unite our people regardless of political differences. For the INEC chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, Saturday’s election in many of the states presents an opportunity to restore the trust of Nigerians not only in his stewardship but also in the capacity of his commission to deliver on credible elections. We hope INEC will use Saturday to make a statement that it is not beyond its capacity to have people cast their ballots, count the votes and then make them count. However, we must also sound a note of caution in that election is a process and not an event. To that extent, the role of the military and security agencies is very critical. We therefore call on President Muhammadu Buhari to ensure that state power is not deployed for partisan purposes in any of the states on Saturday as residents elect their governors and lawmakers.

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WHO WINS KADUNA GOVERNORSHIP ELECTIONS?

aduna State governorship election comes up on Saturday amidst unusual tension with each side using available arsenal at its disposal to discredit its opponent. The usual campaign of calumny, slander and vituperation that characterized Nigeria’s electioneering processes has now been painted with religious colouration making the political atmosphere unnecessarily heated and the dimension practically frightening. Each divide is making frantic efforts to convince its audience through the pulpits on which candidate to follow, between the incumbent Nasir el-Rufai of APC and the major contender Isa Ashiru of PDP. If the result of the last presidential election is a yardstick for victory then El-Rufai has an edge over Ashiru. However, El-Rufai has by his action and some of his unpopular policies of retrenchment of workers, demolition of houses, sale of government quarters, etc., developed strong political opposition that is bent on taking vengeance by dethroning him from the leadership position he occupies. Isa on his part is carrying the albatross of alleged fake certification, incompetence and low self- esteem. The major issue perhaps is the Muslim- Muslim ticket which El-Rufai has introduced into the political climate of the state. If it sails it will be a watershed, a landmark victory for the Muslim in the state and may close the Christian-Muslim ticket that has been operating in the state over the years. It will also expose Southern Kaduna’s numerical strength. Whatever is the case, El-Rufai stands a better chance over his opponent because the religious dimension the campaign is taking is overbearing and a minus to PDP.

El-Rufai was also accused of mass sacking of workers, especially teachers. Schools are still acutely short of teachers and there is no overall noticeable improvement in the quality of education in the state. The worst accusation is that El-Rufai broke his promise of retraining retrenched workers and paying them their retirement benefits. The two candidates are locked in one of the most dangerous propaganda. The simple minority versus majority political struggle has been turned into full scale religious cold war. An innocent choice of a Muslim woman running mate by El-Rufai from the southern part of the state is now being projected as a holy war against the Christians southerners. Churches and mosques are up in doctrinal arms, cautioning followers according to their sentiment. El-Rufai’s choice of a Muslim running mate and making issue out of it is a deliberate ploy by him and his party men to divide the state along religious fault lines in order to gain sympathy from the majority Muslims. By that singular act of choosing a Muslim woman from the Christian dominated south, El-Rufai successfully broke the unified front standing against his reelection. I, personally see nothing wrong in having a Muslim Governor and a Muslim Deputy Governor in a state with 75 percent Muslim population. Similar combinations are obtainable involving Christian majority state with 60 per cent or less dominance. Ordinarily, the Christians in Kaduna State should have no cause to complain. It is normal in Nigeria and it is natural to democracy. My prayer is that the election should be peaceful, credible, free and fair for an acceptable leader to emerge. Jamilu Bello Dogarawa jbdogarawa@gmail.com

THE FLAWED PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION

ith a strong pro-Atiku push to wit, I ‘d’ve my conscience in smithereens by now if I had partook as a collation officer in the last presidential and national assembly elections, a position everyone assumed was automatically opened to all university lecturers. The anecdotal tale just told by my good friend, Dr. James Amgbafi of the Department of Electrical Engineering, about his experience as a collation officer at Kutigi in Lavun Local Government Area of Niger State got me really worried. Even though everyone knew from the THISDAY opinion poll that Candidate Atiku Abubakar will lose Niger State, it was shocking that agents of the Niger State Government, according to Dr. Amgbafi, sought to pressure him upon threats to life and limb and cash inducement to suppress vote-numbers for Atiku Abubakar or annul them totally. Dr. Amgbafi resisted the threats and monetary gift but how many other collation officers succumbed? Informal findings show that not much is the answer. I, along with another conscientious objector, Dr. Salihu Saidu of the Department of Geography was glad not to partake in the flawed INEC’s exercise. Sunday Adole Jonah, Department of Physics, Federal University of Technology, Minna, Niger State

5 ) * 4 % ": t THURSDAY, MARCH 7, 2019

T H I S D AY ˾ THURSDAY MARCH 7, 2019

POLITICS

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

Ethnic Strain as PDP’s Election Weapon

Sanwo-Olu Tunde Rahman

or Lagosians, this Saturday’s governorship election promises to be decisive. It will put many issues finally to bed. One of the issues that must be put to rest is the chasm that some are trying to create and exploit between Yoruba and Igbo people in Lagos. Even among brothers within the same family who love and care for each other, differences arise at times. No two people can see eye to eye on all things. But because of the bonds of affection, shared interests and common objectives, brothers usually mend their differences and this process can even evoke a stronger, more empathetic relationship. The same holds true for the relationship between the two tribes. The relationship is a complex, multidimensional one running the full gamut of socio-cultural and political interaction and exchange. This means there will be points of harmony and convergence of interests as well as points where interests diverge. This is but a function of human nature and thus should generate no unique animus between the two groups. Truth be told this same dynamic is at work within each group. Neither Yoruba nor Igbo are entirely monolithic. Subdivisions and divisions exist within the groups that are as profound and telling as those between the two groups. The real issue is not that there are differences. The more pertinent issue is how we treat those matters. Do we allow these differences to enflame ethnic passions? Or do we resolve these differences as Lagosians seeking to resolve matters in a way that benefits us all as citizens of the same Lagos. Lagos has been very accommodating because the people and the government in the state are cosmopolitan and broad-minded in outlook. The Lagos model has been a very good one. On a functional, day to day basis, we have tried to minimize the harsh distinction many places draw between indigene and others. We want people to function and see themselves as Lagosians. With the inclusion of Igbo in appointments as commissioners and chairmen of agencies in the state, which began during the Asiwaju Bola Tinubu’s era as governor, Lagos has set a standard of ethnic inclusion in the governance of this state. The prism through which we view Saturday’s governorship elections has been altered by the results of the presidential election. Prior to the presidential contest, the PDP doused the nation with fulsome boasting that the election

Agbaje

was already in their hands. They were celebrating victory before the players had even taken the field. Then reality came. They lost and lost by a great margin. Buhari won over 15 million votes. Barely clearing 11 million, Atiku Abubakar ’s and the PDP’s defeat was a resounding one. They can shout as loud and as long as they want, they lost and they know they lost. The reality of this loss has set them on the path of desperation. Being rebuked from the seat of federal power, they have become adamant that they must conquer Lagos. They crave Lagos because they need access to government funds to maintain themselves and their party. They are still not accustomed to being the party in opposition. The funds they amassed after 16 years with their hand in the federal purse have been sorely depleted. If they can’t have access to federal money for another four years, then tapping into the Lagosian treasury is the next best thing in their estimation. If they cannot eat of the fruits of Lagos as their electoral consolation prize, they fear they will collapse from political starvation. Additionally, a sense of revenge motivates them to attack Lagos. Lagos is the home of the APC National Leader Asiwaju Tinubu. The PDP understands the pivotal role Tinubu played as the co chairman of the winning presidential campaign council. He was at the heart of the campaign planning and strategy that culminated in the deracination of the PDP’s presidential hopes. So, in an act of desperate revenge, the PDP and many of its key personalities have shifted their angry attention and dwindling resources to Lagos in a bid to capture the state. They pledged to themselves that they would stop at nothing and let nothing stop them in this mission of misplaced revenge. PDP Presidential Candidate Atiku, outgoing Senate President Bukola Saraki, who also succumbed by tumultuous defeat, and their agents have committed themselves to this spiteful objective. The PDP hopes to stoke the embers of Yoruba-Igbo animosity in order to accomplish their aim. The PDP believes Igbo were the bulk of the vote that Atiku achieved in Lagos during the presidential poll. The PDP has misread this as a sign of a great divide between Yoruba and Igbo in the state. Thus, the PDP now weaponises the divide and frames the governorship election as some sort of battle between the Igbo and Yoruba. This is far from correct but close to reckless. Part of the dynamics at work during the presidential election has much to do with the presence of former Anambra State governor, Peter Obi, on the ballot

as running mate to Atiku. Thus a vote for the PDP in the presidential election was a vote for a popular fellow Igbo and not a vote against Yoruba or an indictment of the present state of relations between the two groups. Again, we must remember that the relationship is a complex one with many points of interaction. Some will be in unison but some will be different. Just as the Yoruba may understandably gravitate toward the APC because of VP Osinbajo, Igbo may have favored the PDP ticket because of Obi. Yet, this should not be construed for animosity. It is a point to develop greater understanding of each other for such is the way of human nature. Contrary to the prejudiced wagging of PDP hired tongues, Igbo in Lagos have fared well. Many important businesses and investments in Lagos belong to them. Ethnicity is not used as a bar to prevent anyone from realizing their dream and seeking their fortune in Lagos. No one is denied school, medical care or housing because of their surname. The Igbo who live here are fully Lagosians. They have a stake in the state and the state is better because of their contributions and the contributions of all who live here. Having invested in Peter Obi in the February 23 vote, many Igbo will likely vote for Sanwo-Olu as governor, not due to any ethnic factors but simply because he is the most qualified and prepared candidate and because the PDP is not a viable alternative in Lagos since the PDP’s designs on Lagos are to drain the state resources not to use those resources for the people. In the end, people are wise enough to vote for their daily interests and those interests are better served by the APC and not by being coerced into a game of ethnic rivalry that has no victors. Whereas the APC and its candidate are moving to douse whatever tension may have been engendered by any unfortunate and isolated incidents that occurred during the presidential poll, PDP and its candidate Agbaje are eagerly stoking discord because they believe such confrontation will profit their harmful aims. A few people may be taken in by these tricks. However, most people will maintain their rectitude and reason. Most people inherently know that such an important election – no election for that matter – should be reduced to ethnic bitterness and contestation. Rather, a meaningful election must be a contest of ideas between the candidates and a decision as to which candidate shall lead them to a greater Lagos. A greater Lagos benefits all while a lesser state impairs us all, irrespective of whether we are

Yoruba or Igbo. You don’t need to look too deep to see the difference in posture between the two parties. The APC leaders and its candidate, Sanwo-Olu, have redoubled their efforts, meeting Igbo leaders and people and members of other ethnic groups to ensure harmony, which remains our hallmark even during the intensity of the electoral period. This is why the atmosphere is one of tranquility and cooperation at the massive Aspamda Market and Balogun Business District among other places with heavy Igbo presence. Only on Tuesday, Asiwaju Tinubu met with NURTW leaders in Lagos where he appealed to them to eschew violence. According to him, people have the right to vote for any candidate of their choice. He pleaded with them to resolve the crisis within their rank and to behave in all things without rancor. Conversely, the PDP wants to rend the links between the Yoruba and Igbo in Lagos. Agbaje’s talking about Igbo allegedly receiving a short end of the stick in Lagos is but a cynical attempt at winning votes by lighting an ethnic bomb. But ask Agbaje, what has he ever really done for Igbo or anyone when he had a chance? He has only acted in his self-interest. Has he hired many people, given scholarship or provided medical care to people. The answers are no, no and no. he is in it for himself. If he thinks he must use you as his battering ram, he will not hesitate to dash your head against the wall of ethnic hatred if it sufficiently profits him. In the final analysis, however, what will win the election is not who best ignites ethnic dispute but who presents the better way to guide the state forward so that all of its people enjoy prosperity, live under equal justice and carry the hope of a greater future. Such things are not to be found with those who sow discord. These greater things are only found with those who have vision and who are compassionate and wise enough to understand that division only reduces what the future may bring. Lagos is for Lagosians and Lagosians must be for Lagos. That must be our standard. Any ploy to divide us is but a plan to ruin us. Lagosians should vote for a greater Lagos where Igbo and Yoruba as partners join hand in friendship and productive cooperation and not for a Lagos where our hands are at each other ’s throat because we were deceived to see one another as enemies. If we are true to the spirit of Lagos, then we know that we are of each other. On Election Day, let us vote down animus and the PDP brokers of hatred. Let us vote for and realize our dream of an even greater Lagos.

T H I S D AY ˾ THURSDAY MARCH 7, 2019

POLITICS

‘Under Yari, Zamfara Has Become An Arid Land’ Nseobong Okon-Ekong presents the views of Dr. Anas Sani Anka, the Chairman of Zamfara State Budget Working Group and Coordinator of the Zamfara State Civil Society Network, who thinks the state is manifesting all forms of political frustration that is driving its towards extinction

may impact negatively on the chances of Mukhtar Koguna wining the Governorship elections in Zamfara more or less, there is high tendency the courts may nullify the verdict of the lower court in respect of the APC primaries in the state.

hat is your assessment of the political situation in Zamfara State? Our story in Zamfara is sad politically. It is sad because while people in the other parts of the country are undergoing new forms of political liberation with freedom to choose those who steer the affairs of their leadership institutions, in Zamfara it has been an extension of political slavery by those privileged political stooges who believed in the idea of political maginalisation and resource manipulation. What exactly do you mean by political slavery and marginalization? I am sure with the political scenario in the state which I know you are very familiar with, you will agree with me that Zamfara state especially under the watch of Governor AbdulAzeez Yari is heading toward what many political and social affairs commentators term “political extinction”. The Governor, for instance, has succeeded in putting fear in the mind of the people, the few political elites who realized the negative direction Zamfara is heading and expressed readiness to support the desirable social and political changes are also subjected to all forms of political frustration at the level of judiciary and even the political party level. The negative political scenario in Zamfara for the past five months especially as regards to the governingAll Progressives Congress (APC) is highly worrisome and unanticipated. The Governor has demonstrated his high level of political immaturity of using force and power of money to actualize his political aspirations and this is impacting badly on the political atmosphere in the state. If we are to talk about the crises in the ruling APC, how does that concern members of the civil society organizations who are seen as neutral and non-partisan? Civil Society movement is all about people. Likewise, politics is about people. You can see the connection. Our role is to monitor politicians and the decision they take as well as measure the impact on the lives of the people. We must be concerned about the crises in the APC because it has almost brought things to a standstill in Zamfara state. The Governor has abandoned the state for the political fight with people of integrity simply because they have asked him to follow due process and do things legitimately for the overall interest of the development of the state. Now because of the Governor’s political interest of fighting everyone around him simply because he wants to maintain his political status as someone who calls the shot in Zamfara politics, Zamfara has become like an arid land where people choose to flee due to economic doom and lack of social security. The most unfortunate thing about Zamfara again is the fact that the Federal Government of Nigeria has abandoned us to our fate. Let us talk about the APC crises in Zamfara State. Do you think the decision by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to accept the candidates of Governor Yari would ﬁnally solve the problem? You see, as members of Civil Society Organisations who watch with keen interest the way the whole crises of the APC primaries took place in Zamfara state, we are of the humble view that the judgment of Justice Bello Shinkafi led State High Court has further aggravated the political tension in Zamfara state. Though I am a student of power and politics not law, but I cannot see any logical reasoning in the judgment of Bello Shinkafi where he aligned himself with the unpopular argument that the primary election conducted by the state governor and state APC executives in Zamfara is legitimate. I cannot establish the legitimacy because the laws are very clear that the powers to conduct primary elections lies squarely with the National Working Committee of the party and not the state. All of us are also witnesses to the testimonies by the Professor Fari and AVM Gana led electoral panels on Zamfara APC Primaries that the elections were not conducted within the timeframe stipulated by the electoral laws. How does Justice Bello establish the legitimacy; Yari conducted the primaries on the simple argument that he had to do that to avoid APC Zamfara losing its status in the

So you mean after the election, the status of the APC candidates may be reversed? Surely, because it is a political suicide to participate in an election that a court of competent jurisdiction ordered you to stay action. Secondly, if the appeal by Senator Marafa succeeds it would be a good lesson for an erring political gladiator like Governor Yari.

Anka 2019 elections? The question is, do the laws empower him to conduct the primaries? Whether APC will run out of time or not that should be left for the APC National Working Committee to decide. We are all learned to some extent and we don’t have to read Law in school in order to understand simple logic and reasoning. The law says the Governor or any of his agents under the state structure do not have the powers to conduct the party primaries, except the NWC. That issue shall remain that way except it is amended. But the National Working Committee has succumbed to the Governor by acceptingYari’s list on the ground that the Court of Appeal in Abuja has issued an order instructing INEC to accept the list of the candidates submitted by the Governor. What is your stake on that? For me, the Adams Oshiomhole led National Working Committee has added to the political fire burning the state already by fielding candidates that emerged from the primary elections conducted by Governor Yari. First, it was the same Oshiomhole that issued a letter of instruction that all governors of APC and their agents should stay away from conducting party primaries and also he emphasized at different media briefings that primaries are to be conducted by the electoral panels sent by the APC NWC. We have those video clips with us. Suddenly he has conceded to what I may call “political threat of the Zamfara Governor” by accepting his candidates. For me the Oshiomhole-led NWC is not fair to the group of eight (G8) candidates because the action resulted in the political embarrassment of the other contestants in the party and indeed their thousands of supporters. Again, the decision is also an indicator that there are very special people that can do and undo within the ruling APC and go scot-free. Back to the issue of the court order, there are separate appeals by Senator Kabiru Garba Marafa andAminu Jaji challenging the judgment of Zamfara High Court 3 and all parties including Oshiomhole- led NWC, INEC and Governor Yari faction of the APC have been placed on notice. By law, this means the matter is inconclusive hence the appellate court is awaited to decide on the judgment of the lower court of Zamfara state. Because of some legal permutations, Aminu Jaji decided to withdraw his appeal and allow that of Senator Marafa to remain on course. If INEC, Oshiomhole-led NWC and indeed Governor Yari have recognized the status of the Court of Appeal Sokoto I don’t see any reason why APC Zamfara shall be allowed to participate in the elections when there is an undetermined appeal? So in my opinion, the APC NWC has helped strongly in crippling the hope of Zamfara people by reversing its earlier decision of restraining state Working Committee of the party and indeed Governors from conducting party primaries. Now that APC has won the February 22nd Presidential and NationalAssembly elections in Zamfara, do you predict an end to the political crises in Zamfara APC? The fact that President Muhammadu Buhari won election in Zamfara does not really interpret

the verdict of the March 9th Gubernatorial and State Assembly Elections in Zamfara state. My facts are; one, President Muhammadu Buhari is a stand-alone pillar in the political journey of any state in Nigeria. He does not need the support of any corrupt-minded politician to win elections in any part of Nigeria. This theory has been tested in 2003, 2007, 2011, 2015 and now in 2019. Rather, people like Abdulazeez Yari need Buhari and his political reputation to win elections at all levels. Secondly, we are all witnesses to the types of political robbery that took place in the name of elections in Zamfara on Saturday 22nd February 2019. What happened was a clear demonstration of the political rejection the Governor and his political allies have suffered in the hands of the common people of the state. We have cases where ballot papers were denied to the people who have been accredited and ready to vote. We have experienced cases of ballot boxes being snatched and all forms of political thuggery just because the Governor wanted to win election by all means. But I am telling you for the Governorship elections coming on the 9th of March 2019, people would legitimately resist all forms intimidation harassment and inducement in the name of elections. And very strongly if these group of eight (G8) unite themselves to support an alternative party for the Governorship race, take my word, APC may lose the governorship election in Zamfara. Which party do you think they may likely support? I don’t know because I am not part of them and I do not speak for them but I am sure they would gang up against the injustice of Governor Yari and surely the masses would rally behind them because people of Zamfara are agitating for realistic social and political change in Zamfara state. But why are you people so much concerned about APC? Are there no other alternative political parties that are on the ground in Zamfara? Of course there is Senator Saidu Muhammad Dansadau of NRM. He is on ground and he is campaigning vigorously, SaniAbdullahi Shinkafi of APGAis also on the ground campaigning, likewise Bello Muhammad Matawalle of the PDP is also on the ground campaigning but you know defeating a political kingship that lasted for more than a decade in states like Zamfara require strong and vibrant political alliance which may likely emerge before the gubernatorial elections. Remember even the current Governor succeeded in defeating Mahmuda Shinkafi of PDP in 2011 because of the strong political alliance his political godfather Senator Yarima established in his favour, so time has come for the political power brokers in the state to rise up to the challenge and resist the types of political injustice manifested against them by the Governor and his political allies. Are you saying the anointed candidate of Governor Yari is not popular in the state? In my own opinion as a student of power and politics, the political predicament of the serving Governor especially his attitude toward his people

There have been allegations of partisanship by INEC Zamfara especially the Resident Electoral Commissioner. How true is this? Weareworkinginsynergywithotherstakeholders to establish the substance of the allegations and as I speak to you there are significant facts we are gathering through some patriotic INEC staff in Zamfara which would be very useful for our engagement. It is so unfortunate the way Zamfara political show in 2019 has ended especially with the difficulty in establishing the neutrality of the major actors especially INEC. But this is a good ground to getting things work perfectly in Zamfara state in the future elections. There are still cases of banditry and attacks on many parts of Zamfara while the political atmosphere in the state remains tensed. Do you think Governorship election would hold peacefully in Zamfara? The question of whether governorship election would hold in Zamfara peacefully or not should be left for the security agencies to answer. Nevertheless, the resurgence of killings and abductions in the state is really a source of concern. And this is why Zamfara needs political stability to enable it re-strategize its security architecture. And I think this is why the Governor should understand that political instability is directly connected to issue social safety net of the people. You cannot achieve peace and stability under a political structure that is rejected by the majority of the people. The Governor should understand that, in politics, rejection by the people is an attribute of failure and when you run a government for close to eight years and your people reject you, then it is a positive conclusion that you have run a failed government. You don’t impose yourself on people but what is legitimate is to allow people choose you. The case of President Muhammadu Buhari has vindicated this theory because Buhari has not imposed himself on the people but people looked for him and voted for him voluntarily. If you are opportune to see the President what would you request from him on behalf of Zamfara people? I will demand for one thing from President Muhammadu Buhari: supporting Zamfara people to institute good governance that would help the government at the center to address the lingering security crises in the state as well as strengthen the economy through agriculture, enhancing of small and micro businesses, reviving education, overhauling of the health sector and in general terms enhance the state revenue base through creation of investment opportunities. These are basically what we are lacking and every serious state government needs to have reliable blue print that defines its policy objectives toward these critical areas I mentioned. What about the military aspects of the ﬁght against the bandits in Zamfara? I always argue that why Zamfara conflict could not be successfully ended is because the Governor and indeed all other actors in the security management of the state have this wrong perception of using military and police as the only option. In conflict management, it is always assumed that when people take arms against the state then certain social, economic and political policies are not functioning effectively. Since the early stage of this conflict in Zamfara we have been advising the state government to decisively review its socio-economic policies, especially those on poverty reduction, employment generation, as well economic development. The government failed to listen and this is where we are today lamenting all the time.

T H I S D AY Ëž Ëœ ÍľËœ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍˇ

FEATURES

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

Steady Climb on the Steps of Honour Nseobong Okon-Ekong writes that a silent industrial revolution is taking place in Akwa Ibom state with the establishment of a couple of strategic businesses that is changing both the economic panorama and the social orientation of the people

R-L: Gov. Udom Emmanuel, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo and the MD of Jubilee Syringe Manufacturing Company, Mr. Zubeyir Gulabi

our years after she obtained an HND in Business Administration from the Abia State Polytechnic, Uduak Akpan Edet was still on a job hunt. Today, she is a Quality Inspector at the Metering Solutions Manufacturing Services Limited in Onna, Akwa Ibom State. Working in an engineering services company wasn't part of her dream, but it has since become one of the biggest revelation of her life. Though she is from Akwa Ibom, this fact only gave little comfort regarding her employment in the company. The team that recruited her was looking for a teachable person who could grasp the volume of knowledge that was going to be imparted to her. Another factor for her employment was the ability to share knowledge acquired on the job. Coming from another part of the state meant she had to rent accommodation in the vicinity of her office. It's going on two years since she exited the teeming army of unemployed youths. The 29 year-old now has the privilege of a decent income to take care of her family, while conveniently servicing a well-furnished N45, 000 per annum one bedroom apartment. One may say that Hanson Nsima is working in a familiar environment having studied Mechanical Engineering at Cross River State University of Technology. However, staying at home for six after graduation

could mean that he had become rustic. Like Uduak, 28 year-old Hanson had to be retrained for the task at Metering Solutions. The company started operations in September of 2017, producing 2000 metres daily. Its target is to hit 1.5million metres per annum. Already, there is an upward surge in demand. Owing to its novelty, Mr. Tolulope Ogunkolade, general manager in charge of operations at the company conveniently brands it "the most privileged business in Nigeria." Reason? It is servicing a market that it has an exclusive hold on. The company started doing business with Port Harcourt Distribution Company.The business has been so good that it uses its success story as a testimonial to pitch for a working relationship with tje other 11 DISCOS. "Our product is top of the notch and made to satisfy the requirement of the customer, said Ogunkolade. So far, the company has supplied over 200,000 metres to PHDC. King Flour Mills is located at Ukat, Onna Council. The factory is nearing completion. With over One metric tonne of wheat materials imported into Nigeria, the company is positioned to help meet the inexhaustible pool of demand for flour in the country. The milling business is one of three key investments by a group of companies led by Mr. Zubeyir Gulabi. Its leading enterprise is syringe manufacturing, for

which it has already established a good reputation with two fledging factories in Calabar, while one is located in Port Harcourt and Ilorin respectively. With the Jubilee Syringe Manufacturing Company Limited in Onna, Gulabi believes importation of the critical medical product will reduce considerably. According to him, "Syringe is the peak of point in the plastic manufacturing line." The company has set the goal of producing 500 million syringes every year. The last, but not the least in the Gulabi industries bouquet in Akwa Ibom State is the St. Gabriel Coconut Oil Factory in Ikot Akpan Okop, Mkpat Enin Council. Ground breaking of the company was done on May 29, 2017. Its target is to service the Nigerian cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries. Among other products, it will manufacture natural body cream. Apart from the factory, St. Gabriel has secured a vast expanse of land for the cultivation of coconut trees. For the peoples of Awa, Mkpat Enin and Onna who had never experienced the multiplier effect of domiciling an industry in their community, it is a world of discovery. Suddenly, there is a demand for good accommodation with modern facilities from staff of these companies. Road networks have been developed to the site of these industries, while power infrastructure have also been sited in these communities. The companies have started to build a robust CSR to

enhance harmony with their hosts. This includes, but is not limited to allocation of quota of employment to qualified indigenes. If the operational impact of these industries have lifted Akwa Ibom State to an enviable second place in terms of Foreign Direct Investment, the intervention of state-funded businesses, which are run according to international best practices have also been one of the defining marks of the Governor Udom Emmanuel administration. Supervised directly by the governor's office with Senior Special Assistant on Technical Matters and Due Process, Mr. Ufot Ebong, in charge, government's involvement in business is pooled under the Akwa Ibom Enterprise and Employment Scheme (AKEES). It is one of the tangible elements of Emmanuel's driving philosophy, 'Dakkada', which aims to rouse the people to greatness. AKEES specifically targets to awaken the spirit of enterprise in Akwa Ibomites. So far, it has engaged 3017 persons, giving them an opportunity to acquire life changing skills, while earning a token sum of money. Ebong envisages that the people will imbibe the simple but critical change that Emmanuel seeks to achieve. "There is a long queue of people waiting for political patronage by becoming PAs or SAs. The governor wants to change that mindset; from consumption to production.

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Workers at the Metering Solutions Manufacturing Company

Production at Jubilee Syringe Manufacturing Company, Onna

AKEES Plastic Factory

â€œThere was a boom in the real estate sector which our people were not prepared

for. So, it was Togolese, Beninoise and Ghanaians who took full advantage of

working as skilled artisans. We want to go back to the basics; get people to take a

pride in becoming bricklayers, electricians and the like. There is so much credit in this country if small businesses can keep their books." The AKEES Industrial Park in Itam is government's showpiece of its willingness to create businesses that can provide jobs and export. Ebong said the governor is hungry to see Made-in-Akwa Ibom products take their pride of place. Though critics are quick to ridicule the government's effort at establishing toothpick, pencil and crayon factories, Ebong dismissed such condemnation as the product of ignorance. "You are talking about a N820 billion industry. This is a miracle happening in Akwa Ibom. Everything we do is climate change compliant." The AKEES Industrial Park has seven composite industries, producing all range of fibre glass doors and roofing sheets that are fire and termite proof. There is a woodcraft segment and plastic manufacturing plant. When the long-lasting nature of hydraform blocks became evident, the section caught many fancies. The blocks were said to have a lifespan of 150 years. Nothing best demonstrates that harmony can be achieved between the All Progressives Congress (APC) controlled federal government and the Akwa Ibom state government which is founded on the philosophy of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP); like the Fertiliser Blending Factory in Abak Council. Operated by Greenwell Technologies. The fertiliser is produced strictly for the federal government's Presidential Fertiliser Initiative. Every bag of the product has been marked, even with the price tag of N5500. The company has refused all offers for distributorship, which would increase the price of the product in the market, opting to continue supply to the Presidency. This is a little known evidence of cooperation between those in leadership position at both levels of government, proving that government exists only for the benefit of the people. If anyone was in doubt that Akwa Ibom has the capacity and the political will to break new grounds in sustainable and profitable business, the recent launch of Ibom Airlines, a first of its kind, more than satisfies such curiosity. Definitely, the Emmanuel administration aims to play only in the big economic league. Finally, the Ibaka Deep Seaport, another revolutionary investment by the Akwa Ibom state government has taken off under a very capable team of technocrats. The governor is committed to inaugurating the early phases of the project, which will set it on an irreversible course of progress. At the moment, the entire state is a huge roads construction site with multiple projects going on in the urban centres and in the rural areas. The energetic Works Commissioner, Mr. Ephraim Inyang-Eyen is committed to the facelift of the state through road construction. Apart from completion of the Third Ring Road, 36 Internal roads have been constructed in Uyo, the capital city. The 20 kilometre Eket-Ibeno Road that leads to Exxon-Mobil has changed the sordid narrative of road transportation in that area. The government is building a 55kilometre 12 lane Super Highway from Ibaka to Uya Oron. The road will start off the Eket Ibono Road, cutting through swamps. Both roads will be 100 commercial due to the anticipated high cost of maintenance. Some of the novelties in road construction that will gladden the heart of the people include a Cable Bridge at Ekpene Ukpa and a remodelling of Etinan Roundabout with a Fountain that can be seen from Uyo, as part of the 27 kilometre Etinan Ndon Eyo Road, featuring three linkages at Ekparakwa, Uya Iron Terminal of the East West Road. According to InyangEyen, in Eket, the biggest roundabout in the state is being built at Urua Affiong Etok. This and the Eket mini stadium including the road network round the sporting facility form the centrepiece of the new look Eket.

5 ) * 4 % ": t THURSDAY, MARCH 7, 2019

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Group Business Editor Obinna Chima Email obinna.chima@thisdaylive.com 08024557078, 08152447875

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Quick Takes Danbatta Congratulates Buhari

Ă’Ă? Ă˘Ă?Ă?Ă&#x;ĂžĂ“Ă Ă? Ă“Ă?Ă? Ă’Ă‹Ă“ĂœĂ—Ă‹Ă˜ Ă™Ă? ĂžĂ’Ă? Ă“Ă‘Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă‹Ă˜ Ă™Ă—Ă—Ă&#x;Ă˜Ă“Ă?Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ă? Ă™Ă—Ă—Ă“Ă?Ă?Ă“Ă™Ă˜Ëœ ĂœĂ™Ă? Ă—Ă‹Ăœ Ă‹ĂœĂŒĂ‹ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŒĂ‹ĂžĂžĂ‹Ëœ Ă’Ă‹Ă? Ă?Ă™Ă˜Ă‘ĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ&#x;Ă–Ă‹ĂžĂ?ĂŽ ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă“ĂŽĂ?Ă˜Ăž Ă&#x;Ă’Ă‹Ă—Ă—Ă‹ĂŽĂ&#x; Ă&#x;Ă’Ă‹ĂœĂ“Ëœ Ă™Ă Ă?Ăœ Ă’Ă“Ă? ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă?Ă˜Ăž Ă Ă“Ă?ĂžĂ™ĂœĂŁ Ă‹Ăž ĂžĂ’Ă? Í°ÍŽÍŻÍˇ ĂšĂœĂ?Ă?Ă“ĂŽĂ?Ă˜ĂžĂ“Ă‹Ă– Ă?Ă–Ă?Ă?ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ë› Ă‹Ă˜ĂŒĂ‹ĂžĂžĂ‹Ëœ Ă“Ă˜ Ă‹ Ă?ĂžĂ‹ĂžĂ?Ă—Ă?Ă˜Ăž Ă?Ă“Ă‘Ă˜Ă?ĂŽ ĂŒĂŁ ĂžĂ’Ă? Ă“ĂœĂ?Ă?ĂžĂ™ĂœËœ Ă&#x;ĂŒĂ–Ă“Ă? Ă?Ă?Ă‹Ă“ĂœĂ? Ă™Ă? ĂžĂ’Ă? Ă™Ă—Ă—Ă“Ă?Ă?Ă“Ă™Ă˜Ëœ ĂœË› Ă˜Ă‹Ă—ĂŽĂ“ ĂĄĂ™Ă•Ă“Ă•Ă?Ëœ Ă?Ă˘ĂžĂ™Ă–Ă–Ă?ĂŽ ĂžĂ’Ă? Ă Ă“ĂœĂžĂ&#x;Ă?Ă? Ă™Ă? ĂžĂ’Ă? ĂšĂœĂ?Ă?Ă“ĂŽĂ?Ă˜ĂžËœ Ă‹ĂŽĂŽĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ĂžĂ’Ă‹Ăž ĂžĂ’Ă? Ă?Ă–Ă?Ă?ĂžĂ™ĂœĂ‹Ă– Ă Ă“Ă?ĂžĂ™ĂœĂŁ ĂĄĂ‹Ă? Ă‹ ĂœĂ?ĂĄĂ‹ĂœĂŽ Ă?Ă™Ăœ Ă’Ă“Ă? Ă?Ă?Ă–Ă?Ă–Ă?Ă?Ă? Ă?Ă?ĂœĂ Ă“Ă?Ă? ĂžĂ™ ĂžĂ’Ă? Ă˜Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ë› Ă? Ă?Ă&#x;ĂœĂžĂ’Ă?Ăœ Ă™ĂŒĂ?Ă?ĂœĂ Ă?ĂŽ ĂžĂ’Ă‹Ăž ĂžĂ’Ă? Ă™Ă—Ă—Ă“Ă?Ă?Ă“Ă™Ă˜ Ă’Ă‹ĂŽ Ă“Ă˜ ĂžĂ’Ă? Ă–Ă‹Ă?Ăž Ă?Ă™Ă&#x;Ăœ ĂŁĂ?Ă‹ĂœĂ?Ëœ ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă?Ă“Ă Ă?ĂŽ ĂžĂ’Ă? Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂĄĂ‹Ă Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă?Ă&#x;ĂšĂšĂ™ĂœĂž Ă™Ă? ĂžĂ’Ă? ĂšĂœĂ?Ă?Ă“ĂŽĂ?Ă˜ĂžËœ ĂĄĂ’Ă“Ă?Ă’ Ă’Ă?Ă–ĂšĂ?ĂŽ Ă˜Ă™Ăž Ă™Ă˜Ă–ĂŁ Ă“Ă˜ ĂœĂ?Ă‹Ă?Ă?Ă?ĂœĂžĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă“ĂžĂ? ĂœĂ?Ă‘Ă&#x;Ă–Ă‹ĂžĂ™ĂœĂŁ Ă“Ă˜ĂŽĂ?ĂšĂ?Ă˜ĂŽĂ?Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ëœ ĂŒĂ&#x;Ăž Ă‹Ă–Ă?Ă™ Ă—Ă‹Ă•Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă“Ăž Ă‹ Ă‘Ă–Ă™ĂŒĂ‹Ă– Ă’Ă™Ă&#x;Ă?Ă?Ă’Ă™Ă–ĂŽ Ă˜Ă‹Ă—Ă? Ă“Ă˜ ĂžĂ’Ă? Ă‹ĂœĂ?Ă‹ Ă™Ă? ĂœĂ?Ă‘Ă&#x;Ă–Ă‹ĂžĂ™ĂœĂŁ Ă?Ă˘Ă?Ă?Ă–Ă–Ă?Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ëœ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă™ĂšĂ?ĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ă‹Ă– Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă“Ă?Ă“Ă?Ă˜Ă?ĂŁË› Ă“Ă?ĂžĂ™ĂœĂŁ ĂĄĂ‹Ă? Ă—Ă‹ĂŽĂ? Ă–Ă‹Ă?Ăž ĂŁĂ?Ă‹Ăœ ĂĄĂ’Ă?Ă˜ Ă“Ă‘Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă‹ Ă?Ă&#x;ĂœĂšĂ‹Ă?Ă?Ă?ĂŽ Ă“ĂžĂ? Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ă‹Ă– ĂœĂ™Ă‹ĂŽĂŒĂ‹Ă˜ĂŽ ĂšĂ?Ă˜Ă?ĂžĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ ĂžĂ‹ĂœĂ‘Ă?Ăž Ă™Ă? ÍąÍŽ ĂšĂ?Ăœ Ă?Ă?Ă˜ĂžËœ Ă‹Ă? ÍąÍŻË›Í˛Íś ĂšĂ?Ăœ Ă?Ă?Ă˜Ăž ĂšĂ?Ă˜Ă?ĂžĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ ĂĄĂ‹Ă? Ă‹ĂžĂžĂ‹Ă“Ă˜Ă?ĂŽ Ă‹Ăž ĂžĂ’Ă? Ă?Ă˜ĂŽ Ă™Ă? Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă—ĂŒĂ?ĂœËœ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍśËœ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŒĂ‹ĂžĂžĂ‹ Ă?Ă‹Ă“ĂŽË› Ă’Ă? ĂŒĂœĂ™Ă‹ĂŽĂŒĂ‹Ă˜ĂŽ ĂšĂ?Ă˜Ă?ĂžĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ Ă?Ă“Ă‘Ă&#x;ĂœĂ? ĂĄĂ‹Ă? ÍśË›Íł ĂšĂ?Ăœ Ă?Ă?Ă˜Ăž ĂĄĂ’Ă?Ă˜ ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă“ĂŽĂ?Ă˜Ăž Ă&#x;Ă’Ă‹Ă—Ă—Ă‹ĂŽĂ&#x; Ă&#x;Ă’Ă‹ĂœĂ“ ĂžĂ™Ă™Ă• Ă™Ă Ă?Ăœ ĂžĂ’Ă? Ă—Ă‹Ă˜ĂžĂ–Ă? Ă™Ă? Ă–Ă?Ă‹ĂŽĂ?ĂœĂ?Ă’Ă“Ăš Ă™Ă? ĂžĂ’Ă? Ă?Ă™Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂžĂœĂŁ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă‹ĂšĂšĂ™Ă“Ă˜ĂžĂ?ĂŽ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŒĂ‹ĂžĂžĂ‹ Ă‹Ă? ĂžĂ’Ă? Ă™Ă? ĂžĂ’Ă? Ă“Ă˜ Ă&#x;Ă‘Ă&#x;Ă?ĂžËœ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍłË›

Konga Travel Goes Live

E-WASTE REGULATION

L-R: Director, Public Affairs, Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Mr. Nnamdi Nwokike; Executive Vice Chairman, Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta; Director, Legal and Regulatory Services, Mrs. Yetunde Akinloye; Director Corporate Planning and Strategy, Ms. Josephine Amuwa and Deputy Chief Technical Officer, IHS Nigeria Limited, Lester Clark, during the public inquiry on the draft guidelines on Disaster Recovery and Regulations on E-waste, held in Abuja...recently

Telcos Cry Out over Multiple Taxes, Seek Tariff Review Stories by Emma Okonji Telecommunication companies (Telcos) have expressed concerns over recent move by various states ministry of environment to impose environmental impact assessment (EIA) levy on their operations across the country. They described the development as another form of multiple taxation that would impede the growth of the sector. To this end, the operators under the aegis of the Association of Licensed Telecoms Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), have written to the Federal Ministry of Environment, explaining the economic implication of allowing Statesâ€™ Ministry of Environment to collect environmental impact assessment levy directly from the operators

TELECOM across the country, after they have paid same levy to the federal government through the Federal Ministry of Environment and the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA). The operators want the Federal Ministry of Environment to review the existing telecoms tariff in order to address every anomaly with telecoms tariff and taxes. According to the operators, they obtained EIA from the Federal Ministry of Environment through NESREA in collaboration with each state ministry of environment, but wondered why the states are now coming up with fresh

demands for EIA levy, which they said, amounted to multiple taxation and charges. â€œWe have received complaints from our members that they have been receiving demand notices for environmental impact assessment payment from some states government ministries of environment, which we considered as an aberration of the existing law,â€? ALTON said in the letter, which was signed by its Chairman, Gbenga Adebayo. The letter dated February 21, 2019, sought clarification on issues such as: â€œThat the Federal Ministry of Environment has ceded the EIA oversight functions to some states ministry of environment to issue EIA certification to its members and that some states ministry of

environment as the case may be can conduct EIA process in its members without recourse to the Federal Ministry of Environment and National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA).â€? Others include: â€œThat the statutory responsibility on environmental issues of the Federal Ministry of Environment has been transferred to the states government; That the states now have power to collect ecological fund from private sector after payment has been made to them by the federal government.â€? In the letter, Adebayo requested from the Federal Continued on page 24

â€˜Africa Needs Repository of Data Analytics to Achieve Digital Economyâ€™ Nigeria and other African countries have been advised to develop data economies, through the creation of repository of data analytics that will help the continent achieve its dream of digital economy. To achieve this, African countries must create data science products, collect high value data sets, develop Application Programming Interfaces (API), develop apps and games for sale, develop African solutions as well as global solutions, that will drive the future of work for Africa, and at the same time achieve Africaâ€™s digital economy. The advice was given by experts at the Big Data and

TELECOM Business Analytics conference, powered by Information and Data Analytics Foundation (iDAF), which held in Lagos recently. With the theme: â€˜Unleashing The Power of Data Analytics to Drive Business Result,â€™ organisations were urged to invest and develop skills in data analytics to enable them make informed business decisions, irrespective of the sector they operate in. In his presentation, the Statistician General of the Federation, Dr. Yemi Kale, who was represented by a senior management staff at National Bureau of Statistics

(NBS), Mrs. Lola Talabi-Oni, spoke on the readiness of Nigeria for the big data evolution that is sweeping across globe, the opportunities around big data and its implications for business. Kale who stressed the need for a policy framework that would drive big data analytics in Nigeria and the rest of African countries, said African governments must develop policies that would enhance data collection and analytics. Addressing the challenges of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in data analytics, the Lead Convener and Founder of iDAF, Mr. Theophilus Mederios, said â€œBuying a tool from a third party vendor will

not magically make organisations the leading AI company. Currently, only a handful of leading technology companies like Google, Microsoft, Facebook, and Amazon, possess the culture, talent and infrastructure to innovate at the cutting-edge of AI.â€? He therefore stressed the need for organisations and individuals to invest in data analytics because decisions and investments made with the help of data analytics, would enhance the ability to adopt machine intelligence in the future. â€œFor companies that do not have technology as a core comContinued on page 24

Ă™Ă˜Ă‘Ă‹ ĂœĂ‹Ă Ă?Ă–Ëœ Ă‹ ĂžĂ?Ă?Ă’Ă˜Ă™Ă–Ă™Ă‘ĂŁĚ‹ĂŽĂœĂ“Ă Ă?Ă˜ ĂžĂœĂ‹Ă Ă?Ă– ĂŒĂ™Ă™Ă•Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă‹Ă‘Ă?Ă˜Ă?ĂŁ Ă’Ă‹Ă? Ă™Ă?Ă?Ă“Ă?Ă“Ă‹Ă–Ă–ĂŁ Ă‹Ă˜Ă˜Ă™Ă&#x;Ă˜Ă?Ă?ĂŽ Ă“ĂžĂ? Ă—Ă&#x;Ă?Ă’Ě‹Ă‹ĂĄĂ‹Ă“ĂžĂ?ĂŽ Ă?Ă˜ĂžĂœĂŁ Ă“Ă˜ĂžĂ™ ĂžĂ’Ă? Ă“Ă‘Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă‹Ă˜ Ă—Ă‹ĂœĂ•Ă?ĂžËœ ĂĄĂ“ĂžĂ’ Ă‹ Ă?Ă&#x;Ă“ĂžĂ? Ă™Ă? ĂŒĂ?Ă?ĂžĚ‹ĂšĂœĂ“Ă?Ă?ĂŽ Ă?Ă–Ă“Ă‘Ă’Ăž ĂŽĂ?Ă‹Ă–Ă? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă’Ă“Ă‘Ă’Ě‹Ă Ă‹Ă–Ă&#x;Ă? Ă™Ă?Ă?Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă˜Ă‘Ă? Ă?Ă™Ăœ Ă‹Ă–Ă– Ă?Ă‹ĂžĂ?Ă‘Ă™ĂœĂ“Ă?Ă? Ă™Ă? Ă‹Ă“Ăœ ĂžĂœĂ‹Ă Ă?Ă–Ă–Ă?ĂœĂ?Ë› Ă’Ă? Ă–Ă‹Ă&#x;Ă˜Ă?Ă’ ĂĄĂ’Ă“Ă?Ă’ Ă™Ă?Ă?Ă“Ă?Ă“Ă‹Ă–Ă–ĂŁ ĂœĂ‹Ă“Ă?Ă?Ă? ĂžĂ’Ă? Ă?Ă&#x;ĂœĂžĂ‹Ă“Ă˜Ă? Ă™Ă˜ ĂžĂ’Ă? Ă?Ă™Ă—ĂšĂ‹Ă˜ĂŁËŞĂ? Ă—Ă˜Ă“Ě‹ Ă?Ă’Ă‹Ă˜Ă˜Ă?Ă– Ă™ĂšĂ?ĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ă? Ě‹ Ă™Ă˜Ă–Ă“Ă˜Ă? Ěś ĂžĂœĂ‹Ă Ă?Ă–Ë›Ă•Ă™Ă˜Ă‘Ă‹Ë›Ă?Ă™Ă— Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă“Ă˜ Ă?Ă Ă?ĂœĂŁ Ă™Ă˜Ă‘Ă‹ Ă?ĂžĂ™ĂœĂ? Ă˜Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ĂĄĂ“ĂŽĂ? Ě‹ Ă“Ă? ĂŒĂ™Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂŽ ĂžĂ™ Ă?Ă˘Ă?Ă“ĂžĂ? Ă—Ă“Ă–Ă–Ă“Ă™Ă˜Ă? Ă™Ă? Ă“Ă‘Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă‹Ă˜ Ă‹Ă“Ăœ ĂžĂœĂ‹Ă Ă?Ă–Ă–Ă?ĂœĂ? ĂĄĂ’Ă™ Ă’Ă‹Ă Ă? ĂœĂ?Ă—Ă‹Ă“Ă˜Ă?ĂŽ Ă“Ă˜ Ă?Ă?Ă‹ĂœĂ?Ă’ Ă™Ă? ĂœĂ?Ă‹Ă– Ă Ă‹Ă–Ă&#x;Ă? Ă“Ă˜ ĂžĂ’Ă? Ă“Ă‘Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă‹Ă˜ Ă‹Ă“Ăœ ĂžĂœĂ‹Ă Ă?Ă– ĂŒĂ™Ă™Ă•Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă?ĂšĂ‹Ă?Ă?Ë› Ă—Ă™Ă˜Ă‘ ĂžĂ’Ă? Ă—Ă™Ă&#x;ĂžĂ’Ě‹ĂĄĂ‹ĂžĂ?ĂœĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ĂŽĂ?Ă‹Ă–Ă? ĂžĂ’Ă‹Ăž Ă‹ĂĄĂ‹Ă“Ăž ĂšĂœĂ™Ă?ĂšĂ?Ă?ĂžĂ“Ă Ă? ĂžĂœĂ‹Ă Ă?Ă–Ă–Ă?ĂœĂ? Ă‹ĂœĂ? ĂŒĂ?Ă?Ăž ĂšĂœĂ“Ă?Ă? Ă™Ă?Ă?Ă?ĂœĂ? Ă?Ă™Ăœ Ă?Ă–Ă“Ă‘Ă’ĂžĂ? ĂžĂ™ Ă–Ă™Ă?Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ă? Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă–Ă&#x;ĂŽĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă&#x;ĂŒĂ‹Ă“Ëœ Ă™Ă˜ĂŽĂ™Ă˜Ëœ Ă™Ă’Ă‹Ă˜Ă˜Ă?Ă?ĂŒĂ&#x;ĂœĂ‘Ëœ Ă?ĂĄ Ă™ĂœĂ•Ëœ ĂŒĂ“ĂŽĂ”Ă‹Ă˜ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă?Ă?ĂœĂ‹Ëœ Ă‹Ă—Ă™Ă˜Ă‘ Ă™ĂžĂ’Ă?ĂœĂ?Ëœ Ă‹Ă? ĂĄĂ?Ă–Ă– Ă‹Ă? Ă?ĂšĂ?Ă?Ă“Ă‹Ă– Ă™Ă?Ă?Ă?ĂœĂ? Ă?Ă™Ăœ ĂŽĂ™Ă—Ă?Ă?ĂžĂ“Ă? Ă?Ă–Ă“Ă‘Ă’ĂžĂ? Ă™Ă˜ ĂœĂ“Ă• Ă“Ăœ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă™ĂžĂ’Ă?Ăœ Ă‹Ă“ĂœĂ–Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă? Ă‹Ă Ă‹Ă“Ă–Ă‹ĂŒĂ–Ă? Ă™Ă˜ ĂœĂ?Ă›Ă&#x;Ă?Ă?Ăž Ă‹Ăž ĂžĂ’Ă? Ă‹Ă?Ă?Ă“Ă?ĂžĂ‹Ă˜Ă?Ă? Ă™Ă? ĂžĂ’Ă? Ă™Ă˜Ă‘Ă‹ ĂœĂ‹Ă Ă?Ă– Ă?Ă&#x;ĂšĂšĂ™ĂœĂž ĂžĂ?Ă‹Ă—Ë›

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ÍˇĂ—Ă™ĂŒĂ“Ă–Ă? Ă?Ă&#x;Ă?ĂžĂ™Ă—Ă?ĂœĂ? Ă“Ă˜ Ă‹Ă‘Ă™Ă? ĂĄĂ?ĂœĂ? ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă?Ă˜ĂžĂ–ĂŁ ĂœĂ?ĂĄĂ‹ĂœĂŽĂ?ĂŽ ĂĄĂ“ĂžĂ’ ĂšĂœĂ™Ă—Ă™ Ă‘Ă“Ă?ĂžĂ?Ëœ ĂĄĂ’Ă“Ă?Ă’ Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă–Ă&#x;ĂŽĂ?ĂŽ Ă?Ă‹Ă?Ă’Ëœ ĂŽĂ&#x;ĂœĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ĂžĂ’Ă? Ă?Ă“ĂœĂ?Ăž ĂšĂœĂ“Ă¤Ă? ĂœĂ?ĂŽĂ?Ă—ĂšĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ Ă™Ă? Ă“ĂžĂ? Ă™Ă˜Ă‘Ă™Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă?Ă&#x;Ă?ĂžĂ™Ă—Ă?Ăœ ĂœĂ?ĂĄĂ‹ĂœĂŽ Ă?Ă?Ă’Ă?Ă—Ă?Ëœ Ă‹Ă‘Ă“Ă? Ă™Ă&#x;Ăœ ĂœĂ™Ă—Ă™Ë› Ă’ĂœĂ™Ă&#x;Ă‘Ă’ ĂžĂ’Ă? ĂšĂœĂ™Ă—Ă™Ëœ Ă—Ă“Ă–Ă–Ă“Ă™Ă˜Ă? Ă™Ă? ÍˇĂ—Ă™ĂŒĂ“Ă–Ă? Ă?Ă&#x;Ă?ĂžĂ™Ă—Ă?ĂœĂ? Ă?ĂžĂ‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă‹ Ă?Ă’Ă‹Ă˜Ă?Ă? ĂžĂ™ ĂĄĂ“Ă˜ Ă?Ă‹Ă˜ĂžĂ‹Ă?ĂžĂ“Ă? ĂšĂœĂ“Ă¤Ă?Ă? Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă–Ă&#x;ĂŽĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă?ĂœĂ?Ă? Ă‹Ă“ĂœĂžĂ“Ă—Ă?Ëœ Ă?Ă—Ă‹ĂœĂžĂšĂ’Ă™Ă˜Ă?Ă? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă?Ă‹Ă?Ă’ ĂšĂœĂ“Ă¤Ă?Ă? ĂœĂ&#x;Ă˜Ă˜Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă“Ă˜ĂžĂ™ Ă—Ă“Ă–Ă–Ă“Ă™Ă˜Ă? Ă™Ă? Ă˜Ă‹Ă“ĂœĂ‹Ëœ Ă?ĂœĂ™Ă— Ă?ĂŒĂœĂ&#x;Ă‹ĂœĂŁ ĂžĂ™ Ă‹ĂŁ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍˇË› Ăž ĂžĂ’Ă? Ă?Ă“ĂœĂ?Ăž ĂšĂœĂ“Ă¤Ă? ĂœĂ?ĂŽĂ?Ă—ĂšĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ Ă™Ă? ĂžĂ’Ă? ĂšĂœĂ™Ă—Ă™Ëœ ĂĄĂ’Ă“Ă?Ă’ Ă’Ă?Ă–ĂŽ Ă‹Ăž ĂžĂ’Ă? Ă•Ă?Ă”Ă‹ Ă“ĂžĂŁ Ă‹Ă–Ă–Ëœ ĂĄĂ“Ă˜Ă˜Ă?ĂœĂ? ĂĄĂ?ĂœĂ? ĂšĂœĂ?Ă?Ă?Ă˜ĂžĂ?ĂŽ ĂĄĂ“ĂžĂ’ ĂšĂœĂ“Ă¤Ă?Ă? Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă–Ă&#x;ĂŽĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă?Ă—Ă‹ĂœĂžĂšĂ’Ă™Ă˜Ă?Ă? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ÍłÍŽËœÍŽÍŽÍŽ Ă?Ă‹Ă?Ă’Ë› ĂœĂ“Ă?Ă˜ĂŽĂ? Ă™Ă? ĂžĂ’Ă? ĂĄĂ“Ă˜Ă˜Ă?ĂœĂ? ĂĄĂ?ĂœĂ? Ă‹Ă–Ă?Ă™ ĂŒĂ?Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ă“Ă?Ă“Ă‹ĂœĂ“Ă?Ă? Ă™Ă? ÍˇĂ—Ă™ĂŒĂ“Ă–Ă?ËŞĂ? Ă‘Ă?Ă˜Ă?ĂœĂ™Ă?Ă“ĂžĂŁ Ă‹Ă? ĂžĂ’Ă?ĂŁ ĂšĂ‹ĂœĂžĂ“Ă?Ă“ĂšĂ‹ĂžĂ?ĂŽ Ă“Ă˜ Ă‹ Ă?Ă&#x;ĂœĂšĂœĂ“Ă?Ă? Ă’Ă™ĂšĂšĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă‹Ă?Ă’ ĂĄĂ’Ă?ĂœĂ? ĂžĂ’Ă?ĂŁ ĂĄĂ?ĂœĂ? Ă‹ĂŒĂ–Ă? ĂžĂ™ ĂšĂ“Ă?Ă• Ă“ĂžĂ?Ă—Ă? ĂĄĂ™ĂœĂžĂ’ Ă&#x;Ăš ĂžĂ™ Í°ÍŽÍŽËœÍŽÍŽÍŽ Ă?ĂœĂ?Ă? Ă™Ă? Ă?Ă’Ă‹ĂœĂ‘Ă? Ă?ĂœĂ™Ă— ĂšĂ™ĂšĂ&#x;Ă–Ă‹Ăœ ĂœĂ?ĂžĂ‹Ă“Ă– Ă?ĂžĂ™ĂœĂ?Ëœ Ă’Ă™ĂšĂœĂ“ĂžĂ?Ë› Ă˘ĂšĂ–Ă‹Ă“Ă˜Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ ÍˇĂ—Ă™ĂŒĂ“Ă–Ă?ËŞĂ? ĂœĂ?Ă‹Ă?Ă™Ă˜Ă? Ă?Ă™Ăœ Ă?Ă’Ă™ĂĄĂ?ĂœĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă“ĂžĂ? Ă?Ă&#x;Ă?ĂžĂ™Ă—Ă?ĂœĂ? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ĂžĂ’Ă?Ă“Ăœ Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă?Ă˜ĂŽĂ? ĂĄĂ“ĂžĂ’ ĂžĂ’Ă? Ă‘Ă“Ă?ĂžĂ?Ëœ Ă?Ă‹Ă?Ă’ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă?Ă’Ă™ĂšĂšĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ĂŒĂ™Ă˜Ă‹Ă˜Ă¤Ă‹Ëœ Ă“ĂžËŞĂ? Ă“Ă?Ă? ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă“ĂŽĂ?Ă˜ĂžËœ Ă‹ĂœĂ•Ă?ĂžĂ“Ă˜Ă‘Ëœ ĂŽĂ?ĂŒĂ“Ă?Ă“ ĂŽĂ™ĂĄĂ&#x;Ëœ Ă?Ă‹Ă“ĂŽ Ă“Ăž ĂĄĂ‹Ă? Ă‹Ă˜ Ă‹Ă?Ă?Ă“ĂœĂ—Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ Ă™Ă? ĂžĂ’Ă? ĂžĂ?Ă–Ă?Ă™ËŞĂ? Ă?Ă™Ă—Ă—Ă“ĂžĂ—Ă?Ă˜Ăž ĂžĂ™ Ă“ĂžĂ? Ă?Ă&#x;ĂŒĂ?Ă?ĂœĂ“ĂŒĂ?ĂœĂ?Ë›

Sâ€™Africaâ€™s Economy Expands

Ă™Ă&#x;ĂžĂ’ Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă?Ă‹ËŞĂ? Ă?Ă?Ă™Ă˜Ă™Ă—ĂŁ Ă?Ă˘ĂšĂ‹Ă˜ĂŽĂ?ĂŽ Ă‹Ăž ĂžĂ’Ă? Ă?Ă˜ĂŽ Ă™Ă? Ă–Ă‹Ă?Ăž ĂŁĂ?Ă‹Ăœ Ă’Ă?Ă–ĂšĂ?ĂŽ ĂŒĂŁ Ă‘ĂœĂ™ĂĄĂžĂ’ Ă“Ă˜ Ă‹Ă‘ĂœĂ“Ă?Ă&#x;Ă–ĂžĂ&#x;ĂœĂ? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă—Ă‹Ă˜Ă&#x;Ă?Ă‹Ă?ĂžĂ&#x;ĂœĂ“Ă˜Ă‘Ëœ Ă‹ ĂŒĂ™Ă™Ă?Ăž Ă?Ă™Ăœ ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă“ĂŽĂ?Ă˜Ăž ĂŁĂœĂ“Ă– Ă‹Ă—Ă‹ĂšĂ’Ă™Ă?Ă‹ ĂĄĂ’Ă™ Ă’Ă‹Ă? ĂšĂ–Ă?ĂŽĂ‘Ă?ĂŽ ĂžĂ™ ĂœĂ?Ě‹Ă?ĂžĂ‹ĂœĂž Ă‘ĂœĂ™ĂĄĂžĂ’ Ă‹Ă?ĂžĂ?Ăœ Ă‹ ĂŽĂ?Ă?Ă‹ĂŽĂ? Ă™Ă? Ă?ĂžĂ‹Ă‘Ă˜Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ë› ĂžĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă?ĂžĂ“Ă?Ă? Ă™Ă&#x;ĂžĂ’ Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă?Ă‹ Ă?Ă‹Ă“ĂŽ ĂžĂ’Ă? Ă?Ă?Ă™Ă˜Ă™Ă—ĂŁ Ă‘ĂœĂ?ĂĄ ÍŻË›Í˛ ĂšĂ?ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă˜Ăž Ă“Ă˜ Ă?ĂžĂ™ĂŒĂ?ĂœĚ‹ Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă—ĂŒĂ?ĂœËœ Ă‹Ă?ĂžĂ?Ăœ Ă?Ă˘ĂšĂ‹Ă˜ĂŽĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ĂŒĂŁ Ă‹ ĂœĂ?Ă Ă“Ă?Ă?ĂŽ Í°Ë›Í´ ĂšĂ?ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă˜Ăž Ă“Ă˜ ĂžĂ’Ă? ĂžĂ’Ă“ĂœĂŽ Ă›Ă&#x;Ă‹ĂœĂžĂ?ĂœË› Ă’Ă? Ă‘ĂœĂ™ĂĄĂžĂ’ Ă?Ă–Ă“Ă‘Ă’ĂžĂ–ĂŁ Ă–Ă‹Ă‘Ă‘Ă?ĂŽ Ă—Ă‹ĂœĂ•Ă?Ăž Ă?Ă˘ĂšĂ?Ă?ĂžĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ă? Ă™Ă? Ă‹ Ă›Ă&#x;Ă‹ĂœĂžĂ?ĂœĚ‹Ă™Ă˜Ě‹Ă›Ă&#x;Ă‹ĂœĂžĂ?Ăœ Ă?Ă˘ĂšĂ‹Ă˜Ă?Ă“Ă™Ă˜ Ă™Ă? ÍŻË›Í´ ĂšĂ?ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă˜ĂžËœ Ă‹Ă?Ă?Ă™ĂœĂŽĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ĂžĂ™ Ă‹ Ă?Ă&#x;ĂžĂ?ĂœĂ? ĂšĂ™Ă–Ă–Ë› Ă’Ă? ĂœĂ‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă?Ă˘ĂžĂ?Ă˜ĂŽĂ?ĂŽ Ă“ĂžĂ? Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă“Ă™Ă˜ Ă‘Ă‹Ă“Ă˜Ă? Ă‹Ă?ĂžĂ?Ăœ ĂžĂ’Ă? ĂŽĂ‹ĂžĂ‹Ëœ ĂžĂœĂ‹ĂŽĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ÍŽË›ÍłÍŻ ĂšĂ?ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă˜Ăž Ă?Ă“ĂœĂ—Ă?Ăœ Ă‹Ăž ÍŻÍ˛Ë›ÍŻÍ°ÍľÍł ĂšĂ?Ăœ ĂŽĂ™Ă–Ă–Ă‹Ăœ Ă‹Ă? Ă™Ă? ÍŽÍˇÍ˛ÍŻ Ë› Ă’Ă? Ă?ĂžĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă?ĂžĂ“Ă?Ă? Ă‹Ă‘Ă?Ă˜Ă?ĂŁ Ă?Ă‹Ă“ĂŽ Ă?Ă‹ĂœĂ—Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă?Ă˘ĂšĂ‹Ă˜ĂŽĂ?ĂŽ ÍľË›Íˇ ĂšĂ?Ăœ Ă?Ă?Ă˜Ăž Ă“Ă˜ ĂžĂ’Ă? Ă›Ă&#x;Ă‹ĂœĂžĂ?ĂœËœ ĂĄĂ’Ă“Ă–Ă? Ă—Ă‹Ă˜Ă&#x;Ă?Ă‹Ă?ĂžĂ&#x;ĂœĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ĂœĂ™Ă?Ă? Í˛Ë›Íł ĂšĂ?Ăœ Ă?Ă?Ă˜ĂžË› Ă“Ă˜Ă“Ă˜Ă‘Ëœ Ă’Ă™ĂĄĂ?Ă Ă?ĂœËœ Ă?Ă?Ă–Ă– ÍąË›Íś ĂšĂ?Ăœ Ă?Ă?Ă˜ĂžË› Ă˜ Ă‹Ă˜ Ă‹Ă˜Ă˜Ă&#x;Ă‹Ă– ĂŒĂ‹Ă?Ă“Ă?Ëœ Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă?Ă‹ËŞĂ? Ă—Ă™Ă?Ăž Ă“Ă˜ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă?ĂžĂœĂ“Ă‹Ă–Ă“Ă?Ă?ĂŽ Ă?Ă?Ă™Ă˜Ă™Ă—ĂŁ Ă‘ĂœĂ?ĂĄ ĂŒĂŁ ÍŽË›Íś ĂšĂ?ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă˜Ăž Ă?Ă™Ă—ĂšĂ‹ĂœĂ?ĂŽ ĂžĂ™ Ă‹ ĂœĂ?Ă Ă“Ă?Ă?ĂŽ ÍŻË›Í˛ ĂšĂ?Ăœ Ă?Ă?Ă˜Ăž Ă?Ă˘ĂšĂ‹Ă˜Ă?Ă“Ă™Ă˜ Ă“Ă˜ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍľË› Ă?ĂžĂ“Ă Ă“ĂžĂŁ Ă“Ă˜ Ă™Ă&#x;ĂžĂ’ Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă?Ă‹ËŞĂ? ĂšĂœĂ“Ă Ă‹ĂžĂ? Ă?Ă?Ă?ĂžĂ™Ăœ Ă?Ă˘ĂšĂ‹Ă˜ĂŽĂ?ĂŽ Ă?Ă™Ăœ ĂžĂ’Ă? Ă?Ă“ĂœĂ?Ăž ĂžĂ“Ă—Ă? Ă“Ă˜ Ă?Ă“Ă‘Ă’Ăž Ă—Ă™Ă˜ĂžĂ’Ă? Ă“Ă˜ Ă?ĂŒĂœĂ&#x;Ă‹ĂœĂŁËœ Ă‹Ă? Ă™Ă&#x;ĂžĂšĂ&#x;Ăž Ă?ĂžĂ‹ĂŒĂ“Ă–Ă“Ă?Ă?ĂŽ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă˜Ă?ĂĄ Ă™ĂœĂŽĂ?ĂœĂ? Ă?Ă?Ă–Ă– Ă‹Ăž Ă‹ Ă?Ă–Ă™ĂĄĂ?Ăœ ĂšĂ‹Ă?Ă?Ëœ Ă‹ Ă?Ă&#x;ĂœĂ Ă?ĂŁ Ă?Ă’Ă™ĂĄĂ?ĂŽ Ă™Ă˜ Ă&#x;Ă?Ă?ĂŽĂ‹ĂŁË›

â€œOne quick example that highlights the potential of this local market includes the need to support provision of uniforms and clothing apparels for school students, military and paramilitary officers as well as workers in the industrial sectorâ€? CBN Governor,

Mr. Godwin EmeďŹ ele

T H I S D AY Ëž ÍľËœ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍˇ

GSMA CALLS FOR REGULATORY FRAMEWORK TO DRIVE DIGITAL AGENDA

Ministry of Environment to clarify these positions, so as to guide ALTON in its dealing with the situation and to advise its members accordingly. Adebayo also called on the federal government to look into the issue of Tax and Levy Amended Order 2015, which he said, was hurriedly signed by the former Minister of Finance in the last administration, Mrs. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala. The signed order according to him, had created confusion in the taxes and levies regime and making the telecoms environment hash for business, not minding the federal government policy on â€˜Ease of Doing Businessâ€™ in Nigeria. Adebayo, had said since the order was signed in 2015, it has created a lot of confusion in the taxes and levies regime and made the telecoms environment hash for business, not minding the federal government executive order on â€˜Ease of Doing Business in Nigeria.â€™ â€˜AFRICA NEEDS REPOSITORY OF DATA ANALYTICS TO ACHIEVE DIGITAL ECONOMYâ€™

petency, even getting started can be a daunting task,â€? Mederios said. The CEO, Fireside Analytics Company that is based in Toronto, Canada, Mrs. Shingai Manjengwa, highlighted opportunities that the informal sector presents in the area of unstructured data, which she said, could be converted into structured data and used for informed decision making. â€œThere are volumes of transactions going on in the informal sector without actual data to track them, and this is where skills in data analytics come into play, and there are innovative solutions that can solve the challenges of data in the informal sector,â€? Manjengwa said. â€œIt is incumbent on all to understand the power of data analytics that will help make informed decision in the design and development of solutions that will drive the next generation workforce, without leaving it in hands of policy makers,â€? Manjengwa added.

Group Business Editor

ĂŒĂ“Ă˜Ă˜Ă‹ Ă’Ă“Ă—Ă‹ Capital Market Editor

Goddy Egene

AgriBusiness/Industry Editor

Ă™Ă˜Ă‹ĂžĂ’Ă‹Ă˜ Ă¤Ă? Comms/e-Business Editor

Ă—Ă—Ă‹ Ă•Ă™Ă˜Ă”Ă“ Senior Correspondent

Ă‹Ă’Ă?Ă?Ă— Ă•Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ĂŒĂ™Ă–Ă&#x; (Advertising) Correspondents

Ă’Ă“Ă˜Ă?ĂŽĂ&#x; Ă¤Ă? (Aviation) Ă“Ă˜ĂŽĂ‹ ĂœĂ™Ă•Ă? (Labour) ĂœĂ™Ă—Ă™Ă?Ă?Ă–Ă? ĂŒĂ“Ă™ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă˜ (Cap Mkt) Ă”Ă“Ă™Ă?Ă™Ăœ Ă–Ă“Ă•Ă? (Energy) Ă‹Ă—Ă?Ă? Ă—Ă?Ă”Ă™ (Nationâ€™s Capital) Reporters

Ă&#x;Ă—Ă? Ă•Ă?Ă‘Ă’Ă? (Money Market) Ă™Ă?Ă‹ Ă–Ă?Ă•Ă’Ă&#x;Ă™Ă‘Ă“Ă? (Maritime)

Report: 60% of Nigerian Businesses Suffer Cyberattack Stories by Emma Okonji

data breaches. He further revealed that 92.4 per cent of malwares are delivered via email, even as total cost for cybercrime committed globally added up to over $1 trillion dollars in 2018. Sharing more facts about cybercrimes, particularly as ransomware affects Small and Medium Businesses (SMBs) in Nigeria, the Market Intelligence and Research Analyst at Sidmach

Technologies Nigeria Limited, Nathanael Odofin, said 22 per cent of organisations had to cease business operations immediately because of ransomware. The report revealed that 81 per cent businesses have experienced ransomware; 66mer cent have suffered a data breach and 35 per cent were victims of ransomware. It however said anti-virus was not enough to mitigate such attacks because most of

them are reactive in nature. â€œAntivirus protects you from classic dangers like known viruses, Trojans, and worms â€“ â€˜knownâ€™ being the operative word here. Antivirus cannot protect without a signature database for detection. â€œBut most antivirus programs are reactive. A study has found that a typical antivirus will only stop 30-50 per cent of new malware when it first appears.

Unless the antivirus software has seen a particular threat in the past, it wonâ€™t necessarily protect your computer,â€? Odofin said. Referring to Verizon Data Breach Investigation Report, he reminded businesses in Nigeria that over half of all cyber breaches in 2017 included the use of malware. He described malware activities as stealing credit card details, revealing passwords and spreading spam.

Cybercrime has become the greatest threat to companies and countries globally, just as about 54 per cent of companies globally experience at least one cyberattack every year. In Nigeria, the rate of cyberattack on organisations is on the rise, as 60 per cent of firms suffer cyberattack every year, according to a recent survey jointly carried out by Sophos Nigeria Limited and Sidmach Technologies. According to the report, only 38 per cent of global organisations claim they have the infrastructure to handle a sophisticated cyber-attack, yet up to 43 per cent of cyberattack is targeted at small and medium scale enterprises (SMEs). But, it disclosed that only 14 per cent of these SMEs have effective infrastructure to mitigate cyber risks, vulnerabilities and attacks. The figures showing the rate of attacks were revealed at a one-day Sidmach/Sophos Lunch and Learn event, which held in Lagos recently. According to the Country Manager of Sophos Nigeria, Mr. Jimi Falaiye, businesses were often concerned about security of data, but unfortunately, 95 per cent of security breaches were caused by human error. â€œCyber-criminals and hackers will infiltrate your company through your weakest link, which is almost never known in the Information Technology (IT) department,â€? he said, adding L-R: Head, People Performance and Culture, KPMG Professional Services, Gloria Ibeziako; scholarship award recipient, Adikwu Agustine that it takes organisations an Akogwu and Partner, Audit/ Consumer Market and Corporate Social Responsibility, KPMG, Tope Onitiri, at the 2019 KPMG scholarship PHOTO: ETOP UKUTT average of 191 days to identify award presentation in Lagosâ€Śrecently

CSR IN ACTION

â€˜Global Daily e-Transactions Hit $1.3bn in 2018â€™ The mobile money industry processed transactions worth $1.3 billion per day in 2018, with digital transaction values growing at more than twice the rate of cash transactions, according to the recent GSMAâ€™s eighth annual â€˜State of the Industry Report on Mobile Moneyâ€™. The report showed that at the end of 2018, there were more than 866 million registered accounts in 90 countries, Nigeria inclusive, which is a 20 per cent increase from 2017. The report offered a current snapshot of the mobile money landscape and highlighting the impact that greater financial inclusion has on lives, economies and innovation, especially in emerging markets. While analysing the report, the Director General, GSMA, Mats

Granryd, said: â€œOur research shows that for the worldâ€™s most vulnerable, the benefits of mobile money are real and wide-ranging. Throughout 2018, the GSMA has continued to support operators in reaching customers that have traditionally been underserved by the financial system. â€œThe mobile money industry is fast-evolving against a backdrop of increasing internet access and smartphone adoption, and now more than ever, mobileâ€™s unparalleled global scale provides a tremendous opportunity to reach the 1.7 billion people who remain financially excluded.â€? This yearâ€™s State of the Industry Report looked at how providers are navigating this

dynamic and shifting ecosystem, which was shaped by key trends in 2018 including: An enhanced customer experience owing to increased smartphone adoption and the expansion of mobile money interoperability; Diversification of the payments ecosystem; The introduction of increasingly complex regulation; and A shift towards a â€œpayments as a platformâ€? business model connecting consumers and businesses with a range of third-party services. Impressed by the growth of mobile money and financial inclusion penetration in emerging markets like Nigeria, the GSMA is currently talking with the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), the telecoms industry regulator, on how best

to collaborate to drive 5G network rollout in Nigeria by 2020, in order to boost connectivity that will further deepen financial inclusion in the country. Speaking on connectivity at a collaborative meeting between NCC and GSMA in Abuja recently, Head, sub-Saharan Africa for GSMA, Mr. Akinwale Goodluck, had said: â€œMobile connectivity has already improved the welfare of millions of Nigerians, opening the door to new digital possibilities and powering the countryâ€™s economic development.â€? He had added that for Nigeria to take full advantage of the next phase of its digital transformation, itâ€™s vital that collaboration between industry and government enables the

right policy environment for millions more to benefit from ultra-fast mobile broadband. According to Goodluck, â€œIf policies donâ€™t keep pace with the needs of society and technological innovation, there is a risk that citizens will be left behind and productivity and competitiveness will suffer.â€? The Executive Vice Chairman of NCC, Pro. Umar Garba Danbatta, had said at the meeting that trial testing of the rollout plan had commenced in the country, beginning with the Eko Atlantic project, where broadband data would drive connectivity and allow humans to interact with connected devices to check their health status, and remotely control home appliances without physical contact.

Zola Electric Announces Expansion into Nigeria ZOLA Electric, a renewable energy brand in Africa, with 200,000 installations and more than 1,000,000 daily users, has announced plan to bring clean, affordable, reliable 24-hour power to Nigeria. A statement quoted the companyâ€™s Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Bill Lenihan, to have said ZOLAâ€™s entry into the Nigerian market was in line with the mission of the company to use distributed renewable energy solutions to make clean, affordable reliable 24- hour accessible for anyone, anywhere.

â€œZOLA Electric is a power solutions pioneer that is now one of the most trusted brands in Africaâ€™s distributed renewable energy market. â€œWe have successfully delivered our clean, affordable and reliable power solutions across Tanzania, Rwanda, CĂ´te dâ€™Ivoire, and Ghana. Weâ€™re super excited to make our clean, affordable and reliable 24 power solutions available to Nigerian homes, business and organisations,â€? he said. Lenihan, explained that the company would expand its distributed smart storage + solar

energy model and launch an affordable renewable energy alternative for Nigerians in a bid to deliver clean energy access to over one million households and businesses in Nigeria over the next three years. The expansion, according to the statement, was focused on improving environmental, health and economic outcomes while driving the transition to clean, renewable energy. â€œNigeria is a rapidly expanding economic powerhouse, with population growth tipped to surpass the United States by 2050. It is Africaâ€™s largest

economy and its biggest oil producer. Despite this, the Nigerian electrical grid is unable to meet basic energy demands. â€œPower from the grid is unreliable and expensive and this has driven more than 100 million Nigerians to rely on diesel generators to power their basic energy needs in their homes or apartments. â€œWith the current electricity access deficit in Nigeria affecting an estimated 80 million people each day, ZOLAâ€™s expansion will help Nigerian homes and businesses to access reliable 24 hours, with smart storage + solar for a monthly price that is less

than the average energy outlay on diesel generators. â€œBy combining our PAYGo micro-finance leasing and mobile money payments, ZOLAâ€™s energy access model is financially inclusive and adaptable to energy need and income,â€? Lenihan said. He further revealed that the affordability of ZOLAâ€™s systems allows customers to redirect their current energy spend on diesel and power bills towards a smart storage and solar system that they will own in the long term resulting in significant cost savings for

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BUSINESSWORLD

ANALYSIS

Leveraging Big Data for Strategic Communications The application of big data has changed the narrative in measuring the impact of strategic communications on brands and advertising, writes Emma Okonji

everal decades ago, it was difficult to measure the impact of advertising and other strategic communication endeavors due to poor tools available to measure communications impact. For several centuries vague and imprecise relationships were drawn between communication campaigns and the impact they had on the target audiences they were meant to impact. A successful American merchant, John Wanamaker, whose retail store chain business reached its peak several decades ago, said the problem of measuring the impact of advertising and other strategic communication endeavors remained a mirage. That was the case because of the poor tools available to measure communications impact. Often in the in the field of marketing, communicators were content with conclusions like, â€œwe advertised last week and sales increased, so it must have worked.â€? At that time, communicators would always generalise their conclusions with the belief that most advertisements were actually meeting the targeted audience without proof. Computing tools But with the emergence of computers and computing technology and strong links to computing tools from computer science, mathematics, statistics and engineering, the narrative changed and these technology tools have continued to play a bigger role in the transmission of messages as well as the measurement of the impact of mass messages and strategic communications. Today, these tools are not only applied in the verification of the impact of communications but also serve as platforms to message design and targeting. For example, the controversies that trailed the election of President Donald Trump of the United States (US), the allegations leveled against Cambridge Analytical in Brexit and the US elections that brought President Trump to office; the revelations of Edward Snowden and National Security Agency (NSA) surveillance programme, brought to light by Wiki leaks, all attest to the fact that the application of the tools of mathematical sciences to strategic communications can cause significant disruptions in politics, social behavior and even consumption patterns. As technology evolves, new measuring tools like big data and big data analytics also evolved that completely demystified and transformed measurement of key results in advertising and strategic communications. These tools and the data they work with are at the heart of what we have come to describe as big data. According to American data analytics giant, SAS, â€œBig data is a term that describes the large volume of data â€“ both structured and unstructured â€“ that inundate a business on a day-to-day basis. But itâ€™s not the amount of data thatâ€™s important. Itâ€™s what organisations do with the data that matters. Big data can be analysed for insights that lead to better decisions and strategic business moves.â€? Impact of big data Big data has continued to address the challenges of inaccurate measurement through the use of empirical data, not only confirming what aspect of ad spend is wasted but even determining what should be spent to avoid wastage altogether. Today, big data has made it possible for communicators and advertisers to personalise and customise marketing communications messaging and even ads to each specific person. With big data analytics, advertisers are able to reach each individual no matter the size of the people. With big data, people can now even customise and personalise website pages depending on whoâ€™s viewing them, where they are and when they are viewing these websites. The study of behaviour and understanding customersâ€™ preferences using complex algorithms and therefore design specific messages that meet their personalities and preferences that will increase the success of strategic communications goals, have been made easy through big data analytics.

Adoption Despite the ease that big data and big data analytics have brought to the advertising industry, a recent research survey conducted by Caritas Communications, a Nigerian public relations firm, revealed that as laudable as the possibilities of big data are, Africa has been slow in adopting the technology. Big data techniques have been applied to address challenges in communications, media and entertainment globally. Other fields of human endeavours where it has also been applied include: banking and finance, healthcare, education, manufacturing and human resources, government, retail and wholesale trade. These sectors have benefitted immensely from insights generated from big data. But in Africa, however, there has been a slow uptake of big data for a number of reasons. Advancing the reasons based on the inference drawn from the survey report that was conducted by Caritas Communications, its Head, Media and Communications, Mr. Ejiro Obodo, blamed the situation on paucity of data and poor record keeping practices; illiteracy and poor reading culture; low investment in analytical tools and lack of technology infrastructure; preponderance of decision making based on hunches and rule of thumb; lack of adequate investment in data gathering in the public and private sector; inadequate manpower to handle big day problems; and high cost of data and computing, among others. According to Obodo, â€œIn particular, the monumental skills gap makes it inevitable for small African companies and agencies to go without tailored insights because, where available, they cannot afford to pay a big data expert. The skills gap is so pronounced that in countries like Nigeria and Kenya, job postings for data experts in companies are posted periodically with most of them left unfilled because of the dearth of required skill.â€? Public relations companies and indeed others who are interested in strategic communication must bar these limitations as Mr. Wanamaker would have done in the 20th Century, if the technology at our disposal today was available to him,â€? Obodo said. Granted that not all strategic communications companies can make the required move to adopt big data and analytics in their operations, those that have the wherewithal to do so, stand the chance of gaining considerably and improving the quality of service delivery their clients enjoy. â€œAt Caritas, we toe this line as we have made strategic investment in tools that give us some edge. Of particular interest is our investment in a big data tool which uses algorithms to sift through the internet and

notify us of hidden stories related to our clients on Twitter, Facebook.com, LinkedIn, blogs, Instagram, news websites among others. But this is not all there is. Big data offers so much more,â€? Obodo said. Big data in Africa Looking at the opportunities of big data for strategic communications, Obodo is of the view that PR companies on the African continent, would stand a chance of benefitting from big data. Citing Ulrike RĂśttger et al in his book on big data analytics, which explained that â€œBig data enables strategic communicators to analyse the needs, opinions, attitudes and behaviour of their stakeholders in detail. From the planning to evaluation, big data analyses make corporate communication more analytic and potentially more strategic,â€? Obodo said PR practitioners, who adopt big data and analytics, equip themselves with broader knowledge base for situation analysis. In this context, big data can be used to analyse things like share-of-voice and company/client activities in a more meaningful and far reaching way. The resulting improvement in market and competition analysis provides insights about the share of oneâ€™s online discourse or which company has a greater share-of-voice across several regions. â€œCompany/client profiling is enhanced by insights generated from big data. Detailed analysis of company-relevant topics and how insights should be applied to ad wording/ messaging or which channels should be used to disseminate information or the optimisation of online-touchpoint analysis are all potential uses of big data,â€? he said, adding that big data provides opportunity to better develop oneâ€™s own strategy. It can be used to analyse how, when and most of all where the target group looks for information about a certain group of products or a topic, as well as in which ways it expresses its opinion. Detailed target group analyses of aspects like region and demography are also possible. The predictions According to the research report, due to the scarcity of fibre optic network connectivity in Africa, mobile phones are the major means of internet connectivity. The sub-Saharan Africa has a subscriber base of over 444 million, equivalent to about nine per cent of subscribers globally. The regional subscriber base is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.8 per cent for the period 2017â€“2022, which is more than double the global growth rate over the same period. The total number of smartphone connections in sub-Saharan Africa stood at 250 million at the end of 2017, equivalent to around a

third of the total connections base. From this massive number of devices, enormous quantities of data are generated. For every moment social media is assessed, a picture is uploaded, orders are made online, the weather forecast app is used on a mobile device, and data is generated that is added to the vast amounts already in circulation. This, according to the report, has shaped new avenues of information about consumer habits. Across the continent, both domestic businesses and international companies are rotating to big data to inform their growth strategies. Data-oriented start-ups are also beginning to grow. Banks and financial firms have noted this development and are clamber to use the data generated by their customers to improve customer service and security. The report also looked at mobile revolution in Africa and how it has recorded tremendous rise for financial inclusion, while citing the World Bankâ€™s statement, which said between 2011 and 2014 the proportion of adults with a bank account in sub-Saharan Africa rose from 24 per cent to 34 per cent, adding that commercial banks in sub-Saharan Africa could use the statistics to increase the number of future bank accounts. The report also considered the impact of big data on healthcare and how healthcare organisations can benefit from digitising, combining and effectively using big data. This could enable a range of players, from singlephysician offices and multi-provider groups to large hospital networks, to deliver better and more effective services. The healthcare sector generates huge volumes of data by essentially keeping meticulous patient-health records thus with the turn to digital record keeping, large volumes of data are generated. â€œJust like in the business world, availability of big data in the healthcare sector, presents an opportunity to discover relationships, patterns and trends within the data. Same as in the business world, big data presents an opportunity to identify patterns and trends in data, which when analysed, presents an opportunity in deriving insights that might lead health providers, practitioners and stakeholders in making better diagnostics, discovering better treatments for diseases, monitoring and preventing disease outbreaks,â€? the report said. The report is of the view that big data and data analytics would allow companies understand their customers better and provide valuable insights about human behaviour and intentions. It added that with support and direction, the development community could actually encourage the growth of the craft of â€˜data scienceâ€™ to enhance evidence-based decision-making.

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Tackling Downtime in Businesses Emma Okonji examines the impact of technology service downtime on businesses and how it affects customers and the economy

echnology, no doubt, is fast driving businesses and speeding up transactions. But despite the fact that technology has become a catalyst for business growth and development, technology service downtime could also be devastating and cause sleepless nights to service providers and customers, if not properly handled. One can be quick to say that we are currently in the tech age, the era of mobility. Virtually every aspect of our daily life is connected or affected by information and communications technology (ICT), systems and applications. Our television sets, home theatre and air conditioners are now inter-connected and remotely programmed and controlled via internet connectivity. With mobile devices, we have endless possibilities on our palms. We can make payment for goods and services, transfer and receive money, open or operate a bank account on-the-go. Travelling also becomes easier as one can book a flight, reserve a hotel room, or pay for a bus ticket from any location. In offices, doors are now automated with chips-encrypted cards that enable access. Car stereos and mobile phone devices are now linked, providing seamless communication while on wheels. Telecom, airline, hospitality, transport and financial services, the media and ecommerce platform operators are among leading sectors in Nigeria that leverage the power of technology. The emergence of tech start-ups and tech hubs has also lent credence to the potential of Nigeria as a strategic market for the development of ICT generally. In spite of these advantages, the same technology could fail for several reasons and cause serious downtime in business that could lead to heavy financial loss and business setback. Technology as next frontier Experts have said tech is the next frontier of socio-economic development. No wonder businesses and organisations, regardless of sector, industry or size, have continued to give priority and allocate sizeable budgets to the automation of their processes, tapping the huge benefits that technology impacts on the value chain. Organisations seeking innovative ways to deliver efficient, speedy and qualitative products and services, create platforms for positive customer experience, using appropriate technology. Investment in the ICT sector in Nigeria was estimated to be about $70 billion as at 2017 contrasting with $50 million recorded in 2001. The telecoms industry had in the last four years, remained resilient even in the face of most daunting economic challenges the country has ever experienced. The industry has made a quarterly contribution of between N1.4 trillion to N1.5 trillion to the nationâ€™s GDP, according to the statistics released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). There were 174 million active subscribers on the nationâ€™s telecommunications networks as at January, 2019, while the figures for internet users hit 113.8 million in the same month. According to the Executive Vice Chairman, Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Prof. Umar Danbatta, the significant leap was a result of the issuance of Digital Mobile Licences (DML). Technology hiccups Notwithstanding the exciting narratives about the power of technology, businesses, organisations, institutions and users of their services, however,

Broad Street

have had occasions to face the challenges and disappointments to which even technology is susceptible. Outages or hiccups commonly known as downtime or disruption of services, are some of the limitations technology-dependent sectors and industries are familiar with. However, downtime is not peculiar to Nigeria. It is a global phenomenon. For example, in 2017, British Airways experienced a major systems failure that put more than 75,000 passengers on the edge and cost the airline over $68 million in passenger reimbursement. HSBC, one of the worldâ€™s leading banks, and Royal Bank of Scotland also suffered information technology (IT) outages that affected thousands of their online customers and resulted in temporary loss of productivity and revenue.

Telecom, airline, hospitality, transport and ďŹ nancial services, the media and e-commerce platform operators are among leading sectors in Nigeria that leverage the power of technology. The emergence of tech start-ups and tech hubs has also lent credence to the potential of Nigeria as a strategic market for the development of ICT generally. In spite of these advantages, the same technology could fail for several reasons and cause serious downtime in business that could lead to heavy ďŹ nancial loss and business setback

Customersâ€™ experience In Nigeria it is not different for service providers and customers. Daily, customers of telecom firms besiege the customer care centres or make frantic calls to complain about service downtime resulting either in inability to recharge, make calls or use their data. Often, customers get to their banks and they must wait for â€˜network to comeâ€™ before they can be attended to. At some instances, payment channels such as Automatic Teller Machine (ATMs), Point of Sale (PoS) and mobile apps are down because of IT outage. Routine system maintenance or major system upgrade or software migration, sometime, becomes a nightmare for banks. Technology-dependent service providers witnessed many unsettling moments in 2018.Customers of many telecom firms experienced persistent poor quality of service, dropped calls, undelivered text messages and buffering internet connectivity. Many banks had systemsâ€™ breakdown and operations went comatose. Customers, who could not withdraw money, make transfer or use online payment channels, were angry. Some threatened to shut down bank operations or close their accounts. Unsuccessful log-in to airline portals to book flight tickets, and flight delays or cancellation drew the ire of dissatisfied passengers. Service providersâ€™ experience What the customers are not aware of, however, is that the issue of downtime goes beyond the service providers. Downtime is often caused by a combination of environmental factors such as unsteady electric power supply. The power problem alone has many attachments including high cost of alternative sources of power and attendant increase in overhead cost. Power surge can also cause damages to appliances. Banks, which subscribe to shared bandwidth option because of high cost of service charged by Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and telco networks, sometime experience service disruption because of poor network. Thunder strike equally

affects hardware like modem, router, switch and radio systems, while software failure can occur. Human error in the configuration of network, and destruction of network cable and underlaid fibre optics by road constructors and vandals are some other factors. Natural disasters such as flooding and acts of terrorism also come to mind. Impact on economy Downtime can impact significantly on the national economy. IT operations evangelist at Splunk, Guillaume Ayme, citing recent research into IT outages carried out by Quocirca, said:â€?The average cost of service downtime to a financial services organisation is over ÂŁ105,000 per event with the value of more significant outages being far higher. With companies averaging three outages per month, losses can be significant over a financial year â€“ ÂŁ3.78 million over 12 months for an average financial institution. Customers have high expectations of their financial services providers, so the reputational impact can be considerable, too.â€? For a country like Nigeria that is just at the base level in cashless policy, having the correct understanding of the challenge matched with the appropriate strategy in place can ensure businesses mitigate and even prevent this flipside of technology. Hence, the federal government must redouble efforts in bridging the gaps in critical support infrastructure such as steady electric power. Though it is a commendable feat that the implementation of the National Broadband Plan (2013 â€“ 2018) attained 31 per cent mark by December 2018, experts are of the view that government should set a higher broadband target to meet the growing demand for broadband access. Experts have equally called on service providers to continuously invest in technologies and people, and as well adopt best practice operational activities and processes. The need for interventions against operational downtime is because while IT systems outage is sometimes unavoidable, downtime doesnâ€™t have to be.

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Mastercard, Angaza Partner on Tech Solutions for Emerging Markets Stories by Emma Okonji Mastercard, one of the leading technology companies in the global payments industry, has signed a global Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Angaza, a last-mile distribution technology, which will see the two companies partner to rollout an efficient digital payment solution that increases

access to affordable necessities, like solar home systems and water pumps, for people and businesses in emerging markets across the globe. Leveraging Angazaâ€™s payas-you-go embedded metering and monitoring technology and Mastercardâ€™s cutting-edge digital payment solutions and infrastructure including QR technology, the partnership

Gokada Announces Plan for Driver Training School Gokada, the Lagos-based ondemand motorcycle taxi app, has celebrated its first year in business with the launch of its new office in Ilupeju. The transport tech disruptor in the ridesharing industry has also confirmed that the new corporate headquarter will house a stateof-the-art driver training school, set to train and verify up to 500 riders at a time, which is due to open in April 2019. Gokada is the future of quick, safe and reliable transport in Nigeria, where riders can either hail or request drivers via the newly re-launched mobile app that is available on Android and iOS. In just 12 months of operation, Gokada has secured close to 1,000 bikes and completed around 5,000 rides across Lagos Mainland each day. To mark the launch of the new Gokada headquarter, the Founder and CEO, Mr. Deji Oduntan, hosted a panel with Nigerian tech start-up founders, many of whom arrived on Gokada bikes. Discussing how his company is tackling the $1 billon Nigerian Okada-riding market, Oduntan,

said: â€œGokada was built on a super simple premise, moving Lagos citizens around the traffic-plagued city, safely and quickly. Congestion smothers our entire economy and affects all businesses - from SMEs to corporate giants. We tackle this head on, acting as a catalyst for the economy to boost productivity and keep the city moving; on two wheels. â€œInvesting in drivers, investing in tech, incorporating feedback from our customers into our product design, providing reliable and fast service to thousands of riders each day - these are all core aspects of what we have prioritised over the past year of operations at Gokada, as we work tirelessly as a team to be the future of two-wheeled transport.â€? According to him, â€œWhilst we celebrate and look back at a strong first year, we are now doubling down to make 2019 an even bigger year, as we consolidate our position as the motorcycle market leaders. As part of this, we will be looking to launch in new cities as well as introduce new verticals to our offerings.â€?

Huawei Unveils New Smartphone Few months after releasing its Y9 2019 smartphone to the market, Huawei, last week, announced its latest flagship â€˜Y Seriesâ€™ device, the Huawei Y7 in Lagos. Created to empower Nigerians to realise their true potential, the Huawei â€˜Y Series combine quality technology and stylish design at a truly affordable price. The new Huawei Y7 Prime 2019 features the latest 6.26-inch Huawei Dewdrop display, 13MP Artificial Intelligence (AI) camera with 1.8 sure aperture lens, long lasting battery for up to 48 hours talk time and an octa-core Qualcomm SoC Snapdragon 450. The Y7 Prime addresses todayâ€™s video-centric social media landscape. To maximise the display area for todayâ€™s video-loving youths, Huawei puts its newest Dewdrop display in the Y7. Debuted with the flagship Huawei Mate 20 and Mate 20 X, the dewdrop display features a tiny pearl-shaped notch to house the front camera, providing the maximum amount of screen for the users to enjoy full content on screen. Speaking at the media launch, Country Manager, Huawei Nigeria, Mr. Mike Zhu, said: â€œWith a vertically aligned camera system, Huawei Y7 Prime 2019 shares a striking resemblance with a

compact digital camera. This is a deliberate design choice: The smartphone was designed to offer the best smartphone photography experience amongst devices of its class.â€? According to him, at the back, enclosed in a durable ceramic-like back cover and metallic chassis, is a 13+2MP AI Camera. The primary 13MP camera has a wide aperture of f/1.8 with 16 virtual f-stops (supporting f/1.8-6) to provide granular controls over depth of field effects. Speaking about its features, Training Manager for Huawei Nigeria, Esechie Tosin Justina, said the improved camera in the new phone, captures 50 per cent more light information compared to its predecessor. In night mode, Huawei Y7 Prime 2019 combines the light information of four photos taken in quick succession to produce a final image that is bright, clean, and full of details. Similarly, in HDR Mode, it puts together three images taken at different exposures to create a final image with better dynamic range. One of the scenarios HDR Mode excels in is taking photos of objects lit by backlightâ€”the digital combination allows the camera to capture the details of objects that are placed in darker parts of an image, Esechie said.

will not only unlock access to the basic necessities, but will also help people without access to credit or traditional banking services, start on a path to financial inclusion. The partnership follows the successful launch of Mastercardâ€™s first pay-as-you-go application programming interface in Uganda last year, which combines low cost QR technology â€“ an open and interoperable technology, with the internet of things to lead more secure and efficient

payments. The pay-as-you-go business models are emerging around the globe to give people the ability to pay for what they use, as they need it. The model adopted by Angaza allows life-changing products, such as solar home systems, clean cook stoves and water pumps, to be sold at a low upfront cost. Consumers can then pay off the cost of the products over a period of time. Executive Vice President, Digital Solutions at Mastercard, Jorn Lambert, said: â€œWe are

delighted to be partnering Angaza to bring access and inclusion to people and businesses around the world. This partnership will help consumers to overcome hurdles such as the significant cash outlay required to purchase critical items by leveraging micro-payments, which in turn also helps to build their credit history. All of this is being made available via the internet of things, which is a great democratizer and is playing a critical role providing safe, secure and accessible digital

ecosystems.â€? On his part, CEO Angaza, Lesley Marincola, said: â€œThis is a pivotal collaboration for the last-mile distribution industry, bridging Angazaâ€™s global pay-asyou-go solution with a leading digital payment provider. â€œThe addition of Mastercardâ€™s QR technology to Angazaâ€™s platform will allow solar distributors and their clients to process payments for lifechanging products securely and efficiently, while opening doors to broader financial inclusion.â€?

MOBILE WORLD CONGRESS

L-R: Public Policy Manager, Access and Connectivity, Facebook, Kojo Boakye; Network Investments Lead for Emerging Markets, Ibrahima Ba; Chief Executive Officer, MainOne,Funke Opeke and Business Executive, MainOne West Africa, Kazeem Oladepo, during the mobile world congress, held in Barcelona, Spainâ€Śrecently

NCC, Others Join eBusiness Firm Partners Tech Company Life Girls in ICT Campaign to Launch 5G Network As preparations for the International Girls in ICT Day celebration advances, Nigeriaâ€™s telecom regulator, the Nigerian communications Commission (NCC) has given its nod to be part of the campaign being organised by eBusiness Life Communication Limited in Nigeria. Also from the sectorial ICT firms, Systemspecs, VDT Communication, Vodacom Business Nigeria and Access Bank have signed on to be part of the forthcoming 8th edition of the campaign being organised by eBusiness Life, publishers of eBusiness Life Magazine in Lagos, Nigeria. The event with the theme: â€œExpand Horizons Changing Attitudes: An ICT Skilled GirlForceâ€?, which is scheduled to hold In Lagos on April 25, 2019, is part of a global campaign to encourage young girls to delve into ICT as a profession and contribute their quota to the growth of the industry in Nigeria while also actualising self-development. International Girlsâ€™ in ICT Day is an initiative launched through ITU Resolution 70 with the idea of creating a global environment that will empower and encourage girls and young women to consider careers in

the field of information and communication technologies (ICTs). In the past seven years, eBusiness Life has been organising the event annually in Nigeria, gathering young girls from different schools, to educate and sensitize them on the opportunities inherent in professions in ICT, and providing a platform for organisations to synergise on complementary ways to further the cause. Also the girls had been made to go through hands-on training on various aspects of ICT and facility visits to ICT companies to get a first-hand experience of the intricacies of the ICT firms. According to the Chief Executive Officer of eBusiness Life Communication and convener of the event, Mrs. Ufuoma Emuophedaro, the need to sensitise young girls is premised on the fact that the society has unconsciously relegated the female gender and delegated careers in technical fields, especially in ICT, to their male counterparts. She called on corporate bodies and the society at large to recommit to supporting every girl to develop her skills, enter the workforce on equal terms and reach her full potential.

At the 2019 Mobile World Congress (MWC19), South Africaâ€™s mobile data-only network operator, Rain, announced that it has launched the first 5G commercial network in South Africa in partnership with Huawei, the leading global ICT solutions provider. The move has made South Africa one of the first countries globally to launch 5G network on commercial basis. With Huaweiâ€™s end-to-end 5G solutions, Rain has been able to build the 5G network using its 3.6GHz spectrum. In the first phase of roll out, Rain has deployed a number of 5G sites in key areas in Johannesburg. Chief Executive Officer of Rain, Willem Roos, said: â€œThe network will provide fibre-like speeds without the installation complexities, time delays and cost of laying fibre in under-serviced areas.â€? Huawei, which also operates in Nigeria, launched full range of 5G end-to-end product solutions, from core network, the bearer network, and base station to terminals in the beginning of 2018. The company already launched 5G phones at MWC19. Apart from deploying new base stations, Huaweiâ€™s solutions enable Rain to fully leverage

its existing LTE network and allocated spectrum for 5G deployment. This approach of sharing facilities and leveraging existing infrastructure will enable Rain to roll out the 5G network in a quick and cost-effective manner. President of Huawei Cloud Core Network Product Line, Shi Jilin, said: â€œIt is an important step to work with Rain in bringing the first 5G network construction in South Africa. â€œWith our solutions, we are committed to working with operators with our innovative solutions to build future-oriented networks for smooth evolution and migration for the maximum value out of their investment and the best user experience,â€? he said. According to the plan, Rain will continue to expand the 5G network to cover all the major metropolitan areas in South Africa with 5G networks to provide ultra-broadband services to homes and enterprises. â€œRain is excited to build South Africaâ€™s first large scale 5G network which can provide fast wireless internet to more citizens. We are supportive of President Cyril Ramaphosaâ€™s investment drive in the country and hope to contribute to readying South Africa for the fourth industrial revolution,â€? Roos added..

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Dada: Politicians Abusing Advertising Rules on Political Campaigns The Managing Director, PRM Africa Marketing and Communications Limited, Mike Dada, in this interview with Raheem Akingbolu, condemns the way Nigerian politicians have been flouting basic advertising rules since the electioneering campaign commenced, calling on regulatory bodies to be more assertive in the future

ow would you assess the political space in Nigeria as it regards electioneering campaign in the last few months? There is no doubt that during electioneering process, some of the key elements of elections are votersâ€™ education, political marketing for the candidates and of course media management through the process. This is important because candidate needs to market and communicate their programs, messages, ideas and party ideologies to the electorates. And as such, the discipline or the practice of political marketing profession will come into bear. Since the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), rolled out the calendar over a year ago, there has been planning and strategic meetings by various political parties and their candidates on how best to educate and engage the voters. Be that as it may, a lot of things have happened in-between in an attempt to deplore and execute these political campaign successfully or otherwise. Of course, the success or failure of such move can be measured today by what has been achieved thus far through the kind of confusion or cacophony that have been created through different communication platforms. It will be apposite at this point to use two or three states as case study in analyzing this, while I will also look at the build up to the Presidential and National Assembly elections that was concluded over a week ago. As professionals in the field of marketing and Public Relations, a few of us have had to sit down and study the trend and concluded that it would take a miracle for some candidates to win because of the nature of campaigns they run and the counter campaign deplored by their opponents to counter whatever strategy they tend to execute. For instance, the other party that lost the presidential election, in my opinion could have done better in terms of the strength and scope of its campaigns. I was privileged to be in many states while the campaign lasted and I saw that one party was more prevalent in terms of brand awareness, presence and strength. One was stronger than the other. Political marketing is both Science and Arts and so the level of awareness, affinity with potential voters and engagement can be measured. Through their campaign mantra; â€˜Letâ€™s get Nigeria Working Againâ€™ and â€˜Move to The Next Levelâ€™, one can also measure which one resonates more with the people. Coming to the state, we also found out that many politicians have not imbibed the idea of engaging professionals to undertake their political marketing strategies and execution. Many politicians are still at that crude method of inviting their family and friends to put things on posters without necessarily dissecting and developing deliberately a political marketing strategy for the brand of the politician. It is also impressive that some have raised the bar by engaging professionals, who execute their campaigns and it shows in the way they approach the public. In Lagos for instance, politicians like Bola Tinubu, Raji Fashola, Jimi Agbaje, Akinwumi Ambode and Babajide Sanwo-Olu have all worked in this direction. For these set of politicians, one easily sees some levels of sophistication and uniqueness in the way their campaigns were conceptualized and executed. Handling campaigns professionally was also noticeable in the way the young presidential candidates like; Kingsley Moghalu, Fela Durotoye and Omoyele Sowore deplored their strategies. They all leveraged on many platforms, especially

Dada

digital media to connect with the public. Though they got minimal votes but their messages were clear and directed at the right audience. Unfortunately, running a campaign professionally is just a factor to win election in this part of the world because party structure and funding play bigger roles. What all these have thought us is that political campaign in Nigeria has improved over what it used to be but it can get better when it is compared with what is obtainable in the advanced world. Every election year, Nigerians are bombarded with a debased environment as a result of indiscriminate placement of posters by politicians. Are there no ways through which this can be done professionally? I quite agree with you that the streets were littered with posters during the build up to the elections but it is not as a result of not having environmental laws in place to guide such conduct. In fact, some states move a bit further by having state-owned outdoor regulatory agencies under which issues like these are addressed. A good example is Lagos State that established Lagos State Signage and Advertisement Agency (LASAA) and in the last 10 years, the agency has consistently insisted that rules and regulations guiding placement of posters should be followed. The essence of this is to maintain some level of sanity in the state to avoid tacky environment that will not appeal to the eyes. The major problem is that some states are not enforcing the laws objectively and this often leads to criticism from other parties and other stakeholders. Letâ€™s take Ogun State for example, in the last few months; candidates of other political parties have had to cry out that the ruling party in the state was allegedly not providing a level playing field for all politicians, in the area of deploring campaign materials. These set of politicians allegedly believe that government of Ogun State

was blocking them from displaying their campaign materials so that they would not compete with their candidates. I have only used Ogun State as a case study but truth is that that is what is obtainable in almost all the states because some of our government officials rarely act objectively in Nigeria. Politicians are the problem, especially those already in the office, who will want to stifle oppositions and deny them the opportunity of having access to public platforms and even state own media houses. Moving forward, I think the National Broadcasting Commission should be harder in its approach to regulation of the state-owned radio and television stations to create a level playing field for all politicians regardless of parties. The bottom line is that the laws are existing but the problem has always been in the area of enforcement and abuse of office by politicians who always want to take it all. If the regulators are firm and the take-it-all mentality is discouraged, then things will be in order. Are you saying enforcement was weak during the build up to the elections? To some extent, it was weak but beyond that I think the politicians too didnâ€™t play it responsibly. There is impunity everywhere and this is arm-twisting the regulators. In the quest of competing and battling for the hearts of the electorates, the environment suffers and this is very dangerous for our image. I say this because if foreigners enter any of the Nigerian cities during election, they will think we are living in the jungle and this is bad for our international rating. In other climes, there are rules that guide all these but we abuse it here. At this stage, Nigeria as a nation should be thinking more about building and respecting institutions and not personalities. Over the years, we have been contending with weak institutions but strong personalities and this is not good for the polity.

In this election year, deploring of A-Frame structures on major streets becomes more pronounced than previous years. As one of the early promoters of this system of advertising, how will you rate the quality of those structures? Like you have rightly said, our firm, PRM Africa has been credited for pioneering the use of A-Frame on the major roads as a form of exposing advert contents for political marketing. Why did we do that? Iâ€™m sure that will be the next question but the truth is that as at the time we did as part of the execution platforms for the political campaign of the incumbent governor of Lagos State, Akinwunmi Ambode then 2014/2015, we wanted to raise the bar and create a unique platform that would better sell our client. We realized that there was huge vehicular and human traffic in Lagos and we wanted to leverage it. We wanted to take the advantage and create huge top of mind awareness for the candidate who possess many unique qualities that were unknown to the people at that time, where it would be in the faces of the people by placing the A-Frame in the median of many roads in Lagos. We started with Ambode and replicated same during the Lagos at 50 celebration and for other candidates in other states and other cities in Africa. Let me quickly add here that before we embarked on the campaign, we got necessary approval from LASAA and we played by the rules all through. Coming to the question of whether the structures out now meet the standard or not, the rules of professional conduct will not allow me to do that. Besides, it will be arrogant and unfair to start commenting or running down the contents or works of other professionals. It is the client and the voters who are the target that can determine whether they are okay or not. Having said that, I think what differentiates one platform from the other is the content and the message and how far they resonate with the public or prefer solutions to the communication challenges. For it not to be abused too, I think in future, it may be regulated by government. What was the feedback your agency get when A-Frame was first deplored as a political marketing strategy? The feedback was positive, especially on the part of our client, his party and the electorates. As at the time we used it in 2014, Ambode, though an accomplished professional and public officer, was relatively known in the political space and he had a Jimi Agbaje that already had certain level of brand equity. Besides, the outgoing governor then, Mr. Raji Fashola was equally a popular person. With that, we had an outgoing governor who was popular, we have an opposing candidate who was popular and we needed to differentiate Ambode and register his brand in the minds of Lagosians where necessary in Lagos. We felt that the first thing to do was to create a top of the mind awareness before moving to the next level of building the brand and that informed the use of A-Frame structures as an outdoor platform. Of course, we also leveraged other platforms like the radio, television, digital and billboard but we were excited more about A-Frame because of the feedback we got afterwards. For instance, I still remember that some top industry players, including a former President of the Public Relations Consultants Association of Nigeria (PRCAN), Mr. Chido Nwakanma wrote articles to commend the A-Frame platform.

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Female Pilots Taking over the Cockpit Evarest Nnaji Aviation has been a manâ€™s game for decades â€” despite womenâ€™s significant contributions from the beginning. But now aviation leaders say they want to ensure more leading roles for women. The â€œboys clubâ€? of aviation is a result of many decades of neglect, ignoring or diminishing womenâ€™s contributions, creating artificial hurdles and sending mixed-messages to young girls, especially in advertising. The fact is that women have played a pivotal role in the growth of aviation from the beginning, and particularly during times of war. They have piloted, helped build and maintained aircraft, even helped build the systems that keep aircraft flying safely. In time past, aircraft piloting was more of STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) subjects and concepts, but technology has twisted and turned that around. With nimble fingers and a well organised mind, electronics computers have put flying in the hands of anybody with basic education as well as articulate mind and the passion to fly. Many people know of Amelia Earhart, whose mysterious disappearance while crossing the Pacific Ocean continues to garner speculation, but other women who accomplished great things in aviation are, sadly, less well known. Willa Beatrice Brown was the first African American woman to earn her pilotâ€™s license in 1938 and a commercial pilotâ€™s license in 1939. She was also the first African American woman officer to serve in the US Civil Air Patrol and the first woman in the US who was qualified both as a pilot and as an aircraft mechanic. She even helped found the Cornelius Coffey School of Aeronautics. In her spare time on the ground, Brown was also the first African American woman to run for Congress. This suggests lots of capabilities amongst women that would require encouragement Over the past ten years, the number of women successfully gaining their ways into the cockpit around the world, and in Nigeria too, is overwhelmingly encouraging. This can be attributed to the fact that the factors that had hindered ladies into the cockpit have been completely eliminated with modern day science and greater awareness in the society. With hydraulic system enhancement and computerisation of flight controls, flying no longer requires so much of physical human power; you now need more articulate and multitasking minds to excel in the modern day cockpit. In the hierarchy of attributes required to fly an aircraft in our modern world, male special attributes like higher physical strength now occupies nowhere; conversely, multitasking

Adeola Sowemimo of Qatar Airways

ability which is regarded to be found more in women is in the upper echelon of the hierarchy. Ladies are also considered to have less societal pressure and are naturally endowed to be much calmer; these also occupy a higher space in the hierarchy of attributes. Human intelligence which sits atop all the attributes is shared equally by both gender. Therefore, male pilots can no longer, realistically, be said to have better chances to cockpit in the modern time aviation world. In the Nigerian society, given the nature of boldness with which our women have embraced the challenges to measure up to the current world order, be it business, politics, art and fashion etc, the only identified inhibiting factor that might militate against having near equal number of gender in our cockpits over the next twenty years, would be the cost of training and self-limitations. But that has also, always, been a factor to both gender. At the moment, it costs as high as $100,000 to $200,000 to train an initial pilot up to commercial flight. And very few families can afford that cost in our society, especially with the current economic downturn. But this is again where women have advantage if one considers that aviation investors are more likely to invest in initial training of female pilots than

male; reason being that research has shown that ladies when drawn on an agreement to serve the sponsoring organisation for a given period to offset training costs, are more likely to do so than their male counterpart without resorting to rancour which have over the years discouraged investors from sponsoring initial trainings for pilots. There is push back from all corners in the past to helping women develop and grow in Aviation, both out of a concern for equality and for economic reasons. Airlines now realise that they are going to run critically short of the â€œmanpowerâ€? they need to grow, and are making a priority of recruiting and training more women to take charge. Considering these factors, business aviation like every other highly technical commercial adventure where consistency and reliability is key; as well as a commercial enterprise where income and return to investment is also a critical success factor, women in our modern world stand the brighter chance of taking their full share of the aviation cockpit. Motivating factors for pilots are second to none if one considers that an average captain earns as high as $10,000 per month in the industry today. Of course you cannot earn that high in your first year as pilot but it is something that can happen within a few years

as a pilot, all things being equal. It is also a highly dignified profession capable of rubbing away completely any iota of inequality or lack of self-esteem, especially for women in our third world environment. Rigorous enhancement professional trainings; ranges of safety awareness; system functionalities; geographical and climatic condition as well as highly technical communication precision etc, trainings and retraining associated with the art, positions aviation pilots men and women to live out their lives fulfilled anywhere in the world. In conclusion, where financial resource is not a factor and excellence is desired; and boldness resides in the mind, distaff is most desired in the cockpit for the safety, reliability and consistency in our current aviation world where glass ceiling has already been shattered and history is being made on daily bases. Commercial aviation investors crave for more stability in their ever challenging operations, ladies are generally more cool headed, a not-easy-to-find amongst male pilots, especially nowadays; so, ladies are more likely to get pilot job position if the opportunity is placed between two equally qualified male and female. So opportunities for female pilots in Nigeria is matchless and highly probable.

MyBucks, Frankfurt-based Fintechs Consumers Commends Capri-Sun Records 30% Loan Growth 100ml Pouch Size Frankfurt Stock Exchangelisted Fintech, MyBucks S.A. has released solid interim results, including a 30 per cent increase in its loan book and a 24 per cent increase in revenue. The increase in loan book demonstrates the success of the Groupâ€™s strategy to become the leading pan-African digital bank. The quality of the book at the same time has increased substantially, as shown by the reduction in impairments (from 19,4% to 11,2%), a statement revealed. The Executive Chairman of MyBucks, Dave van Niekerk said, â€œThis reduction in provisions is due to two main reasons. Firstly, the composition of the banking operations becoming a greater part of the business, and secondly our A.I. continuously improving. We anticipate provisions to further reduce, with the banking segment further growing in importance and the A.I gaining further traction.â€?

To fund the substantial growth, the Group has been able to raise an additional EUR 50 million of debt. While debt increased, the cost of funding reduced substantially to an average annualised cost of funding at 15,8 per cent (from 20,2%). The reduction in rates was due to the banking operations raising cheaper funding through customer deposit and the Group continuing with the success of its local bond programmes as well as refinancing of high-interest legacy debt. The loss before tax for the period amounted to EUR 2.1 million. Its operating cost increased due to additional cost requirements from the banking operations as well as the additional cost associated with the Capfin (Australia) and Pride (Malawi) acquisitions. The acquisitions have been fully integrated which should result in a reduction in costs for the second half of the year. The Group also embarked on a cost cutting

process, which was concluded by December 2018. Van Niekerk added: â€œThe results are testament to the solidity of the MyBucks business, the strategic acquisitions and our investment in technology. As a Group, we have finalised the integration of all our acquisitions and we have disposed of non-strategic and all loss-making operations and have begun to reduce operational expenses while continuing to grow. â€œThe Group is now well positioned to start seeing the benefits of the past two years and all the underlying operational subsidiaries are profitable. We are proud to have won four European Fintech awards over the last three years and are working hard to generate additional revenue on the back of our technology. We are on track to build the leading pan-African digital bank â€“ combining our technology, licenses, and know-how in all the markets in which we operate.â€?

At a retail price of N50, Capri-Sun, a fruit drink for children in Nigeria, has been introduced in a new 100ml pouch size in order to meet an increasing consumer demand for more exciting and unique options. The new pouch size is an addition to excite consumers with the goodness of Capri-Sun, but more importantly, to give them the power of choice. Still with the same signature taste and playful pouch, the Capri-Sun 100ml pouch is handy, pocket-friendly and keeps to the brandâ€™s promise of ensuring a taste of fun in every pouch. A statement explained that consumers would enjoy the variety of options, ease and convenience in the 100ml pouch, as well as its healthy, naturally tasty and satisfying experience that promotes an atmosphere of fun and adventure.

â€œThe introduction of the new 100ml pouch size is in keeping with current trends, and is based on a richer understanding of consumer desires to enjoy handy, affordable, convenient and unique Capri-Sun experience in exciting options. â€œFor now, only available in Orange and Apple variants, the launch presents a key advantage to drive value and excitement into the category by offering an appealing product option in line with consumer expectations,â€? it added. According to the Managing Director of Chi Limited, Deepanjan Roy, the Capri-Sun 100ml pouch size was uniquely designed in response to consumer demands. â€œCapri-Sunâ€™s playful pouch and signature taste which lead to unique experiences of fun, adventure

and carefree pleasure, have made it the preferred fruit drink for children in Nigeria. The 100ml pouch size will delight consumers who have craved for handy and pocket-friendly product choices,â€? he stated. â€œThe Capri-Sun 100ml pouch size now joins the 200ml by pouch size, which is available in cartons of 40 and 16 pouches and retails for N70, on the market shelf. It is available in all departmental stores and neighbourhood shops located across Nigeria. â€œTrusted by mothers for its health benefits and widely popular with children across Nigeria for its delicious taste, Capri-Sun is made from natural ingredients, with no artificial sweeteners, and no preservatives. It is healthy, great tasting and filled with lots of energy and fun,â€? the statement added.

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Fueltrax Sponsors Nigerian-American Naval OfďŹ cer to Outdoor Race Emma Okonji Fueltrax, a United States-based company that operates in the maritime industry has announced plan to sponsoring a Nigerian-borne US Naval Academy graduate and US Navy officer, LT Jesse lwuji, for a marine race competition in Las Vegas, US. The sponsorship would see Iwuji making his first ever Las Vegas Motor Speedway start in the NASCAR Gander Outdoor Truck Series Race, making him the only current military member racing in NASCAR that entire weekend and doing so with Reaume Bros Racing. Commenting on the sponsorship, the CEO of Fueltrax, Anthony George, said: â€œItâ€™s always been a passion for my wife Michelle and I to give back to young men and women and help them reach their dreams. â€œlwuji is a big dreamer and a hard worker and we are honored to help him continue on his journey to success in NASCAR.â€? The West Africa Operations Manager of Fueltrax, Bene Okorie, said: â€œWe are so grateful for our Nigerian-based marine operators and proud to support lwuji both as one of our very own from our community, and as a first-generation American pursing his dreams. Nigerians everywhere should be proud of Jesseâ€™s success.â€?

14,000 Farmers, Traders BeneďŹ t from NSIP says NANTS Oluchi Chibuzor withagencyreport

Meanwhile, Citracks, a locally-based service partner for Fueltrax in Nigeria, has expressed its excitement over the partnership deal, adding that it will further boost marine operations management both in Nigeria and in the United States of America, more so that over 50 per cent of Fueltrax operations are based in Nigeria. Head of operations at Citracks, Frances Ogujawa, said: â€œWe partnered Fueltrax to oversee system installation because they set the standard for Electronic Fuel Management System (EFMS) in Nigeria, making the services that we both provide our clients more reliable and easier to support locally. The partnership highlights the high performance standards of not only Fueltrax, but also of their local partners like Citrax.â€œ lwujiâ€™s agent, Matt Casto, said: â€œFueltrax is such an authentic fit. High performance and advance technology go hand and hand with NASCAR, and since lwujiâ€™s family is from Nigeria, he has a strong connection with the same community the Fueltrax serves. To make things even better, Iwuji has a deep understanding of vessels as a current Surface Warfare Officer.â€? From its inception in 2004, Fueltrax has grown to be the leading universal fuel management solution for offshore marine vessels, compatible with any class, engine or fuel type.

The President, National Association of Nigerian Traders (NANTS), Mr Ken Ukaoha, has said 14,000 members of the association benefited from the National Social Investment Programmes (NSIP) of the federal government. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) quoted Ukaoha, to have said this in Abuja, at a news conference. He noted that the success of President Muhammadu Buhari at the just concluded presidential elections had fulfilled the aspirations of many Nigerians. He said traders and farmers had benefited from the laudable programmes of the federal government. Ukaoha congratulated Buhari for his reelection and urged him to do more in the area of social investment programmes. He said that before Buhariâ€™s re-election, members of the National Executive Council of the association had paid a solidarity visit to the president to table the needs of traders and farmers.

Ukaoha said during the visit, the association urged Buhari to examine cases of tradersâ€™ grievances with regards to illegal seizure of their goods and the subject of overtime cargo by the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS). According to him, the association urged Buhari to provide a credible and predictable trade policy for the countryâ€™s growth, while seeking the harmonisation of taxes and charges to address multiple taxation. He said the association also discussed the non representation of their members in the 17 Agencies and Parastatals under the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment. â€œWe want our members to be included in all statutory boards of agencies related to their activities, including NCS where import duties paid by traders have kept the countryâ€™s economy on its feet,â€™â€™ Ukaoha said. He said that the association also urged Buhari to address the incessant market fire disasters which affects the tradersâ€™ livelihoods as

well as the economic dreams of Nigeria. Ukaoha advised the federal government not to abandon the TraderMoni and other related schemes helping the poor operators. The News Agency of Nigeria reported that TraderMoni is an empowerment scheme of the federal government created specifically for petty traders and artisans across Nigeria. More than 1,2 million petty traders across the country have so far benefitted from the scheme. According to Ukaoha, majority of its members have started to pay back the TraderMoni as it has a six months period. He said for the agriculture sector, NANTS called for increased budgetary allocation to the sector in order to advance improved productivity, food security and the economic diversification agenda. Ukaoha said the association also requested for 60 per cent of the agriculture investments to be earmarked for small scale agriculture. According to him, traders

should be made to benefit from all social capital schemes such as the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), pensions and others not presently favouring farmers. â€œIn addition, we call on the incoming administration to seek ways of revitalising the agriculture extension services in order to reduce the wide extension-farmer ratio and facilitate access to extension agent contact by farmers. â€œThe successes achieved in the Growth Enhancement Support Scheme (GESS) and the Anchor Borrowers Scheme should be sustained through the institutionalisation of the schemes. â€œThe Land Use Act needs to be reviewed to grant ease of access to lands for small scale farmers and women farmers in particular. â€œWe need documented plan of action that will activate improved access to inputs, credits, and address climate change impact, market access for domestic produce, and the prevention and ending of herders- farmersâ€™ crises,â€™â€™ he said.

Group to Organise Food, Drinks Festival Hamid Ayodeji The third edition of Nigeriaâ€™s food, drinks and culture festival known as the Lagos International Food and Drinks Festival (LIFDF), is set to take place in Lagos, on March 23, 2019. The festival, which would welcome over 10,000 visitors and hundred vendors, was inspired by a courageous and universal cultural energy that has translated into the flavours of its cuisine and strong sensibilities of its spirits. According to a statement signed by the Event Director, Ike Steve, the event would feature indigenous cuisines, drinks samples from over 40 Nigerian ethnic groups, live musical performances, comedy shows and also various competitions including cooking, music, dance, eating and drinking as well as food and art exhibitions. He further noted that there would be dance performances by cultural groups, chef master classes, childrenâ€™s fun activities, wine tasting sessions, seminars on food and nutrition, match making sessions between small and medium size enterprises (SMSEs) and exhibitions of products by various vendors. â€œOn a nationalistic front, when this festival evolves to its maximum potential, it will boost the business behind the food industry in Nigeria; thinking of the generation of increased economic activities for the chefs, caterers who participate, then

the restaurants, hotels, eateries that accommodates them and the business growth it would generate for local suppliers of goods and services in the food industry. â€œExpanding the horizon of our thinking to what this means when we introduce global exposure to the product; the world would understand that Nigeria is so much more than her current stereotype, which benefits our tourism product, increases our exports of both goods and services while helping generate the much needed foreign exchange,â€™â€™ Steve stated. He also explained that part of the efforts to expand this edition of the event would be the Beer Festival, Lagos would be co-hosted with the food festival. This, he said was designed to celebrate Nigeriaâ€™s shared drinking culture and a love of celebrating life. Steve added: â€œThe Beer Festival promises to be the largest annual gathering of beer enthusiasts, celebrities, bar crawlers, connoisseurs, and those who simply want to learn more about beer. â€œIt is a chance for brewers to network with old and new fans, while also giving them an ideal opportunity to put a face to the creator of their fans favourite beer. â€œAlso the festival would highlight the health benefits of moderate consumption of beer as nutritionists and beer experts would be on hand to meet with the visitors and share insights.â€?

BOOSTING TECH EDUCATION

L-R: Sophos Product Manager at Mart Networks Nigeria Limited, Opeoluwa Ojumu; Manager, FLIMS Business Unit, Sidmach Technologies Nigeria Limited, Akintunde Opawole; Sales Engineer, Sophos, Christopher Odutola and Head, Marketing at Sidmach, Lanre Adelanwa, during Sophos/Sidmach Lunch And Learn event held in Lagosâ€Śrecently

PEBEC Commences 60-Day Action Plan on Ease of Doing Business Peter Uzoho In line with the commitment to deliver reforms aimed at improving the enabling environment for doing business in Nigeria, the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) has commenced the fourth 60day National Action Plan (NAP 4.0) on Ease of Doing Business (EoDB). The NAP 4.0, which would run from the 1st of March to the 29th of April, 2019, aims to further reduce the challenges encountered by SMEs and businesses in identified areas of focus. These areas include starting a business, getting credit, paying taxes, enforcing contracts or trading within and across borders, amongst others, by eliminating critical bottlenecks and constraints to doing business in Nigeria.

A statement which disclosed this, revealed that the first, second and third National Action Plans on Ease of Doing Business, which were coordinated by Enabling Business Environment Secretariat (EBES) of the Council, resulted in significant progress over the past three years. Working in collaboration with the ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs), the fourth National Action Plan was anticipated to strengthen these ongoing reforms, and improve the Ease of Doing Business frameworks adopted. Some of the targets achieved in NAP 3.0 included driving registration for utilisation of the National Collateral Registry to facilitate access to credit for SMEs; clearance of all pending NAFDAC registration applications to improve efficiency; and creation

of a strengthened single joint cargo examination interface in all airports & seaports for import and export to reduce the time spent at the ports. The Minister for Industry, Trade & Investment and line minister for the intervention, Dr. Okey Enelamah, was quoted to have stated: â€œThe NAP 4.0 has been launched to deepen the reforms delivered and drive institutionalisation. We have highlighted key action items in each of the focus areas to ensure the reforms delivered do not unravel, and to ensure we drive sustainability.â€? Also speaking on the commencement, the PEBEC Secretary and Senior Special Assistant to the President on Industry, Trade & Investment, Dr. Jumoke Oduwole said: â€œThe Council will continue to work extensively with all MDAs, the National Assembly

and various arms of government on various reforms critical to an enabling business environment. â€œFor the NAP 4.0, these include targets such as enforcing compliance with SLAs across all focus areas, driving the passage of the CAM Bill 2018 for improved effectiveness of company law in Nigeria, enhancing efficiency in the small claims court, and enhancing the application and approval system for visas on arrival, to mention a few.â€? She further stated: â€œWe will also engage public and private sector stakeholders, and intensify efforts to communicate the reforms to ensure the benefits are realised. â€œWe have already started a number of communication initiatives, including setting up a website for access to all information on all reforms at www.businessmadeeasy.ng.â€?

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Sunola Unveils New Products Raheem Akingbolu Sunola Foods Limited, manufacturer of Sunola Oil has unveiled new extensions of the Sunola brand in the seasoning, grains and sugar class of consumer foods to consolidate its portfolio of food brands as a one-stop choice by mothers for virtually all their food consumables. The new products launched recently in Lagos, included Momâ€™s Curry Powder, Sunola Rice, and Sunola Sugar. The Momâ€™s Curry Powder which was the flagship product comes in a 100g sachet of 200 pcs packed in a carton. While the Sunola Rice comes in a pack of 1kg and 2kg as introductory stock keeping units, the Sunola brand of granulated sugar comes in a 500g pack. Addressing journalists amidst trade partners and celebrities, an Executive Director of the Company, Dr. Satish Nair, said the new extension of the Sunola brand were products of extensive research process that took cognizance of the different Nigerian recipes, cultural culinary methods and consumer taste across the diverse ethnic groups and regions of the country. â€œMomâ€™s Curry Powder is a product of extensive research formulated to deliver that distinctive taste in foods that everyone looks forward to in the meals prepared by their mothers. It consists of garlic, ginger, turmeric and its production process include drying technology. â€œThe parboiled rice which comes in very portable sizes of 1kg and 2kg would meet the purchasing power of everyone and best fit for storage in kitchen cabinets,â€? Nair explained. Corroborating the claims

asserted by Nair during the unveiling ceremony of the products, Nollywood actress notable in Yoruba movies, Mide Funmi Martins, who vetted Momâ€™s Curry Powder during a meal sampling session attested that the aroma of Momâ€™s Curry Powder is distinctively unique and has become the choice of her family. Martins said, â€œthe secret of any successful marriage is cooking good sumptuous meal and curry is a very essential ingredient that must be in any womanâ€™s kitchen.â€? â€œTo keep a man in marriage, a woman must know how to prepare a good meal. As a celebrity and a dedicated wife and mother, I know the recipes to prepare meals that make my husband and family happy at all times and Momâ€™s Curry Powder is one of the major recipes which I hereby unveil, present and recommend to all Nigerian moms,â€? she added. Following the unveiling ceremony, the National Sales Manager, Adarsh Bhaskaran hinted the media about the marketing activities to drive the new products across the channels to reach the consumer. He said, â€œthere would be a road show pan Nigeria to raise awareness and a 12-month cooking contest across all regions in which a mom would be selected per region and at the end of the regional contest, there would be a grand contest of the regional winners to determine the winner of the â€˜Nigerian Momâ€™ title.â€? Bhaskaran explained further that the new products would enjoy an integrated marketing effort through traditional and new media as well as effective distribution and redistribution across all 36 states in the bid to ensure effective market penetration.

Wâ€™Bank: Despite Gains, Women Face Setback in Legal Rights Ugo Aliogo Globally, women are accorded only three-quarters of the legal rights that men enjoy according to a new index released by the World Bank, constraining their ability to get jobs or start businesses and make economic decisions that are best for them and their families. â€œIf women have equal opportunities to reach their full potential, the world would not only be fairer, it would be more prosperous as well,â€? said World Bank Group Interim President Kristalina Georgieva. â€œChange is happening, but not fast enough, and 2.7 billion women are still legally barred from having the same choice of jobs as men. It is paramount that we remove the barriers that hold women back, and with this report we aim to demonstrate that reforms are possible, and to accelerate change.â€? The index, introduced in the study Women, Business and the Law 2019: A Decade of Reform, looked at milestones in a womanâ€™s working life, from

starting a job through to getting a pension, and legal protections associated with each of these stages. The data spans a tenyear period where 187 countries are scored according to eight indicators. According to the report, achieving gender equality is not a short-term process, requiring strong political will and a concerted effort by governments, civil society, international organisations among others, but legal and regulatory reforms can play a foundational role as an important first step. â€œProgress over the last ten years in the areas measured by the index has been significant. During this time, the global average has risen from 70 to 75. 131 economies have made 274 reforms to laws and regulations that improve womenâ€™s economic inclusion. 35 countries implemented legal protections against sexual harassment at work, protecting nearly two billion more women than a decade ago. 22 economies removed restrictions on womenâ€™s work, reducing the likelihood that women are

kept out of working in certain sectors of the economy. And 13 economies introduced laws mandating equal remuneration for work of equal value. Six economies â€“ Belgium, Denmark, France, Latvia, Luxembourg, and Sweden â€“ now hold perfect scores of 100, meaning they give women and men equal legal rights in the measured areas. â€œA decade ago, no economy could make that claim. Under this index, economies that conducted reforms experienced bigger increases in the percentage of women working overall, leading to womenâ€™s economic empowerment. â€œDespite these efforts, women in many parts of the world still face discriminatory laws and regulations at every point in their working life. Fifty-six countries â€“ spanning all regions and income levels â€“ enacted no reforms at all to improve womenâ€™s equality of opportunity over the ten-year period. The pace of reform was the slowest in the category of managing assets â€“ examining gender differences in property

rights,â€? the report added. The study developed new insight into how womenâ€™s employment and entrepreneurship are affected by legal discrimination, and in turn how this affects economic outcomes such as womenâ€™s participation in the labour market. The new index aims to lay a roadmap for progress over time and identify potential areas where more work is needed, to inspire reforms that benefit gender equality. The report showed that sub-saharan Africa had the most reforms compared with other regions with 71 over the past decade. â€œThough this is in part due to the large number of economies in the region, it is also an indication of improvement from the baseline. More than half the reforms in Sub-Saharan Africa were in the areas of starting a job and getting married. Within each of these indicators, the biggest areas of improvement were on laws affecting gender-based violence. Five economies introduced laws on workplace sexual harassment and domestic violence,â€? it added.

ID Africa Acquires TheNETng to Deepen Mkt Penetration In a fresh move to expand its frontiers in the media and marketing communications industry, ID Africa, a leading Nigerian digital agency has acquired NET Newspaper Limited (NNL). According to a statement jointly signed by both organisations, the acquisition would see ID Africa take up controlling shares and oversee the management of properties such as TheNETng, NECLive, 234Star, Neusroom, Orin, NETshop and other NET News properties. With an average year-onyear revenue growth of 40 per cent, Info Digital Africa, a Creative Communications and Digital Marketing company founded in 2015 is believed to be one of the fastest growing digital marketing, media and communications companies in Nigeria. â€œOver the years, the digital agency has built a commendable track record which includes executing over 150 successful marketing

campaigns, contributing to the growth of various international brands, as well as creating over 20,000 hours of video content, which have amassed over 15 million views across digital platforms. â€œUpon conclusion of this business combination process, the digital company will become a formidable 360 marketing communications and media company using technology and creative content to connect brands and individuals with their target audiences. â€œUnder its new operation, it will look to deliver technology solutions, consumer products, marketing communications services, as well as media and publishing services through its news, entertainment and lifestyle content platforms,â€? the statement added. In addition to the acquisition, Femi Falodun, currently COO at ID Africa, has been announced as the new Chief Executive Officer of ID Africa.

TOUCHING LIVES

L-R: Lead CSR, Airtel Nigeria, Chioma Okolie; Goodluck Okom and his mother, Mrs Blessing Okom, at the cheque presentation on behalf of Airtel Employees, through the Employee Volunteer Scheme Initiative, to Goodluck Okom for a corrective appendectomy surgery, held in Lagosâ€Śrecently

Winners Emerge in KPMG Scholarship Awards Twelve tertiary institution indigent undergraduates have emerged winners of the 2018 KPMG scholarship awards held in Lagos recently. The students, Omoyibo Innocent, Emughedi Goodness, Taiwo Raymond, Adewoyin Sodiq, Okechukwu Providence, Augustine Adikwu, Adams Paul, Adeyemo Richard, Akinseinde Hammed, Tofio Faith, and Nwachukwu Samuel, emerged out of a total of 264 others, to win over N8,590,006 worth of scholarship. The scholarship is spread across the number of years they respectively have left in schools, should they maintain the flying colours. In his welcome address, the Chief Operating Officer and

Risk Management Partner at KPMG Nigeria, Victor Onyenkpa, expressed delight in the performances of the 12 students during the screening processes. He revealed that the idea which was conceived in 2016, was targeted at indigent students who graduated from public secondary schools, and are either in higher institutions or just gained admission into same. According to him, â€œone of our most cherished values at KPMG is improving our community. And the best way to do this is to invest in education because if you train a child, you train a nation. What we sell to our clients is knowledge. And to accomplish this, we use people who are smart, intelligent, and hardworking. Therefore, people are very important to

us at KPMG. â€œI would say a big congratulation to the 12 of you who made it through despite all odds. First, the competition was a very strict and standard one. People already got disqualified even before they applied due to our standards of excellence which we invoked for the contest. Hence, all the 276 applications we received were those that had at least five Aâ€™s or five Bâ€™s at the Oâ€™ level stage, and scored at least 230 in JAMB/ UTME. And are on either first class, or second class upper level, if already in school. So for the 12 of you to have emerged from the 276 applicants after the administered screening test, you deserve an accolade. â€œI want you to see yourself as a bit disadvantaged. In that;

you have not been privileged to have attended private schools, or have the whole luxuries of life like some of your pairs may have, but this should spur you to take your academic very seriously because it is on education that can bring about the required difference in your lives. â€œI went through few of your stories and I understood how some of you have been fending for themselves in school through doing odd jobs and entrepreneurship. Thank God we have now come to the rescue but please donâ€™t stop. Donâ€™t get relaxed in your money fetching skills. â€œYou may now save yourself sometime from it, but donâ€™t stop it. Aside this awards, we would assign to each of you a mentor annually.â€?nd

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Towards Business-friendly Environment Obinna Chima writes on efforts to improve Nigeriaâ€™s business environment

lobally, to realise economic gains, reduce corruption and encourage small and medium scale enterprises (SMEs) to flourish, unnecessary red tapes, among other bottlenecks must be eliminated. In addition, specific safeguards must be put in place to ensure high-quality business regulatory processes. According to the World Bank, Nigeria registered 75,380 business in 2016 (34,531 in 2006) against 376,727 and 3,418 registered in South Africa and Senegal respectively in 2016. Also, time required to start a business in Nigeria reduced from 30 days in 2013 to 11 days in 2018 (including activities such as registering a company, to opening a bank account and other requirements), compared with an average global decline from 27 days to 20 days over the same period. The report shows that there is more need to deepen reforms and advocacy. That is why the federal government has been pushing for an improvement in the business environment. Enabling business includes the promotion of norms and customs, laws, regulations, policies, international trade agreements and public infrastructure that facilitate the movement of a product or service along its value chain. For long, Nigeria has suffered from the inhibitive developments, wittingly and unwittingly, with its economic consequences, including the reputational risks of being known as unfriendly business environment. However, the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) has been on awareness campaign, with the goal of delivering reforms to improve the doing business environment, and moving Nigeria into the top-100 on the 2020 World Bank Doing Business Index (DBI). The DBI is a yearly ranking that objectively assesses prevailing business climate conditions across 190 countries based on 10 Ease of Doing Business (EoDB) indicators, and offers comparative insights based on private sector validation of reforms delivered in the two largest commercial cities in countries with a population higher than 100 million. The report consequently features Lagos and Kano states for Nigeria. The 2019 report disclosed that there was an improvement in Nigeriaâ€™s Distance to Frontier (DTF) score by more than 11 basis points over the past three years. This means that Nigeria has improved its business regulations as captured by the doing business indicators, and is narrowing the gap with global regulatory best practice. But it is still work-in-progress. The success so far, has been driven by the implementation of over 140 reforms by PEBEC over the period, which also resulted in the country moving up 24 places in the rankings over 3 years. With PEBECâ€™s new National Action Plan (NAP 4.0) focusing on deepening reforms and driving compliance, which would run from the 1st of March till the 30th of April 2019, it is expected that the benefits of the reforms will be fully realised to give strategic support economic activities. One of the earliest gains now is the possibility of reserving a company name within four hours and registering a new company with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) within 24 hours from the time of submission of all documents for registration with the commission. It was not possible before now. By this development, SMEs can get help in registering companies from any of the customer service support centres at all the CAC offices nationwide and reserve a business name on the CAC Registration Portal (CRP) within four hours if they submit the request before 2pm on a working day. It costs only N500 to reserve a business name. In addition, all the documents for registration only need to be submitted on the CRP in PDF format with a size no larger than 5MB. This process does not take more than 30 minutes. Speaking at the 10th Presidential Quarterly Business Forum in Abuja, the Secretary of PEBEC and Senior Special Assistant to the President on Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Jumoke Oduwole, said about the target: â€œWe know it is bold, but we are quite clear on what our mandate is and are motivated by the impact these reforms will have on the lives of Nigerians.â€?

Business Registration According to PEBEC, steps to register a business have been simplified further. For example, after applicant checks that the intended company name is available on the CAC website and then reserves it, applicant completes pre-registration form: CAC 1.1 online using the CRP and makes payment for filing and stamp duty â€“ all the fees are available on the CAC website. The applicant signs the pre-registration documents and uploads for processing the CAC 1.1 form; Memorandum and Article of Association (MEMART) retrieved from the CAC website; recognised form of identification for directors/subscribers and secretary; and evidence of payment made to CAC. After these, the applicant will receive the company certificate and Certified True Copies of the documents in return and within 24 hours the company is registered. The Tax Identification Number (TIN) is also automatically generated and sent electronically to the email address of the first company Director, so applicants must ensure that the email is accurately provided when filling the forms. Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo, has reiterated that the enabling business reforms spearheaded by PEBEC are eliminating unnecessary physical visit to CAC, which could take up to 10 days to

We also aim to continue to cascade the Ease of Doing Business initiatives down to the subnational level, working with the state governments and will release the ďŹ rst sub-national survey report this April. We remain ďŹ rm in our conviction of the immediate and long-term beneďŹ ts of the PEBEC reforms

register a business; physical visit to the Federal Inland Revenue Services to get a Tax Identification Number (TIN) or register for Value Added Tax (VAT); physical inspection of business premises before issuance of Business Premises Permits; engaging an accredited agent for registering a company with the CAC; and requirement to fill and submit several documents and forms. On the other hand, applicants are now registering their businesses in the comfort of their offices or homes. Registration of business premises in Kano State is also now automated, and electronic certificates are sent to applicants after the registration process is completed. This process takes 1 day to complete. Also, the cost of N60,000 for engaging an agent is eliminated and incorporation documents merged into a single CAC Form 1.1, eliminating additional N4,000 on documents. Of course, the new narrative is encouraging registration of businesses, with the prospects of improving tax collection likely to promote economic growth and development. It also enhances transparency, as payments are made into the Treasury Single Account (TSA). Continuing, Oduwole added: â€œThis year, we intend to strengthen the collaboration with MDAs and partners to consolidate and build on the work done. â€œWe will be pursuing the implementation of much-needed legislative reforms, specifically the passage of the CAM Bill and Omnibus Bills; the expansion of the regulatory reform programme started with National Agency for Food, Drug Administration and Control and National Insurance Commission to include other regulators. â€œAlso, we will pursue the establishment of a National Trading Platform for ports and the concession of our major international airports. â€œWe also aim to continue to cascade the Ease of Doing Business initiatives down to the sub-national level, working with the state governments and will release the first sub-national survey report this April. â€œWe remain firm in our conviction of the immediate and long-term benefits of the PEBEC reforms. We have put in place frameworks for improved communication and engagement between government stakeholders and private sector players, as we intend to ensure the reforms are validated,â€? she said.

National Collateral Registry Also, as part of efforts to improve the business environment, the federal government in collaboration with the International Finance Corporation (IFC) had established the National Collateral Register (NCR). The NCR is a financial infrastructure that seeks to deepen credit delivery to MSMEs

through enhanced acceptability of movable assets â€“ equipment, machinery, vehicles, Keke â€“ NAPEP, crops, livestock, account receivables, inventories, and jewelry â€“ as collateral for loans by financial institutions. It is a registry where security interests in moveable assets are registered after being used as collateral to obtain facilities from financial institutions. NCR allows lenders to assess their priority interest in potential claims against particular collateral. The objective, it was learnt, is to enhance financial inclusion in Nigeria, stimulate responsible lending to MSMEs, facilitate access to credit secured with movable assets, perfect security interests in movable assets, facilitate realisation of security interests in movable asset. The key deliverable of the registry is to promote the acceptance of movable asset as collaterals for loans and contribute to economic growth and development of the country. It was signed into law in 2017 by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, during the period he acted as president. Presently, a cumulative of 154,827 MSMEs have used movable assets valued at N1.561 trillion to obtain loans from financial institutions since the NCR was passed into law. The latest NCR report obtained by THISDAY had showed that a breakdown of the amount recorded between January 1, 2017 and December 19, 2018, put the value of the assets at N1.209 trillion; $1,142, 389,799.12 (N349,571,278,530.72) and â‚Ź6,080,004.36 (N2,121,921,521.64). The report also revealed that of the 154,827 MSMEs that used their movable assets to obtain loans from financial institutions, 22,251 were female-owned MSMEs. It stated, â€œConsiderable number of borrowers secured credit from financial institutions in 2018 using their movable assets as collateral. The high number of borrowers that secured credit in 2017 is attributable to the high participation of smallholder farmers under the CBN Anchor Borrowerâ€™s Programme using cross-guarantee as collateral. â€œDuring the year under review, there was an upsurge of lending using movable assets as collateral. This is attributable to the increase in the number of microfinance banks on the NCR portal as well as increased participation of deposit money banks and non-bank financial institutions. Out of the total amount of N1,209,381,006,933. 90, a sum of N43,618,262,792.17 went to female MSMEs.â€? Therefore, efforts to eliminate major bottlenecks in doing business, better access to credit and power shortages will go a long way in stimulating growth in the country, promote job creation and contribute in alleviating poverty.

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Empowering Women is Critical for Worldâ€™s Economy, Says Lagarde Stories by Ugo Aliogo On March 8 the world will mark International Womenâ€™s Day, which provides an opportunity to reflect on the struggle for greater gender equality. The roots of the annual event dates back more than a century, yet its focus on respect and opportunities for women remains strikingly relevant today from sexual harassment and violence to unequal laws and unfairness in the workplace, where women are too often under employed, underpaid, and under promoted. According to statement by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), signed by Managing Director, IMF, Christine Lagarde, the unfair treatment can marginalise women and hinder

their participation as productive individuals contributing to society and the economy in invaluable ways. The statement also noted that there was need to consider the rich tapestry of organisations and individuals who can make a difference to ensure women have equal opportunities, I also see a crucial role for policymakers. â€œThey can use their positions to design policies that help women and girls access what they need for a fulfilling lifeâ€”including education, health services, safe transportation, legal protection against harassment, finance, and flexible working arrangements,â€? the statement noted. Lagarde noted that the IMF had recommended those kinds of policy measures to its member countries and works with many governments to

examine how policies affect women. She explained that in recent years the IMF have increased its emphasis on womenâ€™s empowerment precisely, adding that beyond the important ethical considerations, â€œit also represents a missed opportunity in the pursuit of macroeconomic stability and inclusive growth where the IMFâ€™s expertise lies.â€? According to the statement: â€œOur research has shown, for example, that if womenâ€™s employment equalled menâ€™s, economies would be more resilient and economic growth would be higher. â€œOur new estimates show that, for the bottom half of countries in our sample in terms of gender inequality, closing the gender gap in employment could increase Gross Domestic Product

(GDP) by an average of 35 percent of which 7â€“8 percentage points are productivity gains due to gender diversity. Adding one more woman in a firmâ€™s senior management or corporate board while keeping the size of the board unchanged is associated with an 8â€“13 basis point higher return on assets. â€œIf banks and financial supervisors increased the share of women in senior positions, the banking sector would be more stable too. The IMFâ€™s 189 member countries face many different challenges, but empowering women remains a common denominator and a global imperative for all those who care about fairness and diversity, but also productivity and growth of societies and economies that are more inclusive. If we can achieve this, we all gain.â€?

Group Marks Mother Language Day As part of efforts to encourage linguistic diversity and multilingual education, the UN Information Centre (UNIC) Lagos Nigeria, has collaborated with UNIC Nairobi Kenya to commemorate the 2019 International Mother Language Day. The dialogue which involved 20 students with 10 distinct mother tongues, emphasised the importance of mother languages to peopleâ€™s identity, communication, social integration, education and development. Receiving the students from three secondary schools, the Director of UNIC Lagos, Mr. Ronald Kayanja, noted that the collaboration between UNIC Nigeria and its counterpart in Kenya was to develop greater awareness of linguistic and cul-

tural traditions between the two countries and to inspire solidarity based on understanding, tolerance and dialogue. According to him, Languages are the most powerful instruments of preserving and developing our tangible and intangible heritage. â€œThey transmit and preserve traditional knowledge and cultures in a sustainable way. We must preserve our mother languages,â€? He explained. It was so instructive and exciting as the Nigerian students shared their linguistic diversity with the Kenyan team: The Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 1 (No Poverty) was said in Hausa, Igbo and Yoruba languages while the Nairobi team provided the Swahili language translation. In his remarks, the Deputy

Director of UNIC Nairobi, Mr Newton Kanhema, said in Swahili, â€Ño Povertyâ€™ means â€˜Hakuna Umaskiniâ€™. Other words which the Nigerian participants learned were â€˜Helloâ€™ which in Swahili means â€˜Habari yakoâ€™ while the response is â€Ñzuriâ€™ which means â€˜Goodâ€™. Similarly, the Nairobi participants learned that â€Ño Povertyâ€™ means â€˜Ba Talauciâ€™ in Hausa language; â€˜Ise buseâ€™ in Yoruba language and â€˜Enweghi Idaogbenyeâ€™ in Igbo language. The dialogue also explored the basic greetings in the various languages. In line with the advice of the Office of the United Nations Ombudsman and Mediation Services which encouraged people around the world to state their favourite

proverb in their mother tongue, a few proverbs in local languages were discussed: â€œA child who refuses the wise counsel of his parents, will be taught a hard lesson by outsidersâ€?; â€œNo one beats his chest with a fingerâ€?; among others. Earlier in his remarks, UNIC Lagos National Information Officer, Oluseyi Soremekun, noted that International Mother Language day has been observed every year since February 2000 to promote linguistic and cultural diversity and multilingualism. He disclosed that â€œevery two weeks, a language disappears taking with it an entire cultural and intellectual heritage. At least 43 percent of the estimated 6000 languages spoken in the world are endangered.â€?

UNHCR: 30,000 Nigerians Return to Town Targeted by Boko Haram An estimated 30,000 Nigerians have returned from Cameroon to the flashpoint town of Rann, which has been targeted repeatedly by Boko Haram militants this year, the United Nations refugee agency has said in an emailed comment to Reuters. The men, women and children were among 40,000 civilians who fled Rann and sought refuge in

the Cameroonian village of Goura. A United Nations humanitarian report said 5,000 remained in Goura and were expected to make the 8-km (5-mile) trip to Rann on foot. The other 5,000 had reportedly travelled to Maiduguri, the capital of Nigeriaâ€™s Borno state, or to other unknown locations, the UN report said. The Rann residents who

decided to return did so after being visited by Nigerian officials who encouraged them to go, and gave assurances that security would be restored in the area, the UNHCR statement said. â€œThey have responded to this appeal and many have opted to take the return journey home,â€? UNHCR said. â€œWe have also advocated with

the authorities to guarantee admission and protection of those seeking asylum and government support so that humanitarian organisations can deliver assistance.â€? On Wednesday, the aid agency Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) said Cameroonian and Nigerian authorities had ordered the 40,000 refugees to return to northeast Nigeria.

Impact Fund to Create Jobs for Rural Youths An impact fund with an innovative approach for attracting much needed capital to the rural areas of developing countries has been launched at the annual meeting of Member States of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). According to a statement on IFAD website, it was the at IFAD alongside with the European Union, the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States (ACP), the government of Luxembourg and the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) launched the Agri-Business Capital (ABC) Fund to help rural entrepreneurs in the agricultural sector access the finance they need to grow their businesses and create jobs for poor rural people, in particular young people. The statement also noted that the aim of the ABC fund is to generate private sector investment in rural small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), farmersâ€™ organisations and smallholder farmersâ€™ groups which often find it hard to access finance from traditional institutions who view them as too risky. The IFAD President, Gilbert Houngbo in the statement noted those small and medium-sized enterprises can be an engine for development and offer rural communities a pathway out of poverty and hunger, â€œbut only if they can access the resources they need.â€? He also noted that the launch of the fund is an important step to realize the huge potential of small farmers, their organizations, and most importantly young people. The statement also noted that it is estimated that more than half of the 1.2 billion young people in the world live in rural areas. The statement added that young people are two to three times more likely than adults to be unemployed, adding that in Africa alone, 10 to 12 million young people enter the job market yearly. The European Commissioner, International Cooperation and Development, Neven Mimica, emphasized the potential impact of the fund investments on smallholder households. He also noted that smallholders and rural businesses are not getting the investment they need from the private sector, adding that the Fund would help address this gap, improve their access to capital and consequently the lives of 700.000 rural household. In line with its focus on promoting privatesector development, ACP Secretary General, Patrick Gomes, highlighted the transformative effect the ABC fund could have in poor rural communities. According to Gomes, â€œOur African, Caribbean and Pacific members have great expectations of the ABC Fund. We look forward to having the Fund respond to specific needs in the three regions and supporting the implementation of our new approach to structurally transform the ACP agricultural sector. This fund, which aims to contribute to wealth and job creation, particularly for our youth, should significantly enable ACP countries to add value, extract higher rents from commodities, diversify and further integrate into global value chains.â€? Paulette Lenert, Luxembourgâ€™s Minister for Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Affairs, said her government has been a critical partner in the fundâ€™s development. â€œIn line with the Addis Ababa Action Agenda on Financing for Development, Luxembourg has been very active in the field of sustainable impact investment and innovative financing mechanisms,â€? she said. â€œThis has been the case in green and inclusive finance, in labelling and in social performance measurement, as well as in mobilizing private capital for the SDGs. Luxembourg is very proud of having been instrumental, from the first hour, in bringing about this innovative project.â€? The ABC Fund aims to raise EUR 200 million over the next 10 years. It will provide loans adapted to the needs of SMEs. Loan size will range from EUR 20,000 to EUR 800,000. The ABC Fund will work through financial institutions for loans in the range of EUR 20,000 to EUR 200,000, while providing loans between EUR 200,000 and 800,000 directly to investees. AGRA President Agnes Kalibata, said her organization, with its focus on developing private-sector capacity for technology adoption in Africa, will build on this work as the fund is rolled out across the continent.

T H I S D AY ˾ THURSDAY, MARCH 7, 2019

HEALTH & LIFESTYLE

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

Oyo and the Push for Universal Health Coverage While conversations on Universal Health Coverage has continued to be the single most talked about healthcare interventions globally, the Oyo State Health Insurance Scheme is set to achieve the same feat for its eight million residents and 1.6 million children. Martins Ifijeh writes

Universal health coverage is achievable

n Nigeria, when a citizen falls ill, he either walks straight to the hospital to purchase treatment out of his pocket, or prays to his creator for healing. If none of these happen and he is broke, or has delayed salary, is unemployed, or no one to lend him money, or the ailment cost more than the money he has, he simply dies. It is that simple in this part of the continent. About 73 per cent of Nigerians are presently taking this risk on their health, especially poor Nigerians who comprise the major chunk of the country’s population. This therefore has in no small measure increased the country’s mortality rate, reduced life expectancy, and the myriads of poor healthcare statistics which the country is known for. No wonder when health indices are discussed on global stages on a country-by-country basis, Nigeria often emerges one of the countries with the worst indices among key global health issues. The country sits comfortably among the 10 worst countries in the world with disease burdens. On specifics, Nigeria has the highest burden of malaria globally, with about 40 per cent of global malaria deaths occurring in the country and Democratic Republic of Congo alone. Not only that 90 per cent of Nigerians are at risk of it, it kills over 300,000 of them yearly, with 11 per cent of maternal deaths linked to it. Also, Nigeria is rated as the second worst country with maternal and child deaths globally, just second to India. About 15 per cent of global maternal deaths occur in Nigeria alone, and the deaths of newborn babies in the country represent a quarter of the total number of deaths of children under five worldwide. In fact, a woman’s chance of dying from pregnancy or childbirth in Nigeria stands at one ratio 13, if indices from the World Health Organisation (WHO) are referenced. Among other areas, Nigeria is the second worst recipient of malnutrition burden globally, just second to India. Several countries with similar poor health indices decades ago have prioritised their healthcare financing through implementations of universal health coverage programmes for their citizens. For instance, countries like Turkey, Mexico, Thailand, Kenya,

Ghana, among others are currently doing well in healthcare coverage for their citizens. However, Nigeria has continued to struggle through one of the drivers it put in place 13 years ago to achieving universal health coverage, which is the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), with only about four per cent of the population still enrolled under the scheme. It is in complimenting the effort of the federal government and to ensure no Nigerian is left out of any form of health contributory scheme, that various states in the country have taken the bull by the horn to making sure their people benefit from this drive towards universal health coverage. One of such states that have shown high commitment towards ensuring more Nigerians benefit from basic healthcare at no pressure to their pockets is Oyo State, through its state health insurance scheme, where in a space of 18 months has enrolled at least 100,000 residents into its scheme who are already enjoying the benefits of health contributory scheme. While the state has over eight million residents with at least 1.6 million children, its insurance agency, the Oyo State Health Insurance Agency (OYSHIA) said it would continue to prioritise the health of children, pregnant women, and other vulnerable groups in the state; a move that endeared the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) to partner the state in a media dialogue to bring to the fore synergy between the state insurance scheme and the provision of accessible, affordable and quality basic healthcare services to children, among other groups in the state. On specifics, the OYSHIA was set up August 18, 2015 and passed into law November 8, 2016, assented to by Governor Abiola Ajimobi in December, 2016 and flagged off by May 25, 2017 with a strong legal framework that ensures the mandatory scheme; through a gradual but deliberate process reach all residents of the state in no time. Speaking during a two-day media dialogue on Improving Access and Uptake of Healthcare for Children and Women through Health Insurance Scheme-OYSHIA, held in Ibadan recently, the Executive Secretary of OYSHIA, Dr. Olusola

Akande said the idea behind the scheme was to ensure residents of the state enjoy universal health coverage, adding that over 10,000 children less than five years and pregnant women were on the scheme and that there has been 350 vaginal deliveries and 78 Caesarean sessions carried out under the scheme. He said primary healthcare centres accredited for the scheme have been fully upgraded to offer best quality healthcare services to the people of the state. Akande, who said the state has approved two per cent of its consolidated revenue fund from its internally generated revenue towards contributing to the scheme, said the agency was also getting funds from grants, premium, and philanthropy. He said OYSHIA’s benefit packages include Standard Plan with Option of Top-up, Family Plan and Student Plan. Akande said the scheme targets 450,000 enrollees to cover five percent of the population of the state by the middle of 2019. He commended UNICEF for assisting the state to achieve the target and ensure good health for the people of the state, particularly the children and women. He said OYSHIA has been rated very high in terms of performance and assured that the agency would not relent in making sure that the people of the state enjoy quality healthcare without expending their entire savings on medical bills. On some of the innovations put on ground to ensure farmers without money also get into the scheme, he said such categories of persons give out their farm produce in exchange for premium. He expressed worry that some residents were still not aware of the activities of OYSHIA and therefore sought the support of the media to propagate the importance of health insurance to the people. According to him, “many people who would have loved to enroll in our programme but lack financial capacity to pay the premium voluntary agreed to give us yams and palm oil and other farm produce in lieu of cash to be paid for the premium. In the agency, we have set up a marketing section that is helping us

Akande

to sell the yams and palm oil and other farm produce and when we sell them, we help the owners to keep the money until it is enough to pay the premium and enroll them.” A UNICEF Health Specialist, Dr. Adebola Hassan said health insurance would help in preventing avoidable deaths, particularly among children and pregnant women. Adebola said the benefits of health insurance were enormous, particularly in attaining UHC and ensuring good health for the people without experiencing outof-pocket spending when they have health challenges. The Director, Press and Public Relation, Oyo State Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism, Mr Rotimi Babalola also lauded UNICEF for its efforts in ensuring the wellbeing of children and women. UNICEF Communication Specialist, Mrs Blessing Ejiofor said access to quality healthcare was the right of every child and charged the media to assist in reporting issues that would prompt the policy makers to take proactive steps and implement policies that would make life better for children, women and other vulnerable groups. She stressed the need to create awareness on benefits of health insurance scheme so that children and vulnerable populations would gain access to quality healthcare services without experiencing catastrophic health expenditure.

T H I S D AY ˾ THURSDAY, MARCH 7, 2019

HEALTH

Canada, Lagos Partner to Address Disease Outbreaks CharlesAjunwawritesthatthedonationof$3.25millionworthofmedicallaboratoryequipment to Lagos State by the Canadian government will boost healthcare in the state

hile Lagos State is referred to as the economic hub of Nigeria with over 22 million residents, stakeholders believe its huge population size could either be a bless-

ing or a challenge. First, the huge population portends more economic opportunities for both the government and the people. On the other hand, experts fear that in situations of infectious outbreaks, it may pose a bit of a challenge to curtailing it due to the population. This argument has somewhat been punctured with the speedy containment of the 2014 Ebola outbreak where all hands were on deck until the outbreak was finally contained. This therefore gave the notion that the state is ready to tackle disease outbreaks irrespective of the nature of the threat. To reinforce this, the Canadian government decided to support the state in ensuring it is fortified against any form of infectious disease outbreaks that night be of concern, hence its desire to donate biomedical facility worth $3.25 million to the state government. It has also, on a number of occasions donated or supported various healthcare interventions in the state with the establishment of bio-banks and training of professionals. One of such laboratories is located within the premises of Mainland Hospital, Yaba, which was designed to ensure effective management of outbreak of infectious diseases with special focus on containment and strengthening of capacity to prevent, detect and respond to all manner of threats. Sharing his thoughts, Governor Akinwumni Ambode lauded the Canadian government for donating the bio safety laboratory worth $3.25million (about N951.3million) to the state government, saying that the gesture deserved to be commended. Speaking at Epe while receiving the High Commissioner of Canada to Nigeria, Mr Christopher Thornley on a courtesy visit, the governor also commended the Canadian government for partnering the state government in area of capacity building especially after the historic victory against Ebola outbreak in the state in 2014. He said: “On behalf of the people of Lagos State, we like to say a big thank you to the Canadian government for being a very good partner to the course of Lagos State. People might not know but we need to say this clearly. Even though we came out of the Ebola crisis, ever since that success story, the Canadian

Governor-General of Canada, Julie Payette (l) and Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, during the joint unveiling of a Bio-bank Laboratory in Lagos

government has decided to partner Lagos State to donate to us a new laboratory that deals with bio safety and issues that relate to bio healthcare. “As we speak, in another few weeks, the Canadian government will be shipping in equipment for the laboratory at the cost of over $3.25m Canadian dollar. “That laboratory will be situated at the General Hospital in Mainland and that is part of the capacity building that the Canadian government is implementing to partner with us and we are very appreciative of this.” While expressing optimism that the renewed partnership would be of mutual benefits to Nigeria and Canada, Ambode expressed his readiness to partner with the Canadian government in key areas such as health, transport,

investment and Public Private Partnership (PPP), among others, According to him, “we also know that there are whole lot of issues in the health sector and the Canadian government is willing to build capacity for us and with this partnership that we are having, this will extend to other areas and there are so much expertise that we can actually take away from Canada in terms of capacity building for PPP projects and also things that relate to transport. “So, we believe strongly that with this visit, the partnership between us will be more strengthened and also will be of mutual benefits to Canada and Nigeria by way of investment in Lagos.” He assured that the state government would continue to scale up issues relating to judicial and security sector reforms to ensure safety

of lives and property and create an enabling environment for investors to come into Lagos which ultimately would bring about the growth of the economy. Besides, Ambode said his administration would take advantage of the Canadian Trade Office situated in Lagos to scale up investment opportunities and ensure easier business relationship. Earlier, Thornley, who was accompanied by the Deputy High Commissioner in charge of Canadian Embassy in Lagos, Mr James Chrisoff, said the visit was to strengthen relationship between the Canadian government and Lagos State, especially to start dialogue on how to work together in key areas. He also commended Ambode for the solid infrastructures put in place in Epe and other parts of Lagos.

Zero Discrimination Day: NACA Calls on Nigerians to End Stigmatisation of PLWHA The National Agency for the Control of AIDS, (NACA) has called on Nigerians at all levels to end discrimination of Persons Living With HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) in the country. Stating this in a message to mark the 2019 Zero Discrimination Day, the Director General,

NACA, Dr. Sani Aliyu says discrimination of PLWHA was an offence in Nigeria with the passage of the 2014 N ational HIV and AIDS AntiDiscrimination Act, hence the need for awareness. The DG said “The Act makes it an offence to discriminate on the basis of one’s

real or perceived HIV status. It also prohibits any employer, individual or organization from requiring a person to take an HIV test as a precondition for employment or access to services. “I urge Nigerians to take advantage of the 2014 AntiDiscrimination Act to know their

rights and protect themselves from all forms of HIV-related stigma and discrimination. “Legal protection against HIV-related discrimination is an essential prerequisite for an effective national HIV response. The lack of protective law enforcement and the existence of punitive laws can feed

stigma and discrimination and hinder access to HIV services for people living with HIV.” He said discrimination can be institutionalised through existing laws, policies and practices that negatively target people living with HIV and marginalised groups, adding

that stigma and discrimination occur in different forms and may not necessarily be a deliberate or conscious action. He said since 2014, the day has been commemorated annually on March 1, as it is a global event that promotes diversity and recognises that everyone counts.

responsibilities, but also to set the pace for other manufacturing companies by demonstrating its commitment to humanity and environmental preservation. “In a society where organisation and even the citizens pays less attention to the impact of their operations and activities to the environment, we at FIDSON choose to set the pace for others to follow because as an indigenous manufacturer of pharmaceutical products, we say that ‘We Value Life’

and this implies that we must truly show that we value life by strictly adhering to environmental policies and regulations”, he added. The EMS certification, which is one of the many feats achieved by the company in recent times, is another demonstration of the company’s commitment to positively impacting humanity as parts of its Corporate Social Responsibilities (CSR) initiative, focused on Children’s education, health and environment.

Fidson Healthcare Bags ISO 14001:2015 EMS Certification Mary Nnah Fidson Healthcare Plc, a leading pharmaceutical company in Nigeria has bagged the Environmental Management System (EMS) certification, in compliance with the International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) 14001:2015, the world’s most widely recognised standard for Environmental Management Systems which minimises the impact of the company’s operations, activities, products and

services on the environment. EMS is intended for utilisation by organisations seeking to manage their environmental responsibilities in a systematic manner that contributes to the environmental pillar of sustainability while maintaining an eco-friendly environment. Presenting the certification at Fidson’s corporate head office in Lagos, CEO & Managing Partner - 4 Quarters Consultancy Limited (a support firm on EMS Certification), Samuel Sawah noted that Fidson re-

ceived this certification having met all specified requirements that must be deployed in enhancing environmental performance. Sawah said ISO 14001:2015 ensures an organisation achieves the intended outcomes of its environmental management system, which provide value for the environment, the organisation itself and other interested parties in consistency with the organisation’s environmental policy. These management systems

include the enhancement of environmental performance, fulfillment of compliance obligations and achievement of environmental objectives. Responding to Sawah’s remarks, Managing Director, Fidson Healthcare Plc, Dr Fidelis Ayebae thanked the body for the certification and noted that the company’s commitment to maintaining the EMS standards, is not only to enhance its environmental performance and manage legal compliance to environmental

T H I S D AY ˾ THURSDAY, MARCH 7, 2019

NEWS

Prioritise Diabetes Care, DAICOMAG Tells Incoming Govts Martins Iﬁjeh As Nigeria elects governors and state legislators this Saturday, a non-governmental organisation, Diabetes Control Media Advocacy Group (DICOMAG) has recommended that the control of diabetes should be their immediate priority as they are sworn into office in May. Similarly, the group has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to, as a matter of urgency, device concrete measures to address the current heavy burden of the disease in all parts of the country to prevent a looming epidemic. In a statement signed by its

Director of Communication, Mrs Yinka Shokunbi, DICOMAG said it has become necessary to draw the attention of the public, particularly the politicians, to the alarming increase of diabetes in Nigeria and its attending complications and deadly consequences. This is because, according to the organisation, no fewer than five million Nigerians were currently living with the disease and like elsewhere in the world; the number of cases is increasing very fast. Citing figures from the International Diabetes Federation (IDF), DICOMAG disclosed that one in every two people

with diabetes in the country is undiagnosed, “which means the current estimated number of cases could be double or even more. This is one health disaster Nigeria cannot afford to face as we inaugurate a new government. “IDF describes diabetes mellitus as one of the largest global health emergencies of the 21st century, largely because of its severe and deadly consequences. “This is a disease that affects virtually all organs of the body, resulting in loss of vision, dental problem, kidney failure, cardiovascular disease, lower limb amputation, sexual dysfunction, among others, when

not properly controlled – sadly a situation faced by Nigerians living with diabetes today.” DICOMAG noted that while the rapid increase of diabetes cases was a global phenomenon, especially in the developing countries, the difference however, is that most countries were now working relentlessly to ensure it does not become a major epidemic, but Nigeria seems to be sitting on the fenced with no measure or policy to curtail the rapid spread. Shokunbi said: “While neighbouring countries like Cameroun now provide insulin free of charge to children and other countries, and adopt policies to

assist citizens to achieve control of the condition, Nigeria seems to have left people living with diabetes to their fate and without any measure to ensure early detection of cases or inform the people on preventive measures. “Virtually all the states have remained silent. Yet, the number of people living with diabetes or suffering from its consequences such as stroke, blindness, limb amputation, kidney disease and cardiovascular disease are, by far, more than the number of Nigerians affected by Lassa fever, cancer or Ebola which are not only dreaded but given priority attention. “More worrisome is the

fact that a large number of Nigerians with diabetes only get to know of their status at an advance stage of the disease when complications have set in. Awareness about the disease remains at the lowest ebb in the country “DICOMAG therefore hereby calls on the governments both at the federal and state level and the general public not to ignore or underrate diabetes. The government, as a matter of urgency should introduce policies and measures needed to detect cases while state government, in particular must embark on immediate campaign for its prevention and control.”

Obaseki Inaugurates 17-member State Primary Health Care Board Adibe Emenyonu in Benin City In a bid to boost primary healthcare delivery, Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, has inaugurated 17-member Primary Health Care (PHC) Board, with a charge to deepen and revamp the state’s primary healthcare system for responsive, efficient and accessible healthcare. Speaking at the ceremony, in Government House, Benin City, the governor said the board is not a typical public service board but one that must deliver service to the people. He said, “Our vision as a government is to ensure we have a healthcare system that will be responsive, efficient and effective in delivering healthcare in Nigeria. “For us in Edo State, our primary healthcare system will be built on several pillars which include human capacity, provision of technology and data, quality assurance, financing and

infrastructure of the health care system.” Obaseki who stated that the inauguration of the board is to formalise the process which started over six months ago in working with consultants to develop 20 PHCs, also noted that the objectives of these PHCs is to promote a package of preventive, curative and rehabilitative healthcare services to our citizens. The governor explained that part of the key functions of the board includes, initiating, organising and sponsoring programmes for effective healthcare management and manpower development and creation of public awareness of the importance of PHCs in the state. He urged the board to “determine the general policies for the administration of your agencies including the management of its properties and finance. Make regulations for the appointment, promotion, transfer and discipline of staff of the agencies”.

Pharmexcil Set to Host Top India Pharmaceutical Companies in Lagos Martins Iﬁjeh The Pharmaceuticals Export Promotion Council of India (Pharmexcil) will on March 14 – 15, 2019 host the third International Exhibition for Pharma & Healthcare (iPHEX Africa) with top Indian pharmaceutical companies in attendance. The exhibition, which is supported by the Indian High Commission, Indian Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association in Nigeria, Association of Pharmaceuticals Importers in Nigeria and the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria, will feature at least 60 Indian companies. The Director General, Pharmexcil, Udaya Bhaskar said: “We are happy with the level of cooperation from Nigerian government and relevant agencies since the maiden edition of this exhibition, it has not only improved the relationship between both countries but also enable a lot of pharmaceutical and other healthcare companies to grow have direct access to top and government recognised pharma companies from India.”

He said visitors to the exhibition will be able to explore pharmaceutical formulations, APIs, pellets, nutraceuticals, veterinary drugs, medical devices and other healthcare products, adding that about 1,500 to 2,000 local pharmaceutical companies, pharmacists, doctors, regulators, investors and policymakers were expected to attend and interact with exhibitors and themselves. “The import of drugs and pharmaceuticals from India play an important role in drug distribution chain in Nigeria. The presence and interaction with the iPHEX Africa member companies during the event would help exporters to better understand the requirements of NAFDAC and the Nigeria pharma industry and ecosystem,” he said. Pharmexcil is a Government of India set up council under the aegis of the Ministry of Commerce & Industry, for promotion of Pharmaceutical trade in the international markets. He said the Trident Exhibitions Pvt Ltd, India in collaboration with Global Health Project and Resources, Lagos are the managers of the event.

UNITED AGAINST HIV/AIDS

Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole (m) and team of external validators from the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) for the Nigeria HIV/AIDS Indicators and Impact Survey, held in Abuja recently

Edo Unveils Strategic Health Devt. Plan toTackle Morbidity, Mortality Rates Adibe Emenyonu in Benin City The Edo State Government has said that its Strategic Health Development Plan would strengthen structures and institutions to deliver sustainable healthcare to the people and help reduce morbidity and mortality from major and common illnesses in the state. The state Commissioner for Health, Dr. David Osifo, said this while unveiling the 2018-2020 State Strategic

Health Development Plan II (SHDP II), in Benin City, the state capital, recently. He noted that the plan provides for interventions that deliver affordable and effective healthcare system in the state, addin that it is expected to tackle morbidity as well as infant, neonatal and maternal mortality, which are part of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Osifo added that it also provides for cost-effective solutions for quality healthcare delivery, and urged partners

and stakeholders in the health sector to support the state in the implementation of SHDP II. “SHDP II was developed with the understanding that strategic planning is an integral component of decision-making in the allocation of resources to pursue strategies and priorities towards ensuring efficiency and effectiveness in health service delivery of the state,” he said. Director, Health Planning, Research and Statistics, Ministry of Health, Edo State, Dr. Charles Imhalahimi, added

that SHDP II provides a contemporary situation analysis of the healthcare system in Edo State, noting that it outlines activities to be pursued by the state government, the local government councils as well as partners and stakeholders from 2018-2020. Imhalahimi commended development partners and members of the state planning team, headed by the commissioner, for their professional and technical support towards the successful production of the well-researched document.

GE Healthcare Partners NSIA to Advance Early Cancer Detection Martins Ifijeh General Electric (GE) Healthcare has partnered with the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) to supply latest technology in computed tomography (CT) and Discovery RT, to Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), for its modern NSIA-LUTH Cancer Center, commissioned by President Muhammadu Buhari last month. The Discovery RT, a simulation CT machine, is the first of such technology to be installed in the country. It

enables physicians to study the body in detail allowing them to determine the exact location, shape, and size of the tumor to be treated. As part of the partnership, GE Healthcare will also provide servicing of the equipment and deliver hands-on training for the hospital’s radiology staff on the new technology. Nigeria currently has eight public and one private comprehensive cancer care centers to serve its growing population of over 180 million people. Many of the centers have radiotherapy machines that

are outdated, making access to radiation therapy more difficult for cancer patients. Sharing his thoughts, the General Manager, West Central and French Sub-Sahara Africa, GE Healthcare, Evong Ebai said, “For many years, GE Healthcare has developed tools that help improve the care of patients through advanced technologies that facilitate the diagnosis as well as help the fight against diseases such as cancer. “We are happy to collaborate with NSIA in this landmark achievement for Nigeria in progressing the availability of

world-class radiotherapy for cancer patients in the region. This will help improve the overall results in the fight against cancer, as well as in improving the quality of life.” He said the new radiotherapy centre will increase access to quality services for patients across Lagos State, adding that this will help early detection and treatment of cancer, which improves chances of cure. The World Health Organisation (WHO) has projected that by 2030, between 10 and 11 million cancers will be diagnosed in low and middle-income countries.

T H I S D AY ˾ THURSDAY, MARCH 7, 2019

HEALTH

Telema Westhood: Providing Access to Medical Care for the Less Privileged Telema Westwood is the founder of Westhood Foundation, an organisation he established in 2018 to help the poor and the less privileged persons have access to quality medical care and education in the society. In this interview with Sunday Ehigiator, he reveals how his foundation will drastically reduce health challenges in Nigeria. Excerpts: how everything begins to line up.

What is Westhood Foundation about? Westwood Foundation is a charity organisation focused on improving the lives of less fortunate people in society. Our core programs are quality education, quality healthcare, training and preparation and investments in community based businesses.

Where do you see the foundation in the next 10 years? Across the west African region. Taking help across the continent. How was your growing up? Born wealthy. Grew up poor. That’s my story. I saw poverty first hand. But in God’s wisdom I believe he felt it necessary. If I had all the trappings of a privileged life I may have been on a different path. I would trade my experiences for anything. They have made me and continue to provide clarity.

What has the foundation been able to achieve since it was established? Our goal in the immediate term is to conduct 500 free surgeries, immunise 150,000 children and provide free basic health services to 25,000 adults in 15 Senatorial Districts of the Niger Delta. We have achieved about 22 per cent of that goal in just one month with 148 free surgeries already completed. What motivated you to establish the foundation? My personal life story. I am who I am because I received help when I needed it most. As such I cannot in good conscience have the ability to provide help and not do so. There is so much poverty in our land. I and the foundation are committed to trying to balance the equation. No one should have to watch their loved one die from an easily treatable diesease. Our country should not be deprived of a future genius because their parents cannot afford basic education. That’s the motivation. How far do you think the foundation can go to improve the health of Nigerians? Very far indeed. However our distance or our mission is to show

What were the landmark experiences that shaped your upbringing? Being the poor cousin. Everyone treated you differently. Like you had a choice. But success in my view is preparation plus opportunity. Through providence I was helped to prepare and I haven’t joked with any opportunity since. Most profoundly was seeing my family go from opulence to abject poverty. That experience was jarring. I sold newspapers to feed. I started working at 8. I was lucky. Many are not. My vision is to ensure that as many people as I meet will have an equal opportunity to rise above the hands life has dealt. Westwood

how easy real impact can be and awaken the conscience of those with the mandate and ability to improve our country. What are the challenges facing

the foundation in Nigeria? For now, it’s proving that we mean well. And with good reason. Our people have been pawns in schemes for a long time. As such all the work that we do is void

of any political coloration. How are people responding? The response has been awesome. Once people believe that you mean well, you’d be surprised

What are the values/principles that have kept you going? The values that have kept me going. No matter where you are all you need is an opportunity. Also my mother always says if you have enough to eat you have enough to share.

Foundation Receives N1M to Support Underaged Sexual Abuse Victims

Little Hakeem Urgently Needs N4.5M to Treat Hole-in-the Heart

Oluchi Chibuzor

Nine years old Hakeem Abdullahi from Osun State is currently battling to stay alive due to a hole-in-the-heart condition he was born with. Doctors at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) had diagnosed him with Symptomatic Congenital Heart Disease, which they said would cost at least N4.5 million to repair through a surgical operation. The hospital management said clinical evaluation confirmed the condition which it said was life threatening. “Hakeem will require further cardiovascular evaluation and possible open heart surgery to correct his heart defects in order to forestall irreversible and life threatening complications,” the statement from LUTH reads. The family is therefore calling on kindhearted Nigerians,

Total E&P Cooperative Nigeria has donated the sum of one million naira to the Cece Yara Foundation and the Cece Yara Child Advocacy Centre Shelter to provide intervention for children experiencing sexual abuse, as well as aid initiatives to prevent the practice. This, the organisation said, was in line with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) reports confirming one in four girls, and one in 10 boys in Nigeria were victims of sexual violence, leaving them with long lasting problems like low self-esteem, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), suicidal thoughts, learning difficulties, anti-social behavior and sometimes death. Speaking to journalists recently in Lagos, the President, Total E&P Cooperative Nigeria, Mr. Olawale Olasoji, disclosed that drivers of violence against children (VAC) were rooted in social norms,

adding that the use of violent discipline, violence against women and community beliefs about witchcraft ultimately increases the vulnerability of children in our society. He said that Nigeria has the largest number of child brides in Africa with more than 23 million girls and women married as children, most of which are from poor and rural communities with Child’s right Act providing that every child deserves a safe and healthy childhood, free from sexual abuse, adding that to change the narrative, corporate entities must come into play to assist government. Olasoji noted that “every adult, parent and responsible organisation must play a key role in the prevention of child sexual abuse, because Nigeria has the largest number of child brides in Africa with more than 23 million girls and women married as children, most of which are from poor and rural communities. “With the donation of One

Million Naira, Children who have experienced sexual abuse can continue to have direct access to free investigative, prosecutorial, psychological, medical, mental health and emergency intervention services on-site at the Cece Yara Centre,” he explained. On why Cece Yara Child Advocacy Centre Shelter was chosen, the president stated foundation created a safe and healthy environment where children that have suffered from sexual abuse with their non-offending family members, who remain at risk can be accommodated temporarily while they are provided with legal, psychosocial, medical and emotional help. “The shelter will provide a safe temporary environment for children for up to 12 weeks, giving them enough time to heal and continue with life. The shelter conveniently houses 28 children at a time and consists of a sitting and dining room, a kitchen, two female dormitories, one male dormitory and a family room.

Hakeem

philanthropic bodies and the government to come to their aid so little Hakeem can stay

alive. For assistance, call his mother, Iyabo, on 08038325580

T H I S D AY Ëž ÍľËœ 2019

BUSINESS/MONEYGUIDE

CBN Releases Guidance Note on IFRS 9 Implementation Nume Ekeghe The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has released a set of guidance notes on the implementation of the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS9) for the other financial institutions (OFIs). The circular which was signed by the Director of OFIs, Mrs. Tokunbo Martins, was posted on the central bankâ€™s website. The CBN directed the OFIs when measuring financial instruments and assessing significant increase in credit risk, to ensure that an entity, at each reporting date, assess whether the credit risk on a debt instrument measured at amortised cost and fair value through other comprehensive income has increased significantly

since initial recognition, using among other factors the change in the risk of a default occurring over the expected life of the instrument. Part of the circular reads: â€œThe CBN expects OFIs to put in place policies and systems as well as governance arrangements and controls to identify instances where their exposures have suffered significant increase in credit risk. â€œIn assessing significant increase in credit risk, OFIs are to consider quantitative, qualitative and â€˜backstopâ€™ (30 days past due presumption) indicators. However, OFIs with loan facilities with tenor of not more than 180 days should use seven days past due presumption. In the same vein, 90 days past due presumption should be used for

long term financial instruments such as mortgage loans with tenor longer than 10 years.â€? On impairment of financial Instruments, it stated: â€œOFIs are required to put in place appropriate policies to ensure sound credit risk assessment and measurement processes as well as systems, tools and data that appropriately aid the assessment of credit risk and computation of Expected Credit Loss (ECLs). In accordance with Section 5.5.1 of the Standard, OFIs are to determine ECL for financial assets measured at amortised cost, Fair Value through Other Comprehensive Income (FVOCI), lease receivables, contract asset, loan commitment and financial guarantee contract.â€?

Access, Diamond to Become Single Brand from April 1 Access Bank Plc and Diamond Bank Plc are expected to start operating as a single entity from April 1, 2019. This, would be under a new enlarged Access Bank brand. The Managing Director of Access Bank, Herbert Wigwe and his Diamond Bank counterpart, Uzoma Dozie, disclosed this in a joint statement to customers obtained yesterday. But finalising the merger proposes would be after the deal has been sanctioned by the

Federal High Court expected in the coming days, followed by final Securities and Exchange Commission and Central Bank of Nigeria regulatory approvals, they explained. â€œWe are delighted that shareholders of both companies supported the merger. It is a testament to what we have said before: together we are stronger and can offer more opportunities for our employees, more products and services for you, our customers and more

benefits for all our stakeholders. â€œThis approval puts us a step closer to becoming bigger, better and stronger Access Bank, one of Africaâ€™s largest banks by number of customers,â€? the statement explained. They disclosed that a team of brand experts have been working to create a fusion of both banks, adding that the new brand would reflect both banksâ€™ shared purpose to help people achieve their dreams and in doing so, for Africa to take its place on the world stage.

Aiteo Denies Hindering NOSDRA from Investigating Explosion Site The Aiteo Eastern Exploration and Production Company (AEEPCo) has said it did not stop the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency(NOSDRA), from investigating the fire incident at its oil well in Nembe, Bayelsa State on March 1. In a statement yesterday, the oil and gas firm stressed that reports in some news platforms that scores of people were missing after an explosion occurred along the Nembe Creek Trunk Line(NCTL), the major crude oil pipeline traversing the Nembe area, was erroneous. â€œAiteo is the operator of the NCTL as well as the Oil Mining Lease(OML) 29. Further details

on the incident from the affected area as well as statements from Aiteo and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) have cleared that it was not a pipeline explosion, but a fire at a nearby oil well,â€? it explained. Also, Aiteo stated that there was no casualty from the incident. â€œThis was corroborated by community people who later confirmed that there were no missing individuals,â€? the statement added. It disclosed that Aiteo contacted the relevant agencies, including NOSDRA on the matter within 24 hours as stipulated by law. A document referenced AEEPCo/PRD/2019/05

and signed by its Chief Operating Officer, Emmanuel Ukegbu reads: â€œPreliminary investigation suspects a possible explosion that resulted into fire at about 01.00 hours in the vicinity of Nembe Creek Well-7. By 01:30hrs, the fire has tapered down. â€œIt is important to note that prior to this fire incident, all facilities were shut-in due to NCTL outage about 17.00hrs on 28/02/19. We are continuing with investigations and further information will be communicated.â€? NOSDRA had accused Aiteo of frustrating efforts to investigate the incident.

Ayine Appointed to AU Board of External Auditors Nigeriaâ€™s Auditor-General for the Federation, Mr. Anthony M. Ayine, has been appointed a member of the African Union Board of External Auditors. In a letter conveying the appointment that was addressed to Ayine, the Deputy Chairperson of the African Union Commission, Honourable Kwesi Quartey stated: â€œI have the honour to inform you that the Republic of Nigeria has been appointed to serve on the AU Board of External Auditors by the Executive Council Decision

EX.Cl./Dec.1027 (XXXIII) and by the Assembly Decision â€“ Assembly/AU/Dec.15 (XXXI).â€? This was in line with Article 78 of the African Union Financial Rules and Regulations, which states that â€œThe AU Board of External Auditors shall comprise of Heads of Supreme Audit Institutions from member states of the union appointed by the Executive Council.â€? The Deputy Chairperson further stated: â€œI, therefore, would like to take this opportunity to congratulate the

Republic of Nigeria and we look forward to a fruitful and beneficial interaction during the Republic of Nigeriaâ€™s term of office from 2019 to 2020. â€œBy copy of this letter, the Executive Secretary of the Secretariat of the AU Board of External Auditors is advised to initiate communication, provide relevant information, organise the handing over by the outgoing members, and to facilitate the preparation for the audit of the fiscal year 2018.â€?

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 Ă™Ă–Ă“Ă?ĂŁ Ă‹ĂžĂ? Ě‹ ÍŻÍąĎą

OPEC DAILY BASKET PRICE ËœÍł Í°ÍŽÍŻÍˇ

BoIAppoints Shekarau ED,SME The Bank of Industry has announced the appointment of Mr Omar Shekarau as the Executive Director, Small and Medium Enterprises (SME). This followed the retirement of Dr. Waheed Olagunju from the bank. Shekarau, a graduate of ABU,

Zaria, until his appointment, was the General Manager, SME North and later General Manager, Large Enterprises. He is a licenced Human Resource Professional; a member of the Society for Human Resources Management (SHRM); a member of the Chartered

Institute of Personnel Management (CIPM) and a Member of the Chartered Institute of Administration of Nigeria. He has also served in the Military, University community, commercial Banks and Telecommunications before joining BOI in 2005 as a Senior

The price of OPEC basket of fourteen crudes stood at $64.98 a barrel on Tuesday, compared with $64.86 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

T H I S D AY Ëž ÍľËœ 2019

MARKET NEWS

Seplat Petroleumâ€˜s Profit AfterTax Falls to N45 Billion Goddy Egene The shares of Seplat Petroleum Development Company Plc fell 3.5 per cent yesterday as investors reacted negatively to the audited results of the company for the year ended December 31, 2018. The shares fell from N619.00 to N596.90 per share. The firm, which is listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) and London Stock Exchange (LSE) yesterday released its

audited results. Although the company recorded higher revenue, profit after tax (PAT) fell by 44.6 per cent. Specifically, Seplat posted revenue of N228.4 billion in 2018, up by 65.2 per cent from N138.3 billion recorded in 2017. Cost of sales rose 48 per cent from N73.4 billion to N108.6 billion, while gross profit jumped by 84.6 per cent to N119.8 billion from N64.9 billion in 2017. Net finance cost fell by 31.8 per cent to

P R I C E S MAIN BOARD

F O R DEALS

N14.3 billion, from N20.9 billion in 2017. Profit before tax (PBT) increased by 499 per cent from N13.5 billion to N80.6 billion. However, PAT fell from N81.1 billion to N44.9 billion due to debt of N35.7 billion in 2018, compared with a tax credit of N67.7 billion in 2017. The board of directors has recommended a dividend of N18 per share. The Chairman of Seplat, ABC Orjiako had disclosed plan of

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

QUANTITY TRADED

VALUE TRADED ( N )

the company to invest more in its gas business in last year so as to boost revenue and deliver more returns to investors. â€œOur strategy to diversify and grow our sources of income through the expansion of our gas business continues to gain momentum. Since the government launched various initiatives to stimulate investment in the gas sector, including opening the Domestic Supply Obligation (â€˜DSOâ€™) price to commercial mar-

T R A D E D MAIN BOARD

A S

ket forces, Seplat has been at the forefront of gas commercialisation and made substantial investments in support of the governmentâ€™s energy agenda,â€? he said. The Chief Executive Officer of Seplat, Austin Avuru had said the company registered strong cash flow performance and significantly strengthened the balance sheet the previous year. â€œOur proactive and decisive management coupled with the

O F

strong underlying fundamentals of the business have seen us emerge from an exceptionally challenging period a much fitter and stronger business that is well equipped to deliver long-term value for our shareholders,â€? he said. Meanwhile, the the three-day bullish run in the domestic equities market was halted yesterday as the NSE All-Share Index declined 0.16 per cent to close at 32,121.74.

0 5 / 0 3 / 2 0 1 9 DEALS

MARKET PRICE

QUANTITY TRADED

VALUE TRADED ( N)

˾ THURSDAY, MARCH 7, 2019

Thisday Afrinvest 40 Index Sheds 25bps

! % " ! $

Yesterday, the Thisday Afrinvest 40 Index shed 25bps to ĐůŽƐĞ Ăƚ ϭϱϲϵ͘Ϭϰ ĂƐ Ă ƌĞƐƵůƚ ŽĨ ƉƌŽĮƚ ƚĂŬŝŶŐ ŝŶ ZENITH ( 0.8%), CCNN ( 5.0%), and SEPLAT ( ϯ͘ϲйͿ͘ dŚĞƐĞ ƐƚŽĐŬƐ

82)&1*27&0 *5+351&2(* *75.(6 +35 ! % " ! 2)*:

ĐƵŵƵůĂƟǀĞůǇ ĂĐĐŽƵŶƚ ĨŽƌ ϭϵ͘ϱй ŽĨ ƚŚĞ ŝŶĚĞǆ͘

855*27 5.(*

!.(/*5

Bullish Run Halts͙ ASI Down 0.2%

In yesterday͛Ɛ ƚƌĂĚŝŶŐ ƐĞƐƐŝŽŶ͕ ƚŚĞ ƚŚƌĞĞ day bullish run in

5.(* -&2,* 2)*: 73 &7*

;)8)5:? "8;9: )52

(-51:0 )52

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1/-81)5 8-= -81-9

63,15/9 3+

-4-5: 6 68:0-85 1/-81)

and ETI ( Ϯ͘ϭйͿ͘ Ɛ Ă ƌĞƐƵůƚ͕ ŝŶǀĞƐƚŽƌƐ ǁĞĂůƚŚ ĚĞĐƌĞĂƐĞĚ ďǇ

#51:-, )52 .68 .81+)

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ůƐŽ͕ ĂĐƟǀŝƚǇ ůĞǀĞů ǁĞĂŬĞŶĞĚ ĂƐ ǀŽůƵŵĞ ĂŶĚ ǀĂůƵĞ ƚƌĂĚĞĚ

+6*)52 "8)595):165)3 5+

!:)5*1+ " 63,15/9

declined 48.0% and 19.6% to 208.3m units and N2.8bn ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞůǇ͘ dŚĞ ŵŽƐƚ ĂĐƟǀĞ ƐƚŽĐŬƐ ƚƌĂĚĞĚ ďǇ ǀŽůƵŵĞ ǁĞƌĞ ZENITH (45.4m units), GUARANTY (23.1m units) and FIDELITY

;ϮϬ͘Ϯŵ ƵŶŝƚƐͿ ǁŚŝůĞ ZENITH

#513-<-8 1/-81)

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( ;99659 1/-81)

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'ŽŽĚƐ ŝŶĚĞǆ ƚƌĂŝůĞĚ͕ ĚĞƉƌĞĐŝĂƟŶŐ ďǇ ϭ͘ϯй ŽŶ ƚŚĞ ďĂĐŬ ŽĨ declines in CCNN ( ϱ͘ϬйͿ͘ ^ŝŵŝůĂƌůǇ͕ ƚŚĞ ŽŶƐƵŵĞƌ 'ŽŽĚƐ

/ŶǀĞƐƚŽƌ ^ĞŶƟŵĞŶƚ ^ŽŌĞŶƐ /ŶǀĞƐƚŽƌ ƐĞŶƟŵĞŶƚ ĂƐ ŵĞĂƐƵƌĞĚ ďǇ ŵĂƌŬĞƚ ďƌĞĂĚƚŚ ;ĂĚǀĂŶĐĞͬĚĞĐůŝŶĞ ƌĂƟŽͿ ĨĞůů ƚŽ Ϭ͘ϰǆ ĨƌŽŵ Ϭ͘ϴǆ ƌĞĐŽƌĚĞĚ ǇĞƐƚĞƌĚĂǇ͘ dŚĞ ƚŽƉ ŽƵƚƉĞƌĨŽƌŵŝŶŐ ƐƚŽĐŬƐ ǁĞƌĞ JAIZBANK (+5.0%), ACCESS ;нϭ͘ϳйͿ ĂŶĚ UCAP ;нϭ͘ϱйͿ ǁŚŝůĞ ƚŚĞ ůĂŐŐĂƌĚƐ ǁĞƌĞ ůĞĚ ďǇ MCNICHOLS ( 10.0%), ETRANZACT ( 9.9%) and CCNN ( ϱ͘ϬйͿ͘ ĞƐƉŝƚĞ ǇĞƐƚĞƌĚĂǇΖƐ ďĞĂƌŝƐŚ

"8)59+687 6:-39 3+

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ƉŽƐŝƟǀĞ ĐůŽƐĞ ĨŽƌ ƚŚĞ ǁĞĞŬ ĂƐ ŝŶǀĞƐƚŽƌƐ ƉŽƐŝƟŽŶ ŝŶ

! $

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announcements.

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ƉĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ͕ ǁĞ ĞǆƉĞĐƚ ƚŚĞ ďĞŶĐŚŵĂƌŬ ŝŶĚĞǆ ƚŽ ƉŽƐƚ Ă

ĨƵŶĚĂŵĞŶƚĂůůǇ ƐŽƵŶĚ ƐĞĐƵƌŝƟĞƐ ĂŚĞĂĚ ŽĨ ĚŝǀŝĚĞŶĚ

-:) 3)99

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)5/6:- 36;8 1339 3+

! 3 4 & .2* 56

index fell 0.1% based on losses in DANGFLOUR ( 0.9%),

;31;9 -8/-8 1/-81)

( ϯ͘ϲйͿ ĚƌĂŐŐĞĚ ƚŚĞ ŝŶĚĞǆ ďǇ ϭ͘ϳй ǁŚŝůĞ ƚŚĞ /ŶĚƵƐƚƌŝĂů

! 331-, 5,;9:81-9

GUARANTY (+0.9%) and ACCESS ;нϭ͘ϳйͿ͘ KŶ ƚŚĞ ŇŝƉ ƐŝĚĞ͕

2bps ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞůǇ͕ ďƵŽǇĞĚ ďǇ ŵŽĚĞƐƚ ƉƌŝĐĞ ĂƉƉƌĞĐŝĂƟŽŶ ŝŶ

the index.

ƵŶĚĞƌ ŽƵƌ ĐŽǀĞƌĂŐĞ ĐůŽƐĞĚ ŝŶ ƚŚĞ ŐƌĞĞŶ͘ dŚĞ ĂŶŬŝŶŐ ĂŶĚ

HONYFLOUR ( ϯ͘ϳйͿ ĂŶĚ CADBURY ( ϭ͘ϵйͿ ǁŚŝĐŚ ĚƌĂŐŐĞĚ

ƚŚĞ Kŝů Θ 'ĂƐ ŝŶĚĞǆ ĞǆƚĞŶĚĞĚ ůŽƐƐĞƐ ĂƐ ƐĞůů ŽīƐ ŝŶ SEPLAT

;155-99 1/-81)

^ĞĐƚŽƌ ƉĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ ǁĂƐ ůĂƌŐĞůǇ ďĞĂƌŝƐŚ ĂƐ Ϯ ŽĨ ϱ ƐƚŽĐŬƐ

/ŶƐƵƌĂŶĐĞ ŝŶĚŝĐĞƐ ŐĂŝŶĞĚ Ă ŵĂƌŐŝŶĂů ϯďƉƐ ĂŶĚ

> >

264; 13 )34

Bearish Sector Performance

GUARANTY ;EϴϳϮ͘ϵŵͿ ĂŶĚ DANGCEM ;Eϭϳϭ͘ϯŵͿ ůĞĚ ďǇ

(N1.1bn),

value.

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Index ;͞ ^/͟Ϳ ĨĞůů ϭϲďƉƐ ƚŽ ƐĞƩůĞ Ăƚ ϯϮ͕ϭϮϭ͘ϳϰ ƉŽŝŶƚƐ

Eϭϵ͘ϰďŶ ƚŽ EϭϮ͘ϬƚŶ ǁŚŝůĞ zd ƌĞƚƵƌŶ ŵŽĚĞƌĂƚĞĚ ƚŽ 2.2%.

5.(* -&2,* %!

ƚŚĞ ĚŽŵĞƐƟĐ ĞƋƵŝƟĞƐ ŵĂƌŬĞƚ ǁĂƐ ŚĂůƚĞĚ ĂƐ ƚŚĞ ůů ^ŚĂƌĞ

ĨŽůůŽǁŝŶŐ ƉƌŽĮƚ ƚĂŬŝŶŐ in SEPLAT ( 3.6%), ZENITH ( 0.8%)

5*9.386 855*27 5.(* #*.,-7.2 -&2,* ,

# ' ( ! $

' ( ! $

# ' # ( ! $

' ( ! $

˾ THURSDAY, MARCH 7, 2019

MARKET NEWS

Nestle Grows Profit to N35bn, Recommends N38.50 Final Dividend Goddy Egene

However, net finance cost dipped an interim dividend of N20 per share by 89.9 per cent from N8.869 before now, the total dividend for Nestle Nigeria Plc yesterday billion to N889 million last year. the 2018 financial year would be reported a revenue of N266.27 Consequently, profit before tax N58.50 per share. This shows an billion for the year ended December (PBT) improved by 27.5 per cent increase of 37 per cent compared 31, showing an increase of 9.0 from N46.83 billion in 2017 to N59.75 with N42.50 paid in 2017. Commenting on the results, per cent compared with N244.1 billion, while profit after tax (PAT) billion posted in 2017. Cost of sales grew from N33.72 billion to N43 Managing Director/CEO of Nestle Nigeria, Mr. Mauricio Alarcon, said: went up by 6.3 per cent to N152.3 billion in 2018. Given the improved performance, “We are pleased with our 2018 billion, from N143.2 billion in 2017. of directors has results considering the increasingly Operating expenses also climbed the board by 17.9 per cent to N53.27 billion recommended a final dividend of competitive business environment. N38.50 per share and having paid The growth was driven by the from N45.1 billion in 2017. A Mutual fund (Unit Trust) is an investment floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange. vehicle managed by a SEC (Securities and A REIT (Real Estate Investment Trust) is an Exchange Commission) registered Fund Manager. investment vehicle that allows both small and Investors with similar objectives buy units of the large investors to part-own real estate ventures (eg. Fund so that the Fund Manager can buy securities Offices, Houses, Hospitals) in proportion to their that willl generate their desired return. investments. The assets are divided into shares that An ETF (Exchange Traded Fund) is a type are traded on the Nigerian Stock Exchange. of fund which owns the assets (shares of stock, bonds, oil futures, gold bars, foreign currency, GUIDE TO DATA: etc.) and divides ownership of those assets into Date: All fund prices are quoted in Naira as at 05shares. Investors can buy these ‘shares’ on the Mar-2019, unless otherwise stated.

continued loyalty of our consumers iron was introduced during the as we focused on consistently delivering year. In line with its purpose high quality, tasty and nutritious food of enhancing quality of life and products adapted to their preferences. contributing to a healthier future, The discipline and dedication of our Nestlé Nigeria worked alongside people also supported this business stakeholders to execute projects outcome.” aimed at improving livelihoods According to him, the company in communities connected to its continued to invest in innovation to operations while delivering value to keep delighting consumers with its its shareholders. This is a principle iconic brands. called Creating Shared Value, (CSV). “The multi-cereal Nestlé The CSV projects include provision Golden Morn Puffs fortified with of access to clean drinking water, 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.

providing nutrition education, farmer capacity building and grain quality improvement through Feed the Future Nigeria and Nestlé Maize Quality Improvement Partnership,” the company said. Looking ahead, Nestle Nigeria said it will focus on leveraging its capabilities to deliver value to its consumers and its shareholders as it contributes to the growth of the local economy and to improving livelihoods within its communities.

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 161.96 162.47 2.41% Afrinvest Plutus Fund 100.00 100.00 11.00% Nigeria International Debt Fund 279.64 280.31 2.47% 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 1.63% ACAP Income Funds 0.62 0.62 11.96% 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 2.28 2.31 2.59% ARM INVESTMENT MANAGERS LTD enquiries@arminvestmentcenter.com Web: www.arm.com.ng; Tel: 0700 CALLARM (0700 225 5276) Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn ARM Aggressive Growth Fund N/A N/A N/A ARM Discovery Fund N/A N/A N/A ARM Ethical Fund N/A N/A N/A ARM Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A AXA MANSARD INVESTMENTS LIMITED investmentcare@axamansard.com Web: www.axamansard.com; Tel: +2341-4488482 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn AXA Mansard Equity Income Fund 104.28 105.01 3.05% AXA Mansard Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 12.51% 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 13.70% Paramount Equity Fund 12.16 12.26 2.95% Women's Investment Fund 106.24 106.80 2.54% 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 13.20% Coronation Balanced Fund 0.85 0.85 Coronation Fixed Income Fund 1.16 1.16 3.47% EDC FUNDS MANAGEMENT LIMITED mutualfundng@ecobank.com Web: www.ecobank.com Tel: 012265281 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn EDC Nigeria Money Market Fund Class A 100.00 100.00 12.38% EDC Nigeria Money Market Fund Class B 1,000,000.00 1,000,000.00 11.33% 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 145.69 147.02 1.59% FBN Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 14.20% FBN Nigeria Eurobond (USD) Fund - Institutional 115.96 116.43 1.82% FBN Nigeria Eurobond (USD) Fund - Retail 115.90 116.36 2.02% FBN Nigeria Smart Beta Equity Fund 152.36 154.60 1.57% 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 1.23 1.25 0.88% Legacy Debt Fund 3.31 3.31 2.08% Legacy USD Bond Fund 1.04 1.04 0.84% FSDH ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD coralfunds@fsdhgroup.com Web: www.fsdhaml.com; Tel: 01-270 4884-5; 01-280 9740-1 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Coral Growth Fund N/A N/A N/A Coral Income Fund N/A N/A N/A GREENWICH ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED assetmanagement@gtlgroup.com Web: www.gtlgroup.com ; Tel: +234 1 4619261-2 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Greenwich Plus Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 13.00% Nigeria Entertainment Fund 109.06 109.64 1.79% 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 N/A N/A N/A Vantage Balanced Fund N/A N/A N/A Vantage Guaranteed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A Kedari Investment Fund (KIF) N/A N/A N/A

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 1.90% Lotus Halal Fixed Income Fund 1,094.69 1,094.69 2.33% 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 11.73 11.83 1.97% Meristem Money Market Fund 10.00 10.00 11.36% 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 1.41 8.09% PACAM Fixed Income Fund 12.31 12.38 0.93% 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 2,385.35 2,399.97 3.10% Stanbic IBTC Bond Fund 194.84 194.84 2.47% Stanbic IBTC Ethical Fund 0.99 1.00 4.74% Stanbic IBTC Guaranteed Investment Fund 252.07 252.11 1.99% Stanbic IBTC Iman Fund 168.91 169.01 2.99% Stanbic IBTC Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 13.24% Stanbic IBTC Nigerian Equity Fund 8,721.64 8,826.96 2.74% Stanbic IBTC Dollar Fund (USD) 1.12 1.12 1.08% UNITED CAPITAL ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD unitedcapitalplcgroup.com Web: www.unitedcapitalplcgroup.com; Tel: +234 803 306 2887 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn United Capital Balanced Fund N/A N/A N/A United Capital Bond Fund N/A N/A N/A United Capital Equity Fund N/A N/A N/A United Capital Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A United Capital Eurobond Fund N/A N/A N/A United Capital Wealth for Women Fund N/A N/A N/A 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 11.27 11.43 6.87% Zenith Ethical Fund 12.50 12.62 3.85% Zenith Income Fund 21.05 21.05 9.18% Zenith Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 10.97%

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

10.78 115.35 90.99

10.88 117.85 92.70

2.17% -1.64% 2.63%

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

4.26 7.32 15.08 12.67 152.18

4.30 7.40 15.18 12.87 154.18

6.38% -3.92% 0.84% 2.51% 5.98%

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.

5 ) * 4 % ": t THURSDAY, MARCH 7, 2019

THURSDAY MARCH 7, 2019 ˾ T H I S D AY

INTERNA TIONAL

UK Negotiator Reports Robust Brexit Talks in Brussels One of Britain’s Brexit negotiators said on Wednesday he had held a “robust” discussion with European Union counterparts over how to get a withdrawal deal through parliament in London. Speaking after talks with EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier in Brussels on Tuesday, Attorney General Geoffrey Cox said he had put forward some “very reasonable proposals”. “Both sides have exchanged robust strong views and we’re now facing the real discussions. Talks will be resuming soon,”

Cox told Sky News television from Brussels. “These are very sensitive discussions, we’re into the meat of the matter now, we’ve put forward some proposals, very reasonable proposals,” he said. But he said he could not reveal the content of the discussions, saying they were “private and confidential”. The negotiations, which also included British Brexit Secretary Steve Barclay, ended with no official comment from either side.

Prime Minister Theresa May is desperately seeking to salvage her Brexit deal to allow Britain to leave the bloc in an orderly fashion on

March 29. After MPs roundly rejected the text on January 15, she has been seeking guarantees on how its most controversial

arrangement — the so-called Irish border backstop — will be implemented. The House of Commons will have another chance to vote on

the deal next Tuesday. If MPs again reject it, they will vote in the following days on whether to leave with no deal or delay Brexit.

UN Says Conflict in Sahel Region Driving Massive Displacement Rising conflict and poverty are driving massive displacement across the Sahel region where millions of people are still reeling from last year’s food crisis, the UN said on Wednesday. At least 4.2 million people are currently displaced in the Sahel – one million more than in 2018, the UN said. The increase in forced displacement was due to escalating armed violence in parts of Mali, across the Lake Chad Basin and the border region of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, according to the report. Worst affected is the Lake Chad Basin region, with 2.7

million people uprooted from their homes, the UN added. “Food insecurity and malnutrition, fuelled by poverty, climate shocks and conflict, continue stalking the Sahel region,” said Abdou Dieng, Regional Director for the UN World Food Programme in West and Central Africa. According to the UN, food security of millions of families remains fragile in the wake of a severe drought that decimated pasture, livestock, and crops in 2018. It projected that 9.5 million people will be critically food insecure in the 2019 lean season between June and August.

... Provides Funding to Regional Logistics Base for Ebola Response The UN relief agency on Wednesday said it had released 500,000 dollars to support the creation of a regional common logistics services staging area in Uganda to strengthen Ebola readiness and response in the region. Mark Lowcock, UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, said the funds was from the UN Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF). Lowcock said the fund was part of a 10.5 million dollars regional contribution from the CERF towards mitigating the possible impact of the current Ebola outbreak should it spread to countries neighbooring the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The new logistics centre, led by the World Food Programme (WFP) as the lead agency for common

logistics services for both UN agencies and NGOs, will support early action in countries neighbouring the DRC. According to WFP, the staging area will also support ongoing Ebola response in DRC to the extent required to prevent the spread of the disease and respond if needed. Erika Joergensen, WFP East Africa Regional Director said in a statement issued in Nairobi that the UN agency still needs additional support for the logistics staging area in Entebbe. “We are very grateful to CERF and the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) for this timely contribution. “We also urged other donors to support preparedness and the emergency response to stop and push back Ebola,” Joergensen said.

US Revokes 77 Visas of Venezuela’s Govt Officials The United States is barring scores of Venezuelan officials and family members, Vice President Mike Pence said on Wednesday, in the latest measure aimed at bringing down President Nicolas Maduro. “The State Department is revoking 77 visas, including many officials of the Maduro regime and their families,”

Pence said in a speech in Washington, according to his prepared remarks. “We will continue to hold all of the Maduro regime accountable until democracy and libertad (liberty) are fully restored,” he said. Last week, Washington revoked 49 visas from Venezuelan officials.

Algerian demonstrators scuffle with security forces during a demonstration against Algeria’s president’s candidacy for a fifth term…yesterday AFP

Military School Conceals Trumps’ Grades, Says Report A military academy that Donald Trump attended as a teenager concealed his academic records in 2011 in response to pressure from Trump allies, The Washington Post reported Tuesday. The New York Military Academy came under such pressure after Trump challenged former president, Barack Obama to release his own academic records, with Trump saying he was surprised such a “terrible student” got into Ivy League Schools. Evan Jones, the headmaster of the military academy at the time, told the Post that the

superintendent of the private school “came to me in a panic because he had been accosted by prominent, wealthy alumni of the school who were Mr. Trump’s friends” and wanted to keep his academic records secret. Trump has consistently boasted he was a superb student throughout his youth. The school’s superintendent, or director, at the time, Jeffrey Coverdale, told the paper that he rejected a request from members of the school’s board of trustees to hand over Trump’s records to them. “I moved them elsewhere on

campus where they could not be released. It’s the only time I ever moved an alumnus’s records,” Coverdale told the Post. Trump spent five years at the military academy starting in the fall of 1959. He has said his parents concluded he needed more discipline. Last week Trump’s former personal attorney, Michael Cohen, testified to a congressional committee last week that one of his jobs was to threaten lawsuits against the schools that Trump attended so they would never release his grades. Jones said he did not know

if the original request to obtain Trump’s records at the military academy came from Cohen. Jones said he found the records in a filing cabinet in the basement of a building on the campus, which is about an hour’s drive north of New York City. “I don’t know if we should be doing this,” Jones recalled telling his boss. “He told me that several wealthy alumni, including a close friend of Mr. Trump, were putting a lot of pressure on the administration to put the record in their custody for safekeeping.”

India Rape Victim Kills Attacker An Indian woman who was raped and set on fire killed her attacker by dragging him into the flames, police said on Wednesday. The woman survived with burns to her face and hands while the man died in hospital from his injuries. The widow, 35, told police that the man, 42, attacked and

raped her in her home north of Kolkata in eastern India, on Monday, when her daughters were out. “Then he poured kerosene on her body and set her on fire,” police officer Sajal Kanti Biswas told AFP, quoting the woman’s statement. India has a grim record of sexual violence, as highlighted

by the gang rape and murder of a woman on a Delhi bus in 2012. On average, more than 100 rapes were reported each day in 2016, according to the most recent official figures. Victims are often threatened by the perpetrators against reporting the incidents to the authorities. A slow judiciary and lax

policing system also fail the victims, experts say. In recent years some incidents of victims taking drastic actions for “instant justice” have surfaced. Last December a 47-year-old woman cut off the penis of her stalker after the 27-yearold repeatedly sought sexual favours from the mother-of-two.

France Monitoring Algeria Protests, Says Up to People to Decide Future France is closely watching the anti-government protests in former colony Algeria, but it is for Algerians to decide their future, Foreign Minister, Jean-Yves Le-Drian said on Wednesday. Tens of thousands of people have rallied in cities around Algeria in the largest protests since the 2011 Arab Spring, calling on President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, 82, not to stand in an election scheduled for April 18. He submitted his

registration papers on Sunday. “We must let the electoral process unfold. France, obviously, because of our historical links (…), is very attentive to the unfolding events,’’ Le-Drian told lawmakers. Late on Tuesday, Algerian war veterans said the protesters demanding ailing Bouteflika step down after 20 years in power had legitimate concerns and urged all citizens to demonstrate, in another sign of cracks in the ruling

elite. “Algeria is a sovereign country and it is up to the Algerian people, and them alone, to choose their leaders and their future, it is up to the Algerian people to define their aspirations, which implies transparency and the freedom of the process,” Le-Drian said. France is home to more than four million people of Algerian origin. Any upheaval in the North African country, which gained independence from France in

1962 after an eight-year war, would have repercussions in France. If the situation degenerated markedly, French officials would fear an influx of refugees or illegal migrants, as well as a security crisis in a region already destabilised by militants. “This is why the stability, security and development of Algeria are absolutely essential,” Le-Drian said, calling on the demonstrations there to remain peaceful.

THURSDAY MARCH 7, 2019 ˾ T H I S D AY

NEWS

CSOs Want UN, AU to Prevail on Buhari over Military Siege on South-South Clark seeks withdrawal of military from election duties Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja A coalition of civil society organisations and election observers have called on the United Nations (UN), African Union (AU), and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to immediately prevail on President Muhammadu Buhari against the ongoing militarisation of the South-south states ahead of Saturday’s governorship and state Houses of Assembly elections. This is coming as the Niger Delta leader and elder statesman, Chief Edwin Clark

yesterday appealed to the federal government to withdraw the military from all election duties across the country. The Ijaw leader has also urged the people of Delta State to support the re-election bid of Governor Ifeanyi Okowa. Addressing a press conference yesterday in Abuja, the National Coordinator of the group, Jacob Okpanachi noted that it became imperative for the group to draw the attention of the media, the Nigerian people and the international community to the attempt to intimidate, harass and build unnecessary tensions around the election process,

120 Niger Delta Entrepreneurs Receive Shell Nigeria LiveWIRE Grants Another 120 youth entrepreneurs from seven states of the Niger Delta have been given Shell Nigeria LiveWIRE business training and N48 million by The Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) Joint Venture to begin small-scale businesses in their respective states in the expectation that they will become models for alternative livelihoods as part of the programme to deter involvement of youths in vices. The 120 beneficiaries received their certificates at a Regional LiveWIRE graduation ceremony in Port Harcourt on Tuesday. SPDC General Manager External Relations, Mr. Igo Weli, described the company’s flagship youth enterprise development programme, Shell Nigeria LiveWIRE, as a potent initiative that has produced over 7,000 Niger Delta entrepreneurs since inception in 2003 with most of them now employers of labour.

He said, “Some of the beneficiaries have also been given the opportunity to participate in SPDC’s supply chain as vendors and have been linked to growth capital from other agencies.” Speaking at the graduation ceremony, the Director of Secondary Education, Rivers State Ministry of Education, Mrs. Sokari Davies, commended SPDC and its joint venture partners for the consistent sponsorship of the Shell Nigeria LiveWIRE programme. Mrs. Davies said, “Irrespective of the challenges in the operating environment, SPDC still deemed it necessary to empower and develop the youths. Other multinational oil companies should copy SPDC and channel resources towards the development of the youths. That way, restiveness will greatly reduce. Government will continue to partner with SPDC because of this.

which ordinarily should be a civil exercise. Okpanachi stressed that the conduct of the military during the February 23 presidential and National Assembly elections and the heavy deployment of troops in states such as Delta, Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa and Rivers, have raised serious concerns about the military’s involvement in partisan activities. He stated: “We have a duty to our country, to Nigerians and democracy, in ensuring that every elements that threatens our democratic growth are challenged and rejected as a matter of patriotism.” “We must not allow desperate politicians and their collaborators within the security agencies, to truncate this democracy. And when we find ourselves under such circumstance such as is presently being witnessed, appropriate action must be taken not allow our democracy not to be derailed “We are calling on ECOWAS, African Union and the United Nations to immediately prevail on President Buhari, to cease the ongoing hostilities against the people of Delta, Akwa

Backs Okowa’s re-election bid

Ibom, Bayelsa and other states, presently under military hostage ahead of Saturday’s elections,” he said. Okpanachi warned that any attempt to derail democracy would be too tragic for the country to bear, adding that the country must wake up to this reality. He added, “We want the leadership of our security agencies, particularly the military to realise that we are taking notes of all their actions and every deeds shall be accounted for. “We shall not hesitate to further petition the International Criminal Court (ICC) if there is any violation of the people’s rights and we will begin to petition embassies and demand for measures, which include but not limited to denial and withdrawal of visas from whoever is involved in any violence that may emanate from this invasion,” Okpanachi added. Also, the Secretary of the group, Olufemi Lawson, said that the deployment of the military in Rivers is working, noting that in Bayelsa the military has already stationed gunboat, while also designating ten local

government areas (LGAs) as flash points in Akwa Ibom State. Meanwhile, Clark yesterday appealed to the federal government to withdraw the military from all election duties across the country. Clark, who made this appeal during a press conference held in his home town, Kiagbodo, Burutu LGA of Delta State, said from experience of the last presidential and National Assembly elections it was clear that “the involvement of the army was to intimidate and prevent South- south and South-east voters from exercising their franchise”. Clark who is also the Convener of the Pan Niger Forum (PANDEF), alleged that the military was also used to aid and abet the manipulation of votes to favour the incumbent and to determine the general voting pattern in the country. He expressed concern and deepest condemnation in the strongest possible terms on the reported violence and killings that characterised the presidential and National Assembly elections in parts of the country, particularly in Rivers, Bayelsa, Lagos and

Delta States. He said, “the gory tales of violence at Okrika in Okrika LGA, Opobo in Opobo LGA, Bonny Island in Bonny LGA and particularly killings in Abonnema, Asari-Toru LGA of Rivers State, the mindless electoral violence recorded in such places as Bassambiri, in Nembe LGA, Brass in Brass LGA, Agbere in Sagbama LGA and various parts of Southern Ijaw LGA, in Bayelsa State, is quite worrisome.” Clark said since the presidential election was over and February 28 deadline for the military Operation Python Dance had elapsed, the army should withdraw to the barracks to forestall further hostilities and unnecessary killings in the region. “The federal government needs to be reminded that deployment of the military on election duties is an aberration, and same as been pronounced upon and consequently laid to rest in the Court of Appeal, in the case of All Progressives Congress v Peoples Democratic Party & ORS CA/EK/EPT/GOV/1/2015 delivered on Monday, February 16, 2015,” Clark said.

Nigeria Needs Best Brains for Devt, Says Babalakin The Pro-Chancellor of the University of Lagos (UNILAG), Dr. Wale Babalakin (SAN), has said policies must be made to attract the best brains to teach in Nigerian universities. This, he said, would speed up the country’s development. Babalakin spoke yesterday at UNILAG’s College of Medicine during a valedictory service in honour of the founder of Hygeia HMO Limited and former Chief Medical Director of the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), Prof. Emmanuel Adeyemo Elebute (CON). He said he was inspired by the late Elebute’s CV and achievements, adding that the deceased contributed extensively to the development of medicine. Babalakin’s words: “Prof. Elebute attended CMS Grammar School and studied medicine at Trinity College, Dublin. He won the Cunningham Medal for Anatomy and Fitzpatrick Scholarship for the best performance in all professional examinations. With all the options available to him, he chose to come back to Nigeria and contribute to the College of

Medicine, UNILAG. His CV is one that we should propagate. “We have been having serious difficulty in attracting the best of scholars to the university system. In the era of the Elebutes and those immediately after them, there was no better thing to do than to be in the academia. Various policies have made this unattractive and until we reverse these policies and begin again to attract the best brains to teach in universities, our national development will remain stifled.” He said the late Elebute was not only an academic but a “phenomenal administrator”, the pro-chancellor said: “He was the Chief Medical Director of LUTH from 1978 -1980. Before then he had participated actively in the union of doctors, seeking to improve the welfare of doctors as President of the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA) between 1968 and 1970. “He was also a member of the editorial board of the British Journal of Surgery. What this tells us is that we can rebuild from where we find ourselves; we can create a Nigerian academy that will be the envy of all.”

VALEDICTORY SERVICE…

L-R: Provost, University of Lagos (UNILAG) College of Medicine, Prof. Afolabi Lesi; UNILAG Pro-Chancellor, Dr. Wale Babalakin; Mrs. Modupe Odunsi (nee Elebute); and Prof. Oladapo Ashiru of Mart-Life Clinic, during the valedictory service for the Founder of Lagoon Hospital, Prof. Adeyemo Elebute, in Lagos…yesterday

NAF Deploys Aircraft for Delivery of Electoral Materials Kingsley Nwezeh in Abuja Ahead of Saturday’s governorship and State Houses of Assembly elections, the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) has stated that it deployed aircraft to convey electoral materials for the election and locations it considered flashpoints. NAF yesterday said that between February 12 and March 3, 2019, it airlifted a total of 633,790 kilogrammes of electoral materials to 31 different locations across the country. Speaking at a meeting with Air Officers Commanding (AOCs) and field commanders in Abuja, the Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar, said eight NAF

aircraft were deployed in the airlift operation, flying a total of about 340 hours in 257 sorties with about 120 crew members involved, comprising pilots, technicians and other specialties operating on a round-the-clock basis. He said it was part of its constitutional role of providing aid to civil authority and efforts to assist the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). Abubakar noted that contingency plans were emplaced in case of any breakdown of law and order while NAF hospitals and medical centres have been put on alert to assist in attending to any medical emergencies. The CAS emphasised

that the responsibility of commanders was to ensure security of lives and property of Nigerians. He noted that no excuse would be tolerated for any failure in this regard. He also reminded AOCs that they must ensure that all NAF personnel remain professional in the discharge of their duties, while ensuring that no individual or group of individuals is allowed to undermine the electoral process. He stressed that NAF personnel must endeavour to operate in accordance with the Code of Conduct promulgated by Defence Headquarters (DHQ) for members of the Armed Forces during elections. “In line with the directives of the Chief of Defence Staff

(CDS), General Abayomi Olonisakin, to all services on the need to ensure peaceful conduct of the forthcoming gubernatorial and states Houses of Assembly elections. “The Chief of the Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar, has directed Air Officers Commanding (AOCs) and field commanders to ensure safety of lives and properties in their various locations. “They must sternly resist any entreaties by unscrupulous politicians to get involved in partisan politics. “Air Marshal Abubakar therefore urged all eligible voters to come out en-masse to vote for the candidates of their choice,” NAF said in a statement.

5 ) * 4 % ": t THURSDAY, MARCH 7, 2019

THURSDAY MARCH 7, 2019 ˾ T H I S D AY

NEWSEXTRA

Don’t Instigate Tribal Clashes in Name of Politics, Sanwo-Olu Tells Lagos Residents Afenifere, Ohanaeze, PANDEF, others back Agbaje Bennett Oghifo in Lagos and Shola Oyeyipo in Abuja The governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lagos State, Mr. Olusola Sanwo-Olu has advised the residents of the

state to desist from fanning the embers of disunity along tribal lines in the name of politics. Sanwo-Olu stated this yesterday at a mega rally at the Agege Township Stadium, organised by PSP Waste Managers, who promised him

Royal Fathers, Religious Leaders Condemn Militarisation of A’Ibom PDP chieftain berates Osinbajo over allegation of stolen votes Okon Bassey in Uyo Akwa Ibom State religious leaders under the umbrella of Fathers of Faith yesterday condemned the invasion of the state by the military ahead of the governorship and state House of Assembly polls. This is coming as a Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chieftain and former National Publicity Secretary of the party, Senator Anietie Okon, has condemned Vice President Yemi Osinbajo over his recent claims that votes meant for All Progressives Congress (APC) in the last national elections in the state were stolen. Prelate Emeritus, Sunday Mbang of the Methodist Church, who spoke for other religious leaders, noted the ‘high’ movement of military to the state after the presidential and National Assembly elections. He frowned at the role of Senator Godswill Akpabio in the alleged ‘militarisation’ of the state ahead of the March 9, 2019, elections. According to the cleric, “Although as an individual, Akpabio reserves the right to freely associate with whatever political party he deems fit for himself, but his unguarded utterances have however ignited unhealthy rivalry among members of the different political parties in the state. “This unpleasant political atmosphere came to the fore since the uncommon defection of our son and former Governor, Akpabio, from the PDP to the APC on August 8, 2018 “Key among his below par utterances is the infamous ‘Warsaw Saw War’. Ever since he made that statement, things have not remained the same in

our polity. “As if to confirm the belligerent disposition of Akpabio and his party, the APC, the invasion of Akwa Ibom State landscape by the military, shortly before and during the last presidential and National Assembly elections of February 28, 2019, sent a wrong signal to our people. “There were reports of harassment, intimidation and physical assault of the electorate in some parts of Akwa Ibom State, especially in Ikot Ekpene senatorial district, where Akpabio stood in elections. “As we speak, some of the political actors arrested by men of the Nigerian Police and the military are still held in custody without any charge brought against them in the court of law.” The Prelate Emeritus further noted that with few days to governorship and House of Assembly elections in the state, troops have been moved to the state like never before, adding that “men of the Nigerian police have also become battle-ready. “This militarisation of our state would have been understandable and apt if we were in a war situation. For God sake, we are not at war, and therefore, we condemn this suspicious deployment of soldiers and men of other security forces to the state. Commanders and other hierarchy of security forces should remember that professionalism is the hallmark of their callings, and they are never expected to turn their guns against a peaceful people with whose monies the guns are bought. “As a concerned body, we therefore call on President Muhammadu Buhari to urgently look into the situation before it degenerates into an ugly scene.”

Sultan Urges Muslims to Watch out for New Moon The Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar III, yesterday urged Muslims to start looking for the new moon of Rajab 1440AH. Abubakar stated this in a statement by Prof. Sambo Junaidu, the Chairman, Advisory Committee on Religious Affairs and Sultanate Council in Sokoto. The Sultan said, “This is to inform the Muslim Ummah that Thursday March 7, equivalent to 29 day of Jumada al-Thani 1440AH, shall be the day to look for the new moon of Rajab 1440AH.

“Muslims are, therefore, requested to start looking for the new moon of Rajab 1440AH on Thursday and report its sighting to the nearest district or village head for onward communication to the Sultan.” The monarch prayed to Allah to help religious leaders and the entire Ummah discharge their religious duty. The News Agency of Nigeria reports that Rajab is the Seventh month in the Islamic calendar that comes two months before the compulsory fasting month of Ramadan.

500,000 votes. This is coming as some notable geopolitical groups - the Southern and Middle Belt Leaders Forum (SMBLF), pan-Yoruba socio-political group, Afenifere; the umbrella group for Igbos, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, and the Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF), have declared support for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Mr. Jimi Agbaje, for the March 9 governorship election. Sanwo-Olu, represented at the rally by the deputy candidate, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat, pledged to run an inclusive government if elected governor. He said, “All our party members need to do is to remind non-indigenes that since 1999 Lagos State Government has been running inclusive government; we have been paying WAEC fees for Igbo, Yoruba, and Hausa without discrimination. In our prestigious university, we have

Hausa, Igbo and Yoruba and other tribe paying the same school fees. “The same procedure Igbo will follow to get land Certificate of Occupancy is what Hausa and Yoruba will follow. If you go to our general hospitals, we attend to people equally. So nonindigenes should take the right decision by voting for Babajide Sanwo-Olu for continuity of good governance. “All we need to do is to keep reminding them what they stand to gain when they vote for APC; I’m sure they will support us and vote for us.” The PSP Waste Managers, who came out in large numbers said they would sustain their house to house sensitiSation of voters. According to the Chairman, Association of Waste Managers of Nigeria, Mr. Oladipo Egbeyemi, “we are using this medium to assure our governorship candidate of

our support, and also pledge to deliver over 500,000 votes come March 9.” Meanwhile, some notable geopolitical groups - the Southern and Middle Belt Leaders Forum (SMBLF), pan-Yoruba socio-political group, Afenifere; the umbrella group for Igbos, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, and the Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF), have declared support for the PDP candidate in Lagos State, Mr. Jimi Agbaje. The groups in a press statement issued by the National Publicity Secretary, Afenifere, Mr. Yinka Odumakin; Prof. Chigozie Ogbu (Ohanaeze), and Senator Bassey Henahaw (PANDEF), stated that their decision was predicated on the candidate who would support the restructuring of Nigeria. They also assured the electorate that as stakeholders in Lagos, every Nigerian from every part of the country have a right to decide

on their preferred candidate in an election. “Flowing from the above, we cannot be indifferent to who governs Lagos at this critical stage of our national life. We have looked at the build-up to Saturday governorship elections and it is clear there are two leading candidates,” the statement reads, referring to Babajide Sanwo-Olu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and Jimi Agbaje of the PDP. They added: “Of the two, one belongs to a political party that stands on the way of restructuring Nigeria and therefore cannot be in our consideration. The other candidate, Mr. Jimi Agbaje of the Peoples Democratic Party has for over 20 years been involved in the struggles to rearrange Nigeria as an Afenifere man and we have no reservations in encouraging our people to choose him as governor of Lagos in the March 9 election.”

DOOR-TO-DOOR CAMPAIGN…

L-R: Chairman of Udenu Local Government Area of Enugu State, Hon. Frank Ugwu; Enugu State Governor and governorship candidate of Peoples Democratic Party, Hon. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi; Deputy Senate President and Senator-elect for Enugu West senatorial district, Ike Ekweremadu; and Deputy Governor of Enugu State, Mrs. Cecilia Ezeilo, during the grand finale of the PDP door-to-door campaign in Udenu LGA…yesterday

30 Political Parties Demand Redeployment of Bayelsa REC, Others Emmanuel Addeh in Yenagoa Over 30 political parties under the Coalition of United Political Parties (CUPP) and the Inter Party Advisory Council (IPAC) in Bayelsa State yesterday demanded the removal of the state Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Monday Udom. The parties, which also sought the redeployment of several officials of the commission, said the call became necessary due to what they described as an “unholy alliance” of INEC in the state with the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state. According to the parties, there was no need for the leadership of the commission in the state to oversee the conduct of the forthcoming state assembly election if it could not ensure impartiality and non-partisanship.

Speaking at a press conference yesterday in Yenagoa, the state capital, the parties said they had lost confidence in the ability of the REC to conduct a free, fair and credible election next Saturday due to what transpired during the last presidential and National Assembly polls. Chairman of CUPP, Mr. Tare Edwin, alleged that under the REC’s watch, materials were not only stolen, but the impartiality of the commission could not be guaranteed. The parties said: “We will not tolerate any manipulation this time around. There is an unholy alliance between the REC and a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state to undermine the forthcoming state assembly elections. “We are calling on the national INEC to immediately redeploy the state REC due to his poor handling of the

last presidential and National Assembly elections where elections materials were stolen under his supervision. “We don’t see any reason why he should be conducting next Saturday elections. In the last elections, you are all aware that materials were hijacked and carted away by thugs. “A total of 63 card readers were stolen during the exercise in different parts of the state namely: Brass 1, Nembe 23; Sagbama eight; Southern Ijaw 24, and Yenagoa six were missing.“The law stipulates that card readers must be used during the elections but here, where card readers were carted away and elections did not take place, results were just announced.” Also speaking, the state IPAC Chairman, Mr. Eneye Zidougha, said they had lost confidence in the state’s electoral umpire.

According to him, “Another election is about to be conducted, we don’t have confidence in the REC anymore. There is connivance between security personnel and INEC officials. “It appears that some persons are bent on making the process frustrating, nobody is above the law, officers who have erred should be dealt with.” Meanwhile, stakeholders of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the APC in Bassambiri, Nembe Local Government Area have agreed to work for the success of the state assembly election next Saturday. The stakeholders, after a peace meeting with heads of security agencies in the state, resolved that security operatives deployed in Bassambiri should not be obstructed from entering the community to carry out their lawful duties.

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Ganduje Challenges Kwankwaso to Display His Engineering Certificate Ibrahim Shuaibu in Kano Kano State Governor, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje yesterday challenged the former Governor of the state, Rabi’u Musa Kwankwaso, to display his

engineering certificate. Ganduje, in a press statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Abba Anwar, questioned that: “Where did he attend engineering course and graduated?”

Otti, Ogah Lack Basic Sense of Social Justice, Equity, Ikpeazu Alleges Abia State Governor, Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu, has said the governorship candidates of the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) Mr. Alex Otti, and All Progressives Congress (APC), Mr. Uche Ogah, are not grounded on the political firmament of the state, describing them as those who lack basic sense of social justice and equity. Ikpeazu, who is also the governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the next Saturday’s governorship election in the state, said this when he inaugurated the 3.8kilometre Umuode road in Osisioma Ngwa Local Government Area of the state, adding that his opponents (Otti and Ogah) can’t comprehend the scale and scope of what his administration has done for the development of the state. “Our opponents can’t just comprehend the scale and scope of what we are doing quietly. They are not on the political firmament of our state, and they do not exist. How can those who lack basic sense of social justice and equity want to run for the position of a governor in a state? We will not allow them to destroy the understanding of equity and justice which our fathers signed in the Abia Chatter of Equity at the creation of our dear state. “The Abia Charter of Equity stipulates that governorship seat of the state will rotate among the three senatorial districts of the state-Abia North, Abia Central and Abia South. “Abia North governed from 1999 to 2007 when Chief Orji Uzo Kalu was governor. After

his eight years tenure, he handed over to Abia Central from 2007 to 2015 with Senator Theodore Orji in charge. I came in 2015 for Abia South, and going by the provision of the Abia Charter of Equity, Abia South should be supported by Abia North and Central to complete their term of eight years. “No one zone is more Abian than the other zone. Abia belongs to all Abians, and we from Abia South will not allow anyone to deprive us our right,” he stated. It should be noted that Ogah hails from Isiukwuato Local Government Area in Abia North while Alex Otti hails from Arochukwu Local Government Area in the same North, where former Governor Kalu also hails from. In what appears to be singling out Otti who hails from Arochukwu and chose a running mate from Ohafia, another local government area in Abia North, Ikpeazu said: “One of my opponents is from Arochukwu, a local government area in Abia North, and he went to Ohafia, another local government area in the same Abia North, and picked his running mate. Meanwhile, Arochukwu and Ohafia Local Government Areas is one federal constituency with a seat in the House of Representatives.” So, what will this opponent of mine tell the rest 15 local government areas in the state? That is why I said they lack basic sense of social justice, equity, and we will not allow them to destroy our states.”

EFCC Arraigns Tunde Ayeni over Alleged N4.5bn Fraud The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arraigned a former Chairman, Board of Directors, Skye Bank Plc, Tunde Ayeni, on a four-count charge, bordering on criminal breach of trust to the tune of N4,597,500,000. Ayeni was arraigned along with Timothy Oguntayo, for allegedly conspiring at different times to fraudulently divert depositors’ funds domiciled at Skye Bank Plc to personal use. According to The Cable, one of the counts reads: “That you, Tunde Ayeni, whilst being the Chairman, Board of Directors of the defunct Skye Bank Plc and Timothy Ajani Oguntayo, while being the Managing Director, of the defunct Skye Bank Plc on or about October 16, 2014 at Abuja within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, whilst being bankers entrusted with property, to wit: depositors’ funds in the defunct Skye Bank Plc’s Suspense Account, committed criminal breach of

trust in respect of the sum of N1,000,000,000 and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 315 of the Penal Code.” They pleaded “not guilty” to the charges. Counsel for the first defendant, Dele Adesina (SAN), who held brief for the lead counsel, Wole Olanipekun (SAN), informed the court of their pending bail application, which was served on the prosecution on December 13, 2018. Counsel for the second defendant, Oyetola Oshobi (SAN), also made similar application. The trial judge, thereafter, admitted them to bail in the sum of N500 million with two sureties each in like sum, who must be resident in Abuja, and must own a landed property “of sufficient value,” within Abuja metropolis. The matter was thereafter adjourned till May 14, 2019, for “commencement of trial”.

The governor also alleged that “this is somebody who failed his Common Entrance examination during his primary school days. “It was because Kwankwaso failed his examinations then that he was later sent to Craft School. It was known to all that those days, it was those who failed, sometimes woefully in their primary education that were sent to such Craft schools.” Ganduje made this allegation during the official inauguration of the ‘Committee for the Payment of Scholarship Allowances to Internal Students’, held at the Government House in Kano, adding that “only somebody with shallow knowledge would just do what Kwankwaso did

to our education in the state.” According to the governor, Kwankwaso’s failure in managing education during his tenure stemmed from of his (Kwankwaso) inability to comprehend that education policies need plans. “We are doing this simply because he is too proud of himself to be self-acclaimed wise man. But which wise approach does he have when his education is shallow and remains shallow at the same time?” Ganduje asked. He further revealed that when he first came to power, together with his (Ganduje) former Deputy Governor, Prof. Hafizu Abubakar in 2015, almost a year

into their administration, “... Kwankwaso ignorantly blamed us for negligence in handling education sector in the state. “Just imagine a person who failed his primary school examination, and was only managed to attend Craft school would come out boldly and accuse a professor and a PhD holder that they didn’t know how to best handle education. Is this not deception and ignorance?” He added: “When Kwankwaso was sending students abroad, he didn’t bother to do an excellent planning for it,” blaming that on Kwankwaso’s inability to differentiate between good work and un-arranged behaviour in the education sector.

“Most states from Nigeria that sent their students to study then withdrew them because of how the rate of dollar skyrocketed then. But in our own case, I said we would not withdraw a single student, instead, we continued paying with tears. As at now, many of them have graduated,” the governor disclosed. According to Ganduje, “Kwankwaso’s administration left behind billions of naira as outstanding for the foreign students. The state is still paying with the sole intention that we will not allow display of ignorance from the part of the past administration to wreak havoc on our sons and daughters.”

ALUTA CONTINUA…

L-R: Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki; Chairman, Edo State Chapter of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Emmanuel Ademokun; and Chairman,Trade Union Congress (TUC), Ohue Marshall, during an interactive session between the governor and members of Administrative Council of NLC and TUC, at Government House, in Benin City…yesterday

Akpabio’s Kinsman, Others Defect to Akwa Ibom PDP Okon Bassey in Uyo Two days to the conduct of the governorship and State Houses of Assembly elections, hundreds of the All Progressive Congress (APC) members have defected to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Akwa Ibom State. They were received yesterday into the PDP at a grand rally in Uyo. The candidate of the APC for Etinan Federal Constituency and a former member of the

House of Representatives, Mr. Dan Akpan and a former Majority Leader of the state Assembly, Dr. Etido Ibekwe who represented Senator Godswill Akpabio’s Essien Udim State constituency were top on the defection list. Akpan was defeated by the Speaker of the state House of Assembly, Onofiok Luke on February 23 National Assembly elections. Speaking yesterday in Uyo, Governor Udom Emmanuel

commended the people for casting their votes for the PDP on February 23, and welcomed the decampees while advising the people not to be deceived by the blackmail and lies of the people from Abuja who don’t have followers. Emmanuel challenged the opposition to an option A4 voting optionn, noting that if it was effected in Akwa Ibom State, the PDP would win overwhelmingly. He decried the undue

harrassment meted out to the electorates on 23 February, but encouraged the people to go out and vote on Saturday, defend their votes and assured decampees of their political freedom. Emmanuel cautioned security agencies against working against the people on Saturday, noting that they were equipped and empowered with tax payers’ money to defend the people and not fight them.

ARMY PROBES ALLEGED MISCONDUCT OF SOLDIERS IN BAYELSA, OYO, OGUN and other security agencies to dominate the environment to forestall any form of violence. “Commanders must maintain force protect and respond decisively to prevent any surprise attack on troops of Operation Safe Conduct and eligible voters by armed militia groups or political thugs”. He also warned that “they must act according to the rules of engagement and within the code of conduct as well as have respect for fundamental human rights in the performance of their assigned roles. “Commanders must not take any unlawful orders from any politician no matter how highly placed that will jeopardise the apolitical stand of the Nigerian Army.

“Commanders must ensure troops under their command remain apolitical, neutral and should deal ruthlessly with electoral law breakers as well as avoid compromise with any politician and political party”. Meanwhile, Buratai has also alleged that the army has uncovered plans by some politicians to carry out bombing campaigns and carry out acts of assassination on election day. “Recent security threat assessment and analysis of the coming elections showed that politicians have made plans to use all means available to truncate the peaceful conduct of the elections. “There are indications of

their intent to take advantage of and to use the farmers/ herders crisis, armed political thugs and ethnic militias to perpetrate acts of violence including bombings. “Some of them also intend to infiltrate domestic staff of political opponents, employ mercenaries to carry out acts of assassinations, use the social media for smear campaigns, hate speeches and spread fake news in a bid to disrupt the peaceful conduct of the elections. We must not allow them succeed”, he warned. Speaking on the killing of soldiers during the last elections, Buratai said the army was determined to track down the perpetrators

and bring them to justice. “As we mourn the death of the young officer and soldiers killed on the course of their lawful duty during the recently held election, I want to assure their families that their death will not be in vain. “In line with the tradition of the Nigerian Army they will be given heroic burial as they are indeed the heroes of our democracy. I have directed that their full entitlements be paid. “Let no one be in doubt that those desperate politicians and criminals that attacked our troops in the course of carrying out their legitimate duties will be tracked down and brought to justice,” he stated.

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Rivers APC, Amaechi Back AAC’s Guber Candidate Minister’s action shows desperation, says PDP Ernest Chinwo in Port Harcourt Barely two days to Saturday’s governorship and state Houses of Assembly elections, the Minister of Transportation and leader of the All Progressive Congress Party (APC) in Rivers State, Chibuike Amaechi, has said the party would back the governorship candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), Awara Biokpomabo. In a swift reaction, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state has described the APC’s decision as a huge joke, describing Amaechi’s move as the height of desperation. Addressing party supporters yesterday at Eleme, Rivers State, Amaechi said, although the APC was still in court over its non-inclusion on the ballot for Saturday’s elections, it was pertinent to adopt the candidate of AAC considering the closeness of the elections. Amaechi said, “this morning, the leadership of the party met and agreed that we will work with a party called African Action Congress, while we are still in Court to reclaim our mandate. So, on Saturday, we will vote for AAC. You must go home and vote for AAC. There should be no excuse not to vote because there will be security for everybody. You must prepare and make sure you win the governorship election.” Amaechi enjoined the people to vote for the candidate of the AAC as there were numerous

benefits they would derive from the government. “The moment you win the governorship election this Saturday and the governor is sworn-in in May; by June there will be local government elections. So, you should all go out and vote and make sure that you are not rigged out,” he said. The AAC candidate, Awara Biokpomabo, hails from Kula community in Akuku-Toru LGA of the state. But reacting to the development, the PDP described Amaechi as desperate but warned that the state was greater than where a politician would put a stooge to be governor. A statement issued by the state Commissioner for Information and Communications and spokesman of Rivers State PDP Campaign Council, Emma Okah, said the endorsement of AAC governorship candidate by Amaechi was the height of desperation, selfishness and an insult to the people of Rivers State. “Worse still is his empty boasts that after installing a governor in May, he would dissolve the local government councils in June 2019, an evidence that the minister’s choice of AAC is purely to satisfy his inordinate ambition and desires,” he said. He said the state was too big and sophisticated to be led by a “political kindergarten from a political party that is unknown in the state and chosen by the transport minister to serve as

his stooge. It is even more irritating that the said candidate is an adopted houseboy of the minister and a candidate of a political party that neither campaigned nor opened office in any part of the State”. Describing the actions of the Transport Minister as a joke taken too far, the PDP advised the Minister to try another trick as the present one is dead on arrival. The PDP further advised the Minister to cut his desperation to overwhelm Rivers State, learn from history and save himself from endless

embarrassment. “Desperation caused the crisis in the APC; desperation robbed the APC of reconciliation and today, desperation has caused a former governor to beg a candidate who did not print posters let alone campaign in Rivers State to present himself for forceful installation as governor of Rivers State” Okah said, pointing out that the minister cannot do a third term by proxy no matter how he schemes and pretends. Meanwhile, the state government yesterday raised the alarm that Amaechi and

the GOC of 6 Division of the Nigeria Army were planning mass arrest of innocent Nigerians and prominent PDP members in the state. It said the essence of the arrests is to precipitate crisis and cause the INEC to postpone the elections in the state. The government alleged that Amaechi wants use the vacuum created by the absence of arrested leaders and rig the governorship election and force a candidate of his choice against the will of the people. Specifically, the state Commissioner for Information

and Communications, Okah, revealed that the state Commissioner for Education, Dr Tamunosisi Gogo Jaja, and members of his family were yesterday evening arrested by soldiers in Port Harcourt. “We have been saying it repeatedly that the minister has been commanding the army in Port Harcourt to do unprofessional things and the crisis are spreading. “He has been boasting that he has brought soldiers from Sokoto and other states to carry out his political agenda of disrupting or rigging elections on Saturday.

Pam Accuses Cleric of Plotting ENGAGEMENT WITH TRADERS… L-R: President, Balogun Business Association, Chief Tony Obi; All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate for Lagos State House of Assembly, Amuwo Odofin Constituency 1, Hon. Mojisola Alli-Macaulay; Senator-elect, Anambra South senatorial district, Mr. Ifeanyi Ubah; to Destabilise Plateau APC governorship candidate in Lagos State, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu; and his running mate, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat, during a campaign rally at

Chinedu Eze

A member of the Church of Christ in Nation (COCIN), Dr. Simon Dalyop Pam, has accused the President of COCIN, Rev. Dacholom Datri, of dabbling into politics and inciting the congregation of the church against the Plateau State Government to destabilise the state. In a letter he addressed to Datri, which was made available to THISDAY yesterday, Pam said that as a devoted member of COCIN he had to pick the courage to write to the president because of his interest in the peace and unity of Plateau State. He advised the COCIN president to stay away from partisan politics, which is divisive and breeds acrimony among the people. “It is no longer a secret in Plateau State, Nigeria and the world over that you are taking undue advantage of your position to embark upon large scale partisan politics by sponsoring and driving a campaign against the All Progressives Party (APC) in favour of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Without having to make an effort, it is easily discernable that in the history of COCIN presidency, no one has ever let loose his partisanship as you,” Pam alleged. He accused the COCIN president of being dictatorial and inciting the members of the congregation to give ministration that has political undertones aimed at inciting people against

the ruling party in the state. Pam noted the delicateness of religion and the conflagration it could cause if misapplied and raised the alarm over the safety of the people he is sending out to foment trouble by creating animosity while preaching the word of God. “I am compelled to tell you that not only COCIN members, but the Plateau people now know that you are hiding behind the veil of COCIN to promote an ethnic agenda. You and top politicians from your area are promoting the Berom agenda aimed at bringing down other ethnic nationalities on the Plateau”. Pam said the consequence of using the church to incite the people has led to division in COCIN along political lines. “The Church is no longer one. It will take your successor, if he is not like you, great efforts to reunite COCIN,” he said. Pam also alleged that Datri introduced interdenominational conflicts by pitching COCIN against other denominations, especially the Catholic Church, adding that this has led to some other denominations to follow his bad example. “You have exhibited sign of ingratitude to the government of Plateau State and COCIN members who are APC. COCIN has the largest number of commissioners and other appointments in Plateau state government,” Pam added.

Auto Spare Parts and Machinery Dealers Association (ASPAMDA) market, International Trade Fair Complex, Lagos ...yesterday

Man Who Lost $89m to Save 1,000 Nigerians Wants Buhari to Fulfill FG’s Promise Martins Iﬁjeh One of Liberia’s former richest foreign business mogul, Emmanuel Chukwu, has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to fulfill the promise made to him by the federal government 30 years ago for saving the lives of over 1,000 Nigerians at the expense of his $89 million wealth during the 1989 Liberia war. Chukwu, now 75 years, had during the war, ordered for two giant ships to evacuate his goods and other belongings out of the country, but was prevailed upon by the then Nigerian Ambassador to Liberia, one Alhaji Tukur, to rather evacuate stranded Nigerians who were on the verge of losing their lives, as the rebels were in manhunt for them. Tukur had promised him that the Nigerian Government would take care of his loss. Speaking with THISDAY

recently, he said even though the goods were worth over $89.405 million, he could not imagine evacuating his assets to safety when Nigerians were increasingly at risk of being executed. He said it was based on this conviction that he had to accept the ambassador’s request and allow the ships evacuate Nigerians out of the country, leaving his assets in Liberia. “By the time I had agreed, the ambassador then told the Nigerians that they had four options: either they run to the United Nations building, the Nigerian Embassy, churches, or head to my ships, which were already stationed at the sea port. Only the over 1,000 Nigerians who ran to my ships made it alive. The rest were beheaded at the UN Building, Nigerian Embassy and the churches,” Chukwu said. As a man destined to save his people from untimely deaths, Chukwu and his

family waited until all Nigerians had made their way to the ships before he decided to follow suit. But it was late. “Rebels were already in strategic places; so, I managed to find my way to the airport, and through a divine intervention, made it along with my family to Ikeja.” Chukwu said: “True to his word, the ambassador took me to the then Head of State, General Ibrahim Babangida, who thanked me for the rare act of bravery, and then asked me what I wanted. “I told him I would need a house, a school for my children, some money, and then my goods in Liberia should be allowed free duty. I presented these because I was told government won’t be able to pay in cash for what I had lost.” This was the beginning of another journey for Chukwu. He started chasing

all the things the Nigerian government had approved for him without success. He was broke, without a car; his children dropped out of school, and he started to live the kind of life even his former cooks would not live. He moved from one administration to another in a bid to have promises made to him fulfilled. Along the line, his wife who could no longer afford the management of her diabetes condition went totally blind because the man who was worth N2.8 trillion in today’s money started to live in abject poverty. He is presently on the verge of being thrown out of his rented three bedroom apartment for inability to pay the house rent over the years. He called on President Buhari to come to his aid and have all the promises made to him fulfilled so that he can stand on his feet again.

No Public Holiday on Friday, Lagos Govt Clarifies The Lagos State Government yesterday clarified that the state Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode did not declare Friday (tomorrow) as public holiday. In a statement signed

by the Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr. Kehinde Bamigbetan, the government said that civil servants are expected to be at their various duty posts on Friday.

Bamigbetan reiterated that just as earlier announced by the state’s Deputy Governor, Mrs. Idiat Adebule, all public and private schools in the state are expected to proceed on the second mid-term break

on Thursday, 7 (today) and Friday 8 March, 2019 and resume academic activities on Monday, March 11, 2019 in accordance with the revised school calendar for 2018/2019 academic year.

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Boko Haram: UNICEF to Provide Education for over 1m Children in North-east Michael Olugbode in Maiduguri The United Nation Children’s Fund (UNICEF) is set to support the federal government to provide access to education for over a million children and adolescents affected by conflicts in the North-east. The support is coming on the heels of aid of €15 million received from the German Government. UNICEF in a statement yesterday said: “The German Government has announced a

new contribution of 15 million euros to UNICEF Nigeria to support the provision of quality and equitable basic education and strengthen the resilience of the most vulnerable communities, especially children, in Adamawa and Yobe States. “Provided through the German Government’s Development Bank Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW), this new contribution will enable UNICEF to support the Government of Nigeria to provide 1,060,000 conflict-affected

children and adolescents with increased access to quality education in a safe and healthy learning environment. “It will also provide 8,200 teachers with increased capacity to deliver quality learning at pre-primary and primary levels and support 500 school-based management committees to plan and maintain a safe and healthy learning environment in schools, with increased community participation.” The statement quoted UNICEF Representative in

Nigeria, Mohamed Fall as saying: “All children, regardless of their situation, must be supported to access all their basic rights.” He added that: “Investing in education is perhaps the best investment any nation can make for its children,” noting that: “This investment (by the German Government) is timely, as it comes at a moment when we are redoubling our efforts to improve both access and quality of education for conflict-affected children.”

THE STATE OF THE STATES! Let us begin with Kogi State where, according to the NLC document, payment of salaries is based on between 25 percent and 75 percent and is made arbitrarily to core civil servants (CCS) and teachers. The salaries owed to local government workers are 40 percent of January to November 2016 (11 months); 60 percent of December 2016 to May 2017 (six months); 75 percent of June 2017 to April 2018 (11 months) and 30 percent of May to June 2018 (two months). In Kogi State, no gratuity has been paid to CCS, teachers and local government workers for the past 12 years (from 2007 till date). Pension owed to CCS, teachers and local government workers are 40 percent arrears from 2017 and 35 percent arrears for 16 months. There has been no leave bonus and no salary increment since 2014 while some local government workers are currently owed salaries for as many as 17 months. Domestic debt stood at N92,614,036,949.95 as at September last year. It is important to note that there will be no gubernatorial election in Kogi State on Saturday though the caveat I want to add, and this goes for every state, is that what I have highlighted are what was owed as at September 2018. Five more months have followed. So, it is certain that more debt has accumulated in Kogi and other states since then. It is possible, however, that some of these debts have been cleared. In Ogun State where the incumbent governor is sponsoring a candidate in a party different from the platform on which he contested and won a senate seat last week, the NLC document reveals that part payment of salaries is being made without remitting relevant deductions for CCS, teachers and local government workers. CCS and teachers are also owed both pension and gratuity of six years and local government workers, seven years. “Deductions are not remitted with respect to cooperative, bank loans for 17 months; check off dues, seven months and contributory pension, 78 months.” Domestic debt stood at N106,530,499,037.83. Ebonyi State is another basket case. For three years, the government was paying 50 percent of salaries to CCS, teachers and local government workers who are owed the remaining 50 percent. As for

gratuity, CCS are owed 60 percent of one year while teachers and local government workers are also owed 70 percent, also for one year. On pension, CCS, teachers and local government workers are owed 50 percent of three years based on the half salary that is being paid workers. Domestic debt stood at N55,168,747,532.82. In Abia State, CCS are owed salaries of between two to 11 months; teachers, two to six months and local government workers, two months. In terms of gratuity, no worker in the state has been paid any for 16 years while the pension arrears are between three to 14 months. The rough estimate for pension and gratuity arrears, according to the NLC, is N25 billion. Mostly owed are teachers and health sector workers. Domestic debt as at September 2018 was N70,954,143,266.67. In Osun State, there is a backlog of the balance of salaries paid between 26 percent and 50 percent for 33 months. Gratuity of 30 months is also owed to CCS, teachers and local government workers with one year leave bonus yet to be paid. The unremitted payment of contributory pension is estimated at about N50 billion while domestic debt stood at N153,411,852,210.56. In Ekiti State, salaries are owed CCS, teachers and local government workers for between four and seven months, same with gratuity and pension, all of which totaled about N32 billion. Domestic debt stood at N120,160,546,901.58. In Imo State, the default on salary to CCS, teachers and local government workers was put at one month as at September 2018 but there is more to this case. “The current government has neither paid gratuity nor pension in the last seven years. CCS have not been paid pension in 14 months. Workers of the bureau for public procurement and judiciary have not been paid salaries in 10 months and three months respectively”, says the NLC. Domestic debt stood at N101,964,536,533.04. In Nasarawa State, local government workers are owed 25 percent salary for two years with gratuity of CCS, teachers and local government workers also owed for two years. Workers in the state are owed additional three months due to strike action. Domestic debt stood at N90,587,001,480.73. In Oyo State, teachers and local government workers are owed

salaries of two years and one year respectively while CCS, teachers and local government are owed gratuity and pension of between six and 10 months. Domestic debt stood at N87,864,044,155.52. In Benue State, the CCS were owed salary of six months; teachers, 11 months and local government workers, 10 months. Domestic debt stood at N90,947,215,113.69. In Kwara State, teachers and local government workers are owed salary of between four and eight months while CCS and teachers are owed gratuity of three years and local government workers, ten years. Teachers were owed pensions of between three to four months and local government workers, between seven and eight months. Promotion and annual increment are owed from 2013 till date. Domestic debt stood at N58,099,640,134.65. In Adamawa State, teachers are owed salary of one month with local government workers owed five months while the CCS, teachers and local government workers are owed gratuity and pension of between five and seven years. Other unspecified allowances owed to CCS, teachers and local government workers were for four, eight and seven years respectively. Meanwhile, the domestic debt stood at N89,622,312,187.96. In Akwa Ibom State, the CCS are owed gratuity of two years with teachers and local government workers owed gratuity of six years. Meanwhile, leave grant and promotion arrears had also not been paid for between one to seven years for all these workers with pension arrears estimated at N20 billion while domestic debt stood at N206,635,585,551.76. In Anambra State, the CCS gratuity had not been paid for two months with teachers and local government workers owed gratuity of one year. Domestic debt stood at N2,612,431,503.89. In Bauchi State, CCS, teachers and local government workers are owed gratuity of seven years while domestic debt stood at N92,331,867,052.13. In Bayelsa State, the CCS, teachers and local government workers are owed salary arrears of three months in 2016 with gratuity of six years due them. CCS, teachers and local government workers were owed pension arrears of five months in 2016. Domestic debt stood at N137,173,167,904.48. In Borno State, pension

He promised that the KfW contribution will also support UNICEF’s work to link humanitarian needs and longterm development opportunities in target conflict-affected communities in north-east Nigeria. He revealed that the German Government is a long-standing partner of UNICEF Nigeria, having contributed over 21 million euros towards the humanitarian and development response in Nigeria since 2016. UNICEF recalled that prior to

the crisis, the North East had the highest percentage (52 per cent) of children who never attended schools, with at least 17.1 per cent in Adamawa state and 73 per cent in Yobe state. Moreover, the North East had the highest children drop-out rates, at 3.2 per cent (4.4 for Adamawa and 1.6 for Yobe). It lamented that the current situation showed a decline in the total number of schools by 22 per cent and a decline in total enrolment by 38 per cent.

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harmonization was said to be a major issue especially for those that retired before 2011 with the CCS, teachers and local government workers owed gratuity of more than four years. “The government has been gradually offsetting the bills monthly though at a very small scale”, says the NLC document. Domestic debt stood at N74,262,318,468.58. In Cross River State, CCS, teachers and local government workers are owed gratuity of four years, totaling about N12 billion. Domestic debt stood at N124,275,227,312.63. Delta State is owing teachers and local government workers salaries of two months while domestic debt stood at N15,828,999,682.25. In Edo State, gratuity for CCS, teachers and local government workers have not been paid for five years. CCS and teachers are owed salary of between six to seven months for 2012 and 2013 with local government workers owed for three months. Domestic debt stood at N78,420,169,849.22. In Enugu State, gratuity owed for five years to CCS, teachers and local government workers but it was being offset from May 2018 on monthly basis while the old debt of five years remains. Domestic debt stood at N54,924,144,261.83. Gombe is owing CCS and teachers gratuity for five years and local government workers, seven years. An estimated N10 billon in gratuity is owed to workers in the state across board. Domestic debt stood at N55,921,171,267.58. In Kaduna State, CCS, teachers and local government workers owed both gratuity and pension of four years. The major debt is to school teachers including the newly recruited some of whom have not been paid for four months. Domestic debt stood at N90,135,552,871.99. In Kano State, salary is said to be up to date except for the eight-month arrears in 2015 for health workers, secondary school teachers and corporate security. Gratuity owed CCS, teachers and local government workers from November 2015 is worth N14.2bn. Domestic debt stood at N104,404,045,266.80. In Kebbi State, there is an outstanding gratuity obligation of up to N6 billion for CCS, teachers and local government workers while domestic debt stood at N70,161,849,355.52. Ondo State is owning CCS gratuity of five years. Local government workers pension owed for one year. CCS,

teachers and local government workers are owed one year allowances. Domestic debt stood at N49,867,757,811.07. In Plateau State, the CCS, teachers and local government workers have not been paid gratuity since 2009. Domestic debt stood at N119,331,337,734.54. In Rivers State, CCS, teachers and local government workers have not been paid gratuity since 2014. Pension of CCS, teachers and local government workers were being updated but those retired in 2004 have not been added to the scheme. Domestic debt stood at N201,787,224,432.98. In Sokoto State, the CCS, teachers and local government workers have not been paid gratuity for eight years while domestic debt stood at N28,941,491,332.49. In Yobe State, teachers and local government workers are owed salaries of two months. CCS are owed gratuity of eight years while teachers and local government workers were owed gratuity of four years. Domestic debt stood at N58,868,755,155.22. In Zamfara State, CSC, teachers and local government workers owed gratuity of four years with domestic debt of N65,946,215,562.73. More than at any period in our history, who the people elect at state level matters. With declining oil prices and dwindling production, there is even less money to ‘share’ from the federation account. A governor who is not creative will find it increasingly difficult to manage the affairs of his (and sadly not her) state. In her convocation address at Babcock University in June 2014 titled “Transforming the Nigerian Economy: Opportunities and Challenges”, the then Coordinating Minister for the Economy, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala asked salient questions: “Do the (36) states have the resources to deliver services? And why do some states happen to do more and better than others? How can we hold our states and local governments more to account, just as we hold the federal government to account? In terms of the resources, I can confidently say based on the available data that our states are reasonably well-resourced. But of course, I know all of them would want more revenue as we all do even at the federal level.” Okonjo-Iweala, who explained that approximately half of Nigeria’s total

government expenditure occurs at the sub-national level (i.e. the 36 states and 774 local governments), then broke some of the figures down: “If you look at allocations to states and local governments, there are some interesting trends. In 2013, the top 10 allocations went to the following states: Akwa Ibom (N260b or $1.7b); Rivers (N230b or $1.5b); Delta (N209b or $1.3b); Bayelsa (N173b or $1.1b); Lagos (N168b or $1.1b); Kano (N140b or $0.9b); Katsina (N103b or $0.7b); Oyo (N100b or $0.6b); Kaduna (N97b or $0.6b) and Borno (N94b or $0.6b). (Note that all this data does not include internally generated revenues (IGR) of these states, which are significant in some instances such as Lagos State, and very commendable)…” After giving the breakdown, Okonjo-Iweala made her point: “Many Nigerian states receive revenue allocations which are larger than the budgets of neighbouring countries such as: Liberia ($433 million), or Gambia ($210 million) or Benin Republic ($1.47 billion). The top two recipients of state allocations–Akwa Ibom and Rivers–receive $3.1 billion, which is about half of the entire budget of Ghana (about $6.4 billion). On a per capita basis (i.e. revenues/ population), the top three recipients of FAAC allocations are: Bayelsa (N84,500 or $545), Akwa Ibom (N55,600 or $360) and Delta States (N42,000 or $270). On this per capita basis, many Nigerian states receive more than neighbouring countries such as: Ghana ($255), Benin Republic ($146), Liberia ($103), and Gambia ($117)…” Let me quickly point out that given the collapse of oil price, states do not receive as much as they were receiving during that period. In the face of dwindling resources amid growing challenges, what we need in the states are governors who can think outside the box. A few of those seeking re-election have proved themselves worthy while others have not. There are also outgoing governors who are scheming to install successors after bagging tickets to the Senate that has become their retirement home. All said, for us to have accountable government in these states, residents must engage the process, beginning with the election of Saturday. They should go to the polls with the understanding that who they elect as governor will impact their lives and that of their children for the next four years.

T H I S D AY ˾ MARCH 7, 2019

ÜÙßÚ ÚÙÜÞÝ ÎÓÞÙÜ Duro Ikhazuagbe ×ËÓÖ duro.ikhazuagbe@thisdaylive.com 0811 181 3083 SMS ONLY

C Y P R U S I N V I T AT I O N A L T O U R N E Y

Super Falcons Round off with SweetWin overThailand The Super Falcons have ended their participation in the Cyprus Women’s Cup with a commanding 3-0 win over Thailand – one of the 24 countries that will take part in this summer’s FIFA Women’s World Cup finals. Forward Asisat Oshoala scored her second goal of the tournament in the 23rd minute to open the floodgate, before defender Onome Ebi made it two for Nigeria five minutes later. Anam Imo, who also scored Nigeria’s winning goal in the 4-3 defeat of Slovakia on Friday last week, got Nigeria’s third in the 74th minute to seal the victory. The Falcons had edged Slovakia in an interesting encounter on Friday, with goals from Rita Chikwelu (who made a brace), Osinachi Ohale and Imo. On Monday, the nine –time African champions lost 0-1 to Belgium. Nigeria had opened her campaign in the annual tournament with a 1-4 loss to Austria, but Coach Thomas Dennerby said he was happy with the team’s output in the remaining games as the Falcons continued their

preparations for another World Cup appearance. “We lost to Austria but we recovered well against Slovakia, and if we had put away the chances we had after scoring our third goal, there would have been no way for them to equalize. A good thing that we won in the end. “I am happy that we were able to come here and participate in this tournament. The lessons are good for the team, just like we also learnt a lot at the tournament in China.” At the China Tournament, the Falcons lost 0-3 to China’s Steel Roses but then lashed Romania 4-1 in their second and final game in Meizhou. The Nigeria Football Federation and Coach Dennerby are presently studying a number of invitations from some other countries qualified for the FIFA Women’s World Cup in France, with a view to deciding which teams the Falcons should still confront before the finals. The 8th FIFA Women’s World Cup finals will take place in France, 7th June – 7th July 2019.

Super Falcon players celebrating a goal in recent tournament

Mikel ObiTargets Promotion with Boro as GreatestAchievement Oyo, Osun Govts Begin Final sive club and should be in the “I love challenges and I knew Super Eagles captain and UEFA agent after a lucrative stint in Rite forTaiwo Ogunjobi Premier League - it is where it coming in here would be a China with Tianjin Teda. Champions League winner, John Mikel Obi, has said that promotion to the Premier League with Middlesbrough would rank as one of his finest moments in football. The 31-year-old midfielder collected two Premier League titles, a Champions League, Europa League and three FA Cup winners medals with Chelsea, and joined Boro on a short-term deal in January. “If we manage to pull it (promotion) off, it would be amazing,” he said. “It would be up there as one of my greatest achievements.” Mikel Obi moved to the Riverside Stadium as a free

Boro have lost just once in the league since his arrival and are fifth in the Championship with 12 games remaining. A drop into England’s second tier was something new for the Nigeria international, who captained his country at the 2018 World Cup and won the Africa Cup of Nations with the Super Eagles in 2013. “I’m still hungry and want to win trophies. I’m never satisfied with what I have achieved. If I was, I would just sit at home,” he told BBC Sport. “I want to achieve something with this club and that is to get this club promoted.

challenge for me, and being in the second division would be a challenge for me. “I knew this club would be pushing for promotion and managing to do that wouldn’t be easy.” With a game in hand on all four sides above them, Boro are nine points adrift of the top two and an automatic promotion spot. After 34 games they have the best defensive record in the division, however, they have laboured at the other end and scored the fewest goals of any side in the top 15. “Middlesbrough are a mas-

belongs for me,” he said. “We still have a lot of games to play, and if we manage to win quite a few of them, who knows? “If we could get automatic promotion, fine, and if we get into the play-offs and that is how we do it, then that would be amazing as well. “We just have to keep pushing.” As for his own future beyond his short-term deal until the end of the season, Mikel was coy despite saying he felt “at home” and was “enjoying” his time on Teesside. “I want to enjoy my football

2019 BOA Lawyers’Football Lagos Media Marathon League Draw HoldsToday Attracts N6m Cash Prizes Organisers of the Bankole Olumide Aluko (BOA) football competition for Lawyers in Lagos have scheduled the draw for this year’s edition to hold today at the Astroturf 2000 Ikoyi, Lagos. The competition features some of the biggest law firms in the country, who gather at the Astroturf 2000 on Sundays to display their soccer skills in memory of one of their late colleague, Bankole Olumide Aluko. The competition was pushed forward to avoid it clashing with the ongoing elections in the country. The organisers said in a statement yesterday that they were working round the clock to make this year’s tournament even more competitive and exciting for everyone, adding that certain regulations have been put in place to ensure a peaceful competition.

The competition this year will feature 22 teams, which will be divided into four groups of five teams each. The teams are Perchstone and Graeys LP, Pinheiro LP, Aelex , Sofunde Osakwe, Ogundipe & Belgore/ NICCOM LLP (merger), Punuka Attorney, Falana & Falana, Templars and Olisa Agbakoba Legal. Others are the Lagos State Ministry of Justice, Aluko & Oyebode, B.A Law LLP/Probitas Partners LLP (merger), Advocaat, Africa Law Practice/SPA Ajibade (merger), Banwo & Ighodalo, DOA/Grey Chapel Legal (merger), Babalakin & Co and Consolex Law practice. Also in the competition are Wole Olanipekun/Dele Adeshina, Udo Udoma & Belo-Osagie, Pentagon, Olaniwun Ajayi and George Etomi/FRA Williams (merger).

Over six million Naira will be won by various winners in the maiden Lagos Media Marathon billed to take place on May 1, 2019. According to the initial breakdown of cash prizes released by the organizers, the male and female journalists who emerge top in their respective 10km races will be taking home N1m each while the runners-up in the media category will be picking up N.5m each. Already, N300, 000, N200,000 and N100,00 have been set aside for the 3rd, 4th and 5th placed finishers respectively in the media category. For those that will compete outside the media category, they are also going to be handsomely rewarded as the top male and female finishers will be getting N500,000 each. While the runners up in the general category are to get N300,000 each, the 3rd, 4th and 5th placed finishers respectively in this category

will get N200, 000, N100, 000 and N50,000 respectively Also, consolation prizes have been set aside for student winners as well as the winners in the over 50-year-old category. The Chairman of the Sports Writers Association of Nigeria (SWAN), Lagos Branch and Deputy chairman of the organising committee, Mr. Debo Oshudun said other prizes were still been expected as more sponsors come on board. “These are the prizes we have for now but more is expected as we are in talks with several sponsors, for me, everyone is even a winner as far as the Lagos Media Marathon is concerned, taking part in this historic event is something to be cherished, ” he stated. Registration is already ongoing for the media race as interested participants from across the world have been showing interest by visiting the race website,lagosmediamarathon. com to fill the forms.

The Oyo Sate Government it’s Osun counterparts have announced plans for the burial of former Nigerian Football Federation (NFF) Secretary General, Chief Taiwo Ogunjobi. At a joint press conference by the two states in Ibadan yesterday, they said there were novelty matches planned to celebrate the late football icon, both in Osun State and Oyo State stadia. The press conference had some notable sports personalities in attendance including ; Chief Bolaji Ojooba, ex-Nigeria internationals, Mutiu Adepoju and Dimeji Lawal, the Oyo State Commisioner for Youths and Sport, Yomi Oke, sons of the deceased, Lanre and Ayodeji Ogunjobi, and his younger brother, Rotimi Ogunjobi. Oyo State Commisioner for Youths and Sports, Yomi Oke who spoke on behalf of the

state government said the line up programme for the burial involves the entire South-west states and football administrators in the country. Oke said there are going to be novelty matches, symposium and candle light for the deceased ex footballer in Ibadan between Wednesday and Friday next week. According to him, the lying in state was expected to take place at the mainbowl of the Lekan Salami Stadium, Adamasingba Ibadan on Thursday while church service comes up at Living Spring Church, Ojoo Ibadan, before interment. Speaking on the line-up programme in Osun State, the Director of Sport in the state, Layi Adesiyan said Osun has aligned it’s programmes with that of Oyo to ensure smooth and befitting burial for the Ogunjobi.

Argentina FA Demands ‘VIP’ Treatment for Messi from Morocco Femi Solaja áÓÞÒ ËÑÏØÍã ÜÏÚÙÜÞÝ Following the expected return of Lionel Messi back to the national team ahead of the forth coming South America version of Nations cup, Copa America, the Argentine FA has given Morocco Football Association, some strange conditions before the five-world footballer of the year will make the trip to North African nation Morocco may be the first national team that Messi will be featured as the team is set for a prestige friendly match with Argentina on March 26, three days after a match against

Venezuela. Messi has not played for Argentina since the team got eliminated by France at the last World Cup finals in Russia and as part of preparations for the the continental competition this summer, AFA lined up two friendly matches for the team in the coming FIFA window. However, the Argentine FA has set strange conditions for the Moroccans to be able to have a feel of Messi. According to Spanish publication, Tribuna which cited another Spanish publication, Le 360 Sport, reported that the Moroccans must agree that no Moroccan player will be allowed to take pictures with Messi.

T H I S D AY ˾ MARCH 7, 2019

THURSDAYSPORTS U E FA C H A M P I O N S L E A G U E

Stunning Comeback as Man Utd Eliminate PSGVia Late Penalty

Manchester United players celebrating the last minute penalty win against host PSG last night in Paris.

Marcus Rashford scored a nerveless injury-time penalty as Manchester United staged an incredible comeback to beat Paris St-Germain on away goals and reach the Champions League quarter-finals. Rashford thumped home the VAR-awarded spot-kick in the 94th minute after Diogo Dalot’s speculative shot struck Presnel Kimpembe on the arm. The odds were stacked against United in Paris, but they became the first team in Champions League and European Cup history, at the 107th time of asking, to overcome a 2-0 or greater home first-leg deficit. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s visitors got the perfect start thanks to Romelu Lukaku’s opportunist strike after two minutes, the

Belgium striker latching on to Thilo Kehrer’s blind backpass and finding the net. PSG went 3-1 ahead on aggregate when Kylian Mbappe fed a pass to the unmarked Juan Bernat, who slotted home at the back post. The hosts then had a succession of chances, with makeshift right-back Eric Bailly enduring a torrid time in his 35 minutes on the pitch, before injury saw him replaced by Dalot. Unable to capitalise, PSG were punished when veteran goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon spilled Rashford’s long-range shot

and Lukaku converted United’s second. The game appeared to be petering out to its conclusion before Dalot fired the ball against the arm of the unfortunate Kimpembe, and after a long delay while the referee consulted his pitchside monitor, Rashford’s ice-cool penalty sealed a remarkable win United were heading out at the last-16 stage for the second consecutive season when France defender Kimpembe’s block from Dalot’s shot deflected away for a corner. But before it could be taken Slovenian referee Damir Skomina consulted

with the VAR before coming to the side of the pitch to review the incident on the monitor. Players waited anxiously on the pitch and Kimpembe slumped to the ground when the penalty was finally awarded, before Rashford stepped up to smash the ball high beyond the reach of Buffon. United had to survive until the game’s 100th minute before joyously celebrating a famous Champions League victory in front of their boisterous travelling support at the final whistle. Meanwhile it was great night as footballing

idols descended on Parc des Princes for the allimportant clash Sir Alex Ferguson was chaperoned into the ground through a cordoned off area and took the time to pose for selfies with fans. The Manchester United legend was given a warm reception by those who had waited in the cold for his arrival. Former United left-back Patrice Evra was also in the entourage with Ferguson and offered a beaming smile upon arrival. And the French club rolled out the red carpet for Fergie, sitting him

alongside former French president Nicolas Sarkozy. Evra was positioned in the United section and was seen sharing a joke with Paul Pogba and Gary Neville. Pogba was banned for the game having been sent off at the end of the first leg at Old Trafford. Eric Cantona was also pictured in the stands as well as France World Cup winner Emmanuel Petit, who took time out to interact with supporters. Neymar was another high profile onlooker and was seen up in the Gods as he continues to recover from his foot injury. The Brazil and PSG

forward sat in the same area as Ninja, a professional Fortnite gamer who has more Twitter followers than Edinson Cavani and Kylian Mbappe combined. No doubt Neymar would have been itching to get onto the pitch, particularly after watching his side concede two goals in the first half an hour. He then made his way down to the touchline after Marcus Rashford had scored the penalty to send United through on aggregate and watched on in anguish knowing that he will play no further part in the Champions League this year.

Zidane Has Rejected Madrid Job, Says Former Boss Calderon Zinedine Zidane has rejected the chance to return as manager of Real Madrid, according to former club president Ramon Calderon. Zidane, 46, left the club last summer five days after winning a third straight Champions League title. Calderon told BBC Radio 5 Live: “I know that this morning the president (Florentino Perez) called Zidane to ask him back,

he said not now. “He has left open the possibility of coming back in June.” Zidane shocked Real by walking out just days after a famous win against Liverpool which made him the first manager to win three European Cups in a row and only the third to win three in total - along with Bob Paisley and Carlo Ancelotti. The former France captain has

not managed since and Real Madrid are expected to make sweeping changes after their season was effectively ended by a humiliating last-16 defeat to Ajax. As well as being out of the Champions League and the Copa del Rey, Real are third in La Liga, 12 points behind leaders Barcelona. Real replaced Zidane with Spain coach Julen Lopetegui - a move that was a disaster for

club, coach and country - but he lasted just four months, with Santiago Solari eventually taking the reins. Now the club are expected to replace him with a third coach this season. Calderon said former Manchester United and Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho - who managed Real between 2010 and 2013 - is the favourite for the job, but such a move would be wrong.

“The first option for the president has always, always been Mourinho,” Calderon said. “But the problem is who is going to run the club in the office? They are talking of the possibility of Zidane or Mourinho - they are completely different coaches with completely different ideas of football. “It is an erratic and whimsical

president who has brought us to this situation. “There is the option of bringing in Mourinho now, but to me there is no point. “At this moment of the season anything you do is going to be wrong, I suppose that they will wait until the end of the season but this is very long time, three months, to suffer all the critics and the anger of the fans.”

Tottenham Hopes to Play UCL Q’ﬁnals at New Home Tottenham Hotspur are hoping to play their Champions League quarterfinal home leg at their new 62 000-seater stadium instead of Wembley, manager Mauricio Pochettino has said. Spurs have been forced to play home games at Wembley since

their old White Hart Lane ground was demolished at the end of the 2016-17 campaign to make way for the new venue. The club were expected to shift into their new home last August but the move has not yet materialised due to construction

delays. “I was talking yesterday with (chairman) Daniel Levy and he was positive,” Pochettino told reporters after his team beat Borussia Dortmund 1-0 in Germany on Tuesday to advance to the quarterfinals

4-0 on aggregate. “We were listening to the Champions League song. It’ll be amazing to be in the new stadium listening to that song before the game. Now we’re in the quarterfinals I hope we can finish and can

listen to the song there. “I expect to play in the new stadium. The wish is to play.” Spurs will discover who their quarterfinal opponents are when the draw is made on March 15, with the two-legged

tie to be held in the second and third weeks of April. UCL RESULTS RPSG 1-3 Man Utd Porto 3-1 Roma

Thursday March 7, 2019

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Mike Iginni to Nigerians

“What kind of country are we? We are supposed to be going for a civil exercise and that is an election. Why does it look as if we are going to war? I have not come here to count money; I only come here to count ballot papers. Those looking for compromise in the process are the ones who are calling for my removal” – Akwa Ibom REC, accusing those trying to compromise the electoral process in the state of calling for his removal

OLUSEGUNADENIYI THE VERDICT

olusegun.adeniyi@thisdaylive.com

The State of the 36 States! O

nly lunacy can explain how with the two leading presidential candidates being from the north, all the violence and brigandage occurred in the south. To make matters worse, there are several Yoruba and Igbo people in Lagos and in the social media who are tearing at one another because of the manner in which they chose to exercise their franchise. This is one of the issues I plan to interrogate in my ongoing research into what happened before, during and after the 23 March 2019 presidential and national assembly elections - a project for which I have already attracted support. Following the election, incendiary remarks against an ethnic group or religion on the basis of political differences has become the norm. But to develop as a nation, we must create the enabling environment that will give every citizen a true sense of belonging, irrespective of where they choose to reside or who they vote for during election periods. It is also important that those who call themselves leaders do not magnify differences in promotion of some selfish agenda. We will deal with this matter another day as the focus of this intervention is on the gubernatorial election scheduled to hold on Saturday in 30 states of the federation. In his column yesterday, my colleague, Kayode Komolafe highlighted why “the choice of those to be in charge of the states deserves

Yari...Governors Forum Chairman maximum attention” and I agree. When we talk about the millions of our children that are out of school, we are talking about the responsibility of states and local governments. When for instance, only 28 students registered from Zamfara State last year for the National Common Entrance examination into Federal Government Colleges, it is Governor Abdulazeez Yari that should be held accountable, not President

Muhammadu Buhari. So, to the extent that we will choose those who control these states (and by implication those who to superintend the 774 local governments), Saturdays’ election is vital to the development of our country. That Nigerians are more concerned about the federal government without paying much attention to what happens in the 36 states can be glimpsed from the manner in which many believe that the 2019 general election is over. A Twitter post by Senator Ben Bruce said as much last week and I corrected him, though several could not understand my point. If we are to develop as a nation, we must have responsible and responsive state governors. That explains why in the build-up to the gubernatorial election, I have decided to dig deep into the financial state of each of these states - not only regarding obligations to their workers but also their level of domestic indebtedness. A revealing document from the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) research department highlighted what each of the 36 states owed in salaries, gratuity, pension and other allowances as at 25th September 2018. Only five states are not owing workers: Jigawa, Katsina, Lagos, Niger and Yobe. But that is not a complete story because I also obtained another document from the Debt Management Office (DMO) of the domestic debts of each of the 36 states. Lagos of course has a debt portfolio of N501,849,813,426.84 which is

In the face of dwindling resources amid growing challenges, what we need in the states are governors who can think outside the box. the highest among the 36 states. In addition to domestic debts, the remaining 31 states have different financial obligations to their workers even though Osun, Ogun, Benue, Kogi, Imo, Abia, Ekiti, Kwara, Nasarawa, Oyo and Ebonyi seem to be the most notorious in this respect. When you juxtapose the figures in the NLC document against the domestic debt obligations for each of the states in the DMO records as at September 2018, then those who aspire to be governors should look before they leap. NOTE: continue on page… 53

Adeniyi’s Mischievous Gloating Olu Onemola There is no doubt that Olusegun Adeniyi is a popular columnist. That is why one will expect that a writer of his caliber will not rush to join a mob in giving an opinion on an issue without proper investigation and full understanding of both the under-currents and the obvious points. Neither should he engage in using his column to settle personal scores. At least, Adeniyi is known to be a journalist not a politician. And this is in spite of the fact of his history as an indigene of one of the towns in the southern part of Kwara State. However, his article last Thursday, March 1, 2019, titled “The Message from Kwara” was a mere rush to pass judgement on why the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) lost the Presidential and National Assembly elections in his state. The article appeared to be a pure betrayal of Adeniyi’s sentiment and partisan preference. It only shows his long-harbored elite feeling about “why should it always be the Sarakis alone?” This question based on envy and primordial sentiments have dominated Kwara politics in the last 41 years when the Saraki political tendency and structure has been in control of the state. Though, one could concede Adeniyi’s right to take a stand on the politics of his state, it is just that he should feel comfortable and be honest to declare his stand, motivation and interest so that his numerous readers are not fed with disguised sentiments in the stead of pure journalistic analysis. What gave Adeniyi out is that the article under reference was a mere expression of bias and filled with falsehood, fallacies and misrepresentations

R I G H T O F R E P LY that litter the write-up. An instance was his narrative about the visit of Mr Shawn Carter, otherwise known as Jay-Z to Ilorin in 2006. First, Adeniyi created a fiction which made it look like the American artiste was invited to Ilorin because Seni Saraki, the son of the then Governor has interest in music. Second, he wanted it to look like Saraki was frivolous in assigning government officials to receive a common, visiting musician, to Kwara, an illustration that he had no respect for elders serving in his government. However, the fact is that in 2006, Beyonce Knowles was invited to Nigeria by Prince Nduka Obaigbena, who is Adeniyi’s employer, and other world renowned artistes for the THISDAY Musical Concert in Lagos. Her partner, Shawn Carter, aka Jay-Z decided to accompany her to Nigeria where he planned to further his pet project, “Water for Life” being pursued in partnership with the United Nations which had appointed him as Ambassador. As UN ambassador, the American rapper was charged with the responsibility to bring the worsening water and sanitation crisis to the attention of the world’s young people. Jay-Z’s multimedia “Water for Life” campaign, developed jointly with the UN’s Department of Public Information and MTV Networks, included a television documentary, an interactive website profiling the water problem in 26 countries and the distribution of free education resources. The musician had chosen Nigeria and South Africa as countries he would visit in order to

understand how African governments meet the clean water needs of their people and also to interact with ordinary folks. In Nigeria, he chose Kwara State as a place to visit. And this is based on reports that the state government was doing so much in the area of water provision to the rural populace and that it has a young, development-oriented leadership. The comments by the artiste during the visit also showed he was happy with the strides made by the state in the area of provision of social services to the people. While his partner was in Lagos for the Music concert in Lagos, Jay-Z took time off to visit Ilorin. He commissioned a water project completed by the state government at Iponrin, a community at the outskirts of the state capital just as he witnessed the launch of a newly completed road project inside the campus of the Kwara State Polytechnic. He also shared his experiences across the world on challenges against provision of clean water and various methods being adopted in other developing countries with top government officials and opinion leaders. The visit to Ilorin was designed to form part of the worldwide tour, for the musician that was to be chronicled by MTV and later turned into a special documentary series. The series titled “Diary of Jay-Z: Water for Life” was aired on all MTV’s 50 locally programmed channels with a reach across 179 countries. All these facts were known to Adeniyi as a member of THISDAY Board of Editors at the time. But he deliberately, for mischievous and partisan purposes, decided to either reconstruct the narrative or ignore them to suit a script that will make it look like the visit was planned for

the benefit of the then 11- year old primary school boy, son of the Senate President. One had thought that even in playing dirty politics, Adeniyi should not have crossed the line of decency by dragging in an innocent child. After all, he is also a father. Also, a man like Adeniyi who had served as spokesman to a Nigerian President should know that if a dignitary is the guest of a government, top officials whose assignment is connected to the issue, policy, programme or project that is the subject or object of the visit would be involved in welcoming, briefing and taking round the visitor. So, misconstruing and misrepresenting the presence of certain government officials whose portfolio was related to water supply and construction of the water project that was commissioned by the musician at the airport reception for Jay-Z as a disrespect for them is simply doing injustice to public service ethos. It can only be done by a writer who is filled with hatred for the subject of his writing and seeking to draw on irrelevant issues in order to perfect his painting of the object of his hatred. Adeniyi in the article also claimed that he was not gloating. Of course, except he wants to redefine the word, that is what his article was all about. Ordinarily, I will not respond to him, if that was all he did. This is because the Senate President is capable of defending himself. However, one is compelled to respond to a columnist who chose to ignore the facts that he is well acquainted with and rather will want to bring in an 11- year old boy to script a tale by moonlight fiction. This is not a good example to give to upcoming writers. r 0OFNPMB JT 4QFDJBM "TTJTUBOU PO /FX .FEJB UP UIF 4FOBUF 1SFTJEFOU %S #VLPMB 4BSBLJ

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