FRIDAY 15TH MARCH 2019

Nigeria, Sao Tome Give Total Nod to Develop Oil Blocks Crude oil price hits $68 on tighter supply Ejiofor Alike in Lagos and Chineme Okafor in Abuja with agency reports French oil giant, Total, was yesterday awarded an

exclusive right by Nigeria and the Island of São Tomé and Principe, to begin exploration for oil in three blocks, 7, 8 and 11, located within the hydrocarbon-rich

Joint Development Zone (JDZ) owned by both countries in the Gulf of Guinea.

The development coincided with the rise of crude oil price to a four-month high

at $68 per barrel, boosted by tightened global supply and a monthly report of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), which built a case to extend

production cuts beyond June.

The right to explore for oil in the JDZ blocks was formally granted to Total after negotiations were concluded and a Production Sharing

Contract (PSC) signed by parties involved at a ceremony held in Abuja.

The JDZ is an area in the Continued on page 8

PDP Worried over Buhari, APC Govs Meeting Ahead of Extra Elections... Page 8 Friday 15 March, 2019 Vol 24. No 8740. Price: N250

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INEC Urges Ninth N’Assembly to Prioritise Electoral Act Amendment Presents certificates of return to new lawmakers Keeps silent on Rivers’ election NLC demands full autonomy for electoral body Tribunal orders commission to allow Buhari, APC inspect electoral materials Onyebuchi Ezigbo, Alex Enumah and Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has urged the Ninth National Assembly to prioritise amendment to the Electoral Act 2010 as altered ahead of the 2023 general election.

The Chairman of INEC, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, stated this yesterday in Abuja while presenting Certificates of Return to newly elected members of the National Assembly.

He noted that as a matter of urgency, the commission Continued on page 8

Death Toll in Lagos Building Collapse Rises to 14 Rescue operations end

Chiemelie Ezeobi and Sunday Ehigiator With the operatives of the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) getting to ground zero at the three-storey residential building that collapsed at Ita-Faji area of

Lagos Island, rescue operations were yesterday halted.

THISDAY gathered that the fatality figure was pegged at 14, following the latest recovery of a middle-aged man about 3a.m. yesterday, who was buried underneath Continued on page 10

Human Rights Violations Still High in Nigeria, Says Amnesty... Page 10

MARCH AGAINST AIDS...

L–R: Executive Director, UNAIDS, Mr. Michel Sidibe; President Muhammadu Buhari and Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole, during the presentation of report of Nigeria Aids Indicator and Impact Survey (NAIIS) in Abuja... yesterday godwin omoigui

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PDP Worried over Buhari, APC Govs Meeting Ahead of Extra Elections Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has expressed worry over the meeting between President Muhammadu Buhari and some governors of the All Progressives Congress (APC), ahead of the March 23 supplementary governorship elections in Adamawa, Bauchi, Benue, Plateau, Sokoto and Kano states.

The main opposition party in a statement yesterday by its National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Kola Ologbondiyan, claimed the meeting was part of the plot to seize states where the governorship elections had been declared inconclusive by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC. According to him, “The National Working Committee (NWC) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) rose from an emergency meeting on Thursday, March 14, 2019, where it examined the various

states where elections were declared inconclusive despite the fact that the PDP was in the lead and demands that results should be released and returns made by INEC immediately.�

The party stated that after its deliberation and interface with stakeholders from the various states where the supplementary elections have been scheduled to hold, it has mandated all its members to resist any attempt by anybody to tamper with the will of the people in their states.

Ologbondiyan stated: “The hierarchy of the party condemns, in very strong terms, the manner in which the INEC Chairman, Prof.

Mahmood Yakubu, declared states where PDP had popular support and defeated the All Progressives Congress (APC) as inconclusive, whereas in a state like Ogun State, where APC failed to achieve a higher margin of lead over cancelled votes, it was declared the

winner. “The PDP found it strange that INEC can have two sets of rules in the same election for the various political parties. “More worrisome is the resolution which arose from a meeting between some governors of the APC and President Muhammadu Buhari, where the PDP has been informed that a decision was taken to seize Adamawa, Bauchi, Benue, Plateau, Sokoto and Kano states in the March 23, scheduled supplementary election. “It is instructive to state that the Buhari Presidency has not denied this strong allegation of rigging plans, thus strengthening the reality that the APC is always prepared to benefit from electoral fraud.�

The PDP also expressed worry over the damage done to the image of the military by its hierarchy by allowing itself to be used by the APC.�

The party spokesperson said it is despicable that the military has been dragged into politics to an extent where soldiers now join issues with politicians in the media and conduct its affairs as if it has become a political party.

He added that partisan involvement of our armed forces, to say the least, has impaired the confidence Nigerians have on the institution of the military.

Ologbondiyan said that in Sokoto State, the PDP was already in a clear lead, noting that the party’s victory at the March 23 supplementary election is guaranteed.

He stressed: “In Benue, the people have expressed their readiness to go into the supplementary election and they are prepared to vote for the PDP candidate, Governor Samuel Ortom. They are also aware that by PDP’s current leading margin of over 81,000 votes, it is manifestly clear that there is no way APC,

with all its manipulations, militarization, arm-twisting, intimidation and harassment, will defeat the PDP in Benue. “In Adamawa, the PDP observed the mischievous calculation of the APC in sponsoring someone, who did not participate in the election, to go to court and claim that the logo of his party was omitted in the ballot. “This is their desperate bid to get the election already won by the PDP cancelled.

The PDP however notes the failure of the APC to achieve its mischief in Adamawa State. “In Bauchi State, it is known to all, including the APC and its governorship candidate, that Tafawa Balewa Local Government has always been a home to the PDP since 1999. We therefore counsel the APC rigging machine to avert engaging the people of that constituency, as it will be of no avail. “In Kano State, the APC will be confronting the strong will

of the people to do away with a corrupt and incompetent government, which Governor Abdullahi Ganduje has come to represent. The atmosphere of Kano State is ominous and any responsible government will take note and align in the interest of the people.�

The party said that already, the people of Kano State are standing shoulder to shoulder with the PDP in their pursuit of bringing a government that would be representative and purposeful.

Ologbondiyan noted that on no account must Nigerians allow a culture of impunity, where those who failed in any elections will compromise our electoral arbiter and force themselves on the people.

In Rivers State, the PDP restated its demand that INEC should release the results already collated on the governorship election in which PDP clearly won and declare Governor Nyesom Wike as winner.

suspended all electoral processes in Rivers State.

The commission had on Sunday suspended all electoral processes in Rivers State, after the invasion of the state collation centre by soldiers, which later prompted the setting up of a fact-finding committee to assess the situation in the state, giving the committee 48 hours to submit its report before taking further decision on the stalled election.

However, five days after, the commission has failed to make known the findings of

the committee.

The electoral body had said that the initial assessment revealed widespread disruption of the electoral process and the harassment and intimidation of various categories of permanent and ad-hoc staff of the commission.

It stated: "The commission will take a stand when the fact-finding committee submits its report. We urge the people of Rivers State to continue to maintain the peace and await the decision of the commission on the way forward.

"The fact-finding committee

will enable the commission to understand the dynamics of the situation in Rivers State. The commission will take a rational and informed decision that accords with the constitution, the law and its regulations and guidelines.

The commission is determined to protect the sovereign right of the people of Rivers State to determine those that will preside over their affairs.’’ Meanwhile, a source in INEC told THISDAY yesterday that the commission was yet

per barrel, up 37 cents or 0.64 per cent.

OPEC and some non-aligned producers including Russia have been withholding oil supply since the start of the year to tighten global markets.

In its monthly report released yesterday, the group cut the forecast of demand for its crude this year and predicted strong growth in non-OPEC supply. “This highlights the continued shared responsibility of all participating producing countries to avoid a relapse of the imbalance and continue to support oil market stability in 2019,� OPEC said.

OPEC and allies have agreed to cut oil output since January in an effort to reduce global supplies and support prices.

And this week, Russian news agencies reported Saudi Arabia was proposing that the deal be extended until the year-end.

In the meantime, United States sanctions have tightened markets and helped slash output from OPEC members Venezuela and Iran.

Venezuela’s worst blackout on record has left most of the country without power for six days, with hospitals struggling to keep equipment running, food rotting in the tropical heat and exports from the main oil terminal were shut down.

Reuters reported that amid political turmoil in Venezuela, two storage tanks exploded

at a heavy-crude upgrading project in the east of the country on Wednesday, according to an oil industry source and a legislator.

Two sources told Reuters that the United States also aims to curb Iran’s crude exports by about 20 per cent to below one million barrels per day (bpd) from May, likely reining in waivers for Tehran’s remaining customers.

Also, a report that a meeting between the United States and Chinese presidents to resolve a trade dispute had been delayed sent prices briefly down earlier.

Bloomberg reported that US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping might not meet until April at the earliest, after the Wall Street Journal said this month that Xi and Trump could meet around March 27.

A continuation of the tariff war between the world’s top two economies could dent growth in fuel demand and dent prices.

US crude oil stockpiles had declined unexpectedly last week as output slipped from record highs and refining rates edged up, while petrol stocks decreased and distillate inventories rose, the Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday.

Crude inventories fell by 3.9 million barrels in the last week, compared with analysts’ expectations for an increase of 2.7 million barrels.

The biggest decline came from the Gulf Coast, where stockpiles fell by more than 5 million barrels to 222.1 million barrels. Inventories in the East Coast and Midwest regions increased.

Crude stocks at the Cushing, Oklahoma delivery hub fell 672,000 barrels, their first drawdown in a month, the EIA said.

INEC URGES NINTH N’ASSEMBLY TO PRIORITISE ELECTORAL ACT AMENDMENT would begin work on post 2019 elections review and road map to 2023 general election.

He said: “There is a lot of work; but very little time available. As a process govern by law, the success of election in Nigeria depends to a large extent on the electoral legal framework and most importantly in ensuring adherence to the law.

"I want to assure you that we will continue to work with the National Assembly to review and strengthen our electoral law. But, I want to appeal to the senators-elect to

please start work early and conclude work on electoral framework in a good time well ahead of the 2023 general election.’’ He added that the tendency to delay electoral reform, particularly the review of electoral framework until it is too close to the elections, leaves the commission with little time to develop processes, including regulations and guidelines; makes required consultation with stakeholders and embark on effective voter education, including sensitisation, train staff and

organised deployment for the elections.

He was glad that among the senators-elect are senators that the commission has worked very closely with, adding that some of them have taken initiative or even sponsored private member bills to advance the cause of electoral reform. “We look forward to working very closely with you in the next Senate,� he said.

Meanwhile, the electoral body has maintained grave silence, five days after it

Continued on page 10

NIGERIA, SAO TOME GIVE TOTAL NOD TO DEVELOP OIL BLOCKS region of the Nigeria – São TomÊ and Príncipe boundary region speculated to be rich in oil and gas reserves.

And, considering that neither country could have explored the resources in the zone without interfering with their maritime rights, they agreed in a treaty to create a Joint Development Authority (JDA) to develop the field and mutually benefit from its resources.

The JDZ with regards to this was signed in Abuja on February 21, 2001.

Speaking at the PSC signing ceremony, the Managing Director of Total Exploration and Production Nigeria (TEPN), Mr. Nicholas Terraz, stated that the oil company would invest more $10 million to acquire three-dimensional seismic data of oil and gas prospects in the blocks.

Terraz explained that it would be too early to estimate the hydrocarbon potentials of the blocks, adding that more than 1,000 squares kilometres of the field would be explored. “This is for seismic acquisitions, and the investment is over $10 million. It is too early to tell the quantity of the oil. We have a four-year exploration period and during which we will need to acquire the seismic data. Total will be funding 100 per cent for the time being,�

Terraz said.

Also, the Executive Director,

Monitoring and Inspections at the JDA, Dr. Ibiwari Jack, stated that while the potential of the oil blocks were unknown, Total’s exploration of same would provide partners details of the hydrocarbon content of the blocks.

Ibiwari noted that the oil blocks assigned to Total had not been explored before, adding that the company would be the first to explore it. “Having Total back to our JDZ gives us so much confidence. If others look back to see Total, they will want to come. The blocks they are into now, nobody has done any exploration there. “They will go to do their seismic studies there and hopefully in the next one or two years, we will get to know the potential but the prospect is there, very huge,�

Ibiwari said.

In his remarks, the Acting Chairman of the JDA, Dr. Almajiri Geidam, stated that the signing of the PSC with Total was aimed at reviving activities at the JDZ after years of idleness.

Geidam noted that the JDA intends to also revive interests on the JDZ among investors and oil companies.

He said: “Since the JDA was established in January 2002, it has held two licensing rounds which culminated into the award of six blocks in the JDZ. Some exploration activity took place in most of the blocks that

resulted in some discoveries of hydrocarbons. “Today's event which is as a result of a careful reengagement of the industry by the board aimed at reviving the fortunes of the JDZ requires us to commend Total for the renewed interest in the zone. “Furthermore, this event is expected to elicit even more interest and confidence of other prospective investors as well as consolidate the existing cordial relationship between the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of Sao Tome and Principe. “I wish to seize this opportunity to also reiterate the commitment of the board and staff of the JDA that we will work assiduously to ensure that the PSC signed today and indeed other existing PSCs are fully executed in accordance with the Abuja joint declaration on transparency and good governance signed by the two heads of state of the state parties,� Geidam, added.

Crude Oil Price Hits $68 on Tighter Supply Meanwhile, crude oil price hit $68 yesterday.

While the global benchmark, Brent crude hit a 2019 peak of $68.14 per barrel before falling to $67.85, the United States West Texas Intermediate crude futures were at $58.63

TOP GAINERS MCNICHOLS DANGFLOUR IKEJHOTEL STERLINGBANK NEMINSURE TOP LOSERS LEARNAFRICA TRANSCORP LAWUNION

NGN NGN 0.05 0.57 0.80 10.30 0.17 2.30 0.14 2.50 0.12 2.50 NGN 0.14 1.31 0.55 5.40 0.05 0.51 ETERNA 0.40 4.40 LASACO 0.02 0.31 HPE Nestle Nig Plc â‚Ś1,545.00 Volume: 177.630 million shares Value: N2.559 billion Deals: 2,635 As at yesterday 14/3/19 See details on Page 43

% 9.6 8.4 7.9 5.9 5.0 % 9.6 9.2 8.9 8.3 6.0

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Human Rights Violations Still High in Nigeria, Says Amnesty Segun James Global human rights organisation, Amnesty International, has raised concern over the inability of the federal government to hold those involved in human rights violation accountable.

In a statement by the Media Manager of Amnesty International Nigeria, Isa Sanusi, the group decried what it described as pervasive violence against women.

According to the statement, these include purported rape of women and girls at various Internally Displaced Persons’ (IDP) camps, as well as sexual violence against female detainees by security operatives, sometimes in order to extract confessions.

The group said it was worried that the violations have continued, despite the passage of the Violence Against Persons Prohibition (VAPP) Act by the National Assembly in 2015. “While welcoming Nigeria’s acceptance of recommendations to intensify efforts to combat gender-based violence, the organisation urges the

government to ensure that victims throughout the Federation can seek legal redress for gender-based violations, in line with the provisions of the VAPP,� it said. “Since the beginning of the armed conflict in North-east Nigeria in 2009, Amnesty International has documented war crimes and other human rights abuses by Boko Haram and serious violations of international humanitarian and human rights law by the security forces, including arbitrary arrests, torture, enforced disappearances, unlawful killings and extrajudicial executions,� it stated further.

It, however, frowned on the lack of accountability for crimes committed by Boko Haram, as well as by government forces in the fight against the insurgents, and called on the government to ensure that the perpetrators were brought to justice in fair trials.

The organisation noted that several states had called on the federal government to strengthen the protection of the rights to freedom of

and girls at IDPs’ camps in the country.

Before the release of AI’s report, the Nigerian Military had announced that it had received credible intelligence report of a plan by the Amnesty International to release a false report on “fictitious rape incidents� in IDPs camps in the North-east region of Nigeria, urging the public to disregard the report.

However, AI released the report, entitled “They betrayed us�, the global rights group reported “how the Nigerian military and Civilian Joint Task Force (Civilian JTF) have separated women from their husbands and confined them in remote ‘satellite camps’ where they have been raped, sometimes in exchange for food.�

Amnesty International said it has collected evidence that thousands of people have starved to death in the camps in Borno State, north-east Nigeria, since 2015. “It is absolutely shocking that people who had already suffered so much under Boko Haram have been condemned

to further horrendous abuse by the Nigerian military,� said Osai Ojigho, Director of Amnesty International Nigeria. “Instead of receiving protection from the authorities, women and girls have been forced to succumb to rape in order to avoid starvation or hunger.�

It said women had reported being beaten and called “Boko Haram wives� by the security officials when they complained about their treatment. “As Nigeria’s military recovered territory from the armed group in 2015, it ordered people living in rural villages to the satellite camps, in some cases indiscriminately killing those who remained in their homes. Hundreds of thousands of people have fled or were forced from these areas. “The military screened everyone arriving to the satellite camps, and in some locations detained most men and boys aged between 14 and 40 as well as women who travelled unaccompanied by their husbands. The detention of so many men has left women to care for their families alone.

hardly the case as the elections were blighted by perennial tardy logistics such as late arrival of election materials to polling units and failure of data capture machines in some polling units.

It said: “While INEC should be commended for insisting on the use of card readers for elections in every part of the country and for issuing a policy statement that no election result obtained through duress would be validated by issuance of certificate of return, it is clear that these pronouncements hardly served as sufficient deterrence to those bent on foisting the rule of the jungle on our election process. “Also, the deployment of military personnel to harass political rivals was a new low in our electoral history and presents a serious setback to recent electoral reform gains.

We call on the military high command to investigate these infractions and bring the culprits, whoever they are, to book as a deterrence to others. “Going forward, there is need for serious national conversations on critical areas

of improvement in the conduct of elections in Nigeria. We also call for a sincere revisit of the Justice Uwais Electoral Reform Report especially as it relates to reinforcing INEC’s independence, unbundling of INEC and setup of Elections Offences Commission. “We call on President Muhammadu Buhari to show commitment to implementing aspects of Uwais Report which relevance is validated by recent developments in our electoral space.�

motions filed by Buhari and the APC. The panel led by Justice Abdul Aboki held that their applications was meritorious and accordingly ordered INEC to allow them access to the materials for the purpose of inspection and to make photocopies of same.

Buhari and the APC in their motions argued on their behalf by their lawyers, prayed the tribunal to compel INEC to allow them access to materials used for the election, inspect same and obtain certified true copies of the materials.

According to them, the request is to enable them prepare adequately to defend themselves in any petition which the runner-up in the poll, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, and his Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), plans to file.

Last week, Atiku and the PDP were granted a similar permission to enable them institute and maintain their petitions at the tribunal.

Their actions followed the declaration of Buhari and APC as winners of the presidential election, which they alleged was rigged in favour of the president and his party.

ng tubes, canulas, paediatric saline, blood bags, blood giving sets, blankets, oropharyngeal airway and crepe bandages, amongst several others Meanwhile, as part of measures put in place by the federal government, a team was sent to make post disaster assessment, which will lead to providing relief assistance in various capacity to the victims.

According to the Director of Search and Rescue, National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Air Commodore Akugbe Iyamu, the assessment was to know the extent of damages and look at preventive mechanisms that can jointly be adopted by the state and federal government to forestall frequent occurrence of such incident in the future.

He also visited the survivors at the Mainland General Hospital to commiserate with

them, their families and the state government.

He assured the relations of the victims that the federal government was working with the state officials to look at the ways that NEMA could be of further assistance to the victims.

The assistance, he said, will take care at the pre and post disaster recovery state of the victims that will enable them overcome the initial trauma and kick start them back to normalcy.

There were indications yesterday that the state government would make good its promise to demolish structurally defective buildings, as well as conduct integrity tests on other buildings in the area.

It was gathered that the demolition would begin with those that were previously marked but were abandoned

Ojigho expression, association and peaceful assembly.

In order to promote these rights, it disclosed that it recently launched a campaign on freedom of expression in Nigeria.

Amnesty International explained that this was a platform to call on the government to ensure that journalists and other media professionals could operate without fear of arrests or other

reprisals.

Noting that the Human Rights Council has adopted a Universal Periodic Review (UPR) outcome on Nigeria, the group commended the nation’s cooperation with the review process and its positive response to some of the recommendations made by other states in the UPR Working Group.

The rights group had in 2018 accused Nigerian security forces of raping thousands of women

INEC URGES NINTH N’ASSEMBLY TO PRIORITISE ELECTORAL ACT AMENDMENT to take a decision on Imo West senatorial district, whose seat the Governor of the state, Chief Rochas Okorocha contested.

Okorocha's name was removed from the list of senators-elect published on the commission’s website last week Thursday.

He contested the seat on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and was declared winner by the Returning Officer, Mr. Innocent Ibeawuchi, who claimed that he was made to announce Okorocha as winner under duress.

This prompted the commission to say that declaration made under duress by its staff would not be accepted by it.

Asked if INEC would conduct fresh election into the district, the source said: “INEC is yet to take any decision, but maybe the commission will take a decision after the supplementary election.�

Meanwhile, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, representing Lagos Central District, has said that she deserves to be considered a principal officer in the ninth Senate.

The former First Lady of Lagos State, disclosed this yesterday in Abuja while speaking with journalists after she was presented with her Certificate of Return by INEC. She said that it was time for women to come together and support one another, noting that any woman who is in a position should be there for other women.

According to her, “Wherever God has placed you, the next woman on the street is your sister, is your daughter, and is your mother. One is speaking but you are speaking for all.�

NLC Demands Full Autonomy for INEC The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has upbraided the security forces whose personnel were alleged to have unduly interfered with the conduct of the just held 2019 general election.

In its assessment of the conduct of the 2019 general election, NLC said while the exercise was largely peaceful in many parts of the country, there were a number of logistic and security issues

that dogged it.

In a statement issued yesterday and signed by the acting President of the NLC, Mr. Amechi Asugwuni, the congress said despite the constitutional restrictions on the direct involvement of the military in an election, some military personnel went outside their duty call to cause disruption in the electoral process.

It said while the deployment of the military was helpful in preventing skirmishes from different local hotspots from degenerating into society-wide brigandage, the conduct of some soldiers deployed in some parts of the country to maintain public order left a lot to be desired.

NLC said the postponement of the initial exercise contributed to low turnout of voters during the general election.

According to the NLC, public expectation after the postponement was that INEC would put its acts together and ensure that the conduct of the elections on the postponed dates was impeccable but that unfortunately, that was

Tribunal Orders INEC to Allow Buhari, APC Inspect Electoral Materials Meanwhile, the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal in Abuja yesterday ordered INEC to grant President Muhammadu Buhari, candidate of the APC in the presidential election, and the APC access to inspect materials used for the conduct of the election.

A three-man panel of the tribunal made the order in a ruling on two separate exparte

DEATH TOLL IN LAGOS BUILDING COLLAPSE RISES TO 14 the rubble on the ground floor.

As at press time, however, there were conflicting figures about the survivors, with most of the emergency agencies declining to clarify the status of the living and the dead.

According to them, their reluctance to put a figure to the fatality and casualty rates was because some of the survivors who were brought out alive later died, adding that primary responders (neighbours) already carried out some rescue work before the professionals came.

While debunking claims that people were still trapped, the General Manager, Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), Mr. Tiamiyu Adesina, said operations have been concluded.

He said the operation was wrapped up after the last body was brought out by 3a.m.,

adding that the machines reached ground zero and so rescue work was called off.

He added that their reluctance to reel out figures was to avoid giving conflicting reports, which was why they are waiting for the ministry of health to harmonise the figures.

Some heavyduty vehicles have been mobilised to the site to clear out the remaining debris, thus signalling the final stage of rescue work.

Meanwhile, despite assurances by the state Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, and his deputy, Dr. Idiat Adebule, that there would be free medical treatment for the survivors, the reverse seems to be the case.

This is because the families of the survivors yesterday besieged the hospital, demanding that treatment be given to their loved ones

free of charge.

They alleged that most of them were asked to pay so that treatment would be continued, an allegation the hospital has since denied.

While protesting the alleged demands of the hospital, the affected persons blocked the hospital’s entrance as they made their demands known.

Already, some free-spirited individuals and organisations have kicked off a donation campaign to make some of the essentials needed by the survivors available.

Asides the ongoing call for voluntary blood donation, organisations like Health Hub Africa in conjunction with Heal for Africa Initiative, have called for wheel chairs, walking frames, crutches and underlays.

Other essentials include detergents, cotton wool, neck collars, child and adult diapers,

before the building collapse happened.

Still on the deteriorating state of buildings in the area, President, Building Collapse Prevention Guild (BCPG), Kunle Awododu, lamented that there are over a thousand buildings unfit for habitation on the island.

Also at the scene of the building collapse was the Lagos State governor-elect, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, and his deputy, Mr. Hamzat Obafemi, for an on-the-spot assessment.

According to Sanwo-Olu, they came to console families of the victims, while promising that government would leave no stone unturned to ascertain that all involved are rescued.

He also commended the efforts of all the agencies working on the project, just as he begged the community members to give them maximum cooperation.

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

US: Tuberculosis Kills 18 People in Nigeria Every Hour Says the country needs N147bn to tackle scourge Kingsley Nwezeh and Kuni Tyessi in Abuja The United States Centre for Disease Control (USCDC) has declared that no fewer than 18 people die in Nigeria every hour as a result of Tuberculosis, thereby ranking Nigeria the first in Africa and the sixth globally with nine per cent rate, after India and Indonesia, which are at 26 and 11 per cent rate, respectively.

In order to stem the tide in the spread of tuberculosis, US -CDC has disclosed that Nigeria needs N147 billion, as this will take care of Multi Drug Resistant- TB and diagnosis, among others.

This is coming as the Minister of Health, Professor Isaac Adewole said yesterday that HIV/AIDS remained a threat in spite of huge financial commitments made by government for the eradication of the disease, adding that 1.9 million Nigerians are living with the disease.

US-CDC representative in Nigeria, Dr. Bethrand Odume released the statistics yesterday in Abuja at the pre-

World TB Day press briefing with the theme “It’s time!” and slogan “To end TB in Nigeria (keep the promise!

Find TB! Treat TB)”.

Odume said the estimated cost was expected to be raised by the government, communities, private sector, international donors and individuals.

Noting that more funding was needed in the health sector, he lamented that most of the funding for the disease comes from foreign donors, adding that it was unacceptable and should be discouraged.

He said: “To control TB in Nigeria, the sum of N147 billion has been estimated.

N35 billon of that amount which is about 24 per cent has been met. To be very sincere, over time, there has been an increase in funding within the national TB programme and government has actually come up to rise to its responsibilities but the gap of 75 per cent still remains.

“We are looking at how to come about filling this gap. For this approach, the government must be there.

One missing gap in Nigeria

Osinbajo in Closed-door Meeting with Bauchi, Adamawa Governors Omololu Ogunmade in Abuja Vice President Yemi Osinbajo yesterday held separate private meetings with Governors Mohammadu Abubakar of Bauchi State and Jibrila Bindow of Adamawa State.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had declared the March 9 Bauchi State governorship election inconclusive.

is that the private sector is not really coming up and that is where the Stop TB partnership in Nigeria comes in,” he said In the same vein, the National Coordinator, National Tuberculosis and Leprosy Control Programme (NTBLCP), Dr. Lovett Lawanson, in his speech, said the increasing pool of drug-resistant TB in the country continues to be a major threat to the control of the disease.

Lawanson, who was represented by senior programme officer, NTBLCP, Mr. Emperor Ubochioma, lamented that the proportion of missing TB cases among children was more worrisome, as the country was only able to uncover seven per cent of the estimated childhood TB cases in 2017.

“This implies that a large number of TB cases are still undetected and missing, thereby constituting a pool for continuous transmission to the disease in the community.

The missing TB cases in Nigeria can be found among men, women and children with different forms of TB, including drug resistant TB. The proportion of missing TB cases among children is more

1.9m Nigerians living with HIV/AIDS, says minister worrisome, as the country was only able to notify seven per cent,” he added.

Meanwhile, the Minister of Health, Professor Isaac Adewole said yesterday that HIV/AIDS remained a threat in spite of huge financial commitments made by government for the eradication of the disease.

Speaking at the presentation of the Nigeria AIDS Indicator and Impact Survey (NAIIS), in Abuja, the minister said the disease was a significant health crisis that required high level political commitment.

“Nigeria is the most populous country in Africa with an estimated 2018 population of 192 million and a Total Fertility Rate (TFR) of 5.5 per cent.

“Our annual growth rate was estimated to be 2.6 per cent in 2018. Based on the 2014 HIV Sentinel (ANC) Survey, the HIV prevalence for Nigeria was three per cent which makes our country the one with the second highest burden of HIV/AIDS in the world after South Africa.

“This represents about 3 million people living with HIV. HIV, therefore, remains a persistent threat to the health of our people, straining the already weak health care

system and compromising past developmental gains, especially in the areas of maternal and under-five mortality”, he said.

The minister stated that “the first case of AIDS in Nigeria was reported in 1986.

Since then, the epidemic has grown steadily from 1.8 per cent in 1991 to 3.8 per cent in 1993, 4.5 per cent in 1995, 5.4 per cent in 1999 and peaked at 5.8 per cent in 2001.

“The prevalence began a gradual reduction from 5.8 per cent to five per cent in 2003, this decline continued to 4.4 per cent in 2005, 4.6 per cent in 2008 and 4.1 per cent in 2010. By 2014 the HIV prevalence rate was three per cent.

“HIV/AIDS remains a significant public health crisis that is being confronted by the world today particularly in the African continent. The disease is further complicated by socioeconomic and cultural factors as well as the weak health system.

“To this end, its defeat requires high level political commitment, vision and leadership, quality epidemiologic data and strategic interventions.

NAIIS, he said, was

planned and implemented by the Federal Ministry of Health in collaboration with NACA, PEPFAR/US CDC and Global Fund.

In his remarks, the DirectorGeneral of the National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA), Sani Aliyu, said the HIV/AIDs Indicator and Impact Survey (NAIIS) indicateed that about 1.9 million Nigerians are presently living with the disease.

He said the South-south zone of the country has the highest HIV prevalence, at 3.1 per cent among those aged 15–49 years. HIV prevalence among the same age group in the North-central zone is two per cent, and in the South-east zone (1.9 per cent).

The prevalence is lower in the South-west zone (1.1 per cent), the North East zone (1.1 per cent) and the North-west zone (0.6 per cent).

Aliyu said it was important for all people living with HIV to get treatment and achieve viral suppression. He said the government and its partners would support people who are HIV-positive, “to provide treatment, to protect their families and to help people live long and healthy lives.”

INEC also declared the Adamawa governorship election inconclusive.

Both governors declined to speak with State House correspondents after emerging from the meeting.

INEC has fixed March 23 for supplementary elections in Adamawa, Bauchi, Benue, Kano, Plateau and Sokoto States where governorship elections were declared inconclusive.

FG Inaugurates Committee for Take-off of Buhari’s New Administration Olawale Ajimotokan in Abuja The federal government has inaugurated the committee to organise the inauguration ceremony to herald the beginning of a new four- year term for President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration on May 29.

The inter-ministerial comittee was inaugurated yesterday by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Mr. Boss Mustapha.

Mustapha, who is the chairman of the committee, noted that the forthcoming event is a reward for Buhari’s exemplary leadership and sincerity, by Nigerians from different ethnic and cultural backgrounds, who gave him a new mandate of four years on February 23.

He also tasked the members of the committee to deploy their wealth of experience and leave no stone unturned in delivering on the mandate by making the inauguration ceremony a success.

Members of the committee include the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammad and his contemporaries from Interior, Lt Gen AbdulRahman Danbazzau (rtd); Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama; FCT, Malam Musa Mohammed Bello; Defence, Maj. Gen. Mansur Ali, (rtd) Health, Prof Isaac Ajewole; Education, Alhaji Adamu Adamu; State (Aviation) Senator Hadi Sirika and the National Chairman, All Progressives Congress (APC) Adams Oshiomole.

Others are the Inspector General of Police,Mohammad Abubakar Adamu; DG DSS, Yusuf Magaji Bichi; Commander, Brigade of Guards, Brig. Gen. Umar Musa and the Permanent Secretaries (State House), General Services Office and Political and Economic Affairs Office.

Oshiomole, who was absent at the inaugural meeting was represented by the Deputy National Chairman of APC, Niyi Adebayo.

CONGRATULATIONS…

L-R: Lagos East senatorial district’s Senator-elect, Hon. Bayo Oshinowo; Senator representing Lagos Central senatorial district, Oluremi Tinubu; and Senator representing Lagos West senatorial district, Solomon Adeola, at the presentation of Certificates of Return by Independent National Electoral Commission in Abuja...yesterday

Canada: Nigeria’s Democratic System Needs to be Strengthened The Canadian High Commission has called for the strengthening of Nigeria’s democratic practices.

The call comes after the 2019 general election, which some international and domestic observers say was fraught with “systemic failings” especially with regards to logistics and security.

The Canadian High Commissioner to Nigeria, Philip Baker, however, noted that the process was credible, while also congratulating President Muhammadu Buhari on his re-election.

“Despite logistical

challenges as well as reports of isolated irregularities and violence, we note that domestic and international observers have found that the overall result was credible,” Baker said.

The keenly contested Presidential election was held across the country on February 23, 2019.

Following the exercise, however, the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and closest rival to Muhammadu Buhari – Atiku Abubakar – challenged the outcome in court after the APC candidate won the election

with a margin of nearly four million votes.

The governorship and state assembly elections, on the other hand, took place on March 9, in 29 states across the federation.

Elections in six states – Adamawa, Benue, Bauchi, Sokoto, Plateau and Kano – were, however, declared inconclusive and consequently, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) rescheduled the elections to Match 23, 2019.

Baker noted that the rescheduled polls would be an opportunity to perfect the

loopholes observed in previous elections.

“Moving forward, we note the importance of strengthening democratic practices, especially in the lead-up to rerun elections in states with inconclusive official results.

“Canada remains committed to supporting good governance and the rule of law in Nigeria.

We recognize the importance of free and fair elections and independent democratic institutions to ensuring that citizens are able to participate meaningfully in a strong and healthy democracy,” he added

FRIDAY MARCH 15, 2019 ˾ T H I S D AY

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NEWSXTRA

CUPP Alleges Plot to Declare State of Emergency in Taraba Udora Orizu in Abuja The Coalition of United Political Parties (CUPP) has alleged that it had uncovered plot by the All Progressives Congress (APC)led federal government to ensure the declaration of a state of emergency in Taraba State

because of APC’s alleged failure to win the state governorship election.

The CUPP spokesperson, Ikenga Ugochinyere, in a statement issued in Abuja, alleged that in order to achieve this aim, the APC was instigating ongoing religious

NNPC Rallies W’Africa against Regional Energy Challenges Chineme Okafor in Abuja The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), has called for more integration among countries within the West African subregion towards providing lasting solutions to the region’s numerous energy challenges.

NNPC’s Group Managing Director, Dr. Maikanti Baru, made the call at a meeting African oil ministers had with the United States Energy Secretary, Rick Perry, on the sidelines of the 19th CERAWeek Conference in Houston, United States of America..

According to a statement from the Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division of the NNPC, Mr. Ndu Ughamadu, Baru disclosed at the meeting that energy integration across the sub-region was necessary to drastically reduce unemployment and restiveness, as well as improve the economies of affected countries.

He said Nigeria as a regional leader has encouraged regional integration by first putting up the West African Gas Pipeline (WAGP) to ensure gas is available to West African countries along its supply route.

“We are also doing the Trans Sahara Gas Pipeline (TSGP), even as we are intent on extending the WAGP to Morocco,” he added.

Baru, explained that the intent of the West African Power Pool (WAPP) which the region backs, was to put up power plants and other gas-based industries along the power supply routes of countries within the region.

He aalso disclosed that Nigeria’s crude oil production had seen tremendous improvement in recent years, due to the government’s efforts at improving security in the Niger Delta region.

According to him, Nigeria and the US had been very good partners with about $35 billion worth of trade between the two countries.

The statement noted that Perry had in his remarks expressed the commitment of the US towards helping African countries achieve energy independence for the benefit of their people.

Perry said: “For our part we will support progress by engaging economically as well as championing open markets in societies. We endorse the modernisation of critical oil and gas infrastructure which leads to better security and diversification of energy supplies and exports.”

He reportedly described innovation as the surest path to energy security, adding that that once countries innovate, they would have greater economic growth, opportunities and national security.

NCAA’s Weak Regulation Encourages Fraud among Travel Agents, NANTA Alleges Chinedu Eze The National Association of Nigerian Travel Agency (NANTA) has alleged that the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) is responsible for the high rate of fraud prevalent in travel agencies in Nigeria.

NANTA said the regulatory authority has failed to effectively monitor the activities going on the downstream of air travel in Nigeria.

The association said the absence of laws guiding the sector has led to unfavourable rules by International Air Transport Association (IATA), which tend to constrict the growth and profitability of the sub-sector.

Speaking during the Aviation Safety Round Table Initiative (ASRTI) in Lagos, the President of NANTA, Bernard Bankole said the New Generation of IATA Settlement System (New Gen ISS) introduced by IATA allows anyone in and out of

Nigeria to issue tickets, thereby depriving the government its five per cent remittances, and revenues meant for local travel agencies, noting that these challenges have continued to drive genuine travel agencies out of the market.

Bankole said while IATA promised that the system will be faster, safer and more cost effective, the reality is that the system is only killing local travel agencies and increasing the level of fraudulent activities by impostors across various countries.

NANTA President stressed that all these challenges may not have emanated in the first place if NCAA had put in place laws to protect the downstream sector.

“IATA should not come into our country and dictate for us how to run our business. There must be laws put in place for IATA to adhere to. We don’t want foreigners coming into the market and taking over our businesses,” Bernard added.

killings being experienced in the state.

He said: “We have also discovered that the nation’s security forces are giving those behind the sponsored killings tactical support with their silence, hence their failure to quell the uprising. The security agencies are not doing much, rather they are trying

to undermine the governor.”

Ugochinyere also claimed they received insider information that the acting Inspector-General of Police Mohammed Adamu is planning to arrest the Aide-De-Camp to the governor, hence his invitation to the police headquarters, Abuja.

He said the strategy was

to accuse him of arming and working with some militia in a bid to get at the governor.

“APC leaders are clearly not happy that they lost the election and they are stocking the killings and crisis to cause reprisal attacks from other religious groups, which will lead to the declaration of state of emergency.”

He called on the APC to accept defeat and call off their members from ongoing instigation of religious violence in Taraba State.

“Let President Muhammadu Buhari halt the carnage in Taraba State for the good of all and avoid acts, which will lead to abrupt end of this republic,” he said.

ENHANCING BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT…

L-R: Senior Special Assistant to the President on Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Jumke Oduwole; Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Okechukwu Enelamah; Member, Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC), Mr. Dotun Suleiman; and Lead, Strategic Communications, Enabling Business Environment Secretariat, Mrs. Lolade Sasore, at the launch of the Ease of Doing Business (EODB ) mobile App in Lagos… yesterday PHOTO: ETOP UKUTT

Fast-track Demolition of Marked Buildings, Tinubu Urges Lagos Govt The National Leader of All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu, has urged the Lagos State Government to fast-track the demolition of buildings marked as structurally unfit.

Tinubu said that the children who died in Wednesday’s building collapse on Lagos Island did not deserve to die the way they did, describing the incident as tragic.

In a condolence message made available by his Media Adviser, Mr Tunde

Rahman, yesterday, Tinubu, commiserated with the families of the victims, praying that God would comfort them and grant repose of the souls of the young ones.

The News Agency of Nigeria reports that some pupils were among those who lost their lives after a three-storeyed building located on Massey Street, in Ita-Faji, Lagos Island, collapsed on Wednesday.

The school was located on one of the floors of the

building.

Aside from the dead, many other persons were injured. The injured were taken to different hospitals for treatment.

Tinubu said, “The building collapse in Ita-Faji, Lagos Island on Wednesday is a tragic occurrence.

I commiserate with the families of those children who lost their precious lives.

“They do not deserve to die the way they did. May God comfort their families and grant repose of the

souls of those young ones.

“If after the collapsed building had been found to be weak and marked for demolition and everybody had done what was required of them, perhaps this terrible incident would have been averted.

“On its part, the government must fast-track demolition arrangements once a building is discovered to be weak and deserving of being pulled down to save lives,” he said

MNJTF Kills 39 Terrorists, Asks Fleeing Boko Haram Operatives to Surrender Kingsley Nwezeh in Abuja The Multi-national Joint Task Force (MNJTF) yesterday said it had killed more 39 terrorists, and urged the fleeing members of terrorist group, Boko Haram, to surrender and be demobilised while the opportunity lasted.

Giving an update on the ongoing offensive against the Islamic State for West Africa Province (ISWAP) and Boko Haram in the Lake Chad Basin, Chief of Military Public Information, MNJTF, Colonel Timothy Antigha, said two 60-millimeter motar bombs, two gun trucks and an armoured personnel carrier

were also recovered from the insurgents.

Antiga said 39 more terrorists were killed in Tunbum Rege, an island in Lake Chad believed to habour high value Boko Haram targets. He warned individuals associated with the terrorist organisation to surrender for demobilisation and rehabilitation while the opportunity lasted.

“In consonance with the determination of the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) to unhinge the structures of Boko Haram and dismantle its terror networks in the Lake Chad area, air and ground components of

the task force have intensified air interdiction and mop up activities in the area of operation.

“In a recent engagement, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance platforms as well as ground attack aircrafts from a coalition of Cameroonian, Niger and Nigerian Air Forces intercepted and destroyed Boko Haram terrorists in Tunbum Rego, a prominent island in Lake Chad, believed to harbour high valued Boko Haram targets,” he said in a statement.

In a related development, MNJTF troops from Sector 4 attacked Boko Haram assets in Arege, killing scores of

terrorists in the process.

MNJTF said in a separate statement that “33 terrorists killed in action, two gun trucks recovered, one amoured personnel carrier destroyed, two motor cycles destroyed, one 120mm motar Tube recovered and 12 AK 47 riffles.

“Other items include two 60mm motar bombs,3,736 rounds of assorted ammunition, one binocular and two hand grenades.”

The MNJTF wishes to warn individuals still associated with Boko Haram to surrender themselves for demobilisation and rehabilitation, while the opportunity still exists,” the statement explained.

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COMMENT

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

PDP’S PECULIARVICTORY IN OYO STATE The election of Seyi Makinde provides lesson in leadership, writes Oludayo Tade

T

he 2019 general elections have shown the growing evolution and sophistication of the Nigerian electorate. Despite obvious lapses and controversies of inconclusiveness in some states, these elections have shown enlightened awareness and voter differentiation between political parties and personalities, ethnic and religious flags against their desire for good governance. The 2019 voters spoke with their votes sending some opportunist politicians who turned themselves to demi-gods into dungeon of social and political insignificance. They replaced their loquacity with reticent. The political godfathers had a run for their position and were forced to come down from their high horse to beg for forgiveness and allow their manipulation game to continue. In some states, they negotiated favourably with compromises but the pace setter state would not have such external incursion again. The ruling party had had been complacent with the thought that the gap-tooth jinx-breaker governor held the magic wand until he was trashed by a relatively unknown Dr Kola Balogun in Oyo South Senatorial District. Not even the eight House of Representatives seats and two senatorial tickets won by the APC were guarantee of the gubernatorial and state assembly elections. As it turned out on March 9, three-time serial loser and the umbrella party candidate, Engineer Oluseyi Makinde defeated a former deputy governor of Central Bank of Nigeria, a political neophyte to become the governor-elect. The victory was a confirmation of the understanding of the law of power by the Ibadan political warlords led by High Chief Rashidi Ladoja who midwife the first successful political alignment of opposition politicians of Ibadan extraction which edged out and silenced the bad marketer of APC and their political products.

The wall of Jericho in Oyo State was bound to fall in 2019. The remote and immediate causes were crystal clear to political watchers and analysts but not so to the leader of APC in the state. The fallen walls of Jericho was occasioned by both enemies within (Iku-Ile) and without (Iku-ode). The caustic derision of categories of persons, disrespect of tradition, imposition of candidates, over-rating of self, unfriendly policies and workforce catalyse the fall. The APC leader violated extensively law four of power which preaches to those in power to say less than necessary. In his book 48 Laws of Power, Robert Greene states, “powerful people impress and intimidate by saying less. The more you say, the more likely you are to say something foolish�. Harvesting and working on these loopholes of the APC leader, there was no retreat no surrender for the rampaging opposition party after bombing the incumbent governor’s senate dream. But that victory alone cannot get them into the Agodi Government House. They needed collaborative efforts of people of like minds who wanted a common enemy out of the way. A former Governor of Oyo State from Ogbomoso, Christopher who had boasted that the APC will not benefit from a disorganised opposition as it did in 2015 started the coalition talks by approaching his boss, Senator Rasidi Ladoja. After meeting a few opposition gubernatorial aspirants with agreement to reconvene after the Presidential and National assembly elections, the political tactician of Ogbomosoland courted a better deal with the ruling party.

Adopting a similar strategy utilised to court Christopher from Ile-ife, Osun State in 2018, the APC leadership organised a nocturnal standby flight for the Ogbomoso-born former governor. By the time he returned

MAKINDE NEEDS TO ARREST THE DECAY IN PUBLIC HEALTH AND EDUCATION AND BOOST THE ECONOMY. HE MUST SELECT THE BEST OF HEAD TO WORK WITH HIM

from Abuja, the song had changed. He jettisoned the opposition group, abandoned his gubernatorial ambition and announced to work for the candidate of APC, Adebayo Adelabu (penkele mesi). This move partly contributed to the fatal blow of APC in the polls and it was alleged that the former governor sold his people for pittance. Those holding this position forgot that in politics, there is no permanent friend, only interest is permanent. Ladoja’s group forged ahead and was able to secure the commitment of Senator Olufemi Lanlehin (ADC), Sarafadeen Alli (ZLP), Bolaji Ayorinde (SDP) to drop their gubernatorial ambition and support PDP’s Seyi Makinde. This did not come without compromises of forming a government of unity if Seyi emerges victorious. The time the coalition sealed its deal was the last week into the poll and hit the APC below the belt. It was this last minute coalition that secured victory for PDP in 28 out of the 33 local governments in the state. In the House of Assembly elections, PDP reversed the fortunes of APC clinching 26 seats while APC won five and Akala’s ADP won one seat.

Unlike Christopher Omisore who secured the maximum votes needed for APC’s triumph in Osun State in 2018 via the instrumentalities of the state, Christopher Akala’s political forte suffered a major blow; the votes did not come as expected. Akala even managed to win with over a thousand votes in his Ogbomoso north stronghold (APC=14,442; PDP=13,035). Although Akala delivered his area, the expected huge votes did not come. The Osun Model crumbled. As PDP was coasting home to victory after eight years off power, lives were lost, voters were intimidated when subtle vote buying failed, ballot boxes were snatched and results were burnt by sponsored hoodlums. Notwithstanding, the voters in Oyo State sent a strong message to overrated political merchants within and outside the state of their avowed resolution to break the jinx breaker. By midwifing this coalition, Senator Rashidi Ladoja has elevated his political worth, respect and honour. They have showed that a people united can never be defeated. The outgoing kòselèri (it has never happened before) second term jinx breaker has been demystified as kòlèselÊmó (it can never happen again) by this comprehensive defeat.

Now that the reigns of ‘constituted authority’ are over, we all need to learn from the mistakes that costs Shehu his senate ticket and his party, the state. The gap-tooth leader will be pained for daring the people and suffering a peculiar mess. Adebayo Adelabu, the grandson of Goke Adelabu suffered peculiar mess and got silenced by the Ladoja coalition.

Seyi Makinde should learn from this. This APC’s ‘peculiar mess’ is the proverbial cane used in beating the senior wife that he kept in the ceiling for the younger wife. He must keep his agreements with the state, constitution and the coalition that piloted his victory. He needs to arrest the decay in public health and education and boost the economy. He must select the best of head to work with him. He is younger and the energy should show with pro-people policies. People have begged that the voters should allow, Seyi o Seyi (allow seyi to be the governor). Seyi must therefore not fail to deliver. The governor-elect must be magnanimous in victory because failure is an orphan. The ‘otoge’ coalition of Ladoja will enter history book as one that caused the son of penkelemeesi a peculiar political uppercut and shattered the jinx-breaker’s attempt to break another jinx.

Dr Tade, a sociologist wrote this piece via dotad2003@yahoo.com

INEC AND THE FAILURE OF DUE DILIGENCE Sufuyan Ojeifo argues that INEC compromised the credibility of the elections

W

hen I hailed the postponement of the scheduled February 16 presidential and national assembly elections by the Professor Mahmood Yakubu-led Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), in an article, I did so with a sense of responsibility. It flowed from the perception that the electoral body was committed to the conduct of free, fair and credible election.

I also expressed sympathy for the INEC in its seeming adroit management of the process, especially against the backdrop of reports at the time that some powerful forces had allegedly influenced the sabotage of elections so as to railroad the commission into taking a precipitate decision to stagger and isolate the poll that was to hold simultaneously countrywide.

Deciding against muddling through the election, in the face of the shambolic and nightmarish logistical arrangements foisted on the commission by “circumstances� beyond its control, Professor Yakubu had not only made that historic announcement about 2.30am on the Election Day (February 16) to postpone it to February 23; but had also by that decision raised the commission’s credibility a notch. To me that was significant because it somewhat eased my earlier cynicism about the integrity of the process.

But the air of self-assurance was sardonically fouled right at the International Conference Centre, the venue of the stakeholders’ meeting where the INEC leadership announced the postponement of the election. What do I mean? The affirmation by Prof.

Yakubu that a senatorial candidate of the governing All Progressives Congress (APC) for Niger East, Mohammed Musa, was a registered contractor with

the commission shattered my confidence both in the commission and electoral process. This was in response to a question by the agent of Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Mr. Osita Chidoka.

A further aggravation was the critical level of Musa’s involvement in the production and supply of sensitive electoral materials. Activate Technologies, over which he presides as managing director, actually supplied the machines used in printing the permanent voter cards (PVCs). To be sure, Atiku Abubakar had, through one of his publicists, claimed that Musa’s previous company, Act Technologies, had a contract to supply and install PVC card printers in INEC headquarters.

The specific query bordered on the rationale and morality for awarding a subsequent contract to print PVC cards to Musa’s new company, Activate Technologies. According to Atiku Abubakar’s media office, “While Sani Musa has the right to hold any public office in spite of his line of business, it is morally unjustifiable to allow a well-known supplier of sensitive INEC materials to partake in an election in which the key materials to be used for the poll were supplied by him.�

In responding to this specific allegation, the INEC chairman stated: “Yes, I am aware. That company has been working with the commission since 2011.

I assure you that we have a strict system.� He said that “No electoral officer will be compromised (and that) the integrity of the process is protected.� At that point, I considered Yakubu’s assurance dismissive and incapable of obviating the failure of due diligence.

It was clear that a fundamental infraction bordering on the issue of morality had occurred to vitiate the

basis of integrity of the entire electoral process. The leadership of the INEC under Yakubu was imprudent and, perhaps, big-headed. It allowed the characteristic impunity that has afflicted successive governments to dominate its administrative decision-making.

A sensitive, serious-minded management that craves credibility, honesty and independence would have fastidiously checked and cleaned up the entire process of elements that may suggest partisan bias.

That the company had been working with the commission since 2011 should not have validated its retention when the managing director is a candidate in an election in which the materials he produced would be deployed. Yakubu curiously and unfortunately glossed over it.

The second point at issue is the uninspiring performance of the commission in the conduct of the series of elections. The presidential and national assembly elections held but many issues plagued the process and the outcome that made it difficult for the supposed runner-up in the presidential election, Atiku Abubakar, to accept defeat and congratulate the acclaimed winner, President Muhammadu Buhari.

Unlike the 2015 presidential election conducted by the Professor Attahiru Jega-led INEC, the Yakubu-led commission failed woefully to deliver an outcome that is pan-Nigeria.

Even if he was unable to measure up to the Jega exemplar, Yakubu should have eliminated so many of the lapses that have questioned the credibility of the elections. The complete details of alleged infractions and malpractices are expected to be tabled before the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal that has already begun to hear Atiku Abubakar’s petition. INEC will have a great deal of explanation to do before the

tribunal under examination and cross-examination. Its documents will largely be used against it.

The PDP hints it has videotapes of the electoral malfeasances at the various polling units and collations centres nationwide. Closely related to these was the collation of results that were at best convoluted. It was curious the commission had problems with addition of figures. One had thought the results should have been fed into an Excel sheet and programmed to automatically generate accurate scores.

Indeed, final figures were either not correct or simply did not tally, thus creating the suspicion that figures- both real and concocted - were just imputed in the tabulated result sheet and manually calculated using adding machines to achieve predetermined results. It was laughable. As of the time of writing this piece, governorship elections in six states had been declared inconclusive and supplementary elections fixed for March 23.

The nation waits to see how the entire scenario plays out at the tribunals and how the electoral body will exonerate itself of complicity in the generation of results that possibly did not reflect the true wishes and aspirations of Nigerians who trooped out enmasse to vote for candidates of their choice. Another issue is the capacity of the judiciary to be fearless in delivering justice in the election petitions. The current “peculiar mess� in the judiciary and the National Judicial Council (NJC) over the Walter Onnoghen debacle has created apprehension among judges. But then, any judge who is above board should not be afraid to back justice. This is a challenge to the chairs and members of the Election Petition Tribunals.

Ojeifo, an Abuja-based journalist, contributed this piece via ojwonderngr@yahoo.com

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EDITORIAL The Menace Of Lassa Fever Health authorities should work towards eliminating the disease

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nybody who has been following the weekly updates on Lassa fever from the Nigeria Centre for Diseases Control (NCDC) cannot but be worried by the inability to effectively tackle what has become a menace. Against the background of repeated commitments by various stakeholders to prevent a recurrence of the disease, what the current outbreak has shown clearly is that if indeed there have been any preventive strategies, they were not implemented.

We therefore believe that the authorities need to do more if we are ever to rid the nation of the disease that claims the lives of dozens of our citizens on an annual basis.

According to the NCDC Director General, Dr. Chikwe Ihekweazu, recent epidemiological data reveals that this trend usually occurs during the dry season, between January and April. He added that the Lassa fever naIT IS UNFORTUNATE tional multi-partner, THAT LASSA FEVER multi-agency Technical Working Group HAS BEEN A SERIOUS (TWG) will continue CHALLENGE FOR to coordinate reNIGERIA’S HEALTH sponse activities at all AUTHORITIES SINCE IT levels. We commend WAS FIRST DIAGNOSED him and his team for IN LASSA IN 1969 providing support to states including the provision of emergency supplies and deployment of rapid response teams (RRT) for coordination, contact tracing, case management, risk communication and strengthening infection prevention and control practices.

It is unfortunate that Lassa fever has been a serious challenge for Nigeria’s health authorities since it was first diagnosed in Lassa (the village for which it was named) in Borno State in 1969. Despite all the efforts in the past to contain the scourge, it is sad that we have been witnessing frequent outbreaks in recent years. We, therefore, hope that the authorities will

take both preventive and long-term measures this time around so that we do not continue to witness the death of our health professionals and caregivers.

Lassa fever is an acute febrile illness which is caused by a virus with an incubation period of between six to 21 days. The onset of the disease is usually gradual, starting with fever, general weakness, followed by headache, sore throat, muscle pain, chest pain, nausea, vomiting, cough, and bleeding from mouth, nose, etc. But there are recommended preventive measures such as avoiding contact with rats (dead or alive), keeping the house and surrounding clean, clearing the bushes around the house to avoid breeding sites for rats as well as putting refuse into covered dustbins and disposing appropriately, etc.

H 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

owever, because the symptoms of Lassa fever are so varied and non-specific, clinical diagnosis is often difficult, especially early in the course of the disease. For that reason, steps should be taken by the federal government to direct all health facilities in the country to emphasise routine infection prevention and control measures. Healthcare workers should also be advised to always be careful to avoid contact with blood and body fluids in the process of caring for sick persons.

Experts have advised that people should ensure their food (cooked or uncooked) is properly covered while regular hand washing should be adhered to always. The general public should also be adequately enlightened on the dangers posed by rats in their homes. The federal ministry of environment and that of information can deploy the National Orientation Agency (NOA) for public awareness campaigns on the issue.

While we believe that with effective coordination, the disease can be contained quickly before it becomes another national epidemic with dire implications for the lives of our people, the real challenge is to work towards its total eradication from our country.

That is an urgent task for the health authorities at all levels of government in Nigeria.

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DSO NIGERIA JINXED AGAIN!

A

s the chequered history of the Digital Switch Over (DSO) from analogue broadcasts in Nigeria encounters yet another setback, it is disheartening but inevitable to conclude that it has truly succumbed to the notorious jinx termed “Nigerian Factor”. The momentum of progress in taking the latest international broadcasting system across the nation came to an abrupt halt since February 2018 when Osun State became the fifth and last Nigerian state to launch in a ceremony presided by the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed.

Before then in December 2016, the Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo conducted the DSO national launch on behalf of President Muhammadu Buhari at the state-of-the-art signal distribution broadcast centre established on Mpape Hill, Abuja in record-breaking time (according to NBC DG Modibbo Kawu) by Pinnacle Communications Limited. The Ilorin, Enugu and Osogbo DSO centers were set up by Integrated Television Services (ITS), the NTA subsidiary national signals distributor.

The abrupt halt in DSO launch since last February is contrary to the assurance given by Information Minister Lai Mohammed at the Ilorin launch two months earlier, when he declared , “We cannot afford to drop the ball as we continue our journey from analogue to digital television, because the benefits to our people are huge. Yes, this process has not been without hiccups. But like the saying goes, you will never reach your destination if you stop to throw stones at every dog that barks”.

Lai Mohammed has remained curiously quiet since the “DSO ball” got dropped more than a year later but his words have been

echoing especially in the last few months when some equally curious developments replaced the expected launchings on the DSO front. It is remarkable that the events resulting in yet another “hiccup” in the DSO process can indeed be likened to the barking of dogs and the throwing of stones as alluded to by the minister, and it does look like we “will never reach (our) DSO destination”.

This is of course a reference to the controversial ICPC “investigation” into alleged “misapplication of N2.5 billion seed grant released to the agency (NBC) by the federal government for its digital switch-over programme”, as revealed in its November 2018 press statement which drew public criticism for certain factual errors in reference to the DSO project. The ICPC statement was comparable to the barking of the watchdog and its contents were similar to stones thrown at the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), Pinnacle Communications Limited and their respective executives, all of which have now snow-balled into charges against them before a Federal High Court in Abuja.

While DSO enthusiasts in Nigeria and indeed the world await the outcome of the court process, we must reflect on Lai Mohammed’s quoted remark that the DSO in Nigeria “has not been without hiccups” even as we witness yet another hiccup this time, unfortunately, under his watch!

It must be distressing for Lai Mohammed who once made huge capital of his supposed role in salvaging the DSO and getting it back on track soon after he became information minister and continued to bask in the glory of a successful national launch and progressive expansion of coverage after a jinxed history of two embarrassing missed deadlines and a protracted court case

instituted by Pinnacle Communications Limited against the breach of its N680 million private signal distributor license agreement under the previous administration and NBC management.

Interestingly, Pinnacle Communications Limited, the largest private investor and main facilitator of the eventual reclamation of the Nigerian DSO from its jinxed history gets submerged under the fanfare of progress in DSO implementation, even to the extent of becoming a “victim” of its own achievement.

Soon after emerging successful bidder and paying the huge amount of N680 million for the private signal distribution license in 2014, the NBC and its collaborators in the Presidency began surreptitiously slicing off portions of its functions and “subletting” them to companies that were not even part of the difficult bidding process as favours. Only by seeking the intervention of the court was it able to put a stop to such brazen breach of license agreement! Today, Pinnacle Communications Limited is facing ICPC charges even as its voluntary withdrawal of a breach of agreement suit in 2016 and subsequent significant facilitation enabled successful national launch of the DSO and the Kaduna Broadcast Centre.

From all indications, the jinxed history of DSO implementation in Nigeria is repeating itself as it is unlikely that the momentum that saw to the rapid roll-out of the DSO from the FCT to Kaduna, Ilorin, Enugu and Osogbo between December 2016 and February 2018 but fizzled out unceremoniously for more than a year can be revived in the foreseeable future under the prevailing circumstances.

Tolagbe Oworu, Osogbo

FRIDAYMARCH 15, 2019 ˾ T H I S D AY

16

NEWSXTRA

Whistleblower Alleges Threat to Life over WAEC Certificate of Kwara Governor-elect Hammed Shittu in Ilorin A whistleblower, Adekunle Oluwafemi Abraham, who exposed and instituted a court case on the authenticity of West African Examination Council (WAEC) certificate of the Kwara State All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate in the last general election, Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq, has alleged that his life is being threatened by unknown people.

Abraham, however, said he did it in line with the President Muhammadu Buhari administration’s commitment to war against corruption.

Addressing journalists in Ilorin yesterday, Abraham said he had continued to receive threat text messages from unknown persons; pressure from both community

and religious leaders and calls from friends and relations, urging him to withdraw the case in court.

The whistleblower said he instituted the court case upon his personal conviction to expose illegality in the society in line with the anti-corruption posture of the current administration in the country.

He added that he did not do it in the name of his community, Apado, in Ilorin East Local Government Area or any political party.

Describing himself as an activist from his school days at the University of Ilorin, Abraham said he was a Students’ Union secretary and a departmental head, adding that he would pursue the case to its logical conclusion.

“Instead of being celebrated as

a whistle-blower, I’m here being castigated by my community.

And I don’t see any reason this action should be treated in isolation because there are other cases before this in this country, which did not attract much attention.

“Yes, I’m a member of the People Democratic Party (PDP), but I’m not holding forth for my party or my community. Nobody

is sponsoring me. And I hope I deserve national honour for my action. If we say we are fighting corruption and are still perpetuating corruption, it means double talk. When are we getting out of this corruption mess we’ve found ourselves if we go on like this?” He asked rhetorically.

Abraham had on March 7, 2019, instituted a court case

against the APC governorship candidate in Kwara State, Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq, over the authenticity of the candidate’s West African Examination Council (WAEC) certificate.

The case with suit number KWS/73/2019 was assigned to a Kwara State High Court presided by Justice Adenike Akinpelu while the court gave the APC governorship candidate,

now governor-elect, 30 days to defend the authenticity of his WAEC certificate.

Meanwhile, the APC governorelect, through his media aide, Rafiu Ajakaye, has said: “We are not aware of any such pending case or a court order in the state or anywhere in Nigeria,” describing the court case as desperate propaganda of a dying dynasty.

I Didn’t Interrogate Akingbola, Says EFCC Witness Davidson Iriekpen A chief inspector at the defunct Intercontinental Bank Plc, Abdulraheem Jimoh, yesterday told the Federal High Court in Lagos that he did not interrogate the bank’s Managing Director/ Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Erastus Akingbola, during his investigation.

Under cross-examination by defence counsel, Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN), during Akingbola’s trial before Justice Mojisola Olatoregun, Jimoh, the second prosecution witness, said he relied on records of suspicious transactions.

The witness said he did not know whether Intercontinental Securities Limited (ISL), a subsidiary of Intercontinental Bank, fully liquidated a loan obligation to Regal Finance Limited, adding that he did not ask.

Asked if ISL could obtain facilities from other financial institutions, the witness said he did not know.

Asked whether Akingbola as MD/CEO could obtain facilities from other financial institutions, Jimoh said it had to be with board approval, but later changed his answer to “I don’t know”.

Asked whether he looked through ICL’s books and ledgers as the bank’s chief examiner, he said he did not.

On whether he asked Intercontinental Bank if action was taken on Regal Finance Ltd’s alleged indebtedness, he said he did not ask, adding that he did not look into ICL’s books before writing his report.

Asked if he knew anything about bank’s general ledger, he said: “I don’t know anything about Intercontinental Bank general ledger.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) said Akingbola, between November 2007 and July 2008, “caused to be created a misleading appearance of active trading in the shares of Intercontinental Bank Plc on the Nigerian Stock Exchange by being connected with the utilisation of an aggregate sum of N179.385 billlion of the bank’s fund for the purchase of the bank’s shares.”

The commission said Akingbola converted N10 billion belonging to the bank by obtaining three manager’s cheques in the names of Tropics Properties Ltd, Tropics securities Ltd and Bankinson Nigeria Ltd, which he “owned and controlled”.

We Have Magic to Reverse Your Victory, PDP Tells Nasarawa Governor-elect DIgbawase Ukumba in Lafia The Nasarawa State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has alerted the Governor-elect in the state, Abdullahi Sule, that the party has the capability to do anything and reverse his victory as long as the politics of the state is concerned.

The state Chairman of the party, Francis Orogu, stated this yesterday in Lafia, the state capital, when he briefed journalists shortly after a meeting he held with stakeholders of PDP in the state at the state party’s secretariat.

He said: “Our advice is that the Governor-elect, Abdullahi Sule, can go ahead and smile, but should not be in a hurry to laugh because what goes around comes around. We will consult ourselves and take a position on this matter soon.

“We don’t have any other choice than to appeal to our

supporters not to be discouraged by the interference of the security agents in the electoral process.

“There’s a fact that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) officials were mostly working for the All Progressives Congress (APC); cancelling elections where we were winning and allowing every mess to go through where APC was manipulating.”

The PDP chieftain continued that the party has gone through all the records which all complaints made by the party were not taken by the returning officers of those elections in Nasarawa State.

He insisted that the PDP would continue to fight within the armpit of the law by doing it legally, adding that consultation to that effect has commenced with leaders of the party in the state to seek their opinions on how PDP can work with the various candidates and reclaim its victory.

WORLD SLEEP DAY…

L-R: Commercial Director, Mouka Limited, Mr. Dimeji Osingunwa; Mouka Distributor, Mrs. Folasade Wilhelm; Managing Director, Mr. Raymond Murphy; Senior Marketing Manager, Mrs. Tolu Olanipekun; and President, Nigeria Association of Physiotherapy, Dr. Rufai Ahmad, during the celebration of World Sleep Day by Mouka Foam in Lagos…yesterday KOLA OLASUPO

Okorocha: INEC Can’t Withdraw My Mandate Says posterity will judge Oshiomhole, Uzodimma Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja The Imo State Governor, Rochas Okorocha, has said the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) lacks the power to unseat him as the elected senator to represent Imo West senatorial district.

This is coming as the governor has also stated that the National Chairman of APC, Adams Oshiomhole, and the party’s governorship candidate, Senator Hope Uzodimma, should be blamed for the inability of the party to win the governorship election.

The embattled governor, who is also the chairman of APC Governors Forum, blamed his predicament on the unfolding tussle for the principal officers of incoming National Assembly as well as the 2023 presidency.

Okorocha, who addressed a press conference in Abuja yesterday, alleged that some persons within the APC circle were out to cripple him politically before the 2023, vowing that nobody can thwart his political ambition.

He traced his travails in APC, including his recent suspension, to an orchestrated plot to make him politically irrelevant beginning from the party primaries and now the just concluded general election.

According to him, “I understand that people are beginning to fight a war for the future now when we are not even there yet, and I am surprised that INEC is being used as an instrument for those who find it politically difficult to achieve what they want to do.

“The idea is that, do not give Rochas a certificate; you must slow him down until after they have elected the presiding officer then you can let him come in so that he does not become anything and make sure that his candidate for governorship does not win and then make sure that he is crippled politically before 2023.

That is what is happening, and it is very childish.”

Also speaking on what must have led to his predicament, Okorocha said he was at a loss why INEC did not include him among those issued with

certificate of return or deem it feat to give reasons for its action.

“I am told from the grapevine that it was because of duress. In other words, somebody must have coerced the returning officer to do what he was not supposed to do, but here again, I do not understand what that means because there was nothing of such. How can you put somebody on duress to declare you the winner of an election that you have already won? Also, they are not saying that we did not win. They are not saying that the other man won.

“So, I do not understand why we should be the ones forcing someone to do something wrong to claim victory. It is not true but I must let the world understand that this is a game that is being played. The state Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) is playing a script and the script is so funny, it is so cruel and crude, and they are executing it in a funny way,” he said.

The governor, who expressed disgust at the turn of events, said the INEC Chairman, Prof.

Mahmoud Yakubu, has an urgent task of reversing most of the anomalies witnessed during the election in the state.

He said failure to right the wrongs would have very negative impact on the image of the country.

Okorocha described his absence at the presentation of certificate of return and the circumstances around it as funny.

He said: “I was conspicuously absent from the certificates issuance ceremony. I was not there because INEC has removed my name from the list of senators having been declared the winner by the zonal returning officer.

“So, I am actually waiting to hear why INEC struck my name out. I think probably, INEC must be trying to do something special because I understand once results have been declared and returns made, then you are bound to be issued a certificate of return, but to have exempted me, I am in darkness as to what was the reason why I was not invited to collect my certificate of return.

Obi Commiserates with Lagos, Anambra Govts The vce presidential candidate of the PDP in the recent general elections, Mr. Peter Obi has commiserated with the Government and people of Lagos State on the collapse of a building in the State that claimed some lives. Obi’s

message was contained in a Release by his Media Adviser, Mr. Valentine Obienyem.

In a similar note, Obi also offered his condolences to the families of those affected in the accident that took place at Upper Iweka, Onitsha.

Quoting Done John, Mr. Obi said that the tragic incident - Lagos and Onitsha, like the recent crash of an Ethiopian Aircraft, should elicit the compassion and concern of everyone, because “we are all part of humanity”.

He expressed worry at the continued incidence of collapsed buildings across the country; and called on relevant agencies and organizations to double their efforts towards seeking final solution to the menace.

5 ) * 4 % ": t FRIDAY, MARCH 15, 2019

17

18

T H I S D AY ˾ FRIDAY MARCH 15, 2019

Group Politics Editor NSEOBONG OKON-EKONG

POLITICS

Email: nseobong.okonekong@thisdaylive.com 08114495324 SMS ONLY

On The Cusp of Another Crisis

Oshiomole

Alade James

F

or the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), the storm gathers once again. Just as the party savours its victory in a bitterly-fought presidential election that President Muhammadu Buhari won, clouds of crisis hover over it as the jockeying for principal positions in the National Assembly begins.

By virtue of Section 64(1) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, the 8th National Assembly expires by effusion of time on June 8. Barring last minute development, Buhari, going by precedent, is expected to proclaim the 9th National Assembly into being on June 9, 2019.

However, barely have winners emerged in the National Assembly elections than newly-elected lawmakers, comprising returning members and first termers with enough heft to swing things their way, have started positioning themselves for the leadership positions of the National Assembly.

At stake are the following positions: Senate President, Deputy Senate President, Majority Leader, Chief Whip and Deputy Chief Whip, among others.

But while the lawmakers are lining up themselves for the various leadership positions in the legislature, the APC, which is expected to play a crucial role in who gets what, unlike in the 2015 race, is playing it close to its chest.

In 2015, the APC, then a rainbow of political forces determined to wrest power from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), badly managed the process and this led to the emergence of Senator Bukola Saraki, a powerful politician from Kwara, as the Senate President. He won despite efforts by the party to stop him. The APC officials were determined to work for the emergence of Senator Ahmad Lawan from the North-East.

Their inability to assert any authority to rally party members behind Lawan was aided by Buhari’s now famous quotation in his presidential inaugural address in which he spoke

Uwajumogu

about being for nobody and being for everybody.

The party lethargy, arguably due to its inexperience in managing the complexity of national politics, as the key decision makers in the party were hitherto little emperors in their tribal political hegemonies whose words were laws to other party members, provided the leeway for Saraki to outfox the APC. Saraki, a two-term governor of Kwara State under PDP and former Chairman, Nigerian Governors Forum, tapped into his PDP root to beat APC leaders at their own game of intrigues. As part of the bargaining chips, he traded off the deputy Senate Presidency for the support of opposition senators, whose numerical strength was crucial in picking a Senate President.

While 51 out of about 66 APC senators were at the International Conference Centre, Abuja for a controversial meeting whose convener(s) remain(s) unknown to the public till date, the 57 senators at the maiden sitting unanimously elected Saraki as the Senate president.

The absentee senators barely made it back to the National Assembly for the inaugural sitting only to witness PDP’s Ike Ekweremadu who expectedly defeated APC and Ali Ndume, in a contest that gave a legal veneer to the horse-trading between Saraki and PDP. That is why the APC cannot fritter away a second chance to manage the process better this time.

Before the 2015 elections were won and loss, the expectation was that the APC would back a South-East lawmaker as Senate President or House Speaker. With the president from the North and the vice-president, Yemi Osinbajo, from the South-West, conceding either of the two positions to the South-East seemed the logical step in conformity with Nigeria’s power rotation system that aims to quell fears of marginalisation among the federating units by ensuring equitable distribution of power and its appurtenances among the six geopolitical zones.

However, the poor performance

Kalu

of APC in the South-East, a traditional stronghold of PDP, derailed that expectation. All the federal lawmakers from the five states in the geopolitical zone were PDP members.

Even the five Igbo who won election to the House in Lagos State, dominated by the APC, did so on the platform of PDP. But for the Saraki deal with PDP that birthed the Ekweremadu Senate deputy presidency, the South-East would have been out of the power loop in a nation were strong ethnic sentiments drive relationship between constituent states and the federal government.

And now that the first stanza of the 2019 general election is over with APC even improving on its 2015 records, the party is on the cusp of another crisis.

The performance of the APC in the South-East in the recent election has thrown up a spectre of the marginalisation of the geopolitical in the power equation. However, unlike in 2015, the geopolitical zone has produced two APC senators and could get another one should Senator Benjamin Uwajumogu win his re-election bid for the Imo North Senatorial District. INEC declared the contest inconclusive on February 23 and rescheduled the conclusion for March 9. Uwajumogu won his reelection, making him,arguably the most favoured APC senator from the South-east to become a principal officer in the Senate.

In the presidential election, the five states in the geopolitical zone also gave Buhari 403,242 votes, up from the 198,248 votes he got in 2015. The incoming senators, former Abia State Governor, Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu, the outgoing Imo State Governor, Owelle Rochas Okorocha, and Uwajumogu should present an opportunity for the APC not to tread the 2015 path.

Like Okorocha in Imo State, Kalu was instrumental to the impressive showing APC put up in the National Assembly election in his Abia State.

Apart from winning his senatorial seat, he played a key role in the election of two APC members, Benjamin Kalu of Bende Federal Constituency and Nkeiruka Onyejeocha of the Isik-

wuuato/Umunneochi, into the House of Representatives. He also delivered his Bende Local Government to Buhari who beat PDP’s Atiku Abubakar by 9,233 votes to 6,649.

However, unlike Okorocha, Kalu, by virtue of his election on the platform of the now defunct National Republican Convention (NRC) into the 593-member House of Representatives in the July 4, 1992 to herald the aborted Third Republic, could be considered a ranking senator.

The ranking rules confer on former House members same privileges as former senators. Should Kalu choose to bid for the post, it certainly will not be a picnic but he is eminently qualified.

Although many may argue that power distribution should be seen as a reward for electoral performance, the danger in that narrative is that it foists on the polity a winner-takes-all mentality that negates the principles of fairness and equity enunciated by the nation founding fathers.

In addition, we should start shifting away from the divisive policy of punishing voters for their choices. The moment the election is over, winners such as president and governors should forget about who voted for them or against them by ensuring an equitable distribution of political power.

The APC would gain more from running an inclusive government that gives the South-East a better sense of belonging in the federation than the 2015 attempts that seek to punish the geopolitical zone for voting against the party. If the tokenism of the Buhari first term could pave the way for the improvement in the party’s performance in 2019 in the South-East, giving the zone a greater chance in running the nation’s affair will enhance the incremental progress APC is making in the geopolitical zone.

Perhaps this is the time for the president to give life to his promise while collecting his certificate of return, to run an inclusive government.

-James, a public affairs analyst, writes from Kaduna

T H I S D AY ˾ FRIDAY MARCH 15, 2019

19

PERSPECTIVE

Oyetola’s 100 Days of Impactful Governance Sola Fasure

S

aturday March 9, 2019 marked the 100th day in office of Mr. Adegboyega Oyetola as Governor of the State of Osun.

After serving as Chief of Staff to Governor Rauf Aregbesola who served two glorious terms from 2010 to 2018, he was elected as Governor on November 27, 2018.

Governor Oyetola was not a novice to government when he took the mantle of leadership. He came with a formidable and intimidating résumé, replete with sound educational, private and public sector background, comparable to his closest opponent in the election that ushered him in.

Armed with two degrees from the University of Lagos, a commanding presence on Broad Street, Nigeria’s financial capital, the last eight years as the Chief of Staff to the immediate past Governor and without any personal baggage or scandal, it is beyond dispute that he was well prepared for the job.

The office of the Chief of Staff is the hub of government and Oyetola brought integrity, competence, wisdom, maturity and uncommon grace to that office. He made the government to run seamlessly.

By the middle of Governor Aregbesola’s second term, it was clear to most people in the government (and even outside) that Oyetola fit the bill of a worthy legacy successor. This is why most of them supported him to succeed Ogbeni Aregbesola.

In contesting the governorship election, Oyetola could not have been seeking personal fortune. He had been a person of means. At any rate, Osun is not an ideal place for political bounty hunters. She is only rich in potential.

It is therefore his goal to realise these potential and make Osun a prosperous state and a pride of her people.

Oyetola is suave and urbane – a well-polished gentleman – who is a thorough progressive. He has been able to cut a persona of a bourgeoisie with a sound grounding in democratic social welfarism. This implies that as a bourgeoisie, he knows how to create wealth. He balances this with genuine interest in the welfare of the mass of the people, in a democratic system.

For him, wealth creation is not for self, but for the common good. The honeydew of it is his determination not just to create wealth, but to entrench the culture and practice of wealth creation in the state. This puts him as a thinker and social democrat in the mould of the late sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo.

He is not flippant and not known for making platitudes. This is because he is a full barrel. Those who have worked with him know that he is a visionary realist. He doesn’t make promises anyhow, telling people what

Aregbesola

Oyetola

they want to hear, as is the standard practice among the political class.

He promises what is reasonable and realisable. However, when he makes promises, you can take it to the bank.

His private sector background must have taught him that leadership entails tapping the brains of as many people as possible in a collective effort at agenda setting, goal pursuit and realisation. That is why he never shies from telling those he meets to always pass their ideas across. For him, no one can do it alone.

One thing is clear in his first 100 days – it is continuity of his hard work and sleepless nights in running the affairs of the state. It is also the continuity of the good governance that transformed Osun in the past eight years.

One hundred days, by any standard, cannot afford any administration to roll out the drums. It is a period of intense engagement and putting in place the foundation for a maximum eight-year tenure.

Therefore, in the past 100 days, he has met with all the peoples of Osun across the local governments and wards, obtained their demands and observed their needs, especially the most critical. He has also met with stakeholders and development partners – governmental and non-governmental – obtaining their favours and commitment to critical assistance and partnerships.

He has established a pattern of involvement in the five critical areas of governance. These are human development, infrastructure development, economic development, workers’ welfare and security.

Since coming to office, he has paid full salaries to workers every month as and when due. He has also made commitment to offset the accumulated arrears the moment the opportunity presents itself. He met with the 20,000-strong cadets of the Osun Youth Empowerment Scheme (OYES) and promised not just to retain their services but also to increase their monthly allowance.

Starting with healthcare, the revitalization of Ejigbo General Hospital has commenced. On completion, the hospital will have full complement of state-of-the-art equipment, safe water, new children’s ward, medical personnel quarters and asphalted internal road network. Adequate personnel will be available. For easy access, the 3.42-kilometre Ejigbo-General Hospital/UNIOSUN Junction Access Road linking the city centre to the health facility, is being fully rehabilitated.

The project has three months completion period, hopefully in May, 2019. It will cost about N300 million.

Also, Ifetedo General Hospital revitalization has started and is getting full attention.

This rejuvenation of health facilities has been extended to nine Central Hospitals/Comprehensive Health Centres and Three Hundred and 332 healthcare Centres, covering each of the 332 wards in the state. This will make quality healthcare equitably available to all citizens and residents irrespective of where they are staying.

Basic medical equipment, HIV test kits and other consumables to the tune of N87.7 million have been procured for the PHCs.

Construction of 10 roads across major towns has also commenced.

These are Ita Akogun-Ayetoro Road; Ile-Ife-Ijebu Jesa-Iloko-Ilesa (linking Ilesa-Akure Expressway) Road; Orita Cottage-Oke Gada Road, Ede; Isare-Ifofin-Iloro-Akewusola Road, Ilesa; Ikirun (Idi Esu)-IragbijiOroruwo Road; and Dele Yes Sir-Baba Fansanmi-Okefia R/A, Osogbo. Others are Araromi-Anaye Market Road, Iragbiji; Mobil Petrol Station-Idi Oro Junction-Court Junction-Odebara Junction-Agodi Junction-Alasunkala Junction, Ejigbo; Ikire (Naira & Kobo)Apomu-Ikoyi Road (linking Ife-Ibadan Expressway); and Odo Ori-AdeekeIwo Road (linking Ibadan Expressway), Iwo. Many of these roads were wreaked by the heavy rains of last year, which brought untold hardship to motorists and other road users. With their rehabilitation, huge relief has now been brought to users of the roads as economic and social interactions have now been enhanced in the state.

To support the empowerment of rural farmers and facilitate movement of goods, there is an on-going massive grading of rural roads being undertaken by the local government councils. The councils are collectively grading not less than 500 kilometres of roads after Governor Oyetola gave them the mandate in January.

On security, Oyetola’s administration has refurbished 20 Armoured Personnel Carriers (APCs) which have since been deployed to protect lives and properties across the state.

Seven fire stations have also been refurbished while15 fire vehicles have been repaired. These will assist in combating fire outbreaks and other emergencies across the state.

Government has taken steps to strengthen quality education in the state. On 7th February, 2019, Governor Oyetola flagged off distribution of state-of-the-art school furniture , computers, learning aids and games equipment (including Table Tennis, Basketball, Athletics, etc) to schools across the three Senatorial Districts in the state.

The most exciting however is the first State of Osun Economic Summit meant to generate a robust and sustainable economic development template that will launch the state into a boom.

With all arrangements already in place, the stage is set to ignite what will be the most significant activity in the state since its creation in 1991.

The blocks are being built as the direction the administration is going is getting clear. It is an encouraging one with the governor steadying his feet to provide quality leadership for the state. Success definitely is assured.

-Fasure lives in Osogbo

Kano and Ibadan Offer Lessons in Fight against Corruption Wole Arisekola

I

badan and Kano are not just the largest cities in Nigeria.

They are the most politically advanced cities in Africa’s most populous nation. You may call them any name, but the truth is that they are more advanced in politics than any other city in Nigeria.

When it is time to retire their political leaders, they don’t play ethnic or tribal cards. See how they permanently retired two in-laws in politics.

When Governor Umar Ganduje and his in-law, Abiola Ajimobi lost their states, it was not because they performed poorly compared to Udom Emmanuel of Akwa Ibom State, Ben Ayade of Cross River or

Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia who have been re-elected for a second term in their respective states.

Ajimobi and Ganduje didn’t lose because the people of Ibadan and their brothers in Kano love the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) more than they love the All Progressives Congress (APC); the genesis of their electoral woes goes beyond love for parties.

The dollar saga and lack of respect for elders played major roles in what befell them at the polls.

Ajimobi’s ‘Consituted Authority’ video and the viral video in which Governor Ganduje was seen collecting bribe from a certain contractor generated unfavourable responses before the election.

Neither of them was able to

explain to the people of their states exactly what led to the actions that were caught on tape.

The good people of Oyo and Kano States took offence at the obsessive tendencies of their governors.

Though the governors seemed to have become immune to criticisms, the people made up their minds that they would not allow either of them to continue to serve them as their leaders .

While you’re celebrating in Uyo, Calabar and Umuahia over the re-election of governors who have done worse things in their states than taking bribes from contractors, the people of Ibadan and Kano have demonstrated in this election how we can stop corruption in Nigeria.

Ibadan and Kano have shown us

all how to hold our leaders accountable. They have shown that power truly belongs to the people.

Those who call Ibadan people illiterates and Kano voters Almajiris should think again. You may underestimate the voters at your own risk Illiterate and Almajiri voters who voted out Ajimobi and Ganduje because of corruption are 200 times better than the so called educated illiterates in the South-south and South-east who vote for and celebrate corrupt politicians regardless of their level of education.

We need to copy Ibadan and Kano voters if we are serious about moving Nigeria forward.

I am a very proud Ibadan man.

-Arisekola writes from Lagos

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5 ) * 4 % ": t FRIDAY, MARCH 15, 2019

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BUSINESSWORLD R A T E S MONEY MARKET OBB OVERNIGHT

A S

A T

REPO 9.17 % 10.08 %

CALL 1-MONTH 3-MONTH

10.50 % 12.38 % 12.63 %

M A R C H S & P INDEX INDEX LEVEL 1-DAY MONTH-TO-DATE

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

8 , 2 0 1 9 383.22 % 0.08 % 0.32 %

S & P INDEX 1/4 TO DATE 7.35 % YEAR TO DATE 7.35 %

EXCHANGE RATE N306.90/1US DOLLAR* *AS AT LAST FRIDAY

Quick Takes Air Peace Emerges Best Airline

COURTESY VISIT

L- R: Registrar/CEO, Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN), Seye Awojobi; Group Managing Director/CEO, Access Bank Plc, Herbert Wigwe, President/Chairman of Council, CIBN, Dr Uche Olowu, and Deputy Group Managing Director, Access Bank, Roosevelt Ogbonna, during a stakeholder engagement visit to Access Bank by CIBN in Lagos‌recently

Surcharges: NSC Accuses Shipping Lines of Breaching UNCTAD Provisions Eromosele Abiodun The Nigerian Shippers Council (NSC) has expressed concerns over the alleged imposition of all manner of surcharges by multi-national shipping lines bringing cargoes into the country.

The ports economic regulator is particularly worried that most of the surcharges are imposed on Nigerian shippers contrary to the provisions of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).

The Executive Secretary/ CEO of NSC, Mr. Hassan Bello, who described the surcharges as unjustifiable, said the council would take the matter up with the Global Shippers Forum (GSF)

MARITIME to call the different shipping lines and their agents to order.

Bello, explained that while some of the charges were supposed to be temporary, reduced or cancelled as allowed

by UNCTAD and as the situation in the ports changes, the shipping lines have maintained a permanent imposition of the charges on helpless shippers.

He said what was worrisome was that even incidents of piracy that have nothing to do with Nigeria are given different colorations in what was targeted at placing a surcharge on cargoes coming to Nigeria.

According to him, “Everything that happens, even if it is in Togo or Benin Republic, it is attributed to have taken place in Nigeria. Even local infractions like somebody just enters the ship illegally even without weapons; it is reported as incidence of piracy. But that is not piracy, it is probably robbery incident. Piracy is total command of the ship on the high sea.�

Apart from other measures locally, he said the council would reach out to the GSF directly or through the African Shippers Forum (ASF) to address the issues of surcharges.

The ASF collaborates with GSF to reach out to shipping lines in different continents

doing business with the West and Central African sub-region to address issues of arbitrary surcharges.

The Director, Special Duties, NSC, Mr. Tahir Idris, who gave an insight into the different surcharges told newsmen that the shipping agencies often ignore to suspend the surcharges even with the knowledge that the situation which justified their imposition has changed.

He said: “It seems to be permanently being deployed as it is mostly built into the freight cost from parent companies.�

Among the surcharges Continued on page 22

FAAN Targets N30bn Annual Revenue Chinedu Eze The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) has said it aims to increase its revenue from the current budget of over N20 billion annually to N30 billion.

The agency which is managing about 22 airports in the country said that it had taken steps to actualise this goal, by setting up a committee to map out plans to boost revenue generation for the agency, especially from the non-aeronautical areas.

It noted that for it to be able to pay overheads, salaries of its huge personnel and still have funds to maintain the airports, it must look for ingenious ways to earn more revenue.

Therefore, he disclosed that the agency which has received approval would soon increase passenger service charge from the current N1000 to N2500 for domestic passengers and from $50 to $100 for international passengers.

AVIATION A source told THISDAY that the agency hopes to earn more revenue from the new airport terminals in Abuja and Port Harcourt and expressed the optimism that in no distant time, the new facilities in Lagos and Kano would be completed and this would boost FAAN’s revenue.

In the past four years FAAN has engaged in massive recruitment of personnel due to political pressures.

From about 5,000 staff, the agency, THISDAY learnt has a current workforce of 7,000.

According to the source, if the organisation does not increase revenue, it would not be able to pay salaries to its personnel.

The Managing Director of FAAN, Saleh Dunoma, said that the agency was doing everything possible to increase its revenue.

He noted that in addition

to increased personnel, FAAN would have to spend more on aviation security in the procurement of equipment, guns and others, as it aims to equipment its security personnel, as endorsed by the federal government.

To actualise this goal, FAAN has raised a committee which would look at various opportunities available, especially in non-aeronautical sources to boost its revenue, as the management said it would exploit every possibility available to ensure that more revenues are generated.

Dunoma, said that it was high time airport authorities in the continent diversified their revenue generations away from aeronautic to non-aeronautic, stressing that other airport managers across the world had already keyed into this.

He insisted that the committee, which he is the chairman, consisted of relevant directorates and departments responsible for

revenue generation for FAAN and would come out with a roadmap to enhance revenues for the agency.

He declared that FAAN as an agency could not be left behind in the development of its airport infrastructure, stressing that the only way to achieve this was for it to diversify its revenue generation and tap into the myriad of opportunities in the system.

He explained further that apart from Nigeria, other airport authorities across the continent were also deliberating on how to increase their non-aeronautical revenue services, which he said formed the theme of this year’s Airports Council International (ACI) held in Egypt. “What we intend to do is to diversify our revenue sources. In Africa, we have not tapped into non-aeronautical sources and we are encouraging African airports Continued on page 22

AirPeacehasagainbeenchosenasNigeria’sbestairline.Theairlinegarnered a whopping 44.7 per cent of the total votes cast in the domestic airlines category of the third edition of the Nigeria Travel Awards organised by JumiaTravelinLagosrecently.Theairlinebeatfiveotherdomesticcarriers toclinchthe,‘BestLocalAirlineoftheYear,’award.Thefirstrunner-upinthe category got 15.6 per cent of the total votes cast. Air Peace also picked theawardfor2017.

The winner of the award was chosen by members of the public through a simple online poll that closed on March 6. The airline with the highest numberofvotespickedtheaward.

Speaking at the awards ceremony in Lagos, the Managing Director of JumiaTravelNigeriaandGhana,Ms.OmolaraAdagunodo,saidtheevent was organised to celebrate and encourage those excellently acquitting themselvesintheirdifferentspheresofoperation.

AirPeacewasrepresentedattheawardsbyitsCorporateCommunications Manager,Mr.ChrisIwarah,AssistantCustomerRelationsManager,Mrs. PatriciaEbilahandCorporateCommunicationsExecutive,Mr.EfeOsifoWhiskey.

Speakingafterreceivingtheaward,Iwarah,assuredthatAirPeacewasin theairlinebusinesstodoNigeriaandAfricaproud.Theairline,heassured, wouldcontinuetosustainthehighstandardsitwasreputedfor.

Hesaidthecarrierwaspoisedtocompeteonthesameplatformwithits counterparts across the world, especially with its soon-to-commence long-haulflightstoSharjah,Dubai,London,Houston,Guangzhou,Mumbai andJohannesburg.

Firm to Sensitise Travellers

Afirm,StarkLegalBarristersandSolicitorshascompletedplanstosensitise potential travellers, the general public, regulators and stakeholders on the new legislation on consumer protection, which enforcement would affecttheaviationindustry.Thefirmalsosaiditwouldcreateawareness onthenewFederalCompetitionandConsumerProtectionActaspartof itscelebrationoffiveyearsofexcellence.

Theeventwouldbethefirsteditionofitsquarterlybreakfastseries,titled stark illuminate, which would hold in Lagos. The theme of this edition is ‘ConsumerProtectionintheAviationIndustry:TrendsAndDevelopments.’ Subsequent events would focus on issues in the telecommunication, energyandFintechindustries.

TheManagingPartnerforStarkLegal,MojisolaOlugbemi,saidthetheme for the inaugural event was borne out of the recently assented Federal CompetitionandConsumerProtectionAct(FCCPA). “Havingseentheeffectofsomelawsonconsumersandoperatorsinthe aviationindustryandthenumerousencounterstheyface,wehaveseenthe needtoaddressthesemattersbyorganisingabreakfastevent,succinctly focusingonconsumerprotectionintheaviationindustry,�shesaid.

Whileprofferingsolutionsintheaviationindustry,OlugbeminotedthatStark LegalBarristersandSolicitorswascelebratingitsfiveyearsofexcellence. “Other than the journals we usually do, we decided to make it grand by organisingtheproposedbreakfastevent,�sheexplained.

Accordingtothemanagingpartner,theeventwouldgiveanopportunity fordirectstakeholderstoexpresstheiropinion,expertiseandsuggestions acrossdiverselegalissues.

Boeing to Oer Biofuel for Airline

Boeingsaiditwouldsoonofferairlinesandoperatorstheoptionofpowering theirnewlydeliveredaircraftwithbiofuelfortheflighttotheirhomebase.

Theairframersaidtheinitiativewas“designedtofurtherspurtheuseof sustainable aviation fuels – which cut emissions up to 80 percent – and supporttheindustry’sdrivetoprotecttheenvironment.�

The new fuel option would be available for Boeing customers receiving theirnewplanesfromassemblyplantsinSeattleandEverett,Washington state. Also planned is the use of biofuel for some test flights at Boeing Field. Boeing said it was also working on providing a biofuel option at its SouthCarolinaDeliveryfacility.

AlaskaAirlineswouldbethefirstairlinetotakeuptheoption,withablend ofbiofuelandtraditionalfuelwhenittakesdeliveryofthreeBoeing737 MAXaircraftthisyear. “Thisisanotherstepinourdecade-longjourneytoencouragetheadoption ofsustainablefuelsandhelpcommercialaviationearnitslicensetokeep growing,�BoeingCommercialVPSheilaRemessaid.

“The leaders we need in Africa today, are leaders who genuinely care about humanity. We need leaders who are driven by an ambition to leave society better than they met it�

Chairman, UBA Group,

Tony Elumelu

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BUSINESSWORLD SURCHARGES: NSC ACCUSES SHIPPING LINES OF BREACHING UNCTAD PROVISIONS

identified by the council include: Peak Season (PSS); Extra Risk Insurance (ERI)/ Carrier Security Fee (CSF); Congestion (CS); Freight Tax (FTS); Operations Cost Recovery (OCR); Low Sulphur (LSS); B.A.F (Bunker Adjustment Surcharge) and C.A.F. (Currency Adjustment Surcharge).

The surcharges, Idris explained are fees collected by shipping companies in addition to freight rate prevailing in Nigerian seaports.

He said: “There are about eight or more surcharges imposed on Nigerian ports.

The UNCTAD provisions in its Article 16 of the code stipulates that surcharges imposed on cargo moving to and from a particular port shall be regarded as temporary and likewise shall be increased, reduced or cancelled subject to when the situation in the port changes.�

FAAN TARGETS N30BN ANNUAL REVENUE

to look at non-aeronautical revenue sources of revenue because aeronautical sources of revenues have limitations; they are highly dependent on flight operations. “The non-aeronautical revenues are being developed so much that they can be in pari-passu with the aeronautical sources of revenues. This is what we want African airports to develop. Some papers were presented to guide African airports to develop that area. “As a matter of fact, I just finished a meeting with my team. I set up a team on revenue generation and this team is chaired by me. It is very sensitive to the survival of African airports especially FAAN. We started the meeting today (Monday) and we will continue to meet every week until we get to where we want to be. “We have not come up with a target yet, but the committee will come up with that. There are lots of departments involved, including engineering and commercial. By the time we develop some projects, we will have revenue targets that we want to achieve. This will be done by the committee.�

Maritime Stakeholders Urge FG to Maximise Eastern Ports Hamid Ayodeji Stakeholders in the maritime sector of the nation’s economy have urged the federal government to embark on the development of the eastern ports and maxixmise their potential.

Speaking at a stakeholders’ meeting organised by the Nigerian Chamber of Shipping (NCS), Vice-Admiral Dele Ezeoba (rtd.), stated that if the government realises the diverse potential of the maritime sector and puts in place a functioning policy framework, ensuring a proper implementation strategy the economy of the country would experience massive growth.

He said: “The awareness needs to be active and not passive. Such active awareness includes educating the communities on international shipping best practices and also educating the shipping communities to enable them have a better understanding of the communities within which they operate in. Thus there should be a mutual understanding of the reciprocal benefits to the communities and shipping companies. “The Eastern region ports would always be relevant to the economic growth of the maritime sector and country.

If indigenous ship owners or shipping companies work towards the patronage, development and maintenance of these ports despite the challenges the ports face, they would be able to deliver as expected. “The issues experienced

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

Goddy Ogene

AgriBusiness/Industry Editor

Ă™Ă˜Ă‹ĂžĂ’Ă‹Ă˜ äĂ?

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; äĂ? (Aviation) ĂœĂ™Ă—Ă™Ă?Ă?Ă–Ă? ĂŒĂ“Ă™ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă˜ (Maritime) Ă‹Ă—Ă?Ă? Ă—Ă?ÔÙ (Finance) ĂŒĂ?ĂœĂ? åÙÔÓ (Insurance) Ă’Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă—Ă? Ă•Ă‹Ă?Ă™Ăœ (Energy) Reporters

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

by the eastern ports are the lack of security. Security in this instance needs to be addressed from these four levels which are: social, economic, environmental, physical security challenges.�

He explained that the challenges of the eastern ports reflect the challenges of the Nigerian maritime sector as a whole.

He added that addressing the issue required an

integrated, holistic, and all-inclusive approach which would in turn significantly increase the economies of scale in these ports as well as boost the local economy around the port area. “On addressing the security issues around the eastern, economic integration through poverty reduction initiatives along with training and development of human capital in these areas will reduce the

community interference on the government right of way and outside these ports,� Ezeoba added.

Also speaking at the event, General Manager, Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Ebubeogu Iheanacho, said: “Maximising the economies of the eastern ports requires more than a port plan. It needs a port master plan. “In addition, in collaboration with the preparation of the port

master plan, the requirement of a holistic, integrated approach to the issues, particularly security, container management, ports infrastructure, geographical area of the ports, the relationship between the public and the private sector in maritime activities and the financing requirements. All these must be derivable from a comprehensive transport policy and its resultant shipping policy,� he said.

CAPACITY BUILDING

L-R: Group Head, Human Resources / Administration, Inlaks, Adetokunbo Ayo-Ogunsanya; Inlaks’ ATM Academy Grandaunts, Abdulrahman Abdulkadri; Abdulhakeem Abdullahi Opeyemi; Akinsanmi Oluwatosin Bamidele; and Executive Director, Tope Dare, at the graduation ceremony held in Lagos‌recently PHOTO: ETOP UKUTT

Lokoja Port Gets N1.6bn Mobile Harbour Crane Contract Eromosele Abiodun The National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) has awarded a contract for the supply and installation of a 64-ton mobile harbour crane at the Lokoja River Port.

In a statement by the General Manager, Public Affairs of the authority, Tayo Fadile, the

Managing Director of NIWA, Dr Olorunnimbe Mamora, at the contract signing ceremony in Lokoja, said that the project was in line with government’s determination to enhance water transportation.

He said the contract was awarded early enough to ensure the commencement of operation at the port by

next year.

According to him, the port, which would be fitted with state of the art equipment, has reached 75 per cent completion.

The port is located at Jamata area of Lokoja.

Mamora, said that the contract, which was awarded at a cost of N1, 600,344,000 to Messrs LIEBHERR Nigeria

Limited, would be executed within one year.

When completed, he said, the port and others already completed and nearing completion in Baro, Onitsha and Oguta would enhance inland water transportation and create thousands of direct and indirect employment opportunities for Nigerians.

He said the choice of the contractors was informed by their track record.

Speaking at the occasion, the Managing Director of LIEBHERR Nigeria Limited, Mr Hermann Wohuhes, thanked NIWA for the confidence reposed in his firm. He promised to deliver the job strictly in line with the terms of the contract.

Isegbe: Poor Plant Health May Threaten Food Security James Emejo in Abuja

Group Business Editor

NEWS

The Director General, Nigeria Agricultural Quarantine Service (NAQS), Dr. Vincent Isegbe, has said healthy plants remained key to meeting the tremendous challenge of feeding the growing Nigerian population.

He said Nigerian population was projected to reach 236 million by 2030 and 410 million by 2050, warning that “without a rich base of healthy plants, the population will outstrip food production, which will throw the world into a Malthusian crisis�.

Speaking in Abuja at the formal launch of activities to herald the International Year of Plant Health (IYPH) 2020, he said unhealthy plants currently posed serious threats to national food security and economy in general and should not be ignored.

He said: “Plant pests and diseases damage crops and may

cause crop failure, in extreme cases. Their devastative impact leads to food scarcity, sharp increase in food prices and instability in the food market as well as the agro-allied industries.�

Furthermore, Isegbe noted that plant pests and diseases rob farmers of income and hard work and instigate a system-wide poverty, hunger and malnutrition.

He said there was an urgent need to begin to build a robust plant health system that can support the anticipated population explosion in the country and globally.

He also warned of an imminent food crisis except policies are perfected to subdue pests and diseases as well as boost food production.

He said: “In the very least, we have to improve our capacity to feed ourselves on a sustainable basis. This means that we must move speedily to

adopt a forward-looking plant health policy and massively invest in the upgrade and expansion of our plant health infrastructure. “If we are remiss in doing the needful in the run-up to 2050, we will be setting ourselves up for a potential food crisis.�

He said: “We cannot afford to leave plant health in the back burner. We need to rethink our scant regard for plant health and make it a priority. “All development and economic policies must give pre-eminence to plant health.

In addition, the annual budgets of the federal, state and local governments should accord meaningful allocations to plant health. “I have to emphasise that this call for investment in plant health in Nigeria is not a plea that should be mere tokenism.

Tokenism will do little or nothing because plant health is a capital intensive affair.�

The NAQS DG added: “We need much more than the traditional miserly allocations to plant health to reposition our plant healthcare system.

At the federal level, we need, at the very minimum, an annual investment of N50 billion annually for the next five years to scale our plant health infrastructure to the proportion of our immediate needs. “Our investment in plant health will be an investment in social security. It will enable us combat hunger, malnutrition and poverty. With healthy plants, there will be food for all; everyone will be adequately nourished; the income and quality of life of farming households will rise; and more people will find employment in spin-off activities across the value chain. “Conversely, a single crop pest can be a harbinger of doom. Nigerians may recall

the extensive destruction of farmlands visited on the country by the tomato moth (aka tomato ebola) in 2017.�

He said: “That lone pest inflicted colossal losses on farmers and led to a steep hike in tomato prices across the country. That moth still remains a viable threat to the Nigerian agricultural economy today, alongside fall armyworm of maize and the bacterial blight of cassava. “The fact that one pest can precipitate an upheaval across the length and breadth of Nigeria illustrates the sensitivity of the food system to a pest outbreak. The prospect of multiple pest outbreaks is extremely dreary. “It is capable of engendering severe disruptions that might alter the very stability of the polity. This is why plant health is as much a matter of food security as it is a matter of national security.�

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BUSINESSWORLD

NEWS

Ore: Appointing Foreign Technical Adviser for National Carrier Wrong Stories by Chinedu Eze A former Director of Operations, of the defunct Nigeria Airways Limited (NAL), Captain Dele Ore, has said while the plan to float a national carrier for Nigeria was a good idea, it was wrong for the federal government to appoint a foreign technical adviser for the project.

He said Nigeria has experienced persons government needed to render such service to in the country and noted appointing foreign personnel or organisation was a waste of resources and not giving Nigerians the opportunity to serve the country.

Ore, made this known in Lagos at the pre-event press briefing on his latest book, ‘The Learned Commander.’ “You don’t need all these financial advisors, advisers, transaction advisers. Where is Dele Ore? Where is Taiwo Adenekan and others? I cannot fault the policy, the plan, but

I have always said, maybe that is the reason they don’t come to me, we are talking about a national carrier, but I said no, a flag carrier.�

He, however, said Nigeria always had good policies, but lacked the political will to implement most of them, stressing that until the government deployed the political-will, the sector would continue to be stagnant.

Ore who worked for the defunct airline for over three decades said the most traumatic experience he ever had while in the national airline was the sack of 47 pilots in one day by the federal government and described the experience as his saddest moments in the service.

Ore, also recalled that he was appointed and sacked as the chief pilot in the former national carrier thrice by different governments, saying that inconsistency in policy formulation and execution led to the eventual death of

the airline.

According to him, the government as a policy then, had wanted to reduce the workforce of the airline by 50 per cent, stressing that before the retrenchment; the airline had about 3,700 staff.

He noted that the sack of the pilots, which took place in December 1988, was a step in the wrong direction, which had a negative effect on the entire performance of the airline.

Ore who became a pilot at the age of 21 recalled that he found it painful that 47 pilots were sacked under his watch in one day, stressing that most of those sacked were already captains whom the federal government trained for at least nine years.

He said the 30-chapter book to be presented at the Nigeria Institute of International Affairs (NIIA) in Lagos encapsulates everything about his life from the cockpit to the courtroom as a legal practitioner.

Ethiopian Airlines Opens Condolence Register in Nigeria The management of Ethiopian Airlines in Nigeria has opened Condolence Registers at the airline’s offices in Abuja, Lagos, Kano and Enugu.

This is for the victims of the ET Flight 302 that crashed on the 10th of March 6, minutes after take-off.

The General Manager of Ethiopian Airlines in Nigeria Firihiewot Mekonnen received the first set of visitors at the office in Lagos.

At the Abuja airport, the Managing Director of the Federal Airport Authority (FAAN), Saleh Dunomah was received by the Ethiopian

Airlines Sales Manager Abuja, Tilahun Tadesse.

Mekonnen thanked Nigerians for standing with Ethiopia and Ethiopian Airlines in this moment of grief. “We thank the Nigerian President and the good people of Nigeria for the condolence message from the government of Nigeria.

We have always counted on Nigeria as an African partner and brother and this sad occasion once again proves the bond. “We commiserate with Nigeria over the loss to humanity of the two great

Nigerians on that flight. We have since reached out to the families involved. Ethiopian Airlines will not abandon its responsibilities to them,� she said.

Two Nigerians were involved in the crash; Prof. Pius Adesanmi and Ambassador Bashua Abiodun.

Meanwhile, Ethiopian Airlines said it has grounded all B737-8Max airplanes in its fleet. Ethiopian Airlines does not use the B737 Max on its Nigerian routes. The B777, B787 Dreamliner and the Airbus A350 are the Aircraft deployed daily to Nigeria.

Turkish Airlines Introduces New Cabin Uniforms Turkish Airlines recently introduced new uniforms for its cabin crew at a fashion show at the International Tourism Fair (ITB) in Berlin with the attendance of Turkey’s Minister of Culture and Tourism, Mehmet Nuri Ersoy.

Eleven female and male flight attendants presented the new uniforms to ITB guests at the Berlin Exhibition Grounds on a six-meter-long catwalk.

The uniforms were designed by Ettore Bilotta, an haute couturier living in Milan, who worked closely with the flight attendants in the design process.

The airline said the result was a symbiosis of style, functionality and wearing comfort - inspired by many classic elements of Turkish culture. “The airline’s new uniforms integrate traditional patterns of handcrafted glass, ceramics and calligraphy with contemporary textures and

details. “The collection combines the shapes and colours of the Bosporus with a new flow detail� symbolising the effortless energy that flows through Istanbul as one of the most dynamic cities in the world and interface between East and West. Besides clothes, the entire collection includes hats, gloves, bags and other accessories,� the airline said.

Senior Vice President, Corporate Communications of Turkish Airlines, Ms. Seda Kalyoncu, said, “Turkish Airlines is known for its excellent service and peerless brand experience.

It is extremely important to us that our passengers have an incomparable travel experience when they are on-board our aircraft. “It is equally important to us that our on-board staff not only identify with Turkish Airlines with their appearances, but also comfortably dressed for any

climate around the world in order to serve our guests in optimum conditions. We have taken this step with our new cabin uniform. A uniform that has not only been developed together with the staff, but also add a touch of classic haute couture with its practicality.�

For Turkish Airlines, the new cabin uniform also is important for another reason: The airline, which flies to more international destinations than any other, is in the middle of an exciting phase of change.

In addition to changing its uniforms, Turkish Airlines is changing its hub also, by moving to its new home base, Istanbul Airport.

Ushering in a new era, the international hub not only meets all the requirements of the modern aviation industry, it is also a gateway to the world. With its location between East and West, the airport promises to bring the world even closer together

As Fear Grips Global Aviation Industry

Chinedu Eze The crash on Sunday of Ethiopia Airlines Flight ET302 six minutes after take from Addis Ababa to Nairobi in which 157 persons on board died, has reinforced fear about air travel.

Although it is acknowledged that air travel is the safest means of transport, but apprehension stemmed from the fact that the aircraft involved in the crash, Boeing 737MAX 8, is a new aircraft, which was barely five months in the fleet of Ethiopia Airlines and that another aircraft type operated by Lion Air about six months ago, precisely October 29, 2018, had crashed in the same way, eight minutes after take-off in Indonesia.

The grief about the death cannot be stemmed for a long time, but it seems to have been taken over by fear of another crash by the same aircraft type, hence the world’s agitation and worry. This is because the two accidents have already led to a combined loss of 346 lives!

The cause of the crash would be revealed after investigation, but because the crash of Ethiopia Airlines flight was similar to that of Lion Air involving the same aircraft type, industry experts believe that the problem lies in the aircraft rather than the safety of the airlines involved in the accident.

Preliminary report on Lion Air B737MAX 8 crash indicated that the accident might have been caused by Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS), which simple could be referred to as anti-stall computer system. MCAS is automated safety feature on the 737 Max 8 designed to prevent the plane from entering into a stall, or losing lift.

Because similar action took place in the two aircraft before they crashed, almost at the same time they took off, industry experts have linked the two accidents to the same problem, which investigation would confirm, disprove or throw more light on.

However, the manufacturer of the aircraft, Boeing has not in any statement ruled out the that possibility; rather, the second highest aircraft manufacturer in the world promised to update flight control systems on its 737 Max 8 commercial jetliners after the plane was involved in two deadly accidents in the past six months. “Boeing has been working closely with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on development, planning and certification of the software enhancement, and it will be deployed across the 737 Max fleet in the coming weeks,� the US based aircraft manufacturer said.

The crash sent panic to Nigerian travellers who see Ethiopia Airlines as

a household carrier, which has airlifted thousands of passengers from the country. Many Nigerians also believed that Nigerian airlines, especially Air Peace, which recently ordered 10 B737MAX 8 has the aircraft in its fleet.

The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) allayed the fear in a statement, which insisted that no Nigerian airline operates the aircraft type. Air Peace also issued a statement, saying that it does not have such aircraft in its fleet but acknowledged that it ordered 10 of the aircraft, which would start arriving in 2023.

Industry analyst, Kola Semiu also explained, “The Air Peace order of 10 of these brand new planes is a laudable achievement by any standards worldwide but the planes have not been delivered yet and, as such, not in their operations and fleet. “Deliveries of an order made in the last quarter of 2018 will, going by Boeing’s normal delivery schedules, may take between four years to six years!

Therefore, the earliest this airline may get these planes into their fleet could be 2023! “By this time, Boeing may have rectified whatever problem it is with the aircraft if investigations reveal so.

If the problem is with the aircraft and Boeing, though unthinkable, fails or refuses to rectify the fault, the airline, like many others, will naturally cancel the orders.�

Air Peace however said that it has confidence in Boeing to tackle the problem.

So far, Boeing is reported to have delivered 350 of the 737 MAX 8 since 2017 and has orders for 5000 more.

However, as airlines in multiple countries suspend the use of the plane, it is unlikely those orders will go through.

Currently the airlines that have the plane on their roster are: Norwegian Air, Air China, SpiceJet, Southwest Airlines, Icelandair, Flydubai, Air Italy, TUI, LOT Polish Airlines, AeroMexico, Oman Air, SmartWings, Aerolineas Argentinas, Lion Air, Corendon Airlines, China Southern, Ethiopean Airlines, Air Canada, Garuda Indonesia, United Airlines, American Airlines, Xiamen Airlines, WestJet, Turkish Airlines, SCAT Airlines, Chian Eastern, Shanghai Airlines, Shenzhen Airlines, Jet Airways, Okay Airways, GOL, SilkAir, S7 Siberia Airlines, Copa Airlines, Lucky Air, Sunwing Airlines, Hainan Airlines, Mauritania Airlines International, Shandong Airlines, Fiji Air, Enter Air, Cayman Airways, and Comair.

It has to be noted also that Ethiopia Airlines is the most reputable and most profitable carrier in Africa, which has over 70 years of successful operation with advanced technical know-how. It has one of the best aircraft maintenance facilities in Africa.

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Transforming the Aviation Sector Following his re-election, President Muhammadu Buhari has another four years to actualise his plan for the aviation industry, writes Chinedu Eze

S

peaking at the last stakeholders meeting in Abuja last year, the Minister of State, Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika, had explained that many of its programmes for the industry would have been accomplished if there were more time.

The minister had explained that the plan to concession the airports, establish a leasing company, build maintenance facility and float a national carrier was at advanced stage. He had emphasised that those programmes were the brainchild of President Mohammadu Buhari who he said under the All Progressives Congress (APC), had planned to reinvigorate the aviation industry and create more jobs for the teeming youths and also boost the contribution of the aviation sector to the nation’s GDP. To many sceptics, that might sound like fairy tale because nothing on ground showed that substantive efforts were being made to revamp the industry.

However, with the re-election of Buhari, this is the time to astound doubters with the accomplishment of those programmes.

For industry experts, the expectation is that by next two years, the Buhari administration would have completed the concession of the major airports in the country and at least, establish a leasing company and before 2023, it is expected that a national carrier would have started operating and the maintenance facility would be conducting its first major checks.

This optimism was shared by the President of Air Transport Service Senior Staff Association (ATSSSAN), Ahmadu Illitrus, who expressed happiness that the Buhari administration was returned during the election and noted that this is the time the government would have to fulfil all the promises made in the aviation sector.

He said he was aware of the extent many of the programmes introduced by the administration had advanced and expressed the hope that they would all be accomplished before the end of Buhari’s second tenure.

Safety Reviewing the past four years of the Buhari regime that would terminate in May this year, Illitrus said it was a good period for the industry because there was no fatality recorded and that in terms of safety; the government maintained a very good record. “The past four years has been good in the sense that there has been safety of flight operations. In fact, in that area it has been fantastic because there was no fatality in commercial aviation. However, the airlines faced the highs and lows in the industry, and some went down to one aircraft.

Buhari

the consolidation of what was started in the last four years, expressing the hope that the planned aerotropolis would be realised by the time the administration completes its second tenure. “I never expected that those projects would be completed in just four years. I expect them to continue the projects now they have been voted back to office. I am aware that may of those projects are at advanced level, including the national carrier project. “We are under serious threat from our African carriers because of the Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM), which has opened up the Nigerian market as signatory to the treaty. As long as they follow the principle of reciprocity, other African countries’ airlines are free to come into our country. “To march them we need to build strong carriers, which can effectively compete with

Infrastructure In the area of infrastructure, Illitrus said the Buhari administration consolidated on what the previous government started on the modernisation of airport facilities and also remarked that during this period there was stability between the aviation agencies, government and labour.

The Buhari administration completed that the Port Harcourt Airport international terminal, completed the international terminal at the Abuja airport and also completed and unveiled the train station at the Abuja airport. Also work has been going on at the terminal projects in Lagos, Kano and Enugu airports and before the end of next year the projects would be completed.

Spokesperson of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Mrs. Henrietta Yakubu, explained that work on the terminal at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport was at advanced stage, adding that it would soon be commissioned. She explained that why the terminal at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos was not completed yet was because work started relatively late on the project. It took time to agree on the site the facility would be built.

However, she was optimistic that the project would be completed soon.

Expectations Illitrus said industry stakeholders expect

We are under serious threat from our African carriers because of the Single African Air Transport Market, which has opened up the Nigerian market as signatory to the treaty. As long as they follow the principle of reciprocity, other African countries’ airlines are free to come into our country

other airlines in Africa and beyond. So I wish that government should speed up the process for the realization of the national carrier. I hope that government would also review the bilateral air service agreement (BASA), which have been left unexplored,� the ATSSSAN President said.

a lot of framework and capital.� “I commend government for being bold enough to call it off when it realised that it would not realise the national carrier project.

By doing that it prepared itself to continue when it deemed it ready to realise the project. “So in the next four years government should be ready to put more modern infrastructure, more framework and policies in order to encourage foreign investment and then lay a solid foundation for a national carrier,� the source said.

The industry expert said government could look at the lessons it learnt from the Nigeria Airways Limited (NAL) and the lesson learnt in the failed national hangar programme and then device more reliable ways to materialise those projects. “ECOWAS is planning to establish a major maintenance hangar for the sub-region and it is being supported by World Bank, Afrexim Bank and others. The facility is targeted for West and Central Africa. I am aware that they have invited Nigerian carrier, Aero Contractors and have come to see its maintenance facility, which is able to conduct C-check on Boeing 737 classics. They expressed satisfaction with what the airline has. So government should encourage ECOWAS, which I learnt may establish the facility in Nigeria,� he said.

THISDAY learnt that ECOWAS has looked at the country risk, security and environmental factors and decided that it may establish the facility in Nigeria. “Nigeria should move fast to re-establish itself as the leading country in aviation in West and central Africa. If we don’t move fast, other countries like Senegal, Ghana and Ivory Coast will overtake us. “So in the next four years we should strive to outstrip them. Rwand Air, Air Senegal and Air Cote d’Ivoire were set up by people who don’t have two heads. So we have to start somewhere,� the industry expert said.

Policies Nigerian Airlines He said that Nigerian airlines are beset with multifarious problems, noting that they are undercapitalised with few aircraft in operation, adding that fleet size for an airline is very important because it determines how successful its operation could be and remarked that many airline operators lack the expertise and exposure to actually run successful carrier. “Another setback for our airlines is the fact that we don’t have comprehensive maintenance facility locally. It makes maintenance costly and difficult. So we expect government to support the establishment of Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facility in Nigeria. “If this is done it will help our airlines and also the facility will make money because it will attract clients from beyond Nigeria. They will bring aircraft from West, Central and other parts of Africa to the facility. “We have operated a deregulated airline market for over 30 years now and we cannot say that the airlines have done so well; so now let’s try a national airline, a big airline that can compete. I also wish to talk about local refining of aviation fuel. “When the product is refined locally it will reduce overhead for the airlines and make their operations profitable. We cannot have a hub in Nigeria if we don’t have a major carrier. Arik Air had over 25 aircraft but we blew the opportunity. “Building a hub without a major carrier is a waste of opportunity; so we need a strong carrier that can compete in the market. In the absence of domestic airlines to operate international destinations we create excess capacity for foreign carriers,� Illitrus said.

Remaining Competitive A seasoned pilot and senior official of one of the major Nigerian airlines told THISDAY that in the last four years, government had tried to set up a national carrier, concession airports, establish MRO and leasing company.

While these were yet to be realised, the lesson learnt is that “starting a new company requires

The President of the National Association of Nigeria Travel Agency (NANTA), Bankole Bernard told THISDAY that the first four years of the Buhari administration was spent on planning and advised that government should implement the resolutions reached after the Minister held strategic meeting with industry stakeholders.

Bernard said the implementation would be the headway to moving the industry forward. “We don’t have policies that support the growth of domestic airlines. There is no policy that supports code-share partnership between foreign airlines that operate into the country and our domestic airlines. But in other countries in Africa and elsewhere, such policies exist and gives domestic airlines the opportunity to benefit from the operations of international flights to those countries,� Bernard said.

Industry observers also noted that government should have planned, programmed policies to respond to the growing aviation market in Africa with the introduction of SAATM and also marshal out ways to protect indigenous airlines; instead of leaving their fortunes to be determined by the vagaries of the market.

Airline operators said state governments in the continent, especially in West Africa were encouraging their airlines to compete, removing hurdles like high airport charges for them, ensuring that aviation fuel is sold at relatively lower rates and also pushing them to open new markets through bilateral support. “Many government officials from other countries visit Nigerian government just to talk about creating opportunity for their airlines.

I am aware that whenever any of these major carriers in Africa want to operate in Nigeria their ambassador or even their Minister will come and visit Nigeria. “We don’t often see that happening otherwise; like Nigerian government sending emissaries on behalf of Nigerian airlines. Nigerian government has to show that it is committed to the success of Nigerian airlines,� an airline operator told THISDAY.

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As NPA Resuscitates Eastern Ports Eromosele Abiodun writes that ongoing efforts by the Nigerian Ports Authority to make other ports across the country viable and efficient will end the seemingly intractable traffic gridlock in Apapa

S

eaports in relation to trade are major gateways to the economy of a country.

They represent a complex structure in a country’s transportation system providing ship harbour interface services such as pilotage, dredging, provision of berths, maintenance of navigational channels, etc., ship-port interface in terms of loading and unloading cargoes and port-land interface in delivering cargo to and from the hinterland.

In general seaports have five principal roles.

They include: Cargoes and passengers handling, providing services for ships such as bunkering and repair, shelter for ships in case of heavy sea and storm conditions, bases for industrial development and terminals forming part of a transport chain.

Seaports, expert believe, are complex dynamic systems consisting of numerous interacting elements, influenced by random factors. Over the years, seaports across the country have suffered neglect, depriving Nigeria of the economic advantages of having efficient and well managed ports. Apart from the Lagos ports, there are seaports at Warri, Koko, Onne, Port Harcourt, Calabar and Ibom Deep Seaport at Ibaka, Akwa Ibom State, which is still at the design stage. There are also numerous inland dry ports and fuel depots.

The main problem with these ports is that the river channels leading to them are too narrow to accommodate large vessels. The shipping companies find it more convenient to take their vessels to Lagos than to the eastern ports.

The situation worsened after the concession of the ports started in 2006. This was sequel to the withdrawal of the 30 per cent incentive granted vessel owners to use the eastern ports when the Federal Government controlled the ports.

Currently, apart from the Onne Port, most of the other ports servicing the Southeast, South-South and the Eastern flank of the North are virtually idle.

The channels into these ports need to be dredged, their facilities need to be upgraded and incentives provided to enable them take up more of the nation’s maritime business.

Apart from shallow channels, which make it impossible for bigger vessels to access the port, decrepit port infrastructure is another major problem.

While the Calabar Port suffers from shallow draught, the Onne Port is contending with insecurity such as pirate attacks and sea-robbery among others.

Other identified challenges include deplorable berths, dearth of finger mooring jetties to berth Nigerian Port Authority (NPA) crafts, lack of operational vehicles and fire hydrants at quays.

Cargo handling equipment and the port quays areas are also inadequate to make trade facilitation efficient.

Also, while high siltation at the Calabar Port has impeded safe navigation, the Port Harcourt Port suffered under constant pirate attacks, which made the port unattractive for foreign shipping lines. Because of the afore-mentioned challenges, no fewer than 754 vessels are said to have deserted the eastern ports between 2013 and 2016. Specifically, the number of vessels that berthed at the ports reduced from 2,268 vessels in 2013 to 1,514 in 2016.

According to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), the number of vessels that berthed at the Delta port fell from 609 in 2013 to 433 in 2016, while the Gross Registered Tonnage at the port also dropped from 8,687,160 in 2013 to 6,177,809 in 2016.

NPA Takes Action In a bid to reverse the situation, the NPA, last year, commenced the dredging of Warri port at the cost of $44.861million (N16.150 billion). The dredging has been completed and vessels have started calling at the port.

Confirming the above, a Warri based Customs broker and former National Financial Secretary of the Association of Nigeria Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA), Val Orhobabhor, said he gathered that the dredging project has been completed.

Aware of the perennial gridlock in Apapa

On his part, the Olu of Warri, Ogiame Ikewoli 11 called on stakeholders in the Delta ports to give maximum and unflinching support to NPA management so that the transformation the authority has brought to the region could be sustained.

The paramount ruler pointed out that Calabar Port, which also has the same challenge of shallow draught, has been improved upon by the NPA with the use of Flat Bottom Vessels (FBV) to attract more cargoes to the port in Warri.

MD NPA, Hadiza Bala-Usman

as a result of the activity at the Lagos port, the NPA management recently announced that it is working with professionals in the maritime sector to make the eastern ports attractive for business.

Last year, the NPA deployed equipment worth over $30 million in Onne Port, Rivers State. The measure, which was taken by the Managing Director of the NPA, Hadiza BalaUsman was to boost efficiency, security and make the port attractive for business. Onne Port Complex is one of the key ports under the NPA. It is situated on the Bonny River Estuary along Ogu Creek.

THISDAY findings revealed that six pilot cutters, tug boats and 17-meter offshore patrol boats, have been deployed in the port to make the port attractive and stem the cycle of criminalities within and around the port.

Sources at Onne Port confirmed that it cost the NPA more than $30 million to deploy the

Activities such as pipe coating, waste treatment and boat building are provided by companies located in Onne.

The port is highly industrialised with modern facilities and equipment that can stand the test of time anywhere in the world

sophisticated equipment.

One of the sources, however, condemned what he described as indiscriminate anchorage of vessels and urged the perpetrators to desist.

He also urged investors to take advantage of the strategic location of the port, located in one of the largest oil and gas free zones in the world.

Apart from supporting exploration and production for economic activities, the free zone provides a logistic oil service centre for the oil and gas industry in Nigeria (onshore and offshore), while also providing easy access to the entire West African and sub-Sahara oil fields.

The official assured stakeholders and investors that adequate depth of the channel leading to the port would be dredged to accommodate big ocean going vessels and guarantee adequate security.

Stakeholders Commend NPA Meanwhile, stakeholders in the maritime industry have continued to pure encomium on the NPA for the authority’s effort at making other ports across the country viable. For instance, former President of ANLCA Mr. Olayiwola Shittu hailed the NPA for repositioning the port for greater efficiency.

He urged other stakeholders to collaborate with the NPA in its efforts to make the port a hub of maritime activities.

Another stakeholder, Mr. Felix Abraham, said the deployment of the equipment has assisted the port in taking its rightful position as hub for the East and Central Africa subregions in oil and gas and has an advantage of accessibility and proximity to the Eastern commercial centres like Onitsha, Nnewi and Aba, among others.

Abraham said: “Activities such as pipe coating, waste treatment and boat building are provided by companies located in Onne.

The port is highly industrialised with modern facilities and equipment that can stand the test of time anywhere in the world. “It has one of the biggest habour mobile cranes in Africa, (Liebherr 600) with a lifting capacity of 208 metric tonnes. Also, 220 Gmk 5220 grove twin cranes that have capacity of lifting single heavy duty cargo of 300 tonnes.�

NPA Privatises Warri Port As part of measures to make the eastern ports attractive for business, the NPA and the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) recently handed over Terminal B of the Warri Old Port to private concessionaire, Ocean & Cargo Terminal Services Limited.

Director-General of BPE, Mr. Alex Okoh, said President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration was committed to a private sector-driven economy.

He also called on local and international businessmen to take advantage of the government’s open door policy to establish businesses in the country.

Okoh said the Nigerian ports are the main gateway to the country and key to the Federal Government’s objective of diversifying and growing the economy.

He pointed out that the objective of the government in port concession was to increase efficiency at the ports with the ultimate goal to modernise the ports and make them more competitive.

The BPE boss said: “The objective is to increase efficiency in our ports, improve service delivery, upgrade and modernise facilities in the ports, reduce the cost of shipping and clearing of goods at the ports and relieve the government of the burden of financing the sector.�

According to him, the concession is for a period of 25 years at an annual lease fee of $1,621,500, in addition to the entry fee and monthly throughput fee chargeable on the volume of cargo handled.

Okoh assured that the implementation of the development plan for the concessionaire would be closely monitored by the relevant government agencies, including the NPA, the BPE and Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission to ensure compliance.

Tackling Insecurity The NPA is also tackling insecurity which lead to inflated cost of importing goods through the eastern ports. An importer, Mr. Robert Francis had recently told THISDAY that shipment of cargoes from China to Lagos, which used to cost about $1,500 now costs between $4,000 and $4,500 because of insecurity and high salinity of the sea. He therefore, urged youths in the area to give peace a chance to make the ports attractive and competitive. “In addition, vessels calling at Onne Port in Rivers State also slammed $45,000 (N16.2milion) on importers for an average of six hours per night for delay to berth. The delay, which is estimated at $7,500 per hour, is said to be caused by incessant robbery and shallow port channels,� he said.

Worried by the problems, Transportation Minister, Rotimi Amaechi had last year, explained that one of the factors militating against the success of the maritime sector was insecurity in the Niger Delta region, which he said hampering the growth and development of the region.

He said Niger Delta was not working because of the people in the area. He said: “How many Lagosians are on the water in Lagos?

None. The reason vessels will not come to the eastern ports is because there is no war insurance on vessels because of restiveness in the region. “War insurance means if the goods cost N10, 000 in Lagos, it will get it N20, 000 here because there is extra cost on it. There is insecurity in Lagos, but not as bad as it is in the eastern ports.�

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BUSINESSWORLD

INTERVIEW

Cornacchia: Nigeria Remains an Important Market The Senior Vice President, Marketing and Communications, Middle East and Africa, Mastercard, Bea Cornacchia, in this interview speaks on the recent launch of a sonic indentity by the global payment company. Oluchi Chibuzor presents the excerpts:

M

astercard recently introduced a new sonic brand. What informed that decision?

For Mastercard, this a very important moment because we are launching a new dimension of our brand. I think that you will agree with me that consumers, nowadays, are asking for more and more touch points, especially from global brands. In addition, Mastercard is among the few global brands that is highly recognisable among consumers. Consumers associate Mastercard with very important values such as trust, safety and security. So we felt it is our responsibility, from a business perspective, to develop the best technology, the best tools and the best products, but at the same time also, our brand should be best in class, as our business. For this reason, we started the journey of modernising the brand in 2016. We felt that 2016 was the right moment when the lines between the physical world and the digital world started to blur a little. So we felt that our previous logo was not appropriate from a look and feel stand point to be the best brand online from our interaction with the consumers.

That was why in 2016, we modernised our logo and we took at that time, a bold decision to take the Mastercard name out from the centre of our brand; and we also changed the ‘M’ and the ‘C’ from capital letters to lower letters (from MasterCard to mastercard). So, that was the beginning of our journey. Some weeks ago, as I am sure you know, we decided that we are going to evolve into a symbolic brand. We completely removed the Mastercard name from our logo, which I really feel is a super bold decision. I feel that at a global level, there are only four brands that have made that decision, including Mastercard. And that was not the end of the story. We are also launching the sonic brand. So why the Sonic brand? As I said to you, the way that consumers are interacting with the brand has dramatically changed and even today, you can make a purchase online without having the debit card with you. So we felt that it was important to have something which is recognisable, which has the same colour as our brand but at the same time, it is very modern. That is how the sonic brand came to our mind. It took about 18 months to produce the sonic brand that I hope you have had the pleasure to listen to. So for 18 months, we worked with musicians and agencies across the globe. So the anthem that you listened to is the global one but we will localise the sound for every single market and that is the beauty of music.

That is a bit of the journey that we are going through.

Your decision to take out the Mastercard from the logo, do we expect it to also affect your market in Africa and how soon will that be?

So, as I told you, taking out our name from our logo was a bold decision. So this is official, Mastercard has evolved into symbolic brand. How we are going to roll out in the different markets in Africa specifically? I think is a great question. We are currently working to define a very specific plan. To be honest, I don’t feel that in Africa specifically and in Nigeria, that we will take out the name from the logo in the next six to eight months because again, this for us is a journey. As I said earlier, it is a bold decision and we also need to be respectful to our consumers. So the vision is to go there but I feel that for the next six to eight months, we will continue to keep the Mastercard name in the logo in Nigeria and in Africa.

But moving forward, we will take it out.

With that decision to still keep the name and logo in Africa for a while,

Cornacchia

are you seeing it impacting positively on your brand and your market share?

So, normally, companies can take out the names from the logo when they have almost achieved a 100 per cent brand awareness recognition in the market. I feel that in Africa, we are not at that level in all the markets, but I can tell you, we are almost there.

That was why I said it is not something that we will do immediately. But whenever

Nigeria, for us as you already know, is an important market where Mastercard is the leader both from a business perspective and from a brand perspective.

But now, we don’t want to be only the leader in the market, we want to get closer to our consumers in order to connect people to priceless possibilities

we will do it, we are very confident that it will not impact negatively on the country; it will have a positive impact because it is a cool brand. And that is also the reason why we are adding the sonic brand to add a new flavour. If you think of it, as human beings, we have five senses. So we already have how to see the brand, now the other side is how to hear the brand and that is just the beginning. We will continue to be close to our consumers with the remaining three senses.

Take us through the continents or markets you are going to start with and how you intend to go about it in terms of ensuring that each region gets their own feel?

Yes, so today, while I have the pleasure of having this conversation with you, all my colleagues across the globe are doing the same. So today is the global day of launching the sonic brand. My Chief Marketing Officer is at the Grammys where Mastercard is a proud sponsor and he’s going to officially launch the sonic brand. So first of all, this is a global announcement. You touched a very important point: how we are going to localise? So first of all, let me tell you what we have done. So we started the journey of the sonic brand 18 months ago as I told you, and we asked all the musicians to consider five main attributes.

Our sonic brand should be inclusive, first of all, because yes, it needs to be special such that everybody should feel that they are part of the game. Secondly, it should be passionate. I mean, music should give you the touch that a logo cannot give you.

Thirdly, it should be surprising. I think that you should expect this from a technology company. Fourth, it should be delightful; it needs to be sophisticated but it also be a source of delight to the customer. Last,

but not least, it should be captivating, you should remember the sonic brand. So, those are the five attributes and as you can see, these five attributes can be extremely local. So while you heard the global anthem today, we are working on developing an African one and why not a Nigerian one?

So, that is the beauty of the music. How are we going to use this anthem? We are going to use it every time we produce a piece of content for our consumers: be it a video, a blog, a podcast; whatever is our connection with our consumer. But not only that, our consumers as I told you are also making payments digitally and physically.

That is another way where our anthem will be leveraged and used. Of course this will not happen from one day, so we think that today is the beginning of a journey and we will need between three to five years to have a complete global rollout of the sonic brand.

Do you think this brand revolution will have impact on the penetration of Mastercard brand in Africa?

Yes, definitely. Otherwise, why are we doing this? Yes, you are totally right but this is a very important topic because one of the main requests from consumers is “hey global brand, stop doing advertising, that is not what I want.� We are always looking at avenues for interacting and connecting with our consumers. So, ideally, the sonic brand will give us the opportunity of getting closer to our consumers so as to increase the penetration. By the way, Nigeria, for us as you already know, is an important market where Mastercard is the leader both from a business perspective and from a brand perspective. But now, we don’t want to be only the leader in the market, we want to get closer to our consumers in order to connect people to priceless possibilities.

THIS WEEKEND

NEWS METRO THISLIFE

WEEKLY MAGAZINE

ART WEEKEND ENTERTAINMENT Group Features Editor: Chiemelie Ezeobi chiemelie.ezeobi@thisdaylive.com 08152252325

Seyi Banigbe:

Changing Nigeria in Her Own Little Way

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COVER SEYI BANIGBE: CHANGING NIGERIA IN HER OWN LITTLE WAY

eason 2 of Binging with GameChangers, a popular Talk Show, kicked off on March 14 on DSTV and other stations across the country with promises to be bigger and better.The show explores the thoughts and perspectives of the people behind some of Nigeria’s most successful brands, as well as individuals thriving in their chosen careers despite evident barriers. In this interview with MARY NNAH, its initiator and anchor, Seyi Banigbe, a trained lawyer and entrepreneur, said the talk show inspires individuals to, against all odds, pursue their passion in all spheres of life and become successful eventually. Excerpts:

What did you study at school?

I studied law, so I am a trained lawyer with an MBA from the Imperial College London. I obtained my Law degree (LLB) from the University of Lagos (Unilag) and was thereafter called to the Nigerian Bar. I am a certified member of the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators (ICSA) UK and the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (CIArb) UK.

You are a trained lawyer-cum-serial entrepreneur turned Talk Show host.

Do you still practice law?

I still practice law but I actually started my entrepreneurial journey right from the university where I sold clothes, shoes and accessories to my hall mates. I honestly can’t remember a time since I graduated from the university when I have not been busy exploring a business idea or growing a business. I’ll ascribe my knack for entrepreneurship first to my mum, seeing her juggle her job and businesses while growing definitely stirred up something in me. It told me that if at any time, I wasn’t comfortable with my earning power; I have all it takes to turn things around. I’ll also say that my desire to cause change in my society and in people’s lives, has also made me venture into a whole lot of things that I may have never ventured into.

What is the focus of the talk show, Binging with GameChangers?

Binging with GameChangers is passionate about telling Nigerians that you don’t have to run away, you can be big and you can make it right here. You can be who you want to be in Nigeria. We think the brain drain should stop. We think people need to realise that there is money on the streets of Nigeria because this is a developing economy, so almost every idea you bring to Nigeria will thrive.

Binging with GameChangers is a business and career inspirational talk show. It was borne out of passion to see Nigerians prosper and flourish in all their endeavours. We are very conscious of the fact that not everyone can and should be an entrepreneur. This is selecting high flyers and in exceptional areas in the economy, people in the corporate space and business place. We highlight their challenges, successes and how they have been able to rise basically irrespective of the limitations that Nigeria and life itself offers. It is a 30 minutes’ talk show and it is online and TV stations.

What excites us is that we are able to talk to Nigerians across the nation through terrestrial and Cable TV. The emphasis also is that you don’t have to travel out of this country to make it. You can stay right here just like the people who we are showcasing and becoming a billionaire. It is a mind-set; a mind change.

Season 1 of the show aired last year and Season 2 promises to be even bigger and better, as it is now airing online and on six TV stations concurrently - Africa Magic Family, NTA Network, STV Network, LTV, MYtv & NTA 2 and features an eclectic range of guests including Banke Meshida (Makeup-artiste Icon), Dr. Ola Orekunrin (Flying Doctors), Yemi Alade (artist), Funke Bucknor (event planner), and much more.

How did you start?

I run Bland2Glam, a jewellery brand and you know when you are into fashion you tend to attend a lot of events, activations and all of that, so for one of them, we had an inspirational chat and also a party. I was made to conduct the interview aspect and I was told last minute. Typically I am a behind the scene person. I will pay any other person to do it but it shouldn’t be me. So I was called upon impromptu to handle the interview segment and I did it reluctantly but by the time I was done with

L-R: Members of the production team for Season 2 of Binging with GameChangers. From left, Director, Seyi Fabunmi; Executive Producer, Seyi Banigbe; Producer, Yemisi Adesanya; Hair Stylist, Tonye Vaavavoom; Makeup artist, Yinka and Stylist, Kayito Nwokedi

just knowing that we are able to expose these stories to people across Nigeria.

Season 2 is bigger and better, we are on more platforms. So, I will say we are changing Nigeria in our own little way.

You keep saying season 2 is bigger and better. Tell us why?

It got more exciting in season two because apart from wearing Nigerian designers, Vlisco also came on board and they got me to wear loads of amazing African prints. So, there are a whole lot of exciting African stuffs that people will be enjoying while watching the show.

L-R: Yvonne Chioke of Vlisco with Seyi Banigbe during the private screening of Binging with GameChangers 2

it, virtually everyone in the hall walked up to me telling me I asked questions differently. And I was like; maybe we should put it on a CD and get more people to watch. I gave the recording to someone in the media to watch, I never knew him from Adam before then, after watching the

What excites me most about that platform is that a little girl in Bauchi or Zamfara can put on her TV without paying any cable fee and can actually watch all the big shoots we bring and can actually say-I can actually be like these people. When I wake up every day, I am happy just knowing that we are able to expose these stories to people across Nigeria

video he said, “I need to have a meeting with you. You are passionate about what you are talking about and Nigerians need to hear from you.� And I was like no way!

And he said, Seyi, you want to sell a CD to people to listen to your chat and then you don’t want to put it on cable and Terrestrial TV. And the moment you ask me a question and I can’t answer, when you leave me speechless, I know there is a problem. So from that point I decided to give it a trial. It has not been easy but I think that one thing that has actually helped me is listening to people tell me what they see in me. Sometimes we are not quick to recognise what we carry. And today, Binging with GameChangers, is not just online, we are actually speaking to the whole of Nigeria.

We started off by airing on African Magic Family and from there we moved on to NTA Network, which covers the whole of Nigeria. What excites me most about that platform is that a little girl in Bauchi or Zamfara can put on her TV without paying any cable fee and can actually watch all the big shoots we bring and can actually say, I can actually be like these people.

When I wake up every day, I am happy

We are looking forward to a juicier, more inspiring content. We are also excited about the fashion segment and from the beginning we have been particular about wearing made in Nigeria outfits.

One other thing that excites me about season two is our mentorship platforms.

If you need a mentor, you can go to our platform. It is an E-mentorship platform where we give people the opportunity to be mentored. Once you register on our website, we connect you with successful mentors across the nations that are willing to spend some time for a period of 6 to 8 weeks. Here they answer questions and basically guide the person on their success path. So, we are excited about that as well and it gives people across the country access to guidance, especially from people who seek to achieve what they have achieved.

Did you have people who mentored you?

I think one of the reasons I am passionate about what we are doing with the E-mentorship platform is because in my younger years, I would meet people that I wished to be like but, sometimes, you just don’t know how to approach the person or don’t have access. All you can do is just sit down and admire from afar. Some you would even approach, they would say yes but they are not even interested; they don’t have your time. So, I would say that I have tasted what it is like not to experience what mentorship can provide, hence my passion to make such a beautiful thing available to people.

However, it doesn’t mean that I haven’t learnt from people. Most of the mentorship I have gotten has been by reading through books about people. Of course, I have had one or two people mentor me directly.

I know that it is just different having someone give you attention.

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XTRA

Celebrating Leslie Oghomienor, the Man of the Future Mary Nnah Divinely, every day has a place and a specific purpose in human history. So it is in the life of Leslie Merede Oghomienor, a kind-hearted man with a heart of gold.

Known as a seasoned entrepreneur, renowned businessman of international repute, he has been frequently referred to in various corporate circles as ‘ Red’ coined from his native name- Merede meaning, “The Man of the Future�.

The finest full general, the beautiful one, was title given to him by the amiable General Yakubu Gowon, at the screening of Olobiri, in Lagos. Also referred to as, “The Helper and the King of Games� in some quarters, ‘the Man of the Future’ in all judgement, that sees tomorrow, with the intent to better the human society, is 50!

Born on March 17, 1969, in Lagos, into the family of Isaac and Ajua Margaret Oghomienor a k a Miss as she was fondly called - a widely admired, loved and highly respected teacher, Merede was brought up in a strict Roman Catholic family background whose values swings on the hinges of integrity, truth, discipline, the spirit of giving, good character, respect for elders, humility and trust in God. The family culture, tradition, or perhaps a well-defined way of life, which he strongly believes, is an undeniable determinant factor or influence in the little God has helped him to accomplished, this which he is truly and unequivocally grateful to Him. He drew a lot of inspiration from Miss, his mother, a devoted teacher, friend and a mother to all, who he said was a passionately tenacious in everything she was involved in - from her teaching profession, her responsibilities as a mother and wife and to her role in the church and the community. She was always willing to help where such was required.

Oghomienor is the chairman, Russell Smith Nigeria; eminent voting board member, FCBarcelona, Spain; president, Penya De Lagos Club, and chairman, Blaugrana Group International , promoters of the elite Barca Academy, first in Sub Saharan Africa, and founder Legends for Children project, for the championing of indigent children education, with special interest for the girl child.

A very quiet and generous giver, a good soul to emulate and indeed a wholly true friend rare to find in this part of the planet, has over the years humbly and silently distinguished himself and lived a quality but very simple life that convincingly inspires a sustainable brilliance, excellence, selflessness, innovativeness, ingenuity, confidence, professionalism, diligence, commitment , passion and tenacity.

Howbeit, he encourages showmanship and giving back, being that he was raised in a very loving and warm family setting that savoured in laughter, good values, friendliness, games, fun, frills and thrills that made growing up exciting , interesting and richly and robust.

Oghomienor , who did not fully dreamt of being who he is now, until the beginning of the new millennium, has shifted interest from his core business - oil and gas to sports which is the new oil, with the mission to give back and quest to pioneer new areas and ideas, explore the challenges that may come, and uniquely exposed the teeming Nigerian future to the abundant opportunities in the bid live

Oghomienor

one’s dream by sincerely helping others live their life purpose. And accruing benefit is a better and quality society.

Before he became gainfully employed in 1996, ambitiously, the very young boy, cut his teeth as an employer of labour, in the fast growing entertainment industry as a producer and promoter, when he singlehandedly produced the ‘Out of Bound’, sound track, a Richard Mofe - Damijo, star studded multiple award winning movie directed by the meticulous and legendary.

Tade Ogidan and took same on a successful live concert and exhibition tour up - North.

The first time in the industry such a feat and innovation was experienced. He left when his thorough research revealed that the sector then had no define direction or well lay out and articulate structure as compared to other key sectors of the economy like the oil and gas where he later pitched his tent years after and it has paid off.

Oghomienor’s colourful and creative many parts can be traced to his academic journey which began at Corona School, Gbagada, Lagos, where he recently returned 40 years after as old boy, to established the Barca Academy in partnership with the Corona Schools’ Trust Council.

It was in the same premises, that he was given the title, ‘ King of Games’ because of his all-round sporting artistry.

From there he went to the Federal Government College, Enugu, for his post primary education. Five years later, he gained admission into the University of Jos, Jos, where he graduated with a degree in Business Management. No wonder his spread of friendship is beyond ethnic or

religious inclination.

This motivates, in strong terms, his attitude towards the concept of state of origin in any form of documentation. “If I were the President of Nigeria, in my first ninety minutes in the office, in a radical manner will be to remove state of origin as a policy. I will adopt the concept of the local government area where the citizen resides, do business or work, pay taxes, devoid of any form of emotion, fear or favour. “Such is qualified to stand for election and be voted for if he or she meet other requirements. This approach will go a long way to eliminate all forms of apathy and suspicion, promote peace and unity. Surely, the nation and the people is bound to flourish,’ he noted.

His sojourn at Accenture Consulting as a first time employee, was awesome he revealed. A place he classified as an intellectual boot camp. This excursion took him through an entirely different form of life changing education, where he learned dedication, diligence, promptness, customer relations and service, hard work, strategic planning, thinking and execution, teamwork, entrepreneurial skills, knowledge, positive attitude, growing people and many more, which have been of immense benefit to his life and outlook, this he acknowledged with all deep sense of appreciation.

Hence, he advised the upcoming business owners to learn to start from the beginning - from where there are, to where they want to go, learning and working committedly with patience. And not from the top, a trend that is prevalent today, which he thinks is

not achievable. And if at all it does, will not endure.

From Accenture, he went to Frank’s International, an oil and gas firm, where he left eight years later, after a meritorious service in 2004, to start Russell Smith Nigeria, as the chief executive officer, till end of 2017, when he became the chairman.

Today, after all forms of challenges and rejection from within and without the industry, Russell Smith, has grown to be a strong and an ignorable brand in the sector.

Reputed as the most innovative, totally indigenous oil and gas concern with an indisputable global span, engaging over 365 sound professionals from across the world, exploring new frontiers, to say the least, the countenance on the face of this, principled, well disciplined and stylish man is overwhelmingly awed by the company’s accomplishments and successes looking back. This he said is more than enough motivation to help others grow and become international brand.

However, he admonished start-ups, not to faint, but preserve in their aspirations to achieve greatness and in a way add good value to society, saying that hard work, complete compliance to standard operational procedures, regulatory laws and rules, professional code of ethics, guides to good and responsible corporate citizenship and diligence among others is a sure path to live one’s dreams.

Oghomienor is focused and articulate.

His willingness to genuinely and silently help others grow stands him out among his peers. He is always looking for hidden ways and opportunities to grow others, helping in the improvement of their quality and standard of life by way of giving back. This for him and the board is a greater calling, and feel of fulfilment, uncommon and farther than what they were experiencing in the petroleum sector.

This phenomenon must have informed the incorporation of Blaugrana Group International, the promoters of the elite Barca Academy, with campus in Surulere, Lekki and Gbagada all in Lagos, with 96 students on full scholarship, a project which at the long run is planning to cater for over 500 beneficiaries.

In the bid to consolidate this vision his organisation berthed the Legends for Children project, launched in Abuja last year.

Since his discovery that every child wants to learn, he has asked God to give him the strength and the resources to help them in any legal and humane way possible. He propounded that a holistic child development is the key to national integration and all transform.

As a man of the future, Nigeria, which he calls, “My Father Land�, he believes will be develop into a greater, strong, peaceful and viable nation and Blaugrana Group International would be a global African brand, synonymous with youth development, empowerment and opportunities; world class and first of its kind in Africa facilities, quality child education, support for good causes, excellent leadership, high moral values and pioneers of new areas.

The highly spiritual Oghomienor has been married to his wife, Yetunde Oghomienor since February 10, 2007. The bonding is strong - similar ideas, peacefully getting ahead in life with the “I can do� spirit. Believing nothing is impossible. The marriage is blessed with lovely children.

RBE Unveils First Artiste, Jay Tunes Ayodeji Ake Royal Brother Empire, a new record label has unveiled its first artiste, Osayomore Joseph Ighonogie, who performs under the stage name Jay Tunes, as the label promised good musics.

RBE Manager, Lucky Melvin told reporters at a press conference held recently in Lagos, that the label has discovered some loopholes in the music industry and has decided to fill them up with heart-warming and soul arresting music of all seasons. “Royal Brother Empire is a new record label that is poised on bringing good music into Nigeria. We have looked

at the industry and we have seen so many loopholes. Won’t mention any, but we are about filling them,� he said.

Speaking on the first artiste, Melvin noted Jay Tunes was signed based on his diverse knowledge and distinguished style of music as a producer, song writer and a singer. “For now, we have only Jay Tunes, who is the son of Ambassador Osayomore Joseph, a legend in indigenous music. We saw him in Jay Tunes and he is so talented that he can do both indigenous and circular music. “He is also a good instrumentalist that can do a lot with the guitar. Those are his uniqueness. Expect a lot from Royal Brother Empire, but for now we are

focusing first on Jay Tunes,� he said.

When asked about the deal with RBE, Jay Tunes noted that he is privileged to be the first artiste of the label, while describing it as a golden opportunity. “Being an artiste in RBE is awesome.

I have been exposed to all kind of opportunities, and we are working towards a goal. It’s team work and we are making it happen. To me its a rare opportunity because there are people out there hoping for this� Jay Tunes said. He said what distinguishes him from other Nigerian artiste is his “ unique sounds and being a producer as well. I’m looking forward to feature Davido, Runtown, and a whole lot of artists�.

Jay Tunes

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E-TRENDS

MUSIC SHOWBIZ

‌Your weekly entertainment delight

NOLLYWOOD

Gidi Fest Rolls Out Plans for Sixth Edition

Dr.Sid, Denrele at past edition of Gidi Fest

Stories by Vanessa Obioha

T

he music, culture and arts festival is taking things a notch higher for its sixth edition. At a press briefing to announce the plans for this year’s event, the organisers Eclipse Live rolled out some few changes. First, the event now has a new venue; Landmark Beachfront, Landmark Towers, Victoria Island, Lagos.

Eko Atlantic City have been home to the festival in past editions until last year when it moved base to Hard Rock Cafe beachfront.

However, Chin Okeke, one of the founders of the festival pointed out that the change in venue was necessary to accommodate it’s teeming audience.

The festival recorded over 812 visitors from outside Lagos at last year’s edition.

This year, Okeke is optimistic that the

number of visitors will be 1,000, with an overall expectation of 10,000 attendees.

Having been recognised as a promoter of tourism in the state by the Lagos State government which added the event to its cultural calendar, the organisers expressed confidence that through its ‘mygidi’ project — which captured six tourists exploring the music, arts, food and culture of the state — that the festival will achieve its target. “The Gidi Tribe reaches beyond the shores of Nigeria, from Africans to diaspora in Europe, Caribbean and American with African heritage. We want to promote Lagos as a destination and expose the stories that captivate music fans and explorers from everywhere. #mygidi is a journey into the Lagos experience.�

Another addition to this year’s event is the promotion of a cashless festival. Though it is not the first time the organisers are embarking on such, however, their new partner Barter has proven its capability to

achieve this goal. Okeke explained that the cashless initiative will reduce cash theft as attendees can make purchases through the mobile app with or without internet connection. Known as a progression of urban youth culture through music, arts, food and games, this year’s edition while retaining its elements will also see the infusion of other activities to create a lasting experience. One of such is the collaboration between the organisers and Echo Music and Arts Foundation that will see the birth of two landmark events in April: Lagos Music Week (LMW) and The ECHO Music Conference (EMC). The former is a sevenday social calendar that brings together a wide variety of musical and cultural activities in the week leading up to Easter.

The variety of events from live music concerts, conferences, nightlife and exhibitions, will promote Lagos as the centre of the African music movement. EMC on the other hand will be the ultimate event for budding music professionals aged 21-35

and the first of its kind. This one-day event offers talks and masterclasses from industry professionals and the biggest artists.

Still on music, the headliners for this edition include Niniola, Patoranking, Wande Coal, Moonchild Sanelly, DJ Neptune and Teni the Entertainer. For its Next Gen performers, artistes like Dami Oniru, Tems will be on stage. “We are excited by the sheer diversity of the acts we’re announcing this year, it’s going to be a hell of a show. 2019 will see a return to our roots of promoting the future of African music, whilst many returning acts who have grown in leaps and bounds since the last time they graced the Gidi Fest stage.� The Streets to Gidi initiative will also be featured as soccer competition and arts from young talents will be showcased at the festival. There will also be a runway show as well as a good court displaying the best of Nigerian cuisine.

Held every Easter holiday, this year Gidi Culture Festival is slated for April 20.

How Celebrities Partied Hard at MTV Base’s 14th Anniversary

It was a night of exhilarating fun and non-stop excitement as MTV Base recently marked its 14th anniversary in the continent. Known for showcasing the best of African music to the world, the music channel threw all in the ring to give fans and lovers of music a remarkable experience. With over 1500 party goers in attendance at the Mainland Block Party takeover compered by MTV Base VJ, Nenny B, alongside actor, Bolly Lomo, the partnered event featured everything from dance competitions to a relaxing poolside for guests to unwind at. The party also recorded impressive performances from artistes like Zlatan, Chinko Ekun, Skiibii and Ycee while fans had the time to mingle with their favourite celebrities like Falz, Niniola, DJ Spinall, DJ Neptune, Reekado Banks, among others. “At MTV Base, we like to go big or go home. We knew that including our faithful audience in this year’s anniversary celebration was something we had to do, so it was imperative to ensure that they came to a party that would give them the complete MTV Base experience that they have come to know and love,� said Solafunmi Oyeneye, Senior Channel Manager of MTV Base. Launched on February 22, 2005, MTV base combines African and international music genres relevant to young African viewers including R’n’B, dancehall, hip-hop, kwaito, hip life, reggae, zouk, m’balax and Afrobeat, celebrating the cultural vibrancy and creativity of African music and artists.

Skiibii performing at MTV Base party

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E-TRENDS

NFVCB Leads Campaign Against Hate Speech

L-R: Adewale Elesho, Tunji Bamishigbin, Foluke Daramola, Adedayo Thomas, Hilda Dokubo, Saint Obi, Igwe Gab Okoye, aka Gabosky

Recently, the National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB) engaged youths in Lagos, in a one-day seminar tagged ‘Safer Internet Programme And Capacity Building Against Hate Speech’, as its contribution towards the federal government fight against hate speech.

Resource persons from Nollywood, including actor and activist, Hilda Dokubo; filmmaker Tunji Bamishigbin, the popular marketer, Igwe Gab Okoye, aka Gabosky and veteran actor Keppy Ekpenyong Bassey, graced the event which took place on Thursday, March 7, 2019, at the Suru Express Hotel, Ikeja.

Youths from all the local government areas of Lagos State who attended the event were educated on how to resist

being used by bigots to fan the embers of hatred in a multi-religious and multi-ethnic nation like Nigeria.

According to the Executive Director of NFVCB, Adedayo Thomas, “as content regulators in the media sector, the attention of the youths needs to be channeled towards issues that will promote peace and not division, intolerance and marginalization of the vulnerable. The National Film and Video Censors Board’s Safer Internet programme is aimed at promoting a better and positive use of Digital, Information and Communication Technology. “The board had done a lot to ensure that the internet and the electronic media

SeyiShaySettoPerformatBoisdale Singer and actress Seyi Shay have been announced as part of the lineup for the Boisdale of Canary Wharf, London.

Boisdale of Canary Wharf is one of London’s great traditional British restaurants dedicated to the finer things in life such as delicious food, fine wine, and whisky, set to the soundtrack of the best live blues, soul and jazz music from around the world. Great artistes like Melanie C, Brian McFadden, Rebecca Ferguson, and Horace Andy are some of the performers to have once held residencies at the 200-capacity venue.

Shay will know join these artistes to have her own twoday residencies on May 29 and 30.

The ‘Right Now’ singer will be playing intimate shows at the illustrious venue, delivering live performances of dancehallinfused afrobeat hits. Ticket offerings allow attendees to either enjoy dinner and the show, or simply get lost in the artiste’s enchanting performances.

Seyi Shay

are not used for negative purposes. As a matter of fact, the internet and the electronic media become unsafe when they are used to propagate fake news and hate speeches.�

Also speaking at the event, Dokubo engaged the youths with practical example of how information are usually thwarted by bigots for selfish reasons, causing misinterpretations and disaffection among people. “Media has gone beyond film and television, and today, nearly everyone is a reporter and content producer as the social media provides us the free platform of broadcast through WhatsApp, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube,� she said.

She described hate speeches as activities, and weapons used to instigate, and nearly always results in violence and destruction of all that the people represent. “Hate speeches are a violation of our sensibilities; they attack our people, race, belief, sex, culture and more. These hate people argue passionately about issues, believes, ideas, and policies. It’s not always pretty - but the right to say what we believe, and to publish those beliefs has been and are still an essential part of our freedom as a people and our democracy as a nation and must be said without hate even as we motivate others into action.�

She advised that rather than spread a hate speech, receivers should delete such messages.

Beverly Naya’s Documentary to Open iREP ‘Skin’, a documentary by Nollywood actress Beverly Naya and directed by Etim Effiong will be opening the ninth edition of iREP International Documentary Film Festival scheduled for Wednesday, March 20-24. The film which explores the negative impact of skin bleaching featured Eku Edewor, Diana Yekini, Phyno and Bobrisky who shared their views on colourism. “Looking back at our journey so far, it is good to know that young talents like Naya and Effiong made us establish this platform where they can showcase their works.

It is a good thing to see these young Nollywood stars delve into the notso-glamorous genre of documentary,� said filmmaker and co-founder of the festival.

In its usual tradition, the documentary film festival will open with a cocktail party at Freedom Park, Broad Street, Lagos.

Themed ‘Storylines’, this year ’s festival will feature 30 documentary films that reflects the Africa-in-SelfConversation theme over the period of four days, March 21-24. Also, there will be presentations and panel discussions from highly renowned personalities like Prof. Jonathan Haynes, Prof. Niyi Coker, Theo Lawson among others.

Known for its reputation to train young filmmakers in the art of documentary filmmaking, this year will see 70 young and upcoming filmmakers trained in the ‘Basics of Storytelling’ and the ‘Vision of Directing’.

The training is in partnership with the

Beverly Naya

Nigerian Film Corporation (NFC).

This year will also see iREP in partnership with the Independent Television Producers Association of Nigeria (ITPAN) host a pitch forum for young and old documentary filmmakers to present their non-fictional film project ideas with special focus on social/ cultural developments in and around Africa before a selection panel. The proposed pitching forum seeks to grow and encourage a spirited generation of factual filmmakers.

Films screenings will take place simultaneously throughout the festival at Freedom Park and Nigerian Film Corporation, Ikoyi, Lagos.

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NEWS

InternationalWomen’sDay:Google CelebratesFemaleIcons

Caption LR: CEO, Accelerate TV, Colette Otusheso; Publisher Bellanaija, Uche Pedro; Google’s Country Manager, Nigeria, Juliet Ehimuan; and Founder, Flying Doctors, Dr. Ola Orekunrin at the Talk at Google show recently

Ayodeji Ake As part of it scheduled programs to celebrate the 2019 International Women’s Day, Google’s talk program, ‘Talk at Google’ , featured female icons to discuss on the need for self development for women.

The program organised in Lagos recently, brought together three young and inspirational Nigerian women; Publisher Bellanaija, Uche Pedro; Founder, Flying Doctors, Dr. Ola Orekunrin; and CEO, Accelerate TV, Colette Otusheso; who deliberated on the topic ‘Women authacity and leadership’.

Speaking from the business point of view on making Nigeria a better profitable business environment, Orekunrin stressed on the need for economy upliftment to create more opportunities to enhance women devel-

opment. “We are in a place where a lot of work is to be done in terms of education.

We are in a space where women don’t inherit. I think there are a lot to put in place to ensure women progresses. Increasing our economy and getting more opportunity is key,� she said.

On way forward for women, she urged women to embrace innovative businesses and get involved in governance and leadership. “I always want to be impactful in my field.

We have a scholarship program that helps a lot of women. I don’t wake up to see people to be like me, but I have always had the penchant to impact lives. My word of advise to women is that they should know their business and the way around it,� she added.

Pedro in her words noted there is a large number of

women who want go into business but struggle their way around getting capital.

She said women should utilise technology which has been the latest trend for businesses to substitute huge capital. “I believe when women are given opportunity they excel. There have been drastic changes from the last 10 years in a revolutionalised system where women get involved. “Technology for example has democratised us. It obvious that to start a business can be very expensive, so technology is replacing.

I look forward to see more female founders. Technology is a game changer. And I will tell women to take advantage of technology,� she said.

While advising women to embrace technology, she also cautioned women to be wary of tricky information on social media platforms. “The technology is bombarded with

a lot of information but I encourage the women to pause, listen and build,� she said.

Otusheso emphasised on the need to educate women for development. She argued that education for women is another form of empowerment. “I will succumb to education because it is very important to development.

I believe in education that we need to start from the bottom “I want to be the type of woman that gives opportunity to other women.

We have done well in terms of storytelling.

Telling positive stories about women. And I can say that we have so many women storytellers that are making waves today,� she said.

She urged women to get rid of their fears and learn to try new things, adding that they also shouldn’t give up when failure comes.

Maritels Rewards Loyal Customers Mary Nnah Maritels Industries Limited, makers of Funq Yue seasoning, recently rewarded loyal customers to mark the 10th anniversary of its product launch in Nigeria.

In a ceremony held in Oke Arin market in Lagos Island and trade fair market were standby prizes of tricycle (keke Marwa) deep freezers, electric fan, mini buses and the grand prize of a Toyota corolla car, customers smiled home.

Isaac Essien, General Manager, Maritels Industries Limited, said the event was aimed at rewarding their loyal customers, as the company marked its 10th anniversary. “Last year we ran a promo in commemoration of the anniversary. We slated today for the presentation. Today, we are here to keep our promises,� Essien said. He said that a good number of customers participated in the promo, which qualified them for the prizes of corolla car, mini buses and tricycles.

He noted that same ceremony and gift items took place in the South-east and South-south

One of the lucky winners at the Trade Fair Complex market in Lagos, Mrs Okpala Francisca who won a Toyota Corolla car

zones few days before shifting to Lagos to appreciate their loyal customers in the South-east and South-south zones.Okpala Francisca, CEO, Maxfranc International, Trade Fair Complex and winner of the grand prize said her joy knew no bounds.

“I am highly excited. It was not easy but for the grace of God, I sensed that I would make it. On December 23, we had a ghastly motor accident on Lagos or Ibadan expressway, it was really serious but to God be the glory, we all survived. Today, God has

rewarded me with a beautiful car�. Enendu Maduka Eugene, another winner and CEO of Nobleman Ventures Oke Arin market was highly elated as he got a reward of a mini bus at the ceremony held a day before the trade fair presentation.

Nigeria’s RatiďŹ cation of Illicit Trade Protocol is Commendable – ERA/FoEN Tells FG The Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria (ERA/FoEN) has commended the federal government for ratifying the protocol to eliminate illicit trade in tobacco products.

With Nigeria’s depositing of the instrument of ratification at the World Health Organisation (WHO), it becomes the 51st country to ratify the treaty which was initiated in 2012.

The protocol, under the auspices of the World Health Organisation Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO-FCTC) aims to eliminate all forms of illicit trade in tobacco products and provides tools for preventing illicit trade by securing the supply chain, including by establishing an international tracking and tracing system. It will also counter illicit trade through dissuasive law enforcement measures and a suite of measures to enable international cooperation.

The protocol proper contains provisions that requires, inter alia: the licensing of all entities involved in tobacco supply chains; Tobacco companies to apply due diligence measures to its customers; secure track and trace of tobacco products and production controls in factories; record-keeping obligations in respect of tobacco manufacturing equipment; and, restrictions on the sale or purchase of tobacco manufacturing equipment.

In a statement issued in Lagos by ERA/FoEN’s Philip Jakpor, the body said that though the deposit of the ratification instrument at the World Health Organisation (WHO) was coming more than 10 months after the Federal Executive Council (FEC) approved it going forward, it was still commendable as a checkmate to smuggling of cigarettes that the tobacco industry permits to remain in business.

ERA/FoEN Deputy Executive Director, Akinbode Oluwafemi said: “The Nigerian government deserves kudos for this feat that will ensure all loopholes that the tobacco industry has exploited to over-supply cigarettes to targeted markets to engender illicit profits are blocked. With the ratified protocol we can now track every single stick of cigarette to the manufacturer.�

The ERA/FoEN boss said that beyond the ratification, the eighth National Assembly should act fast to approve Regulations for the full enforcement of the National Tobacco Control (NTC) Act, 2015 as a legacy achievement. “We remind the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki of his words two years ago, that government at all levels must now act fast in rejecting the ploy to make Nigeria a dumping ground for tobacco products that pre-disposes the nation’s citizens, especially the young people, to diseases, disability and ultimately death�, he said.

Group Launches Loose Conversation Initiative Ugo Aliogo Loose Media (LM) has announced a five-month grant initiative to support the launch of Loose Conversations (LC).

LC is sparking conversations that challenge one’s mindset.

Speaking at a media briefing in Lagos yesterday, the Chief Executive Officer, Loose Media, Valentine Ohu, noted that the platform utilises many collaborative, storytelling-based strategies to give a voice to conversations society has been afraid to have.

He also noted that the platform challenges the status quo and allows for new standards of thinking, adding that ‘everyone has a story literary commission is a meaningful reflection of our unique relationships and experiences through the art of storytelling�.

Ohu added that the grant provides vital funding to support aspiring writers, further essential conversations, and invest in online communities through writing.

According to him, “Starting from March 2019, LM will grant one lucky writer a $1,000 for five extraordinary stories. We will award $1,000 to one writer every month until July 2019.

This commission is dedicated to empowering writers from all backgrounds to express themselves in unorthodox ways. “This literary commission initiative is in partnership with the African Artists’ Foundation (AAF). The collaboration with AAF will expand the reach of our effort and help us bring these winning stories to life via offline exhibitions at Talk Your Own, their monthly open mic initiative. “The first submission window for this grant will be from March 11- 18. To advance this grant, Loose Media will employ various offline and online promotional tools to support this work and enhance outreach. “Applicants applying for the month of March are advised to email five (400-600 word) stories discussing each of the following unorthodox topics: Abortion, Money, Infidelity, Feminism, and Body Image and submit to @loosemedia. com by March 18 , at 11:59 pm and must be 18+. “Each story must be sent in a PDF format and must be on separate PDF files. Each one must discuss these topics in an unorthodox way. It must be unique. “Submission must include the following necessary information: author’s full name, age, phone number, location (city, state, and country), and Instagram handle. All stories and necessary information must be sent in one email submission; applicants that submit stories in a different email thread or repeated email threads will be automatically disqualified. “All decisions made by the judge regarding the winners are final. By clicking submit you agree to the terms and conditions. Winners are subject to only one of the five grants.

Grant rules are subject to change.�

33

F R I DAY Ëž ÍŻÍłËœ Ͱ͎ͯ͡

ART WEEKEND

‌For pure art enthusiasts

Pius Adesanmi: The Unforgettable Following the demise of the 47-year old Nigerian-Canadian scholar, Prof. Pius Adebola Adesanmi, which hit the art community in Nigeria and beyond like a thunderstorm last Sunday, YINKA OLATUNBOSUN relived the prophetic and humorous instances in the writings of the late Professor using vignettes as relics of a life well-livedr His last Facebook post which became viral after the news of his death spread like wildfire was receivedby friends and associates as a premonition. “If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me,� he wrote before boarding what would be his last flight from Canada to Africa. Prof. Pius Adesanmi was one of the 157 aboard the Boeing 737 Max 8 aircraft operated by the Ethiopian Airlines which crashed at approximately six minutes after takeoff.

It can be argued that there is no rightthinking person who will desire to die by a plane crash, certainly not a loving father nor a caring husband. The post could have been an expression of hope and faith in the protective powers of a supernatural being, given its biblical source. Still, it is no less than eerie, given the circumstances.

Just last year, Adesanmi survived a ghastly motor accident enroute Oyo, which almost cost his life. In his piece dedicated to the Germany-based Nigerian novelist, El-Nathan John, he recounted the grim moment of his traumatic experience. “One thing that my car crash in July allowed me to assess and put in perspective is how much of my life I spend in airports and planes. From South Africa to Europe and the US, I cancelled nine lecture trips in a three-month span because I was in no physical condition to travel. I was also mentally exhausted, in physiotherapy, in the other trauma therapy Nigerians don’t like to talk about,� he wrote.

Adesanmi was not one to wallow in self-pity. While lamenting over the emergency response services in Nigeria drawn upon his near-death experience, he would also express gratitude for another chance to live. The socially committed writer relished the opportunity of intellectual fellowship with like minds. One of such being his meeting with the Nobel Laureate, Prof. Wole

Adesanmi

Soyinka for a lecture in Dakar, Senegal.

He wrote: “After Kongi’s keynote lecture today, well, Africa’s great sage and his students shall not live by ideas, discourse and intellectual alone for into everything on earth is appointed a time, a time to eat and a time to unwind away from the whirl and buzz of the confer-

London to Lagos: Bonhams Auction HouseWoos Collectors

ence, a time for lunch and time to be with beautiful people.�

The global citizen is the author of Naija No DeyCarry Last , a collection of satirical essays. A first class graduate from the University of Ilorin, with Master’s degree in French from the University of Ibadan in 1998 and a P.hd

in French Studies from the University of British Columbia in Canada, this scholar had been very vocal on socio-cultural and political space. He was a Professor of Literature and African studies at Carleton University, Ottawa, Canada and the director of the University’s Institute of African Studies.

Sometimes, he was homesick. In spite of his vehement criticisms against the state of affairs in his home country, the patriotic poet was moved to write this on February 2 on his Facebook profile: “I am badly craving guguru oloyin( honey-coated popcorn ) from Garage Offa in Ilorin. Whether caramel or butter, obodo oyinbo (western) popcorn is inferior to ours.�

A true African, his impact on the literary scene is reflected through his decorated life. He won the inaugural Penguin prize for African Writing in the non-fiction category in 2010. He also received the Prestigious Canada Bureau of International Education Leadership Award in 2017.

A most-sought after international speaker, Prof.Adesanmi was at the conference organised by the Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa in Dakar, Senegal where he couldn’t help but do a comparison of the infrastructural development in the host and his home country.

He wrote on his Facebook wall in December 2018: “Somewhere near you in Nigeria tomorrow, someone will cut a ribbon to launch a borehole or a shalanga(pit latrine)�. In fact, his remarks turned out to be a prophecy that was fulfilled when a celebrity turned politician launched a public toilet in Surulere, Lagosjust before the elections last month.

It is sad that the insightful author had died in a plane crash with no survivor.

As for the art community and his devout readers, the best souvenir and undying legacies are found in his writings published in books, scholarly journals

Nigeria’s Classical Pianist, Omordia Set for Home-coming Performances Yinka Olatunbosun

Yinka Olatunbosun A leading auction house in London, Bonhams has announced another bridge building auction plannedfor March 20 which enables potential art collectors in Lagos to bid for masterpieces of art as their UK counterparts at the Modern and Contemporary African Art Auction.

With over 100 pieces on sale, the auction house is parading the best of African art and artists such Ben Enwonwu, Erhabor Emokpae, Jimoh Alomo, UzoEgonu, Ladi I walk, Kolade Oshinowo, AbiodunOlaku, Gbenga Offo, Kainebi Osahenye and Boris Nzebo (Cameroon). Other artists from South Africa whose works are part of the lots include Gerald Sekoto, Francois Krige, Vladimir GriegorovichTretchikoff, Harry Trevor, Carl Adolph Buchner, Christo Coetzee, Cecil Edwin Grabs Skotnes, Sydney Alex Kumalo, Dylan Lewis, Billy Monk, Brett Murray, Lionel Smut and Dumile Feni-Mhlaba.

A piece by Norman Clive Catherine

Sudanese artists are part of this auction. Masters such as Ahmad Shibram, Hussein Shariffe, Ibrahim El-Salahi and Muhammed Ahmed Abdalla Abbaro will have

their works on bid as well.

The auction will take place in Lagos at sundown at the Wheatbaker Hotel, Ikoyi simultaneously with the UK bidders

Nigeria’s Classical pianist and 2009 Delius Prize Winner in international piano competitions, Rebecca Omordia makes a grand return to Nigeria this month. The music virtuoso is expected to perform in Lagos and Abuja.

A masterclass for students of the MUSON School of Music will hold on March 16 in Lagos while the next day, music buffs will be serenaded by the soulful sounds of Omordia at the Agip Recital Hall, MUSON Centre, Onikan, Lagos.

She will strike great notes in Abuja where she is expected to perform at a recital organised by the Romanian Embassy to celebrate Romanian’s presidency at the European Union. “It is very special to me performing in my fatherland,� the NigerianRomanian pianist said. “Last year, the Nigerian

Omordian

audience made me feel like I truly belong there. I am honoured to perform at MUSON, the very centre of classical music in West Africa and happy to give a Masterclass to the talented piano students of MUSON School of Music. I am very much looking forward to performing for them again� she added.

Between March 2018 when she first visited and now,she has done incredible works as an active promoter of the Nigerian and African classical music genre. Her CD “EKELE� released last

year on Heritage Records, featuring works by three Nigerian composers (Ayo Bankole, Christian Onyeji and Fred Onovwerosuoke) was a huge success in the UK and Europe. It was also featured by a newspaper in Italy and was described as an “appealing album�

(BBC Music Magazine), “fascinating programme�

(Gramophone Magazine) and “beautifully delivered recital� (The Sunday Times).

In February 2019, she launched as an Artistic Director, the first ever African Concert Series at the October Gallery in London, in partnership with the Institute of Music & Art AM15.

AMI5 appointed Rebeca Omordia to curate a music programme that reflects the depth and diversity of African Art Music, the richly diverse genre of music that originated in Ghana and Nigeria which forms a bridge between Western classical music and traditional African music.

34

F R I DAY Ëž MARCH 15, 2019

FERTILITY

with DR. KEMI AILOJE Info@lifelinkfertility.com; Website: lifelinkfertility.com 08033083580

STEP BY STEP THROUGH THE PROCESS OF IN VITRO FERTILIZATION (Part 2) Unfortunately not all eggs will fertilize and not all fertilized eggs are capable of GVSUIFS HSPXUI BOE EFWFMPQNFOU TPNFtimes embryos may progress through these phases of development but are not good quality enough to implant when transferred back to the womb. The quality of sperm and eggs determines the quality of embryos and the chances of implantation and live birth.

Your physician or clinical coordinator is expected to keep you updated on the QSPHSFTT PG ZPVS FHHT TQFSN BOE FNCSZP development.

L

ast week we discussed the step by step approach to IVF and we will be continuing the process this week‌

Step 5: The Sperm Couples planning to use fresh semen samples arescheduled to come in on the morning of the procedure for semen collection while those who desire to use frozen sperm sample will already have it in the lab in which case the embryologist prepares it ahead for the procedure. It is very common for most men to be anxious and find it difficult producing sperm on the day of egg retrieval. Men who experience difficulty producing sperm are advised to freeze their sperm prior to the procedure date. The semen sample would be prepared and the best quality sperm selected and introduced to the eggs.

Step 6: Fertilization The embryologist using specialized microscope is able to sort and separate the eggs from the follicular fluids. The eggs and sperm are fertilized in a dish. This is called conventional IVF. In some cases where the sperm count is extremely low the embryologist will pick up the sperm and inject into the eggs. This is what is referred to as ICSI which means intra Cytoplasmic Sperm Injection. This meeting of the sperm and egg is to encourage fertilization to take place just like it does in a natural cycle in the woman’s fallopian tube. The sperm and egg cultured inside the incubator is expected to have fertilized in about 18 to 24hours.

Step 7: Embryo Development Fertilized eggs are referred to as embryos.

Under favorable environment they undergo further growth and development. r UP DFMMT JT PCTFSWFE XJUIJO IPVST r DFMMT JT PCTFSWFE XJUIJO IPVST r #MBTUPDZTUT EFWFMPQ GSPN EBZ BOE have been documented to have better pregnancy rate than embryos of day 2-3.

Step 8: Embryo Transfer This is the process of putting back the embryos back into the womb. Your physician will transfer 2-3 of the best quality embryos depending on your age and previous history.

Luteal Phase support medications are given to improve and maintain endometrial lining build.

Your fertility specialist nurse usually gives information regarding how to prepare for the procedure.

The embryo transfer process takes about NJOVUFT *U JT B TJNQMF QSPDFTT UIBU EPFT not require any anesthetic medication.

The embryologist loads the embryos into B UJOZ ĂĄFYJCMF UVCF DBMMFE DBUIFUFS XIJMF the fertility specialist places the catheter through your cervix into the uterus (womb).

Some patient may insist on having a bed rest following embryo transfer; however there has not been sound evidence to prove that pregnancy rate is higher in women who had bed rest after embryo transfer as compared to women who resumed normal BDUJWJUZ #FTU SFDPNNFOEBUJPO JT UP BWPJE strenuous activities.

Extra embryos should be frozen for future

treatment if they are of good quality.

Step 9: Pregnancy Test Approximately 10-14 days after embryo transfer you will be required to have a pregnancy test done. Women who have a positive pregnancy will be required to do a scan in one week to note the location and number of embryos implanted and in two weeks to assess for the heartbeat of the developing fetus. Serial ultrasound scans will follow up to Antenatal period.

The Recipient cycle *O XPNFO XIP SFRVJSF 3FDJQJFOU $ZDMF an egg donor is properly screened and matched appropriately to suit physical and genetic features of the proposed patient.

The donor is made to undergo the above MJTUFE TUFQT XIJMF UIF 3FDJQJFOU XJMM undergo Controlled Endometrial Development. Hormonal medications aregiven to increase blood supply to the uterus (womb) so as to build and maintain the endometrial bed. This is done to improve the chances of implantation.

Serial ultrasound scans are conducted to measure the thickness of the lining of the womb. Embryos produced from donor eggs and husband’s sperm or donor sperm as the QBUJFOU DPOTFOUT XJMM CF USBOTGFSSFE UP UIF already prepared womb of the mother to be in a Recipient cycle.

The above listed steps takes about four to six weeks interval to complete a cycle of IVF process and this may just be what it takes for the journey between you and your long desired pregnancy and for you begin to experience the joy of parenthood. to be continued

XTRA

Reecting on the Legacy of Chief Obafemi Awolowo i/PX UIFSF NBZ CF PCTFSWFST PVU UIFSF who remember Awo as no more than a GPSNFS -FBEFS PG UIF :PSVCBT 'PS TPNF BSDI XBT the title speaks to Yoruba irredentism at the 110th birthday JUT NPTU QPUFOU #VU UIFSF BSF UIPTF XJUI B of Chief Obafemi more nuanced sense of political history in "XPMPXP BOE JT BOE PVUTJEF /JHFSJB GPS XIPN "XP XBT being celebrated a public policy practitioner and politician posthumously by extraordinaire. many followers i'PS ZFU PUIFST "XP XBT OPU KVTU B GPSFPG IJT JEFPMPHZ NPTU QVCMJD JOUFMMFDUVBM BOE QVCMJD WJTJPOBSZ FTQFDJBMMZ BNPOHTU IJT LJOTNFO UIF :PSVCBT he is Nigeria’s most prolific statesman as yet.

5PEBZ * KPJO PUIFST UP SFåFDU PO UIF MFHBDZ PG 'SPN UIJT QPJOU PG WJFX EFBUI IBT JO FGGFDU a man of faith whose politics was grounded shot up the value of the man’s political stock.

JO TUSPOH JEFPMPHJDBM QPTJUJPOT XIJDI DBO CF *U JT DMFBS "XP JT BOE DBO CF QFSDFJWFE JO TVNNBSJTFE BT i-JGF .PSF "CVOEBOU BOE various ways. What is not in doubt is that he Freedom for Allâ€?. To project Awolowo as stood up for what was best for the greatest haven been perfect in his lifetime is to dehumajority of the people. Some of the character NBOJTF IJN CVU IF XBT DFSUBJOMZ B HPPE NBO BUUSJCVUFT UIBU EFĂ OF VT BT &LJUJ BOE BSF that lived ahead of his times.â€? My late father embedded in the logo that is being launched XBT POF PG IJT GPMMPXFST BOE IF TVQQPSUFE UPEBZ DBO CF USBDFE UP TPNF PG "XP T QPMJDZ him to be elected to represent Ekiti North in Awolowo campaigns in and out of public office. the Second Republic National Assembly. I “Ekiti’s claim to be the ‘Fountain of personally hold very fond memories of my Knowledge’ is in part because as Premier of Fayemi.

This is a fact that Kayode Fayemi father talking about the man Awo and his UIF 8FTUFSO 3FHJPO JO UIF T "XP PGGFSFE is very conscious about. His policies and ideals.

GSFF FEVDBUJPO UP BMM BOE TVOESZ 0G DPVSTF programmes are carefully modelled after 5PEBZ NBOZ DMBJN UP CF "XPJTUT GPS our parents and grandparents took the opUIPTF "XP DIBNQJPOFE ZFBST BHP XJUI QPMJUJDBM MFWFSBHF FWFO UIPVHI UIFJS QPMJUJDT portunity. In doing so they helped us mould adaptations to the realities of the times.

Even MJGFTUZMFT BOE WBMVFT BSF BU WBSJBODF XJUI some of the building blocks of the heritage JO EFBUI 'BZFNJ UBLFT "XPMPXP TFSJPVTMZ what Awolowo represented. In this day and He has maintained a very good relationship that we celebrate today.�

BHF XF IBWF WFSZ GFX BNPOHTU VT PG UIF Not one to wear the toga of Awoist on his XJUI UIF "XPMPXP GBNJMZ BOE GPS BMM UIF CSFFE PG B NBO XIP TBJE i8IJMF NBOZ NFO TMFFWF OPS TIPVU JU GSPN UIF SPPGUPQT UIF ZFBST IF IBT CFFO JO PGĂ DF IF IBT DPOTJTin power and public office are busy carousing discerning however can see that Kayode in the midst of women of easy virtue and men tently held state functions to commemorate Fayemi is one of the few authentic Awoists the legacy of the late sage.

PG MPX NPSBMT * BT B GFX PUIFST MJLF NF BN – a veritable philosopher king – that we are 0O POF PG TVDI PDDBTJPOT JO 'BZFNJ busy at my desk thinking about the problems blessed to have in our generation today.

FOTVSFE "XPMPXP T QPTUIVNPVT CJSUIEBZ of Nigeria and proffering solutions to them. *O UIF EBZT UP DPNF QPTUFSJUZ XPVME .BSDI DPJODJEFE XJUI UIF VOWFJMJOH 0OMZ UIF EFFQ DBO DBMM UP UIF EFFQ *OEFFE of a new logo for Ekiti state. Speaking on the be kind to Fayemi for continuing in the few men can truly be said to be descended footsteps of Obafemi Awolowo – one of the from the political lineage of the man Obafemi significance of both events happening on the greatest sons of Oduduwa that ever lived TBNF EBZ 'BZFNJ TBJE Awolowo - few men like Kayode Fayemi. – for upholding his legacy and bringing the “Today’s event is also significant for 'PS UIF QFSDFQUJWF ,BZPEF 'BZFNJ JT POF values that he represented to remembrance.

JUT DPOUFYU PG XIJDI UIFSF BSF BU MFBTU UXP of the rare men in contemporary Nigerian There must be a blessing for individuals aspects.

First the event is taking place on politics that best mirror the legacy of the that honour those that went before us and UIF UI EBZ JO UIF NPOUI PG .BSDI "T UIF NBO "XP )JT QPMJUJDT IJT SFDPSET JO BOE attained the light – such individuals who in birthday of the late sage Obafemi Awolowo PVU PG PGà DF IJT BTQJSBUJPOT GPS UIF :PSVCBT the same spirit do not joke with the welfare

.BSDI IBT HSFBU SFTPOBODF JO /JHFSJB BOE UIF CMBDL SBDF BT B XIPMF TIPX of the old and aged amongst us.

JOUFMMFDUVBM QPMJUJDBM BOE FDPOPNJD DJSDMFT that we are privileged that the full measure As the people of Ekiti join others around BDSPTT /JHFSJB BOE NPSF TP JO UIF TPVUIXFTU of the spirit of the man Awo lives on in the the world to commemorate the 110th posthuzone of which Ekiti is part. hearts and minds of people like Kayode NPVT CJSUIEBZ PG $IJFG 0CBGFNJ "XPMPXP Akin Rotimi

M

BOE UIF UI BOOJWFSTBSZ PG UIF VOWFJMJOH PG PVS OFX JEFOUJUZ XJUI B TUBUF GVODUJPO PO UIF UIFNF i/FX &OHBHFNFOUT CZ 1SPHSFTTJWFTu I am sure that our ancestors as a great cloud PG XJUOFTTFT GSPN BCPWF XPVME CF QMFBTFE and consent that out of Ekiti shall rise the one who shall attain that which Awolowo was not able to.

Six Elements of Ekiti Logo Launched .BSDI The Woven Cord The Woven Cord depicts the culturally homogeneous nature of the Ekiti people.

Ours is the only state in Nigeria with a single USJCF TBNF MBOHVBHF BOE XIFSF BMM UIF UPXOT and villages are suffixed with ‘Ekiti’.

The New Dawn The New Dawn symbolizes Ekiti’s place as the emerging land of opportunities. It also symbolizes the hope and optimism associated with the Ekiti people which makes us SJTF BCPWF DIBMMFOHFT UP FOTVSF XF SFNBJO on the path of peace and progress.

The Rolling Hills The Rolling Hills depict the topography PG PVS MBOE GPSNJOH UIF CBDLESPQ PG UIF beautiful scenery. It is the origin of our name ‘Ile Olokiti’.

The Vegetation The Vegetation depicts the fruitfulness of our land. It symbolizes a land blessed with an abundance of a wide variety of natural resources. It also represents the mainstay of our livelihood – Agriculture.

The Water The Water represents the springs in Ekiti 4UBUF QBSUJDVMBSMZ UIF *LPHPTJ 4QSJOH UIF only place in the whole world where hot and cold water springs naturally occur side by side. A wonder to the world - a pride to us.

The Book 5IF #PPL EFQJDUT UIF FOMJHIUFONFOU PG UIF Ekiti people. The Ekiti people love knowledge and celebrate wisdom.

35

F R I DAY Ëž ÍŻÍłËœ Ͱ͎ͯ͡

COLLAGE EVENTS

PISTIS Foundation to Drive Medical Aid to 4,000 Nigerians

Mary Nnah

L-R: Groom’s parents, Pastor Johnson and Pastor (Mrs) Kehinde Odejayi; couple, Mr and Mrs Michael and Ibukunoluwa Odejayi; First Lady of Ogun State, Mrs Olufunso Amosun; Mrs Olubimpe A. Odubela and Mr John Odubela SAN, in Lagos...recently

L-R: Guest speaker, Emmanuel Kelechukwu; CEO Foshizi Tours, Mrs. Ife Olranwaju; Convener, Mrs. Ekaette Umoh; Co-chair, Mr. Ehi Okoyomon and CEO Hatlab, Mrs. Latifat Balogun, during the 50 Business Plan Competition and conference to mark Umoh’s 50th birthday in Abuja... recently

A faith based non-profit social intervention organisation, Pistis Foundation, is set to hold a one-week medical and surgical outreach to cater to about 4,000 underprivileged people in the Lekki-Epe axis of Lagos State.

This free event tagged “Ubomi‌Restoring Livesâ€? will commence on Monday 18 to Friday March 22, 2019 at Pistis Annex, 3 Remi Olowude Street, by Marwa Bus Stop, Lekki, Lagos.

According to the Chairman, Board of Trustees of Pistis Foundation and Lead Pastor of The Elevation Church; Godman Akinlabi, “Ubomi is how we impact the lives of those in our immediate community, who may be suffering from illnesses that may lead to avoidable deaths for children and adults. “Healthcare in Nigeria is generally poor and it requires the collective support of government and non-governmental organisations to enhance current standards. “At Pistis Foundation and The Elevation Church, we believe that greatness means service and we are happy to serve our communities and make many lives better�.

Ubomi means “life� in Xhosa, a South African language.

It is designed to cater to indigent people who cannot afford medical/surgical fees for their health conditions. As such, Pistis Foundation will be attending to everyone who fits this profile, irrespective of religious or ethnic background, within the 4,000 person-limit, during the outreach. Being attended to will be on a first-come basis, except in emergency cases.

Pistis Foundation is working in partnership with Pro Health International, a reputable health NGO with many years of experience in offering medical and surgical aid to indigent communities across Africa to actualise this major project that will improve thousands of lives and provide otherwise unaffordable healthcare services to many. Ubomi will host over 200 healthcare professionals and volunteers providing medical consultations, health education and various surgeries. Surgeries will include general, gynaecological, dental, eye, paediatric and more. Pistis Foundation was founded by The Elevation Church with its three key focus areas as education, health and shelter.

SME Springboard Trade Fair Holds April 13 This is an open call to the business moguls in Abuja and it’s environ for anyone who is into any of this line of business: fashion, beauty, food and beverage, lifestyle or services to participate in the forthcoming SME Springboard Trade Fair coming up on April 13.

According to the convener, Achenyo Helen Asimegbe, who is also the CEO of Stylemark Mall, a retailer of high-quality children’s clothing and accessories, the trade fair is also targeted at people who are looking to enjoy massive deals this Easter on goods and services.

Billed to hold in Abuja, Asimegbe, who also doubles as a humanitarian and the CEO of Style Mark Pro Enterprise Hub, a capacity development centre, which trains entrepreneurs, small business owners and start-ups, said the trade fair is one’s number one spot to enjoy whooping discounts.

The discounts she said will be on dresses, shoes, bags, accessories, perfumes, makeup, kiddies clothing, kitchen utensils and groceries etc.

In addition, she said participants have the chance to be treated to delicious cuisines, adding that people should hurry now, and call +2348032288532 to book for a stand to showcase their businesses for a stand fee of N15, 000, given limited spaces available.

Veuve Clicquot Brings Yelloweek Celebration To Lagos L-R: Groom’s father and Chairman, Vigeo Communications Limited, Mr. Victor Gbolade Osibodu; bride’s mother and Managing Director, 10-10 Furniture’s, Mrs Muni Sonibare; couple, Abimbola and Tobi Osibodu; groom’s mother, and former GMD, Union Bank, Mrs. Funke Osibodu and bride’s father and Afenifere Chieftain, Chief Supo Sonibare (SAN), at the wedding ceremony between the two families at Catholic Church of Pepetual, VI Lagos....recently

L-R: Shuaibu Abbas Usman, Abdulqadir Babagana Musa, Muhammad Mustapha Maihaja, Abdulqudus Adebayo Temi, Kamaludeen Umar, Fahad Danladi; regional winners and representatives of Africa at the Huawei ICT Global competition celebrate with Tank Li (centre), Managing Director, Huawei Abuja... recently

Prestigious global champagne brand, Veuve Clicquot is set to bring all of its excellence a n d g r a n d e u r t o t h e f o re i n We s t Africa as its trademark “Yelloweek� is set to debut in Lagos, Nigeria from Saturday, March 16 through Sunday, March 24.

P a i n t i n g t h e c i t y y e l l o w i n s t y l e , Ve u v e C l i c q u o t Y E L L O W E E K i n L a g o s w i l l c re a t e a b e e h i v e o f u r b a n , f u n a n d chic lifestyle activities. These include the International Lagos P o l o To u r n a m e n t , Ye l l o w M a s t e rc l a s s , Ye l l o w D i n n e r, R i c h a n d F a m o u s N i g h t a n d Ye l l o w P a r t y - C l i c q ’ o n T h e N i g h t , all hosting the city’s most beautiful people to a week of elegance, style and fun.

S p e a k i n g o n t h e L a g o s e d i t i o n o f Ye l l o w e e k – E l i z a b e t h O p u t a , B r a n d M a n a g e r C h a m p a g n e & Wi n e s p o r t f o l i o , s a i d , “Yelloweek is a series of champagne-inspired events that has b e e n h o s t e d b y Ve u v e C l i c q u o t i n C a n a d a , S a n F r a n c i s c o , C a p e To w n a n d n o w L a g o s w h i c h m a r k s o u r d e b u t i n We s t Africa. We are excited and can’t wait to show Lagos city the t r u e e s s e n c e o f Ve u v e C l i c q u o t ! �

S i n c e i t s c re a t i o n i n 1 7 7 2 , Ve u v e C l i c q u o t p l a y e d a n i n strumental role in establishing and evolving the champagne i n d u s t r y a s w e k n o w i t t o d a y. L o c a t e d i n R e i m s , F r a n c e , Ve u v e C l i c q u o t p r i d e s i t s e l f o n u s i n g o n l y t h e m o s t d i s t i n c t grapes reflecting Madame Clicquot’s motto “only one quality, the finest.�

Now, more than 200 years later, Veuve Clicquot Champagne i n s p i re s t h e w o r l d t o “ B e C l i c q u o t � : m o d e r n , audacious and premium quality. These values, set forth by the ground-breaking and extraordinary Madame Clicquot and maintained by generations of Clicquot drinkers, promise a remarkable experience with each sip of Veuve Clicquot Champagne.

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F R I DAY Ëž ÍŻÍłËœ Ͱ͎ͯ͡

POTPOURRI

Church Pledges to Raise People of Distinction in Lagos The Cedars House of Grace, newly planted in Lagos, has pledged to raise a people of distinction among the dwellers of Lekki and its environs.

The senior pastor of the church, Niyi Eboda said this at the inaugural service of the church at the Grand Atrium hall, Lekki, Lagos, adding that part of its aim is to raise a people of distinction living off a life that is unending, the very life of God. According to him, “we believe in the power of new seasons. We believe that in life God has not ordained for people to assume status quo. Status will remain an assumption until it is proved. “ Emphasising that Christians were called to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world, the senior pastor told newsmen that the role of the church in the general elections was to raise people who understand the place of the citizens. “We are meant to solve the problem not add. In the book of Obadiah in the Bible, we are called the saviours. Hence, our job as believers and Christians is to emancipate. We are supposed to turn on the light not cause the darkness,�

Eboda added.

He succinctly said the church is supposed to raise people who are going to ensure they assume responsibility for a

better nation, adding that governance should not be left for those who are elected into offices since everybody is a part of the process of governance.

Eboda further noted that not only must Christians raise people who are value-hardened citizens, but also people who understand the importance of exercising their franchise in times like this. His words: “We should not fold our arms and keep complaining of things in the country. We are supposed to get actively involved and play our parts.�

Meanwhile, another senior pastor and ordained reverend, Mrs. Funke Felix-Adejumo, lauded Eboda for taking such a bold step into the creation of another church. “Another church is born and it is good.�

She expressed: “The church is marching on and the gates of hell cannot prevail. Only God knows the people that will be raised here today that will go and matter in quarters that matter in calling like politics, career, businesses and more.�

The senior pastor further commended Eboda and his wife, Adeeola Eboda (a reverend). “I so much believe in the grace upon their lives.

These are born leaders, who are in ministry just to touch lives. I rejoice

with them and congratulate them. I know the best is yet to come�.

Reacting to claims that there are proliferation of churches in the country,

Funke said that that world thinks the church has failed does not mean that is the truth. “If not for the church, the nation would have

been stinking. Do you know how many harlots would be on the streets if not for the church? Do you know how many armed robbers would be

out there or people begging for bread if not for the church? Government can fail but the church cannot fail,� she said boldly.

L-R: Mrs. Adeola Eboda, Rev. Funke Felix-Adejumo and Rev Niyi Eboda

Tecno Launches New Camon 11 Camera with AI Technology Ugo Aliogo TECNO Mobile has dutifully delivered record breaking smartphones that continue to stand the test of time and influence the technological landscape.

The brand dominates the feature phone sales in Nigeria, which can be credited to its vast knowledge of the African smartphone market space, alongside the company’s strong productive output, presence, availability, distribution network, and a variety of affordable feature phones, that targets the low and middle – income consumers in Nigeria.

The relevance of TECNO brand products can also be traced to the fact that the brand provides users with devices that come equipped with amazingly good batteries and performance output.

According to Euromonitor International August 2018 report, Transsion Holdings with its TECNO brand, dominates the feature phone sales in Nigeria, and this is an outcome of TECNO’s interest in targeting the low and middle- income earners.

The company has carved a niche for itself by creating a vast variety of smartphones to meet the needs and standards of the diverse income segments of the growing population in and around Africa.

Nonetheless, one of the reasons the TECNO and itel brands take the lead could also be a result of the availability and affordability for the average Nigerian consumer, which drives sales and markets within the smartphone sphere.

In terms of price competition in the stiff

Nigerian smartphone market, the influx of Chinese manufacturers and domestic players has led strong competition. With the Chinese firms offering cheaper smartphones with premium quality for different segments of the society, particularly low and middle – income consumers, within the society.

It is no longer news that the smartphone giant launched another camera centric duo device from its Camon series, the TECNO Camon 11 and 11 Pro. The flawless aesthetics of the device draws the attention of any user who decides to purchase the phone. The notch screen is wonderful. The Camon 11comes with a new level of seamless user experience, clear selfie because of the smart phone’s AI assisted feature.

TECNO mobile is no

stranger to integrating stunning cameras into their devices and is also known to set the pace when it comes to technological advancements in the Africa smartphone space. The CAMON 11 packs a punch with its incredible camera which comes equipped with an A.I 16MP front camera, and a 13MP + 2MP dual back camera which comes with an adjustable flash.

Another impressive feature of the CAMON 11 camera is the A.I beautification effect- which means that users do not need to worry about making edits or putting the image through immense filter torture after taking them. The smartphone comes equipped with a 3750mAh big battery that delivers uninterrupted performance no matter how long it is used. The device also boasts of a 6.2 inch notch display, A.I

HDR, A.I Adjustable LED flashlights, A.I automatic scene and HiOS 4.1. With the CAMON 11 device, selfie lovers will enjoy an impressive high-end 16MP front camera that is as clear as day.

Other advanced features of the camon 11 are artificial intelligence software, face unlock, HDR mode, fingerprint, 6GB RAM and 64GB ROM, 2.0 GHz Octa-Core processor, AI beauty mode, call recording by fingerprint and animoji features which combines human expressions with 3D virtual expressions that can be saved and shared through your various social media platforms.

The Camon 11 also features a sleek and almost bezel-less design that matches its 6.2inch notch display, with an unparalleled level of functionality that delivers

a stellar experience to the users.

All things considered, the TECNO CAMON 11 is an impressively compelling piece of smartphone tech and for the camera; therefore a user is sure to get more than what he/ she bargained for.

Between the solid material design and buildquality, performance that swings above its pricebracket and slick software experience, the CAMON 11 is a smartphone that makes recommendation very easy.

On the aspect of its pricing, the TECNO CAMON 11 is surely a steal especially because of all the unique features the device flaunts, and for anyone looking for a device that gives that premium quality aesthetics and advanced camera feature, the TECNO CAMON 11 is probably the way to go.

ERA Celebrates International Women’s Day As the world commemorated the 2019 International Women’s Day, the Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria (ERA/ FoEN), urged women and gender rights groups across the country to support the federal government’s current tobacco control efforts and calls for speedy approval of the Regula-

tions for full enforcement of the National Tobacco Control Act, 2015. According to Philip Jakpor, the theme for this year ’s International Women Day is #BalanceforBetter, and serves as call-toaction for governments to celebrate women’s achievement and addressing bias.

ERA/FoEN believes the tobacco menace is the

number one militating factor to women reaching their full potentials in life, and supports tobacco control efforts that will address the growing number of young women getting addicted to tobacco and its debilitating impact on their health and progress in life.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), 20 per cent of the

world’s more than a billion smokers are women and are more vulnerable to the dangers of Tobacco and its ugly effects ranging from female-specific cancers, high mortality rate, compromised pregnancy etc. In the WHO report Women and health: today’s evidence, tomorrow’s agenda, mention is made about the influence of tobacco advertising

targeting girls, with some of the most dominant themes depicting glamour, sophistication, style, luxury , romance and sex, among others strategies all aimed at wooing them into smoking. ERA/FoEN Project Coordinator, Oluchi Joy Robert said: “As we mark this global event, the outgoing 8th National Assembly owes Nigerian women the gift of approv-

ing the Regulations as this will not only save women that are currently addicted to smoking, but also dissuade young girls from getting lured into taking up this dangerous habit�. “To stand up against the deadly attractions of the tobacco industry, women are crucial. Tobacco-free women are healthy women and only healthy women can reach their full potentials.�

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F R I DAY Ëž ÍŻÍłËœ Ͱ͎ͯ͡

ENTREPRENEUR

Mike Oludoyi: Passion for Luxury Automobiles

ÙÑÓ ÞËÞĂ? ĂŒĂ™ĂœĂ˜ Ă–Ă&#x;âĂ&#x;ĂœĂŁ Ă?Ă˜ĂžĂœĂ?ĂšĂœĂ?Ă˜Ă?Ă&#x;Ăœ ĂŒĂ‹Ă?Ă?ĂŽ Ă“Ă˜ Ă—Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă?Ă‹Ëœ Ă“Ă•Ă? Ă–Ă&#x;ĂŽĂ™ĂŁĂ“Ëœ Ă“Ă˜ ÞÒÓĂ? Ă“Ă˜ĂžĂ?ĂœĂ Ă“Ă?ĂĄ åÓÞÒ SUNDAY EHIGIATOR ĂœĂ?Ă Ă?Ă‹Ă–Ă? ÒÙå Ă’Ă? Ă?ÙÖÖÙåĂ?ĂŽ Ă&#x;Ăš Ă™Ă˜ Ă’Ă“Ă? ÚËĂ?Ă?Ă“Ă™Ă˜ Ă?Ă™Ăœ Ă‹Ă&#x;ĂžĂ™Ă—Ă™ĂŒĂ“Ă–Ă?Ă?Ëœ Ă?Ă Ă?Ă˜ Ă‹Ă? Ă‹Ă˜ Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂŽĂ?ĂœĂ‘ĂœĂ‹ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă‹ĂžĂ?

W

hen it comes to luxury cars, the name Mike Korede Oludoyi; a Mopa born luxury entrepreneur, might not be too unfamiliar among the initiates, but for the uninitiated, he is one that has always had a knack for business, having grown up in a family with a business tradition. The young inspiring ‘Mo Autos’ founder, who is a graduate of Accounting from one of the top universities in the world, had earlier started his career as a banker with one of the new generation banks in Nigeria before his foray into dealing with luxury cars. Excerpts: How was your growing up?

I was born into the family of Chief Biodun Oludoyi. It’s a family of six; my dad, mum and three siblings. We are Christians.

My dad was one time Chairman of Kogi State Pensions Board while my mum has always been a business woman. I grew up always being around my mum, to help her business and learn from her.

I grew up in Mopa, Kogi State and went to primary school there. Growing up, I have always had passion for automobiles.

I grew up with the dream of being an automobile engineer and work in car production fields.

But eventually, I found strength in accounting. Hence I found myself briefly in banking, until I found my way back to my true passion.

Oludoyi

How did your interest in cars begin?

Growing up, my dream was to become an automobile engineer. I loved cars so much, that I wake up every morning before school, I would always wash and clean my father’s car. Though I later took interest in Accounting and studied and graduated as an accountant, but cars have always been natural with me. I wouldn’t want to say I was obsessed with it; but it kind of occurs to me without stress. I take note of every nice car I saw while growing up. I registered the names and models to heart. Sometimes, I would sleep and dream of those cars I saw and registered to heart. It was a nice experience and I am glad I was able to retrace my steps back to my passion.

What about ‘Mo Autos’ and what grades of cars does it trade?

I founded Mo Autos in December 2016, after I left the banking system. I got her wholesale operation license in February 2017. The company has since grown her name in the Dallas/Fort worth area as the “go to� dealership for clean grade-A cars, ranging from luxury to regular brands at affordable prices.

Following this success as the preferred car dealership for many immigrants, professionals and Americans alike, we created an online platform on instagram with the handle @Mo.Autos to bridge the divide and extend our services to interested clients around the world with a taste for exquisite automobiles at affordable prices.

Currently, our online business map focuses more on Nigeria and we have done businesses with, and delivered beautiful cars to numerous Nigerians; both individuals, corporate and political entities.

We also ship to three other African countries; Benin Republic, Ghana, Kenya and South Africa. And trust me, it is a brand that can be trusted and recommend to all.

How long have you been in business and how did it start?

I have basically been in business generally for over 10 years; but I founded and started Mo Autos three years go. It started with me trying to sell my older car when I got a new one and I was able to sell it within 24hours for a profit. That encouraged me to do it more.

Car entrepreneurship is one that is capital intensive, how were you able to

Oludoyi

startup?

While I was schooling as a student in University of Texas, Dallas, I made a decision to deprive myself of somethings I can do without so I can save money. I saved enough money to get me a second car, and I bought the second car and decided to try and sell my older car. Like I said earlier, I sold it for a profit within 24hours and I quickly went to buy another car but this time, I marketed my both cars for sale and managed to sell both for a profit within three days. From then on, I bought and sold cars for about a month, before I decided to start up my own dealership.

What makes Mo Autos unique?

Unlike many others, we built our name on the core values of integrity, empathy and customer service. We take pride in every car we buy and sell, because it’s an embodiment of our name and brand reputation. Our services and delivery is currently the fastest of any AfricanAmerican dealer, and we always deliver quality. No client can ever say we didn’t deliver a car that brings them joy. Because we put in our time to hand pick cars in perfect condition for the perfect prices.

Our prices are also always cheaper than indigenous dealers in Nigeria. It’s always cheaper and more affordable when you import through us.

What are the major challenges faced in this line of business?

This is a business where trust is needed.

So many people are too scared to do busi-

ness with an online entity, but the world is moving fast and with time many more will join the many other people who are buying cars online, and getting it imported at incredibly affordable prices.

One other challenge is short delays from freight shipping companies due to weather or other constraints. Though delays are very rare, it’s also a challenge because as a dealer we cannot exercise any control over such delay.

You have a client data base here in Nigeria, so how easy is it to deliver goods to them?

We have done businesses with top business executives, politicians, corporate entities and people in the entertainment industry; amongst them is Ubi Franklin.

Delivery to our client is quite easy, as we proceed to clear cars from the port immediately it arrives and go on to deliver to their addresses. We deliver our clients carsDoor to Door.

What is the maximum duration it takes since you are based in Texas?

Maximum duration from the moment a customer orders for a car to when the car is delivered is 45days. We usually deliver faster than that most times.

Let’s talk about the quality of cars you deal; are they brand new or used, and how clean and affordable are they?

We sell brand new cars and certified pre-owned cars. Any car we sell is always very clean; inside and outside, in excellent condition and always affordable.

Have you considered opening

branches here in Nigeria?

We are looking into that but currently we have a liaison office in Apapa Wharf, Lagos for clients and potential clients who may like to meet and speak to someone on ground in Nigeria as they order.

What is the channel of Patronage?

Currently, we have an Instagram page where we post our activities as a business and encourage more potential clients to patronise our service. Other means of patronage is via our Whatsapp +12149316342 or email Mo.autosdallas@ gmail.com Is there a website or social media platform where prospects can checkout your stocks?

Yes, we are on Instagram. You can find us with the handle @MO.AUTOS You left the banking industry to pursue entrepreneurship, would you say it has been a jolly ride?

Even though bank job is quite stressful, I’ll say entrepreneurship has not been a jolly ride. The highs and lows are always there and sometimes you feel the weight of the responsibility you owe to your clients and people who look up to you.

At the end of the day I’ll say entrepreneurship is very worth it but it’s surely not a jolly ride.

Your advice to young entrepreneur Keep your eyes open to growth and self development. Always look for business opportunities around you, more importantly be prepared to grab the business opportunities you spot.

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F R I DAY Ëž ÍŻÍłËœ Ͱ͎ͯ͡

METRO

‌Your city life in print

A Walk for Equity Ă™Ă—Ă‹Ă˜ Ă™Ă? Ă™ĂœĂžĂ&#x;Ă˜Ă? Ă‹Ă–Ă– Ă™Ă? Ă‹Ă—Ă? Ă˜Ă“ĂžĂ“Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă Ă?Ëœ Ă‹Ă˜ åÓÞÒ Ă?Ă?Ă—Ă‹Ă–Ă? Ă‘Ă?Ă˜ĂŽĂ?Ăœ ĂŒĂ“Ă‹Ă?Ëœ Ă–Ă‹Ă?Ăž ĂĄĂ?Ă?Ă• Ă”Ă™Ă“Ă˜Ă?ĂŽ ÞÒĂ? ĂĄĂ™ĂœĂ–ĂŽ Ă“Ă˜ Ă?Ă?Ă–Ă?ĂŒĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ÞÒĂ?

Ă˜ĂžĂ?ĂœĂ˜Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ă‹Ă– Ù×Ă?Ă˜ËŞĂ? Ă‹ĂŁ åÓÞÒ Ă‹ ĂœĂ™Ă‹ĂŽ ĂĄĂ‹Ă–Ă• ÞËÑÑĂ?ĂŽ ËŠ Ă‹Ă–Ă• Ă™Ă—Ă‹Ă˜Ëœ Ă’Ă“Ă˜Ă• Ă›Ă&#x;Ă‹Ă–ËŞË› Ă’Ă? Ă?âĂ?ĂœĂ?Ă“Ă?Ă? ĂĄĂ‹Ă? Ă‹Ă“Ă—Ă?ĂŽ Ă‹Ăž Ă‹ĂĄĂ‹Ă•Ă?Ă˜Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ åÙ×Ă?Ă˜ ÞÙ Ă?ĂžĂ‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă&#x;Ăš Ă?Ă™Ăœ ÞÒĂ?Ă“Ăœ ĂœĂ“Ă‘Ă’ĂžĂ?Ëœ ĂžĂ’Ă“Ă˜Ă• ĂŒĂ“Ă‘ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ĂŒĂ? ĂŒĂ?ÞÞĂ?Ăœ ĂšĂ?ĂœĂ?Ă™Ă˜Ă? Ă“Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă™Ă?Ă“Ă?Þã˛ MARY NNAH ĂĄĂœĂ“ĂžĂ?Ă?

I

n consonance with the global theme, ‘Think Equal, Build Smart, Innovative for Change�, a group of women drawn from various sectors of the economy participated in a walk tagged, “Walk Woman, Think Equal’ to mark the International Women’s Day.

Held in Festac, Lagos, the walk organised by the MMS Woman of Fortune Hall of Fame (MMS WoFHoF) Initiative, an NGO with female gender bias, the exercise was to sensitise the public on the role of a women in nation building.

It is worth mentioning that MMS WoFHoF Initiative promotes equality and fairness in career, and work place, political and corporate leadership, capacity building and role modelling through mentoring women and younger generation in their chosen professions while inculcating enviable home and entrepreneurial cultures into them. “In Africa, Nigeria to be precise, the cultural political background confines women to their homes, especially the kitchen and the other room. This does not allow them to come out to the limelight. As part of the efforts to correct this, MMS WoFHoF Initiative titled today’s walk, ‘Walk Woman, Think Equal’. This is to encourage a woman to believe in herself and believe in her abilities to go beyond the confines of her home. A woman should aim high to make significant achievements by impacting the society positively�, the Executive Secretary, MMS WoFHoF Initiative, Chioma Nwagbo said during the walk.

Speaking on the essence of the walk Nwagbo said: “We are trying to create a picture, which is to encourage women to come out of the confines of their homes and have the sense of belonging that they are not just furniture in their homes, nor confined to the kitchen nor are they domestic staff. We aimed to encourage them to be professionals and that they should aim higher and so they should walk out of those confinements and come to the limelight.� “The most important aspect is for them to look at themselves at par with their male counterpart and to be sure that you can achieve what a man can achieve and to build that confidence that wherever a man can be, you can as well as a woman. You can be a professional, you can be a highbred businesswoman, and you can be an industrialist and other things having in mind that sex is irrelevant in life achievement�, she noted further.

Social Empowerment Scheme The organisation believes that it is just not enough to merely tell women to come out and be all what they desire to be. Therefore, to help women achieve their dreams of becoming pacesetters in their various endeavours as well as to help grow businesses and galvanise capacity to reach a greater number of women, artisans and micro business owners in mentorship, MMS WoFHoF Initiative has introduced a social empowerment scheme, called, Vision 5W-250,000, which aims to give access to micro credit facilities and grants to 250, 000 micro business owners, especially women in five years, from, 2019-2024.

Nwagbo stressed that MMS WoFHoF Initiative through this scheme is bent on empowering and training the next generation of women leaders in the maritime, oil and gas, finance, aviation as well as political leadership sectors. “Vision 5W-250,000 is a project that would be used to empower women. It is not just enough to tell a woman to stand up for her right or stand up for what she believes in but she also needs to be empowered. And this what Vision 5W-250,000 aims to do�, she noted.

The MMS WoFHoF scheme which is segmented into various portfolios includes: MMS WoFHoF Micro Credit Scheme, a daily contribution where a person contributes a certain amount of money for savings, which is subjected to collection by the contributor after a given period. A service charge is deducted at the end of the programme.

Access to Daily Thrift (Esusu) is another scheme where a person do a daily contribution of N500 minimum, which would be saved and at the end of the month one day’s contribution

Therefore, to help women achieve their dreams of becoming pacesetters in their various endeavours as well as to help grow businesses and galvanise capacity to reach a greater number of women, artisans and micro business owners in mentorship, MMS WoFHoF Initiative has introduced a social empowerment scheme, called, Vision 5W-250,000, which aims to give access to micro credit facilities and grants to 250, 000 micro business owners, especially women in ďŹ ve years, from, 2019-2024

Some women during the walk

A cross section of women at the MMS WoFHoF oďŹƒce in Festac

Participants getting set just before the walk took o

is taken as service charge.

Access to Quick cash is another empowerment plan whereby petty traders are empowered to have access to petty cash of N50,000 for the period of three months. There is also Access to Equipment lease (Hire purchase) and finally is the WoFHoF Cooperative Cluster which entails different categories of contributions.

Testimonials The initiative, Nwagbo revealed, has started empowering women with quick cash to start-up or boost their businesses and the programme intends to touch the lives of 50,000 women annually to reach 250,000 in five years.

Some of the women who have benefited from the scheme testified on how it has helped improve their businesses.

For Uju Faith Oke, a trader, she has benefited a lot from the scheme, which has helped her business grow in a short period of time. “I collected loan of N50,000 from the organisation, which I invested in my business and today my shop has a new improved look and now when I enter my shop, I become very happy�, she said excitedly.

Another beneficiary, Anthonia William, a second hand cloth dealer, said the loan she collected from MMS WoFHoF is far better than other loans she has ever gotten, adding, “in this case, MMS WoFHoF has made it so easy for us

to pay back the loan and also save a token for ourselves so that at the end of the three months, you don’t need to apply for another loan but you get your savings to put back into your business and then move on to the next level of the scheme�.

Charge to Women Meanwhile, one of the MMS Hall of Fame and President of Women in the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA), Hajia Bola Muse, who also took part in the walk, commended Nigerian women for their amazing ability to multi-task and put in the best on all sides. “A woman is at work, yet she is thinking of her kids in the school, thinking of making dinner back home. She cares for the homes and manages the home. She also takes charge at the office or her business. Women are amazing.

Women are privileged to partner God in bringing forth several generations. We house the baby and bring forth the baby in due time� she said.

President of African Women in Maritime (WIMAFRICA), Nigerian chapter, Bola Muse who was represented by Mrs. Ruth Chukwukezirim, advised women not to believe in the fallacy that certain trade was for men. “When people say freight forwarding is men’s trade, I say: really? Can you show me where it is written that it is men’s trade?

Nobody has been able to show me. This means we can do anything as women and we have top women in the maritime sector. This means women can not only play a role in the shipping sector but also rise to the pinnacle� she added.

Head of Department, Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation at Amuwo-Odofin Local Government Area, Mrs. Temitayo Dabiri-Raji commended the women who took part in the Walk. Referring to women as the salt of life, she said; “I strongly believe that if you train a woman, you train a nation. I want to specially commend the federal, state and local governments in Nigeria for their efforts towards ensuring gender equality in governance. At the moment, women are encouraged to partake in decision making in all the three tiers of government. Several state governments and local governments have been keen to train women and empower them�

Condemning the rate of domestic violent issues in the country, Dabiri-Raji urged women undergoing such turmoil to speak out. “Those who have suffered domestic violence should go to the available portals to lodge their complaints and be assured that the complaints would be attended to. Women should also be very diligent in terms of child upbringing and not just trust family members to do the task� she said.

Charge to Federal Government As part of the efforts to grow the feminine brand in Nigeria, the Founder of the MMS WoFHoF Initiative, Mr. Kingsley Anaroke urged the Federal Government to reserve certain positions in government agencies for women.

Drawing an analogy with the federal character system in Nigeria, he said; “We have federal character in Nigeria, so we should be able to have gender character that should define inclusiveness of women in all sectors and capture the gender sensitivity of the nation. To help us bridge that gender gap, we should be able to reserve 40 per cent of government recruitments across board. If we do this over a period of time, we would have more women participating in various sectors�.

In sync with the International Maritime Organisation (IMO), World Maritime Day’s theme; ‘Empowering Women in the Maritime Community’, Anaroke hinted that MMS WoFHoF Initiative would organise a ceremony to mark its ‘Hall of Fame’s Day’ on Tuesday March 19, at Golden Gate, Ikoyi, Lagos by 4pm. The event is scheduled to recognise and celebrate some ‘Indomitable Maritime Amazons’ who have made modest contributions in the maritime industry.

He therefore called on maritime professionals and noble organisations to deepen their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) impact by partnering the NGO to enable it execute Vision 5W-250,000.

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F R I DAY Ëž ÍŻÍłËœ Ͱ͎ͯ͡

CRIME&SECURITY

Crude Oil Theft: JTF Takes Over Six Suspects, Seven Boats From Navy

CRIME SITUATION REPORTS

SECURITY TIPS (PART 53)

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08093314811 Sylvester Idowu

The Joint Task Force (JTF) codenamed Operation Delta Safe (OPDS) has taken over six suspected oil thieves and seven loaded Cotonou boats from the Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS Delta), Warri, for further investigation.

During the handing over ceremony at the NNS Delta’s base in Warri, its Commander, Commodore Ibrahim Dewu disclosed that the suspects were arrested with products believed to be illegally refined diesel, also known as AGO, estimated to be 540,000 liters.

Dewu, who was represented by the Executive Officer (XO) of the NNSDelta, Navy Captain Adeyemi Adewuyi, said the suspects were apprehended last Wednesday, March 6, 2019 and that the product was said to have been procured from Opudebubo Creek in Warri SouthWest Local Government area of De lta state.

He warned those involved

in illegal activities in the maritime environment within the NNS Delta area of responsibility (AOR) to desist or face the law, as the Nigerian Navy would not relent in its efforts to make the Niger Delta safe and fit for legitimate activities. “We are handing over seven Cotonou boats that were arrested on March 6 to appropriate security agencies. The boats were arrested at Opudebubo Creek in Warri South-West council area of Delta state.

According to the suspects, they came all the way from Igbokoda in Ondo state to buy the products from the creek.

They said they were taking the product to Igbonla in Okitipupa in the Igbokoda area of Ondo state. “The quantity is estimated at 540,000 liters of AGO, illegally refined. We managed to arrest six suspects.

The original number of the Cotonou boats was eight, however, one of them sank at the point of arrest, due to leakage.

Investigation is still on and

that’s why we are handing them over to the appropriate prosecuting agency for all other facts to come out. “I want to use this opportunity to warn all the criminals like pipeline vandals, to desist from their nefarious ways. Nigerian Navy will not relent in her efforts to stamp out criminality in the creeks of the Niger Delta�, he said.

One of the suspects, who identified himself as Odusola Irewole said he was a first timer in the illegal business, adding that he was pushed into it by lack of a gainful employment. “We came from Ondo state on the 6th of this month to buy diesel in Opudebubo Creek. I don’t know the seller because I’m just a worker in the boat.

The owner of the business is in Ondo state now. “This is my first time because this boat is a new boat. I’m doing this job because there’s no job anywhere else, nothing to survive on. I didn’t know it was illegal, it is now that I’m getting to know�, the suspect said.

Lagos Police Command Gets New PPRO The Commissioner of Police, Lagos State, CP Zubairu Muazu, has appointed DSP Bala Elkana as the new Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO).

The new PPRO who took over from CSP Chike Oti, on Monday, enlisted into the Nigeria Police in 2003. He holds a Bachelors degree in Law (LLB), Masters Degree in Peace Studies and Conflict Resolution and a Masters Degree in Business Administration (MBA).

He had served in different commands and held various positions, including Operations Officer, Divisional Crime Officer, Divisional Police Officer, Community Policing Officer. In addition to all these positions, he was the PPRO in Niger and Akwa Ibom states.

Elkanan who is bringing with him a rich background in public relations and information management, is also a Fellow of Corporate Institute of Administration, and an ac-

08093314844 08093314855 Source: Ministry of Justice, Kaduna State

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Bala

tive member of International Association of Chiefs of Police and a member of Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR).

Until his recent posting, he was an Investigator in the IGP Monitoring Unit. Meanwhile, Bala can be reached on GSM 07063116303

+8$ "MBLBSB Source: Lagos State Police Command

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F R I DAY Ëž ÍŻÍłËœ Ͱ͎ͯ͡

LIFE

Goodnight to the Organ Grandmaster, Pa James Adekunle Adedayo Adejobi

I

t was Williams Shakespeare who once said â€œâ€Śin my stars I am above thee but be not afraid of greatness. Some are born great, some achieve greatness and some have greatness thrust upon them.â€?

In relation to this, Mr. James Adekunle who, in his later years became known as Pa Adekunle, was certainly, a Nigerian, from Akoko- Edo local government, Okpe, Edo state, Nigeria and an individual who achieved greatness by hard work, great vision, and zeal for excellence in his chosen profession of church organ music, despite not being born great.

I first set my eyes on this quintessential personality, sometime in 2016 in the company of Lanre Delano, Sole distributor of Allen Organ in Nigeria and Co-founder of the Church Organ Projects In Nigeria- CHOPIN). This was at CHOPIN’s office on Awoyemi close off Ogunlana Drive in Surulere Lagos.

There was a buzz of excitement in the office that peaceful Wednesday afternoon, so much so that even the neighbors and passers-by were listening to it and kind of curious to know where the vibe was coming from, as the sonorous sound coming from the massive Allen Organ located at a corner of the CHOPIN office filled the entire room, who was on the keys?, the organ grandmaster himself, Pa Adekunle as he was fondly called by all.

From the gates of the office apartment, you could hear the sound of the organ resonating back and forth as the master kept reeling out the sound with such an immense passion that only a master of the game can give. I was wowed.

As I stepped into the office eagerly, to see who the person behind the sound was, I was amazed to see a simple, ordinary looking, a grey-headed man dressed in a simple native attire behind the organ playing effortlessly without even looking at the keys on the piano, so engrossed that even my presence was not noticed until he completed his lines!

Yes you can describe Pa Adekunle as an exceedingly simple and humble person who is passionate about his job and cared less about the money involved, his watchword was giving an awesome delivery.

After that meeting, we met a couple of times to discuss one project or the other. Pa James Adekunle can be described as a jewel of the inestimable value of our time given his astute and selfless contribution to the church organ music profession in Nigeria.

In retrospect, Pa Adekunle was born into the humble family of Mr. and Mrs. Adekunle on October 22, 1930 to the family of Mr. and Mrs. Adekunle, James was the organist and choirmaster of the Holy Trinity Church, Ebute-Ero Lagos from 1962 to 2019 (58years) till his death on January 20, 2019.

After 58 years of active service as the organist and choirmaster at the popular Holy Trinity Church Ebute Ero, Lagos, Pa James Adekunle finally took a bow.

Prior to this time, he attended St. Luke’s Teachers College Ibadan during which he won the first prize at the Western Nigeria Competition for Original Music Composition.

While still a student in London, he was, for two years the Organist of Harmony at the Methodist Church (1960 - 1962).

On arrival in 1962, he was appointed the Senior Programmes Assistant at the Nigeria Broadcasting Corporation Ikoyi but was redeployed to King’s College, Lagos in 1963 where he taught music for ten years (1963 - 1973).

In 1973, he was redeployed to the inspectorate division of the Federal Ministry of Education as one of its pioneer inspectors and was head of the Western State branch (Ibadan).

In 1976, he was transferred to Calabar as Head of the Cross River branch (Calabar) and moved to head the Lagos state office in 1977 where he retired on 01-01-87 as Deputy Director of Education.

In February 1989, he was invited by the Musical Society of Nigeria {MUSON) to actualise the establishment of its school of music which was accredited in 2002 as being at par with any diploma awarding music institution in the U.K. He retired from MUSON in 2005 after 16 and a half years as pioneer director. He was a frequent resource person at CHOPIN - Church Organ Projects In Nigeria Music seminars and workshops. He was honored with the Organ Grandmaster Award by LOOM (Lovers Of Organ Music). He was a Patron of the Guild of Organists in Nigeria.

It is no wonder some of his students and friends had very beautiful things to say about this legend of our time.

Adekunle

“Mr. Adekunle really sowed the music seed in me. Through him, I was able to appreciate the great composer, George Frederick Handel, who composed the Messiah and many other great works such as Ode to Saint Cecilia. Handel superfluously sprinkled great trumpet obligato parts in these great works enhancing my love for that instrument. If I had my way I will dispatch Mr. Adekunle to the great heavens with Handel’s Zadok the Priest, with the lines, MAY HE LIVE FOREVER, HALLELUJAH AMEN AMEN. Mr. Adekunle had a sweet soul, I am very sure he died peacefully�

Another student wrote; “I met baba Adekunle in my second year in King’s College Lagos. He was a good motivator encouraging students to take music seriously. One of his star students was named Akinyele was popularly known as MOZART. I’m aware he sent one of Akinyele’s composition to the Royal School of Music and he was given a full scholarship to study music. One of the pieces he taught me was Symphony no 8 by Beethoven. I still remember the piece till today. He was a funny person who related very much with his students I was endeared to him when I discovered that he went to

the same music school with my father The Guildhall School of music.�

And yet another by Ebenezer Ekundayo Omole, director of music, Saint Jude’s Church Odi Olowo Lagos. “Pa James Adekunle, my father and mentor‌I never had the opportunity of being tutored by him, yet he had the greatest and profound influence on my musical career. We met in 1972 during the dedication of Pipe organ in our church in Saint Judes Anglican Church Odi Olowo, where Pa Adekunle and Mr. Jones (the partner of Pa Fayemi who manufactured and assembled the organ) were invited to play. “The duo performed and demonstrated the capabilities of the two manuals pipe organ on that day. The performances of these people were impressive although I was just playing grade3 piano exam pieces at the time, a few months after this dedication, I went to King’s College Lagos to meet him with the intention of making him my Piano and Organ teacher, getting there I was welcomed by the family and was asked to play my exam pieces. Unfortunately, after that, Papa gave me shocking news, that they were already packing out as he had been transferred out of

Lagos. It was a terrible blow on my musical ambition. “Unknowingly Pa Adekunle included my name in the list of King’s College Students for ABRSM Exams that year. It was after the exams that I knew I was registered. Pa Adekunle gave me the opportunity of attending his Choir practices at Ebute- Ero between 1973 and 1975 where I learned a lot of techniques in teaching Church music. Since that time, Papa always monitored and supported me anywhere I worked, for example between 1985 and 1990 when I was at Saint Paul Cathedral Shagamu, he was there on two different occasions to accompany my choir during our Choir Festivals. “Similarly, when I came back to St. Judes OdiOlowo as Organist and Choir Master in 1994, he was also there at most of our programmes: Festivals, Carols, Cantatas and particularly two times, we performed “Complete Messiah

by G.F Handel�. Each time he was there, he will make his observations known within two weeks after the programme. Since I became the Head of Music and Music Education Section of the Lagos State Ministry of Education in 1990/1991, I always invited him for State Music Workshops.�

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T H I S D AY Ëž ÍŻÍłËœ Ͱ͎ͯ͡

Leveraging Advertising for Customer Services Raheem Akingbolu examines the implications of in-branch ads that displays pictures and contact details of a financial institution’s executives and encouraging customers to contact them should service not meet their expectations

S

ervice is still a very contentious issue in today’s Nigeria. The concept of good customer service which many societies take for granted tends to be the exception rather than the rule in this part of the world. Take the DISCOs for instance, which rather than provide consumers with an accurate bill of energy consumed would unabashedly give you a bill for the energy which it imagines you have consumed (estimated bill) and thereafter give you a deadline to make this payment.

Fail to pay this fraudulent draconian bill and your office or residence could be summarily disconnected from the national electricity grid, without any apologies. Even the bigger department stores which are fairly recent creations and ought to be more attuned to service especially given their experience in developed countries hardly fare better.

A common sight in many big department stores especially during peak hours is long queues even with few functioning tills. At such peak periods, one would expect that the management of such department stores, knowing the intensity of customer traffic, would beef up manpower at dormant tills and help ensure more manpower is available to manage surging customer traffic. But this seldom happens. So customers will typically find long queues of customers being attended to often by relatively few cashiers, while a good number of tills remain dormant.

What about the telecom companies that will deduct airtime from customer’s phone at will and pester the customer with unsolicited text messages and marketing gimmicks?

Perhaps worst of all, what about the public health institutions where the medical personnel often seem oblivious of the meaning of the word, “service�? Health institutions where rendition of service to patients is typically impersonal and crude, with hardly any option for the patient to complain and seek redress for perceived ill treatment?

Nigeria’s banks were for many years a part of what was apparently a culture of “we are doing you a favour� that appears to guide the approach of many service providers in Nigeria to service delivery. Many Nigerians who are old enough may recall the ordeal that conducting transactions in Nigeria’s banks was, in the old days, until the emergence of what is now generally known as the “new generation banks in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s.

The incursion of the second generation of banks into Nigeria’s banking system essentially “revolutionised� service in the banking system, to use that often exaggerated word. In the front line, well trained university graduates replaced the “cashiers� of old, who typically had not been trained up to university level. Instead of “cashiers�, this new breed of officers was referred to by better sounding designations like “Executive Assistant�, or “Front Service Officer� or even “Customer Relations Officer�. Because these tertiary level educated executives had been carefully selected and painstakingly trained, they of course, rendered far better service than their predecessors who soon became extinct.

In addition, what used to be the banking hall of old went through a total make-over.

Today, there are some banks, especially in Nigeria’s commercial nerve center of Lagos, whose internal ambience could compete favorably with that of a 5-star hotel. Efforts have also been made to drastically reduce the customer waiting time. Again it may sound like ancient history, but there was a day when a bank customer would receive a tally number and sit to wait indefinitely to be called up by the cashier. Now, in some banks, one may simply walk in to the customer service officer; conduct his or her transaction and leave. In other cases, the customer may have to stay in a queue which in most cases, is manageable, and which banks have striven to manage even

further by advising customers withdrawing relatively smaller sums of money to use ATMs stationed outside.

The ATM by the way is yet another key innovation by banks that appears unsung by Nigerians. But clearly this is an infrastructure into which banks have invested considerably and which ensures that millions of Nigerians are provided access to cash on a 24-hour basis. This is an innovation for which the banking sector deserves commendation.

As is common in the service industry, but particularly in the banking sector, these innovations typically begin with one or two banks and are quickly adopted by other banks once they see the value therein.

This brings the banking public to another innovation that is being spearheaded by Stanbic IBTC Bank. It is the service guarantee which the bank makes openly to its customers.

About two years ago, in an article entitled, “Trading privacy for service excellence�, this reporter examined this approach by the bank.

The bank at the time published full page ads in many newspapers where it advised

As in the initial ads in which the executives publicly implore customers to contact them should they receive less than sterling service, these in-branch ads implicitly showcase the conďŹ dence which the bank has in its services and its people

customers to contact the Executive Director for Personal and Business Banking (Retail Banking) or the Operations Director, if at any time; they felt they had not received the right level of service at the bank. Of course, both the personal phone numbers and email addresses of both executives were displayed conspicuously in both ads.

In the report, effort was made to admire the bank’s approach at the time. It takes only a bank that has immense confidence in its operations nationally, to make such an open proposal. It was reasoned then that this was a big vote of confidence by the bank not only on its employees and operations but also on its customers. One must be supremely confident of the caliber of the customer base to make such an open proposal. Experience in many organisations is that rather than utilize such phone calls and email addresses for which they were created, they soon become avenues for spam phone calls and emails including job applications and all manner of proposals.

While the bank’s confidence and pioneering initiative are to be commended, for its boldness in running those ads openly, the ads appear to have quietly disappeared.

Could this be as a result of some of the issues we highlighted at the time it made its debut, such as spam mails for instance?

We notice, however, perhaps as an extension or modification of the initial campaign above, the bank has now taken to advertising the names, pictures and phone numbers of senior executives within a branch who should be contacted if a customer gets service that is below the quality he expects of the bank.

In these ads, the bank clearly guarantees to its customers that: “You must get more than what you expect, today.�

As in the initial ads in which the executives publicly implore customers to contact them should they receive less than sterling service, these in-branch ads implicitly showcase the confidence which the bank has in its services and its people. The ads also serve an unspoken purpose: They help to keep the bank on its toes. When an institution has made such a promise openly, it must actively strive to ensure that all of the back-end and front-end processes that should guarantee excellent customer service are well taken care of.

Such an openly made guarantee will also help to ensure that issues including products and services are well thought-through before

they are introduced to the banking public. It also helps to ensure that there is no slip with regard to how the bank continues to engage its customers, as its customer-facing people must strive to ensure that on a continuous basis, they provide a service that delights their customers.

This is yet another formidable service innovation for which the bank should be commended. It will be interesting to see if this innovation will be copied by other banks and grow to become commonplace in Nigeria’s banking sector. If it does, the banking sector would have proven itself as perhaps the most important pace-setter in the customer service space in Nigeria.

Stanbic IBTC Bank’s service guarantee approach, reinforces the fact that the human element remains very critical in the banking sector. Even though it continues to grow its technological channels for customer transactions such as online banking and use of the USSD, the use of ATMs as highlighted above, among others, it recognises that there remains a majority of customers who desire face-to-face contact with banking hall executives. It is to this vital category of customers for instance that these banking hall assurances are targeted: “We promise to surpass your expectations today.�

The bank occupies a unique position in Nigeria’s banking space. It is at once a Nigerian bank like other Nigerian banks but at the same time is also an international bank by virtue of its affiliation with Standard Bank and by extension its global reach and access to international capital.

The question on the lips of analysts like this writer is therefore: is this service innovation a local initiative or could it have been copied from any of the bank’s operations elsewhere?

Whatever the case, however, the service guarantee is a big plus not only for bank customers but indeed for customer service in general, in Nigeria as it helps to further broaden the frontiers of service delivery, helping to keep service providers on their toes. It also helps to explicitly give customers the reassurance that they are pivotal to the institution’s very existence and the institution’s abhorrence of poor service in general.

No doubt, market watchers will continue to monitor this service guarantee disposition of Stanbic IBTC Bank and trust that it will continue on this path of being a torch bearer for excellent service delivery in Nigeria.

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T H I S D AY Ëž ÍŻÍłËœ 2019

BUSINESS/MONEYGUIDE

NBS: Nigerians Pay More for Cooking Gas,Kerosene James Emejo Ă“Ă˜ ĂŒĂ&#x;ÔË The average price for refilling a five kilogramme (Kg) cylinder for Liquefied Petroleum Gas, otherwise known as cooking gas increased by 1.37 per cent (month-on-month) to N2, 067.68 in February 2019, compared to N2,039.82 recorded in January, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

But it decreased by -4.09 per cent, year-on-year when compared to the N2,155.97 recorded in February 2018, the NBS added.

According to the Liquefied Petroleum Gas (Cooking Gas) Price Watch - February 2019, which was posted on its website yesterday, states with the highest average price for refilling a 5kg gas cylinder included Bauchi N2,500.00, Cross River N2,450.00 and Adamawa/Borno N2,400.00.

On the other hand, Osun with N1,811.11, Kaduna N1,725.00 and Enugu N1,680.00 represented states with the lowest average

price for the refilling of a 5kg cylinder of cooking gas.

Similarly, the average price for refilling a 12.5kg cylinder for cooking gas decreased by -0.77 per cent (month-on-month) and -2.04 per cent (year-on-year) to N4,244.91 in February 2019 from N4,277.86 in January 2019, the statistical agency stated.

It pointed out that Akwa Ibom with N4,700.00, Abia N4,688.89 and Cross River N4,759.09 were states with the highest average price for the refilling the 12.5kg cylinder if cooking gas while Oyo N3,805.88, Ogun N3,835.71 and Kano N3,775.00 paid less.

In the same vein, the average price per litre paid by consumers for household kerosene decreased by -0.27 per cent month-on-month to N305.55 in February compared to N306.28 in January as well as increased by 5.85 per cent (year-on-year) when compared to the N288.57 recorded in February 2018.

Plateau with average price of N335.55, Anambra N332.22 and

Enugu N329.17, had the highest average price per litre of kerosene for the period while Gombe N265.74, Niger N268.42 and Lagos N274.35 paid the lowest average price per litre of kerosene.

According to the National Household Kerosene Price Watch (February 2019) also released yesterday, the average price per gallon paid by consumers for household kerosene increased by 2.71 per cent (month-on-month) and 15.90 per cent (year-on-year) to N1209.73 in February from N1187.75 in January.

States with the highest average price per gallon of kerosene were Jigawa N1331.25, Borno N1325.00 and Katsina N1305.00. while those with the lowest average price per gallon of kerosene were Niger N1,110.00, Kogi N1,051.43 and Bayelsa N1,105.00.

THISDAY findings however showed that Nigerians often pay more for cooking fuels at retail outlets.

PEBEC Launches App to Drive Ease of Doing Business The Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) has launched the reportgov.ng app, an official public service feedback and complaints platform to support business climate reforms implemented by the council since 2016.

The platform, which is also a website, is also expected to facilitate the escalation and resolution of issues encountered with ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) towards ensuring a more business-friendly environment.

According to a statement, the app was co-launched by the Minister, Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Okey

Enelamah; Chairman, Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria, Mr. Adedotun Sulaiman, and Senior Special Adviser to the President on Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr Jumoke Oduwole, at the Regulatory Conversations (RC3.0) event themed “Improving Transparency and Ease of Doing Business in Nigeria.�

The program featured a panel of discussants and stakeholders from the public, private sector and civil society, with a focus on issues bordering on transparency and efficiency of service delivery in Nigeria.

The PEBEC was established in July 2016 to remove delays and restrictions that come with

doing business in Nigeria, and make the country an easier place to start and grow a business.

Supported by Executive Order 001 (EO1) signed in 2017 to promote transparency and efficiency in the business environment, PEBEC has undertaken to drive EO1’s six directives, which aim to address specific limitations identified in the civil and public service systems.

The new mobile app is available on the Google Play store, and, “is coming soon to the iOS store to enable users give feedback or complaint that will drive continuous improvement in service delivery and public protection efforts.�

AfDB Pledges $25bn to Climate Finance Nume Ekeghe The African Development Bank (AfDB) will double its climate finance commitment for the period 2020-2025, the Bank’s President, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina announced yesterday.

He said the Bank would commit at least $25 billion towards climate finance. Speaking at a plenary in the presence of heads of states at the One Planet Summit taking place in Nairobi, Adesina also announced the Bank was on course to achieve its target

of allocating 40 per cent of its funding to climate finance by 2020, a year ahead.

The Bank’s commitment on the target, the highest among all multilateral development banks, had progressed steadily from nine per cent in 2016 to 28 per cent in 2017 and 32 per cent in 2018.

Considering Africa’s high vulnerability despite contributing the least to climate change, the African Development Bank has successfully raised its adaptation finance from less than 30 per cent of total climate finance to

parity with mitigation in 2018.

Adesina said: “The required level of financing is only feasible with the direct involvement of the entire financial sector.

Consequently, the Bank launched the African Financial Alliance for Climate Change (AFAC) to link all stock exchanges, pension and sovereign wealth funds, central Banks and other financial institutions of Africa to mobilise and incentivise the shift of their portfolios towards low carbon and climate resilient investments.�

125th Anniversary: FirstBank to Embark on Relay Walk First Bank of Nigeria Limited and other corporate entities in the FBNHoldings group would collectively have a 125km Relay Walk to celebrate the Bank’s 125 years anniversary this Saturday.

The bank explained that the relay walk which is to be carried out at locations across Nigeria and other countries where the bank operates was among the many activities lined-up to celebrate its impact and contribution to the growth and development of Nigeria over the years.

According to the Chief Executive Officer, First Bank of Nigeria Limited, Dr. Adesola

Adeduntan, “the 125km Relay Walk is a representation of the collaborative effort of not just FirstBank but all entities in our holding company, FBNHoldings, that have in the last 125 years impacted lives and contributed to the growth and development of our host communities and countries where we do businesses. “At FirstBank, we are proud of the strides made across these locations where we operate as without the effort of all staff – past and present – as well as our customers and stakeholders, there would be no FirstBank. “The 125km is a mark of our incredible journey of delivering

impeccable financial services to our customers as we leave no stone unturned to remain an icon of admiration in today’s financial services industry in Africa.�

Adeduntan explained that the relay walk would be a collaborative effort to achieve a symbolic 125km.

He added “It is also a representation of the FirstBank brand in the last 125 years; our people, the team work, partnership and the collective spirit which has shown that as a team, together we can do and achieve more. It is neither a marathon, nor sprint, but a surefooted, steady walk we have taken in the last 125 years.�

L-R Africa Advisor, S-RM Corporate Intelligence, UK, Mr Paul Adams; President, Nigerian Stock Exchange, Abimbola Ogunbanjo and Group Chief Executive, FCMB Group Plc, Mr. Ladi Balogun, during an evening of tributes in memory of a former Chairman/Managing Director of FCMB, Dr. Jonathan Long, which took place in Lagos‌recently

MARKET INDICATORS MONEY AND CREDIT STATISTICS

(MILLION NAIRA)

NOVEMBER 2018 Money Supply (M3)

31,794,803.44

-- CBN Bills Held by Money Holding Sectors

6,333,064.28

Money Supply (M2)

25,461,739.17

-- Quasi Money

14,773,076.98

-- Narrow Money (M1)

10,688,662.18

---- Currency Outside Banks

1,711,763.59

---- Demand Deposits

8,976,898.59

Net Foreign Assets (NFA)

18,990,400.78

Net Domestic Assets(NDA)

12,804,402.66

-- Net Domestic Credit (NDC)

26,062,986.22

---- Credit to Government (Net)

2,980,229.66

---- Memo: Credit to Govt. (Net) less FMA

7,093,619.43

---- Memo: Fed. and Mirror Accounts (FMA)

-4,144,571.43

---- Credit to Private Sector (CPS)

23,082,756.56

--Other Assets Net

13,258,583.57

Reserve Money (Base Money

6,811,192.37

--Currency in Circulation

2,100,129.91

--Banks Reserves

4,366,259.05

Ëž Ă™Ă&#x;ĂœĂ?Ă? Ě‹

Money Market Indicators (in Percentage) Month

March 2018

Inter-Bank Call Rate

15.16

Minimum Rediscount Rate (MRR) Monetary Policy Rate (MPR)

14.00

Treasury Bill Rate

11.84

Savings Deposit Rate

4.07

1 Month Deposit Rate

8.82

3 Months Deposit Rate

9.72

6 Months Deposit Rate

10.93

12 Months Deposit Rate

10.21

Prime Lending rate

17.35

Maximum Lending Rate

31.55

Ëž Ă™Ă˜Ă?ĂžĂ‹ĂœĂŁ ÙÖÓĂ?ĂŁ Ă‹ĂžĂ? Ě‹ ͯ͹Ϲ

OPEC DAILY BASKET PRICE AS AT WEDNESDAY, 13 MARCH 2019

The price of OPEC basket of fourteen crudes stood at $66.60 a barrel on Wednesday, compared with $66.30 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

43

T H I S D AY Ëž ÍŻÍłËœ Ͱ͎ͯ͡

MARKET NEWS

BearishTrading Returns on Losses by Bellwether Stocks Goddy Egene The market returned to negative territory yesterday after one day of growth, following losses recorded by bellwethers. After five days of decline, the market had rebounded the previous day.

However, the bears returned yesterday dragging the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) All-Share Index (ASI) by 0.5 per cent to close at 31,213.47. Similarly, market capitalisation shed N54.7 billion

to close at N11.6 trillion.

A total of 20 stocks depreciated dominated by bellwethers, compared with nine that appreciated.

Stocks such as Zenith Bank Plc, Nestle Nigeria Plc, Dangote Cement Plc, Access Bank, FBN Holdings Plc and Guaranty Trust Bank Plc. However, Learn Africa Plc led the price gainers with 9.6 per cent, trailed by Transcorp Hotels Plc with 9.2 per cent. Law Union and Rock Insurance Plc and Eterna

P R I C E S MAIN BOARD

F O R DEALS

Plc shed 8.9 per cent and 8.3 per cent respectively.

Other top price losers include: LASACO Assurance Plc (6.0 per cent); May & Baker Nigeria Plc (2.9 per cent); FCMB Group Plc (2.0 per cent); Jaiz Bank Plc(1.9 per cent).

On positive side, Mcnichols led the price gainers with 9.6 per cent trailed by Dangote Flour Mills Plc with 8.4 per cent. Ikeja Hotel Plc chalked up 7.9 per cent, just as Sterling Bank Plc

S E C U R I T I E S

MARKET PRICE

QUANTITY TRADED

VALUE TRADED ( N )

garnered 5.9 per cent. The lender recently raised a bond of N32.9 billion through its month listed Sterling Investment Management SPV Plc under a N65.00 billion Debt Issuance Programme .

The bond was listed on the FMDQ OTC Securities Exchange and Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE). According to the Managing Director and Chief Executive of Sterling Bank Plc, Mr. Abubakar Suleiman, The success of the bond reflects the increasing appetite of

T R A D E D MAIN BOARD

A S

local institutional investors for long term debt instruments. We are happy with the very strong outcome which shows investors’ confidence in Sterling Bank Plc, and further strengthens and diversifies our corporate funding strategy.�

Meanwhile, activity level was mixed as volume traded shed 53.1 per cent to 177 million shares while value traded appreciated by 13.2 per cent to N2.6 billion. The top traded stocks by volume were

O F

Zenith Bank (80.8 million shares), Sterling Bank Plc (16.8 million) and FCMB Group (12.1 million shares) while Zenith Bank (N1.8 billion), GTBank (N228.2 million) and Nestle (N109.4 million) were the top traded stocks by value. In terms of sectoral performance, two of five indices tracked trended southwards while one closed flat. The NSE Industrial Goods Index led with a decline of 0.5 per cent, trailed by the NSE Banking Index with 0.4 per cent.

1 5 / 0 3 / 2 0 1 9 DEALS

MARKET PRICE

QUANTITY TRADED

VALUE TRADED ( N)

˾ FRIDAY, MARCH 15, 2019

44

Friday, March 15, 2019

Thisday Afrinvest 40 Index Down 0.4%

THISDAY AFRINVEST 40 INDEX

Yesterday, the Thisday Afrinvest 40 Index shed 39bps to ĐůŽƐĞ Ăƚ ϭ͕ϱϭϮ͘ϯϯ ĚƵĞ ƚŽ ƐĞůů ŽīƐ ŝŶ ďĞůůǁĞƚŚĞƌƐ GUARANTY (-0.8%), ZENITH (-0.9%), and DANGCEM (ϭ͘ϬйͿ͘ dŚĞƐĞ ƐƚŽĐŬƐ ĐƵŵƵůĂƟǀĞůLJ ĂĐĐŽƵŶƚ ĨŽƌ ϯϵ͘Ϯй ŽĨ

Fundamental Performance Metrics for THISDAY AFRINVEST 40 Index

Ticker

Current Price

THISDAY AFRINVEST 40

the index.

Local Bourse Reverses Gains͙ ASI Down 0.5%

(-0.8%) and ZENITH (-0.9%) - led to a reversal in prior ŐĂŝŶƐ ŝŶ ƚŚĞ ďĞŶĐŚŵĂƌŬ ŝŶĚĞdž ǁŚŝĐŚ ĚĞĐůŝŶĞĚ Ϭ͘ϱй to 31,213.47 points ǁŚŝůĞ zd ůŽƐƐ ŵŽĚĞƌĂƚĞĚ ƚŽ –ϭ͘Ϭй͘

Eϭϭ͘ϲƚŶ͘ ĐƟǀŝƚLJ ůĞǀĞů ǁĂƐ ŵŝdžĞĚ ĂƐ ǀŽůƵŵĞ ƚƌĂĚĞĚ ƐŚĞĚ ϱϯ͘ϭй ƚŽ ϭϳϳ͘Ϭŵ ƵŶŝƚƐ ǁŚŝůĞ ǀĂůƵĞ ƚƌĂĚĞĚ ĂƉƉƌĞĐŝĂƚĞĚ ďLJ ϭϯ͘Ϯй ƚŽ EϮ͘ϲďŶ͘ dŚĞ ƚŽƉ ƚƌĂĚĞĚ ƐƚŽĐŬƐ ďLJ ǀŽůƵŵĞ ǁĞƌĞ

ROE

ROA

P/E

P/BV

Divindend Earnings Yield Yield

1,512.33

-0.39%

3.0%

51.2%

21.2%

7.7%

6.1x

0.8x

5.2%

35.40

-0.8%

19.0%

2.8%

2.6%

31.2%

5.5%

5.4x

1.9x

7.7%

18.5%

2 Zenith Bank PLC

22.20

-0.9%

11.5%

-3.7%

7.0%

22.6%

3.2%

3.8x

0.9x

12.6%

26.4% 12.0%

4 Nestle Nigeria PLC

13.2%

190.00

-1.0%

8.7%

0.2%

2.2%

44.6%

23.2%

8.3x

3.3x

8.4%

1,545.00

-0.3%

8.2%

4.0%

4.7%

90.4%

27.8%

28.5x

24.4x

3.8%

3.5%

75.00

0.0%

5.1%

-12.3%

-2.0%

11.3%

5.0%

30.5x

3.6x

3.2%

3.3%

8.20

-1.2%

5.3%

3.1%

2.5%

6.6%

0.8%

5.9x

0.4x

3.0%

17.0%

19.00

0.0%

4.3%

-2.1%

-2.1%

34.2%

19.6%

4.6x

1.4x

6.6%

21.8%

3.5x

0.6x

11.1%

28.9%

5 Nigerian Brew eries PLC 6 FBN Holdings Plc 7 Cement Co Northern Nigeria PLC 8 United Bank for Africa PLC

7.65

1.3%

4.2%

-0.6%

-1.9%

15.4%

1.8%

9 International Brew eries PLC

24.05

0.0%

2.7%

-21.1%

-23.7%

-23.8%

-3.2%

596.90

0.0%

3.2%

-6.7%

-6.7%

9.4%

5.7%

6.5x

0.6x

3.0%

15.5%

10.9%

40.4%

10 SEPLAT Petroleum Development C

ŽŶƐĞƋƵĞŶƚůLJ͕ ŵĂƌŬĞƚ ĐĂƉŝƚĂůŝƐĂƟŽŶ ĨĞůů Eϱϰ͘ϳďŶ ƚŽ ůŽŐ Ăƚ

Price Change Index to Date

1 Guaranty Trust Bank PLC

3 Dangote Cement PLC

Sell-ŽīƐ ŝŶ ďĞůůǁĞƚŚĞƌƐ - DANGCEM (-1.0%), GUARANTY

Price Previous Current Change Price Weightin YTD Change g

11 Access Bank PLC

5.9x

-1.5%

5.95

-0.8%

2.9%

-12.5%

-8.5%

14.1%

1.7%

2.5x

0.4x

12 Ecobank Transnational Inc

13.65

0.0%

2.7%

-2.5%

-4.5%

12.1%

1.0%

4.3x

0.5x

13 Stanbic IBTC Holdings PLC

48.00

0.0%

2.6%

0.1%

0.1%

34.5%

4.7%

6.8x

2.1x

3.1%

14 Unilever Nigeria PLC

38.70

0.0%

2.5%

4.6%

4.6%

14.7%

9.0%

19.1x

2.7x

1.3%

5.2%

15 Lafarge Africa PLC

12.90

0.0%

1.7%

3.6%

7.5%

-53.7%

-7.9%

0.9x

11.3%

-48.8%

23.3% 14.8%

16 Guinness Nigeria PLC

64.00

0.0%

1.1%

-11.1%

-11.1%

8.5%

4.5%

17.9x

1.6x

2.9%

5.6%

ZENITH (80.8m units), STERLING ;ϭϲ͘ϴŵ ƵŶŝƚƐͿ ĂŶĚ FCMB

17 Okomu Oil Palm PLC

80.00

0.0%

1.3%

5.0%

5.0%

39.3%

29.7%

7.6x

2.6x

3.8%

13.1%

18 Total Nigeria PLC

200.00

0.0%

;ϭϮ͘ϭŵ ƵŶŝƚƐͿ ǁŚŝůĞ ZENITH ;Eϭ͘ϴďŶͿ͕ GUARANTY

1.2%

-1.5%

-1.5%

34.6%

7.5%

7.0x

2.2x

8.5%

14.3%

19 11 PLC

165.00

0.0%

1.1%

-11.1%

-11.1%

38.0%

16.8%

5.5x

1.8x

4.8%

18.1%

5.2%

11.3%

;EϮϮϴ͘ϮŵͿ ĂŶĚ NESTLE ;EϭϬϵ͘ϰŵͿ ǁĞƌĞ ƚŚĞ ƚŽƉ ƚƌĂĚĞĚ stocks by value.

Mixed Sector Performance ^ŝŵŝůĂƌ ƚŽ ƚŚĞ ƉƌŝŽƌ ĚĂLJ͕ ƉĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ ĂĐƌŽƐƐ ƐĞĐƚŽƌƐ ǁĂƐ mixed as 2 of 5 indices under our coverage trended ƐŽƵƚŚǁĂƌĚƐ ǁŚŝůĞ ϭ ĐůŽƐĞĚ ŇĂƚ͘ dŚĞ /ŶĚƵƐƚƌŝĂů 'ŽŽĚƐ ĂŶĚ ĂŶŬŝŶŐ ŝŶĚŝĐĞƐ ĐůŽƐĞĚ ŝŶ ƚŚĞ ƌĞĚ͕ ĚŽǁŶ Ϭ͘ϱй ĂŶĚ Ϭ͘ϰй

19.10

0.0%

0.9%

-17.3%

-14.0%

6.6%

2.0%

8.8x

0.5x

21 Oando PLC

20 Flour Mills of Nigeria PLC

5.75

0.9%

1.3%

15.0%

19.8%

10.9%

1.7%

4.8x

0.4x

22 Fidelity Bank PLC

2.18

-0.9%

1.1%

7.4%

7.4%

11.3%

1.5%

2.8x

0.3x

5.0%

23 Transnational Corp of Nigeria

1.23

-0.8%

0.9%

-6.8%

-2.4%

19.3%

4.3%

4.0x

0.7x

2.4%

25.0%

24 Dangote Sugar Refinery PLC

13.95

0.0%

0.8%

-8.5%

-5.7%

32.6%

16.4%

5.6x

1.6x

9.0%

18.0%

20.9% 35.2%

25 Diamond Bank PLC

2.49

0.0%

0.9%

15.8%

-5.8%

-0.7%

26 FCMB Group Plc

1.96

-2.0%

0.6%

3.7%

8.9%

8.4%

1.2%

2.6x

0.2x

5.1%

27 UAC of Nigeria PLC

7.80

0.0%

0.4%

-20.0%

-18.3%

0.4%

0.2%

61.4x

0.3x

8.3%

1.6%

28 Sterling Bank PLC

2.50

5.9%

0.6%

31.6%

31.6%

10.6%

1.1%

6.6x

0.7x

0.8%

15.2%

0.3x

-28.2% 39.0%

29 Presco PLC

75.00

0.0%

0.4%

17.2%

17.2%

37.0%

24.8%

3.0x

0.9x

2.9%

33.8%

30 NASCON Allied Industries PLC

20.70

0.0%

0.4%

15.0%

15.0%

47.0%

17.5%

10.8x

4.8x

7.2%

9.3%

31 Forte Oil PLC

28.00

0.0%

0.3%

-2.4%

0.0%

84.6%

8.3%

11.5x

2.1x

8.7%

32 Union Bank of Nigeria PLC

6.85

0.0%

0.4%

22.3%

22.3%

5.3%

1.0%

12.4x

0.7x

8.1%

31.5%

3.6%

4.0x

1.1x

3.6%

1.0x

1.4% 5.6%

33 Julius Berger Nigeria PLC

27.50

0.0%

0.3%

36.8%

24.4%

ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞůLJ ĨŽůůŽǁŝŶŐ ůŽƐƐĞƐ ŝŶ DANGCEM (-1.0%),

34 PZ Cussons Nigeria PLC

11.00

0.0%

0.2%

-9.1%

-10.6%

GUARANTY (-0.8%) and ZENITH (-Ϭ͘ϵйͿ͘ KŶ ƚŚĞ ƉŽƐŝƟǀĞ

35 Chemical and Allied Products P

37.40

0.0%

0.2%

7.3%

7.3%

66.2%

30.2%

17.5x

11.7x

36 Wema Bank PLC

0.79

-1.3%

0.2%

25.4%

25.4%

6.6%

0.8%

9.0x

0.6x

37 Beta Glass PLC

79.00

0.0%

0.2%

15.7%

15.7%

21.1%

14.7%

7.3x

1.4x

1.5%

13.7%

38 Dangote Flour Mills Plc

10.30

8.4%

0.2%

50.4%

56.1%

14.9%

4.2%

9.1x

1.3x

2.0%

11.0%

39 Transcorp Hotels Plc

5.40

-9.2%

0.1%

-11.5%

-9.2%

11.0x

0.7x

2.8%

9.1%

40 AXA Mansard Insurance PLC

2.20

0.0%

0.1%

20.2%

20.2%

9.7x

1.1x

2.7%

10.3%

side, the Insurance index gained 0.5% due to price ĂƉƉƌĞĐŝĂƟŽŶ ŝŶ NEM (+5.0%) and LINKASSURE (+3.5%) ǁŚŝůĞ ďƵLJŝŶŐ ŝŶƚĞƌĞƐƚ in OANDO (+0.9%) led to a 0.1%

neutralized the gains recorded in DANGFLOUR (+8.4%) ĐĂƵƐŝŶŐ ƚŚĞ ŽŶƐƵŵĞƌ 'ŽŽĚƐ ŝŶĚĞdž ƚŽ ĐůŽƐĞ ŇĂƚ͘

/ŶǀĞƐƚŽƌ ^ĞŶƟŵĞŶƚ tĞĂŬĞŶƐ /ŶǀĞƐƚŽƌ ƐĞŶƟŵĞŶƚ ĂƐ ŵĞĂƐƵƌĞĚ ďLJ ŵĂƌŬĞƚ ďƌĞĂĚƚŚ ;ĂĚǀĂŶĐĞͬĚĞĐůŝŶĞ ƌĂƟŽͿ ǁĞĂŬĞŶĞĚ ƚŽ Ϭ͘ϰdž ĨƌŽŵ Ϭ͘ϳdž recorded in the previous trading session as 8 stocks

T ic k er

ƚŽƉ ƚƌĂĚĞĚ ƐƚŽĐŬƐ ǁŚŝůĞ LEARNAFRICA

(-9.7%),

TRANSCOHOT (-9.2%) and > thE/KE (-8.9%) led ůĂŐŐĂƌĚƐ͘ ĞƐƉŝƚĞ LJĞƐƚĞƌĚĂLJΖƐ ƐĞůů ŽīƐ͕ ǁĞ ĞdžƉĞĐƚ ƉŽƐŝƟǀĞ corporate earnings releases to drive the performance of

ƚŚĞ ĞƋƵŝƟĞƐ ŵĂƌŬĞƚ ŝŶ ƚŚĞ ŶĞĂƌ ƚĞƌŵ͘

Afrinvest West Africa Limited

P ric e C hg %

T ic k er

Vo lum e

P ric e C hg % -0.9%

M C N IC H OLS

0.57

9.6%

Z EN IT H B A N K

80.8

D A N GF LOUR

10.30

8.4%

ST ER LN B A N K

16.8

5.9%

IKEJ A H OT EL

2.30

8.0%

FCM B

12.1

-2.0%

ST ER LN B A N K

2.50

5.9%

GUA R A N T Y

6.4

-0.8%

N EM

2.50

5.0%

F ID ELIT YB K

6.0

-0.9%

R EGA LIN S

0.25

4.2%

UB A

5.9

1.3%

LIN KA SSUR E

0.60

3.4%

J A IZ B A N K

4.6

-1.9%

UB A

7.65

1.3%

FB NH

4.2

-1.2%

OA N D O

5.75

0.9%

T R A N SC OR P

4.1

-0.8%

F T N C OC OA

0.20

0.0%

IKEJ A H OT EL

3.7

8.0%

advanced against 21 decliners. STERLING (+5.9%), DANGFLOUR (+8.4%) and IKEJAHOTEL (+8.0%) led the

P ric e

3.5%

T o p 10 T r a d e s b y V a l u e

T o p 10 L o s e r s T ic k er LEA R N A F R C A T R A N SC OH O

P ric e

5.7% 11.1%

T o p 10 T r a d e s b y V o l u m e

T o p 10 G a i n e r s

ƵƉƟĐŬ ŝŶ ƚŚĞ Kŝů Θ 'ĂƐ ŝŶĚĞdž͘ >ŽƐƐĞƐ ŝŶ NESTLE (-0.3%)

11.6%

24.9%

P ric e C hg %

T ic k er

Value

1.31

-9.7%

Z EN IT H B A N K

1800.9

P ric e C hg % -0.9%

5.40

-9.2%

GUA R A N T Y

228.2

-0.8%

LA WUN ION

0.51

-8.9%

N EST LE

109.4

-0.3%

ET ER N A

4.40

-8.3%

IN T B R EW

54.4

0.0%

LA SA C O

0.31

-6.1%

UB A

44.8

1.3%

M A YB A KER

2.33

-2.9%

ST ER LN B A N K

41.9

5.9%

A IIC O

0.71

-2.7%

FB NH

34.5

-1.2%

FCM B

1.96

-2.0%

D A N GF LOUR

32.5

8.4%

J A IZ B A N K

0.51

-1.9%

D A N GC EM

28.6

-1.0%

WEM A B A N K

0.79

-1.2%

NB

25.2

0.0%

Brokerage

Asset Management

Investment Research

Ayodeji Ebo | aebo@afrinvest.com

Ola Belgore | obelgore@afrinvest.com

Robert Omotunde | romotunde@afrinvest.com

Adedoyin Allen | aallen@afrinvest.com Oluwarotimi Ashimi | oashimi@afrinvest.com

Jolomi Odonghanro | jodonghanro@afrinvest.com

45

FRIDAY, MARCH 15, 2019 ˾ T H I S D AY

MARKET NEWS

NSE Trains Compliance and Operations Officers on Derivatives Goddy Egene The Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) will on Monday organise a derivatives workshop as part of its commitment to improving the capacity of professionals in the Nigerian capital market. According to the NSE, the workshop, which is targeted at compliance officers and operations officers of dealing member firms, is designed to

provide participants with insights into the structure and operating requirements of the exchange Derivatives Market.

“It will also provide them with an understanding of the potential of the market, as well as risk management and return enhancement benefits,” the exchange said.

A derivative is a contract between two or more parties whose value

A Mutual fund (Unit Trust) is an investment vehicle managed by a SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) registered Fund Manager.

Investors with similar objectives buy units of the Fund so that the Fund Manager can buy securities that willl generate their desired return.

An ETF (Exchange Traded Fund) is a type of fund which owns the assets (shares of stock, bonds, oil futures, gold bars, foreign currency, etc.) and divides ownership of those assets into shares. Investors can buy these ‘shares’ on the

is based on an agreed-upon underlying financial asset (like a security) or set of assets (like an index). Common underlying instruments include bonds, commodities, currencies, interest rates, market indexes and stocks.

The training is coming after a similar workshop organised by the NSE on fixed income workshop in other to improve the capacity of its members and enhance investors’

floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange.

A REIT (Real Estate Investment Trust) is an investment vehicle that allows both small and large investors to part-own real estate ventures (eg.

Offices, Houses, Hospitals) in proportion to their investments. The assets are divided into shares that are traded on the Nigerian Stock Exchange.

GUIDE TO DATA: Date: All fund prices are quoted in Naira as at 13Mar-2019, unless otherwise stated.

participation in the fixed income market.

The workshop brought 200 stockbrokers, dealing members and other key capital market stakeholders, who were there to explore opportunities available in the fixed income market, as well as address the concerns and build the capacity of our members interested in trading fixed income on the exchange.

“All fixed income securities (with the exception of zero-coupon bonds) provide some form of regular interest payments to investors.

This makes the fixed income market especially attractive to investors whose main investment goal is providing themselves with a steady income,” the exchange had explained.

Since the beginning of this year, the NSE has shown its

determination to make the exchange in particular and market in general to be attractive and accessible to all investors.

For instance, the NSE, in collaboration with Fund Managers Association of Nigeria (FMAN), Association of Stockbroking Houses of Nigeria (ASHON) and the Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc, last month launched the Mutual Funds Trading platform.

Offer price: The price at which units of a trust or ETF are bought by investors.

Bid Price: The price at which Investors redeem (sell) units of a trust or ETF. Yield/Total Return: Denotes the total return an investor would have earned on his investment. Money Market Funds report Yield while others report Year- to-date Total Return.

NAV: Is value per share of the real estate assets held by a REIT on a specific date.

DAILY PRICE LIST FOR MUTUAL FUNDS, REITS and ETFS MUTUAL FUNDS / UNIT TRUSTS AFRINVEST ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD aaml@afrinvest.com Web: www.afrinvest.com; Tel: +234 1 270 1680 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Afrinvest Equity Fund 157.44 158.01 -0.42% Afrinvest Plutus Fund 100.00 100.00 8.11% Nigeria International Debt Fund 281.16 281.91 3.04% 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 1.15% ACAP Income Funds 0.62 0.62 12.15% 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 2.66% 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 103.45 104.18 2.24% AXA Mansard Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 15.29% 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 13.80% Paramount Equity Fund 12.09 12.19 2.36% Women's Investment Fund 105.89 106.45 2.20% CORDROS ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED assetmgtteam@cordros.com Web: www.cordros.com, Tel: 019036947 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Cordros Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 13.27% Cordros Milestone Fund 2023 100.78 101.02 Cordros Milestone Fund 2028 102.28 102.86 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 13.05% Coronation Balanced Fund 0.84 0.84 Coronation Fixed Income Fund 1.16 1.16 3.71% 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 12.39% EDC Nigeria Money Market Fund Class B 1,000,000.00 1,000,000.00 11.76% FBNQUEST ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD invest@fbnquest.com Web: www.fbnquest.com/asset-management; Tel: +234-81 0082 0082 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn FBN Fixed Income Fund 1,229.33 1,230.15 3.70% FBN Heritage Fund 145.09 146.35 1.17% FBN Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 14.19% FBN Nigeria Eurobond (USD) Fund - Institutional 116.37 116.88 2.18% FBN Nigeria Eurobond (USD) Fund - Retail 116.30 116.81 2.37% FBN Nigeria Smart Beta Equity Fund 150.00 152.23 0.00% FIRST CITY ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD fcamhelpdesk@fcmb.com Web: www.fcamltd.com; Tel: +234 1 462 2596 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Legacy Equity Fund 1.22 1.24 -0.30% Legacy Debt Fund 3.32 3.32 2.36% Legacy USD Bond Fund 1.04 1.04 0.94% FSDH ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD coralfunds@fsdhgroup.com Web: www.fsdhaml.com; Tel: 01-270 4884-5; 01-280 9740-1 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Coral Growth Fund 2,997.79 3,029.63 0.48% Coral Income Fund 2,828.28 2,828.28 3.26% 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 14.72% Nigeria Entertainment Fund 108.87 109.50 2.02% INVESTMENT ONE FUNDS MANAGEMENT LTD enquiries@investment-one.com Web: www.investment-one.com; Tel: +234 812 992 1045,+234 1 448 8888 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Abacus Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 13.20% Vantage Balanced Fund 2.15 2.17 -0.01% Vantage Guaranteed Income Fund 1.00 1.00 14.85% Kedari Investment Fund (KIF) 123.80 124.03 -0.89%

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 1.93% Lotus Halal Fixed Income Fund 1,098.75 1,098.75 2.70% 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 11.56 11.65 0.43% 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 1.37 1.39 7.17% PACAM Fixed Income Fund 12.30 12.37 0.83% PACAM Money Market Fund 10.00 10.00 12.01% 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 126.77 127.48 5.05% 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 1.03 1.03 2.73% 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 2,378.85 2,393.11 2.81% Stanbic IBTC Bond Fund 195.26 195.26 2.69% Stanbic IBTC Ethical Fund 0.97 0.98 2.63% Stanbic IBTC Guaranteed Investment Fund 252.56 252.60 2.18% Stanbic IBTC Iman Fund 166.44 168.34 2.04% Stanbic IBTC Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 13.36% Stanbic IBTC Nigerian Equity Fund 8,616.84 8,723.29 1.52% Stanbic IBTC Dollar Fund (USD) 1.12 1.12 1.24% UNITED CAPITAL ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD unitedcapitalplcgroup.com Web: www.unitedcapitalplcgroup.com; Tel: +234 803 306 2887 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn United Capital Balanced Fund 1.19 1.21 0.23% United Capital Bond Fund 1.64 1.64 3.06% United Capital Equity Fund 0.69 0.71 -2.09% United Capital Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 14.62% United Capital Eurobond Fund 109.16 109.16 1.77% United Capital Wealth for Women Fund 1.09 1.10 0.41% 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 11.13 11.29 5.06% Zenith Ethical Fund 12.35 12.49 3.02% Zenith Income Fund 21.11 21.11 9.66% Zenith Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 11.33%

REITS NAV Per Share

Yield / T-Rtn

5.95 119.30 51.94

-39.35% 0.06% 0.00%

Bid Price

Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

10.67 113.88 89.81

10.77 116.31 91.48

1.14% -2.91% 1.29%

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

4.03 7.17 14.69 12.38 152.13

4.07 7.25 14.79 12.58 154.13

0.79% -5.94% -1.71% 0.13% 5.95%

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.

46

FRIDAY MARCH 15, 2019 ˾ T H I S D AY

INTERNA TIONAL

British Lawmakers Overwhelmingly Back Brexit Delay British lawmakers yesterday voted by 412 to 202 for Prime Minister Theresa May to ask the EU for a delay to Brexit.

It means the UK may not now leave on 29 March as previously planned.

Mrs. May said Brexit could be delayed by three months, to 30 June, if MPs back her withdrawal deal in a vote next week.

If they reject her deal again then she said she will seek a longer extension - but any delay has to be agreed by the 27 other EU member states.

A spokesman for the European Commission said extending Article 50, the mechanism taking the UK out of the EU on 29 March, would need the “unanimous agreement” of all states.

And it would be for the

leaders of those states “to consider such a request, giving priority to the need to ensure the functioning of the EU institutions and taking into account the reasons for and duration of a possible extension.”

The Commission’s President, Jean-Claude Juncker, was “in constant contact with all leaders,” the spokesman added.

Theresa May has long insisted that the UK will leave the EU on 29 March with or without a withdrawal deal.

But she was forced to offer MPs a vote on delaying Brexit after they rejected her withdrawal agreement by a large margin, for a second time, and then voted to reject a no-deal Brexit.

She has warned that extending the departure date

beyond three months could harm trust in democracy - and mean that the UK would have to take part in May’s European Parliament elections.

Some ministers said it was still possible for the UK to leave on 29 March - and others voted against a delay.

Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Liz Truss, tweeted: “I voted against a delay to Brexit. As a delay was passed

by Parliament, I want to see deal agreed ASAP so we can minimise to short, technical,

extension.”

Health Secretary Matthew Hancock said it would be “extremely difficult” but “still possible to deliver Brexit on 29 March with a deal.”

He said there were now two options: “to vote for the deal and leave in orderly way or a long delay and I think that would be a disaster.”

MPs earlier rejected an attempt to secure another Brexit referendum by 334 votes to 85.

And they also rejected a cross-party plan, to allow MPs

to take control of the Brexit process to hold a series of votes on the next steps, by the narrow margin of two votes.

Following the votes, Labour leader, Jeremy Corbyn, reiterated his support for a further referendum after earlier ordering his MPs not to vote for one.

He said: “Today I reiterate my conviction that a deal can be agreed based on our alternative plan that can command support across the House.

“I also reiterate our support

for a People’s Vote - not as a political point-scoring exercise but as a realistic option to break the deadlock.”

Labour abstained when MPs voted on the referendum proposal, tabled by Independent Group MP, Sarah Wollaston, arguing that now was not the right time to push for a public vote.

Labour’s plan to delay Brexit to allow Parliamentary time for MPs to “find a majority for a different approach” was defeated by 318 to 302 votes.

EU Reports Drop in Asylum Applications in 2018 Some 580,800 first-time asylum seekers applied for protection in EU member-states in 2018, statistics agency, Eurostat, reported on Thursday.

It stated that the number of applications was 11 per cent fewer than what was recorded in 2017.

“The 2018 total is slightly less than half the amount of applications in 2015, the peak year, and it is comparable to 2014 levels,’’ Eurostat said.

Both migration numbers and asylum applications swelled in 2015 to 2016, when the war in Syria spiralled and other Middle Eastern states were wracked with fresh turmoil.

Those nationalities continue to be the top groups seeking protection.

Syrians were the largest group in 2018, with 80,900, followed by Afghans with 41, 000 and Iraqis, 39,600.

Together, they accounted for almost 30 per cent of the total.

The number of pending applications, however, is much larger. Those totalled

878, 600 at the end of 2018, down slightly from 927, 000 a year earlier.

Germany, meanwhile, saw the largest share of applications, at 28 per cent, followed by France and Greece, at 19 per cent and 11 per cent.

In terms of year-on-year changes, however, there was wide fluctuation across the bloc.

Some states, such as Cyprus, Spain and Belgium, recorded large percentage jumps in applications, while Italy and Austria had large drops.

“The EU-wide average was 1,133 applicants per one million population, but some countries recorded far lower ratios,’’ Eurostat said.

Hungary, for example had only 65 applicants per million, while Poland had 63.

The latter have rightwing, populist parties in government, and Hungary, in particular, have staked out a hardline course on migration and asylum more generally.

Angry Residents Burn down Another Ebola Treatment Centre in Congo Angry residents have burned down an Ebola treatment centre in eastern Congo, an official said yesterday, the latest attack on a clinic.

“The centre and some vehicles were completely burned down,” Richard Nyembo, a local official in the Lubero area, told dpa.

An official at the general hospital, Kasereka Lupande, said that one of the attackers was killed when police intervened in the fracas in North Kivu province.

“There was one death, one injured, and five vehicles and the centre damaged,” Lupande said.

Authorities and aid groups have been struggling to do their jobs in the dangerous eastern region where

numerous militia groups operate, most fighting over the Central African country’s rich natural resources.

However, they have also had to deal with a local populous suspicious of health workers.

Two Doctors without Borders (MSF) clinics were attacked in recent weeks, prompting the World Health Organisation to say it was “deeply concerned.”

A total of 584 people have died since the outbreak started in 2018.

Report says it is the second-largest Ebola outbreak ever.

Ebola is a highly infectious disease that causes a fever and often leads to massive internal bleeding and death.

CEMENTING TIES ...

Ekiti State Governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi (right), with Chinese Ambassador to Nigeria, Dr. Zhou Pingjan, during a courtesy visit to the governor in Ado--Ekiti...yesterday

Senate Poised to Pass Bill Ending Trump’s Border Emergency, Veto Expected The United Senate yesterday said it was poised to pass a proposal to terminate President Donald Trump’s declaration of an emergency at the southern border.

Five Republican senators said they backed the measure passed in February by the US House of Representatives, which is controlled by Democrats.

No fewer than four Republicans are needed to pass it in the 100-seat Senate, along with all 45 Democrats and two independents.

However, the measure is unlikely to become law given that a two-third vote of

Congress is needed to override a presidential veto. “We’ll see whether or not I have to do the veto. And it will be, I think, all very successful, regardless of how it all works out,” Trump told newsmen on Wednesday.

Vice President Mike Pence met with Republican senators this week to try to tamp down support for the measure, with some Republicans worried that future Democratic presidents could usurp the power of Congress to fund the government.

Some Republicans are also worried that future Democratic presidents might use the emergency declarations to fund

their own pet programmes.

Pence told senators that Trump would back a second bill offered by Republican Senator Mike Lee, which would end future emergency declarations after 30 days unless Congress votes to extend them.

On Wednesday, Lee said the White House had subsequently made clear his bill did not have an immediate path forward. He added that he would vote to end the emergency declaration.

Ticking clock may save Trump from impeachment At stake are billions of dollars in funding for a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border that Trump

is demanding but Congress has refused to fully provide.

The stalemate led to a 35-day partial government shutdown that ended in January. Under the emergency declaration Trump signed on Feb. 15, he will take money from other federal programmes to build the barrier he says is needed to curb illegal immigration and drug trafficking.

Democrats have denied there is an emergency at the border, saying border crossings are at a four-decade low. Court challenges have also been filed asserting it is Congress, not the president that decides how taxpayer money is spent.

Pompeo Says All US Diplomats Have left Venezuela All United States diplomats remaining in Venezuela had left the country on Thursday, Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, said, amid a political crisis over the legitimacy of President Nicolas Maduro’s 2018 reelection.

“US diplomats will now continue that mission from other locations where they will continue to help manage the flow of humanitarian assistance to the Venezuelan people.

“And also to support the

democratic actors bravely resisting tyranny,” Pompeo said in a statement.

A US official said the diplomats were flown out in a civilian charter aircraft.

The State Department had already announced that it would withdraw its remaining diplomatic staff from Venezuela this week.

Washington has taken the lead in recognising Juan Guaido, the 35-year-old Congress chief, who declared himself interim

president in January, calling Maduro’s 2018 re-election a fraud. Most countries in Europe and Latin America have followed suit while Russia, China and others support Maduro. In another development, four people were killed and at least 300 were detained in association with protests and looting that took place during Venezuela’s nationwide blackout, rights groups said on Thursday.

Venezuela suffered its worst

blackout in history last week following technical problems that President Nicolas Maduro called an act of U.S.-backed sabotage but critics dismissed as the result of incompetence.

Rights groups Provea and the Venezuelan Observatory of Social Conflict said via Twitter that three people were killed in the central state of Lara and one person was killed in the western state of Zulia.

The cause of the deaths was unclear.

47

FRIDAY MARCH 15, 2019˾ T H I S D AY

WORLD OF ISLAM INTERNA TIONAL

Japan Joins Global The Case for Allah’s Existence Ban on Flights of in the Quran and Sunnah – 3 Boeing 737 MAX Edited by: MJO Mustapha Email deji.mustapha@thisdaylive.com

Justin Parrot/Yaqeen Institute/IslamiCity (continued from last week)

In the name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful Appealing to the Mind, Reason, and Logic Cosmological Discourse The question that most human beings eventually ask themselves is about the nature of existence: Why am I here? Why is there a world and a universe? Why is there something and not nothing?

The Quran addresses this question with a cosmological discourse, a reminder that it was God who created everything and caused it to be. Human beings are asked to reflect upon the nature of their existence and the universe. Is it really plausible, sensible, and intuitive that the universe appeared arbitrarily for no reason?

Allah said: Have they not thought about their own selves? God did not create the heavens and earth and everything between them without a serious purpose and an appointed time, yet many people deny that they will meet their Lord. (Q30:8) Our intuition and experience tell us that effects have causes; things come to be because something made them that way. Since the universe is one giant series of causes and effects, it is reasonable to conclude that it had an original cause that set it all in motion.

Allah said: Were they created out of nothing? Were they the creators? Did they create the heavens and the earth? No! They do not have faith. (Q52: 35-36) These verses posit three possibilities: 1) the universe appeared without any agent to bring it into existence, 2) people created themselves, or by implication 3) the universe must have been created.

The first two propositions are impossible. It could not be the case that the universe appeared from nothing without any reason, purpose, or force to inject it with its energy and direction.

Everyday experience informs us that all things we witness in life, every effect we see, must have an explanation at some level. The second proposition, that people created themselves, can be dismissed on its face. As such, the only reasonable conclusion is that the universe was caused – it was created – it was made to exist by something greater and more powerful than itself.

The only reasonable conclusion is that the universe was made to exist by something greater ...

Ibn Hajar (d. 1449) explains the meaning of these verses by quoting the scholar Al-Khattabi: It is said the meaning [of the verse] is: Were they created without a creator? That is impossible, as they must have a creator. If they deny the Creator, then they must have created themselves, and that proposition is even more foolish and false, for how can something without existence create anything? If they reject these two opinions [that they came to be without a creator or they created themselves], then the proof is established upon them that they were in fact created.

Scholars derive from these verses and others a logical train of thought, sometimes referred to as the cosmological argument, which determines that God, as the uncaused cause or first cause, is the most reasonable answer to the existential question. Ismail Latif Hacınebioglu summarizes the logic of the argument in the following steps: 1. Everything in the universe that has a beginning must have a cause.

2. The universe began to exist.

3. Therefore the beginning of the existence of the universe must have been caused by something.

4. The only such cause must be an uncaused cause, or God. This line of thinking is acceptable to the mind and it finds validation in human intuition and experience. It sufficiently answers the question of why anything exists in the first place. Jubair ibn Mut’im (d. 677) reported that he heard the Prophet reciting these verses in the evening prayer, and he said, “My heart was about to fly!”. The argument in this passage was so compelling that Jubair embraced Islam.

A version of this argument was used by the great jurist and theologian Abu Hanifah (d. 767) in his debate with philosophers who were skeptical about the existence of God: It was reported from Abu Hanifah that some philosophers (ahl al-kalam) intended to discuss with him the establishment of the existence of one Creator. Abu Hanifah said, ‘Tell me before we speak on this matter about a ship on the Tigris river moving by itself and filled with food, goods, and other materials, then it goes back by itself, then anchors itself, then unloads itself and continues to do all of this without anyone to manage it.’ They said, ‘This could never

happen.’ Abu Hanifah said, ‘If it is impossible for a ship, then how is it possible for the entire world in all of its vastness?’.

Ibn Al-Qayyim (d. 1350) uses a similar example of a watermill spinning on its own, producing, harvesting, and distributing its crops without anyone to guide it: What do you say about a watermill revolving over a river in perfection? Its tools are perfected, its parts measured with excellence, and it is so obvious such that no observer can find fault in its parts or its form. It presides over a grand garden within which are every kind of fruit and crops, watering them as needed. Within this garden, its shrubbery is gathered and its maintenance is assured for its well-being. Its produce is excellent and guaranteed, and all of its needs are well served. Thus, nothing of it is left disordered and none of its fruit is left to rot. Then, the value of everything produced is divided according to their needs and necessities, divided by every type and distributed, and this distribution occurs in this manner at all times.

Do you find this arrangement to have a creator or harvester or manager? Or, is the arraignment of that watermill and garden without an actor or maintainer or manager? What do you find that your mind tells you in that case and how could you explain it?

Common sense tells us that the ship or the watermill must have been made to move by something outside of itself. Established scientific principles agree. The great physicist Sir Isaac Newton’s first law of motion states: “Every object persists in its state of rest or uniform motion in a straight line unless it is compelled to change that state by forces impressed on it.” In other words, things in the universe do not move or change their movements unless an external force acts upon them. This is true of everything in the universe, and it is just as true for the universe itself as a whole.

Those who deny the existence of the Creator attempt to challenge the a priori premise that the universe has a definite beginning. Their argument is that the universe has always existed in an endless series of causes, or an infinite regression, without the need for a first cause to set it in motion. Besides being counterintuitive – as all things we experience in life had a beginning at some point – modern physics and cosmology now largely accept the premise of the cosmological argument as fact. The “big bang” theory postulates that the universe began from a singularity somewhere between 12 and 14 billion years ago.

Tracing the series of explanations for why things are as they are leads to the reasonable ...

Even if we accept the idea of an infinite regression for the sake of argument, and despite the lack of scientific or intuitive evidence for it, that does not discount the need for a cause beyond time and space to produce and sustain it. Polymath and philosopher G.W. Leibniz (d.

1716) asserts that an infinite series must still necessarily have a sufficient reason for its existence: Let us suppose that a book on the elements of geometry has always existed, one copy always made from another. It is obvious that although we can explain a present copy of the book from the previous book from which it was copied, this will never lead us to a complete explanation, no matter how many books back we go, since we can always wonder why there have always been such books, why these books were written, and why they were written the way they were.

What is true of these books is also true of the different states of the world, for the state which follows is, in a sense, copied from the preceding state, though in accordance with certain laws of change. And so, however far back we might go into previous states, we will never find in those states a complete explanation [ratio] for why, indeed, there is any world at all, and why it is the way it is… From this it follows that even if we assume the eternity of the world, we cannot escape the ultimate and extramundane reason for things, God. In the same vein, physicist Don Page gives the example of an artist drawing a circle on a canvas; the circle has no beginning or end, yet it still required an external artist to draw it.

The existence of the universe itself, regardless of its finite or infinite nature, must have had a Creator to set the chain of causes in motion.

Nevertheless, the cosmological argument by itself is only one piece in a much larger discourse on the nature of existence. The Quran complements the discussion with an even greater and more compelling teleological discourse – that the world was designed.

Japan on Thursday joined a global ban on flights of Boeing’s 737 MAX planes in the wake of Sunday’s crash of the medium-haul jets, which killed all 157 people aboard, officials said.

The land and transport ministry ordered overseas carriers not to fly Boeing 737 MAX aircraft to any airports in Japan.

“The ban won’t be lifted until we can confirm its safety,” the official told AFP. No Japanese airline companies possess Boeing 737 MAX planes, while All Nippon Airways (ANA) plans to buy 30 units of the aircraft.

The ministry has not

issued any instruction on ANA’s planned purchase, the official said, adding: “Primarily, each private company should make its own decision.”

On Wednesday, the US joined Canada and other countries in grounding the aircraft, saying that new evidence showed similarities between last Sunday’s deadly crash of an Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 MAX 8 and a fatal accident in Indonesia in October.

Ethiopian Airlines said Thursday that the black box flight recorders from the Boeing 737 MAX 8 that crashed have been flown to Paris for analysis.

German Catholics Meet to Address Child Sex Abuse Scandal Germany’s Catholic Church was due Thursday to speak about steps to address its child sex abuse scandal, which mirrors clerical paedophilia revelations worldwide.

Cardinal Reinhard Marx, the head of the German Bishops’ Conference, was due to give a 1300 GMT press conference at the end of a four-day episcopal conference in the western city of Lingen.

As in Australia, Chile, France, Ireland and the United States, Germany’s Catholic Church has had to admit to abuses by predator priests and clergy and their systematic cover-up over decades.

Germany’s Church last September released a study that showed 1,670 clergymen had committed some form of sexual attack against 3,677 minors, mostly boys, between 1946 and 2014.

The authors said the figure was “the tip of the iceberg”

as many Church documents had been “destroyed or manipulated”.

The true figure of German Catholic abuse victims was estimated at 114,000 in a recent Ulm University study based on a randomised survey of the general population that was published in the Journal of Sexual Child Abuse.

Survey leader Joerg Fegert, whose study estimated similar figures for the Protestant Church, told Die Welt newspaper that he hoped the bishops’ meeting “will finally face up to the true dimensions of the sexual abuse of minors”.

Last month a Vatican meeting addressed the global issue heaping pressure on the Church, and this week Australian Cardinal George Pell, one of Pope Francis’s closest advisers, was jailed for six years for molesting two choirboys in 1996.

AfDB to Provide $25bn to Fight Climate Change in Five Years The African Development Bank (AfDB) on Thursday said it would provide 25 billion dollars (2.5 trillion shillings) over the next five years to help in the global fight against climate change.

The President of AfDB, Mr. Akinwumi Adesina, said the bank currently provides 34 per cent of its overall lending portfolio to projects aiming to boost the fight against climate change.

Addressing at the One Planet Summit during the 4th session of the UN Environment Assembly, Adesina said that there was need to create home-made financing mechanisms to enable local communities cope with climate change.

Adesina said that the financing required to deal with climate change should come from the private sector.

He said that the funds should be directed toward

renewable energy solutions to enable millions of people still unable to access electricity to be connected.

“Africa needs indigenous models to finance climate change,” Adesina said.

I formerly known and addressed as ISICHEI ESTHER IFEANYI, now wish to be known and addressed as ADEYEMI ESTHER IFEANYI. All former documents remain valid. The general public should please take note.

I formerly known and addressed as EUNICE OPEOLUWA ADEBIYI, now wish to be known and addressed as EUNICE OPEOLUWA ANUODO. All former documents remain valid. The general public should please take note.

I formerly known and addressed as ISABELLA JOHN RWUANN, now wish to be known and addressed as ISABELLA JOHN SAMUEL. All former documents remain valid. The general public should please take note.

I formerly known and addressed as OGUNSOLA COMFORT EKUNDAYO, now wish to be known and addressed as OLATUNDUN COMFORT EKUNDAYO. All former documents remain valid. The general public should please take note.

I formerly known and addressed as MISS UBENE ILO BLESSING, now wish to be known and addressed as MRS. MOMOH ILO BLESSING. All former documents remain valid. The general public should please take note.

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I formerly known and addressed as JOYCE OGHOWMEN IGELEKE, now wish to be known and addressed as JOYCE FUNMI-MATHEW .

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Rivers PDP: Why INEC Should Declare Wike Winner INEC committee’s visit a waste, says APC group Ernest Chinwo in Port Harcourt The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Rivers State has stated that there was no ambiguity from the results so far released in the March 9, 2019 governorship and state Assembly elections, as Governor Nyesom Ezenwo Wike has been duly re-elected for a second term.

This is coming as a good governance advocacy group, the Rivers Unity House, (RUH) has said the visit of the fact-finding committee of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to the state following the suspension of the gubernatorial election in the state was a waste.

PDP, at a press conference addressed by state Chairman, Felix Obuah, at the PDP Secretariat in Port Harcourt, urged the INEC to declare Wike winner of the election, adding that the results from all polling units and constituencies where elections were concluded have confirmed and reaffirmed that Rivers people voted for no other party but the PDP. Obuah said with 26 state constituencies already declared in favour of the PDP, there was no iota of doubt that Wike has been re-elected by the people of Rivers State.

He expressed confidence that from the results so far declared at the units across the state, the remaining PDP candidates, including Wike, Senator George Sekibo and Hon. Betty Apiafi

would also be elected on the strength of the peoples’ votes.

Giving a summary of the results so far released by INEC, the State PDP Chairman said while PDP garnered a total of 26 seats in the State House of Assembly election, AAC/ APC got none. Again, at the National Assembly election, while PDP won a total of 14 seats, AAC/APC recorded zero.

“As we await the official declaration by INEC that our governorship candidate, Wike has been duly re-elected in line with the peoples’ votes and overwhelming wishes, I urge the people of Rivers State to remain vigilant and continue to support our party,” Obuah said.

He went on: “The victories of February 23 and March 9, 2019 are victories for all Rivers people. By voting massively for PDP, Rivers people chose freedom, performance and merit over political gangsterism, impudence and impunity.

“You courageously stood your ground despite the arrests, harassment, violence and horrific onslaught on our democratic rights by the combined gang of renegade soldiers and F-SARS personnel.

I want to assure the people of Rivers State that PDP will not He urged the people of the state to remain vigilant and continue to support the PDP, as the official declaration by INEC that Wike has been duly re-elected in line with

Vandals of Electrical Installation to Get Two Years Jail Terms in Ekiti The Governor of Ekiti State, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, has inaugurated an Electricity Regulatory Act, which forbids theft and vandalism of electricity equipment and installation in the state.

Going by the content of the act tagged: ‘Ekiti State Electricity Regulatory Act 2015’, vandals of electricity equipment now risk two years jail term with option of N10 million fine.

The act also mandates the establishment of electricity committees in all the communities in the state to monitor suspicious activities on any electricity installation or equipment, and report to distribution companies (discos).

While inaugurating the Act at a function attended by stakeholders in Ado Ekiti yesterday, Fayemi, who was represented by the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Mr. Biodun Oyebanji, stated that the Act was enacted to protect both the suppliers and consumers of electricity.

“This regulation was made to protect suppliers and users of electricity. If you tamper with your meters or do anything untoward to the transformers you are liable.

“The electricity company, the Benin Electricity Distribution Companies (BEDC), must not default in electricity supply because such also carries penalty”.

The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of BEDC, Mrs. Funke Osibodu, revealed that distribution companies lose about N30 billion daily due to the activities of vandals and

theives. She commended the state government for enacting the law, saying it will help in boosting power supply to Ekiti State.

Osibodu, represented by a staff of the company, Lucky Ayomoto, added that BEDC, which controls electricity distribution in Ekiti, Ondo Delta Edo and Osun States, has taken giant strides in ensuring that the economies of those states were given impetus through improved electricity supplies since assumption.

According to her, “Ekiti State Electricity Regulation Act 2015 therefore seeks to curb and deter illegal and unauthorised use of regulated electricity supply as well as to protect electricity infrastructure.

“According to the Nigeria power baseline report of 2015, Nigeria was estimated to have daily technical losses of 12 percent and non-technical losses of 34 percent, giving a combined total of 46 percent in aggregate technical and non-technical losses.”

Osibodu added that the BEDC, as part of its responsibilities, has increased power supply to Ado Ekiti capital city from five hours to 9 hours daily, while other towns like Ido, Otun, Osun, Ira, Igogo and others in Ekiti North now enjoy 18 hours daily supplies.

“Ode Ekiti in Gbonyin Local Government Area that has been in total darkness has now been reconnected to national grid while work is ongoing on Ikogosi, Erinjiyan and Ipole Iloro electricity,” she said.

the peoples’ votes, is being awaited.

Meanwhile, a good governance advocacy group, RUH has said the visit of the fact-finding committee of INEC to the state following the suspension of the gubernatorial election in the state was a waste. Convener of RUH, an advocacy group within the All Progressives Congress

(APC), Kingsley Wenenda Wali, spoke yesterday at a live radio programme monitored in Port Harcourt. He said the visit of the committee was a waste of time and resources.

Wali said: “I don’t feel comfortable discussing INEC. Let’s say I doubt if INEC is fair. I doubt that very much.

They brought themselves into the playing field as active

participants but because as a civil servant, I believe that the kind of things should be saying should stoke flame or fire as it were. There are certain things you shouldn’t do as a civil servant but INEC is saying all of that.

“What is all these about the fact-finding committee? They have the DSS, which is part of the electoral process. What

report can’t you get from the DSS? Why sending people to come to Port Harcourt to do what?

“Unless you are saying that the DSS is also compromised; that the army is compromised and the Police is compromised and the only people that are not compromised is INEC. I find that very ridiculous to believe.”

THIS IS TO CERTIFY THAT...

Governor Ibrahim Gaidam of Yobe State (right), receiving his Certificate of Return as senator-elect representing Yobe East senatorial district from INEC National Commissioner, Tijjani Muazu, at a ceremony at International Conference Centre in Abuja...yesterday

Fresh Elections to Hold in 124 Polling Units in Bayelsa Emmanuel Addeh in Yenagoa The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has rescheduled election in at least 124 polling units in disputed areas in the state.

Head of Voter Education and Publicity in the state, Mr. Wilfred Ifogah, listed the affected areas to include Southern Ijaw, Ogbia and Brass Local Government Areas (LGA).

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) had raised the alarm that elections did not take place in several parts of Bayelsa as the elections were highly militarised and

characterised by intimidation, ballot snatching and manipulation of results.

Ifogah noted that a stakeholders’ meeting would be held with all concerned parties before the elections to acquaint them with their roles during the rescheduled polls.

According to the INEC boss, while elections will be conducted in six polling units in Brass, it will be carried out in 65 units in Ogbia, while in Southern Ijaw, 53 polling units would be affected.

Meanwhile, a PDP governorship aspirant in Bayelsa, Mr Keniebi Okoko, has said that INEC was yet to

justify the huge resources made available to the electoral umpire by the federal government.

He noted that with the amount that was budgeted for the elections, the problem of logistics and Information Technology infrastructure shouldn’t be a problem for INEC. Speaking during an interview in his country home in Yenagoa, Okoko, the businessmen and cleric, noted that the world had moved beyond the use of thumbprint in elections and urged Nigeria to embrace technology in the conduct of elections.

He also condemned the use

of the military in the elections, describing it as an aberration.

He said: “In every democratic nation, the military man at any point in time is not supposed to be seen by any civilian. His duty post is in the barracks, combat ready to defend the sovereignty of the nation, combat ready to defend the borders of his nation with integrity.

“The duty of the military is to uphold the dignity of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

I have not seen it in any civilised democratic nation where you deploy the military for elections. I have not seen,” he explained.

Offa Robbery: Court Adjourns over Security Report Hammed Shittu in Ilorin A Kwara State High Court sitting in Ilorin, yesterday, abruptly adjourned the resumed trial of Offa bank robbery suspects, citing security reports.

The five accused persons standing trial in connection with the April 5, 2018 bloody bank robbery in Offa, Offa Local Government Area of the State, Ayoade Akinnibosun, Ibikunle Ogunleye, Adeola Abraham, Salaudeen Azeez and Niyi Ogundiran were in court The court had commenced sitting on the case at about 9a.m yesterday for the continuation of hearing as one of the prosecution witnesses, Hitila Hassan continued to give his evidence and was cross-examined by the defense counsel, Mathias Emeribe.

The Presiding Judge, Justice

Halimat Salman, had said during the court proceeding at about past 2 p.m that “reports reaching us are not favourable for the continuation of the case today. I don’t have anything doing but the court had to rise for the case to continue tomorrow.

“For the security of the suspects and all of us here, I have to rise. May God spare our lives till tomorrow for the continuation of hearing.”

In his evidence-in-chief, Inspector Hassan said the confessional statement of the first suspect (Ayoade Akinnibosun) indicted the Chief of Staff to Kwara State Government, Babatunde Abdulwahab; Political Adviser to Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed, LekanAlabi, and one Adeola Omiyale.

He added that the first suspect alleged that he got the AK47 rifles allegedly used in the

robbery incident from the above people, saying that informed their arrest by the police high command in Abuja.

Hassan, who said he is an inspector of police attached to the Intelligence Response Team of the former Inspector General of Police, added that it is headed by Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP), Abba Kyari.

Hassan said he supervised the recording of the confessional statements of Ibikunle Ogunleye (2nd accused person) and Adeola Abraham (3rd accuse person), adding that he helped write those of the first accused(Akinnibosun) and 5th accused person (Niyi Ogundiran) and he countersigned as the writer.

The Lead Prosecuting Counsel, Prof. Wahab Egbewole (SAN), sought to tender the statements as exhibit but Emeribe objected.

He argued that the statements

were not voluntarily taken, noting that they fell short of the provisions of the Evidence Act particularly, Sections 28 and 29.

He said: “They fall short of the Kwara State Administration of Criminal Justice Law because as it did not show the voluntariness of the statements as stated, particularly as it concerns section 33 of the Kwara State Administration of Criminal Justice Law 2018.

“Even in the absence of the law they did not comply with the judge’s rules. It must be understood that Kwara State Administration of Justice Law 2018 was created to protect the rights of the accused when statement of this nature is about to be taken. Failure to yield to these provisions will automatically render the admissibility of same null and void.

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Supreme Court Fixes March 26 to Hear Abe’s Appeal on Rivers APC Primary Alex Enumah in Abuja The Supreme Court will on March 26 begin hearing in the appeal seeking

the determination of the authenticity or otherwise of the direct primary conducted by the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers

Sanwo-Olu Visits Collapsed Building Site, Meets Victims at Hospitals Lagos State Governor-elect, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, yesterday visited the survivors of the collapsed building at the hospital in company of his Deputy Governor-Elect, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat.

Sanwo-Olu, who also visited the site of the collapsed buildings at Ita-Faaji, Lagos Island, to assess the rescue operations and sympathised with the residents who lost loved ones in the tragedy commended the efforts by the emergency and rescue workers.

The governor-elect who hails from Lagos Island, upon arrival at Ita-Faaji at 1:05p.m, lamented the loss of lives in the incident, which, he said, could have been prevented if the owner of the collapsed buildings had not flouted the State’s building codes.

The incoming governor personally engaged some residents to get first-hand information on how the threestory structure came down.

Some of the residents who bared their minds on the incident, alleged that building developers in the area were fond of using sub-standard building materials on the property they manage, urging

the incoming governor to carry out an audit on all buildings in the area when he assumes office.

They also told Sanwo-Olu that complaints were lodged at the Local Government office and Ministry of Physical Planning about defective structures in the area prior to the last Wednesday collapse, alleging that building developers usually bribed government officials to look away.

In his response, SanwoOlu said: “I am personally terrified that we lost lives in this incident, because it is something that shouldn’t happen. I urge all government agencies that are involved in ensuring standards on buildings to speed up their tasks to prevent a repeat of this tragic incident.

“These agencies should go out and check if there are still buildings across Lagos that have compromised. This is the rightful thing to do now. We should not wait till we see fatalities, such as we witnessed in this incident. Sanctity of building approvals is important and critical to ensuring we prevent this kind of event in the future.”

Oyetola Appoints SSG, CoS Osun State Governor Adegboyega Oyetola yesterday made three major appointments.

These are: Prince Oluwole Oyebamiji as Secretary to the State Government (SSG); Dr. Charles Diji Akinola as Chief of Staff (CoS) to the Governor; and Mr. Adeyanju Abdullah Binuyo as Deputy Chief of Staff.

A statement by Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Mr. Adeniyi Adesina, said the appointments took immediate effect.

Oyebamiji is a 1978 graduate of Theatre Arts of the University of Ibadan.

He is a former Permanent Secretary, one-time General Manager, Osun State Broadcasting Corporation (OSBC), and erstwhile full-time Commissioner in the Osun State Civil Service Commission.

Akinola is an alumnus of the Harvard Kennedy School of Government and a Fellow of the Weatherhead Centre for International Affairs, Harvard University. He has a wealth of experience in international development, public policy and cross-sector partnerships.

He was for many years Country Director, TechnoServe, an international development organisation reputed for its work in agriculture value chains and agribusinesses, and later Executive Director,

Enterprise for Development International.

Akinola was the Director General, Office of Economic Development and Partnerships which is responsible for spearheading cross sector partnerships between the state, national and international investors and partners. He was the Chairman of the State Planning Commission and had variously supervised the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, and the Ministry of Regional Integration in the State.

Binuyo obtained a B.Sc. and MSc. from the University of Lagos. He attended several trainings at the University of Reading in the United Kingdom, Tias University in the Netherlands and the National University of Ireland.

Binuyo has a deep experience in development finance, project and human management in the public and private sectors.

He was the Senior Special Assistant on MDGs to the immediate past Administration.

Prior to that, he had being a consultant to the Office of the Senior Special Assistant to the President on MDGs. In 2015, he was Technical Adviser to the Transition Committee of President-elect, Muhammadu Buhari. Until recently, he was Chief of Staff to Minister of Communications Mr.Adebayo Shittu.

State for the nomination of its candidates for the 2019 general election.

Senator Magnus Abe, who is a factional leader of the Rivers APC, is praying the apex court to make a final pronouncement on the legality of both direct and indirect primary polls conducted by the two factions of the party, last year.

When the matter was mentioned yesterday, Abe’s counsel, Henry Bello, moved a motion praying the apex court to, among others, grant accelerated hearing in the matter, abridgment of time

within which parties are to file their processes and a definite date for hearing of the appeal.

The motion dated March 1, was predicated on eight grounds and affidavit of urgency among which is that the matter being a pre-election suit, must by law be fully determined within 60 days.

While moving the motion, Bello prayed the five- member panel of the apex court to grant his client accelerated hearing and order parties to file and exchange their processes within the time

allowed by law for a preelection matter.

Respondents in the appeal are the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), APC and another governorship aspirant, Tonye Cole as well as 36 others.

INEC, represented by Mathew Anyim, announced to the court that the electoral body had chosen to be neutral in the matter.

Celestine Agidi, who stood for Tonye Cole and his team did not object to the motion but however pleaded that 24 hours will not be sufficient for him to file his brief of

argument.

In a ruling, the presiding Justice, Mary Odili granted the three prayers of the appellant and adjourned hearing in the matter till March 26.

Justice Odili also ordered Cole and other respondents to file their brief of argument within three days, while the appellant was granted three days within which to file his own response.

Although the APC was served with hearing notice, it was not represented in court by either a counsel or any of its staff.

FCTA Disburses N2.6bn to Six Area Councils, Others Olawale Ajimotokan in Abuja The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has disbursed a total of N2.6 billion to the six Area Councils in the FCT and other stakeholders as their share of statutory allocation for the month of January.

FCT Permanent Secretary, Chinyeaka Ohaa made the disclosure during the Joint

Accounts Allocation Committee (JAAC) meeting in his office.

From the breakdown of the allocation, Gwagwalada Area Council received the lion share of N226 million while Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC) got N221 million. Abaji Area Council received N183million, while Kuje Area Council got N167 million. Bwari Area Council also

received N164 million while the sum of N154 million was shared to Kwali Area Council.

In addition, Ohaa disclosed that primary school teachers got N1.2 billion ,while15 per cent pension funds accounted for N226 million.

Also one per cent training and 10 per cent employer pension contribution gulped N107 million.

The Permanent Secretary charged the council chairmen to ensure judicious use of the fund for payment of staff’s salaries and infrastructural development of their respective domains.

He also dwelled on the payment of workers’ salaries, saying the action boosted the electoral fortunes of political players in view of the ripple effects it created.

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Groups Urge EFCC to Probe Ganduje over Fresh Withdrawal of N235m for Vote Buying Fund was budgetary allocation for capital projects, state govt replies Ibrahim Shuaibu in Kano Kano State Civil Society Groups yesterday called on the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to probe the state Governor, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, for allegedly withdrawing N235,500,000, from the state government treasury ahead of the supplementary election due in nine days’ time.

But in a swift reaction, the state Commissioner for Local Government, Murtala Sule Garo, described the allegation as politically-motivated to dent the government image,

stressing that the fund was part of budgetary allocations meant for capital projects in the state.

The groups stated this in a petition to the anti-graft agency yesterday titled: ‘Petition against Kano State Government over attempt to buy votes ahead of the March 23, 2019, rRerun gubernatorial election in Kano’.

The petition signed by Co-conveners of the group, Kabiru Saidu Dakata and Abdulrazaq Alkai, urged the crime commission to probe the suspicious withdrawal.

According to them, “We

wish to draw your attention to a suspicious withdrawal ofN235,500,000, from Kano State Government treasury through the Ministry for Local Governments.”

They also alleged that “the said amount has been allocated to different local governments where INEC is scheduled to hold the re-run election in the state.

“The coalition is aware of the effort your commission in curbing the menace of vote buying, especially by encouraging Nigerians to report incidents of votes buying to your commission, either through the already shared phone numbers or through other means.”

The Kano based CSOs explained in the petition that “it is in recognition

of EFCC’s commitment to curb this menace that this information is contained in a leaked document dated March 12, 2019, that is now available in the public domain.”

They also alleged that “on March 13, 2019, arrests of some votes buying agents have been made in some communities where gubernatorial re-run election will take place, and some of those agents confirmed that they were working for the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state, as one of them confirmed on a popular local radio programme in Kano last Wednesday.” The groups appealed to “EFCC to investigate this matter, while also putting some measures in those communities to ensure that votes buying, before and

during the election, does not influence the gubernatorial re-run election in the state.”

They, therefore, assured EFCC of its commitment to continue to support the efforts of the commission to curb votes buying and any other form of corruption in the state and Nigeria at large.

However, in a swift reaction, the state Commissioner for Local Government, Murtala Sule Garo, refuted the claim, insisting that the groups are political motivated to dent the image of the government.

Murtala told THISDAY in Kano that no money was allocated to compromise election, explaining that the money released was part of budgetary allocation to fund capital projects.

Dismissing the claim that the funds was released specifically to places where rerun will hold, the commissioner posited that only nine local councils benefited out of the 30 areas where rerun will hold.

“It is not true and it gross misinformation. The money released is part of normal allocation from government treasury since both state government and local council operate joint account.

“We need not to buy votes because the people are already with the state government. And if they say we released money to compromise election, the allocation was meant for 13 LGA’s, and out of these councils, rerun will hold only in nine,” he stated.

economic freedom,” the company declared.

“We became the first company to single-handedly build an international submarine cable, Glo 1, to provide sufficient bandwidth to drive internet penetration,” the company said, adding that, “the 9,800-km-long cable has landing points in Lagos, Nigeria; Accra, Ghana;

Dakar, Senegal; Nouakchott, Mauritania; Casablanca, Morocco; Sesimbra, Portugal; Vigo, Spain, and Bude in England.”

The grandmasters of data also expressed the hope that the forum will galvanise the continent towards prosperity, given the profile of participants and the range of issues to be tackled.

FG’ll Recreate Grazing Reserves in Nigeria, Glo: Why We are Supporting 2019 Africa CEO Forum Ogbeh Insists The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh, yesterday declared that the Federal Government would soon embark on the re-creation of grazing reserves across the country.

Ogbeh disclosed this when he received 64 participants of the Executive Intelligence Management Course 12 and faculty members of the Institute for Security Studies, lower Usma Dam, Bwari, Abuja, at the headquarters of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

He told his guests that the recreation of grazing reserves became necessary because of the farmers and herders conflict as well as the high level of unemployment across the country, adding that the grazing reserves would help in solving the problems.

Ogbeh said, “We are not going to any state that is not

interested and we are not going to collect anybody’s land.”

He called on the individuals who had interest and ability to build grazing reserve to do so and promised government’s support.

The minister, in a statement from the FMARD, thanked the delegates and told them that the institute was working for the development of the West African region and Africa in general.

Ogbeh said the security analysis they embarked on in the institute was a good gesture as it would help in developing Nigeria’s democracy, especially during elections when the country normally recorded high level of violence due to desperate politicians.

He called on the participants to focus on the security challenges facing the West African region and the continent.

Fully integrated telecommunications solutions provider, Globacom, has stated that it decided to sponsor the 2019 Africa CEO Forum because of its desire to help Africa transform its huge potentials into economic prosperity.

According to the company, the event will provide a platform for chief executives of African businesses, international investors and policymakers to champion private sector-led growth on the continent. The forum will be held in Kigali, Rwanda, on March 25 and 26.

“We share Africa CEO Forum’s objective of using regional integration to drive private sector growth and create more African champions,” Globacom said in a statement issued yesterday in Lagos.

Globacom is the 2019 Apex Diamond partner of the event.

The company’s Executive Vice Chairman (EVC), Mrs. Bella Disu, will also play a prominent role at the forum as chair of the ‘Women in Business Initiative’

Group Condemns Spate of Attacks on Presidential Adviser, Dokubo Chinedu Eze The Foundation for Peace and Non-violence in Nigeria has condemned the spate of mudslinging in the media on the Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta Affairs and Coordinator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP), Professor Charles Dokubo.

President of the group, Onengiye Erekosima, who made the observation while speaking to journalists yesterday at the Murtala Muhammed Airport (MMA) in Lagos on his way to Abuja, stated that the Ijaw nation was being embarrassed by attempts to soil the reputation of the special adviser by some Ijaw people, either jostling for his position in the presidency or having an interest to protect.

Erekosima also said Dokubo is a decent man, who does

not deserve such mudslinging, and that nemesis would catch up with the perpetrators.

He decried what seemed of recent to be the character of some Ijaw people to pull their brothers down in order to replace them in their jobs or just for self centredness, pointing out that the dogeats-dog mentality was embarrassing to the Ijaw nation before other Nigerians.

The leader of the group, therefore, urged the perpetrators of the act to desist from such ‘queer and borrowed culture’ for which the Ijaw people were not known for in the past.

Erekosima said: “It was unthinkable for anyone to imagine or moot the allegations let alone falsely accusing him in the media of such heinous offence as looting a training complex, knowing well his forthright status and impeccable

character in Ijaw land in particular and Nigeria in general.”

He noted that Dokubo has achieved so much and cited the case of prompt and regular payment of stipends to ex-agitators, who no longer block the highways in the region to protest the anomaly, as a big credit.

Erekosima stated that a cursory interaction with the Special Adviser would leave no one in doubt of his intellectual capacity, dexterity and diligence to deliver, and appealed to members of the public to discountenance the campaign of calumny by some misguided Ijaw persons.

He further stated that the presidential adviser is an honest man that means well for the people of Niger Delta, and cautioned that history would not forgive anyone working to truncate such hope.

session.

“This is part of our efforts to empower African businesses and spur economic growth in the region. Since we started operations in 2003, we have been in the forefront of promoting economic growth.

We have continuously invested heavily in building reliable communication infrastructure to support

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Court Restrains INEC from Conducting Governorship Supplementary Election in Adamawa You lack jurisdiction, says electoral body Daji Sani in Yola A Yola High Court yesterday restrained the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from conducting a supplementary Governorship Election in Adamawa State, fixed for March 23.

But in a swift reaction, the electoral body in the state has

dismissed the restraining order, insisting that the court lacked jurisdiction.

The ruling by Justice AbdulAziz Waziri, followed a request to that effect filed by counsel to the Adamawa Chapter of the Movement for the Restoration and Defence of Democracy (MRDD), Mr. Mustafa Shaba, over absence of the party logo

Delta Police Nab Two Suspects over Kidnap of Egyptian Omon-Julius Onabu in Asaba Police in Asaba, Delta State, have arrested two men in connection with alleged kidnapping and hostage taking of an Egyptian engineer, Mr. Reda Hasanin.

The victim was reportedly lured from Egypt on the pretense of coming to Nigeria to seal a contract by a kidnapping syndicate led by one self-styled businessman identified simply as Sunny. The rescue and subsequent arrest of the two suspects was made possible following the alarm raised by residents of the area.

Although, the police have expressed appreciation to residents of the neighbourhood for calling police attention to strange happenings in their area, the main police informant has practically been on the run for fear of possible reprisal attack as some of the suspects were still at large.

However, THISDAY learnt that the wife and children of the informant and other occupants of the house where the informant resides have deserted the house while the informant has not been spending nights there, since the police raided the place.

The whistle blower also said that his fears arose when he began receiving several calls from people who know him, advising him to relocate from

the area, which is located near Okpanam, next to Asaba.

Narrating the incident, the chief informant said that last Sunday morning, he heard someone shouting for help and became worried when the shouting persisted, prompting him to move in the direction of the strange voice.

According to him, locating the building where the shout was coming from, he met some people from the neighborhood who had gathered, wondering what was happening in the building.

He said one of the suspects came out and told them that it was “a family affair”, claiming that it was his younger brother who had gone to Europe and returned with nothing after the family had spentover two million naira on him.

The informant further revealed that he personally insisted on seeing the brother but that the suspect pleaded for time; and later came out with someone he claimed was his brother to meet them shouting.

Unsatisfied with the explanation, the informant alerted the police who found the Egyptian already unconscious and in a pool of blood apparently from injury he sustained on his head for daring to shout for help.

He was however resuscitated by the police and taken to hospital for treatment.

Expose Criminals’ Hideouts, Katsina Emirate Tells Residents Francis Sardauna in Katsina

As kidnapping and banditry intensified in Katsina State, the state Emirate Council has urged residents of the state to expose criminals’ hideouts and activities with a view to curbing criminal activities in the state.

This was even as the council said it has constituted development associations across the 34 local government areas (LGAs) of the state to checkmate the menace.

The Chairman, Katsina State Council of Chiefs, Dr. Abdulmumini Kabir Usman, stated this when the council paid courtesy call to Governor Aminu Bello Masari to identify with him on his re-election at Government House.

Usman who is also the Emir of Katsina, disclosed that the rate of kidnapping and armed robbery was alarming, hence the formation of associations that comprise of at least 20 different groups of people selected from ward, village and district levels in each local government area in the state.

He added that the associations in synergy with security personnel and other stakeholders would report any unlawful act to the head office under the Katsina or Daura Emirate Council.

While admonishing the state government to assist the associations with logistics for smooth running of their activities, the paramount ruler said no meaningful development could be achieved in an atmosphere of rancor or acrimony.

Masari while responding, said the traditional system of leadership is the best way of dealing with current social problems in the society.

He said the task before the government is to ensure sustainability of the structure of traditional institutions for effective security system in the state, adding that his administration would sustain it current war against criminality.

“I call on all and sundry to continue to join hands with security agents to safeguard people lives and property,” Masari said.

on the ballot paper of the inconclusive election.

Delivering the ruling after going through the two affidavits in support of the motion including that of extreme urgency, Justice Waziri, held that the request has merit and therefore was granted.

“After careful perusal of the a annexture of the MRDD 1 to 5 alongside written address of counsel urging me to grant the application, I am of the view that the application is pregnant with merit and must be granted.

“I hereby grant the following order.

“The defendant here in, the INEC is restrained whether by themselves, their executives, servants, privies, representative nominees or any other person or persons from proceeding with

the supplementary election in respect of Adamawa State Governorship pending the hearing and determination of the Motion on Notice.”

The Judge ruled that all the processes relating to the suit be served to Adamawa INEC in Yola in compliance with Order 6 of the Court.

The case was adjourned to March 21 for hearing of motion for the interlocutory injunction.

Speaking to journalists on the development, counsel to MRDD, Mr. Mustafa Shaba said the plaintiff, MRDD represented by the state chairman of the party, Ibrahim Umar, rushed to the court to complain against what he described as “serious infraction”.

“The party has come to court and fortunately the election has

not been concluded to stop INEC from further breaching of the party’s candidate (Rev. Eric Theman) right.

“We want the logo to be place and the election to start afresh.

“What we apply for today is for Interim injunction restraining INEC as it is for now from proceeding until the needful is done,” Shaba said.

Meanwhile, INEC in the state has dismissed a court ruling, which restrained it from conducting a rerun of the governorship election in 40 polling units in the state.

Reacting to the ruling, the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in the state, Kashim Gaidam, said the court lacked jurisdiction over the federal establishment, describing it as possible undue influence.

He said, “It is an order of a state High Court which has no jurisdiction over federal establishments. It is very surprising indeed. Could it be undue influence? Section 87 (10) of electoral law is also relevant.

I am sure the commission will issue an official statement on the matter.”

After the first round of election on February 9, 2019, the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Hamadu Fintiri, established a lead margin of 32,476 votes over the All Progressives Congress candidate, Jibrilla Bindow, who is seeking a second term in office.

In declaring the election inconclusive, INEC said the margin was lower than 40,998 votes that were declared invalid.

CONGRATULATIONS…

L-R: Deputy President of Senate, Sen. Ike Ekweremadu; former Governor of Enugu State, Sen. Chimaroke Nnamani; and former Senate Leader, Sen. Teslim Folarin, during the presentation of Certificates of Return to senators-elect by INEC in Abuja…yesterday

El-Rufai Dismisses Rumours of Car Crash John Shiklam in Kaduna Kaduna State Governor, Mallam Nasir el-Rufai has dispelled rumours of a ghastly accident involving his convoy.

Reacting to the rumour on his verified Twitter handle, el-Rufai said there was no truth in the rumour, which went viral on the social media.

He said: “I woke up after a rare 8-hour bout of deep sleep to learn that some bigotrydriven, PDP-affiliated fake news platform has declared my driver dead and my humble self in coma.

“Both claims are false. I thank them for reducing the days in their lives and adding them to mine. “ I remain their permanent nightmare and not about to disappear from their wretched and corrupt lives any time soon by the Grace of Almighty Allah, until they are permanently retired and buried”.

The social media was awash with rumours that el-Rufai’s vehicle was involved in a crash while returning from Kano and that his driver died while the governor was in a

critical condition.

The fake news, according to sources, has been traced to a lady who is not resident in Kaduna.

Also reacting to the rumours on his Twitter handle, Special Adviser to the governor on Media and Communications, Muyiwa Adekeye, said el-Rufai didn’t even travel to Kano.

Adekeye: “The hatred that moves people to peddle lies, concoct rumours of accidents and try to pass off their ill-will as God’s doing is a burden on those who have permitted

reason to exit their minds and have given their hearts to a constricting narrowness.

“While Malam Nasir elRufai was at post-election receptions in Kaduna on Sunday night, some liars placed him in Kano. Now they are spreading tales that he was involved in a fatal accident. Hatred is not a political strategy!”.

It was gathered that the governor departed Abuja on Wednesday for Dubai aboard Emirate airlines flight and is expected back home early next week

Professionals Blame Regulators for Collapsed Building in Lagos Bennett Oghifo Building professionals have advised the Lagos State Government to demolish most of the buildings in the Idumota, Adeniji Adele axis of Lagos Island to prevent them from collapsing on their users.

The professionals, who

represent Building Collapse Prevention Guild, at the scene of the collapsed building yesterday, said nobody needed to conduct an integrity test to know that the unfortunate incident occurred because of deflection in the beams, bad workmanship and poor quality building materials.

They added that these

infractions were ignored by those who ought to regulate building code, saying it would happen again in the area any time soon.

However, the claim that the infractions were ignored by government agencies was countered by the Lagos State Building Control Agency

(LASBCA), through its Public Relations Officer, Titilayo Ajirotutu, who told THISDAY yesterday that “during its monitoring exercise, the agency identified the building as being distressed and was given a letter to undergo all necessary tests to ascertain the structural stability of the building.”

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ECOWAS Parliament Restates Commitment to End Herders-farmers’ Clashes in W’Africa Alex Enumah in Abuja

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) parliament has reiterated its commitment towards finding a lasting solution to the frequent clashes between herdsmen and farmers, whichhave claimed

many lives and impacted negatively on the economy of the region.

The Secretary General of ECOWAS Parliament, John Azumah, who reaffirmed the position of the parliament, said as representatives of the people, they were burdened by the

Bayelsa PDP Berates Sylva, Lokpobiri over Attack on Clark The Bayelsa State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has condemned in strong terms what it described as the despicable display of disrespect for the person of Ijaw National Leader, Chief Edwin Clark and other elder statesmen and leaders in the South-south and Middle Belt by a former governor of the state, Timipre Sylva and Senator Heineken Lokpobiri t The State Secretary of PDP, Godspower Keku, also berated the state Publicity Secretary of the APC for casting aspersions on the integrity of Clark and other leaders in the Southsouth and Middle Belt for saying the truth about the election-related violence in Rivers and Bayelsa States.

Keku said that it was as immoral as it is sickening for a son of the South-south to make such a disparaging remark about the elders and leaders of his people for saying the truth about issues of grave concern to them.

He said that the statement attributed to Buokoribo, where he described Clark and other leaders as a disgrace fits perfectly into APC’s language of desperation and culture of violence in Bayelsa.

Keku said that a child who looks his grandfather in the face to describe him as a disgrace only advertises the nakedness of his household to the strangers.

He said that the time had come for the APC led by Sylva and Lokpobiri to realise that this failed attempt to drag respected elders of the land

into disrepute would not change the APC’s story of political rejection in Bayelsa and the South-south.

He stressed that in spite of the massive deployment of soldiers to aid the evil plot of the APC to rig the election in Bayelsa, the people roundly rejected them with the PDP clinching 17 out of the 21 declared results of the 24 House òf Assembly seats.

Keku added that the PDP would leave no stone unturned in the move to retrieve the four seat erroneously announced for the APC at the tribunal as the APC lacks the capacity to win a seat in the House òf Assembly in a free and fair contest.

The PDP scribe called on Sylva, and his remnant of supporters to immediately tender an unresolved apology to the Ijaw Nation, the Niger Delta, the South-south and the Middle Belt for the undeserved invectives on Clark and other leaders in the South-south and North-central.

He stressed that a people of culture would not indulge in a despicable attempt to convert their leaders to objects of mockery for saying the truth which the APC was attempting to do after suffering a most humiliating and crushing defeat in the hand of the PDP in the last election Keku said that it was rather sad that the APC was targeting the elders of land like Pa Clark and others as the innocent victims of the defeat-inspired transferred aggression.

Danbatta Lauds NCC’s Performance The Executive Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta, has lauded the performance of the regulatory body, which he said is now aiming at beating the record platinum rating it received from a sister agency, Bureau of Public Service Reform (BPSR) two years ago.

Danbatta spoke yesterday in Abuja while receiving the Managing Director of the Nigerian Security Printing and Minting Plc, Alhaji Abbas Umar Masanawa who paid him a courtesy visit in his office.

He expressed delight that the NCC is now globally acclaimed for regulatory excellence and operational efficiency, which has helped it to achieve great success in the key areas of its mandate.

“The verdict is out there on the performance of the commission as a word-class regulatory agency. We didn’t

pass this verdict by ourselves.

But it took a lot of hard work and commitment by both management and the entire staff of the Commission for us to achieve the enviable position we are today,” he pointed out.

Speaking further, Danbatta observed that despite inheriting a world class organisation he has not left any stone unturned in his efforts to add to the success story.

Earlier, the NSPM Plc boss had said that he was at the headquarters of the Commission to seek for partnership, especially in the areas of printing of sensitive documents.

Masanawa, who was accompanied by top echelon staff of the company, however, said that like NCC, the company is aiming to become a world class organization, which can attract business from outside the shores of the country.

frequent herders and farmers’ clashes and other reports of communal violence within the community.

Azumah, who spoke in an interview with journalists at the end of the Extra Ordinary Session of the ECOWAS Parliament, held in Dakar, Senegal, said: “The Parliament has a very big role especially the members who have the opportunity to meet with the concerned communities and to be able to explain the other side of the story.”

“So, if the members of parliament up their game and constantly provide information- they constantly meet these communities that are involved in these activities

and we believe strongly that we will be able to sort or mitigate the tendencies,” he said.

Azumah observed that the parliament, as a body, has built overtime experiences in conflict resolution as it has been involved in resolving conflict areas such as the Mano River Union in 2012, the resolution of the Liberian civil war, and the issue of Al- Qaeda in Mali, adding that the parliament was the only community institution that was on ground to talk to the people.

He recalled that the parliament was only last year involved in resolving the Sierra Leonean issues occasioned by election disagreements.

According to Azumah, all

the parliament need to do is to agree on a broad framework of how to go about the issue and engage all parties in a roundtable and make them understand the need to cease hostilities.

He further said: “We believe strongly that when we start, we will be able to get the necessary information and proffer solutions. What the parliament does is to make recommendations to the authorities, the implementing bodies, for them to look into the matter and resolve the issue.”

Earlier, he stated that the major highpoint of the seminar was parliament’s confirmation of their support for the decision

of the Authority of Heads State and Government in the implementation of the Single Currency in 2020.

“We are asking them to be very firm and resolute on the date, that the date should not be changed, as you may know, it has been changed severally and we think that they should be firm; there should be a political will that it should be done in 2020 and then for that matter, implemented,” he said.

He, however, observed that the lawmakers were constrained in what they can do because of the limited resources available to them, adding that same problem affects all other ECOWAS institutions.

HONOUR TO WOMEN…

L-R: Human Resources (HR) Manager, Simba Group, sole distributors of TVS tricycles, Mr. Ulhas Theurkar; Simba Group Head of Marketing, Mr. Karthik Govindarajan; Nollywood star, Chioma Akpotha; Deputy Head, Simba Group, Mr. Vivek Pendharkar; Head of Training, Mrs. Naved Hassan; and Mr. Nitesh Kumar, at the just concluded celebration of International Women’s Day in Lagos…recently

Obangame Express 2019 Kicks off as US Equips Maritime Training School Chiemelie Ezeobi The 2019 Operation Obangame Express officially commenced yesterday in Lagos with 20 African nations and 11 allied nations participating in the maritime interdiction exercise.

At the opening ceremony were senior leaders from the US Africa Command and the Nigerian Navy, representatives of maritime forces from the Gulf of Guinea, Europe, North and South America, as well as regional and international organisations.

Now in its ninth year, Obangame, a Fang language of southern Cameroon, which means “togetherness,” is an annual multinational maritime exercise designed to improve cooperation among the participating nations in order to increase maritime safety and security in the Gulf of Guinea (GoG).

The Chief of the Naval Staff, Nigerian Navy, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas, who hosted the exercise, said regional joint patrols was very important for governments of countries around the GoG because of the enormous maritime resources with prospects for lasting solution to economic and developmental aspirations

of African states.

According to Ibas, the region was frequently being challenged by multifaceted and evolving maritime threats leading to unpredictable threat-levels and deepening conditions inimical to peace and security.

Of particular concern, Ibas said, was the realisation that many of the threats posed great danger to effective exploitation of the maritime environment and increasingly manifest as transnational and cross-border crimes, hence, the need for a united response by regional navies and coastguards.

He said: “This esteemed assembly is no doubt fully abreast of the gains of the African Integrated Maritime Strategy (AIMS) 2050 and the Yaoundé Code of Conduct of 2013, which have facilitated capacity building within a defined architecture for regional maritime security Operations.

“These instruments have also emplaced standards for inter-regional co-operation based on law enforcement at sea, information sharing and training, further enhancing multilateral collaboration in the GoG. “This is the spirit that birthed

the OBANGAME EXPRESS as a tool for enhancing the collective capabilities of GoG countries to counter sea-based illicit activities by improving regional cooperation.”

Delivering the welcome remarks, United States Consul General, John Bray noted that Obangame Express has grown in leaps and bounds, both in complexity and in accomplishment.

He said: “We note the efforts by regional navies to work together in the spirit of the Yaoundé Code of Conduct which is designed to improve regional cooperation, maritime domain awareness, information-sharing practices, and tactical interdiction expertise to enhance the collective capabilities of Gulf of Guinea and West African nations to counter sea-based illicit activity.”

As part of the events to open the 2019 Obangame Express, Bray and Ibas commissioned the Nigerian Navy’s Maritime Domain Awareness (MDA) Training School in Apapa. The training school was built by the Nigerian Navy and equipped by the United States Navy.

“The Maritime Domain Awareness Training School

in Apapa is one of the most evident examples of our enduring partnership. This school will be a regional center of excellence in the area of maritime domain awareness where neighboring countries will be trained,” Bray added.

In her remarks, Director, Directorate of Intelligence, U.S. Africa Command, Rear Admiral Heidi Berg, lauded the commitment of the 33 nations scheduled to participate in this year’s exercise.

According to her, illicit maritime activities such as illegal fishing, trafficking of weapons, narcotics and people, as well as the ongoing threat of piracy, undermine the rule of law, food security, and economic development in the region.

“This exercise is a clear demonstration of the United States’ dedication to combat these illicit activities and help our partners in the Gulf of Guinea to provide security for their resources, their economy, and their people. Obangame Express 2019 will make the region a safe place for maritime commerce and ultimately help increase prosperity of the region,” Berg said.

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T H I S D AY ˾ MARCH 15, 2019

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

A H E A D F I F A C O U N C I L M E E T I N G T O D AY

Pinnick RestatesAfrica’s Backing for 48-teamWorld Cup Duro Ikhazuagbe áÓÞÒ ËÑÏØÍã ÜÏÚÙÜÞ With the prospect of African slots increasing from five to 10, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) has thrown its weight behind the plan to increase the 2022 World Cup in Qatar to 48-team format.

Africa currently enjoys five slots since the Mundial it hosted for the first time in South Africa in 2010.

The proposal to increase the World Cup to 48 teams was proposed by FIFA President Gianni Infantino and was expected to take effect at the 2026 edition to be co-hosted by Canada, Mexico and the United States of America.

But the FIFA Council meeting scheduled to hold today in Miami is expected to take farreaching decisions on whether to begin the 48-team format at the next World Cup in the Middle East in three years time.

CAF’s Senior Vice President, Amaju Pinnick who is leading the delegation from the continent to the meeting in Miami in the absence of President Ahmad who was denied entry visa into America, is expected to restate the position of Africa to expand the format for more teams.

“CAF will definitely support the vision of (FIFA President) Gianni Infantino if he wants this,” Pinnick told BBC Sport yesterday. “Why wait until 2026 if we can achieve it now? If you do it now, there will be more money and more participating teams.

“In Africa we are going

CAF’s Senior Vice President, Amaju Pinnick (right) and FIFA President Gianni Infantino at the FIFA Council meeting in Miami, USA…yesterday

to have another 4.5 (places), which makes more sense to us - rather than just going with five nations. That’s why Africa will always support Infantino,” Pinnick who also doubles as President of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) stressed with conviction.

According to BBC Sports, b ecause of its small geographical size, Qatar would need the support of regional co-hosts

to stage a 48-team finals.

Earlier this week, the Associated Press reported that a leaked FIFA feasibility study into the prospect of expanding the 2022 World Cup could work if at least one of Qatar’s neighbours was used as an additional host.

Stadiums in Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have been identified as suitable yet only two of these countries would

appear feasible at present Kuwait and Oman.

Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and the UAE severed diplomatic ties with Qatar in 2017, accusing the country of supporting terrorism - an accusation it denies.

“The involvement of additional neighbouring host countries would require certain conditions to be met, in particular the consent of

the relevant authorities in the main host country, Qatar,” the FIFA report stated, according to AP.Qatari officials are set to meet FIFA leaders today, when the FIFA Council will discuss a feasibility study organised by the world governing body’s task force.

A final decision on the possible expansion - which would come ahead of a pre-existing decision to have 48 teams in the

2026 World Cup in Canada, Mexico and the United States - is expected to be taken at the FIFA Congress in June.“Make it like a Middle Eastern World Cup, and what does that do?

It heals the wounds of politics.

Football heals wounds where other diplomatic moves fail, so they should capitalise on that,” added Pinnick.

“Most (member associations) want it - I’ve done my own research and spoken to a lot of colleagues - not just in Africa, but in CONCACAF (Central American, Caribbean and North American region), in CONMEBOL (South America), some even in Europe.”However, Europe is expected to challenge the prospect of 16 more teams and an extra 16 games - given the 2022 finals are already forcing the continent’s leagues to rearrange their competitions.

This is because the tournament will take place in the middle of the European season, having been moved to November-December from its traditional June-July slot.

Meanwhile, the global footballers’ union FifPro has called for a ‘comprehensive review of the match calendar’ and a ‘minimum rest period between matches (of) 72 hours’ after the feasibility study found the Qatar finals could still be played in their original time frame.

This would mean 80 matches being played in the same 28-day window between 21 November and 18 December 2022.

Nigerian Football Stakeholders Bid Ogunjobi Final Farewell There was pomp, colour and essence as actors and actresses in Nigerian football put out all the stops in honouring former international defender, former Secretary General of then NFA and one-time Member of the Board of NFF, Chief Taiwo Joseph Ogunjobi ahead of the final interment of his remains today.

The rites of passage began on Tuesday in Oshogbo, capital of Osun State and where he served as Chairman of the State Football Association until

his passing, with some youth football and tributes, before the train headed for Ibadan, the largest city in West Africa, capital of Oyo State and the town where Ogunjobi spent most of his lifetime.

On Wednesday, the Western Nigeria Football Forum, headed by the First Vice President of NFF, Seyi Akinwunmi, and for which Ogunjobi was a key actor, galvaniser and advisor, held a symposium in his honour with the theme: ‘Celebrating the Life and Times

of Ogunjobi.’

At the symposium were the Chairman of the Western Nigeria Football Forum and NFF First Vice President Seyi Akinwunmi; NFF General Secretary, Dr. Mohammed Sanusi; NFF’s zonal coordinators led by the Chairman of Chairmen, Alh. Ibrahim Musa Gusau; former NFF President, Gen. Dominic Oneya (rtd); former NFF First Vice President, Mazi Amanze Uchegbulam; former NFF General Secretaries Dr. Bolaji Ojo-Oba and

Mfon Udoh, Ilechukwu Win LBA for February Akwa United forward, Mfon Udoh and MFM FC’s Fidelis Ilechukwu have been named League Bloggers Awards (LBA) Player and Manager for the month of January respectively.

Both men claimed the individual prizes for their outstanding outings in January with their clubs in the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL).

Udoh came out tops ahead of Abdulrahman Bashir of Enyimba, Tasiu Lawal of Katsina United and Fuad Ekelojuoti of Sunshine Stars.

The Akwa United man netted four goals and provided two assists in the month under review -- meaning he was directly involved in six of his club’s 10 goals in February.

MFM Head Coach Ilechukwu had to fend off serious competition from Akwa United’s Brazilian trainer Rafael Everton as well as Usman Abd’Allah of Enyimba and Ibrahim Musa of Kano Pillars.

The race was narrowed down to Ilechukwu and Everton who led their teams to unbeaten outings in the month under review.

However Ilechukwu claimed the manager’s prize for a flawless outing in which MFM won all four of their matches compared to Akwa United who won four and drew one having played an extra game more.

Abd’Allah’s Enyimba finished February with three wins, a draw and a loss while Kano Pillars under Musa won three of their four matches, losing at Go Round at the start of last month.

LBA’s next announcement for the player and manager’s nominees in March will be released in early April.

Fanny Amun; two-time Head Coach of the Super Eagles, Chief Adegboye Onigbinde; President-General of the Nigeria Football Supporters Club, Dr. Rafiu Oladipo; former international players, Dr. Felix Owolabi and Mutiu Adepoju and; senior stakeholders of the game from far and near, including Mr. Ade Somefun.

Prominent persons at the symposium paid homage to Ogunjobi, a man regarded as one of the most charismatic

administrators in the history of Nigerian Football, with Akinwunmi saying: “This is an avenue to honour him because he did so well for football in the South West and Nigeria as a whole.”

The event took place at the indoor hall of the Lekan Salami Stadium, venue of several conquests for Ogunjobi.

On Thursday, a football match between a team of Ambassadors and Family United By Sports at the

Lekan Salami Stadium ended 2-1 in favour of the former, and in the evening, a lyingin-state provided opportunity for prominent stakeholders, including Board Members of the NFF, NFF Management, NFF Staff, current and past bigwigs in the game, former international players and administrators to bid Chief Taiwo Ogunjobi goodbye.

The remains of the amiable administrator will be interred at a private cemetery in Ibadan this morning.

Corporate Nigeria Backs 2019 DOAMF Charity Golf More corporate organisations are signing up to support the ninth edition of the Daniel Ogechi Akujobi Memorial (DOAM) Foundation Charity Golf Tournament, the Final of which is set to hold on Saturday, March 30, 2019 at the Golf Section of Ikoyi Club 1938 in Lagos.

According to the Coordinator of the DOAMF Charity Golf Tournament, Mr. Pat Bassey, the different levels of support offered by the sponsors will go a long way in helping the foundation reach its objective for 2019 of touching at least 5,000 lives.

“The show of support is very much appreciated and we would

gladly harness all resources for the benefit of the targeted vulnerable persons, in the areas of healthcare and education, The Foundation remains committed to maintaining the goodwill garnered through passionate consistency and accountability in all its dealings till now”.

He further affirmed a commitment to deliver better value to every participant and partner of the event. In all, about 190 players will be teeing off at the one day event. About half of the field will be drawn from the Qualifier that took place on March 2, 2019. The other half of the total number of players will

be drawn from lady and veteran players, as well as from the list of the Foundation’s corporate and individual partners/sponsors, and guests. PricewaterhouseCoopers, Zenith Bank Plc, Diamond Bank Plc, Providus Bank, ARM Pension Managers, Radial Circle Group, Amni Petroleum, SEPLAT Petroleum, Channels Television, Silverbird Television, Grand OAK, Cappa & D’Alberto, SPAR (Park N’ Shop), Total E&P, Exxon Mobil, First Bank Nigeria PLC, Mixta Africa, Victoria Crown Plaza, Ikoyi Club 1938, Protea Hotel, and many more, have confirmed their sponsorship of the event.

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FRIDAYSPORTS

Adekuoroye Eyes Return to World Number 1 Spot

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scored the opening goal for Arsenal (his 31st goal in only 53 appearances) as the Gunners defeated Rennes last night to qualify for the quarter finals of the Europa League

Europa: Giroud’s Hat-trick against Dynamo Move Chelsea into Q’final Olivier Giroud scored a hat-trick as Chelsea thrashed Dynamo Kiev to move into the Europa League quarter-finals with an 8-0 aggregate win.

The France forward’s early effort from Willian’s corner set the tone for the Blues, who arrived in Kiev with a commanding 3-0 lead from the first leg.

Giroud swept in his second of the night from Marcos Alonso’s sublime cross to register his eighth goal in the competition this season.

With the visitors in total control, Alonso tapped in a third goal

from Callum Hudson-Odoi’s cross before the break.

Kiev captain Serhiy Sydorchuk went close to a consolation for the hosts in the second period, hitting the post from close range.

But Giroud completed his hat-trick with a header from another Willian corner, before Hudson-Odoi’s placed effort put the gloss on a dominant display.

Chelsea will discover their quarter-final and potential semi-final opponents at 12:00 GMT today.b While Giroud has started just two Premier League matches for Chelsea in the last

four months, he has relished his outings in the Europa League.

Since his last domestic goal against Tottenham on 24 November 2018, the 32-year-old has scored eight goals in seven appearances in Europe.

And another clinical performance ensured he left the Olympic Stadium in Kiev as the Europa League’s top scorer with nine goals.

One-touch finishes for his first two goals of the evening exemplified his prowess from close-range, giving home goalkeeper Denys Boyko

no chance. Alertness and anticipation allowed him to steer Willian’s corner past the Kiev keeper for his first goal from around six yards out. And his movement created the space for him to connect powerfully with Alonso’s cross to thump in a second from the centre of the hosts’ penalty area.

His final effort, a header from another Willian corner also highlighted his aerial threat as he capitalised on shoddy marking to seal a perfect hattrick, comprising of right-foot, left-foot and headed goals

Unlike in previous rounds, there is no longer any country protection in the draw, meaning teams from the same domestic league can now face one another.

That throws open the possibility of a Manchester derby in the quarter-finals.

However, if they do not face each other, United will have to reverse their fixture if they are drawn at home in the same week as City.

“Following a decision made by the relevant local authorities, Manchester City and Manchester United cannot play at home on the same night, nor on consecutive nights,” said UEFA. “Should both clubs be drawn within the same sequence (home or away), the team having finished lower in the domestic league the previous season –- in this case Manchester United — will be reversed in

Heineken Excites Fans as English Clubs Dominate UEFA Champions League It was a memorable match night of UEFA Champions League on Wednesday at the Cubana Hut & Grill as fans were treated to an exclusive viewing experience by international premium lager beer, Heineken as Liverpool FC secured passage into the quarter final phase of the competition over host, Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena in Germany.

Ahead of the draw ceremony which comes up this afternoon in Nyon, Switzerland, consumers at the unmissable match moments were delighted that all the four

English Premiership clubs with massive fan bases in Nigeria are still in the last eight of the competition for the first time since 2008/09 season.

Interestingly, after watching the proceedings from giant screens at the premium arena, the talking point was the domination of English clubs ahead of the Spanish giants Real Madrid (four times) and FC Barcelona that have dominated the scene since 2014. Football fans joined match conversations by sharing their half and full time match

Bernardo Silva is the lat-

predictions and were rewarded with gifts provided by Heineken.

While the two matches of the night saw the duo of Sadio Mane of Liverpool and Lionel Messi of FC Barcelona emerge as winners of their respective games, it was Chioma Nwosu who was the heroine of the night at the Cubana Lounge as she predicted correctly the match results and performed brilliantly during the fans engagement session at interval.

“We are excited to share all the unmissable moments

lying third.

The four times African champion went on to thank the President of Nigeria Wrestling Federation (NWF), Honourable Daniel Igali, her coach, Purity Akuh, her training partners and General Overseer of Mountain of Fire & Miracles Ministry (MFM), Dr Daniel Olukoya for supporting her efforts.

Adekuoroye said: “I am glad that I have been ranked fourth in the world after my performances at the German Prix and Bulgarian Open.

“I learnt so many lessons from these two tournament.

By the grace of God, hopefully before the end of 2019, I will get to the top. “(I learnt) what I am good at and my weaknesses. The most important of all is that I also learnt from the mistakes of my opponents.

“In 2017, I was ranked number one in the world, after also performing excellently well in my outings.”

Abuja Agog for Archery Workshop

Abuja bubbles as a total of 83 archers drawn from across the country storm the capital city for the first phase of the Nigerian Archery Federation Game Clinic, Coaching and Officiating Workshop holding from 17 to 24 March, 2019 at the Multi-purpose Indoor Sports Hall of the National Stadium, Abuja. President of the Nigeria Archery Federation, Mohammed Abdullah, said said yesterday that the participants are drawn from the Defence Headquarters, Abuja comprising, Army, Navy, AirForce, Road Safety and the Nigeria Immigration services.

Others are from Imo, Kogi, Niger and Oyo State. Tukura Archery Academy and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) accordance with the UEFA complete the list of archers for Club Competitions Committee the event.

Abdullahi who is excited principles.”

The semi-final draw will also take place today, and UEFA added: “The calendar for the semi-finals will be communicated to all parties on April 18, 2019, following the return legs of the David Beckham will return quarter-finals.” to Manchester United to Juventus, Barcelona, Porto and mark the 20th anniversary Ajax complete the Champions of their dramatic 2-1 ChamLeague quarter-final line-up. pions League final victory over Bayern Munich with a match against the German side.

The game will be played at Old Trafford on 26 May and feature many who played in the original match at the of the current season of the Nou Camp.

UEFA Champions League as Sir Alex Ferguson will we have always done since the manage United with Beck2005/06 season when Heineken ham, Paul Scholes, Nicky established a partnership with Butt and Jesper Blomqvist UEFA with the sponsorship of in midfield. the most glamorous club football “I’m so excited to be going competition in the world. “We back to Old Trafford,” said look forward to continually Beckham. bringing premium experiences to “1999 was such a massive live as we take football viewing year for us so recreating that experience beyond the compremoment is going to be really hension of passionate fans of the special,” he added. competition,” the Marketing “To be back together as a Director, Nigerian Breweries Plc., squad and to be managed Emmanuel Oriakhi, remarked. by the boss again is huge.

Man Utd May Face Champions League Fixture Reversal The home leg fixture of Manchester United’s Champions League quarter-final tie could be reversed in the event of a clash with that involving Manchester City, depending on the outcome of today’s draw, UEFA announced yesterday.

The two Manchester clubs are through to the last eight alongside two other Premier League sides, Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool.

Nigerian female wrestling sensation, Odunayo Adekuoroye has expressed delight with her fourth place global ranking, but stressed she is capable of returning to number one in the world, which she held at a point in 2017.

After a title-winning outing at the German Grand Prix and equally great Bulgarian Open run, the two-time Commonwealth Games champion said she will work hard to climb higher in the women’s -57kg wrestling class.

Adekuoroye insists her performances last month in Germany and Bulgaria gave her fresh insights into her form, which she said she will now use to soar on the rankings

by United World Wrestling (UWW).

She will, however, have to contend with the opposition posed by China’s Ningning Rong, who tops the women’s -57kg, as well as Bilyana Dudova of Bulgaria in second and Grace Bullen of Norway

over the encouraging number of participants registered so far for the Workshop, further hinted that the Nigerian Immigration Services has the highest number of participants which is 20 while the Defence Headquarters has 15 leaving Road Safety and the FCT with 10 participants each. Niger State has 5; Imo 4, Kogi 3 and Oyo 3. Tukura Academy has 5 participants while 8 unattached individual participants have since been registered. Meanwhile, Archery President Abdullah while lauding the project, gave the names of Mr. Olatunji O Boluji, Dr. Tukura, Mr Lucky Izukor and Mr. Kunle Akintimehin as the four resource persons for the week-long Workshop which is aimed at repositioning archery sport in Nigeria. The participants will depart on 24 March 2019.

Beckham Back for Man Utd against Bayern I can’t wait.”

Former England captain Beckham, 43, won six Premier League titles, two FA Cups and one Champions League crown during his United career before he was sold to Real Madrid for £25m in the summer of 2003.

United interim boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, who scored the injury-time winner in 1999, is expected to be in the side.

The Champions League triumph - with victory over German giants Bayern secured thanks to two injury-time goals by Teddy Sheringham and Solskjaer - was part of a 1998-99 Treble that also included the Premier League title and the FA Cup. The anniversary match will raise funds for the Manchester United Foundation.

Friday, March 15, 2019

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MISSILE Ekweremadu to FG “Yes, money must be sought by any government to fund infrastructure, but it must not be solely anchored on borrowing which, in the long run, will take the country back to a problem it had earlier solved. Besides, there are other creative ways of funding such highly needed infrastructure” – Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, faulting the nation’s debt profile during a debate in the Senate.

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And Igini Stood His Ground “When you have a mountain in your path, do not sit down at its foot to cry, but rather, get up and climb it.”

F

or no reason other than he was just doing his job with dignity, dedication and utmost integrity, the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) was on a campaign to destroy one of the most respected Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) who was assigned to Akwa Ibom State, Mr Mike Igini. He had become the target of a series of well-orchestrated smear campaigns before the presidential and national assembly elections, and more desperately, before the governorship elections.

His sin was that he would discharge his duties in the just-concluded elections by the book and would not allow the will of the people to be sabotaged by the very people who claimed to have integrity and had branded every other person as corrupt. These pretenders to progressivism and democracy did their background checks on Igini. Their findings? A man whose needs are limited and whose ways are as white as snow. But for the APC, it is never say die! In their evil machinations, they allegedly still made mouth-watering monetary offers to compromise him. But he stood his ground not to do anything that would compromise the will of the people as expressed at the polling units but stolen at the collation centres - where the greatest electoral heist took place all over the country.

Not done, the APC took a strange and unprecedented step. The party of desperadoes approached the court to order INEC to redeploy Igini to another state, just a few days to the governorship election. It was a bizarre move, underlining the desperation that flows in the bloodstream of the party. The bewildered judge refused, saying granting their request would affect the conduct of free and fair elections in the state.

Sensing that INEC would not yield to pressure, they resorted to all sorts of scorched-earth tactics.

Some INEC offices were razed to the ground by “hoodlums” in the full glare of the security forces that were there to protect them. In other words, they conspired to commit arson against taxpayers’ properties all in a bid to frustrate the conduct of free and fair elections.

You see, in the presidential and the national assembly elections, Senator Godswill Akpabio and the ruling APC lost in Akwa Ibom completely.

For that, all hell broke loose. Igini was the cause for not playing ball, so he had to be redeployed to another state before the governorship polls, they had reasoned. A little background is necessary here: Soon after Akpabio defected to the APC, he had boasted that the takeover of the state by the party in 2019 would be as total as the 1940 invasion of Poland by the German dictator, Adolf Hitler. By that declaration, he was serving notice that the elections in the state would be a full-scale war, which his new party must win.

“When they asked Hitler’s minister for information how was the war in Poland. He said Warsaw saw war and war saw Warsaw. I will say that in the Ikot-Ekpene arena, when I stepped out, this is my first function after that, Warsaw saw war and war saw Warsaw. We can’t talk politics in the church but in 2019, Warsaw shall see war and war shall see Warsaw. The return will be victory. May God grant us all victory,” he boasted.

Akpabio actually made good on his threat, enabled by federal might, he brought war upon his state using federal security forces to molest

Igini and beat up his people. But the people were as determined not to yield an inch of their soil to him or his hirelings. By the time the dust settled, it was the people that won, they had vanquished their delinquent son. It is instructive that the APC went about its campaign to smear Igini without any pretence about its motive. It is a shame that even Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, “a man of God” who should have been more circumspect in his utterances, descended into the gutter in an act of political desperation, contradicting himself in the process.

President Muhammadu Buhari who had sent Osinbajo to represent him at a town hall meeting with elders and stakeholders of the APC in Uyo also stressed it was not possible that Akpabio lost the election in his constituency thus: “Everything stolen would be restored. What happened on February 23 was robbery. The votes of the people were stolen but we are not deterred. The president sent me to thank you today. We are going to make sure that everything that was stolen on the February 23 election would be restored.

“It is not possible that Senator Godswill Akpabio lost. We are in no doubt that Senator Akpabio is the elected senator of Akwa Ibom North West senatorial district. The National Chairman of the party, Adams Oshiomhole and I have been in the opposition for long and we cannot be defeated

anymore.”

That was the president speaking through his deputy, a professor of law. Really? Are these people kidding? Who told them that Akpabio cannot lose? I was shocked to hear that those words came from the president. For their partisan interests, these people are prepared to destroy all the institutions of state. It is only when they win that elections are free and fair. Once they lose, they use all sorts of tactics to demonise and arm-twist the institutions into declaring the elections inconclusive, preparatory to another round of barefaced manipulation to ultimately secure victory for the APC. So in Buhari and Osinbajo’s thinking, Akpabio cannot lose because he is now in the APC, but the Senate President, Bukola Saraki who was a more effective grassroots politician in Kwara State than Akpabio was in Akwa Ibom, could lose because he is in the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)? Who are these people? And where did they come from? We all saw the speed with which the INEC announced Saraki’s defeat in Kwara to the celebratory delight of the APC and their supporters. In contrast, the announcement of Akpabio’s defeat was suspended for more than 24 hours because the powers that be tried everything in their arsenal to save the political featherweight from “uncommon” humiliation.

But in Igini, a former Students’ Union President of the University of Benin and a hero of the June 12 struggle, they ran into a brick wall.

Akpabio’s philosophy of “what money cannot do, more money can do it” that has kept him going all these years failed this time. More money could not buy him re-election. Intoxicated by money and power, and crippled by self-destructive arrogance, Akpabio thought that money was everything in life. But he has now found out that “the power of the people is more powerful than the people in power”. Whether he learns useful lessons is left to him. His brother, Rotimi Amaechi, another Buharist, is still out of control in Rivers State. He has levied war on his people.

But his time will come no doubt and his people shall deliver themselves. I hope they show him mercy when that time comes.

Igini, thrown up by the unusual electoral cycle, has become the pride and a hero of true democrats, and a villain to desperate power seekers with nothing to offer society other than the elevation of mindless thuggery, serious criminality and

Akpabio’s philosophy of “what money cannot do, more money can do it” that has kept him going all these years failed this time. More money could not buy him re-election. Intoxicated by money and power, and crippled by self-destructive arrogance, Akpabio thought that money was everything in life.

But he has now found out that “the power of the people is more powerful than the people in power”.

Whether he learns useful lessons is left to him. His brother, Rotimi Amaechi, another Buharist, is still out of control in Rivers State. He has levied war on his people. But his time will come no doubt and his people shall deliver themselves. I hope they show him mercy when that time comes

breathtaking thievery. We should all stand with him as the enemies of democracy encircle to devour him. We should rise and defend him as a man of real integrity, not the fake integrity being bandied about on behalf of Nigeria’s maximum ruler. This man deserves a national honour. We need people like him to redeem Nigeria, to restore hope to this country that Rotimi Amaechi only recently described as “helpless and hopeless”.

Igini himself put it succinctly when he said that he was not posted to Akwa Ibom to count money but to count ballots. “I have not come here to count money. I only came here to count ballot papers. Those who want me to compromise the process are the ones shouting out there. I can tell you that… those looking for compromise in the process are the ones who are also calling for my removal. Why would you remove a man who says he wants to give everybody equal opportunity?” He wondered.

How many Nigerians can, not only say that, but do it? How many can withstand the temptation of accepting mouth-watering offers by corrupt politicians to compromise the will of the people?

How many will not see their sensitive positions as opportunities to make their own killing out of Nigeria? I am beaming with pride, as there is indeed hope for Nigeria after all. I am even more excited that Mike Igini was my classmate in secondary school (Okotie Eboh Grammar School, Sapele), where he was the Punctuality Prefect. I am grateful for the old precious values that were inculcated in us which have prevailed over the reigning evil in the land.

Many of the people in leadership positions today were the vagabonds of their school days; the delinquent ones, the dropouts who forged academic qualifications and lied under oath to climb the ladder of progress. They graduated to be thugs used to disrupt the system, only to further graduate to occupy leadership positions.

They have become parents. But what sort of parents are they? Parents who drive to schools with full police escorts, blaring siren, to assault teachers for disciplining their ill-mannered and wayward children? Parents who pay others to writes examinations for their children, and pay teachers to award marks they don’t deserve to them? Yes, these are the parents they have become.

They are not ashamed to exhibit lawlessness in their children’s presence. They are not ashamed to exhibit disorderly behaviour in public. Unfortunately, some of these people are the very ones charting the future of this country. From the time they emerged on the scene as lawmakers, governors, ministers, etc, the prognosis has not been good - our country has regressed because they lack the desired vision to lift Nigeria to new heights and new frontiers.

To hold on to power and feather their own nest, they have resorted to all sorts of breathtaking machinations, with the support of thugs and other like-minded individuals with corresponding depravity. They are practically holding our democracy hostage and have sought to destroy anyone that is not like them.

This man, Igini, is the embodiment of those admirable values of the olden days; values we yearn for today; values that he (Osinbajo) constantly preaches everywhere he goes. Igini is not perfect, no doubt, but he represents the ideal character portrait of what Nigeria needs to move forward. It is an irony of immense proportions that a party that claimed sainthood and had at every turn accused others of corruption has done everything that constitute an affront to our precious values of yore.

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