SUNDAY 24TH JANUARY 2021

WTO: Stiglitz, Others Urge Biden to Back Okonjo-Iweala Obinna Chima Former senior United States government officials have advised President Joe Biden to support Nigeria’s candidate, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, to head the World Trade Organisation (WTO) as

Director General.

Okonjo-Iweala, who would be the first woman to lead the WTO is a dynamic leader who has the vision to manage the Geneva-based trade body through an era of reform, ex-officials including former World Bank Chief Economist,

Joseph Stiglitz and former United Nations Ambassador John Negroponte, said in a letter to Biden posted on AllAfrica.com.

But for the opposition of the United States, Okonjo-Iweala would have been announced on Wednesday as the first

female and African to lead the global trade body.

In the race for the post, she had garnered the votes of 163 of the 164 members of the trade organisation, to be named the preferred candidate for the job compared to her challenger, Ms. Yoo Myung-hee

of South Korea, backed by the US. By WTO regulations, the director-general should emerge by consensus.

The letter from the former senior US officials read: “Among the many critical matters before you and your cabinet is the leadership

of the WTO. It was no surprise to us that a stellar Nigerian-American, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo- Iweala, emerged as the consensus candidate for the position of Director-General of the WTO having won the Continued on page 5

Zenith Bank to Bar Customers with Unrepatriated Export Proceeds from Banking Services… Page 5 Sunday 24 January, 2021 Vol 25. No 9422

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Afenifere, ACF Disagree as IG Orders Arrest of Sunday Igboho Fani-Kayode weighs in Deji Elumoye, Kingsley Nwezeh in Abuja and John Shiklam in Kaduna The eviction notice issued by

a youth leader in Oyo State, Sunday Adeyemo otherwise known as Sunday Igboho, has ignited a firestorm between the Pan Yoruba Socio-cultural

group, Afenifere and the Area Consultative Forum (ACF), taking diametrically opposed positions.

Presidential Spokesman,

Garba Shehu, confirmed the arrest order during a BBC Hausa programme.

However, the InspectorGeneral of Police, Mohammed

Adamu, has directed the Oyo Commissioner of Police, Ngozi Onadeko, to arrest Igboho and transfer him to Abuja.

Igboho had given herdsmen

in Igangan in Ibarapa North Local Government Area of Oyo a 7-day ultimatum to Continued on page 8

Concerns Mount over Corruption and Inefficiency in Cash Transfer Programme Absence of requisite data recipe for abuse, manipulation Funds disbursement outside budgetary appropriation Obinna Chima As the federal government plans to commence fresh disbursement of money to citizens, in short-term palliative measures to alleviate poverty, some operators in the government’s National Cash Transfer Programme (NCTP) have alleged a highlevel inefficiency, corruption, and nepotism in the system as run by the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Sadiya Farouq. According competent sources, the infractions have been the bane of the scheme, which has prevented it from realising its objective.

The government plans to disburse N5, 000 each to about

24.3 million poor Nigerians over a period of six month in the new exercise. The minister disclosed the new payment during the week. She said it was meant as a cushion for those further impoverished by the COVID-19 pandemic.

But a source involved in the scheme told THISDAY that with the absence of accurate data, corrupt government officials had been defrauding the system in the name of poverty alleviation. The source stressed that the fund disbursement for the Rural Women Programme and the Rapid Response Register were outside the budget and without appropriation, insisting that there is no verifiable database Continued on page 10

INEC: NIN Not a Precondition for Prospective Voters... Page 10

MOVING AHEAD WITH INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT...

L-R: Permanent Secretary, Lagos Ministry of Works & Infrastructure, Engr. Olujimi Hotonu; Special Adviser to the Governor on Works and Infrastructure, Engr. Aramide Adeyoye; Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, and his deputy, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat, during the inauguration of reconstruction of Hospital Road, Badagry ...yesterday

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Zenith Bank to Bar Customers with Unrepatriated Export Proceeds from Banking Services Obinna Chima In line with a fresh directive from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) that all exporters with unrepatriated export proceeds should be barred from accessing all banking services from January 31st, 2021, Zenith Bank Plc has notified its customers in export business of its readiness to enforce the policy.

The bank gave the notification to its customers in a letter titled: “Barring of Exporters with Unrepatriated Export Proceeds from all Banking Services,” dated January 22nd, a copy of which was obtained yesterday.

The tier-one bank stated: “Please be informed that the Central Bank of Nigeria through its circular referenced TED/EXP/CON/NES/01/001 dated 13th January, 2021, has instructed that all exporters with unrepatriated export proceeds by 31st January, 2021, should be barred from accessing all banking services.

“Subsequently, all customers with unrepatriated export proceeds are required to comply with this directive before the specified date.”

A recent report by AZA Finance, an Africa-focused provider of currency trading solutions had attributed the pressure facing the naira on the parallel market to diversion of export proceeds away from the approved channels by a lot companies in the country.

According to AZA Finance, “Many companies and individuals are diverting export proceeds and remittances away from approved channels while directing unmet dollar demand to the parallel market. As dollar scarcity continues to linger, we foresee more pressure on the local currency.

“Dollar demand pressure continues to weigh in from importers stocking up for Christmas sales.”

The Federation of

Agricultural Commodity Associations of Nigeria (FACAN) had said it was in total support of the CBN’s position on repatriation of export proceeds to boost liquidity in the forex market.

It had also called on the apex bank to further strengthen the policy to allow exporters unfettered access to their, “hard-earned foreign exchange proceeds,” going forward.

FACAN National President, Dr. Victor Iyama said,

“some exporters have gone underground in order to stay afloat while some will not repatriate their forex earnings and some have resulted to smuggling”.

He added: “It is our considered view that any exporter who refuses to comply on 100 per cent repatriation of export proceeds into the country should be treated as an economic saboteur and sanctioned accordingly as we in the league of exporters are

ready to enforce it.”

He argued that allowing exporters unrestricted access to their export proceed will among other things lead to increased revenue to the country, reduce smuggling activities, improve forex earnings, reduce corruption as well as improvement in the country’s balance of trade.

Iyama said: “Exporters source for their produce from local buying agents/ aggregagtors/merchants at

just a little margin below the international market price as an act of sacrifice. Yet, our exporters still buy from these agents/aggregagtors/ merchants at those prices just to remain in businesses and when the proceeds of export are repatriated through commercial banks, exporters are forced to accept the repatriated proceeds at a predetermined bank rate of say N385 to $1, while the parallel market i.e. Bureau

De Change sell the foreign exchange majorly sourced from the same CBN at N465, thereby shortchanging the exporters by a margin about N80.”

He said: “The nation’s economy is therefore being deprived of the much needed foreign exchange as a result of this obnoxious arm-twisting of all repatriated funds of the exporters, Nigerians in diaspora and foreign investors.”

GIFT FOR THE CRIME FIGHTER...

Oyo State Goververnor, Seyi Makinde (left) presents an artwork to the first female Commissioner of Police in Oyo State, Ngozi Onadeko, during her first official visit to the Governor in Ibadan on Friday

Buhari Mourns Emir of Dikwa, Says Nigeria will Miss His Services Deji Elumoye in Abuja and Michael Olugbode in Maiduguri President Muhammadu Buhari has mourned the Emir of Dikwa, Shehu ABBA Masta II, saying Nigeria will miss his services.

The President in a tribute on Saturday said: "the contributions of the late Emir of Dikwa to unity, harmony

and peaceful coexistence in the country were remarkable and Nigeria will miss his services.''

Buhari expressed heartfelt condolences to the government and people of Borno State on the death of Emir of Dikwa, the second highest ranking traditional ruler in Borno kingdom.

In a condolence message to the Shehu of Borno,

Abubakar Ibn Umar Garbai El-Kanemi, the government and people of Borno State, Buhari said: ''the death of the traditional ruler came at a time when his services were badly needed in the country."

Describing the late Emir as a gentleman who worked for the welfare of his people, the President prayed that "May Allah forgive his gentle

soul, and reward his noble deeds with aljanna. May Allah grant his family the fortitude to bear this great loss".

Alhaji Muhammad ElKanemi II died on Saturday aged 75.

The throne, Shehu of Dikwa, is a first class and one of the most prominent in Borno State.

A statement on Saturday

announcing his demise by the Borno State Commissioner of Information, Babakura Abba-Jato read: “His Royal Highness, the Shehu of Dikwa, Alhaji Muhammad ibn Masta El-Kanemi II, has answered the call of Almighty Allah in the early hours of today in Abuja.”

The deceased, born in 1946, was crowned the Shehu of Dikwa after another emirate

was created out of the then Dikwa Emirate in 2008.

According to the statement, the late Shehu, a seasoned administrator, civil servant and politician, died in a private hospital after a protracted illness.

His body, the statement added, was expected in Maiduguri from Abuja. He left behind wives children and many relatives.

For example, she helped negotiate a politically delicate multilateral replenishment — on the order of $49 billion — for the International Development Association, the World Bank’s lending arm for the poorest nations.

“As a dual citizen of the United States and Nigeria, she has established herself as a highly respected authority in both nations, especially on issues related to global development. During her meteoric rise through the World Bank ranks to the position of Managing Director, she gained invaluable experience in managing

the complex relationships between development issues, institutions, business interests and measurable outcomes.

“This experience, together with her recently completed five-year tenure as board chair of GAVI— the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization— perfectly position her to help build pragmatic solutions for pandemic-related trade and intellectual property challenges across diverse global stakeholders.

“We know Dr. OkonjoIweala and have found her to be a woman of integrity, an honest broker and a

pragmatist who consistently delivers results. We believe strongly that she can be a transformative director-general, one who -- with your support -- will be embraced and effective within and beyond the WTO. “In sum, Dr. Ngozi OkonjoIweala is a uniquely qualified leader poised to help the WTO evolve and succeed for future generations. She is a leader who can also be relied on to pay due attention to the concerns many Americans have about global trade.

She has what it takes to lead WTO reforms and take the organisation into the future.”

WTO: STIGLITZ, OTHERS URGE BIDEN TO BACK OKONJO-IWEALA support of the overwhelming majority of member nations, including America’s leading trading partners in the European Union.

“The arbitrary opposition to her candidacy from the Trump Administration in October 2020 continues to baffle trade leaders and experts around the world. In round after round of competition, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala won against her competitor for the post, South Korean Trade Minister Yoo Myung-hee.

“The Trump Administration’s contentious practice of pitting America against multilateral alliances

was in full display in this WTO race. We write to respectfully encourage you to support the candidacy of the eminently qualified Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala as she seeks to become the next Director-General of the WTO.” They stressed that, “OkonjoIweala is a dynamic woman of vision who can guide the WTO through its era of reform. She possesses a very rare combination of leadership and experience that is deeply grounded in international trade, finance, economics and diplomacy.

“Her selection, as the first American and woman of

color to serve as the WTO’s director-general will send a clear message of inclusion to the rest of the world.”

While highlighting the specific qualifications of the Nigeria’s two-term former Finance Minister, they pointed out that, “as an economist with degrees from both Harvard University and MIT, she has been sure-footed throughout her career in articulating a compelling, nuanced vision for the future of global trade in goods and services and the institutions that support it.”

They added: “She is a consummate diplomat seasoned in building coalitions.

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Africa CDC: Continent’s COVID-19 Fatality Rate Surpasses Global Figures Nigeria records 1,633 new cases, raising tally to 120,602, discharged 95,901 with 1,502 deaths Tobi Soniyi The Head of Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), John Nkengasong, has said Africa’s coronavirus fatality rate has risen alarmingly to 2.5%, higher than the global level of 2.2%.

At inception of the pandemic, Africa’s rate had been below the global average. Many experts then, including Billionaire Bill Gates, had queried why the disease was not killing as many people in Africa.

Reuters quoted Nkengasong as saying Africa's shares of the global fatalities following the outbreak of the second wave of the virus are higher now than the global average.

“The case fatality rate is beginning to be very worrying and concerning for all of us,” he said, although he did not give a reason for the increase.

According to him, the number of African nations with a rate of deaths-per-cases higher than the global average is growing.

There are 21 countries on the continent with a rate above 3%, including Egypt, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Sudan.

The initially lower case fatality level in Africa might have been due to lower testing rates and a youthful population, experts said last year.

However, the position of the World Health Organisation appears to contradict Nkengasong’s.

WHO's Africa head, Matshidiso Moeti, told an online news conference that Africa’s case fatality rate was not dramatically worse than those of other regions.

She said higher rates were probably due to the challenges African countries most severely affected by the second wave – notably South Africa, where a more infectious variant has

been detected – were facing in providing care for infected people.

Over the past week, cases around the continent decreased by nearly 7% compared to the previous week while deaths increased 10%, according to Africa CDC data.

With a population of more than 1.3 billion, Africa has recorded 81,000 COVID-19 deaths, representing 4% of fatalities globally from the coronavirus, Nkengasong said.

Africa has recorded 3.3

million infections in total. The continent reported 207,000 new cases in the past week, with South Africa alone reporting 100,000 of those, Nkengasong added.

However, Nigeria, the most populated country on the continent has continued to record more coronavirus infections during this second wave of infection with more fatalities.

In the past four weeks, there have been over 200 fatalities from COVID-19 complications

in Nigeria.

The country has so far tested 1,225,179 people since the first confirmed case of COVID-19 was recorded on February 27, 2020 in the country.

Statistics show that the virus has become much deadlier this month, as it has killed more people than any other month since the pandemic broke out.

Of the 1,485 total deaths from COVID-19 nationwide, the month of January 2021 accounts for 13.2 per cent of the national mortality rate.

In the last 21 days, an average of nine persons were killed by coronavirus in Nigeria. With about a week more to go before the month ends, experts say more are expected to die.

On Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday 15, 14, 15, and 14, daily deaths were recorded respectively.

The highest single day death rate was recorded on January 14, 2021, when the virus killed 23 people. This has been the highest single day deaths reported in the country since

the pandemic broke out last year.

This also represents 11.7 per cent of the deaths posted in the last 21 days of January.

But the total confirmed COVID-19 cases in Nigeria now stand at 120,602, with 95,901 recoveries recorded so far as at January 21, 2021.

As the country battles to contain the virus in the face of a chronic shortage of necessary equipment and facilities, health workers across the country continue to struggle.

FOR A NEW NDDC...

Interim Administrator of Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Mr Effiong Akwa (left) and foremost Niger Delta rights activist, Ann-kio Briggs , during Akwa’s courtesy visit in Port Harcourt on Friday

AFENIFERE, ACF DISAGREE AS IG ORDERS ARREST OF SUNDAY IGBOHO leave, following reports of killings of some Oyo indigenes by the herdsmen.

Igboho blamed Fulanis including Saliu Kadri, the Seriki Fulani, of masterminding the rising insecurity in the area.

But the quit notice had prompted the Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, to call on the IG to arrest troublemakers claiming to protect the Yoruba interest.

“For people stoking ethnic tension, they are criminals and once you get them, they should be arrested and treated like common criminals,” the governor said.

Force Public Relations Officer and Commissioner of Police, Frank Mba, was yet to respond to queries on the update on the arrest order as at the time of filing this report.

Meanwhile, the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) has immediately called on the federal and state governments in the Southwest to quickly avert an impending upheaval that might destabilise the country.

The ACF was reacting to reported attacks on the Serki Fulani in Oyo State allegedly

by Yoruba youths.

In a statement on Saturday in Kaduna, Emmanuel Yawe, spokesman of the ACF, urged the government to act fast by bringing the perpetrators to book before the situation degenerates into social upheaval.

“The Arewa Consultative Forum this morning received reports of an attack by Yoruba Youths on Alhaji Saliu Abdulkadir, the Serki Fulani in Oyo State.

“In the reports, he was attacked and driven out of his house, eleven cars and his house burnt, with his family members now living in the bush.

“There are allegations that one Sunday Igboho an agitator for Oodua Republic and who issued an ultimatum giving Fulani people seven days to leave Yorubaland is the instigator of the attack”, the statement said.

The statement lamented that the most disturbing aspect of the attack was the allegation that security agents, who were earlier informed about impending attack, “stood by helplessly as the attack was

carried out.

“The ACF is worried about this trend and calls on the federal and state governments in the Southwest to move quickly to avert a social upheaval that may destabilise the whole country.”

The forum recalled that the Nigerian civil war in the 1960s started with such attacks and counter attacks like this.

“The governments must be proactive and stop history from repeating itself. Those who carried out these attacks must be apprehended and the due process of the law allowed to take its course”, the statement said.

It also warned that, “If this is not done, there may be counter attacks in the north and the country will be up in flames. The authorities must act. The ACF is very worried and calls on them to act fast.”

But Afenifere, on its part, berated the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) over their comments on the recent clashes in Ibarapa local government area of Oyo State.

The body, in a statement entitled "ACF’s Hypocritical

Tears", issued on Saturday by its spokesman, Yinka Odumakin, took exception to the ACF statement wherein they made reference to the event of 1966.

It said: "While we have gone to a great length to sue for peace and have appealed to our pained people to be lawabiding even with the daily provocations of the Fulani and harassment of our people, we frown at the very arrogant and insulting ACF statement especially, their reference to the event of 1966."

Afenifere further submitted that: "We must make it clear to them that they cannot threaten us with a war at this stage as we will not provoke war but never are we going to run for anybody on our land. We are miffed that a body like ACF that has never shown any remorse over the killing of our people can open their mouths anyhow now because there are consequences for the irresponsible actions of their people.

"We advise them to call their criminals to order and not expect our people to sheepishly wait to be killed

by those who value cow lives more than human beings. We do not want a repeat of 1966 event but if there are people plotting such event again, the rain will be over their heads".

Weighing in on the situation, a former Minister of Aviation, Mr. Femi FaniKayode, warned President Muhammadu Buhari to ensure that Sunday Igboho was not arrested and that no harm befell him.

Fani-Kayode gave the warning on his official twitter handle.

“It would be dangerous, reckless and counterproductive for Buhari to arrest or kill Sunday Igboho.

When the Northern youths demanded that Igbos should leave the north, no one was arrested. Why should Sunday be arrested or killed for asking killer Fulani herdsmen to leave Southwest?

“I advise the FG to tread softly, because Sunday has the full support of the Yoruba nation, because he has spoken for the people. Kill him and you make him a martyr for Oduduwa, arrest him and you make him the greatest

hero of the Yoruba since independence. Whichever way, he wins", he said.

According to him, the best option for government was to arrest the herdsmen rampaging Southwest, killing and kidnapping the people and not by arresting those standing up and speaking for their victims.

“Sunday did not ask for all Fulanis to leave Southwest. He asked for the killers, terrorists and kidnappers amongst them to leave Ibarapa and the Yoruba people love him for it. Is that a crime?

"As long as he maintains the peace and does not indulge in or encourage any violence, I do not see what he has done wrong? In 1999, when Gani Adams was rising up, I identified him as a young man to watch.

"I wrote an essay about him and I said his courage would take him far. I was proved right. Today, I identify Sunday Igboho who has stood up against wickedness, injustice & apartheid in our land, when other Yoruba leaders were too timid to stand. I commend his courage,” he said.

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INEC: NIN Not a Precondition for Prospective Voters Says commission won’t share constitutional duties with any agency Chuks Okocha in Abuja The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Saturday dismissed speculations that the National Identity Number (NIN) was a prerequisite for registration by prospective voters, saying there was nowhere in the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria where such a condition was stipulated.

The commission also said it was not willing to share its constitutional duties in the registration of voters for the forthcoming elections in the country with any government agency.

Refuting a story by a national newspaper (not THISDAY), that prospective voters must henceforth possess the National Identity Number, INEC National Commissioner in charge of Voter Education, Information and Publicity, Festus Okoye, dismissed the report outright.

According to him, "Sections 77(2) and 117(2) of the Constitution and the equivalent provisions in sections 132(5) and 178(5) gives

the Commission the exclusive power and vires to carry out the registration of voters and it does not share this power with any other Commission, Agency or organ of government.

"INEC is a constitutional body and its activities are provided for, regulated and circumscribed by the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended). Its procedural approach to the performance of its constitutional duties is also regulated by the Electoral Act 2010 (as amended) its Regulations, Guidelines and Manuals.

"The powers of the Commission regarding the compilation, maintenance and updating of the voters’ register are constitutional and statutory and it does not share this duty and responsibility with any other organ or agency of the government and no organ of government or agency or party can impose additional registration conditions above and outside the ones imposed by the constitution and the law.

"The Commission on its own

part and in the performance of its duties cannot impose additional conditions for the registration of voters above and in excess of those already imposed by the constitution and the law. The law and the constitution make it mandatory that there cannot be registration by proxy and that registration can only be carried out in places and venues designated by the Commission and that those that possess any of the requirements in section 10 of the Act must be registered.

"No provision of the Constitution or the Electoral Act makes the possession of National Identity Number (NIN) compulsory for voters’ registration. A registrant that is not under a legal or constitutional disability and presents a birth certificate to a registration officer will be registered.

"A registrant that produces a baptismal certificate or a national passport, National Identity Card or Drivers License will be registered. A registrant that provides any other document that proves his or her identity, age and

nationality will be registered.

"The Commission will not make any of these documents compulsory, because the Constitution and the Law have not made any of them compulsory. Presently, the Commission has the largest database of Nigerians with 84, 004,084 registered voters,” he said.

Okoye explained further that the commission was working at expanding voter access to polling units preparatory to the acquisition and rolling out of INEC Voter Enrolment Device (IVED), which will enable the Commission revalidate the voters roll and carry out an effective and efficient voter’s registration exercise that meets the requirements of the National Digital Identity Ecosystem.

He stated that Section 77(2) of the Constitution provides that every citizen of Nigeria, who has attained the age of eighteen years (18) residing in Nigeria at the time of the registration of voters for purposes of election to a legislative house shall be entitled to be registered as a

voter for that election.

"The equivalent provision in section 132(5) provides that every person, who is registered to vote at an election of a member of a legislative house shall be entitled to vote at an election to the office of President."

His words: "The combined provisions circumscribe the threshold for voter’s registration to three key components. 1. A registrant must be a citizen of Nigeria, 2.

The person must have attained the age of eighteen years and 3. The person must be residing in Nigeria at the time of the registration of voters.

"Part 1 of the Third Schedule to the Constitution and section 9 of the Electoral Act 2010 (as amended) provides that INEC shall arrange the conduct of the registration of persons qualified to vote and prepare, maintain and revise the register of voters for the purpose of any election under the Constitution.

"On procedural matters and logistics, section 10 of the Electoral Act, 2010 (as amended) provides that each applicant for registration under

the continuous registration system shall appear in person at the registration venue with any of the following documents: (a) Birth or baptismal certificate, (b) National passport, identity card and (c) Any other document that will prove the identity, age and nationality of the applicant.

"Furthermore, section 14 of the Act obligates a registration officer, in the performance of his duties to demand from any applicant the information necessary to enable him ascertain whether the applicant is qualified to be registered as a voter."

He assured Nigerians desirous of being registered that, "The Commission is working hard to ensure that the revalidation of the voters’ roll is, seamless, effective and efficient and that the continuous registration of voters captures all Nigerians that have attained the age of eighteen (18) since the last registration of voters. We encourage Nigerians to be law-abiding and carry out their civic responsibilities and obligations."

In First Exco Meeting, Delta Govt Approves Kwale Industrial Park Orhuwhorun road reconstruction, others Omon-Julius Onabu in Asaba Delta State Government held its first Executive Council (EXCO) meeting of the year at Government House, Asaba, weekend, announcing the approval of key infrastructural projects, including the full establishment of the Kwale Industrial Park in Ndokwa West. The Commissioner for Information, Mr. Charles Aniagwu, disclosed these while briefing newsman on resolutions at the meeting presided by Governor Ifeanyi Okowa.

Aniagwu said approval was given for the establishment of the multi-billion-naira Kwale Industrial Park with 25 per cent

equity for the state government, while private operators would hold the remaining 75 per cent equity. He stated that the approval was a boost to the industrial park, the process of which establishment was slowed down by the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic last year.

The commissioner stated, “Today, being the first EXCO of the year, we considered quite a number of projects and we are hopeful that in the course of the year, we will begin to give trends to most of those projects that are outlined in the 2021 budget. So, our 2021 budget is fully operational.

“We started by approving the establishment of the

Kwale Industrial Park. That establishment now means that we now have a MultiPurpose Vehicle through which we are going to implement the full establishment and operationalisation of that industrial park. This Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) that is being established in the name of Kwale Industrial Park is going to be the government’s eye. The government is going to hold not more than 25 per cent of the equity of that industrial park. And out of that 25 per cent, government will consider what is necessary to take care of host communities. We are not holding it in trust for host communities because we are paying compensation for the

land that we are acquiring.”

The exco meeting also approved the widening and rehabilitation of the 2.1 kilometres Orhunwhorun Road in Udu Local Government Area in the Warri axis of the state at a total cost of N398.2 million.

The Information commissioner said the rehabilitation work would start from Orhunwhorun to DSC in Ovwian-Alaja, Udu Local Government Area.

He said approval was also given for the construction of Aragba-Orogun township roads in Ughelli North Local Government Area at a total cost of N552 million, stressing that compensation would be paid in the construction of the road.

Similarly, approval was given for the overlay of the Old Lagos-Asaba Road through Umunede/Ekwuoma/ Igbodo in Ika North-East Local Government Area at a total cost of N310 million.

Aniagwu disclosed that approval was given for the second Agricultural Policy of the state government to boost the agricultural sector in the state. He pointed out that the Exco considered the report of the Judicial Panel of Enquiry into the Okpe-Urhobo Forest Reserve crisis, adding that the white paper from the panel was accepted by Exco to address the crisis.

The commissioner disclosed that the Head of Service would

set up a panel to investigate a retired Director in the Ministry of Environment over his alleged encroachment on parts of the forest reserve.

The meeting approved the scrapping of the taskforce alleged to be involved in the harassment of land developers under the guise of Public Property Protection. It warned that the edict outlawing extortion and harassment of property developers, the Delta State Public and Private Property Protection Law of 2018, was still in force.

Aniagwu said the meeting also gave approval for the participation of Warri Wolves football club in the 2020/2021 Nigeria Professional League.

CONCERNS MOUNT OVER CORRUPTION AND INEFFICIENCY IN CASH TRANSFER PROGRAMME for each of the programmes.

According to the source, “It is one thing to have data and it is another thing to use the data. That does not exist under this programme. Now, what they want to do with this new payment is like generating QR Code without any database.

It is all fictitious, because you cannot reconcile that data with any backend.

“Today, they are still disbursing cash with no transparency or electronic confirmation of receipt. This is the vacuum that exists whilst N745 billion has been scheduled for disbursement in six months.”

The federal government said NCTP was designed to deliver timely and accessible cash transfers to vulnerable Nigerians.

But a report by the Africa Network for Environment and Economic Justice (ANEEJ), titled, “Spot Checks,” on payment to beneficiaries of NCTP revealed that most of the beneficiaries were in the northern part of the country.

The cash transfer programme, also known as Household Uplifting Programme (HUP), is one

of the four social investment programmes of the federal government. It is managed by the National Cash Transfer Office (NCTO), domiciled in the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development.

While the federal government contributes 80 per cent of the fund for the scheme, the World Bank contributes 20 per cent. The 80 per cent from the government comes from recovered loots from the late Sanni Abacha. The World Bank was brought in to bring structure to the entire value chain.

The ANEEJ report indicated that 90.46 per cent of the total funds disbursed to beneficiaries in the January to April 2020 cycle was paid to beneficiaries in the northern part of the country, while only 9.54 per cent was paid to beneficiaries in the South.

ANEEJ said, “The implication of this is that a larger share of the resources is paid to more beneficiaries in the north than in the southern part of the country. Majority of the beneficiaries were paid N20,000 each, representing four months benefits (January

– April 2020). Some were paid N10,000, depending on when they were enrolled.

“A few beneficiaries were paid arrears to cover for the period of November – December 2019, while a few others were paid top-up of N10,000 each as was seen in Anambra State.”

The report stressed that the present payment service providers (PSP) in the scheme did not have the capacity to effect electronic payment to CCT beneficiaries. It also showed that there were issues of intimidation of beneficiaries by community leaders on purpose to part with some of the allowances.

It revealed, “The cooperative organisations were getting between N2,000 – N4,000 from beneficiaries and some of the beneficiaries showed little understanding of the process.

Issues of family conflict arising from the death of the caregiver, insecurity in some locations leading to the bringing together of beneficiaries of different payment points to one location, leading to crowd management crisis and the mix-up on the issue of CCT and COVID-19 palliative. These concerns

were clearly manifested in Kogi State.”

It indicated that in some areas, the payment agents were short of cash and would have to go to the banks again and again, or re-schedule payment to beneficiaries to other days. This, it stated, happened repeatedly in Kogi and Oyo states, among others.

Additionally, the report said some payment points were very far from the benefiting communities, while and some had a very high population of beneficiaries.

“This usually leads to delay or late payment and some beneficiaries would now have to travel late to reach their respective communities. Some of these beneficiaries have been attacked previously on their way home,” the report stated.

Providing more insights into the corruption and inefficiency in the programme, another source at NCTO, who pleaded to remain anonymous, disclosed that people managing the cash transfer programme saw it as an avenue for corrupt enrichment and, thus, deliberately made the process opaque and inefficient.

The source alleged that the

programme coordinators set up a fraudulent backend in the cash transfer office, adding that the backend was supposed to have all the beneficiaries who have been selected to participate in the programme.

The source said, “That data is gotten from the National Beneficiary Register. But the register doesn’t have unique identification. So, the NCTO pulls from that data bank.

They appoint payment service providers, allocate states to them and send the list of all those qualified in various states to the service providers, ask them to create account numbers for the beneficiaries and they are expected to send the account numbers back to the NCTO. “That is the beginning of the fraud. Normally, if you go to open a bank account, the first thing the bank is supposed to do is to see the person, validate the person before opening the account. But what they do here is that they make the service providers to open the bank accounts and the account details are sent to the NCTO. “So, because they now have the data, they manipulate

everything. Once they get the list, which most times is made of fictitious identities, they push the money to the service providers. When the service providers get the money, they are expected to go into the field to meet people they have never met before in their lives, register the beneficiaries and confirm they got the money. But out of the 15 service providers, only two can do that – Unified Payment and Visual ICT. “There are three preferred service providers who control about 60 per cent of the programme. Those are the firms that they use to primarily launder money. In the field, they line people up to take photographs and after the first 200 people have collected, that’s the end.”

Corroborating the ANEEJ report, the source added, “Where you even see people trying to do it sincerely, you find out that the state representatives extort money from beneficiaries, claiming that they were the ones that put their names on the list. So, for every N10, 000 they collect, the state representatives collect N2,000 from each person.

SUNDAY JANUARY 24, 2021 • T H I S D AY

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JANUARY 24, 2021 ˾ T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R

EDITORIAL

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

UBEC AND 'SHORTAGE' OF TEACHERS The dearth of teachers should be addressed urgently

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he revelation by the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) that Nigeria has a shortage of 280,000 teachers at the basic level in both public and private schools is a reflection of the state of affairs in the country. It makes no sense that a nation bursting with hundreds of thousands of unemployed university graduates, including those who trained as teachers, should be talking about such shortage. It is also curious that UBEC spent N10 billion on teacher education last year, when there was no learning as a result of COVID-19 pandemic and strike by the UBEC should Academic Staff publish the list of Union of Universistates with the ties (ASUU). lowest number However, the immediate quesof teachers, their status with regard tions are: Is there between to the procurement synergy the Teachers Instiand utilisation of tute in Kaduna, the UBEC funds, as Teachers Registrawell as records of tion Council and UBEC? Is there any learning outcome real evidence of teacher in all competitive development beyond examinations records of expenditure over the years? Is there any indication of improvement in the academic performance of students, as a result of this alleged investment in the training of teachers? Why should the federal government be recruiting teachers for primary schools that are statutorily under the control of local governments? Why is it that, after the Community Accountability and Transparency Initiative (CATI) of the education ministry which revealed that billions of Naira from the UBEC was diverted in 2006, nothing was ever heard of the initiative?

The foregoing and many more are pertinent questions begging for answers but with ‘shortage’ of teachers, it is easy to understand why the illiterate population remains high in Nigeria. The National Commission for Mass Literacy, Adult and NonFormal Education, (NMEC) has established that the percentage of people from the age of 15 and above who can read and write simple statements on their

Letters to the Editor

everyday life stands at an unacceptable 35 per cent. This high rate of illiteracy partly accounts for the low level of development in Nigeria. Although teachers are central to changing this situation, majority of those currently engaged in the profession have sadly made their work part time; as they engage in petty trading and related activities.

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S U N DAY N E W S PA P E R EDITOR SHAKA MOMODU DEPUTY EDITORS OLAWALE OLALEYE, TOBI SONIYI 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 DIRECTORS ERIC OJEH, PATRICK EIMIUHI ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR SAHEED ADEYEMO CONTROLLERS ABIMBOLA TAIWO, UCHENNA DIBIAGWU, NDUKA MOSERI DIRECTOR, PRINTING PRODUCTION CHUKS ONWUDINJO HEAD, COMPUTER DEPARTMENT PATRICIA UBAKA-ADEKOYA TO SEND EMAIL: first name.surname@thisdaylive.com

he dearth of teachers is an issue that needs to be urgently addressed at the level of National Economic Council, where the governors are members. Primary education does not fall within the purview of the federal government.

The two per cent of the Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF) set aside by the federal government for equal distribution to all the states and Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to support basic education is looked upon by many states with a sense of entitlement. While the grant is not being accessed in some states that refuse to pay a matching grant of the same amount due to them, others treat it as slush funds.

Not long ago, the Zamfara Education Board Chairman complained bitterly about the chronic shortage of primary school teachers in his state. He said no fewer than 300 public primary schools were manned by a single teacher each. It is the same in most schools in remote rural communities across the country where there are no teachers, leaving the children to their own devices. Perhaps even worse is that many of the few teachers available to impart knowledge are highly incompetent, hired through the corruptionridden system of “who you know.” As the Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu rightly said two years ago, “it is an embarrassment to us that we have so many qualified people without job and we are giving the job to people who are not qualified.”

If those who are expected to impart knowledge are themselves illiterates, how do we create the necessary balance of skills and knowledge that would drive national development?

The way forward is a massive teacher recruitment drive, with the budgetary allocation to go with it. In addition, UBEC should publish the list of states with the lowest number of teachers, their status with regard to the procurement and utilisation of UBEC funds, as well as records of learning outcome in all competitive examinations. It is the failure to take some of these steps that has consistently earned UBEC a bad name for the misdeeds of some state governments.

TO OUR READERS Letters in response to specific publications in THISDAY should be brief (150-200 words) and straight to the point. Interested readers may send such letters along with their contact details to opinion@thisdaylive.com. We also welcome comments and opinions on topical local, national and international issues provided they are well-written and should also not be longer than (950- 1000 words). They should be sent to opinion@thisdaylive.com along with the email address and phone numbers of the writer.

STRONG INSTITUTIONS, PENCE AND DEMOCRACY

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anuary 6, 2021 has properly gone down in history as the day rape was orchestrated against the hitherto honoured strong institution called democracy. This deity called democracy is a governance idea that replaced others especially in the 20th century. Its chief priest remains the United States of America (US) and its shrine is the Capitol Hill housing the legislature. On that day, the legislature was to certify the November 3rd, 2020 presidential election that Biden and Harris were declared winners; but to their worst surprise, the then President Donald Trump had planned to truncate that process and upturn the result in his favour.

So how strong was democracy to have allowed, in the first place, Trump supporters to infiltrate the hallowed chambers of Capitol Hill

to desecrate its shrine? The same security officers democracy uses to show its strength disappointed it that day. So the violators went into the shrine, abused its instruments and facilities, spat on the floor, sat on its seats, broke its gates, broke its windows, shouted unprintable words and songs, brought into the shrine intolerable flags, dressed like animals or masquerades, ran amok and told the world that democracy is not as strong as they thought.

In fact they told democracy that it is a thief: it stole an election that Trump won. So where was democracy when all these happened inside the Capitol Hill?

Was democracy in chains? Were its gods and oracles asleep? Or did democracy travel to a very far place? Did democracy decide to exit the US (DEXITUS or DEXIT)?

Where were the ammunitions (police, military, guns, missiles and rockets of democracy) held by its force agents that were always at its disposal? So can democracy be a toothless bull dog?

Where were its chief servants: the Constitution of the US, past presidents of the US, the chief judge of the Supreme Court, the Speaker of the House and the Senate President? So all these people and instruments of democracy were in the US and the rape, abuse and shithole still took place? It then means that truly, democracy is just an idea that if left alone is lifeless, harmless and cannot do anything on its own.

However, it gains life and becomes useful to humanity and God if human beings decide to act according to its principles. Without these actions of the human beings,

democracy is as good as a dead thing.

That is my take when people say that countries need strong institutions, not strong men. I totally disagree with them.

In the case at hand, Mike Pence was the strong man not democracy. He was the general who stood firm, risked his life and continued the process of certification of Biden/Harris election victory. He was the man that did not know how to do things the other way as demanded by his boss. He did not know how to do the wrong thing. He strongly believes in the harmless principles of democracy (institution). He decided to do the right thing.

This is the difference between the institution and the human beings that work in institutions: the institution is weak and useless until and unless human beings do that which is right in the institution. If they don’t, the institutions cannot do anything on their own to get things right. So who is stronger:

the institutions or those that manage them? The obvious answer is the human beings.

Consequently, in my own country Nigeria, what should be strong is the human being that manages the institutions. No matter how strongly worded our laws are, if the human beings who implement these laws know how to do what the laws did not recommend, the institution remains a failed one.

Several times in Nigeria, legislators, rioters, etc., have entered the legislative houses and carried away or broke the maze of the chambers. How many of these violators were arrested and prosecuted? In Nigeria, political leaders look the other way, do the wrong things and we suffer; yet someone will tell me the institution is weak.

––Okachikwu Dibia, Maitama, Abuja.

(See concluding part on www.thisdaylive.com)

SUNDAY JANUARY 24, 2021 • T H I S D AY

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JANUARY 24, 2021

OPINION

COVID-19 VACCINATION AND VACCINES Adewale Kupoluyi writes that while the availability of vaccines is a positive development, non-pharmaceutical measures should not be abandoned

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he casualty ravaging the world from the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) may gradually be on the decline following the development of vaccines against the deadly virus. In the last few months, economies have been shut down, many people have been killed by the pandemic, the use of face masks and shield have become the ‘new normal’ while perpetual fear has remained part and parcel of our daily lives. It was, therefore, a thing of joy that the road to defeating the virus is getting wider by the day, but this is not without looking at some contending issues without further delay.

To start with, there have been reported cases of adulterated or fake vaccines in the market. This appears to be the most dangerous source of concern as far as vaccination and vaccines are concerned.

It is common knowledge that a major challenge facing the administration of food and drugs in the country is that of fake, adulterated and substandard products. Apart from the huge monetary loss to innocent victims or buyers of dangerous drugs, consuming them can be lethal since the ailments requiring medication remain untreated. Kudos to leading pharmaceutical companies that have started the production of doses of the vaccines whereby each patient is eligible to take two doses, but the way and manner that doses of the vaccines would be administered should attract public attention since the quantity of available vaccines is inadequate or meagre when compared to the population size in Nigeria.

To ensure that batches of the vaccines are appropriately administered in terms of rationing, priority should be accorded frontline health workers and the aged while other vulnerable citizens should follow. If care is not taken, the rich, affluent and top government officials could hijack the process at the expense of those identified above. Attempts must be made to cater for all. We recall that during the 2009 swine flu pandemic, high-income countries bought up the available stocks while poorer countries could not access the vaccines until after several years. To be pro-active, several countries have now signed up to a pooled purchasing scheme that is designed to ensure a fairer distribution of vaccines.

The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, which was founded by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and Gavi, which is Caccine Alliance, have already saved the lives of millions under the childhood immunisation schemes through the delivery of two billion doses by the end of 2021 by allowing participating countries to immunise 20 percent of their populations.

No doubt, the serious threat from COVID-19 makes vaccination challenging and a serious matter, most especially when the demand for vaccine doses far surpasses supply; there is the temptation for people to be naturally selfish and focus on their immediate

interests. This is at variance with what transpired a few months back when the pandemic brought an unusual sense of solidarity, but with the huge financial burden of procuring vaccines today, everyone appears to fend for themselves because money is now involved. The truth is that the COVID-19 pandemic has caused so much apprehension and anxiety that the distribution of vaccines was needed to douse tension when properly handled. The release of N10 billion by the government to support local production of vaccines should make a difference in Nigeria, if properly managed.

The efforts of state governments to complement that of the federal government in the procurement of vaccines are commendable. This intervention should not be taken hook, line, and sinker without due diligence and adhering to necessary regulations. This concern is fuelled by the disposition and contempt often displayed by some governors when it comes to following rules. Many of the governors behave as mini-gods considering the enormous powers they wield.

The Presidential Task Force on COVID-19, National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), Federal Ministry of Health, Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), and the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) should, therefore, monitor the states closely for compliance.

Furthermore, the memory of what transpired in 2003 in five states under Northern Nigeria cannot be forgotten so easily when they boycotted the immunisation campaign for oral polio vaccine due to fears that it was unsafe. In time past, people have refused to take vaccines because they were allegedly brought into the country to reduce the population. These unfounded claims are bound to be pronounced, especially with the various conspiratory theories suggesting that COVID-19 was man-made and that certain powerful persons sponsored the creation of the virus, to reduce the African population.

Even though it is difficult to ascertain or prove the veracity of these claims, the right thing to do by the government is to dispel the myth and adequately educate the people on why they should partake in the vaccination.

Non-governmental actors have critical roles to play in clearing the air on the misconception, effective strategies for combating misinformation, the merits and inherent dangers of vaccination and vaccines.

In these trying times and second wave of the pandemic, we should never forget to always avoid crowds, maintain social distancing, wash hands regularly, use alcohol-based sanitisers and wear face masks correctly

Proper handling of the vaccines is also key due to their perishability. As a chain process covering transportation, storage, retrieval and the like, those saddled with these duties should be properly trained and equipped to handle the assignments. The delicate nature of the vaccines makes them susceptible to damage, if not properly handled. I can imagine what would have happened to the people when they are immunised with contaminated and impotent vaccines that had either been infected or destroyed by high temperature, as most of the vaccines are better stored at low temperature of about -70 degree Celsius.

The required infrastructure should be provided to preserve the potency and equally safeguard our health workers from the hazards of work they are regularly exposed to. This makes it imperative once again, the patriotic call for proper funding and remuneration of health workers. Effective monitoring should be accorded priority. This is to ensure that in the event of any reactions or side effects occasioned by the administration of the vaccines, health professionals can fully take control to minimise casualty as was the case in the United States of America and Norway within days when their citizens received their first dose of the vaccines. People should be monitored for reactions such as fever, nausea, severe pain at the injection site and allergic conditions, among others. Fighting COVID-19 successfully requires a combination of several factors bordering on infection mitigation, therapeutics and vaccines. While the availability of vaccines is a positive development that humanity is truly advancing towards ending the pandemic, other non-pharmaceutical measures should not be abandoned.

It is instructive to mention that despite the euphoria of breakthrough, some virologists have strongly advised against the procurement of COVID-19 vaccines at the moment, arguing that it is unnecessary to introduce vaccines to Nigerians now since 70 percent of the country’s population can naturally develop antibodies against the virus. The virologists had reasoned that the people should rather be allowed to use their herd immunity, which they are enjoying as a natural gift and that, the government should forget about massive vaccination for now and concentrate on the few people that have some medical conditions that had compromised their level of herd immunity. In these trying times and second wave of the pandemic, we should never forget to always avoid crowds, maintain social distancing, wash hands regularly, use alcohol-based sanitisers, wear face masks correctly, report strange feelings to relevant health authorities, and more importantly, be sincere and stop playing politics with COVID-19.

–––Kupoluyi wrote from Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Ogun State

On Trump’s Twitter Ban Twitter and other social media giants were right in banning former President Trump, argues Ayodele Okunfolami

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oogle-owned YouTube joined its Silicon Valley neighbours that had earlier given a form of ban or deferral to outgone President of United States of America, Donald Trump’s social media accounts.

YouTube placed a suspension that saw Donald Trump unable to post a video for the week leading to the inauguration of President Joe Biden.

Although it is his permanent suspension from the microblogging social media platform, Twitter, that is most talked about and polarizing frankly, what Trump thing is not controversial? This particular ban has not only questioned Big Tech’s right to trample on free speech but also their guts to off the mic of the most powerful man in the world.

Though conspiracies existed even before the anti-masonic age, Trumpian times tossed us into the Golden Age of conspiracy theories where cheap sentiments prevailed over common sense.

Because conspiracy theories answer people’s psychological need, the virtual world of social media becomes an escape for them. It is also an era where distrust for mainstream media and corporate institutions grew to cancerous proportions. All Trump needed was to soar and try to sustain power on the growing disgruntlement fueled by rising unemployment, widening inequalities, changing demography, migrant crisis, far-right discontent, and social injustice.

So after branding conventional media “Fake News”, Trump resorted to Twitter where his more than 57,000 tweets could reach his base and the world without the censors of a biased editor working to please his paymaster. Besides serving as an amplification avenue for his misleading untruths, this unorthodox means of state communication served Twitter as well. It drove tremendous traffic towards it to its profiting. And it is this commercial success that made it tolerate a lot of Trump’s exaggerations and superlatives as it is currently doing with other far right leaders like Narendra Modi of India and Jair Bolsonaro of Brazil who are as divisive and also command huge markets.

Now do social media giants have the right to suspend or block outright the accounts of their customers? The answer is a big YES.

First, every service has terms and conditions, and if any service provider has these terms and conditions, it is the media. From strict time limit for call-ins, to blurring of disturbing scenes, to blipping of swear words, to restricting adult scenes to nocturnal hours, the media has over time found a way of managing freedom of expression, viewer discretion, and respect for the laws of the land.

Secondly, we all impatiently don’t read those lengthy bogus terms and conditions that can only be understood by lawyers and just click “I accept” to get logged on social media. It is the breach of those terms and conditions that made Twitter leave @ realDonaldTrump in the dark. In fact, several nobodies without verified seals are seeing their respective social media accounts blocked or suspended and heaven doesn’t fall. For example, several members of QAnon have seen their Facebook accounts blocked since August last year while many other YouTubers are blocked because they violated copyright laws in their broadcast.

So Donald Trump should even be grateful that Twitter tolerated his excesses long enough before his posts started becoming irredeemably toxic to the public. And the red card didn’t come without previous yellows. From the time he encouraged Americans to do awkward things like drinking disinfectants in order to fight coronavirus, to his unproven claims that he won the elections, Twitter occasionally flagged those misleading tweets for public safety. Even some news networks in America stopped covering him live so as not to serve as channels for his inaccuracies which are usually harder to undo once consumed by the gullible viewer.

Even though social media is unregulated for now, the various concerns by the United States Congress and the European Union has made them self-regulatory in a way.

They have programmed their respective algorithms not just for targeted ads for individual users, but also to prevent posts they consider dangerous to the public from going viral. Facebook in fact flags posts as false information after failing its independent fact-checkers’ test. But with 88 million followers and multiples of retweets and shares that would come after in exponential

degrees, Twitter and other social media giants had no other option but to place embargoes on Trump’s accounts.

By the way, these Big Techs, are the richest companies in the history of mankind and have the largest subscription base than any President in the world. Big techs have digital footprints of all their customers and track them with every click to manipulate them to achieve electoral, ideological or business goals while the thumbprint that brought the politician to power dries up in four years. This answers the question of whether they are bigger than the occupant of the White House who gets less than 100 million votes for only a maximum of eight years to preside over only a fraction of the world. The world Trump and his supporters are refusing to live in is one that leaders work with the media and not the media working with leaders. That is why it is Australia that would be the loser if Google chooses to pull out of the country because of the recent laws to stifle the search engine.

Then the timing of the ban. The riotous invasion of the Capitol by a mob incited by Trump at the twilight of his presidency was just the perfect time to pull the trigger on his social media accounts. The invasion was treasonable, there was fear of what next could come from Trumpoverse, democracy (which is the bedrock of free enterprise that produced the Internet) was threatened, and Trump’s political influence had diminished. Meanwhile, it wasn’t only tech companies that gave Trump the hammer. Several other brands took advantage to break ties with everything Trump.

Terms and conditions apply, you would say.

In conclusion, while some may find hypocrisy and inconsistencies in Twitter’s actions, enterprises in their quest to be socially responsible have stripped celebrities that front their respective brands because of perceived homophobia, racism, human rights abuse and other image launderers. Twitter just did the same to Trump, the only thing Jack Dorsey and his board could have done was to have legitimized Trump’s “covfefe” before turning his lights off.

––Okunfolami wrote from Festac, Lagos

T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JANUARY 24, 2021

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LETTERS

TIME TO SPEAK TO THE FULANI YOUTH

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eadership must be responsive to diversity. It is the rudimentary ingredient to fostering unity among variegated people. Where leadership becomes insouciant to diversity, every other thing fails. This is where the Buhari administration hit its nadir. The government abused and mismanaged the delicate ethnic and religious balance on which Nigeria pivots.

In fact, President Buhari never cloaked his prejudice and oblique aspect.

After the 2015 election, he infamously said those who gave him five percent vote were not deserving of the same treatment as those who gave him 97 percent vote. ‘’Words on marble’’ -- Buhari: “The constituents, for example, gave me 97% [of the vote] cannot in all honesty be treated on some issues with constituencies that gave me 5%. I think these are political reality.”

This is from the president of the most powerful black nation on the planet.

Compare Buhari’s blighted utterance with the statement of Joe Biden, US president, who declared that he would be the president of all Americans, and that he would work for both Democrats and Republicans.

Owing to the obvious

Buhari

twisted proclivities of Buhari’s administration, the fissures dividing Nigerians according to religious and ethnic caste widened cosmically. It is a general truth that Nigeria has never been this fractured.

The ethnic and religious taxonomies are very pronounced. IPOB in the south-east, supremacist groups in the south-west and south-south -- and confusion everywhere.

Some of these groups were not there until after 2015 – owing largely to the ethnic incitements of the Buhari

administration – a divisive government which elevated nepotism to a state policy.

As a matter of fact, there was Boko Haram and farmer-herder clashes prior to the Buhari administration, but Nigeria fell to the suzerainty of bandits, who happen to be from the president’s ethnic stock, under Buhari. The scale of pillaging and savagery is unprecedented. From Zamfara, Katsina to Oyo and Ondo, the blood of the innocents cries out.

Some roads have become ghost avenues; villages and

businesses abandoned – all because of leadership failure which enabled the enterprise of banditry.

What is frightening, as some say, is that these people are of the assumption that they own Nigeria because Buhari is the president. This is what Olu Falae, a statesman who has been a recurring victim of bandits, said: ‘’When I was a child, herdsmen were our friends, they would bring their cows here and we would sing with them after selling their cows, they were not threatening anybody.

But in the last 10 years or 15 years, they became violent and they have become a different thing altogether and I suspect it’s because the President is a Fulani.

The ordinary herdsman ignorantly believes that they own everything in Nigeria, both all of us in Nigeria and whatever we possess.

"For example, a few years ago, one of the herdsmen hanging around my farm, met one of my workers and asked my workers why I was disturbing them, that I should be planting my maize on one side and allow them to graze on the other side, even on my farm. He was proposing that I should share my farm with him. Has such a person got any sense of property, right? Did he think he has no right in that

THE TEST OF DEMOCRACY IN RIVERS STATE

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he Rivers State government is set to conduct the local government election in April. The state government has enjoined the electoral commission to conduct a free and fair election. But the APC National Executive Committee is kicking. It has directed its party members in Rivers State not to participate in the forthcoming election. Its greatest reason for refusing to participate in the election is because according it the election is merely a selection.

In other words, it has no confidence in the electoral system put up by the Rivers State government. It is not ready to give the selection any form of credibility by participating in it. On the other hand, Magnus Nge Abe is enjoining the APC in the state to participate in the election. APC is now a house divided against itself.

Are there benefits of the APC participating in the local government election?

Personally, I think there are. First, everyone knows that Wike is an apostle of participatory governance.

Since he became the governor of Rivers State, he has left no one in doubt that free participation in government is the only sure way to enliven our democracy and create good government. He showcased this in the Edo

governorship election held last year. Governor Wike has often stuck out his neck insisting that election in Nigeria should be free and fair. Furthermore, he has enjoined the Rivers State electoral body to conduct free and fair election.

Recently, the governor has told the aspirants that there are no automatic tickets.

The APC has the opportunity to show the world that governor Wike is not a democrat by participating in the election. The APC should participate in the election and ensure that the election is free and fair.

The APC should hold the electoral body to account the same way governor Wike had held national INEC in the past to account.

It will be a loss to democracy and a set back to the democratization of the local councils if the APC refused to participate in the forthcoming local government election in Rivers State.

APC is a political party that has the constitutional rights to partake in any election in Nigeria at any level. Democracy is defined as government of the people. It is not so when only one party is allowed to contest in an election.

So where is the plurality of governance? Rivers State should not be allowed to be a one-party state.

Otherwise, it becomes a

dictatorship and the people will only blame themselves.

In a democracy, the people form the government.

This is not so when only one party is contesting an election at the grassroots level where government is brought closer to the people.

The APC should be able to separate its internal politics from popular governance.

One may argue that apart from the APC, there are other parties in the state. This may be true, but these other parties may have no electoral value (my apologies). It is only when political parties with strong electoral base spread across the state participate in an election that democracy can be deepened in the system.

The APC has a right to boycott the local government election slated to take place sometime in April.

But it also does not have the right to deny the people the opportunity to democratize the local government system in the state.

A political party is a tool by which the people participate in governance.

By withdrawal from the election, the people have been denied an opportunity to participate in the governance of the local governments in the state.

This can no longer be called a participatory government because it has become a one-man show. Who do you

blame for this? The APC of course! It is in this respect that I support the call of Magnus Abe, the factional leader of the APC in the state that the APC should prepare and participate in the election. Those who are interested should pick the forms and start their campaign. Magnus Abe’s position is the best for the APC. They should ensure that the election is free and fair. It is our responsibility to ensure that Rivers State does not become a one party state.

The APC in Rivers State should know that its allegiance is to the people of the state. If it refuses to participate in the election, then it lacks the moral right to criticise an exercise it refused to participate in.

Of course it cannot accuse governor Wike of running a one-man government when it has refused to participate in an exercise that enhances governance and makes dictatorship impossible. Those who refused to participate in government should not complain when government leaves its responsibility to engage in acts consider antithetical to democratic governance. Magnus Abe is right for calling on the APC to participate in the local government election. The APC should participate.

––Chimezie Elemuo, Oginigba, Port Harcourt

place?’’

It is really disturbing.

With a crisis of deadly potential precipitating in the south-west over the siege by bandits in the region, it is time for the president to act – by initiating a process of prevailing on the Fulani youths to desist from this path. Miyetti Allah, the Fulani socio-cultural group, has been instrumental in securing the release of captives from bandits and in establishing links for dialogue with them. For example, the freedom of the Kankara schoolboys of Katsina was by dint of Miyetti Allah. The group has also intervened in other situations. Can this group do the bounden duty of speaking to the heart of the Fulani youths?

A few days ago, Sheikh Ahmad Gumi met with some Fulani communities in Kaduna and sermonised them. About 600 bandits reportedly agreed to surrender their firearms.

This is leadership. Really, this precarious occasion in the life of our nation calls for leadership by all Fulani leaders. They must rise up

and talk to their won.

Nigeria, divided we stand? As I said in a previous article, crime has no ethnic face. There are people of criminal inclinations in every group, race, place and religion. We defeat the fight against insecurity if we lend ourselves to ethnic prejudices. And we must take caution not to tinge the enemy in brushstrokes of ethnicity. Let us not make banditry about “all herdsmen”. Asking Nigerians to leave a state because they are not natives or because a few of them are trafficking in blood goes against every shred of humanity. The enemy are the bandits not an ethnic group.

Our unity should matter to us. There are people working overtime to plunge Nigeria into crisis. They profit from blood and build their political assets from anarchy. We should not let these blood dealers celebrate. We have lost many souls to violence already; we should not lose more precious souls to a crisis of attrition.

––Fredrick Nwabufo is a writer and journalist

‘We’ll Be Back in Some Form’

T

he cryptic message

by Donald Trump on the day he departed the White House, “we’ll be back in some form,” will dominate political discussions for a couple of years into the Joe Biden presidency.

What did Trump really mean? It is said that, as a result of age and depending on his state of health in 2024 plus his belief in the Democratic Party’s “liberalism and feminism,” Joe Biden may not seek a second term and so the coast will be clear, if you will, for the “CaucasoidBlack-Asian” VP, Kamala Harris, to run for president.

Donald Trump, in his cryptic McDouglas Arthureque quip, actually meant he will push Ivanka Trump-Kushner into the fray. Then, it will be a “woman-to-woman, Jew’s wife versus Jew’s wife” fight between two beautiful ladies whose mothers were “modern immigrants” to the US; that would be

an evenly-poised contest.

Ivanka’s popularity pre2024 will soar if security in the mainland US takes a knock as a result of Biden reversing Trump’s “travel ban” Executive Order; to ensure that this does not happen, since Democrats will be rightly tensed as this particular travel ban is lifted and pissed-off grizzled reactionaries enter stateside and sneer at a “decadent” America, Biden, Harris and the likes of Ilhan Omar will have a lot of “cooling-off talks” to do as they criss-cross America.

Otherwise, Ivanka will run her 2024 campaign exactly on the format of her dad Donald by threatening a second, more comprehensive and punitive “travel ban.” Sure, the Democrats will not rest easy these next four years.

Trump will see to that.

––Sunday Adole Jonah, Department of Physics, Federal University of Technology, Minna, Niger State

The Numbers Have Been Counted

N

ow that the inauguration is over, we have Doug Emhoff, the first 'Second Gentleman. This is a great step forward as his wife, Vice President Kamala Harris is sworn in.

True progress however will happen when there is a second first gentleman and then it will be possible to say there is an equality in politics.

––Dennis Fitzgerald, Melbourne, Australia.

16

THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER JANUARY 24, 2021

BUSINESS OUTSIDER

The Oil Palm Opportunity in Nigeria Tunji Adegbite

O

riginally native to the tropical rainforests of West Africa, Oil palm is one of Nigeria’s most economically viable agricultural products. Its production currently extends to other African countries in the Oil Palm Belt – Angola, Democratic Republic of Congo, etc; and several South-Asian countries, following the introduction of the seedlings to the region by Dutch traders in the 18th century.

Palm oil, one of the products of the oil palm plant is an important component in over half of consumer goods sold globally. It is extracted from the mesocarp of the fruits and its main chemical constituent is palmitic acid. The kernel of the palm fruit also produces a lighter oil known as the palm-kernel oil, used for cosmetic purposes.

Nigeria was the world’s largest palm oil producer with a global market share of 43% until the 1960s when Malaysia and Indonesia surpassed Nigeria’s production rate. Currently, the 5th largest producer in the world and number 1 in Africa, Nigeria’s production constitutes about 1% of the global market. However, Nigeria’s export market share is not reÁective of its production capacity. In fact, Nigeria ranks 6th in African palm oil exports.

According to the World Bank in 2018, Nigeria consumed 1.34 million metric tonnes of palm oil making it Africa’s biggest palm oil consumer. Domestic production for that period stood at 1.02 million metric tonnes creating a demandsupply gap of over 300,000 metric tons, which is currently met through imports.

Demand is primarily driven by the local consumption of palm oil, used in most Nigerian local cuisine because of its Áavor proÀle, and a complementary increasing demand by industrial processors.

The palm oil value chain bears a lot of similarities to the structure of the petroleum sector. It comprises of an Upstream sector which is involved in planting, cultivation, and harvesting; a midstream sector that is involved in the reÀning and processing; and a downstream sector involved in the retail of end products and industrial derivatives.

Activities in the value chain of palm oil production from farming to marketing, serve as an important source of income for many farming communities in Nigeria. Oil palm is grown across 24 states in Nigeria with the 9 states of the NigerDelta playing a major role in the country’s oil palm production belt. There are three types of palm fruits- Dura, Pisifera, and Teenera- which is a hybrid of Dura and Pisifera. This hybrid fruit produces a much higher content of palm oil.

One of the reasons the oil palm industry is not meeting its potential is due to its fragmented nature. 80% of local production is controlled by small-scale farm holders who harvest semi-wild plants mainly Dura fruits using ine΀cient manual farming methods. The processing aspect of the value chain is also aͿected by the wide dependence on traditional processing methods which yield less output and more wastage. However, the palm oil marketing sub-sector unlike the others is run e΀ciently with a lot of middlemen bridging the gap between farmers and the consumers. Some marketers have gone on to brand their products to distinguish their products in the market upselling their value.

Major challenges facing the palm oil sector aͿecting its competitiveness and The dominant presence of low yielding Dura variety Ine΀cient processing technologies and substandard mills that extract about 25-50% of the oil content, amounting to almost 50% of the oil being thrown away for half of all processed palm fruit

Source: United States Department of Agriculture, Statista

Source: United States Department of Agriculture The high cost of acTuiring land for plantations InadeTuate post-production storage facilities resulting in losses.

Poor road networks and congested shipping ports resulting in delayed shipping times.

As part of its eͿorts to improve local production and protect local farmers, the Federal Government restricted access to Foreign Exchange at the Interbank Market for importation of ReÀned Palm Oil (RPO) and introduced a 35% customs duty charge on the importation of Crude Plam Oil (CPO). This, however, did not particularly improve local production as the bottlenecks in the production chain were not adeTuately addressed. Also, some commercial companies frustrated by low local yields and Tuality capitalized on the ECOWAS Trade Liberalisation Scheme (ETLS) to facililate imports from other West African countries at a lower rate of 0.5% tax rate.

The Central Bank of Nigeria estimates that Nigeria could earn a potential $20 billion annually from the palm oil value chain.

To drive investments in the agricultural sector and expand production capacity, the Federal Government listed Palm oil among 10 agricultural products that are to receive support from the Central Bank of Nigeria. To achieve this, the apex bank has introduced a number of intervention programs including the Anchors Borrowers Programme. This program provides a single-digit interest rate on loans to farmers through the Deposit Money Banks and other participating Ànancial institutions, for palm oil, the interest rate per annum is 9%. While this is commendable, however, the enablers reTuired to close the supply-demand gap go beyond Ànancing.

Opportunities exist for investment in palm oil production across the overall value chain, including improving the processing technology, upgrading the varieties of existing palm plantations with newer higher oil content varieties, exportation, and marketing.

The export demand for palm oil is also very high; China, India, and the European market- mainly Italy, Spain, Germany, the United Kingdom and

the Netherlands, are high importers of palm oil for use in their food, cosmetic, biomass, and confectionery industries.

Marketing and branding of Tuality palm oil products, in particular, is very lucrative for investors and has low customer attrition rates because of the proliferation of adulterated palm oil in the markets.

New market demands by the feed industry for palm kernel cake ( a byproduct in the processing of palm oil), because of its high protein content (22%) is also an opportunity for investment and market growth.

Tunji Adegbite iV a thought leader in 6trategy and 6upply &hain and haV ZorNed Zith leading organiVationV liNe PZ& and an ,O& +e iV alVo the Iounder oI NaVpire a buVineVV reVearFh platIorm uVing Fonte[tual NnoZledge to help entrepreneurV and proIeVVionalV in AIriFa VuFFeed +e Fan be reaFhed Yia tunji#naVpire Fom 9ieZV e[preVVed in thiV artiFle are perVonal and do not repreVent the YieZV oI any inVtitution he iV aͿliated Zith

SUNDAY JANUARY 24, 2021 • T H I S D AY

17

18

THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER JANUARY 24, 2021

BUSINESS/PERSPECTIVE

As Nigeria Borrows to Finance Wastes Nigeria is in dire economic straits and in one of its worst economic crises in its history as recently warned by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund last December. It is so bad that in November the Budget Office stated that 428 of Nigeria’s over 600 agencies would be unable to pay November salaries. In 2015, in order to reduce waste and cost of governance, the Oransanye report recommended the scrapping and merger of many of these federal agencies. For more than 5 years, the Buhari administration continues to fund these mostly moribund, obsolete, ineffective ,duplicated, unnecessary agencies many replete with mismanagement and corruption. How can a country that houses 87 million extremely poor people, the highest in the world, be financing 14 Space agencies? This is a picture of President Buhari’s 2021 budget proposals for a few of these agencies many with personnel costs (P) ranging from 90% to 100% of their total budgetary allocations. Quite a number of these agencies were able to get the National Assembly to further pump up their budgetary allocations in the 2021 Appropriation Act, writes Senator Sola Akinyede Aerospace National Space Research And Development Agency Abuja-N5.6b Defence Space Administration Abuja -N2.8b Nigerian Communications Satelite Ltd Abuja -N7b Centre For Satellite Technology Development Abuja- N2.1b National Institute Of Space Engineering Abuja - N577m Atmospheric Research CentreAyingba Kogi State- N1b (P-N963m) Centre For Space Transport Propulsion Epe Lagos State-N2.066b (P-N1.93b) African Regional Centre For Space Education Ife Osun State-N1b ( P-N933m) Advanced Space Technology Application Laboratory Uyo Akwa Ibom State-N896m (P-N806m) Centre For Basic Space Science, Nsukka –N1.4b (P-N1.3b) Centre For Geodesy And Geodynamics Toro Bauchi State- N1.

(P-N1.2b) Advanced Space Technology Application Kashere,Gombe StateN391m Aerospace Engine Laboratory Oka Ondo State-N447m (P-N426m Advanced Space Technology Application Lantang Plateau State – N257m AdvancedUnmannedAerialLaboratoryUburuEbonyi State-N660m Advanced Aircraft Engineering Laboratory Gusau Zamfara StateN369m (P-N347m) Remarks-With Many So Impoverished, Should Space Be Our Priority? Even If It Is, What Are We Doing With Five National Space Agencies In Abuja And Ten Rural Space Agencies Located In The Backwaters With Little Or No Electricity ?

Energy Nigeria Nuclear Regulatory Authority Abuja -N13b (P-N11.9b) Atomic Energy Commission Abuja -N2.9b Energy Commission Of Nigeria Abuja-N5.8b NIGERIAELECTRICITYREGULATORYCOMMISSIONABUJAUndisclosed Nigerian Electricity Liability Management Ltd Abuja -N1.4b Nigerian Electricity Management Services Agency Abuja-N2.8 Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Plc Abuja –N152b National Power Training Institute Abuja-N1b Remarks -Nuclear and Atomic power in a heavily terrorised State and six regulatory and management agencies while we struggle with electricity?

Science and Technology National Agency For Science And Engineering Infrastructure Abuja-N4.3b Engineering Materials Development Institute Akure-N1.2b Projects Development Institute (Proda) Enugu-N8.5b NationalO΀ceOfTechnologyAcTuisitionAndPromotionAbuja-N2b National Board For Technology Incubation Abuja –N1.55b National Centre For Technology Management- N929m National Information Technology Development Agency – N10.8B (2017 Budget) National Research Institute For Chemical Technology Zaria-N3.3b Nigerian Institute For Leather And Science Technology-N1.9b Nigerian Building And Road Research Institute Lagos-N20b National Biotechnology Development Agency Abuja-N2.9b National Biosafety Management Agency Abuja-N1.24b National Automotive Design And Development Council-N500m Remarks-13 national agencies for science and technology .Impact?

Petroleum Petroleum Training Institute Abuja-N14.8b Federal University Of Petroleum Resources EͿunrun-N62b National College Of Petroleum Studies Kaduna-Undisclosed Petroleum Technology Development Fund(Books/Conferences.

Spent N120b No-Impact -Neiti) Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency-N11.2b(2020 Budget) P-N11.2b Petroleum ETualisation Fund- Undisclosed Remarks-Current budgetary allocations of PTDF, PPPRAand PEF are unknown.As prices of petroleum products are now market-driven following subsidy removal, the President does not need to wait for the PIB Bill before winding up these three agencies some of which were still trying to engage new staͿ.

Transport Nigerian Institute Of Transport Technology Kaduna-N16b Federal University Of Transportation,Daura Kastina State(Chinese

Buhari

‘Gift’ To Be Funded By Fgn).

Education National Institute For Education Planning &Administration-N1.1b National Education Research And Development Council-N1.5b Mass Literacy Council-N2.3b Nomadic Education Council-N1.3b National Commission For College Education-N1.88b National Board For Technical Education-N1.8b National Board For Arabic And Islamic Studies –N9b.

Remarks- These agencies could easily be domiciled as directorates in the ministry of education.

Information and Culture National Institute For Culture Orientation-N2.5b National Council For Arts And Culture-N2.3b Centre For Black Arts And Civilizations-N743m National Tourism Development Corporation-N2.5b National Institute Of Hospitality And Tourism-N2.8b Nigerian Film Corporation-N1.2b National Film And Video Censor Board-1.2b Agriculture National Agriculture And Land Development Authority-N10.1b National Institute For Fresh Water Fish,New Bussa-N1.4b National Agriculture Seed Council-N2.2b National Agriculture And Quarantine Service-N7.5b Water National Water Resources Institute Kaduna-N1.9b Nigeria Intergated Water Management Commission –N885m National Inland Waterway Authority-N7.3b 12 RIVER BASIN DEVELOPMENTAUTHORITIES –N63B (Many Involved In Rural ElectriÀcation/Solar Border National Boundary Commission-N3b Border Communities Development Agency-N9.3b Questionable Agencies Public Complaints Commission- N5.2B (P-N5.2B) (Done Nothing For 46 Years, Duties Now By NHRC Nigeria O΀ce For Trade Negotiations-N3.8b National Productivity Centre-N6.14b Infrastructure ConcessionaryAnd Regulatory Commission-N1.5b New Partnership For African Development-N1.08b Fiscal Responsibility Commission-N506m Cooperative Information Network –N1.15b (P-N1.19b) The budgets for these 70 agencies out of the odd 300 agencies recommended for positive action by the Oransanye Report are in excess of N500 billion. This means that since President Buhari was elected more than Àve years ago, at least N2 trillion has been wasted on these 70 agencies, and the amount that would have been spent

on the 300 agencies will be in the region of 8 trillion naira over this period ($26 billion dollars at N306 to the USD rate over that period .

Between June 2015 when Nigeria’s external debt was $11.4 billion and June 2020 the Buhari administration accumulated $22 billion in foreign debts currently at $31 billon from a low of $5.5 billion after paying oͿ the Paris Club in 2005. EͿectively the $22 billion was borrowed to fund these 300 odd federal agencies that should have been scrapped or merged in 2015. The World Bank has just agreed to give us another loan of $1.5 billion after the IMF gave us a loan of $3.4 billion in April 2020. The Buhari government has also borrowed domestically to fund payment of allowances to the Executive, Legislature and Judiciary and we are currently spending N600 billion every year to service our debts. In the Àrst four years of his administration President Buhari borrowed more money than former Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo, Umaru Yar’Adua and Goodluck Jonathan combined borrowed in 16 years and yet the economy continues to deteriorate, there is little or no infrastructure to show for it, poverty continues to envelope more, and of course security is deteriorating because the loans are being used to Ànance wastes. Why is this government frittering away the future of the next generation to fund wastes with a signiÀcant proportion lost to corruption ? Why did President Buhari present to the NationalAssembly for the sixth time the budgets of these agencies that continue to constitute a drain on our national resources ?Why can’t the President channel the resources saved from these wastes to health ,infrastructure, youth unemployment and poverty alleviation ?

We have a degenerating Ànancial crisis, a deteriorating security crisis and an ominous socio-economic crisis. The World Bank on the 10th of December 2020 warned that if we continue with our business as usual approach to governance, our economy will go back to where it was 40 years ago and will ‘unravel’ – a diplomatic euphemism for a collapse. The authoritative Financial Times of London in its December 22 2020 edition says Nigeria is ‘teetering on the brink of becoming a failed state –a country where the government is no longer in control ‘. At number 14 out of 174 countries in the Fragile States Index and with the government hopelessly helpless with Boko Haram in the North East, bandits and kidnappers in the North West, and sporadic kidnappers in the South, the opinion of the Financial Times should not be a surprise. But a day after the Financial Times Op-ed, the presidency rushed to distribute a statement around newsrooms raising an alarm about a ‘smear campaign by disgruntled politicians portraying the President as not being in charge of the country’. Portraying ? Are the World Bank and Financial Times disgruntled politicians? Contrary to the understanding of Nigerians when they are in power, the word disgruntled simply means unhappy, dissatisÀed or displeased with the state of something. Nigerians in the North East, North West as well as the youths in urban parts of the country are justiÀably disgruntled . With the President himself saying that only God can eͿectively supervise the Nigeria- Niger border, is this not a tacit admission of loss of control since God has never made it His habit to come down himself to police the borders in countries? For the second year running, Nigeria has come outright last in the world in the index of 157 countries committed to reducing ineTuality. The index by Oxfam and Development Finance International declared that Nigeria’s budget on health, education and social protection is ‘shameful ‘.The diversion of resources to these wasteful and unproductive agencies as is obvious in the 2021 budget together with the disproportionate allowances and perTuisites to the elite in the Executive, Legislature and the Judiciary is the reason for this ineTuality, for Boko Haram, for banditry and kidnapping and for #EndSARS. Thinking it can borrow its way out of bad governance, this government is simply digging from inside a hole and the country continues to sink deeper into a socio-economic morass.

To many objective passengers in the ship of state called Nigeria, the impression is that with little or no maintenance checks and the aircraft on autopilot, either the pilot lacks the reTuired certiÀcation to operate the aircraft or/and has become comatose or at best is sleeping . The copilot has been sent out of the cockpit, members of the cabin crew are doing as they wish with some stealing from the passengers, while some pirates are threatening to throw out passengers who refuse to hand over their possessions. The waste being perpetrated by the Buhari administration, and its inability to contain systemic, endemic and structural corruption is the reason things are deteriorating.

Rather than blaming disgruntled politicians, the politicians in the cockpit who are not disgruntled including the governors running helter skelter in search of 2023 should wake up the pilot and ask him to sit up so he can see what is happening after which he can pray to God to give him the wisdom to understand what needs to done and the will and courage to execute in accordance with the powers vested in him by section 5 of the Constitution.

Senator Sola Akinyede was in the Senate from 2007-2011.

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THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER JANUARY 24, 2021

BUSINESS

Editor: Kunle Aderinokun 08033204315, 08111813084 Email:kunle.aderinoku@thisdaylive.com

A fuel dispenser

Nigeria’s Unorthodox Deregulation

By March this year, the Nigerian downstream oil industry would be marking its one-year anniversary of what the authorities describe as its full deregulation.

Emmanuel Addeh examines the peculiarity of Nigeria’s variety of the policy and how it has fared almost 365 days after

O

n March 19, 2020, the federal government o΀cially announced that it had fully liberalised the downstream oil industry, which in essence meant that the forces of demand and supply would thenceforth determine the prices at which Nigerians will buy petrol at the pumps.

One big part of that announcement was that since the market had been essentially opened up, a horde of players will naturally come into the petrol and other associated products importation business, raising competition and eventually leading to lower prices.

Like the argument currently being marshalled by the players in the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI) to the eͿect that government’s decision to remove subsidy and the push for Cost ReÁective Service will be the magic wand, the main hook when government made the announcement was that giving independent marketers the freedom to import will make Nigerians spoil for choice in terms of product prices.

The proponents of a deregulated market maintained that just like the telcos were allowed to determine prices when they newly entered the market,

eventually leading to competition and massive fall in the pricing of airtime, data, etc, the downstream should be allowed to evolve in the same manner.

But almost a year later, what is the state of play?

A Historical Perspective The announcement of the deregulation policy in March 2020 wasn’t the Àrst time the country would be going through that route. Indeed, several attempts in the past to remove subsidy and give market forces a free rein had been attempted in the past or poorly managed, thereby taking the country back to where it started.

Deregulation, a highly sensitive subject in the country, since 1999, when democracy was restored, has always posed a serious challenge to successive governments.

The decision as to whether or not to adopt the deregulation policy as previous governments sought to remedy the distortions in supply amid leakages of government revenue through a very opaque subsidy regime has been like an albatross for almost all Nigerian leaders.

While there are always political consequences to this decision, proponents of deregulation have constantly maintained that savings that would accrue from fuel subsidy removal could be

channelled to addressing the ailing infrastructure and human capital in the country.

Historically, government’s intervention or inÁuence on pricing of petroleum products in the form of subsidies dates back to 1973 when it became inevitable after the civil war to adopt some short term measures to cushion the eͿects of the high cost of imported petroleum products on the Nigerian people.

The Gen. Yakubu Gowon-led military administration at the time felt the need to reduce the eͿect of actual market prices of the products on the people as the landing cost was a huge burden, hence the need to make the products not only available, but aͿordable.

Although in 1986, Gen. Ibrahim Babangida, then head of state, never indicated that he was deregulating, he however, increased the pump price of petrol from 20k to 39.5k in 1986, representing about 97.5 per cent increase.

The Babangida administration further hiked fuel prices for as many as Àve times, with the pump price hitting 70k from 60k before he stepped aside in 1993.

Although deregulation or the attempts at deregulating should ordinarily not be synonymous with higher pump price, many Nigerians believe that they are not mutually exclusive, especially with the beneÀt of hindsight and their experience

in the last couple of years.

Mass protests have mostly occasioned the eͿorts to introduce market-driven prices, but taking advantage of the unprecedented fall in international prices of crude oil early 2020, the current administration seized the opportunity to, as they said, fully deregulate petrol prices.

During the Obasanjo administration in 2000, the pump price was again increased from N20 to N30, up by 50 per cent, it was N65 under the Yar’Adua administration and moved to N87 under Jonathan administration which ended on May 29, 2015.

In all the federal government was said to be spending about N1.4 trillion, approximately 30 per cent of its total yearly expenditure yearly on fuel subsidy.

While previous governments have always mouthed the same reasons why deregulation was the way to go, including the argument that removing subsidy on petrol would make way for savings to be channelled to critical infrastructure in the country and that eventually prices will fall as more players come into the market, Nigeria’s deregulation outcomes have been somewhat diͿerent.

In Defence of Deregulation Like every government before it,

20

THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER JANUARY 24, 2021

BUSINESS Nigeria’s Unorthodox Deregulation the federal government through the ministry of petroleum and the agencies it oversees, gave several reasons why deregulation was the way to go.

It stated that it was to ensure economic growth and development of the country, stop the subsidy regime, because it was beneÀting the rich, rather than the poor and ordinary Nigerians.

“Deregulation means that the government will no longer continue to be the main supplier of petroleum products, but will encourage the private sector to take over the role of supplying petroleum products,” minister of petroleum, Chief Timipre Sylva, said while defending the policy.

He pointed out that in line with global best practices, the price of petroleum products will be determined by market forces, stressing that henceforth, the government’s regulatory function will be similar to that played by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in the banking sector.

He explained that like the CBN, which tries to make sure that deposit money banks do not charge arbitrary interest rates on its customers, the government would also ensure that oil marketers do not rip Nigerians oͿ.

Sylva stated that by reason of the deregulation policy, an increase in crude oil prices would also reÁect at the pump price of petroleum products.

“Indeed, one of the reasons we have been unable to attract the level of investments we desire into the reÀning sector has been the burden of fuel subsidy.

“We need to free up that investment space so that what happened in the banking sector, aviation sector and other sectors can happen in the midstream and downstream oil sector.

“We can no longer avoid the inevitable and expect the impossible to continue.

There was no time government promised to reduce pump price and keep it permanently low,” he noted.

He disclosed that the deregulation policy will attract more investments into the oil sector, create more jobs and opportunities and free up trillions of naira to develop infrastructure instead of enriching a few Nigerians.

Unorthodox Deregulation Succinctly put, deregulation aims at “promoting competition in areas previously considered to be natural monopoly of an individual, group of people or government enterprises.”

The downstream sector of the Nigerian oil and gas industry primarily comprises reÀning, distribution and marketing of fuels including petroleum, diesel, kerosene and such associated products.

As it is, Nigeria, whether through private operators or public facilities, is virtually not reÀning any crude. With that out of the way, the focus has always been about distribution and marketing, especially of petroleum products.

If the essence of deregulation is to encourage competition, then in 10 months, that policy which was supposed to have kicked oͿ in March last year, has, to say the least, not commenced.

What currently obtains is that the federal government through the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) remains the sole importer of these products almost one year after its o΀cial announcement.

The idea that the steady rise in the pump prices of fuel will fall as competition sets in, just like in the telecommunications industry, also appears to have faltered.

Till today, government remains the sole importer of petrol. It is therefore, safe to ask if deregulation, the Nigerian way, has failed before it took oͿ.

In the same vein, many Nigerians have argued that what has simply happened is the removal of subsidy, with the government still calling the shots in the industry as to who should import or how much marketers should sell the products they manage to get.

Sylva

Has Fuel Subsidy Returned?

Although for 2020 and 2021, the federal government had no budget for petrol subsidy, it has become indeed a matter of conjecture whether fuel subsidy has truly gone for good.

It was easy and expedient for the government to tie the pump price of fuel to the international price of crude oil when prices of Brent Crude fell to as low as $10 in the early part of the second quarter of last year.

However, the rise in the price of crude oil at the international market, averaging $55 in January has pushed the landing cost petrol to N160 per litre and has left the federal government in a dilemma, it was learnt.

If the landing cost has hit N160, it them means the open market price, which is the expected price at the pump stations, has also jumped to N183 per litre, given how the arithmetic works.

With an additional N23 in the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) pricing template and an estimated national consumption Àgure of about 50 million litres daily, it is assumed that the federal government now pays about N1.1 billion on consumption of petrol in the country daily. This has not been disputed by the authorities since it was revealed this January.

FG Remains Sole Importer Despite ‘Deregulation’ The explanation given by the federal government while trying to assuage the usual opposition to deregulation was that within a short time, market forces will drive down pump prices of fuel as more players join the market.

But in a market that’s still largely distorted and the forces being largely manipulated, the dream of the customer being king is yet unrealised.

When curious newsmen sought to know why despite all the talk about competition leading to price crash had not been achieved despite a deregulated market, the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency, PPPRA, blamed foreign exchange challenges and prevailing uncertainty for the inability of oil marketers to resume fuel import.

Represented by the General Manager, Administration and Human Resources of the PPPRA, Mr. Victor Shidok, the agency stated that because of the dif-

Kyari

Àculties in accessing foreign exchange by oil marketers, the PPMC is currently the sole importer of the commodity into the country, and announces the prices at which it sells the commodity to oil marketers. The situation remains the same despite almost a year of liberalisation of the sector.

“You know the role that foreign exchange plays with the sourcing of PMS. When you are not producing and earning foreign exchange as you ought to do, then there would be pressure on the little that you have.

“That is why you see the galloping foreign exchange. We did not expect it would remain like that forever; that is why government is doing all it can and in the near future, we would begin to see an improvement in the value of the naira.

“Secondly, we believe marketers are still studying the market before they come in fully to resume fuel import.

There is also scepticism whenever a new policy is being put up. We do not envisage that the exchange rate would remain at the rate at which it currently is,” the agency assured.

It added: “With government’s pronouncement that the sector is deregulated it means that prices would strictly be based on the forces of demand and supply. You can have a regulator that always serves as a watchdog to see how these forces are being played out; how the interests of all operators and consumers are taken care.

“It is a market that is open, based on bargaining power and based on where you source your product. PPMC is a marketer; it also sells the product and also carries out analysis as to the price it wants to sell the products to its customers. That is the announcement they always make after doing an analysis of their cost and analysing their margins.”

But oil marketers insist that despite their willingness, they cannot import petrol now because of scarcity of foreign exchange.

Chairman of the Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigerian (MOMAN) Adetunji Oyebanji, while reacting to reports that the PPPRA had cleared qualiÀed marketers to import petrol into the country, stated that it was almost impossible as they had no access to foreign exchange.

“We are engaging CBN on this and

hoping for a positive response but it indeed is an issue at the moment,” he said.

MOMAN also clariÀed that marketers were never stopped from importing petrol but rather the economics behind it then stopped them.

MOMAN CEO, Cletus Isong, also noted said that the problem has never really been clearance to import but distortions within the market.

“We had always had the approval to import, the problem before now was that if we imported and the prices were higher than the Àxed selling price here in Nigeria, then we would be unable to sell. That was what the subsidy was about,” he told journalists.

“So right now because the price is low in the market we can import but we are challenged by the access to foreign exchange,” Isong added.

So, basically, the NNPC through its subsidiary, PPMC, still calls the shot.

For instance it put the landing cost of petrol at N128.89 per litre, up from N119.77 per litre in September and October and in November said that the ex-depot price of petrol was increased to N153.17 per litre, not N155.17, ‘based on the prevailing realities of market forces of demand and supply’.

No Reprieve for Consumers In the Ànal analysis, it would appear that it is double whammy for the average petrol consumer in the country because in one fell swoop, the subsidy they enjoyed before now has been ‘removed’ thereby making them pay more for the product.

Secondly, the expectations of the consumer that the increasing prices of fuel will be driven down once the market is deregulated and there’s competition therein remains a pipe dream.

In a country where public infrastructure like trains and electricity work, the impact of distortions may not be readily felt by its citizens. But a litre of fuel and its price at the pump means much more to the Nigerian.

Will the current situation change soon? Will reprieve come the way of Nigerians who bear the brunt of these policies that rarely serve their purpose?

Will the country begin to reap the gains of deregulation, having borne the pain for almost a year?

THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER JANUARY 24, 2021

21

BUSINESS/ECONOMY

Downstream Oil Sector and the Dangote Factor The downstream end of Nigeria oil and gas industry has gone through various reforms these past two decades.

The last, but on-going is the crude swap and its full support for the 20,000bpd reÀnery in Niger Republic; as the guaranteed oͿ -taker. The objective is to assist with distribution of petrochemical products in the Northern region. If Nigerian government can play oͿ taker for such a small reÀnery to boost importation of fuel and other products to the North, surely it can do same to the modular reÀneries springing up in diͿerent parts of the country. Most of all, at 650kbpd, the Dangote reÀnery is well placed to satisfy the petrochemical needs of the country, while the government prepares Nigeria’s four reÀneries for 2023. Chris Paul writes

B

efore you begin to conjecture this as promoting Dangote ReÀnery, let me quickly disabuse your mind from such thought. Rather, this is a serious conversation about a commodity that has risen above every commercial consideration to the realm of life and death for Nigerians and their nation’s economy at large.

It is a commonsensical argument about what makes sense and what should in other climes of noble and sincere elite, be a given rationale for making life better for the people. It is essentially a discourse on why, without a doubt, Nigerians now have more than ever before the opportunity to buy a litre of petrol at less than N50.

AsaformerPresidentofNigerianChamberofCommerce,Industry, Manufacturing and Agriculture (NACIMA), John Isemede, told THISDAY, it is easier to reÀne a barrel of crude than to brew a bottle of beer. This is demonstrated in the Niger Delta Creeks with the youth bursting pipelines to steal crude oil which they process into many derivatives.

If you remember that over Àve decades ago, during the civil war, the Biafran side ran locally-made reÀneries, relate them to what the Niger Delta boys are doing today, which some of the bigger players would induce government to describe as illegal reÀneries, then you will agree with Isemede that, indeed, it should be easier for Nigeria to reÀne her crude without any foreign support.

Regardless of the spurious argument or fraudulent technical claims the managers or technocrat have thrown at us, the logic here is this: Nigeria has crude; the kind that is much sought after.

So, as she had done, in the past, according to a former Petroleum Minister, the late Prof. Tam David West, when the nation was almost getting close to fuel scarcity, she enlisted the International Oil Companies (IOCs) to take Nigeria’s crude to reÀneries abroad in return for reÀned products. The IOCs would supply the needs of the country, sell the extra and dutifully remit the proceeds to the federation account. This processing arrangement, as it was called back then, happened under Major-General Muhammadu Buhari’s watch, as a military head of state.

A similar arrangement was introduced in 2016/17 and it was referred to as crude swap but known as Direct Sale of Crude Oil and Direct Purchase. The diͿerence between the model David-West superintended upon and the one today’s NNPC adopted, is that rather than deal with the IOCs, the national oil company chose to deal with independent marketers.

Thus in compliance with the Public Procurement Act 2007 and Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC)’s Policy and Procedures, NNPC engaged qualiÀed and credible companies in a Direct Sale of Crude Oil and Direct Purchase of Petroleum Product (DSDP), to ensure sustained product supply in the country.

A brief description of DSDP scope shows that NNPC delivers monthly crude oil lifting on Free on Board (FOB) basis to its suppliers who, in return, deliver petroleum products of Nigerian standard speciÀcation to NNPC, on Delivered at Place (DAP) basis at designated safe port (s) in Nigeria. The petroleum products to be delivered is the equivalent in value to the Crude Oil received from NNPC subject to the general terms and conditions as would be advised to successful companies subsequently via Term Sheet (TS).

Although, the oil-swap deals provided virtually all Nigeria’s gasoline and some of the diesel and jet fuel, it was introduced to replace the failed methods Nigeria applied to meet its domestic fuel needs in the last decade.

First, is the NNPC reÀnes crude oil at its three reÀneries and sells most of the output to privately owned fuel marketing companies.

Paltry amounts are sold through NNPC’s network of retail Àlling stations. Through, its subsidiary, PPMC, the NNPC also imported products using fuel marketers.

Second, the fuel marketers deliver the products to PPMC and are given cash in exchange (called “open account” imports). The open accounts method was stopped in 2011 after the process was marred by massive corruption that suddenly shot to trillions of naira.

The third method involved private marketers importing products with permits issued by the Petroleum Product Pricing and Regulatory Authority (PPPRA) and selling them to a range of wholesale and retail buyers.

Finally, NNPC imports and sells products through swap deals in which crude oil is exchanged directly for reÀned petroleum products. Since the open account system was stopped, Swaps helped the country maintain the Áow of fuel into Àlling stations across the States. However, experts expressed reservations about the probity of the swap deals as many believe the swap deals were not properly structured, monitored and audited.

This option was so good; NNPC announced a 6-month extension of its contracts with private oil Àrms to swap crude oil for fuel.

The aͿected oil companies, according to a media report from Reuters, renegotiated the price agreement due to changes that were made in the prices of petrol in the country.

The initial 1-year oil swap contracts to exchange over 300,000

Sylva

barrels of crude oil per day with 15 company groupings expired in October 2020. The swap deal with these companies supplied a huge portion of Nigeria’s petroleum products which included fuel, diesel and jet fuel, as it had not been proÀtable for private oil companies to import fuel into the country. And this had prompted NNPC to be the sole importer of fuel for quite a while.

Introduced in 2016 to replace the programme, which at that time, gulped trillions of naira in subsidy payments to importers, most of whom declared fake product delivery papers, the scheme involved about 34 companies under a total of 15 groupings to carry out a swap deal for the supply of reÀned fuel in exchange of crude oil, as NNPC contractors.

Barely Àve weeks, the government had expressed its satisfaction with what the policy had achieved for the country, when, in October, it announced that plans were underway to end the oil-for-fuel swap system in the nearest future.

At a virtual conference at the African ReÀners & Distributors Association annual conference, NNPC Group Managing Director, Mele Kyari, informed his audience about a plan to end the country’s oil-for-fuel swap system which had saved the country US$1billion a year, as soon as local reÀning capacity improves by 2023.

The government has been assisting the private sector to develop modular reÀneries, and a few private reÀneries are expected to come on stream soon. Such as a 100,000-barrel capacity reÀnery located near Port Harcourt, the Niger Delta Petroleum reÀnery in Delta state and six modular reÀneries. The country is also patiently awaiting Dangote’s 650,000 barrels per day capacity reÀnery.

The NNPC MD also noted that he expected NNPC’s reÀneries to be fully revamped and running again by 2023 through partnership with private companies.

Due to countless years of underinvestment and poor maintenance and despite continuous talk of revamping the reÀneries, in 2019, the combined capacity utilisation of Nigerian reÀneries fell to 2.5%, an all-time low annual activity level since 1998 when NNPC started providing the data.

All the talk about revamping, resuscitating or resurrecting the dead reÀneries has been the mantra successive governments have been mouthing since 2000 when the nation resumed this democratic journey. Yet, 20 years down the line, there is nothing to show for it.

And from the body language of the relevant regulatory agencies it does not seem that promise will ever come to past.

It was this type of promise that got the former Minister of Petroleum Resources and University teacher, Prof. Tam David West, outraged when in an interviewed published in the 12 November 2019 edition of the Guardian online, the one-time minister accused the immediate past Minister of State, Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachuwu, of being economical with the true state of the reÀneries: “It is scandalous to hear Dr. Ibe Kachukwu saying all the reÀneries would be ready by next year. You can’t make statements like a magician. Nigeria has no business importing fuel. There are two questions: Should there be subsidy or should there be no subsidy? My answer is capital no If you go through the racket, I will tell you why

subsidy is nothing but fraud. It is not just one-man business; there are many interests involved in the fraud. When former President Goodluck Jonathan set up the Subsidy Investigation Panel and I was invited, I got my facts ready that there should not be any subsidy.

The time I wanted to present my facts at the panel, Jonathan said they shouldn’t allow me,” David-West said.

Another source of David-West’s anger against government is the argument oͿered in favour of fuel subsidy; “How about the argument that subsidy is beneÀtting the rich and not the poor? Faulty logic.That’s what the Ànance minister said. I call it convoluted logic So, if you say the subsidy exists according to you and you meant it for the common man and it’s not going to the common man« so, when you remove it, how will he get it? Convoluted logic The President (Goodluck Jonathan) said it that if you remove fuel subsidy, we will build more reÀneries. So, you kill us Àrst before you build your reÀneries« when you remove subsidy, prices of everything in the country will increase,” he concluded.

If he could say that about the former coordinating minister in the past administration, what would he have said to the current argument, by the government led by the same Buhari; that Nigeria has the cheapest fuel in the world; either the usually emotional academic will explode into uncontrollable tears or laughter.

Not a few industry insiders noted that the government had supported Dangote reÀnery so much that it would make no sense revamping the existing reÀneries at huge costs.

With Dangote ReÀnery expected to commence operations within the timeline with a capacity of 650,000 barrels per day of crude oil, Nigeria’s existing reÀneries may cease to operate having continued to record huge deÀcit over the years.According to the public statement by the group, the integrated reÀnery and petrochemical project had reached 80 per cent completion, covering engineering, design as well as procurements.

The Nigerian reÀnery utilisation rate, for more than Àve years, has been below 30 per cent, with a remarkable drop in the past three years when any month above a Àve per cent utilisation rate might be considered a successful one.

With a cumulative plant capacity of 445,000 barrels per day, the facilities posted a capacity utilization of zero per cent all through the 13-month period. In other words, Nigerians are to believe that for every day, through all of 13 months, the four reÀneries were fed with their due ration of crude oil feedstock which amounted to the four facilities’ combined capacity of 445kbpd. However, the volume of crude they recorded as closing stock between August 2019 and August 2020 was 3.78 million metric tonnes. Yet, according to the NNPC’s Monthly report for August 2020, the volume of crude processed by the facilities from August 2019 to August 2020 was at zero metric tonnes and no one was queried or Àred Kyari said the vision of revamping the pipelines is in tandem with the ReÀneries Rehabilitation Project, “Which we have promised to deliver by 2023. I am happy to announce that the funding challenge, which had stalled the second phase of the rehabilitation of the Port Harcourt ReÀnery, has been resolved. The contract for the second phase will soon be awarded and work will commence in Q1 of 2021.” From his statement, the GMD is saying the Àrst phase of the reÀneries rehabilitation had been done and the reÀnery should be performing at 60% capacity and with the good news- that the funding challenged for the second phase of the repair has been resolved, the PH reÀnery should be working at a full capacity by the end of 2021 or early 2022. Let all who know, please note this and hope Kyari would prove skeptics wrong and deliver on his word. If he does, he would have convinced critics that, unlike his predecessors, who made promises to repair the reÀneries a singsong for them to give sound bite to the press; he is diͿerent and a man of his word.

It was reported that those, who built the PHRC were invited at the outset of this administration but the perception is that the government does not want the reÀneries to work. Having supported the Dangote reÀnery to a level that it would become counter-productive to spend so much on the ine΀cient local reÀneries.

Most industry players also believe the upcoming Dangote ReÀnery will solve the problem of production in existing reÀneries, adding that despite the costs incurred from maintenance and recently, rehabilitation, the reÀneries are still not working. But how does Dangote reÀnery solve the problem when the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, said the reÀnery will be selling fuel to Nigerians-in Nigeria, where it is operating from, at international price Where things stand now, for Nigeria and Nigerians, is that both the national and individual Nigerian life are powered by fuel among other petroleum products.

So, it should not matter where government gets it, at the cheapest price, so Nigerians can get the product at a comfortably aͿordable rate. That is why the Niger reÀnery may not be so upsetting when one considers its proximity to the Northern part of the country.

22

THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER JANUARY 24, 2021

BUSINESS/MEDIA

Lai Mohammed, Information and Culture Minister

President, Advertising Practitioners Council of Nigeria, Olalekan Fadolapo

Managing Debt in Period of Recession

In a period of recession with its attendant pressure on private initiatives, when accessing funds from banks is becoming as di΀cult as the proverbial camel passing through the eye of the needle, it is not out of place for business owners to put pressure on debtors and other business partners with outstanding liabilities. But when such debt recovery does not follow due diligence, substantial period of time is lost to needless controversy, writes Festus Akanbi

O

nly few are surprised that the emerging di΀cult operating environment is already pushing business owners to take desperate steps to remain relevant.

For instance, the advent of COVID-19 and its attendant strains on businesses are beginning to test the Ànancial management of entrepreneurs, who have to cope with pressure from banks.

It is natural that when a company is pressed for funds and banks are not willing to lend without the usual stringent conditions, the immediate thing that comes to mind is to go after one’s perceived debtors. This is where the issue of eͿective debt management comes to play.

Debt is used by many corporations and individuals as a method of making large purchases that they could not aͿord under normal circumstances. A debt arrangement gives the borrowing party permission to borrow money under the condition that it is to be paid back at a later date, usually with interest.

Debt Management In essence, debt management is very crucial for advancement whether in business, government or by individuals and groups. Sometimes, improper debt management precipitates avoidable disputes, which if not properly curtailed, may decimate the interest of the parties involved.

In his book The First 5,000Years, David Graeber, an American Anthropologist, and a professor of anthropology, investigated debt across time and cultures and Ànd it to be a primary institution, preceding exchange, money and any notion of the economy.

According to the Mckinsey Global Institute, by mid 2015, the world’s debt stood at $204 trillion, $86 trillion (50%) higher than it had been in 2007,

immediately before the crisis, and $121 trillion (145%) higher in the year 2000.

Emerging markets and developing countries have about $11 trillion in external debt and about $3.9 trillion in debt service due in 2020. Of this, about $3.5 trillion is for principal repayments.

Around $1 trillion is debt service due on mediumand long-term (MLT) debt, while the remainder is short-term debt, much of which is normal trade Ànance.

Certainly, debt management which has plagued the core existence of nations, businesses, whether indigenous or those with global presence is also a phenomenon in the media, which acts as a gatekeeper of information.

In Nigeria, the media industry is one of the sectors where debt and its management has become a recurring issue.

Many media organisations depend on their business relation with advertising and marketing communication agencies who develop and place adverts in newspapers, radio, television, billboards as well as digital platforms.

Managing Advertising Budget About two decades ago, advertising agencies began to set up what is now called media independent agencies to speciÀcally and empirically plan, buy and manage advertising spend more e΀ciently.

This became an attraction for big spender multinationals who believe in the value propositions of media independent agencies.

These agencies identify the best time frame, and windows for market penetration of target audience and recommend the budget to achieve clients’ objectives. They engage in processes which involve purchasing desirable spaces and time slots in the print and electronic media, for clients to reach their target markets.

Statistics shows that the global media planning

and buying market growth is propelled by the growth of media expenditure. It is being aided by advertising agencies, and their action is being driven by the increasing penetration of the internet. The popularity of the internet is evident throughout the regions with a vast population shifting from television to online videos.

The Market Leaders Notable among the global media buying agencies are Starcom, MediaCom, Carat, Vizeum, Horizon Media, WPP plc, and Omnicom Group Inc. Others are Publicis Group, Interpublic Group (IPG), Dentsu Inc., Havas Group, Hakohodo DY Holding Inc., Mindshare Worldwide, MDC Partners Inc., Acxiom LLC, among others.

Their global market value in 2019 was $425 billion, with a projected compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4 percent from 2020-2025, and expected market size of $537.6 billion in 2025.

In the United States, the market size of the media buying agencies industry is $7.3bn in 2021 and it is expected to increase by Àve percent, but has declined 2.6 percent per year on average between 2016 and 2021.

In Nigeria, media buying agencies that have made strides in the industry includes mediaReach OMD,All Seasons Zenith, Media Fuse, Starcom/ Media Perspective, SBI Media and Media Seal among others.

These agencies have contributed immensely to the growth of local and international businesses, as intermediaries with media organisations, a situation that has greatly enhanced the way operations are run.

Disagreement Over Account Reconciliation Because Nigerian business environment is not insulated from shocks being experienced in other climes, local businesses are having their own share of the pressure and the corresponding spats

over account reconciliation. A case study is the current procedural disagreement over account reconciliation between two media partners in Nigeria,GalaxyTVandmediaReachOMD,which the media owners, according to reports, are now applying unorthodox management approach to resolve.

According to Àndings, the issue between mediaReach OMD and Galaxy TV borders on poor accounting process and the inability to reconcile and sign-oͿ appropriately. From investigations, mediaReach OMD is said to have shown due diligence in ensuring reconciliation of accounts, in line with global best practices with all payment records.

Furthermore, it was alleged that eͿorts by the leading marketing and media agency to reconcile and get sign-oͿ on reconciled position with Galaxy TV were not successful due to certain factors.

Other allegations include the refusal to approve the request for reconciliation of over 14 years; refusal to sign-oͿ on accounts when such are not deemed to be in favour of Galaxy TV, even after the company’s Ànance team has signed oͿ; rejection of third party monitoring report as the basis for compliance and payment; and the constant push for reconciliation once the company loses its Ànancial records.

The situation has been allegedly aggravated by the President of the broadcast organisation, Chief Steve Ojo, who, in 2019 was said to have engaged an external auditor,AdesolaAdewumi & Co. to undertake a comprehensive reconciliation of its Ànancial transactions with mediaReach OMD for the period covering 2014 to 2018, an exercise that was unjustiÀably not concluded.

Asource disclosed that the media agency made concerted eͿorts to ensure smooth reconciliation, as the statement of account sent to it for the period 2010 to August 2019 was signed-oͿ with the broadcast organisation also in 2019.

The source added that instead of taking note of the reconciled accounts, Galaxy Ànance team was said to have written to the media agency stating that their President requested for a revisit of transactions from 2010 to 2013, which had been signed-oͿ. Again, the TV station requested for another round of transactional review of accounts.

It was gathered that after series of meetings with Galaxy TV, the media agency shared on annual basis, all payments made by it from 2007-2019, including the names of banks, account numbers and the dates payments were made, although the information were said to have been presented to the President of Galaxy TV in the past.

The source said that other eͿorts of reconciliation with Chief Ojo includes tripartite meetings with major clients, where it was agreed that expanded reconciliation team comprising the Ànance team of both organisations as well as their legal representatives and external auditors be set up to hasten the settlement.

The source explained that the situation keeps snowballing from one inconclusive meetings and reconciliation attempts to another, with the presence of the Galaxy TV team.

Attempts to get the media agency’s explanation was di΀cult. Adirector of the agency, Mr. Alaba Fadero,didnotimmediatelyrespondtoTHISDAY enquiries. When he eventually caved in to pressure, he said the organisation does not like to join issues, saying MediaReach has good relations with many media organisations spanning two decades which has been mutually beneÀcial, as an international organisation committed to best practices, proper accounting and engagement with partners.

He said it is in this light that they would rather focus on dealing with this issue professionally, rather than engaging with the partner in the media, that the issue is about records, accounting and data. “Any dispute arising from there should be resolved based on best practices of accounting, records and data,” he stated Industry watchers wondered why it was di΀cult to resolve the issue if it is true that the MediaReach team was able to present all the needed facts and Àgures on their operations with Galaxy. They suspected that Galaxy TV might be dealing with the challenge of record keeping, which explains the insistence that mediaReach team be presenting records repeatedly.

It was alleged that the Àgures pronounced as owed were falsely computed as several payments have not been documented by the media owner.

Speaking on the need to tread softly on corporate disputes, a boardroom guru and Managing Director, Enterprise Life Insurance, Nigeria, Mrs. Funmi Omo advised the Galaxy Tv and MediaReach OMD to ensure the dispute is settled amicably.

On who keeps the records, Mrs. Omo said both parties were supposed to keep adequate records of transactions to avoid this kind of dispute.

“Ideally, both parties should have records and keep records,” she stated.

23

THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER JANUARY 24, 2021

BUSINESS/FOCUS

SAHARA GROUP @ 25

From Oil Trading to Human Capital Transformation and Innovation

Sometimein1996,someyoungNigerianentrepreneursestablishedtheSaharaGrouptotakeadvantage of opportunities in oil and gas trading. Following 25 years of disruptive and brilliant masterstrokes of knowledge, humility, business integrity, diverse human capital, sustainable corporate citizenship and robust stakeholder network, Sahara Group has grown into a leading energy conglomerate with footprints in Africa, Asia, Europe and the Middle East. The inspirational Sahara story has the potential of transforming the unfolding global energy sector. Kunle Aderinokun writes

H

istory is rife with enthralling stories of notable men and women who made a name for themselves through the brazen belief that out of Africa could emerge giants in industry and trade. Think of the Lion of Mali, whose empire grew to span West Africa and the Sahara Desert with equally vast trading activities spreading into North Africa. The image of a man from the middle ages holding an imperial golden globe readily comes to mind. As his territory and fame grew to legendary proportions, so did the economic status of his people. Mansa Musa was his name, and he once held the commercial strings of sub-SaharanAfrica in his hand. His vast wealth rivalled probably only by Marvel Comic’s Àrst black superhero known as King T’Challa of the fabled country of Wakanda.

The year was 1994, and somewhere in the United Kingdom, a young African who had been motivated by the story of Mansa Musa’s entrepreneurial prowess had recently bagged an MBA (Master’s in Business Administration). He was on the way to obtaining his RIBA (Royal Institute of British Architects) certiÀcation; eager to chart his course to greatness, the sky seemed to be the limit, or was it? So, the job hunt began.

It had to be an oil company or a bank, the perfect springboard at the time for rapid career growth, as he was playing “catch up” with his classmates.

But as an economic refugee in the UK, the opportunities were limited. The once puͿed-up shoulders of a young professional who believed the world was his oyster threatened to droop from the weight of numerous rejected applications.

One of the most notable incidents was when the head ofAfrica Trade for a top international trading house (whom he had stalked for months) walked him out of his o΀ce when he showed up for an appointment secured via desperate means. This experience left him in enough confusion to walk the distance from Knightsbridge to Kilburn, tail appropriately tucked between his legs. But a never say die spirit was in there somewhere, and since the opportunity seemed not to be in the o΀ng, he decided to build the doors himself.

His entrepreneurial skills were honed from the age of nine, in his role as CEO and Publisher of a Primary School magazine. An idea that was turned into a money-making venture by creating paid features for his classmates. From that age on, this young man, obsessed with value creation, ventured into many more businesses that eventually culminated into what is known today as the Sahara Group. His name is Temitope Shonubi.

Understanding that collaboration makes us better, Temitope sought like-minded individuals with similar dreams and diverse strengths to build the business. Some of such persons who built the business with him are his long-time friend and business partner, Ade Odunsi, and former classmate, Tonye Cole, who has since left the Group to pursue a career in public service. These two brought their unique skills and personalities to the table, ensuring that every transaction is considered from a risk perspective with appropriate mitigants and the right governance structure in place. Since then, the partnership has grown with the addition of Wale Ajibade, Kola Adesina, and Olumoroti Adedoyin-Adeyinka, with combined years of experience close to a century. The partnership continues to develop as a community of like minds bound by the same vision, as plans are underway

Storage tank farms

to appoint additional leaders, a reward for past and continuous dedication and commitment to attaining the vision.

Fast forward! Years after Sahara came into existence, the same man who threw the young Shonubi out of his o΀ce that fateful day in London paid him a visit in pursuit of a business opportunity.

He did not remember his encounter with him three years earlier and was not to be informed of this until 10 years after that second meeting!

In that 10-year period, Sahara had hired a couple of staͿ from the same international trading Àrm that rejected him, including that senior executive’s former boss, to head its Geneva o΀ce. Sahara had also rejected oͿers of permanent partnership with the same Àrm. Alas! Failure bred success, and grace followed mercy. The Sahara Group had come of age.

“To earn the respect of others, we must Àrst believe in our potential,” reads a line from the Sahara Creed, an anthology of poignant statements that set out the organisation’s philosophy. This statement underscores the tenacity and Àerce determination with which the Group has grown in less than 25 years, from a trading company to an energy conglomerate with a global footprint.

The mindset that kept Temitope Shonubi going in the early days is still the same mindset that remains evident when you meet any Sahara Group member, even today.

There was a time the world would not have imagined looking to Africa to implement global energy solutions. Today, the narrative is rapidly changing, and the Sahara Group is at the vanguard of the transformational story from Africa to the world. Founded in 1996 with an initial focus on oil trading, Sahara Group is widely regarded as a leading energy conglomerate renowned for championing capacity building and promoting the “best in Africa for Africa to the world” narrative globally. Since its inception, the Group has deployed “transformational energy initiatives” to become a conglomerate with a proud African heritage and vast operations in Far and Middle East Asia, Europe, and Africa.

As it celebrates 25 years of leadership across Africa’s energy value chain, the energy conglomerate is consistently increasing its investment in technology, artiÀcial intelligence, and human

capital transformation as critical drivers of its next expansion phase. Innovation will deÀne Sahara’s brand positioning and oͿering in the coming years, as the group actively pursues its agenda of transforming conventional business borders and barriers to opportunities for diversiÀcation. It is already making good progress in this direction, starting with aligning its human capital resources and processes to support agile, smart, and innovative responses to the quest for value creation.

Creating a sustainable economic, social, and governance impact has remained central to Sahara’s corporate strategy. The conglomerate has taken bold steps in growing its business operations and Ànancial performance to achieve annual revenues in excess of $10 billion, with over 4,000 employees and operations in over 40 countries. Sahara’s focus is on continuous improvement, additional value, operational e΀ciency, and sustainability. This is a scalable model it plans to replicate for its operations worldwide. From a best-in-class Terminal Automation System (TAS) for e΀cient terminal operations in the oil & gas sector to Plant Data Visualization System (PDVS) for enhanced remote monitoring of plant operations, Customer Energy Management (CEM), and GIS-based Network Monitoring System (GNMS) for customer-centric power distribution & data management services, to name a few. All available on mobile application platforms towards the objective of promoting operational e΀ciency.

Speaking on the corporate milestone and plans for the foreseeable future, Executive Director, Sahara Group, Temitope Shonubi, said, “For us at Sahara, it has been 25 years of instituting a stamp of distinction. Like most start-ups, we were chasers then followers, and today are the dream actualized corporation. It is much more expensive and di΀cult to be a trailblazer, defying the impossible to emerge as an enterprise that creates value innovatively, responsibly, and sustainably. Still, at Sahara, we are focused on remarkable growth and grateful for the opportunity to serve and bring energy to life across global markets.”

He added: “At Sahara, Knowledge has been the empowering tool, business integrity our greatest asset, humility our greatest ethos, diverse people and network our greatest value, as we believe

there is no US without U”.

The activities of the Sahara Foundation stand out as one of the Group’s most cherished accomplishments. Starting in partnership with the Carter Centre in the eradication of guinea worm disease all over Nigeria, Sahara Foundation has over the years, emerged as a global promoter of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), with over 2,000,000 (two million) beneÀciaries across its locations through interventions in Health, Education, Capacity Building, and lately, Extrapreneurship - a concept that promotes opportunities for social innovators and entrepreneurs.

In 2015, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), through the Sustainable Development Goals Fund (SDG-F), established the Private Sector Advisory Group (PSAG) as a pivotal platform for business leaders to contribute to extraordinary social impact and cultivate partnerships of tremendous transformative capacity. From an initial list of 100 shortlisted global multinational companies, the United Nations SDG-F selected 13 companies and inaugurated them in Madrid.

Within the African continent, Sahara Group was one of the only two companies that made the Ànal selection.

Following the establishment of the PSAG, Sahara Group has played a leading role advisory group.

Sahara has demonstrated that to navigate and stay calibrated amidst this landscape, a companywide commitment to social responsibility must exist. The company has been an ambassador to the global private sector, serving as a role model to companies across industries and geographic locations for how corporate governance can enable development objectives. Following success at the global level, Sahara was tasked to replicate the PSAG in Nigeria in 2017. Since then, other sustainable partnerships have been created among major private sector organizations to promote sustainable development.

The Sahara Group is not oblivious to the fact that there is a growing global demand for safe and clean energy and the shift towards a lower carbon footprint. Riding on the success of previous partnerships, Sahara and the UNDPin 2019 entered into another partnership to promote access to clean and aͿordable energy inAfrica with a commitment to provide access to clean and aͿordable energy to over 650 million people in Sub-SaharanAfrica. This is hinged on sub-SaharanAfrica having the lowest energy access rates and the highest percentage of untapped hydropower potential globally, with only 11per cent utilisation capacity. The overall objective is to build a roadmap and provide catalytic support for public-private alliances in delivering large-scale solutions towards achieving the SDGs, focusing on SDG 7-access to energy.

The group remains passionate about green energy and environmental conservation. Its “green life” project, aimed at driving energy and ecological conservation initiatives across its business operations and partnerships, saw the group pioneer the commencement of an electronic billing system (e-billing) by Ikeja Electric Plc, the Group’s power distribution arm, as a catalyst to force a re-think on environmental conservation in the energy sector. To reinforce Sahara’s commitment to clean energy initiatives, the Sahara Group also initiated the use of electric buggies and bicycles at its Egbin Power, Africa’s largest privately-owned Power Plant, with plans to replicate same at other operational facilities across the Group. But Sahara did not stop there.

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THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER JANUARY 24, 2021

SPECIAL REPORT

The Morning AfCFTA: How New Trade Agreement Will Make or Break Nigeria

Africa has always been promising with great potentials not fully harnessed by the countries inhabiting the continent but exploited by those outside it. But with the launch of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) on January 1, 2021, and Nigeria signing its agreement after an initial hesitation, how will Africa’s most populous nation and largest economy on the continent fare? Bayo Akinloye examines what to expect

I

t was a grand occasion characterised by a Áurry of activities. Pages of papers ru΁ed due to constant thumbing in the decorous hall peopled by Africa’s most powerful men. There was excitement in the air as their optimism outweighed their pessimism. A historic moment was about to climax. For the Àrst time in many years, many African heads of state decided to become united and uniÀed on trade terms. Africa and the world waited for the icing on the cake.

It was phase one of the African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement (AfCFTA) being adopted by African Union (AU) heads of state and government at its 10th Extraordinary Summit in Kigali, Rwanda, on March 21, 2018. There were graceful grins and gleeful greetings as everyone signed up for the trade agreement. In that crowd, one face became expressionless.

It was Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari. Po-faced, he held his pen Àrmly. Everyone in the chamber looked with bated breath awaiting the leader of ‘Giant of Africa’ to seal the deal. But creases crowded his forehead and you could sense indiscernible threads of sweat line them up. Until that moment, as always, Nigeria was a signiÀcant player in bringing AfCFTA to life. However, at this moment, Buhari was worried. Perhaps, understandably so: he pulled out of the agreement signing ceremony at the last minute, following agitations from the private sector that the agreement would make Nigeria a dumping ground for goods and services in Africa.

Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, his deputy, later explained why the country had refused to sign the agreement, saying: “Due to the prevalence of dumping on the continent and the potential for its escalation, one may argue that free trade in Africa may not necessarily be fair.

Our decision to delay the signing of AfCFTA and to extend consultations is to ensure that our participation does not adversely impact on the progress that we have made to date.”

Not everybody agreed with him though.

“Today without the CFTA, do we have dumping? Do we have smuggling? Do we have counterfeiting? They are rampant, right? This has nothing to do with the free trade agreement. For a country that is porous, whether you have a free trading agreement or not, for as long as your border patrols, laws, and implementation of policies are lacking, these sorts of things will continue to happen.

“So, dumping happens even in developed countries and where ever there is a gap.

Criminals exist everywhere, and they will look for loopholes and try to use them. This for me is a completely separate thing from a free trade agreement. It has nothing to do with it,” explained an executive at a multinational manufacturing fast-moving consumer goods company.

Everybody Wants Nigeria on His Team

By July 7, 2019, in Niamey, Niger Republic, Buhari was more than ready to append his signature. It was exactly 10:47 am (as reported by the president’s spokesman, Femi Adesina) when Buhari appended his signature to the agreement at the 12th Extraordinary Summit of the African Union (AU) on the launch of the Operational Phase of the AfCFTA and thus Nigeria o΀cially joined the free trade area.

“Nigeria wishes to emphasise that free trade must also be fair trade,” said the president, adding, “As African leaders, our attention should now focus on implementing the AfCFTA in a way that develops our economies and creates jobs for our young, dynamic and hard-working population. I wish to assure you that Nigeria shall sustain its strong leadership role in Africa, in the implementation of the

Buhari

AfCFTA. We shall also continue to engage, constructively with all African countries to build the Africa that we want.”

By December 5, Nigeria deposited its instrument of ratiÀcation of the AfCFTA agreement, becoming the 34th member state to formally ratify the treaty. The deposit came an hour before the opening of a summit of African heads of state where they proclaimed the Johannesburg Declaration formally Àxing trading to start on January 1, 2021.

“We can conÀdently say that Africa is on track to deliver a commercially viable continental market on 1st January 2021,” said the AU Commission’s Trade and Industry Commissioner, Albert Muchanga, who received the instrument from a Nigerian delegation at the AUC’s headquarters in Addis Ababa.

Everybody wants Nigeria on their team because of the sheer size of its market, population, and political swag. But what will life be like, economically, for Africa’s most populous country with the largest economy after joining the AfCFTA bandwagon?

The Morning AfCFTA The AfCFTA agreement entered into force on May 5, 2019, after the treaty was ratiÀed by 22 countries (the minimum number required under the treaty) out of the 54 that agreed to be members of the bloc. Eritrea is the only country that has yet to make any commitment to the continental body. Trading was earlier scheduled to start on 1 July 2020 but it was postponed for six months because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

On paper, the AfCFTA provides the opportunity for Africa to create the world’s largest free trade area with the potential to unite

more than 1.2 billion people in a $2.5 trillion economic bloc and “usher in a new era of development.” It has the potential to generate a range of beneÀts through supporting trade creation, structural transformation, productive employment, and poverty reduction.

It is little wonder that the federal government declared January 2021 as a month to campaign for the importance of the AfCFTA in Nigeria. Nigeria’s Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Adeniyi Adebayo, made the declaration, calling on Nigerians, particularly industrialists to take advantage of the opportunities to promote made-in-Nigeria products.

In 2017, intra-African trade was estimated at $135 billion, growing by nine percent yearon-year from $124 billion in 2016. The growth was primarily driven by South Africa, Namibia, Zambia, and Nigeria, which jointly accounted for over 37 percent of intra-African trade in 2017. In 2017, Namibia and Zambia became the second and third largest contributors to intra-African trade. respectively.

However, Nigeria remains one of the main drivers of intra-African trade, with its total intra-African trade growing by eight percent in 2017, from a contraction of 27 percent in 2016.

“While there has been a recent increase in intra-African trade, the rates are still signiÀcantly lower than other continents. In order to boost economic growth and prosperity on the continent, it is imperative that African countries improve trading with each other, and invest in infrastructure to drive trade,” PwC said in a report, ‘AfCFTA: Thriving in a New Africa.’

2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development AfCFTA is a Áagship project of Agenda 2063

of the AU — Africa’s own development vision.

It was approved by the AU Summit as an urgent initiative whose immediate implementation would provide “quick wins, impact on socio-economic development and enhance conÀdence and the commitment of Africans as the owners and drivers” of Agenda 2063.

The expected cumulative eͿect of AfCFTA is to contribute to the achievement of the United Nations 2030 Agenda, in particular, to the Sustainable Development Goals, from targets for decent work and economic growth (Goal 8) and the promotion of industry (Goal 9), to food security (Goal 2) and aͿordable access to health services (Goal 3).

By supporting African industrialization and economic development, AfCFTA can also help to reduce the continent’s reliance on external resources. This would allow Africa to better Ànance its own development, which is recognized under Goal 17.

“Of utmost importance, however,” said the AU, “is Goal 1 and keeping the pledge that ‘no one will be left behind… starting with the furthest behind Àrst.’ For this, it is crucial that Governments across Africa implement measures to accompany AfCFTA, such as the African Union’s Boosting Intra-African Trade Action Plan, but also that the African private sector step up to invest in, and take advantage of, the opportunities arising from AfCFTA.” Regional integration is considered inevitable for economic transformation and sustainable socio-economic development on the continent, serving as a development strategy aimed at aggregating Africa’s small countries into one large market that can deliver economies of scale, improved competitiveness, foreign direct investment, and poverty reduction. In

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THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER JANUARY 24, 2021

SPECIAL REPORT

Adebayo

El-Sisi

Mansur

The Morning AfCFTA: How New Trade Agreement Will Make or Break Nigeria addition, it is expected to help in addressing non-economic problems such as recurring conÁicts and political instability as well as increasing the continent’s bargaining power on the multilateral front.

AfCFTA and ERGP 2017-2021 The cornerstone of the continental free trade agreement is the promotion of industrialization, sustained growth, and development on the continent with the expectation that it will “boost intra-African trade, stimulate investment and innovation, foster structural transformation, improve food security, enhance economic growth and export diversiÀcation, and rationalize the overlapping trade regimes of the main regional economic communities.”

Similarly, the broad vision of the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) of Nigeria is to turn around the country’s economic performance and lay the foundations for sustained inclusive growth underscoring the relationship between AfCFTA and ERGP. It is little wonder that the Nigerian O΀ce for Trade Negotiations commissioned an independent study on the potential beneÀts of the AfCFTA for Nigeria.

Signposts for AfCFTA Future In the NOTN report, a total of 512 companies were polled from all geopolitical zones of the country of which 70 percent were small businesses (10-49 employees); 20 percent mediumsized businesses (50-199 employees); and 10 were large businesses (200 or more employees).

A further breakdown of the companies indicated that 40 percent were manufacturers, 25 percent services businesses, and 15 percent engaged in wholesale and retail trade.

Of the remainder, 10 percent were in agriculture and nine percent in the export sector.

In terms of output, 68 percent produced Ànal goods, 30 percent produced intermediate goods while 28 percent produced primary goods.

According to the NOTN’s independent report, only 25 percent of the companies participated in international trade (exports); ranging from 19 percent of small companies to 55 percent of large companies. Overall, the rate of exporting among manufacturing companies “is very low” at 24 percent. For export destinations, nine African countries (Ghana, Cameroon, Niger, South Africa, Togo, Benin, Chad Mali, and Cote d’Ivoire) are among the top 15 export destinations for Nigerian businesses “in decreasing order of dominance,” with Ghana being the most frequent destination.

The silver lining in the cloud may be that Nigerian manufacturers trade more with other African countries than the rest of the world.

“Thus, a dismantling of barriers to free

trade across Africa is likely to be beneÀcial to Nigerian manufacturing,” the report pointed out. Sadly though, regarding the country’s business environment, 55 percent of the businesses rated it as hostile (either ‘unsupportive’ or ‘very unsupportive’); comprising 58 percent of small businesses, 46 percent of medium businesses, and 48 percent of large businesses.

Power supply, access to credit, roads, taxes, and tariͿs “are the top four challenges in decreasing order of importance to Nigerian businesses.”

For AfCFTA, Nigerian Businesses Say ‘I Do’ According to the NOTN report, 69 percent of businesses believed AfCFTA would be advantageous to the country. Only 20 percent believed AfCFTAwould be disadvantageous to Nigeria and 11 percent were unsure about how AfCFTA will aͿect the business environment.

The study listed the top three advantages of the free trade area as “better business environment, promotion of local business, and business expansion.”

On the other hand, the top three disadvantages are the inÁux of sub-standard goods, discouragement of local businesses, and loss of revenue for Nigeria.

Akpan Ekpo, a professor of Economics and Policy, University of Uyo and Chairman, Foundation for Economic Research and Training (FERT), does not think Nigeria’s ready for the AfCFTA leap.

He told THISDAY: “I do not think the country is ready. To beneÀt from any free trade arrangement, the domestic economy must be resilient to shocks, build relevant infrastructure, show signs of industrialization, and alter the structure of the economy from consumption to production. There is a need to put in place and implement policies that would enable the economy to beneÀt from the global value chain...the challenge is how to harmonize the policies and provide strategies on how best to implement the same for the beneÀt of the economy.”

Another economic expert did not share that pessimism. SheriͿdeen Tella, a professor of Economics at the Olabisi Onabanjo University, noted: “The government has signed the agreement and the next thing is to encourage the private sector to participate in the scheme. It is a largely private-sector scheme, not government and I am sure our private sector is already looking at the project to key into it. I read about Dangote Company already has a plan for the AfCFTA. Many other companies could be silently working on this too.”

No Pain, No Gain: Examining Both Sides of AfCFTA Coin

According to the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry Director General, Muda Yusuf, the rise or fall of AfCFTA in Nigeria will depend on the sectors.

He explained: “There are some sectors that would be vulnerable to this agreement.

But on the whole, if Nigerian entrepreneurs have access to larger markets, it would be very advantageous to them. We are talking about a market of about 1.2 billion people.

This is huge and Nigerians are generally very enterprising.”

Overall, 78 percent of the businesses polled believed that AfCFTA would make a positive impact on local businesses; 10 percent believed that the impact would be negative while the remaining 12 percent believed it would have no impact. While 56 percent of them agreed Nigeria “does not have the infrastructure necessary to reap those beneÀts and gains,” there is an understanding among business leaders that the country should not wait until the infrastructure gap is fully closed before participating in the AfCFTA. Sixty-Àve percent of the businesses surveyed expected AfCFTA to help them overcome their “top challenges” while 22 percent expected it to accentuate them; 34 percent of large companies expected AfCFTA to accentuate their challenges, compared to 25 percent of medium companies and 18 percent of small companies.

The companies that expected AfCFTAto ease their business challenges cited “improvement in the ease of doing business that they expect to accompany the trade agreement (32 percent); expected improvement in infrastructure (24 percent); and enlargement of markets for Nigerian producers 17 percent).”

Among exporting companies, 84 percent expected AfCFTA to increase their volume of exports.

That enthusiasm was shared by 91 percent of small companies and 100 percent of agriculture and trade businesses as exporters of agricultural commodities “view Nigeria as competitive within the continent and believe that CFTA will give them access to do business in African countries that are otherwise not easily accessible.”

A one percent decrease in tariͿ rate imposed or faced by Nigeria in trading with the rest of Africa will increase trade in all cases by more than one percent, noted NOTN, adding that a fall in revenue in the short term due to tariͿ elimination by the country, as being proposed to be the aftermath of AfCFTA, would be oͿset by rise in revenue generated through increased trade in the longer term.

Similarly, a reduction of Nigeria’s weighted tariͿ against exports from other African coun-

tries by one percent would boost economic activity by 0.6 percent, boost non-oil revenue by 2.5 percent and improve exchange rate competitiveness by reducing the real eͿective exchange rate by 0.3 percent.

“The eͿect of AfCFTA on welfare is positive on aggregate. A 0.05 percent welfare gain is expected, which translates to an estimated $260 million in 2018 values. The positive eͿect is largely driven by measures complementary to full tariͿ removal. Precisely 64 percent of the eͿect size is driven by estimates that complement full tariͿ removal with the removal of non-tariͿ barriers,” stated the report.

It, however, added: “AfCFTA focusing entirely on tariͿ removal is less beneÀcial to Nigeria, rather, an extension to non-tariͿ barriers accrues important beneÀts to the country.

Wage eͿects of job creation in the CFTA are expected to be small; Nigerian agriculture will gain more in job creation than other sectors from CFTA, and the beneÀts will accrue mostly to unskilled workers.

“Allocative e΀ciency and capital accumulation are expected to signiÀcantly improve, which will augment labour productivity.

This explains the expected $447milllion in labour market gains.”

The labour force is expected to increase from 83.1 million in 2018 to 119 million by 2030 with new entrants increasing from 2.3 million to 3.6 million as an average of 3.3 million jobs are expected to be created annually over the period 2018-2028 (rising from 2.5 million in 2018 to 4.3 million in 2030); broad unemployment rate (discounting underemployment) is projected to decrease from 30.2 percent in 2016 to 16.7 percent in 2030 while the narrow unemployment rate is projected to drop from 11.7 percent to 6.5 percent over the same period.

Tella acknowledged that the existence of the free trade area challenges producers to be competitive, that is, producing good quality outputs; being innovative and expansive.

He explained: “The participants see the bigger market as an opportunity to produce more and capture a large proportion of the market with attendance growing incomes. The larger the quantity of the goods produced, the lower the unit cost. That is what free market areas provide and what producers want to take advantage of. The implication is that the expansion of the businesses means expansion in employment opportunities for the people and the subsequent increase in labour incomes.

“So, what more is required in recession than employment generation to earn income and lift people out of poverty? The government itself will be able to get more income tax from workers which will improve its revenue.”

26

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dŚĞƌĞ ǁĂƐ Ă ƌĞĚƵĐƟŽŶ ŝŶ ƚŚĞ ƐĞƌǀŝĐĞƐ ĚĞĮĐŝƚ ƚŽ Ψϭ͘ϴďŶ ĨƌŽŵ ΨϮ͘ϲďŶ ŝŶ YϮ͗ϮϬϮϬ ĚƵĞ ƚŽ ĐŽŶƟŶƵĞĚ ǁĞĂŬŶĞƐƐ ŝŶ ĚĞŵĂŶĚ ĨŽƌ ŝŶƚĞƌŶĂƟŽŶĂů ƚƌĂǀĞů ĂŶĚ ƚŽƵƌŝƐŵ ĂŵŝĚ Ă ƐĞĐŽŶĚ ǁĂǀĞ ŽĨ Ks/ ϭϵ ĂƐ ŽƚŚĞƌ ďƵƐŝŶĞƐƐ ƐĞƌǀŝĐĞƐ ĚĞĮĐŝƚ ĨĞůů ƚŽ Ψϴϳϴ͘ϴŵŶ ĨƌŽŵ Ψϭ͘ϵďŶ ŝŶ YϮ͗ϮϬϮϬ͘ dŚĞ ĚĞĮĐŝƚ ŝŶ ƚŚĞ ŝŶĐŽŵĞ ĂĐĐŽƵŶƚ ƌŽƐĞ ŵĂƌŐŝŶĂůůLJ ƚŽ Ψϵϲϱ͘ϱŵŶ ĨƌŽŵ

ΨϴϬϴ͘ϭŵŶ ŝŶ YϮ͗ϮϬϮϬ ĨŽůůŽǁŝŶŐ ĐŽŶƟŶͲ ƵĞĚ &y ŝůůŝƋƵŝĚŝƚLJ ĂŶĚ ĂŶ ŝŶĐƌĞĂƐĞ ŝŶ ƚŚĞ ŝŶǀĞƐƚŵĞŶƚ ŝŶĐŽŵĞ ĚĞĮĐŝƚ ƚŽ Ψϭ͘ϬďŶ ĨƌŽŵ Ψϴϯϲ͘ϰŵŶ ŝŶ YϮ͗ϮϬϮϬ ĚƌŝǀĞŶ ďLJ ĨĞǁĞƌ EŝŐĞƌŝĂŶ ƌĞƐŝĚĞŶƚƐ ĞĂƌŶŝŶŐ ŝŶĐŽŵĞ ĂďƌŽĂĚ͘

dŚĂƚ ƐĂŝĚ͕ ƚŚĞ ŚŝƐƚŽƌŝĐĂůůLJ ƐƵƌƉůƵƐ ĐŽŵƉŽͲ ŶĞŶƚ ŽĨ ƚŚĞ ĐƵƌƌĞŶƚ ĂĐĐŽƵŶƚ ƌĞŵĂŝŶƐ ƵŶͲ ĚĞƌ ƉƌĞƐƐƵƌĞ͘ 'ŽŽĚƐ ƚƌĂĚĞ ĚĞĮĐŝƚ Ăƚ Ψϰ͘ϵďŶ ĨƌŽŵ Ψϰ͘ϭďŶ ŝŶ YϮ͗ϮϬϮϬ ƌĞĂĐŚĞĚ ƚŚĞ ŚŝŐŚĞƐƚ ůĞǀĞů ŽŶ ƌĞĐŽƌĚ ďĂƐĞĚ ŽŶ ƋƵĂƌƚĞƌůLJ ĚĂƚĂ ĚĞƐƉŝƚĞ ƚŚĞ ŝŶĐƌĞĂƐĞ ŝŶ ĞdžƉŽƌƚƐ ;Ϯϳ͘ϯй ƋͬƋͿ ĚƵƌŝŶŐ ƚŚĞ ƋƵĂƌƚĞƌ ƌĞůĂƟǀĞ ƚŽ ŝŵƉŽƌƚƐ ;Ϯϰ͘ϯй ƋͬƋͿ͕ ƐƵŐͲ ŐĞƐƟŶŐ ĂŶ ŝŶĐƌĞĂƐĞ ŝŶ ƚƌĂĚĞ ĂĐƟǀŝƟĞƐ ĨŽůůŽǁŝŶŐ ƚŚĞ ƌĞŽƉĞŶŝŶŐ ŽĨ ĞĐŽŶŽŵŝĞƐ͘ ƌŝǀĞŶ ďLJ ƚŚĞ ƌĞĐŽǀĞƌLJ ŝŶ Žŝů ƉƌŝĐĞƐ ĚƵƌŝŶŐ ƚŚĞ ƋƵĂƌƚĞƌ ;ϭϱ͘ϲй ƚŽ ĂǀĞƌĂŐĞ Ψϰϱ͘ϬͬďͿ͕ ƚŚĞƌĞ ǁĂƐ Ă ŶŽƚĂďůĞ ŝŶĐƌĞĂƐĞ ŝŶ ƚŚĞ ǀĂůƵĞ ŽĨ Žŝů Θ ŐĂƐ ĞdžƉŽƌƚ ;ƵƉ ϰϬ͘ϲй ƋͬƋ ƚŽ Ψϳ͘ϰďŶͿ ǁŚŝůĞ ƚŚĞ ŶŽŶ Žŝů ĞdžƉŽƌƚ ĐŽŵƉŽͲ ŶĞŶƚ ƌĞŵĂŝŶƐ ǁĞĂŬ ;ĚŽǁŶ ϯϱ͘ϱй ƋͬƋ ƚŽ ΨϬ͘ϲϱϭ͘ϳŵͿ͘

dŚĞ ƌĞĐĞŶƚ ƌĞĐŽǀĞƌLJ ŝŶ Žŝů ƉƌŝĐĞƐ ƚŽ ĂŶ ĂǀĞƌĂŐĞ ŽĨ Ψϰϱ͘ϳͬď ĂŶĚ Ψϱϰ͘ϳͬď ŝŶ Yϰ͗ϮϬϮϬ ĂŶĚ :ĂŶƵĂƌLJ ϮϬϮϭ ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞůLJ ŝƐ Ă ƉŽƐŝƟǀĞ ĚĞǀĞůŽƉŵĞŶƚ͕ ƐƵƉƉŽƌƚĞĚ ďLJ ĂŐƌĞĞĚ ĞdžƚƌĂ ƉƌŽĚƵĐƟŽŶ ĐƵƚƐ ŽĨ ϭŵďĚ ďLJ ^ĂƵĚŝ ƌĂďŝĂ͘ ,ŽǁĞǀĞƌ͕ Žŝů ĚĞŵĂŶĚ ŽƵƚͲ ůŽŽŬ ƌĞŵĂŝŶƐ ǁĞĂŬ ŽŶ ƚŚĞ ďĂĐŬ ŽĨ Ă ƐůŽǁ ƉĂĐĞĚ ƌĞĐŽǀĞƌLJ ĨŽůůŽǁŝŶŐ ƌĞŶĞǁĞĚ ůŽĐŬͲ

ĚŽǁŶƐ ŝŶ ŵĂũŽƌ ĞĐŽŶŽŵŝĞƐ ƐƵĐŚ ĂƐ ƵƌŽƉĞ ƚŽ ĐŽŶƚĂŝŶ ƚŚĞ ǀŝƌƵƐ͘ tŝƚŚ ƚŚĞ KW н ĐƵƚ ĂŐƌĞĞŵĞŶƚ ŝŶ ƉůĂĐĞ͕ ƚŚĞ ƌĞĐŽǀĞƌLJ ŝŶ Žŝů ƉƌŝĐĞƐ ĂůŽŶĞ ŝƐ ŝŶƐƵĸĐŝĞŶƚ ƚŽ ĐŽƌƌĞĐƚ EŝͲ ŐĞƌŝĂ͛Ɛ ǁĞĂŬ ĞdžƚĞƌŶĂů ƉŽƐŝƟŽŶ͘ tŝƚŚ ƚŚĞ ŐƌĂĚƵĂů ŝŶĐƌĞĂƐĞ ŝŶ ƚŚĞ ŵĂƐƐ ĚŝƐƚƌŝďƵƟŽŶ ŽĨ ϭϵ ǀĂĐĐŝŶĞƐ͕ ǁĞ ĞdžƉĞĐƚ ĂŶ ƵƉƟĐŬ ŝŶ ŝŶƚĞƌŶĂƟŽŶĂů ƚƌĂǀĞůƐ ĂŶĚ ĚĞŵĂŶĚ ĨŽƌ ŝŵͲ ƉŽƌƚƐ ǁŚŝĐŚ ƐƵŐŐĞƐƚƐ ƚŚĂƚ ƚŚĞ ƚƌĂĚĞ ĚĞĮĐŝƚ ǁŽƵůĚ ƌĞŵĂŝŶ ůĂƌŐĞ͘ tŚŝůĞ ƚŚĞ ƌĞǀĞƌƐĂů ŽĨ ƚŚĞ E͛Ɛ ƉŽůŝĐLJ ŽŶ ĚŝĂƐƉŽƌĂ ƌĞŵŝƩĂŶĐĞƐ ŝŶ ĞĐĞŵďĞƌ ϮϬϮϬ ŵĂLJ ĞŶĐŽƵƌĂŐĞ ŵĂƌŐŝŶͲ Ăů ŝŶĐƌĞĂƐĞ ŝŶ ŝŶŇŽǁƐ͕ ǁĞ ĞdžƉĞĐƚ ƌĞŵŝƩĂŶĐͲ ĞƐ ƚŽ ƌĞŵĂŝŶ ǁĞĂŬ ĂƐ EŝŐĞƌŝĂŶƐ ĂďƌŽĂĚ ĐŽŶƟŶƵĞ ƚŽ ĂĚũƵƐƚ ƚŽ ƚŚĞ ƉŽƐƚ Ks/ ĞŶǀŝͲ ƌŽŶŵĞŶƚ ŝŵƉůLJŝŶŐ ďůĞĂŬ ŽƵƚůŽŽŬ ĨŽƌ ƚŚĞ EĂŝƌĂ͘

'ůŽďĂů ƋƵŝƟĞƐ DĂƌŬĞƚ͗ DĂƌŬĞƚƐ ZĞƐƉŽŶĚ WŽƐŝƟǀĞůLJ ƚŽ ŝĚĞŶ͛Ɛ ZĞƐƵŵƉƟŽŶ 'ůŽďĂů Ks/ ϭϵ ĐĂƐĞƐ ƌĞŵĂŝŶĞĚ ŽŶ ƚŚĞ ƌŝƐĞ ƚŚŝƐ ǁĞĞŬ Ăƚ ϵϲ͘Ϭ ŵŝůůŝŽŶ͕ ĂŶ ŝŶĐƌĞĂƐĞ ŽĨ ϰ͘ϱй ĨƌŽŵ ůĂƐƚ ǁĞĞŬ ǁŚŝůĞ ƚŚĞ ĚĞĂƚŚ ƚŽůů ƌŽƐĞ ϰ͘ϰй ƚŽ Ϯ͘ϭ ŵŝůůŝŽŶ͘ dŚĞ h^ ƌĞŵĂŝŶƐ ƚŚĞ ŵĂũŽƌ ĞƉŝĐĞŶƚƌĞ ŽĨ ƚŚĞ ƉĂŶĚĞŵŝĐ ǁŝƚŚ Ϯϰ͘Ϯŵ ƌĞƉŽƌƚĞĚ ĐĂƐĞƐ ĂƐ WƌĞƐŝĚĞŶƚ :ŽĞ ŝĚĞŶ ǁĂƌŶƐ ƚŚĂƚ ƚŚĞ ĐŽƵŶƚƌLJ ŵĂLJ ƌĞĐŽƌĚ ĂƐ ŵĂŶLJ ĂƐ ϭϬϬ͕ϬϬϬ ĨĂƚĂůŝƟĞƐ ĨƌŽŵ ƚŚĞ ǀŝͲ ƌƵƐ ŝŶ ƚŚĞ ĐŽŵŝŶŐ ŵŽŶƚŚ͘ hƉŽŶ ĂƐƐƵŵƉͲ ƟŽŶ ŽĨ ŽĸĐĞ͕ WƌĞƐŝĚĞŶƚ :ŽĞ ŝĚĞŶ ŚĂƐ ƐŝŐŶĞĚ ŶƵŵĞƌŽƵƐ ĞdžĞĐƵƟǀĞ ŽƌĚĞƌƐ ǁŝƚŚ ƐŽŵĞ ŽĨ ƚŚĞ ŽƌĚĞƌƐ ƌĞƉĞĂůŝŶŐ WƌĞƐŝĚĞŶƚ dƌƵŵƉ͛Ɛ ĂŐĞŶĚĂ͕ ĐŚŝĞĨ ŽĨ ǁŚŝĐŚ ŝƐ ƌĞǀĞƌƐŝŶŐ

ƚƌĂǀĞů ďĂŶ ĂŶĚ ŝŵŵŝŐƌĂƟŽŶ ĚĞĐŝƐŝŽŶƐ͘ dŚĞ ƉƌĞƐŝĚĞŶƚ ŝƐ ĂůƐŽ ƉƵƐŚŝŶŐ ĨŽƌ Ă ŵĂƐƐŝǀĞ Ψϭ͘ϵƚŶ Ks/ ϭϵ ƌĞůŝĞĨ ƉĂĐŬĂŐĞ ǁŚŝůĞ ĨĂĐͲ ŝŶŐ ƐƚĂƵŶĐŚ ŽƉƉŽƐŝƟŽŶ ĨƌŽŵ ZĞƉƵďůŝĐĂŶ ůĂǁŵĂŬĞƌƐ͘

WĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ ŝŶ ƚŚĞ ĚĞǀĞůŽƉĞĚ ŵĂƌŬĞƚƐ ǁĂƐ ďƵůůŝƐŚ ǁŝƚŚ ϱ ŽĨ ϳ ŝŶĚŝĐĞƐ ĂĚǀĂŶĐŝŶŐ ǁͬǁ͘ /Ŷ ƚŚĞ h^͕ ƚŚĞ ^ΘW ϱϬϬ ĂŶĚ E ^ Y ŝŶĚŝĐĞƐ ƌŽƐĞ ϭ͘ϵй ĂŶĚ ϯ͘ϴй ǁͬǁ ƌĞƐƉĞĐͲ ƟǀĞůLJ͘ /Ŷ ƚŚĞ h<͕ ƚŚĞ &d^ ůů ^ŚĂƌĞ ĂŶĚ &ƌĂŶĐĞ ϰϬ ŝŶĚŝĐĞƐ ĚĞĐůŝŶĞĚ ďLJ Ϭ͘ϵй ĂŶĚ ϭ͘ϱй ǁͬǁ ĚƵĞ ƚŽ ĚŝƐĂƉƉŽŝŶƟŶŐ ĞĐŽͲ ŶŽŵŝĐ ĚĂƚĂ ǁŚŝůĞ 'ĞƌŵĂŶLJ͛Ɛ y dZ y ŝŶĚĞdž ĂĚǀĂŶĐĞĚ Ϯ͘ϲй ǁͬǁ͘ ,ŽŶŐ <ŽŶŐ͛Ɛ ,ĂŶŐ ^ĞŶŐ ŝŶĚĞdž ƌŽƐĞ ϯ͘ϭй ǁͬǁ ǁŚŝůĞ :ĂƉĂŶ͛Ɛ EŝŬŬĞŝ ϮϮϱ ŝŶĚĞdž ĐůŽƐĞĚ ƚŚĞ ǁĞĞŬ ŚŝŐŚĞƌ ďLJ Ϭ͘ϰй ǁͬǁ͘

WĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ ĂĐƌŽƐƐ ƚŚĞ Z/ ^ ŵĂƌŬĞƚƐ ǁĂƐ ŵŝdžĞĚ ǁŝƚŚ ϯ ŝŶĚŝĐĞƐ ĐůŽƐŝŶŐ ůŽǁĞƌ ǁͬǁ͘ ŚŝŶĂ͛Ɛ ^ŚĂŶŐŚĂŝ ŽŵƉŽƐŝƚĞ ŝŶĚĞdž ĂĚͲ ǀĂŶĐĞĚ ϭ͘ϭй ǁŚŝůĞ ^ŽƵƚŚ ĨƌŝĐĂ͛Ɛ &d^ ͬ:^ ůů ^ŚĂƌĞ ŝŶĚĞdž ĂƉƉƌĞĐŝĂƚĞĚ Ϭ͘ϳй ĚĞƐƉŝƚĞ ǁĞĂŬ ŵĂĐƌŽ ĞĐŽŶŽŵŝĐ ĚĂƚĂ͘ ŽŶǀĞƌƐĞůLJ͕ ZƵƐƐŝĂ͛Ɛ Zd^ ůŽƐƚ ƚŚĞ ŵŽƐƚ͕ ĚŽǁŶ ϯ͘ϰй ǁͬǁ ĚƵĞ ƚŽ ĐŽŶĐĞƌŶƐ ŽǀĞƌ ǁĞƐƚĞƌŶ ƐĂŶĐƟŽŶƐ͘ ^ŝŵŝůĂƌůLJ͕ ƌĂnjŝů͛Ɛ /ďŽǀĞƐƉĂ ĂŶĚ /ŶĚŝĂ͛Ɛ ^ ĚĞĐůŝŶĞĚ Ϯ͘ϴй ĂŶĚ Ϭ͘ϯй ǁͬǁ ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞůLJ͘

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THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER ˾ ͺͼ˜ ͺ͸ͺ͹

ǁ͘ ŐLJƉƚ͛Ɛ 'y ϯϬ ĂŶĚ 'ŚĂŶĂ͛Ɛ '^ ŽŵͲ ƉŽƐŝƚĞ ĂƉƉƌĞĐŝĂƚĞĚ ϭ͘ϴй ĂŶĚ ϭ͘ϳй ǁͬǁ ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞůLJ͘ ^ŝŵŝůĂƌůLJ͕ DŽƌƌŽĐĐŽ͛Ɛ ĂƐĂͲ ďůĂŶĐĂ D ^/ ŐĂŝŶĞĚ Ϭ͘ϰй ǁͬǁ͘ KŶ ƚŚĞ ŇŝƉƐŝĚĞ͕ <ĞŶLJĂ͛Ɛ E^ ϮϬ ůĞĚ ƚŚĞ ůŽƐĞƌƐ ǁŝƚŚ Ă ϭ͘ϳй ĚĞĐůŝŶĞ͘ EŝŐĞƌŝĂŶ ůů ^ŚĂƌĞ ŝŶĚĞdž ĂůƐŽ ůŽƐƚ Ϭ͘ϰй ĂƐ ŝŶǀĞƐƚŽƌƐ ŬĞĚ ŐĂŝŶƐ ĨƌŽŵ ƉƌĞǀŝŽƵƐ ǁĞĞŬ ǁŚŝůĞ DĂƵƌŝͲ ƟƵƐ͛ ^ D y ŝŶĚŝĐĞƐ ůŽƐƚ Ϭ͘ϯй ǁͬǁ͘

ĐƌŽƐƐ ƚŚĞ ƐŝĂŶ ĂŶĚ DŝĚĚůĞ ĂƐƚ ŵĂƌͲ ŬĞƚƐ͕ ƉĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ ǁĂƐ ĂůƐŽ ŵŝdžĞĚ ĂƐ h ͛Ɛ y 'ĞŶĞƌĂů ĂŶĚ dƵƌŬĞLJ͛Ɛ /^d ϭϬϬ ŝŶĚŝĐĞƐ ŐĂŝŶĞĚ ϲ͘ϱй ĂŶĚ ϭ͘Ϯй ǁͬǁ ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞůLJ͘ ŽŶǀĞƌƐĞůLJ͕ YĂƚĂƌ͛Ɛ ^D ϮϮϬ ĂŶĚ dŚĂŝůĂŶĚ͛Ɛ ^Ğƚ ĚĞĐůŝŶĞĚ ϭ͘ϲй ĂŶĚ ϭ͘ϰй ǁͬǁ ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞůLJ͘ >ĂƐƚůLJ͕ ^ĂƵĚŝ ƌĂͲ ďŝĂ͛Ɛ dĂĚĂǁƵů ůů ^ŚĂƌĞ ŝŶĚĞdž ůŽƐƚ Ϭ͘Ϯй ǁͬǁ͘

ŽŵĞƐƟĐ ƋƵŝƟĞƐ DĂƌŬĞƚ͗ ĞĂƌŝƐŚ WĞƌͲ ĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ ZĞƐƵƌĨĂĐĞƐ͙ ^/ ĚŽǁŶ Ϭ͘ϰй ǁͬǁ dŚĞ ĞƋƵŝƟĞƐ ŵĂƌŬĞƚ ĐůŽƐĞĚ ŝŶ ƚŚĞ ŶĞŐĂͲ ƟǀĞ ƚĞƌƌŝƚŽƌLJ ĨŽůůŽǁŝŶŐ ůŽƐƐĞƐ ŽŶ ϰ ŽĨ ϱ ƚƌĂĚŝŶŐ ƐĞƐƐŝŽŶƐ͘ ĐĐŽƌĚŝŶŐůLJ͕ ƚŚĞ ďĞŶĐŚͲ ŵĂƌŬ ŝŶĚĞdž ůŽƐƚ Ϭ͘ϰй ǁͬǁ ƚŽ ϰϭ͕ϬϬϭ͘ϵϵ ƉŽŝŶƚƐ ĨŽůůŽǁŝŶŐ ƐĞůů ŽīƐ ŝŶ E' D ; ϭ͘ϯйͿ͕ h D Ed ; ϭ͘ϭйͿ ĂŶĚ D EͲ ^ Z ; ϮϬ͘ϬйͿ͘ /ŶǀĞƐƚŽƌƐ͛ ǀĂůƵĞ ĂůƐŽ ĚĞͲ ĐůŝŶĞĚ േϴϭ͘ϲďŶ ĂƐ ŵĂƌŬĞƚ ĐĂƉŝƚĂůŝƐĂƟŽŶ ĨĞůů ƚŽ േϮϭ͘ϰƚŶ ǁŚŝůĞ zd ƌĞƚƵƌŶ ƐĞƩůĞĚ Ăƚ ϭ͘ϴй͘ ĐƟǀŝƚLJ ůĞǀĞů ǁĂƐ ŵŝdžĞĚ ĂƐ ĂǀĞƌͲ ĂŐĞ ǀŽůƵŵĞ ƌŽƐĞ ϱ͘Ϯй ƚŽ ϳϮϱ͘Ϯŵ ƵŶŝƚƐ ǁŚŝůĞ ǀĂůƵĞ ƚƌĂĚĞĚ ĚĞĐůŝŶĞĚ Ϯϭ͘ϴй ƚŽ േϱ͘ϭďŶ͘ dŚĞ ŵŽƐƚ ƚƌĂĚĞĚ ƐƚŽĐŬƐ ďLJ ǀŽůͲ ƵŵĞ ǁĞƌĞ dZ E^ KZW ;ϱϲϲ͘Ϭŵ ƵŶŝƚƐͿ͕ D E &/d ;ϭϱϬ͘Ϭŵ ƵŶŝƚƐͿ ĂŶĚ hE/s/EͲ ^hZ ;ϭϮϯ͘ϭŵ ƵŶŝƚƐͿ ǁŚŝůĞ 'h Z Edz ;േϯ͘ϲďŶͿ͕ E/d, ;േϮ͘ϲďŶͿ ĂŶĚ hͲ D Ed ;േϮ͘ϮďŶͿ ůĞĚ ďLJ ǀĂůƵĞ͘

WĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ ĂĐƌŽƐƐ ƐĞĐƚŽƌƐ ǁĂƐ ůĂĐŬůƵƐͲ ƚƌĞ ǁͬǁ ĂƐ Ăůů ŝŶĚŝĐĞƐ ƵŶĚĞƌ ŽƵƌ ĐŽǀĞƌĂŐĞ ůŽƐƚ ƐĂǀĞ ƚŚĞ &Z / d ŝŶĚĞdž ǁŚŝĐŚ ĐůŽƐĞĚ ŇĂƚ͘ dŚĞ ĂŶŬŝŶŐ ŝŶĚĞdž ůĞĚ ƚŚĞ ƉĂĐŬ͕ ĚŽǁŶ ϭ͘ϯй ĨŽůůŽǁŝŶŐ ůŽƐƐĞƐ ŝŶ h ; ϱ͘ϵйͿ ĂŶĚ ^^ ; ϱ͘ϳйͿ͘ dƌĂŝůŝŶŐ͕ ƚŚĞ /ŶƐƵƌĂŶĐĞ ĂŶĚ /ŶĚƵƐƚƌŝĂů 'ŽŽĚƐ ŝŶĚŝĐĞƐ ĨĞůů Ϭ͘ϴй ĂŶĚ Ϭ͘ϱй ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞůLJ͕ ĨŽůůŽǁŝŶŐ ƉƌŝĐĞ ĚĞĐůŝŶĞƐ ŝŶ D E^ Z ; ϮϬ͘ϬйͿ͕ E' D ; ϭ͘ϯйͿ ĂŶĚ h D Ed ; ϭ͘ϭйͿ͘ ^ŝŵŝůĂƌůLJ͕ ƐĞůů ƉƌĞƐƐƵƌĞƐ ŝŶ DZ^K/> ; ϭϴ͘ϱйͿ͕ /Ed Z t ; ϯ͘ϭйͿ ĂŶĚ E'^h' Z ; Ϯ͘ϵйͿ ĚƌĂŐŐĞĚ ƚŚĞ ŽŶͲ ƐƵŵĞƌ 'ŽŽĚƐ ĂŶĚ Kŝů Θ 'ĂƐ ŝŶĚŝĐĞƐ ĚŽǁŶ ďLJ Ϭ͘ϭй ĂƉŝĞĐĞ͘

/ŶǀĞƐƚŽƌ ƐĞŶƟŵĞŶƚ ĂƐ ŵĞĂƐƵƌĞĚ ďLJ ŵĂƌͲ ŬĞƚ ďƌĞĂĚƚŚ ;ĂĚǀĂŶĐĞͬĚĞĐůŝŶĞ ƌĂƟŽͿ ǁĂŶĞĚ ƚŽ ϭ͘ϵdž ĨƌŽŵ ϯ͘ϭdž ůĂƐƚ ǁĞĞŬ ĂƐ ϱϬ ƐƚŽĐŬƐ ŐĂŝŶĞĚ ĂŐĂŝŶƐƚ Ϯϲ ƚŚĂƚ ĚĞĐůŝŶĞĚ͘ , DW/KE ;нϰϰ͘ϰйͿ͕ dZ E^ yW ;нϯϳ͘ϱйͿ ĂŶĚ E Z ;нϯϮ͘ϮйͿ ůĞĚ ƚŚĞ ƚŽƉ ŐĂŝŶĞƌƐ ǁŚŝůĞ D E^ Z ; ϮϬ͘ϬйͿ͕ DZ^K/> ; ϭϴ͘ϱйͿ ĂŶĚ &dE K K ; ϭϯ͘ϬйͿ ůĞĚ ƚŚĞ ĚĞĐůŝŶĞƌƐ͘ /Ŷ ƚŚĞ ĐŽŵŝŶŐ ǁĞĞŬ͕ ǁĞ ĂŶƟĐŝƉĂƚĞ Ă ƉŽƐŝƟǀĞ ƉĞƌĨŽƌͲ ŵĂŶĐĞ ĂƐ ŝŶǀĞƐƚŽƌƐ ƐĞĞŬ ďĂƌŐĂŝŶ ŚƵŶƟŶŐ ŽƉƉŽƌƚƵŶŝƟĞƐ͘

&ŽƌĞŝŐŶ džĐŚĂŶŐĞ DĂƌŬĞƚ͗ / ƵƚƐ 'ůŽďĂů Kŝů ĞŵĂŶĚ &ŽƌĞĐĂƐƚ ƌĞŶƚ ĐƌƵĚĞ Žŝů ƉƌŝĐĞ ĨĞůů Ϭ͘ϲй ǁͬǁ ƚŽ Ψϱϲ͘Ϭϲďďů ;ϭͬϮϭͬϮϬϮϭͿ ĂŌĞƌ /ŶƚĞƌŶĂƟŽŶͲ

Ăů ŶĞƌŐLJ ŐĞŶĐLJ ;/ Ϳ ƐůĂƐŚĞĚ ŝƚƐ ϮϬϮϭ Žŝů ĚĞŵĂŶĚ ŽƵƚůŽŽŬ͘ / ĨŽƌĞĐĂƐƚƐ Ă ĚŝƉ ŝŶ Yϭ͗ϮϬϮϭ ĂŶĚ ĂŶŶƵĂů ŐůŽďĂů Žŝů ĚĞŵĂŶĚ ƚŽ ϵϰ͘ϭŵďƉĚ ĂŶĚ ϵϲ͘ϲŵƉĚ͕ ĚŽǁŶ Ϭ͘ϲŵďƉĚ ĂŶĚ Ϭ͘ϯŵďƉĚ ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞůLJ͘ dŚŝƐ ǁĂƐ ŽŶ ƚŚĞ ďĂĐŬ ŽĨ ƐůŽǁĞƌ ƉĂĐĞ ŽĨ ƌĞĐŽǀĞƌLJ ĨŽůůŽǁŝŶŐ ƌĞŶĞǁĞĚ ůŽĐŬĚŽǁŶƐ ƚŽ ĐŽŶƚĂŝŶ ƚŚĞ ƉĂŶͲ ĚĞŵŝĐ͘ >ŽĐĂůůLJ͕ ƚŚĞ ĞdžƚĞƌŶĂů ƌĞƐĞƌǀĞƐ ŝŶͲ ĐƌĞĂƐĞĚ Ϭ͘ϲй ǁͬǁ ƚŽ Ψϯϲ͘ϱďŶ ;ϭͬϮϬͬϮϬϮϭͿ͘

/Ŷ ƚŚĞ &KZ y ŵĂƌŬĞƚ͕ ƚŚĞ E ƐƉŽƚ ƌĂƚĞ ƚƌĂĚĞĚ ŇĂƚ Ăůů ǁĞĞŬ Ăƚ േϯϳϵ͘ϬϬͬΨϭ͘ϬϬ ǁŚŝůĞ ƌĂƚĞ Ăƚ ƚŚĞ ƉĂƌĂůůĞů ŵĂƌŬĞƚ ĚĞƉƌĞĐŝĂƚͲ ĞĚ േϮ͘ϬϬ ǁͬǁ ƚŽ േϰϳϳ͘ϬϬ͘ϬϬͬΨϭ͘ϬϬ͘ ƚ ƚŚĞ /ŶǀĞƐƚŽƌƐ Θ džƉŽƌƚĞƌƐ ;/Θ Ϳ tŝŶĚŽǁ͕ ƚŚĞ E & y ƌĂƚĞ ĂƉƉƌĞĐŝĂƚĞĚ േϬ͘ϱϬ ǁͬǁ ƚŽ േϯϵϰ͘ϭϳͬΨϭ͘ϬϬ͘ ĐƟǀŝƚLJ ůĞǀĞů ŝŶ /Θ tŝŶͲ ĚŽǁ ĨĞůů ƚŚŝƐ ǁĞĞŬ ĂƐ ƚŽƚĂů ƚƵƌŶŽǀĞƌ ĚĞͲ ĐůŝŶĞĚ Ϯϯ͘ϲй ƚŽ ΨϯϬϮ͘ϳŵ ĨƌŽŵ Ψϯϵϲ͘ϯŵ ƌĞĐŽƌĚĞĚ ŝŶ ƚŚĞ ƉƌĞǀŝŽƵƐ ǁĞĞŬ͘

ƚ ƚŚĞ &D Y ^ĞĐƵƌŝƟĞƐ džĐŚĂŶŐĞ &y &ƵͲ ƚƵƌĞƐ ŽŶƚƌĂĐƚ DĂƌŬĞƚ͕ ƚŚĞ ƚŽƚĂů ǀĂůƵĞ ŽĨ ŽƉĞŶ ĐŽŶƚƌĂĐƚƐ ƐĞƩůĞĚ Ăƚ Ψϴ͘ϱďŶ͕ ƵƉ Ϭ͘Ϯй ;Ψϭϯ͘ϰŵͿ ĨƌŽŵ ƚŚĞ ƉƌŝŽƌ ǁĞĞŬ͘ dŚĞ :ĂŶƵĂƌLJ ϮϬϮϮ ŝŶƐƚƌƵŵĞŶƚ ;ĐŽŶƚƌĂĐƚ ƉƌŝĐĞ͗ േϰϯϲ͘ϴϰͿ ŚĂĚ ƚŚĞ ŵŽƐƚ ĚĞŵĂŶĚ ǁŝƚŚ ĂĚĚŝƟŽŶĂů ƐƵďͲ ƐĐƌŝƉƟŽŶ ŽĨ Ψϱ͘Ϭŵ ƉƵƫŶŐ ƚŚĞ ƚŽƚĂů ǀĂůƵĞ Ăƚ ΨϮϱ͘Ϭŵ͘ DĞĂŶǁŚŝůĞ͕ ƚŚĞ :ĂŶƵĂƌLJ ϮϬϮϭ ŝŶƐƚƌƵŵĞŶƚ ;ĐŽŶƚƌĂĐƚ ƉƌŝĐĞ͗ േϰϮϯ͘ϵϬͿ ƐĂǁ ƐĞůů Žī ǁŽƌƚŚ ΨϭϮ͘Ϭŵ ĂƐ ƚŚĞ ƚŽƚĂů ǀĂůƵĞ ƐĞƩůĞĚ Ăƚ Ψϭ͘ϲďŶ͘ /Ŷ ƚŚĞ ĐŽŵŝŶŐ ǁĞĞŬ͕ ǁĞ ĞdžƉĞĐƚ EĂŝƌĂ ƚŽ ƌĞŵĂŝŶ ǁŝƚŚŝŶ ƐŝŵŝůĂƌ ďĂŶĚ ĂĐƌŽƐƐ ƚŚĞ ĚŝīĞƌĞŶƚ &y ƐĞŐŵĞŶƚƐ͘

DŽŶĞLJ DĂƌŬĞƚ͗ ZĂƚĞƐ ůŽƐĞ ,ŝŐŚĞƌ ĞͲ ƐƉŝƚĞ ůĞǀĂƚĞĚ ^LJƐƚĞŵ >ŝƋƵŝĚŝƚLJ /Ŷ ƚŚĞ ŵŽŶĞLJ ŵĂƌŬĞƚ ƚŚŝƐ ǁĞĞŬ͕ ŝŶƚĞƌďĂŶŬ ƌĂƚĞƐ ƚƌĞŶĚĞĚ ůŽǁĞƌ ŽŶ Ϯ ŽĨ ϱ ƚƌĂĚŝŶŐ ĚĂLJƐ ĚƵĞ ƚŽ ŝŵƉƌŽǀĞĚ ƐLJƐƚĞŵ ůŝƋƵŝĚŝƚLJ͘ ƚ ƚŚĞ ƐƚĂƌƚ ŽĨ ƚŚĞ ǁĞĞŬ͕ KƉĞŶ ƵLJ ĂĐŬ ;K Ϳ ĂŶĚ KǀĞƌŶŝŐŚƚ ;KsEͿ ƌĂƚĞƐ ĐůŽƐĞĚ Ăƚ Ϭ͘ϱй

%!

ĂŶĚ Ϭ͘ϴй ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞůLJ͕ ĨƌŽŵ Ϭ͘ϱй ĂŶĚ ϭ͘Ϭй ƌĞĐŽƌĚĞĚ ŽŶ ƚŚĞ ƉƌĞǀŝŽƵƐ &ƌŝĚĂLJ ĂƐ ƐLJƐƚĞŵ ůŝƋƵŝĚŝƚLJ ĚĞĐůŝŶĞĚ ƚŽ േϯϳϰ͘ϲďŶ͘ KŶ dƵĞƐĚĂLJ͕ ƌĂƚĞƐ ƚƌĞŶĚĞĚ ůŽǁĞƌ ĂƐ ƐLJƐƚĞŵ ůŝƋƵŝĚŝƚLJ ŝŶĐƌĞĂƐĞĚ ƚŽ േϳϯϮ͘ϴďŶ ƐƵƉƉŽƌƚĞĚ ďLJ േϮϮϲ͘ϯďŶ ŝŶŇŽǁƐ ĨƌŽŵ KDK ŵĂƚƵƌŝͲ ƟĞƐ ŚĞŶĐĞ͕ K ĂŶĚ KsE ƌĂƚĞƐ ĐůŽƐĞĚ Ăƚ Ϭ͘ϰй ĂŶĚ Ϭ͘ϱй ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞůLJ͘ KŶ &ƌŝĚĂLJ͕ K ĂŶĚ KsE ƌĂƚĞƐ ƐƵƌŐĞĚ ƚŽ ϭϬ͘Ϭй ĂŶĚ ϭϬ͘ϱй ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞůLJ ĚĞƐƉŝƚĞ ƌŽďƵƐƚ ƐLJƐƚĞŵ ůŝƋƵŝĚŝƚLJ Ăƚ േϳϬϰ͘ϯďŶ͘

&ŽůůŽǁŝŶŐ ƚŚĞ ŝŶŇŽǁ ĨƌŽŵ KDK ŵĂƚƵƌŝƟĞƐ ǁŽƌƚŚ േϮϮϲ͘ϯďŶ͕ ŽŶ dŚƵƌƐĚĂLJ͕ ƚŚĞ E ĐŽŶĚƵĐƚĞĚ KDK ĂƵĐƟŽŶ ǁŽƌƚŚ േϭϳϬ͘ϬďŶ ƚŽ ŵŽƉ ƵƉ ĞdžĐĞƐƐ ůŝƋƵŝĚŝƚLJ ŝŶ ƚŚĞ ƐLJƐƚĞŵ͘ ĞŵĂŶĚ Ăƚ ƚŚĞ ĂƵĐƟŽŶ ǁĂƐ ŚĞĂůƚŚLJ ĂƐ ƚŚĞ ϭϬϯ ĚĂLJ ;KīĞƌ͗ േϮϬ͘ϬďŶ͖ ^ƵďƐĐƌŝƉƟŽŶ͗ േϱϭ͘ϭďŶ͖ ^ĂůĞ͗ േϮϬ͘ϬďŶͿ͕ ϭϴϬ ĚĂLJ ;KīĞƌ͗ േϮϬ͘ϬďŶ͖ ^ƵďƐĐƌŝƉƟŽŶ͗ േϳϵ͘ϴďŶ͖ ^ĂůĞ͗ േϮϬ͘ϬďŶͿ ĂŶĚ ϯϲϮ ĚĂLJ ;KīĞƌ͗ േϭϯϬ͘ϬďŶ͖ ^ƵďƐĐƌŝƉƟŽŶ͗ േϱϲϵ͘ϰďŶ͖ ^ĂůĞ͗ േϭϯϬ͘ϬďŶͿ ŝŶƐƚƌƵŵĞŶƚƐ ǁĞƌĞ ŽǀĞƌƐƵďƐĐƌŝďĞĚ ďLJ Ϯ͘ϲdž͕ ϰ͘Ϭdž ĂŶĚ ϰ͘ϰdž ǁŝƚŚ ŵĂƌŐŝŶĂů ƌĂƚĞƐ ŽĨ ϭ͘ϱй͕ ϰ͘ϯй ĂŶĚ ϱ͘ϳй ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞůLJ͘

/Ŷ ƚŚĞ ƚƌĞĂƐƵƌLJ ďŝůůƐ ƐĞĐŽŶĚĂƌLJ ŵĂƌŬĞƚ͕ ƚŚĞ ƉĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ ǁĂƐ ŵŝdžĞĚ ĂůďĞŝƚ ŶĞŐĂƟǀĞůLJ ƐŬĞǁĞĚ ĂƐ ĂǀĞƌĂŐĞ LJŝĞůĚ ĂĐƌŽƐƐ ďĞŶĐŚͲ ŵĂƌŬ ƚĞŶŽƌƐ ƚƌĞŶĚĞĚ ŚŝŐŚĞƌ ŽŶ ϯ ŽĨ ϱ ƚƌĂĚͲ ŝŶŐ ĚĂLJƐ͘ dŚĞ ǁĞĞŬ ƐƚĂƌƚĞĚ ŽŶ Ă ďƵůůŝƐŚ ŶŽƚĞ ĂƐ ĂǀĞƌĂŐĞ LJŝĞůĚ ĂĐƌŽƐƐ ƚĞŶŽƌƐ ƐĞƩůĞĚ Ăƚ Ϭ͘ϰй͕ ĚŽǁŶ ϭϰďƉƐ ĨƌŽŵ Ϭ͘ϲй ƌĞĐŽƌĚĞĚ ƚŚĞ ƉƌĞǀŝŽƵƐ &ƌŝĚĂLJ͘ KŶ dƵĞƐĚĂLJ ĂŶĚ tĞĚŶĞƐĚĂLJ͕ ƐĞŶƟŵĞŶƚ ǁĂƐ ďĞĂƌŝƐŚ ĂƐ ĂǀĞƌĂŐĞ LJŝĞůĚ ƌŽƐĞ ϭďƉ ĂŶĚ ϭϱďƉƐ ƌĞƐƉĞĐͲ ƟǀĞůLJ͘ &ŽůůŽǁŝŶŐ ƚŚĂƚ͕ ĂǀĞƌĂŐĞ LJŝĞůĚ ĨĞůů ϱďƉƐ ŽŶ dŚƵƌƐĚĂLJ ĂŶĚ ƌŽƐĞ ϵďƉƐ ŽŶ &ƌŝͲ ĚĂLJ͘ ŽŶƐĞƋƵĞŶƚůLJ͕ ƚŚĞ ĂǀĞƌĂŐĞ LJŝĞůĚ ĂĐƌŽƐƐ ƚŚĞ ŵĂƌŬĞƚ ŝŶĐƌĞĂƐĞĚ ϲďƉƐ ǁͬǁ ƚŽ ƐĞƩůĞ Ăƚ Ϭ͘ϲй͘

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/Ŷ ƚŚĞ ĐŽŵŝŶŐ ǁĞĞŬ͕ ǁĞ ĞdžƉĞĐƚ ƚŚĞ E ƚŽ ƐƵƐƚĂŝŶ ŝƚƐ KDK ĂƵĐƟŽŶ ŐŝǀĞŶ ƚŚĂƚ KDK ŵĂƚƵƌŝƟĞƐ ǁŽƌƚŚ േϭϵϬ͘ϮďŶ ǁŝůů ŝŵͲ ƉĂĐƚ ƐLJƐƚĞŵ ůŝƋƵŝĚŝƚLJ ůĞǀĞůƐ͘ ůƐŽ͕ ǁĞ ĞŶͲ ǀŝƐĂŐĞ ƚŚĞ ĞůĞǀĂƚĞĚ ƐLJƐƚĞŵ ůŝƋƵŝĚŝƚLJ ůĞǀĞůƐ ǁŽƵůĚ ĐŽŶƟŶƵĞ ƚŽ ĚƌŝǀĞ ƌĂƚĞƐ ůŽǁĞƌ Ăƚ ƚŚĞ ƐĞĐŽŶĚĂƌLJ d ŝůůƐ ŵĂƌŬĞƚ͘

ŽŶĚ DĂƌŬĞƚ͗ ĞĂƌŝƐŚ dƌĞŶĚ ŽŶƟŶƵĞƐ dŚĞ ĚŽŵĞƐƟĐ ďŽŶĚƐ ŵĂƌŬĞƚ ŝŶ ƚŚĞ ǁĞĞŬ ĞdžƉĞƌŝĞŶĐĞĚ ĐŽŶƟŶƵŽƵƐ ƐĞůů ƉƌĞƐƐƵƌĞƐ ǁŝƚŚ ĂǀĞƌĂŐĞ LJŝĞůĚ ƌŝƐŝŶŐ ŽŶ ϯ ŽĨ ϱ ƚƌĂĚŝŶŐ ĚĂLJƐ ƚŽ ĐůŽƐĞ Ăƚ ϳ͘Ϭй ƌĞůĂƟǀĞ ƚŽ ƉƌĞǀŝŽƵƐ ǁĞĞŬ͛Ɛ ĐůŽƐĞ ŽĨ ϲ͘ϳй͖ ĂǀĞƌĂŐĞ LJŝĞůĚ ƌŽƐĞ ϯϯďƉƐ ǁͬǁ͘ ĐƌŽƐƐ ƚŚĞ ƚĞƌŵ ƐƚƌƵĐƚƵƌĞ͕ ǁĞ ŶŽƟĐĞĚ ƚŚĞ ŵĂƌŬĞƚ ƐƵƐƚĂŝŶĞĚ Ă ďĞĂƌŝƐŚ ƐƚƌĞĂŬ Ăƚ ƚŚĞ ůŽŶŐ ĂŶĚ ŵĞĚŝƵŵ ĞŶĚ ŽĨ ƚŚĞ ĐƵƌǀĞ ǁŝƚŚ ĂǀĞƌĂŐĞ LJŝĞůĚ ƌŝƐŝŶŐ ϱϲďƉƐ ĂŶĚ ϯϯďƉƐ ǁͬǁ ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞůLJ͘ >ŝŬĞǁŝƐĞ͕ ĂǀĞƌͲ ĂŐĞ LJŝĞůĚ ŽŶ ƚŚĞ ƐŚŽƌƚ ƚĞƌŵ ŵĂƚƵƌŝƟĞƐ ƌŽƐĞ ŵĂƌŐŝŶĂůůLJ ďLJ ϭďƉ ǁͬǁ͘

ƚ ƚŚĞ ƉƌŝŵĂƌLJ ŵĂƌŬĞƚ͕ ƚŚĞƌĞ ǁĂƐ Ă ŚĞĂůƚŚLJ ĚĞŵĂŶĚ ĨŽƌ ďŽŶĚƐ ŽŶ ƚŚĞ ƚŚƌĞĞ ŝŶƐƚƌƵŵĞŶƚƐ ƚŚĂƚ ǁĞƌĞ ŽƉĞŶĞĚ ǀŝĂ ƚŚĞ DK ĂƵĐƟŽŶ ŽŶ tĞĚŶĞƐĚĂLJ͘ dŚĞ D Z , ϮϬϮϳ͕ D Z , ϮϬϯϱ ĂŶĚ :h>z ϮϬϰϱ ǁĞƌĞ ŽīĞƌĞĚ ǁŝƚŚ ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞ ƐŝnjĞ ŽĨ േϱϬ͘ϬďŶ ĂƉŝĞĐĞ͘ dŚĞ D Z , ϮϬϮϳ ĂŶĚ ϮϬϯϱ ŝŶƐƚƌƵͲ ŵĞŶƚƐ ǁĞƌĞ ŽǀĞƌƐƵďƐĐƌŝďĞĚ ďLJ ϭ͘ϴdž ĂŶĚ Ϯ͘ϭdž ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞůLJ ǁŚŝůĞ ƚŚĞ :h>z ϮϬϰϱ ŝŶͲ ƐƚƌƵŵĞŶƚ ǁĂƐ ƵŶĚĞƌƐƵďƐĐƌŝďĞĚ ďLJ Ϭ͘ϴdž͘ dŚĞ ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞ ŵĂƌŐŝŶĂů ƌĂƚĞƐ ŽĨ ƚŚĞ ŝŶͲ ƐƚƌƵŵĞŶƚƐ ǁĞƌĞ ϴ͘Ϭй͕ ϴ͘ϳй ĂŶĚ ϵ͘Ϭй ĨŽƌ D Z , ϮϬϮϳ͕ D Z , ϮϬϯϱ ĂŶĚ :h>z ϮϬϰϱ͘ ůů ƚŚĞ ŝŶƐƚƌƵŵĞŶƚƐ ǁĞƌĞ ŝƐƐƵĞĚ Ăƚ ƉƌĞŵŝƵŵ ƚŽ ƉĂƌ ǀĂůƵĞ ĂŶĚ ŽŶ ƚŚĞ ĂŐŐƌĞͲ ŐĂƚĞ͕ Ă ƚŽƚĂů ƐƵďƐĐƌŝƉƟŽŶ ĂŶĚ ĂůůŽƚŵĞŶƚ ŽĨ േϮϯϴ͘ϯďŶ ĂŶĚ േϭϮϮ͘ϰďŶ ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞůLJ͘

ƚ ƚŚĞ ^^ ƵƌŽďŽŶĚ ƐĞŐŵĞŶƚ͕ ƚŚĞ ŵĂƌŬĞƚ ƌĞďŽƵŶĚĞĚ ĨƌŽŵ ůĂƐƚ ǁĞĞŬ͛Ɛ ƉĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ ĂƐ ĂǀĞƌĂŐĞ LJŝĞůĚƐ ĨĞůů ϭ͘ϯй ƚŽ ƐĞƩůĞ Ăƚ ϲ͘Ϯй͘ dŚĞ ^ĞŶĞŐĂů ϮϬϮϭ ŝŶƐƚƌƵŵĞŶƚ ĞŶͲ ũŽLJĞĚ ƚŚĞ ŵŽƐƚ ďƵLJŝŶŐ ŝŶƚĞƌĞƐƚ͕ ƐŚĞĚĚŝŶŐ ϮϴďƉƐ ǁͬǁ͘ ^ŝŵŝůĂƌůLJ͕ ƚŚĞ 'ŚĂŶĂ ϮϬϮϯ ĂŶĚ /ǀŽƌLJ ŽĂƐƚ ϮϬϯϮ ŝŶƐƚƌƵŵĞŶƚƐ ĨĞůů ϭϵďƉƐ ĂŶĚ ϭϳďƉƐ ǁͬǁ ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞůLJ͘ ŽŶǀĞƌƐĞůLJ͕ ƚŚĞ ĂŵďŝĂŶ ϮϬϮϮ ĂŶĚ ϮϬϮϰ ŝŶƐƚƌƵŵĞŶƚƐ ƌĞĐŽƌĚĞĚ Ă ďĞĂƌŝƐŚ ƉĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ ĂƐ ĂǀĞƌͲ ĂŐĞ LJŝĞůĚƐ ƌŽƐĞ ďLJ ϭϴϵďƉƐ ĂŶĚ ϴϵďƉƐ ǁͬǁ ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞůLJ͘ &Žƌ ƚŚĞ ĨƌŝĐĂŶ ŽƌƉŽƌĂƚĞ ƵƌŽďŽŶĚƐ ƵŶĚĞƌ ŽƵƌ ĐŽǀĞƌĂŐĞ͕ ƚŚĞƌĞ ǁĂƐ Ă ƉŽƐŝƟǀĞ ƉĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ ĂƐ ĂǀĞƌĂŐĞ LJŝĞůĚƐ ĚĞĐůŝŶĞĚ Ϯ͘Ϭй ƚŽ ĐůŽƐĞ Ăƚ ϯ͘Ϯй͘ dŚĞ E Z' E Z'z >d ŝŶƐƚƌƵŵĞŶƚ ůĞĚ ŐĂŝŶͲ ĞƌƐ͕ ĚŽǁŶ ϵϲďƉƐ ǁͬǁ ǁŚŝůĞ ^ W> d W Ͳ dZK> hD s K ϮϬϮϯ ƚƌĂŝůĞĚ͕ ĨĂůůŝŶŐ ϮϵďƉƐ ǁͬǁ͘ ŽŶǀĞƌƐĞůLJ͕ K&&/ , Z/Ͳ &/ E ^ W,K ϮϬϰϰ ĂŶĚ ^ 'ZKhW >d ϮϬϮϴ ƌŽƐĞ Ϭ͘ϰй ĂƉŝĞĐĞ ǁͬǁ͘

ŚĞĂĚ ŽĨ ŶĞdžƚ ǁĞĞŬ͛Ɛ ƚƌĂĚŝŶŐ͕ ǁĞ ĞdžƉĞĐƚ ŝŶǀĞƐƚŽƌƐ ƚŽ ĐŚĞƌƌLJ ƉŝĐŬ ŽŶ ďŽŶĚƐ ǁŝƚŚ ĂƩƌĂĐƟǀĞ LJŝĞůĚƐ ĂŚĞĂĚ ŽĨ ĐŽƵƉŽŶ ŝŶŇŽǁƐ ŽĨ ĂďŽƵƚ േϱϬďŶ ǁŚŝůĞ ƚƌĂĚŝŶŐ Ăƚ ƚŚĞ ƵƌŽͲ ďŽŶĚƐ ƐĞŐŵĞŶƚ ƐŚŽƵůĚ ƚĂƌŐĞƚ ƐƉĞĐŝĮĐ ŝŶͲ ƐƚƌƵŵĞŶƚƐ ǁŝƚŚ ŽƉƟŵĂů ƌĞƚƵƌŶƐ ƉŽƚĞŶƟĂů͘

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˜ ˾ JANUARY 24, 2021

28

MARKET NEWS

Lafarge Africa to Divest 35% Shareholding in CBI Ghana Goddy Egene

manufacturer, has disclosed its decision to divest its 35 per cent shareholding in Continental Blue

Lafarge Africa Plc, a cement 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

Investment Ghana Limited (CBI Ghana). In a notification to the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE),

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 21Jan-2021, unless otherwise stated.

the company said the decision was taken at the emergency meeting held on Wednesday,

20th January 2021. Although no reason was disclosed in the notification, it may not be

unconnected with the losses reported by the subsidiary over the years.

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: +234 818 885 6757 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Afrinvest Equity Fund N/A N/A N/A Afrinvest Plutus Fund N/A N/A N/A Nigeria International Debt Fund N/A N/A N/A Afrinvest Dollar Fund N/A N/A N/A ALTERNATIVE CAPITAL PARTNERS LTD info@acapng.com Web: www.acapng.com, Tel: +234 1 291 2406, +234 1 291 2868 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn ACAP Canary Growth Fund N/A N/A N/A ACAP Income Funds N/A N/A N/A 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 0.97% AIICO Balanced Fund 3.54 3.69 -0.39% ANCHORIA ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED info@anchoriaam.com Web:www.anchoriaam.com, Tel: 08166830267; 08036814510; 08028419180 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Anchoria Money Market 100.00 100.00 0.63% Anchoria Equity Fund 137.95 138.41 3.05% Anchoria Fixed Income Fund 1.29 1.29 -3.10% 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 19.07 19.65 5.18% ARM Discovery Balanced Fund 401.44 413.54 0.27% ARM Ethical Fund 35.97 37.05 6.70% ARM Eurobond Fund ($) 1.22 1.23 0.09% ARM Fixed Income Fund 1.10 1.11 -1.28% ARM Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 0.38% AXA MANSARD INVESTMENTS LIMITED investmentcare@axamansard.com Web: www.axamansard.com; Tel: +2341-4488482 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn AXA Mansard Equity Income Fund N/A N/A N/A AXA Mansard Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A CAPITAL EXPRESS ASSET AND TRUST LIMITED info@capitalexpressassetandtrust.com Web: www.capitalexpressassetandtrust.com ; Tel: +234 803 307 5048 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn CEAT Fixed Income Fund 2.15 2.15 -8.01% Capital Express Balanced Fund(Formerly: Union Trustees Mixed Fund) 2.27 2.32 26.97% CHAPELHILL DENHAM MANAGEMENT LTD investmentmanagement@chapelhilldenham.com Web: www.chapelhilldenham.com, Tel: +234 461 0691 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Chapelhill Denham Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 2.00% Paramount Equity Fund 16.79 17.11 5.02% Women's Investment Fund 136.78 138.37 2.78% CORDROS ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED assetmgtteam@cordros.com Web: www.cordros.com, Tel: 019036947 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Cordros Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 0.79% Cordros Milestone Fund 2023 133.38 134.31 Cordros Milestone Fund 2028 N/A N/A Cordros Dollar Fund ($) 109.07 109.07 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 1.68% Coronation Balanced Fund 1.20 1.21 0.03% Coronation Fixed Income Fund 1.60 1.60 1.02% EDC FUNDS MANAGEMENT LIMITED mutualfundng@ecobank.com Web: www.ecobank.com Tel: 012265281 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn EDC Nigeria Money Market Fund Class A N/A N/A N/A EDC Nigeria Money Market Fund Class B N/A N/A N/A EDC Nigeria Fixed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A FBNQUEST ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD invest@fbnquest.com Web: www.fbnquest.com/asset-management; Tel: +234-81 0082 0082 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn FBN Fixed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A FBN Balanced Fund N/A N/A N/A FBN Halal Fund N/A N/A N/A FBN Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A FBN Nigeria Eurobond (USD) Fund - Institutional N/A N/A N/A FBN Nigeria Eurobond (USD) Fund - Retail N/A N/A N/A FBN Smart Beta Equity Fund N/A N/A N/A FCMB ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED fcmbamhelpdesk@fcmb.com Web: www.fcmbassetmanagement.com; Tel: +234 1 462 2596 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Legacy Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A Legacy Debt Fund N/A N/A N/A Legacy Equity Fund N/A N/A N/A Legacy USD Bond Fund N/A N/A N/A FSDH ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD coralfunds@fsdhgroup.com Web: www.fsdhaml.com; Tel: 01-270 4884-5; 01-280 9740-1 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Coral Growth Fund 3,896.58 3,948.38 3.76% Coral Income Fund 3,319.43 3,319.43 1.63% FSDH Treasury Bills Fund 100.00 100.00 2.75% 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 0.92% Nigeria Entertainment Fund 129.09 129.63 20.31%

GROWTH & DEVELOPMENT ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED assetmanagement@gdl.com.ng Web: www.gdl.com.ng ; Tel: +234 9055691122 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn GDL Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A INVESTMENT ONE FUNDS MANAGEMENT LTD enquiries@investment-one.com Web: www.investment-one.com; Tel: +234 812 992 1045,+234 1 448 8888 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Abacus Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 0.19% Vantage Balanced Fund 2.87 2.94 31.56% Vantage Guaranteed Income Fund 1.00 1.00 4.50% Kedari Investment Fund (KIF) 155.66 156.19 8.51% 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 1.45 1.47 0.69% Lotus Halal Fixed Income Fund 1,128.66 1,128.66 0.52% MERISTEM WEALTH MANAGEMENT LTD info@meristemwealth.com Web: http://www.meristemwealth.com/funds/ ; Tel: +234 1-4488260 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Meristem Equity Market Fund N/A N/A N/A Meristem Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A PAC ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD info@pacassetmanagement.com Web: www.pacassetmanagement.com/mutualfunds; Tel: +234 1 271 8632 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn PACAM Balanced Fund 1.65 1.69 7.43% PACAM Fixed Income Fund 12.31 12.42 9.61% PACAM Money Market Fund 10.00 10.00 1.50% PACAM Equity Fund 1.66 1.68 PACAM EuroBond Fund 108.59 111.08 SCM CAPITAL LIMITED info@scmcapitalng.com Web: www.scmcapitalng.com; Tel: +234 1-280 2226,+234 1- 280 2227 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn SCM Capital Frontier Fund 134.79 137.52 9.34% 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 1.00 1.00 0.41% 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 2,521.35 2,532.80 2.06% Stanbic IBTC Bond Fund 210.33 210.33 0.20% Stanbic IBTC Ethical Fund 0.88 0.89 2.97% Stanbic IBTC Guaranteed Investment Fund 273.87 273.95 0.25% Stanbic IBTC Iman Fund 154.92 156.64 1.41% Stanbic IBTC Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 0.28% Stanbic IBTC Nigerian Equity Fund 7,674.15 7,756.30 -0.34% Stanbic IBTC Dollar Fund (USD) 1.23 1.23 0.31% Stanbic IBTC Shariah Fixed Income Fund 111.31 111.31 0.21% UNITED CAPITAL ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD Web: www.unitedcapitalplcgroup.com; Tel: +234 803 306 2887 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn United Capital Balanced Fund N/A N/A N/A United Capital Bond Fund N/A N/A N/A United Capital Equity Fund N/A N/A N/A United Capital Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A United Capital Eurobond Fund N/A N/A N/A United Capital Wealth for Women Fund N/A N/A N/A QUANTUM ZENITH ASSET MANAGEMENT & INVESTMENTS LTD service@quantumzenithasset.com.ng Web: www.quantumzenith.com.ng; Tel: +234 1-2784219 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Zenith Equity Fund 12.50 12.64 5.46% Zenith Ethical Fund 13.88 14.01 13.64% Zenith Income Fund 24.11 24.11 0.55% Zenith Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 1.91%

REITS NAV Per Share

Fund Name SFS Skye Shelter Fund

Yield / T-Rtn

120.87

0.11%

52.46

0.11%

Bid Price

Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

13.33 127.57 100.82

13.43 127.57 102.73

0.83% 4.79% 1.47%

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

funds@vetiva.com Bid Price

Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

4.23

4.27

11.44%

Vetiva Consumer Goods Exchange Traded Fund

6.02

6.10

5.68%

Vetiva Griffin 30 Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva Money Market Fund Vetiva Industrial Goods Exchange Traded Fund

18.08 1.00 20.52

18.18 1.00 20.72

10.36% 0.87% 0.00%

194.07

196.07

-12.80%

NAV Per Share

Yield / T-Rtn

107.71

13.11%

Fund Name Vetiva Banking Exchange Traded Fund

Vetiva S&P Nigeria Sovereign Bond Exchange Traded Fund

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.

A

WEEKLY PULL-OUT

24.01.2021

SHAFFY BELLO MY LIFE, MY STYLE, MY FUTURE The name Shaffy Bello conjures many images. There is the beautiful, fair-skinned lady who serenaded us with her tenor in ‘Love Me Jeje,’ a popular classic hit by musician Seyi Sodimu. Then there’s the actress who lit our screens with her peerless interpretations of roles including Adaora Bhadmus in the successful family drama series ‘Battleground.’ And, the fashion enthusiast whose colourful Instagram posts make many hearts drool in awe. At 50, Shaffy as a singer, actress, fashion enthusiast, and mother is still soaring, writes Vanessa Obioha ASSISTANT EDITOR OLUFUNKE OLAODE/funkola2000@gmail.com

54

THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER ˾ ͰͲ˜ ͰͮͰͯ​ͯ

COVER

On Being 50 And Spirit-guided

Bello

T

he name Shaffy Bello conjures many images. There is the beautiful, fair-skinned lady who serenaded us with her tenor in ‘Love Me Jeje,’ a popular classic hit by musician Seyi Sodimu.

Then there’s the actress who lit our screens with her peerless interpretations of roles including Adaora Bhadmus in the successful family drama series ‘Battleground.’

And, the fashion enthusiast whose colourful Instagram posts make many hearts drool in awe.

The woman who opened the doors of her new home in a quiet neighbourhood in Lekki is a confident lady, gracefully sipping lemonade she had made out of life’s lemons.

The interview was had in her backyard.

It’s a cold Thursday morning in January.

It had rained the previous night, a sign that climate change is gradually taking its toll.

But the nipping air didn’t send Bello snuggling under her sheets. Rather, she’s up and about, supervising the renovation of her home. One minute, she’s on the phone giving specific details of the décor she wants.

The next, she is directing the labourers where her pictures should be placed. The moment we sat down, Bello literally tuned out every other thing. Even when the workers stylishly strolled into the backyard to get her attention, she didn’t move a nerve.

“I’m a stoic. I never knew I was until someone special to me made me realise,” she explains.

“I commit myself to whatever I’m doing.

When I am with someone, see the way I’m sitting with you now,” she demonstrates with her hands.

“All I can do is do this. I’m not thinking of anything else. Because here’s the thing.

Tomorrow is not promised, the next minute is not promised. So, whatever it is you’re doing now, just do it well. Right now, that I’m sitting with you is the most important thing I have going on right now.”

That trait is sprinkled all over her career, making her one of the bankable actors in Nollywood.

“Shaffy is one of the most talented professionals I have ever worked with,” said Femi Odugbemi, the Executive Producer of ‘Battleground,’ the drama series where she portrayed the lovable character Adaora.

For Adaora, Bello stretched herself.

She explains, “Adaora was a taxing role because it was a journey for the character. She didn’t start that way. She just wanted a home and to love her children and husband. But things started to unravel, just like in our lives.

We discover some secrets and it’s how you deal with them that matters.

“So Adaora dealt with her husband’s secrets. And the lemons that life threw at her, she decided to make lemonade with some of them and sometimes take the lemons and throw it back at whoever it is that threw it at her. I think everybody deals with things differently.

“I learned so much from her. It was a journey; she was unravelling little by little, and she became stronger, with everything she dealt with.”

From the way she described the character, one could feel a sense of connection. She didn’t deny this fact.

“Absolutely! There is a bit of Adaora in every woman,” she points out.

In her case, it’s how the divorced mother of two has evolved and discovered herself through the years.

At 18, Bello was whisked away from her home in Nigeria to the United States, following the meticulous plans of her parents who insisted that she get her tertiary education abroad. On getting there, she followed the footsteps of her sisters. She is the last of five girls. There was no time for love.

“I was eager to make money,” she laughs.

But she fell in love with one of the richest media icons in America, Oprah Winfrey.

“She is like a mother to me. I watched The Oprah Winfrey Show from inception till the end. She moulded my thinking, the way I live my life, the decisions that I made. From her book club to the therapists and guests she had on the show, it made me who I am today.”

Within a year, Bello saved $5,000. By 19, she was living on her own.

“I had a roommate and I had to struggle to do everything. I went to work and school, juggled everything to make a living.”

She wasn’t as privileged as some of her mates then whose parents funded their rent. Of course, her father sent money across to them occasionally “but the rest was up to you.” Even then, parents expected them to live a responsible lifestyle.

“You don’t want to bring disgrace to your family. We were guided by the Yoruba proverb that says: ‘Know the child of who you are and walk by that.’”

While in the US, she found her calling in singing after worshipping in a church, Jesus House DC. She spent 14 years in the church choir and toured parts of America as a gospel artiste.

Yet, there was a desire to be in the Nigerian entertainment industry. Being spiritually attuned, Bello didn’t jump on the idea the first time she had a brainwave. She waited to be guided by the spirit and with the help of her pastor, she knew when to spread her wings.

But it wasn’t an easy decision.

“I didn’t actually come to Nigeria with the intention of staying. I came to stay for a while, learning what it takes to be here. I knew I wanted to be here. But I didn’t know what direction yet. I knew it was entertainment.

I didn’t know what God wanted me to do exactly.”

By then, she was married to a British Nigerian and had two children. At first, she shuttled between Nigeria and America but soon realised that it wasn’t a fool-proof plan.

“I always tell people living in the Diaspora that it is quite difficult to run a business in Nigeria when you are always going and coming. You almost have to stay in Nigeria.”

In deciding to stay in Nigeria, Bello realised that some changes would be effected.

You will not make such huge moves and not sacrifice some things, and the first people who sacrificed were my family — my children, and of course my ex-husband. He sacrificed quite a lot. He stood by me. He’s a good man.

But challenges in life will take you to different places.”

Not many people were aware that she was divorced. She deliberately kept that part of her life away from the prying eyes of the public. Her reason?

“I got to a comfortable place where I could talk about it and the comfort came when my children accepted it and were okay. They would still go through the turmoil of divorce, every child does. But I wasn’t comfortable talking about it until my family and children knew and were all okay with it. That’s when I let the public know because it’s nobody’s business.

It doesn’t affect my job. It doesn’t affect what I do: you still watch me on TV. It makes no difference at all. But I wanted to be comfortable enough to talk about it. It happened way longer than that but I felt more comfortable after my children were okay.”

Despite her divorce, she still believes in the sanctity of marriage.

“There are couples who have been together for 60 years. That shows you it can be done,” she admits. She frowns at the thought that marriage clips a woman’s wings. For her, there is time for everything and if one is lucky to find a man who helps her to fly, she will certainly soar.

One thing was clear to Bello when she joined the movie industry: to be the best.

She knew what she wanted and she worked hard to get it. She points out that she didn’t join the movie industry as a starving actor. Her popularity as a singer had already gone ahead of her, yet it didn’t make her lazy or complacent.

She wanted to stamp integrity and class on her name.

Those have shown over the years in the various roles she had played: be it Adaora or Adesuwa in the Nigerian telenovela, ‘Taste of Love,’ and every role has required her to give in her best. In an upcoming production, she reveals her fans will be stunned seeing her play an Ologun.

Off-screen, the actress in her is still visible.

It is in the dramatic way she conveys her thoughts. Sometimes, it’s in the smooth cadence of her voice, like a nightingale. Other times, it’s in the animated gestures.

However, one picture that her fans are unlikely to see is the one in front of me. She is dressed in black tights and a blouse. Her cornrows are covered in a blue scarf. A string of beads adorns one of her ankles. Her face is devoid of makeup, showing the freshness and the youthfulness of her looks. She recently turned 50. How will her fans feel seeing her in her natural state?

“Look at me now. This is who I am. Don’t think that Instagram is where life is. It is a facade. Now if I want to post something, I will dress up but if you think that’s how I look all the time, you must be kidding.”

Knowing how impressionable youths can fall for the superficial lifestyle on social media, Bello tries to strike a balance. She puts it this way: “I’m honest with my fans. Don’t go buying bags that you see me carry on Instagram. If you’re a 35-year-old lady and you can’t afford a Gucci bag, what are you doing trying to buy one? Don’t be like me, because you haven’t walked where I have walked.

“You haven’t sown that seed yet until you do. If you can’t afford an expensive weave, get an affordable one, and do it neatly. You can go to Lagos Island or Tejuosho market and get an ankara that is affordable.”

She adds, “For me, I will still bring you that N5000 dress that looks so great. And you can purchase it. You can still look good, without spending money. I think that’s what I bring to Instagram now. I will bring you the luxury but it’s not for everyone. I will also come dressed in affordability and I am a big fan of looking good without breaking the bank.”

Fashion to her is a mood. There are days she feels like being a tomboy and she puts on a jersey. Other days, she feels like being a lady, she wears a dress. At the moment, she is in a decorative mood, thus her simple look. She’s always been a fashion enthusiast.

“Abinibi kin se ability (it’s innate, not acquired),” she explains in Yoruba. “Back in the States when I went to choir practice, they were always marvelling at my looks.”

She gave a peek of her closet which is a generous array of clothes, shoes, and bags.

“My shoes and bags can be found in every room.”

Now at 50, there are certain rules that Bello lives by. First, she doesn’t live her life through her works.

“I’m being spirit-guided in the way that I live my life. Because if you make decisions based on the way you feel and the way things are going, you might just find yourself in a place where you don’t want to. Let’s not forget that there are some holes that I have fallen into in my 20s, 30s, and 40s that I can’t afford to do now,” she reveals.

“I’ve learned over the years from my experience, I’ve learned from my sisters. There are some things you do, some things you don’t do. These are the product of some decisions.

And I’ve learned not to make such mistakes and be guided by God.” Secondly, she keeps a small circle of friends whom she refers to as sisters.

“I roll with people I have known over the years. I don’t need new friends but I can make new acquaintances.”

She’s also learnt not to be the one-eyed individual in the midst of the blind.

“Because if you’re the one-eyed man, you feel like the king. And so, it makes you feel like you’ve achieved something. You have to walk among people who’ve got their heads on their shoulders, who know what they’re doing.”

Perhaps, the biggest lesson of them all is becoming more confident in her skin.

“I think 50 just gives you more confidence.

You’re in a place where you just feel you are not living for anyone. Not that the fear is not there.

But guess what, you can easily brush it aside and do you. As long as God is not ashamed of me at the end of the day because of what I’m doing, anybody else’s opinion doesn’t matter. I think it just puts you in that place...,” she searches for the right words to convey her thoughts.

“It just, it just feels right as a woman.”

SUNDAY JANUARY 24, 2021 • T H I S D AY

55

56

T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ ͺͼ˜ ͺ͸ͺ͹

Life and Times of Our Father, Prince Ismaila Ikharo (III), 19th August, 1952 – 19th December, 2020 Prince Teslim, Tariq, Taulib, Princesses Tahirah and Tareah Ikharo

P

rince Ismaila Ibrahim Ikharo, the Seriki Samali of Auchi (“Chief”), died on December 19, 2020 in Oakland, California from sudden cardiac arrest. At the time of death, he was surrounded by his three sons and enveloped in the prayers of the global Nigerian community as a leader who inspired a generation of Nigerians in America to reach back and uplift the youth in their home country.

The son of the late Prince Braimah and Princess Melemu (Afegbua) Ikharo, Chief Ismaila, born August 19, 1952, never let his position as the youngest of 7 children necessitate taking a back seat to his siblings. Instead, from a young age, he was propelled by a desire to help bring prominence to his family, the Ikharo royal family of Auchi Kingdom. He yearned to see more role models and professionals within the ranks of Ikharos, figures that could inspire young people like himself and expand their realm of possibility. From the time of his journey to America in 1977, and through the many arcs of his life, he unwittingly became such a figure himself.

For thirty years, Chief Ismaila anticipated his own death.

He’d tell his children regularly how he was going to die soon, even as the decades passed. At the age of 39, a mere four days after the birth of his fifth child and in his prime, Chief suffered a heart attack and underwent triple bypass surgery, the first of many ailments related to Chief’s gentle heart. Facing his own mortality at an early age seemed to spur in Chief a sense of urgency – all we have is the present moment to achieve the goals we set for ourselves. Chief rarely wasted a moment and was almost pedantic about cultivating habits for success.

At his core, Chief was a helper. His passion was education, but he was charitable to a fault, willing to use his last kobo to help someone in need and always available to counsel.

Chief extended himself in ways few would do, as he found enriching the lives of others personally rewarding. “I do for others even when I know they would not do for me,” he’d say. On a personal level, he was always first in line to offer financial support, a meal or a warm place to stay to friends, acquaintances and strangers alike, whether in the Bay Area or abroad. In the community, he was civic minded, hosting political fundraisers for local leaders and actively engaging in community development initiatives. In the last days of his life, as he lay in his hospital bed, still, Chief answered every incoming call, offering words of advice or financial assistance where he could. Chief was, at his core, deeply good.

He was also an amiable man with a thirst for life, and his positive energy was infectious. Even facing down life’s greatest travails, Chief would say, “Everything is in divine order.”

He believed in the power of God’s plan, and this belief seemed to inspire his clarity of purpose and enable his generosity. God would provide and make a way, even where the road proved winding.

To his community of friends and acquaintances, Chief was a problem-solver and the ultimate connector, building enduring relationships across cultures, nationalities, religions and ethnic groups. He was a son of Auchi, yes, but a Nigerian nationalist in action and at heart, assisting, befriending and endearing himself to Nigerians across tribal divisions. Chief never hesitated to leverage existing relationships on behalf of others, seeing only the potential positive outcome of building bridges. Those who knew him well often remarked on how popular Chief was, both within and outside of the Nigerian community. His quiet confidence made those around him feel safe and content in his presence, but also like the possibilities for their own lives were limitless, if only because Chief said so.

His faith in and sponsorship of others was propelling.

Empowerment of his family and community through education was principally important to Chief Ismaila, which he demonstrated throughout his life. Education, he believed, was the best legacy you could bequeath to any generation.

It was also a key step in developing the network of Ikharo professionals he so greatly sought. While a secondary school teacher in Nigeria, Chief helped indigent parents navigate the high school admissions process for their children and was a vocal advocate for the right to an education for all young people.

When he subsequently journeyed to America to attend college, Chief did two things: First, he became the first person in the Ikharo family to obtain a college degree, graduating from Wilberforce University in Xenia, Ohio with a Bachelor of Science degree in Investment Management, and later attained a Master of Sciences degree in Social and Applied Economics from Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio and a Master of Business Administration degree from Golden Gate University in San Francisco, California. Second, he demonstrated to the young people of Auchi that poverty and lack of connections were not fixed barriers to educational attainment. Where educating in America or the UK was once seen as a privilege reserved for the children of wealthy Nigerians, Chief showed that it was within reach for those from humbler beginnings. In the process of bettering himself, Chief blazed a trail for others to follow.

Prince Ismaila Ibrahim Ikharo, the Seriki Samali of Auchi (“Chief”) It was during his time as a graduate student that Chief began sponsoring the education of young Nigerians in America. He began first with members of the extended Ikharo family, helping them obtain student visas to study in the US, enrolling them in local colleges around the US, paying school fees and housing some in his small apartment (and, later, in his family home). He soon expanded his vision to include young people from around Nigeria, recognizing that, regardless of religion or tribe, the country as a whole would benefit if its populace had greater access to higher education.

Not everyone had faith in the plausibility of Chief’s vision, no matter how noble. Many needed to be shown to believe, even some closest to him. Many others simply did not believe that one man could be so generous and expect nothing in return. But Chief’s benevolence was not without expectation. Instead, it was part of an implied contract: as he poured his resources into others, he hoped they might pay it back, but he expected that they’d pay it forward. His life was a call to action for Nigerians around the world — true success is not attained until your resources have been used in the service of others.

Those closest to Chief often remarked that, if he lived for himself, he’d be a very rich man. Though he was undoubtedly enterprising — at points, Chief served as an insurance broker, built and sustained a successful courier service and thrived as a licensed real estate agent — Chief prioritized his greater vision for a mobilized, educated Nigerian youth over his own individual success. To some, Chief was excessively rigid in his fixation on educational achievement. To others, his definition of “success” was too narrowly drawn and divisive. In this, Chief was undoubtedly polarizing throughout his life, notwithstanding his personal sacrifices and good intentions. Nevertheless, on May 17, 1997, Chief’s many decades of work to help uplift his people was formally recognized in Auchi during his investiture as the Seriki Samali (“Leader of the Youth”) of Auchi Kingdom.

Chief Ismaila was a righteous visionary, but he was also a husband, a father, a man of faith and a devoted friend.

Chief’s aspirations were and have always been nurtured by his supportive wife, Hauwa. The two met when Chief was a charismatic 25-year-old teacher in Agenebode with big dreams of schooling in America, and Hauwa was a beautiful, vibrant go-getter from Jattu. They were friends first and above all else, and both aspired to experience a dynamic life outside of their respective villages. Over the years, Hauwa has been the stable force behind Chief and his nuclear family, his primary counsel helping propel him towards his dreams.

As a father, Chief was dogged in his emphasis on education. He shuttled his five children to school each day, usually with the radio off to ensure that their days began with a values-based lecture. “Obedience pays, humility

pays, they make you beloved to God and to man,” he’d remind them each morning. Never afraid to ruffle feathers, Chief was known by fellow parents and teachers to be an actively engaged member of the school community and a passionate activist for his children’s academic and extracurricular success. As he watched his five children grow into accomplished lawyers, creatives and entrepreneurs, Chief was filled with joyful satisfaction.

Chief’s sons always marveled at and sought to replicate his keen sense of style, quiet humor and incredible determination in the face of adversity. To his daughters, Chief was a source of great support and strength, a mentor available at all hours (and in all time zones) to lend an ear to complaints, provide a word of advice, or just add levity to a bad situation with one of his many jokes or proverbs. To his children, Chief was magic: he was a beloved man of the people, but a fully engaged and present father; a guiding force whose lessons endured in his absence.

The world is never ready for the loss of a giant. Though death is certain for everyone, there are some people whose lives feel bigger, whose continued presence is taken as inevitable. Chief was the pillar of the Ikharo family, a revered leader of the Nigerian community at home and abroad, and a testament to the power of selfless generosity to uplift communities and inspire generations to follow. He was, as his friends will tell you, one of one.

In the end, though, we all become stories. Our legacy lives on through the memories shared with those we leave behind, and the lasting marks we make in the hearts and lives of others. As the poet Rumi wrote, “goodbyes are only for those who love with their eyes. Because for those who love with heart and soul, there is no such thing as separation.”

In this, Chief’s many friends and followers can take solace.

The story of Chief Ismaila’s life will endure so long as those he touched continue to share memories and take actions in furtherance of the ideals Chief stood for in his life.

So many plans were left unfinished, but that simply means there is more work for the rest of us to do. The Auchi community, the global Nigerian community, those touched by him around the world… it is time to get to work and determine how we, individually and collectively, can use our lives and our resources to empower others.

Written in loving memory of our dear father, Prince Ismaila Ibrahim Ikharo (III), the Sereki Samali of Auchi Sacred Kingdom, Edo State.

Prince Ismaila was buried on 7th January 2021 in his home in Auchi. It is intended that the 40 days prayer will take place in Abuja on the 16th of February, God willing.

In loving memory of their beloved father, the children of late Prince Ismaila Ibrahim Ikharo (III) have commenced construction of a two -story mosque in Etsako West LGA of Auchi in honour of his dedication to islam and service to his people.

57

THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER ˾ JANUARY 24, 2021

TRIBUTE

Larry King Live

Larry King: A King Is Gone Bayo Akinloye

“T

here’ll never be another broadcaster like Larry King!”

On January 23, 2021, the world awoke to a tweet from Larry King’s Twitter account. It wasn’t his last tweet. It wasn’t his tweet either.

His last tweet on the social media platform was dated November 27, 2020. Bespectacled, frail-looking, King ruled the universe of live talk shows with his simplicity, ingenuity, and humility. He set new standards for journalists in the art of interviewing. On Saturday, the man died. Earlier this year, two of King’s children, sonAndy and daughter Chaia, died within weeks of each other.

“With profound sadness, Ora Media announces the death of our co-founder, host, and friend Larry King, who passed away this morning (Saturday) at age 87 at Cedars-Sinai Medical Centre in Los Angeles,” the January 23 tweet revealed.

The veteran talk show host tested positive to COVID-19 and was moved to the intensive care unit on New Year’s Eve and was receiving oxygen.After showing signs of recovery, he was moved out of the ICU at a LosAngeles hospital and was breathing on his own and to prove that the 87-year-old broadcasting legend shared a video phone call with his three sons. He won the war but not the battle. In the past, King had bravely faced a heart attack that required quintuple-bypass surgery, and in 2017 he underwent surgery to remove a malignant tumour in his lung.

For 63 years and across the platforms of radio, television, and digital media, Larry’s many thousands of interviews, awards, and global acclaim stand as a testament to his unique and lasting talent as a broadcaster. While it was his name appearing in the shows’ titles, Larry always viewed his interview subjects as the true stars of his programmes, and himself as merely “an unbiased conduit” between the guest and audience.

Whether he was interviewing a US president, foreign leader, celebrity, scandal-ridden personage, or an everyman, Larry liked to ask short, direct, and uncomplicated questions. He believed concise questions usually provided the best answers, and he was not wrong in that belief. His interviews from his 25-year run on CNN’s ‘Larry King Live,’ and his Ora Media programmes ‘Larry King Now,’ and ‘Politicking with Larry King’ are consistently referenced by media outlets around the world and remain part of the historical record of the late 20th and early 21st centuries.

Born November 19, 1933, King was recognized with awards including two Peabodys, an Emmy award, and 10 CableACE Awards. He began his career as a local Florida journalist and radio interviewer in the 1950s and 1960s and gained prominence beginning in 1978 as host of The Larry King Show, an all-night nationwide call-in radio programme heard on the Mutual Broadcasting System. From 1985 to 2010, he hosted the nightly interview television programme, Larry King Live, on CNN. From 2012 until 2020, he hosted Larry King Now on Hulu and RTAmerica. He continued to host Politicking with Larry King, a weekly political talk show which has aired weekly on the same two channels from 2013 until his death.

But life was not always rosy for King.

A Zeiger Became a King Born in Brooklyn, New York, he was one of two children of Jennie (Gitlitz), a garment worker who was born in Vilnius, Lithuania, and Aaron Zeiger, a restaurant owner and defence-plant worker who was born in Kolomyia,Austria-Hungary. He attended Lafayette High School, a public high school in Brooklyn. Then, his father died at 44 died of a heart attack (King himself would later suffer at least one heart attack) which resulted in his mother, brother, and himself being supported by welfare. King was “greatly affected” by his father’s death, and was reported to have lost interest in school. He briefly attended a course in Shipping Management at the New York City College of Technology but dropped out after less than a year.After graduating from high school, Larry worked to help support his mother.

A Kingly Career From an early age, he desired to work in radio broadcasting. That

dream did come true but not on a silver platter.Achance meeting with a CBS staff announcer was all that King needed to announce his arrival to the world. The announcer suggested to King to go to Florida which was a growing media market with openings for inexperienced broadcasters. King listened and stepped into Miami.After initial setbacks, he gained his first job in radio. The manager of a small station, WAHR (WMBM) in Miami Beach, hired him to clean up and perform miscellaneous tasks. When one of the station’s announcers abruptly quit, King was put on the air. His first broadcast was on May 1, 1957, working as the disc jockey from 9 am to noon. He also did two-afternoon newscasts and a sportscast. He was paid $50 a week.

He acquired the name Larry King (he was born Lawrence Harvey Zeiger) when the general manager, Marshall Simmonds, claimed that Zeiger was too ethnic and difficult to remember, so minutes before airtime, Larry chose the surname King, which he got from an advertisement in the Miami Herald for King’s Wholesale Liquor.

Within two years, he legally changed his name to Larry King.

King’s Miami radio show brought him local attention.Afew years later, in May 1960, he hosted Miami Undercover, airing Sunday nights at 11:30 pm on WPST-TV Channel 10 (WPLG). On the show, he moderated debates on important local issues of the day. During this period, WIOD gave King further exposure as a “colour commentator” for the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League, during their 1970 season and most of their 1971 season.

On January 30, 1978, King went national on a nightly Mutual Broadcasting System coast-to-coast broadcast, inheriting the talk show slot that had begun with Herb Jepko in 1975, then followed by “Long John” Nebel in 1977, until his illness and death the following year. King’s Mutual show rapidly developed a devoted audience.

Then, the train moved to Cable News Television. The Larry King Live CNN show began in June 1985 in which King hosted a broad range of guests from controversial figures of UFO conspiracy theories and psychics, to prominent politicians and leading figures in the entertainment industry, often doing their first or only interview on breaking news stories on his show.After doing his CNN show from 9 to 10 pm, King then travelled to the studios of the Mutual Broadcasting System to do his radio show, when both shows still aired.

Unlike many interviewers, King has a direct, non-confrontational approach. His reputation for asking easy, open-ended questions has made him attractive to important figures who want to state their position while avoiding being challenged on contentious topics.

King had said when interviewing authors, he did not read their books in advance, so that he would not know more than his audience. Throughout his career, King interviewed many of the leading figures of his time.According to CNN, King conducted over 30,000 interviews in his career.

He also wrote a regular newspaper column in USAToday for almost 20 years, from shortly after that first national newspaper’s debut in Baltimore-Washington in 1982 until September 2001. The column consisted of short “plugs, superlatives and dropped names” but was dropped when the newspaper redesigned its Life section.

The column was resurrected in blog form in November 2008 and on Twitter inApril 2009.

On June 29, 2010, King stepped down from his nightly job hosting Larry King Live.

In March 2012, King co-founded Ora TV, a production company, with Mexican business magnate, Carlos Slim. On January 16, 2013, Ora TV celebrated their 100th episode of Larry King Now. In September 2017, King stated that he had no intention of ever retiring and expected to host his programme until he died. That happened this January.

Ora TV signed a multi-year deal with Hulu to exclusively carry King’s new talk-oriented web series, Larry King Now, beginning July 17. On October 23, 2012, King hosted the third-party presidential debate on Ora TV, featuring Jill Stein, RockyAnderson, Virgil Goode, and Gary Johnson. In May 2013, the Russian-owned RTAmerica network announced that they struck a deal with Ora TV to host the Larry King Now show on its network. When criticized for doing business with a Russian-owned TV network in 2014, King responded, “I don’t work for RT,” commenting that his podcasts, Larry King Now and Politicking, are licensed for a fee to RTAmerica by New York-based Ora TV.

“It’s a deal made between the companies ... They just license our shows. If they took something out, I would never do it. It would be bad if they tried to edit out things. I wouldn’t put up with it.”

On his art of interviewing, King noted in a TelevisionAcademy interview: “An interview is an interview. It’s basically who, what, where, when, and why.And while it is certainly kind of an exalted place to sit with the Prime Minister of Great Britain or the president of a country, it’s still… ‘why do you do what you do? How do you feel about what you do? What do you think about what’s happening in the world?’ It comes down to an interviewer is an interviewer.

“I never sat down with a president of the United States or a world leader or head of a country and thought, ‘whew, this is the head of a country — I have to be different!’ I’m still every man. What would a guy in the street say to Chirac of France if you had a chance to talk to him?”

On His Love Life King married eight times. He married high-school sweetheart, Freda Miller, in 1952 at age 19 but the union ended the following year at the behest of their parents, who reportedly had the marriage annulled. King was later briefly married toAnnette Kaye, who gave birth to his son, Larry Jr., in November 1961. King did not meet Larry Jr. until the latter was in his thirties.

In 1961, King married his third wife,AleneAkins, a Playboy Bunny, at one of the magazine’s eponymous nightclubs. King adopted Akins’ sonAndy in 1962. The following year, the couple divorced. In 1963, he married his fourth wife, Mary Francis ‘Mickey’ Stuphin, who divorced King. He remarriedAkins, with whom he had a second child, Chaia, in 1969. The couple divorced a second time in 1972.

In 1997, Dove Books published a book written by King and Chaia, ‘Daddy Day, Daughter Day.’Aimed at young children, the book tells each of their accounts of his divorce fromAkins.

On September 25, 1976, King married his fifth wife, mathematics teacher, and production assistant, Sharon Lepore. The couple divorced in 1983. King met businesswoman JulieAlexander in 1989 and proposed to her on the couple’s first date onAugust 1, 1989.

Alexander became King’s sixth wife on October 7, 1989, when the two were married in Washington, D.C. The couple lived in different cities, however, withAlexander in Philadelphia, and King in Washington, D.C., where he worked. They separated in 1990 and divorced in 1992.

He became engaged to actress Deanna Lund in 1995, after five weeks of dating, but they remained unmarried.

On His Death In July 2009 and again on February 2014, King appeared on The Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien and on Conan respectively, where he told O’Brien about his wishes to be cryonically preserved upon death, as he had revealed in his book, My Remarkable Journey. In December 2011, preceding a CNN Special on the topic, the Kings had a special dinner with friends Conan O’Brien, Tyra Banks, Shaquille O’Neal, Seth MacFarlane, Jack Dorsey, Quincy Jones, and Russell Brand where his intent to do so was reiterated, among other topics that were discussed.

King had stated that his interest in cryonics was partly due to not believing in an afterlife or a higher power. King asserted he was an atheist, and that he doubted religious claims, in part because of human suffering from natural disasters like Hurricane Katrina.

When asked what he would like his legacy to be, King, referring to himself, said, “His life led to more people having information that they didn’t have before, and he taught us a lot and we learned a lot and enjoyed it at the same time. He brought a great deal of pride to his business.”

King battled other health problems over the years, including prostate cancer and type-two diabetes. In 1987, he suffered a heart attack that required quintuple-bypass surgery, and in 2017 he underwent surgery to remove a malignant tumour in his lung. King, who was married eight times, also had a long history of health issues, including his first heart attack in 1987. In April 2019, TMZ reported that King suffered a heart attack prior while preparing to visit the hospital for a previously scheduled angiogram. After arriving via ambulance, doctors reportedly performed an angioplasty to repair a collapsed artery.

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THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER ˾ ͰͲ˜ ͰͮͰͯ

HighLife Tunji Olowolafe Goes Low Profile

Olowolafe

S

torms are terrifying disturbances that are able to tear away even the most deep-rooted trees. The trees that survive are those that bend to the winds and somehow lessen the grip of destruction.

With people and politics, the same principle holds true: bend to the pressure or break. It would seem that Tunji Olowolafe, the MD/CEO of Deux Project Limited, knows this well enough to adapt it to his own situation.

Tunji Olowolafe is one of those higher-up Nigerian figures, whose charisma and connections enable them to artfully command both political and economic power. With Olowolafe, the prestige was not handed to him; his efforts delivered the goods to him. But very little is certain or solid on such heights, and so the latter end of 2020 witnessed Olowolafe’s slip.

It reportedly began with the 2020 October 10 Lekki tollgate shooting. Because Olowolafe allegedly has a finger in the pie that is the Lekki Concession Company (LCC), and was one of the characters behind the allegations that Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu was partly to blame for the shooting. The alleged motivation for Olowolafe’s gambit was to have his LCC take over management of the Ikoyi-Lekki toll bridge, which is reportedly a pot of gold under the control of Tinubu.

But Tunji Olowolafe is supposedly one of the many guys Tinubu has helped and launched into choice positions in Lagos. So, what gives? Are the turnovers of the toll gate enough incentives to turn against a benefactor?

At the end of the day, Tunji Olowolafe is alleged to be one of those who bore the heat of public distrust and condemnation.

Thus, since 2021 began, the man has kept away from the limelight and is reported to have taken to flying under the radar. After all, no influential Nigerian ever plunged beyond recovery from keeping a low profile. Better to bend than break.

with KAYODE ALFRED ͮͶͯ​ͯʹ͵ͳͷͶͮ͵˜ E-mail: kayflex2@yahoo.com

...Amazing lifestyles of Nigeria’s rich and famous

Bisi Onasanya at 60: Former Banker-Turned-Real Estate Guru Some folks conjecture that Stephen Olabisi Onasanya, the former Group MD and CEO of First Bank of Nigeria Limited, is extremely fortunate, so fortunate that he should be designated ‘Lord Luck’; others maintain that it is his foresight that draws ever so slowly towards clairvoyance that is the spring underneath him. Every observer acknowledged that there is something about Bisi Onasanya that incarnates substance and success.

For years (actually between 2009 and 2015), Bisi Onasanya was the face of Nigeria’s premier bank, First Bank.

It is even likely that every First Bank customer born around that time assumed that Onasanya owned the bank, with his framed photograph everywhere.

That perceived omnipresence, albeit erroneous, actually represented something of Onasanya’s flair for success. How else does one explain that he withdrew from the apex of the banking industry, and almost immediately began to produce fantastic results in real estate with his own company, Address Home Limited?

As most people are aware, Bisi Onasanya retired from First Bank on December 31, 2015, after spending over

Onasanya

two decades there. Almost immediately afterward, Onasanya announced that he

was going straight into the real estate industry. That news was received with mixed responses, with some folks assuming that the celebrated chartered accountant would be fish in the fire. But Onasanya’s foray into the industry of home-building and sales is looking more and more like the proverbial flower that grew on a concrete floor, and contrary to expectations, has begun to yield uncommonly fine and massive fruits.

According to reports, Onasanya’s Address Home Limited is already on many investment charts as one of the fastest-growing property development businesses in Lagos. There are reports that Address Home has a finger in some of the choicest slices of properties in locations like Banana Island in Ikoyi. What else is there to say, but that Onasanya and his wife, Helen Omowunmi Onasanya, and their four children, are doing well?

In the other news, Bisi Onasanya will clock the big 60 on August 18, 2021. So, a thriving business, a happy family, and a near-supernatural grip on success and substance. What else is there to ask for?

League of the Extraordinary: Tony Elumelu Becomes One of Africa’s Giants Renowned businessman and philanthropist, Tony Elumelu, has begun the year 2021 with a giant step forward. The chairman of Heirs Holding, after what can only be long hours of thought and longer hours of punching in the numbers, has acquired a big chunk of the (oil mining licence) OML 17 from Shell, ENI, and Total, spending a solid billion dollars to do so.

Tony Elumelu recently delighted the hearts of Nigerian businesses everywhere with the

biggest purchase yet: $1 billion for 45 percent participating interest in Nigeria’s oil licence OML 17, through his oil and gas company, TNOG Oil and Gas Limited.

Announcing the news on Twitter, Elumelu noted that his guiding principle of Africapitalism, inclusive development, and shared prosperity with host communities, inspired the purchase.

Stride after stride, Tony Elumelu proves himself a baron of business, a friend to all, and a champion of Africa.

Elumelu

Demola Seriki Bounces Back, Rewarded for Loyalty The days are beginning to brighten for former Minister of State for Defence and Chairman of Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), Ademola ‘Demola’ Seriki. He, alongside a host of others, has been confirmed for ambassadorial positions, six months after their nominations and screening by the Senate. Seriki will be representing Nigeria as a non-career ambassador in Spain.

Demola Seriki’s life in public service deserves contemplation.

Against all odds, a figure assumed to be forever retired and peripheral to the goings-on of the Nigerian political landscape.

But his years of dedicated service have proved all those calculations wrong, and his appointment as Nigeria’s highest-ranking diplomat in Spain is well deserved.

Seriki

Before he was assigned CAC chairman, it could be said that the highest office Seriki ever held was that of Minister of State for Defence, between 2008 and 2009. Granted, the gentleman has a finger in many pies, but none of those (until his appointment into CAC) had anything to do with politics or grassroots development, which Seriki is outspokenly passionate about.

Recent years have not been exactly kind to Demola Seriki.

Tidings of debt and general instability threatened his reputation as a calm and diligent businessman and public figure.

But all such reports, hopefully, are at an end. The day is bright and fair again for Demola Seriki as he champions the Nigerian cause in Spain.

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THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER ˾ ͺͼ˜ ͰͮͰͯ

HIGHLIFE

New Moves of Former Fidelity Bank MD, Nnamdi Okonkwo What is the logical course of action for someone who has reached the apex of an industry? This is the question that comes up at the mention of former Fidelity Bank MD/CEO, Nnamdi Okonkwo. As his successor, Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe is gradually settling into her position, eyes are turning towards Okonkwo to find out whether he will take the road less travelled (and stay permanently away from the financial sector), or carve another niche for himself similar to his old job.

Last year ended the era of Nnamdi Okonkwo at Fidelity Bank, and 2021 began with Okonkwo not having to walk into his office, and pore over charts and forecasts for the new year. Regardless, old habits die hard, so there are speculations that the banking and finance expert misses his Fidelity gig, but none of that is news.

The question is what is on the menu for Okonkwo: more finance and business, maybe politics? After all, Tokunbo Abiru

went the way of politics, and Bisi Onasanya, further back, went the way of real estate: and both of them are doing well.

According to reports, Okonkwo has decided to remain within the corporate corridors as a financial administrator/ manager. However, he is supposedly leaning towards non-executive roles and likely preparing towards establishing some form of a business brand.

Okonkwo’s footprints will not fade away anytime soon. During his tenure as Fidelity MD/CEO, he not only managed to integrate digital innovations and technology into the everyday life of a Fidelity Bank customer but also largely steered the train for modernday convenient banking in Nigeria. This has been noted as the secret behind Fidelity Bank’s staying afloat during the COVID-19 pandemic, even making progress and joining the ranks of top Nigerian banks. All in all, the day is still very bright and clear for the 56-year-old Nnamdi Okonkwo.

AMCON in Aviation: The Marvels of Ahmed Kuru

T

Okonkwo

Folake Ani-Mumuney: The Beautiful Corporate Amazon to Watch Out for There are tags and labels that, as a result of constant use, have become something of an address. The title, ‘Corporate Amazon,’ is one of such, and has gradually become the designation of the celebrated corporate woman, Folake Ani-Mumuney. To refine the words of Homer, “Her feet are tender, for she sets her steps, not on the ground but on dais of legends.”

Folake Ani-Mumuney is one of those who simply began to be corporate celebrities as if emerging on the scene out of a magical hat. When some folks began to realise that her trail wasn’t getting any dimmer, Ani-Mumuney had already become the chairperson of First Bank of Nigeria Insurance Brokers as well as the general manager and global head of the bank’s Marketing & Corporate Communications division.

Folake Ani-Mumuney’s first university degree is, interestingly, in Philosophy; the

Ani-Mumuney

Okupe And Son: Between God And Gay

Okupe

second in Law; with a diploma in Business Computing Systems Analysis and Design.

These, it would seem, have equipped her with enough arsenal to rise through the ranks in communications, marketing, and adverts, allowing her to work alongside some of the most accomplished business figures in Africa.

It was one of such figures, Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, that first noticed her genius, and got her to work for him (which is how Folake Ani-Mumuney served at the Dangote Group as its chief marketing and communication officer).

Until Dangote came along, Ani-Mumuney worked with British Airways.

Folake Ani-Mumuney’s accomplishments are much to shout about, especially in her preferred field of marketing, communications, and advertising. These accomplishments earned her the presidential seat with the Advertisers Association of

“The picture below is that of Mobolurin Okupe. He is my son. I gave him the name MOBA OLUWA RIN, (I WALKED WITH GOD) because he was born at the time I gave my life to Christ,” Doyin Okupe, a former presidential aide, wrote on Facebook.

Why has he taken to social media regarding his son, Mobolurin?

It is because his son, Mobolurin, has admitted being gay and OK with it.

But not so his father. Why is Okupe so concerned about his son’s sexual orientation?

“I have been aware of this his new orientation for a while now.

He knows that as a Christian and a witness for Christ (an evangelist) I am vehemently opposed to homosexuality as it runs contrary to the avowed precepts of my Christian faith,” confessed Okupe.

Okupe is, however, looking beyond the obvious.

He explained: “For me, I look beyond the surface or the physical.

Here I see a major spiritual challenge ahead but I know as my God liveth, this whole saga will end up in Praise to the Almighty Jehova who i serve day and night.

“For it is written: ‘Behold, the hand of the Lord is not shortened that it cannot save, neither is His ear dead that he cannot hear. Isaiah 59 vs 1.’”

he CEO of Assets Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON), Ahmed Kuru, is adding a new varnish to the agency that is both brilliant and unprecedented.

With this development in action, AMCON is better equipped to meet its vision of being a “key stabilising and re-vitalising tool in the Nigerian economy.”

AMCON is one of those agencies that hold no scare or value for the average Nigerian, especially those at the lower tiers of the economy.

However, for those that interact (in the billions and hundreds of millions) with banks, AMCON is like a cranky and old schoolteacher that is quick with the whip and aiming for delicate parts. Thus, it is nothing of note to read about AMCON seizing one property or the other.

However, Ahmed Kuru has reportedly thought up a new initiative that might endear the agency to the up-and-ups of the Nigerian working class: putting tamed properties to better use. Particularly, it is reported that Kuru has marshalled the aviation assets seized from Arik Air and Aero Contractors, and is on set to build a new airline (for local and international travels) with them.

Such a daring move is coming at a time when the Nigerian economy is phasing in and out of expectations and predictions, and in need of some stabilising. AMCON’s game is therefore garnering the attention of concerned Nigerians, and so Kuru’s genius has not gone unnoticed.

Recall that the management of Aero Contractors submitted to AMCON in 2016, allegedly because the company was deeply indebted. AMCON subsequently took over its management and even appointed a new board to manage things. A similar occurrence unfolded in 2017 with Arik Air— which allegedly owed domestic and foreign investors around N375 billion.

Ahmed Kuru has reportedly explained that the defaulting airlines can serve as launching pads for the ‘Nigerian Eagle,’ the AMCON-developed airline expected to set the tone for other airlines in the country. Evidently, Kuru is certain that AMCON’s foray into the aviation sector will yield better returns compared to the contributions of both Arik Air and Aero Contractors.

The stage is set, with all eyes on AMCON and Ahmed Kuru.

Kuru

60

THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER ˾ ͰͲ˜ ͰͮͰͯ

LOUD WHISPERS

with JOSEPH EDGAR (09095325791)

Bullish Tony Elumelu – Africa is in Your Hands These words are the same words that he shouts at the end of CNN TV adverts which promotes his foundation. But today no be the foundation I want talk about abeg.

Na my brother’s $1.1bn acquisition of 30 percent of OML 17 from Shell.

This I hear is the second-biggest transaction in this our Oga Buhari second term and it cannot be bigger than this. Mr. Elumelu has been doing things o but this just takes the cake as they say it. Let me now tell you guys why I am so excited about this transaction because it goes against the grain of thought that nothing can happen in this economy again. Nigerians are ever so pessimistic that they blame Buhari for everything. But with these kinds of moves under the same tough operating environment that is affecting everybody, then people can look up and attempt to be inspired.

The move is indeed lion-hearted if not for anything but for the mid- to long- term potential, loss of influence of oil as a major energy source but it goes to show very quickly Mr. Elumelu’s confidence in the markets, his desire to further deepen his job and wealth creation potential and more important, putting his money where his mouth is unlike the myriads of paper tigers that abound.

Before I close, let me tell one small story. I once wrote an article that was kinda critical of Mr. Elumelu and I got a call to come see him. I went oh. I like the man, normally when they call me, I will just tell them a story because I don’t want anybody to compromise me but he was different. He was my early oga at BGL so I still respect him. When I got there, I saw a team seated in the boardroom with my article on the screen. Even Mr. Nnorom was

there. He is my friend oh. My plan was that if they want to beat me, I go just hold Mr Nnorom shirt, say oya save me. But nothing oh.

It was a session on my article. I was excited. This is how to deal with critics. I said in my mind, not those ones that will be calling you and be saying, ‘bro why you yab me like that na’. He said, ‘Edgar, I want to understand the thought process behind this article so that we can better understand ourselves going forward. I loved this. We engaged, I explained myself. He explained himself and his people explained themselves. At the end of the day, it was such a robust engagement that made me better understand his motives and his vision. So, my brother let me say well done once again and truly Africa is indeed in our hands. Thanks.

Elumelu

GBENGA OYEBODE – LONG TIME NO SEE No wonder, I have been looking out for this my egbon. Last time I saw him was in his office when I went to sell the possibility of his supporting my play, Aremu.

Someone had said, do you know Mr. Oyebode, oya, go and see him. I called and he said come.

If you have never sat with Mr. Oyebode, I think you should before rapture. The man is deep, a fountain of knowledge and very deliberate in his thought process. Each time I meet him I used to enjoy the gist as we will engage from business to politics to philanthropy. He will say Edgar fintech is the way forward. That is the area that is catching my attention. Me, I will say, me too. I am looking at fintech too, crossing my legs like him and trying to look aristocratic. Anyways, gist is that I was surprised when I just learnt that he had retired from his powerful firm – Aluko and Oyebode and restructured it to face the new emerging economic hotspot – fintech. Kai, I said to

myself no wonder I have not heard or seen him in a while. He was busy restructuring. I like him if for nothing else for his depth, integrity and knowledge. I wish him well this new year and a wonderful time in retirement. Wait o, they say he is now counsel in the firm whatever that means, sha stay blessed Egbon.

ACCESS BANK MARCHES ON Lord Herbert is taking over eight African countries. They say Access Bank is now the biggest bank in the country. I believe because their PR man, Abdul Imoyo, has moved from Bariga to Lekki. Na these kind things you will use to know when a firm is progressing that is what they teach us at Analyst school. The news has greeted me, however, with mixed feelings. I am very happy that this expansion will bode very well for the organization stamping Nigeria’s footprints on the continent but my fear is that others have gone and ran back with their tails between their legs.

Some of this growth has even led to their unravelling when not wellconceived and managed. Anyways, I do not think this would be the

OLUWO OF IWO – DON’T MAKE ME LAUGH Kai, headlines can put someone in trouble oh. The thing screamed – anybody with COVID-19 that enters Iwo land will be automatically cured. Well as with anything to do with this Baba, I tried to ignore but as I was suffering from a rare patch of writers’ block with nothing to comment on, I opened the story. The daddy traditional ruler was just expressing faith in a speech commemorating his fourth abi fifth year of ascension. He talked about the development he has brought to the town including the N500 he used to share to all the people making sure that he was videorecorded while giving it out and in the process, made a prayer point that anybody with

Oyebode

Imoyo

Oluwo of Iwo

case with Access Bank. You have come a long way and I remain very confident that you will succeed in this space. Well done to you and your team especially that your brown-skinned one that is on Awolowo Road. Kai.

COVID-19 will be cured. This is what media turned around and made it look like we were seeing a Pastor Oyakilome-type proclamation. You see how they push someone into trouble. if I hadn’t opened the report and went to yab daddy based on the headline why wouldn’t the fine daddy curse me and make me die of weak erection? I thank God I took the patience to read the stuff and better understand where the light-skinned monarch was coming from. You know the man can slap. The other person he slapped, I hear is still having neck pain almost two years now.

Happy anniversary Kabiyesi and may God give you many more fruitful years on the throne of your forefathers. Well done, sir.

FALZ THE BAHD GUY – WHERE ARE YOU? Please don’t disgrace me oga.

After the #EndSARS protests, I had put your name on the list of young Nigerians to watch out for.

Since the protest, you have dyed your hair pink, put on nose ring and moved on. Now people are

Njie

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LOUD WHISPERS laughing at me. All that gra gra you were doing during that time quoting constitution, jumping on okada without shirt, reeling out data against the government and generally leading the push has now ended where o? Oga, why do you do like this na? I had thought that by now you would have corralled all that energy into a credible political movement towards enshrining the kind of leadership you wanted. So, all was just PR and for ‘like’ on Instagram so that the babes can see that you have chest.

My brother this is wayo o. You have to come out and continue the struggle. Vie for elective position or support candidates that will make a difference. You are embarrassing me o with this your yeye silence abeg.

MUSTAPHA NJIE – ‘PEPPER DEM’ I have decided to borrow the title from the popular song to better illustrate this story about this mercurial man. Mustapha is Gambian but he came to Nigeria and in a short space has achieved a lot in this same economy that we are all lamenting. In a joint venture initiative with the Rivers State government, he created the RIV TAF which today employs 1,200 Nigerians and has provided housing for over 800 families. Mustapha’s TAF Global has over 2,000 Africans employed spread across many African countries with Nigeria taking the lion’s share. This same Nigeria that we are abusing Buhari and blaming every other thing apart from ourselves for our poverty. Mustapha loves Nigeria and really envies us because of our huge potential.

He talks glowingly about Nigeria and Nigerians that in his home in Banjul, his house is the rendezvous of people who want to listen to his many Nigerian stories. I have had the privilege of working closely with him, followed his processes and admired his never-say-die Nigerian spirit. Irony abi, he says he is too Nigerian to be Gambian but we that are the real Nigerians are sitting down there and badmouthing the country that has so much. Have we ever stopped to ask ourselves how Lebanese, Chinese and now Gambians come into the country empty-handed and build empires while we are still here writing articles like me and be saying this is the worst place to live in the world? My brother, well done and keep the good work going. Please, can you spread your tentacles to Shomolu and come and employ us? We need the magic touch.

BILL GATES – YOU HAVE SUFFERED This baba has suffered.

Apparently, he has gone into a joint venture with the Chinese to bring COVID-19 and then as the astute businessman that he is, has gone into joint operation with Pfizer to bring the vaccine.

Well, he has not stopped oh, using another subsidiary, he will poison the vaccine so that we will all die because he thinks we are too much in the world making the Kogi State governor say over his dead body before he takes the vaccine.

The other day, I did two minutes and Duchess wanted to complain, I say it is Bill Gates oh. He has contaminated the water I have been

Gates

Onwenu

drinking making me a two-minute man down from my usual 45 minutes. Duchess is looking for Bill Gates. My people the conspiracy theory around this paddy head is plenty oh and it is global. How the man came to represent Satan in the world really beats me oh.

He has destroyed global economy.

He is killing babies all over Africa.

He gave America Trump and he is the one that even threw us into recession and made Babachir cut

grass with N400m or I no know the exact amount. But we dey court.

It is even Bill Gates that made Dino lose election in Kogi and has made Buhari refuse to wear face mask. My own is that we should arrest him once and for all and if he doesn’t disappear, we make him face the long arm of the law with my brother Tope Fasua being the head of the jury. I really pity this Bill Gates. He just wants the best oh.

DIMEJI BANKOLE – CONGRATULATIONS BUT… Let me congratulate the gentleman for his recent nuptials. I am sure he is presently enjoying his honeymoon with his very beautiful wife. Nothing is sweater than getting married to your ‘baby’. But as I try to celebrate with them, the video of the wedding ceremony and the reckless abandon in this time of COVID-19 comes to my head. Timi Dakolo who has been going all over the place without mask and be singing some yeye songs to bored brides was there singing and serenading as usual without

Dimeji Bankole, tied the knot with Aisha Shinkafi Saidu

mask. The couple - no mask, the guests no mask. The few that had mask na under their chins. Now, when people like this that should know don’t adhere and post the irresponsibility on social media, how will the gullible majority know that over 1,400 Nigerians have died and over 108,000 people have been infected? I really don’t want to spoil your wedding bliss even though you thoroughly deserved it with the video I have seen, I will just say God bless your union and I wish you a safe marital bliss. I no vex, I just dey caution.

AMBASSADOR BOLERE KETEBU, I DIDN’T KNOW It was my sister Dr. Ibiene Ogolo, who called and said, call Bikiya she just lost her mother. I said no! Bikiya Graham Douglas is my closest sister. We love each other oh. We have been mutually bereaved this period, me losing my wife Erelu in July and my mother in January. She losing her brother Tonye Graham-Douglas Jr this November and both of us losing Albert Okumagba. I even got her to host a tribute night for Albert by the BGL family. We have been consoling each other with calls and all that. So, when Ibiene called, I was weak and chatted Bikiya up.

She was strong and I said hold on oh. Then, my brother, Ken Etete, sent me a news feed of the passing of Ambassador Ketebu and I said sad not knowing she was Bikiya’s mother. She was Nigeria’s ambassador to Ireland and a member of the federal House of Representatives amongst a litany of positions she held in the country. It was just this morning that I was about to write this tribute on Bikiya and her late brother and mother that I said, Bikiya please give me your mother’s name and she said Ambassador Bolero Ketebu, na im I screamed, is that your mother kai!? I didn’t know oh.

Such an illustrious woman and very beautiful. I see where Bikiya got her looks from. This is heavy, losing a brother and mother in months, really heavy but God is with the family, I know. He is with them just as he is with us. Take heart, my darling Bikiya. God will bless and keep the rest of your family, especially my darling Ibiso.

Kai. ONYEKA ONWENU – THE RUNAWAY BRIDE The elegant stallion – I have always wondered what the person who came up with this moniker was thinking - has just revealed that the legendary Fela had asked to marry her. Well, if it is the Fela that me I knew, I don’t think that was a real marriage proposal. That was style to have a quickie and run away.

Thankfully, the elegant stallion did not fall for it oh as she said according to her that she is a very possessive woman and would not have been able to cope with Fela’s harem. This is quite an interesting story an d I would have imagined how it would have gone down. Onyeka was quite a beauty in those days especially with that her trademark gray patch on her head. Even me I had a crush oh and used to hate Sunny Ade who dared to sing a duet with her and be carrying that his tribal mark face and be trying to take it near her face. The thing used to pain me. That is how Fela too would have said, kai let me try my luck too because this one pass all my 42 wey I keep for house o. He say, women like to hear marriage so let me use that style and just do one and run. But Baba no know say, this na American brought up oh. She just snub him and good for him. Is it that pant he will now be wearing around with our elegant stallion? Mbok, Mummy don’t mind me jo, just wanted to take a small quip at you. How are you and I hope you are enjoying the retirement sha?

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Adebayo Adeoye bayoolunla@gmail.com; 08054680651

Ardova Boss, Abdulwasiu Sowami, on The Rise

Tamuno

Dame Maureen Tamuno Reaps Bountifully

I

n the words of the American rapper, singer, and songwriter, Willie Junior Maxwell II, famously known as Fetty Wap, “My whole thing is loyalty.

Loyalty over royalty; word is bond.”

No doubt, one name that typifies this famous quote is Dame Maureen Piribonemi Tamuno. She tells anyone who cares to listen that she is a card-carrying member of the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC. But she is not in politics for politics’ sake; she has continued to use the opportunities provided her by the party to make society better.

One thing she has going for her is her loyalty. Although she has been disappointed and betrayed by many in the past, she has remained faithful to whatever she believes in.

Today, this respected politician is reaping bountifully for staying true to her ideology, following her recent confirmation by the Senate as one of the non-career ambassadors.

The former member of Rivers State House of Assembly, last week, was among the non-career ambassadors posted to their respective duty posts. Tanumo, who was posted to Jamaica, has featured prominently in several areas of our national life with impressive records.

Often times when her name crops up in public discourse, she is always acknowledged as brilliant, given her intimidating credentials: she holds a degree in Management Studies from the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University (ATBU) Bauchi, Bauchi State, a postgraduate Diploma (PGD) in Management, Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Marketing and PhD in Strategic Marketing and Consumer Behaviour.

Beyond these enviable academic qualifications, Tamuno, who is currently a member of the board of Nigeria Railway Corporation, has been recognized for her humanitarian efforts through her Lady Maureen Tamuno Foundation, a non-governmental organization for the care of widows, orphans, and the downtrodden in society.

A member of the Junior Chamber International (JCI) Nigeria, Tamumo is also said to have trained over 300 teenagers in various skills and set them up with starter packs via her Pearls Growth Club, an NGO for young persons between the ages of 11 and 17.

Tanumo, who was deputy national coordinator of the Nigerian State and Local Government Trade and Tourism Fair held in Abuja in 2000, has a number of awards in her kitty, including Entrepreneurship Award for the Year 2003, Award of Excellence from the RSUST Alumni Association Tanumo, a Fellow of the Institute of Public Management (FIPM) and Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Management (FCIM).

Until 2019, he was relatively unknown as a player in the oil and gas sector. But his status changed the moment his oil firm, Prudent Energy, acquired humongous shares in Forte Oil. Since then, Abdulwasiu Sowami has shot himself into the league of top oil players in Nigeria. No doubt, with his acquisition of Forte Oil, now known as Ardova Plc, public interest has been piqued. However, Sowami, whose profile has been on the rise, prefers to live a quiet lifestyle.

The oil tycoon shies from the klieg lights.

The Ogun State-born businessman seems to prefer to grow his business. This is more so as the news is doing the rounds that he is taking over yet another oil and gas firm, Enyo.

Enyo is one of the newest and fastestgrowing retail and supply companies in the downstream sector, with billionaire oil magnate Tunde Folawiyo as chairman and Abayomi Awobokun as the managing director.

In a statement, Ardova Plc, said: “AP, a leading Nigerian integrated energy company, and the shareholders of Enyo Retail and Supply Limited (Enyo) have entered discussions relating to AP acquiring Enyo.”

It was gathered that the announcement is pursuant to the acceptance in principle of AP’s offer and acquisition framework by the

shareholders of Enyo.

“It is subject to the successful completion of due diligence exercise and the receipt of all required regulatory approvals.”

According to CEO of AP, Olumide Adeosun, immediately after the completion, AP will look to retain the Enyo branded stations, which will operate side by side with the AP brand, while leveraging the strengths of AP and its group companies.

He stressed further that parties are committed to concluding the deal by the end of Q1 2021.

Sowami is a graduate of Sociology from the University of Maiduguri, Borno State, and holds a master’s in Corporate Governance from Leeds Beckett University, United Kingdom (UK).

An associate member of the Institute of Directors, his robust industrial knowledge and experience in the country’s oil and gas sector spans over two decades owing to the leadership positions he had held in various companies.

Sowami launched his career with Besse Oil and Services Limited and later moved on to Cosmos Oil Limited before Ignite Energy Limited.

Meanwhile, it was also gathered that Folawiyo is not quitting the firm, but rather wants to diversify so as to concentrate on Aje Gas and Condensate Field, which lies in Oil Mining Lease 113 in the Benin Basin, about 43 kilometres

Sowami

offshore Lagos.

In 2016, Folawiyo Petroleum announced its first production of crude oil from the Aje Field, the first producing field outside of the Niger Delta in Nigeria.

Sujimoto Construction Boss, Sijibomi Ogundele’s Winning Strategy

Ogundele

For many business organisations and entrepreneurs, the year 2020 had come with a bagful of disappointments occasioned by the COVID 19 pandemic.

But for Sijibomi Ogundele, the Managing Director Sujimoto Construction Company, an upscale real estate firm, 2020 was not a totally unpleasant experience, as he was able to navigate through the turbulent waters.

Unlike some of his competitors, he managed to gain the trust of his clients and also delivered on

his promises to investors whom he offered 400 percent return on investment in two years, the first of its kind in business investment in the country.

It will be recalled that many had expressed doubts about the authenticity of the projection, claiming he could not achieve it with the current economic situation.

But the ‘motomatics’ originator once again showed his wizardry by proving naysayers wrong; he backed his projection with visible, convincing, and laudable facts.

As most countries in the world have switched to smart and automated homes, Sujimoto is making sure Nigeria is not left behind by bringing smart luxury to every Sujimoto-erected architectural masterpiece gracing the skyline of Nigeria and by extension Africa.

For instance, his Guiliano by Sujimoto residence in Banana Island, home to pop star, Davido, is a wonder to behold.

According to projections from experts and analysts, in the next five years, the brand Sujimoto, would be ranked as one of the top five luxury

real estate firms in the world.

Also, the Leonardo by Sujimoto in Banana Island, Lagos, is another concrete evidence of luxury and comfort.

Society watch gathered that the company has also taken a long journey to the nation’s capital city, Abuja, where it will be erecting the ‘Queen Amina by Sujimoto’.

The luxury twin tower will be erected in the heart of Maitama, Abuja. In addition, Sujimoto is also creating 1,200 luxury apartments named the ‘Sujimoto Diamond City’.

The city will also boast 98,000sqm office spaces, 2 five-star hotels, 20,000-seater conference hall, 10,000 car parks, high-tech hospitals, sports centre/gym, independent power supply centre, and many more.

Those close to him revealed that he achieved the feats based on his wonted tenacity and doggedness. Perhaps, the sterling qualities have enabled him to rise above the challenges posed by the pandemic.

Lagos Ex-MILAD, Buba Marwa Back to Relevance For Brigadier-General Buba Marwa (retd), 2021 has begun on a very interesting note.

In the thinking of many, the appointment of the former military administrator of Lagos State as director general of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, has further signified that his dwindling political career has finally been revived.

Since the Adamawa-born retired soldier left office as Nigeria High Commissioner to South Africa, a position he was appointed to by the late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, he appeared to have

been left in the cold.

After his tenure as a military administrator ended, he founded Albarka Airlines. He resigned as the chairman of the airline in 2005 to pursue his political career.

But not long after, the aviation authorities grounded the airline for non-maintenance of its fleet.

Two years after, the Nigerian government withdrew the licence of the airline for not meeting the recapitalization requirements.

It will also be recalled that he had unsuccessfully sought the number one job of Adamawa State in 2011, with the intention to unseat the then incumbent Governor of the state, Murtala Nyako.

Marwa

SUNDAY JANUARY 24, 2021 • T H I S D AY

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INTERNATIONAL The End of a Democratic Tyrant and White Supremacy: Beyond Making America Great Again

U

nited States used to be an important country for various reasons in international relations until the election of Mr. Donald Trump as the 45th President of the United States on January 20, 2016. Before 2016, the United States fought a civil war in 1861-1865 in defence of self-determination in international politics. In this regard, the United States made life very difficult for colonial masters, especially the United Kingdom and France in their desire to continue to sustain colonialism. In fact, the role of the United States in seeking to stop colonialism and promoting the principle of self-determination for dependent territories.

The Gambia, in particular, was noteworthy.

It is also useful to recall the relevance of the 1823 Monroe doctrine. US President James Monroe noted in his State of the Union Address that the tolerance of existing colonial possessions did not mean US acceptance of new colonial possessions. Although President Franklin Delano Roosevelt rejected the Monroe Doctrine and President Harry S. Truman replaced the Monroe Doctrine with his own, Truman Doctrine, which was predicated on good neighbourliness policy and which lasted until the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. Second, even though the United States is not generally considered as a coloniser, there is no disputing the fact that the United States falls squarely within the definition of an imperialist country. Imperialism, according to the British Encyclopaedia, is ‘state policy, practice, or advocacy of extending power and dominion, especially by direct territorial acquisition or by gaining political and economic control of other areas.’ More important, imperialism ‘always involves the use of power, whether military or economic or some subtler form.’ The purchase of Louisiana from France in 1803, the acquisition of Florida from Spain in 1819 and the forceful annexation of Texas from Mexico in 1845 are clear manifestations of imperialism, which is a critical subject in the discipline of international relations.

Third, the United States is recognised as a terra cognita of democracy and protection of fundamental human rights worldwide. Fourthly, the United States moved from its status of a great power at the end of World War II to that of a superpower, meaning that it could act universally in any field of choice: militarily, economically, culturally, etc. Fifthly, and perhaps more interestingly, is the fact of the United States being an industrialo-military power with a nuclear capability. This observation is self-explanatory, especially in light of the Soviet Union’s own policies of glasnost and perestroika, which led to its demise. As at today, the United States is the only superpower remaining, but which is breathing with much difficulty. This breathing difficulty might have informed the adoption by Donald Trump in 2016 the policy of ‘America First,’ and thereafter the twin policies of ‘Make America Great,’ and ‘Make America Great Again.’

White Supremacy as Basis of America First US foreign policy under former President Donald Trump had two main dimensions: the declared and the non-declared. The declared foreign policy was defined in terms of US global interests, which essentially, were security of the homeland, with emphasis on elimination of the use of terror in international life and relations, on the one hand, and economic, with emphasis on trade.

At the level of US security interests, the strategic calculation was to carry the battle to the door steps of terrorists wherever they may find themselves abroad, while making it very difficult for them to enter the United States by tightening defence and immigration controls. In this regard, Donald Trump proposed the amendment of the law to allow for the re-adoption of the ‘water boarding’ policy and the use of torture by the United States to extort information from suspected terrorists. This was his declared agenda when he was campaigning for election. Following his election, Donald Trump believed that terrorism must be a priority.

This approach and priority required strengthening the military, expanding it in order to have a very robust defence. It was against this background that President Trump not only requested an additional amount of $30 billion for the Defense Department for the remainder of fiscal year 2017, but also sought an increase of 10% ($54 billion) in defence spending so as to have a total of $639 billion for the fiscal year 2018.

In terms of US global interests, foreign policy at the economic level was largely predicated on a tripod of ‘America First’, ‘Make America Great’, and ‘Make America Great Again.’ This policy was meant to apply to US attitude in foreign trade. The implication

VIE INTERNATIONALE

Bola A. Akinterinwa Telephone : 0807-688-2846

e-mail: bolyttag@yahoo.com

Joe Biden is sworn in as 46th U.S. President and his wife, Jill of the policies cannot be far-fetched. The first leg of the tripod, ‘America First,’ simply means non-readiness to accept the superiority of any other national interest. It implies rigidity, noncompromise when it comes to protection of the national interest.

Whereas, the quest for global peace, and particularly the conduct and management of international relations, is generally predicated on give and take and taking and giving. It is a world of compromise but Donald Trump’s policy of America First does not give room for compromise.

As regards Making America Great and Great Again, there is nothing wrong with the policy. The challenge is at the level of the modality of how to make America Great and Great Again. How to make America great Again first reminds us of what Barbra Streisand said in Larry King’s book, Truth Be Told (New York: Weinstein Books, (c) 2011, p.142): ‘a man is commanding, a woman is demanding. Aman is forceful, a woman is pushy. Aman is perfectionist, a woman is a pain in the ass.’ The differentiation between a man and a woman by Barbra Streisand cannot but be tenable.

However, there is nothing to suggest that Donald Trump, a man that he really is, is not also demanding, pushy and constituting a pain in the ass. Put differently, Donald Trump is both a man and a woman. This is why the three trusts of his foreign policy have been problematic, because only his supporters, who were consciously misinformed and deliberately induced into error of believing that there was a true agenda of makingAmerica Great and GreatAgain, were the only people who wrongly understood Donald Trump.

As regards non-declared foreign policy, Donald Trump was only myopically, if not foolishly, preaching the sermon of white supremacy in a globalising world. As noted in the Holy Bible, Proverbs 26:4, ‘answer not a fool according to his folly, lest thou also be like unto him. Verse 5 continued that ‘answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own conceit.’ These two verses may not be conflicting, even though they do in appearance. Verse 4 talks about the nexus between silence and foolishness while verse 5 is about action and foolishness. Both silence and action do raise the issue of how and when to be silent and when to act.

What the Bible is simply saying is that foolishness and wisdom co-exist, that there is time to know when silence is golden and there is also a time to respond constructively. Most unfortunately, however, President Donald Trump sees himself as an embodiment of unlimited wisdom, knowledge and understanding. He

Most unfortunately, what is particularly noteworthy about the belief in White supremacy is that it is precisely what sharply divides the people of America. As shown in the 2020 presidential election results, about 70 million Americans voted for DonaldTrump as a candidate for presidential election and chief apostle of White supremacy. 78 million people voted for Joe Biden.This means that only about 148 million out of a total population of 331,002,651, as at June 2020, participated in the election. Put differently, only 44.71% took active part in voting for and against, while the 55.29% of the people, in fact, the majority of Americans, did not vote. But what is the position of those Americans who did not vote? How many of the 55.29% of the people who did not vote would have supported Donald Trump’s belief in White supremacy? This is the most critical challenge for President Joe Biden.The United States must not be allowed to be a racist country.

It must remain the global epicentre for true democracy and freedom in all its ramifications

strongly believes in himself and white supremacy and therefore often carried this mentality to the general public in the conduct and management of political affairs in the governance of his country.

And true enough again, the need to make America Great Again can be explained by the quest for restoration of White supremacy in public governance in response to an emerging America in decay.

As identified by Rebecca Gordon in CounterPunch of January 21, 2021 (vide www.counterPunch.org), there are three main dynamics of the decay. First is the grotesque economic inequality, which has been increasing and punctuated by the Great Recession of 20072008 and COVID-19 pandemic. In the words of Rebecca Gordon, ‘we’ve seen 40 years of tax reductions for the wealthy, stagnant wages for the rest of us (including a federal minimum wage that hasn’t changed since 2009 and attacks on programs like TANF (welfare) and SNAP (food stamp) that literally keep poor people alive.’

Asecond dynamic is deep corruption that undermines the political system. It should be recalled that Donald Trump promised to ‘drain the swamp’ if elected. Most unfortunately, he ended up ‘presiding over one of the most corrupt administration in US history...,’ funnelling government resources to his own business, employing government resources to forward his re-election... tolerating corrupt subordinates... and contemplating self-pardon.’

Athird dynamic is the ever-deepening conflict driven by White supremacy. The origin of politics of White supremacy can be traced back to the time attempts were made to nearly exterminate people of colour. The truth of the matter was that the US Constitution guaranteed many rights to White men, but codified the enslavement of Africans and their descendants. In fact, it was in an attempt to continue to maintain, as well as sustain, the enslavement that the Southern States seceded and fought a civil war.

It is precisely this undying idea of White supremacy that is running in the bloodstream of Donald Trump. He does not see any good thing in a Black man. He is a hardened racist without shame, without knowledge for political governance and wisdom to discern what is good from what is bad. He is an encyclopaedia unto himself, always correct while all others are always wrong.

In this regard, Ecclesiastes 1:18 says ‘for in much wisdom is much grief, and he that increaseth knowledge increaseth sorrow.’ This clearly summarises the situation with Donald Trump, who has been wrapped up in self-glorification of much wisdom, which he really does not have and in a holier-than-thou attitude, which again he lacks, but have to end his tenure, wallowing in much grief. He does not believe in simple democratic rule or in international protocols of official behaviour. He professes democracy but behaves like a tyrant. His life is that of fake news lies-telling whenever he is accused of misdeeds. He even presents himself as a Christian.

The manifestations of his self-glorification which brought his end into a world of deepening grief, are a relief to the great majority of Americans who accept the goodness in whatever God Almighty has created, are all thought-provoking and not only encouraging, but also commendable. This is why the United States will need to go beyond Donald Trump’s lip service of Making America Great Again.

Beyond Making America Great Again

Without scintilla of doubt, America is already on the fast track of decay at home and decline in the world. If America is to be made great again, there will be need to completely do away with some of the obnoxious policies and attitudinal dispositions of Donald Trump.

First and foremost is to adopt a new policy of restoring the lost international respect for the United States. In this case, the policy should no longer be that of making America Great but making America respected Again. In doing this, the controversial White supremacy ingredient of political governance must first be thrown into the garbage of history. It should no longer be heard of. Returning to the world of multilateral diplomacy and seeking to play active parts in global governance is good, commendable but not enough. What will be enough is to have a United States without institutionalised racial inequality.

For instance, the belief in White supremacy is unnecessarily myopic. It has, for a long time, sharply divided the people of America. No race can rightly claim superiority over the other, especially if we consider and accept that all that God created were good. And perhaps more interestingly, the argument of White supremacy cannot have credibility beyond the fact of White people having early exposure before others to scientific discoveries, and therefore industrial breakthroughs, the main rationale of which cannot but be traceable to the harsh geo-climatic environment of the White world. Even if the White men are largely responsible for many scientific discoveries and development, no one can rightly dispute the fact of several discoveries and contributions to global development by non-White peoples.

Most unfortunately, what is particularly noteworthy about the belief in White supremacy is that it is precisely what sharply divides the people of America. As shown in the 2020 presidential election results, about 70 million Americans voted for Donald Trump as a candidate for presidential election and chief apostle of White supremacy. 78 million people voted for Joe Biden. This means that only about 148 million out of a total population of 331,002,651, as at June 2020, participated in the election.

Read full article online - www.thisdaylive.com

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THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER ˾ JANUARY 24, 2021

with ChidiAmuta e-mail:chidi.amuta@gmail.com

ENGAGEMENTS

Mr. President, It’s the Legacy Moment

I

n a little over two years, the curtain will close on the Buhari presidency. Of the time left, the final one year will be spent in the drama of political succession. In the festival tradition of our politics, little or no governance takes place in the year preceding the exit of the incumbent. It is a year for the pageant of promises, the displays of thuggish mobs, the frenzied clash of monumental ambitions and the stoking of hopes. Technically, therefore, Mr. Buhari is now left with a little over one year to fulfill all the promises he made us on the eve of his ascendancy in 2015.

In terms of the agenda that he himself outlined of his free will and under no duress, Buhari now has just a little over a year to take us to his promised land. There is only one year to delete Boko Haram from our national landscape; a year to chase away all the bandits, dangerous herdsmen, kidnappers and armed robbers currently tormenting our people all over the country. Buhari has barely one year to migrate some ten million of our 100 million desperately poor into tolerable prosperity. In the same one year, electricity will no longer be epileptic. Most importantly, corruption would end or be reduced to a rare absurdity. If these lofty goals now look and sound laughably impossible, it is because the passage of time does not obey the wishes of politicians.

As we prepare to hand down the verdict on Buhari’s stewardship in the next couple of months, the machinery of regime communication is sharpening its defensive weapons. The arguments are predictable even if mundane. Oil prices collapsed and remained miserably low almost throughout Mr. Buhari’s eight year tenure. The corona virus interrupted normal economic activities and further depressed the economy. The opponents of government engineered a wave of insecurity to sabotage the valiant efforts of the president. This could go on indefinitely. But the fact remains that Nigerians placed their fate in the hands of Major General Buahari for eight years on the basis of the undertakings he gave when he was seeking our mandate. All our glories and calamities are happening under his watch. No one recalls that the president was elected to offer a long list of excuses for failure if he eventually fails.

In the count down to Buhari’s legacy stretch, I suspect that Mr. Buhari and the coterie of political janitors around him may not have found time to contemplate the power of small intangible things when it comes to the legacy of dispensations. There may have been sleepless nights spent on ideas of power and its management but perhaps hardly a second spent on the power of ideas in the management of the expectations of society. Low oil prices, the onset of a global pandemic or low tax returns may be excuses for not embarking on ambitious infrastructure projects. These unforeseen economic contingencies may be excuses for reducing the usual lavish costs of governance. But they do not by any means deprive governments the creative ability to apply the innovative power of ideas to solve urgent national problems. The ultimate legacies of an administration are reflections of the ideas it invoked or ignored.

Power incumbency is a game of revolving obsessions. Every government, elected or self -imposed, defines itself by the obsession it invents and infects the people with it. Democratic dispensations are even more adept at it. The gifted political leader finds a way to sustain his pet obsession until it becomes a plague suffered by all or an infection resisted by many. Ascan of recent history shows it: Trumpism in the United States, Brexit in the United Kingdom, resurgence of the Great Russia power, environmental insensitivity in Brazil, experimental autocracy in Hungary, legitimacy of gangsterism in the Philippines etc.

Once emplaced, the life blood of regimes is how successful they are in reducing their key obsession to a big issue which becomes the source of policies and programmes to engage public attention while their tenure runs. When leaders birth great ideas that capture the spirit of the age, they inaugurate major lasting changes and in

Murtala’s real legacy is the demonstration of the possibility of true nationalism through a sanitization of governance. His was perhaps the first real sincere war against corruption through the introduction of consequential governance. Our collective patriotic soul was fired. For once, Nigerians irrespective of ethnicity were united in the celebration of the rise of genuine patriotic leadership. It was tragically brief

Buhari the process etch their names in marble for generations. Lucky are those societies which experience leaders who dream big dreams of worthy destinations where they want to take society and consciously galvanize their people to follow. The distinction between the ordinary leader and the spectacular leader is in the quality of the obsession they engage the people. The leader whose obsession turns into ashes departs the place of power either as a villain or a miserable mistake of history.

Our national history is not without moments of great dreams, periods of giant leaps and flickers of heroic intervention. There have been moments when some leaders have risen, invoked great ideals that kindled hope and awakened optimism. But what remains remarkable is that the most lasting legacies of our past leaders were simple things that did not necessarily cost heaps of money.

Easily the most consequential leader of Nigeria since independence, Yakubu Gowon had thrust on him the decisive questions of Nigerian history. He and his military colleagues led Nigeria into a very avoidable war and had to fight it, win it and save the nation from early disintegration. Awar leader who reunited a fractured nation sounds grand by every measure of statesmanship. After a war that cost so much in human lives and sense of national communitarian feeling, it was Gowon’s task to reintegrate the ex-Biafrans into the federation and implement a difficult reconciliation, reintegration and reconstruction. The repair of a nation devastated by war and return to normal life was in every way an all- consuming national preoccupation. It involved the entire nation in an informal consensus. The formal end of the civil war was accompanied by symbolic acts of nation building and the inauguration of a new national order in which the 12 state structure replaced the pre-war four region structure.

But Gowon was not content with merely ending a war and reuniting the nation. He also undertook major economic and political innovations, some of which have become permanent features of our socio political and economic life and consciousness. The migration to a decimal currency with an indigenous identity was a major advancement on the road to authentic nationhood. After months of sustained public enlightenment, the Naira was born on 1st January, 1973. That put an end to the era of the Nigerian Pound, an adaptation of the British pound sterling which was an unstated remnant of the colonial era.

In a bid to align Nigeria more with its economic neighbourhood, Gowon went ahead to spearhead the founding of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in 1975. This was accompanied by the migration of Nigeria from left to right hand drive, thus bringing the country in line with the trend in the rest of West Africa and decisively severing Nigeria from the British tradition.

Murtala Mohammed’s enduring legacy resides in two intangible things. He showed up and stood straight up for Nigeria. He came to symbolize the ideal of one nation under God, ruled according to law by a few good men and women. That was the summation of the Murtala legacy and his abiding mystique in the national consciousness of Nigerians.

Murtala’s real legacy is the demonstration of the possibility of true nationalism through a sanitization of governance. His was perhaps the first real sincere war against corruption through the introduction of consequential governance. Our collective patriotic soul was fired. For once, Nigerians irrespective of ethnicity were united in the celebration of the rise of genuine patriotic leadership. It was tragically brief.

The Shehu Shagari presidency was essentially a restoration of the civil essence of governance through the revalidation of the bureaucratic state. It was our inaugural experimentation with the US- type presidential system. Method returned to the usual insanity of Nigerian politics. Party supremacy was observed to a great extent. There was a return to some sort of politics of ideas.

Between the nationalist republican outlook of the ruling National

Party of Nigeria (NPN) and the social democratic programmes of the Awo –led Unity Party of Nigeria(UPN), there was a clear ideological difference. On education, for instance, while the NPN insisted on qualitative education, the UPN approach was more quantitative and broad based. Makeshift schools were quickly erected to run shift classes with the aim of educating the highest number of Nigerian children in the states controlled by the party.

The legacy of the Shagari presidency therefore was more in terms of a return to civil governance after years of military dominance as well as a return to the politics of method and partisan discipline and internal democracy.

In terms of deploying the power of ideas to impact our nation space, the gold medal goes to former military president Ibrahim Babangida. Babangida’s trick was perhaps to concentrate on institution building for the sake of posterity. Posterity is the homeland of legacies. Nearly everything good that he is remembered for is a triumph of good ideas. The Privatization of unproductive public assets was an idea. The licensing of new generation banks was an idea. The establishment of regulatory bodies- National Broadcasting Commission(NBC), National Communications Commission(NCC), Nigeria Deposit Insurance Commission(NDIC) etc., - were all ideas. Peoples’ Bank was an idea, so were Community Banks, and the drive for rural development. The Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) was just an idea on a piece of paper which Wole Soyinka took to Dodan Barracks one evening and Babangida bought into it. The Open Secret Ballot system of voting was an idea; so was the inevitability of a two party system. The creation of a three -arm national security architecture which led to the establishment of the State Security Service (SSS), Defense Intelligence Agency(DIA) and National Intelligence Agency(NIA) was an idea in response to credible security threats. These innovations were not about throwing money at problems. Nor were they about brick and mortar, expensive contracts financed with huge foreign loans. Nor were they about the showmanship of cutting of ceremonial tapes. They were about reaching far and wide into the national reservoir of ideas, skills and competences to harvest new ideas. It was about finding unusual solutions to familiar problems with the power of new ideas. The most enduring legacies of the Babangida presidency can be found mostly in this series of ideas-driven institutions ost of which have endured over three decades since after he left office.

Babangida had brick and mortar legacies for which many remember him. Many Nigerians credit for instance him with the realization of the dream of Abuja through the construction of most of the infrastructure in the central district of the new city. He did not have the benefit of a bulging treasury as oil prices sank to below $9 except for the brief period of the first Gulf war.

As civilian president, Mr. Obasanjo had an abiding sense of history and an acute sense of legacy. The entire nation was his constituency and he sought the best hands from the diversity of the nation to run the affairs of the state. When on a visit to Anambra state the traditional leaders sought to thank him for appointing many of their sons and daughters into his administration, Obasanjo characteristically drew their attention to the sterling qualifications and outstanding capacity of those he appointed and added: “If there is more from where those came from, please give me…”

Obasanjo had an arcane perception of legacy. He reached for quick wins with lasting significance. He eagerly embraced the digital economy by first embarking on the inauguration of the GSM telecommunications revolution. That unleashed latent energies in the economy by creating multiple collateral economies of telephone services and accessories. He followed this up with an ambitious but sensible banking consolidation and capital market reform.

These twin ideas brought a huge percentage of Nigeria’s hitherto predominantly informal economy into the formal spectrum.

Market women and common traders began to measure their net worth in terms of equities held in the capital market and the credit worthiness it gave them to expand and grow their businesses.

Obasanjo deliberately de-emphasized brick and mortar and white elephant contracts because the nation was over burdened with debts. Instead, he harvested the power of ideas to explore new frontiers while deploying considerable diplomatic muscle to free the nation of most of its debts.

The day Mr. Obasanjo was leaving office as elected president on May 29, 2007, I casually asked one of my junior staffers what she would remember the outgoing president for. The lady reached for her little handbag and brought out her cell phone. “It is this! With it, I am now somebody... Somebody can call somebody and maybe, something good can happen from there...”

The shortest cut to projecting the possible legacy of an administration is by identifying its governing obsession. I have tried endlessly to identify the defining obsession or unifying emphasis of the Buhari presidency. Buhari as a military head of state was more definable. He stood then for discipline and anti corruption.

Like most Nigerians now, I would like to hold President Buhari responsible for something remarkable and positive. But I cannot yet find a unifying theme for the current chaotic orchestra. Could it be anti corruption? That has been squandered on the altar of nasty partisanship and sickening nepotism. Could it be a more secure Nigeria? That has degenerated into a democratization of insecurity and danger. Maybe it is economic salvation. That too has yielded the unintended consequence of an unprecedented federal republic of over 100 million of the poorest people in the world.

Yet the ultimate question cannot be excused away. What will future generations of Nigerians remember the eight years of the Buhari presidency for?

ARTS & REVIEW A

PUBLICATION

24.01.2021

BASKING ON A CULTURE OF RESILIENCE, TERRA KULTURE ROLLS OUT ITS PLANS A screenshot from Palava

EDITOR OKECHUKWU UWAEZUOKE/ okechukwu.uwaezuoke@thisdaylive.com

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JANUARY 24, 2021

ARTS & REVIEW\\PREVIEW

BASKINGONACULTUREOFRESILIENCE, TERRAKULTUREROLLSOUTITSPLANS With its list of best-seller films, creative and informative exhibitions and awe-inspiring musicals, Terra Kulture in Victoria Island, Lagos hopes to make this year an entertaining one for its habitués.

Okechukwu Uwaezuoke reports

N

o collective sigh of relief should be heard in the cultural sector yet.

For, though the year 2020 – with its haunting memories – has slipped into the recesses of past, reasons for unease still haunt the industry, whose primary source of income depends on large gatherings. Hence, for successfully navigating through that turbulent year, the Terra Kulture earned its stripes as one of the sector’s most resilient.

Indeed, not only did the Victoria Island, Lagosbased cultural centre survive the debilitating periods of the COVID-19-induced lockdown and restrictions as well as the subsequent anti-police brutality (or #EndSARS) protests, it kept itself in the industry’s consciousness through its innovate exploration of online platforms. Thus, it managed to thrive during the year, which it ended on a high note with a Broadway-style musical, titled The Oluronbi Musical.

It is on this note, therefore, that expectations swirling around this Nigeria’s leading culture and entertainment hub – owned and managed by the lawyer and businesswoman Bolanle Austen-Peters – remain upbeat. Reaffirming its commitment to “exploiting all available avenues towards achieving its goals of producing premium content that is entertaining, educative and culturally uplifting”, it aims to give Nigerians and Africans “both locally and the world over a sense of pride, a feeling of belonging and, most importantly, [the] knowledge of self and richness of culture.”

For its teeming habitués, its promise of “a lineup of blockbuster films, creative and enlightening exhibitions and awe-inspiring musicals” raises their hope of an exciting year 2021.

The first among the feature films, Palava – with a storyline is inspired by the recent events in Nigeria – has been slated for release mid-2021. Its account of a struggling musician, Mide, whose plans for a one-night gig go awry with lacklustre performance and a disgruntled client, climaxes with a trail of chaos and tragedy resulting from a mild altercation with a police officer at a checkpoint. “Terra Kulture is committed to fearlessly and creatively telling Nigeria stories and ‘Palava’ is a necessary tale of the dichotomy of the reality faced by average Nigerians and is sure to jumpstart important dialogue,” a press release from the cultural centre explains.

Wire Wire, the other film whose principal photography begins sometime this year, is scheduled to be released in 2022. It reprises the familiar tales of the misadventures of some of the country’s highlyskilled fraudsters, offering the viewer glimpses into the lives of these men and women and highlighting how their use of intelligence, sleight of hand and an abundance of technological know-how leaves their targets completely bamboozled. “The subject matter of the film is one that is timely and extremely relevant to the social, economic and political landscape of modern-day Nigeria and is instrumental in understanding the state of things as they are today,” says the press release.

Moving on to the theatrical productions, The Oluronbi Musical will be returning to the Terra Kulture’s Theatre@Terra stage in April this year. The Broadway-style production, which was first staged during in December during the Christmas break, is based on the story of Oluronbi, whose rash promises hang over her and her nation like the proverbial sword of Damocles. Faced with the choice of paying the ultimate price or watching her nation suffer the consequences of her folly, Oluronbi take steps which unfurl a series of thought-provoking events. Lurking beneath this cautionary tale is an obvious swipe at African leaders and politicians, who are renowned for their bogus promises. Words, the musical therefore reminds the viewer, are seeds that will not only grow into giant trees but also stand in the way of their originators in future. “The Oluronbi Musical reminds us that all promises must be kept, big or small,” continues the press release. “Do not make a promise you do not intend to keep. Promises are sacred. Those who keep promises make the ultimate sacrifice of love and they

A scene from one of the Terra Kulture's stage productions

Another scene from a Terra Kulture stage production are not just releasing themselves from a bond, they are healing an entire nation.”

Another stage production, Queen Idia the Musical is based on the well-known Benin empire legend about Queen Idia, the wife of Oba Ozolua, whose reign was sometime around 1481 AD. The saga, which revolves around a pure bond of love between mother and son, also celebrates the strength of the African woman and how far she can go to ensure the success of her society.

As the Iyoba (or the Queen Mother and mother of Oba Esigie), Queen Idia was a woman who rose above taboos and limitations imposed on the African woman to engrave her name in history.

The theatrical production, which will hopefully be shown to the public in December 2021, should be seen as a bold step by Terra Kulture towards realising its

goal of exploring the richness of Nigeria’s cultural diversity through sharing unique stories from all parts of the country. Since its successful adaptation of the Moremi story for the stage, its sights have been set on appropriating stories from Nigeria’s diverse cultural groups. Thus, it “aims to educate and enlighten children, youths and adults on the different cultures within Nigeria, foster unity and tolerance between people and awaken a sense of curiosity and pride for our culture.”

Indeed, Terra Kulture’s history of award-winning productions stands it in good stead for future quality contents, with which it hopes to light up this year with amazing and awe-inspiring presentations rooted in the reenactment of uniquely Nigerian stories.

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JANUARY 24, 202ͯ ˾ THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER

THE ALTERNATIVE

with RenoOmokri

Oloriburuku Governor

P

robably the most irresponsible comment ever made about the Boko Haram tragedy that has been visited on Nigeria is that made by the incumbent Governor of Borno state, Professor Babagana Zulum, whereby he abdicated responsibility for the Boko Haram insurgency and sought to place the blame for the deadly terror group on Christians.

His exact words at the January 15, 2021, 17th Gani Fawehinmi annual lecture organised by the Nigerian Bar Association, Ikeja branch are as follows: “They are being sponsored by many people across the world. Among Boko Haram, we have white men, Asians, Africans, Muslims and Christians.”

Without evidence, without precedence, Zulum decided to slander Christians directly. Meanwhile, the Islamic establishment has been having a hissy fit over the Christmas Day homily of Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah that attacked Islam in no way, shape or form.

Can you imagine the deception of this oloriburuku Governor? Radical Islamists are killing Christians, and rather than being ashamed and putting his house in order, Zulum is seeking to blame Christians.

First and foremost, Zulum is a shameless liar. There are no Christians in Boko Haram, and since he who alleges must prove, then we put Governor Zulum on notice to provide the strictest proof of his outrageous lie.

And secondly, and I hate to say it, but the Northern elite are directly responsible for Boko Haram. They politicised it.

We remember when on June 2, 2013, Muhammadu Buhari said that the ‘military offensive against Boko Haram was anti-North’. I mean, that is the type of statement you expect from the spokesman of ISWAP. Is it any surprise then that the Buhari administration has been pursuing a policy of rehabilitating so-called ‘repentant’ Boko Haram members?

My question for Zulum is this: Can he produce one Christian amongst the thousands of repentant Boko Haramists who have been ‘rehabilitated’ by the Buhari government?

For years, these Northern elites have fed fat on Nigeria’s wealth and have refused to empower their own people through investments in education and healthcare.

Take Borno, for example. In January of 2020, I watched probably the saddest video I have ever seen in my life. It was a video on the website of The Cable, and it showed the sheer number of private jets that landed in Maiduguri on December 28, 2019, bringing guests for the wedding ceremony of the son and daughter of Kyari Mele, the Group Managing Director (GMD) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

I have lived in America for decades. I schooled in the United Kingdom. I travelled to over 30 countries in 2019, campaigning for #FreeLeahSharibu. Yet, I have never seen private jets converge in such profusion on one place and for one event in my life. The only possible exception is when I watched a clip on CNN of guests arriving for the World Economic Forum in Davos, but to a large extent, they arrived on commercial planes.

Sadly, on the same day that The Cable reported that 40 private jets rained out of the sky into Maiduguri, ferrying guests to the wedding Fatiha of the children of the NNPC GMD, the British press was agog with photographs of British Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, and his girlfriend, Carrie Symonds, flying economy to the Caribbean island nation of St. Lucia, to mark the New Year. Note that Boris Johnson is one of the most successful politicians on Earth right now to put this in perspective. Yet he flew Economy.

The NNPC has made a N547 billion loss in the last three years, yet its GMD’s guests flew into town with 40 private jets. And Nigeria wants to borrow $29.6 billion!

I urge my readers to note that the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, which this fellow heads, has consistently declared a loss for the past five years.

I also urge my readers to note that Borno is the poorest place in Nigeria. And if you excise Borno from Nigeria, it becomes the poorest place on Earth, bar none.

I again urge my readers to note that this happened at a time when Borno had almost 2 million Internally Displaced People.

It costs about $25,000 to charter a private jet from Abuja to Maiduguri. Now, multiply that by 40. That money wasted on that day could have fed a million IDPs. It could have built a thousand makeshift

Zulum shelters for them.

These are their own people. Zulum was at that wedding. He was luxuriating. He failed to see that this type of wickedness of the Northern elite has led to the uprising by the masses in anti-social groupings like Boko Haram, bandits, and kidnappers.

President Muhammadu Buhari likes to be seen as the only good person in Nigeria. Still, we have not forgotten so soon how, according to Daily Trust (which also happens to be the President’s favourite paper), his own daughter, Zahra Buhari, received pre-wedding gifts worth 47 million Naira from her then suitor and now husband, Ahmed Indimi.

This same Ahmed Indimi likes to fly in private jets, pictures of which dot Nigeria’s social media landscape.

Yet right there in Indimi’s Borno state, right there in Maiduguri where their palatial family house is a sprawling tourist attraction, there are millions of Internally Displaced Persons without food to eat and medicine for their ailments. Perhaps it is this sort of wickedness that Mohammed Yusuf saw which made him conclude that Boko (book) must be Haram, if it can make people so oblivious to the suffering around them.

This same Indimi family that likes to marry and be married to Nigeria’s high and mighty (President Ibrahim Babangida is also their in-law via the marriage of Mohammed Babangida, his first son, to Rahama Indimi). Borno has the highest unemployment rate in Nigeria and the second-lowest primary school enrollment rate in Nigeria. What has its private jet-loving, high and mighty-marrying elite done to change that?

It took a Christian, in Femi Otedola, to donate $14 million dollars to the Save the Children Fund that is feeding and caring for IDP and orphaned children in Nigeria’s Northeast. Zulum did not remember to thank Otedola for that. But he remembered to accuse Christians of being among Boko Haram.

I was in Anambra once and the type of community spirit I saw there impressed me. They may not have a lot of private jets in Anambra, but in Anambra, they have community associations that give scholarships and business grants to those who are commercially inclined. There is absolutely NO poverty in Nnewi, one of the communities where this community spirit is most prevalent.

They build their own primary and secondary schools through community effort. I am dead serious. If you go there, you will not believe your eyes!

They have well tarred modern roads that were built through their private efforts. All over Anambra, the various towns and villages copy the Nnewi model.

I daresay that there is more evidence of private and community development in Anambra than there is of any type of federal government presence. Anambra does not even have an airport! Borno does. Anambra does not even have a publicly-built federal university!

The only so-called Federal University in Anambra, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, was built by the state government with contributions from private citizens and then compulsorily taken over by the military government of General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida via Decree No. 34 of July 15, 1992. But in Borno, they have a massive federal university WHOLLY built with Federal Government funds.

If any state deserves to be poor from a lack of Federal Government presence, that state is Anambra. If any state deserves to be rich by reason of the existence of Federal Government presence, that state is Borno.

But Borno is poor while Anambra is rich! Why? Those are the types of questions that Governor Zulum should be seeking answers to, rather than trying to blame Christians for what he and the rapacious elite of his region have done to their land.

If a Christian uttered the rubbish Zulum uttered, Nigeria would be on fire. Take Kukah’s Christmas message. No mention of Islam. Yet, JNI, MURIC and the Sharia Council of Nigeria want to crucify him. I believe in unity, but not unity at all cost. If we can’t stay together peacefully, perhaps we should go our separate ways!

In conclusion, without mincing words, Governor Zulum is an oloriburuku. And if he does not know what that means, he can as well ask one of the Christian Boko Haram members to translate it to English for him.

Reno’s Darts Look at Garba Shehu saying herdsmen have a right to live and do their business anywhere in the country.

Yet an Igbo man does not have the right to live and sell alcohol in Kano. A Yoruba man does not have the right to run a pig farm in Sokoto. Zulum can accuse Christians, but Kukah can’t comment on the state of the country?

What type of unequal union is this? Alcohol is haram, but killing innocent Nigerians by herdsmen is not haram? We can do our own in your land, but you can’t do your own in our land. We are either all equal or we all go our separate ways!

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JANUARY 24, 2021

CICERO

Editor:Olawale Olaleye mail:wale.olaleye@thisdaylive.com, SMS: 08116759819

IN THE ARENA

COVID-19: Between Lockdown and Protocols Enforcement ThefederalgovernmenthasrebuffedcallsforanotherlockdowninthefaceofCOVID-19secondwaveasunrealistic, because of its grave economic implications. But a rational, scientific, apolitical option might be the enforcement of protocols, writes Louis Achi

B

arely 24 hours after his inauguration on January 20, US President Joe Biden vowed that his administration’s national Covid-19 strategy would be based on science, not politics. According to gung-ho Biden, Coronavirus deaths in the United States will likely top 500,000 next month, in a dose of reality to the nation, as he signed 10 new executive orders and unveiled his administration’s comprehensive national strategy to defeat the raging pandemic.

He also announced a “full-scale, wartime effort” to address the shortages of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and other items and materials needed for testing and vaccinations, by invoking the Defence Production Act. The law allows the government to mobilise companies to prioritise producing the necessary equipment.

“400,000 Americans have died. That’s more than have died in all of World War II. This is a wartime undertaking,” he proclaimed.

Mounting of aggressive public enlightenment programmes, vaccination campaign, the requirement of masks on interstate travel and international travellers to quarantine, equipping schools to reopen safely and boosting testing - all speak to science-based, proactive measures to enforce protocols.

In terms of institutional capacities, organisation of society, industrial setups, systems sophistication, Nigeria can hardly be compared to the US. But despite these advantages, the US has suffered the largest casualty to the rampaging viral pandemic. The emerging consensus here is that a reactive rather than proactive leadership was to blame On the home front, the first lockdown in reaction to COVID-19 first wave almost prostrated Nigeria in several critical arenas. From an already lame industrial production base, the education arena, health sector, international trade, hospitality industry and several more were effectively hobbled.

Not surprisingly, against this backdrop, the thought of imposing a second lockdown as the viral pandemic’s second wave kicked in was simply out of question, in the government’s calculations. Good a thing the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has clearly defined exacting protocols to limit and contain the pandemic’s spread. But the big problem is enforcement. For the safety of citizens, this hurdle must be frontally dealt with.

Protocols enforcement appears to be the wink link in limiting the local spread of the coronavirus.

Currently, even very enlightened population segments often embrace scary indulgences that verge on impunity. Many social events are organised without extant protocols being observed. These have consequences and the media is copiously reporting related deaths. Even television stations transmit these events live.

Current mathematical models of SARS-CoV-2

Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha transmission and control show that physical distancing can mitigate the pandemic and this has subsequently been backed up by empirical analyses of related case data. The other strategies like masking up and disinfection of surfaces that are touched often especially, in public facilities are also critical.

To be clear, the number of COVID-19 cases detected in the country in the past one month and a half has been confirmed beyond doubt that a second wave of the outbreak has already begun. This much was confirmed by Boss Mustapha, Secretary to the Government of the Federation and chairman of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19, mid last December. Mustapha had stressed that the country was at risk of losing not only the gains from the hard work of the last nine months but also the lives of citizens.

“We are in a potentially difficult phase of the COVID-19 resurgence. Accessing the hope offered by the arrival of the vaccine is still some time ahead,” he said.

Health Minister Osagie Ehanire had earlier announced that the government would receive 20 million doses of a COVID-19 vaccine by January 2021.

Another dimension in confronting the pandemic is to look at management models adopted by other

countries. New Zealand, Japan, several Northern European countries have deployed science-based strategies to minimize casualty.

But looking at the big picture of a pandemic that has prostrated the globe, panic or fear is hardly the appropriate survival response. This is where the federal and state governments, policy formulators and local health agencies take the centre stage – from public education, vaccine development or sourcing and delivery, to strict enforcement of protocols – have become priority.

Beyond well-structured enlightenment campaigns to educate the populace about the positives of strictly observing the related safety protocols, clear consequences must also be enforced by the authorities to persuade daredevils that, wanton breach of these protocols come with specific and harsh punishments.

To guarantee the collective safety of Nigerians, the government must focus on enforcement as it has ruled out lockdown. Without doubt, knowledge-based intervention protocols as already defined by NCDC – powered by science-driven policies and responsible footing by citizens – offer real safety.

More, theological leaders, who are powerful opinion molders also need to be courted to encourage responsible social behaviour by their faithful.

P O L I T I CA L N OT E S

That Ondo, FG’s Needless Sparring

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Akeredolu

ast week’s disagreement between the federal government and the Ondo State government over the latter’s quit notice to some criminal herdsmen squatting in the forest and decimating the ecosystem has further reaffirmed government’s notorious but inane disposition to issues especially, when certain ethnic nationalities are involved.

Sadly, the Muhammadu Buhari administration often forgets that the relationship between the central government and the federating units is not subservient but is quick to handing down orders as though a principal is reading riot act to its students over whom

he has absolute control.

With increasing insecurity, which has exposed the helplessness of the federal government, no state should wait to be prodded before doing the right thing except such has left the fate of its people in the hands of criminals, a majority of whom are not even Nigerians.

The order by the Ondo State government was without biases to any particular ethnic nationality but a move to preserve the state’s ecosystem and secure his people, considering the importance of the Ondo forests. In this case, a sensible ‘partner’ is expected to constructively engage his colleague and work out an amicable solution and not always ready for some sparring.

THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER ˾ JANUARY 24, 2021

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BRIEFINGNOTES

Biden: His Work Is Cut Out From the plethora of challenges inherited, President Joseph Biden already has his work cut out for him. Shola Oyeyipo writes

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merica, Americans, and many nations across the globe are still experiencing what could be rightly described as Post Trump Traumatic Distress (PTTD). During his four years reign as the president and towards the tail end of his administration, the immediate past president of the United States, Donald Trump left many in a state of perpetual amusement and shock by his actions and inactions.

He eventually bequeathed to his successor, President Joseph Biden, a nation plagued by division as never seen in the modern history of the country. Thanks to the outgone president, who freely peddled unsubstantiated claims of electoral fraud, stoked the embers of white supremacy and galvanised his supporters into insurgents, who disgracefully attacked the US congress with their phantom agenda to upturn Biden’s electoral victory.

That was perhaps the last straw that broke the back of his camel as some of his die-hard supporters like the former Senate Majority Leader, Mitch McConnell, Linsdey Graham, and a host of others, dumped him.

Though Trump is now out of the way, it is right to say he already dictated what Biden must urgently address given the ‘legacy’ he left behind. The new president is not oblivious of those burning issues. He enumerated them in his acceptance speech, when he said tackling the Coronavirus pandemic will be his top priority.

Biden being sowrn in as the 46th president of the US But while everyone will agree that the respiratory disease which has claimed over 400, 000 AmeriAmericans. He signed 10 executive orders to expand testing can lives must catch the president’s attention; restoring unity, and make the vaccines more available. The agenda to is of equal, if not greater importance and urgency. administer 100 million vaccine doses by the end of April, Trump effectively polarised America through party politics the invocation of the Defence Production Act as a way to and instigation of racial disharmony by raising a crop of ensure that federal agencies and manufacturers increase disciples, who agreed strongly with his disinformation. important supplies needed to combat the pandemic, and the Though several courts have thrown out cases that chalimplementation of fresh travel restrictions to curb the spread lenged Biden’s electoral victory for lack of evidence of fraud, of the disease are right steps in the right direction. they share his view that it was stolen.

President Biden, in the cover letter of his ‘National StratTrump’s believers also felt that it was unnecessary to wear egy for the COVID-19 Response and Pandemic Prepareda facemask to prevent the spread of COVID 19. They held ness’ released Thursday, wrote that: “It is a comprehensive events with the crowd and flagrantly ignored the Center for plan that starts with restoring public trust and mounting Diseases Control (CDC) mask mandate, thereby helping to an aggressive, safe, and effective vaccination campaign. It further spread the virus. continues with the steps we know that stop the spread like Presently, America seems to be in a war situation. While expanded masking, testing, and social distancing.

COVID-19 claims an average of 3, 054 lives daily, the activi“It’s a plan, where the federal government works with ties of the Trump-insurgents are akin to domestic terrorism. states, cities, tribal communities, and private industry to So, President Biden cannot afford the disaster already raised increase supply and administer testing and the vaccines that for him by Trump. He must make frantic efforts to get those will help reopen schools and businesses safely. Equity will people in line behind himself as the nation moves to wage also be central to our strategy so that the communities and war against the raging virus. people being disproportionately infected and killed by the He must be commended though as he has continued to pandemic receive the care they need and deserve.” preach peace and unity and has vowed to be president to This however goes back to the issue of unity, because everybody, either they supported him or not. If the Trump good as Biden’s plans are, they are subject to congressional supporters are not recalcitrant and they embrace peace, very approval. If Congress refuses to pass the administration’s easily the country will move past the disunity entrenched by $1.9 trillion proposed for Coronavirus relief, Americans the last administration. might continue to die.

Arguably, Biden is already putting in place stringent Another very important reason the Biden $1.9 trillion measures to stop the negative effects of COVID-19 on recovery plan must see the light of the day is because the

US economy is in a pretty bad shape and this is better underscored by the fact that about 16 million people are receiving unemployment benefit from the government as of January 2 and the number is expected to keep growing. So, the president and his team have a lot of work to do on the economy. Some analysts have suggested that it could take up to 2023 before the US economy comes back on track.

While he would be working on the economy, securing the country from a threat from within is another big job before President Biden. The president specified these aspects of threat in his inaugural speech. He ideentified “political extremism, white supremacy and domestic terrorism.”

From every indication, President Biden is familiar with the challenges confronting his government. He noted further that, “Few periods in our nation’s history have been more challenging or difficult than the one we’re in now. A once-in-a-century virus silently stalks the country. It’s taken as many lives in one year as America lost in all of World War II. Millions of jobs have been lost.

“Hundreds of thousands of businesses closed. A cry for racial justice some 400 years in the making moves us. The dream of justice for all will be deferred no longer. A cry for survival comes from the planet itself. A cry that can’t be any more desperate or any more clear. And now, a rise in political extremism, white supremacy, domestic terrorism that we must confront, and we will defeat.”

Definitely, all eyes are on President Biden as expectations are high. Above all, history beckons on him to write his name on the sand of time and in gold.

NOTES FOR FILE

Addressing Incessant Tanker Explosions

An explosion caused by a petroleum tanker by Otedola bridge in Lagos

Why does it appear like the Nigerian governments at all levels are not wired to learning from anything? Whether it’s political, social or economic, recurring mistakes are a fad here and no one if often ready to take the bull by the horn.

This doesn’t only usually leave the Nigerian people more vulnerable; it speaks to the kinds of humans they are – either as leaders or followers.

The rate at which tankers explode in dif-

ferent parts of the country is fast becoming a norm – a disturbing one to say the least.

But this is not just happening and two, it is mostly often as a result of human error.

Therefore, how the regulatory agencies have not been able to fathom the problem and address this existential threat to the daily living of everyone is confounding.

Governments at all levels must design a way to curtail the ever-increasing explosions to save lives and properties.

THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER ˾ JANUARY 24, 2021

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2021: Imaging the Anambra Spectacle One of the major events that will shape 2021 in Nigeria is the governorship election in Anambra State, writes David-Chyddy Eleke, who looks at some of the efforts of major political parties in the state to wrest power from the ruling APGA

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n January 20, 2021, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) announced the date for the Anambra governorship election. It is holding November 6, 2021.

The announcement has since sent a wave of frenzy among people of the state especially, the political class, and most importantly, aspirants of various political parties to the position of the

governor.

The early release of the date has also been commended by some of the aspirants, while most have gone into secret political meetings for alignment and realignment.

Though several political parties are expected to sponsor candidates to the governorship seat, what is most basic is that only four political parties have existence in the state, with two being the most dominant.

The four political parties that have strong reckoning in the state include the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), All Progressives Congress (APC) and the new kid on the block; Young Progressives Party (YPP), which is singlehandedly sustained in the state by Senator Ifeanyi Ubah.

Of the four, however, the APGA and the PDP have proven to be the most dominant.

As Anambra makes to elect a new governor this November, the ruling party, APGA will be playing the role of a defending champion, leaving the other parties tackling her to take over the state.

Already, the PDP and the APC have begun plans to wrest power from APGA, but so far, APGA is sitting pretty, banking on its usual acceptability among the people of the state.

A little over two weeks ago, the PDP held a South-east stakeholders meeting to deliberate on how it could take back Anambra, which it believes is a predominantly PDP state, but mistakenly fell in the hands of APGA. The meeting was presided over by the zonal chairman of the party, Chief Ali Odefa, who vowed that South-east zone remains the strong hold of the PDP, and that his headship of the zone would return it to the PDP, beginning from Anambra State.

As part of the plan to take back the state, Odefa stated that a lot of strategies had been mapped out by the PDP, including ensuring a free and fair primary election to elect the standard bearer of the party for the election.

He ordered all its members in the state, who still have matters pending in court against the party or its members to immediately withdraw them, so the party under him could start on a fresh slate. He said the aim was to ensure that the party went into the forthcoming 2021 governorship election as a united house, devoid of any division.

“We are calling on all of you here and the ones that are not here to go and withdraw all pending cases in court and let’s come home and resolve whatever difference we have. We may not all agree with ourselves, but because of the interest of the party, we must ensure that we work together.

“I am happy with the level of maturity among the contestants.

We will bring people to learn from what you are doing here.

Save for misunderstanding, no state is more PDP than Anambra. A pioneer founder is from here, and I know that PDP will get to the government house again.

“If we work hard, we will be in the government house next year. I am very confident about this. It is simple. We want to bring transparency in the primary election processes. The process must be free and fair. We know that if the process is transparent, contestants will not work against the party during the election. If you give money to anyone, in Abuja or Aso Rock to influence the primary election for yourself, it is dash.

“Everyone of you (aspirants) is fit and capable of governing Anambra. I know Anambra well; I have conducted elections here, and most of you are my friends, but for now, I renounce my friendship with you. I get a lot of messages from you (aspirants), but let me tell you that the delegates will help you more than I will.”

This seems to be a new start for the party, because before now, part of the problems that have dogged the party is that money bags usually dump the party leadership and members in the state to thoroughly grease the palms of the party leadership at the top, who also unilaterally issues them the party’s ticket, causing bad blood and disaffection among aspirants that are not favoured. Also speaking on their resolve to make amends for past mistakes, Mr. Peter Obi, a former governor of the state and Vice Presidential candidate of the party in the 2019 presidential election, who is also the leader of the party in the state, dished out fatherly advice that could help the party succeed in the forthcoming election.

He told aspirants, “You must do all to go out and canvass for votes. It is time for you people to quit using little boys to flood the internet with messages and also attending every burial ceremony in town. You are not undertakers. Election is also not won on the internet, but in the field. You all must move to the field and start canvassing support for the party.”

In response to request by the party at the state level for funding, Obi also made massive donation of food and cash to members of the party at the grassroots level as Christmas package, while pledging a monthly donation to the state leadership of the party for the running of the day to day affairs of the party until after the conduct of the election, saying such gesture would give the aspirants the opportunity to save up their own resources to move to the field to canvass for support.

Peter Obi and Willie Obiano Already, the party parades about 15 governorship aspirants, all of which are exuding confidence that they would clinch the ticket of the party and go ahead to do the party proud by winning the November 6, governorship election.

Some of the aspirants include Harry Oranezi, Ifedi Okwenna, Emeka Azubogu, Valentine Ozigbo and Godwin Maduka. Others are Uche Ekwunife, Obiora Okonkwo, Ike Oligbo, Emeka Etiaba, Godwin Ezeemo, Chuma Nzeribe and Ugochukwu Okeke.

On the other hand, the APC, which previously was not gaining any form of acceptance in the state has also re-strategised, and is already being reckoned with by people of the state. This can be seen in the growing number of membership of the party, and also the number and quality of people seeking to fly the ticket of the party for the next election.

During a special stakeholders meeting of the APC convened by the state leadership of the party, which held in Awka the Anambra State capital, leaders of the party in the state marshaled out various strategies that could help them win power in the state. They also called for the support of the party at the national level to win the 2021 governorship election.

Leaders of the party, who spoke at the meeting called for funding of the party.

Chairman of the party in the state, Hon Basil Ejidike, who delivered a welcome address, harped on the challenges of the party and called for the support of its stakeholders and national leaders.

“A high powered committee of committed elders has been set up to explore avenues of sustaining the party financially.

There are no steady source of revenue for the daily activities and sustenance of the party,” he said.

Hon Tony Nwoye, a governorship aspirant of the party in his address called on the leader of the party in the state (Dr Chris Ngige) to reach out to the party at the national level for support if the election must be fully prosecuted.

“This is a special meeting, where we need to tell ourselves the truth. Our leader, Dr. Chris Ngige (Minister of Labour and Employment) must play the role of a leader. He has to reach out to the party at the national for us to get the resources to discharge the election creditably.

“Let us tell ourselves the truth, we had the least votes in Nigeria for the presidential election and we had no Senate, House of Representatives or House of Assembly candidate, who won in 2019 election. If we must grow, we must eschew all the past acrimonies and tell ourselves the truth and chart a course as to how we can win the forthcoming election.”

Paul Chukwuma, the immediate past national auditor of the party and Emma Anosike, a former senator representing Anambra North zone, reiterated calls on Ngige to speak to the national

leadership of the party for them to “water the ground well for the party to be able to function in the forthcoming election”.

Anosike, on the other hand, said, “I have never seen a party that is in power at the national level, but when there is election here (Anambra), we are given money from back pocket to prosecute it, but when there is election in other states in other regions of the country, they give money from front pocket. If they do not want us to be a part of the election, they should tell us early enough so we go and rest.”

As a mark of its growing popularity in the state, APC already has some of the best aspirants to the governorship position if weighed from all fronts and every parameter of measurement.

Among them are young, rich, popular and brainy politicians whose ability to perform is not in doubt. They include Ben Etiaba, Dr. Amobi Nwokafor, Hon Azuka Okwuosa, Dr. George Moghalu, Paul Orajiaka, Dr. Chidozie Nwankwo, Johnbosco Onunkwo, Senator Andy Uba, Arc Geoff Onyejekwe and Hon Tony Nwoye.

One of the aspirants, Nwankwo, the Chief Executive Officer of Wichtech Limited, makers of Wichtech roof tiles, who spoke to THISDAY at his country home in Oko, Orumba North Local Government Area said APC would make the next government in the state, and that it was certain.

Though a fresh politician, Nwankwo said his decision to vie for the seat, and to actualize it on the platform of APC were divine. He stated that he was not among the aspirants, who were out of job and needed to get a job by contesting for the governorship of the state. Rather, that he was leaving a business empire he has grown to its peak in seven countries of the world to heed the divine call to grow Anambra State.

In all these, APGA, the defending champion, has remained quiet, both about its aspirants and also on the strategy it intends to deploy to retain the state. The party has just a few aspirants, with former Central Bank Governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo leading the pack.

No known stakeholders meeting of the party is known to have held on its strategies, just as its leader, Governor Willie Obiano has remained at the receiving end of criticisms by all other political parties seeking to succeed him.

The least that has been heard of the governor is a recent press release on his behalf by the Anambra State commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Mr. C. Don Adinuba, where the governor cautioned governorship aspirants of other political parties to concentrate on selling their manifestoes to the people, instead of throwing darts at him.

Many believe that the November 2021 governorship election would be among the toughest the state has ever had, just as it would also define the credibility of the electoral umpire and again, that of the president.

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One circle of food production can no longer sustain the growing population of Nigeria hence a concerted efforts by the Nasarawa State government to cultivate the dry season crops, reports Igbawase Ukumba

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griculture, being the major occupation of about 80% of the Nasarawa State population and the state being endowed with fertile land and good climatic condition, suitable for the production of arable crops for both domestic consumption and export, the administration of Governor Abdullahi Sule is, therefore, committed to effective distribution process in the delivery of farm inputs to teeming farmers, to ensure an all-year-round farming, with a view to attaining sustainable food production in the state.

It was against this background that the administration has gone a long way by not only encouraging agricultural productivity, but also ensuring how post-harvest could be improved, as well as reduce losses to the minimum.

In the same vein, the National Centre for Agricultural Mechanization, Ilorin, in collaboration with the Nasarawa State government, organised a field day, where different types of farm equipment were demonstrated to enable the farmers purchase them for value addition, as well as reduce drudgery in their farm operations.

Similarly, post-harvest technologies were demonstrated by a German Company, Riela, at Shabu Integrated Farms in Kokona Local Government Area of the state.

Fascinated by this technology, Governor Sule, when kicking-off the sales of fertilizer and farm inputs to dry season farmers of the state, said the state government intended to place order for the purchase of 250 sets of portable improved hand maize shelling equipment for distribution to teeming farmers in the state.

“Furthermore, we have also keyed into the federal government initiative through collaboration and partnership with critical development Partners towards agriculture value chains development.

“This include the IFAD/FGN Value Chain Development Programme in which the sum of N176 million has been released as counterpart funds by the state government; the sum of N72 million has been approved, which will soon be released as counterpart fund for UNDP/GEF Food Security and Resilient Project in the state; and JICA and GIZ to boost Agriculture Extension Services delivery in the state,” the governor added.

He noted with appreciation the harmonious relationship existing between the state government and the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, which informed the tremendous benefits the state enjoys, particularly the donation of 990 metric tons Ruminant Feeds and 80 tons Mineral Salt Licks distributed to Pastoralist and Livestock Farmers in the state.

The governor also appreciated the Federal Ministry of Agriculture for the construction and equipping of an Animal Health Service Centre in Karu, donation of Veterinary Consumables as well as the implementation of REDISEE Project, the posting to the state of two Veterinary Doctors and donation of four tricycles, among other consumables.

Governor Sule stated that the commencement of sales of 300 metric tons fertilizer and distribution of other farm inputs to dry season farmers was a further demonstration of his avowed commitment to the development of the agricultural sector. He declared that the fertilizer would be sold at a subsidized price of N5,000 per bag, even as he charged the beneficiaries to ensure judicious use of the commodity to increase their yields for enhanced benefits.

“Let me, however, warn that those handling the fertilizer sales will be held responsible for any anomaly in the distribution of the fertilizer in their respective domain. Coordinators at various levels are to ensure remittance of sales to the designated bank accounts, as any misappropriation will be meted with appropriate sanction.

I should also caution individuals and groups against purchasing the commodity and selling to farmers at exorbitant rates,” Sule warned.

Nevertheless, the food production in Nigeria is facing challenges caused by the effect of climate change, which include flood disaster in the northern and central Nigeria, poor rain in the southern part of the country and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The flood, which ravaged several states, is causing a serious threat to the food and nutrition need of the nation.

The above scenario resulted in several millions of hectares of food crops especially, maize, rice, surghum, millet being destroyed and sources of livelihood of thousands of farming families lost.

The situation has compounded the food crisis caused by COVID-19 pandemic and security issues in the northern part of the country, the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Alhaji Sabo Nanono, stated during the flag off of sales of the 300 metric tons fertilizer and distribution of other farm inputs to dry season farmers by the Nasarawa State government.

Nanono, who was represented by the director federal agriculture in the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Hajiya Kharima Babangida, said: “For over a year now, the ministry has been responding to these challenges of food availability caused by the COVID-19 pandemic by supporting smallholder farmers nationwide with various inputs including certified improved variety of food crops such as rice, maize, surghum, wheat, orange, sweet potato, groundnut, soyabean,

L-R: Representative of Agric Minister, Hajiya Kharima; Governor Sule; Others at the event cowpea, yam, as well as cash crops such as cashew, cocoa, oil palm, sesame seeds, gum arabic, etc.”

“Others include herbicides, insecticides and agricultural machineries such as transplanters, reapers, power tillers, motorised sprayers, processing equipment. These palliatives are expected to alleviate the effect of the pandemic and ensure that they keep producing food in the country.”

Acccording to the minister, “the flood then came which ravaged and destroyed thousands of farm lands and property as well as lives across the country, therefore calling for urgent attention from the government to mitigate the negative impact of this, and to ensure that the country does not experience food shortage nationwide.”

“It is against this backdrop that the decision of the Nasarawa State government to launch the sales of fertilizer and distribute inputs to dry season farming is apt, very commendable and given the fact that one circle of food production can no longer sustain the growing population in terms of food and nutritional needs of our dear country hence concerted efforts in cultivation of dry season crops, “Nanono maintained.

It was in the same light that the agriculture minister said several development partners such as the FAO, the World Bank, IFAD, were supporting smallholder farmers in some states through the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development with seeds, fertilizers and agricultural chemicals.

In support of the laudable initiative by the Nasarawa State government, the minister presented some inputs to the right farmers in Nasarawa State. The support was expected to reach about 200 rice farmers in Nasarawa State, which was receiving those inputs out of the nine states selected for the interventions.

The interventions for the rice farmers in the state include 200 bags of certified rice seeds, 1,000 litres of herbicide, 800 bags of insecticides, 800 bags of NPK fertilizers, 400 bags of Urea fertilizers and 800 bags of soil amender.

Nanono, however, urged beneficiaries of those inputs to make judicious use of it in the dry season farming in order to produce food for the nation. He also hoped that the support would increase the county’s food and nutritional security, as well as enhance the smallholder farmers recover from the effect of the natural disasters.

He added: “Other supports and programmes, which the ministry is doing in support of Nasarawa State include the establishment of a yam storage facility in Lafia. Another area of support, because we are not only promoting production, we are also promoting value addition, with the establishment of a Cassava Processing Centre near Keffi.

“To increase the number and quantity of cassava planting materials, we are also establishing a Cassava Multiplication Centre at Adogi. And to support sheabutter processing, we are also establishing a Sheabutter Processing Centre at Shabu.”

The minister hoped that the Nasarawa State government would continue to support smallholder farmers with not only inputs, but also with infrastructure to ensure that the state maintains its enviable position in food production.

Welcoming guests to the event, the Nasarawa State commissioner for agriculture and rural development, Professor Alanana Otaki, said the sales of fertilizer and distribution of other farm inputs to the dry season farmers in the state was part of the fulfillment and commitment of Governor Abdullahi Sule to the development of agricultural sector being the major economic base of the state.

Acccording to Professor Otaki, “bearing in mind that the state has comparative advantage of all crops that are needed locally, nationally and internationally, the sales of these inputs are of utmost value and importance to the farmers and other major stakeholders in the sector aimed at boosting their agricultural activities.”

For the Nasarawa State chairman of the All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), Hon. Samuel Meshi, the flag-off of sales of the 300 metric tons fertilizer and distribution of other farm inputs

by Governor Sule to the dry season farmers was another day the farmers of the state would not forget in a hurry.

He notes that it was because the day marked the beginning of a season the farmers were looking up to, “the day is not just only for dry season farmers, but for the entire farming community of Nasarawa State.”

He assured the people that Nasarawa State would never go hungry, as they would continue to support the programme and do the best they could to make sure that food security was uphold to the latter.

T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JANUARY 24, 2021

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Amosun...the issue in Ogun politics

Amosun, the Atypical Politician, Is 63 Sixty-three years on Monday, January 25th, a former governor of Ogun State and senator representing Ogun Central, Ibikunle Amosun, remains an issue in the annals of his state’s body polity and even more, the nation, where his influence has continued to expand to the awe of his rivals and the opposition alike, writes Wale Morafa

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enator Ibikunle Oyelaja Amosun has always been in a different class – a class distinguished by examples of personal discipline, generosity, compassion, hard work and unbendable principles.

Either in his private or public life, the former governor of Ogun State and senator currently representing the people of Ogun Central, is very much atypical. From his sartorial preferences to leadership style, he stands pretty tall and far away from the archetypal lot.

In his private life, his choices aren’t just desirable; they are equally not the familiar demeanour of the average family man. You can’t but crave his love for family. In the public sphere – one largely typified by thorough and unique political ideology – no one is yet to come close to Amosun in his turf of play.

What more, with an upbringing cemented by sound family values, uncompromised religious doctrines, solid educational background and constant personal developments, it couldn’t have taken much to infer that Amosun would go far in life, so long he wouldn’t step away from those guiding principles.

A tough political juggernaut, albeit reasonable at demanding bends, there’s a reality about Amosun that’s beginning to dawn on his supporters and rivals alike and it is the need to understudy his survival strategy. It is nothing close to what they’ve seen before.

Living with the enemies and surviving their antics without betraying emotions, is not an option for the fainthearted. But Amosun has become an authority in that strange discipline, mastered the craft and has continued to trump his traducers, even at their game. Call him a political life coach and you just might be spot-on!

Nothing, however, underscores his strengths as much as his capacity to move on from the ‘not-too-pleasant’ situations that life seldom throws at him. He never allows a bad result to weigh him down. Instead, he picks up the pieces, learns from his mistakes, and begins again even more intelligently. Whenever he loses, he never forgets the

lessons therein.

Arguably the one politician in Ogun State today with the largest and biggest following, complemented by an unmatched political structure, with enviable grassroots appeal, how Amosun has been able to keep his political family close and shockingly impenetrable, is the puzzle that has continued to confound his rivals and the opposition alike.

It is public knowledge that Amosun could be pervicacious, albeit on principle, this he always balances with his religious doctrines, which recognise the God-factor in all his undertakings. This, perhaps, can also explain away why his crowd of supporters never wanes, much as he is an incurable giver.

Another thing that has kept this man of focus going is his rich network of influence and contacts across all strata of life – political and social circles especially. He finds networking easy and leverages the very essence as a noted politician, who realises the weight of such an advantage.

Of course, this further explains his reach and the capacity to move across the northern and southern divides without flaunting his ‘human net-worth’. It’s an asset; he does not need to impress anyone by opening it up. But when the debate is about national influence and capital, he can only be underrated at the detriment of his opponents.

It was, therefore, not much of a bother to a reasonable few, when at the beginning of the Muhammadu Buhari administration his relationship with the president stirred some uneasy calm – both in some identifiable camps and the lives of a few characters that are still suffering the entitlement mentality.

But, that’s not a badge he loves to adorn to spite anyone. Even then, he would not let the sheer envy of a few vitiate a relationship that has stood the tests of many seasons. Striking that balance, although by choice, says even more about his native intelligence. Amosun is by every definition a loyal individual and always looks out for his friends.

After his initial four years as a senator, four years in the lurch, eight years as governor and the current representa-

tion in the ninth senate, it would take another intentional character like “Ajiri omo oye” as close allies choose to call Amosun, to challenge his legacies, many of which are spread across different human interests.

Even more instructive is the fact that his legacies have never been denoted only by politics or public office. With personal foundations and certain humanitarian exercises anchored on compassion and sincere intentions that are wont to outlive him, Amosun has a very good relationship with his people of Ogun State that would take more than a ‘bread and butter politics’ or fleeting inducement to undo.

Honest, straightforward, blunt and simple, both in principle and disposition, there’s no gainsaying the fact that Amosun’s lifestyle has been guided more by his closeness to God and kindness to fellow humans, which is why he has successfully meandered through some of the many traps of life, characterised by treachery, betrayal and outright envy.

Amosun is an exemplary family man, not just by sheer characterisation, but also by conscious choices that could cause some positive stir in many other homes. The quality of wife (Olufunso) he is blessed with also attests to how far he has come with his preferences and of course, where life is taking him in the future yet unseen. Talk about his children, they are a pride to behold!

Curiously, at a time every known politician with name recognition has caught the 2023 bug, coupled with increased frenzy, Amosun has maintained a dignified silence and quietly tucked in his rather intimidating corner.

Does that not speak to the admirable personality of a man, who has remained largely unpredictable with his many choices? Certainly, at 63, life still has a lot stored up for this intentional but atypical politician, whose unassuming nature has made him unreadable for his enemies but has continued to affirm his place in the body polity, both on the national and local fronts, where his footnotes are in bold and memorable prints.

Many congratulations, sir!

––Morafa wrote from Ijebu Ode, Ogun State

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Acting News Editor ÌÙãÏÑË ÕÓØÝËØ×Ó E-mail: ÑÌÙãÏÑ˲ËÕÓØÝËØ×Ó̶ÞÒÓÝÎËãÖÓàÏ˛ÍÙט͸΀͹ͽͺͻͽ΁ͺͽͻ ̙Ý×Ý ÙØÖã̚

Confusion Trails APC Membership Registration Exercise

N’Assembly postpones plenary till February 9

Gboyega Akinsanmi and Funmi Ogundare Confusion yesterday trailed the proposed nationwide membership registration/revalidation exercise of All Progressives Congress (APC) as the party issued conflicting statements on the exercise scheduled for Monday.

Saturday afternoon, a statement by the APC Secretary of the Caretaker/National Convention

Planning Committee (CECPC), Senator John Akpanudoedehe announced the deferment of the exercise till a later date.

About six hours after it reportedly cancelled the exercise, however, the APC, in an entirely different statement, debunked a report that it had postponed the party membership registration and validation exercise.

As shown in the first statement, the ruling party said: “We sincerely apologise on the

postponement of the proposed All Progressives Congress party registration which was scheduled to take place on Monday, January 25, now put on hold till further notice.

“We, therefore, implore all members and stakeholders, well-wishers and lovers willing to join our great party to put on hold till directive comes from above. Thanks for your cooperation,” the party allegedly said in a three-paragraph statement.

However, midnight Saturday, another statement emerged from the office of the National Secretary of APC CECPC, claiming that the previous statement “is fake and highly mischievous.”

Akpanudoedehe, in the new statement, said: “The APC membership registration, revalidation and update exercise remains on course and commences as scheduled in the attached timetable.

“As earlier announced, the

HOUSING FOR ALL...

L-R: Commissioner for Housing, Mr. Moruf Akinderu Fatai; Special Adviser to the Governor on Housing, Mrs. Toke Benson-Awoyinka; Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu and Deputy Governor, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat during the commissioning of Lagos State Affordable Public Housing Scheme at Idale, Badagry, on Saturday,

CECPC has approved the constitution of State Membership Registration Committees for the party’s nationwide membership registration, revalidation and update exercise. This will be followed by a train-the-trainer workshop.”

Perhaps, unaware of the sudden deferment of the registration exercise, the National Assembly yesterday postponed the resumption of plenary earlier scheduled for January 26 till February 9 to enable members of the ruling party participate in the exercise.

A statement by the Clerk of the National Assembly, Ojo Amos Olatunde, said the postponement “is to enable members of the All Progressive Party (APC), participate in the registration and revalidation exercise scheduled to commence on Monday 25.”

The statement said: “This is to inform all distinguished senators and honourable members of the National Assembly that the resumption of plenary sessions earlier scheduled for Tuesday, January 26, is hereby rescheduled for Tuesday, February 9.

“This postponement is to enable members of the All Progressives Congress to participate in the registration and revalidation of its membership scheduled to commence on Monday, January 25.”

The APC had earlier postponed its proposed nationwide member registration and revalidation exercise till

January 2020.

Before its tenure extension by the party’s National Executive Council (NEC), the committee had slated December 12, 2020 for the commencement of the exercise.

However, the committee, in a fresh resolution then, highlighted factors responsible for the postponement.

He said the fast-approaching Christmas and New Year celebrations are among the factors that may hamper maximum participation of its members in the processes, if not considered.

“On account of several factors however, including the fast-approaching Christmas and End of Year celebrations; as well as the interest of our Christian members; and the objective of ensuring maximum participation, the CECPC has decided to shift the date of the exercise to the second week of January 2021,” the committee secretary said.

Mr Akpanudoedehe then appealed for “the understanding of our teeming members and the general public, in the interest of preparing a solid foundation for a successful exercise.”

With the extension of its tenure by another six months, the committee has been tasked by the APC NEC to deliver its national convention and tidy up its reconciliatory moves across the party chapters across the 36 states of the federation.

Again, Senior Academics Fault Fresh LASU VC Selection Process Gboyega Akinsanmi

Senior academics at the Lagos State University (LASU) have faulted the process newly initiated to select the next ViceChancellor of the institution, citing diverse antics by some powerful individuals that have hijacked the entire process.

The academics under the aegis of Concerned Senior Academics of LASU asked the Governor and Visitor of the institution, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu to reconstitute the Joint Council

and Senate Selection Committee in line with the LASU Law, 2004.

They expressed these concerns in a two-page letter by Prof.

Oladimeji Kolawole, Prof.

Olalekan Jaiyeoba and Prof.

Adeleke Yusuff, picking holes in the fresh process the governor directed the Governing Council to initiate penultimate week.

Sanwo-Olu had cancelled the initial selection process amid allegations of manipulation and directed a fresh exercise to address grievances raised by stakeholders.

The governor made the decision following petitions arising from the selection process of the institution’s ninth substantive VC. He also directed that a fresh process that would terminate in 45 days should commence immediately.

In their two-page letter, the academics first commended the governor for cancelling the initial selection process, which they alleged the ProChancellor, Prof. Adebayo Ninalowo and the immediate past Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Lanre

Sanwo-Olu Inaugurates Housing Scheme, Maternity Home in Badagry Segun James Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu yesterday inaugurated an affordable public housing scheme in Idale Badagry as part of efforts to reduce the housing deficit in Lagos State.

Besides the unveiling of the 252 units of two-bedroom housing project, the governor also inaugurated a110-bed Maternal and Childcare Centre (MCC), School of Anaesthesiology in Badagry General Hospital.

He unveiled the projects alongside the Deputy Governor, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat; Commissioner for Housing, Mr. Moruf AkinderuFatai; his health counterpart, Prof.

Akin Abayomi and Oba Akran of

Badagry, De Wheno Aholu Menu Toyi I, among others.

At the inauguration, SanwoOlu said the estate, which is a joint venture with Echostone Development, “consists of 252 two bedrooms terrace bungalows in an eco-friendly environment.”

He explained that the state government acknowledged the effect of affordable housing on the socio-economic wellbeing of the residents, which was why his administration went into a joint partnership with a private investor, Echostone Development Nigeria Ltd, to deliver the 252-unit two-bedroom terrace bungalows for low- and middle-income families.

According to him, the housing project was designed with eco-

technology and EDGE Advanced protocol, which is a green building certification that makes buildings to be more resource-efficient.

Sanwo-Olu said the same technology would be employed to build the proposed Workers’ Village in Ipaja later in the year.

This scheme, he said, would provide 600 affordable housing units to workers and their families.

He said: “The 252 units of twobedroom terrace bungalows being commissioned today incontrovertibly proved our sincerity about closing the housing deficit and delivering our housing promises through the relationship we have cultivated with the private sector for housing development.

Fagbohun hijacked.

The letter, however, pointed out that the fresh process initiated to select the next VC of the institution was laced with compromise, errors and manipulation, which according to them, would have grave consequences for LASU if allowed.

The letter, therefore, asked the governor to intervene to save the 37-year-old institution, noting that the unintended consequences from the decision to compromise the VC selection process, if allowed to further

degenerate, might be difficult to manage.

It said Sanwo-Olu’s intervention would prevent LASU’s pro-chancellor and immediate past vice-chancellor from handpicking the next vicechancellor of the institution.

Specifically, the letter asked Sanwo-Olu to dissolve the selection committee comprising representatives of the Governing Council and the Senate and reconstitute a new one within the ambit of the LASU Law, 2004.

It said: “The general perception appears to be that the Ninalowo-led Joint Council and Senate Selection Committee is no longer capable of acting fairly within the crucible of openness and transparency in this matter.

“In the midst of all the controversies that led to the cancellation of the previous exercise, Ninalowo did not allow the governing council to see, much less deliberate on the contents of the new advert before rushing to press.

Gas Explosion Kills Four, Injures Many in Delta Omon-Julius Onabu in Asaba Three children and a woman were yesterday confirmed dead in an explosion that occurred in a gas plant at Agbor, Ika South Local Government Area (LGA), Delta State on Friday.

The explosion also left a dozen persons battling for their lives at different hospitals, following severe burns they sustained.

The explosion reportedly occurred due to a fire outbreak which occurred when a tanker laden with gas attempted to discharge gas at the commercial gas plant.

Fielding questions on the incident, the state governor, Sen. Ifeanyi Okowa confirmed the casualty figures after visiting

the gas plant and meeting with families of victims of the explosion.

He disclosed that the survivors had been duly referred to a specialised centre for the treatment of burns at the University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH), Benin City in Edo State, due to the high degree of burns they sustained.

Okowa described the fire disaster as unfortunate, saying the Delta State Government would be responsible for the cost of medical treatment of the victims.

Okowa said: “We have visited the place and the victims and we have seen the extent of damage caused by the inferno. We lost four persons; three children and a woman.

“After my visit to the two families that lost their dear ones,

I also visited the Central Hospital at Agbor where they were initially rushed to with varying degrees of burns ranging from 80 to 90 per cent.

“They were offered medical services even though they would not have been able to attend to them because of the extent of the burns so they have to transfer them to the Federal Medical Centre Asaba and the University of Benin Teaching Hospital with aid of ambulances provided by the state government.

“I have directed the Commissioner for Health to make some deposits at the hospitals to enable them to have full treatment,” the governor explained.

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Seplat Asks Privileges Committee to Sanction Senior Advocate $FFXVHV KLP RI PLVOHDGLQJ FRXUW WR VHFXUH RUGHU 2JXQED GHQLHV ZURQJGRLQJ VD\V DFWLRQ SURIHVVLRQDO Tobi Soniyi Seplat Petroleum Development Company has asked the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee (LPPC) and the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) to sanction a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Mr. Kunle Ogunba, for alleged gross misconduct and unethical practices contrary to the Rules of Professional Conduct for Legal Practitioners 2007.

In the petition to the LPPC, which was equally copied to the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) President, the company accused Ogunba of violating Rules 1, 15, 24, 30 and 32 of the Rules of Professional Conduct 2007 and urged sanctions against the senior advocate in line with paragraph 55 of the Rules of Professional Conduct.

Ogunba has, however, denied any wrongdoing, alleging a plot

by Seplat to blackmail him.

Seplat move comes barely three years after the LPPC stripped Ogunba of SAN rank sequel to Honeywell Group’s petition accusing him of gross misconducts, including the “institution of multiplicity of proceedings before different judges of the Federal High Court on the same subject with the deliberate aim of abusing the process of court and derailing the course of Justice.”

The sanction was, however, lifted on 20th September 2018 with a proviso that the learned silk

should be of good and honourable conduct going forward.

But in the new petitions, Seplat, a leading independent indigenous oil and gas exploration and development company, accused Ogunba of instructing the invasion of No. 16A Temple Road, Ikoyi Lagos, housing its corporate offices, a rented property which also housed Samsung Heavy Industries Nigeria Limited, African Finance Corporation, and Arise Television.

It urged the LPPC to “immediately commence disciplinary action against Mr. Adekunle Babatunde Ogunba, SAN” over steps and actions it considered “unbecoming of a legal practitioner of his standing and constitute a danger of bringing disrepute to the legal profession, which is held so dear” Seplat alleged that having locked up its corporate office in a commando style, “the agents of Adekunle Ogunba served certain court processes on Seplat containing an Originating Summons, a Motion on Notice and interim ex parte Order in suit No FHC/L/ CS/1588/2020”.

The suit is in respect of a loan obtained by Cardinal Drillings Services Limited from Diamond Bank (now Access Bank), which has fallen due and in respect of which Access Bank appointed the law firm of Kunle Ogunba & Associates Receiver/Manager, pursuant to a Deed of Debenture executed between Access bank and Cardinal Drilling.

Seplat also accused Ogunba of obtaining the said ex parte orders with “patently false” claims.

In the court processes filed

by Kunle Ogunba & Associates, a counsel in the chamber deposed: ”The 1st Defendant (Seplat) employed the 2nd Defendant (Cardinal Drilling Services Limited) as a veritable ‘vehicle’, ‘smokescreen’ and/or ‘shell company’ for obtainment of the facilities from the Plaintiff (Access Bank PLC), in furtherance of the purchase of drilling rigs for the ‘sole benefit and utilisation’ of the 1st Defendant, which outstanding indebtedness the

1st Defendant has refused to liquidate.

“The 1st Defendant is ‘sister company’ to the 2nd Defendant, jointly promoted by the 3rd Defendant (Seplat Chairman, Dr. A.B.C Orjiako) who is the alter ego of the 1st and 2nd Defendants”.

But Seplat has accused Ogunba of deliberately misleading the court and failure to adduce any documents to support the claims.

“This information is patently false. In support of the affidavit, a deed of debenture, an offer letter of banking facility and a personal guarantee were

exhibited to the affidavit. None of these documents had Seplat as a party, nor bore its signature or corporate seal.

“There was no documentary information exhibited to the affidavit sustaining that Seplat used Cardinal Drilling as a ‘vehicle’, ‘smokescreen’, ‘decoy’, or ‘shell company’.

“Furthermore, the loan and security agreement exhibited by Adekunle Ogunba do not show that Seplat was part of this banking relationship or loan arrangement or received any part of the proceeds disbursed by Access Bank to Cardinal Drilling”, Seplat stated

“The loan was secured by deeds of fixed debenture over Cardinal Drilling’s assets”.

“Seplat is not party to the Loan Agreement or the Debenture and did not provide any guidelines, guarantees, commitments or indemnities on behalf of Cardinal or otherwise in connection with the loan”, Seplat affirms.

The company further stated: “The Cardinal rigs were used to provide services to Seplat and other exploration and production companies, such as Nigerian Petroleum Development Company Ltd (a subsidiary of the NNPC) and Summit Oil.

Readjust Diaspora Remittance Policy, Milolar Tells FG Chibuzor Oluchi Milolar Brand, an indigenous fashion and lifestyle company, has urged the federal government to re-adjust its diaspora remittance policy to aid Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSME) trade effectively with their customers abroad.

The company unveiled another of the brand’s physical outlets, extending its reach to the Okota axis of Lagos State, with an assurance to Nigerians that both online and physical offices remain a one-stop-shop that caters for all their fashion needs.

The founder of the company,

Damilola Otubanjo made this remark at the weekend at the inauguration of another Milolar outlet designed to give customers an opportunity to interact physically and pick latest trending items to suit the right needs Speaking with journalists, the founder noted that the extension was based on a customer’s request that the brand move its outlet to the axis to cater for the residents’ needs.

Otubanjo disclosed that business expansion in the country came with different challenges which entrepreneurs battle daily to remain in business and contribute to the country’s development through

creation of employment opportunities for the youths.

While listing the challenges confronting businesses across the country, she said that the new diaspora remittance policy announced by Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) was the new addition to numerous issues confronting entrepreneurs’ in Nigeria brought by the government even while the country is grappling to exit recession.

She canvassed that a review would assist many MSMEs especially the indigenous fashion brands to keep touch with their customers abroad specifically those that favoured Nigerian brands to

others.

“A major recent challenge is a policy that has limited trading and commerce with foreign countries. The ease with which transactional funds were sent has been clamped down on by the government, stopping the inflow of funds from outside the countries, making sales to other countries pretty challenging.

“Many relied heavily on international trades made available through online platforms. And before we could understand what was happening the government has brought another policy that has affected entrepreneurs’ efforts at keeping their businesses afloat.”

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Akufo-Addo: Piracy, Terrorism Rife in ECOWAS Nations

Urges member states to contribute to $1bn security fund &DOOV IRU PRUH FRPPLWPHQW WR WKH ÀJKW DJDLQVW WHUURULVP Michael Olugbode in Abuja

The Chairman of ECOWAS Heads of State and Government, Nana Akufo-Addo yesterday lamented that terrorism and piracy “are still major challenges to the member states.”

Akufo-Addo, also the President of Ghana, pleaded with the member nations to continue to contribute financially towards the $1 billion ECOWAS Regional Security Fund (ERSF).

He made this appeal at the 58th Ordinary Summit of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of States and Government virtually held yesterday, seeking more commitments towards the fight against terrorism and piracy in the West Africa sub-region.

At the summit, Akufo-Addo said the sub-region had preserved

and strengthened the gains of regional integration, particularly in the area of consolidating democracy, pursuing the free movement of goods, and developing economic infrastructure.

He lamented that terrorism and piracy continued “to be major challenges. We continue to face critical security challenges with deadly terrorist attacks in Mali, northeastern Nigeria, Burkina Faso, and Niger.

“I reaffirm our strongest condemnation of these attacks in our region and community, and deplore the activities of these criminal, terrorist groups. We sympathise and extend our deep condolences to affected countries and the families of the victims.”

He, however, said the development “reinforces the conviction of the ECOWAS leaders. We must

pursue, even more vigorously, the actions we have begun, with the rapid implementation of the decisions of our Extraordinary Summit on Terrorism, held on 14th September 2019.

“This concerted effort, which must be a major priority objective of the community, is the best way for us to collectively address the security challenge, and give ourselves the means to ensure the security of the populations of our community. Our dignity and our sovereignty are at stake.”

Akufo-Addo called on member nations to continue to contribute

financially towards the $1 billion ECOWAS Regional Security Fund (ERSF).

He said raising the fund, created in support of the 2020-2024 AntiTerrorism Action Plan, has to be a high priority for all because “it enables us to act independently in this crisis.”

“We also need to engage in the growing menace to the maritime security of our region. Acts of piracy and maritime destabilisation are on rapid increase in the Gulf of Guinea, illustrated by the data, which indicate a 40% rise in pirate activities in the Gulf in 2020 over

2019. This calls for a strong regional response.”

On the critical issue of the single currency for the community, the ECOWAS chairman disclosed that member states had agreed on a revised convergence policy, about which a report would be presented to them at the meeting.

He added: “I am of the view that the difficulties involved in meeting the convergence criterion should not stand in the way of the rapid establishment of a payment and settlement system in ECOWAS, which will enable a rapid expansion of trade and

investment in the community. We will receive, at this Summit, a report on progress on this matter.”

Also at the summit, the Special Representative of the SecretaryGeneral and Head of the United Nations Office for West Africa and the Sahel, Mohamed Ibn Chambas said electoral and indeed political processes anchored on consensus and inclusiveness with full participation of women and youth could significantly contribute to prevent conflicts and address some of the peace and security challenges in the sub-region.

Dogara Not Our Member, PDP Insists Segun Awofadeji in Bauchi The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Bauchi State, yesterday said that a former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon Yakubu Dogara was no longer its member.

The chapter’s Publicity Secretary, Yayanuwa Zainabari rejected the former speaker at a session with journalists at the party secretariat, Bauchi.

At the session, Zainabari said: “Dogara is not a member of the PDP in Bauchi state as far as we know, he tendered his resignation letter from the party to his ward chairman in July 2020 which was copied to the state secretariat.”

“Also, during the last by-election for the state constituency seat of Dass LGA in the State House of Assembly, he participated fully in the campaigns of the All Progressives Congress

(APC) against the PDP, if he is a member of the PDP, will he do that?

“Just recently, we started seeing his posters on the street of Bauchi with the state governor, Senator Bala Mohammed with an inscription of 4 +4, what that portends, we don’t know but we are dissociating ourselves from whatever may be the reasons.”

Zainabari said Dogara voluntarily left the PDP without any cogent reason, noting that the party had gone to the court “to seek redress so that we will retrieve the seat of Dass/Tafawa Balewa /Bogoro Federal Constituency.”

He, therefore, called on political jobbers, who had been trying to cause confusion in the state to desist from doing so, saying it would not allow anyone to rubbish what the party has done in two years.

Young Professionals Plan N’Delta Beyond Oil Summit Chibuzor Oluchi A group of young professionals of the Niger Delta extraction has vowed to champion a new narrative towards stimulating the growth of micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSME) in the region.

The group said it has concluded plans to host what it described as the biggest MSME Summit in the region, stressing that the event, which was earlier planned for March 2020 was moved to Friday, February 12, 2021 due to the ravaging coronavirus pandemic.

Speaking to newsmen in Port Harcourt, the Chairman of Nigerian Young Professionals Forum (NYPF) and former governorship candidate in Bayelsa State, Moses Siloko Siasia, said a team of young people with futuristic thinking had been put together for the summit.

Siasia, who said the theme of the event is ‘Stimulating MSME Growth Beyond Oil’, added that the summit will host over 300 carefully selected MSME/small business owners across all the states in the region who will

attend in person, while others will join the conference virtually in conformity with the COVI919 preventive guidelines and protocols.

He noted that amongst other things, the summit would help generate a database of all the existing MSMEs in the region, while galvanizing stakeholders’ buy-in for the strengthening of businesses operating in the Niger Delta region to facilitate the sustainable growth of small businesses.

“The only hope for the region right now is to encourage those doing meaningful businesses.

The society has neglected productivity for too long. More people of good character and competence should be encouraged to emerge in the region and in which case young people with great ideas and skills can be enabled by the various governments of the region and the multinational oil companies operating within the region,” he said.

He stressed that it would further enhance the region’s productive capacity to be competitive and develop.

QUEST FOR TRUE LEADERS . . .

L-R: A member of the House of Representatives, Hon. Shina Peller with Niger State Governor, Alhaji Abubakar Sani Bello during a leadership symposium organised by the Lead Generation Initiative in Abuja.. Thursday

Tragedy as Truck Kills 10 in Ondo James Sowole in Akure

At least, 10 persons including students of the Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba, Akoko (AAUA), were crushed to death in Akungba, Akoko South West Local Government area (LGA), Ondo State yesterday.

The incident occurred when a cement-laden truck, which belonged to Dangote Cement Company, rammed into shops at the university community, killing the victims.

Although casualties were still being evacuated from the scene, a source told THISDAY

that no fewer than eight bodies had been evacuated already.

The source said the truck was coming from Obajana in Kogi State and heading to Akure, the Ondo State capital.

He said the accident occurred a few metres after the main gate of the institution.

The university resumed on January 18 after it was closed to students due to the COVID 19 pandemic that affected academic and other aspects of national lives in 2020.

The 2019/2020 Season First Semester Examination, that was aborted due to the COVID

outbreak, had been scheduled to start tomorrow (Monday).

Confirming the incident, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), for the Ondo State, Mr Tee Leo Ikoro said eight bodies had been brought out from the rubbles of the accident.

Ikoro, who said the vehicle was heading to Akure, said he could not confirm the number of injured persons as evacuation was still ongoing.

Accidents involving articulated vehicles had been a common occurrence in the university town. On December 11, 2020

four vehicles including a cement laden truck rammed into one another in front of the main gate of the university.

One of the vehicles was carrying cartons of fish. The accident claimed two lives.

On October 31, 2020, also, about 10 persons were killed in an accident that happened at Akungba Market, in Ondo State.

The accident was said to have occurred after a truck conveying bags of rice lost control and ran into the Akungba Market, crushing 10 to death and inflicting injuries on many others.

FG Probes Assassination of Nigerian in S’Africa Tobi Soniyi The federal government said it has forwarded a petition seeking investigation into the assassination of a Nigerian, Abudu Adedayo Temitope who was killed in Johannesburg, South Africa on January 5.

The Chairperson of Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, Abike Dabiri-Erewa disclosed this in a letter she addressed to the family of the deceased recently.

Temitope’s brother, Mr Abudu Olatunde Mustapha had sought the commission’s help to unravel the circumstances under which his brother was killed with a view to bringing the perpetrators to book.

While acknowledging the

petition, the commission’s legal adviser, A. Bello said: “We at the commission wish to extend our heartfelt sympathy over the loss of your brother in South Africa.

“As it is our desire to see that those responsible for the death of your brother, we have forwarded your petition to the Nigerian High Commission in Pretoria with a view to cause an investigation into the matter.”

In the letter addressed to Dabiri-Erewa, Abudu said he wrote on behalf of the family of the deceased whose death, he said, had left a vacuum in the family.

According to the complaint, Temitope was shot and killed in cold blood in Johannesburg,

South Africa.

The complaint read: “The deceased was a native of Ogun state in Nigeria. He was 40 years old. He was buried the following day according to Islamic rites at Olifantsvlei graveyard in Johannesburg, South Africa.

“The sad event took place on January 5. He was shot dead by an unknown gunman according to an eye witness in Delvers Street, Central Johannesburg, SA. “He was rushed to Hillbrow Community Health Center where he was attended to and was confirmed dead. The South African police were alerted and they came to the scene of the incidence. They found 2 cartridges of bullets in the

environment.

“The forensic expert who was also notified of the shootings and investigated the unfortunate incident took the body of the deceased for further investigation before it was released to his friends for burial the next day.”

The complainant said his brother was married and blessed with three children in Nigeria.

He also left behind five siblings who are all resident in Nigeria.

“We implore the commission to wade into this matter to unravel the cause of his death. He was a law abiding and peace loving Nigerian who went about his livelihood in South Africa while he lived and worked there.

THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER ˾ JANUARY 24, 2021

77

BOOK REVIEW

A Transcendent Think Tank of a Book Book:

HarnessingNigeria’sMaritime Assets:Past,Present&Future Author: BashirYusufJamoh Publisher: BashirYusufJamoh Pagination: 227 Reviewer: VincentObia

T

his book, Harnessing Nigeria’s Maritime Assets: Past, Present and Future, by Bashir Yusuf Jamoh, would easily rate as one of the seminal presentations of our age, given its sweeping, yet precise and focused attention, first, to the age-old question of diversifying the Nigerian economy and, secondly, to the author’s persuasive argument that what he calls “The Blue Project” is where we must turn to revive our dimming socioeconomic fortunes and recover “colossal waste and missed opportunities.”

Jamoh reaches for the position of the 17th Century English writer, Walter Raleigh, to sustain the thrust of his work. So, right there in the inside cover, he draws the attention of the reader to his mission by quoting the wellknown English explorer: “For whosoever commands the sea commands the trade; whosoever commands the trade of the world commands the riches of the world, and consequently the world itself.”

Then, as he unveils the pages, Jamoh conducts the reader through a maze of muscular writing to affirm the comprehensive power of the oceans, which modern man appears to be marginalising. But in the chapter dealing with Historical Perspectives, the author says this relegation of the seas is only a recent development. It was not always so. According to Jamoh, in this scholarly aspect of Harnessing Nigeria’s Maritime Assets that takes you through the past, there were great ages that respected and exploited the potential of the waters. He refers to voyages by history-making European sailors, the slave trade, the phase of imperialism, made “possible on the strength of the effective mastering of the art and science of navigating the sea”, and the achievements of King Jaja of Opobo as a result of the network of waterways that opened up trade to the outside world.

Long before then, Jamoh writes, that was the experience of the ancient Chinese. He refers to the “case of the Tang dynasty of 618 CE to 907 CE, the Golden Age of Chinese reform and cultural advancement all made possible by the dominant strength it exercised over the waters.”

Against this background the Director-General of Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) builds the unchallengeable proposal: “Nigeria’s maritime sector is humongous. It is capable of generating over N7 trillion annually (which is over75 per cent of the 2018 budget) and creating 40 million jobs.”

But, alas, Jamoh laments, “What has not been adequately explored is the subject of harnessing Nigeria’s vast assets.” The forte of his book is that it is not a platform for complaining about a bad past, sad present and bleak future. The nationalist, realist, and optimist that he is, and given his position as the chief executive officer of a foremost industry parastatal, Jamoh offers priceless suggestions on how to leverage the limitless resources of Nigeria’s maritime environment for competitive economic advantage. He draws unsparingly from his own rich background in the field.

The author identifies Nigeria’s huge maritime assets: bodies of water, coastline, and waterways, water-related enterprises, skilled seafarers, dockworkers, ICT experts, marine engineers, etc. He urges a multidisciplinary approach to harness this huge reserve of latent qualities to grow the society and its people beyond the current levels. Jamoh is not just presenting private opinions. He relies on several authorities and personal experiences of his interface with the system.

It is the reason the chapter on the country’s maritime assets is the longest. He writes boldly, passionately and patriotically, leaving nothing unaddressed as he pleads that we are sitting atop inexhaustible riches. This is what Jamoh unearths: “The potential of the maritime sector in rebooting the Nigerian economy cannot be overemphasised…

“In an exhibition of the industry held in 2015, the industry was projected to grow with an attraction of a lot of investors as the Nigeria maritime potential was spotlighted alongside Brazil, Russia, India and China.”

Why hasn’t Nigeria matched or approximated the heights reached by these maritime powers? Jamoh believes the country has hardly empowered the institutional regulatory bodies in the sector. He is asking for what he refers to as “institutional frameworks” that have clear mandate, even if their functions overlap, as to how each agency would creatively identify with the vision of the Blue Economy or Project.

Jamoh’s book notes other challenges: pollution, piracy,

illegal bunkering, militancy and kidnapping, drug and illegal arms trafficking, pipeline vandalism, cybercrime, inadequate infrastructure, etc. These have ensnared the sector and made it to suffer setbacks of grave outcomes.

So what can be done to ensure a safe future for the maritime world? Beleaguered by the impediments highlighted above, must it be led into the next generation with the same drawbacks that have not allowed it to fly? Shouldn’t the present generation guarantee it a safe landing into the future by ridding it of what is making it incapable of being useful to the nation and its people?

Jamoh’s informed take: “Increasingly, as gathered from consistent stakeholder views and advocacy over the last two years, there appears to be a trending that is more in favour of lesser state-dominated sector with state actors playing largely enabling roles for a partnership with the private sector to thrive within the context of bias for the national interest. This seems to be the way to go.

“Diversification of the economy entails the idea of bringing the needed expertise and sourcing private

participation and capital to be invested in the infrastructural development of the maritime industry.”

There’s a harvest of recommendations in Jamoh’s Harnessing Nigeria’s Maritime Assets to guide the government and industry players to create a sector that would make Nigeria of the Millennium Generation. The NIMASA boss groups them into what he terms, “The Enabling Triangle.” These are Governance, Maritime Infrastructure Development, and Maritime Security. He depicts these demands with an illustration where all dovetail into each other, to suggest that they none can stand independent of each other.

It is a salutary conclusion to a book I prefer to see as the work of a think tank, a group of experts, because of the extensive nature of its references, charts, tables of statistics, and treatment of the subject from the point of view of a professional’s dispassionate lens.

Jamoh’s Harnessing Nigeria’s Maritime Assets is strongly recommended to our leaders as they ponder over the inevitable path of diversifying our economy.

78

THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER JANUARY 24, 2021

SUNDAYSPORTS

Edited by: Duro Ikhazuagbe email:Duro.Ikhazuagbe@thisdaylive.com

Southampton Knock out Holders Arsenal from English FA Cup Duro Ikhazuagbe with agency report

M

ikel Arteta’s woes as Arsenal Manager increased yesterday after Southampton knocked holders Gunners out of the FACup in the fourth round courtesy of a Àrsthalf own goal on Saturday.

The Saints were rewarded for their attacking intent in the opening period when Gabriel turned in Kyle Walker-Peters’ cross in the 24th minute.

It was the Àrst goal Arsenal had conceded in 508 minutes as they suͿered a Àrst loss in seven matches.

Southampton will face another Premier League side, Wolves, in the next round.

With their next opponents enduring a poor run in the league and having struggled in their 1-0 win at non-league Chorleyon Friday, the 1976 winners will fancy their chances of progressing further at Molineux.

The Saints also went close through Che Adams, whose low, angled strike was saved brilliantly by Bernd Leno, and James Ward-Prowse, who saw his delivery from a corner come oͿ the bar.

In the second half, substitute striker Shane Long fell under a challenge in the box, but penalty appeals were waved away by referee Peter Bankes.

Arsenal were without forward Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and midÀelder Emile Smith Rowe, while another in-form player, Bukayo Saka, was only introduced in the second half.

Mikel Arteta’s Gunners side were tepid as an attacking force during the Àrst 45 minutes, but looked more of a threat after the break.

However, Eddie Nketiah’s deÁected shot in the 67th minute, which was superbly dealt with by home goalkeeper Fraser Forster, was their only

Southampton player season celebrating knocking out holders Arsenal from the FA Cup...yesterday

eͿort of note.

Speaking to BT Sports after the match, Arsenal Manager, Mikel Arteta, said “We’re really sad to be out of the competition.

“We had issues in the Àrst half and unforced errors as a result of the high press they do.

In the second half, we had two or three big chances. “It was an even game. In the Àrst half, they won a lot of second balls. In the second half, we added more quality. We became more dominant and created chances, but it wasn’t enough.”

On whether Aubameyang, missing because of

personal reasons, will be available for Tuesday’s league match against Southampton: “I don’t know.

He needs to address that issue, we’ll see how it evolves. We’re here and we have to support him - he needs to take the time that is needed because that is a priority at the moment.”

SCOTTISH LEAGUE

CAF CONFEDERATION CUP Joe Aribo on Target Rivers Utd Set up Group Stage as Rangers Stretch Lead to 23 Points Super Eagles forward, Joe Aribo was on target yesterday as Rangers celebrated Steven Gerrard’s 150th game as manager by stretching their Scottish Premiership lead to 23 points after thumping Ross County 5-0.

Poor marking allowed Ryan Kent and Filip Helander to head the home side into a healthy lead before Joe Aribo’s Àne Ànish before half-time.

Ryan Jack scored his return from injury before Connor Goldson’s headed Ànish.

They could even aͿord a missed penalty from James Tavernier as they remain unbeaten in the league this season.

County struck woodwork twice after the break, but by then Rangers were well on their way to their ninth win in a row over the side who remain third bottom of the table.

John Hughes’ side had arrived buoyed by last week’s 4-1 thumping of Aberdeen, but they never lookedindangerofspoilingtheoccasionforGerrard as he became the fastest-ever Rangers manager to reach his 150th game in charge - his 926 days beating Dick Advocaat by 24 hours.

By bravely handing 17-year-old Leo Hjelde signedonloanfromCeltic24hoursearlier-hisdebut and dropping winger Regan Charles-Cooke and forward Jermaine Hylton, Hughes had signalled his intent to keep it tight.

County’s high press did manage to trouble Rangers - but only for the six minutes it took for the hosts to score with their Àrst foray into the Highlanders’ box.

Hjelde was too late on the scene as Kent looped in a Ànish after being found unmarked by Alfredo Morelos’ header across the face of goal.

Top scorer Tavernier blotted his copybook by having a weak spot kick saved by Ross Laidlaw, although justice was probably done as Morelos looked to be fouled outside the area.

Playo; Clash with Enyimba Rivers United FC defeated South Africa’s Bloemfontein Celtic 3-0 yesterday in Port Novo, Benin Republic to set up a mouth-watery clash with Nigeria’s other representatives in the playoͿ for the ticket to the group stage of the CAF Confederation Cup. Before yesterday’s victory at the Stade Charles De Gaulle in Port Novo, the Pride of Rivers people had won the Àrst leg 2-0 in South Africa to qualify 5-0 to the playoͿ.

The reverse Àxture would have taken place in Port Harcourt by for inability of the South Africans to secure entry into Nigeria due to Covid-19 restrictions.

GodwinAguda opened scoring for Rivers United in the Àrst minute of the game.

The former Rangers midÀelder got his second of the game late in the Àrst half Fortune Omoniwari put the game beyond the South Africans when he added the third four minutes after the break.

The People’s Elephant will host Rivers Utd in the Àrst leg in Aba on 14th February, while the reverse Àxture takes place a week later in Port Harcourt.

GOLFERS ALL...

L-R: AIG Chris Ola, Dr. Biyi Ogunbanjo, Ladi Durojaiye and Jenkins Alumona of Team Flykite at the ongoing Ikeja Golf Club Corporate Golf Challenge ...at the weekend

Aspire Football Dreams Nigeria Grieves over Erico’s Passage The Nigeria o΀ce of Aspire Football Dreams has been thrown into shock following the death on Wednesday of Coach Joe Erico.

Erico was one of the key Àgures of the Aspire Football Dreams programme which projected Super Eagles stars Henry Onyekuru, Francis Uzoho among others.

Director of Aspire Football Dreams in Nigeria, Col. Sam Ahmedu (rtd) while reacting to the news said he was in shock.

“Joe Erico, you have left an indelible footprint

in Nigerian sports. Thank you for your great contributions to Nigerian football and guidance and support to the success of the Aspire Football Dreams Project.

“No one like you “Jogo Bonito”, you were a unique brother and friend and it’s hard to understand your sudden departure. But God knows best.

May God give your wife Mosun, sons Stephen and Michael and their sister and the rest of the family the fortitude to bear your loss.

“We all at Aspire Football Dreams (Nigeria)

will miss you. Rest in peace, brother,” Ahmedu wrote in a condolence message to Erico’s family.

Coach Joe Erico, a former national team goalkeeper and assistant national team coach was partly responsible for Nigeria’s qualiÀcation for the Korea/Japan FIFA World Cup in 2002.

He also coached NEPA FC, Julius Berger Football Club of Lagos and Iwuanyanwu Nationale of Owerri, impacting the Brazilian free Áowing style of football nicknamed the Jogo Bonito on his teams.

SUNDAY JANUARY 24, 2021 • T H I S D AY

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Beating the Drums of War

R

ecent events in south-western Nigeria, as I would offer to think, are not ordinary. First, Chief Sunday Adeyemo (also called Sunday Igboho), a private citizen described as “youth leader”, stormed the Fulani community in Igangan, Oyo state, and gave them seven days to vacate the land, failing which he would expel them. The “grassroots mobiliser” confronted the Seriki Fulani, Alhaji Saliu Kadri, accusing his kinsmen of killing Yoruba people. After issuing his ultimatum, Igboho said: “It’s not like I just commanded the Fulani to leave our land or that I suddenly said something arbitrarily. For like two weeks now, these Fulani people in Ibarapa have been killing our people.”

Second, Governor Rotimi Akeredolu of Ondo state issued another seven-day ultimatum to Fulani herdsmen to vacate the state’s forest reserves.

The deadline is today. He has banned nightgrazing and movement of cattle within cities and highways. He has also outlawed what he called “under-aged grazing” — which I must presume are the young herders. His Riot Act has been opposed by presidency and prominent northern elders. There is a debate on the constitutionality of his order. Akeredolu, though, does not seem to bother. He has ordered massive recruitment into Amotekun — the south-west quasi-state police outfit — ahead of the operations to flush out Fulani herders.

Why is Akeredolu so incensed? Bad elements, he said, have turned the forest reserves into hideouts for keeping victims of kidnapping, negotiating for ransom and carrying out “other criminal activities”. The governor asked those who wish to carry on with their cattle-rearing business “to register with the appropriate authorities”. Igboho, on his part, has defended his unilateral action.

“Some are saying I am not in government and that I am meddling with what does not concern me. If there is a government and it is not doing what it is supposed to do, the people that voted will rise up,” he explained. In other words, there will be something like free-for-all — as we see in failed states.

Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo state is more temperate in his own reaction. He has come out clearly against ethnic profiling. Labelling every Fulani a kidnapper, armed robber and murderer is unhelpful as far as he is concerned.

Focus should be on the criminals, not the ethnic group, he warned. Makinde also had a dig at Igboho, whom many describe as a political agent rather than a youth leader. “For people stoking ethnic tension, they are criminals and once you get them, they should be arrested and treated like common criminals,” Makinde told the police commissioner, adding that they cannot hide “under the guise of protecting Yoruba’s interest” to perpetuate chaos.

Events are unfolding at a rapid pace. Houses owned by Fulani people have been burnt in Igangan after the expiration of Igboho’s ultimatum.

On Saturday, Mallam Garba Shehu, presidential spokesman, announced that the inspector-general of police has issued an order for the arrest of Igboho for the eviction notice. Ordinarily, such an announcement should be coming from the police authorities and not presidential spokesman. But it is what it is. The Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), the northern group, has warned that the attacks on Fulani communities in the south-west can lead to war. Afenifere, the Yoruba group, has described ACF’s statement as “insulting and arrogant”.

Indeed, the eviction notices to Fulani

Buhari communities offer a different dimension to the security crises. There are many scenarios running through my head, but this particular one scares me: the notice expires; Amotekun launches an operation to evict them; they resist; they get killed; their bodies are taken to the north for burial; Fulani groups reinforce and launch reprisals — which, from experience, can become protracted and gruesome; Yoruba villages come under regular attacks; Yoruba youth groups take revenge on other northerners in the south-west; northerners attack Yoruba up north; and we end up with thousands of dead bodies in a number of states. Not looking good at all.

That is why I would rather suggest, or plead, that our immediate concern should be how to de-escalate the tension rather than fuel it. The easiest thing to say is “let us go to war”. Many people who witnessed the End SARS uprising in Lagos will testify that it was not a pleasant experience — and this was far from being a war. I have discussed with many Nigerians who witnessed the civil war from 1967 to 1970 and most of them always pray that Nigeria would never go to war again. There is hardly any Igbo family that did not lose a loved one during the war. War mongering is sweet on Twitter but the actual event is not a tea party. I would appeal to our leaders to curb the war rhetoric.

Here is my take on the situation. First, it boils down to one thing: the feeling that the security agencies are not doing enough to curtail the criminalities in the region. Igboho said if the government would not do something, the people would rise up and protect themselves.

This is a major red flag for state failure. The moment government loses monopoly of use of legitimate force, militias will fill in the gap.

The signs are already everywhere: citizens are forming vigilante groups because the security agencies are ineffective. Citizens have lost faith in the ability of the state to enforce law and order, to protect life and property. This is what you see in Somalia and Syria.

Meanwhile, it does not help that there is a theory that the Fulani have an agenda to take over the whole of Nigeria and “dip the Quran in the Atlantic Ocean”. The herders’ association, Miyetti Allah, is believed to be enjoying state protection. If you accept this theory, as millions of southerners and middle belters do, then you are likely to have serious sentiments for the anti-Fulani movement. And you are likely to support the actions of Akeredolu and Igboho.

You will see their endeavours as an attempt

to protect Yorubaland from Fulani “jihadists”.

I fear that this suspicion is fuelling the tension between Yoruba and Fulani communities in the south-west. Hence, the songs of war.

Ironically, herders, mostly Fulani, are also heavily implicated in the insecurity ravaging the north-west. Most of the kidnappers in that region are said to be Fulani. There have been incessant kidnappings and killings in Zamfara state in the last seven years — that was before Buhari came to power. The crimes are usually attributed to bandits. Therefore, what we have in our hands is a failed security system that has led to insecurity nationwide. The narrative in the south is that the criminals are bandits when they strike up north but Fulani jihadists when they strike down south. That is the price we pay for the inability of the country to protect us. It creates room for all sorts.

I would also say that the federal government is not acting in a way that will make southerners trust the state. Take, for instance, the order to arrest Igboho — which I support. No individual, not even a governor or a president, has the power to evict any Nigerian from any part of the country based on ethnicity, politics or religion. But where this administration always loses the case is that it is not even-handed. In 2017, a group of northern youths led by Alhaji Shettima Yerima issued an ultimatum to Igbo people to leave the north by October 1 because of Biafra agitations. Nobody ordered his arrest, and we had a police force and an IGP to boot. That is how trust is lost.

Nevertheless, I would like to warn against ethnic profiling when it comes to criminal matters. It is a dangerous game. To the best of my knowledge, every ethnic group in Nigeria has criminals. For all you care, the Fulani guys that are implicated in kidnapping and ransomtaking might be working in conjunction with Yoruba insiders and police accomplices. They will be sharing the proceeds of crime without discrimination. That these people are getting away with these crimes — without any arrests or prosecutions even when the states have the power to do so — suggests that it is an organised network. They appear, to me, to be enjoying protection from security agencies.

The challenge facing us is two-fold: de-escalating the tension and improving security. While the first is urgent and immediate, the second is medium-term; without it, there will always be such flare-ups. Insecurity by itself is bad enough.

When we now allow it to be layered with ethnic tensions, it is doubly dangerous. The Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF) has a role to play in calming nerves. Most importantly, Buhari needs to be actively involved. He should call the governors to a meeting and, if necessary, summon an emergency meeting of the National Security Council (NSC) to discuss the burning issues. We are, as it seems to me, playing with fire. We should not take our luck for granted.

In the final analysis, moments like this call for statesmanship, not war mongering. This is not the time to be beating drums of war. This is the time to “kulu temper” and confront the issues one by one: why are these crimes so easy to commit? Why is nobody facing prosecution?

What can we do to protect the lives of all — no matter the ethnic or religious affiliation? We have enormous security problems to overcome if we are to enjoy peace. One of my favourite Yoruba proverbs says: “Irorun igi ni irorun eye.” You see, it is in the interest of the bird that the tree is comfortable for her to perch on. If we don’t silence the drumbeat of war, we may live to regret it. My two cents.

And Four Other Things…

FORBES LIST Forbes has released its Africa’s Billionaires list for 2020 but it would appear the enthusiasm is not what it used to be. I have always questioned the metrics: the magazine uses the value of quoted companies to determine its ranking — and we all know this is not a reliable yardstick in our clime. No wonder, Dr Mike Adenuga Jnr, the billionaire entrepreneur with vast interests in telecoms and oil, reportedly has no regard for the ranking, even though his name is on the list.

Most of his businesses are not quoted so his worth is understated. A scoring system that only looks at assets and ignores liabilities is not something that can be considered reliable or authoritative. Reform.

CLEAN BILL? So Bill Gates has now taken the COVID-19 vaccine? I am getting confused. The vaccine, according to the conspiracy theory, is meant to alter our DNA, plant microchips in our bodies and allow the same Bill Gates to take control of our brains so that we can become his zombies. Now that he has taken the vaccine, does that mean Bill Gates will now take control of the brain of Bill Gates? Never mind. The new theory will be that it was water that was injected into his body, not vaccine.

So far, over 20 million shots of the vaccines have been administered on Americans. Israel has incredibly vaccinated about 25 percent of its population. It appears those ones did not get the memo. Bewildering.

HARD HADIZA I was very glad that President Muhammadu Buhari has re-appointed Ms Hadiza Bala Usman as the managing director of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA). Why? Ferocious media attacks that have been launched against her. She really stepped on toes — toes of those who have been holding the country to ransom with fraudulent agreements designed to rape the national treasury and turn the commonwealth to their private pockets. Those I am talking about know themselves. If Buhari had succumbed to the blackmail, that would have sent the wrong message to the ports community.

The biggest task ahead of her now is how to overcome the demons of port congestion.

Challenge.

BIDEN ON BOARD I was so relieved to see the back of Donald Trump on Wednesday as the United States inaugurated Joe Biden as its new president. Trump was a nightmare and an embarrassment to his country. I don’t even know if Biden would be a better president on the economic front, but I know for sure that he would not be a rabble rouser or demagogue like Trump. I’m not sure anybody missed Trump at the inaugurated which he petulantly — but predictably — boycotted after setting the country on fire with his baseless claims of rigging. We Nigerians look up to America a lot in our practice of democracy. Every wrong move can empower the anti-democratic elements in Nigeria.

Disastrous.

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