MONDAY 1ST MARCH 2021

Stock Market Sheds N1.364tn on Profit-taking, Weakening Sentiments Goddy Egene The stock market, which gained N1.124 trillion in January, lost N1.364 trillion in February.

This was as a result of profit-taking and gradual migration of investors to the

fixed income market.

Consequently, the local bourse has suffered a yearto-date decline of 1.2 per cent compared to a growth in the first month of the year.

High demand for stocks had made the market to gain N1.124 trillion in January after

a superlative performance in 2020 that saw the local bourse leading global returns on investments.

However, the growth was halted in February as some investors sold down to book profit, while others began to migrate to fixed income market

following an uptick in yields in that investment space.

Market capitalisation of equities fell from N22.187 trillion at the end of January to N20.823 trillion, while the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) All-Share Index (ASI) declined from 42,412.66 to 39,799.89.

The decline implies a loss of N1.364 trillion in market capitalisation and 6.16 per cent in the NSE ASI in February compared with N1.124 trillion and 5.3 per cent gain respectively in January.

Although the market was expected to sustain the

growth recorded in January on the expectations of positive earnings season and better yields delayed dividend declarations and a sudden uptick in the yields fixed income market changed the Continued on page 9

NERC: Niger, Others' Debts Worsening Illiquidity in Power Sector... Page 8 Monday 1 March, 2021 Vol 26. No 9458. Price: N250

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Pope Prays as Military Intensifies Search for Zamfara Schoolgirls Matawalle insists on negotiation with abductors FG pledges to end abduction of students Soyinka laments incessant kidnapping of pupils Chuks Okocha in Abuja and Francis Sardauna in Katsina As the military and the police yesterday intensified the search for 317 pupils of Government Girls' Science Secondary School, Jangebe in Talata Mafara Local Government Area of Zamfara State, who bandits kidnapped on Friday, Pope Francis has prayed for

their safe return.

“Let us pray that Our Lady might keep them safe,” the Pope said at the Angelus prayer yesterday, calling the bandits’ action, vile.

He invited everyone to pray for them so that they might return home soon.

“I am near to their families Continued on page 9

As Fuel Queues Return, NNPC, IPMAN Caution against Panic Buying Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja and Peter Uzoho in Lagos The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) have cautioned motorists against panic buying as fuel queues returned in Abuja and Lagos.

THISDAY gathered that

many filling stations were not selling petroleum products in Abuja and environs at the weekend, blaming rising depot price and lack of access to petrol due to new payment rules by the Petroleum Products Marketing Company (PPMC) a subsidiary of the NNPC, for the development.

Pockets of queues were Continued on page 9

HONOUR FROM HOMEFRONT...

Bayelsa State Governor, Senator Douye Diri (left), and former President Goodluck Jonathan during a grand reception in honour of the governor by the people of his Kolokuma/Opokuma Local Government Area in Kaiama…weekend

Commit to Rule of Law, Democracy, Jonathan Urges African Leaders...Page 5

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

Commit to Rule of Law, Democracy, Jonathan Urges African Leaders

Ejiofor Alike Former President Goodluck Jonathan has called on African leaders to adhere to the rule of law and prioritise equality and justice in order to build a continent of peace, prosperity and development.

Jonathan made the call during the Ninth African Leadership Magazine Person of the year award ceremony organised virtually during the weekend where he was awarded with the African Peace and Security Leader of the Year 2020.

In his acceptance remarks, the former president stated that for peace to reign, those who wield power should respect the rule of law, be fair to all and dispense justice in a manner that promotes equity and boosts the people’s confidence in their nation.

“When politicians undermine democratic principles and usurp citizens’ rights, it creates a situation that impacts negatively on peace and development," he said.

Jonathan also underscored the importance of democracy, stable leadership and peace and development to national growth.

He stated: “In Africa, it appears we see the political process as a civil war or a fraudulent enterprise that has no rules. This is unhealthy

for our polity as it impedes our development.”

Jonathan, in a statement yesterday by his spokesman, Mr. Ikechukwu Eze, said that leadership commands a great influence in the affairs of men, such that the fate of a nation is often interconnected with that of the leader.

According to him, leaders that promote peace and build institutions always focus on those deliveries that cater to the needs of our citizens and keep them safe.

“More than in any other parts of the world, self-centred and egocentric contests for power by African politicians had, more often than not, unleashed widespread violence and insurgency on the African soil.

“Peace in our continent is mainly threatened by political instability, poor democratic practices and weak institutions.

Many African nations that are today mired in conflicts, or just emerging from one, often have such crises rooted in the struggle for leadership.

“I always make the point that there is a clear link between a nation’s social and economic standing and its position in the global conflict index. Nations with fewer conflicts and more stable leadership tend to be richer and better off in the human development profile,”

he added.

Jonathan stated that the nations with the lowest progress on the official United Nations Human Development Index, many of them in Africa, are those that are either poorly governed or embroiled in

leadership struggles.

Jonathan thanked the publisher of African Leadership Magazine and the award committee for the honour, saying that “I am delighted that my little contributions towards peace

and sustainable democracy in our continent are being recognised.

“Awards and recognitions are good because it reassures the recipients that their little contributions to the growth of society have not gone

unnoticed. It also comes with a sense of responsibility which jolts the awardees to the fact that they can no longer go below a certain threshold. To all of us receiving the award today, it is, therefore, a nudge to do more.”

VISIT TO ROYALTY...

Kebbi State Governor, Senator Abubakar Bagudu (left), and Emir of Yauri, Dr. Muhammad Zayyanu, during the governor’s visit to the Emir’s Palace in Yauri, Kebbi State...yesterday

Buhari Launches Eastern Rail Corridor March 9 Redirects line to Abakaliki, Awka Kasim Sumaina in Abuja The Minister of Transportation, Hon. Chibuike Amaechi, has said President Muhammadu Buhari will perform the groundbreaking ceremony for the Eastern rail corridor in the country's ongoing railway modernisation on March 9.

Amaechi, while on an inspection tour to all the stations from Mobolaji

Johnson Station at Ebute Metta to Ibadan station yesterday, also said Buhari had approved the redirecting of the Eastern line to two new spurs.

The minister, in a statement yesterday by the Director of Press of the ministry, Mr. Eric Ejiekwe, identified the two spurs as Abakaliki, Ebonyi State and Awka, Anambra State.

He added that the federal government has approved

the commencement of the Port Harcourt - Kano rail project and is also negotiating loans for the Lagos-Calabar rail project.

On the take-off of the Ibadan-Kano rail project, Amaechi said the government was seeking approval for a loan to enable it to take off.

On the Lagos-Ibadan rail project, Amaechi stated that he had challenged Messrs.

China Civil Engineering and

Construction Company (CCECC) to deploy global acceptable safety and security standards for the project.

He directed that the central cooling system be installed in all the major train stations along the route.

Amaechi also urged the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) to punish truck drivers who fail to comply with government's directives

when the rail end of the Apapa Port Spur line is completed.

He added that Buhari has specified the tonnage of cargo that should be allowed on the roads and the directive will be complied with.

According to him, the directive has not been implemented as there are no viable alternatives yet.

During the inspection, the minister took the train to

the completed southward 8.72 kilometres of the Apapa Port Spur Line end of the Lagos-Ibadan rail line, where he expressed displeasure at the outrageous number of trucks parked on the rail tracks, making work difficult to complete.

The minister, therefore, directed the NPA to ensure that the trucks are moved out and that only registered trucks moving goods are allowed into the ports.

Dangote: Nigeria to Save $2.5bn Annually from Petrochemical, Fertiliser Plants Peter Uzoho The President of Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, has said that the Nigerian economy will be boosted by over $2.5 billion annually through foreign exchange savings and exports from the group's petrochemical and fertiliser plants.

The figure is a fraction of the over $9 billion estimated to be saved for Nigeria annually from the Dangote refinery, petrochemical, and fertiliser plants by way of reduction in foreign exchange spending and other importrelated costs.

Dangote spoke at the weekend while leading the

Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr. Godwin Emefiele, and some business captains on an inspection tour of his multi-billion dollar construction site in Lagos.

Dangote told journalists after the facility tour that the import substitution policy of the CBN made the investments the group was making on the projects possible.

Dangote who stressed the need for Nigeria to be more focused on finding a substitution for oil, which he said was losing its attractiveness, however, jocularly said he had never seen crude oil in his life despite building a 650,000

barrels per day refinery.

He added that import substitution was the only way to develop the country's economy and address youth unemployment.

"We need to find a substitution for oil and I think, the petrochemical we have, in terms of boosting our foreign reserves, in terms of reducing our outflow of foreign exchange.

"Both the petrochemical and the fertiliser, if you look at that one alone, it will bring over $2.5 billion in, without the petroleum products, without what we are going to save in terms of the imports, in terms of demurrage," Dangote said.

According to him, when the refinery becomes operational, all the ships transporting petroleum products to Nigeria will be out of business.

He said the group would help to monetise Nigeria's gas that is currently being flared by taking 110 million standard cubic feet of gas worth over $1.2 billion, to power the petrochemical plant.

"You can see, very soon, gas that we are flaring, we are actually going to use just 110 million standard cubic feet of gas and if you translate it into the current price of urea, it's $1.2 billion.

"So if you bring 3 billion standard cubic feet (SCF)

and you make sure that you have that 3 billion SCF for petrochemicals, imagine what that will achieve", he said.

He thanked the CBN governor for introducing and driving the import substitution policy, saying that "it is a very good policy, I think you should continue with that. I think your foreign exchange should actually be focused on what you are doing."

He advised Emefiele to always support those keying into the import substitution policy while refusing to support those that set up industries and come back to ask for foreign exchange to import raw materials.

Acknowledging the investments he and his team had put in to ensure that Nigeria reduces its penchant for importation, Dangote encouraged other business people to look inwards and attract investments to the country.

Dangote stated that if the projects he was carrying out now had been mentioned to him 10 years ago, he would not have accepted to embark on them.

According to him, they had tried to buy the national refineries but could not succeed and they are now building one that is bigger than those refineries combined.

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NERC: Niger, Others' Debts Worsening Illiquidity in Power Sector Urges FG, states to offset growing bills Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has expressed concern about the continuing inability of its international as well as special customers to settle their invoices for services rendered by the Market Operator (MO).

NERC, in its quarterly report for the second quarter of 2020, obtained by THISDAY at the weekend, said the failure by Niger, Togo and Benin Republic and Ajaokuta Steel Company, which is a special customer, to meet their obligations were compounding the liquidity challenges in the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI).

It, however, added that Compagnie Energie Electrique du Togo of Togo had offset N1.5 billion of the total debt owed.

It also stated that the refusal of the three tiers of government in the country to settle their electricity bills has become a burden on industry operators.

It said of the N222.51 billion invoice issued by the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Plc (NBET) in the period under review, only 28.05 per cent or N62.41 was settled by the distribution companies (Discos).

According to it, while none of the 11 Discos met their expected remittances to NBET, Abuja Disco and Eko Disco fully fulfilled their financial obligations to the market operator.

It said the financial viability of the industry remained a major challenge threatening sustainability.

It attributed the liquidity constraint to the non-implementation of

cost-reflective tariffs, high technical & commercial losses exacerbated by energy theft and consumers’ apathy to payments under the widely prevailing practise of estimated billing.

According to NERC, the new figures represent a 4.67 percentage points decline from the final settlement rate recorded in the first quarter of 2020 compared to the quarter which ran from April to June.

“The severity of the liquidity challenge in NESI was reflected in the settlement rates of the service charges and energy invoices issued by MO and NBET respectively for each of the Discos as highlighted, as well as the non and low payment by the special and international customers respectively for the services rendered by MO. “During the quarter under review, the special customers (Ajaokuta Steel Co. Ltd and the host community) did not make any payment in respect of the N0.32billion and N0.05billion invoices issued by NBET and MO respectively.

“Of the N4.10billion ($13.39 million) invoice issued

by MO to international customers (i.e., Societe Nigerienne d’electriciteNIGELEC, Societe Beninoise d’Energie Electrique-SBEE and Compagnie Energie Electrique du Togo-CEET) during the quarter, only CEET paid the sum of N1.51bilion (US$4.92million) in respect of services it received from MO,” NERC stated.

The average aggregate remittance performances to MO and NBET, NERC said, were 86.35 per cent and 18.94 per cent respectively, with performance level ranging from 9.63 per cent (Yola) to 106.23 per cent (Abuja)

for MO and 1.54 per cent (Kaduna) to 34.22 per cent (Eko) for NBET. It said the payment cycle for March to June 2020 fell within the period of the ‘lockdown’ introduced by the federal government as part of measures to curtail the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, which affected Discos’ billing of post-paid customers.

NERC also blamed tariff shortfall, represented by the difference between actual end-user tariffs payable by consumers and the cost-

reflective rates approved

by NERC, for the liquidity challenges in the industry.

It stated that the settlement ratio to the expected Minimum Remittance Threshold (MRTs), having adjusted for tariff shortfall indicated that Discos need to improve on their performance.

It said whereas Discos were expected to make a market remittance of 44.87 per cent during 2020/Q2, only 28.05 per cent settlement rate was achieved within the timeframe provided for market settlement in the

market rules.

According to NERC, Discos’ remittance level, regardless of the prevailing tariff shortfall, was still below the expected MRT. It said without prejudice to the impact of COVID-19 lockdown on Discos’ operations during the quarter, they must continue to improve on reducing ATC&C losses to levels commensurate with their contractual obligations in their performance agreements.

NERC also appealed to the federal, state and local

governments to settle their debts.

“As stated in the previous quarterly reports, one of the contributory factors to high ATC&C losses, and hence poor liquidity, is nonsettlement of energy bills by MDAs across the three tiers of government (i.e. federal, state and LG).

“This issue must be urgently addressed as part of the ongoing federal government’s efforts towards ensuring financial sustainability of NESI,” it stated.

CONDOLENCES...

L-R: Daughter of late Vice Admiral Joseph Aikhomu, Anita; wife, Ekanem; and the Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, during a condolence visit to the family in Abuja…weekend

Tributes as Ex-Air Force Chief, Eduok, Laid to Rest Kingsley Nwezeh in Abuja Governor Udom Emmanuel of Akwa Ibom State and the Chief of Air Staff, Air Vice Marshal Oladayo Amao, were among dignitaries who paid tributes yesterday as the remains of the 12th Chief of the Air Staff, Air Marshal Nsikak Eduok, were laid to rest at his country home in Mbak Ekpe on the outskirts of Uyo, Akwa Ibom State.

According to a statement yesterday by the Nigerian Air Force (NAF), the funeral service and interment, held at the weekend, attracted dignitaries and sympathisers from all walks of life.

Eduok died on January 6, 2021, at the age of 73.

Speaking during the burial ceremony, Amao described the late NAF chief as an amiable personality, a man of valour and integrity and a great achiever with an unprecedented drive for success.

“He was a mentor to so many of us both serving and retired. He was one of the best hands in the NAF who steered the tide of the service towards the successes recorded in the past years.

"He changed the landscape of the service and left the scene like a hero while the ovation was still reverberating,” he said.

According to him, Eduok contributed to the development of the NAF. He said the late CAS was his personal mentor, whom he described as a great fighter pilot whose transformational approach to leadership tremendously impacted on the development of the NAF. Amao described him as an accommodating air marshal, whose astuteness, diligence and dedication while alive made impacts on “our lives and the NAF as a whole”.

He stated that while

serving as the CAS, Eduok relied on his experience to steer the affairs of the NAF. The feat, he said, ultimately led to the outstanding transformation enjoyed by the service today.

He noted that Eduok was renowned as the first CAS to procure an attack helicopter, which enhanced the offensive capability and operational effectiveness of the NAF. “A warrior that he was, Air Marshal Eduok saw to the successful conclusion of the National Peace Enforcement efforts in Liberia and Sierra Leone.

"Even in retirement, the late former CAS continued to make invaluable contributions to the development of the service, with significant inputs towards the restructuring of the NAF to make it more effective in dealing with contemporary security challenges facing the country.

"His contributions to NAF operations in pursuit of Nigeria’s national security and stability will forever be remembered,” he added.

While condoling with his immediate family for the loss, Amao said Eduok would be missed for his contributions not just to the NAF and Akwa Ibom State, but also to the country.

The CAS said in honour of his sacrifice to the service and the nation and in recognition of his extraordinary passion for fitness, the Ultra-Fit Gymnasium Centre at the NAF Base, Yola, was named as Air Marshal Nsikak Eduok (retired) to immortalise him.

“To his immediate family as well as the executive governor and good people of Akwa Ibom State, we indeed share in your grief and reassure you of our continuous support in these trying times.

"Just about two weeks

ago, Akwa Ibom State bade farewell and laid to rest, the first indigenous military administrator of this state and a senior air force officer, the late Air Commodore Idongesit Nkanga (rtd)," he said.

He stated that these events were huge losses to the NAF, Akwa Ibom State and the nation.

"We are however very proud and highly honoured to have worked with your amiable husbands, fathers and illustrious sons,” Amao said.

In his remarks, Emmanuel, expressed a deep sense of loss and grief on behalf of the government and people of Akwa Ibom State, as he bade farewell to Eduok, whom he described as a quintessential Nigerian patriot, a trail-blazer, an epitome of courage and bravery, a decorated air force officer and above all, a husband, father and

a devout Christian.

He stated that the late CAS was one of the ambassadors in Akwa Ibom State who epitomised the state’s defining characteristics of duty, honesty, transparency, integrity, love for country and God which he brought to bear in the course of his illustrious career with the NAF, becoming "the first Akwa Ibom indigene to ever occupy that exalted position.”

He said the late CAS, in retirement, chose to relocate to his home state and was a dependable statesman, a voice for reason and moderation whose counsel when sought was always ready and on point.

“Let me end this oration by quoting a line from the 19th Century Unitarian preacher and writer, Minot J. Savage ‘The brave die never, though they sleep in dust.

Their courage nerves a thousand living men.”

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PAGE NINE POPE PRAYS AS MILITARY INTENSIFIES SEARCH FOR ZAMFARA SCHOOLGIRLS and to them,” said the Pope as he led the faithful in the recitation of the Hail Mary.

“I join my voice to that of the Bishops of Nigeria to condemn the vile kidnapping of the 317 girls, taken away from their school in Jangebe.

I am praying for these girls so they might return home soon. I am near to their families,” he wrote.

Gunmen had invaded the Jangebe community on Friday, attacked some houses along their way, and raided the school where they abducted 317 students.

The girls have now been in captivity for three days, and efforts to secure their release are ongoing.

The United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) had also condemned the kidnapping on Friday, calling it a gross violation of children’s rights.

The Jangebe attack comes barely two weeks after scores of children were abducted by bandits from Government Science College (GSC), Kagara in Niger State.

The Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Mr. Jamilu Iliyasu, told THISDAY that the military and the police were still combing the forests in search of the victims so as to rescue them from the bandits.

He, however, refuted a report that had gone viral yesterday that the victims had been released and they

were on their way to Gusau to be received by Governor Bello Matawalle.

To quicken the recovery of the schoolgirls, Matawalle has also promised to use repentant bandits to secure their release.

However, the federal government has committed itself to take all necessary steps to prevent a reoccurrence of schoolchildren's abduction.

Reacting to the report that the schoolgirls had been released and were in the palace of the Emir of Anka waiting for transportation to Gusau, Iliyasu told THISDAY that even the Emir of Anka and 16 other emirs were at the Government House, Gusau, together with a federal government delegation, to commiserate with the governor on the abduction.

“I have read the report and I do not know where it came from; the Emir of Anka is here in Gusau; we have just received a delegation from the federal government who came to commiserate with the governor. The military and the police are still combing the forests, searching for the students,” he stated.

Also, Iliyasu in a statement quoted the governor as saying that efforts are still ongoing to secure the release of the abductees.

"Gov. Bello Mohammed Matawalle Maradun and his

aides have since Friday when the girls were abducted by gunmen not rested but been working round the clock making frantic efforts that will lead to the safe release of the victims.

"We are not happy that someone who does not know the details of the situation will try to further hurt the victims' parents, government and the security by ridiculing the effort with falsehood," he said.

The statement added that the state government would be happy to announce the release of the schoolgirls as soon as they are freed.

Matawalle Insists on Negotiation with Abductors Despite the abduction of the 317 schoolgirls, Matawalle has said the incident will not deter him from negotiating with the bandits, adding that he will utilise repentant bandits to secure their release.

The governor assured residents of the state that his administration is committed to its ongoing peace and dialogue initiative with the bandits, despite the abduction and other nefarious activities of the hoodlums.

Matawalle told a federal government delegation in Gusau that the state government would continue to use repentant bandits who

subscribed to the ongoing peace accord to rescue the schoolgirls.

The delegation, led by the Minister of Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika, was in the state to commiserate with the government and people on the abduction of the schoolgirls.

On the entourage, were the Minister of Police Affairs, Mr. Muhammad Dingyadi; Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, Mrs. Pauline Tallen; and the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Ms. Sadiya Farouq.

Matawalle said: "For what happened in Jangebe, we are not going to say much about what happened or going on blame games. All we need now is for a safe return of these children. The security agencies need synergy to share relevant intelligence and to strategise in fighting this kind of criminalities without this synergy, no matter what the president is trying to do, will not be possible.

"I assured you again that my government is committed to the peace and dialogue initiative; we are using those that have subscribed to our peace accord; let the president be aware that these children will be rescued soon."

He called on President Muhammadu Buhari to strengthen the nation's

security in order to get the capable and reasonable security personnel to protect lives and property.

He urged the federal government to deploy additional security personnel in flashpoints in communities across the state, adding that the security manpower of the state is grossly inadequate to tackle the pervading security challenges.

He said: "We have so many crises in different parts of the country, Zamfara is part of it and our security formations in the state are doing their best but something is missing somewhere and it has to be addressed as quickly as possible so as to address the occurrences of any attempt of this kind again.

"The people of Zamfara State have mandated me as their governor to appeal to Mr. President to mobilise more security personnel to the state because we have a shortage of security manpower in the state.

Despite the fact that the IG just recently deployed about 275 Special Forces, but because of the huge landmark of the state and different camps of the leaders of bandits, we need more and more presence of security personnel in such areas."

Matawalle thanked Buhari for the federal government's concern, noting that very soon the abductees will regain their freedom.

AS FUEL QUEUES RETURN, NNPC, IPMAN CAUTION AGAINST PANIC BUYING also observed in a few filling stations in Lagos.

While some of the marketers in Lagos have shut down their filling stations, many others have also increased the pump price of petrol at their filling stations to avoid shutting down operations.

THISDAY check revealed that some of the marketers, who were selling at N162 per litre, have now raised their petrol prices to between N165 and N170 per litre, in defiance of the directive by the NNPC that there would be no increase in petrol price in February.

Some of them, while displaying N162 per litre on their bill boards were selling above this price.

Aside from the NNPC, retail stations and some major marketers did not open for business in Abuja, leading to queues at the few petrol stations selling to customers, a development which started on Friday evening.

When contacted, the NNPC spokesman,

Dr. Kennie Obateru, told THISDAY that the corporation is still standing by its last public statement that it has enough supply, noting that there is no need for panic buying or hoarding of products.

Although the NNPC stations within town still sold for N162 per litre, some of the independent retailers which managed to get the product were selling petrol between N163 and N170.

But at A.A. Rano, Jabi and Gwarinpa, the product was still selling for N163 per litre while queues were observed at Oando filling station, Zone 4; Conoil, Wuse; Eterna, Wuse 2; Mobil, Lokogoma; NNPC, Major oil, Jabi; Optima Energy Jabi, and some other stations.

National President of the Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN), Dr. Billy Gillis-Harry, however, blamed the rising depot price and lack of access to the product as the cause of the scarcity.

He told THISDAY that

he had raised the alarm about three weeks ago about the impending fuel scarcity when it became almost impossible to get the product at the going depot rate.

He stated that the depot owners hiked the product price, making it impossible for filling station owners to sell at N162 or N163.

He said: “We already saw this coming three Fridays ago. To make matters worse, PPMC has changed their payment style which is very inefficient. That’s why you are seeing what you are seeing. And the government will tell you they have supply. But where is the supply?

“The retailers cannot have access, marketers cannot have access. The only people they are giving products are the depots and what’s the depot doing, their prices are excruciating on our accounts.

It’s simple, retailers cannot restock.

“It’s really a shame because this is something that was foreseeable and

we could have resolved it. Labour is not the right association to discuss petroleum products issues with. They have no knowledge of the dynamics of the grassroots of this business.”

He noted that while the government is still selling products at N148.69 at the government depots, the retailers cannot get access to buy because they have to go through an inefficient system of qualifying to pay for it online.

He added that for that reason, the retail outlets still depend on the private depots to source products, stressing that after sourcing at an exorbitant rate, it’s impossible to sell at N163.

He said: “It’s only the few filling stations that are accessing the product from depots that are getting it. And they are not many.

Out of every 10, just two have access. If they go to the depot with N5 million to N7 million and it’s now over N8 million where will the rest come from?”

Gillis-Harry suggested that the importation of petroleum products should be open and liberalised to associations like PETROAN to be able to import petroleum products.

“We have said let’s have a business meeting with PETROAN which represents over 100,000 filling stations.

They can’t continue to play politics with the lives of Nigerians,” he posited.

Meanwhile, IPMAN has advised Nigerians to stop panic buying and stocking petrol.

The National Public Relations Officer of IPMAN, Alhaji Suleiman Yakubu, gave the advice in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) yesterday in Abuja.

Yakubu was reacting to the long fuel queues recorded at some filling stations in Abuja.

He decried the panic purchases and long queues in various filling stations across the nation’s federal capital.

Yakubu, however, said that crude oil price had gone up,

STOCK MARKET SHEDS N1.364TN ON PROFIT-TAKING, WEAKENING SENTIMENTS minds of some investors who reduced their exposure to the equities market.

While profit-taking is expected to continue intermittently, the decline is seen as an entry opportunity for investors to position ahead of dividend declarations by more companies that would publish their audited full year 2020 financial results.

Analysts at Cordros Securities said on Friday that they expected the NSE floor to be flooded with corporate earnings as more companies publish their audited FY 2020 numbers, accompanied by dividend

declarations.

“We believe this should provide respite for market performance. However, we expect intermittent profittaking activities to continue due to lingering concerns about yield elevation in the FI market. As a result, we think the local bourse will likely exhibit a zig-zag pattern. Notwithstanding, we advise investors to take positions in only fundamentally justified stocks as the unimpressive macro story remains a significant headwind for corporate earnings,” they said.

Similarly, analysts at

Investdata Consulting said players should be on the lookout, as more companies expectedly send in their 2020 financials, giving the market an upward push or downward pull, depending on the strength of these numbers.

According to them, with the pullbacks impacting positively on dividend yields, income investors should target ‘stocks with a dividend yield of 7.5 per cent and above in the short term, since the equity market remains the best window for hedging against the nation’s spiralling inflation.

“Despite, the seeming

profit booking across many of the sectors, these corrections are creating ‘buy’ opportunities for players that understand the dynamics of the market,’ irrespective of what is happening on the fixed income side, especially with oil price selling now above $65 per barrel and breakthroughs in vaccines will help to drive global and domestic economic recovery,” they said.

Investdata advised that with the mixed macroeconomic indices emanating from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), in the face of changing market

trends and trading pattern, that is now of concern to retail and institutional investors, players in the equity market should invest wisely.

“One way of navigating the murky waters is to be guided by your set investment objectives, particularly entry and exit strategies, to survive and profit from the expected new trend. In that way, should the full-year earnings reports and dividend news fail to impact and support the current trend, a big rotation in sector trends would also guide you, going into the future,” Investdata said.

"I strongly believe in the president and his effort in fighting all forms of insurgency and I want to urge him to improve on the nation's security by ensuring synergy among the security agencies so that confrontations with criminals can be coordinated on the ground and air simultaneously," the governor said.

Earlier, Sirika had said they were in Zamfara on the directive of Buhari to commiserate with the government and the people over the incident.

He assured the state government that insurgency, banditry and other forms of criminalities would soon be eradicated following rejig of the nation's security architecture.

Sirika stated that Buhari promised that what happened in Jangebe will not reoccur.

He said new measures had been developed by the federal government to end criminalities.

He said: “His Excellency, the president is saddened by the abduction of the students from Jangebe and reassures that the government is a government that has all the resources and wherewithal to contain these criminalities to a conclusive end.

"He has also commended the efforts of Governor Bello Continued on page 10

adding that it has affected the products price.

He assured Nigerians that normal supply of petroleum products would soon be restored since loading has commenced at various depots.

“We want to assure the buyers that government and marketers are doing everything possible to ensure that the products are available in every filling station within a few days starting from today,” he said.

In March last year, the federal government said it had begun the execution of a deregulation policy which would ensure that petrol prices are determined by market forces, one of which is the international price of crude oil which has recently climbed to $66 per barrel.

TOP GAINERS LASACO MBENEFITS COURTVILLE OANDO NAHCO TOP LOSERS WEMABANK CHAMPBREW SUNUASSURE

NGN NGN 0.11 1.23 0.03 0.40 0.01 0.21 0.02 0.46 0.06 2.28 NGN 0.07 0.63 0.28 2.52 0.07 0.66 AFRIPRUD 0.35 5.75 AXAMANSARD 0.06 1.06 HPE Nestle Nig Plc ₦1,450.00 Volume: 507.255 million shares Value: N2.443 billion Deals: 4,465 As at yesterday 26/2/2021 See details on Page 37

% 9.8 8.1 5.0 4.5 2.7 % 10 10 9.5 5.7 5.3

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MONDAY, ͹˜ ͺ͸ͺ͹ ˾ T H I S D AY

NEWS

Restore Professionalism in EFCC, PDP Charges Bawa Chuks Okocha in Abuja The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) yesterday urged the new Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr. Abdulrasheed Bawa, to re-engineer the commission and restore professionalism in the anti-graft agency.

The party also called on him to avoid the pitfalls of

his immediate predecessor in office, Mr Ibrahim Magu, by resisting pressures to use the agency as a tool for political persecution, harassment of dissenting voices, settling of personal scores as well as for personal enrichment.

The party, in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Kola Ologbondiyan, said such tendencies eroded

professionalism in the EFCC compromised its activities and diminished the public confidence in its fairness, impartiality and even-handedness in the handling of cases.

PDP said the anti-graft agency was articulated and established by a PDP administration to fight corruption and not as a tool for oppression and

intimidation of innocent Nigerians for political and other unjustified reasons.

The PDP stated that for the first time, the chairman of the EFCC had been drawn from the pool of trained investigators of the commission, adding that Nigerians expect Bawa to sanitise the system and restore professionalism in line with international best

practices.

The PDP said: "Our party urges the new EFCC Chairman to bear in mind that, given his young age and training, he should exhibit the ideals of the generationnext Nigeria in reciprocation of the confidence Nigerians repose in him."

The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) had earlier urged Bawa to spare no

one in his fight against corruption.

The National Secretary of the Caretaker/Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee (CECPC), Senator John Akpanudoedehe, in a statement last week in Abuja, had urged Bawa to be guided by the stance of President Muhammadu Buhari that the fight against corruption must be total and unsparing.

Nigeria Receives 3.92m Doses of AstraZeneca Tomorrow Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja Nigeria is scheduled to receive 3.92 million doses of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine tomorrow.

This was contained in a joint press statement issued yesterday by the National Primary Healthcare Development Agency (NPHCDA); United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and World Health Organisation (WHO) in Abuja.

The delivery will mark the first arrival of the COVID-19

vaccine in the country and make Nigeria the next West African country to benefit from the COVAX Facility after Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire.

The arrival of the vaccine will enable the NPHCDA to commence the vaccination of Nigerians in priority groups, starting with the frontline healthcare workers.

The Executive Director and Chief Executive of the NPHCDA, Dr. Faisal Shuaib, said in the statement that the arrival of this vaccine is the result of the

commitment of the President Muhammadu Buhari-led Federal Government of Nigeria, the support of the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 and the guidance of the Minister of Health, Dr. Osagie Ehanire.

He also said that the agency is fully prepared to receive and deliver the vaccine to eligible Nigerians, adding it has commenced the training of health workers and ensured that cold chain facilities are ready at all levels.

"We have a robust cold

chain system that can store all types of COVID-19 vaccine in accordance with the required temperature.

We are therefore confident that we will have a very effective roll-out of the vaccine, starting with our critical healthcare workers, who are in the frontline in providing the care we all need,” Shuaib added.

On his part the UNICEF Nigeria Country Representative, Mr. Peter Hawkins, said that the delivery of the AstraZeneca vaccine is part of an overall

16 million doses planned to be delivered to Nigeria in batches over the next months by the COVAX Facility, as part of an unprecedented global effort to ensure equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines.

“The COVAX Facility is co-led by Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), with UNICEF as a key implementing partner,” Hawkins said.

WHO’s Country

Representative in Nigeria, Dr. Walter Kazadi Mulombo, said COVAX Facility, has worked exceptionally hard to ensure that Nigeria gets the vaccine as soon as possible so that it can start its vaccination programme to the largest population in Africa.

"Vaccines are a critical tool in the battle against COVID-19. In the meantime, Nigerians must continue to take steps to contain the virus, as the vaccination programme will take at least a year before it is fully effective," he added.

Magashi: Airpower, Equipment will Turn Tide against Insurgency, Banditry Kingsley Nwezeh in Abuja Minister of Defence, Maj. Gen. Bashir Magashi (rtd) said weekend that airpower and the right military equipment would turn the tide against insurgency and armed banditry.

This comes as the United States said the security cooperation between the US and Nigeria would strengthen the country's capabilities to secure land and sea borders and combat terrorism in the North-east of the country.

A US delegation made up of the US Ambassador to Nigeria, Ms. Mary Beth Leonard; Foreign Policy Adviser, Russell Schiebel; and US Defence Adviser to Nigeria, Col. Andrew Clerk; and the head of the United States African Command (AFRICOM) held bi-lateral

talks with Magashi last week.

In a chat with THISDAY at the weekend, Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to the Minister of Defence, Mr. Mohammad Abdulkadir, said the US pledged support for Nigeria's effort to tackle security challenges.

"They pledged support for Nigeria's efforts to tackle security challenges and part of it is the aspect of equipment. The minister appealed to them to consider releasing the 12 Super Tucano aircraft.

"They are supposed to supply six; they supplied one.

We are still expecting five more. He laid emphasis on air power required to tackle the problem of insecurity", he said.

"The minister told the delegation that if we are able to get the equipment

to carry out this fight, it's as good as we have won the fight.

"He appealed to them to ensure that the remaining Super Tucano aircraft are supplied in good time. He also appealed to them to help them develop the army’s aviation unit".

A statement posted on United States Embassy website, Abuja quoted the Commander of the US African Command (AFRICOM), General Stephen Townsend, as saying that “The bilateral relationship between Nigeria and the US is built on several pillars including security cooperation.

“US Africa Command will do our part to advance the security cooperation pillar, so that Nigerians can enjoy the more secure future they

all deserve.”

It said "as close partners, the US and Nigeria have worked at ensuring the collaborative relationship continues to grow to include a commitment to interoperability.

"Nigeria purchased 12 A-29 Super Tucano light attack aircraft, which will be delivered later this year. Nigeria’s purchase of A-29 Super Tucano aircraft is another example of their commitment to interoperability and security in the region".

The US added that its economic relationship with Nigeria is already strong, adding that it was looking forward to the continued strengthening of security relationships.

According to the US, Nigeria’s leaders understand

the importance of a collaborative approach to ensuring stability in West Africa and partnering on areas of mutual interest.

The US Ambassador to Nigeria, Leonard, said “our security cooperation partnership with Nigeria’s military will strengthen the country’s capabilities to secure land and sea borders, enhance overall security and combat terrorism in the North-east.”

Magashi had at the meeting last week said a full-fledged Nigerian Army Aviation was a critical component in the counter-terrorism and counter-insurgency campaigns in the country.

He said Nigeria would appreciate the US intervention to fully establish the Aviation Unit of the Nigerian Army as a force multiplier in the ongoing fight against ISWAP/

terrorists in the country.

The minister thanked the United States for its technical and manpower training support towards enhancing the nation's capacity and capabilities to end insecurity bedevilling the country.

While recalling specific instances of US strategic support to the Nigerian Military, he mentioned progress recorded in the supply of Super Tucano aircraft, Thunder Boat for Maritime Operations and logistics to the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) for enhanced combat efficiency and effectiveness.

On human rights issues, he told the US delegation that the Nigerian military is adopting international best practices to reduce collateral damages in the fight against terrorism.

families and ourselves.”

pupils are being kidnapped and schools closed down due to insecurity.

In a series of tweets yesterday in Abuja, the National Publicity Secretary of PDP, Mr. Kola Ologbondiyan, said: "How can we have a general and former head of state as our president yet students are being kidnapped, schools are being shut down while bandits and terrorists take over our roads and homelands?

"Meanwhile, the general, who promised to lead from the fronts recedes in the safety and comfort of Aso Villa, from where he is sending boastful messages to the bandits.

"Rather than leading from the fronts as promised, this general has surrendered our nation to bandits, invaders and terrorists."

POPE PRAYS AS MILITARY INTENSIFIES SEARCH FOR ZAMFARA SCHOOLGIRLS Matawalle in the measures he is taking against armed banditry and assures him that he will continue to support the government's actions in the state with a view to bringing lasting peace.

"The federal government will continue its partnership with the Zamfara State government and its citizens in resolving the security challenges facing the state.”

Soyinka Laments Incessant Abduction of Pupils In a reaction, the Nobel Laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, said the incessant attacks on schools by terrorists are fast making the country close to

the stage of accepting the unacceptable culture.

Soyinka spoke during an award lecture and public presentation of his latest book, ‘Chronicles of the Happiest People on Earth,’ in Abeokuta, Ogun State on Saturday.

He said states may need to shut down some of their activities in solidarity with affected states where kidnapping of children are rampant.

“The abductions of our children, when will it end; how will it end? I don’t think any one of us can tell. But it is important that we continue to stress and to remind ourselves that, not only are these abnormal times, but it seems to be, to me anyway, times of the shirking of responsibility in very key areas,” he said,

adding that those at the helm of affairs of the nation have failed the populace.

School Abductions Designed to Cripple Education, says Northern Group Meanwhile, the Coalition of Northern Groups (CNG) has said that the recent abduction of schoolchildren is a grand design to discourage the growth of the region through education.

The coalition in its reaction to the abduction of the 317 Zamfara schoolgirls, urged Northern leaders to address insecurity in the region.

This is the third abduction of schoolchildren in the North in the last three months.

CNG, in a statement by its spokesman, Mr. AbdulAzeez Sulieman, said: “We see the recent escalation of the kidnap of schoolchildren as a grand design to cripple the educational viability of the Northern region, after having messed up its economy and mutual cohesion.

“We call on Northern leaders to interrogate the extent of levity of the federal authorities in not being able to anticipate and checkmate the manoeuvres of marauding bands of criminals that roam Northern communities and operate at will targeting such soft spots as schools.

“The situation is also difficult for absolutely everyone, as we wonder about the future and worry about each other, our neighbours, our friends, our

Buhari Has Surrendered Nigeria to Bandits, Says PDP The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) also intervened yesterday, accusing the Buhari administration of abandoning Nigeria.

The party wondered how a president that promised on the assumption of office that he would lead the battle against crimes, criminality and insurgency from the front has become so incapacitated that bandits are ravaging the country.

The party expressed surprise that all this is happening when Nigeria has a president who is an army general and yet

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Okonjo-Iweala Assumes Duty as WTO DG Today Obinna Chima The newly-elected Director General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala will assume duties today.

The former Nigeria’s two-term Finance Minister was selected by the General Council of the WTO a fortnight ago, as the organisation’s seventh director-general.

With her emergence as the first African and first female to be the Director-General of the WTO, Okonjo-Iweala had unveiled her agenda, which included working with other members of the organisation in reforming and rebranding the global trade body.

Okonjo-Iweala, in her acceptance speech, had also highlighted the

need for procedural reforms so that the WTO would better serve its members.

Her term which is renewable, will expire on August 31, 2025.

According to her, the rule book of the Geneva-based organisation is outdated, while its rules lag behind those of some regional and bilateral trade agreements, which are incorporating many innovations.

Okonjo-Iweala had stated that the WTO’s rulebook must be updated to take into account 21st century realities such as e-commerce and the digital economy.

She said: “It has been a long and tough road, full of uncertainty, but now it is the dawn of a new day and the real work can begin.

“Some WTO rules and procedures also need to be revisited, including the procedure for appointing director-general.”

According to her, the WTO secretariat should be strengthened, to enable it to provide cutting-edge

services to members.

She had explained: “An important change would be to move away from the current silo way of working, to a more teambased and task-based approach.

“The secretariat has to be fit-

for-purpose to take account of the changing dynamics of the global economy and priorities of members.

“The challenges facing the WTO are numerous and tricky, but they are not insurmountable. There is

hope, there is light at the end of the tunnel if we work together in a transparent manner that builds trust, build bridges and diffuses political tension and encourages convergence.”

Bandits Kill Seven in Fresh Attacks on Kaduna Communities John Shiklam in Kaduna Seven people were killed in fresh attacks on communities in Igabi and Kajuru Local Government Areas of Kaduna State.

Kaduna State Commissioner for Internal Security and Home Affairs, Mr. Samuel Aruwan confirmed the killings in a statement issued yesterday in Kaduna.

He said in Kajinjiri village, Igabi LGA, two people were killed when bandits attacked the village.

He said in Rago village, also of Igabi LGA, the bandits killed two people.

Aruwan further said three people were killed in another attack on Kutura station, Kajuru LGA. The statement reads: “On a sad note, security agencies have reported that armed bandits attacked Kajinjiri village, Igabi local government area and

killed two residents identified as: Ibrahim Rabi’u and Abdulrahman Mohammad.

“One person, Kamal Murtala, sustained gunshot injuries, and is receiving treatment at a nearby facility.

“Similarly, in Rago village also of Igabi Local Government Area, bandits killed two locals identified as:Alhaji Ibrahim Iro and Muhammadu Rabiu.

“In a separate incident, gunmen invaded Kutura station, Kajuru Local Government Area and killed three residents, identified as: Michael Shadari, Clement Aura Bili and Danlami Shaban”.

The commissioner said “Governor Nasir El-Rufai noted the reports with sadness and condoled the families of those killed in both attacks, while offering prayers for the repose of their souls.

He also wished the injured victim from Kajinjiri village a quick recovery.”

Kano, Yobe Close Schools over Security Threats The Kano and Yobe states have closed some schools as a precautionary measure against abduction of students.

In Kano, the state government has closed some health training institutions due to security challenges.

All the affected students are to vacate on Monday (today) but will continue their studies and training through special arrangements.

According to the state government, the decision is a proactive measure to avoid incidents of abduction of students.

Commissioner for Health, Dr. Aminu Ibrahim Tsanyawa, in a statement said: “Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje has directed the closure of some health training institutions in the state with immediate effect.”

Tsanyawa’s statement, which was signed by the Information Officer of the Ministry of Health, Hadiza Mustapha Namadi, gave the names of the closed health institutions to include: School of Health Technology Bebeji, School of Nursing Madobi, Schools of Midwifery Gwarzo, Gezawa

and Dambatta.

The statement added: “Adequate arrangement has been made for the students to continue with their academic activities.”

“All parents and guardians are advised to convey their children from their respective schools tomorrow (Monday) morning,” Tsanyawa said.

Meanwhile, the Yobe State Government has also directed the closure and immediate evacuation of students in all boarding schools.

The order came following security reports that Boko Haram insurgents were lurking around the state capital with plans to launch an attack and kidnap some students.

It was however gathered that the vacation orders did not include SS 3 students.

Government Girls College Damaturu is also accommodating a girls’ schools from Buni Gari which was relocated to Damaturu because of the insecurity in the area.

No statement has yet been issued from the security operatives in the state to that effect as at the time of filing this report.

SIXTY HEARTY CHEERS…

L-R: Bishop, Methodist Church Nigeria, Diocese of Nyanya, Rt. Rev. Kehinde Adeyemi; retiring State House Deputy Director of Information, Mr. Attah Esa; and the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina, during a send-off ceremony in honour of the retiring Deputy Director at the State House Conference Centre in Abuja…weekend

Hunters Kill Kidnapper, Rescue Seven Victims in Ondo James Sowole in Akure Hunters and rescue team in Akunu Akoko in Akoko North East local government area have killed a suspected kidnapper and rescued seven kidnapped victims.

The hunters had stormed the forest on the orders of the Regent of the town, Princess

Tolani Orogun, after news filtered in that some travellers have been abducted.

Witnesses said the travellers were heading towards Abuja when they were abducted and taken into the bush.

The witnesses said the Regent informed the hunters and youths that continued kidnapping in the axis must stop and she ordered

them to go after the kidnappers.

It was in the course of combing the forest that one of the suspected kidnappers was gunned down while others fled leaving their victims behind.

Police area commander for Ikare Akoko, ACP Razak Rauf who confirmed the report said remains of the suspect has been deposited in mortuary.

Several persons have been kidnapped along the Akunu, Ikakumo and Auga of Ondo State.

Chairman of Akunu Akoko community, Mr. Ade Aboginije, urged the state government to increase security presence in the area being a boundary town with Edo and Kogi States.

FCT Police Nab 40 Suspected Car Snatchers, Drug Peddlers Kingsley Nwezeh in Abuja The FCT Police Command said weekend it arrested 40 suspects for car snatching, drug peddling and armed robbery along Abaji, Gwarinpa, Asokoro, Jabi-Dakibiyu and Mabushi axis.

A statement by the command said the suspects were arrested during coordinated raids and patrols between February 18 and 24,2021.

The suspects are: Tijani Zariwa, 25; Shamsudeen

Abdullahi, 20; Muktari Mohammed, 48; Yahaya Abdullahi, 20; Abbas Mohammed, 24; and Suleiman Audu 19.

Others are Abubakar Baba, 34; Hudu Garba, 24; Sadiq Isa, 20; Yusuf Ali, 18; Abu Momoh Samuel; Simon Ndagi, 34; and Nwanse Precious, 22; a female amongst others.

Exhibits recovered from the suspects are: one white Toyota Hilux, one ash-colour Toyota Corolla, one locally fabricated rifle, 21 unexpended cartridges

and one fabricated marking gun.

The suspects arrested for car snatching are Olamide Atanda, 29; Osas Raphel, 32; They were arrested for snatching a vehicle after attacking and trampling their victim along Lugbe axis.

The vehicle was recovered by eagle-eyed police operatives on stop and search operations along Abaji axis.

Exhibit recovered include one silver-colour Toyota Corolla.

The statement signed by

Spokesman of the command, ASP Mariam Yusuf said all the suspects have been arraigned in court except the car snatching syndicate, who would be arraigned upon conclusion of investigation.

“We enjoin residents to remain calm, law-abiding and comply with all COVID-19 regulations. Meanwhile the command wishes to reiterate its unwavering commitment to the protection of lives and property within the FCT”, it said.

JAMB, Tertiary Institutions to Close 2020/2021 Admissions June 15 Kuni Tyessi in Abuja All admissions into the nation’s tertiary institutions for the 2020/2021 academic session will end by June 15, 2021, according to a decision collectively taken at a virtual meeting with heads of tertiary institutions in the country on Wednesday, February 24, 2021.

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) and tertiary institutions agreed at the meeting to close admissions for the 2020/2021 academic session

by June 15, 2021, JAMB’s Head of Information, Dr. Fabian Benjamin, said in a

statement yesterday.

The statement said Registrar of JAMB, Prof. Is-haq Oloyede used the meeting to find out the progress tertiary institutions had made on the 2020/21 admissions scale.

It noted that the goal of the interactive meeting was to forestall an endless admission regime generated by the series of disruptions to daily life occasioned by the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to the statement, the meeting would enable the board to put necessary machinery in place for the 2021/2022 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination

(UTME/DE) registration exercise.

It noted that only 30 per cent of institutions had started admissions into the 2020/2021 Academic Session.

The statement said there was need to collectively decide when to close the 2020/2021 Admission Exercise.

It added that the proposal was for Public Universities to end admissions four weeks ahead of Private Universities, the Polytechnics, Colleges of Education and IEIs. “After a robust and insightful deliberation, members collectively agreed that all public universities are expected

to finish their admissions on or before 15th May, 2021, while the private universities and all IEIs, polytechnics and COEs would complete theirs at the agreed date of June 15, 2021.

“Oloyede reiterated that the chosen deadlines remained sacrosanct and binding on all institutions as the Board would not tolerate any breaches of the collective decision reached at the meeting.

“He said the Board would announce in a week’s time the commencement date for the sale of application documents for the 2021/2022 Academic Session,” the statement said.

MONDAY MARCH 1, 2021 • T H I S D AY

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T H I S D AY • MONDAY, MARCH 1, 2021

COMMENT

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

THE NUTS AND BOLTS OFVACCINATING A COUNTRY Rajendra Aneja lists some building blocks for seamless execution

“

There is no magic in magic, it’s all in the details,” opined the master story teller, Walt Disney. As African countries ready to roll out the vaccines, this advice on the importance of detail, is relevant. Nations should now focus on the nuts and bolts of vaccinations.

The inoculations will require granular planning in scheduling, determining disseminating centres, communications to recipients, recruitment of adequate volunteers, safe storage and transportation of the vaccines, maintenance of records, monitoring side-effects, administering second jabs, etc. Ideally, all the information about every vaccination should be stored in computers, accessible to health authorities for follow-up.

Inoculating Public Workers: Countries should begin with determining the priority groups to be inoculated. Most countries have prioritised health workers, law enforcers like the police and the army personnel.

These categories of public staff are easy to locate. They are in hospitals, police stations and army quarters. Doctors can visit these locations with vaccines. Inoculating these categories, should be a cakewalk.

Senior Citizens: The next priority group will be the senior citizens and the infirm. Many of them may have comorbidities. Ideally, senior citizens should be inoculated at their residences. This may require additional planning and efforts. However, it will save a lot of inconveniences to the frail. Senior citizens should also be able to register with the local hospital or municipal authorities, through family members. If the registration is made online, then the process should work without glitches. They can visit the hospitals on predetermined days for inoculations. Those who are unable to travel, should be inoculated at homes. Citizens living in Homes for the Elderly, should be inoculated at their centres.

Civilian Society: The challenge will be to vaccinate the below 60 years category of citizens. They constitute the majority in most nations. This group will have to be inoculated by geographical zones. Governments have census data and voting lists of the regions. Depending on the quantum of vaccines available, they will have to prepare schedules of vaccinations by locality and communicate digitally with recipients. They can allocate time schedules for specific zones and clusters of residences.

Recording Information: Health authorities should maintain meticulous records of the contact details, names, ages of people who are inoculated.

This will also help to ensure that they return for the second jab, till we have vaccines which require just one jab. Recipients of the vaccines, should be given a document, certifying the vaccination.

Doses and Computer Modelling: A key element in inoculating the entire civilian population, will be to determine the number of doses required daily, for a plethora of vaccinating centres. The process would be akin to the demand forecasting models used by corporations, to forecast demand for a product in a geographical area.

The model would need inputs, like population, age-ranges, locations of people, indicative ratios of people coming for inoculations in surrounding neighbourhoods, transport availability, attitudes to vaccinations, etc. On the basis of these variables, health authorities can forecast the vaccine requirement by town or locality. Vaccines should be positioned at the centres, 24 hours prior to the inoculations.

Communications: Informing the time and place of the vaccination will be critical, to optimise the vaccination drive. If people squander time and

THERE WILL COME A TIME IN ABOUT TWO YEARS, WHEN VACCINES WILL BE FREELY AVAILABLE IN PHARMACIES. WE COULD THEN BUY ANY BRAND OF VACCINE AND VISIT THE FAMILY DOCTOR TO GET VACCINATED

effort to locate their vaccination centres or wait indefinitely for the jab, it will diminish productivity. Some citizens may simply return home.

Storage of Vaccines: The vaccines can be stored in the cold storages of hospitals and health clinics. The help of the private sector can be sought, for accessing their cold storage facilities.

Involve Private Sector: Governments should join forces with the private sector. Private hospitals should be permitted to vaccinate the public. Many large companies have medical facilities and doctors on their premises. They can have vaccination centres in their premises. In UAE, many companies arranged to inoculate their staff in the offices.

Organising inoculations in offices and factories should be the norm, not the exception. This will enable rapid inoculation of employees and their families.

Training Health Workers: The recruitment and training of adequate number of health workers, to inoculate citizens, will be challenging.

Even retired health workers, like doctors, nurses, etc., should pitch in.

Health workers should also be able to deal with queries.

Vaccinate Slums at Site: In vaccinating crowded slums, it would be pragmatic to establish vaccination centres on sites. Vans with refrigeration facilities could stock the vaccine. Medical staff accompanying the vans could administer the doses. Meticulous record-keeping in slums should be mandatory, due to the large numbers to be vaccinated.

Doctors and some ambulances should be present, to treat any person who has side effects.

Rural Areas: In the villages, local officials, village headmen and leaders should spearhead the vaccination drive, through public health centres. Private doctors in villages and small towns, should also contribute.

The resources of the private companies can be harnessed for accelerating vaccinations in villages. These companies have rural infrastructure of vans, promoters, warehouses, etc., which can be deployed.

Educational Institutions: Vaccination centres can also be started in the universities, colleges and schools. Parents of school children should be present, whenever kids are vaccinated.

Boost production of Vaccines: It is horrifying to see countries squabbling amongst themselves for vaccines. The focus of governments should be to provide incentives to vaccine manufacturers to boost their production exponentially. It would be provident for African countries to be self-sufficient in vaccines and establish production facilities in Nigeria or Kenya. In the current scramble for vaccines, many African countries, have been left in the lurch.

Be Ready for Future: There will come a time in about two years, when vaccines will be freely available in pharmacies. We could then buy any brand of vaccine and visit the family doctor to get vaccinated.

If there were enough vaccines being produced, we could even order them online. Pharmacy companies can pack “do-it-yourself” vaccine kits with instructions. Amazon could deliver vaccines, packed in ice packages, as they deliver chocolates in some countries. Hopefully, those days are not far away for countries in Africa.

Aneja was the Managing Director of Unilever Tanzania. He is an alumnus of Harvard Business School and the author of books entitled, “Rural Marketing across Countries and ‘Business Express’. He is a Management Consultant

BETWEEN THE HOUSE OF REPS AND NNPC Dan Aibangbe canvasses the need to focus on building institutions rather than personalities

I

n recent times, the media has been awash with the story surrounding the ‘smoking gun’ found in the centrally air-conditioned high offices of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC). The proverbial smoking gun in this case, is the purportedly unremitted 19.25 billion USD revenue from crude oil sales made way back in 2014. That is about seven years down the lane! At the initial time, the prevailing dollar exchange rate of N168 gave the resulting figure of about N3.24 trillion.

In today’s terms, at a worsened official rate of N380 to a dollar, the revised figure would come to N7.315 trillion. This amount would conveniently finance a whopping 50 percent of the highly ambitious and expansionary national budget of 2021.

The monstrosity of this figure would ordinarily explain the aggressive tenacity with which the House of Representatives’ Public Accounts Committee is seemingly pursuing the inquiry. It is pertinent to state here that this matter has been dragging since the seventh National Assembly, four GMDs ago and three Auditors-General down the line.

When this trajectory is put into proper perspective, one cannot but despair at the charade going on. The pertinent question is: how serious or effective is the National Assembly’s over-sight function, regardless of the barking? There have been similar cases of serious national questions being asked at either or both the Senate and the House of Reps about the failure of leadership surrounding the nation’s security ecosystem, for instance. At a point, the House made (what appears to many concerned Nigerians) very feeble attempts at holding the President accountable for the unpalatable security situation in the country.

Many suggested that the poor results were the outcomes of incapacity, or fatigue (not the military

clothing) or overstaying of the Service Chiefs, whom he had retained against public opinion.

This phenomenon supports the suggestion in some quarters that the oversight arm of government simply carries out its responsibilities perfunctorily or only in advancement of self-interests or both, rather than in patriotic pursuit of public interest as expected.

While the NNPC may have, in the past, suffered systemic failure occasioned by the nature of the ownership and corporate structure, l can boldly affirm that today’s NNPC and its corporate progenies are undergoing pleasant renaissance, which all patriots must commend, support and embrace.

For instance, the NNPC has become much more transparent in its accountability and responsibility to the freedom of information tenets. If you visit the NNPC portal today, you will find a lot of critical and vital information that hitherto were hidden in subterranean pandora boxes.

In fact, the NNPC as it stands today, has distinct semi-autonomous companies under the group superstructure. So, one would wonder why an oversight committee will not take advantage of this to obtain better quality information available at the group structure. Why would the committee that is keenly interested in investigating an almost belated matter be wasting further time by being only interested in focusing on the group head?

It is no news that the last investigative meeting scheduled for January 2021 was botched due to the Public Accounts Committee’s insistence on having the NNPC GMD appear in person. Thus, the business and the opportunity had to be kicked down the lane - a sheer waste of everybody’s time, official resources and an avoidable delay.

Bearing in mind that the purpose of the invitation was to shed light on ‘the failure to remit a huge amount of national revenue way back about seven years, I was at a loss as to why the session had to be postponed! Such serious matter, to my mind, does not require the biometrics of the NNPC GMD. By extension, it does not require his physical presence.

It does require the presentation of cogent documents by an authorized representative of the corporation. It requires the attendant attention of very knowledgeable senior executive. The group head may be on vacation or indisposed. That should not stall the pursuit of such critical inquiry!

The Nigerian system must necessarily deliberately start to focus on building institutions rather than personalities for the simple reason that systems are more enduring than personalities. Personalities built many impressive national assets in the past, such as rail transport, national carrier, production conglomerates, etc. Lack of supportive systems have ensured that new personalities are rebuilding these same infrastructures today!

The truth is that in reality, the job description of many top executives often require them to be at many locations at the same time (a form of playing God). It is to mitigate such challenges that proxies, agents and representatives are a standard part of everyday business. The agent or proxy is usually nominated by the Principal, but in many cases, the representation status may even be imposed without the express consent of the principal! Such circumstances may arise by necessity, co-habitation, convention or by implication.

The Attorney is acceptable as a representative of an entity in many situations. A Parent is an acceptable representative of a minor. It is for such

reasons that we have the House of Representatives in our democratic configuration of today. Each Honorable Member speaks, votes and presents the petition of their Constituents to ensure decorum and minimize the monetary and time costs of having the constituents appear in person. The usual exception to this proxy-agent representation is where biometric and personal details are required. Where an Institutional issue is in contention, I see no real reason to personalize the response.

Having the foregoing background in mind, could the honorable Representatives be engaging on an ego-trip or do they have a personal axe to grind when they insist on having specific personalities attend to their oversight sessions? Could they be operating under innocent but erroneous conception or could they be seeking to blackmail or extort the respondents?

In my private capacity, I have been privileged to witness legislative enquiries in Nigeria and elsewhere. I cannot but help to notice the wide gap in the level of civility and decorum. My impression is that in our local scenario, entrenched personal interests pervade the process. A recent example is the Public Hearing held in respect of the long-overdue Petroleum Industry Bill, where delegates from the South-South, who ordinarily should be speaking with one voice by now had to even exchange fisticuffs!

In the other example mentioned above, an invitation was extended to the President to address the Reps about the delinquent security status of the entire nation. The outcome of this episode becomes cogent once again.

Aibangbe, a Media and Public Relations Consultant, wrote from Lagos

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T H I S D AY • MONDAY, MARCH 1, 2021

EDITORIAL THE RISING CASES OF CANCER Major stakeholders could do more to stem the scourge

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n 4th February, Nigeria joined other countries to commemorate this year’s World Cancer Day, drawing attention to the growing rate of the chronic disease and the corresponding number of deaths it has caused in the country. In less than seven years, Nigeria’s burden of cancer has climbed by over 300 per cent with more people coming down with the health challenge. In 2017, the then Minister of Health, Isaac Adewole, said about 200 Nigerians lost their lives every day to the scourge, with women bearing most of the disease burden.

Although incidence of cancer has been on the increase in many regions of the world, mortality is relatively higher in less developed countries like Nigeria due to the lack of access to treatment facilities, and late diagnosis, among others. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), estimated incidences for the top five commonest types of cancers in Nigeria are: breast cancer, cervical cancer, prostate cancer, non-Hodgkin lymphoma and liver cancer in that order. These cancer types and the other less common kill about 80,000 Nigerians every year.

With data showIMPROVEMENTS IN ing that the cost of cancer treatment and PUBLIC HEALTH AND INCREASED FUNDING FOR management is not in HEALTH CARE INITIATIVES sync with the income of most Nigerians

BY GOVERNMENT, suffering from any DONOR AGENCIES, AND DEVELOPMENT PARTNERS type of the disease, the government and other ARE LIKELY TO LEAD stakeholders must put TO A DECREASE IN THE a framework in place INCIDENCE OF THIS KILLER to encourage early DISEASE diagnosis and access to affordable treatment and management. This, it is believed, would prevent late stage diagnosis as well as help those suffering from the scourge to get proper treatment or management without them worrying over who pays the bill. Recent data showed

that about 72 per cent of cancer patients in Nigeria pay out of pocket for their care; an action not in tandem with reality since many are unable to afford it. For instance, a mastectomy typically costs around N250,000—an amount far beyond the reach of most patients.

While the alarming rate of death from cancer points to the state of medical institutions in Nigeria, it is important for critical stakeholders to understand the danger the disease poses to the future of our country. It is bad enough that cancer is a terminal disease, it is worse when most Nigerian medical centres lack the diagnostic capacity to quickly detect and treat cancer infections. That should encourage discussions on how to fashion both preventive and curative solutions at all levels of the society.

I T H I S DAY EDITOR BOLAJI ADEBIYI DEPUTY EDITOR YEMI AJAYI, DAVIDSON IRIEKPEN, MANAGING DIRECTOR ENIOLA BELLO DEPUTY MANAGING DIRECTOR KAYODE KOMOLAFE CHAIRMAN EDITORIAL BOARD OLUSEGUN ADENIYI EDITOR NATION’S CAPITAL IYOBOSA UWUGIAREN MANAGING EDITOR JOSEPH USHIGIALE

T H I S DAY N E W S PA P E R S L I M I T E D EDITOR-IN-CHIEF/CHAIRMAN NDUKA OBAIGBENA GROUP EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS ENIOLA BELLO, KAYODE KOMOLAFE, ISRAEL IWEGBU, IJEOMA NWOGWUGWU, EMMANUEL EFENI DIVISIONAL DIRECTORS BOLAJI ADEBIYI, PETER IWEGBU, ANTHONY OGEDENGBE DEPUTY DIVISIONAL DIRECTOR OJOGUN VICTOR DANBOYI SNR. ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR ERIC OJEH ASSOCIATE DIRECTORS PATRICK EIMIUHI, SAHEED ADEYEMO CONTROLLERS ABIMBOLA TAIWO, UCHENNA DIBIAGWU, NDUKA MOSERI DIRECTOR, PRINTING PRODUCTION CHUKS ONWUDINJO HEAD, COMPUTER DEPARTMENT PATRICIA UBAKA-ADEKOYA

t is good the country’s healthcare system is tilting towards Universal Health Coverage (UCH) with the establishment of the Basic Health Care Provisions Fund (BHCPF) and health insurance schemes at both the national and state levels.

There is a need to inculcate cancer care into all UHC programmes since poor Nigerians cannot pay out of pocket. This framework must ensure Nigerians, irrespective of location, get unfettered access to healthcare services for diagnosis, treatment and management of cancer, while the government sets aside from the insurance pool, funding to tackle their challenges. Cancer is preventable and treatable during its early stage, and Nigerians deserve this.

We believe that the task of saving its citizens from the cancer menace remains essentially with government which has to provide both the basic facilities to combat the disease and to create the enabling environment that can facilitate the collaboration of the private sector in tackling the scourge. Increased awareness campaigns, improvements in public health and increased funding for health care initiatives - by government, donor agencies, and development partners - are all likely to lead to a decrease in the incidence of this killer disease. Nigerians themselves must also begin to imbibe the culture of regular medical check-ups so they can commence treatment of any diagnosed ailment promptly before it gets too late.

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Yakasai And Rules Of Engagement

The North And Buhari’s Dilemma

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he bulk of supporters of President Muhammadu Buhari are in northern Nigeria. He enjoys a kind of cult-like followership in the entire region. For example, in the 2015 presidential elections, the north gave him 80 percent of the 15,424,921 votes that he got, in 2019, the region did the same to him with 77 percent of the 15,191,847 votes that he got.

Before and after both the 2015 and 2019 presidential elections, expectations from the north on the president were and are still high, especially in the areas of provision of security, youth empowerment and poverty reduction. President Buhari was and is fully aware of these hopes from the core of his support base.

Such a burden gives one some sleepless nights.

To be fair to President Buhari, he has done well in the agricultural sector, provision of new infrastructure and the rehabilitation of the old ones, including the successes in the social intervention programs; especially petty cash distribution to the masses. And, in his attempt to tackle insecurity in the north, especially in the northeast, the president appointed mostly officers from northeast Nigeria to man some of the security agencies. It has worked to a large extent, but there are some areas that need improvement and some strong-willed approach to the current monster banditry in the northwest - a calculated crime that is as complex as Nigeria. Though, the president said: “We have the capacity to deploy massive force against the bandits in the villages where they operate, but our limitation is the fear of heavy casualties of innocent villagers and hostages who might be used as human shields by the bandits”.

In the area of youth empowerment and poverty reduction, may be in his wisdom to face the issue, the president appointed many seasoned northerners in many positions of authority - but in that area, it has not worked, in fact, this political-patronage strategy has failed. Most of the president’s appointees from the north have not served as a link between the president and his support base. What President Buhari should do is, to do it by himself- identify 20-30 business-people and business enthusiasts in the north and assist them directly in their area of competence or choice. Imagine the impact new billionaires would have in the business sector like new industries in the manufacturing and agricultural value chain etc. For the youth, the president should also do it by himself- by a direct contact politically, in business and in hi-tech, though, few young people have benefited from the president’s appointments but most of them were not influential and direct, like the recent appointment of Abdulrasheed Bawa as EFCC Chairman, which got massive commendation throughout the country. Come 2023, Buhari’s single most important political strategy is to bring onboard a youngster from the north as Vice President - that would be a joker card. President Buhari’s dilemmas in the north are basically three- ‘Build’ some people who can as well build thousands of others and new businesses. The president should also have direct contact with the youth - that’s to use his today for their tomorrow and his. Thirdly, the President should confront the senseless banditry in the northwest, which is not just a mere banditry.

Zayyad I. Muhammad, Jimeta Adamawa State

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alihu Tanko Yakasai also known as Dawisu, former Special Adviser to Gov. Umar Ganduje of Kano State, wanted to both defend and strike his boss. But unfortunately, in politics, one must choose to either strike or defend his boss. This is especially so in a situation where one is an appointee of government.

For, in the game of politics, one cannot be part of a government and concurrently be its critic. More so, it is against the rules of engagement in a political arrangement to go to the public to criticise the government one serves.

It is tantamount to embarrassing the government in the market square at the time of the annual Yam festival. This is irrespective of whether or not what one said is true. What matters in politics is that if one is part of a government, they must speak in its interest irrespective of whether or not they lied.

For instance, Dawisu wrote against the rising spate of kidnappings of especially boarding school students in the country.

And without mincing words, the former image maker of the Kano State governor, pointed a blaming finger at the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), of which he is member for failing to secure the lives and properties of Nigerians.

And even the deaf and blind knows that the country is in a serious security crisis where virtually everyone is potentially an abductee. Apparently therefore, Dawisu said the truth which is like the proverbial double-edged sword that can hurt both the person attacked and the attacker.

He therefore paid a solemn price for his courage to air it.

At first, he was picked up by yet unidentified men and later he was sacked by his boss, Gov. Ganduje. But this is not the first time Dawisu had a problem like this with his erstwhile principal. In October last year, he criticised the President, and Ganduje swiftly responded by suspending him. Therefore, the skirmish between Dawisu and his now former boss is not entirely new.

Mukhtar Jarmajo, Bauchi

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MONDAY MARCH 1, 2021 • T H I S D AY

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T H I S D AY ˾ MONDAY MARCH 1, 2021

Group Politics Editor NSEOBONG OKON-EKONG

POLITICS

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

M O N D AY D I S C O U R S E

Inherent Issues, Intrigues and Permutations of APC Registration

Adedayo Akinwale writes on intrigues and permutations generated by the recent extension of the ongoing registration and revalidation exercise of the All Progressives Congress ahead of the 2023 national elections

Buhari

Buni

Tinubu

Akande

D

parties in merger that formed the APC suspects that there is more to the membership drive than meets the eye. The ACN bloc within the APC is controlled by Tinubu, who reasons that the primary objective of the membership drive is aimed at reducing his influence in the party.

Justifying the revalidation and registration exercise, Buni insists that it is a constitutional provision and a strategic measure by the committee to give existing and new members a sense of belonging.

A statement by his Director-General, Press and Media Affairs, Mr. Mamman Mohammed, explains that the registration and revalidation exercise will assist the party to generate a valid, accurate and up-to-date data on party membership to enhance and support its planning process.

He argued that since the initial exercise in 2014, the party has not registered new members nor updated the personal information of existing members as provided in its constitution.

Buni added: “The registration exercise gives our new members a sense of belonging and the existing members will update their information while those who left the party will have their names removed from the party register.”

membership in his hometown, Ila Orangun, Osun state, also declared the National Caretaker and Extraordinary Convention Committee led by Buni as an abnormality.

The former Osun state governor warned that the next national elections that would elect a successor to President Buhari was going to be the most important test of the ongoing APC membership registration and whatever structure was being envisaged to be imposed on it.

Akande stated, “The first is that, in normal circumstances, a Caretaker Executive Committee for a political party is an abnormality. If not carefully controlled and expeditiously managed, most aberrant authorities end up in contempt and disgrace.” He noted that APC leadership might be “wasteful and unappreciative” of the proper use of money in a kind of scanty economy in which Nigeria now finds itself.

Akande added, “These seeming ugly perceptions put into abeyance the applause of the two national election successes that the original APC register enjoyed since its completion on 15th February, 2014 and the over one billion Naira of 2014 value that the original register cost when APC had no money of its own.”

time of the registration of this party, I will not fault Baba Akande’s position; I will not, but endorse it,” he said after being registered.

“What we are doing now is a matter of addition and subtraction, free entry and free exit.

You have joined a particular party; you have decided to leave that party. You have equal opportunity for new members to join and update the existing register of the party.”

ACN Bloc Knocks Exercise Following the commencement of the exercise, a former Interim National Chairman of the party, Chief Bisi Akande, described the exercise as an indefensible aberration leading to certain ugly perceptions. Akande’s comment was the first time Tinubu’s camp came out forcefully to condemn the exercise.

The party chieftain who revalidated his

Tinubu Faults Exercise After revalidating his membership, Tinubu said he hasn’t heard of a situation where the party’s register submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) at the time of APC registration has been invalidated.

He stated, “Since we have a foundation and that foundation supports the structure of the party up till the present and it was built at the

espite the fierce opposition to the ongoing membership registration and revalidation exercise by the All Progressives Congress (APC) by mostly party chieftains loyal to the National Leader of the party, Senator Bola Tinubu, the exercise commenced on schedule on February 9, 2020, with a flag-off in Daura, Katsina State by President Muhammadu Buhari.

The National Caretaker and Extraordinary Convention Committee of the All Progressives Congress (APC) led by the Governor of Yobe state, Mai Mala Buni, had sought tenure extension last December from the National Executive Committee (NEC), to conduct the exercise.

Though the conduct of registration and revalidation exercise was not part of the mandate of the committee, the request was granted by the NEC and its tenure which was supposed to end last December was extended.

The tenure extension which was totally supported by the APC governors is believed to be part of the strategy to ensure that the governors tighten their grip on the party structure and to whittle down the influence of the National Leader of the party.

This, political analysts, say will help the governors to decide who gets what in the party and also protect their interest as the 2023 national elections beckon. The seeming inability of President Muhammadu Buhari to take charge of the party and has given so much latitude to the APC governors to have a firm control of the party.

The Caretaker committee came into being on June 25, 2020 following the sack of Adams Oshiomhole-led National Working Committee (NWC) and was given six months to conduct National Convention for the party and also reconcile aggrieved party members.

Few months into its existence, the Caretaker Committee has been able to steady the once troubled ship of the party and also reconciled party chieftains and even factionalised state chapters. The Buni-committee recently reconciled former Governor of Zamfara State, Abdulaziz Yari and Senator Kabiru Marafa.

The supremacy battle between the duo in Zamfara State resulted in one of the most devastating losses suffered by the APC in the 2019 national elections. The ruling party lost all the elective positions in the state to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). And even after that fatal blow, the fight between Yari and Marafa and their various supporters continued unabated, before it was finally put to rest.

APC Membership Drive The ongoing membership drive of the party didn’t commence without opposition. The Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) bloc, one of the

The PDP spokesperson, Mr. Kola Ologbondiyan, stated the party’s position. He said Nigerians are already aware that the purpose of the APC membership revalidation exercise is to produce inflated membership figures to assist the APC to allocate fictitious votes to itself in the 2023 elections; a scheme that is dead on arrival. According to him, Moreover, no Nigerian would want to join a party of fraudsters, manipulators, political bandits and liars, which has ruined our country and expended its goodwill on the altar of violence, deception and insensitivity to the needs of the people. On the extension of exercise, the main opposition party said the three weeks extension would not change the public rejection that greeted the exercise and the APC as a party

Oshiomhole’s Breaks Silence The immediate past National Chairman of APC, Mr. Adams Oshiomhole, faulted the exercise, saying it was contrary to the party’s constitution.

Oshiomhole, shortly after revalidating his membership of the party at Unit 1, Ward 10, Iyamho, Etsako West Local Government of Edo State, said there is nowhere in the party’s constitution that says a member must revalidate its membership.

He stated, “APC is governed by a constitution and not by man, the constitution only provides for registration and I registered as a member of the APC in 2014 under the Interim National Chairman, Chief Bisi Akande.

“There is nothing in the APC constitution that says a member shall revalidate or renew its membership. Once you register when you joined the party and you have not decamped, you are a member. So, revalidation is strange to our constitution.I have only done this because I want peace to reign but in doing this, we have to be careful not to create constitutional breach.”

Oshiomhole pointed out that between 2015 and now, people have exited the party and others have joined while some have died, adding that it makes sense to review the register so that those who have decamped to APC will be registered while those who have left would be deleted.

He added, “If you ask me, as a foundation member, who has never decamped, to revalidate my membership, it is double registration because there is nothing like revalidation in our constitution. By asking me to revalidate my membership, it means I was not a member when I never left the party. I think the correct language should be either reviewing or updating because it makes sense to review voters’ register due to the new members that have joined or those that have exited.”

Fayemi’s verdict The Governor of Ekiti State, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, after revalidating his membership at Ogilolo Ward 11 Unit 09, Ekiti State, disagreed with Tinubu, Akande and Oshiomhole, saying the exercise was backed by Article 9 of the party’s constitution. He was of the view that the reason for the exercise was for the party to know all its members and not deregister them.

T H I S D AY ˾ MONDAY MARCH 1, 2021

18

MONDAY DISCOURSE

Al-Makura

Yari

Fayemi

Oyetola

Fayemi said, “The APC Constitution in Article 9 stipulates that our register must be updated every six months. So, Baba Akande never said we should not register or revalidate our membership. He only tasked the leadership on the way it should be done to earn credibility.

“We don’t want to deregister anybody, let members revalidate their membership, and those who are non-members but interested should also feel free to join us, that is what the exercise is all about.”

our party. Our members now have a say in whoever becomes a flag bearer either at the party level or in government.

“Though the Constitution allows everyone to register as a member of any political party, even if they are suspects, murderers, character assassinators etc, but those who constitute the majority of the party membership must represent the core values of the party. What distinguishes us in APC are the values we hold.

We value social democracy, to a large extent liberal democracy and progressivism.”

“There must be a clear distinction between jolly good fellows and fair-weather friends who will still leave our party when they sense a better opportunity elsewhere. In associating with individuals, who you are, your character and world view must come to play.

“More importantly, we must honour the memory of our father, Chief Bola Ige and what he stood for which includes compassion, commitment to the good of the majority and ideas that will bring good life, happiness, progress and security for the people,” he said.

he went to assess preparations towards the registration exercise .

A party source, who also witnessed the incident but pleaded anonymity said, “While the training was ongoing at a hotel at GRA, Gboko, a group of people stormed the venue and demanded to know how the adhoc staff were selected. The development led to a heated argument and a confrontation that degenerated into a free for all which invariably resulted in the death of the ward chairman.”

Another party source, who does not want his name in print also said that the future is not so bright for the party if issues including arbitrary and unconstitutional suspension of members, and scheming out some foundation members are allowed to continue.

The source alleged that some leaders are running the party like a cult group while members are expected to follow sheepishly.

Confirming the incident, the state APC Caretaker Publicity Secretary, James Orgunga, said, “Yes, the Gboko South ward council chairman, Tersoo Ahu, was killed. They were around for the training for the forthcoming registration and then, some people just came and hacked him (Ahu) down and he died, that is the information I have for now.”

able to agree on a workable method to move the party forward.

“So, I hope that going forward we won’t have to come here. They should be able to resolve their issues back home. So, I believe APC in Delta State is now intact and I also believe APC in Delta state will grow bigger.”

Issues Arising From Membership Drive Nevertheless, despite several assurances by the leadership of the party that the exercise would not be hijacked, recent events in some state chapters of the party revealed that the membership drive is now being used to settle old scores and to ease some members out of the ruling party.

In some states, the entry of some individuals into the APC has further polarised the party. It appears another round of reconciliation is in the offing after the exercise might have ended considering the crisis it has created.

The Disharmony in Kwara APC Things are no longer at ease in the Kwara State Chapter of the APC. The calm political waters of the party is troubled At the moment, there is no peace in sight.

While the exercise was peaceful in Kastina, it was a free-for-all in Kwara state when supporters of rival APC factions clashed at a meeting called ahead of the exercise. The violence erupted at the Banquet Hall of Government House.

The APC registration and revalidation Committee called the meeting to ensure a smooth registration exercise amid the protracted crisis in the APC Kwara State which worsened after the removal of Mr. Bashir Bolarinwa as the party chairman.

Bolarinwa was recently removed by the caretaker committee of the party and replaced with Abdullahi Samari.

The development was a fallout of an enduring supremacy battle between Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq and a group of party leaders led by the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed and Minister of State for Transportation, Senator Gbemisola Saraki.

Though the national leadership of the party asked North-central leaders of the party to intervene, the political waters of the APC in the state remains unsettled. When it became glaring that the exercise was not in his favour and may have reduced his significance in the state chapter of the party, Mohammed recently called for the cancellation of the exercise.

Oyetola’s Delight in Omisore’s Defection and Aregbesola’s Concerns The ongoing exercise has again resonated the supremacy battle between a former Osun State governor who is now Minister of Internal Affairs, Rauf Argbesola and his successor, Gboyega Oyetola.

Following the recent defection of a former Deputy Governor of Osun State, Iyiola Omisore, from the Social Democratic Party (SDP) to the APC, Aregbesola raised concerns about the admission of new members into the ruling party, after the revalidation of his APC membership at Ifofin, Ward 8, Ilesa East Local Government Area, Ilesa, Osun State.

It appears that the defection of Omisore to APC was not supported by many leaders of the ruling party, which may have influenced the statement made by Aregbesola, He stated, “This registration affords us the opportunity to deepen internal democracy in

Oyetola’s Reaction In spite of the concerns raised by Aregbesola, Oyetola described Omisore’s defection as a historic feat that has seen the party landing a big fish.

He said, “Indeed, this is a historic moment for the APC nationally and especially in the State of Osun. When he decided to support us at the gubernatorial election re-run in 2018, to many, it was like a shot out of blue.

However, what a lot of people didn’t know was that Otunba Omisore and I have had an enduring relationship of almost three decades.

“So, the choice of who to support at the rerun wasn’t a chore because he knew who and what he was investing his trust in. With this defection, our long-standing courtship has now been consummated and we are certain that it will yield rewarding political fruits in Osun.

“His supporters have followed him into the party and what we have now is a fusion of the two parties. So, this is indeed historic.”

Benue APC Crisis Lingers Initially, there were several unresolved issues in some local government chapters of the party in Benue State. The lingering crisis in these local government chapters have continually defied logic and reconciliation. Some of the affected local government areas include, Gboko, Ushongo, Guma and Konshisha.

However, the lingering crisis assumed another dimension when the party’s caretaker chairman in Gboko South Local Government Area ward, Tersoo Ahu, was killed recently.

Ahu was killed by some hoodlums when

Delta APC Crisis and Party Leadership Intervention The Delta State Chapter of APC has been embroiled in a leadership crisis with different factions arising from the camps of the Deputy Senate President, Ovie Omo-Agege, the Minister of State, Labour, Mr. Festus Keyamo and Chief Great Ogboru.

So, when the exercise commenced in the state, Keyamo raised the alarm raised that the state Chairman of the party, Mr. Jones Erue, was plotting to influence the exercise.

The alarm raised by Keyamo in a letter addressed to the party forced the Governor of Niger State and the Chairman of the Membership Revalidation and Registration Committee, Abubakar Bello, to have a closed door meeting with aggrieved party chieftains from Delta state over the ongoing registration exercise.

The meeting was attended by Keyamo, Ogboru, former governorship aspirant, Chief Otega Emerhor, former House of Representatives member, Halim Agoda and the State Chairman of the party, Prophet Jones Erue.

Bello, while briefing journalists after the meeting said they were able to agree on a workable method to move the party forward.

He added, “Well, I think we had a wonderful meeting. It is not unusual in a political process to have differences in opinions and what have you. So, Delta State is a very important state for us in the South-south and we have been

Despite several assurances by the leadership of the party that the exercise would not be hijacked, recent events in some state chapters of the party revealed that the membership drive is now being used to settle old scores and to ease some members out of the ruling party. In some states, the entry of some individuals into the APC has further polarised the party. It appears another round of reconciliation is in the offing after the exercise might have ended considering the crisis it has created

APC Extends Exercise The initial hiccups did little or nothing as the ruling party extended the exercise by three weeks.

The National Secretary of the Caretaker/ Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee, Sen. John Akpanudoedehe, gave reasons for the extension. He said the party was responding to the demands across the states for an extension to allow all prospective members.

Akpanudoedehe noted that biases in some sections might have been used to rubbish the good works of the President Muhammadu Buhari administration, but the strong, impressive response of the public in the ongoing registration exercise has spoken the true mind of Nigerians and has put paid to the false narratives of party’s critics, cynics and the opposition.

The secretary noted that the party had received a nationwide acknowledgement of the increasing popularity of the APC, and most especially in states that are being governed by the opposition party.

He said, “In response to the demands across the states for an extension to allow accommodation of all prospective members, the party has therefore extended the nationwide membership registration exercise by a period of three weeks.”

PDP Mocks APC The PDP said the Akande outburst has further confirmed revelations that the so-called APC membership revalidation and registration is a huge scam designed to allot fictitious figures and inflate the APC membership register.

The PDP spokesperson, Mr. Kola Ologbondiyan, stated the party’s position. He said Nigerians are already aware that the purpose of the APC membership revalidation exercise is to produce inflated membership figures to assist the APC to allocate fictitious votes to itself in the 2023 elections; a scheme that is dead on arrival.

According to him, Moreover, no Nigerian would want to join a party of fraudsters, manipulators, political bandits and liars, which has ruined our country and expended its goodwill on the altar of violence, deception and insensitivity to the needs of the people.

On the extension of exercise, the main opposition party said the three weeks extension would not change the public rejection that greeted the exercise and the APC as a party.

The PDP further mocked the APC for “becoming stuck with its exercise following serious confusion and violent disagreements in their fold after their plot to announce humongous fictitious figures and presenting a heavily padded membership register was busted.”

“Our party is already aware of the confusion in the APC after a genuine report from the field indicated a huge reduction in APC membership profile, given that more than half of its members across the federation refused to revalidate their membership while most regular Nigerians who they approached, responded with vehement apathy.”

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

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T H I S D AY ˾ MONDAY MARCH 1, 2021

POLITICS

Why Akeredolu is in a Hurry to Succeed Nseobong Okon-Ekong writes that Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu of Ondo State has made good his second term inaugural resolve to confront all challenges without leaving any behind, a couple of hours after he was sworn in

A

ll over over Ondo State, famously called the ‘Sunshine State’, post swearing-in jubilations and merriments are still enduring in the 18 local government areas as indigenes, particularly, APC supporters relish the victorious moments as well as the expectant dividends of the second coming of Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu.

The joy in the hearts of the people, knows no bounds.

The inauguration ceremony on the 24th of February held at the International Center For Culture and Event Centre (The DOME), and was attended by dignitaries across the country which included the National leaders of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Chief Bisi Akande, former senate president, Ken Nnamani, Senator Iyiola Omisore, among others.

Governors in attendance were Ekiti State Governor, Dr Kayode Fayemi, Lagos State Governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Osun state Governor, Mr Gboyega Oyetola, Ogun State Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun and the Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki.

Governor Akeredolu in his speech, assured that his administration will not depart from the trodden path which has earned him affection and deep reverence from the citizenry.

While noting that he came on board with the resolve to confront all challenges without leaving any behind, Governor Akeredolu said even though his administration is yet to reach the set goals, he was confident that his administration is on the right path.

The Governor assured that he will continue, with more vigour, to justify the trust earned by his administration, adding that his second term is not for relaxation.

He stressed that the COVID-19 pandemic has had a deleterious effect on the global economy, predicting that may get worse as loss of jobs has been on a frightening scale.

“Production of goods and services has plummeted. Our national economy is in recession.

Ingenuity, resourcefulness, courage and hard work will be the needed virtues for survival in the days ahead.”

Governor Akeredolu disclosed that his administration intends to focus on agriculture and youth empowerment through entrepreneurship.

Perhaps, the highpoint of policy twist was the disclosure by the governor that he was rejigging his administration’s programmes.

He said he has painstakingly reviewed JMPPR which guided his activities in the first term.

JMPPR is an acronyms for; J- Job creation through Agriculture, Entrepreneurship and Industrialisation; M- Massive Infrastructural Development and Maintenance; P- Promotion of Functional Education and Technological Growth; P- Provision of Accessible and Qualitative Health Care; and Social Service Delivery; R- Rural Development and Community Extension Services.

He noted that a lot of dynamics have come into play since he took over the reins of governance in 2017, identifying security challenges and the need to place more emphasis on energy as part of the reasons for the review.

“I wish to state that we have been reviewing these programmes since our victory at the last election with a view to achieving more improvement in service delivery.

Thus in the next four years, we will be pursuing a totally repackaged programme christened REDEEMED. R-Rural and Agricultural Development; E-Educational Advancement and Human Capital Development; D-Development through Massive Infrastructure; E-Efficient Service Delivery, Development and Policy Implementation; E-Effective Healthcare and social welfare Services; M-Maintenance of Law and Order for Adequate Security; E-Energy, Mining and Sustainable Industries; D-Digital Revolution and Entrepreneurship.”

The Governor reeled out the achievements recorded by his administration in the three senatorial districts of the state while assuring that the ongoing projects will be completed soon.

Akeredolu He thanked President Muhammadu Buhari for his support and the national leaders of the party among several others.

True to type, on Thursday 25th, exactly 24 hours inauguration, Governor commissioned a state-of-the-art molecular laboratory and Public Health Laboratory in Akure as part of his efforts to improve the testing capacity on COVID-19 in the state.

The Governor named the commissioned building after the late Commissioner for Health, Dr Wahab Adegbenro.

He described the late Health Commissioner as a dogged fighter, stressing that naming the building after him will keep him in the good memory of the state for life.

Governor Akeredolu who identified a low capacity of testing due to the unavailability of functional and accredited laboratories to run highly technical tests described the newly commissioned building as a great asset to the state.

“At the outset of the outbreak, COVID-19 samples in Ondo State were taken to Ede in Osun State with an attendant delay of several days. Later, the Federal Medical Centre, Owo was accredited which only slightly improved the system. Consequently, our administration resolved to address this situation head-on by establishing additional laboratory.“ The Governor reiterated that the COVID-19 pandemic remains an existential threat to all

humanity, assuring that his administration will continue to advocate that members of the public exercise a high sense of responsibility by adhering strictly to all laid down protocols and guidelines.

He appreciated partners who had assisted the state in the fight against COVID-19 since its outbreak, particularly; the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), the World Health Organization (WHO), the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF), the Nigeria Cross and several other groups, corporate bodies and individuals.

Twenty-four hours after the bold step in the health sector, Governor Akeredolu officially commissioned the 16.75Km Akure-Idanre Road with a spur to Oke-Iya and Igisogba roads. Governor Akeredolu who described the project as a novel one.

“To put the records straight, what has transformed into a world-class infrastructure before our very eyes today used to be a footpath between Akure and Idanre, accessible only during the dry seasons.

“This project that is being commissioned is providing a new lease of life for our people by increasing the value of the adjoining property, increasing their disposable income by way of reduction in the wear and tear of our vehicles, reducing the travel time and accessibility to the city centre of Akure because the Oba Osupa Road – Hospital Road- Ijoka Road, when

He noted that a lot of dynamics have come into play since he took over the reins of governance in 2017, identifying security challenges and the need to place more emphasis on energy as part of the reasons for the review. I wish to state that we have been reviewing these programmes since our victory at the last election with a view to achieving more improvement in service delivery. Thus in the next four years, we will be pursuing a totally repackaged programme christened REDEEMED. R-Rural and Agricultural Development; E-Educational Advancement and Human Capital Development; D-Development through Massive Infrastructure; E-Efficient Service Delivery, Development and Policy Implementation; E-Effective Healthcare and social welfare Services; M-Maintenance of Law and Order for Adequate Security; E-Energy, Mining and Sustainable Industries; D-Digital Revolution and Entrepreneurship

completed would be connected to this road.

“This road project is laced with functional hydraulic structures like 600mm x 600mm lined drains, culverts, with a solid stone-based base course, 50mm thick layer wearing course. We are not unaware that traffic from the Akure – Idanre and vice versa would be diverted here and that is why we have designed and constructed a road that would be able to withstand the axle load pressures of worst conditions.“ The immediate past Special Adviser on Works, Land and Infrastructure, Engr. Raimi Aminu explained that the road was constructed to specifications.

He said the road has 500 meters spur to OkeIya and 500 meters spur to Igisogba making the total length of the road 16.75 km.

In his remarks, the acting chairman of the APC in the state, Engr. Ade Adetimehin, an indigene of Idanre, appreciated Governor Akeredolu for his love for the people of Idanre, adding that the Governor had earlier commissioned a 7.5km township road within the first 100 days of his administration in 2017.

The Owa of the Idanre kingdom, His Royal Majesty Oba Fredrick Adegunle Aroloye also thanked Governor Akeredolu for fulfilling his promise to the people of the hilly town.

Governor Akeredolu’s journey to February 24 was not without hiccups, after all. He survived traps, political land mines and even the unusual.

First, the governor, who was reportedly suspended by the national leadership of the APC got reprieve when he was given a clean bill of health by the Mai Mala Buni led national working committee that he had no issue relating to suspension.

Clearly, opposition elements within the APC had been buoyed by the unconfirmed suspension of Governor Akeredolu to heighten their onslaught, especially within the now disbanded Unity Forum that was led by former Deputy Governor, Ali Olanusi and oiled by Senator Ajayi Borofice. It was also reported that the embattled deputy governor, Ajayi, found solace in the alleged suspension to lubricate his ambition to supplant Akeredolu.

However, as political pundits would say, there is no permanent enemy, nor friend in politics. The once vociferous and dreaded Unity Forum rallied round Akeredolu a few days after the governorship primary following an unusual diplomatic shuttle by the governor.

Governor Akeredolu even enlisted the help of APC national leader, Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu to rein all supposedly aggrieved party leaders to back Akeredolu ahead of the election.

The likes of Chief Olusola Oke, SAN, Ambassador Sola Iji, Engr Ife Oyedele and many others, took the Aketi battle as their personal project and decimated the south, especially of all of anti-Akeredolu remnants.

Another fearful scenario Akeredolu survived was his ill-health in late 2019 when he was away for almost three months. His return to base after about three weeks of rest in Abuja, rather than easing tension, exasperated it as the state was sharply divided into the Aketi/Ajayi camps.

The fear of Ajayi, touted as a very crafty grassroots politician dumping the APC was most palpable. But it finally happened after several denials to that effect when the then deputy governor dumped Akeredolu and APC for the PDP. The nation waited in animated breath, a repeat of the Ajasin/Omoboriowo scenario in Ondo as a straight contest between Akeredolu and Ajayi brewed. It did not because the then deputy governor lost the governorship primary to Jegede.

Although the development was seen as a reprieve for the APC, the decision of Ajayi to align with the former governor, Olusegun Mimiko-led ZLP opened a fresh chapter of tension and apprehensions all over. For one, Ajayi’s touted force in the southern senatorial district had remained untainted even as Mimiko’s legendary political maneuverings were frightening.

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MONDAY MARCH 1, 2021 • T H I S D AY

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T H I S D AY ˾ ͯ˜ 2021

BUSINESSWORLD

Group Business Editor Obinna Chima

Email obinna.chima@thisdaylive.com 08152447875

Ͱ ʹ ˜ Ͱ ͮ Ͱ ͯ MONEY MARKET OVERNIGHT OBB

REPO 6.33 5.67

CALL 1-MONTH 3-MONTH

4.75 6.25 7

S & P INDEX INDEX LEVEL 1-DAY MONTH-TO-DATE

562.51% 0.01% - 5.65%

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

- 16.08% - 16.08%

EXCHANGE RATE N379/1US DOLLAR* ̩

Quick Takes ‘No Oil Spill at Abiteye, Utonana Fields’

NEW ARRIVAL

L-R: Group Managing Director, Access Bank, Mr. Herbert Wigwe; Governor, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr. Godwin Emefiele; Aviation Minister, Senator Hadi Sirika; Managing Director, Allied Air, Cat. Val Tongo and Director General, Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, Capt. Musa Nuhu, during arrival of the newly acquired B737-800SF Aircraft in Abuja...recently

Chevron Nigeria Limited (CNL) has refuted claims by Benikrukru communities in Warri South West Local Government Area of Delta State of an alleged oil spill threatening their livelihood.

General Manager, Policy, Government and Public Affairs, Mr. Esimaje Brikinn in a statement, said the company’s investigation carried out on the claim showed there was no spill in the flow stations.

“Chevron Nigeria Limited (CNL), operator of the joint venture between the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and CNL, is aware of a media report alleging an oil spill from its Abiteye and Utonana fields around Benikrukru community in CNL’s Western Operations, Warri South West Local Government Area of Delta State.

“CNL has investigated and continues to surveil its assets in the Abiteye Field including the 16” Makaraba-Utonana-Abiteye Right of Way (ROW) and confirms that there has not been any oil spill from its Assets in Abiteye and Utonana fields.

“CNL surveillance programme is an ongoing exercise engrained in our processes and no spill has been sighted from our Assets in Abiteye and Utonana Fields,” the statement read.

Hero Brand Unveils New Campaign

CBN Calls for Greater Policy Coordination to Support Economic Recovery Obinna Chima The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has called for greater policy coordination and synchronisation of efforts to enhance economic growth in the country.

The Deputy Governor, Operations Directorate, CBN, Mr. Edward Adamu, made this call in his personal statement at the January 2020 Monetary Policy Committee Meeting, a copy of which was obtained at the weekend.

“To be clear, I view policy coordination across economic management institutions at the federal level as essential as response coordination across the tiers of government,” he said.

In his contribution, Adamu, stated that data presented highlighted some important downside risks, which included insecurity and rising inflation, especially food. Among other consequences, he pointed out that inflation beyond a certain threshold could undermine the output recovery gains.

Yet, to effectively address inflation, its origin and character must be well understood, the

ECONOMY CBN Deputy Governor said.

“Among others, I could see the dominant influence of high production cost and distribution bottlenecks in the current inflation dynamics.

“Of course, the effect of the easy stance of monetary policy cannot be completely discounted. However, given that food prices have remained the major driver of the overall domestic price pressure, the role of money can be assumed to be minimal. As such, the correct policy-mix must continue to include a focus on alleviating supply from both production and distribution sides,” he said.

He noted essentially, there is no one policy instrument that can mitigate all the risks in the horizon.

On her part, the Deputy Governor, Financial System Stability, CBN, Mrs. Aishah Ahmad, noted that notwithstanding the positive outlook for the banking sector, the CBN must remain vigilant given the uncertain macro environment.

According to her, the CBN would continue to monitor risks and vulnerabilities in the economy and their impact on financial system stability.

“In this respect, it should continue monitoring restructured and unrestructured industry loan portfolios, sustain dynamic stress testing and ensure banks build operational resilience by strengthening their cyber defenses and business continuity planning.

“Consolidating the industry’s earnings profile will also be critical to grow capital buffers; which will be important to enable it to manage likely financial and macroeconomic headwinds,” she explained.

Ahmad noted that rising prices coupled with negative/low growth was a serious challenge confronting monetary policy in Nigeria and many African countries.

She pointed out that structural, long term policy initiatives to diversify the economy remains critical, saying that containing the pandemic immediately would be paramount to economic resilience and recovery.

“Thus, a proactive and coordinated vaccine procurement and distribution strategy is required to improve business sentiment and promote a positive macro-economic outlook. “Policy priorities must also include continued financial support to sectors most impacted by the pandemic and those most fundamental to recovery,” she added.

In his contribution, the Deputy Governor, Economic Policy Directorate, CBN, Dr. Kingsley Obiora, said the banking system has also maintained its stability and resilience during this crisis.

He disclosed that total gross credit rose to N20.48 trillion in December 2020, an increase from N19.72 trillion in November 2020 and from N17.57 trillion in the corresponding period of 2019.

Also, non-performing loans (NPLs) stood at 6.01 per cent in December 2020, compared to 6.06 per cent in the corresponding period of 2019. This, he said reflected strengthening of risk management practices, the Global Standing Instruction Continued on page 24

FG Mulls Policy to Earmark Procurement Contracts for Women James Emejo in Abuja The Minister of State for Industry, Trade and Investment, Mrs. Mariam Katagum, has said that the federal government is currently working on a policy that will earmark a certain percentage of public procurement for women owned businesses.

She also said all MSME groups and individuals would be granted level playing ground to apply and access government funding initiatives, particularly the MSME Survival Fund.

The minister spoke while she received the executive committee members of the NECA’s Network of Entrepreneurial Women (NNEW) Abuja, led by its

ECONOMY Chairperson, Mrs. Amina Zanna Ibrahim, on a courtesy visit to her over the weekend.

Katagum said: “Disabuse your minds about government contracts. We have this initiative that is going on about procurement processes for women.

“We are trying to take it at a policy level so that all these procurement processes will at least, try to earmark a certain percentage for women owned businesses.

“But we have to take it at the policy level because the men who are taking all the contracts

will not want you to come and compete with them.”

However, the minister assured the women that the proposed framework will ensure that female entrepreneurs get a share of procurement contracts going forward.

She added that already, the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC) is currently working to ensure that women are considered in future procurement.

The minister also assured that all government’s funding interventions, particularly the MSME Survival Fund scheme, which was created to ameliorate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on small business,

will be administered on a level playing ground so all applicants can get equal opportunities.

Katagum added that she will consider it a major, if applicant are able to access the funds on merits and without intermediaries or any kind of influence.

She said: “When we first started this MSME Survival Fund, I told the vice president that I would think I am successful by the number of people that would say, they didn’t know anybody or they heard this on the radio, or their friends told them or they saw it on the TV-and they applied and they got it.

Hero, has launched a new campaign, tagged ‘Aha Gi Efula’. Aha Gi Efula which means ‘May your name never be forgotten’ speaks to the importance of one’s name, personal identity, and leaving a legacy.

The nationwide campaign seeks to inspire Hero’s teeming consumers to aspire to great heights—and in doing so—etch their names in the memory of humanity. It is premised on the belief that a name holds intrinsic value and embodies a person’s identity.

Hero is one of the leading products of International Breweries Plc, a proud part of Anheuser Bausch InBev (AB InBev), the world’s largest brewer with more than 400 beer brands.

According to Marketing Manager, Hero, Margaret Igabali, having established itself as a brand that is rooted in culture and tradition since its emergence on the Nigerian consumer market scene in 2012, Hero is going one step further to spur Nigerians to not just dream and envision a brighter future but to work assiduously towards it in the belief that their name will never be forgotten.

“Hero has always showcased the colourful cultures and traditions that define Nigerians as a people because we realise they are what makes us unique.

“In particular, the people of the south-east have embraced the brand, employing sobriquets such as ‘Pride of the East’ and ‘Ompa’ (which translates to “My father”) to describe their affinity towards the beer.

And this time around, Hero is inspiring consumers to live up to their name and live a lasting legacy with the Aha Gi Efula campaign,” she noted.

Aha Gi Efula is a prayer and a declaration and tells the story of heroes gone past who succeeded despite the challenges they faced.

It represents hope, inspiration, and an unwavering conviction that a person’s legacy will endure through the years and serve as a point of reference for others long after they are gone.

Trader Wins N10m in Lotto

A trader in Bauchi state, Rabiu Ibrahim has become the winner of the first ever N10 million EasyWin lotto jackpot.

At the presentation of cheque to the winner in Lagos, Ibrahim declared that EasyWin Lotto is indeed a life changing experience because fortune has smiled on him more than imagined and faster than expected.

He said the feat would help to enhance his phone accessories business and investment in other areas.

The 31-year old Ibrahim could not hold back tears of joy, when he was informed of his winning ticket.

The excitement attracted people in his locality of Katagum. Ibrahim holds a diploma from Abubakar Ali Tatari Polytechnic,Bauchi.

According the Easywin Lotto City Manager, AdewaleAloyinlapa, the company will continue to lead in the lottery business because most people see us as reliable and their winnings are redeemable without issues.

Adewale also stated that EasyWin lotto could be played by anyone above the age of 18 via different ways.

“COVID-19 is still not gone.

The only people who are travelling now are people who travel for business. People don’t travel for leisure and tourism, which means that passenger traffic is low” CEO of Aglo Limited,

Continued on page 24

Tayo Ojuri

24

T H I S D AY ˾ ͯ˜ ͰͮͰͯ

BUSINESSWORLD CBN CALLS FOR GREATER POLICY COORDINATION TO SUPPORT ECONOMIC RECOVERY (GSI) policy and regulatory forbearance that had allowed banks to restructure credits impacted by COVID-19.

“But even as the domestic economy begins to recover, imbalances remain. COVID-19 infections have resurged, with 123,000 confirmed cases and 1,500 deaths.

“Inflation pressure has also persisted, as headline inflation increased to 15.75 percent in December 2020 from 14.89 percent in November 2020 and is at its highest level since December 2017. The upward pressure has been largely driven by food inflation, which rose to 19.56 percent in December 2020 from 18.30 percent in November 2020.

“This appears to be attributable to structural factors arising from disruptions to supply chains, insecurity in food producing areas of the country, infrastructural deficiencies and increases in both the pump price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) and electricity tariffs. Such inflationary pressures emphasise the critical,” he added.

FG MULLS POLICY TO EARMARK PROCUREMENT CONTRACTS FOR WOMEN

“And we’ve got quite a lot of testimonies of people who even said their friends told them to apply and they said leave me alone; and then suddenly, they saw that their friends got it.”

She however, promised that her ministry will work with the group towards realising a common objective to advance the interest of women owned enterprises at all times.

Earlier, Ibrahim had conveyed the women’s visit to the minister, seeking for better collaboration to better collaboration with the ministry.

To group, among other things, sought to partner with the ministry in the areas of information on government’s interventions that could benefit women as well as capacity building.

NEWS

Soludo: Consolidation Enhanced Bank Lending David-Chyddy Eleke in Awka Former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Prof.

Chukwuma Soludo has said the bank sector consolidation initiated under his leadership at the regulatory institution in 2005 made it possible for banks in Nigeria to be able to give out loans to businessmen and other group of people in need of funds.

Soludo stated this during an interactive session with journalists in Awka, Anambra State capital, to intimate them of his aspiration to govern the state.

He said, “Anyone who can go to any bank in Nigeria to borrow N5 million owes it first to God, then to myself, through the bank consolidation exercise we did.

“In Nigeria then, all the 89 banks were worth very little, such that you can hardly approach them for loan. The entire capital base of all the banks was not worth the capital base of one bank in the United States, but we decided that, that must change.

“When I told then President, Olusegun Obasanjo, that we can do it, he doubted. He said he does not have the power to fight with ‘these bank people’, but I assured him we can not only do it, but also with 18 months (within his tenure). I told him just to authorise me to do it.”

The former CBN chief said he received a total of 19 death threats after the plan was announced, saying that some people even

attempted to kidnap his children from school, but he stuck to his gun, and accomplished it within 18 months.

“No bank before now could afford to finance a Public-Private Partnership. All that has changed

today, and a lot of business men are benefiting from it, taking funds that have helped them to grow their businesses. “ He said the establishment of African Finance Corporation was also his brainchild, noting that

the establishment was one, which the African Union (AU) grappled with for several years.

Soludo is seeking the governorship seat of Anambra State. He told journalists that the courage he showed in discharging several

national and international duties would be brought to bear in Anambra if he is elected governor of the state. He said he was seeking the seat because he believes, “it is time to come back home and develop the state.”

PUBLICHEARING

L-R: Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr. Isa Pantami; Executive Vice Chairman/CEO, Nigerian Communications Commission, Prof. Garba Danbatta; Director General, National Information Technology Development Agency, Dr. Kashifu Abdullahi, and Director, Technical Standards & Network Integrity, NCC. Engr. Bako Wakil, during the Investigative Public Hearing of the Senate Joint Committee on Communications, Science and Technology, ICT & Cybercrimes and Primary Health Care & Communicable Diseases on “The Present Status of 5G in Nigeria” held at the National Assembly Complex in Abuja…recently

Allied Air Takes Delivery of Africa’s First B737-800 Freighter Chinedu Eze Nigeria-based major cargo carrier, Allied Air has taken delivery of its first Boeing 737-800 converted freighter.

The airline said aircraft is worth about N8 billion and it is the first for the cargo airline in Africa, adding that the freighter (MSN 36846) is the youngest 737-800 in the world that has been converted to-date.

Allied Air also said the aircraft would be deployed for COVID-19 vaccines distribution across Nigeria as one of its first missions, saying the equipment is fitted with temperature controlled facilities so that it would be able to deliver medical supplies effectively.

The aircraft acquisition was reported to have been financed through the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) intervention fund but structured and delivered by the Access Bank Plc. The Minister of Aviation, Sen. Hadi Sirika; Central Bank of Nigeria Governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele, Access Bank Plc Group Managing Director, Mr. Hubert Wigwe and Managing Director of Allied Air, Capt. Val Tongo, along with other government officials received the aircraft on arrival.

It was also welcomed with water canon ceremony at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.

Speaking at a brief ceremony held at the Abuja Airport, Tongo

said the aircraft would be deployed for COVID-19 vaccine distribution.

He confirmed that the freighter (MSN 36846) is the youngest 737-800 in the world converted to freighter to-date.

In his comments, Emefiele said: The aircraft is funded through the intervention fund of the CBN, but accessed via Access Bank.

“Only about three weeks ago, the Aviation Minister commissioned another aircraft for Air Peace. What does that mean, with the hard work, the Nigerian aviation sector is opening up more and more and investments are coming in,” he added.

He called on other investors to invest in the aviation sector, assuring that the CBN and the

Nigerian banks are ready to support them.

The minister said at the event that the, “aircraft will be dedicated to cargo and the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines across the country. Before the vaccines arrive, the cargo shade would be ready and the aircraft is also ready for distribution.”

Just like the CBN Governor, he tasked other operators to invest in the aviation industry so that it could double its contribution to the Gross Domestic Product to five per cent or N450 billion annually.

The Director General of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Capt. Musa Nuhu, said the aircraft would undergo the

mandatory process that would ensure the airline has acquired the proficiency to safely fly the aircraft.

“Right now they are going through demonstration flight where they will show the ability to handle this type of aircraft,” he said.

On his part, Wigwe, said: “We are extremely happy to be a part of this endeavour and these are little signals to show that we are coming out for cargo,” adding that this aircraft can carry specialised medical facility.

Allied Air, a member airline of the International Air Transport Association (IATA), is also the first cargo airline in Africa to attain the IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA) certificate.

Experts Task Experiential Marketing Companies on Tax, Pension Compliance Raheem Akingbolu

Group Business Editor

Obinna Chima

Capital Market Editor

Goddy Egene

Comms/e-Business Editor

Emma Okonji Asst. Editor, Money Market Nume Ekeghe Senior Correspondent

Raheem Akingbolu (Advertising) Correspondents

Chinedu Eze (Aviation) Eromosele Abiodun (Maritime) James Emejo (Finance) Ebere Nwoji (Insurance) Chineme Okafor (Energy) Emmanuel Addeh (Energy) Reporters

Nosa Alekhuogie (ICT) Peter Uzoho (Energy)

Partner, Tax and Regulatory Services at the Deloitte, Oluseye Arowolo, has identified multiple taxation as a structural problem in Nigeria.

He has also advised members of the public to always engage professionals while taking the advantage of the country’s tax system.

Speaking on the topic “Nigeria’s Changing Tax Landscape” during the hybrid event tagged: “EXMAN Training 2021,” Arowolo urged members of the Experiential Marketers’ Association of Nigeria (EXMAN) to always do impact assessment, train staff members on new tax requirements and understand that by law, withholding tax can be

brought forward amongst others.

Also speaking at the event which was put together by the leadership of EXMAN for members to ensure compliance and work within the details of the law and appreciate the importance of taxation and pension scheme, the Team Lead, Business Development at ARM Pension Manager, Lanre Oyenekan, stated that the importance of pension scheme cannot be over-emphasised as it mitigates future hardship and makes employees’ future secured which in turn boost productivity.

Oyenekan, who spoke on “Relevance of Pension in The Changing World,” added that pension was expected to be taken from basic, housing and transport allowances while the eight per

cent is deducted as employee’s contribution and the employer on their part contributes additional ten per cent and they should not be in default.

He urged EXMAN members to comply and speak to their pension managerS when they have issues and those who don’t have should as a matter of urgency engage one.

Earlier, EXMAN President, Tade Adekunle, stated that the training was organised to help members better understand the tax and pension scheme and how they can overcome some of the challenges they are facing in that aspect of doing business as well as taking advantage of the opportunities inherent.

“The area of tax is where we have been having challenges.

With government going about it in a very brutal way, going after virtually all the companies under marketing communications and other companies in Nigeria, we are of the opinion that we need a better understanding of what is expected of us.

“This is to really have a good understanding of the system and avoid falling foul of the law. That is why we asked the top management and finance management experts to become part of our training today,” he said.

He added that after the training its members would be able to manage their tax process on time not to wait for when there are issues.

Similarly, former EXMAN President, Kayode Olageshin stated that, “EXMAN is an

industry association and one of the critical purposes of having an industry body is to be able to train our members and improve professionalism for our practice and compliance with government regulation which is a very key aspect of professionalism.”

He added that the training will help them to know how best to engage the authorities regarding the challenges their members are facing as regards tax and pension. However, he stated that tax reduction can be given to their members.

“Concession such as the one the government has with the construction industry where they have 2.5 per cent such things if it comes our way it is something that would also help our business significantly,” he stated.

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Onyeagwu: Why SMEs Find it Difficult to Secure Bank Lending The Group Managing Director of Zenith Bank Plc, Mr. Ebenezer Onyeagwu, in this interview on Arise Television said the bank will continue to accelerate its retail and digital banking initiatives in order to sustain the positive performance it recorded in 2020. He also urged operators of small and medium scale enterprises in the country to take advantage of the various single-digit long-term funds in the market to grow their businesses, while stressing the need for such businesses to ensure that they meet the eligibility criteria. Excerpts:

Z

enith Bank posted about 33 per cent asset growth in 2020 and we saw an 89 per cent increase in your cash balance, was that a strategic decision motivated by the pandemic to increase your cash holdings?

You need to recognise the fact that Zenith is the biggest bank in the country and given our share size, it is important for us to maintain certain optimal level of cash balances to meet the transactions and the needs of our customers. Again, you need to understand that the cash balances are a point in time balance. The balance you see today is not what you will see tomorrow. You may end with N55 billion at the reporting time, that is, end of the year and you move in the next day, that balance may come down to N20 billion or even N10 billion, depending on the transaction flow. So, essentially, as a big bank, with our asset size and huge liquidity position, we need to keep a level of cash holding to meet our daily needs.

Customer deposit increased by 24 per cent in 2020, how were you able to mobilise deposits in a pandemic year and what is your retail banking strategy for 2021?

The growth we achieved was powered by the acceleration of our retail and digital banking initiatives. If you dimension it further, you are going to see that our retail deposit moved from N1.1 trillion to N1.7 trillion. When you cascade that downward again, you will see that savings moved from N600 billion to N1.1 trillion, accounting for 88 per cent increase in deposits. So, what we see driving that growth in deposit, is the acceleration of our digital and retail banking initiatives.

In terms of your operating expenses, you more than doubled your information technology spending to N20.4 billion in 2020, from N9.8 billion in 2019, was that related to having more staff work from home or cyber security protection?

It is a combination of so many things. Firstly, because we are now expanding and accelerating our digital initiatives, we need to acquire lots more licences and new software. And these items are foreign currency denominated. By the time you convert it to naira, it comes to so much. That is the primary reason. Of course, we are scaling up in terms of our cyber-security initiative because as we continue to grow in our digital expansion programme, it is also important that we make adequate provision to deal with the downside effect of implementing a digital banking regime, which has also seen a rising case of cybercrime. So, we are also up scaling our investment in terms of what we have, to contend with the ever-increasing risks we see in the environment. That in a nutshell explains the rise in our digital banking initiative.

A lot has been said about high cost of doing business in Nigeria, even for banks in the country and how it filters through to high interest rates on loan. What is your take on that?

Out cost profile depicts the operating environment. Within the year we saw upward review in fuel price, which accounted for the increase in our fuel cost. Again, when you are looking at cost of doing business, you also need to look in total, how businesses are being conducted. If I set up a branch today, I would need to provide my infrastructure, I need to provide power, water and in some cases we even construct road to provide access to the branch location. So, as a result of the poor state of infrastructure, you see that businesses would now have to contend with providing these resources to get their operations running. So, if we have a more available and cheaper utilities services and infrastructure to support businesses, of course, cost would go down. Then, looking at cost of doing business in banking, it goes beyond those operational costs. We also have things like regulatory cost.

A bank like Zenith, given our size, the burden

Onyeagwu of regulatory cost on us is heavy. By regulatory cost here, I am referring to the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation premium and the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria fee. So, because of our size, if you look at the numbers, you will see that these regulatory costs account for a whopping 28 per cent of our overhead. So, all of them come together to add to the cost of doing business for us as a banking institution in the country.

So, how can we get interest rates on loans down to single-digit?

First of all, if you are looking at interest rate, you have to look at it in terms of the theoretical framework and issues around money supply, demand for money, issues around government borrowing and the fiscal deficits. So, when you put all that together, you will see that you cannot have a situation where you decree interest rate by fiat. Interest rates would always be set by the dynamics and realities in the market. In this case, if you are looking at interest rate in Nigeria, you have to index it to the risk-free rate.

One-year risk-free rate in Nigeria is like 10 per cent. So, it will be difficult to have single-digit rate in Nigeria. However, the Central Bank of Nigeria has come up with a number of laudable initiatives to support single-digit lending. We

You need to recognise the fact that Zenith is the biggest bank in the country and given our share size, it is important for us to maintain certain optimal level of cash balances to meet the transactions and the needs of our customers

have intervention funds such as the Creative Industry Financing Initiative, where banks in the country provide long-term single-digit funding for entrepreneurs who are in cinema, movie, ICT and fashion designing. We also have what is called the Agri-Business/Small and Medium Enterprise Investment Scheme. It is also a pool of fund available for businesses in that space. You can as well access these loans. Apart from these ones, the CBN also have different intervention schemes such as the Anchor Borrowers Scheme, the Commercial Agricultural Credit Scheme and others, and all these loans are single-digit and they provide long-term financing. The big problem we have is that when you see an SME approaching you for loan, the SME may not have a track record; he walks up to you and tells you that he needs a single-digit loan and needs N20 million. But I can’t give you N20 million without looking where you are coming from. So, we cannot decree interest rate by fiat. But the regulators have done a good work by providing funding schemes and whoever is eligible would get such single-digit long term loans once they meet the criteria. So, the funding is there, but the SMEs when they approach the banks don’t often meet the eligibility criteria.

In March 2020, there was a rumour in the market that Zenith was to acquire a tier 2 bank, with your growth in asset, is there an acquisition plan for your bank this year?

You called it rumour and that was what it was. First is to say that Zenith Bank has grown organically, we are disciplined, we are focused and we look for where to extract value. However, we would not do a deal or a corporate action just for the sake of doing it. If we find a deal that fits into our profile, of course we would do a deal.

It has to be something that fits into our profile.

Until we find such, we would continue to grow organically, depending on the opportunities we find in the market.

What about outside Nigeria or any other African country, any expansion plans?

We are looking at everything, our eyes are open, if we find any location that we think makes sense and is able to create value, why not. Bear in mind that we are already in Ghana, we are in Sierra Leone, Gambia, UK and by no means that is not to say that we cannot expand beyond this location. It depends on what we see as events continue to unfold and emerge.

What is your outlook for 2021?

We would continue to reinforce our identity, we are Zenith, we are a market leader, we are creative, we are dynamic and we have the capability to respond to adversity as they come. As long as we are able to reinforce that, we would ensure that we are able to drive resilience within the team, we would drive doggedness, and we would also diligence to navigate the landscape. If you look at the bigger economy, it was an interesting news that the country escaped recession in the fourth quarter of 2020. That was positive for the country. Even when we haven’t seen the Covid-19 vaccine in the country, the news that the country would soon get the vaccine is positive and the government is making efforts to ensure that we have our own share of the vaccine. Oil price is now about $65 price. And even though we still have to contend with OPEC quota, that is good news. Our payment system is expanding dramatically and that is promoting consumer spending. The CBN is also making effort to improve the availability of forex in the market. So, with these, one can say with a bit of cautious optimism that this year will be better than last year. However, at Zenith, we would be interrogating these scenarios and see the opportunities therein. We would be expanding our digital and retail banking initiatives because we can see the progress and impact it has had on our activities. We would also ensure that we key into emerging opportunities in the country as they continue to unfold. Two key areas are agric and ICT. So, we would reinforce our identity as Zenith, we would retain our market leadership.

The important thing for me is that I have a brilliant and excellent team.

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Continental Re Boss Calls for Insurance Consolidation Ebere Nwoji The outgoing Group Managing Director, Continental Reinsurance company Plc, Dr. Femi Oyetunji, has called for a reduction in the number of insurance underwriting firms in the country from the current number of 62 to about 20 firms.

Oyetunji, also said there was need for an increase in the current number of re-insurance firms from two to more firms, to ensure the retention of premium generated in Nigeria within the country for execution of long term projects like building of roads and other infrastructures.

Oyetunji, who stated this in an interview with journalists in Lagos, said what the industry needs to improve the current low penetration and contributions of insurance to the GDP from less than one per cent to five per cent was to enthrone the regime of well capitalised, well skilled , well transformed and industry with synergies.

“If we don’t reduce the number of insurance companies in this market to 15 or 20 well capitalised, well skilled, well transformed industry, I don’t think we can do more than what we are doing now”, he said.

“This is what I will like to see in the industry. I want to see insurance companies talking to each other, not just collaboration but coming together, looking for synergy we have over 50 firms now let’s merge and reduce the number,” he said.

The Continental Reinsurance Boss said the danger in what is happening in the industry presently is that, “the big players will come in, dominate the market, make all the profits and repatriate same to their own countries.”

He added: “I mean global players and we are already seeing

the trend. The reason we are not seeing them more now is perhaps because of the current economic situation.

“Once things settle, the global players will come in and dominate and what will happen is that they will dominate the market and guess where the profits will go, the global players are based in their home countries in Germany, UK ,US and that is where they will take the profits they made here.”

Against this backdrop, Oyetunji, said he would like to see a consolidation exercise that would bring about fewer insurance firms operating with strength.

“I want to see fewer companies that have the requisite that people want, the analytics the technology the products that will move us from less than one percent penetration even double that and then we can get up to five per cent penetration you can get up to 10 per cent you can imagine the kind of industry we will have if insurance industry in Nigeria has up to five per cent penetration,” he stated.

On the current number of two Reinsurance firms in Nigeria which are Continental Re and Nigeria Reinsurance, Oyetunji, said there is room for more players to enter the market.

Currently, mega risks from Nigeria are insured abroad because of weak capacity, but Oyetunji gave reason for this saying, “the reason people go outside, you know there is local content and if you exhaust the local capacity, we can’t over expose our balance sheet to a single risk. There is a limit to what we can take so new reinsurers coming in is a welcome development.”

According to him, this will ensure that premium generated in Nigeria are kept in Nigeria.

‘Agriculture Will Boost S’West Annual GDP to $80bn’ James Emejo and Folalumi Alaran in Abuja The Group Chairman of Odua Investment Company (OIC) Limited, Dr. Segun Aina, has said agriculture has the capacity to boost the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the South west region to over $80 billion annually as well as create wealth for the over 40 million population.

Speaking during the inauguration of a new board of directors for SWAgCo, a subsidiary of Odua Investment, which is focused on agriculture, Aina said given the potential of the sector, the agricultural investment company would seek to unlock the untapped potential of the sector within the region to create wealth, job opportunities and contribute to the country’s GDP in general.

SWAgCo is an agricultural investment company, with a strong capital base, estab-

lished to unlock unrealised agriculture and sub-optimised agribusiness value by transforming underinvested agribusiness opportunities within tye country into institutional-grade investment operations.

Aina pointed out that the appointment of a new board to drive the company became necessary as part of its strategy to reposition the entire group and to make it the engine room for economic development of the South West. He said the appointment of six new board members for a four-year term would help reposition the firm, expand its business as well as strengthen its corporate governance.

He said: “The new leadership, which were selected through a competitive process handled by KPMG, brings a wealth of professional experience and expertise at a senior level in investment, finance,

agriculture and performance solutions to consolidate SWAgCo’s operation.

“This also set it on the path of achieving its mission to change the landscape of agriculture and agriculture investment in Nigeria.”

He explained that the appointment was as part of its future-forward strategy to reposition its operations to take full advantage of opportunities within the agricultural space.

According to him, the appointments had Mr. Owolabi Salami as the Chairman of SWAgCo while Mr. Adeola Adetunji, Ms. Cecilia Akintomide, Ms. Adekemi Ajayi are Non-Executive Directors to the SWAgCo board.

On the other hand, Mr. Babajide Arowosafe was appointed the chief executive as well as Mr. Adegboyega Osobu as executive director of the organisation.

Aina said: “They join

SWAgCo at an exciting time as we begin the journey to grow and expand its operations and implement its strategy for economic and social impact within the agricultural space in Nigeria.”

In his response however, Salami, reiterated his commitment to work towards changing the landscape and investment outlook of agriculture in the region.

He said: “This is a significant moment in the history of our country, it is a great honour to serve as Chairman of the SWAgCo board of directors.”

“I am proud of the major accomplishments over the past few months of its establishment and the commitment put into the pre-operational phase of the institution by the interim board.

“I look forward to working closely with all our shareholders, and the management team”, he added.

Ellah Lakes Partners Ekiti, to Engage Youths in Agribusiness Ekiti State’s youth have been admonished to leverage the disposition of the state government to be fully engaged in agricultural value chain.

Ekiti State Ministry of Agriculture in conjunction with the Ministry of Youth held an outreach programme in the state Capital, Ado-Ekiti recently The youth were challenged to avail themselves of the opportunity as the proposed investments were not only about agriculture, but also to uplift communities by creating an Ecosystem of small businesses for economic growth.

Ellah Lakes Plc were the sponsors of the event, as part of their engagement programme with stakeholders in the State.

The company was represented by its Chief Executive Officer, Chuka Mordi and, Chief Agronomist, Jamie Rixton. For decades, Ellah Lakes, listed on the Nigeria Stock Exchange had supplied Nigerian households with great meals sourced through sustainable fishing practices and led the industry in meeting the demands of the growing population.

However, the acquisition of Telluria Farms in 2019, an oil palm production company, had influenced the refocusing of its corporate mission into the production of Oil Palm and its derivative products According to a statement, Ekiti State Governor, Dr. Fayemi Kayode, who emphasised the commitment of his government to encourage the private sector to participate in agriculture, promised to explore investment options with the capital market so that deposit money banks can partner with the state ministries, departments and agencies to finance critical infrastructure for the upliftment of the state.

Earlier in his remarks, Mordi thanked the Governor for his sterling efforts in encouraging private sector participants into the state.

“With the intense focus on the commencement of the Special Processing Zones for Agriculture, as soon as possible, and the state’s commitment to completing the cargo Airport for export, I’m convinced that we can optimise the Agri value chain, for our crops, in Ekiti State,” he said.

NYSC Member Wins Car in Access Bank Promo Nume Ekeghe A member of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) serving in Niger State has emerged winner of a brand new salon car in the Access Bank’s, ‘Transact and Win a Car’ promo Mr. Tolulope Agabaje, who had operated his account for 11 months collected his brand new Hyundai Accent having performed more than 10 transactions through the bank’s digital platforms in the first quarter of 2021.

Agbaje, like most of the past winners, doubted when he heard about his feat, saying he felt the calls from the bank were from fraudsters.

He said: “I am still in shock as I was not expecting it. I cannot even remember the

amount of transactions I did but I know it was too much.

The car was not something I was looking at owning in a year or even three years, but Access Bank has fast-tracked my dream of owning a car and so I would keep spreading the word to friends and family that this is indeed real.”

Also speaking at the presentation, the Executive Director, Access Bank Plc, Victor Etuokwu, said, the promotion was designed to play a big role in the lives of the bank customers.

According to him, the bank is targeting the unbanked and the underbanked and looking at increasing the rate of transactions through its mobile and digital platforms.

Etuokwu said: “We want to continue to play a big role in the lives of our customers and as for Tolulope, we have asked him what he graduated with, he said he is a first class holder and with this, we are looking at a possibility of him working with Access Bank.”

Commenting further, the Lead Manager, Mobile and Internet banking, Access Bank, Osakwe Edwards, said, the campaign would boost the bank’s digital products, adding that Tolulope emerged winner after a draw was conducted.

“Tolulope performed 10 transactions which is the criteria to win the car via the USSD or the mobile app. We did a draw and out of the million people that met the criteria, Tolulope emerged tops.

For now, this is the third car

that has been given.

“One person won in Abuja, the other won in January and so we are hoping to commence another prize presentation by the second quarter (Q2) of 2021.

When we start by Q2, it will be on quarterly campaigns/ draws and by the end of Q2, We will have another winner by the end of Q3 and Q4.

“Digital is the future and this mobile banking is what we want to get a lot of people into and you know that as a bank, we make revenue from our digital channels and we use it to boost our customer acquisition. “These days, people do not need to get to the bank to open an account with us or perform transactions, they can do that through our mobile banking platforms or USSD”, he added.

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BUSINESSWORLD

NEWS

NIPC to Engage Staff over Industrial Action James Emejo in Abuja The Nigeria Investment Promotion Council (NIPC) has said despite the disruption of the commission’s activities , including that of the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) Secretariat which operates from its premises, the NIPC Head Office, its management remains fully committed to dialoguing with the staff union to resolve their grievances and ensure that they remain motivated towards achieving the goals and objectives of the institution.

The commission, also expressed concern over the unexpected

industrial action and locking of the access gate of the its Head Office Complex in Maitama, Abuja, by the leadership of the NIPC Chapter of the Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria (ASCSN) last month.

The NIPC management in a statement, noted that most of the allegations were also made by the Union when it unexpectedly locked the NIPC gate in July 2020, adding that some of the issues currently being headlined had either been resolved or currently being addressed by management.

The Union had among other things, claimed that their action was supposedly predicated on

the alleged wrongful dismissal of staff; management’s alleged refusal to implement the terms of an agreement reached with the Union in July 2020; alleged interference and manipulation of staff promotion exercises; NIPC’s supposed inability to achieve results in five years; other unfounded allegations against the person of the Executive Secretary.

However, the management, while responding to the allegations, pointed to the various achievements of the commission under the leadership of the current Executive Secretary (ES), Ms Yewande Sadiku, adding that major welfare improvements were initiated under her leader-

ship without being prompted, including staff housing loan scheme, post service benefit scheme and peculiar allowance.

The statement added that under the leadership of the current ES in the last four years, NIPC had recorded a number of achievements including the production of the Book of States to highlight investment prospects and competitive advantages of every state in Nigeria, to better showcase subnational investment opportunities.

Others are the publication of the Compendium of Investment Incentives in Nigeria; Initiation and implementation of the reform of Nigeria’s Inter-

national Investment Agreements regime to attract Responsible, Inclusive, Balanced and Sustainable investments, which led to the negotiation of the NigeriaMorocco Bilateral Investment Treaty that was prominently featured by UNCTAD as an exemplary model in the 2017 World Investment Report among other things.

The commission added: “For the record, it should be noted that despite the resolution of virtually all the issues and continuous engagement with the Union and other stakeholders, the Union has issued four ultimatums to management in the past six months, over issues that had either been resolved

or had never been brought to management’s attention.

“Most of the current allegations were also made by the Union when it unexpectedly locked the NIPC gate in July 2020.

“Following that incident, the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment held several meetings with representatives of the NIPC Governing Council, NIPC Management, the Union, the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment and other stakeholder MDAs resulting in the resolution of the issues, most of which have been implemented, while others are at various stages of implementation.”

WACT Enhances Service Delivery with New Equipment Eromosele Abiodun The West Africa Container Terminal (WACT), Onne, has acquired 15 new Kone Rubber Tyred Gantry Cranes (RTGs) to enhance service delivery at its terminal in Onne Port, Rivers State.

The Commercial Manager of WACT, Mr. Noah Sheriff, who confirmed this in a statement issued by the company said the first batch of six RTGs has arrived at WACT, Onne.

WACT, he added, had commenced training operators of the highly technical cranes, which are the first in Nigeria’s eastern ports.

“We expect to deploy this first set of RTGs into operations in May 2021. Awareness campaign with the trucking community is also ongoing, ”he said.

Sheriff said the deployment of the six new cranes, “is the start of WACT’s transformation from the use of Reach Stackers to RTGs in the terminal, which will immediately increase our current import yard capacity.”

“We are expecting a total of 15 RTGs. With the delivery of the first set of six, we expect nine more, which will be delivered later this year,” he said.

In addition to the new RTGs, Sheriff said WACT took delivery of 8 new specialized terminal trucks last week to support the high incoming volumes.

He said the acquisition of the new cranes and terminal

trucks was part of an ongoing $100 million investment, which is, “aimed at significantly increasing the terminal capacity for the benefit of our landside customers in the Eastern part of the country.”

He said, “We envisage significant volume growth; hence we embarked on an ambitious terminal upgrade, which includes both yard expansion and equipment upgrade.

“As part of the terminal upgrade project, we have successfully transformed our quayside model of operation by moving from ships gear operations to full Mobile Harbour Cranes (MHC) operations. Our terminal currently has four fully functional Mobile Harbour Cranes.

“We are also delighted to inform the port community that our contractors have mobilized on-site for the commencement of civil works in continuation of the upgrade. The civil works are scheduled to be completed this December.”

The Managing Director of WACT, Aamir Mirza, said WACT has become one of the best-equipped container terminals in West Africa and has strategic plans for consistent improvement in every area of its operations.

“With our massive investment, WACT has established itself as the largest and most efficient container terminal in East Nigeria, creating thousands of direct and indirect job opportunities.

Ruogang: Lekki Port Key to Bridging Gap in Nigeria’s Maritime Infrastructure Eromosele Abiodun The Managing Director, Lekki Port LFTZ Enterprise Limited (Lekki Port), Mr. Du Ruogang has stated that the delivery of the Lekki Deep Sea Port project would go a long way in helping the nation to bridge the gap in the Nigeria’s maritime infrastructure in the shortest time possible.

Ruogang made this known during the just concluded Ehingbeti – Lagos Economic Summit organised by the Lagos State Government with the theme: “For a Greater Lagos: Setting the Tone for the Next Decade.”

During one of the plenary sessions on, ‘Lagos as an Industrial Hub,’ he noted that the deepening of infrastructure footprints by the Babajide Sanwo-Olu-led administration both within the environment where the project

is located and other axis of the state was a strong pointer that the state government was committed to the development of the port and its underlying socio-economic potentials.

“We are pleased with how well things are going with the construction despite the challenges being encountered all over the world with the COVID-19 pandemic, which is also being felt in Lagos State, and all over the country,” he said.

Ruogang, further expressed confidence that the delivery of Lekki Port project would be sooner rather than later.

“While Lagos is not immune from the economic challenges that are being tackled globally, the uniqueness of Lagos State is the willingness of the leadership to go the extra mile to live up to

APM Terminals Apapa Boosts Operation with Additional Gantry Cranes Eromosele Abiodun APM Terminals Apapa, has boosted its operation with the delivery of additional four Rubber Tyred Ganrty (RTG) cranes.

The company in a statement said the new equipment was part of a larger equipment fleet renewal and expansion program, where a total of 7 RTGs, 7 Reach Stackers and 2 Empty Handlers has been acquired.

The Chief Operating Officer of APM Terminals Apapa, Steen Knudsen, said the new cranes, which were built with the latest technology, have lifting capacity of 41 tons and would ensure efficient services to the entire port community.

“With the new acquisition, APM Terminals Apapa will in

2021 have 30 RTGs in operation.

It also has 13 Mobile Harbour Cranes (MHCs), in addition to several reach stackers, forklifts, empty handlers and specialised terminal trucks; making it the best equipped port terminal in Nigeria, “he said.

He said the new cranes were acquired as part of an ongoing investment of $80 million for the year 2020-2021, bringing the total investment by the company in Apapa since 2006 to $438 million (approximately N168 billion).

“We remain committed to deepening our investment in Apapa to enable us handle increasing volumes at the port.

The additional investments will create capacity to handle growth in the economy to support the

federal government’s efforts on trade growth and improve service delivery across the logistic chain,” Knudsen said.

He said APM Terminals Apapa recently deployed 4G LTE wireless network and commissioned its Operation Command Centre to enhance service delivery.

“We have embarked on massive digitization of our operations and services. This is in keeping with our global transformation drive. The deployment of the 4G LTE wireless network has stimulated greater efficiency and higher productivity as it will allow for better collaboration in our terminal operations.

“The new Operation Command Centre, which was commissioned by the Honourable

Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, accompanied by the Managing Director of Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Ms. Hadiza Bala Usman in December 2020, comes with several benefits to our customers.

“The Centre is the brain of the business. It is about day-to-day execution where information is exchanged. This is where we decide which box to put where, at which time and the equipment to pick it up so that everything works together.

“It will strengthen exchange of information and coordination in the movement of containers out of the port thereby enhancing operational efficiency in addition to providing a better work environment,” he said.

its characteristic of an investor friendly state.

“Lagos makes a significant contribution to the Nigerian economy. It contributes 30 per cent to Nigeria’s GDP. This is remarkable considering that Lagos is home to only 10 per cent of the population of Nigeria.

“The majority of Nigeria’s manufacturing is based in Lagos as well as many service industries such as finance. All of these factors combine to encourage industry to locate in Lagos, and that is the reason we are here to look forward to the future possibilities, ”he added.

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28

Between Labour and Opposition to Deregulation

NNPC megastation

Olu Tayo

L

ast week, the price of crude oil rallied to $66 per barrel, the highest in 13 months. This was after oil price sank to sub-zero level in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020.

Ordinarily, for a country like Nigeria that is heavily dependent on revenues from oil, the price rally ought to be good news as it portends more money for the government to provide social amenities for the welfare of the citizens.

But the cheery news of oil price rally is dampened by the prospect of a rise in the pump price of petrol.

In March 2020, the federal government finally took the bull by the horns and deregulated the downstream by taking advantage of the low oil prices induced by the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Petroleum Products Marketing Company (PPMC), a subsidiary of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) had announced that petrol prices would henceforth be determined by market forces. It had explained that the new price regime with its cost-reflective nature was expected to help to improve product availability and attract investments to the sector as marketers now have increased margin.

Since then, the Petroleum Product Pricing Regulatory Authority (PPPRA) has been giving monthly guidance on petrol prices through price modulation method, meaning that when crude price goes up, petrol price would go up, and when it comes down, petrol price would follow suit.

Owing to this, during the launch of the Nigerian Upstream Cost Optimisation Programme (NUCOP) recently, both the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva, and the Group Managing Director of NNPC, Mallam Mele Kyari, had hinted at the prospect of a rise in the pump price of petrol in the country in line with the deregulation regime in operation in the downstream, following the rise in the price of crude oil.

Since then, the leadership of organised labour have been beating drums of war, contending that a pump price increase would impose more hardship on Nigerians who are already battling the effect of a sluggish economy.

Deregulation of the downstream and pump price increase have been very testy issues that have generated a lot of conflict between the government and labour for close to two decades.

Indeed, since 2004 when the federal government started the policy of selling the crude oil earmarked for local refining/consumption at international price, it created a situation where the landing price of petroleum products was higher than the

regulated pump price of petroleum products in the country.

The old system where crude oil earmarked for local refining/consumption was sold to the NNPC at a subsidised rate was able to take care of price differential between landing cost and regulated pump price.

With the new policy, a system of subsidy payment was introduced to take care of the price differential.

But over time, the subsidy system became cumbersome and the federal government began to find it unwieldy and unsustainable.

For instance, the federal government had disclosed that the nation spent N10. 413 trillion on fuel subsidy between 2006 and 2019, even as the country consistently grappled with low revenue generation over same period.

The various attempts to end the subsidy regime by deregulating the downstream became a constant subject of bitter conflicts between the government and labour sometimes resulting in debilitating strikes.

Therefore, with the current rise in the price of crude oil, it is inevitable that the price of petrol would go up in the local market.

More so when there is no provision in the 2021 Appropriation Act for subsidy payment. The deregulation of the downstream is supposed to bring about some sort of liberalisation of the sector which would make it possible for all petroleum products marketers to source their products from anywhere and sell at any price dictated by prevailing market forces.

The competition arising from that would have helped to force pump prices down to the benefit of the citizens.

But the scarcity of foreign exchange has made it difficult for the marketers to import products, thereby making NNPC the sole importer in keeping with its statutory role as marketer of last resort.

With the agitation of labour to roll back the

Ordinarily, for a country like Nigeria that is heavily dependent on revenues from oil, the price rally ought to be good news as it portends more money for the government to provide social amenities for the welfare of the citizens

deregulation, NNPC is inadvertently being made the fall guy to absorb the cost of the price differential between landing cost and pump price.

This would put NNPC in a very bad spot financially and eventually lead to a situation where it would be difficult to further import products. The obvious implication of that is fuel scarcity and the return of fuel queues.

The same people who are resisting the deregulation would be the same people who would turn around to castigate NNPC for not supplying enough fuel to guarantee zero fuel queues and for not making a profit at the end of its financial year.

To analysts at CSL Stockbrokers, the removal of the subsidy on petrol remains a critical freemarket reform.

“In our view, and we believe it is beneficial to the finances of the government and the overall economy,” the Lagos-based firm added.

To the Chief Executive Officer of Financial Derivatives Company Limited, Mr. Bismarck Rewane, the removal of subsidy would boost investments in the downstream sector of the oil and gas industry.

Rewane said subsidy removal would encourage investments in private refineries such as the Dangote Refinery, the BUA Refinery, among others springing up in the country presently.

According to him, petrol subsidy would free revenues for the government to provide essential services and at the same time boost investments in the downstream sector.

“Investments will increase. It will boost investments in private refineries such as Dangote Refinery, while those who will buy our dilapidated refineries will also come,” he added.

The Chairman of Fidelity Bank Plc and former Managing Director of the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON), Mr. Mustapha Chike-Obi, Nigeria can no longer afford the subsidies that it had been paying, Also, the Chairman of the Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN), Mr. Adetunji Oyebanji, said fuel subsidy removal would give operators the opportunity to recover their costs, adding that it would in the long run, encourage investment and create jobs.

The Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs. Zainab Ahmed, believes that incurring further costs on under-recovery has been stopped permanently.

According to her, “This we have been able to do by adopting a price modulation mechanism and the government has removed fuel subsidy provision from its revised 2020 budget and also from the Medium Term Economic Framework (MTEF) for 2021-2023.

We don’t have plans to incur any expenditure on fuel subsidy.

“What that means is that the price of refined products (petrol) will be determined by the global price of crude oil, so the price will keep changing according to how the global market operates.”

The Minister of State for Petroleum, Mr. Timipre Sylva, said Nigeria was no longer in the business of fixing fuel prices, adding that global oil price crash had made removing the subsidies inevitable.

“It is about the survival of our country. There are certain things that the country can ill-afford at this time,” he said.

Therefore, labour must learn to be objective in its resistance to the downstream sector reforms meant to eradicate the distortions in the market which have been responsible for bouts of scarcity and lack of investments in the sector.

If the labour leaders spearheading the resistance to deregulation are fair to themselves, they would recognise that the deregulation has largely stabilised petroleum products supply over this past year.

Once the foreign exchange issue that has made it difficult for major and independent marketers to engage in importation of petroleum products is resolved, the other gains of deregulation will kick in and Nigerians will be better for it.

One of the key arguments of labour is that if the refineries were in operation, it would help reduce the prices of products and mitigate the hardship that deregulation would impose. But the reality on ground does not support that.

The revamping of the refineries will only result in marginal decrease in the pump price of petroleum products since the only cost element it would affect is the freight cost. Since the refineries would pay international price for crude oil, the benefit from local refining in terms of products pricing would be marginal.

The earlier the labour leaders understand this and allow the deregulation process to go on unhindered, the better for Nigeria and Nigerians.

If they are in doubt, they should go and ask the former Edo State Governor, Adams Oshiomhole, who made a career out of his opposition to deregulation for over 10 years only to turn around to become an apostle of deregulation as a governor.

The market stabilisation that has been brought about by the past one year of deregulation should be enough to assure labour that full deregulation is the way to go if Nigerians are to enjoy the full benefits of their hydrocarbon wealth. Resisting deregulation under the guise of fighting for the welfare of Nigerians is only an attempt hoodwinking Nigerians into believing that they can eat their cake and still have it. t5BZP XSPUF JO GSPN -BHPT

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Breaking Down the Access, Seplat Debt Debacle Oluchi Chibuzor attempts to untangle the raging debtor/creditor case between Seplat Petroleum Development Company, an indigenous oil firm and Access Bank, explaining that a seemingly simple matter is being compounded by one of the parties

I

t has often been argued that it is not a crime to borrow money from banks to grow businesses, but the problem is refusing to pay back the loan. This is the cruz of the dispute between Seplat Petroleum Development Company and Access Bank.

This is because monies given out as loans are depositors’ funds/investments which must not be allowed to go down the drain.

Succinctly put, the meat of the extant case is that Seplat owes Access Bank Plc over $85.8 million and it’s either unwilling to pay or that it is erecting all manners of roadblocks to prolong or make it impossible for the bank to get back its funds.

To be sure, the lending to the oil company, a transaction that was carried out under the chairmanship of Dr Ambrose Orjiako, was done by the defunct Diamond Bank whose assets and liabilities Access Bank inherited in 2019 after its acquisition of the bank.

Before the bubble burst, Diamond Bank was one of the most talked about success stories in the banking sector, but bad debts, like the current one in dispute, saw it gasping for breath until Access Bank came to the rescue by acquiring it.

However, while Orjiako is not disputing that his company owed Diamond Bank and by extension Access Bank after the acquisition, his argument is that it was not Seplat that took the loan directly, even though as documents show, the money was used to the benefit of Seplat.

Emerging Facts While it is now clear that Cardinal Drilling Services Ltd took the loan and used it to acquire four rigs for Seplat’s benefit, the oil company and its owners have criticised the debt recovery procedures as corporate bullying, a position that has been described as an attempt to whip up undeserved public sentiments.

Specifically, the bank obtained the facility from the defunct bank to purchase the CDS Rigs 101, 201, 202 and 203 and was secured by a fixed and floating debenture over Cardinal’s assets which were used to provide drilling services to Seplat.

For years, after every effort to retrieve the loan estimated at $86 million proved abortive, Access Bank eventually approached the court, claiming that there is an inter-company relationship between Seplat and Cardinal Drilling and that they are jointly promoted by Orjiako.

Also joined in the suit filed by Access Bank was Kalu Nwosu, who reportedly issued a personal guarantee and a statement of personal net worth as security to the facilities availed to Seplat. Access Bank’s argument is that Seplat solely enjoyed all the benefits of the facilities granted Cardinal Drilling for the promotion and advancement of its businesses, maintaining that the oil company is the real debtor while Cardinal is merely a smokescreen for the obtaining the credit facility.

In December last year, precisely on the 20th, a Federal High Court, authorised a receiver/ manager, Messrs Kunle Ogunba & Co, to enforce an ex parte motion requesting that Access Bank Plc takes over Seplat’s corporate headquarters at 16A Temple Road, Ikoyi, Lagos.

The bank further prayed the court to validate the appointment of Kunle Ogunba & Associates as the Receiver/Manager; validate the Receiver/Manager’s authority to take possession of the four Cardinal Rigs and other assets of persons and companies presumably connected to Cardinal drilling; restrain all defendants from disposing or dealing with the assets; and declare that the defendants have no right to enter into, or deal with, any of the assets.

Seplat, thereafter, approached the Court of Appeal which ruled in its favour by ordering the immediate suspension of the injunction and interlocutory injunction that allowed Access Bank the freedom to seal Seplat’s property and control their accounts.

The court also ordered Seplat to execute a bank guarantee with a reputable bank in the country for $20 million.

But what cannot be disputed, according to those in the know, is that Orjiako, along

Orjiako with his international partners jointly have about $45 million equity in Cardinal Drilling Services.

Apart from that, Access Bank insisted that Seplat has consistently disclosed in both its interim and annual reports that Cardinal Drilling is a related party, which significantly contradicts the substance of its denial.

Seplat’s Attack on Access Bank’s Lawyer While that back and forth was going on, efforts by the lawyer to Access Bank Plc, Mr Adekunle Ogunba (SAN), to discharge his professional duties to the bank riled the defaulting oil company, leading to a petition

by Seplat.

The senior lawyer denounced Seplat’s decision to drag him before the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee (LPPC) and the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee (LPDC) of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) for alleged gross misconduct and unethical practices.

Ogunba posited that the so-called petition against him, was meant to create all kinds of roadblocks which would delay the payment of the debt the oil firm owes Access Bank Plc. Ogunba advised the oil company that rather than embarking on a wild goose chase, it should indeed begin the process of liquidating its huge financial obligation to the bank.

Insisting that the attempted blackmail and intimidation will not work, the senior lawyer noted that he was merely discharging his duties to his client in the court case between the two companies.

“It is obvious that the petition (if any) is an attempt to blackmail me and avoid the payment of huge indebtedness of Seplat to Access Bank Plc and nothing more.

“Seplat is better advised to take steps to liquidate its debt rather than attempt to intimidate me, a lawyer merely doing my duties as such. Once again, I reiterate the fact that the petition has not been formally brought to my attention for a formal reaction,” he stated.

He expressed surprise that he was being targeted by the oil firm rather than facing the issues at stake , asking Seplat to focus on the substance of the case, rather than attempting to hound him.

“It is stock in trade of these huge debtors to peddle petitions all around in a bid to avoid the payment of their debts. I was not there when they borrowed the funds and they have obviously targeted my person for the nuisance value rather than take steps to liquidate the debt.

“This particular debt was part of the huge debt overhang that sunk the defunct Diamond

Wigwe Bank and they don’t mind if Access Bank goes under for their sake too,”he noted.

Documents Show Seplat Used Cardinal to Obtain Loan According to documents filed in court by the bank through its lawyer, Ogunba, it is obvious that Cardinal Drilling is a subsidiary of Seplat.

However, Seplat argued that Access Bank could not hold it liable for a loan obtained by a third party (Cardinal Drilling) and faulted Ogunba’s claim that Seplat employed Cardinal Drilling as a ‘shell company’ for the obtainment of the facility.

But contrary to Seplat’s claim that there was no documentary information exhibited to buttress the claim, findings from the court processes filed by Access Bank showed that the plaintiff provided proof of Seplat benefiting from the loan.

After Cardinal Drilling obtained the loan and disbursed it, the company passed the obligation onto Seplat as as shown in the company’s statement of account, which Access Bank exhibited in court.

The bank has details of Seplat transferring funds into Cardinal Drilling’s account, which in turn would transfer it to Diamond Bank (which was later acquired by Access Bank), as loan repayment.

To the bank, Seplat is the real debtor, which was why the bank and its lawyers joined Seplat in the debt recovery suit, obtained and executed the order against it, which is now a subject of appeal.

Sources close to the bank say rather than Seplat repaying the loan, there is a bid to tarnish the image of Ogunba by writing a petitions against him, insisting that based it is based on a ruling by Justice Aikawa, who, despite objections by Seplat’s lawyers, granted Ogunba’s application.

The petition against Ogunba was written even before the ruling on Seplat’s application to discharge the order made by Justice Aikawa was given.

Seplat’s petition was submitted on December 18, 2020 while Justice Aikawa delivered his ruling on December 24, 2020.

Despite the indigenous oil firm’s insistence that it wasn’t complicit, findings from the court processes filed by Access Bank showed that the plaintiff provided proof of Seplat benefiting from the loan, with Cardinal Drilling passing the obligation to Seplat after obtaining the loan and disbursing it.

The company’s statement of account, which Access Bank exhibited in court, has details of Seplat transferring funds into Cardinal Drilling’s

account, which in turn would transfer it to Diamond Bank (which was later acquired by Access Bank), as loan repayment.

Access insists that Seplat is the real debtor, which was why the bank and its lawyers joined Seplat in the debt recovery suit, obtained and executed the order against it.

Access Bank Wants Seplat Lawyers Punished In furtherance of its efforts, Access Bank Plc has also written the Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee (LPPC) and the Legal Practitioners’ Disciplinary Committee (LPDC), demanding the sanctioning of Mr Babajide Koku (SAN) as well as Etigwe Uwa (SAN), both lawyers to Seplat, for alleged professional misconduct in the handling the court case between both companies.

In the petition against Koku and Uwa, the bank stated that both senior lawyers engaged in acts unbecoming of legal practitioners and contravened well established legal principles in bad faith.

In the letters to both bodies, Access bank accused Koku of “Aiding and abetting his client’s engagement in acts contravening well established legal principles and illegalities all in bad faith to prevent his clients from fulfilling their corporate responsibilities.”

The bank further maintained that the senior lawyer “Engaged in acts calculated to deliberately obstruct, delay and ultimately affect the administration of justice.”

It stated that the email written conveying the execution of the order of the Court of Appeal to the bank was replete with fallacies, insisting that notwithstanding the fallacies contained, Koku failed to immediately caution his client, Orjiako to refrain from instructing his company Seplat from making such misleading statements.

“It is pertinent to state that the suspension of the interlocutory injunction was to be secured by a Bank Guarantee issued in favour of the Deputy Chief Registrar of the Court of Appeal in line with the ruling of the Court,” the bank stated This is why many observers see the dispute between Seplat and Access Bank as completely unnecessary. They believe that the huge amount spent on unwarranted litigations and media should have been used to negotiate the loan.

“Instead of going back and forth, Seplat should come up with a plan to pay back their obligation. You can’t borrow depositors money, and then run to court for protection after failing to pay back. The $20 million deposited with the Chief Registrar of the Court to secure unfreezing of their assets should have been a starting point to paying down that debt instead,” advised a public affairs analyst

Raheem Akingbolu

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MONDAY MARCH 1, 2021 • T H I S D AY

MONDAY MARCH 1, 2021 • T H I S D AY

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IMAGES

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Photo Editor ÌÓÙÎßØ ÔËÖË Email ËÌÓÙÎßØ˛ËÔËÖË̶ÞÒÓÝÎËãÖÓàÏ˛ÍÙ×

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CITYSTRINGS

Group Features Editor: Chiemelie Ezeobi Email chiemelie.ezeobi@thisdaylive.com, 07010510430

Why Boboye is Still at FRSC Mary Ekobay

F

or some time now, the tenure of Boboye Oyeyemi, Corps Marshal and Chief Executive of the Federal Road Safety Corps, FRSC, has been the subject of a debate with views querying the legality or otherwise of his continued stay as Nigeria’s number one Road Safety officer.

Those questioning his continued stay have obstinately held on to the provision of the Public and Civil Service Rules detailing the employment, discipline, recruitment, retirement and other conditions surrounding an employee of the government. They argued that having attained the age of 60 years as head of the FRSC, Oyeyemi automatically stopped enjoying the protection of the law to remain in office.

The Public Service Rules 02809 provides that: “The compulsory retirement age for all grades in the Service shall be 60 years or 35 years of pensionable service whichever is earlier. No officer shall be allowed to remain in the service after attaining the retirement age of 60 years or 35 years of pensionable service, whichever is earlier.”

Last November 26, Boboye attained 60 years of age causing many to wonder his retention against the rule they copiously quote.

Now, just like the Armed Forces and other paramilitary services, the Road Safety has a ‘domestic legislation’ that stops promotion at the rank next to the head of that organisation. In the Army, it is the rank of Major General; Deputy Corps Marshal in the Road Safety, Deputy Inspector General in the Police and so on as applicable in different organisations. At this stage, whoever becomes the head of any other military or paramilitary service is appointed by the President in exercise of his powers and he reserves the power to make such appointment from within or outside of such organisations.

This position is further supported by the provisions of Section 7 (1) FRSC Act, 2007 which gives the President the power to appoint anyone he considers as having sound knowledge in road traffic and road safety administration as the Corps Marshal of FRSC. That is the only specific qualification stipulated by Section 7 (1) FRSC Act, 2007.

This clearly shows that the Corps Marshal is not a career civil/public service officer who is expected to grow through the ranks and be subjected strictly to civil/public service rules.

In fact, this is the first time a member of the Corps was appointed as Corps Marshal.

The Corps Marshal is not a rank of a member of the Corps as provided in Section 11 (1) FRSC Act, 2007, which listed the ranks of members of the Corps to start from Deputy Corps Marshal. The fact that the present Corps Marshal, Dr Boboye Oyeyemi is a member of the Corps will not change the status of the office of the Corps Marshal from being a political office to a career public service office. To do so, would amount to taking away the powers of the President conferred on him by Section 5(1) (a) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended and Section 7 (1) of FRSC Act, 2007.

The pressure on Oyeyemi is perhaps comprehensible having risen through the ranks. He is therefore deemed to be a civil servant, which is not actually so in the spirit and letter of the appointment of the leadership of the armed forces and paramilitary organisations. Once appointed, the appointee stopped being a civil servant as the President is not duty bound to comply with the Public Civil Service

Oyeyemi

Rules even in disengaging anyone if he so desires ahead of 60 years of age or 35 years of pensionable service. Only political appointees are so treated.

Again, Section 5(1)(a) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) vested in the President the superintendent powers in delegating to other people to exercise on his behalf. The provision reads: “Subject to the provisions of this Constitution, the executive powers of the Federation – (a)Shall be vested in the President and may, subject as aforesaid and to the provisions of any law made by the National Assembly, be exercised by him either directly or through the Vice President and Ministers of the Government or officers in the public service of the federation…”

Heads of the tri-service and other paramilitary agencies are therefore appointed at the pleasure of the President as political appointees and only him determines their tenure and in exercising that power, the President can bypass certain ranks to appoint subordinates to head an agency forcing superiors to give way in retirement in deference to the judgment and discretion of the President.

From 1988 ‘outsiders’ were chief executives of the FRSC. These are Dr Olu Agunloye, Maj. Gen. Anthony Hananiya, Danyaro Ali Yakasai, Engr.

Abba Kyari Wakilbe and Osita Chidoka up till 2014. It is clear that the headship of the organisation has always enjoyed tenure duration from all that pleases the President and this is without ambiguity.

Similar concerns were raised on the elongated tenure of immediate past service chiefs; same for the current Inspector General of Police whose tenure the President has extended for three months. With the uproar that greeted the appointment of retired Colonel Hameed Ali to head the Nigeria Customs Service, the President must have latched on to his constitutional powers and exercising same for him to sail through. No wonder there is yet no legal hurdle to upturn those decisions regardless of several

objections.

Rather than resenting Oyeyemi or worried about the President’s lawful exercise of his powers against the wishes of critics urging him to resign before being reappointed, which again is discretionary, patriotism could have overridden typical burdens often piled against the President to remove public officials with visible results and peerless impacts.

Without mincing words, it is clear that no public officer is indispensable.

It is the hallmark of patriotism to understand when not to throw off a performing official like Oyeyemi, considering the number and quality of innovations that have been brought to impact on the FRSC, building on the inherited laudable services of his predecessors.

In the years he has served the nation in his capacity as Corps Marshal, Oyeyemi has introduced some initiatives in line with the mandate of the FRSC. Of note is the drastic reduction in carnage on the highways across the country, obviously with the cooperation of officials of the corps as well as other critical stakeholders like the Special and Celebrity Marshals, alongside spirited sensitization campaign through Road Safety Clubs in educational institutions.

Under his vigorous leadership, the FRSC realised the need to bridge the information gap with the establishment of the National Traffic Radio 107.1FM in October 2019 as a viable channel through which information could be transmitted seamlessly to the public.

Not only that, at the time insecurity is linked to many nefarious activities of cybercriminals and criminals in terrorist financing, the FRSC under Oyeyemi has continually offered partnership with the banking sector, the National Bureau of Statistics, the National Identity Management Commission and even security agencies on sharing information targeted at assisting these organisations on identity and biometric management.

The President’s retention of Oyeyemi is not without some grounds as the FRSC has attained global standard

with the introduction of emergency toll-free line 122 that has proven to be effective in shortening response time to save victims in emergency situation across its 203 Unit Commands and 29 outposts across the country.

Worried about the persistent abuse of traffic rules, the Oyeyemi-led FRSC established Operation Cobra, an initiative introduced to reduce crash rate by apprehending traffic offenders who are referred to a government health facility for Emotional Stability Test. The construction and inauguration of 16 permanent structures in various sector commands, with other two awaiting inauguration in Road Safety formations across the country must be the legacy of a committed public officer!

As part of his laudable achievements, personnel of the FRSC are trained and deployed to Tank Farms on the Safe-toLand initiative necessitating inspection of articulated vehicles before loading.

This is necessary to guarantee suitability before loading as part of measures to reduce road crashes associated with fuel-laden tankers.

To demonstrate Boboye’s interest in the welfare of officers, the Post Service Scheme and the 20,000 housing units for FRSC staff was inaugurated. The purpose is to make beneficiaries proud home owners as part of measures to motivate them to serve better. The scheme can only be expanded to reach more staff.

Moreover, President Buhari cannot be oblivious of the incremental decline in road crashes to save lives, development of standard road infrastructures as well as deployment of life-saving innovations like the speed limiter, all trademarks of the Boboye Oyeyemi-led management.

As positional responsibilities of public officials demand absolute loyalty to the job and their principal, Oyeyemi is sure not a sit-tight administrator. In his bid to continue with the agenda of President Buhari to guarantee sustainable safety on Nigerian roads, there is no point distracting the Corps Marshal on his national assignment. .... Ekobay wrote in from Abuja

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CRIME&SECURITY

USAID Support Buoys Peace Building Between Rival Farmers, Herders in Taraba State

T

he U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), in partnership with a coalition of international and local partners, successfully concluded a community-driven conflict mitigation intervention to restore peaceful coexistence among farmers and herders in vulnerable communities of Nigeria.

Called Engaging Local Actors to Promote Peaceful Coexistence among Farmers and Herders in Taraba State (ELAPC), the activity focused on 10 communities across four local government areas (LGAs) in Taraba State where violent conflict has damaged relationships along ethnic, political, and religious backgrounds.

Over the last two years, ELAPC brought together more than 3,600 representatives of farmers and herders, Muslims and Christians, women and youth, as well as people living with disability, to identify and address the drivers of the conflict and adopt inclusive strategies to reduce a culture of violence in the communities.

“This activity has made a real difference for peaceful coexistence in communities, demonstrating that even a modest initiative with communities and local officials can promote more robust collaboration between government and civil society and be real catalysts for positive change,” USAID Mission Director Anne E. Patterson told participants at the ceremony.

ELAPC engaged 600 members of Christian and Muslim women’s groups to mediate divisive issues between farmers and herders such as encroachment onto farmland and destruction of crops, to help reach amicable, non-violent resolutions and settlements.

Women, men, and youth acted as community peace observers, and women served in other critical roles like providing psycho-social support to other women traumatized by conflict.

A USAID-supported member of a Taraba State women’s group pickets against gender-based violence last December. She and 600 colleagues served in critical roles such as mediation and supporting other women traumatised by conflict

Culturally familiar “mediation tents” in partner communities helped strengthen parameters of justice at the local level, giving farmers and herders new confidence in fair and swift resolution to their grievances at no cost, and successfully de-escalating tension and conflict in dozens of cases between farmers and herders.

This intervention resulted in an overall reduction in the reported frequency of violence in the ten partner communities,

peaceful planting and harvest seasons, and introduction of cultural activities shared between herder and farmer youths.

“I want to thank the American people for choosing Taraba State for this pilot project,” said the Hon.Taninga Paninga Binga, Commissioner of Humanitarian Affairs and Special Duties, representing Governor Darius Ishaku.

“We have new capacity to address land issues and promote peaceful co-existence

in our communities. The Taraba state government will ensure this project’s gains are sustained by providing support to continue these practices.”

USAID’s conflict management and mitigation programs bring together conflict-affected groups to interact purposefully in a safe space, and provide opportunities for adversaries to address issues peacefully, reconcile differences, and promote greater understanding and mutual trust.

EndSARS Protest: Police Re-arrest Escaped Prisoner, Decry Incessant Murders Becky Uba Umenyili

Luck ran out of an erstwhile prisoner, Obehi Ehis Frank Ogbeh, who escaped from White House Prison Yard in Edo State during the EndSARS protest last year.

Ogbeh was re-arrested by men of the Ogun State Police Command earlier this year at Agbado area of the state.

Investigations by the police revealed that his re-arrest followed the report from residents of that area about the suspicious conduct of the man and following his apprehension, it was discovered that he tried settling down secretly in Agbado area in order to avoid being traced.

The state Commissioner of Police, CP Edward Ajogun has directed that the suspect be transferred to the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department (SCIID) for further profiling.

This is just as he also decried the degree of murder cases that have been perpetrated in the state, especially from the last Christmas season till date.

Most recently, there has been several killings in the state with arrest of so many suspects who have been remanded in police custody for further investigations and prosecutions.

Presently, three men namely: Daniel Ikwe, Micheal Tedungbe and Idowu Shorunke are in police net over the death of Rasaq Shotunde who was murdered in cold blood over a land feud between him and Shorunke.

During investigation, it was discovered that Shorunke was the person who hired the other two for the sum of

CP Ajogun

N500,000.00 to eliminate the deceased.

Ikwe and Tedungbe on the other hand both confessed that they laid ambush for the deceased on his way to the village from Abeokuta, where he had gone to visit his son and used a heavy stick to smash his head.

In another land feud, a 55-year-old man named Ishau Falana is under arrest for beating his relative, Badmus Rafiu to death for burning a bush close to his farm at Oluwasogo area of Ijaka Isale in Ogun State.

The culprit over-powered the deceased, who he tied and beat severally and abandoned in a state of coma in the bush.

It was the mother to the deceased who found her son the next day while the culprit lamented that he didn’t

know that his victim would die.

Also, three culprits- Okiki Mulero, 23; Micheal Mulero, 21; and Joseph Mulero, 17- all siblings, are facing murder charges for beating a So-Safe corps officer who was on guard duty at OGD Estate Asero, recently.

Disaster struck when Mr. Okiki Mulero, who is a commercial cyclist was denied entrance into the estate for carrying more than one passenger contrary to the rule of the estate.

This infuriated him and he called his two brothers, Micheal and Joseph Mulero who came to the scene and they jointly attacked the two security guards with planks.

In the process, one of the security men by the name Segun Godfrey Barde was hit with a plank and he slumped.

He was subsequently rushed to O&A hospital where he gave up the ghost while the three siblings, who have all confessed, are in the custody of the homicide section of the SCIID for further investigation and prosecution.

In a similar vein, battle for supremacy between members of Eiye and Aiye cult groups in Ifo area of the state, led to violent clashes between the two nefarious groups and demise of one of the cultist, simply identified as Ofada, who was shot dead during the imbroglio.

The cult members held their clandestine meetings at various points unknown to them that the police had been alerted about their activities.

On sighting the policemen, some of them fled while some were apprehended and also led the police to further arrest other members.

The corpse of the slain cultist has

been deposited at the general hospital mortuary, while the injured ones have been taken to the same hospital for medical care.

Meanwhile, CP Ajogun has ordered the transfer of the suspects to the SCIID for discreet enquiries and also ordered a manhunt for the remaining members of the groups.

He also condemned another case of jungle justice meted out to one Samuel Ajibade, who was accused of stealing phone handsets and beaten to coma by a group of three male youths at Iju, Ota but died after he was taken to the Ota General Hospital.

In another development, a wanted alleged cultist who had been on police search list, Owolabi Oludipe a.k.a Somor was recently shot dead while in a gun battle between his group and policemen at Odogbolu.

Sustaining fatal injury from the bout, the suspect who was taken to the hospital following his surrender to the police, confessed to have been responsible for the killing of some prominent persons in the state, before giving up the ghost in the hospital while the police recovered from him assorted charms which he wore on his body, arms and phone sets.

Similarly, two members of an armed robbery syndicate were shot dead in the first week of February, following gun battle with the police at Oyingbo area of Ijebu Ode during a robbery operation, while others took to their flights.

The CP has appealed to members of the public especially hospitals to report anybody seen with gunshot injury to the police.

T H I S D AY ˾ ͯ˜ 2021

36

BUSINESS/MONEYGUIDE

Seplat Boss Identifies Gas as Catalyst for Economic Growth Goddy Egene The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Seplat Petroleum Development Company Plc, Mr. Roger Brown, has identified its fast-growing gas business as a strong catalyst for sustainable economic development and growth of Nigeria.

Brown stated this at the Nigerian Gas Association (NGA) 12th biennial International Conference with the theme: “Powering Forward: Enabling Nigeria’s Industrialisation Via Gas,” held virtually.

He described gas business as a revolution, indicating that the direction is laudable and highly rewarding to the Nigerian people and the economy at large.

Speaking on the company’s contributions to the Nigerian Gas industry, Brown said: “Our new Sapele Gas Plant processing capacity (PC) is 75MMscfd, increasing PC in the West to 540MMscfd (Oben and Sapele). Seplat currently contributes about 30 per cent of gas to power generation in Nigeria. Its ANOH Project is

to add 300MMscfd capacity and unlock over 1,200MW of gas constrained power generation capacity.”

He, however, stressed the need to build institutional capacity to drive and sustain the transition, which is critical to attaining value and wealth advancement.

The Seplat CEO also called for the need to drive investments through liquidity pools such as the capital markets, bonds and PFAs as well as exploring a myriad of financing options to provide funding for gas infrastructure projects.

According to him, Seplat is strategically positioned to access Nigeria’s main demand centers, with its current well stock delivering 300 - 350MMscfd (Gross).

Commenting on some of the challenges bedeviling the gas-to-power drive, Brown said capital intensity, under-investment, delayed delivery of planned gas infrastructure, poor pipeline network, lack of cost reflective tariffs and huge debts in the power sector; lack of clear gas

fiscal terms for PSCs and delay in passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB), amongst others, were issues to be addressed.

Given the company’s industry strides, Seplat honoured with the NGA Special Recognition Award for its strong and outstanding support in its service to the Nigerian gas industry and the NGA. Commending Seplat and other players for their dedication to the growth of the sector, President, NGA, Audrey Joe-Ezigbo, said there is the need to continously project and leverage the potential of gas towards enabling and reinvigorating Nigeria’s industrial sector.

“Riding on the declaration by the Honourable Minister of state, Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, to dedicate the new decade to the promotion and adoption of natural gas as the fuel of choice for national growth, it has become imperative for us to reinforce this paradigm, leveraging its benefits across diverse key sectors in Nigeria and across Africa,” she said.

MARKET INDICATORS MONEY AND CREDIT STATISTICS

‘NSE’s Demutualisation will Strengthen Investor Confidence’ Goddy Egene The Executive Chairman, Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Alhaji Muhammad Nami, has said the demutualisation of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) will promote access to diverse investment opportunities and strengthen investors’ confidence in the capital market.

Nami stated this when he performed the NSE digital Closing Gong Ceremony at the exchange last Friday, disclosing that the FIRS had been following the activities and developments at the exchange which bear mutual benefits to both institutions.

“The FIRS has been keenly following the activities and the developments at the exchange which bear mutual benefits to both institutions.

“Noteworthy is the demu-

tualisation of the NSE which will undoubtedly promote access to diverse investment opportunities and strengthen investors’ confidence in the capital market,” he said.

Nami, stressed that there was clear evidence that the policies being put in place by the management of the NSE are yielding positive results given the impressive performance of the equities market in 2020 despite the COVID-19 pandemic and harsh social and economic conditions.

“I assure you that the FIRS will continue to support the positive initiatives of the NSE to improve its operations, achieve its goals and deliver on its mandate,” he said.

On his part, the Chief Executive Officer, NSE, Mr. Oscar Onyema, commended the FIRS for its internal revenue assessment

and collection efforts for the benefit of the economy despite the challenging times.

“I am delighted to welcome the Executive Chairman, FIRS, Alhaji Muhammad Mamman Nami to this digital closing gong ceremony. The FIRS is saddled with the very important task of assessing, collecting and accounting for tax and other revenues accruing to the Federal Government of Nigeria. I must, therefore, commend the FIRS for its internal revenue assessment and collection efforts for the benefit of our economy, even in these challenging times. As responsible corporate citizens, we at the NSE are proud to be associated with the FIRS and will continue to strengthen our relationship even as we look ahead to our post-demutualisation phase,” Onyema said.

GreenwichMerchant Bank AppointsRotimiMD/CEO Greenwich Merchant Bank Limited, a financial services provider with focus on high-end financial products and services to select clientele in targeted sectors of the economy, has announced the appointment of Mr. Bayo Rotimi as its new Managing Director/ Chief Executive Officer.

He joined Greenwich Merchant Bank with over 27 years’ experience as an investment banking professional; having previously worked at Fountain Trust Merchant Bank, Lead Merchant Bank

and FCMB Capital Markets Limited, where he rose to the position of Chief Executive Officer in 2008 before leaving to establish his own boutique Investment Banking Firm.

He was, until recently, the Chairman of the Investment Committee of ARM’s Discovery Aggressive Growth, Ethical, Money Market, Fixed Income and Eurobond Funds with over N110 billion under management.

Rotimi holds a Bachelors Degree in Economics from

the University of Lagos (1990) and a Masters Degree from the University of Sheffield, UK (1992).

He has acquired significant experience over the years and has led the execution of numerous landmark transactions cutting across Corporate Finance, Capital Raising (debt, equities, and hybrids) and Financial Advisory services (Mergers & Acquisitions, Corporate Restructuring, Privatisation Advisory and Project Finance).

He is a Member of the Institute

Stanbic IBTC Offers Low-InterestAgric Loans Stanbic IBTC Bank Plc has reaffirmed its commitment to the growth of Nigeria’s agriculture sector by supporting farmers and other players in the agricultural value chain.

As the demands on agribusinesses change seasonally, the financial institution provides financing solutions for agricultural enterprises to suit their requirements.

A statement explained that

the needs range from availability of resources, to farming equipment, as well as enhancement of seasonal cashflow, amongst others.

Stanbic IBTC Bank offers various low-interest credit facilities across the agricultural sector that will help clients to cushion the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic Speaking on this, Head, Agribusiness, Stanbic IBTC Bank, Wole Oshin, said the

agribusiness financial solution was geared towards ensuring that players in the agriculture space are not hindered by lack of finance.

He said: “The bank’s suite of agribusiness solutions minimises risks, ensures maximum control and optimises profits associated with international trade by making transactions smoother, simpler and safer for all parties involved.

(MILLION NAIRA)

JULY 2020 Money Supply (M3)

36,822,751.47

-- CBN Bills Held by Money Holding Sectors

3,476,121.25

Money Supply (M2)

33,346,630.22

-- Quasi Money

120,764,479.02

-- Narrow Money (M1)

12,582,151.19

---- Currency Outside Banks

2,002,026.89

---- Demand Deposits

10,580,124.31

Net Foreign Assets (NFA)

7,637,137.23

Net Domestic Assets(NDA)

29,185,614.24

-- Net Domestic Credit (NDC)

39,711,115.95

---- Credit to Government (Net)

19,521,851.08

---- Memo: Credit to Govt. (Net) less FMA

0.00

---- Memo: Fed. and Mirror Accounts (FMA)

0.00

---- Credit to Private Sector (CPS)

-130,189,264.87

--Other Assets Net

3,472,017.70

Reserve Money (Base Money

13,421,827.07

--Currency in Circulation

2,395,917.03

--Banks Reserves --Special Intervention Reserves

11,025,910.04 317,234.17

˾ ÙßÜÍÏ ̋

Money Market Indicators (in Percentage) Month Inter-Bank Call Rate

March 2018 15.16

Minimum Rediscount Rate (MRR) Monetary Policy Rate (MPR)

14.00

Treasury Bill Rate

11.84

Savings Deposit Rate

4.07

1 Month Deposit Rate

8.82

3 Months Deposit Rate

9.72

6 Months Deposit Rate

10.93

12 Months Deposit Rate

10.21

Prime Lending rate

17.35

Maximum Lending Rate

31.55

˾ ÙØÏÞËÜã ÙÖÓÍã ËÞÏ ̋ ͯͱϱ

OPEC DAILY BASKET PRICE AS AT THURSDAY, 25 FEBRUARY 2021

The price of OPEC basket of thirteen crudes stood at $65.42 a barrel on Thursday, compared with $64.00 the previous day, according to OPEC Secretariat calculations.

The OPEC Reference Basket of Crudes (ORB) is made up of the following: Saharan Blend (Algeria), Girassol (Angola), Djeno (Congo), Zafiro (Equatorial Guinea), Rabi Light (Gabon), Iran Heavy (Islamic Republic of Iran), Basra Light (Iraq), Kuwait Export (Kuwait), Es Sider (Libya), Bonny Light (Nigeria), Arab Light (Saudi Arabia), Murban (UAE) and Merey (Venezuela).

SOURCE: OPEC headquarters, Vienna

37

T H I S D AY ˾ ͯ˜ ͰͮͰͯ

FBNQuest Raises Target Price of Zenith Bank on Improved Results Goddy Egene Analysts at FBNQuest have raised their target price for Zenith Bank Plc shares to N42.80 per share, following the improved results for the year ended December 31, 2020.

The price target implies a potential upside of 68 per cent from its closing of last Friday.

Zenith Bank Plc defied the challenging period and posted to grow its profit after tax (PAT)

by 10.4 per cent to N230.565 billion from N208.843 billion in 2019 and declared a final dividend of N2.70 per share.

According to FBN Quest, following the results, they had made upward revisions of 8.0 per cent to the target price and 32 per cent to their 2021 full year(FY) non-interest income forecast.

The analysts explained that the upgrade to their forecast underpined the 12 per cent

P R I C E S MAIN BOARD

F O R DEALS

upward revision to our 2021 FY earnings per share (EPS) forecast.

“Notwithstanding, our new price target of N42.80 is only 8.0 per cent higher because we have increased the risk-free rate driving our valuation model by 100bps to 11.0 per cent to reflect the uptick in government bond yields. Given the prevailing yield environment and the outlook on interest rates, management sees a 10bp expansion in NIMs to 8.0 per cent,” they said.

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

QUANTITY TRADED

VALUE TRADED ( N )

The analysts stated that Zenith Bank management was confident in its outlook on asset quality, as it expects the bank’s non-performing loans (NPL) ratio to remain below 5.0 per cent.

“Due to strong loan growth of 20 per cent in 2020, management has guided to 2021 FY loan growth of 10 per cent, in line with our forecast. Our new forecasts translate to a 2021 FY profit before tax (PBT)

T R A D E D MAIN BOARD

A S

forecast of N267 billion, up 4.0 per cent, and just shy of the bank’s N270 billion guidance.

Although our 2021 FY earnings forecast is broadly in line with guidance, our return on average earnings (ROAE) forecast of 19.6 per cent is 340bps lower than the 23 per cent guidance provided by management. To meet its ROAE target, the bank would have to deliver PBT of over N300 billion or make fair value adjustments (losses) to its

O F

book value,” they said.

FBNQuest noted that the shares are trading on a 2021 FY P/B multiple of 0.7x (for 19.2 per cent ROAE in 2022FY) or a 35 per cent discount to book value.

“Our new price target implies a potential upside of 68 per cent from current levels. We believe Zenith Bank offers a favourable risk-reward relative to peers. We keep our Outperform rating,” they analysts said.

2 6 / 0 2 / 2 0 2 1 DEALS

MARKET PRICE

QUANTITY TRADED

VALUE TRADED ( N)

38

MONDAY, MARCH 1, 2021 ˾ T H I S D AY

MARKET NEWS

Africa Prudential Plc Appoints Zubaida Rasheed Director Goddy Egene

appointed Mrs. Zubaida Mahey the company, the appointment is registrar business to providing Plc for 23 years, rising to the Rasheed as an independent non meant to consolidate on its digital digital solutions and technology position of executive director. She Africa Prudential Plc has – executive director. According to transformation drive from its core services. She worked with NITEL gained significant experience in A Mutual fund (Unit Trust) is an investment floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange.

Offer price: The price at which units of a trust or vehicle managed by a SEC (Securities and A REIT (Real Estate Investment Trust) is an ETF are bought by investors.

Exchange Commission) registered Fund Manager. investment vehicle that allows both small and Bid Price: The price at which Investors Investors with similar objectives buy units of the large investors to part-own real estate ventures (eg. redeem (sell) units of a trust or ETF. Fund so that the Fund Manager can buy securities Offices, Houses, Hospitals) in proportion to their Yield/Total Return: Denotes the total that willl generate their desired return. investments. The assets are divided into shares that return an investor would have earned on An ETF (Exchange Traded Fund) is a type are traded on the Nigerian Stock Exchange. his investment. Money Market Funds report of fund which owns the assets (shares of stock, Yield while others report Year- to-date Total bonds, oil futures, gold bars, foreign currency, GUIDE TO DATA: Return. etc.) and divides ownership of those assets into Date: All fund prices are quoted in Naira as at 25- NAV: Is value per share of the real estate shares. Investors can buy these ‘shares’ on the Feb-2021, unless otherwise stated. assets held by a REIT on a specific date.

corporate strategic management of human and material resources, for organisational success.

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 158.75 160.34 -1.87% Afrinvest Plutus Fund 100.00 100.00 3.21% Nigeria International Debt Fund 351.96 351.96 -11.77% Afrinvest Dollar Fund 113.77 113.77 -0.30% 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 1.05 1.06 16.48% ACAP Income Funds 0.63 0.63 -13.33% 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 0.65% AIICO Balanced Fund 3.38 3.54 -4.74% 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 N/A N/A N/A Anchoria Equity Fund N/A N/A N/A Anchoria Fixed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A 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 18.69 19.25 3.03% ARM Discovery Balanced Fund 410.66 423.04 2.57% ARM Ethical Fund 35.17 36.23 4.32% ARM Eurobond Fund ($) 1.20 1.20 -2.08% ARM Fixed Income Fund 1.04 1.05 -6.80% ARM Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A AVA GLOBAL ASSET MANAGERS LIMITED info@avacapitalgroup.com Web: www.avacapitalgroup.com Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn AVA GAM Fixed Income Dollar Fund 102.76 102.76 1.03% AXA MANSARD INVESTMENTS LIMITED investmentcare@axamansard.com Web: www.axamansard.com; Tel: +2341-4488482 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn AXA Mansard Equity Income Fund N/A N/A N/A AXA Mansard Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A CAPITAL EXPRESS ASSET AND TRUST LIMITED info@capitalexpressassetandtrust.com Web: www.capitalexpressassetandtrust.com ; Tel: +234 803 307 5048 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn CEAT Fixed Income Fund 2.07 2.07 -26.43% Capital Express Balanced Fund(Formerly: Union Trustees Mixed Fund) 2.20 2.25 -12.09% CHAPELHILL DENHAM MANAGEMENT LTD investmentmanagement@chapelhilldenham.com Web: www.chapelhilldenham.com, Tel: +234 461 0691 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Chapelhill Denham Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 1.87% Paramount Equity Fund 16.01 16.32 0.15% Women's Investment Fund 134.61 135.13 0.76% CORDROS ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED assetmgtteam@cordros.com Web: www.cordros.com, Tel: 019036947 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Cordros Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 1.51% Cordros Milestone Fund 2023 129.85 130.73 Cordros Milestone Fund 2028 N/A N/A Cordros Dollar Fund ($) 110.10 110.10 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 1.29% Coronation Balanced Fund 1.18 1.19 -2.09% Coronation Fixed Income Fund 1.49 1.49 -5.97% EDC FUNDS MANAGEMENT LIMITED mutualfundng@ecobank.com Web: www.ecobank.com Tel: 012265281 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn EDC Nigeria Money Market Fund Class A 100.00 100.00 1.53% EDC Nigeria Money Market Fund Class B 1,000,000.00 1,000,000.00 1.55% EDC Nigeria Fixed Income Fund 1,154.78 1,157.44 -3.78% FBNQUEST ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD invest@fbnquest.com Web: www.fbnquest.com/asset-management; Tel: +234-81 0082 0082 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn FBN Fixed Income Fund 1,345.66 1,345.66 5.72% FBN Balanced Fund 184.81 186.14 -1.53% FBN Halal Fund 109.99 109.99 4.27% FBN Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 1.64% FBN Nigeria Eurobond (USD) Fund - Institutional 123.57 123.57 2.99% FBN Nigeria Eurobond (USD) Fund - Retail 123.70 123.70 2.99% FBN Smart Beta Equity Fund 150.72 152.64 -0.30% 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 1.00 1.00 1.15% Legacy Debt Fund 3.89 3.89 0.62% Legacy Equity Fund 1.58 1.62 4.03% Legacy USD Bond Fund 1.14 1.14 0.75% FSDH ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD coralfunds@fsdhgroup.com Web: www.fsdhaml.com; Tel: 01-270 4884-5; 01-280 9740-1 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Coral Growth Fund N/A N/A N/A Coral Income Fund N/A N/A N/A FSDH Treasury Bills Fund N/A N/A N/A

GREENWICH ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED assetmanagement@gtlgroup.com Web: www.gtlgroup.com ; Tel: +234 1 4619261-2 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Greenwich Plus Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 1.00% Nigeria Entertainment Fund 127.81 128.34 19.07% 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 1.36 1.36 58.14% Vantage Balanced Fund 2.71 2.77 18.11% Vantage Guaranteed Income Fund 1.00 1.00 4.50% Kedari Investment Fund (KIF) 154.40 154.84 -0.66% Vantage Dollar Fund (VDF) - June Year End 1.07 1.07 5.09% 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 N/A N/A N/A Lotus Halal Fixed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A 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 1.61 1.64 7.37% PACAM Fixed Income Fund 12.21 12.33 -0.23% PACAM Money Market Fund 10.00 10.00 1.25% PACAM Equity Fund 1.59 1.61 0.55% PACAM EuroBond Fund 109.31 111.96 -0.11% 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 127.89 130.61 6.50% 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 1.01 1.01 1.00% 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 3,157.76 3,184.84 -1.78% Stanbic IBTC Bond Fund 226.52 226.52 0.74% Stanbic IBTC Ethical Fund 1.17 1.18 -0.42% Stanbic IBTC Guaranteed Investment Fund 296.73 296.73 0.70% Stanbic IBTC Iman Fund 215.48 218.14 -1.39% Stanbic IBTC Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 1.66% Stanbic IBTC Nigerian Equity Fund 9,972.74 10,106.11 -5.01% Stanbic IBTC Dollar Fund (USD) 1.24 1.24 0.92% Stanbic IBTC Shariah Fixed Income Fund 111.70 111.70 0.56% 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 1.35 1.37 -1.06% United Capital Bond Fund 1.91 1.91 0.88% United Capital Equity Fund 0.90 0.92 4.35% United Capital Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 3.20% United Capital Eurobond Fund 118.12 118.12 0.88% United Capital Wealth for Women Fund 1.08 1.10 0.07% United capital Sukuk Fund 1.02 1.02 2.11% 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 12.22 12.33 3.00% Zenith Ethical Fund 13.50 13.61 10.50% Zenith Income Fund 24.16 24.16 0.77% Zenith Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 1.54%

REITS NAV Per Share

Yield / T-Rtn

121.58 52.64

0.70% 0.46%

Bid Price

Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

12.96 120.88 95.91

13.06 120.88 97.72

-1.94% -0.71% -3.47%

Fund Name SFS Skye Shelter Fund Union Homes REIT

EXCHANGE TRADED FUNDS Fund Name Lotus Halal Equity Exchange Traded Fund SIAML Pension ETF 40 Stanbic IBTC ETF 30 Fund

VETIVA FUND MANAGERS LTD Web: www.vetiva.com; Tel: +234 1 453 0697 Fund Name Vetiva Banking Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva Consumer Goods Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva Griffin 30 Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva Money Market Fund Vetiva Industrial Goods Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva S&P Nigeria Sovereign Bond Exchange Traded Fund

funds@vetiva.com Bid Price

Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

3.97 5.62 17.28 1.00 18.92 176.25

4.01 5.70 17.38 1.00 19.12 178.25

4.73% -1.20% 5.62% 0.40% -7.77% -20.15%

NAV Per Share

Yield / T-Rtn

108.05

13.11%

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.

MONDAY MARCH 1, 2021 • T H I S D AY

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MONDAY MARCH 1, 2021 • T H I S D AY

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MONDAY MARCH 1, 2021˾ T H I S D AY

NEWSXTRA

Again, Bandits Kill 10, Abduct Others in Niger Communities Laleye Dipo in Minna While Niger State was celebrating the release of abducted students of Government Science College, Kagara, bandits have again stormed the state, killing, maiming and kidnapping people across two senatorial zones.

The zones affected are the Niger East and Niger South senatorial zones.

No fewer than10 persons were said to have been killed in the two zones, while at least 26 others, mostly women were abducted with a large number of cattle rustled.

Eight persons among those kidnapped were abducted near the Government Technical College, Pandogari, fueling the initial speculations that they were students of the school while one Aminu who produces satchet water and his three children were also kidnapped in the town.

But the Information Officer of

the State Ministry of Education, Mr. Jibrin Usman Kodo said those kidnapped around the school were not students, adding that “in fact, we have closed almost all the schools in that area” The bandits visited Katcha LGA in the Niger South senatorial zone where they killed one person and abducted three others.

The three kidnapped were said to be successful businessmen in the town.

“The bandits were many they came with AK-47 rifles and were shooting anyhow,” one eyewitness told THISDAY on phone, adding that the security men in the area were of no assistance The Katcha LGA Chairman, Alhaji Mohammad Baba Nna in a telephone interview said “the incident happened around 1am (Sunday ) and lasted for three hours, saying that “they went away with three persons who are businessmen in the town and we are yet to hear from them.

“They came with very sophisticated weapons and I am sure that’s why the Policemen were afraid to come to their rescue during the incident,” Nna said.

However few hours after the 12

people were abducted and taken into the bush, some villages within the same Rafi LGA came under serious attacks, leaving five people dead and unspecified number of others kidnapped.

In another Saturday night operation in Maikunjeri village in Chiikum Ward, four people were killed and many, including women abducted.

Over 100 cattle were reported

to have been rustled by the bandits from this area Another gang was said to have invaded Kundu village, in Gunna Ward in the same Rafi LGA and unleashed terror on the people.

IN A MOURNING MOOD…

Former member of National Assembly representing Enugu North senatorial zone, Senator Ayogu Eze; Enugu State Governor, Hon. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi; and the Senator representing Enugu North, Senator Chukwuka Utazi, during the funeral rites of a member of Governing Council, Institute of Management and Technology (IMT), Enugu, the late Prof. Nicholas Okonkwo Idoko, at Umuida, Enugu Ezike, Igbo-Eze North Local Government Area of Enugu State…weekend

Okorocha Alleges Plot to Assassinate His Hospitalised Son-in-law Okupe: I’ll Join 2023 Presidential Race if Insecurity Persists A former Governor of Imo State, Senator Rochas Okorocha has disclosed that his hospitalised son-in-law, Mr. Uzor Anwuka, who was allegedly shot last Sunday when he accompanied him (Okorocha), to unseal the Royal Spring Palm Estate, Owerri, sealed by the state government, would be flown abroad for medical treatment.

Anwuka, a son to a former minister of state for Education and ex-vice chancellor, Imo State University, Prof. Anthony Anwuka, is an American-trained medical doctor.

Speaking when Okorocha, who now represents Imo West at the Senate, visited him in the hospital, Uzor said he had undergone three surgeries without any success.

He said, “On the day of the incident, my father-in-law called me that he was in Owerri to see his seized property and I drove down there to see him. On getting there, I saw a crowd of thugs led by one of the governor’s cousins.

“They had guns, cutlasses and other weapons; they started harassing everyone, including my father-in-law (Okorocha). It was

when they were asked to round us up that they started shooting. I tried to climb the fence but I was hit by a bullet and I fell inside the bush.

“I was there for several hours before I was rescued and brought to the hospital. I have been in this hospital for six days and my leg has been operated three times but it is not getting better. So, I will be going out to get a better treatment.

Reacting, Okorocha said, “It is really sad; this is an assassination attempt, but I thank God he is alive. We have concluded arrangements with the hospital to move him out because they are suggesting that he may need some transplant, to cut some part, but we are hoping it will get better.

“It was a horrible experience; the guys were sent to kill, because at a time, the hoodlums masked their faces and (we) could no longer know who is a policeman or a thug.

Luckily, I spoke Hausa language to one of the policemen, who asked me to go and that nobody would touch me.”

A former presidential spokesperson, Dr. Doyin Okupe, has vowed to contest the 2023 presidential elections if the spate of banditry, kidnapping and terror attacks across the country persists.

Okupe explained this in a statement issued yesterday.

He promised to submit a letter of resignation from office dated September 30, 2025, for himself and his vice president to the National Assembly, if he wins the election and fails to improve on the security of lives and property of Nigerians.

Okupe said, “I make this declaration with great and

profound sense of responsibility considering the gloom and perplexity that the menace of banditry, kidnapping, herdsmen’s terrorism and Boko Haram terrorism had brought on the country nation while all Nigerians appeared helpless and hopeless.”

He condemned the internal war, insecurity, lack of safety, severe inter-ethnic hatred and strife tending to tear the nation apart.

He said: “I sincerely believe that things do not need to be the way they are. I have been a very close aide of two great Presidents and have been close enough to Power to know what can be done under

these perplexing circumstances.

“I am convinced within myself that I have the knowledge, the intellect, the exposure and experience that will be required to lead this nation out of its present predicament , if no other seriously minded person is willing to offer themselves.

“As a teaser, I will elaborate briefly but not in too much details on what government can do to curtail this rampaging menace.

“As President I will declare a state of emergency in

the affected states. I know politicians will not like this.

But without security the nation and its politics will neither survive nor exist.

“Governors will not leave their political offices but their duties and functions shall be strictly limited to administrative matters while the state of emergencyis in place . The state assemblies will be on temporary holiday till things return to normalcy.

“I will appoint a senior military personnel to be the State Security administrator not lower than a Brigade General.”

Abaribe: Why I Fell out with Kalu Deji Elumoye in Abuja Senate Minority Leader, Eyinnaya Abaribe, has recounted his experience as the Deputy Governor to Senate Chief Whip, Orji Uzor Kalu, when the latter was the governor of Abia State in 1999, saying he fell out with Kalu for refusing to be one of his (Kalu) mother’s ‘Egusi’ peelers.

He also narrated how he survived

three impeachment attempts as deputy governor of the state from 1999 to 2003.

These revelations are excerpts from 10 chapter of Abaribe’s 334 page autobiography titled: ‘Made in Aba’, which will be unveiled today in Abuja.

The ranking senator in the book explained that his trouble as deputy to Governor Kalu started when he

refused to join the league of ‘Egusi’ peelers who thronged his mother’s abode for whatever reason.

He stated on Page 155 of the book: “I was just not toadying to Orji Uzor Kalu enough that was my greatest undoing. I was not in the league of ‘Egusi’ peelers that thronged his mother’s house for whatever reason. His minions had not succeeded in binding me to

some ethereal commitment on any false loyalty scale.”

Explaining how he survived three impeachment attempts by the state House of Assembly, Abaribe, in the book, said: “I lasted exactly three years and nine months in office before I threw in the towel. The bumpy ride ended on March 7, 2003 , when I finally resigned and switched parties.

PDP Postpones Purchase NDLEA Nabs Trans-border Drug Trafficker of Forms for Anambra with N1bn Cocaine The commander said his Republic with 62 wraps of substance Republic, with his final destination Michael Olugbode in Abuja Governorship Election suspected to be cocaine weighing believed to be Algeria where he men had commenced further

Extends tenure of zonal caretaker committees Chuks Okocha in Abuja The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) yesterday announced the postponement of the sale of forms for the Anambra State governorship primary election from the earlier scheduled date of March 1, 2021, to a new date of March 10, 2021.

Also, the party has slated today as the last day for submission of already purchased and completed forms for zonal congresses in all the zones.

In a statement issued by the National Organizing Secretary of the PDP, Col. Austin Akobundu (rtd), the party said the screening of aspirants for Northeast,

Southeast and South-south zonal congresses has been scheduled for March 02, 2021, at the zonal headquarters.

In the same vein, the party said the tenures of Zonal Caretaker Committees for Southwest, North Central and Northwest have been extended for another period of 30 days.

The party said the fresh extension takes effect from March 10, 2021, being the date of the expiration of the current tenure.

The national organising secretary called on all critical stakeholders and members to take note of the changes in the schedule of activities of the party.

A trans-border drug trafficker, Mr. Nkem Timothy, 36, has been arrested in Sokoto by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) with suspected cocaine valued at a billion naira on the street.

Timothy, also known as Auwalu Audu, was nabbed while trying to cross to Algeria through the Niger

1.550 kilogrammes.

A statement issued yesterday by the Director of Media and Advocacy, NDLEA, Mr. Femi Babafemi, said the acting state Commander of NDLEA in Sokoto, Bamidele Segun, revealed that the suspect was intercepted on a motorcycle around the baggage area at Illela border while trying to cross to Niger

resides. The illicit drug was neatly concealed inside yoghurt bottles when he was arrested.

Segun was quoted in the statement to have stated that: “He (Timothy) was found with an ECOWAS passport with different name written as Auwalu Audu but he gave his real name as Nkem Timothy.”

investigation to unravel his sponsor(s) and other members of the trans-border drug cartel.

He said: “This is a groundbreaking feat for us in the Command, as seizure of this magnitude of type A drug (cocaine) has never been made in the Sokoto Command before.”

Declare Abductors of Students Terrorists, NANS Tells FG Victor Ogunje in Ado Ekiti As distressing incidences of abduction of schoolchildren rage in the northern part of the country unabated, the National Association of Nigerian Student (NANS) has advised the federal government to list bandits perpetrating such

‘horrendous crime’ as terrorists.

NANS averred that the abduction of over 300 schoolgirls from Government Girls Junior Secondary in Jangebe, Maru Local Government Area of Zamfara State in the early hours of last Friday, was an indictment and clear indication of the failure of

the country’s security apparatuses.

Also, the students’ group advised the government to convey a national security summit towards galvanising the best brains in providing ideas and innovation to combating the multi-faceted security challenges in Nigeria.

In a statement issued in Ado

Ekiti yesterday, NANS National President, Sunday Asefon, expressed disgust at the rate of kidnapping of schoolchildren in quick succession in the country, saying the experiences from Chibok, Dapchi, Kagara, and recently Jangebe in Zamfara State, were pointers to failure of governance at all levels.

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NEWSXTRA

Nigerian Editors Condemn Incessant Abduction of Students Ejiofor Alike The Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) has condemned the incessant abduction of students by bandits in parts of the country.

In a communique issued yesterday by its President, Mr. Mustapha Isah, and its General Secretary, Mrs. Mary Atolagbe, after their meeting on February 25, 2021, the editors expressed worry that the spate of abductions, if not checked, could discourage parents from sending their children to school.

This, they argued, could lead to a further increase in the number of out-of-school children in Nigeria.

“We strongly believe that children have the right to education and schools should be made

safe for them to learn therefore, a comprehensive security plan should be put in place by all levels of government to prevent further abductions of students. Going to school to acquire knowledge is not a crime,” NGE said.

In the same vein, the guild called on the Nigerian government to urgently revisit the Safe School Initiative, with a view to implementing it for the benefit of Nigerian children.

The body of editors argued that dialogue and amnesty for bandits have not been positively impactful and should be discouraged.

The guild aligned with the advice of President Muhammadu Buhari to state governors, to stop giving cash and other materials, such as vehicles to

PDP House Caucus Kicks against Arrest of Ganduje’s Aide by DSS Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) caucus in the House of Representatives has expressed dismay over the recent arrest of the former media aide to Kano State Governor, Dr. Abdulahi Ganduje, Mr. Tanko Yakassai, by agents of the Department of State Services (DSS).

Yakassai had recently decried that the current administration has failed Nigerians at all levels, which led to his removal as the Special Adviser on Media to the state governor.

But the leader of the caucus, Hon. Kingsley Chinda, in a statement issued yesterday, expressed concern over the ‘continuous breach of freedom of expression by the President Muhammadu Buhari government’.

Chinda stated that: “As a caucus, we note with very serious concern the continuous breach and denigration of democratic ethos and the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria

1999 (as amended) by President Muhammadu Buhari.

“Particularly in view of the constitutionally guaranteed safeguards in chapters IV thereof on freedom of speech, and also the provision of Section 14(1) of the constitution which provides that: ‘The Federal Republic of Nigeria shall be a state based on the principles of democracy and social justice’.”

The lawmaker noted with utmost surprise and disappointment the rationale behind the arrest of Yakassai by the DSS “for standing by and speaking truth to power.”

He, however, said the PDP caucus was proud of and saluted the stance, uncommon boldness, courage and statesmanship shown

by Yakassai and other Nigerians for standing firm to speak the truth.

The caucus, therefore, called on Buhari and the federal government to pay particular attention to the message Yakassai and other well-meaning Nigerians are sending, rather than focus on the messenger.

Civil Society Groups Blame Insecurity on Corruption, Failed Leadership Sunday Okobi A coalition of 16 Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) yesterday blamed the insecurity especially banditry, kidnapping and armed robbery in Nigeria on corruption by previous administrations.

At a press conference, which took place in Ikeja, Lagos, the coalition expressed dismay over the insecurity in the country, saying such poses serious threat to the Nigerian state at large.

The Executive Director, Centre for Public Accountability, Olufemi Lawson, who addressed the briefing called on the new Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Chairman, Abdulrasheed Bawa, to beam searchlight on activities of past governments in the northern states affected by insecurity.

According to him, “As we

gather here today, we are all are aware of the heightened threat of insecurity, occasioned by the activities of armed bandits particularly in the northwest of our country, the recent being Thursday’s abduction of about 317 schoolgirls in Zamfara State.

“We are sad that the issue of insecurity in Nigeria is becoming a threat to everyone and we must not fold our arms while some elected public officials elected to serve us continue to deprive us of the basic needs because of their irresponsibility,” the groups said.

Lawson noted that going by the series of revelation from their interactions with citizens and stakeholders in Zamfara State have shown that the state is backward in terms of project and development, as “the fact speaks for itself.

bandits, because such overtures could empower them to carry out more abduction.

NGE also condemned a statement credited to an Islamic scholar, Sheikh Abubakar Gumi, describing journalists as criminals.

It reminded Sheikh Gumi and his like-minded that Journalists

don’t create events, but merely report them. The editors added that journalists should not be expected to eulogise a group of people that abducts innocent children and others at will.

The guild also denounced the choice of words by some governors who commented on the state of

insecurity in the country.

“They are reminded that holding a public office comes with enormous responsibilities. Those who do not have solutions to the current security situation should not aggravate it with irresponsible public comments. This is no time to play to the gallery,” NGE said.

It called on the state governments to live up to its fundamental responsibility of securing the lives and property of Nigerians.

The editors also charged the new Service Chiefs to devise a new strategy to rid the nation’s forests of bandits and other criminal elements.

CONGRATULATIONS…

L-R: Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Mr. Adeniyi Adebayo; Chief Security Officer to the minister, Superintendent of Police (SP) Olufemi Adeyemi; and Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Sunny Ubua, of Inspector General of Police’s Intelligent Response Team (IGP- IRT), during the decoration of Adeyemi with his new rank of SP in Abuja…weekend

OneBank Digitises Esusu Rotation Savings for Families, Friends Sterling Bank Plc has added rotation savings and peer-to-peer lending feature to the available options on OneBank, its digital banking platform. The new feature, known as Ajo Scheme, is the digital construct of Ajo, Esusu and Adashe, the oldest informal means of collecting and saving money through a savings club or partnership for big-ticket transactions such as a downpayment on a house, car, gadgets, school fees, overseas trips. The Ajo Scheme will allow members that are OneBank users to make an agreed monthly contribution

with funds accessed on an agreed rotating basis.

Group Head, Digital Banking of Sterling Bank, Oladipo Alabede, disclosed this in a recently issued statement. He explained that the Ajo Scheme could be initiated by an interested customer who will invite family and friends to join the scheme. However, all participants must be registered users on OneBank and must accept the invitation request.

He said there is also an allowance for participants to switch collection positions after being accepted to be part of the

scheme.

Oladipo said that debiting participants’ accounts and remittance to beneficiaries is automated, adding that the process runs daily and will debit participants on the day he/she has selected.

He said where the account is not funded, the process is repeated for the entire day selected by the participant. If the contribution still fails to come in, the scheme continues as is. The benefactor for that cycle will get only the contributions that came in for that month.

Oladipo noted that disputes relating to unfunded accounts will not be handled by the bank, saying that participants would have to sort out the dispute outside the App. According to him, someone can be added without his/her knowledge if the creator knows the email address. Still, such an added person will have to accept before he can become a valid participant.

The Group Head of Digital Banking said once the Ajo Scheme starts; it cannot be dissolved until its cycle is completed.

Olaosebikan Lauds Buhari over Three Nigerians Ruling World of Trade Kemi Olaitan in Ibadan

A media consultant, Alhaji Kehinde Olaosebikan, has lauded President Muhammadu Buhari, for three Nigerians leading trade and commerce bureaucracies of African continent and the entire world simultaneously, saying Nigeria is the first country in the world to achieve this feat.

Olaosebikan, the Chief Executive Officer of Midas Communications, a global PR firm, in a statement made available to THISDAY in Ibadan, yesterday, said the achievement by

Nigeria confirmed the success of the international relations policy of the present government and the propriety the President enjoyed across the world.

He said with Dr. Ngozi OkonjoIweala stepping in as the seventh Director General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), in Geneva, Switzerland, Nigeria already has Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, as the President of the African Development Bank (AfDB) and Prof. Benedict Okey Oramah as the President and Board Chairman of African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank),

He maintained that the three Nigerians got the continental and global positions with the full support of the country and direct decisive policies andactionsofBuhari, adding that with the occupation of the three eminent positions by Nigerian citizens, Nigeria under the leadership of the President has recorded an unprecedented accomplishment in the world.

According to him, “No other country of the world, whether in Europe, Asia, South America, North America, Antarctica or Oceania has had the rare privilege

of having her citizens occupying the three trade and investment positions at the same time.

Before Ngozi Okonjo Iweala’s assumption of office, six countries, namely; Ireland, Italy, New Zealand, Thailand, France and Brazil had produced Directors General of the Organisation but none of the nations was privileged to have her citizen as head of either the development or investment b a n k o r o rg a n i s a t i o n of her continent at the same time.

Nurses’ Strike May Paralyse Ondo Healthcare Services James Sowole in Akure The healthcare delivery services in Ondo state government-owned health facilities may be paralysed totally from today, as nurses under the auspices of National Association of Nigeria Nurses and Midwives (NANNM) will embark on a three-day warning strike starting from today.

Already, medical officers under the umbrella of the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA) had

been on strike for about three weeks due to issues relating to payment of monthly salaries.

Similarly, the nurses said they are embarking on the warning strike to press home their demand on the half payment of salary by the state government.

The decision of the nurses was contained in a letter dated February 26, 2021, and signed by the state Secretary of NANNM, Aina Emmanuel Oluwasegun.

The secretary said the nurses’

decision was reached after the meeting of the leadership of the union and its members.

He said the industrial action would commence from 12 noon today to March 3, 2021.

The notice stated: “Sequel to the meeting the State Executive Council of National Association of Nigeria Nurses and Midwives (NANNM) held on February 16, 2021, we resolved that the state government should: ‘Pay 100 percent salary of January 2017,

December 2020, January 2021; 20 percent of balance of December 2016; 50 percent of November 2020 and commencement of new salary adjustment for local government nurses within seven working days’.

“Following the expiration of the seven working days ultimatum without any response from the government, you are directed to proceed on three days warning strike from 12 noon March 1 to March 3, 2021 at first instance.”

MONDAY MARCH 1, 2021 ˾ T H I S D AY

24 HOURS...

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24 HOURS...

PDP, Falana Condemn Arrest of Ganduje’s Aide By DSS Chucks Okocha in Abuja The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and a human rights lawyer, Mr. Femi Falana (SAN), has condemned the arrest of Salisu Tanko-Yakasai, a former Special Adviser on Media to Kano State Governor, Dr. Abdullahi Ganduje, who was arrested by the Department of State Services (DSS) shortly after criticising President Muhammadu Buhari on Twitter.

Falana, who is the Interim Chairman, Alliance on Surviving COVID-19 and Beyond (ASCAB), said this in a statement yesterday titled, ‘Asking Buhari to Resign is Not An Offence’.

The senior advocate said retired military officers and political party leaders, including chieftains of the All Progressive Congress (APC) have repeatedly asked Buhari to call it quits due to the worsening insecurity in the country, adding that there is no justification for the arrest and detention of Yakassai.

He noted that in the National Assembly, there had been calls by legislators for Buhari’s resignation or removal on the grounds that criminal gangs have taken over the monopoly of violence in the

country.

Falana said, since such concerned citizens were never arrested, the harassment ofYakassai is high-handed, discriminatory, and illegal.

The statement read in part, “It is on record that the APC and its leaders including Buhari; National Leader, Bola Tinubu;MalamNasirEl-RufaiandAlhaji Lai Mohammed repeatedly called for former President Goodluck Jonathan’s resignation between 2013 and 2014 yet they were never subjected to any form of intimidation for exercising their freedom of expression at the material time.

“Since the call for President Buhari’s resignation is likely to continue to be made by other concerned individuals and groups over the virtual collapse of the security architecture of the neocolonial state it is pertinent to draw the attention of the State Security Service to the case of Arthur Nwankwo v the State 1985 6 NCLR 228 where the Court of Appeal charged the Nigerian people to engage in relentless criticism of democratically elected governments”.

“In particular, Olajide Olatawura JCA (as he then was of blessed memory) had this to say: The decision of the founding fathers of the present constitution which

guarantees freedom of speech which must include freedom to criticise should be praised and any attempt to derogate from it except as provided by the constitution must be resisted.”

The ASCAB chairman called for the immediate and unconditional release of Yakassai from illegal custody.

Meanwhile, the PDP has also asked for the immediate and unconditional release of Yakasai, son of elder statesman, Tanko Yakasai, from security custody.

The party in a statement by its spokesman, Mr. Kola Ologbondiyan described the reported arrest of Salihu by security operatives as well as his alleged detention in a secret facility, just after his “criticism against the Buhari administration’s failures in the fight against banditry in our country”, as completely unacceptable.

“Salihu Yakasai’s ordeal is a sad reminder of the sudden disappearance of another known critic of the Buhari administration, Abubakar Idris, popularly known as Abu Hanifa Dadiyata, since August 2019.

2023 Elections: ADC Rejects Creation of New Polling Units Chuks Okocha in Abuja As preparation for the 2023 general election continues, the African Democratic Congress ( ADC) has rejected plans by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to create additional polling units in the country.

The issue of additional polling units, which was shelved ahead of the 2015 general election, seems to have taken the centre stage again.

In August 2014, INEC, under the leadership of Prof. Attahiru Jega, sought to create 30,027 additional polling units ahead of the 2015 general election, with 21,615 in the north and 8,412 in the southern part of the country.

Addressing a press conference on the state of the nation at the weekend, the ADC said creating

more polling units in addition to the existing 120,000 would further increase the cost of electioneering in the country.

The ADC National Chairman, Chief Okey Nwosu, who stated this at the party’s national secretariat in Abuja at the weekend, urged public officials to exercise restraint while formulating policies that would affect the economy of the country adversely.

Nwosu noted that while the United States of America with a land mass of 9.8million square kilometres has 250,000 polling centres, Nigeria with approximately 923, 768 square km has 120,000.

According to him, “Recently, INEC has been on the offensive to create more polling stations in addition to the existing 120,000 in spite of the Nigeria budget limitations and economic struggles.

“INEC and the National Assembly have shown apathy to due diligence and efficacious financial management. The ration and rationale of election expenses to the GDP of the country is mind-boggling and sparks a sign of irresponsibility.”

The ADC chairman stated that the cost of electioneering in Nigeria is taking a heavy toll on the country, political parties and the citizens Consequently, he said the National Assembly, INEC as well as political parties should be concerned about the cost of elections in the country and its effects on the economy.

“Our elections and democracy must not continue to sap the country because leaders are inept, corrupt and uncreative,” he added.

APC will Zone Positions Based on Unwritten Agreement, Says Chairmanship Aspirant Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja Ahead of the national convention of the All Progressives Congress (APC), a chairmanship aspirant of the party, Mr. Malik Illiasu Abdul, has stated that the party would zone positions during the convention based on the subsisting unwritten agreement in the party.

It is believed that the convention of the party would be conducted in June 2021 when the tenure of the National Caretaker Committee led by the Governor of Yobe State, Mai Mala Buni, would expire.

Abdul, while addressing a press conference yesterday in Abuja, said he planned to return the party to the grassroots, and also eliminate ‘moneybags’ politics if given the opportunity to lead the party.

According to him, “Definitely, the party will zone its offices because as

you are aware, there is an unwritten rule, though not in the constitution.

It is eight years for the South and North. So, you cannot discard that.

If the presidency goes to the South, certainly the party chairmanship will come from the North.

Abdul was also of the opinion that the APC-led federal government has performed well since it came to power in 2015.

The party chieftain noted that the federal government has spent up to N3 trillion in various social investment programmes.

According to him, “In terms of monetary value, through social development and interventions programmes, the government has spent up to 3 trillion. It has never been done before in the history of this country. It is a deliberate policy of the APC government that brought all this. And you can see

the N-power and the survival funds, these are party policy to help the citizens to overcome challenges.”

He emphasised that it is now left for party members to build on the achievements of President Muhammadu Buhari, adding that it would be an indictment on the youths if the APC goes into extinction after the expiration of Buhari’s tenure.

On the ongoing party registration and revaluation exercise, and the statement credited to the Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola, that the APC is admitting killers into the party, Abdul said a political party comprises all sorts of people, adding that armed robbers can be in the party because they are human beings.

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FOR THE RECORD

This is Lagos of My Dream Babajide Sanwo-Olu

L

et me start by saying how truly honoured and privileged I am to have just been decorated as the Grand Patron of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Lagos State branch. But it is a bigger honour to have been asked to felicitate with you at another yearly thanksgiving of our Interdenominational Divine Service, which is called IDDS 2021, with the theme: “A new beginning, a new dawn and a new glory”.

A year ago when we were at the Baptist Shepherd Hill Church where our CAN President, Dr. Samson Supo Ayokunle, admonished us and challenged us, the first index case of COVID-19 had not happened in Nigeria. A year ago, we hadn’t seen the unprecedented security challenges facing our dear country. A year ago, we hadn’t seen the huge destruction that came out of the peaceful #EndSARS protests that we witnessed in Lagos. A year ago, we hadn’t seen the recession that has culminated in the economic crises in our country and the world. And so, everyone of us here today has every reason to thank the Almighty God that has kept us because it has been a difficult year.

The last one year has been a difficult year for us as a government. In the last one year, Nigeria has had to test over one million for COVID-19. Nigeria has been hit by over 150,000 infected patients.

Your Lagos, our Lagos, has remained the epicenter of the virus, with over 40 per cent of all of the national statistics. Globally, the virus has taken over 2.5million people; it has infected over 10million.

Lagos also witnessed an unprecedented protest that started peacefully. Our youths, the leaders of today, voiced their grievances to all of us in government and this led to the destruction that we have never seen before in this part of the world. We were asking ourselves, “how did we get here?”

We have also seen that within that one year, Nigeria’s economy had been hit by recession. We have seen high numbers of unemployment. We have seen huge security challenges that have shaken the foundation of our country. We have seen all of the economic challenges that have not only hit Nigeria but have hit the bigger parts of the entire world. But we thank God that we are standing and we are seated today with the grace that the Most High has given to each and every one of us.

And so, if we reflect back and also listen to the gospel this morning; I will read part of it. “And he says, why do you eat and drink with the collectors and the sinners?” Who are the collectors and the sinners? Probably politicians, including me, standing in front of you; government officials standing in front of you. Why? But our Lord Jesus answered and said, “Those who are well have no need of a physician but those who are sick. I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.” I think if that passage did not hit all of you, it hit me because it is time for sober reflection. It is a time that the topic we have taken here today, “A new beginning, a new dawn and a new glory”, cannot be better imagined and cannot be better put forward. Is it the security situation in our country? It calls for prayers now more than ever before. It calls for our intercession. It calls for all of us to come together, stronger, bigger and better. Our father, the CAN President, spoke last year; it was as if he predicted it. He was crying at the top of his voice then that the security situation of the country was going down. We all did not take it serious.

We have all witnessed the challenges of our country. We don’t have any other place that we can call home. We need to be very careful not to turn the security issues in our land into an ethnic, religious or tribal war. We need to be careful to ensure that we bring out and we isolate criminally-minded people in our community. Let’s avoid tribalising it, giving it an ethnic coloration or turning it into a religious issue. We are the largest country in Africa; where will we go to?

Governor Sanwo-Olu Who will take us? Where can we get on to? We have no other land than here and that is why I said that, indeed, Nigeria needs a new beginning. Nigeria needs a new dawn. Nigeria needs a new glory.

We are fighting not only health and medical wars because, like I told us, COVID is still around; all of us are masked up; we cannot even identify ourselves. We can’t hug ourselves. We can’t greet ourselves and we can’t even shake ourselves. So, we have a health issue that is bothering all of us. We have an economic issue that is challenging us. The country is just coming out of a recession - let us hope that it really comes out of it- when people find it difficult to earn a living, when people find it difficult to eat three decent meals a day. We are confronted with security challenges. We cannot afford to add political instability to it.

Are we saying that God Almighty is not aware? Are we? Certainly not. God Almighty is aware and He doesn’t shake from where He is. So, the challenge is for all of us as leaders in our various spheres of endeavor; be it religious leaders, be it political leaders, economic leaders, health or medical leaders, office leaders, church leaders to take up the responsibility and ask ourselves, “what can I do differently to make sure that we all have a better tomorrow?” “How will I leave this place better for our children and grandchildren than we have met it?”

I am not going to attempt to preach a sermon because my father in the Lord is most competent to do that. I am just

here to challenge us, to encourage us and to say to us because we are sons and daughters of the Most High, that our tomorrow, working together and collaboratively, will be better than our today. And so, I want to first congratulate the immediate past chairman of Lagos CAN, a very good senior friend and father of mine, Apostle (Prof) Alex Bamgbola, who had held that leadership for six years, so graciously. Baba, thank you very much. But the baton has changed; it is about the new leadership that has been sworn in today. We know that he is capable, but he needs each and everyone of us for his tenure to be bigger, greater and mightier than his predecessor’s.

Today, more than ever before, we need to come together as a nation. We need to come together as the body of Christ. Our leadership in the Christian faith needs to come stronger together, irrespective of your individual differences, and let us hold the beacon and the light of the nation together and pray to the Almighty that during our time, greater and better things will happen. Not under your watch, will we see a crumbling nation or crumbling state. It will never happen and it will never happen in your time.

For my government and me, we will continue with all our strength to serve you and serve you well. We will continue to use every breath that God has given to us. Transparently and truthfully, we will continue to push all the economic pillars that we have set for ourselves. For Traffic Management and Transportation, I will come here some day and say to you that

For my government and me, we will continue with all our strength to serve you and serve you well. We will continue to use every breath that God has given to us. Transparently and truthfully, we will continue to push all the economic pillars that we have set for ourselves

our railways have started working. I will come here some day and I will declare to you that we have opened up 16 brand new jetty terminals that you can use for water transportation. I will come here one day and I will tell you new bridges have been built, like the one we opened yesterday to connect various parts of the city. On Health and Environment, I will come here one day and I will declare to you that we have built the biggest children hospital in West Africa. I will come here one day and I will tell you that we have built an Infectious Disease Research Centre, the biggest in Africa, so that when another pandemic comes, we can begin to produce vaccines in Nigeria, in Lagos. We do not need to wait for anybody in America or India for them to produce vaccines for us. Under Education and Technology, I will come here one day and I will say to you that almost every house will have an internet connectivity that will be second to none.

The one we are deploying is to ensure that all of our youths and young people have internet connectivity that would be available at a cheaper rate. I will come to you one day and say that, indeed, we have added 1,500 new classrooms to our public schools. I will come to you one day and say that we have recruited additional 5,000 teachers; that indeed we have renovated over 500 schools that are all in the public space. Under Making Lagos a 21st Century Economy, I will come here one day and I will say to you that even as difficult as power is, we have been able to galvanise and ensure that power is accessible, affordable and it is in all the nooks and crannies of the state. And that power will not just be for two-three minutes, you can have power for a minimum of 20 hours a day to run your businesses.

These are the commitments that we are putting together. I will come here one day and I will say though we may not be able to build houses for everybody, but we can add another 10,000 housing stock to the housing needs of the state and these houses would be available on a long term basis so that you don’t need to pay with a single cheque to be a house or home owner. Because of the strong youth population that we have, I will come here one day to say that our entertainment and tourism industry is second to none in the whole of Africa. Because, indeed, we would have galvanized and we would have encouraged those youths to be real entrepreneurs, the people who can carry our culture and our tourism outside the shores of our country. And finally, I will come here one day to talk boldly about Security and Good Governance and I will be able to tell you that, indeed, we all can sleep with our two eyes closed because by that time we believe that what we be have been asking for under the State Police would have come to reality and we can put our money where our mouth is and I can fully protect each and every one of you. This is the Lagos of my dream. This is the Lagos that I see. This is the Lagos that we are promising you.

And this is the Lagos that we believe is possible for each and every one of us.

Children of God, I want to thank you all. I want to thank you for holding faith, for listening to your religious leaders and for believing that indeed as a child of the Most High God, He will continue to protect us. God does not promise that there would not be challenges; He doesn’t say that our roads will not be shaken. But He promises us that at the end of all of it, he will take us out of all the troubles of this world and will build a better one for us. So, on that note, I want to thank you very much for being a part of IDDS this year and I hope that when I see you next year, it would be for greater news from Lagos. Thank you very much. t&YDFSQUT PG -BHPT 4UBUF (PWFSOPS 4BOXP 0MV T TQFFDI BU UIF *OUFSEFOPNJOBUJPOBM %JWJOF 4FSWJDF PSHBOJTFE CZ UIF $ISJTUJBO "TTPDJBUJPO PG /JHFSJB $"/ BU UIF "QPTUPMJD $IVSDI ,FUV PO 'FCSVBSZ 20.

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MONDAYSPORTS

Group Sports Editor Duro Ikhazuagbe Email duro.ikhazuagbe@thisdaylive.com 0811 181 3083 SMS ONLY

NPFL

Dakkada in Stunning Comeback Win against Kano Pillars Olawale Ajimotokan in Abuja Nigerian Professional Football League (NPFL) leaders, Kano Pillars were brought down from their Olympian height on Sunday evening by Dakkada FC at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium in Uyo. A superlative second half performance saw Dakkada FC rally to a 3-2 win at home against the Sai Masu Gida.

The Kano team fresh from their win at home to Sunshine Stars were hoping to consolidate their spot on top of the NPFL log going into the fixture, while the

MATCH DAY 13 Abia Warriors 1-0 Wikki Rangers 2-0 Heartland Ifeanyiubah 0-0 Plateau Lobi 1-0 Katsina Utd Kwara Utd 1-0 W’Wolves Akwa Utd 1-0 Rivers Utd Sunshine 0-0 Adamawa Jigawa GS 0-0 Enyimba Dakkada 3-2 K’Pillars TODAY MFM FC v Nasarawa

home side hoped to bounce back from the disappointing defeat away to Heartland on Thursday.

The home side were without captain, Aniekan Ekpe who was suspended following his red card in Owerri on Matchday 12.

Interestingly, it was the visitors that established a firm control of the opening moments and got rewarded when pressure from the right flank saw Francis Odinaka handling the ball inside the penalty area.

Veteran Rabiu Ali sent goalkeeper Oramade Olawale the wrong way from the spot in the 10th minute.

Pillars doubled the advantage on the half hour mark, when Gerome Henchong rose highest to head Auwalu Malam’s cross beyond goalkeeper Olawale.

Christian Ekong reduced the deficit, when he got to the end of Kokoete Udo’s brilliant pass, before calmly guiding past Idris Ibrahim on

National Principals’ Cup Back to Stay, Says Dare The Minister of Youth and Sports, Sunday Dare, at the weekend declared that the revived National Principals’ Cup has come to stay this time to boost the development of football in Nigeria.

The competition is a developmental grassroots event for all secondary schools in the country.

Dare was speaking at the kick-off ceremony of the Principals’ Cup on Friday at the Agege Stadium in Lagos when Igbobi College played the opening match of the competition against Government College, Kaduna.

The minister said: “I am so elated that a competition like this which engages our youths and prepares them for the future is back.

“When you look at at the likes of Segun Odegbami, Felix Owolabi, Daniel Amokachi, Adokiye Amiesimaka, Stephen Keshi, Dosu Joseph, Henry Nwosu, Victor Ikpeba and a whole lot of others who took part in this event, one will realize the magnitude of this

big revival.

“I want to assure everyone that this competition will outlive all of us and will not go down again. It will be a brand with sponsors in place so that it will be sustained in many years to come.

“It is important to use this event to boost the age grade national teams and to give the young ones a chance to attain their full potential,” stressed the sports minister.

Deputy Governor of Edo State, Philip Shaibu, Minister of State for Education, Emeka Nwajuba, the first and second Vice Presidents of the Nigeria Football Federation - Seyi Akinwunmi and Shehu Dikko - represented the federation at the event.

The match between Igbobi College, Lagos and Government College Kaduna ended 1-1 with state preliminaries expected to start immediately nationwide.

Dare also enjoined the participants of the competition to combine education effectively with sports.

W O R L D TA B L E T E N N I S

Olajide Omotayo Set African Record in Qatar Olajide Omotayo has set a new African record at the first official World Table Tennis (WTT) events after the 2019 African Games champion became the first Nigerian and African to win a match at the WTT Middle East Hub holding in Doha, Qatar.

Omotayo who is competing in his first international tournament after qualifying for the Tokyo Olympic Games at Tunis in February 2020 began his campaign from the preliminary alongside other African players from Egypt and Algeria.

Pitched against Kazakhstan’s Alan Kurmangaliyev in the first round of the preliminary and the Nigerian showed his stuff against the European to become the only African player to record a victory on the opening day of the tournament taking place at the Lusail Sports Arena in Doha in Doha.

Omotayo is among the 298 players representing 66 countries taking part in the $200,000 prize money event which is one of the Hub (Contender) in the Middle East Hub.

38 minutes.

Dakkada returned from the break with renewed vigor and urgency, as they pushed for the leveler. Ekong was involved yet again in

a classy team move, before squaring the ball to Phillips Archibong, whose 15 yards strike rolled past Ibrahim in the 48th minute to level the score.

The home side wrapped what was an incredible comeback in the 76th minute, when substitute Isaac George scored from the spot, after goalkeeper

had clipped Ekong inside the penalty area.

The win lifts Dakkada to 9th position on the log, while Pillars go down to second place.

The Minister of Sports, Sunday Dare, flanked by other top dignitaries including Deputy Governor of Edo State, Philip Shaibu (2nd left), and match officials shortly before the kick off of the National Principals’ Cup at the weekend in Lagos

Ofili Races to New African 200m Indoor Record, Qualifies for Olympic Nigeria’s Favour Ofili sped to a new Nigeria and African 200m indoor record of 22.75 seconds Saturday night to win at the SEC Indoor Championship at the Randal Tyson Indoor Centre in Fayetteville, Arkansas, USA. The 18-year old broke the 22.80 seconds record set by Ivory Coast’s Muriel Ahoure in 2009 and made history as the first Nigerian sprinter to break 23 seconds in the half lap indoors.

The World Championship 400m semi-finalist served notice of her huge talent in the semifinals when she clocked a then personal best of 23.15 seconds to qualify for Saturday’s final.

That performance pushed her to number five on the Nigerian all-time list and number six in Africa before speeding into

the record books in the final to become number one in Nigerian and African all-time list ahead.

Prior to her incredible run in Fayetteville, Regina George’s 23.00 seconds run in 2013 in Fayetteville had looked to stay for another year at least after Blessing Okagbare came 100th of second short of equalling it early this month in Fayetteville with her 23.01 seconds performance before Ofili chose the same venue to obliterate it from the record books.

Ofili has thus surpassed the 22.80 seconds qualification standard set for the 200m for the Tokyo Olympics holding this summer.

It was generally a good weekend of track and field for Nigerian athletes in the National

Collegiate of Athletics Association (NCAA) with Ruth Usoro also surpassing the 14.32m standard for the triple jump after hopping, stepping and jumping to a new 14.38m Nigerian record, surpassing by 10cm the 14.28m she set early this month.

Usoro has not only become the first Nigerian woman to meet the qualification standard for the Olympics in the event but also the first Nigerian woman to meet the standard for both the triple and long jumps after her 6.82m feat a couple of days ago saw her hit the mark for Tokyo.

Shot putter, Isaac Odugbesan was also in great form as he hauled a massive 20.50m personal best in the event to win at the 2021 Indoor Secs.

He is now the third Nigerian

to throw 20m and more in the Shot Put indoors after Stephen Mozia and Chukwuebuka Enekwechi.

Favour Ofili...sets new Nigerian and African 200m Indoor record

Brazilian Everton Resigns from Vandrezzer FC Job Nigeria’s National League side, Vandrezzer FC have parted ways with their Brazilian Head Coach, Rafael Everton.

A statement on the club website on Sunday morning, announced the exit of the Brazilian who has handled FC IfeanyiUbah and Heartland in the NPFL previously.

“Everton who entered a new contract with VFC prior to the commencement of the 2020/2021 season has resigned via a letter dated February 27, 2021 received by email today (Sunday).

Jose Israel De Lira and a player, Alberico Da Silva have also done same via the same medium,” the club said in

the statement.

Although no reason was given for the sudden departure of the Brazilian, the club said Assistant Coach Madaki Alfred who led the Lions in their league match victory against Nilayo FC and most recently, a draw against Nnewi United, would continue in acting

capacity.

“Acting head coach of our first team, (Madaki Alfred) will be assisted by ex-international player Patrick Udoh, who is also one of our coaches.

We wish Everton, Jose Isreal and Alberico well in their future endeavors,” concludes the club statement.

Motorsports Group Wins Award Nigeria’s foremost Motorsports promoter, Work and Play has been awarded the Best Tourism Promotion Initiative at the 2020 edition of the Nigeria Tourism Award held last weekend.

President of the Motorsports group, Adeoye Ojuoko said the award from such a respected body confirms the importance of a sustained focus on national development.

“The past year was a difficult one because of the pandemic.

We had our calendar decimated by the sit at home, and most of the racers and even sponsors became extra cautious even

when we had a little window to host one or two events.

“Our team resorted to collaboration, and we were able to pull off three of the biggest Motorsports activities in the country last year.”

He dedicated the Award to the teeming members of his group, whom he says have shown tremendous faith in Work and Play’s vision to use the Motorsport as a vehicle to stimulate, tourism, economic growth, Youth engagement, and professionalism President of the Nigeria Tourism Award, Efetobo

Awhana, said the team (Work and Play) showed resilience in the face of the challenges that the industry was exposed to. Citing their innovative partnership as a rare example for the industry in the throes of shutting down, while the lockdown lasted in 2020.

Last year’s events that earned the team the award included partnership with BMW Nigeria Club for the 2020 Lagos Autofest; the Fanfaro Autofest in Ibadan that also had Work and Play partnerships as well; and later a final show in Kebbi State

the at Zuru Sports Autofest.

Ojuoko said, “While we appreciate the award, as commendations for the works done in the outgone year, we also have 2021 fully planned out, this is hoping that the global stemming of the Coronavirus will be on the rise.”

He added that Racers and Motorsports enthusiasts will hit the racing tracks of Ilara-Imokin and Akure for the return of the Ondo Auto Rally in April as the official 2021 season-opening event.

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MONDAYSPORTS

CALENDAR OF CALAMITIES

T

the topsy-turvy scheduling of the National Sports Festival has brought into the forefront the lack or organizational planning of sports bodies in Nigeria. The event initially planned for March 2020 has seen the dates moved from then to September, then November, then January, then February and now April (or is it indefinitely?). The Nigerian National Sports Festival was designed to be a biennial multi-sport event organized by the Federal Government of Nigeria through the National Sports Commission (Or Ministry of Sports-depending on the nomenclature of the day) for athletes from the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.

Started and staged in 1973 at the National Stadium, Surulere in Lagos, the game was originally conceived as a “unifying tool” with the main purpose of promoting peace and cross-cultural affiliation in Nigeria after the Nigerian Civil War in 1970. Over the years, the purpose and relevance of the games have been debated and evolved, but one thing remains constant- It is loved by athletes.

But there is always uncertainty over the festival. The dates are not cast in stone and political climate clearly dictates how and when it holds. If it had been consistent, we should have been

preparing for the 24th edition instead of the 20th that Edo will host. Festival was missed in 1983, 1987, 1993, 1995, 2014 and 2016. The current Festival has been postponed so much that athletes have been demoralized.

States have cancelled several camping, lost income while coaches are unable to plan to prepare their athletes. All these and more adversely affect the growth and marketability of the event.

While it is acknowledged that the pandemic played a role in the postponements, it is a general theme for sports in our country. We have no fixed calendar. We cannot plan or prepare adequately for events.

Athletes, coaches, media and marketers are often left in the realm of the unknown. We set dates arbitrarily and events may not have start dates till a few days to its commencement.

If we look at sporting calendars worldwide it’s organized and fixed. In football, national leagues know their start and end dates, sometimes up to four years in advance. In tennis, the grand slams have their fixed days long before the previous edition ends.

All the smaller competitions have their weeks of the year taken and thus sometimes it is very difficult to introduce new events because the whole weeks of the competitive season have been taken. It’s the same in whatever sports you look at. Formula 1,

athletics, basketball, cricket etc.

Their calendars are fixed. So it is very difficult and almost impossible to see postponements without a plausible cause.

Sports has become a big business in a global economy.

Tournaments are followed by millions of people across the world. Teams make big investments in new players, stadia etc. Broadcast rights amount to hundreds of millions of dollars in some competitions.

Countries and cities fight for the right to organize worldwide events such as the Olympics

Logo of the Edo 2020 National Sports Festival and the Football World Cup. Professional sport leagues involve millions of fans and significant investments in players, broadcast rights, merchandising, and advertising, facing challenging optimization problems. On the other side, amateur leagues involve less investments, but also require coordination and logistical efforts due to the large number of tournaments and competitors.

Events also have to struggle for air time as the want viewing audience to grow exponentially.

Organizers and sports bodies use different exact and approximate

approaches, including integer programming, constraint programming, metaheuristics, and hybrid methods to schedule their events over the year to fix a unique time for it to maximize audience and fit what’s best in seasonal terms for the athletes to perform optimally.

So despite the pandemic, it was challenging to postpone the Olympics and set a new date.

And almost immediately a new date was set once postponement was decided. This gives all parties time to plan and adjust.

Postponement carries its own set of ramifications and it is already expected to add $2.7 billion to Japan’s costs as reported by Forbes Magazine.

Most events were outrightly cancelled like the Wimbledon Tennis Grand slam because conditions for a new date were hard to meet. (Contracts agreed, weather, player preparedness, broadcast availability etc.)

However, cancelling the Games outright—which has only happened three times, during World War I (1916) and World War II (1940, 1944)—would have “massive” ramifications for all the stakeholders involved, from governing bodies to athletes to sponsors to broadcasters.

The award to Qatar to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup proved controversial; Ex-FIFA President Joseph Blatter had said the tournament won’t take place in January or February,

because it may clash with the 2022 Winter Olympics, while others expressed concerns over a November or December event, because it might clash with the Christmas season (even though Qatar is predominantly Muslim, the football players in the tournament are predominantly Christian). The Premier League voiced concern over moving the tournament to the northern hemisphere’s winter as it could interfere with the local leagues.

FIFA executive committee member Theo Zwanziger said that awarding the 2022 World Cup to Qatar’s desert state was a “blatant mistake”, and that any potential shift to a winter event would be unmanageable due to the effect on major European domestic leagues. But it was agreed that the dates of the World Cup had to be changed from the usual June because of the extreme heat in Qatar at that time of the year. This was all planned as far back as 2013.

So while we can appreciate the web of intricacies in scheduling sports events, this is not available back home in Nigeria. We do lack a cyclic plan of sporting events where fans can plan ahead and look forward to. Many times

the problems come from the uncertainty of hosting the events as organizers look for sponsors.

That on its own is a different story but the fact that most sporting events in Nigeria wait for the financial support of the government, it is impossible to fix events and these events would continue to be moved for the political purposes of those in charge.

So while events independent of government interference like the Accessbank Lagos City Marathon, the Nigeria Sports Awards and a few others that always schedule their dates long in advance have recorded successes, they are the reasons why professionals should manage our sports events to avoid uncertainty for athletes, fans and sponsors alike. We need to hand the National Sports Festival to professionals to manage it like other similar competitions around the world.

* Enefiok is an author, Speaker, administrator, Life coach, businessman and Nigeria’s ONLY Male two Time Olympic Medalist

PREMIER LEAGUE

Ndidi Concedes Penalty, Iheanacho Woeful as Arsenal Win at Leicester Leicester’s increasingly forlornlooking pursuit of Premier League leaders Manchester City suffered a big blow Sunday afternoon as Arsenal came from behind to claim an impressive 3-1 victory at the King Power Stadium.

For Nigerian internationals in the fold of the Foxes, Wilfred Ndidi and Kelechi Iheanacho, it was another bad day in the office after the midweek Europa League defeat against Slavia Prague.

Ndidi in particular let his fans down, conceding a late first half penalty after Nicolas

RESULTS PREMIERSHIP C’Palace 0-0 Fulham Leicester 1-3 Arsenal Tottenham 4-0 Burnley Chelsea 0-0 Man Utd SERIE A Sampdoria 0-2 Atalanta Crotone 0-2 Cagliari Inter 3-0 Genoa Udinese 1-0 Fiorentina Napoli 2-0 Benevento

Pepe’s cross struck him in the hand in the box. Alexandre Lacazette duly slotted the ball home pass goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel.

James Maddison’s creative energy in the midfield was noticeably missing on Sunday, with Kelechi Iheanacho failing to replicate it as his replacement. The Super Eagles forward even fluffed the last minute chance to reduce the shoreline to a decent 3-2 outing.

On a miserable afternoon at the end of a dire week for the Foxes, they also had influential winger Harvey Barnes carried off on a stretcher with his leg in a brace to add to their already considerable injury problems.

Things had started well for the hosts, who were given an early tonic for their midweek Europa League exit as Youri Tielemens was allowed to run unchecked down the right before firing a

low shot into the far corner with just six minutes played.

Arsenal refused to be adversely affected, though, and took control of the game with impressive attacking intent and far greater fluency than Leicester.

David Luiz brought them level, finding space in the box to steer a header in from Willian’s free-kick.

Alexandre Lacazette then put them ahead after the video assistant referee (VAR) judged that Ndidi had blocked Nicolas Pepe’s shot in the box with an outstretched arm.

It was second time lucky for the Gunners, who had earlier had a penalty awarded on the pitch but then downgraded to a free-kick after VAR decided the offending tackle on Pepe had taken place just outside the area.

Ivory Coast forward Pepe got in on the act himself, tapping into a largely unguarded net after Willian’s pass had deflected his way.

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta actually chose to rest a number of key players yesterday, including Bukayo Saka and Pierre-Emerick

Aubameyang, whose late winner had won their Europa League tie against Benfica on Thursday.

Arsenal move up to ninth,

eight points off the top four but with a renewed interest in events above them in the table.

Wilfred Ndidi (right) shortly after handling the ball during Leicester clash with Arsenal...yesterday

USA-based Boxer Solicits Sponsorship for Boxing in Nigeria Mary Nnah 27-year old Nigerian-American born amateur boxer cum entertainer, Abimbola Abel

Bola Osundairo...Calls for support for boxing in Nigeria

Osundairo, has enjoined Nigerian youths to diligently follow their passion to the point of global recognition and celebration.

Popularly known as Bola Osundairo, also called on Nigerian government to show more interest in boxing as sport and help it to grow.

The Chicago-based boxer who is also into movies as an actor, disclosed in a telephone chat at the weekend that Nigerian youths have great talents and are waiting to explore opportunities.

He noted that boxing as a sport is presently more of entertainment and not as brutal as it used to be.

Osundairo insisted that the sport can create jobs for millions of Nigerian youths if the government as well as corporate organisations in the country would invest in it.

While encouraging youths to take up the sport with passion, Osundairo reeled out some of the criteria for qualifying as a good boxer: “A boxer needs at least four people for a bout; coaches, physician and manager.

It’s easy to be a boxer, and in actual fact, anybody can be a boxer. All you need is the interest as long as you are medically fit.”

While appealing that a license and boxing kits should be provided for anyone who has

interest in the sport, Osundairo added, “Once you put on gloves and get into the ring you either get beaten or you beat your opponent.

“But I don’t get punched, I make sure I dodge all the punches, I fight to punch”, he added jocularly.

Speaking further he said, “I am a good amateur boxer and I have been training hard and have fought 12 fights with no defeat, I have won all the fight I got involved in.”

“I have participated in many boxing programmes in Chicago, and I want to represent my country at international meetings, Olympics and other boxing competition. If I can

get the endorsement, I want to represent Nigeria at the Olympic Games”, he noted further.

The 27 year- old boxer who started off three years ago has been doing greatly.

“I have the materials, passion, capacity, physique, skill and medical fitness to engage in the sport here in Nigeria but I am requesting for an enabling environment to prove my worth.

“How do I get endorsements when there are too many sanctions? I am a US born Nigerian boxer and want to bring honour to my country, if I would be given the platform to train at the grassroots level.

Osundairo who revealed further that although each time he visits Nigeria, he trains people at the Ikeja Police College under Coach Mohammed, noted that such alone was not enough to get the attention of government who need to improve and invest in boxing.

“It is unfortunate that our leaders have not been able to invest in boxing as a sport.

They prefer finished product, and neglect raw material.

While in developed nations, the western countries see the raw talent and scout them for proper train to become world champions”, he lamented.

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Falana to APC

“It is on record that the APC and its leaders including General Buhari; Tinubu; El-Rufai and Lai Mohammed repeatedly called for former President Jonathan’s resignation between 2013 and 2014 yet they were never subjected to any form of intimidation for exercising their freedom of expression at the material time.”

– Human rights lawyer, Mr. Femi Falana, condemning the arrest of former Special Adviser on Media to Kano State Governor, Salisu Tanko-Yakassai, by DSS.

ALEXOTTI OUTSIDE THE BOX

alex.otti@thisdaylive.com

Recovery from Recession: Too Early to Rejoice?

“The fact is, we’ll never build a lasting economic recovery by going deeper into debt at a faster rate than we ever have before.”

- President Ronald Reagan (1993)

O

n February 18, 2021, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), released its 4th quarter economic report in which it stated that the Nigerian economy grew by 0.11% from the previous quarter’s growth rate of -6.1%. Readers would recall that the country had been declared to have gone into a ‘technical recession’ by the end of the third quarter, having reported negative GDP growth for the second and third quarters of 2020. The Nigerian economy going into recession was an easy situation to understand in the light of Covid-19 and its devastating effect on the global economy. In the wake of the pandemic, oil prices came tumbling down and the global supply chain was disrupted.

Again, as had been variously reported, the Nigerian economy had been struggling since it recovered from the recession it slipped into in 2016. While recovery took place, economic growth remained minuscule and the economy remained fragile. Given the level of declines, some analysts believed that recovery was going to be hard and slow. Experts had predicted an economic growth rate in the region of -2.0% for the 4th quarter and recovery from the 2nd quarter of 2021. Understandably, the recent NBS report may have surprised them.

But were they really wrong in their forecast?

What does this latest recovery mean for the economy? Does the economy have much to cheer about, or is this a case of empty growth?

Is it like the ball room dance: one step forward, two steps backward? These and more are some of the issues on which we intend to initiate a conversation today.

For proper context, a recession in economic parlance, refers to a situation where an economy witnesses, a negative, (not declining) GDP growth for two consecutive quarters. At the end of June 2020, GDP growth rate was -3.62% and by the third quarter it had worsened to -6.1%.

Analysts have described it as the worst recession in Nigeria in over 40 years. Anyhow one looks at it, the recovery of the economy was a great news, particularly because the global economy was also in deep recession at the same time. The recovery of the Nigerian economy was on the back of growth in some unlikely sectors of the economy. The non-oil sector grew by 1.7% when compared to the previous year. This growth was driven mainly by Agriculture, which grew by 3.4% and Telecommunications, which grew by 17.6%. It is also important to note that part of the recovery had to do with the taming of the slide in oil prices on account of OPEC’s production cuts. For the quarter under review, average daily production for Nigeria dropped from 1.67m in the 3rd quarter to 1.56m. We shall return to this shortly.

Of course, there has been a lot of effort, particularly by the CBN, to encourage growth by pumping money into the hands of consumers and producers to stimulate the economy. As at the end of January this year, the CBN had injected about N2trillion into the economy under the following schemes: The Agribusiness/Small and Medium Enterprises Investment Scheme, The Covid-19 Targeted Credit Facility, The Healthcare Support Intervention Facility and The Creative Industry Financing.

Finance Minister, Zainab Ahmed All these funds which made their way into the economy were also helpful in stimulating demand and ultimately supporting the recovery of the economy. Most of the loans were actually booked at between 5% and 9% which would help beneficiaries manage their costs and grow their businesses. Like we had pointed out in previous interventions, we subscribe to the school of thought that argues that the fastest route out of a recession is spending. There is no doubt that this approach is exactly what the CBN was pursuing by the interventions which has contributed immensely in helping the economy exit recession in record time.

One thing that we are sure did not contribute significantly to this recovery is oil. With relatively low oil prices and with the attempt by OPEC to cut the production quotas of member countries, we have seen some semblance of recovery recently. As at last week, oil prices had crossed the $65 per barrel mark. We are only referring to this as it is one of the factors that would sustain the recovery, which the Nigerian economy recorded in the last quarter. As we shall demonstrate in due course, it would be our wish to sustain economic growth on the back of non-oil products, but we cannot but underscore the point that oil, which contributes slightly over 9% of the country’s GDP, accounts for about 90% of its foreign exchange earnings and close to 60% of annual government revenues.

As Nigerians savour the news of our economic recovery from recession, we should not lose sight of some important indices that point to the fact that we are not yet out of danger zone. In the first place, the growth number is a mere 0.11%. This number, even though still a growth, is too tiny. Why does it matter? The fact that it is this tiny may imply that we did not grow in the right sense of the word. But the issue of recession, other than depicting a two-quarter consecutive negative growth in the economy does not really convey much.

This is because, any country that finds itself in this kind of situation can always get itself out, without necessarily having any positive effect in the quality of life of the populace.

Like we had demonstrated in this column in times past, any growth in the economy that has no reference to the change in demographics, particularly population, would have told an incomplete or partial story. And that is why

even when Nigeria recovered from the 2016 recession with GDP growth rates hovering around 2%, the economy remained fragile, as population growth outpaced economic growth. Therefore, an economic growth that is barely above 0%, while technically is a sign of success, will certainly not cut it. But then we must take some cold comfort in the fact that the measure speaks to positive GDP growth, no matter how small. Subsequently, to the extent that GDP growth continues to be positive, the economy would continue to be seen as having recovered. Even when it becomes negative in a quarter, it will need to maintain that for two consecutive quarters to declare a technical recession. In dealing with GDP, therefore, a more useful measure would be GDP per Capita.

This indicator measures output per head in the country, over a period of one year. Nigeria has a current GDP per Capita of about $2250.

It would be revealing to compare this number with current GDP per Capita of the some African countries. For instance South Africa has a GDP per capita of $5,300. Botswana’s is $7,230; Gabon’s $7,400 and Equatorial Guinea’s $12,400.

Clearly, while Nigeria has an absolute GDP that places it ahead of other African countries, it trails those countries when measured per head.

Looking at Nigeria of today and Nigeria of 6 years ago when GDP per Capita was $3,100, it will be clear that the country has been growing its population much faster than it has been growing output. Simply put, on the average, Nigerians have become poorer!

As a corollary to the GDP per Capita is poverty index. If indeed the economy is recovering, it should translate to less poverty.

The facts point to a different outcome. It is not surprising therefore that Nigeria has remained the poverty capital of the world with close to 90m or 43% of its population living below poverty line of less than $1.90 a day. This is a big challenge in the country which is not helped by a combination of structural issues and current concerns including heightened insecurity, illiteracy, and limited economic opportunities.

The people under this bracket are not affected by the economic recovery that the rest of the economy should be celebrating. In a country of serious divides, there is little impact that these statistics will have on their lives.

The economy may have recovered but there are many parts of the same economy that cannot be said to be making any attempt at recovery.

Recent reports from the Debt Management Office (DMO) indicate that the country owes some $86b as at the end of June last year. In order to understand the full implication of this, you must add the fact that this is in addition to the budget support of Ways and Means from CBN in the neighborhood of $26b. This is a big threat to the economy. How can government rein in costs, manage within its means and cut down on servicing of debt? In 2020, out of a total expenditure of N10 trillion, government was only able to raise a revenue of N3.9 trillion, leaving a deficit of N6.2 trillion funded by borrowings.

We had reported that the government spent over 60% of its revenue to service debts in 2019.

By last year, the situation had deteriorated such that government spent 85% of its revenue to service debt. This also means that government would continue to borrow even though it is approaching unsustainable levels. Ordinarily, borrowing should not be a problem, as it is

one of the recommendations to cure recession.

However, the challenge lies in what would happen when the loans become due and there is no revenue to pay back.

While thinking about the debt profile, another important index that must be thrown into the mix is inflation. Inflation in an economy has the same effect as hypertension in the human body. Once they creep in, if they are not tamed, they do not stop until they kill their host.

Inflation simply reduces the value of money in one’s wallet without touching the money.

In the latest report of the NBS, inflation was put at 16.47% as at the end of January 2021, as against 15.75% in December 2020. A major contributor to the rising headline inflation is food inflation which also rose from 19.56% to 20.57% respectively. Put simply, every year, the N100 in your pocket will lose N16.50 of its value and all things being equal, in about 6 years, it will be worth nothing. How does the average household protect itself from this erosion? I believe we can now understand the reason for the poverty level in the country.

Will exiting recession cure this cankerworm?

As we are debating inflation, we should not forget its twin brother, unemployment. In fact, economists have a different name for negative GDP growth occurring alongside inflation and unemployment. This is called “Stagflation”. I believe that is what has been happening in the Nigerian economy. The debate about the rate of unemployment in the country has continued to rage as there seems to be no agreement on the reliability of data. However, the NBS put the unemployment rate as at end of 2nd Quarter 2020 at 27.10%. Some other sources, particularly international, have insisted that the figure is closer to 32.5%. Whichever data you choose to rely on, the level of unemployment is extremely high compared to countries like Ghana at 4.5% within the same period.

Our approach is understandably not exhaustive of the key indices to indicate a recovering economy. While contending that more attention be paid to these indices, we would not be doing justice to this issue if we do not point the debate to other headwinds that will complicate the recovery process. The first and probably the most important one is insecurity. With the level of banditry and killings in the country, it will be impossible for normal economic activities to take place in several parts of the country.

Farmers are unable to attend to their farms and movement on the roads have been severely hampered. The government must address this with a view to bringing it down to the barest minimum. The imminent petroleum products price increase in the light of increased crude oil prices is another threat that would reduce disposable income and disrupt consumption which would in turn impair business and the productive base of the economy. This is also true of increases in electricity and other tariffs.

While one is not advocating subsidy here, it is important to point out that any action that reduces disposable income in the face of a fragile economy, would have an adverse effect on economic activities in the country and that is not what the economy needs at this time.

In conclusion, what we have done today is to stir a conversation and get us thinking once again about the economy and what exiting recession means to each and every one of us.

May I therefore request that we let the discussion continue.

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