SUNDAY 23TH JANUARY 2022

MPC: Analysts Caution against Interest Rate Increase Festus Akanbi As the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) begins its first meeting for the year 2022, in Abuja tomorrow, economic analysts have advised against hike

in the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) despite the mounting pressure on the apex bank to announce a higher rate.

MPR was retained at 11.5 per cent at its September 2021 meeting.

MPR is the interest rate at which CBN lends to the

commercial banks. The MPR is the benchmark against which other lending rates in the economy are pegged and is usually used as an instrument to moderate inflation in the economy.

In their forecast of the outcome of the MPC meeting,

analysts from Financial Derivatives Company Limited (FDC), Cordros Capital Limited and Cowry Asset Management Company Limited, in separate reports, released last week, believed that the current pressure on the CBN is not enough to cause an upset

in the nation’s interest rate regime.

According to them, issues putting pressure on the MPC to increase benchmark rate include an upward inflationary pressure amid the anticipation of subsidy removal, increasing electricity tariff, foreign

exchange volatility and the intending rate hike by Federal Reserve in 2022.

The pressure was fueled by the latest headline inflation figure, which broke away from the eight-month declining trend Continued on page 6

Herdsmen from Libya, Mali, Others Still Killing Benue People, Ortom Cries out... Page 10 Sunday 23 January, 2022 Vol 27. No 9784

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2023: INEC Warns Political Parties, Aspirants against Early Campaigns Says campaigns start 90 days to elections Vows to sanction violators of extant rules Chuks Okocha in Abuja Worried by the proliferation of billboards and campaign posters of some political parties and aspirants across the country, the

Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has warned the parties and their various aspirants to wait for the official commencement of campaigns as provided by the law.

The electoral body noted that the law provides that campaigns in public shall commence 90 days before the polling day and end 24 hours before the election.

The commission has also

warned of consequences awaiting the violators of campaign guidelines.

INEC’s National Commissioner in charge of Information and Voter Education,

Mr. Festus Okoye, told THISDAY yesterday that it was not yet time for campaigns and warned political parties, aspirants and their supporters to remain within the confines and ambit of the law

and the 1999 Constitution, as well as the rules and regulations of the commission in carrying out their activities.

Continued on page 5

Nothing will Bring Me Back to Partisan Politics, Obasanjo Tells PDP Leaders Buhari’s administration clueless, piling eternal debts, says Ayu James Sowole in Abeokuta Former President Olusegun Obasanjo yesterday restated his vow not to return to partisan politics.

Obasanjo, 84, made this known when a delegation of the leaders of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) led by the National Chairman of the party, Dr. Iyorchia Ayu, visited him at his residence in Abeokuta, Ogun State.

This is coming as Ayu has described the President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration as a clueless government that is piling eternal debts for future generations.

The PDP delegation during the meeting, held behind closed doors, dwelt extensively on the party’s search for a suitable presidential candidate, who will wrestle power from the APC. The National Secretary of the party, Senator Sam Anyanwu; the Deputy National Chairman, Continued on page 8

STRATEGIC CONSULTATION… L-R: Former Governor of Jigawa State, Alhaji Sule Lamido; former President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo; and the National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Senator Iyorchia Ayu, when Ayu led the former governors and members of National Working Committee of PDP to visit Obasanjo in Abeokuta…yesterday

I Have No Intention to Vie for APC Chairmanship, Buni Clarifies... Page 5

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HONOURING A COLLEAGUE… L-R: Senator Bello Mandiya; Senator Ahmad Babba Kaita; Senate President, Dr. Ahmad Lawan, Emir of Katsina and Chairman, Katsina State Council of Chiefs, Alhaji Abdulmumuni Kabir Usman; and Yobe State Governor, Alhaji Mai Mala Buni, at the turbaning ceremony of Senator Abba Ali as Turakin Katsina, Katsina State…yesterday

I Have No Intention to Vie for APC Chairmanship, Buni Clarifies Alleged tenure elongation plot untrue, says ruling party Ojudu commends party for adopting direct primary for Ekiti 2022

Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja and Victor Ogunje in Ado Ekiti The National Chairman of the Caretaker/Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee (CECPC) of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and Governor of Yobe State, Mai Mala Buni, yesterday debunked speculations that he was scheming to contest for the chairmanship position of the party at the National Convention slated for February 26.

The ruling party, through the Secretary of the Buni-led committee, Senator John Akpanudoedehe, has also described the speculations that the Yobe State governor was plotting to remain in office as the national chairman of the APC as untrue.

Buni’s clarification came as the Special Adviser to President Muhammadu Buhari on Political Matters, Senator Babafemi Ojudu, has commended the Buni-led CECPC for embracing direct primary for Ekiti State governorship election, saying this would help in dousing the tension and return calmness after the internal poll.

There were strong speculations that Buni was scheming to contest the chairmanship position of the party, following an alleged plot to throw the position open to all geopolitical zones in the North.

But Buni’s Director-General, Press and Media Affairs, Mr Mamman Muhammed, said in a statement yesterday that the governor had not discussed with anyone that he would contest any position.

He stated: "Governor Buni is not scheming for any position.

As you know, he is a serving governor, the Executive Governor of Yobe State and comfortably piloting the affairs of the state.

"He is just the chairman of the Caretaker Committee of the party. As you said, there are so many rumours.

"But l want to assure you that Governor Buni has not discussed with anyone that he is contesting any position.

"He has neither confided in nor asked someone to work for him for the aspiration of any office.

That he is scheming or lobbying or aspiring for the party's office is false, unfounded and baseless."

Also, the Secretary of the committee, Senator John Akpanudoedehe described the report as untrue.

He said the media is trying to create content that has been misleading Nigeria and keep saying things that are not true.

Akpanudoedehe said: "You wanted a convention; we have set a date for our convention; you are coming with another story. That I simply say that it is not true."

Meanwhile, the Presidential Adviser on Political Matters, Ojudu, has saluted the national secretariat of the ruling party for embracing direct primary for Ekiti governorship primary, saying this will help in dousing the tension and return calmness after the internal poll.

He, however, advised the Buniled National Caretaker executive of the APC to conduct a free, fair and credible primary that can produce a formidable candidate for the June 18 governorship election in the state.

The presidential aide said this in Ado Ekiti yesterday during an interaction with journalists on the January 27 APC primary to elect its flagbearer.

He averred that the only way the APC can be proud of itself as a ruling party and win the

June 18 election with ease, is to conduct a credible primary that is devoid of violence, venom and bloodshed.

"I want to appeal to party men to be civil and peaceful. The only glory we can record in our party is to be peaceful and for our leaders from Abuja to conduct a primary we can all be proud of. Don't let us be violent just

because of the internal election.

"Primary of any party should be a day of celebration of democracy and not a day of bloodshed. We should be able to do this election without rancour. I am of that belief that politicians, who want to use money to hire thugs to win the election should rather use such money for the development of

our unemployed youth.

"Our party officials should be fair and transparent. They should also be efficient with the process.

"I commend Governor Buniled executive for allowing direct primary for this election, so that every member of the party, either rich or poor, high or low can participate. This will enable

us to produce a candidate that can face the candidates of other parties.

"If by any means we impose someone or throw up someone who used money to induce the people, or relying on federal might, we will have a candidate that cannot win or that wouldn't be acceptable to the party people.

IBEDC Resolves Feud with AMCON, Rallies Workers to Prevent Loss of Revenue

Festus Akanbi

Strong indications emerged that the resumed negotiations between lawyers representing the Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBEDC) and the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) have put paid to the attempted takeover of the electricity distribution company.

Mr. Tunde Ayeni’s Integrated Energy Distribution and Marketing Limited is the owner of IBEDC. But on January 20, 2022, it was reported that AMCON had taken over the control of the electricity firm through a receivership.

But a reliable source told THISDAY yesterday that AMCON did not takeover IBEDC.

The source said IBEDC’s lawyers had been holding meetings with representatives of AMCON on how to resolve whatever dispute that is on the ground.

He explained that the outcome of the meetings was to be adopted as court pronouncement at the next sitting when the case comes up.

“AMCON was indeed at the IBEDC premises on January 20, but when the lawyers from both sides met and discussed, it was agreed that AMCON will be the one to announce the resolution of the issues,” the source said, adding that it was that understanding that made AMCON officials vacate the IBEDC premises on Friday.

The clarifications were in

tandem with an internal memo signed by the company’s Chief Operating Officer, Mr John Ayodele, on Friday, informing the staff that investors in IBEDC were already in talks with AMCON on ways to resolve the issues, assuring them that the status quo would be maintained.

He also challenged the staff to be dedicated and to ensure that revenue collection and quality of service to consumers are not compromised.

Ayodele, who reportedly broke the news of the take-over of the distribution company by AMCON in an internal memo on January 20, 2022, stated in the Friday correspondence with the staff that “Further to the communication earlier sent on 20th January 2022, in respect

of the above, kindly note that the investors have resolved on way forward with AMCON and the status quo ante maintained.

“On behalf of the board and management, I urge all of us to go about our normal duties, while we count on your unflinching commitment and dedication to ensure our revenue collection for this month and excellent service to consumers are not compromised going forward.”

IBEDC distributes electricity to consumers in Oyo, Osun, Ogun and Ondo states as well as some parts of Ekiti and Kwara states.

The spokesperson for AMCON, Mr Jude Nwauzor could not be reached as calls and messages sent to his phone were not acknowledged at the time of going to press.

2023: INEC WARNS POLITICAL PARTIES, ASPIRANTS AGAINST EARLY CAMPAIGNS “Political parties, aspirants and their supporters are advised to wait for the release of the timetable and schedule of activities for the 2023 general election for proper guidance and assurance of conformity with the law and the constitution.

"Political parties are aware that based on the existing law, the period for campaigning in public has not matured and has not come into force.

“All the registered political parties must ensure that their supporters and aspirants on their various platforms do not carry out any form of campaign in public in violation of the law

and the Constitution," Okoye warned.

"Furthermore, section 86(1) of the Electoral Act makes it mandatory that the commission shall keep records of the activities of all registered political parties and may seek information or clarification from any registered political party in connection with any activities of the political party which may be contrary to the provisions of the Constitution or any other law, guidelines, rules or regulations made pursuant to the Act,” he added.

The INEC commissioner reminded the political parties that the timetable and schedule

of activities for the 2023 general election have not been released by the commission.

According to him, it is the duty of the commission to issue regulations, guidelines and manuals to give effect to the intendment of the law and the Constitution.

"By Section 221 of the Constitution, no association, other than a political party shall canvass for votes for any candidate at any election or contribute to the funds of any political party or the election expenses of any candidate at an election.

"Part 1 of the Third Schedule to the Constitution gives the

commission the power to monitor the organisation and operation of political parties, including their finances, conventions, congresses and party primaries.

"Furthermore, Section 99 of the Electoral Act, 2010 (as amended) prescribes and circumscribes the period of campaigning in public by political parties. Based on the existing law, campaigns in public shall commence 90 days before polling day and end 24 hours before that date.

“However, section 99 of the Act recognises that political parties are not the only operators in the electoral process.

"Therefore, section 100 of the

Act provides that a candidate and his party shall campaign in accordance with such rules and regulations as may be determined by the commission,” the INEC commissioner further clarified.

Okoye recalled that in the exercise of the powers conferred on it by the Constitution and the Electoral Act, the commission had issued regulations and guidelines for rallies and campaigns by political parties, aspirants, candidates and their supporters, adding that the document was signed by the Chairman of the commission, Professor Mahmood Yakubu on May 31, 2018.

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NEWS

ON THE MARCH AGAIN… L-R: Former Governor of Delta State, Chief James Ibori; state Deputy Governor, Mr. Kingsley Otuaro; Governor Ifeanyi Okowa, and the state Chairman, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Mr. Kingsley Esiso, at the PDP Mega Rally, held in Asaba…yesterday

Report: Nigeria’s Oil & Gas Industry to Face Liquidity Challenges in 2022 Dangote refinery to alter sub-region’s fuel supply dynamics Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja Nigeria’s oil and gas industry may struggle with liquidity challenges in 2022, a new report

by Mordor Intelligence, a global market research and intelligence firm, has predicted.

The report also projected a slow Compound Annual Growth Rate of (CAGR) of two per cent for the industry during the period under review, on the back of the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In its market overview for the year, the research firm noted that oil and gas production had been hampered in Nigeria in the past few years due to the attack on oil infrastructure by militants.

Furthermore, it explained that oil theft had been one of the major issues faced by the market in Nigeria, which has resulted in huge losses to operating companies in the country. “Such factors are expected to hurt the market growth during the forecast period,” it said.

For months, Nigeria has been struggling to match its Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) quota, losing millions of barrels in 2021, according to the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NURPC).

The commission had lamented that with the OPEC production quota of 1.683 million bpd in January and 1.701 million bpd in February this year, it is only able to pump 1.396 million bpd currently, leading to a loss of at least 115,926 million bpd daily, put at roughly $300 million monthly.

“We are losing about 115, 926 barrels per day, so that translates to roughly about $300 million and that’s a huge loss to a nation that requires these funds,” the commission’s Chief Executive, Mr Gbenga Komolafe told a visiting senate committee.

Komolafe attributed the

underperformance to mostly oil theft, sabotage, vandalism as well as technical issues, including ruptures associated with the country’s oil assets.

However, the Mordor report noted that some of the major factors that would drive the market during this period could include increasing investments in the upstream sector and the development of large-scale modular refineries in the country.

“The Nigerian oil and gas market is expected to register a CAGR of more than two per cent during the forecast period.

The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly hampered the growth of the market, mainly due to global oil and gas demand contraction and global economic slowdown.

“The outbreak of COVID-19 led to the crude oil price crash of April 2020, leading to a significant reduction in Capital Expenditure (CAPEX) spending by oil and gas

companies globally.

“The country’s national oil and gas companies were already struggling with liquidity and cash shortage, and due to the outbreak of COVID-19, the situation has further deteriorated,” the report stated.

It projected that although Nigeria's offshore oil and gas industry continues to expand, albeit it will be very slow.

In the downstream, the firm noted that lack of infrastructure and security concerns are leading Nigeria to underutilise its refining capacities, thereby pushing the country to become a net importer of refined petroleum products.

“However, Nigeria is on the edge of altering refined products’ supply dynamics in the region with the help of the upcoming Dangote Refinery, and it is expected to become the regional refining hub in the coming years.

“Once completed, the country is planning to become the refinery hub in Africa. This, in turn, is expected to attract foreign players to tap into the country's downstream market in the near future,” it added Given the country’s huge gas reserves and its advantage as a clean fuel, the report pointed out that gas has already witnessed a massive surge in its domestic consumption in recent years.

The shift to gas, it stated, is also supported by the fact that major oil reserves are likely to get dry in the coming three to four decades.

“Hence, the oil market is considered to be one of the most vulnerable markets where natural gas has the highest potential to penetrate.

“Moreover, gas production has become a major focus for the oil and gas companies, in response to strong investment in gas-to-power projects, across the region,” it noted.

It explained that the growth of Nigeria's offshore exploration and production activities has been mainly driven by the efforts of governments in the region, as well as a growing list of international oil and gas companies interested in exploring alternative fields to replace the maturing offshore producing sites.

“The China National Offshore Oil Corporation mobilised a $3 billion investment, in addition to the $14 billion already spent on its existing oil and gas operations in the West African country.

“A large share of this investment goes into the operations in Nigeria. One of the most ambitious ultra-deep offshore projects is the Egina oil field in water depths between 1,400 and 1,700 meters,” it added.

As one of the largest and oldest oil producers in Africa, it stated that the oil and gas sector is one of the

most important sectors in the country’s economy, accounting for more than 90 per cent of the country’s exports.

“As of 2020, Nigeria had the largest oil and gas reserves in the African region, with around 37 million barrels of crude oil (36,910) and 5.5 trillion cubic meters of gas,” the firm said.

According to the research firm, the privatisation of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) and the creation of a limited liability corporation into which the ministers of finance and petroleum would transfer NNPC assets, could make it easier for the struggling company to raise funds.

But the market intelligence company stated that foreign investment in the country’s oil and gas sector is expected to slow down due to the COVID-19 pandemic, thereby hampering the growth of the market during the forecast period.

MPC: ANALYSTS CAUTION AGAINST INTEREST RATE INCREASE to rise by 0.23 per cent to 15.63 per cent from 15.4 per cent in November 2021.

This increase in inflation figure, according to the report

by Financial Derivatives Company, now increases the probability of a rate hike, even though it is highly unlikely this time. The CBN had maintained the status quo 25 times in the last 28 meetings.

The report did not rule out further increases in domestic inflation in the coming months.

It however insisted that the monetary policy committee may not yield to the temptation of tampering with the current rate.

“We expect domestic inflation to increase further in the coming months due to the imminent removal of petrol subsidy and the planting season effect amongst other factors. This increases the chances of a tighter monetary policy stance although it is highly unlikely at this time,” the report stated.

In their report, analysts from Cordros Capital said despite the reality of the current inflationary trends, the CBN may prefer to exercise some restraints to allow previous policy actions to permeate the economy instead of falling to the temptation to raise interest rates.

“The uptick in headline inflation in December (2021) will likely stir up a debate among Committee members about whether it is a blip or a trend that will persist in the coming months.

For us, the significance of this meeting is primarily predicated on the body language of the Committee regarding the timing of the shift to a hawkish monetary stance. Like the November meeting in the prior year, we expect the Committee to affirm its view on monitoring the policy actions of global central banks before commencing

its tightening cycle.

“Given the negative output gap and sub-optimal PMI readings, our baseline, the expectation is that the MPC will judge the need to allow previous policy actions to permeate the economy.

“Accordingly, the Committee is likely to assess that tightening at this meeting will be “too early” and counterproductive. Thus, we expect the MPC to maintain the status quo on all monetary policy parameters. However, we expect the Committee to strike a hawkish tone in light of the gradual tightening in global financing conditions even as inflation remains above the CBN’s medium-term target of six per cent to nine per cent.”

The report called for the sustenance of the growth momentum as the impact of the favourable base from the prior year dissipates. “As a result, we project the economy

would grow by 2.44 per cent y/y and 2.10 per cent y/y in Q4-21 and Q1-22, respectively.

Accordingly, we expect the committee to reiterate the need for CBN to maintain its current interventions to sustain the recovery of output growth, more so that the PMI readings remain sub-optimal.

Therefore, we believe the fragile recovery process would induce the committee to maintain its dovish stance,” the report stated, adding that the committee will feel the committee needs to maintain its monetary policy stance to allow its interventions to continue to support improvement in aggregate food supply and, by extension, drive down prices.”

Dismissing the possibility of a raise hike, analysts from Cowry Research note that an increase in MPR would hamper economic growth.

“Our expectation on retention of policy rate

centres more on the fact that Nigeria’s inflationary pressure is chiefly cost-push, which would be aggravated if the cost of funding goes higher again – especially for the manufacturers who would pass on the additional cost to their customers. We believe that the monetary policymaker would see pre-election aggravated demand-pull inflationary pressure as transient. Hence, we anticipate an upward trend in stop rates and yields on debt securities, to retain investment in Naira, denominated assets,” the report from Cowry Asset Management stated.

According to Emefiele, the committee in September 2021 unanimously voted to maintain the key lending rate at 11.5 per cent, with the asymmetric corridor of +100 and -700 basis points around the MPR. The CBN MPC noted that holding stance would allow current recovery in output and decline inflation continue.

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Ministries Can Now Award N1.499bn Contract without BPP, Says FG Olawale Ajimotokan in Abuja with agency report The federal government has approved a prior review of the thresholds service-wide application for procurements in Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), THISDAY has learnt.

Ministerial tenders board can now award a contract of N30 million and above - but less than N1.5 billion - for works, according to a circular signed by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Mr Boss Mustapha.

TheCable reported that this represents a 200 per cent increase from the initial approval of N10 million and above — but less than N500 million.

The board can also award N20 million and above (but less than N300 million) for goods, while the threshold for services is N20 million and above (but less than N300 million).

Before now, it could only approve contracts from N5million and above (but less than N100 million) for goods and consultant fees.

According to the circular, cited by TheCable, Mustapha said the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) would be more disposed to post review, procurement audit, surveillance and monitoring activities to check against abuse procurement processes and enforce appropriate sanctions.

The review states that only BPP can provide a certificate of “no objection” for procurement of goods worth N300 million and above, works from N1.5 billion and above and consultant fees above N300 million in MDAs. Certificate of no objection is approval showing that a procuring entity conforms with the procurement laws.

“To ensure sustained and realistic procurement outcomes in the face of current economic realities and to enhance budget

implementation and ease of doing business, the federal government has approved the revision of the subsisting Prior Review and Monetary Thresholds for Service-Wide Application for procurement of Goods, Works and Services,” the circular reads.

“With the revision of the procurement thresholds, the bureau shall be more disposed to post review, procurement audit, surveillance and

monitoring activities to check against abuse or breach or to enforce appropriate sanctions where necessary in line with the provisions of the Public Procurement Act.” The circular added that the approved procurement thresholds supersede all subsisting thresholds except for the special thresholds for expenditures related to the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPC),

which is in US Dollar and is self-adjusting to reflect the prevailing Naira equivalent values.

Mustapha said the implementation of the circular is with immediate effect.

According to section 22 of the Public Procurement Act, the Tenders Board, headed by an accounting officer (permanent secretary or executive officer), is responsible for the procurements of goods, works and services

within the threshold set in the regulations.

For the parastatal tenders board, the government also reviewed the contract thresholds to N10 million and above (less than N100 million) for goods, N30 million upwards (less than N1.5 billion) for works, and N20 million above for services.

It added that accounting officers (permanent secretaries) can only approve less than N20 million contracts for goods, N30

million and below for works and N10 million and below for services.

For the director-general and chief executive officer (CEO) of MDAs, the contract threshold was reviewed upward from N2.5 million to N10 million for goods.

For works and services, it increased the threshold from N5 million and N2.5 million to N20 million and N10 million, respectively.

CONDOLENCE VISIT… Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar (left), and Governor of Sokoto State, Hon. Aminu Tambuwal, during the former vice president’s condolence visit to the governor over the recent death of his elder brother in Sokoto…yesterday

NOTHING WILL BRING ME BACK TO PARTISAN POLITICS, OBASANJO TELLS PDP LEADERS South and former Deputy Governor of Oyo State, Mr Taofeek Arapaja; other members of the party’s National Working Committee (NWC) and the PDP vice presidential candidate in 2019 elections, Mr, Peter Obi, were part of the delegation.

The delegation also include a former governor of Ondo State, Dr. Olusegun Mimiko; a former governor of Jigawa State, Mr. Sule Lamido; and two former governors of Cross River State, Mr. Donald Duke, Senator Liyel Imoke; former Police Affairs Minister, Adamu Waziri, and former Minister of Special Duties, Tanimu Kabiru Turaki (SAN), were also among the PDP chieftains in attendance.

A source privy to the meeting told THISDAY that the PDP leaders sought Obasanjo’s contribution to the issue of zoning and the search for a formidable presidential candidate.

“The visit was part of the wider consultations embarked upon by the PDP to strategise for the 2023 general election, especially the presidential election. They had fruitful discussions on the issue of zoning and the need to search for a suitable and credible presidential candidate,” the source said.

However, after the closed-door meeting, Obasanjo publicly told

his guests to bear in mind that he was no longer in partisan politics.

Recall that the former president had some years ago publicly announced that he was quitting politics, and tearing his PDP membership card in his house in Abeokuta.

But speaking yesterday, Obasanjo said: "I have been with the party right from inception.

Whatever I do in my own life, because I became president on the platform of PDP, PDP will continue to be part of the history of my life.

"But having said that, the day that in my ward I decided to tear my PDP card was the day I ceased to be a member of PDP and that day I vowed that I will not be a member of any political party again, but I will remain a statesman in Nigeria, in West Africa, in Africa and indeed in the world."

The former president, who said the responsibilities on the shoulder of Ayu, were enormous, prayed that he would be able to carry them.

"Your case is like the case of Idi Amin of Uganda. Idi Amin came to me and he said 'my brother, you have Africa load and it is on your shoulder, I pray God will help you carry Africa load'.

"Iyorchia, you have PDP load with Nigeria load and

it is only God that can help you to carry this load, which of course, I believe if God gives you a responsibility, He will also give you the wherewithal to be able to carry that responsibility.

"In my hope, which is also some people's disappointment is that some of you who knew how things were done 21 years ago are still there but then some people will say here if you knew how it was done 21 years ago why have you not consistently be doing it? I think you can answer that, I will not answer for you, but if you ask me, I retired 14 years ago and I remain retired and I will remain retired by the grace of God. "But if I retired from partisan politics if politics is the welfare of the people, I must not retire from the welfare and wellbeing of people whether in my community, in my state, in my own country, anywhere in Africa or indeed anywhere in the world and that is why I have the type of responsibility that I now have in the horn of Africa, which is not an easy responsibility, but it has to be done. But I will say that your responsibility is not an easy one either, but it has to be done.

"But bear in mind and I want to emphasise that I'm no longer in partisan politics and there is nothing that will bring me back to partisan politics, but

I will always be interested in what is good for Nigeria and anybody who wants to have my advice, I will give it in the best interest of Nigeria and the best interest of Africa,” Obasanjo explained.

Responding, Ayu commended Obasanjo for what he did when he was Nigeria's president.

He described the President Muhammadu Buhari administration as clueless and piling eternal debts for this and future generations.

Ayu also described the present administration as wicked, pointing out that only a wicked regime would subject generations unborn to the servitude of slavery.

Not done, the National Chairman blamed Buhari for the low in Nigeria’s international reputation as an insecure country and the poverty capital of the world, a reversal of fortunes which he measured, were the direct opposite of the achievements of Obasanjo of the PDP. "We thank you for the service you rendered and the great work you have done in the PDP as the first president.

"Your period as president under the platform of PDP was seen as the golden era of the PDP because not only did you grow the economy to be the biggest economy in Africa, you

were able to eradicate Nigeria from slavery by negotiating and cancelling so much of our foreign debts that would have made it very difficult to run the country.

"By the time you left office, Nigeria was set free, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) was on the increase daily; we were respected in the international community, everywhere we went.

"I remember I accompanied you as your minister to some countries - Germany, Indian - I saw the respect they accorded you in India and I was very proud to be a Nigerian.

"Today, unfortunately, we don't have the same recognition because what we have has fallen short of the leadership that Nigeria deserves.

"Apart from the infrastructural intervention, which you did, most of the institutions, some of them are today useful... like EFCC, the ICPC and so on you- put it in place.

"I remember when you took some of us to Germany to the offices or the Transparency International and we had a very useful discussion there.

So, you are very passionate about this country and you did a lot and we thought we should come and thank you for what you have done not to just Nigerians but our party

and Africa.

"Over these years that you were in power, you saw every Nigerian as one family, you didn't discriminate against the South, the East, the West or the North. Even though in your first tenure, the South-west didn't actually support you, but you brought them back on board and they supported you in your second tenure,” Ayu explained.

“In Africa today, I think today, in all modesty, after the departure of President Mandela, there is only one person of such stature on the African continent and we are proud that that person is a Nigerian and that Nigerian is no other than President Olusegun Obasanjo and you have continued to display the leadership because it is wrong to address you as Nigerian leader or Yoruba leader or an Owu chief.

"Even though you retired from partisan politics, partisan politics will never retire from your blood, because you want the right thing done and since you want the right thing done, for the life you will remain the emeritus member of the PDP. You cannot build a house and leave it to collapse,” Ayu told Obasanjo.

He promised the former president that the PDP would restore Nigeria’s lost glory.

SUNDAY JANUARY 23, 2022 • T H I S D AY

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ͺͻ˜ ͺ͸ͺͺ ˾ T H I S DAY, T H E S U N DAY N E W S PA P E R

NEWS

MOURNING WITH THEIR OWN… L-R: Managing Director, SESKAY Marketing Communications, Mr. Sanmi Omiata; Lagos State Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr. Gbenga Omotoso; MD/Editor-in-Chief, New Telegraph Newspapers, Mr. Ayodele Aminu; Prince Kunle Oyewumi; Executive Editor, Upshot Media, Mr. Mojeed Jamiu; Mr. Lawrence Azeez, at the funeral ceremony of Oyewumi’s father and Soun Ogbomoso, Oladunni Oyewumi Ajagungbade III, in Ogbomoso… yesterday

Herdsmen from Libya, Mali, Others Still Killing Benue People, Ortom Cries out Buhari: I will crush terrorists before I hand over in 2023 ACF seeks urgent action against criminal acts in schools Gboyega Akinsanmi in Lagos and John Shiklam in Kaduna Benue State Governor, Dr Samuel Ortom has raised the alarm that herdsmen from Mali, Niger, Mauritania, Libya and Senegal were still maiming and killing the peace-loving people of his state.

However, President Muhammadu Buhari has vowed to crush terrorists across the nation before he hands over power in 2023.

Buhari’s reassurance is coming as the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) has called on governments at all levels to take urgent steps to stem the menace of anti-social and criminal acts going on in schools nationwide.

Also as part of the efforts to tackle banditry, the Special Task Force, Operation Safe Haven (OPSH), maintaining peace in Plateau and parts of Kaduna and Bauchi states, has trained 103 youths on armed combat and intelligence gathering.

Speaking on ARISE NEWS Channel, Ortom however, disclosed that the strict enforcement of the state’s 2017 Open Grazing Prohibition and Ranches Establishment Law has reduced the level of insecurity, pointing out that herdsmen now comply with the provisions of the law.

The state government had enacted the anti-open grazing law on May 22, 2017, to curb the nefarious activities of herdsmen carrying AK-47 rifles about the state, maiming peasant farmers, killing them and taking over their parcels of land.

But following the failure of the law to deter herdsmen from destroying farmlands and killing farmers, the Benue State House of Assembly amended the law, which was signed by the governor on Thursday with stiffer penalties against violators.

Speaking on the amended legislation, Ortom acknowledged that all “is going well with the enforcement of the law except for the notorious criminal elements

of Fulani herdsmen, who came from Mali, Niger, Mauritania, Libya and Senegal.”

Ortom noted that the intention of the criminal elements “is not for grazing or doing cattle business, but to send people away and take over their land.

“Currently, as I talk to you, those people who come around with AK-47 rifles, AK-49 rifles and other associated sophisticated weapons are not just here with cattle. These notorious elements come to kill or maim our people.”

The governor cited the plight of internally displaced persons (IDPs), who attempted to return to their homes and continue with their farming activities, but were attacked, maimed and killed.

He lamented that the activities of the notorious criminal elements “are part of the reasons we have still over 1.5 million IDPs in our camps across the state.

“The children, who are not going to schools, are not happy.

The old men, who are forced to stay in these camps, are not happy. The camps we established here are not even standard.

Sometimes, the camps are sited in the school environment.

“The one close to a standard camp is what we have in Makurdi here. The General Theophilus Danjuma Committee constructed it to rehabilitate people. No person wants to live in this camp. But they are forced to live there.

“They want to go back. I am ready to provide logistics for them so that they can go back. But those who attempted to go back were maimed, killed and raped. These terrorist Fulani herdsmen amputated women’s hands.

“The security personnel posted to Benue State have also done their best. But over 100 of them have been killed since 2017. If security personnel, who were trained with sophisticated weapons, were killed, what do you expect averaged farmers, who were displaced and in distress, to go back and do?”

The governor, thus, commended all security agencies including Operation Whirl Stroke, the Army, Nigeria Police, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) and the agro rangers for working hard to ensure compliance with the anti-open grazing law and maintaining relative stability in the state.

The governor disputed claims that the legislation “is targeted at Fulani herdsmen in the state. This amendment came as a result of those who felt they have enough money to pay fines or demurrages.

“The issue of the cattle business, as it is today in Nigeria, is not just being done because they have collected enough money. So, they are always ready to pay those meagre sums,” noting that the Tiv, the Igede and the Idoma are equally affected.

Within five years that it had been experimented, Ortom clarified that the law “is not targeted at Fulani herdsmen, Hausa, Jukun or Igbo. It is targeted at every person, including the indigenous people of Benue State.”

He noted that the state’s livestock guards have done well by arresting over 50,000 heads of cattle, while over 600 people were arrested for carrying out open grazing.

“These include the Fulanis, the Hausas, the Tiv, the Idoma and the Igede,” he added.

Buhari: I will Crush Terrorists Before I Hand over in 2023 Meanwhile, President Buhari has vowed to crush terrorists across the nation before he hands over power in 2023.

He made the promise while speaking at a State Banquet organised by Kaduna Governor Nasir El-Rufa’i to round off the President’s visit to Kaduna State.

He also commended the State

Government’s support to security agencies, saying the establishment of a ministry dedicated to internal security was a good step to tackle the menace.

According to the president: “I wish to assure the people and government of Kaduna State that the federal government is doing its utmost best to contain and crush the terrorists menacing our citizens and their property in parts of the country."

The president commended the support the state government had been providing to security agencies, noting the establishment of a ministry dedicated to Internal security. ‘‘I wish to assure the people and government of Kaduna State that the federal government is doing its utmost to contain and crush the terrorists that have been menacing our citizens and their property in parts of the country. ‘‘On behalf of the federal government, I commend the efforts of the Kaduna State Government to respond to the demands of development. ‘‘The relationship between our tiers of government represents an instance of successful collaboration between the national and state governments for progress, peace and prosperity. ‘‘I urge Malam Nasir El-Rufai to push on and not relent in his efforts to accelerate change and progress in Kaduna State,’’ he said.

“I am glad to say that I have seen with my own eyes the remarkable changes across all the three senatorial zones,’’ he said.

In his remarks, Governor ElRufai called for further military action to stop the activities of terrorists in the State. ‘‘We believe that further military action and more troops on the ground are needed to stop the terrorists that menace our people.

“But as we tackle security, we must also move forward with the things that our resources

and planning enable us to do to make life better for our people,’’ he said.

ACF Seeks Urgent Action against Criminal Acts in Schools In a related development, the ACF has charged governments at all levels to take urgent steps to stem the menace of anti-social and criminal acts going on in schools across the country.

The forum made the call in a statement issued to condemn the killing of a five-year-old school girl, Hanifa Abubakar by her teacher, Abdulmalik Muhammed, at a private school in Kano.

The statement signed by the spokesman of the forum, Mr Emmanuel Yawe, expressed shock and revulsion over the anti-social and criminal acts going on in Nigerian schools.

The forum also recalled the controversial death in December 2021, of Sylvester Oromoni, a 12-year-old student of Dowen College, Lagos, stressing that the epidemic of drugs addiction, cultism and death are endangering the lives of children in schools across the country.

However, in the case of Sylvester, autopsy reports have since exonerated the five students accused of bullying and torturing him to death.

“The Arewa Consultative Forum wishes to express its shock and revulsion over the anti-social and criminal acts going on in Nigerian schools. These border on bullying, murder, kidnappings, homosexuality, cultism, among others. The latest of these cases of horror is the alleged kidnap and murder of five-year-old pupil, Hanifa Abubakar by her teacher Abdulmalik Muhammed at a private school in Kwanar Dakatar in Kano State.”

ACF also cited the controversial death of Sylvester Oromoni.

“The Arewa Consultative Forum would like to call the attention of the authorities to this new epidemic of drugs, brutality, cults and death which is taking over all schools across the country and endangering the lives of our daughters and sons and the future of our country.

“These horrors are not limited to private schools. But we are particularly concerned about what goes on in private schools because they take their students as commodities, which should be traded for money,” ACF explained.

Military Trains 103 Kaduna Youths on Armed Combat Meanwhile, as part of efforts of the military aimed at tackling insecurity in southern parts of Kaduna State, the Special Task Force, Operation Safe Haven (OPSH), maintaining peace in Plateau and parts of Kaduna and Bauchi states, has trained 103 youths on armed combat and intelligence gathering.

The graduation ceremony of the trainees took place yesterday at the OPSH Sector 7 Command in Kafanchan, Jema’a Local Government Area, Kaduna State.

Speaking at the graduation of the trainees, Commander of the sector, Col. Timothy Opurum, said the formation and training of the civilians were informed by the displacement of some communities by bandits in 2021.

“What brought about this training is the displacement of people living in Jankasa and Kachechere villages under Ungwan Gaya District.

“When I took over, I discovered that no people were living in those areas because of an incident that happened in that place last year.

“Based on that, I drew these youths from among all the indigenes that had been displaced from that place and gave them basic training."

SUNDAY JANUARY 23, 2022 • T H I S D AY

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾JANUARY 23, 2022

EDITORIAL

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

AUDIT REPORT ON POLICE ARMOURY

The audit report raises difficult questions for the police on issue of national security

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he revelation by the Auditor General of the Federation that about 178, 458 different categories of arms from the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) armoury are missing or cannot be accounted for should compel serious attention from the presidency. We consider the report rather alarming especially in the face of the clear and present danger posed by the activities of insurgents, bandits, kidnappers, armed robbers, and sundry criminal elements who terrorise the country. For any nation, nothing can be more dangerous than a lack of transparency and accountability in the storage of dangerous weapons.

Meanwhile, the report of the AuditorGeneral of the Federation goes beyond police armoury to other critical arms and agencies of government that whimsically violate statutory financial reporting obligations. The report, for instance, indicted the National Assembly management, as well as the National Assembly Service Commission (NASC) over a questionable expenditure of N9.424 billion that cannot be properly accounted for with any supporting documents.

Where a body that is constitutionally empowered to have its eyes at every sector of our national life is deeply involved in unwholesome practices, there is cause for worry.

Sadly, this is not a new development.

For years, the National Assembly has been found to compromise its duty of ensuring propriety in the conduct of government business by seeking to place itself above measures that would enthrone accountability, all in the name of separation of powers.

However, we are particularly concerned about the situation at police armoury because of the implications for national security. Over the years,

What the report of the Auditor General of the Federation has revealed is the lack of internal control and supervision in the management of weapons

Letters to the Editor

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there had been reports that official arms were being sold to members of criminal gangs and we had in recent times witnessed the arrest of some police and military officers in that regard. What the report of the Auditor General of the Federation has therefore revealed is the lack of internal control and supervision in the management of weapons. The lack of integrity in the register and monthly returns of arms and ammunition obtained from force armament, force headquarters for various states commands, formations, zonal offices, training, institutions, squadrons, etc., is detailed in the audit report. Despite that damaged and obsolete firearms and ammunition ought to be treated in line with Financial Regulations 2618 which require the destruction to be carried out in such a manner as to render the firearms unusable, that protocol is cynically breached. he Inspector General of Police (IGP) as the Chief Executive Officer of the NPF as well as the Nigeria Police Service Commission should be held accountable for these lapses. The IGP should provide reasons why records of unserviceable and expired firearms and ammunition were not maintained.

He should also forward a comprehensive record of all unserviceable firearms and ammunition and up-to-date record/schedule of expended ammunition to the Public Accounts Committees of the National Assembly.

The resolution by the House of Representatives to probe the audit report is commendable but that presupposes that the legislature is also willing to play by the rules. “The value of the lost firearms could not be ascertained because no document relating to their cost of acquisition was presented for examination,” argued Toby Okechukwu who moved the motion to investigate the report. “Out of this number, 88,078 were AK-47 rifles, 3,907 assorted rifles and pistols across different police formations, which could not be accounted for as of January 2020”.

One of the major challenges facing Nigerian security agencies, especially the police, is the lack of public trust. This has led to a situation in which Nigerians deny them vital intelligence needed to effectively carry out their mandate of ridding the society of violent criminals. The revelation in the Auditor General’s audit that the inventory of weapons was not properly taken points to a more fundamental challenge with the NPF. It is in the interest of the country that the issue be properly addressed.

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S U N DAY N E W S PA P E R EDITOR DAVIDSON IRIEKPEN DEPUTY EDITORS FESTUS AKANBI, EJIOFOR ALIKE MANAGING DIRECTOR ENIOLA BELLO DEPUTY MANAGING DIRECTOR ISRAEL IWEGBU CHAIRMAN EDITORIAL BOARD OLUSEGUN ADENIYI EDITOR NATION’S CAPITAL IYOBOSA UWUGIAREN MANAGING EDITOR BOLAJI ADEBIYI THE OMBUDSMAN KAYODE KOMOLAFE

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

NIGERIA AND ROYALTIES OF RECRIMINATION

hen the Igbos of Southeast Nigeria say ‘Igbo enwe eze’ which simply translates to ‘Igbos have no king’, they address an ancient grievance. The simple saying which packs a punch tells of a people`s aversion for centralized authority, their independent spirit and their sheer defiance.

At the peak of colonialism, while the centralization of power in the emirates of North fired the preferred indirect rule machine of the British, the colonialists ran into a brick wall in the Southeast where they were at a loss about where to find power. They ultimately settled on the use of warrant chiefs. But the highhandedness and haughtiness of the men chosen to be warrant chiefs evoked memories of the slave trade and aroused ancient

resentment in the people.

Eventually, the system crumbled like a pack of cards.

What happened in the Southeast has proven a historical blueprint as traditional institutions have failed to fully take root in the Southeast. Of course, many villages in the Southeast have traditional rulers in place but the degree of influence many of them wield is far inferior to what their counterparts in other parts of the country wield notably in the North and Southwest. In spite of the varying degrees of influence, many royal institutions in the Southeast are now fostering crises in many villages as power tussles careen out of control to send communities spiraling into violence.

Some villages in the Southeast have more than one traditional ruler with each of them claiming

legitimacy. So, during the annual homecoming of Ndigbo in December, factions created by those laying claims to the kingship of their villages hire thugs and foment trouble.

There is another side to it. Some serving Nigerian politicians in Abuja have perfected the art of fomenting trouble in their hometowns and threatening all their opponents with federal might. As Nigeria continues to cascade into insecurity, the role of traditional rulers has come under ever intense scrutiny. The question is framed around what traditional rulers are doing and what they are supposed to be doing.

It is only unfortunate that in Nigeria`s highly volatile Northwest and Northeast regions, traditional rulers have themselves become subjects of vicious attacks from bandits and

terrorists. Some have been attacked and abducted right from their palaces while others have received on behalf of their beleaguered communities all manner of epistles threatening chaos and destabilization if outrageous sums demanded as taxes and levies are not paid urgently.

So, in Nigeria, the traditional institution is coming under increasing pressure, whittled down by pressure from politicians increasingly desperate for political capital and terrorists pushing distorted ideologies and economic agendas. So, in Southeast Nigeria, many communities are in turmoil, riven apart by all manner of charlatans laying claim to the thrones of their forefathers. The only claim some of these charlatans have is the backing of some high-profile politicians who have lost credibility at home but are high ranking government officials elsewhere.

With the support of such men who have no scruples whatsoever over

turning their communities upside down in a bid to reclaim long lost political relevance or simply to teach their opponents a lesson, the charlatans posing as traditional rulers proceed to hold their communities to ransom and unleash the horde of criminals they always have at their beck and call at the slightest provocation.

Such traditional rulers are the ones who would arm unknown gun men in the Southeast; they are the ones who would habour bandits in their domain in the Northwest; they are the ones who would turn to illegal oil bunkering in the Niger Delta.

It is unfortunate that in these days when the traditional institution is coming under increased pressure, many Nigerians do not really know whether to twist or turn when dealing with their traditional rulers.

– Kene Obiezu, keneobiezu@ gmail.com

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾JANUARY 23, 2022

NEWS

News Editor: Gboyega Akinsanmi E-mail: gboyega.akinsanmi@thisdaylive.com,08152359253

TUC Mobilises Members for Strike against Fuel Subsidy Removal Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja The Trade Union Congress (TUC) has directed its state chapters to mobilise their members for a nationwide strike if federal government goes ahead to remove fuel subsidy without meeting the conditions set by the union.

As part of the resolutions reached at its National Executive Council (NEC) meeting held yesterday in Abuja, the union urged the government to review the privatisation of the power sector since the contracts had expired to ensure viability, job security and effectiveness of the sector.

The union said that the proposal

by National Council of State on the final removal of subsidy on petrol as from June 2022 should take into consideration the attendant

economic impact on the masses.

TUC insisted that refineries should be fully overhauled, while the establishment of modular refineries should be encouraged.

It also called on federal and state governments to put in place measures to ameliorate the suffering of the people through food security and infrastructural development.

In the communiqué issued at the end of the NEC meeting, the union said that it deliberated on the various issues among which was the state of the nation and observed with serious concern the worrisome economic situation and the rising cost of living.

On the issue of proposed removal fuel subsidy, the union said: “It has mandated the congress led by the President to take all

necessary steps to ensure that these conditions are met before subsidy is removed. “Consequently, NECin-Session directs state councils and affiliates to commence mobilisation of members for industrial actions against subsidy removal without Government fulfilling conditions precedent,” according to the communique.

The President of the TUC, Comrade Quadri Olaleye who read the communiqué, said that NEC has directed state chapters to commence mobilisation of members for a strike if the federal fails to meet conditions set by the workers.

He noted that TUC acknowl-

edged the giant stride in rice production through various interventions of the Buhari’s administration, and called on the federal government to ensure that the price of rice in the market becomes affordable to the common man to justify the rice revolution policy of the administration.

The TUC President further said that the federal government must exhibit political will in its economic diversification programmes with a major focus on agricultural production.

According to the TUC, the development of the agricultural value chain can create mass em-

ployment and put the country on the path of economic recovery and prosperity.

The union urged the federal government to immediately review the privatisation of the power sector since the contracts have expired.

Part of the communiqué reads: “NEC-in-Session insists that federal government must ensure that the conditions precedent put forward by the TUC on the deregulation of the downstream such as; the revitalization of existing refineries, establishment of new ones including modular refineries and

effective policing of borders to stem the rate of petroleum products smuggling are implemented.”.

The union also called on its members nationwide to obtain their Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs) and ensure active participation in the democratic process ahead of the 2023 general election.

Members of the union were also urged to support the Political Commission of the Congress in creating groundswell awareness for providing leadership alternatives that deliver on democratic dividends and transformative governance to the people.

NSCDC Arrests 15 Oil Thieves in Rivers Blessing Ibunge in Port Harcourt The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Rivers State Command, has arrested 15 persons allegedly involved in illegal crude oil refining business.

The command led by Commandant General Special Intelligence Squad (CGIS) also seized six trucks and a bus used in conveying the illegally refined products in the state.

The Public Relations Officer of the command, Mr. Akins Oguntuase, disclosed this at a session with journalists at the NSCDC Zonal Office in Port Harcourt Shortly after parading the suspects, the spokesman said achievements was sincere fight against vandalism of the national assets, soot menace and infrastructure.

Oguntuase explained that the command recently paraded some suspected oil thieves allegedly involved in acts of economic sabotage.

He said: “Today, we are parading 15 suspected oil thieves, who

were arrested by the CGIS in collaboration with the personnel of the state command.

“A total of six trucks and a bus used to convey the illegally refined products like kerosene and diesel were arrested,” the spokesman disclosed at a session with the journalists.

He noted that two out of the six trucks had already been handed over to the command by Dr. Chidi Lloyd, the Chairman of Emohua Local Government Area (LGA) for investigations and possible prosecutions.

He said: “On January 15, at about 13.05 hours, close to Olu Obasanjo Road, two suspected oil thieves were arrested and a truck with registration number RNG 181x yellow and white colour were arrested along with the suspects who are presently undergoing interrogations, they would soon be charged to court.”

Oguntuase, however, urged residents of the state to collaborate with security agency in the ongoing fight to end the nefarious acts in the state.

Borno Set up Panel to Look into Slitting of Throat at Islamic School Michael Olugbode in Maiduguri

The Borno State Government has set up a committee to investigate the incident of the slitting of the throat of Jubril Sadi Mato, a student of Elkanemi College of Islamic Theology, Maiduguri.

Jubril, currently on admission at the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital (UMTH), was said to have refused to go on an errand by a senior student that subsequently took him to a lonely place within the school where he allegedly did the damage and left him for death.

In a letter of appointment of the investigate Committee, members are given seven days to unravel the circumstances behind the ugly incident.

The letter which was signed

by Borno State Commissioner for Education, Alhaji Mohammed Abacha, gave

the names of members to include representatives of the Department of State Security (DSS); Nigeria Police; Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) and Director Quality Assurance of Borno State Ministry of Education.

The letter addressed to Alhaji Saddiq Kadafur, the Borno Ministry of Education’s Ministerial Secretary which was appointed to act as Chairman of the Committee, read: “Sequel to the recent unfortunate incident involving Jubril Said Mato, a student of Elkanemi College of Islamic Theology, Maiduguri, the Ministry of Education therefore constitutes a 5-man Committee with you as the Chairman to investigate and arrive at the remove causes of the incident and arrive at the remote causes of the incident and suggest ways to curtail its re-occurrence in the future.”

WITH LOVE FROM LAGOS… L-R: Nasarawa State Governor, Alhaji Abdullahi Sule; Special Adviser to Ekiti State Governor on Federal Matters, Mr. Makinde Araoye and Lagos State Deputy Governor, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat at the meeting of the National Economic Council (NEC) at the Banquet Hall, Presidential Villa, Abuja… recently

CSOs Fault Buhari for Unveiling Substandard Vehicles, Equipment Kingsley Nwezeh in Abuja A coalition of 33 Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) yesterday faulted President Muhammadu Buhari for inaugurating substandard 200 Buffalo vehicles, bulletproof vests and other equipment, which the Police Trust Fund (PTF) donated to the Nigeria Police recently.

CSOs, including Rule of Law And Accountability Ad-

vocacy Centre (RULAAC) and International Peace and Civic Responsibility Centre (IPCRC), called on the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to expedite action on the investigation of the allegations.

In a statement yesterday, the coalition expressed concern about Buhari’s inauguration 200 Buffalo Toyota operational vehicles and other equipment

purchased by the Police Trust Fund for the Nigeria Police Force through contract fraud allegation on January 13 of The coalition claimed that the Chairman of the Board of the Nigerian Police Trust Fund (NPTF) and former Inspector-General of Police, Mr Suleiman Abba, claimed he was not aware of the development since his board was not carried

along in the procurement of the said equipment.

It said: “We, the undersigned members of the CSO-PTF Support and Oversight Group have received with serious concern the news of Buhari’s inauguration of 200 Buffalo Toyota operational vehicles and other equipment purchased by the Police Trust Fund for the Nigeria Police Force through alleged contract fraud.

Abuja, Lagos Workers Record Highest Requests for NSITF Compensation Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja The Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) has said that the Abuja and Lagos regions of the country recorded the highest requests for compensation for injured workers in 2021.

While giving performance update, the General Manager, Claims and Compensation at NSITF, Nkiru Ogunnaike, said the fund in 2021 processed and paid 18,128 claims, amounting

to a total sum of N857,754,394.51 , with Lagos and Abuja regions accounting for 7,688 and 4,223 of the claims.

A statement signed by the General Manager, Corporate Affairs of NSITF, Mrs. Ijeoma Okoronkwo, said the update by Ogunnaike was presented at the 2022 Management Review Conference held in Abuja last Thursday.

Ogunnaike gave instance of a pathetic case of an employee

of Bougyeus Construction Company, who sustained injury in the course of work, leading to total deafness in his two ears and requiring Cochlear Implant Surgery to enable him hear again.

“The Board of the NSITF sat and exhaustively deliberated on this case of 100 per cent disability and graciously approved the sum of N14m for the surgery.

He has also been added to the monthly payroll of the NSITF/Employee Compensation Scheme Unit, pending successful operation and recovery, and if not, until he attains the age of 55.

Managing Director of the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF), Mr. Mike Akabogu while speaking at the review meeting, said the agency has implemented landmark decisions in furtherance of the strategic reform package.

Customs Intercepts 135 Trailers Loaded with Rice The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) at the weekend disclosed that its Federal Operation Unit, Zone ‘A’, Lagos intercepted no fewer than 135 trailers loaded with thousands of bags of foreign rice.

The Comptroller of the Federal Operation Unit, Hussein Ejibunu disclosed this at a media briefing in Lagos, saying 2021 was eventful as operatives of the unit successfully combed the Western zone for contraband.

According to him the duty paid value of the rice and other cargoes seized last year, was more than N7.86 billion. In the year under review, the comptroller disclosed that 751 pieces of cartridges were also intercepted.

He said other products in the unit’s kitty “include premium motor spirit, frozen poultry products of more than 12,394 cartons as well as 562 units of used vehicles.

Used shoes, used clothing, used

fridges, vegetable oil, 16 containers of unprocessed woods, carbide, unapproved drugs, and 149 units of motorcycles were impounded.”

He disclosed that the Unit generated revenue to the tune of N617,919,095.25 with 116 suspects arrested. 18 of the suspects were arraigned in court, 69 released on administrative bail, one-handed over to the NDLEA while 23 of the suspects are still in Custom’s custody.

He explained that the end of 2021 witnessed the unit being boosted with operational vehicles, gun trucks, and commendation letters by the Comptroller General of Customs and his management, that galvanized officers and men to improve on their performance.

Obviously, according to the comptroller, the re-jigging of the Unit was the magic wand that shot up the seizure profile of the Unit, between September and December 2021.

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JANUARY 23, 2022

OPINION

THE AFRICAN WORLD’S DEBT TO W.E.B. DU BOIS Ike Okonta pays tribute to William Du Bois, a Pan-Africanist, author and civil rights activist

I

have just finished reading David Levering Lewis’ two-volume biography of the African American intellectual and architect of the American Civil Rights Movement, Dr W.E.B. Du Bois. The two books won the Pulitzer Prize an unprecedented two times and cemented Professor Lewis’ reputation as one of the world’s leading biographers and historians. The prose deployed in the books is sinewy and lyrical.

The argument is engaging and muscular. The overall effect is one of joy and gratitude – that an African American historian would pay tribute to one of the world’s greatest intellectuals in a manner worthy of great literature.

Dr Du Bois, for the uninitiated, was born in Massachusetts, United States, in 1868. He died in exile in Kwame Nkrumah’s Ghana in 1963, at the ripe age of 95. Du Bois packed into a long life activities including journalism, political activism, and fiction and non-fiction writing.

He was the first black American to earn a doctorate in Sociology in Harvard University. He was to quickly prove that he fully deserved his PhD. One of his earliest books, The Souls Of Black Folk, is still read all over the world today and taught in leading universities. His other books include Gift Of Black Folk, Black Reconstruction and The World And Africa. It is in these books that Dr Du Bois gave to the world such concepts as ‘Double Consciousness,’ ‘The Talented Tenth’ and the twentieth century being the century of the colour line.

Dr Du Bois is also hailed as the father of Pan-Africanism. As early as the year 1900 he called a meeting of black intellectuals and political activists in London and charged the gathering with the task of reviving the economic and political fortune of all people of African descent in the motherland and the diaspora. It was in the speech he delivered at this historic meeting that Du Bois prophesied that the twentieth century would be a very turbulent century politically and that non-Europeans in Africa and Asia would rise up to challenge the hegemony and imperialism of Europeans. Du Bois was to follow up this 1900 meeting with several congresses of the Pan African movement, culminating in the epochal congress in Manchester, United Kingdom in 1945 where

the likes of Kwame Nkrumah and Jomo Kenyatta came into their own.

Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe, one of Nigeria’s leading nationalists, was directly influenced by W.E.B. Du Bois when the former was studying in the United States in the late 1920s. One of Azikiwe’s earliest journalistic pieces, an essay on the killing of Igbo women by British colonialists during the Aba Women’s War in 1929, was published in The Crisis, the very influential monthly magazine of African American affairs which Du Bois edited at the time. As an undergraduate in the Nsukka campus of the University of Nigeria in the early 1980s I was thrilled encountering the names of prominent African Americans on several university buildings. The fiction section in the university library was also stocked with the works of the leading African American writers of the 20th century – Richard Wright, James Baldwin, Langston Hughes , Ralph Ellison among others. I read these authors with relish and was introduced to the life and travails of our black brothers and sisters in America. This experience shaped and continue to shape my politics.

It is, however, significant to note that Dr Azikiwe, who founded the University of Nigeria in 1960 did not name a single one of the buildings in the University after Dr Du Bois.

I have often speculated on the reason. Could it be because Dr Du Bois was a socialist and indeed joined the Communist Party of the United States in the evening of his life? As is well known Azikiwe was an arch capitalist and in his writings did not hide the fact that one of the major motivations of his life was to accumulate as much wealth as possible. Du Bois travelled widely in his old age and met such personages as Chairman Mao of China and Nikita Krushchev of the So-

The best way to pay back Dr W.E.B Dubois is to simply continue the work where he left off – the project of a renascent African world taking her proper place in the world

viet Union. The American government, which was at the time in a cold war with China and the USSR did not like the fact that Du Bois was fraternizing with the ‘enemy’ and in fact confiscated his passport for a period. Nnamdi Azikiwe, the ultimate pragmatic politician, might have steered away from Du Bois during this time so as not to offend the United States and Great Britain.

Dr Du Bois is not widely known in Nigeria unlike in Ghana where he is celebrated as a Pan African icon. This is tragic because Nigeria and indeed all African countries owe Du Bois a debt of gratitude. Without Du Bois’ pathbreaking work in the early decades of the 20th century as an implacable Pan Africanist, the rise of the likes of Dr Azikiwe, Jomo Kenyatta of Kenya and Dr Kwame Nkrumah of Ghana would have been inconceivable. Until he breathed his last in Accra where he was working on an encyclopedia of the African world, Du Bois hungered for the day when the countries of Africa and its diaspora would be able to stand up on their own and take their place in the comity of nations. He had total and unswerving faith in Africa and her peoples, and was confident that the day was not far off when the continent would astonish the world with her advances in culture and science and technology.

The Covid 19 outbreak and Africa’s laggardly response to it has brought home the brutal fact that Africa will have to swim or sink on her own efforts. The present situation wherein Africa’s ruling class since the 1960s have been looting the continent and stashing away the money in European and American banks must be confronted and a new Africa founded on the dreams that Dr Du Bois so selflessly and bravely enunciated allowed to take root. The best way to pay back Dr W.E.B Dubois is to simply continue the work where he left off – the project of a renascent African world taking her proper place in the world.

– Dr Okonta was until recently a Leverhulme Early

Career Fellow in the Department of Politics, University of Oxford. He presently lives in Abuja.

BETWEEN TINUBU AND BUHARI’S SUCCESSOR Oludayo Tade supports President Buhari for keeping sealed lips on the identity of his successor

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he market for 2023 politics has been declared opened by the son of Abibatu Mogaji who is also the ceremonial national leader of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu (BAT). The Asiwaju of Lagos State had visited the president to intimate him of his intention to vie for the number one position in the country. As a political strategist, Asiwaju understands the first law of power which says ‘never outshine the master’. The master in the APC is the incumbent President who through his last exclusive interview with Channels TV, revealed that he also understands the laws of power. It was Seun Okinbaloye who asked President Muhammadu Buhari (PMB) “You don’t have any favourite in your party (to succeed you) in 2023?” and the president responded: “No. I wouldn’t disclose (now).

He may be eliminated if I mention. I better keep it secret”.

Through this response, PMB displayed his understanding of the importance of concealed intention as a powerful tool in ‘keeping off-balance and in the dark’, so that those thinking they are close to the President will be shocked by the time he unleashes the purpose behind his actions and unveil his favoured successor. But how is PMB’s position critical in the unfolding declaration of interests for the 2023 presidency in the ruling party? Will the Jagaban of Borgu find favour as the favoured successor the President spoke about in the interview? With all the powers at his disposal, why would the President be afraid that his favoured successor may be eliminated if he dares to name him and what does this say about the nature of Nigerian politics?

While expression of interest in the 2023 presidential race is still at infancy, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu’s has stressed that it is his lifelong ambition to become the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and he has the right as the citizen of the country who meets the constitutional requirements to that office to so aspire. From activism, formation of National Democratic Coalition (NADECO) and foray into politics, the Jagaban of Borgu has been playing strategic politics towards realizing his ambition dating back to his ascendancy to the Governorship seat of Lagos State.

He has since then been enjoying political patronage from within and stretching his sphere of influence outside the state. In terms of political sagacity, I am aware that Tinubu was the only surviving Alliance for Democracy Governor in the southwest who did not fall victim of the antics of the

Olusegun Obasanjo government that swept others; that defeat shifted the structure of power and influence to the surviving governor, Bola Ahmed Tinubu as the chief financier of the party. Turning Lagos to Industrial training space for politicians who would later be supported financially and morally to realise their own gubernatorial ambitions in Oyo, Osun, Ekiti and Ondo states, Asiwaju’s political clientelism is an investment which he hopes to leverage on at the right time. He must have realised that spread also counts in becoming the president of Nigeria and so wasted no time in raising political disciples to begin to preach his gospel as he expands his tentacles.

As Lagos groomed politicians become Governors in other states in the region, Jagaban became the kingmaker and championed expansive politics oriented to position him in history. After unsuccessful attempts at getting the center through regional strength, Tinubu mainstreamed his politics to National through which he will be able to, in the nearest future build alliances that will ensure the realization of his presidential ambition. He would later align with former political foe, the incumbent President who also failed to clinch his lifelong dream of becoming a democratic President thrice. They formed a new mega-party that would unseat the Peoples’ Democratic Party. At the birthing of APC, compromise also had to be made as the favour of the incumbent and the vote from northern Nigeria would be needed as a payback to elevate the kingmaker (Asiwaju) to be crowned in Aso rock palace.

As Tinubu continues to position people in the corridors of power and influence in the polity, he also ensures he breaks the barriers of religion and ethnicity by identifying with those who would be useful for him later, which may be now.

This political tactician with academic resume in accountancy and experience in the oil industry would now reveal the desire to break the record of late Sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo to achieve the feat the great Awolowo did not achieve. This is also seen in what I consider as a political statement of promising to build on the foundation of PMB if he becomes the President. Was it to correct the mistakes made by some political warlords from the region in the past who revealed their true intentions and got their ambitions thwarted? Even at that, the Jagaban would

have to solve the puzzle of PMB’s favoured successor, settle intra-party rivalries which will soon ensue and if successful, face inter-party battles and finally the Nigerian electorate.

However, the body language and mannerism of the president of Nigeria determines a lot of things in our polity and that is why an aspirant cannot but first go to Aso rock to tell him that they are interested in wearing his shoes when he leaves in 2023. Robert Greene’s 48 Laws of Power comes in handy at this time. Greene counsels us never to outshine the master but ‘to make the masters appear more brilliant that they are and you will attain the heights of power’.

Why should someone called national leader of a party go to the President first? It is the understanding of the fact that Tinubu must ‘make the President feel comfortably superior’ and this is why the husband of Oluremi has been able to master the art of Nigerian politics. But the President has given no clue who the favoured successor will be and this is a blank cheque to all aspirants, waiting for whose name the President will write on it.

I have a feeling of an impending shocker which I get from the response of the president on his preferred successor. This atmosphere of uncertainty surrounding where the pendulum of presidential preference may swing may have made him to keep sealed lips and save the anointed person from being eliminated.

Our history is replete with unresolved ‘political assassination’ or if you like, ‘elimination’. But I support the president for keeping sealed lips on the identity of this favoured successor for the fact that the person will be safe from being ‘eliminated’.

Elimination is a law of power too. Crushing one’s enemy totally is reproduced in Pentecostal churches’ ‘die by fire’ prayers in which there is no time to take risk of allowing repentance of the enemy. In political parlance too, wiping out an enemy may be a strategy to neutralize a threat to your ambition and force a redirection to your side. Will the favoured successor of the President be Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu or another person? Will the President favoured successor be favoured by the electorate? Only time will provide the right answers.

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

T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾JANUARY 23, 2022

15

LETTERS

IGBOS, PDP AND THE PRESIDENCY

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hen preparation unites with expectations and opportunity – results happen.

For every feat, there must be diligent preparation and effort. Nothing takes shape in disarray, grumbling and victim complex. We, the Igbo, cannot sit by the Rivers of Babylon and lament our way to the presidency. We cannot have what we are not ready or prepared for.

If work had been put in

by Igbo political leaders in the past six years -- forging alliances and mobilising consciences -- the right atmosphere would have been created for the zoning of the presidency to the south-east by the foremost political parties in 2023. The mood today says otherwise. The Igbo are not prepared for the presidency -- even though deserving of it.

I met with some of these leaders years ago. I shared my concerns about the

self-relegation of the Igbo in national politics and suggested ways of generating a high-voltage flow for the realisation of the ever-elusive aspiration of presidency by the Igbo. I was discouraged by them. Well, I later found out their reason. Their interest was survivalist, and not about the Igbo.

These same people cry ‘’the Igbo are marginalised and Buhari is Fulanising Nigeria’’, but will work hysterically for another Fulani in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to emerge as president. The fact is if any of the political parties happens to cede the presidential ticket to the south-east, these Igbo political elite will still tarry with the same presidential aspirant from the north-east. That is, survivalist politics -- which negates the interest of the whole for that of the individual.

This brings me to the question. What did the PDP do to deserve the loyalty of the Igbo? What did the PDP do for the Igbo in 16 years when

the party was in power? The Igbo have trudged with the PDP through thorns and thistles, yet have nothing to show for their years of blind loyalty. Absolutely nothing! I challenge anyone to list the infrastructural achievements of the PDP federal government in the south-east in 16 years.

I have searched frantically, but found nothing. The

much-vaunted upgrading of Enugu airport to international standards under the PDP government was a hoax. The airport was only converted from a motor park to an aviation igloo. The Buhari administration later had to shut down the airport for repairs owing to the treacherous runway. The second Niger Bridge was only in the works on paper. But today, the

ADVOCACY AGAINST WITCH PERSECUTION IN AFRICA

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wo years ago, the Advocacy for Alleged Witches (AfAW) campaign was launched. This initiative was put in place to tackle witchcraft accusations and witch persecution in Africa. Campaign against witch-hunting in the region had too many missing links.

AfAW was founded to supply these links, and yes to try and right the wrongs of witch-hunting in Africa. I had objections to how the issue of witchcraft accusations in Africa had been explained and addressed. Over the years misrepresentation of African witchcraft has yielded a mistaken approach to the problem. I was deeply disappointed by the lackluster take on various abuses linked to witch persecution in the region. I believed and still believe that Africa deserves better; the continent needs a more robust and effective campaign against witch persecution.

I had serious doubts and objections to how mainly western anthropologists explained African witchcraft because the explanation was one-sided. The anthropology of witchcraft created a stereotypic image of Africa. In an attempt to make sense of the continued manifestation of witchcraft accusations in the region, western scholars advanced the notion that witchcraft belief was useful to Africans; that witchcraft accusations served domestic purposes and fulfilled social stabilizing functions. Since the times of Evans-Pritchard, generations of western scholars and their African allies have jostled to outexplain one another on how witchcraft accusations benefit Africa. They made witchcraft the gatekeeping concept, a frame to study, examine and understand ancient and modern Africa, pre-colonial, colonial, and post-colonial Africa. Witchcraft accusation

has been designated and presented as a mechanism that African societies need to function. Really?

Unfortunately, in explaining African witchcraft, scholars have mainly focused on the accusers and witch hunters, ignoring the accused and the witch-hunted. They have explained African witchcraft based on what those who entertain occult fears and anxieties say and do, overlooking how accused persons respond and react.

Scholars have overlooked the destructive, disruptive, and destabilizing impact of witchcraft accusations and witch persecution. The seemingly useful portrayal of African witchcraft has made it difficult to treat the wild phenomenon of witchcraft allegation with the urgency that it deserves.

Witch hunters are seen as `social and community service providers, not as lawbreakers and criminals.

This mis/understanding of African witchcraft has made it challenging to rally the UN and other international agencies against abuses linked to witchcraft beliefs. By the way the UN has recently passed a resolution against abuses linked to witchcraft beliefs. But it is left to be seen how this resolution would be translated into concrete actions. Many organizations are reluctant to tackle witch persecution headlong. They are concerned that they could be accused of racism or colonialism. So to avoid being labeled racist or colonialist, agencies fail to do the needful; they equivocate and paper over the problem.

International NGOs have refused to call witchcraft and witch-hunting by their names.

But the whole blame cannot solely be placed on western anthropologists, the UN, and other international agencies.

The attitudes of Africans have not helped matters.

Many Africans have appropriated and internalized this misconceived and stereotypic notion. They conflate being African and believing in

witchcraft, identity politics, and witchcraft politics as if both are inextricably linked.

Look, they are not. Witchhunting feature -and have featured- in other non-African cultures.

If other societies did not tie witchcraft belief to their identity, why should Africans do so?

Although many Africans are socialized to believe in witchcraft and the supernatural world, there are Africans who do not subscribe to these superstitious formations.

If there is anything that needs to be decoupled and disentangled in discourses on Africa, it is witchcraft belief and African identity because the conflation of these beliefs and African identity has made it extremely hard to mobilize Africans against witch persecution in the region.

So the continent of Africa needs more effective and robust efforts to correct the pervasive misconceptions and eradicate witch persecution.

Witch-hunting in Africa needs to be tackled with a sense of urgency and pragmatism. Campaign against witch persecution and witch-hunting needs a change in strategy and approach.

AfAW was founded to fill in this gap and to fulfill this crucial need.

In 2020, AfAW outlined a decade of activism to guide this campaign initiative to realize a critical mass of advocates in all African countries.

AfAW aims to make witchhunting history by 2030.

This goal has elicited mixed reactions. Some people have dismissed it as unrealistic. For them, Africans are so hardwired to witchcraft accusations and witch persecution that 10 years are not enough to weaken the grip of this belief in the minds of the people. So they claim that a decade does not suffice to get Africans to abandon this entrenched superstition.

But others have welcomed the development. British biologist, Richard Dawkins,

tweeted that we should not wait until 2030 to end witch hunting in Africa; that witch persecution should end immediately. Simply put, ending witch-hunting in Africa is long overdue. And at AfAW we agree with this sentiment. We are guided by this vision. We are inspired and motivated by the move to make witch-hunting history.

At AfAW, we are excited that witch-hunting in Africa has been given an expiration date; that witch persecution would, at last, get the attention it deserves locally and internationally. To this end, AfAW has, in the past two years, worked and campaigned to educate and enlighten the people. Social media have been used to track cases of accusation, and to educate and enlighten witchcraft believers and accusers. AfAW has used various channels to get Africans to understand that the misfortunes which they experience have no connection with witchcraft or magic; that alleged witches are innocent.

In this campaign, AfAW has prioritized the safety, humanity, and human rights of the accused because witchcraft accusation remains a form of death sentence in many communities.

In the past two years, AfAW has supported victims of witch persecution in Nigeria and beyond. It has provided material and financial support wherever and whenever they could. The group has supported the relocation of victims in Imo, Cross River, and Abia States in Nigeria. AfAW has defrayed the costs of medical treatment of some victims in Cross River, Adamawa, and Plateau States in Nigeria. The group has sponsored the education of child witch victims in Ogun and Plateau States. AfAW's advocacy work is not limited to Nigeria. The group has intervened in cases of witch persecution in other African countries.

– Leo Igwe, nskepticlao@ yahoo.com

bridge is nearing completion under an APC government that the Igbo do not fancy.

Onitsha-Enugu expressway is also nearing completion as well as other projects by the federal government in the south-east.

What did the PDP do to deserve the loyalty of the Igbo? It is really mindboggling trying to situate the reason for the Igbo’s love affair with the PDP. Some Igbo politicians today are racketing for inland ports in the south-east. They went on the accustomed refrain of nepotism when a dry port was established in Kaduna by the Buhari administration.

But these people were in government years ago – for 16 years -- what did they do for the south-east? Nothing!

The Igbo keep tailing the PDP through its floundering and wobbles. Even within the party, the south-east is henpecked. Yet, the Igbo sustain the romance.

As I said in the column: ‘In 2003, south-east voted for Obasanjo against Ojukwu – why’, the Igbo’s love for the PDP even conquered Odumegwu Ojukwu. In the 2003 presidential election in which Ojukwu, the famed Igbo leader, vied, the south-east voted tremendously for his rival – Olusegun Obasanjo of the PDP. In fact, Ojukwu’s ‘’Igbo party’’, the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) could not even win governorship elections in the south-east except in Anambra -- the late politician's native home.

In Anambra, Obasanjo had 466,866 votes which represent 54 percent of the entire count while Ojukwu

had 279,378 – 34 percent of the total tally. In Abia, Obasanjo had 386,748 votes (51.7 percent) while Ojukwu had 260,899 votes (34.9 percent).

In Ebonyi, Obasanjo had 752,823 votes (94.5 percent) but Ojukwu polled only 20,525 votes (02.6 percent) within the same range as Muhammadu Buhari who had 16,308 votes in the state.

In Enugu, Obasanjo had 897,721 votes (79.7 percent) while Ojukwu had 177,050 votes (15.7 percent). And in Imo, Obasanjo polled 656,861 votes (64.6 percent), but Ojukwu had 281,114 votes (27.7 percent). The late Igbo leader’s second attempt in 2007 was also unsuccessful.

Obasanjo trounced Ojukwu on his own turf.

How intriguing? Today and like in the past, the Igbo elite consort with the PDP for their own survival – and not for the advancement of the Igbo. The beneficiaries of the PDP years were the elite who had sizeable representations in government. The south-east’s liaison with the PDP subsists, yet no commensurate dividends in terms of economic and infrastructural development for the region.

The south-east regaining its place means it must look beyond a solitary party.

It must put itself in the thick of things. And to sit at the table, it must wrest itself from the enchantment of the PDP. It must forge new alliances – a new political and social concordat.

I ask again, what did the PDP do to deserve the loyalty of the Igbo?

– Fredrick Nwabufo is a writer and journalist

THE MENACE OF METHAMPHETAMINE

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ethamphetamine has become a sensation among many of our youths and has been making waves recently. Popularized by the name Mkpuru Mmiri in the South Eastern part of Nigeria, which translates to seed of water owing to its colourless nature, it also goes by the name ice, hype, glass, chalk, and a host of others, similar to Amphetamine, a drug used to treat attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and narcolepsy, a sleep disorder.

The drug increases the dopamine level in the brain thus leading to both long and short-term effects which climaxes at extreme weight loss, anxiety, addiction, intense itching, memory loss and a host of other undesired results. It is estimated that 75% of the users in our society are adversely affected and thus become a burden to their families and the communities as a whole.

Since the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency’s first discovery of a clandestine laboratory in Lagos in 2011, the Nigerian apex drug enforcement agency, NDLEA has since then matching the drug

barons grit for grit in order to shut down the spread of this drug or “highness” as the street calls it.

Is there remedy for addicts?

Of course YES. Cognitive behavioural therapy and motivational incentives are few of the numerous treatments in use, even though research continues towards developing medicines and other new treatments for methamphetamine. People can recover from methamphetamine addiction if they are ready to deal with the series of problems that come along with its use.

In conclusion, the success or failure of the fight against the abuse of this drug is dependent on many factors, individuals or independence of the patient. For some, total abstinence while for some others, slow reduction in dosage accompanied by supportive psychotherapy is preferable.

It’s imperative for community, traditional and religious leaders to join the renewed war against drug abuse by the Buba Marwa-led new NDLEA by providing information that will lead to the unraveling of clandestine laboratories producing this illicit drug and others in its category.

– Valentine Udechukwu, Segemu, Kano State

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SUNDAY JANUARY 23, 2022 • T H I S D AY

17

THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER JANUARY 23, 2022

BUSINESS Budget 2022: Sorting the Wheat from the Chaff

Editor: Festus Akanbi

08038588469 Email:festus.akanbi@thisdaylive.com

CanNigeriansexpectasmoothimplementationofthe2022Budget,whichwassigned on December 31, 2021, amid a barrage of complaints from President Muhammadu Buhari bordering on the National Assembly’s unilateral insertion of additional items and fresh allegations of deliberate duplication of projects without recourse to what constitute priorities to the Nigerian people? Asks Festus Akanbi

I

n fulÀlment of the commitment of the outgoing administration to make its budget ready in record time, President MuhammaduBuharihadonDecember 31, 2021, signed Nigeria’s 2022 budget into law. This took place exactly two weeks after the Senate and House of Representatives had passed the bill presented by the president a few weeks earlier.

The National Assembly had approved a total expenditure of N17.1 trillion against the N16.3 trillion proposed by the president in October, indicating that an extra N700 billion was added to the proposed appropriation.

The lawmakers also raised the Oil Benchmark Price from $57 to $62. They explained that the increase was intended to reÁect the current market values of the oil barrel in the international market.

Nigeria’s daily oil production rate was pegged at 1.86 million per barrel.

In the budget, statutory transfer was put at N869.6 billion, debt service at N3,88 trillion, recurrent (non-debt) expenditure at N6.9 trillion and capital expenditure at N5.46 trillion.

Dealing with Loopholes in Budget 2022 AsNigeriansawaitedaspeedyimplementation of the budget, there are indications that certain additional projects inserted into the original documents presented by the President may threaten the take-oͿ of the 2022 budget.

Shortly after the budget was signed into law, economic analysts began to tear the documents apart amidst the lamentation of the President over the allegation of arbitrary insertions of new lines of projects while some essential items were either reduced or yanked oͿ by the lawmakers.

The question is, given the complaints from the Executive, can Nigerians sleep with their two eyes closed over the 22 Budget?

One of such organisations that raised eyebrows is BudgIT, a foremost civic-tech organisation leading the advocacy for transparency and accountability in Nigeria’s public Ànance.

The organisation, in a statement last week called on the citizens, civil society organisations, private sector, and the international community to urgently prevail on the National Assembly and Presidency to urgently amend and eliminate the loopholes in FG’s 2022 Approved Budget.

Season of Duplications BudgIT claimed that its preliminary analysis of the 21,108 capital projects in the 2022 approved budget revealed 460 duplicated projects amounting to N378.9billion. It had earlier raised the alarm that 316 duplicated projects were inserted into the 2021 federal government Budget approved

by NASS. Interestingly, some of the controversial projects amounting to billions of naira are directly linked to the State House and the Presidency. BudgIT gave examples to include the N20.8billion requested by the Presidency to construct a 14-bed presidential wing at the existing State House Medical Centre, N28.72million requested for the purchase of two units of 10KG washing machines and six units of LG Televisions in the State House Lagos Liaison O΀ce, among others.

“Speaking of projects approved under MDAs that cannot execute them, The National Agency For Great Green Wall which was set up to prevent land degradation and desertiÀcation a΁icting 11 states in northern Nigeria, and to boost food security in the country has N1.3billion or 64% of its capital budget dedicated to purchasing motorcycles, street lights and other projects outside its mandate. This is disingenuous especially as communities in these states are being ravaged

President Buhari at the presentation of the 2022 Budget at the National Assembly in 2021

by bandits and terrorists who often arrive in motorcycles.

Misplaced Priorities “Likewise, four recreational parks under the Ministry of Environment, have a total allocation of N67.8million to construct “Gun Armouries” in Cross Rivers, Kaduna, Borno & Yobe States, even though the Ministry of Environment is not a security agency. This raises the question – Why is the ministry of environment stashing guns in recreational parks in these states in an election campaign year and at a time when the country is facing unrest in nearly all of the 36 states?”,

the statement said.

The statement wondered why the River Basin Development Authorities, which is supposed to be in the vanguard of boosting agricultural productivity in Nigeria has deviated from its primary role. The agency, which according to BudgIT was set up to facilitate the management of water resources for agriculture that would end the tide of food supply Áuctuations that aͿect food prices, has instead metamorphosed into an agency that constructs roads and supplies street lights.

“Acumulative total of N6.3billion was allocated to supplying street lights in 73 communities across

Highlights of Nigeria’s 2022 Budget of Economic Growth and Sustainability Highlights (NGN’Billion) 2022 Proposed

2021 Budget*

% Change

Aggregate Revenue Aggregate Expenditure Statutory Transfers (incl. capex) Recurrent Non-Debt Debt Service & Sinking Fund Capital Expenditure Capex % of total expenditure 3roMected budget deÀcit

10,132 16,391 768 6,829 3,901 4,891 29.84% (6,259)

8,121 14,570 496 5,763 3,320 4,989 34.24% (6,449)

24.76% 12.50% 54.84% 18.50% 17.50% -1.96% -12.86% -2.95%

Assumptions Benchmark oil price per barrel Oil production (mbpd) Exchange rate (Naira to US$1) Target inÁation GDP Growth rate

$57 1.88 410.15 13% 4.2%.

$40 1.86 379 11.95% 3%.

42.50% 1.08% 8.22% 8.79% 40.00%

Inclusive of the 2021 Supplementary Appropriation Act

the 36 states, while N14.8billion was allocated for the construction of 219 roads across 36 states; whereas the majority of the roads are the responsibilities of State and Local governments and not the Federal Government,” the statement said.

BudgIT’s Country Director, Gabriel Okeowo, said “The loopholes for fraud in the 2022 FG budget is a crime against the 86million Nigerians living below the poverty line, an injustice to hardworking taxpayers and an open mockery of countries and lending institutions that intend to borrow NigeriaN6.29trillion in 2022.”

President Buhari, who had commended the speedy passage of the budget which he described as the continuing cooperation and commitment of the Ninth National Assembly to the restoration of a predictable -anuary to December Àscal year, as provided for in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, however, made some reservations about some changes in the approved budget.

President Buhari listed such contentious additions to include, increase in projected the federal government ‘s independent revenue by N400 billion, saying the justiÀcation for this is yet to be provided to the Executive. Others, according to the President included “Reduction in the provision for Sinking Fund to Retire Maturing Bonds by N22 billion without any explanation; Reduction of the provisions for the Non-RegularAllowances of the Nigerian Police Force and the Nigerian Navy by N15 billion and N5 billion respectively.

This is particularly worrisome because personnel cost provisions are based on agencies’ nominal roll and approved salaries/allowances; “Furthermore, an increase of N21.72 billion in the Overhead budgets of some MDAs, while the sum of N1.96 billion was cut from the provision for some MDAs without apparent justiÀcation; “Increase in the provision for Capital spending (excluding Capital share in Statutory Transfer) by a net amount of N575.63 billion, from N4.89 trillion to N5.47 trillion. Nevertheless, provisions for some critical projects were reduced.

These include: Reduction of N12.6 billion in the Ministry of Transport’s budget for the ongoing Rail Modernisation projects, Reduction of N25.8 billion from Power Sector Reform Programme under the Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning, and Reduction of N14.5 billion from several projects of the Ministry of Agriculture, and introducing over 1,500 new projects into the budgets of this Ministry and its agencies.”

Arbitrary Inclusion of New Provisions The President also observed that while funds to critical sectors of the economy were unilaterally cut by the lawmakers, the signed documents were characterised by the inclusion of new provisions totalling N36.59 billion for National Assembly’s projects in the Service Wide Vote negates the principles of separation of Powers and Ànancial autonomy of the Legislative arm of government.

“The changes to the original Executive proposal are in the form of new insertions, outright removals, reductions and/or increases in the amounts allocated to projects.

“Provisions made for as many as 10,733 projects were reduced while 6,576 new projects were introduced into the budget by the National Assembly.

“Reduction in the provisions for many strategic capital projects to introduce ‘Empowerment’ projects,” the President noted, warning however that the cuts in the provisions for several of these projects by the National Assembly may render the projects unimplementable or set back their completion, especially some of this Administration’s strategic capital projects. He added that “Most of the projects inserted relate to matters that are the responsibilities of state and local governments, and do not appear to have been properly conceptualized, designed and cost.”

He also raised the alarm that many more projects have been added to the budgets of some MDAs with no consideration for the institutional capacity to execute the additional projects and/ or for the incremental recurrent expenditure that may be required.

Analysts, therefore, wondered why despite the National Assembly increasing projected revenue by N609.27 billion, the additional Executive request of N186.53 billion for critical expenditure items could not be accommodated without increasing the deÀcit, while the sum of N550.59 billion from the projected incremental revenues was allocated at the discretion of National Assembly.

In a year when political campaigns are due to take the centre stage, analysts warned that it is imperative for both the executive and the legislators to seek ways to remove all the grey areas from the budget document in the interest of the Nigerian people.

18

THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER JANUARY 23, 2022

BUSINESS LAW

Supreme Court Gives GTBank Lifeline to Tackle Innoson The highest court in Nigeria, the Supreme Court hardly reverses its decisions. But when it did penultimate Friday, it was a huge relief and a lifeline for Guaranty Trust Bank to properly present its case in the lingering legal tussle between it and Innoson Nigeria Limited and its promoter, Innocent Chukwuma, Alex Enumah writes

I

t was not only a huge relief but a great lifeline penultimate Friday for Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank) when the Supreme Court took a second look into its lingering legal tussle with a vehicle manufacturing company, Innoson Nigeria Limited.

The legal battle, which the bank thought it had lost, was suddenly brought back to life with high hope that the apex court will diligently examine the issues this time around and do justice to the case.

Against all odds and expectations, the court while delivering a judgment in an application by the bank seeking the re-listing of the appeal because it was wrongly dismissed, set aside its earlier decision which dismissed an appeal by the bank against an N2.4billion judgment given in favour of Innoson Motors Nigeria Limited by the Court of Appeal in Ibadan.

A Àve-member panel of the court led by Justice Olukayode Ariwoola, unanimously held that the apex court erred when, in a ruling on February 27, 2019, it erroneously dismissed the appeal marked: SC/694/2014, Àled by the bank.

In the lead judgment written by Justice Tijani Abubakar, and read by Justice Abdu Aboki, the court held that it was misled by its Registry, which failed to promptly bring to the notice of the panel that it sat on the matter on February 27, 2019, and that GTBank had already Àled its appellant’s brief of argument.

The court said the panel that sat on the matter on February 27, 2019, upon being notiÀed of the existence of the appellant’s brief of argument, would not have given the ruling which dismissed GTBank’s appeal on grounds of lack of diligent prosecution.

Relying on Order 8 Rules 16 of its Rules, Justice Abubakar, in the lead judgment, held that the apex court has the power to set aside its decision in certain circumstances, like any other court. He added that such circumstances include where there is any reason to do so, such as where any of the parties obtained judgment by fraud, default or deceit; where such a decision is a nullity or where it is obvious that the court was misled into giving a decision.

Justice Tijani held that the circumstances of the GTBank case fall into the category of the rare cases where the court could amend or alter its order because the said order or judgment did not present what it intended to record.

“I am convinced that at the material time that the appellant’s appeal was inadvertently dismissed by this court, there was in place, a valid and subsisting brief of argument Àled by the applicant.

“It will be unjust to visit the sin of the court’s Registry on an innocent, vigilant, proactive and diligent litigant.

“It is obvious from the material before us that there were errors committed by the Registry of this court, having failed to bring to the notice of the panel of Justices that sat in chambers on the 27th of February 2019 that the appellant had indeed Àled its brief of argument.

“This is a case deserving of positive consideration by this court. Having gone through all the materials in this application, therefore, I am satisÀed that the appellant/applicant’s brief of argument was Àled before the order of this court made on the 27th of February 2019 dismissing the applicant’s appeal.

“The order dismissing the appeal was therefore made in error. It ought not to have been made if all materials were disclosed.

The application is, therefore, meritorious and hereby succeeds,” Justice Abubakar said.

He proceeded to set aside the court’s ruling of February 27, 2019, dismissing GTBank’s appeal and ordered that the appeal marked 694/2014 “be relisted to constitute an integral

Group Chief Executive Officer of GTCO, Segun Agbaje

part of the business of the court until its hearing and determination on the merit.”

Other members of the panel – Justices Ariwoola, John Okoro, Helen Ogunwumiju, Aboki – agreed with the lead judgment.

The two businesses have been in a long business dispute, claiming wrongdoing against each other.

The founder, Innoson Motors, Mr Innocent Chukwuma, in 2011 dragged GTBank to court, alleging arbitrary charges levelled against him and a string of bank accounts he held at the bank. But GTBank later countersued, claiming it was Chukwuma who allegedly falsiÀed bank and shipping documents to obtain tax waivers from the Nigerian government.

The bank subsequently referred the matter to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). The anti-graft o΀ce Àled criminal charges against Chukwuma at a Lagos court. He has subsequently declared wanted for failing to appear for arraignment in the matter, which is still proceeding separately from the N14 billion arbitrary charges lawsuit currently at appellate levels.

Chukwuma denied the allegations of doctoring shipping documents, saying the matter had previously been investigated by the EFCC and the police, both of whom cleared him of any wrongdoing.

He accused GTBank of using law enforcement agencies to hound him and cripple his business; a claim the bank also denied.

This prompted the company to approach the Ibadan Division of the Federal High Court with a garnishee application. On May 18, 2010, the court by way of Garnishee order absolute ordered GTBank to pay Innoson N2.4 billion with a 22% interest, per annum, on the judgment sum until the Ànal liquidation of the judgment debt.

The bank rejected the order and swiftly proceeded to the Court of Appeal with an appeal which was dismissed on February

Chukwuma

6, 2014.

When Innoson Nigeria Limited tried to execute the judgment, GTBank went to court to Àle a motion on notice seeking orders to suspend the execution. It also sought orders to set aside the orders made by the court granting Innoson leave to enforce the judgment and to issue the processes of executing the same.

The court, however, declined to accede to the prayers of the bank. Instead, it a΀rmed the order it granted Innoson and approved the process of enforcing the judgment.

The bank then went to the Supreme Court. The apex court led by Justice Olabode Rhodes-Favour on February 27, 2019, dismissed the appeal which in the estimation of the auto-manufacturing company, a΀rmed the concurrent judgment of both the Court of Appeal and the Federal High Court, Ibadan Division.

Based on the purported Supreme Court decision, the counsel to Innoson, Prof McCarthy Mbadugha, approached the Awka Division of the Federal High Court for leave to enforce the judgment from the Ibadan Division of the Federal High Court.

The vehicle manufacturing company had Àve years ago claimed that the judgment debt of N2.4bn had an accrued interest of about N6,717,909,849.96 which resulted in about N8.8 billion.

Based on the purported Supreme Court decision, the automobile company issued a statement claiming that it had obtained a nod to take over the bank.

It took a response from the bank to fault and deny the claim. The statement signed by the Company Secretary of the bank, Erhi Obebeduo, read: “The attention of Guaranty Trust Bank has been drawn to statements circulating in the news and social media in respect of purported enforcement of a judgment of the Federal High Court, Ibadan, Oyo State at one of its branches in Anambra State.

“The bank as a law-abiding corporate citizen is taking all necessary legal steps to address this situation and ensure that no illegal or fraudulent execution is carried out.

“It is important to state that the judgment alleged in the issue is in respect of garnishee proceedings against the account of the Nigerian Customs Service Board domiciled with the bank and not against the bank as an entity.

“The bank remains committed to providing best-in-class customer experience to all its valued customers.”

The latest decision by the apex court is therefore a huge relief and great lifeline for the bank which has been seeking all legal means to resolve the protracted tussle. It is hoped that the court will diligently examine the issues and reach a sound judgment that would be pleasing to both parties.

As expected, the ruling has elicited reactions from a cross section of Nigerians who are surprised to see the apex court reversing itself after it had vowed not to so and even reprimanded and sanctioned many lawyers and appellants for daring to come up with applications seeking a review of the court’s earlier decisions concerning them.

“So, the Supreme Court can reconsider an earlier decision in the face of a compelling evidence? Didn’t the court say it was infallible? That was the question that came to my mind when the news broke that Nigeria’s apex court had reversed its earlier dismissal of an appeal by GTBank against a N2.4 billion judgment given in favour of Innoson Motors Nigeria Limited by the Court of Appeal in Ibadan.

I am just wondering if it is because it is a bank? Anyway, going forward, we don’t want to hear the justices of the Supreme Court telling Nigerians that it is infallible or that its decision is Ànal or that applicants should take their applications to God because there is nothing more they can do. We have now seen that there is something they can do,” said one public aͿairs analyst who pleaded anonymity.

19

THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER JANUARY 23, 2022

AGRICULTURE

One of the rice pyramids unveiled in Abuja last week

The Imperishable Rice Revolution The rice revolution ushered in by the CBN’s Anchor Borrower Programme remains an indelible reference point in the government’s drive to diversify the economy as well as reposition agriculture, but consumers of rice want to see that the bumper harvest reÁects in the current price of rice in the market, James Emejo writes

I

n the past two years, Nigerians have had to endure the persistent increase in the price of cement with the attendant hardship it brings to bear.

The retail price of the commodity has risen more than 177 per cent from N1,800 to N5,000 as currently witnessed in parts of the country.

In January last year when the commodity sold for about N3,800, the federal government while lamenting the rising prices, attributed the upward price movement to production challenges, adding that it was engaging stakeholders in the industry to address the issue.

Cement prices had since risen by over 50 per cent, despite the assurances by the government to arrest the situation, thereby raising concerns by Nigerians.

The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Mr Niyi Adebayo, had ,urged the public not to embark on panic buying and storage of the product as the current mark Last week, President Muhammadu Buhari, in the Federal Capital Territory, unveiled what was described as the single largest rice pyramids ever assembled in the country.

The pyramids further marked a watershed in the CBN-led eͿorts to make agriculture the mainstay of the Nigerian economy again, amidst a seemingly bleak future for the oil economy.

The CBN Governor, Mr Godwin EmeÀele, in 2015, at the onset of the Buhari administration, introduced the ABP to curtail excessive imports by enhancing the capacity of local farmers as well as providing them with the hitherto elusive Ànancing to boost food production in line with the president’s directive to grow and eat what is produced locally.

The apex bank had also in a bid to sustain the stability in the foreign exchange regime and ensure e΀cient forex utilisation, included over 41 items on the list of Not Valid Foreign

Exchange at the o΀cial channel. The move was aimed at encouraging local production of goods and items which the country has a comparative advantage over to help limit importation which had been detrimental to the economy.

It is a well-known fact that millions of jobs are literarily exported to other countries when the country sustains its appetite for foreign goods.

The neglect of agriculture since the discovery of oil is largely responsible for the current economic predicament Nigeria faces besides its leadership failings and corruption.

Many have also imagined what fate could have befallen the country at the heat of the COVID-19 pandemic when restrictions were applied by various countries to check the spread, leading to severe Àscal constraints for governments oil demand fell drastically and food export was banned by some countries.

The CBN ABP which had achieved enormous success over time ultimately saved the day.

Nigerians have commended the Buhari administration especially for its focus on agriculture which appeared to have boosted food security amidst concerns of worsening insecurity in the country.

ABP as Game-changer Though the policy on 41 items restricted from forex allocation was initially opposed by some Nigerians who beneÀtted from the old system of unbridled importation, the policy can now be likened to the biblical rejected stone which had become the cornerstone in the diversiÀcation programme of the present administration.

The ABP had been launched as part of the intervention to compensate for the restriction of forex by boosting local production.

Today, those who criticised the ABP, have suddenly lauded the giant strides so far

recorded in record time particularly in the rice revolution.

Many Nigerians confessed that they never believed that local rice would become the dominant staple in the domestic market as well as become the delight of consumers.

All thanks to the visionary leadership and foresight of the EmeÀele-led CBN. Between September and October 2021, under the ABP, the bank disbursed N43.19 billion to support the cultivation of over 250,000 hectares of maize, sorghum, soya beans and rice during the 2021 dry season and N5.88 billion to Ànance six large-scale agricultural projects under the Commercial Agriculture Credit Scheme (CACS).

Cumulatively, the bank has disbursed the total sum of N864 billion to 4.1 million farmers, cultivating 5.02 million hectares. The bank also disbursed the sum of N41.2 billion for the commencement of the brown revolution, a large-scale wheat programme to wean us oͿ imports by 35 per cent in the Àrst year.

EmeÀele, nonetheless said, “We are delighted that these eͿorts have yielded fruits by not just increasing the availability of rice, but also in moderating prices, reducing imports and increasing job creation in the country.”

He pointed out that beyond increasing national output from about 5.4 million metric tonnes in 2015 to over nine million metric tonnes in 2021, there had also been signiÀcant improvement in the productivity per hectare of the smallholder farmer from about 2.4 metric tonnes per ha in 2015 to about Àve metric tonnes per ha in 2021.

He noted that these expansions have not only made Nigeria the largest rice producer in Africa but had also unlocked enormous private sector investment in the rice value chain.

He said the number of Integrated Rice Mills grew astronomically from six in 2015 to over

50 in 2021 with many more in various stages of completion.

The CBN governor added that today, Nigeria’s milled rice matches the foreign competition in quality.

He added that taking a cue from the success in the rice value chain, the apex bank had also commenced the “Brown Revolution” last year in line with its mantra for the transformation of the wheat value chain in the country.

According to him, wheat remained the third most consumed grain in the country after maize and rice, stressing that the country only produce about one per cent (63,000 mt) of the 5-6 million mt of wheat consumed annually in Nigeria.

He said, “This enormous demand-supply gap is bridged with over $2 billion annual importation of wheat. As a result, wheat accounts for the second-highest food import bill in Nigeria, thereby putting pressure on the nation’s foreign exchange reserves.

“We have concluded the Àrst major wet season wheat farming in Plateau State and planted over 100,000 hectares of wheat across 15 states in the 2021 dry season. This strategic intervention will herald a progressive reduction in our wheat import bills over the coming years.”

EmeÀele also added that the CBN established a Strategic Maize Reserve with the stock of maize submitted as loan repayment by farmers, pointing out that this will provide a buͿer for price modulation for the poultry and feed mills nationwide.

He said, “A total of 241,656.76 mt was aggregated in the 2020 wet and dry seasons, out of which 217,218.53 mt has been disposed to 18 millers and poultry farmers through the Poultry Association of Nigeria.

“The programme was able to stabilise the poultry and livestock sectors during the pandemic and saved the industry and consumers over N10 billion in raw material costs.”

He said, “Our experience over the years has been transformed to the operational e΀ciency of the programme. We have added several layers of controls to improve transparency and accountability among all stakeholders and what you are witnessing today is a demonstration of our growth and a strong indication of the enormous potential in the country’s agricultural space.

EmeÀele, however, noted that the current progress was still a far cry from the desired goal, pointing out that the “growth processes rea΀rm our belief in the potential inherent in our agricultural space and we can hopefully harness them to lead the diversiÀcation agenda of the economy”.

He said, “The mega pyramids being launched today represents aggregated paddy rice submitted as repayment of loans by RIFAN farmers under the 2020 dry season and 2021 wet seasons.

Buhari Assures on Food Price Reduction However, Buhari assured Nigerians that prices of food items especially rice will soon come down, urging them to exercise some patience as the growing food production in the country, especially expansion in rice farming, will eventually bring down prices of food, making it more aͿordable for all.

He said, “Today rice production in Nigeria has increased to over 7.5 million metric tonnes annually. Before the introduction of the Anchor Borrowers Programme (APB), the average production in Nigeria between 1999 to 2015 was less than 4 metric tonnes annually.

Beyond the Pyramids While the CBN was celebrating the bumper harvest of rice, a cross-section of Nigerian consumers that spoke with THISDAY wondered why a bag of rice still goes for between N28,000 and N30,000 in the market.

A rice seller in Garki Market, for instance, challenged the government to Áood the market with rice to show Nigerians that the rice pyramids unveiled last week were real.

A housewife, Mrs Chizoba Davies, told our correspondent that the markets in Lagos, the commercial hub of the country, are yet to have a feel of the haul displayed in Abuja last week.

The mother of three said she bought a bag of rice last Wednesday, at Daleko Market, Lagos, at the cost of N28,000.

“The government should go beyond displaying large stock of rice in Abuja. They should make the commodity available all over the country at a cheaper price for us to take them seriously. We cannot have so much hunger in the country and some people are celebrating what to me, is not the reality on the ground,” she said.

THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER JANUARY 23, 2022

20

ECONOMY

Stakeholders Renew Battle against Ponzi Scheme Operators The Ànancial services sector in 2021 recorded increase in the number of Ponzi schemes, contributing to local investors’ weak participation in the nation’s capital market. Kayode Tokede in this report highlights what the regulatory bodies, especially Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) must do to tackle this Ànancial pandemic

T

he apex capital market last year consistently reported cases of Ponzi schemes, warning investors to stay clear to avoid their Àngers being burnt.

SEC last year disclosed that three million Nigerians lost N18 billion to Ponzi scheme operators as devastating impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Nigerian economy, low-interest-rate environment, coupled with the increased use of online services to interact and transact, have helped the proliferation of Ponzi schemes through the oͿering of unrealistic returns on investment to unsuspecting investors.

As gathered by THISDAY, SEC in 2021 warned investors of more than Àve investment schemes, stating that these operators are not registered as Capital Market Operators (CMO) with the commission.

SpeciÀcally, SEC in May 2021 warned the public of the proposed launch of a Crowdyvest Halal Fund by Crowdyvest, an unregistered entity purporting to operate as a cooperative society.

The commission had issued a Cease and Desist Order on Crowdyvest to stop the launch and operations of the Crowdyvest Halal Fund and any other investment activity which involves soliciting investments and deposits from the public.

Also, SEC in the same year warned the public of MBA Capital and Trading Limited, Poyoyo Investment (PILVEST) Nigeria Limited and activities of FinAfrica Investment Limited (Chinmark Group).

Given the recent increase in Ponzi investment scheme activity, which has resulted in many people losing their life savings to scammers, many people believe the SEC’s warning shot is appropriate, and key stakeholders must collaborate on awareness and stringent enforcement to serve as a deterrent to others.

A Major Blow on Ponzi Scheme Operators The commission on June 2021 obtained judgment of the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja in respect of BARA Finance & Investment Limited, wherein the company, as well as Messrs Ede Agida Peters and Olom Ojebong Jacob, were convicted of engaging in illegal capital market activities and operating an unregistered investment scheme, contrary to the provisions of Sections 38, 54 and 67 of the Investments and Securities Act 2007.

The court had sentenced Mr Ede Agida Peters and Mr Olom Ojebong Jacob to one-year imprisonment at the Nigerian Correctional Centre, without the option of a Àne. No pronouncement was made by the court on the commission’s request for the defendants to refund all outstanding monies due to their “investors”.

The commission reiterated that BARA Finance & Investment Ltd and its promoters are not registered to operate in the Nigerian capital market.

Accordingly, it advised the public to desist from engaging in any capital market-related business/investment activities with the company or otherwise dealing with the above-mentioned individuals convicted by the Federal High Court.

The case of BARA Finance & Investment Limited was the only court judgment the commission reported in 2021, an indication that the judiciary system has to be fortiÀed to carry out swift judgements on operators of Ponzi schemes.

Early March 2021, the Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami had vowed that the federal government would clamp down on Ponzi scheme operators.

He noted that Ponzi schemes are diͿerent from legitimate investment opportunities, as the perpetrators take advantage of their fellow citizens.

He added that: “The investment climate is not simplistic, it can be highly sophisticated and that is why the law regulates the space to ensure that the requisite duty of care by operators is not breached in any way, that there is a proper disclosure as required by law and that there is a generally level playing Àeld for all stakeholders.”

On its part, the commission vowed to continue to crack down on Ponzi schemes and illegal fund managers amid the recent resurgence in the Ànancial sector.

According to the Director-General, SEC, Lamido Yuguda, “Ponzi schemes operate with unsustainable operating models that ultimately lead to huge losses for investors.

Yuguda said the unlawful schemes had continued to enjoy massive patronage of the populace and remained a source of concern for regulators in the Ànancial sector.

He added: “Following the collapse of the MMM Ponzi scheme, the Nigerian Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) had estimated that over three million Nigerians lost about N18 billion.

Several other illegal investment schemes have cost Nigerians their assets and life savings.”

Stakeholders on Possible Solutions Capital market analysts maintained that the punishment is a welcome development but that the commission needed to strengthen its awareness programme on investment and engage those at the grass root of the danger of not investing in registered CMOs on the Exchange.

Yuguda said the commission’s eͿorts in

addressing Ponzi schemes are therefore geared towards investor protection and preserving market integrity, saying the Nigerian capital market should be a safe destination for investors.

“This capacity building programme will allow participants to learn contemporary and innovative ways of combating and curbing the menace of Ponzi schemes in Nigeria,” he said.

According to him, the commission is poised to continue to apply measures and seek the cooperation of relevant stakeholders toward combating the activities of these Ponzi schemes.

He regretted that the upsurge of the schemes had undermined the reputation of the Ànancial markets and dampened investors’ conÀdence, among other things.

“SEC Àrmly believes that the country’s capital market can attain its potential if market operators and participants contribute their respective quotas to the growth.

“SEC is committed to always ensuring and maintaining an environment that is enabled by the appropriate regulatory framework, timely and aͿordable access to the market.

In a chat with THISDAY, the Managing Director, APT Securities Limited, Malam Garba KurÀ, demanded of the capital market regulating bodies to encourage more products aimed at meeting investors’ expectations.

Giving his suggestion, he said: “The way is to encourage more products that can be registered and meet the aspirations of the investors that will reduce their participation in Ponzi schemes.”

To reduce the menace, the Managing Director, Morgan Capital, Mr Rotimi Olubi said the continued awareness of the dangers and the inherent risks associated with such investment schemes must be sustained.

He noted that stricter public sanctions of erring promoters, compensation of a whistleblower when a Ponzi scheme/promoter is identiÀed, public sensitisation on how to identify and avoid a potential Ponzi scheme and continued investor education are the strategies capital market regulating bodies must adopt in eradicating Ponzi schemes in the country.

The Vice President, Highcap Securities, David Adonri, noted that if perpetrators of previous Ponzi schemes are severely punished, it would serve as deterrence to others.

He added that regulators needed to be vigilant at all times to Àsh out and deal mercilessly with perpetrators.

A Ànance expert at PAC Holdings, Mr Wole Adeyeye suggested that: “The best way to address Ponzi schemes is to create awareness in the country.

“People need to know the danger in investing in Ponzi schemes. Also, regulating bodies can invest in technology to monitor these Ponzi schemes. They can make the website of these Ponzi schemes inaccessible to the public.”

In his contribution, the Head, Retail Investment, Chapel Hill Denham, Mr Ayodeji Ebo said: “There is a limit to what the regulators can do in respect of Ponzi schemes because there is an element of greed as well as a knowledge gap.

“Investors needed to carry out proper due diligence by checking if the investment outÀt is registered with the SEC or the CBN. This will minimize their risk. Also, understanding the characteristics of genuine investments will enable investors to discern quickly when they come across Ponzi schemes.”

The commission enjoined the investing public to seek clariÀcation as may be required via its established channels of communication on investment products advertised through conventional or online mediums.

21

ͺͻ˜ ͺ͸ͺͺ ˾ T H I S DAY, T H E S U N DAY N E W S PA P E R

MARKET NEWS A Mutual fund (Unit Trust) is an investment vehicle managed by a SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) registered Fund Manager.

Investors with similar objectives buy units of the Fund so that the Fund Manager can buy securities that willl generate their desired return.

An ETF (Exchange Traded Fund) is a type of fund which owns the assets (shares of stock, bonds, oil futures, gold bars, foreign currency, etc.) and divides ownership of those assets into shares. Investors can buy these ‘shares’ on the

floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange.

A REIT (Real Estate Investment Trust) is an investment vehicle that allows both small and large investors to part-own real estate ventures (eg.

Offices, Houses, Hospitals) in proportion to their investments. The assets are divided into shares that are traded on the Nigerian Stock Exchange.

GUIDE TO DATA: Date: All fund prices are quoted in Naira as at 20Jan-2022, unless otherwise stated.

Offer price: The price at which units of a trust or ETF are bought by investors.

Bid Price: The price at which Investors redeem (sell) units of a trust or ETF. Yield/Total Return: Denotes the total return an investor would have earned on his investment. Money Market Funds report Yield while others report Year- to-date Total Return.

NAV: Is value per share of the real estate assets held by a REIT on a specific date.

DAILY PRICE LIST FOR MUTUAL FUNDS, REITS and ETFS MUTUAL FUNDS / UNIT TRUSTS AFRINVEST ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD aaml@afrinvest.com Web: www.afrinvest.com; Tel: +234 818 885 6757 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Afrinvest Equity Fund N/A N/A N/A Afrinvest Plutus Fund N/A N/A N/A Nigeria International Debt Fund N/A N/A N/A Afrinvest Dollar Fund N/A N/A N/A 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 9.84% AIICO Balanced Fund 3.42 3.49 -3.26% ANCHORIA ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED info@anchoriaam.com Web:www.anchoriaam.com, Tel: 08166830267; 08036814510; 08028419180 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Anchoria Money Market 100.00 100.00 7.28% Anchoria Equity Fund 140.26 142.02 1.15% Anchoria Fixed Income Fund 1.17 1.17 1.79% info@anchoriaam.com 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 20.65 21.27 1.78% ARM Discovery Balanced Fund 463.04 477.00 2.63% ARM Ethical Fund 39.55 40.74 1.51% ARM Eurobond Fund ($) 0.00 0.00 -100.00% ARM Fixed Income Fund 1.01 1.02 0.17% ARM Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 8.55% AVA GLOBAL ASSET MANAGERS LIMITED info@avacapitalgroup.com Web: www.avacapitalgroup.com Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn AVA GAM Fixed Income Dollar Fund 108.34 108.34 0.37% AVA GAM Fixed Income Naira Fund 1,073.89 1,073.89 0.58% AXA MANSARD INVESTMENTS LIMITED investmentcare@axamansard.com Web: www.axamansard.com; Tel: +2341-4488482 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn AXA Mansard Equity Income Fund N/A N/A N/A AXA Mansard Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A CAPITAL EXPRESS ASSET AND TRUST LIMITED info@capitalexpressassetandtrust.com Web: www.capitalexpressassetandtrust.com; Tel: +234 803 307 5048 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn CEAT Fixed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A Capital Express Balanced Fund (Formerly: Union Trustees Mixed Fund) N/A N/A N/A CARDINALSTONE ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED mutualfunds@cardinalstone.com Web: www.cardinalstoneassetmanagement.com ; Tel: +234 (1) 710 0433 4 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn CardinalStone Fixed Income Alpha Fund 1.05 1.05 0.55% CHAPELHILL DENHAM MANAGEMENT LTD investmentmanagement@chapelhilldenham.com Web: www.chapelhilldenham.com, Tel: +234 461 0691 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Chapelhill Denham Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 10.02% Paramount Equity Fund 16.95 17.26 0.74% Women's Investment Fund 139.80 141.40 0.54% CORDROS ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED assetmgtteam@cordros.com Web: www.cordros.com, Tel: 019036947 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Cordros Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 9.22% Cordros Milestone Fund 136.33 137.20 3.12% 110.76 110.76 0.29% Cordros Dollar Fund ($) 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 8.13% Coronation Balanced Fund 1.28 1.29 2.35% Coronation Fixed Income Fund 1.41 1.41 -1.12% 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 7.44% EDC Nigeria Money Market Fund Class B 1,000,000.00 1,000,000.00 7.27% EDC Nigeria Fixed Income Fund 1,154.35 1,156.43 -1.35% assetmanagement@emergingafricafroup.com EMERGING AFRICA ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED Web:www.emergingafricagroup.com/emerging-africa-asset-management-limited/, Tel: 08039492594 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Emerging Africa Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 8.92% Emerging Africa Bond Fund 1.05 1.05 3.08% Emerging Africa Balanced Diversity Fund 1.12 1.12 0.55% Emerging Africa Eurobond Fund 104.78 104.78 0.17% 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 1,402.29 FBN Bond Fund 1,402.29 11.11% 176.65 FBN Balanced Fund 177.88 0.80% 116.29 FBN Halal Fund 116.29 9.16% 100.00 FBN Money Market Fund 100.00 8.94% FBN Dollar Fund (Retail) FBN Nigeria Smart Beta Equity Fund FCMB ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED Web: www.fcmbassetmanagement.com; Tel: +234 1 462 2596 Fund Name Legacy Money Market Fund Legacy Debt Fund Legacy Equity Fund Legacy USD Bond Fund FSDH ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD Web: www.fsdhaml.com; Tel: 01-270 4884-5; 01-280 9740-1 Fund Name Coral Balanced Fund Coral Income Fund Coral Money Market Fund

122.50 150.99

122.50 3.81% 152.79 0.51% fcmbamhelpdesk@fcmb.com

Bid Price 1.00 3.99 1.78 1.21

Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn 1.00 7.68% 3.99 -0.39% 1.81 2.24% 1.21 0.24% coralfunds@fsdhgroup.com

Bid Price N/A N/A N/A

Offer Price N/A N/A N/A

Yield / T-Rtn N/A N/A N/A

INVESTMENT ONE FUNDS MANAGEMENT LTD enquiries@investment-one.com Web: www.investment-one.com; Tel: +234 812 992 1045,+234 1 448 8888 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Abacus Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 8.41% Vantage Balanced Fund 2.89 2.96 1.32% Vantage Guaranteed Income Fund 1.00 1.00 4.50% Kedari Investment Fund (KIF) 142.00 142.05 -8.75% Vantage Equity Income Fund (VEIF) - June Year End 1.27 1.31 0.93% Vantage Dollar Fund (VDF) - June Year End 1.07 1.07 4.07% LOTUS CAPITAL LTD fincon@lotuscapitallimited.com Web: www.lotuscapitallimited.com; Tel: +234 1-291 4626 / +234 1-291 4624 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Lotus Halal Investment Fund 1.55 1.57 2.63% Lotus Halal Fixed Income Fund 1,143.61 1,143.61 0.61% 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 12.01 12.12 1.96% Meristem Money Market Fund 10.00 10.00 10.10% NORRENBERGER INVESTMENT AND CAPITAL MANAGEMENT LIMITED enquiries@norrenberger.com Web: www.norrenberger.com, Tel: +234 (0) 908 781 2026 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Norrenberger Islamic Fund (NIF) N/A N/A N/A Norrenberger Money Market Fund (NMMF) 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 1.59 1.61 PACAM Fixed Income Fund 11.69 11.66 4.34% PACAM Money Market Fund 10.00 10.00 7.51% PACAM Equity Fund 1.46 1.48 1.48% PACAM EuroBond Fund 114.38 116.67 -0.79% 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 N/A N/A N/A 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 1.08 1.08 10.03% 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 N/A N/A N/A Stanbic IBTC Bond Fund N/A N/A N/A Stanbic IBTC Ethical Fund N/A N/A N/A Stanbic IBTC Guaranteed Investment Fund N/A N/A N/A Stanbic IBTC Iman Fund N/A N/A N/A Stanbic IBTC Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A Stanbic IBTC Nigerian Equity Fund N/A N/A N/A Stanbic IBTC Dollar Fund (USD) N/A N/A N/A Stanbic IBTC Shariah Fixed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A Stanbic IBTC Enhanced Short-Term Fixed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A UNITED CAPITAL ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD unitedcapitalplcgroup.com Web: www.unitedcapitalplcgroup.com; Tel: +234 01-6317876 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn United Capital Equity Fund 0.94 0.97 1.36% United Capital Balanced Fund 1.37 1.39 0.66% United Capital Wealth for Women Fund 1.11 1.13 2.39% United Capital Sukuk Fund 1.08 1.08 0.43% United Capital Fixed Income Fund 1.96 1.96 0.36% United Capital Eurobond Fund 122.68 122.68 0.28% United Capital Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 8.77% 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 Balanced Strategy Fund 13.29 13.41 0.74% Zenith ESG Impact Fund 14.93 15.10 2.20% Zenith Income Fund 24.93 24.93 0.21% Zenith Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 7.26%

REITS NAV Per Share

Yield / T-Rtn

124.98 54.65

10.62% 8.10%

Bid Price

Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

14.03 130.70 103.60 18.40 21.88

14.13 133.97 105.87 18.50 21.98

0.46% -0.69% -0.02% 0.00% 0.00%

Fund Name SFS REIT Union Homes REIT

EXCHANGE TRADED FUNDS Fund Name Lotus Halal Equity Exchange Traded Fund SIAML Pension ETF 40 Stanbic IBTC ETF 30 Fund MERGROWTH ETF MERVALUE ETF

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

4.15 5.58 18.14 1.00 21.68 159.45

4.25 5.68 18.34 1.00 21.88 161.45

10.13% 9.46% 5.55% 8.10% 11.75% 1.06%

NAV Per Share

Yield / T-Rtn

107.28

10.80%

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.

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SUNDAY JANUARY 23, 2022 • T H I S D AY

SUNDAY JANUARY 23, 2022 • T H I S D AY

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SUNDAY JANUARY 23, 2022 • T H I S D AY

A

WEEKLY PULL-OUT

23.1.2022

I

AYODEJI OLATOREGUN NIGERIA’S NUMERO UNO CAREGIVER Soft spoken, with a gentle mien, Ayodeji Olatoregun is the brain behind Quendon Genesis Limited, an outfit that specialises in taking care of the elderly and those living with dementia. He is a passionate natural caregiver with a vision to care for the elderly from 65 years and above within the comfort of their homes. With over 40 years in the field, the Thames Valley University trained health specialist and former Registered Manager with National Health Service (NHS), UK believes in creating an environment that is caring, safe and above all, kind for the elderly. Olatoregun, the Ibadan-based caregiver tells Funke Olaode why caring for the aged in their lifetime is more rewarding than lavish funerals after their demise.

f one’s parental exploits were to be a model for one’s career choice, Ayodeji Olatoregun, the managing director of Quendon Genesis Limited would probably be in the classroom as a tutor. Right from her early life, she had carved a niche for herself to be the best and being unique in her chosen field, which has paid off. Born in the early 50s into the family of teachers.

Her father, the late Chief Joseph Uwagbue Olatoregun, a native of Ifon in Ondo State was a Senior tutor at St. Andrews College, Oyo in the old Western Region while her mother, Mrs. Deborah Olatoregun was the first female pupil teacher in Owo Province. A well-grounded and educated family, Olatoregun’s siblings are high fliers in diverse professions, including medicine.

Olatoregun has evolved over the years in her career which she started in Ondo State before moving to England in the early 80s. Her journey into the medical profession began in Akure, the Ondo State capital where she enrolled as the pioneer student of the newly established College of Technology. There, she studied Laboratory Science. She later delved into banking working with Savanna Bank, earning money, building her confidence, creating a career and pursuing a future ambition.

“My parents were teachers but I never wanted to be a teacher because I am very inquisitive. I have always been very inquisitive. I love to know more about human beings. After my training as a Lab Technician, I joined Savanna Bank. And I was a medical service aid, because at that time we had a medical department. We had a lot of hospitals that were attached to Savanna Bank. So the staff would go to the nearest hospital to their house that is attached to them. And we are in charge of the bills, vetting of the bills, and checking the doctors. That aroused my interest. I worked in Savanna Bank for seven good years,” she said.

Having charted a path for herself in the medical line, Olatoregun moved to England in the early 80s where she landed her first job as a Registered Manager with National Health Service (NHS), UK. But prior to that, she had trained at the Thames Valley University, Faculty of Health and Human Services where she acquired different certificates in health related fields.

“I started doing all these diploma courses that are related to psychiatry.

I was interested in the elderly people, I just love working with elderly people, asking them questions. Then I finally went to Thames Valley University in London where I had a certificate in psychiatry and elderly care at the Faculty of Health and Human Sciences. I spent three years there. And that was when I was a registered manager with the UK National Health Services (NHS).”

As a certified NHS officer, Olatoregun’s job entails caring for the elderly people and their day to day activities, supporting them

ASSISTANT EDITOR OLUFUNKE OLAODE/victoria.olaode@thisdaylive.com.

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾JANUARY 23, 2022

COVER

Caring for the Elderly While Alive is More Rewarding than Lavish Funeral because of their vulnerability.

“You look after their emotional and mental fitness. We work with the social services, we work with the police, and we work with the community. I also worked in elderly homes as a manager as well.”

A well grounded individual, being a woman of colour in a white dominated environment has its challenges. But Olatoregun was equal to the task; she was prepared to respond to someone in need particularly the elderly, rise to their challenges and allay the fears that are often associated with old age as well as racism.

“My experience working in the UK was fantastic although because of my colour, there were challenges at the initial stage. But the passion for my calling kept me going. At one stage, I wanted to divert to do something different but I met some of these English people that were so nice, and the encouragement was there, so I had to continue moving on.

Again, in Europe, they are so passionate about their elderly.

Now they have a plan for their elderly people; 55 years and above is what I was registered for.

The children don’t have much say when the government comes in. If you have a house, some will sell their properties and put them in a residential home where they are safe, protecting them and making sure their finances are not abused.

They are well protected because there is a plan in place. And the policies and everything soothes the elderly very well. You cannot work in the care sector especially with the elderly or the junior ones without being credit checked.

Credit check means they have to send you to an authority that will vet it, that you have never had any criminal case before, and that you can work with these elderly people. Elderly people in the UK are entitled to social services and the police will be involved.”

It was extremely an easy decision to make when in 2014 after an eventful 28 years in the UK, Olatoregun returned to Nigeria. Why did she return?

“I left because I was tired. I just have the passion of coming to Nigeria. I’ve got a lot of friends here. My both parents had passed on. So I just sat down one day and said, I have contributed my quota in the UK. Let me go to Nigeria and see how I can replicate what I had done in the UK. I came and found that there was no policy in place for elderly people. There was nothing in place for them.

That is why you see some people employing house help that are killing them, taking their money, and doing whatever they want to do.”

Practicing kindness, patience and helpfulness for the elderly is natural to Olatoregun and in 2014, she established Quendon Genesis Limited (QG Care Service), a domiciliary caregiving outfit that specialises in taking care of the elderly and dementia, aged from 65 years and above within the comfort of their homes. Throwing light on the meaning behind the name ‘Quendon Genesis Limited.’

“I took Genesis because I love reading the bible. I just wanted to make it Genesis, but my son just came up with the alphabet of all our names.”

The elderly are fragile. They are vulnerable. For Olatoregun and her team, the true test of a person’s character is what they do when there is no one around. And

Olatoregun

this is what she has practiced through her company in the last eight years.

With Quendon Genesis Limited, her clients can sleep with both eyes closed because their elderly ones are safe and secured in the loving and caring hands of Quendon staffers.

“I trained my staff in an act of kindness and compassion in this job because it is a profession. I gave them a lot of books to read about home care, a lot of food hygiene and a lot of communication books because you must be able to communicate as a good caregiver. You must be compassionate about the job; you must like the elderly people. I had one client for six months and it was somebody who got to know me in England that introduced me to this family. And he was even the one paying because he told them not to pay, that he just wanted them to see what I am capable of doing. I can tell you confidently that we have tried our best over the last eight years getting referrals because of our company’s track record of excellence.”

Placing someone under the care

of total strangers in the name of caregiving can be daunting, Olatoregun said she is different.

“Security has always been an issue.

But what makes us different is that I do my check before I recruit.

After the interview, the guarantor has to produce an international passport, or driver’s license or National Identification Card original before I could recruit. And after the recruitment, I start the training. I am eternally grateful to the University College Hospital (UCH) Ibadan for their support. They train my staff for me. All the doctors, the Chief Medical Officer, they all supported me and that made a difference. And I ensured I do my spot check unannounced every week or every month. It depends on the situation. Unannounced spot check is when nobody is aware that either I or my coordinator is coming to visit. So we check all the log books, because every day the staff has to write books for me. Their

feeding, personal care, outing activities, medication taken, the family that visits, how they spend the money. And if they need medical care, we arrange for the doctor. There are some that we make arrangements for to be taken to church every Sunday. Being old does not mean you can’t live a better life. There are some packages, you have to travel and the carer has to go with them. And since I started I have never had any incident or crisis with staff stealing or maltreating my patients.”

Talking extensively about domiciliary care which she provides, Olatoregun said it is the best. “Before I left the UK, the government met and decided that it is better to look after these elderly people in their homes because they are very conversant with everything in their environment. They know their neighbours, they know who is a new face, they know who has been living there. So, that is why I prefer to do domiciliary care because they are much more comfortable in their own homes than taking them to elderly care home, where you will put introverts and extroverts in the same room. It does not work like that. And they work all their life, they go into this home and start living a regimented life. They wake up at the same time, they eat the same food, and they don’t have friends, no variety, and no activities.”

At Quendon Genesis Limited, there are packages to meet individual’s needs.

“Our package is reasonable. I have got a lot of packages, it depends on what people want. I have weekends, Monday to Friday, I have live-in 24 hours a day and I have a rotational basis, that will be about two or three staff working in the house with that person. One staff must be with that client 24/7 and no Christmas, no New Year, No Easter or Ileya. My staff are always there because they have their off duties. So once I have signed my contract, it is 24 hours, somebody must be with my client.”

Her commitment to her profession has seen the profile of her company soar. She has catered for high profile clientele ranging from top judicial officers, governors, senators and so on. “I have retired as Senior Advocate of Nigeria, I have judges, doctors, I have parents of governors, parents of ministers and a lot of professors.

In retrospect, running the company over the last eight years has been rewarding.

“I have worked with some beautiful families that understand what I stand forthat my paramount aim is to protect their elderly people, security wise considering what is happening in Nigeria now with maids killing or running away with valuables. If your parents are with me, you are 100 per cent sure that they are safe. I believe our elderly people need to be taken care of. And that is why the government should put up policies and should stop paying lip service to all these things and hit the ground running. The Ministries: the Minister for Humanitarian Affairs, the Minister for Health, the Minister for Women Affairs and then the Office of the Vice-President should look at this critical aspect of our society.”

As this reporter rounded off the conversation, it was obvious that Olatoregun’s calling isn’t a misstep judging by her passion and commitment.

“I am fulfilled, very fulfilled. I am happy I am in Nigeria. It is a passion and it is a calling. I don’t need to be a pastor but this is a calling upon my life. My mother died in my arms. I love elderly people because you learn a lot from them. One day by the grace of God, we are going to be old. I don’t believe in throwing parties, taking expensive event centers, celebrating the life of these people you never cared for while they were alive. I don’t believe in it because caring for the aged in their lifetime is more rewarding than a lavish funeral after their departure,” she said

T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾JANUARY 23, 2022

51

GLITZ PERSONALITY

W The Fashion hen Jemiriye Adeniji opened the doors of her apartment on that Thursday afternoon, she was neither dressed in an African attire nor was she sporting a headgear (gele) or a head wrap. She was clad in a casual outfit with her lustrous black hair tied in a loose knot. Perhaps, it was intentional to reveal the other side of her away from prying cameras. Over the years, her colourful and towering head wraps have become symbolic of her personality. Sometimes, her hair is wrapped in a gele, other times- covered in a turban.

At home, she was free and hospitable, cracking jokes while recalling her childhood memories.

Her love for head wraps travels far into that history which she peeled in layers. When her mother worked in a textile factory.

“I come from a family that appreciates and celebrates the African outlook. We used to have a lot of ankara in my home. My mother worked in a textile factory so she used to experiment with some of the fabrics. Neighbours usually come to my mother to help them wrap their geles, “ she said.

Watching her mother’s skillful and stylish way of tying the head wraps captivated her so much that subconsciously, she began emulating her, filling in for her when she was unavailable to help the neighbours.

Also, growing up with her grandmother who donned beautiful head wraps enthralled her the more.

Jemiriye, as she is popularly known, would make good use of her skills when she went to work at Nike Art Centre. The founder of the famed art hub, Nike DaviesOkundaye is a quintessential African artist and textile designer known for her flamboyant and majestic geles.

Whenever there was a workshop for head wrapping at the art gallery, Jemiriye was among the facilitators.

In the United States where she currently lives, Jemiriye organises head wrapping workshops for different races.

More so, the singer is captivated by the royalty that comes with head wraps. As a child, she was intrigued by the regal appearance of the late South African singer Miriam Makeba.

“I loved how she looked each time she stepped out.” The head wrap means more than fashion to Jemiriye.

“It represents a lot of things.

Primarily, it is a symbol of African pride for African women. When a woman loses her husband in some African cultures, she shaves her head and uses a head wrap to cover the baldness. Nowadays, women in America suffering from cancer use head wraps to cover their heads after losing their hair to chemotherapy. Head wrap is something that has come to stay.

It’s just that we all think there must be an occasion to wear it. It doesn’t diminish you in any way. It elevates your beauty.”

As a cultural ambassador, Jemiriye is passionate about any form of art that promotes African culture. Like fashion, she uses music to celebrate her African heritage.

and Music of Jemiriye Drawing upon her maternal influence and work history, Jemiriye Adeniji recounts how she weaves fashion into music to promote the African culture in an encounter with Vanessa Obioha

Adeniji

She was in Lagos to promote her new single, ‘Lagos’. The song, she said, is an ode to the city which formed a major part of her journey.

“Anywhere I find myself in the world, that Lagos hustling spirit shines. I just can’t be in the backseat.

Even though I’m from Osun State, that hustle, I can make it and never give up spirit is always in me.”

The accompanying visuals of the music shows iconic locations in Lagos such as Freedom Park in Lagos Island, the National Arts Theatre, Iganmu, Ebute Metta Railway Station among others.

Although she is familiar with many parts of the state, Oshodi remains dear to her for good reasons.

“I spent part of my formative years in Oshodi. I remember as a young girl accompanying my mum to the market to buy stuff and I was always amazed at how she negotiated with the traders. I learnt the power of negotiation from the Oshodi market.

You got to be smart. You know what they say about Oshodi then, you may lose your hand and your change in Oshodi market. I picked up the street sense from Oshodi.”

The singer inherited her passion for music from her parents. Her father was an avid collector of music while her sonorous voice is a gift from her mother.

Her musical pursuits have taken her to unexpected places and fetched her fame. For instance, in 2006, she led the theme song at the Pan-African Women Conference in South Africa that had in attendance, South African antiapartheid activist, Winnie Mandela and other powerful female leaders from the continent. That experience opened her eyes to the plight of the average African woman. Since then, she has made it a mission to preach African women empowerment. It is important to her that women in Africa are financially independent.

“When I went to Europe, I saw that women were calling the shots, they were organising, spending, empowering even men. I have always been that kind of woman. I saw myself through school,” said the artist who graduated from the Nigerian Institute of Journalism. The way she sees it, women can play a vital role in peacebuilding in Africa: they only need to be given a seat at the table.

“We are mothers. We know how to take care of the child.”

Also, in 2014, she became the first African to sing the Baseball anthem at the Citizen’s Bank Park Stadium, Philadelphia, during the Jackie Robinson Day celebration.

Jemiriye’s ‘Knocking on Heaven’s Door’ which conveyed a message of peace in Africa and across the globe was featured in the 2016 Olympics in Rio, Brazil. The talented singer’s music style is rooted in Yoruba folk, Afrobeat and Jazz. One can call it an afro-fusion as it blends different sounds to give it that unique feel.

Currently, the former Nigerian Idol contestant is working on an album due on an undisclosed date. Her mission through her music and fashion is to spread the message of hope, love and beauty.

“I’m a messenger. I carry a message for somebody out there and I pray to God not to die with my messages.”

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JANUARY 23, 2022

GLITZ ENTERTAINMENT

Oscars Nomination Voting Begins this Week Stories by Vanessa Obioha Nomination voting for the 94th Academy Awards otherwise known as the Oscars, will commence on Thursday, January 27, 2022, and conclude on Tuesday, February 1, 2022.

The nomination voting is coming on the heels of the recent announcement by the organising body of the Awards, the Academy of Motion Pictures, Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) that 276 feature films are in contention for the awards this year.

In a statement, the Academy revealed the conditions for feature films to compete. They include an opening in a commercial motion picture theatre in at least one of six U.S. metropolitan areas: Los Angeles County; the City of New York; the Bay Area; Chicago, Illinois; Miami, Florida; and Atlanta, Georgia, between March 1, 2021, and December 31, 2021, and complete a minimum qualifying run of seven consecutive days in the same venue.

“Drive-in theatres open nightly are included as qualifying commercial venues in the above cities. Films intended for theatrical release but initially made available through commercial streaming, VOD service or other broadcast may qualify if the film is made available on the secure Academy Screening Room member site within 60 days of the streaming/VOD release or broadcast. Feature films must have a running time of more than 40 minutes,” the statement reads.

Films contesting in the Best Picture category must have submitted a confidential Academy Representation and Inclusion Standards entry as part of the submission requirements. However, meeting inclusion thresholds will not be required for eligibility in the Best Picture category until the 96th Oscars.

Nominations for the 94th Academy Awards will be announced on Tuesday, February 8, 2022, while the main ceremony is scheduled for Sunday, March 27, 2022, at the Dolby Theatre at Hollywood and Highland in Hollywood.

Chloe Zhao

Filmmaker, Ike Nnaebue’s ‘No U-turn’ to Debut at the Berlinale Nollywood filmmaker Ike Nnaebue will be screening his self-reflective story on migration ‘No U-turn’ at the 72nd Berlin International Film Festival.

The documentary is part of the selection for the festival’s ‘Panorama’ section which offers audiences an opportunity to discover films that offer friction and provide material for discussion.

Commissioned by Arte, the European public service channel that promotes cultural programming, ‘No U-turn’ is a co-production between Nigeria, South Africa, France and Germany. It chronicles Nnaebue’s cinematic journey from Lagos to Tangier, the continenttraversing route he first travelled as a teenager in hope of a better life. Along the way, he draws a multinational and multilingual portrait of African migration. The thrust of Nnaebue’s documentary is to find out the motivation of young people who still embark on the journey to an uncertain future.

Speaking on the selection of his documentary, Nnaebue expressed excitement.

“Screening at the Berlinale is a dream of a thousand filmmakers all over the world. It is one of the top three festivals in the world.”

He added that making the documentary was an interesting journey.

“Interestingly, the film was about a journey and the journey of making the film was quite a journey and we are happy to be sharing it with you.

The fact that a film I made about my young adulthood quest to reach Europe is premiering at the number one film festival in Europe is something so magical, it feels like I’m in a dream.”

The Berlinale will officially open on February 10, 2022, and will run till February 20, 2022.

Nnaebue

Reliving Fuji Opera in Lagos It still feels like yesterday when the Orijin sponsored Fuji: A Opera lit up Lagos with a beautiful blend of arts and music.

The multi-layered Fuji-themed experience pooled lovers of the genre as well as the arts to the multiple-day affair during the festive period.

Beginning with the Orijinal Fuji Is Art exhibition which was designed in two folds: outdoor installations and a gallery exhibition, attendees were drawn to the digital artworks by 24-year-old Nigerian digital artist, Bidemi Tata whose works visualized the tenet and character of the Fuji music subculture.

The grand finale of the art exhibition, an exclusive VIP Preview, took place at Untitled, Maitama Sule, Ikoyi Lagos on Sunday, December 5 as Bidemi took guests on a journey using comic-book sensibility to express a bold representation of the Fuji music subculture, grounding this age-old genre of music in relevance with new age technology and digital possibilities of relatable storytelling.

Taking the experience a notch higher, Fuji Vibrations, a platform dedicated to blending Fuji music with other genres and styles witnessed a series of live fuji music concerts at Ogba, Yaba and Victoria Island respectively with a highly respected line up of Fuji music powerhouses including Akeem Adisa Adesope, Rasheed Ayinde Merenge, Igwe Remi Aluko, Saheed Osupa, General Ayinla Kollington, Sulaimon Adio Atawewe (Mr Spirit), SK Sensation who is also the president of the Fuji Musician Association of Nigeria (FUMAN), Kolade Onanuga also known as KWAM 2, KS1 Malaika, among others.

For the finale, Fuji Vibrations not only entertained guests with the blend of Fuji music styles, but it also served as a platform to see the possibilities of other music genres infused with Fuji as DJ Maze and Xtreme held a 30-minute DJ set that fused Electronic Dance Music (EDM) with Fuji music.

A happy remix of known Fuji songs got attendees jumping as they performed. Not a few captured the fluid transitions with the camera of their mobile phone. It was indeed a breath-taking experience as Orijin, the official beverage partner of the event, served various orijinal cocktails, and its new variant, the Tigernut and Ginger, much to the delight of the ecstatic guests.

Kollington

SUNDAY JANUARY 23, 2022 • T H I S D AY

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HighLife

with KAYODE ALFRED 08116759807, E-mail: kayflex2@yahoo.com

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

Pacesetter: Another Milestone Project from Sanwo-Olu

Babajide Sanwo-Olu! Given enough time, this is a name that has the potential to reach the rest of Africa - and not because it has a pleasant ring. The governor of Lagos State is doing an incredible job at leading the people of the largest city in Africa towards true progress. Here is finally a governor that is as diligent as he is visionary, seeing enough of the gaps in the city’s development to bring about a revolution.

So, having settled all accounts regarding primary and secondary education, Sanwo-Olu has moved to the next thing—trains.

Informed Lagosians seem to have gotten the better of the denizens of Milwaukee and Wisconsin in general.

Afew days ago, Sanwo-Olu arrived in the American city of Milwaukee and sealed the deal for the acquisition of two metro trains. Originally intended for one of the US’ high-speed rail lines, the trains at Sanwo-Olu’s behest are now headed to Lagos where they will be cherished and used properly.

While people from the US are glaring in Rev. Ogunkanmi

Rev. Victor Ogunkanmi Celebrates 60th Birthday in Style We can gather ourselves and argue that everyone was given a blank board at birth and asked to draft the conditions of their destiny. Seeing the brilliant lives of some individuals among us, this argument ought to be quashed completely. One of such lives, that of Reverend Victor Olakunle Abayomi Ogunkanmi, the presiding General Overseer of Christ Gospel Mission Int. (CGM), just clocked 60.

However, even as the colour of his sunshine of years dims to a flushed pink, it is still far rudder than others can compare to.

The 60th birthday of Ogunkanmi was met with celebration across the country. In fact, in honour of this attainment, the relatives, friends, and followers of the church leader organised a celebratory service for him. The event was held at the Bolton White Hotel and Apartment, Abuja, on January 16, 2022.

Apart from the immediate relatives of Ogunkanmi, there were several distinguished guests at the event. Each of these guests was content to raise a glass in honour of the priest, both hands in worship for the blessings on his life, and hearts at the establishment and continued endurance of Ogunkanmi’s ministry over the years.

For those familiar with the story of Ogunkanmi, it is no secret that he is not the typical Preacher’s Kid (PK). Although he was born to a man of God, Ogunkanmi’s very birth symbolized the start of something entirely new. Like the Prophet Samuel, Ogunkanmi was a child of promise, and subsequent years established this fact.

In many ways, Ogunkanmi lived as normal a life as possible while he was young. Even his university education at the University of Ife from 1979 to 1983 did not stem this normalcy. He was many things, including the Editor-in-Chief of Pointer News Agency at one point.

However, at the end of the day, Ogunkanmi returned to full-time pastoral ministry, pioneering Christ Gospel Mission in the process.

It has been many years since but Ogunkanmi is still a very valuable component of the Church in Nigeria.

Thus, at 60, he has become one of the fathers of the faith in the country, a pillar for positive change and transformation.

the direction of Lagos, Lagosians are busy celebrating their luck in choosing the smartest governor possible. This is because outside of getting the best card at the hand of the innovative Americans, Sanwo-Olu has also ensured that the first metro system in West Africa will be mounted in Lagos.

For Sanwo-Olu, this is just another milestone that isn’t worth mentioning in the face of all the plans he has scribbled on his idea notes. For Lagosians and Nigerians in general, this ‘trivial’ milestone is a big deal, a very big deal.

It has to be said that Sanwo-Olu will be remembered for many things. Among these, his revitalisation of the education sector and transformation of the transport industry will likely top the list. Then again, he is not at all finished with his work. There is still much to marvel over, new milestones to reach.

Abubakar Hassan Nalaraba: Proving His Mettle in the Green Chamber

Nalaraba

There is so much in the offing for Nigerians who have sworn to see their dreams done, the corporate corridor in the country wearing their names from time to time, and the world as we know it refitted to accommodate more happy people. Abdulkabir Adisa Aliu is on the higher tiers of this category of Nigerians. His success story is something others can aspire to and emulate.

Aliu is the pioneer Group CEO of Matrix Group and one of the individuals that founded the energy company. As the person in this position, it has fallen to Aliu to set the pace for the company’s growth.

Towards this goal, Aliu has not yet faltered but raised the bar beyond what his peers in sister companies have accomplished. Thus, he has effectively carved a name for himself on the marble of business might that is the corporate

Standing before the people of any region and wielding their interests is usually a group of individuals ready to throw down at a moment’s notice. Honourable Abubakar Hassan Nalaraba is one of such individuals and his sacrificial life is there for all to see.

It has to be said that many lawmakers in present-day Nigeria are trying their best to put their nation together and not only minding their constituencies. Nalaraba sits amongst these noble and prestigious lawmakers as he represents the interests of Awe/Doma/Keana Federal Constituency of Nasarawa State in the National Assembly. More than this interest, however, Nalaraba is giving himself out to be tested and modelled after, demonstrating his confidence that all that is right should be emulated whether it is expected or otherwise.

And Nalaraba’s patriotism, for some reason, was not expected.

Inside the World of Abdulkabir Adisa Aliu

Aliu

Ambode Back on Social Whirl

Ambode

As vast and multi-coloured as this world is, change is the only constant. While we like to declare this fact in the negative, there are times when the constancy of change proves to be uplifting. For former Lagos State Governor Akinwunmi Ambode, the present is such a time. Having lived on the ambitions and power leftovers of others, things are starting to look up for the sanguine man.

A few days ago, the turf wicket of the Tafawa Balewa Square (TBS) Cricket Oval in Lagos was inaugurated. The turf wicket was a big deal in the state before the facility was shut down 18 months ago to drive it to a new level.

Now that the game of cricket can once again draw the attention of cricket-buff Lagosians, it says something that Ambode was one of the dignitaries on ground to set the ball rolling.

While Ambode posted pictures of his attendance at the event on his social media handle, Nigerians in general and Lagosians, in particular, were more interested in the

Sanwo-Olu

Notwithstanding, Nalaraba has come to stand out among his peers in the Green Chamber as someone solely focused on his goals and nothing else. Being the Chairman of the House of Reps’ Committee on Pilgrims Affairs, Nalaraba’s role exceeds that of many others in the same honourable capacity. But he has never balked at this, choosing instead to use the instrumentality of the position to make as many lives better as humanly possible.

Some have called Nalaraba the Honourable Chairman Great Love because of his emphasis on love among the citizens of the country. Even so, the lawmaker has only intensified his efforts to see the country more united in the future than it ever was in the past. For this reason, he associates with all and sundry without paying too much attention to the religion and culture of those around him.

What a fellow! One can only say that as long as one has the heart to see some objective done, emulating Nalaraba should not be impossible. But then, what great comfort that the lawmaker has set a guideline for others to follow!

space.

Aliu has been the CEO of the Matrix Group since the company was established in 2005. Ever since then, he has stretched the company’s goals to include exploits that might be considered the express ambitions of mad people. But that is indeed one way to describe Aliu and his team in the face of their many accomplishments in the oil sector.

This has earned Aliu the title of a super oil trader, a title that has gone ahead of him to open many doors.

Aliu’s world is shiny, to say the least.

His mansion in the prestigious Banana Island and his other possessions, especially the Bluefin Depot in Warri, Delta State, distinguish him from his fellows. Thus, for those who declare that Aliu lives like royalty, the assessment is not unwarranted. His life is enviable indeed. forthcoming changes in the social and political scene. It seems to everybody that Ambode has found a branch upon which to perch and perhaps return to the ruling class.

For many, losing the sponsorship and support of political juggernauts and associates is the same as falling into the bottomless pit with no odds of survival or revival. Not Ambode. The man has risen from the calamity that drove him out of the Lagos Government House nearly three years ago after having only exhausted a term. Moreover, as reports of a grand reconciliation team from the All Progressives Congress are still in effect, Ambode is very likely to return before long.

Perhaps there is something symbolic in Ambode’s reappearance at the TBS Cricket Oval. Perhaps like the game many people have paid too much attention to the tangent of the thrown ball to realize that the batter has something up his sleeve.

Ambode may very well be this batter who after suffering many things is ready to show his supremacy once again.

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Fresh Battles Trail Fayose, Olujimi: Why They May Never Work Together 2022 is turning out to be a year of as many dramatic events in the political scene as we witnessed in the year before. As Ekiti State, for example, prepares to elect the next governor, the political pillars are at one another’s necks. Based on current reports on this front, acknowledged Ekiti kingmakers, former Governor Ayo Fayose and his foremost political rival, Senator Biodun Olujimi have something to flex their muscles on.

Many analysts are punching their calculators trying to make predictions about who will clinch the Ekiti governorship seat in the face of so many contenders.

However, a sizable fraction of these analysts is more interested in how Fayose and Olujimi are going to flow together.

This time, as in many other times, it is obvious that Fayose’s interests are far from those of Olujimi. The latter is not at all in support of Fayose’s candidate for the Ekiti top seat. This much was evident when the Senator was joined by several others to stage a protest contesting the alleged partiality staged by the National Working Committee (NWC) in Fayose’s favour.

Fayose

Olujimi

It is no secret that the aforementioned political leaders have raised the war blade against each other countless times in the past. Also, while it seems that their feud is partly on principle, after having locked horns for so long they buried their hatchet not too long ago. But, following the NWC incident, the hatchet has been dug up and is deadlier than ever.

Thus, rumours of fresh battles between Fayose and Olujimi are more recent than the reports of their reconciliation. Moreover, some commentators have speculated that it will be easier for Fayose and Olujimi to get along when they are on opposite sides of the party pack. Therefore, as long as they are both members—leading members for that matter—of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), there’ll always be a bone of contention between them.

On this point, Fayose and Olujimi may never agree. Then again, life always finds a way to surprise people. As slim as the odds are of this happening with Fayose and Olujimi, there is a chance.

Tomi Somefun: Making A Difference at Unity Great things are unfolding at Unity Bank and there is no person more worthy of a thumbs-up than the MD/CEO, Tomi Somefun.

While other banks in Nigeria are throwing caution to the wind in their attempts to get more customers, more branches, and more turnover at the end of the year, Somefun has sharpened Unity Bank to focus on the sustainable growth of the Nigerian economy. The latest gesture on this point is the gig with the Rice Farmers Association of Nigeria (RIFAN).

Somefun revealed to the public on January 18, 2020, that she intends to continue to support RIFAN in its objective to help rice farmers and farming in Nigeria. With Unity Bank backing up the association, Somefun intends to reduce the cost of and emphasis on rice importation, boosting rice production in Nigeria. Evidently, from where Somefun is standing, this is enough

oomph to create more jobs for the Nigerian citizenry and reduce the burden on the central government.

Rice farming is one of the most important aspects of the agricultural sector in many developed and developing economies of the world. This is primarily because the cereal crop is eaten daily and has therefore become popular in both developed and developing regions. Regions with environments (land and climate) that allow and promote the growth of this staple food are expected to experience economic growth and development based on the productivity of their agricultural sector. Even though Nigeria is one such nation, there are too many limitations dissuading rice farmers from capitalizing on the obvious advantages.

What Somefun is doing with RIFAN, consequently, is brilliant. Maximising the

A Peek Into the World of Adeolu Adeboye

Somefun

production of rice will not only create employment and reduce rice importation, but also restore Nigeria’s reputation as a nation that knows to farm well and benefit from its labour.

Runsewe Mobilises 10m Online Supporters for Super Eagles as Odegbami, Elegbeleye Others Laud Initiative

Runsewe

The National Council for Arts and Culture (NCAC) has launched 10 million online supporters for the Super Eagles to enable Nigerians who can’t cheer the national team at the ongoing Africa Cup of Nations campaign in Cameroon due to COVID-19 travel restrictions to do so via online platforms.

There Adeola is a sphinx-like quality to Otunba Olusegun Runsewe. His genius burns with electricity that that no earthly contrivance could tame. Wherever he finds himself,

Runsewe parades his smarts at astounding depths.

Blessed with the gift of presence, when Runsewe walks into a room, people sit up, straighten their ties or adjust their garbs, hold their breath and listen with rapt attention.

And he dazzles with his graceful charm and candour. He enjoys the bequest of performance too, which often translates to rare excellence.

Interestingly, however, Runsewe described the initiative as a concept which other African countries will take a cue from in a not too distant future.

Runsewe said 10 million online supporters for the Eagles will ensure mass support, boost the morale and galvanise the efforts of the national team towards winning the Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon.

“I am happy we have made history. We have even gotten 20 million supporters.

Already in one hour of launching, 54 onlines connecting to the project. Other Africans will take a cue from us,” Runsewe said.

The initiative was ratified by some key stakeholders notable among who are former national team captain, Chief Segun Odegbami; former DG National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), Dr Danladi Bako; former DG National Sports Commission Hon. Gbenga Elegbeleye; President General Worldwide, the Nigeria Football Supporters Club, Dr Rafiu Oladipo; and veteran broadcaster, Dr Peter Igho.

Speaking through virtual links, Odegbami described the concept as a brilliant idea noting that the Super Eagles are presently excelling at the Africa Cup of Nations.

“Out of so many things that are going wrong in our society, our football appears to be one bright, shinning star. Mobilising Nigerians to support the national team would lift the spirit of all Nigerians and start to give us hope that gradually something great can come out of the country,” Odegbami said.

Basheer Tosin Ashafa: Like Father, Like Son

If quickness of mind and hands can run in the family, it shouldn’t come as any surprise that there are families known chiefly for philanthropy and super humanitarian exploits. However, such families are few and far between. Thus, it is a happy fact that the son of the MD/CEO of the Federal Housing Authority of Nigeria (FHA), the progressive Basheer Tosin Ashafa (alias BTA), is not putting his father’s name to shame.

There are scores of well-bred children that cannot find any reason to live beyond themselves. BTA has long distinguished himself from these people. In the little time that the Nigerian public has come to know him, BTA has shown himself to be a committed social activist and advocate.

This identity has almost overshadowed his otherwise everyday label of a real estate developer and entrepreneur. And for good reason, obviously.

Recently, however, it seems as if BTA’s reputation is on the cusp of matching his father’s. This, as analysts have pointed out, is

Ashafa

Adeboye

the natural consequence of giving your best to people. In BTA’s case, this is the equivalent of his having established the Basheer Tosin Ashafa Fund. As the mission statement has it, BTA’s Fund is indeed breaking barriers.

Currently, BTA’s initiative has accomplished much in the way of helping the underprivileged in Nigeria. The initiative is focused and deliberate as its resources are being poured into primary and secondary schools, as well as used to restack the hopes of households. Thus, BTA and his team have distributed food and cash items to said households, with learning aids and educational materials to schools. They have also created programs and workshops to train people to sustain themselves.

It is obvious that like his father, BTA is committed to making the world a better place.

Perhaps in the matter of a few years, he will overshadow his father in this pursuit. It is evident that this noble spirit and fire runs in the Ashafa family.

2022 is shaping up to be an awesome year for many Nigerians. Due to the wind of change and progress currently sweeping across the country’s corporate corridor, another individual has found the doors of opportunity and fortune opened to them. The individual in question is none other than Adeolu Adeboye, the son of the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, Enoch Adeboye. As things stand presently, Adeboye has been made the Chairman of the board of Directors at Ronchess Global Resources Plc. Adeboye is an established software engineer with enough experience dragging behind him to throw despair at Ronchess’ competitors. Other Ronchess appointees on the list are Niyi Ogunnowo who will serve as co-Chairman, Okafor Akalaka, Temitope Adeboye, Tope Adebosin, Lanre Ladipo, Leon Kelly, Nasir Muhammad, and Christopher Egba Oruete (ESQ.) Adeboye reportedly is a graduate of Software Engineering from the University of Hertfordshire in the United Kingdom (UK). In truth, he is much more than this. He used to be—and still is—a principal figure in several sectors including insurance, retail, power, and construction.

Moreover, even as a practising engineer, Adeboye spent a decade in the UK and made a colourfully loud name for himself before gliding back home to contribute to the development of Nigeria.

Adeboye’s ascension to the big league comes after Ronchess’ successful listing on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX). Thus, Ronchess’ status as a leading construction company with fingers in traffic solutions and procurement services has grown brighter. In other words, this is an opportune time for Adeboye, a window that was open solely for his sake.

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LOUD WHISPERS

with JOSEPH EDGAR (09095325791)

Prof. Yemi Osinbajo: I Really Do Dare You Look, let’s not mince words. Me, I like a good fight and there is nothing that will be more exciting than a frontal push on the Presidency by Professor Osinbajo especially now that his mentor and baba have stuck out his wrinkled neck.

Look there should be no fear my dear Prof. This is a straight fight for the soul of the nation and whether the man pays your school fees or borrows you money to pay dowry should not be in consideration.

Asiwaju is eminently qualified. I like his candidacy. He has built structures and he is playing the game expertly. I am really impressed with his strategy, his engagement and his lock-in if you know what I mean.

Anytime, the man is feeling poorly in the polls, he will just go to Kano and all those people will be shouting, ‘Asiwaju for President’.

His mojo will rise and he will bounce back.

That is what I like and that is how politics should be played.

So, you too, enter this ring na. I do not understand all this fear. The other day, they said they will suspend you from APC South-west, your boys, like Ojodu, are shouting and the rest of us are angling for your candidacy.

What you are waiting for is what we do not understand.

My dear Prof, enter the matter. What will happen, last, last Asiwaju will trounce you

but you would have given us an exciting and a very powerful electioneering period.

Imagine a debate between you two with Dr Abati as referee. It will make a very beautiful viewing.

So, my Lord, no need to fear. Just do like Asiwaju who went to Buhari and told him clearly that he wants to contest. That is a man. Me, I am beginning to like him o.

You too, find time and go to Asiwaju and sit him down and say, ‘ Daddy, ejo e ma bi nu. Dolapo lo ran mi. She says, I should tell you not to be angry, that I should try for the presidency.

If you are too worried, carry me along.

Me, I will talk o. Nothing dey fear me.

Me, I will tell him and anything that wants to happen let it happen, man die but once as we say it in Shomolu. Simple.

President Olubukola Saraki?

This is the season so we must continue to push people out. Bukola Saraki is a man after my heart. What I am fighting for is a robust engagement that will put very serious minded people against each other.

Not dem Orji Kalu type of people but very serious-minded leaders who will come and canvass very strenuously for our votes.

As I watched Saraki hobnob at the Ibori party last Sunday, I could see his boundary splitting personality. He had friends from

all over the divide and when the MC didn’t call his name out at first, he didn’t flinch. Very presidential. He took his seat at the high table, waved at some people, ‘hi-fived’ the others and generally showed that he was a Nigerian for all people.

I want his candidacy out there on the streets and I thank God he is looking like he will or has jumped in. My own is to push as many credible people as possible into the ring.

Because from what I am seeing, it is looking like only Asiwaju is truly and truly ready and that will be sad.

200million people and we will now come and have a ‘walk over’? God forbid.

Bukyyyyyy, Bukkyyyyyyy, how many times have I called you? Stand up and enter that PDP ring and win the mandate and come and give Asiwaju a true fight for his Bullion van.

I trust you to put up a good fight. You that have nerves of steel. Abi, is it not you that sat there and was drinking Tuwo when DSS were climbing the fence and doing western rolling to come and catch you and you calmly carry your phone and call Bill Clinton to deal with them.

Mbok, enter this matter. Let’s fight for the soul of this country. If you dey fear, call mama GO and she will spiritually fortify you.

SENAMI IBORI: WHAT ARE FRIENDS FOR? She is the extremely beautiful wife of my very good friend and champion, Chief James Ibori. She is also the daughter of philanthropist and my ‘lender of last resort,’ the elegant Caroline Sosu.

It was her 40th birthday and I got the invite courtesy of the aforementioned Caroline Sosu.

She said, ‘Edgar, you know say you no dey dress well. This one if you wear a t-shirt, dem no go let you enter for gate o’. I say madam, no worry. I go dress well; I must come this one to come observe.

That is how I went to the salon to get ready. Pedicure everything, even the hair from my nostrils I pull am commot.

We entered the party o. It was gorgeous and everybody was there. I cannot mention names but just take it that everybody that went to that Mr. Waya party during the Obasanjo

administration that led OBJ to yab them and call them one name like that was there.

The pretty celebrant came out looking like the Mona Lisa. Her beauty shone with pride seeing the quality attendance. She must have looked at Mr. Ibori and said to him after it all; ‘thank you my darling, oya come and take’ and that one would have said, ‘darling, let’s take it easy, I don’t want to break my back, you know elections are around the corner. Let’s just kiss, you hear no vex’.

Well-done, Chief Ibori and happy birthday my dear sister. You truly are well-deserving. But next time, try just serve Afang even if it’s only for me. Thanks.

I shook him and ran to my friend Mudi to say, ‘see Henry Imasekha o’ and he say, ‘Who he be, Na actor?

HENRY IMASEKHA: LONG TIME NO SEE You know this kind of Boss is the one that area boys used to see and just jump up, raise their hands in the air and be shouting, ‘ alright sir, your boy is loyal’.

I became an area boy the moment I say My lord Imasekha. I said to

him, ‘I am loyal and he said, stand at ease’ and I said, ‘are you sure sir?’ and he said ‘Yea,meet my wife.

He went ahead to show me one of the most beautiful ladies I had seen in a bit. Don’t let me describe her before my Lord, ask Emma Nwachukwu, my brother who will be with me in Abeokuta to bundle me and put me in one of the Dangote trucks and dispatch me straight to Sambisa forest.

You guys may not understand my affection for daddy. I have met him like say only six times in my life, but people like this just inspire and make you want to be more of a human being.

Meetings with him are a tutorial.

His kindness and love for me is very clear. I have never called him for anything that he will refuse.

He is a well-known supporter of all of my causes but much more importantly, he is a very senior colleague in investment banking whose landmark transactions continue to form long stories for we, the younger ones.

Ibori

Imasekha

Lamidi

Kanu

Osinbajo

KHADIJAT OKUNNU LAMIDI: CANDLE IN THE WIND The declaration hit social media with a thud. She was female and she looked quite well spoken.

Strong family pedigree and perfect positioning.

Sadly, it is all just empty breeze. My enthusiasm waned immediately from the first interview. She was inspired during #EndSARS- a joke and the second one just killed it. ‘I am related to Tinubu’. Biggest joke.

Someone once said, why we are not getting it right in achieving a credible generational shift in leadership at the centre is because we are looking for perfection while the older generation are positioning candidates with nationwide name recognition.

So, you see the problem with this

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LOUD WHISPERS particular candidate is the lack of a defining conviction, inexperience and lack of depth which has made the announcement peter out like a badly lit ‘banger’.

I tried to reach out to her because I remembered that I had once spoken to her during my push for support for my play ‘Isale Eko’ and as such, I still had her numbers.

Sadly, she didn’t pick. I wanted to better understand her mission and to also hear her out very comprehensively. But as my father used to say, it is the sleep you know death. From the follow up statements that I have seen, this is just a flickering candle in the wind.

Next...

NNAMDI KANU: ON THE ‘DESIGNER’ I STAND I have seen the report from the federal government’s lawyer at this man’s trial that the man has decided to always wear his designer duds even though the thing has faded and is looking like something we used to wear when we are serving manual labour at Command Secondary School in Lagos.

You see, me I understand perfectly the sentiments behind that decision and the young man should not be blamed. I have some designer clothes too and the fit-no be for here-.

When you wear designer, the confidence the thing will give you, you will just be posing and carrying your head up in the air and be doing like nobody can touch you.

The one that Kanu is wearing is Fendi. Mbok, come and see the people that wear Fendi, they are not normal people o. My friend the Mogul, I call him that because the man used to borrow me money before. He loves Fendi o.

When he wears it. He will call me to come to his office and see it. Me sef, I will drive from Shomolu to Lekki. Not Lekki phase 1 oo, but the one that is after second roundabout and he will be pruning like a peacock and be saying, ‘Edgar, see Fendi’. Me sef will say, ‘kai, this na Fendi, make I touch? He will laugh.

So mbok, let’s leave Kanu with his Fendi and focus on the matter on the ground.

Let me use this opportunity to beg, Baba Buhari to kindly reconsider a plea for his release.

Me sef, don tire. Let’s start afresh. This country needs all hands. We are all brothers. FREE KANU NOW. AHMED KURU: A NIGHT OF LONG KNIVES I have never seen a press release so carefully written. I saw on several platforms that the highly respected head of the AMCON has been a guest at the EFCC on some transactions which involve the undervaluation of some assets.

Reading the statement in about three platforms, I was really taken aback by the choice of words, care in the construction of the words and the fine line whoever authored the statement threaded as he tried to give us the information At times like this, me I don’t use to waste time in taking a position.

Me, I am stating here very boldly that I remain very confident on the

integrity and person of Mallam Kuru.

This is how I stood in firm support of my sister Yewande Sadiku. That is how they said, they carried her and all sort where said. I stood o. I said very clearly that this one no be thief. This one will not thief and this one did not thief.

I used to know Mallam Kuru since his days at Habib Bank. I used to watch him from afar and even from those early days, he had shown a bright spot. No wonder he had such a brilliant career in the place.

I can vouch and will vouch and if they need surety that does not have any landed property but can

stand surety by conviction please call me. I will STAND.Ahmed Kuru will come out of this one that is if it is true and that writer who wrote the statement was correct in choosing his words because this one no ‘be thief, he will not thief and has not thief.’

NYESOM WIKE: FIRE FOR FIRE This one does not mince words and it is no wonder some were comparing him with my uncle Sanwo-Olu when that policeman was trying to give him a session on police procedure.

Some had said that by the time the policeman had finished talking, Wike would have given him

BABAFEMI OJODU: JOKER IN THE PARK Let me give you guys one story.

When we were about to host the command performance of our Play Awo. As we were struggling with the DSS and Protocol people from the Vice President’s office and the Speaker and the Executive Governor of Lagos, that is how one man appear.

He said he was from Senator Ojodu and wanted to know where he would be sitting. I look the man with his shoe like Ikpeazu own and shoo him away. This is us with limited front row seats, struggling to seat VP, Governor, Speaker, their wives, two exgovernors and their wives and this one come say Senator Ojodu nko.

The DSS man, say ‘Please can you excuse us for a second? We needed to get seats for Segun Awolowo’s mum and the elderly Professor Oyediran who were representing the Awo family.

But the man who was clearly under very strict instructions was insistent and they asked him if his principal was holding a cabinet position. The man say, YES. Mbok the DSS man nearly slap am. Na me hold am.

We finally gave the respected Senator a seat just behind the

Ojodu

front row and his man huffed and walked away. Can’t remember if he came for the play.

What brought about this long gist is the long statement Chief Ojodu has released on the back of a Tinubu presidency viz-a-viz his position.

As I went through the statement, I could sense the fear even though it was a vain attempt to be bold.

I will not support Tinubu the title screamed but in the body of the statement na beg. You know that kind thing na – Tinubu is my egbon, Tinubu married my wife for me, I cannot abuse Tinubu, he is a super human. Even Tinubu himself know that my father was NPN and I was UPN, when Tinubu was in exile, I used to send ‘agege’ bread to his house.

My brother, this is not how they used to do this thing. Take a firm position and stand. Are you for or against Tinubu? Are you for or against Osinbajo. All these a little bit to the left and a little bit to the right grandstanding is not working again. It is what has put us in the position we are in this country today.

Ojodu, where do you stand? If you can’t tell us, let us rest abeg.

We don tire.

headbutt and sent him back to police college.

From what we are seeing especially with the DPO who was running an illegal refinery you will not blame those who felt that Wike would have handled the Magodo thing differently.

The man call press conference and gave the police till ‘Monday’ to remove the DPO. He told them very clearly that he didn’t even want them within the state. He ended up reminding them that he was the landlord of their building and if you remember what he did to the hotel, you will guess what Wike will do to the police station that he is the landlord.

I just love this Wike.

AUGUSTINE EGWAVOEN: GOD BE WITH YOU My brother, I am not watching any of your matches courtesy of my Doctor. My BP has been funny recently spiking and refusing to come down. The doctor says, I should come and take BP drug but I dodge because of the possible effect on my activities in the other room.

So, I have been doing lifestyle changes and one of my lifestyle changes is not to watch any of your matches before you come and send me to my early grave.

But I have been hearing of your exploits on the field. They say, you have been winning matches and at a party on Sunday, I heard the great Tony Elumelu ask your ogaAmaju where you got one boy like that.

Last night, I heard that you have won another match. Making my brother Ope ask me what exactly is Amaju doing by appointing a foreign coach when you are doing so well.

Well as a veteran of many sacks, you go don dey use to am by now.

Just keep doing your best, God will help you win the Cup and if they sack you, no worry its part of the thrill of Nigerian football.

I wish you well, I will hear the results after everything. I cannot risk my life for you. Thank you.

EVANS JAKPA JOHNS: A WARRI MAN IN LAGOS You guys will not know him. He is the son in law to the former Petroleum Minister Ibe Kachikwu.

He is a fun-loving guy and very steeped in tradition.

He is working very closely with me on our new Play – Ogiame Erejuwa II. The Play will be written and directed by versatile William Benson who did a wonderful job on my last Play in Uyo-Ufok Ibaan.

The reason why I chose to work with Evans is simple. During the last coronation of the very well respected Olu of Warri, I saw Evans in every shot. He will jump in and out and dance and sing.

His passion and energy were infectious. I loved him.

So, when I made up my mind, I went straight to him and said, let’s do this and he said, Oya. So in between preparations for his doctoral defense, he will be taking me through Itsekiri traditions and culture, opening me up to great Itsekiri sons and daughters and generally doing the groundwork to ensure a fitting showing of this colorful story. I am excited.

58

T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾JANUARY 23 2022

Adebayo Adeoye bayoolunla@gmail.com; 08054680651

SOCIETY WATCH

The drumbeat of War Among Germaine Auto Centre Owners When Germaine Auto Centre Company and Admiralty Motors Limited were set up some years ago by the family of Anthony and Maryann Chukwueke, it was intended to be the market leader.

But little did it occur to any of them that a time would come when the plan would be greatly upset by their actions and inactions.

Today, the same company that they had reportedly set up together has torn them apart and they are no longer seeing eye-toeye.

Society Watch gathered that the two siblings are currently fighting for the soul of the leading auto firm. A source revealed that Maryann has dragged her brother, Anthony, who is the Chairman Board of Directors, before a Federal High Court in Lagos, claiming that the latter muscled her out of the company she co-founded and contributed to its development.

She is claiming that Anthony, who was working in the Department of Petroleum Resources when the company was set up, used his status and accumulated wealth to muscle her and some other siblings out from the management of the company.

According to her, after she was edged out she set up her own company, Admiralty Motors Limited, sometime in 2002.

She further claimed that Anthony later approached her to assist with the management of Germaine Auto Centre sometime in 2019, a request she grudgingly obliged upon pleas by family members.

She also alleged that sometime in April 2021, she noticed that Anthony was representing her company, Admiralty Motors Ltd’s assets as his own and that he had even gone forward to evaluate her company in the name of Germaine Auto Centre Limited.

Within the same period, she claimed, Anthony had caused a solar panel to be installed on her company’s property located at Shapata, Ibeju Lekki, Lagos, without informing her or seeking her consent.

She said the activities of Germaine Auto Company, vide the instrumentality of Anthony, caused her to believe that the company, Anthony and Martha Etemu are making efforts to unlawfully claim her company and its assets. As a result, she locked up the premises to prevent trespass on the property. In her claim, Anthony mobilised thugs to forcefully invade the Admiralty Motor premises. But when they were resisted, they sought the assistance of the Nigeria Police, Elemoro, where criminal allegations were made against her.

She said when she later honoured the invitation by the Divisional Police Officer, DPO on September 23, 2021, she was let off the hook, as there was no evidence to substantiate their allegations against her.

“I have been receiving several threats and disturbing phone calls from my brother and the company’s Human Resources and Administration officer, Martha Etemu and their agents. I received a letter of suspension from the company on September 26, 2021, from Anthony,” she added.

Consequently, she is claiming the sum of N80m as exemplary and aggravated damages jointly and severally against her brother.

She is also praying the court to restrain her brother and his agents from interfering with the property belonging to her.

However, in a counter-affidavit sworn to by Etemu, on behalf of the company, Anthony pooh-poohed almost all the claims of Maryann, saying, “She does not hold shares in Germaine Auto Centre in her personal capacity, but only does collectively and jointly by virtue of her membership of the NwawubaChukwueke family.

“The said Nwawuba-Chukwueke family is a major shareholder in the company and allocation of shares has been put off until Germaine Auto Centre satisfies its indebtedness in full and reverts in entirety to the Nwawuba-Chukwueke.”

Untold Story of the Smouldering War in Adeleke’s Family Political office is sweet. The luxury of power is almost heavenly!

Little wonder, brothers, friends and relatives battle each other to a standstill to have power.

This assertion is currently playing out in Osun State, as the two brothers from the same household of the Adelekes are at each other’s jugular for the race to determine the Peoples Democratic Party’s standard bearer for the July 2022 gubernatorial election in the state.

It is no longer news that Senator Ademola Adeleke, otherwise known as ‘Dancing Senator ’, has once again thrown his cap in the ring to wrestle power from the incumbent governor of the state, Gboyega Oyetola, who denied him the number one job four years ago.

This time, he has worked and vowed to do anything humanly possible to emerge victorious at the polls.

But what the politician from Ede did not bargain for is that his nephew, Dele Adeleke, would serve as an albatross to his governorship ambition. His nephew is also vying for the same job. In fact, he has rejected several peace accords and also vowed to fight to the finish.

This smouldering war has pitted the family members against each other, as they have formed different camps, and have resulted in backbiting, name-calling,

Dele-vs-Demola

mudslinging and throwing of tantrums.

It was also hinted that contrary to rumours in some quarters, Dele is not a novice in politics; he is said to be a grassroots

person who has his supporters across the state.

It was gathered that he had attempted to contest for Senate in 2016 shortly after Senator Isiaka Adeleke’s death, but he was shut down by the family who preferred Ademola, despite that fact he supported him and was even his returning officer during the 2017 governorship election.

Another source revealed that Ademola and his siblings (Deji and Dupe) have not been fair to the young man who is the son of their stepbrother and first son to their late father, Senator Raji Ayoola Adeleke.

According to a source, “The late Isiaka, Deji and Demola have not been helpful to anyone who does not come directly from their mother’s offspring. Their father, the late Balogun of Ede, had three wives; their mother was the last wife of the man. He had several other children from his other wives.

But have you heard of their names?

No! You can’t because they are not that rich and popular in the society like Deji and his other siblings.”

The source also disclosed that Dele’s political influence is growing across the state but his lack of an enormous financial war chest to execute a gigantic project such as this would be his stumbling block.

Serial Entrepreneur, Titilope Ejinagwa’s New Passion

Ejinagwa

Billionaire businesswoman, Titilope Ejinagwa, will walk into a room with her signature smile and still grab the attention of others. She’s as simple as they come. But when you get to know her, you will realise that she is not just an ordinary entrepreneur, but one who believes in working hard in silence and allowing success to make the noise.

When the brainy woman came into the Nigerian market not so long ago, with her ‘Sparkle Rice’, it was a deliberate effort to bring affordable food to the people while also giving them good taste.

Not only that, but she has also proved that

she is not a selfish mogul, as she has invested in additional equipment that will make it possible for any of the other rice growers to finish processing their rice products at her factory.

It is, therefore, not for fun that she is called the mother of network marketing in Africa by her admirers.

Today, she is one of the most successful marketers to emerge from the continent and she is currently the first black five-star director and global icon of Longrich Bioscience.

In 2012, Longrich, a $20bn OEM products manufacturer for Adidas, Walmart, Carrefour, Procter and Gamble and GSK, had simply wanted to test the African market.

Consequently, in her resolve to help establish Africa operations, she mounted pressure on Longrich to build a permanent smart factory in Nigeria. Her insistence paid off in 2018; and today, a $104m OEM Smart factory is built in Lekki Free Trade Zone in Nigeria, which will export Longrich products to Western Europe and all of Africa from this year. The factory will employ over 600 Nigerians in two years.

Meanwhile, the woman of substance is said to have also substantially invested in real estate. In the last 11 years, she has acquired properties in Dubai year on year. However, her penchant for local content made her decide to bring similar real estate projects to Africa.

Partnering with the Middle East Construction company, ESLA (known as EKO PEARL in Nigeria), the entrepreneur is also

the Chairman on the Board of two Nigerian Companies in different phases of development of medium to high rise real estate projects, one of which is the Trillion Tower at Eko Atlantic City.

She also understands that the fossil fuel industry is in transition, as the oil and gas companies are repositioning and re-inventing to make their value-chains greener. This transition phase presented an opportunity for her to invest in the sustainability industry.

As soon as she became a shareholder and Director on the Board of Loofca International, a multinational oil and gas services company registered in Africa and the United Kingdom, she exerted her inaugural pressure again. She wanted the Board of Loofca to update their Greener Earth Operating strategy.

From a business perspective, business continuity in the oil and gas industry is only achievable through sustainability planning and practices. This is the reason she is also currently a member of the Board-committee that is updating Loofca’s sustainability plan to ensure it is future proof.

Ejinagwa, who is also the chairman of DTP, a talent detection company for creative arts, music and acting, is working on a reality TV show with Adeola Agoro, a journalist and media consultant whom she has encouraged to reach for more. Known to be tirelessly innovative, she was pioneer Chairman and a majority shareholder of Richway MicroFinance Bank Lekki, Lagos.

Folorunsho Alakija’s Religious Vehemence In the words of Harry Golden, “The only thing that overcomes hard luck is hard work.”

If there is anyone who believes so much in this witty and philosophical saying, it is no other than Africa’s richest woman, Folorunsho Alakija.

Indeed, if you have a chance encounter with this businesswoman and you tell her that she is lucky based on her current position, she will most probably shake her head vigorously and declare that it is all due to hard work and the grace of God. And for all her years of hard work, providence has been merciful enough to her. Perhaps, this explains why she has taken her religious fervour far above any other thing in her life.

While many of her contemporaries care less about worshipping their Creator, the billionaire oil mogul never jokes with it. In fact, she recently took her evangelism to a new dimension, as she was sighted preaching in the public.

Many were amazed seeing the businesswoman who is also the Vice-Chairman

of Famfa Oil trying to win more souls into the vineyard of God. It is her own way of appreciating God for all He has done for her in the past years.

Penultimate week, Alakija stormed the Surulere area of Lagos preaching and winning souls. Before she set out on that day, she had enjoined her fans to watch out for her, as she announced on her Instagram page, quoting Mark 16: 15 that says “Go into the world and preach the gospel to all creation.

“I will be at Bode Thomas Surulere today to preach the wonderful gospel of Jesus.”

It was also disclosed that she put together a programme titled “Yes Lord Prayer Retreat” through her Rose of Sharon Glorious Ministry International, Ogundana Drive in Surulere, Lagos on January 8.

However, many of her followers have been asking why she focuses mainly on that part of the state. The answer is not far-fetched: the Lagos State-born billionaire started her business from Surulere before she grew in leaps and bounds.

Mazloum

THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER ˾ JUNE 24 2012

ARTS & REVIEW A

PUBLICATION

23.1.2022

MEETING CHRISS NWOBU…THE MAN WHO TOOK THE SHOTS From modest beginnings as a modelling agent, Chriss Aghana Nwobu has, as a self-taught creative photographer, clawed his way from anonymity to recognition as one of the leading photographers in the local art scene, writes Okechukwu Uwaezuoke

W

ithout much ado, Chriss Aghana Nwobu had set to work. He had to take numerous images with his camera – a Canon EOS M 6 – before settling on what by his standards qualiÀed as the best. This was happening not too long after he arrived in his black Hyundai Accent for his scheduled photoshoot session with a client that late Sunday, January 2 morning.

Nwobu, a self-taught professional, seemed keen on turning each of the images taken under the illumination of LED video light into a work of art. His skills honed over the years grew prodigious enough to make him one of the industry’s top guns.

Indeed, the 51-year-old had certainly come a long way. It all began, he recalled, while he was working as a modelling agent and had come across several photographers. As a result, he was able to get to know several of the creative directors of the advertising Àrms for which he supplied models. “I was able to understand what they were looking out for in terms of image delivery,” he said. “I also realised there was a huge gap between the agencies and photographers, who have great photographic images that could Àt into the kind of stock photos that agencies required for their work but do not have the right access to those agencies.”

This inÁuenced his decision to broaden his scope by acting as a go-between for photographers and advertising agencies in need of their services. The constant exposure and interaction with creative photographers and their works reawakened in him a dormant desire to tell visual stories.

Thus, he began to identify and connect with such industry luminaries as Sunmi Smart-Cole, the late Johnson Donatus

Okhai Ojeikere, Don Barber and Tam Fiofori. Talking about the latter, a neat weaving of fate seemed to have arranged their meeting. Full of expectations, albeit tempered with a note of trepidation, he sauntered into The Guardian Newspapers’ Lagos corporate o΀ce building along the Osodi-Apapa Expressway one late afternoon in the year 2005 and requested to see the then Sunday editor Jahman Anikulpo.

As it turned out, the latter was interviewing Àlmmaker Chris Obi-Rapu, known in the industry as the "Father" of Nollywood.

Nonetheless, he was able to read a letter brought by the visitor, which invited him to attend a photography event, tagged Foto-TalkShop, billed to hold at the then-French Cultural Centre on Kingsway Road in Ikoyi, Lagos. This event aimed to bring together creatives not only to discuss photography but also to raise awareness of the medium as an art form.

After acknowledging the letter, Anikulpo inquired as to who else Nwobu had discussed the photo talk shop project with. During the subsequent conversation, Nwobu revealed his intention to invite the legendary Tam Fiofori to the event, who, by a strange coincidence, was waiting for

Nwobu

A screenshot from one of Nwobu's works

Another screenshot from one of Nwobu's works

his friend Obi-Rapu in Anikulapo s o΀ce.

Shown the letter, Fiofori without much ado invited Nwobu over to a meeting place on James Robertson Street in the Lagos mainland neighbourhood, Surulere. This was where he met many of the sub-sector’s crème de la crème.

Among the others, to whom Nwobu a΀rmed that he also owed a debt of gratitude, were Victoria Azinge, a director of communication at the late Sonny Odogwu’s SIO Group of Companies and Basil Okafor, The Sun Newspaper’s founding art director. His timid Àrst steps in the industry were made easier by the encouragement of both benevolent personalities.

Meanwhile, he got better and better over the years through his active involvement in photography, not only by viewing the works done by others but also by creating and telling his own story. With his improve-

ment, he naturally became more conÀdent in his visual vocabulary. “I was also fortunate to work with a diverse range of international documentary Àlmmakers, Àrst as a Àxer and then as a researcher, producer, and manager for several major production companies, including Vice Media, H.B.O., BBC, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Channel 4 UK, National Geographic, and many others too numerous to mention,” he disclosed.

Travelling with the Nigerian Amputee Football team to Accra, Ghana for one of their tournaments was one of his most memorable moments as a creative photographer. There, he saw Àrsthand how resolute the human spirit could be when dedicated to a cause in which it believes.

Cramped in a Toyota Hiace minibus with these young physically-challenged men on the journey from Lagos to Accra, watching

them train and eventually play against teams from other countries gave him reasons to look at life diͿerently. Greatness, he soon realised, slumbers in the human spirit regardless of his circumstances.

Then there was Invisible Borders, a photographers' collective. As one of its ten founding members, he participated in its inaugural trip from Lagos to the Malian capital Bamako for the photography biennale in 2009. Nwobu described that Àrst trip as “very challenging” and “eyeopening.” Nonetheless, it paved the way for the second trip to Dakar, Senegal in 2010 for the Dakar Art Biennale, dubbed Dak' Art, and subsequent trips. Following that trip, many of the group's founding members stood down to allow newer photographers to participate and contribute to the African narratives. “I am always proud to be a part of that project that set the stage for many young creatives from various parts of the African continent to tell and show the world a diͿerent Africa from what the western mainstream media have always portrayed.”

The photography collective, by the way, was founded as a platform for its members to add their voices to issues bordering on African colonial demarcations and to challenge Western stereotypes about Africans.

Moving on from the Invisible Borders, Nwobu had since become involved in several projects. His biggest so far, according to the award-winning photographer, is the series, he titled called Power, Religion and Politics, which have shown as part of the ReSigniÀcation exhibition in Havana, Cuba from May 9 to June 5, 2017, and a few months after in New York, US. He would later speak about the project during a ReSigniÀcation Conference in Johannesburg, South Africa and held yet another exhibition in 2018 during the Manifesta 12 in Palermo, Italy.

The Anambra State-born artist also manages a media production company in addition to owning and operating an art space named Ikollo House/Gallery in AVERA Estate, adjacent to the Lagos Business School in the Ajah area of Lagos.

“We research, produce, and create different video contents, particularly in the documentary genre, while maintaining our services with our existing clients in the broadcast industry,” he said of the studio. “We're also looking into new areas for diͿerent home entertainment digital content productions that will be released soon.”

Nwobu, who once won the Best Photo Story Award category at the 2012 Intimate Lens Ethnographic Film and Photography Festival in Caserta, Italy, was also a nominee for Prix Pictet Award 2013 in Switzerland.

Through his works, he ventures into such areas that others would rather avoid as religion and cultural anathemas. He also appropriates objects such as the African mask, calabash chalk (called nzu in Igbo), costumes, and whatever else he deems relevant in his works. “I work a lot with human forms and Àgures,” he said. “I've always been fascinated by sculptural pieces, particularly those of African Àgures, and I see the human Àgure as another type of architectural piece, albeit a unique one.”

EDITOR OKECHUKWU UWAEZUOKE/ okechukwu.uwaezuoke@thisdaylive.com

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THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER JANUARY 23, 2022

ARTS & REVIEW\\LITERARY CAFÉ

NEW NIGERIAN LITERATURE’S UNSUNG HEROES Chukwuebuka Umezuruike

T

heliteraryspaceinNigeriaisexpanding.

Just recently, Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki won the 2020 OtherwiseAward and the British Fantasy Award for his novella and anthology. The broadened space, which has incorporated a new exciting genre called Africanfuturism and Africanjujuism – a term that was coined by Nigerian American writer Nnedi Okoroafo, has made it easier for most Nigerians to extend their tentacles and help spread the traditional Nigerian culture.

Among these writers are Chiagozie Fred Nwonwu, who writes under the pen “Mazi Nwonwu”, Chinelo Onwualu, Suyi Davies Okungbowa, Dandy Jackson Chukwudi, Suileman Ayuba and Wole Talabi among others. These young writers, who are implicit members of the third generation of Nigerian writers, have helped shaped the culture of Nigeria in the Diaspora.

In 2019, Tade Thompson – a Nigerian-born UK citizen won the most prestigious award in the UK known as Arthur C. Clarke Award for his novel Rosewater making him the only and Àrst African to win the award since its inauguration. The novel also won the inaugural 2017 Nommo Award for Best Novel and, with its two sequels, was a Ànalist for the 2020 Hugo Award for Best Series. Rosewater has been developed into two more sequels: The Rosewater Insurrection and The Rosewater Redemption.

Mazi Nwonwu who is a Nigerian journalist at BBC News and BBC Igbo specialises in science Àction and fantasy Àction which appropriates Igbo gods as the heroes. This perhaps is to redeÀne the understanding of some Igbo gods. Mazi Nwonwu is the co-founder and currently the managing editor of Omenana Magazine. His short story “Rainmaker”, which was part of the African futurism: An Anthology, was edited by Wole Talabi and nominated for the Nommo Award for short stories section.

Suyi Davies Okungbowa is a Nigerian science Àction, fantasy and dark Àction writer and academic from Edo state. He is currently an assistant professor at the University of Ottawa. Okungbowa's debut novel, David Mogo, Godhunter was released by the Abaddon imprint of Rebellion Publishing on July 9, 2019, in the US and two days later in the UK and Europe. The novel follows the titular demigod, who is also a god hunter, as he scours the streets of Lagos, Nigeria, in the aftermath of an event called The Falling where thousands of orishas have fallen to the city.

In October 2020, David Mogo, Godhunter was announced as the winner of the 2020 Nommo Award for Best Speculative Novel by an African.

Tade Thompson

Suyi Davies Okungbowa

Mazi Nwonwu

Dandy Jackson

In January 2020, Okungbowa started a new trilogy called The Nameless Trilogy. The Àrst book in the trilogy, Son of the Storm, was released in May 2021. Son of the Storm is a novel about Danso, a Bassai scholar who discovers the dark secrets of his city-state, Bassa. The novel reveals the quest and wants for power.

Wole Talabi is a Nigerian editor and engineer, who currently lives in Malaysia. He is the editor of the critically-acclaimed anthology Africanfuturism: An Anthology. The anthology included short stories from Africa’s best science Àction and fantasy writers. It won the Nommo Award for Best Anthology.

Talabi is a recipient of the Locus Award, Nommo Award and Caine Prize. Most of his short stories have been nominated for diͿerent awards.

Nnedi Okoroafo is a science Àction and fantasy writer based in the US. She completed her college education at the University of Illinois at Urbana-

Champaign, before proceeding to obtain a master's degree in journalism from Michigan State University and a master's degree and PhD in English from the University of Illinois, Chicago.

Her awards and works include: The Strange Horizons Reader's Choice Award for Stephen King's Super-Duper Magical Negroes, Macmillan Writers' Prize for Africa for Long Juju Man, Carl Brandon Parallax Award for The Shadow Speaker, Wole Soyinka Prize for Literature in Africa for Zahrah the Windseeker, World Fantasy Award (Best Novel) for Who Fears Death, Black Excellence Award for OutstandingAchievement in Literature (Fiction) for Zahrah the Windseeker, Kindred Award for Who Fears Death,African Literary Person of the Year from Brittle Paper, Nebula Award, Children's Africana Book Award for Best Book for Young Readers for Chicken in the Kitchen, HugoAward for Best Novella for Binti, Mathical Honors, Kurd Laßwitz Preis for

8PH]XUXLNH LV D IUHHODQFH ZULWHU

character-naming. Nene as a substitute for Mother or Mama is reminiscent of Wole Soyinka's Wild Christian character in the 1981 memoir Ake: The Years of Childhood.

Although E.C Osondu’s work is situated in a contemporary African setting, it explores the

use of traditional encrypted messaging which parents, particularly mothers use to create a communal system of punishment for a child who has misbehaved.

“Talantolo” has its equivalent in many other African cultures. For instance, the Yorubas may use the word “Arodan" for a similar purpose. In this tech-driven period, cancel culture has taken the place of such communal punishment.

The representation of women in When the Sky is Ready is impeccable, giving the reader the impetus to empathise with Miss Koi Koi and her cautious step towards Ànding love again. But while showing this vulnerable side of a guarded woman, the author presents two strong women: Nene and Ayira. Even in death, Nene's spirit and values are embodied in her son who chooses integrity over instant gratiÀcation. And Ayira is willing to risk her life for her family rather than be a victim of forced marriage.

Apart from the overarching themes of survival and migration, the linear plot story is layered like a woven mat with subject matters of communal love, family bond and resilience. With When the Sky is Ready, the master storyteller has given the world a piece anyone can devour at a layover and the complex truths that had resided with generations across borders.

E.C. Osondu is the author of a collection of short stories titled Voice of America and a novel This House is Not for Sale. He is a professor of English at Providence College in Rhode Island, USA.

BOOKS

SIMPLE READ, COMPLEX TRUTHS Yinka Olatunbosun

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fricans must, by now, be mentally and emotionally exhausted from reading the media's barrage of deplorable stories about irregular migrants. The imagery of Áoating lifeless bodies in the Mediterranean Sea always seems to drown out true accounts of bravery of migrants who are metaphorically trapped between the devil and the deep blue sea.

The hunt for a cohesive African story about migration leads to Ouida Books' latest oͿering, When the Sky Is Ready, The Stars Shall Appear.

With this book, E.C Osondu mastered the technique of developing a strong story with worldwide resonance from the carefree perspective of a young African child, and ending it almost in the same way.

Using simple language and a non-provocative narrative style, the Caine Prize-winning author carefully creates an unnamed character, Nene's son, whose simple village life of contentment is interrupted by the visit of Bros from Italy. Bros, a self-made communal hero Áaunts his newly found wealth in the small

village known as Gulu Station. His arrival fuels curiosity in the “Italian dream”- to live, work and prosper in Rome. Gulu Station, in its contextual reading, may well be a metaphor for Nigeria or anywhere else that is a place of communal love lacking in basic amenities.

Far from being a propaganda literary tool, the author has made this work a book to brew conversations, raising questions about why the average Nigerian youth is willing to put his life on the line, just to be out of this country Economic hardship, war, and the pursuit of a better quality of life are some of the main factors that drive the desperate migration that had been crystallised into characterisations in this novel.

The character of Bros, in the bigger picture, tugs at the power of role models and inÁuencers. The desire to migrate is highly inÁuenced by what people hear or see on social media.

Nigerians whose lot in life has changed for the better Áaunt their wealth and other achievements accomplished within a few years of leaving the Nigerian shores while their contemporaries in their home country are at a high risk of reversal of fortunes which can be occasioned by job loss, underemployment, life-altering health challenge, crime amongst other unforeseen circumstances.

Quite oddly familiar too is the author's

The Book of Phoenix, Locus Award for Best Young Adult Book, Lodestar Award for Akata Warrior, Eisner Award for LaGuardia and Hugo Award for Best Graphic Story for LaGuardia Jackson Chukwudi Dandy who writes as Dandy Jackson Chukwudi is more of a fantasy than science Àction author. His most known work Tales of Eremma was nominated for the Nommo Award for Best Novella. He has contributed to some of the critically-acclaimed anthologies in Africa. Dandy has been nominated for the Locus Award, Nommo Award and Caine Prize. Most of his short stories have been nominated for diͿerent awards.

These third-generation Nigerian writers have experimented with diͿerent genres and styles; an example is, Dandy who blends modernity to his fantasy stories and a giving us a taste of what we know and understand or Suyi Davies Okungbowa who uses pidgin English in his godpunk fantasy stories: giving a nectar feeling in stories. The most prominent of the third generation of writers is conceived to be Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie who started with Purple Hibiscus in 2003. Save for Adichie, only a handful of this set of writers is known to us.

In Comics, the third-generation writers exist, Comic Republic, Lagos-based publishers are prominent in creating Africanfuturistic characters like Guardian Prime. LaGuardia, a comic book by Nnedi Okorafor, is associated with Africanfuturism.

The third generation of Nigerian writers has used the new media sector as a medium to showcase their stories and poem to a worldwide audience. This new medium has introduced the use of literary magazines such as Omenana Magazine, Saraba Magazine, Jalada, Ndi Edemede and Blithe Magazine, among others to distribute their stories.

It will be nice to note that since the early 1990s, several novels have been published to mark the advent of the third generation of Nigerian writers. During this time, some Nigerian writers wrote breakaway literature writings, which were quite diͿerent from the norm; such writings include The Famished Road (1991) by Ben Okri, The Icarus Girl (2005) by Helen Oyeyemi, GraceLand (2004) by ChrisAbani, Zahrah the Windseeker (2005) by Nnedi Okoroafo.

This new generation of Nigerian writers has brought about an emerging phase in Nigerian literature, in which there is a major shift in the method of publishing. The emergence of the third generation of Nigerian writers has changed the publishing sector with a resurgence of new publishing Àrms such as Kachifo Limited, Parrésia Publishers, Cassava Republic and Masobe Books, among others.

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THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER JANUARY 23, 2022

CICERO

Editor: Ejiofor Alike SMS: 08066066268 email:ejiofor.alike@thisdaylive.com

IN THE ARENA

As Zamfara Turns Bloody, Matawalle Should Name Bandits

After meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari last week, Governor Bello Matawalle of Zamfara State told journalists that the raging banditry in his state would not end soon because some people and their collaborators were behind it. Louis Achi writes that the governor should name the bandits and their sponsors

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committee set up by Governor Bello Matawalle of Zamfara State to find solutions to the raging banditry in the state had disclosed that over N3 billion was collected by bandits as ransom in the state. This flowed from the committee’s report which was presented to the governor two years ago on Friday, October 11, 2019, in Gusau, the state capital.

The committee, headed by a former Inspector General of Police, Alhaji Mohammed Abubakar, also had the likes of Senator Saidu Dansadau; and a former Deputy Inspector General of Police, Mamman Tsafe, among others, as members.

The report, which covered the period from June 2011, to May 29, 2019, revealed the huge ransom money collected from 3,672 victims whose relatives paid to secure their freedom.

Abubakar said a total of 6,319 persons were either arbitrarily or willfully killed, 4,983 women were widowed, 25,050 children orphaned and 190,340 persons displaced by banditry during the period in the state.

Abubakar said his committee had concrete evidence that five Emirs in the state were complicit in the spate of banditry while 33 districts and several village heads were also working with these terrorists. He did not publicly name the affected traditional rulers.

He also revealed that 10 soldiers, some policemen and civil servants were discovered to have had their hands smeared in the banditry which has lasted for about a decade in the state. The former IG, however, said some security personnel and one emir distinguished themselves creditably in the protection of the people.

He also said innocent Fulani herdsmen lost 2,015 cattle, 141 sheep and goats, 2,600 donkeys and camels to rustlers while 3,587 houses, 147,800 vehicles, motorcycles and others were burnt at different times and locations within the period.

The committee recommended unconditional disarmament and setting up of a judicial commission of inquiry backed by law to address all forms of banditry in the future. It also advised government to partner neighbouring state governments to rehabilitate all inter-

Matawalle

state roads, to ease movement of security personnel and the general public.

It also recommended that the state government should prioritise education and ensure all children, including those of nomads attend school. Governor Matawalle had promised to implement the recommendations, assuring that he would not be influenced by any sentiment.

His words: “I would like to make it clear that personal relationship, sectional, geographical, religious and ethnic interests will have no role to play in the decision l will take with regard to recommendations of the committee, especially those that relate to the recommended sanctions and disciplinary measures.”

It could be recalled that the Zamfara State Government had in 2019 entered a peace agreement with bandits. About 15 brand new Hilux vehicles were given to leaders of different repentant bandits in Zamfara State

by Matawalle. The governor also approved millions of naira to be given to the ‘repentant’ bandits as compensation. But despite the accord, communities in the state are still being

attacked and residents kidnapped or killed.

But two years after submission of former IG Abubakar’s report, the embattled Zamfara governor has made little headway in neutralising the bandits.

Just last week, bandits who have now been declared terrorists by the federal government put fear in the hearts of locals by writing Zamfara communities and demanding N34 million. This was a precondition from bandits operating from Gando Forest in Bukkuyum Local Government Area of Zamfara State to stop planned attacks in the state. The helpless communities were given a 30-day deadline to comply.

Incidentally, this latest threat comes on the heels of Maitawalle’s visit to President Buhari to solicit help to cage the ranging banditry.

Alluding to the failed interventions he had made to stem the bloody banditry, he recalled: “You know when I assumed duty as governor, I used so many options to bring this insecurity to a minimal level. First of all, I initiated dialogue and reconciliation between the herders and farmers and during that

dialogue, we spent more than nine months without any crisis in Zamfara State.

“But unfortunately, people use politics, because they have collaborators. So, they went back to those bandits, telling them that the government is not serious about this dialogue, that we did not give them anything.

So, the bandits decided to go back to their normal businesses. That’s why I backed out from the reconciliation programme. But definitely, it worked for over nine months.”

At press time, many Zamfara stakeholders are deeply worried over government’s inaction on committee’s report, which indicted top politicians, traditional rulers, among other members of the state’s elite.

More, allegations abound that some government officials who were indicted in the report are still in service. According activist, Salisu Anka, “It will be difficult to take an action against them. And this is not fair because we all know that most of the houses are owned by the civil servants, and we know some of these civil servants have rented out these houses to these criminals and their families.

“Indeed, the report which exposes the complicity of some traditional rulers, security personnel and some top government officials is not only worrisome, but it is a fundamental duty for the governor to act and bring them to justice in the interest of the people and state.”

According to the state Commissioner for Information, Mr. Ibrahim Dosara, who confirmed some successes recorded in the military operations, majority of the bandits have relocated to neighbouring states of Sokoto, Katsina, Niger and Kaduna.

Two years on, Matawalle’s pledge to take needful actions with regard to recommendations of the Abubakar’s committee has largely come to naught. Given the situation on the ground and the extreme existential threats to life, limb and property, the governor should bite the bullet and take urgent steps to protect his state-wide constituency notwithstanding inherent constitutional limitations.

He should without further waste of time name both the bandits and their collaborators with a view to initiating stern prosecution

P O L I T I CA L N OT E S

A Tale of Two Teachers

Ganduje

Mallam Mukthar Gulma and Abdulmalik Tanko are both teachers. Gulma is a teacher at the Federal Government College, Birnin Yauri, Kebbi State, and Tanko, the proprietor of Noble Kids Nursery and Primary School, Kano State.

Thus, while one deals with teenagers, the other is a minder of children. Yet, they love their students/pupils differently.

Here are their stories. Bandits recently invaded the college, where Gulma was teaching and they abducted some of his students. But, in displaying a rare courage, he took himself to the bandits and said they should either release his students or take him along with them and the bandits did as he said and took him along. He was only released with his students, some days ago after spending days with their captors.

From Noble Nursery School in Kano, Tanko,

the proprietor himself, kidnapped one of his pupils, Hanifa Abubakar, 5, demanded a ransom of N6,000,000, part of which was already paid, but ended up poisoning the little girl, cut her into pieces and buried in a shallow grave. Tanko and his accomplices were later arrested and they confessed to the crime, saying he killed her, because she recognised him.

Above are two contradictory circumstances that life just threw up in a weird society. While no one has said little or nothing about Gulma’s act of courage – indeed, the type that merits a national award – the entire social space, has since been mourning the mindlessness of Tanko and others, who just cut short a promising life as a result of their personal greed.

Perhaps, society needs to encourage the like of Gulma to prevent other animals in human

skin like Tanko from traveling the inhuman route as frequently as they now do. Hanifa was a totally innocent child, who probably trusted the animal called Tanko, like every child would anyone, who showed them love and care. But he exploited that and sent her to an early grave.

These two examples must be dealt with, seriously and deservingly, by the leadership, so that while rewarding good deeds on the one hand as Gulma did by standing up for his students, the leadership and society must also sanction and punish the deliberately callous choice by Tanko as some form of deterrence to evil doers in the society. While congratulating and thanking Gulma, it’s important the full weight of the law is brought down on Tanko and his gang of criminals.

THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER JANUARY 23, 2022

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BRIEFINGNOTES Wike’s Magic Wand to Tackle Oil Theft Governor Nyesom Wike’s recent revelation on the alleged involvement of a divisional police officer and a commander of the anti-vandalism unit of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps in illegal refinery operation in Rivers State has explained why security officers lobby their superiors in Abuja to be posted to the Niger Delta region. Ejiofor Alike writes that oil theft will reduce drastically if the federal government and other governors in the region adopt Wike’s approach

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he authorities of the Nigeria Police and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) must have been embarrassed recently when Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State openly accused a divisional police officer (DPO) and the civil defence officer in charge of vandalism of oil pipelines in the state of operating illegal refineries in the state.

Speaking at the Government House in Port Harcourt during a meeting with local council chairmen and heads of security agencies, including the Commissioner of Police in Rivers State, Eboka Friday, the visibly angry governor also demanded immediate redeployment of the two security officers from the state.

The state Commissioner for Information, Mr. Paul Nsirim had revealed that Wike had on Wednesday, January 13, 2021, embarked on fact-finding assessment tour of two local government areas - Ikwerre and Emuoha.

The purpose of the visit, the commissioner disclosed, was for the governor to obtain first-hand information from some of the locations where the operators of the infamous illegal refineries threatening the lives of Rivers people with black soot, had commandeered as their operational bases.

Wike had ignored the risk to his life and dared these heavily armed illegal refinery operators, who are backed by unscrupulous security officials, in their locations.

During the visit, the governor unveiled mind-boggling facts that would help the federal government to tackle oil theft if indeed the war against the menace is not a lip-service.

The governor went through the track roads to the forest of Ogbodo community in Ikwerre Local Government Area and the forest of Ibaa community in Emohua LGA to uncover the illegal refineries that are fed with stolen crude oil.

Rising crude oil theft, coupled with ageing oil and gas infrastructure, had forced Nigeria to record a huge deficit of almost 200 million barrels of oil in the first 11 months of 2021.

As part of the efforts to tackle the menace of crude oil theft, the Rivers governor took the bull by the horns by naming some of those behind these illegal operations.

He had also declared 19 persons wanted, and directed all local government chairmen and community leaders in the state to locate, and identify such sites and also report all those involved for prosecution.

He had also issued a 48-hour ultimatum to the 23 LG chairmen in the state to provide a comprehensive list of illegal refineries and their operators within their jurisdiction.

Wike At the meeting held in Government House with security chiefs, Wike accused the DPO in Emohua LGA of operating illegal refinery and demanded his redeployment from Rivers State.

“Thank you for transferring the DPO who owns a refinery but the man must leave here – not just transfer -he must leave this state. I can’t be governor here and a security man owns an illegal refinery. No, it is not possible. It is either he becomes the governor or I will be the governor. I will not agree.

“The man has to go. Take him to wherever they allow bunkering. He shouldn’t be here again,” Wike reportedly told the state police commissioner.

The governor said it was unfortunate and unbelievable for security officials in Nigeria to be involved in illegal bunkering.

“I can’t believe it,” he added.

He also accused the civil defence officer in charge of vandalism of oil pipelines in the state of being a saboteur, and demanded his immediate redeployment from Rivers.

“Where is the civil defence man? Yes, who is the man in charge of pipeline vandalism?

Transfer the man! He should leave. He is a saboteur – complete saboteur. I will not allow it. I mean, how can security men be the ones involved? What kind of country are we? If that man is not transferred latest Monday…, I will not take it,” the governor warned.

Wike had repeatedly raised the alarm that the sooth threatening the health of the residents of Port Harcourt was caused by the operation of illegal refineries in the state, and had vowed to go after their operators.

“Now, every council chairman must go and identify where illegal refineries are taking place. If you identify one, you get N2 million.

So, go and identify as many as you can. I will pay N2 million for each one. I am going to fight against this. Our people are dying and we owe our people the responsibility to protect them, to save them from death they never caused.

“So, you must, and you’re given 48 hours to go and identify all illegal refineries sites, and those who are in charge of them,” the governor had told the council chairmen.

Nigeria have lost billions of dollars in oil revenues as cases of crude oil theft have

continued to rise despite the massive deployment of the military and other security agencies to the oil-producing Niger Delta region to tackle the menace.

Figures from the Nigerian Upstream Regulatory Petroleum Commission (NURPC) had indicated that while Nigeria was expected to pump approximately 635 million barrels of oil

by November 2021, it struggled to produce only 441 million barrels during the period.

Product losses through the pipelines have continued to rise due to the involvement of the security agents deployed to the region.

As the federal government deploys more security personnel to the region, cases of oil theft continue to rise.

Security experts had alleged that security agents, who lobby to be posted to the region, send ‘returns’ to their superiors in Abuja in appreciation.

Wike alluded to this fact when he told the meeting that “you people (civil defence) are fond of escorting these people – civil defence are the one escorting these people (oil thieves). They sent you here to provide security but you are doing it to kill us. If this is the kind of security you provide, don’t provide it. Civil defence is killing us. Do you people lobby to come here to protect Rivers people or to protect our lives?

I will not take it. They will come and give you people money. Are you people not ashamed that you are wearing uniform and look at how the country is going down? Instead of you to fight crime, you are aiding crime. What kind of country is this?” the governor queried.

Wike had thanked the state police commissioner for transferring the affected DPO but mere transfer was not enough punishment for such heinous crimes. The police and NSDC authorities must demonstrate that they are not complicit in crude theft by investigating the affected officers and prosecuting them. It is an an economic crime, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) should equally swiftly move in and investigate the affected officers and their collaborate for possible prosecution according to the law.

It is a shame to security agencies that it was a governor who discovered the involvement of their men in these crimes. Wike has obviously put the investigative skills of these agencies to question. The governor’s revelation has also raised concerns on their alleged culpability in these crimes.

Now that Wike has set the pace by daring the lions in their dens, the federal government and other Niger Delta governors should adopt his approach to find a permanent solution to illegal bunkering.

NOTES FOR FILE

Who Abducted Five AfDB Contractors in Ebonyi?

Umahi

Who abducted and killed five engineers contracted by the African Development Bank (AfDB) to inspect project in Ebonyi State?This is one question that has repeatedly been thrown at the Ebonyi State Government with no answer.

An Enugu-based engineering firm, Nelan Consultants, had on November 3, 2021, deployed the five engineers on a supervision of the ongoing Abakaliki Ring Road project at Effium in Ohaukwu Local Government Area of the state.

The project is funded by AfDB. The engineers were allegedly abducted from the site by unknown armed men, who also took away their project vehicle.

That was the last their families, friends,

colleagues and relatives heard from them in the community, which has been enmeshed in a protracted communal crisis with its neighbouring Ezza Community.

The missing engineers include: Messrs Nelson Onyemeh, a Director and partner to Nelan Consultants; Stanley Nwazulum; Ernest Edeani; Ikechukwu Ejiofor and Samuel Aneke.

However, the Ebonyi State Governor, Mr. David Umahi had in December 2021 announced publicly to the shock of the families of the engineers that they had been killed by their abductors.

Without reaching out to the families of the engineers, Umahi announced that the suspects arrested over the abducted engineers confessed

that they had been killed and buried.

The families had lamented that Umahi had neither produced the killers, nor shown evidence of the victims’ burial, describing the announcement by the governor as curious and suspicious.

The governor was accused of allegedly instigating another company to replace the consultants.

But the Ebonyi State government had in its reaction on December 20, 2021 exonerated itself from any involvement in the incident.

The Commissioner for Information, Mr. Uchenna Orji, had said at a news conference in Abakiliki that the government had no hand in the disappearance of the engineers.

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THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER JANUARY 23, 2022

CICERO/REPORT

Oyetola, Aregbesola’s Supporters Return to Trenches in Osun Ejiofor Alike writes that unless Governor Gboyega Oyetola of Osun State and the Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola sit down for a reconciliatory meeting, the crisis in the All Progressives Congress will persist as the duo continue their proxy political battle

Oyetola

F

ollowing the failure of the Senator Abdullahi Adamu-led National Reconciliation Committee of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to reconcile the members of the party in Osun State, the proxy war between the immediate past governor of the state and Minister of Interior, Mr. Rauf Aregesola, and Governor Gboyega Oyetola has continued.

The minister had recently confirmed the existence of two factions of the party in the state.

Speaking during the commissioning of the Digital Nigeria Centre project facilitated by the federal government at Ijesha Muslim Grammar School, Ilesha, Osun State, the minister had also acknowledged that he is a member of The Osun Progressives (TOP), a faction within APC that has been opposing the administration of his successor, Oyetola.

Oyetola and Aregbesola had kept their disagreements out of public view, until March 2020 when the governor approved the reversal of the single school uniform, ‘reclassification’ of the public school system and the abolition of single-sex schools introduced in 2013 by Aregbesola.

Oyetola was Aregbesola’s Chief of Staff when he was the governor of the state.

Former Caretaker Secretary of the party in the state, Mr. Razaq Salinsile, heads the TOP backed by Aregbesola.

Salinsile became Aregbesola’s Chief of Staff after Oyetola had resigned to pursue his governorship aspiration, after emerging as the candidate of the APC. Oyetola and Aregbesola were ardent supporters of the National Leader of the APC, Senator Bola Tinubu but the minister and the former Lagos State governor were said to have parted ways over the 2023 presidency.

Aregbesola’s open admission of the existence of factions in the party has confirmed his role in TOP.

Aregbesola The minister’s statement has also confirmed that last year’s intervention by Tinubu and the former Interim National Chairman of APC and former governor of the state, Chief Bisi Akande did not resolve the crisis.

“We have APC of Rauf Aregbesola, which is chaired by Hon Razaq Salinsile.

Everybody is doing his or her own. Later, we will renegotiate and rearrange everything.

“The caucus that produced our faction is called, ‘The Osun Progressives (TOP)’ chaired by Elder Lowo Adebiyi. Those people who are doubting whether I am part of TOP or not should listen up, I belong to TOP wholeheartedly,” Aregbesola reportedly explained.

The minister is said to be displeased with Tinubu for allowing his political base to be demolished in Lagos.

To ensure that the APC has a united front ahead of the February 2022 governorship primary in the state, the national secretariat of the party had sent Senator Adamu-led committee to reconcile the two factions.

When the committee visited Osogbo, Adamu had told the governor that the committee would ensure fair hearing, equity and justice in carrying out its assignment in the state.

Aregbeola’s faction was said to have given Adamu’s committee some tough conditions for peace to return to the party.

One of the conditions, it was learnt, was that Oyetola should resign his position in the National Caretaker/Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee (CECPC) of the ruling party.

They argued that Oyetola should resign before the Osun APC governorship primary, since he would be contesting for the governorship ticket Another condition was the recognition

of executives elected by the TOP in its ward, local and state congresses.

Responding to the demands by Aregbesola’s faction, Adamu had stated that the committee had taken note of the demands.

“We have taken note of the comments, contributions and the interventions they made,” he added.

However, Oyetola’s faction, better known as Ileri Oluwa faction had described the demands as self-serving, and called on the committee to reject them.

With the failed reconciliation, Oyetola’s loyalists and those of Aregbesola have returned to the trenches, turning the social media and other political spaces to battle fields.

Key Oyetola’s supporters include: Senate spokesman, Senator Ajibola Basiru, while Prince Gboyega Famodun heads the faction.

The two factions, which emerged from the parallel state congresses held in October 2021, are preparing to produce separate governorship candidates.

Immediate past Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Lasun Yussuff; former Speaker of the Osun State House of Assembly, Hon Najeem Salam; and former Secretary to the State government, Alhaji Moshood Adeoti, had argued that APC would not win the 2022 governorship election if Oyetola emerged as its candidate.

Yussuff has since obtained nomination form to contest the primary election slated for February and it was not clear if he would be presented as a consensus candidate by the group.

Oyetola is the only aspirant who has declared his intention to contest for the party’s primary election from his faction.

Shortly after Aregbesola had admitted the existence of the two factions, the chairman-elect of the APC faction loyal to

the governor, Famoodun, had described the members loyal to the Aregbesola group as disgruntled members of the party.

Famoodun in a statement attacked Aregbesola for open declaration of support for TOP, describing the conduct of the ex-governor as below expectation.

He also told Aregbesola to perish the belief that he was the only power broker in Osun progressive politics, adding that the former governor was only living in past glory.

“The intra-APC opposition group, called TOP, which meets every Thursday in the Campaign Office of the Interior Minister in Osogbo has become a venue where barrage of insults are heaped on the person of Governor Gboyega Oyetola, the state leadership of the APC and the state government by the leadership of the said TOP “This disgruntled set of the APC members are peopled by members of the cabinet of Aregbesola during his two terms as the governor of the state who are now protesting their not being appointed by Governor Oyetola for the third term.

“Osun APC is too strong for Aregbesola to break. His recent statement in Ilesa reduces his status as a former governor and as a serving minister of a party he claimed to belong to. Aregbesola is an arrogant, selfish, self-centered, reckless, wicked and inconsiderate politician who wants the whole world to be his possession. It is not an overstatement to categorise Aregbesola as someone who prefers to rule in hell than to serve in paradise.

“Aregbesola should be told that there is no amount of intrigues by him that is capable of bungling the second term ambition of Governor Oyetola as it has divine guidance and pathfinder which makes him (the governor) unstoppable by any mortal.”

With the rigid posture adopted by Oyetola and Aregbesola’s loyalists, only a meeting of the two leaders will find lasting peace to the crisis.

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THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER JANUARY 23, 2022

CICERO/REPORT

Anyim

2023: When South-east PDP Spoke with One Voice Chuks Okocha writes on the decision of the South-east PDP stakeholders to back the presidential ambition of a former Senate President, Senator Anyim Pius Anyim

L

ast week was very significant in the South-east’s quest for the presidency in 2023. The agitation that the geopolitical zone should produce the next President of Nigeria has been loud and deafening.

It was based on that popular clamour that the former Senate president, who was also the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator Anyim Pius Anyim informed the stakeholders of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the zone of his ambition to contest the 2023 presidential election on the platform of the party.

The venue was Enugu, the capital city of the old Eastern Region. The gathering of the stakeholders was unique, and like a carnival. And it turned out to be a political celebration never witnessed in the South-east in a long while.

It was a day that the South-east political leaders in the main opposition party spoke with one voice on their quest for one of their own to occupy the Presiden-

tial Villa by 2023.

Some selected political leaders and elders from the South-east region all spoke with one voice, endorsing the presidential ambition of Anyim.

The stakeholders include all the zonal and the five state executives of the PDP. Also in attendance were: Senator Theodore Orji, Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe; Dr. Ali Odefa, PDP National Vice Chairman, South-east; Mrs. Josephine Anenih; Senator Obinna Ogba; Prof. Elochukwu Amucheazi; Nze Ozichukwu Chukwu; Senator Emma Nwaka, and Senator Chuka Utazi, representing Enugu North in the Senate, among others.

In a communique read by Chief Eze Duru Ihuoma (SAN), the political leaders said they were declaring support for Anyim taking “due cognisance of his previous record of distinguished and unblemished service as President of the Senate and Secretary to the Government of the Federation.”

The PDP zonal leaders and elders said that in all ramifica-

tions, Anyim had distinguished himself as a detribalised statesman, consensus builder and true nationalist.

Also, in a 10-point resolution issued at the end of the meeting, and signed by the former governor of Abia State, Senator Theodore Orji, who also chaired the meeting and Duru-Iheoma, a former chairman of PDP in Imo State, the South-east PDP stakeholders reiterated that the people of the region “have earned the right to occupy the office of President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in 2023 on account of their eminent qualifications and overwhelming contributions to the development of all parts of the federation through the years.

They said because of that, “the choice of a South East citizen as presidential candidate of the party in 2023 will guarantee to every Nigerian a sense of equity, justice and inclusion in the management of the affairs of the nation. In our view, this is the best way of ensuring that we build a nation that leaves no one or group behind.”

According to the PDP South-east stakeholders,“on account of the foregoing, we congratulate Senator Anyim Pius Anyim for the patriotism of his decision to offer himself for national service by aspiring to contest in the 2023 Presidential race.

“We take due cognizance of his previous record of distinguished and unblemished service as President of the Senate and Secretary to the Government of the Federation.

In these positions, he distinguished himself as a detribalised statesman, consensus builder and true nationalist.

“We, therefore, unanimously endorse his aspiration with all conviction and enthusiasm and eagerly commend him to the rest of the nation as a worthy leader who will pilot the affairs of the nation towards greater security, unity and prosperity for all citizens.”

They appealled to all the peoples of the South-east zone to remain steadfast in the hope that the zone can all join hands in solidarity with all other parts of the federation to build a prosperous nation founded on democracy, equity and inclusion to the benefit of the country.

Anyim on his part said that he was stepping out with a sense of humility, as a Nigerian with patriotic fervour, and considerable knowledge of Nigeria.

He argued that he understood the country’s diversities and current challenges, and was properly equipped with clarity of the needed solutions.

“Let me elaborate; as a young officer, at the then Directorate of Social Mobilisation, I understood the need for value orientation as a tool for instilling patriotism.

“I was also schooled to appreciate the value of social justice, equity and fairness as building blocks for social harmony and inclusion.

“As a young politician I imbibed the founding vision of the PDP as grassroots movement that would provide leadership that will respect the rule of law, ensure that power belongs to the people and deliver national cohesion and inclusiveness through good governance.

“I have been privileged to understand our national problems and appreciate their enormity and peculiarities in the last 21 years from my vantage positions in both the legislative and the executive arms of government.

“Therefore, I have a clear view of the task ahead as well as the solutions needed to advance the cause of our country.

“My records as President of the Senate and as Secretary to the Government of the Federation clearly show that I am more interested in building strong institutions than seeking enhancement of personal power or position.

“My records show effective and efficient management of the nation’s diversity on the basis of equity, justice, fairness and inclusiveness.

“I am a committed believer in the rule of law; and will always promote and protect the sanctity of lives as well as the rights and liberties of all citizens.

“My decision is a product of some years of prayers, reflections and introspection on not just my capacity and preparedness to take on the task ahead, but also deep thoughts on our national challenges and the solutions they demand.”

Anyim who reaffirmed his earlier position that he would contest whether the presidency was zoned to the South or not, however said if the presidency was zoned to Southeast, it would satisfy the demand for equity and fairness.

THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER JANUARY 23, 2022

GAVEL

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Editor: Ejiofor Alike SMS: 08066066268 email:ejiofor.alike@thisdaylive.com

Will Electoral Bill Jinx be Broken this Time?

Udora Orizu writes that the Senate and House of Representatives are expected to set up a conference committee to harmonise diͿering positions on Electoral Bill for onward transmission to President Muhammadu Buhari for assent

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embers of the National Assembly at the resumption of plenary after the Christmas break last week, bowed to President Muhammadu Buhari’s request and reworked and passed the Electoral Act (Amendment) Bill, 2021.

Both chambers however approved different versions in the bill. While the Senate provided in the re-amended bill for direct, indirect primaries or consensus as the procedure for the nomination of candidates by political parties for various elective positions, the House only provided direct and indirect mode. The bill which seeks to address a plethora of issues peculiar to Nigeria’s political sphere, use of technological innovations to ensure free and fair elections, when assented to by the president will govern the conduct of future elections.

Previous Declines by President Buhari The bill has suͿered several setbacks since President Buhari’s administration came to power. In 2018, President Buhari rejected the bill for the Àrst time when the National Assembly tampered with the election sequence by making the presidential election to be the last election. The second rejection was when there were alleged correction of errors and this third rejection is as a result of draft issues. These rejections dashed the hope of many Nigerians who hoped that the bill will be assented to before the 2019 general election.

Amendments by Ninth National Assembly In July 2021, Clause 52(2) tore ninth Assembly Senators and House of Representatives members across party lines apart in the course of considering the clauses of the entire report. The contentious clause saw the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) senators and House members rejecting the calls for electronic transmission of election results by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), while the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) members voted for electronic transmission of poll results.

The House eventually passed the Electoral Act Amendment Bill, amid a walkout staged by opposition members, with the controversial Clause 52(2) intact, adding that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) “may transmit results of the election through electronic means where and when practicable.”

The Senate on the other hand passed same bill adding that the “Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) must certify that national coverage is adequate and secure, while the national assembly must approve,” before INEC can adopt E-transmission of results.

As outrage trailed the lawmakers’ decision, with many Nigerians accusing them of plotting to delegitimise future elections, the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan and the Speaker of the House, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila in October constituted a conference committee to meet and harmonise the differences in the Senate and House versions of the Bill. The lawmakers re-amended certain aspects of the Bill contained in Clauses 43, 52, 63 and 87, respectively.

In the harmonised version, both chambers adopted the electronic transmission of election results in line with the position of the INEC. The lawmakers however resolved

Buhari that political parties should adopt direct primary as mode of electing their candidates for elective o΀ces.

Latest Amendment While many Nigerians applauded the move by the lawmakers to rescind its earlier decision and allow INEC adopt electronic transmission of election results. However the move by the lawmakers to change the primary mode of electing political candidates from indirect to direct has generated controversies among stakeholders who see it as an infringement on the independence and internal democratic workings of individual political parties.

Consequently, the bill earlier passed by the lawmakers on November 18, 2021, states was rejected by President Buhari in December, citing issues with the provision of direct primaries as the sole mode of conducting political parties’ primaries.

Commencing the 2022 legislative session, National Assembly moved expeditiously, and kept its promise to immediately revisit the Electoral Act Amendment Bill, 2021, which President Buhari declined to assent to.

While both the Senate and the House re-amended Clause 84(2) and expunged the contentious imposition of compulsory direct primaries on parties as procedure for nomination

of candidates to stand elections, they diͿered on the inclusion of consensus option.

The Senate, on its part, loosened the process and procedure to include direct, indirect and consensus options, the House of Representatives, which also amended Clause 84(2) in the bill only approved direct and indirect primaries as procedure for the nomination of candidates by political parties for the various elective positions.

It also approved the recommended Clause 84(3) that, “a political party that adopts the direct primaries procedure shall ensure that all aspirants are given equal opportunity of being voted for by members of the party and shall adopt the procedure outlined below: (a) In the case of Presidential Primaries, all registered members of the party are to vote for aspirants of their choice at a designated centre at each ward of the federation.”

The Clause provides further that, “similar procedure as in (a) above, shall be adopted for Gubernatorial, Senatorial, Federal and State Constituencies.”

The Senate added that, “Special Conventions should be held to ratify the candidate with the highest number of votes at designated centers at the National, State, Senatorial, Federal and State Constituencies.”

Clause 84(4) further provides that,

“a political party that adopts the system of indirect primaries for the choice of its candidate shall adopt the procedure outlined below; (a) In the case of nominations to the position of presidential candidate, a political party shall, (i) hold special presidential convention at a designated centre in the Federal Capital Territory or any other place within the federation that is agreed to by the National Executive Committee of the party.”

Will Buhari Assent to the Bill This Time?

President Buhari in a recent interview assured Nigerians that if the Senate and House of Representatives address these issues as quickly as possible, he will grant assent to this key legislation.

With the option of consensus candidate which both chambers have a diͿering opinion on, it means a conference committee will now be set up to harmonise both positions. Chairman, Senate Committee on INEC, Senator Kabiru Gaya, told journalists after plenary last week that the bill would be transmitted to the president this week.

Gaya said: “We expect the conference committee to meet this week. We will expect their report at plenary Tuesday. The National Assembly will transmit the clean copy to the president before the end of the week.”

As the atmosphere is already warming up for the 2023 general election, it’s hoped that Buhari will not hesitate to do the needful this time.

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THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER JANUARY 22 , 2022

INTERNATIONAL AU and Unconstitutional Governments: Preventing Maliexit in ECOWAS and Ensuring Regional Integration

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aking progress backwards appears to be the current major challenge of the African Union (AU)’s efforts at constitutional governance in Africa. When several African States acceded to nationalsovereigntyinthe1960sand1970s,coups d’état were frequent and generally tolerated in Africa and in the comity of nations. Under the pretext of corruption-driven bad governance, the military easily changed government forcefully to the extent that militocracy became a new tradition.

However, at the Sixteenth Franco-African Summit held at the French coastal resort of La Baule from 19 to 21 June 1990, in which thirty-five African countries participated, the French government announced a new policy linking development assistance to good governance, apparently in light of media reports on plagues of Africa, black Africa’s bankruptcy, African debt trap, etc.The linkage is also a resultant from French Prime Minister, Michel Rocard’s quest for a revision of foreign aid policy, which underscored human rights and greater aid to the Third World in general as opposed to Francophone Africa.

InthewordsoftheFrenchPresidentthen,FrançoisMitterrand,‘ofcourse we must speak of democracy…You should not consider freedom to be a hidden enemy. It will be, believe me, your best friend… France will link its entire contribution effort to efforts made to move in the direction of greater freedom… Aid will be more lukewarm toward regimes which conduct themselves in an authoritarian manner without accepting evolution toward democracy. It will be enthusiastic for those which take the step with courage’ In this regard, democracy for President Mitterrand is about free election, non-censorship, multipartyism and independent judiciaries.

Thus, the La Baule Franco-African Summit laid the foundational conditionfordemocratizationasaconditionfordevelopmentassistance in international relations. African leaders did not hesitate to reckon with the conditionality by noting in its OAU Declaration issued on July 11, 1990, at the end of the 26th OAU Summit in Addis Ababa that all countries had the right‘to determine, in all sovereignty, their system of democracy based on their socio-cultural values, considering the realities of each country.’Put differently, the principle of democratization was accepted but the type of democracy to be put in place should be left to Member States to determine.This is the background to the AU’s and ECOWAS adoption of the principle of non-acceptance of changing government forcefully in Africa. But most unfortunately, Africa is increasingly playing host to unconstitutional change of governments.

The most recent and problematic is the Malian saga.

AU Policy and Unconstitutional Governments TheAfricanUnionhaspoliciesthatarequitehostiletoforcefulchange of Government in Africa but does not have sanctionary measures that can deter unconstitutional governments.There was the OAU Solemn Declaration on Security, Stability, Development and Cooperation in Africa which was adopted in Abuja, Nigeria, on 8 and 9 May 2000.

There was also the decision AHG Dec 142 (XXV) on the Framework for OAU’s reaction to unconstitutional Change of Government adopted in Algiers in July 1999, etc.

As contained in Section 1, Article 1(b) of Protocol A/SP1/12/01 on Democracy and Good Governance Supplementary to the Protocol Relating to the Mechanism for Conflict Prevention, Management, Resolution, Peacekeeping and Security, done in Dakar, Senegal on 21 December 2001,‘every accession to power must be made through free,fairandtransparentelections.’Article1(c)addsthattheECOWAShas Zero tolerance for power obtained or maintained by unconstitutional means.’Both provisions are simply saying that change of government beyond democratic means is not acceptable in Africa. This provision falls under the ECOWAS constitutional convergence principles.

In the same vein, at the level of the Constitutive Act of the African Union, Article 4 on Principles of the AU talked about non-interference andnon-interventionintheinternalaffairsofanotherState.Forexample, Article 4(g) provides for‘non-interference by any Member State in the internal Affairs of another,’while in Article 4(h) provides for‘the right of the Union to intervene in a Member State pursuant to a decision of the Assembly in respect of grave circumstances, namely war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity.’

Explained differently, interference does not imply the use of force, whereas intervention does. Interference is when a matter falls within the exclusive competence of a sovereign state and when the matter is considered very domestic. As clearly stipulated in Article 4(h), intervention becomes a desideratum when the matter involves grave circumstances,thatis,warcrimes,genocide,andcrimesagainsthumanity, in which case the principle of International Responsibility to Protect also becomes applicable.

In this regard, does a forceful change of government

VIE INTERNATIONALE with

Bola A. Akinterinwa Telephone : 0807-688-2846

e-mail: bolyttag@yahoo.com

Chairperson of AU, Felix-Antoine Tshisekedi constitute a grave circumstance? When does a coup d’état become illegal or illegitimate, or unconstitutional? This question is pertinent here because in the context of the Malian coup, the people of Mali, in their majority, supported a forceful change of government. There were several days of street protests against the elected government of Mali. Put differently, in whose interest is the protection of democracy?

When soldiers plan a coup with the support of the people, should a foreign intervention force support the people’s position or that of the government? It is against this background that ECOWAS interference and possible intervention should be understood, and particularly in terms of the implications for regional and continental integration.

Additionally, The AU Constitutive Act provides for imposition of sanctionsinthecontextofnon-paymentofassessedduestothebudget of the organization. Article 23(1) says‘the Assembly shall determine the appropriate sanctions to be imposed on any Member State that defaults in the payment of its contributions to the budget of the Union in the following manner: denial of the right to speak at meetings, to vote, to present candidates for any position or post within the Union or to benefit from any activity or commitments therefrom.’ These sanctions are not a big a deal and they do not appear to cover the issues of forceful change of government.

Article 23(2), under which such forceful change of government can be covered, stipulates that‘furthermore, any Member State that fails to comply with the decisions and policies of the Union may be subjected to other sanctions, such as the denial of transport and communications links with other Member States, and other measures of a political and economic nature to be determined by the Assembly.’

Manypointsarenoteworthyinthisarticle.Firstisthe‘maybesubjected to other sanctions.’The article does not say shall be subjected, meaning that there is no compulsion to act in the event of any infraction.

Secondly, the ‘denial of transport and communications links’ does not have any military character, meaning that the punishment for whatever offence is still largely at the level of interference and not intervention and therefore, does not warrant any military intervention.

Thirdly, in the event of continued intransigence of non-payment of required contributions or non-compliance with the AU’s decisions and

As good and objective as these sanctions may be, there is nothing to suggest that they will have any meaningful impact on the government and people of Mali, especially when they are analysed against the background of regional environmental conditionings of political governance. Besides, the sanctions only have the potential to provoke the withdrawal of Mali’s membership of the ECOWAS, as well as discourage AU’s efforts at regional integration in Africa. By so doing, Mali may become the second country, after Mauritania’s withdrawal in 2000. Mauritania’s Prime Minister, Cheikel Afia Ould Mohammed Khouna announced the notice of withdrawal on Sunday December 26, 1999, because of the ‘latest decisions of the Community’ without explaining what the latest decisions were. Today, the Malian environment and current political thinking in the country may not be different from that of Mauritania in 1999 which prompted the required withdrawal notice of one year. In fact, the interests of the ECOWAS are not consistent with the long-term interests of Mali and France Can the ECOWAS deal with regional terrorism? When will the ECOWAS and the AU accept to seek a better understanding of the Malian problem? ECOWAS sanctions may prompt Maliexit. Mali can find an alternative future in a Maghrebin sub-region even if it is geopolitically located in the West African region. ECOWAS should make haste slowly with its sanction

policies, other non-articulated measures could be taken but they must be of a politico-economic nature.This simply means that, in whatever situation, military sanctions are ruled out, but in every recent change of government, it has always been by military coups.

It is useful to recall that on October 8, 2016, more than 30 ex-members of the elite presidential guard, led by Gaston Coulibaly, attempted to overthrow the Burkinabe government by launching attacks on the presidential residence,anArmybarracks,and a prisoninOuagadougou.

The 2016 coup made it the third after the 2003 and 2015 coups. In 2017, Zimbabwe played host to a coup in November 14-21 while Equatorial Guinea had its own on 27-28 December of the same year.

On 7 January 2019, Gabon recorded a failed coup. In September 2021, President Condé of Guinea Conakry was ousted by the Army while the coup in Niger was thwarted in March of the same year. All these coups took place contrary to the rule of non-constitutional change of government in Africa.

Therecidivistcharacterofthecoupscannotbutraisesomefundamental questions: is the AU policy of zero tolerance for unconstitutional change of government in Africa being complied with? If yes, why the recurrence of coups? If no, how do we explain the non-compliance? Is it failure of democracy or lack of good governance? Since 1952, Africa has been playing host to attempted and successful coups d’état. Sudan is leading with a total of 17 coups out of which 5 were successful. The last coup in Sudan took place on 10 April 2019. Burundi occupies the second place with 11 coups, while Sierra Leone and Ghana are placed third with 10 coups each. Comoros is placed next with 9 coups, while Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Guinea Bissau, Mali, Benin had 8 coups each and Niger and Chad have recorded 7 coups each. In fact, there were two coups in Sudan in 2021: in September and when General Abdel Fattah Burhan dissolved the civilian arm of the Transitional Government and took over. Mali also had two coups, described as coup within coup, in 2021.

The first coup occurred on 18 August 2020 when some soldiers attacked the Soundiata military base in Kati. There was an exchange of gunfire, attachment and distribution of weapons. The President of Mali, Ibrahim Boubakar Keïta (IBK), who had been president from September 2013 to August 2020, was forced to resign and dissolve his government. Indeed, the Prime Minister, Boubou Cissé and his government promptly resigned and Colonel Assimi Goïta, declared himself leader of the National Committee for the Salvation of the People. Goïta’s coup had a popular support while the international community generally was hostile.

France, the former colonial master, China, the African Union, the European Union condemned the coup. The United Nations Security Council, in a resolution, also condemned the coup.The United States went beyond condemnation by cutting off military aid to Mali on 21 August 2020. In the same vein, the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie suspended Mali’s membership while the ECOWAS not only suspended Mali’s membership but also directed the closure of land and air borders with Mali. Perhaps more interestingly, at its summit held on 7 September 2020, the ECOWAS gave a deadline of 15 September before which to appoint a new civilian president and prime minister. Even though the directive was not strictly complied with, but a transition government was put in place, on 24 May 2021 anothercoupd’étattookplace.TheVicePresident,AssimiGoïta,replaced President Bah N’daw, Prime Minister Moctar Ouane and Minister of Defence, Souleymane Doucouré:

Maliexit, and Regional Integration MaliexitmeanstheimminentwithdrawalofMali’smembershipofthe ECOWAS. It does not mean outright exit yet.The imminent withdrawal of membership is because of the conscious belief of Malians that the ECOWAS was protecting the Government under which the people are seriously suffering. Malians are complaining about poor governance and do see the military junta as their saviour while the ECOWAS is concerned about forceful change of government.

In this regard, not only is the ECOWAS misunderstanding the Malian saga, those condemning the coups in Mali are also refusing to acknowledge that the Malian coups have popular backing, that the coup took place to back the people’s calls for removal of the elected government of President IBK. A catalogue of complaints was established against him, while his inability to respond to the jihadist insecurity threats continued to deepen and generate animosity. Public demonstrations, the so-called June 5 Movement which insisted on the departure of IBK, became the order of the day and the military took advantage of the development to force IBK out of power. When the ECOWAS announced its first set of sanctions, Malians responded with more public demonstration in support of the coupists. This meant that the fight is not between the ECOWAS and the coup makers, but between the ECOWAS, on the one hand, and the military junta and the people of Mali, on the other hand.

True enough, the ECOWAS and the military junta agreed with the 28 February 2022 deadline to hold general elections in Mali. However, as at today, the Goïta junta has not taken any meaningful steps towards holding any presidential elections before next February 28. This has angered the ECOWAS to the extent that it has taken fresh sanctions against Mali.

In the Final Communiqué of the 4th Extraordinary Summit of the ECOWAS Authority on the political situation in Mali, held in Accra, Ghana on 9 January 2022, the Authority‘regrettably observed the failure of the Transition authorities in Mali to take the necessary steps for the organization of the Presidential elections before 27 February 2022 and contrary to the agreement reached with ECOWAS Authority on 15 September 2020 and the commitment in the Transition Charter.’

Read full article online - www.thisdaylive.com

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THISDAY, THE SUNDAY NEWSPAPER JANUARY 23, 2022

with ChidiAmuta e-mail:chidi.amuta@gmail.com

ENGAGEMENTS

Land of a Million Presidents

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t the height of the hysteria about who would succeed the military administration of General Ibrahim Babangida, the elaborate but controlled transition programme encouraged members of the political elite to openly express their aspiration for the presidency. But the politicians were somewhat wary. After all, successive military administrations had promised and failed to hand over power to anyone but themselves. Moreover, this particular administration had decimated the political class through a deliberate series of bans and exclusions.

You were either a new breed or old breed politician. You were either part of the problem or ready to queue up behind those who said they were solving the problem. Having survived a series of purges, bans, re-categorisations and white- washing, the politicians who survived Nigeria’s years of political long knives felt confident enough to step forward to desire the plum job. Trust Nigerian political animals, those eternal and incurable optimists. Each one of them felt it would be most expedient to be seen as an anointed choice of the military.

Babangida, ever the friendly foe with a decorated sword, was the friend of nearly every political actor in the field. Each presidential aspirant felt a hidden obligation to bounce their ambition off the military president.

Each felt that declaring their interest to the emperor was a prerequisite to their otherwise legitimate democratic right. So, they took turns to visit Aso Villa to whisper their intentions to the boss. In separate private audiences with the President, I suspect that each ambitious political aspirant received an assurance that he would be the chosen one. Before long, the entire political landscape was swarming with an assortment of self -confident presidential aspirants. Check out the long list of present day presidential aspirants trooping to Minna for ‘consultations’ and each emerging with words of encouragement!

Each one of the IBB era politicians kept the source of their confidence to their chest. Thus, we had the likes of Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, Patrick Dele Cole, Babagana Kingibe, Tom Ikimi and Olu Falae stepping forward to declare presidential intentions. Some even mounted elaborate early campaigns. But only two of these – Babagana Kingibe and Tom Ikimi-were lucky to be rewarded with the chairmanship of the two government approved political parties.

The rest is history.

It is another presidential season in a different clime. A different set of politicians, mostly of the All Progressives Congress (APC) clan, are trooping to the Presidential Villa to seek the tacit endorsement of the incumbent on their presidential aspiration. Former Lagos Governor, Bola Tinubu led the pack. He was closely followed by Ebonyi Governor Dave Umahi. Former Abia State Governor, Orji Kalu who has not declared anything has also visited Buhari mostly for a timely photo opportunity.

No one knows what the usually taciturn and quiescent Buhari told them.

From every indication, we are right in the midst of an emerging national circus. As my friend Segun Adeniyi insightfully pointed out in his column in this newspaper earlier in the week, the national circus is gathering traction.

The public is fast losing track of the number of those who have declared to be our president in 2023.The declarations are however merely the prep stage of the circus. We will soon enter the travelling stage which is the roadshow itself.

My late grand father used to tell me that madness is not such a calamity for as long as one can cope with the malingering part of the ailment!

On a more serious note, however, the recent spate of presidential declarations represent so many things that are good and bad with our polity. It is a good thing for so many citizens to aspire to lead the nation. A democracy should never set a limit to how many citizens aspire to lead or say so with neither fear nor reservations.

Freedom is the first condition of democracy; citizens should be free to follow, free to want to lead and free to dissent when those who rule run counter to their best wishes and interests.

The sheer number of those stepping forward

Yakubu to declare their presidential bids also indicates the magnitude of problems facing the country. There is a sense in which the mushrooming of presidential aspirants is also symptomatic of the variety of perspectives and solutions to the problems assailing the nation. It is only natural for a nation beset with such a cocktail of existential problems to excite such a barrage of alternative leadership options. On a normal day, Nigeria is a land of a million presidents, a laboratory of conflicting perspectives on leadership and solutions to national problems at any point in time.

Above everything else, the spate of presidential aspirants is an open verdict from a long standing referendum on Mr. Buhari’s bumbling presidency. Over a year to his official exit, the public has since lowered the gavel on Buhari’s divisive and crassly incompetent presidency. Among political pundits, the jury is out as to the political gravity of a Buhari endorsement or lack of it. From the experience of the last seven years, even Mr. Buhari’s most ardent political disciples know that the only candidate Buhari supports to the hilt is Buhari himself. The only seat worth fighting for, defending and possibly dying for is the throne on which he sits in Aso Rock.

It is indeed however a strange ‘Village Head’ democracy in which full fledged citizens and leading party members have to inform an incumbent president that they want to take over his job come the next election. What is wrong with following party procedures and guidelines to seek endorsement through the mechanism of internal democracy?

Predictably, Buhari has been receiving in audience all the leading APC members with presidential intent who have been dropping by his office for photo opportunities to enhance their visibility. My former state governor and friend Orji Kalu has visited Buhari in the office in the wave of these PR stunts. It is indeed a strange variety of village head democracy in which legitimate aspirants to the presidency of the country feel that they have to obtain the televised permission of the incumbent president to vie for what is ordinarily their right as citizens.

Yet we cannot discount the import of Mr. Buhari’s presence in creating the enabling environment for the full emergence of presidential ambitions and aspirations especially

in his party. Specifically, Mr. Buhari still needs to unshackle those in his administration who have political ambition to resign and face their political programmes. In this regard, there are quite a number of consequential presidential material still quarantined in Buhari’s administration.

Beyond the APC collection of aspirants, however, there are others in the other parties whose presidential ambitions have since become household words. They do not need the permission or seal of presidential approval to forge ahead with their campaigns.

The likes of Atiku Abubakar and Kingsley Moghalu have been presidential aspirants and candidates for long enough. They hardly need any new formal declarations. We know them and where they stand on critical national issues. All they need is to secure the ticket of their respective parties and hit the road to market their agenda to Nigerians.

Those familiar with Nigeria’s viral enterprise culture will have noticed the hand of our entrepreneurial spirit in an emerging presidential declaration industry. The other day, a good friend and former influential senator came visiting after a long spell. His phone kept ringing repeatedly until he courteously put it in silent mode. He told me the calls were mostly from groups from different parts of the country who were pressuring him to declare for president! Each group told him he was among the very best of candidates. To beat each other to the bargain, some of the pressure groups gave him an idea of how much it would cost to make his declaration the most impactful! Some of the support groups even had the costs of the trending declarations in case he wanted to place himself comfortably in the forefront. In the end, my guest gave me an elaborate lecture on the new industry of presidential declarations and the impending market prospects of presidential campaigns.

The declarations and statements of intent that we have seen so far are instructive. They are indicative of various categories of aspirants and levels of seriousness. There are those who are tried and tested politicians, known state governors, federal appointees, legislative leaders and a few former corporate leaders.

There are genuine regionally and geo politically representative candidates whose

intent and aspiration is informed mostly by the “turn by turn” mentality of Nigerian political leadership: ‘it is the turn of my geo political zone and so why not me?’ These are typically the zoning champions like Ebonyi Governor Dave Umahi and, perhaps, Orji Kalu who has not quite directly declared an aspiration.

There are also youthful idealists and utopian leadership theorists, barbing salon and beer parlor presidents. These are people who just want to break the national noise barrier by making enough noise to sprout from the anonymity of the Nigerian crowd.

There are still others for whom the presidential aspiration is a further rung on the ladder of political leadership. These are people who have a track record of service and vast experience in the management of public expectations in relevant roles. These include the likes of Pius Anyim, Atiku Abubakar and Bola Tinubu for whom the presidential desk would be a natural political progression to something higher in the ladder of political ascent.

There are other very outstanding aspirants like my friend Prof. Kingsley Moghalu in a class of genuine patriots and experienced technocrats.

He is in the unique category of people who combine sound leadership ideas with relevant technocratic and practical experience and whose aspiration is fired by a genuine desire to make a difference in a nation that desperately needs to break the tradition of clueless leadership. Professor Moghalu has authored two full length books on his vision of a new Nigeria and how to deal with different national issues and problems. Such commitment and dedication is indeed rare in the history of Nigerian political leadership quests. An aspirant like this rises above visionary idealism and a narrow bookish conception of the work of president.

There are also youthful idealists and leadership theorists. Most of these people have no experience in public or organised private affairs. Their entire vision and life experience is in their laptop. Just ask them and they snap open their power point presentations with graphs, holograms, prediction tables etc.

Some of them have never even run a corner shop in all their life or opened a kiosk to sell peanuts. In other climes, these are people who should start their political careers from being community volunteers, vying for local government councillorship, state house of assembly seats, federal legislature or some other more modest tutelage pedestal.

But the Nigerian in us will not buy such a gradualist progression approach in climbing up the political ladder. By our nature, every Nigerian who goes to a church wants to meet the Bishop or General Overseer on first visit.

If he is rebuffed, he goes home, starts his own church and anoints himself pastor first and bishop shortly afterwards. When the Nigerian is accosted at a police checkpoint, he does not want to be interrogated by the sergeant or Inspector on duty. He asks menacingly and authoritatively: “who is the most senior officer here?”

In the parade of presidential declarations and ambitions that have so far been on display, there are a few worrisome trends. In some of the prominent cases, people who the public only recognize as known miscreants and criminal suspects for public asset stealing are among the aspirants. There is of course the technical requirement that no man is a criminal before he is convicted of a crime by a competent court of law. But there is a misalignment between personal moral stature and the rigorous requirements of public morality. A patented criminal with copious court appearances and even outright convictions who either serves their term or manages to engineer an expensive legal reprieve can live freely in society with his family and friends.

But for such a person to openly aspire to lead the nation in a credible political process would amount to insensitivity to the dictates of pubic morality. It is even a derogation and devaluation of the moral credential of the entire country.

We become more of ‘’any how” and “anything goes” nation in the process. This is why our Senate has degenerated into an oligarchy of the tainted.

(See concluding part on www.thisdaylive.com)

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SUNDAY JANUARY 23, 2022 • T H I S D AY

T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾JANUARY 23, 2022

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NEWSXTRA

Boko Haram Invades Chibok, Razes Church, Abducts 15 Girls Piyemi, a village in Chibok Local Government Area (LGA), Borno State, has come under the onslaught of Boko Haram and Islamic State for West Africa Province, local vigilantes have disclosed.

Consequently, according to the local vigilantes, the terrorists razed a church and abducted 15 girls in a village close Chibok town.

One of the local vigilantes confirmed the incident yesterday, disclosing that the terrorists attacked the village Thursday at about 7:00 p.m.

According to the vigilante, a church has been razed and 15 girls abducted by Boko Haram terrorists in a village near Chibok LGA, Borno State, following an attack. Apart from the abduction of 15 girls and the razing of the church, he added that a local vigilante was also killed during the attack.

He added that the name of the village is Piyemi, the same area where a Pastor, Bulus Yukura, was kidnapped in December 2020.

He said the assailants targeted the community church EYN NO

1 Pemi.

Another vigilante disclosed that those abducted were picked from houses around the church.

He said the girls, who were abducted, “are between the ages of 10 to 13, according to villagers.

Chibok local government is located in the southern axis of the state. These attacks have become common in Chibok and environs, with many unreported which security sources attribute to its proximity to the Sambisa forest.

Sambisa has been a known base of the outlawed Boko Haram militia, loyal to the

late Shekau.

Locals say attacks are more frequent during dry seasons as the terrain is more motorable for the insurgents.

“The mud during the rainy season impedes their movement which is why we were able to access our farms. But once the rain stops and everywhere becomes dry these attacks are common. We need help,” the vigilante cried out.

In November, the Commanding Officer of the 28 Task Force located in Chibok Brig General Dzarma Zirkushu was killed

NIS in Major Shake-up, Redeploys Six ACGs, 26 Comptrollers Michael Olugbode in Abuja The Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) has announced a major shake-up in its senior staff with the redeployment of six Assistant Comptrollers General and 26 Comptrollers.

This was revealed in a statement the spokesman of the service, Amos Okpu issued on behalf of the Acting Comptroller General of Immigration, Isah Idris yesterday.

The statement said the Acting Comptroller General of Immigration has approved a major senior staff shake-up involving six Assistant Comptrollers General and 26 Comptrollers.

The statement said In the post-

ing order with reference number NIS/ADM/4422/V/832/16 and dated 21st January 2022, the senior officers were moved across commands and formations within the country as follows: The statement said: “Zonal Coordinator in charge of Zone “F” Ibadan, ACG DE Amahian has been moved to the Planning, Research and Statistics (PRS) at the Service Headquarters while ACG LE Oemi-Ockiya formerly in PRS, proceeds to Ibadan to replace him; “The Assistant Comptroller General in charge Investigation and Compliance, ACG AO Esekhagbe moves to the Migration Directorate while ACG UA Auna who before now was the Principal Staff Officer

to the Acting Comptroller General is deployed to the Investigation and Compliance Directorate; “The Assistant Comptroller General in charge of General Services at the Service Headquarters, ACG OG Osisanya fdc, proceeds to Lagos as the new Zonal Coordinator Zone ‘A’ while ACG EI Inok formerly the Zonal Coordinator of Zone ‘H’ Makurdi has been moved to the Service Headquarters to be in charge of Budget.

“Some of the Comptrollers deployed include the following: The current Lagos State Command Comptroller, AB Aliyu fsi has been moved to the Service Headquarters as the Principal Staff Officer to the Acting Comptroller General

while Comptroller Bagiwa Mani formerly of Kaduna State Command will take over as the Lagos State Command Comptroller; “Comptroller K Nandap formerly in charge of Plateau State Command is now the Comptroller of Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Ikeja while Comptroller Chris Nomhwaange replaces her as the new Comptroller of Plateau State Command; “Also deployed are Comptrollers YU Galma formerly in Zone ‘B’ Kaduna and NI Eneregbu of HRM Service Headquarters, who have now been moved to head Seme Border Command and Mfun Border Command respectively.

in an ambush on his way to provide enforcement to troops in distress in the next town.

Pockets of attacks have continued ever since, worsening in recent times in villages on the fringes of the dreaded forest.

In April 2014, 276 female students, mostly Christian between 16 and 18 were kidnapped by

the Islamic terrorist group Boko Haram from the Government Girls Secondary School at the town of Chibok in Borno State, Nigeria.

Prior to the raid, the school had been closed for four weeks due to deteriorating security conditions. But the girls were in attendance in order to take final exams in physics.

Gunmen Kill Two in Benue Community George Okoh In Makurdi Gunmen have attacked Igama community in Ojigo council ward, Okpokwu Local Government Area (LGA), Benue State, killing two people and destroying several houses.

Members of the community confirmed the attack on phone yesterday, alleging that Fulani herdsmen were behind the killing.

The invaders were said to have stormed the community in broad daylight and shot in all directions while residents scampered for safety.

Speaking with THISDAY on telephone, Chairman of Okpokwu LGA, Mrs Amina Audu also confirmed the report, noting that it was the third time in the last two weeks that the attackers were invading her council.

She added that the attack

which she noted was perpetrated by herdsmen, was without any form of provocation at all.

According to the council boss, Fulani herdsmen came and attacked the community and burnt houses and a woman was found dead after several days.

Audu noted that the incident was reported to the police, saying some security personnel were detailed to the area to forestall any breakdown of law and order.

She added that men of the livestock guards were also sent to the area, though the herders quickly ran away before the security men arrived.

She said: “They have attacked the community three consecutive times since January 13. They will just come into the community and attack them. They normally come in the afternoon.

T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾JANUARY 23, 2022

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NEWSXTRA Okowa: PDP on Mission to Rescue Nigeria

Asks other parties not to contest poll in Delta Ibori commends governor’s leadership Omon-Julius Onabu in Asaba Delta State Governor, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa yesterday said the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) “is on a mission to rescue Nigeria from the All Progressives Congress (APC).”

Okowa, specifically, asked aspirants of other political parties not to waste their money to contest elective offices in the state, saying the state “is the stronghold of the PDP. He made these remarks in Asaba, the Delta State capital yesterday during a mega rally organised to unveil “Operation Harvest APC Members” in the state.”

The gathering was attended by a former governor of the state, Chief James Ibori; the Deputy Governor of Delta State, Mr Kingsley Otuaro; Minority Leader, House of Representatives, Chief Ndudi Elumelu; Senator James Manager; a former Senate Chief Whip, Senator Stella Omu and Chairman of Delta PDP, Chief Kingsley Esiso, among others.

At the gathering, a former chairman of Delta APC, Chief Cyril Ogodo led thousands of supporters of the Deputy Senate President, Senator Ovie

Omo-Agege to the PDP. The defectors pledged to work for the PDP to ensure that the APC as a party in the state was rendered practically irrelevant in the state.

Speaking at the meeting, Okowa pledged that that primaries for all elective positions would be free, fair and transparent, stressing that the PDP remained one united family.

The Delta governor added that leaders of the party in the state would ensure that primaries for all elective positions were free and credible.

Okowa said the massive mobilisation for the rally represented a booster for the readiness of the PDP to rescue Nigeria from the ruling APC, advising aspirants in other political parties not to waste their money to contest elections in Delta State.

He said: “I give thanks to God for what is happening here today.

I thank our leaders in the PDP. I thank our state and local government executives for this rally. I thank our youths and women for the massive mobilisation for this rally.

“It is by the grace of God and through their hands that we have mobilised to make a statement

Ugwuanyi Receives Haitian Delegation in Search of Ancestral Roots Enugu State Governor, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi yesterday, received a Haitian delegation at the Government House, Enugu, amid excitement and fulfillment.

The 10-man Haitian delegation, led by Senator Moise Jean-Charles, were on a home-coming mission to Enugu, the historic capital of Igboland, to perform conventional Igbo rituals such as traditional naming and name adoption, after they traced their roots to Igboland.

Addressing the delegation, Ugwuanyi welcomed them to the state in particular and the entire Igboland in general, and commended them for the bold step.

Ugwuanyi, represented by the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Prof. Simon Uchenna Ortuanya, also appreciated them for “keeping a date with history, for following your heart and for following your roots and getting back

to your roots.”

The governor, who stressed the significance of the visit, stated that today “is a new beginning for all of us.

“We open our doors to you and we are ready as we have demonstrated. We also want you to know that changing your names is in agreement with the Igbo tradition that you have a new name for a new born.

“Today, you are born new in Enugu State and in the land of your fathers. Congratulations!”

In his address, the leader of the delegation, Jean-Charles described the visit as homecoming, rooting back to their origin in Igboland while thanking Ugwuanyi for the hospitality accorded to them in the state.

He recounted the affinity of the people and culture of the state and Haiti, revealing that Enugu “has five letters as Haiti and that Enugu and Haiti mean cities on top of a hill.

Onekhena Dies at 65 A certified and chartered accountant of repute and Chief Executive Officer, Crown Height Consulting Services, Mr. George Onekhena has passed on.

President, the Executive Council and Board of Trustees of Ikpomaza Old Students Association, Mr. Roland Otaru (SAN) announced the passing of Mr Onekhena recently in the United States, aged 65.

Onekhena was CEO, Crown Height Consulting Services, Deputy Commissioner, National Insurance Commission (NAICOM), Abuja; Executive Director Finance, Lion of Africa Insurance

today across Nigeria that PDP is prepared to take over this nation.

“One good thing about us in the PDP is that we are one family.

We are not like the other people where one man takes it all. Here in PDP. We are one family.

“We work as a family with the love of God. But in the other parties, they are always fighting themselves. We have been doing a great job as Deltans. But it is

because Deltans voted us into power. That is why we have the opportunity to do the great job that we are doing for our state.

“It is because you have always supported us. That is why when we win, we win very well. We won well in 2015 and in 2019. In 2023, we will finish work again.

“We are advising those who want to run in other political parties not to waste their time and money because

there is no space for them in Delta.

Never in the history of this state have youths been so empowered through our various empowerment and entrepreneurship programmes.

“We have done well for our women and we will continue to do more for them, and let me make it clear that even as we play politics, we will continue to do the work that you asked us to do.”

Speaking on the state’s infra-

structure development, Okowa assured that his administration was not about to slow down in the tempo of work across the state.

He said: “Until I leave office in May, 2023, we will continue to build more and more roads and for those who haven’t been to Asaba in recent times, when you see our new State Secretariat you will be proud that you are a Deltan.

WE’LL ALWAYS STAND BY YOU… Oyo State Governor, Mr. Seyi Makinde (left) with the widow of the Soun of Ogbomoso, Olori Olufemi Oyewumi during the reception for the late monarch in Ogbomosho... yesterday

Groups Canvass Death Penalty for Kano Child Killer Ibrahim Shuaibu in Kano Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) yesterday asked the Kano State Government to ensure that the abductor and killer of a five -year-old girl, Hanifa Abubakar, “faces death penalty for what they described as ‘barbaric’ act.”

Executive Director, Youth Society for the Prevention of Infectious Diseases and Social Vices, Ms Zainab Ahmad made this call at a session with journalists in Kano yesterday.

Ahmad, who read the position of the CSOs yesterday, also called on the state government to hasten signing the Child Rights Act to law without further hesitation.

On this note, according to the executive director, “We call for death penalty for the barbarians that kidnapped and killed the little angel.”

She added: “We also call on the Kano State Government to monitor the activities of private schools in the state so as to prevent recurrence of similar incidents.”

Ahmad also insisted that strict supervision and inspection of private schools be adhered to in the state to avoid any future occurrences.

She said: “Schools are supposed to be safe place where parents can trust that no harm will befall their children but when teachers starts becoming killer kidnappers, education is endangered and nobody’s child is safe.

“No child deserves to be treated like this, every child has the right to grow up in a safe and

nurturing environment. We charge the Kano State Government to see through this agonising moment and honour Hanifa’s memory by signing the Child Rights Act into law without further hesitation.

While commending the Nigerian Police, Kano State command for successfully nabbing the killer kidnapper, the CSO called the state government to ensure that no stone is left unturned in preventing a future occurrence by establishing a child rescue center in the state.

Again, Okorocha, Uzodimma Clash over Killing of 11-year-old Boy Amby Uneze in Owerri A former Imo State Governor, Senator Rochas Okorocha has faulted his immediate successor, Senator Hope Uzodinma for insinuating that he (Okorocha) ordered the killing of an 11-year-old lad, Somotochukwu in 2017.

Okorocha, in a statement by his media adviser, Sam Onwuemeodo yesterday, said the reference of

the late little lad at this period of sufferings by Imo people showed the insensitivity of the present administration to gruesome murder of innocent youths, traditional rulers and other citizens of the state.

He therefore queried the comment by Uzodinma through his Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Declan Emelumba that Okorocha ordered for the killing

of the 11-year-old boy during the relocation of Ekeukwu market in Owerri.

He added that they failed “to tell their audience what was the co-relation between the relocation of Ekeukwu market and the death of the young lad.

“Using the death of the innocent boy to justify the carnage or massacre in lmo, under the Uzodinma administration only

showed the pitiable level the government in lmo has degenerated,” he said.

Okorocha said he did not go after those strongly opposed “to his government for the 8 years he was governor. He did not go after the politicians behind the resistance to the relocation of Ekeukwu market.

Then, he should not have gone against an innocent boy. A very tender and innocent boy.

Nigerians Ask FG to Renovate Consular Pavilion in US Omolabake Fasogbon

Onekhena

Company Limited, Non-Executive Director Financial Reporting Council (FRC); and Managing Partner, George Andrews.

Nigerians living in the United States of America have asked the federal government to consider the renovation and expansion of the consular waiting area to improve the experience of applicants.

At an interactive session with the new Consul General, Amina Smaila in Atlanta recently, they urged the federal

government to look into the request urgently in order to provide safe space for visitors, especially with the new realities of COVID-19.

They expressed concern about the collapse of the tent outside the consulate building being used as an extension of the waiting area.

They noted that the collapsed tent had caused “a lot of discomfort for applicants who usually

wait outside, thus exposing to cold especially during extreme cold winter season.”

They also demanded an upgrade of equipment to aid excellent service delivery in the consulate.

Also at the interactive session, one of the guests, Francis Agbowa challenged the federal government to see to other challenges affecting the image of the commission

in the global society.

He identified some of the challenges as delayed visa applications and racketeering, amid other unprofessional treatments.

He said: “Over the years, Nigerians living in the diaspora are always in the news complaining vehemently about Nigerian consulates abroad most especially in the United States of America.

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T H I S D AY, T H E S U N D AY N E W S PA P E R ˾ JANUARY 23, 2022

SUNDAYSPORTS

Edited by: Duro Ikhazuagbe email:Duro.Ikhazuagbe@thisdaylive.com

AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS

Battle of the Eagles as Nigeria, Tunisia Gun for Q’final Ticket Duro Ikhazuagbe

A

sNigeria’sSuperEaglesbattleCarthage Eagles of Tunisia for a place in the quarter finals of the ongoing 33rd Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon this evening, the memory that will comefloodingiswhathappenedin aWorld Cup qualifier on November

12, 1977.

That day, Godwin Odiye scored an own goal at the National Stadium in Lagos that sent the Green Eagles packingfromthe1978WorldCuphostedbyArgentina.

Althoughbetweenthenandnow,SuperEagleshave earned series of victories against the Carthage Eagles ofTunisia, that memory has simply refused to go away.

Fast forward to the last edition of the AFCON that held in 2019 in Egypt, it was on the back ofTunisia that Super Eagles climbed to pick the third placed bronze under now sacked German Gernot Rohr.

ButintheneweraunderAugustineEguavoen,Super Eagles have regained their mojo. Suddenly, the world has started to see semblance of the familiar Nigerian pattern again. In the three matches played by Nigeria in Cameroon, Super Eagles have not only recorded 100 per cent success, we are now touted as favorites for the trophy.

WillTunisia that struggled to sneak into this stage of the competition after finishing as one of the third best teams stop Nigeria’s good run? It is doubtful.

From available records, Eguavoen appears to have the secret to unmaking Tunisia. It is not impossible for him to repeat his 2006 feat against the Carthage Eagles in Garoua, Cameroon.

EguavoenwasheadcoachoftheSuperEagleswhen NigeriaupendedtheCarthageEaglesonpenaltyshootout inPortSaidinEgypt16yearsagotosendtheCupholders out of the tournament at the quarter final stage.

“Thatwasahuge,hugegameandamemorableone forme.Thematchended1-1inregulationandextratime

Super Eagles battle ready for Tunisia tonight

and we had to go into penalties.We lost two of our first three kicks or something like that and then bounced backwhenourgoalkeeper(VincentEnyeama)stopped two of their kicks. It was a sweet victory,”Eguavoen said.

AttheAlMasryStadiumon4thFebruary2006,Obinna NsoforscoredforNigeriabeforeKarimHagguilevelledfor theCupholders.Intheshootout,JosephYoboandYusuf

Ayila missed as Chedli and Ben Achour did for Tunisia.

TayeTaiwo, Nsofor and Obafemi Martins scored, as did Namouchi, Guemamdia and Jose Clayton for Tunisia.

In sudden death, John Mikel Obi and goalkeeper Enyeama scored for Nigeria as did goalkeeper Ali Boumnijel and Hadj Massaoud for Tunisia, but after Nwankwo Kanu scored for Nigeria, Riadh Bouazizi saw

his kick saved by Enyeama.

It is doubtful if Nigeria’s current“red hot”Eagles will allow the game to drag into shootouts. Not after the scintillatingperformanceagainstEgyptandSudan.Even the second string team without eight of the stars that demolished the Pharaohs in the starting XI didn’t fare badly against Guinea Bissau .

“33” Export Lager Charges COVID-19: 12 Tunisian Players to Miss Clash with Nigeria Ahead of the round of 16 Africa Cup of Eagles to Go forTicket Nations (AFCON) clash with the Super Eagles, “33”Export Lager, the official beer for the Super Eagles, has charged the Nigeria national team to complete the good work started in the group stage by ensuring qualification for the Qatar 2022 World Cup. The Eagles were yesterday paired against the Black Stars of Ghana in the final playoffs draw conducted in Yaounde, Cameroon.

Among other things, the fixture is bound to rekindle the football rivalry that exists between the two West African powerhouses for more than 50 years.

While many rightly admitted that the Black Stars remain one of the best teams on the continent despite their recent dip in form, the national team’s official beer has charged the Super Eagles to go all out to ensure they secure what would be their seventh ticket to the Mundial.

several Tunisian players and the head coach, Mondher Kebaier, have tested positive for COVID-19.

Kebaier was absent during the pre-match press conference yesterday at the media centre of the Roumdje Adjia Stadium, Garoua.

Tunisia’s Assistant Coach, Jalal Al-Qadri, addressed journalists during the press conference.

He said Wahbi Khazri, captain of the Carthage Eagles, and eleven others had contracted COVID-19 and would not be available for the game.

The other 11 players include; Aissa Laidouni, Dylan Bronn, Ghaylène Chaalali, Ellyes Skhiri, Anis Ben Slimane, Mohamed Romdhane, Ali Maâloul, Ben Hmida, Aymen Dahmen Yoann Touzgha and Issam Jebali.

Meanwhile, goalkeeper Farouk Ben Mustapha is suspended from the game.

Tunisia qualified for the round of 16 after

Tunisia Head Coach, Mondher Kebaier (second left) along with 12 players have been ruled out of tonight’s match with Nigeria due to Covid-19 positive results

finishing as one of the four best losers in the group stage.

They won their first game 4-0 against Mauritania and lost their remaining two matches.

QATAR 2022

Eternal Rivals Nigeria, Ghana in Final World Cup Playoffs Femi Solaja

Super Eagles of Nigeria have been drawn against their eternal rivals, the Black Stars of Ghana in the 2022 World Cup playoffs scheduled for March.

At the draw which held yesterday evening in Yaounde, Cameroon, 71-year old rivalry between Nigeria and Ghana on the football field was rekindled for the fifth time in the history of the competition playoffs.

Four –time African champions Ghana will host the first leg with the reverse encounter in Nigeria, both to hold between 24th and 29th March.

The draw was conducted by Samson Adamu, CAF’s Director of Competitions and African football

legends El Hadj Diouf and Emmanuel Adebayor.

The Super Eagles emerged from a group comprising themselves, Liberia, Cape Verde and Central African Republic to be eligible for the play-offs, while the Black Stars prevailed over South Africa 1-0 on the final day in an explosive and controversial duel in Cape Coast. Ethiopia and Zimbabwe were the other teams in the pool.

Nigeria have played against Ghana more than any other country in the world in football, with a total of 57 senior matches between both countries in 71 years. Ghana have won 19 of those clashes with Nigeria winning 16, and 19 drawn.

Before now, Nigeria had met Ghana for the first time a World Cup qualifier was on 28th of August,

1960 which Ghana won 4-1 and the reverse fixture in Lagos ended 2-2.

When the two sides met again in the qualifying tournament was in 1973 but Ghana was on the winning side with an inconclusive 3-2 win in Lagos which was later awarded to the visitors 2-0 on September 10th 1973 while the return leg ended goalless.

While the last meeting between the two sides ended in Nigeria’s favour in the qualification towards Korea/Japan 2002 tournament. The first leg in Accra ended goalless on 11th 2001 but Late Shaibu Amodu tutored side won the reverse fixture in Port Harcourt 3-0 to qualify for the Mundial in Asia.

ROUND OF 16 (Today) B’ Faso v Gabon (5pm) Nigeria v Tunisia (8pm) (Monday) Guinea v Gambia (5pm) Cameroon v Comoros (8pm)

PLAYOFF FIXTURES Ghana Vs Nigeria Egypt Vs Senegal Cameroon Vs Algeria DR Congo Vs Morocco Mali Vs Tunisia

PREMIER LEAGUE Everton 0-1 Aston Villa Brentford 1-2 Wolves Leeds 0-1 Newcastle Man Utd 1-0 West Ham Southampton 1-1 Man City

Sunday January 23, 2022

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Ayu to FG “By the time you left office, Nigeria was totally set free, direct foreign investment was on the increase on a daily basis and we were respected in international community and everywhere we went. Today, this clueless APC and the President Muhammadu Buhari govt have undone that and has plunged Nigeria into eternal debt” – National Chairman of PDP, Dr. Iyorchia Ayu, describing the Buhari-led govt as clueless and piling eternal debts for future generations.

WAZIRIADIO POSTSCRIPT

Maximising Buhari’s Remaining Time in Office

B

y this time next year, President Muhammadu Buhari will have just four months left in office. Many Nigerians, within government and outside of it, in good and in bad faith, are dutifully ticking off the remaining months and days. Not a few people are already looking forward to the morning after 29 May 2023. From one of his recent statements, the president seems to be in this category too. Not that he has a choice, but he seems eager to move on to his second retirement, and to less-exacting things like taking extended rest, spending time on his farm, and attending to his grandchildren.

President Buhari is blessed with an unflappable mien. So, it is difficult to know if he is approaching the remaining 16 months with a sense of fulfilment or with some measure of anxiety. However, the fact that he has exhausted almost 85% of his eight years in office should give him a strong cause for pause. He came to office with wide and wild expectations. In almost seven years, the poetry of campaign has been given a short shrift by the laborious prose of governance.

Even when ample accommodation is made for external headwinds and some landmark achievements, critics and supporters alike seem to agree that the Buhari administration could have done much more to meet the expectations of 2015.

Time is hopelessly running out. The president will not have another chance to make a different impression. In fact, he has been lucky to have a second chance in two different ways. Thirty years after he was kicked out of office by his military colleagues, he rode back triumphantly into the presidency with a halo: cast in the messiah mould, he defeated an incumbent to become president, the only Nigerian ever to do so. And four years later, he was re-elected as president.

The only other Nigerian who has had the dual luck of being both military head of state and being voted president twice is President Olusegun Obasanjo. This is an honour many of his military colleagues and others covet but will not get, and not for lack of trying.

This rare luck, the expectations of his ardent supporters and even the disdain of his implacable traducers, and the limited time available to make good should propel some urgency and intensity. To compound matters, most of the remaining time will be dominated by the politics of 2023. There is a feverish battle aboard for the soul of the ruling party, involving not just the governors and legislators but also some within his government. This is not unfair or unexpected: people will have to think about their political future without the president. The party convention and the election of principal officers will be followed by what promises to be an epic contest for the presidential ticket of the party. Then, there is the not so small matter of general election in which the main opposition party will make a spirited effort to reverse the setback of 2015.

Every defeated incumbent or term-barred one with elected or soon-to-be-elected successor faces a lame-duck period, a period of distraction, lethargy, and limited

Buhari influence. Given the informal but spirited flag-off of political activities, the lame-duck period has arrived very early for President Buhari. Beyond the fact that politics has now effectively crowded out everything else, there are specific political pre-occupations likely to limit presidential performance.

The folks at the National Assembly are already consumed in the quadrennial battle to earn their return tickets (as usual, most of them are not likely to return, as the turn-over rate for national legislators has been remarkably high since 2003). Some members of the president’s cabinet and some of his key appointees have open or thinly disguised political ambitions, some are hitching their tents with the emerging camps, and others are busy trying to figure out what to do next. It is safe to say that most of them are distracted or tired even.

This is the implementation context for the president’s remaining 16 months in office.

The sudden realisation of limited time may evoke three different reactions. The first is to continue at the current pace, with the hope that certain ongoing initiatives will come to fruition soon and history will take a fair, equal-measure view of things.

The second is to attempt to do so much in the little time left. This could lead to the introduction of a slew of initiatives, driven by a concern that the judgement of history could be harsh and by the belief that there is still enough time to do many things. The third, a practical half-way house of sorts, will be to focus on a few ongoing areas with renewed intensity. I don’t think the first two approaches should be favoured, not just because of Buhari and his potential legacy, but because of Nigeria. The current pace will not cut it. And realistically, especially in the prevailing circumstances, there is little time left for any audacious reform, policy, turn-around, or legislation. On this basis, I will suggest that the administration should focus, with a laser-beam intensity, on just three things.

The first is improving security. Of the three agenda items that President Buhari ran on to

get elected in 2015, fighting insecurity was the strongest. He was a soldier, a general and a former military head of state. That electoral promise spoke to his professional background and experience. At a time that Boko Haram posed a real threat not just to Nigerians in the North East but also elsewhere, it was easier for a significant number of Nigerians to choose a retired general over a civilian incumbent president whose handling of the threat was tainted by either denial or the mindset that Boko Haram was sponsored by people of certain regions and religions just to undermine him. But Boko Haram has not disappeared with the retired general in charge. To be sure, the capacity of the terrorist group to hold swathe of territories in the North East has been seriously diminished, and the siege has lifted on places like Abuja (where five major bombings occurred within two years and key government buildings were screened off). But Boko Haram is still there, with our gallant forces in constant push-back mode.

More disturbingly is that insecurity has gone beyond the North East, and more than at any other time in our history insecurity has become more generalised, more pervasive. The North West has become a major hotspot. Yes, there were incidents of cattle rustling in some parts of that zone and banditry in Zamfara State for a long time.

In classic rendition of the broken window theory, what started as a localised problem in some remote villages in Zamfara has now spilled over into other states in the zone like Kaduna, Sokoto, Katsina (the president’s state) and even Niger State in North Central. Added to this, kidnapping has become widespread, especially in the North West and South West, there is an upsurge of clashes between herders and farmers, there is some sort of insurgency in the South East and a low intensity militancy is still ongoing in some part of the Niger Delta.

Given how central security is to practically everything, this is an area the president cannot afford to leave the country worse off than he met it. He should take this as his main thing for the time he has left in office. The good news is that this is not an area that will be too impacted by the distraction of politics. It is important to give our over-stretched armed forces all the moral, technical, operational and financial support they need to scale up assaults on the terrorists and sundry criminals harassing, abducting, maiming and killing our citizens. Nigerians are tired of tepid warnings or hollow promises. They want the full strength of the state to be brought against these criminals. Nothing should be off the table in this quest, including leveraging technology, using mercenaries, if necessary, further improving engagement with our neighbouring countries, enhancing policing of our borders, ensuring better coordination across tiers of government, improving intelligence gathering and acting on time on credible intelligence, and setting clear targets for and undertaking regular reviews with our security top-brass.

The second recommended area of laser focus for the president is on completing ongoing

infrastructure projects. Though not one of the three campaign issues in 2015, or at best a subset of growing the economy, improving the stock of physical infrastructure in the country is one area in which the president, surprisingly, has earned his stripes. Either in restarting long-abandoned projects (like the Warri-Itakpe rail line) or completing the ones started by his predecessors (like the AbujaKaduna rail line) or starting and completing new ones (like the Lagos-Ibadan rail line), Buhari has done more for infrastructure than any of his predecessors in the fourth republic. This much his implacable critics will concede, even if grudgingly or with caveats. He is the infrastructure president, with tentacles not only in rails and roads, but also in electricity, health, water, aviation, and oil and gas.

Through enhanced budgetary allocations and special interventions such as the Presidential Intervention Development Fund, Sukuk Bonds, Road Infrastructure Tax Credit Scheme, the Presidential Fertiliser Initiative, the recently incorporated Infrastructure Company (InfraCo) and bilateral and concessionary loans from China etc., Buhari has enabled an increase in the quantum of infrastructure likely to impact quality of life, ease of doing business and even security in the country. However, some of the ongoing projects may slow down or fall off as politics takes centre stage. It will be important for him to ensure fund availability, insist on regular update and adopt a project management approach to the key projects. The following signature projects need to be completed: the AjaokutaKaduna-Kano gas pipeline, the Mambilla River Power Plant, the Second Niger Bridge, the Loko-Oweto Bridge, the Bodo-Bonny Road, the Abuja-Lokoja-Benin Highway, the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, the Ibadan-Kano Rail, the Port Harcourt-Maiduguri Rail, the Abuja-Kaduna-Kano Highway, and the East-West Road, among others.

My last limited agenda for the president is for him to ensure credible election next year. To be sure, presidents don’t conduct elections. That’s the remit of INEC. But the president has more than a passive role to play to ensure that INEC has all the resources it needs to undertake a credible election and to guarantee a fair playing field by preventing the co-option of state assets for electoral advantage. The first task for the president in this area will be for him to quickly sign the electoral act once the National Assembly concedes to his valid observation about imposition of direct primaries on political parties.

The second task under credible transition will be for the president to resist the temptation to force his choice on the country as his successor. The last time a departing president tried to do that was in 2007. It didn’t end well. The country is yet to live down the ripple effect that imposition created, and that attempt remains an indelible stain on the record of the perpetrator. Buhari can make credible election his parting and lasting gift to Nigeria. Despite the pressure that will be brought on him and the waning influence of a lame-duck period, he can do it. He should.

History will be more than kind to him if he takes this right and honourable path.

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