MONDAY 19TH APRIL 2021

Report: FG’s Revenue Falls By 12.8% to N807bn in January Expenditure rises by 7% to N771bn Obinna Chima The total amount of revenue generated by the federal government in January 2021 was N807.54 billion.

This was 12.8 per cent

lower than the N910.9 billion generated by the government in the corresponding period of 2020 and 4.6 per cent below the provisional budget benchmark for the period, according to data from the

Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) economic report for January 2021, obtained from its website at the weekend.

In contrast, the provisional aggregate expenditure of the federal government rose from

N717.60 billion as of December 2020, to N770.77 billion in the reporting period.

According to the report, oil and non-oil revenue constituted 45.4 per cent and 54.6 per cent of the total

collections, respectively.

It stated that the modest rebound in crude oil prices in the preceding three months enhanced the contribution of oil revenue to total revenue, relative to the budget

benchmark.

However, non-oil revenue sources underperformed, owing to the shortfalls in collections from Value Added Continued on page 47

Litigations Stall LG Elections in Anambra, Katsina, Kwara... Page 5 Monday 19 April, 2021 Vol 26. No 9507. Price: N250

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Govs Propose Monthly Payment to State Judiciaries Chuks Okocha in Abuja

L-R: Chairman, THISDAY/ARISE Media Group, Prince Nduka Obaigbena; former Commandant, National Defence College, Rear Admiral Patrick Agholor (rtd); Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Lucky Irabor, former member, House of Representatives, Hon. Nduka Irabor; and Governor, Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr. Godwin Emefiele, at the wedding of the former House of Representatives' member's daughter, Harim, to Mr. Nathaniel Omoruyi at Owa Oyibu...weekend

Governors of the 36 states of the federation have proposed a novel idea to resolve the impasse over the implementation of the constitutional provisions that Continued on page 47

For Alleged Sympathy for Terrorists, PDP Urges Buhari to Remove Pantami I am a changed person, says minister Chuks Okocha in Abuja The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) yesterday urged President Muhammadu Buhari to remove the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr. Isa Pantami, for his alleged sympathy for terrorist organisations, including the Taliban, AlQaeda and Boko Haram.

The party also asked the Department of State Security to invite the minister for questioning.

The PDP demanded that Buhari should immediately show Pantami the door given the sensitivity of the issue at stake.

According to a statement by the National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Mr. Kola Ologbondiyan: "Our party’s position is predicated on the heightening concerns in the public space and in the international arena of possible compromises by the communication minister, Continued on page 47

NNPC’s Operating Revenues Slump By 120.9bn in January... Page 8

GOING DIGITAL IN OGUN...

L-R: Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Communication, Hon. Lado Suleja; Executive Vice Chairman, Nigeria Communication Commission, Prof. Umar Dambata; former Governor of Ogun State, Chief Gbenga Daniel; Ogun State Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun, Chairman, 21st Century Technology, Mr. Wale Ajisebutu; and the State Deputy Governor, Mrs. Noimot SalakoOyedele, at the unveiling of Ogun State Digital Economy Infrastructure Project in Abeokuta…recently

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

Litigations Stall LG Elections in Anambra, Katsina, Kwara Oyo conducts poll May 15 Edo, Ogun, Osun, Imo, Zamfara yet to fix date

Francis Sardauna in Katsina, Kemi Olaitan in Ibadan, Hammed Shittu in Ilorin, David-Chyddy Eleke in Awka, Kayode Fasua in Abeokuta and Amby Uneze in Owerri Litigations have held up the conduct of local government elections in Anambra, Katsina and Kwara States, while Edo, Ogun, Osun, Imo and Zamfara states are yet to fix dates for the polls, despite the illegality in running the local councils with non-elected officers, THISDAY’s investigation has revealed.

It was gathered that of the nine states that are yet to conduct elections for local

government areas, only Oyo has fixed May 15, 2021, for the polls.

However, the Zamfara State Government has attributed its delay in holding council polls to insecurity bedevilling the state.

The Supreme Court in a judgment delivered on December 9, 2016, had voided laws enacted by state Houses of Assembly that empowered governors to sack elected local government chairmen and councillors and replace them with handpicked administrators.

In the unanimous judgment of five justices, the Supreme Court described the sacking

of elected local government administrators as “executive recklessness” that should stop immediately.

The judgment by the fiveman panel, led by Justice Olabode Rhodes-Vivour, was given in an appeal over the dissolution of the 16 local government executives in Ekiti State by Dr. Kayode Fayemi during his first term as governor.

The Supreme Court, in faulting the law purportedly relied on by Fayemi to dissolve the local government administration, held that Section 23(b) of the Ekiti State Local Government Administration (Amendment) Law, 2001, which empowered the governor to dissolve local government councils, whose tenure was yet to expire, violated section 7(1) of the

constitution from which the state House of Assembly derived the power to enact the local government law.

Justice Centus Nweze, who delivered the lead judgment had held that the tenure of the local government councils could not be abridged without violating the supreme constitutional provisions.

However, seven years after the dissolution of Katsina State

elected local government chairmen and 361 councillors in the 34 local government areas of the state by Governor Aminu Masari in 2015, the state is yet to conduct any council polls.

Investigation revealed that the last time the state held local government election was in 2014 during the Peoples Continued on page 48

Defence Minister, Service Chiefs in Borno to Review Insurgency War Week-long battles claim 21 civilians, three soldiers Kingsley Nwezeh in Abuja Minister of Defence, Maj. Gen. Bashir Magashi (rtd); Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Gen. Lucky Irabor; and the service chiefs arrived in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital, at the weekend to review the situation after a week-long, firefight between troops and insurgents that led to the death of 24 persons, including three soldiers.

Combined artillery bombardments and airstrikes repelled attempts by fighters of Boko Haram and the Islamic State for West African Province (ISWAP) to overrun Damasak, a town in Mobbar Local Government Area bordering the Niger Republic and Lake Chad axis.

Borno State Governor, Prof. Babagana Zulum, said at the weekend during a visit to Damasak, where he later spent the night with refugees who escaped from the attacks, that 21 civilians were killed during the clashes last week.

A statement by the Nigerian Army yesterday said three soldiers died during the clashes.

THISDAY gathered that the minister's entourage was received by the Theatre Commander, Operation Lafiya Dole, Maj. Gen. Farouk Yahaya, and other commanders at the Maiduguri Air Task Force Base.

Yahaya lauded the sustained commitment shown to the operations of the theatre by the minister, the chief of defence staff and service chiefs.

He added that beyond collective visits, the military chiefs had visited individually to encourage the war efforts.

The minister and the service chiefs later had a closed-door meeting with war commanders.

Meanwhile, the Nigerian

Army said troops of Operation Lafiya Dole at the weekend arrested a suspected Boko Haram informant, whose spying activities and that of his accomplices were responsible for the attacks on troop position by terrorists in Kamuya, Yobe State.

A statement signed by the Director, Army Public Relations, Brig.

Gen. Mohammed Yerima, said the informant, who was identified as Modu Ari, was apprehended by troops of 27 Task Force Bridge.

"On interrogation, he confessed to having revealed troops' movements and position to his Boko Haram collaborators. An investigation is, however, ongoing to unravel the network of local informants whose nefarious activities have endangered troops on clearance operations around the fringes of the Timbuktu Triangle.

"The unfortunate sabotage of troops’ movement by Ari and his accomplices made it possible for the terrorists to attack the rear element of troops on patrol," it said.

The army said though the attack was repelled by troops from the Tactical Headquarters of 27 Task Force Brigade and Army Super Camp 3 Buratai, military personnel suffered some casualties.

The war update said in spite of the setback, the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Ibrahim Attahiru, encouraged troops of Operation Tura Takaibango to maintain the fighting spirit and remain dedicated in the effort to flush out the remnants of the terrorists as quickly as possible.

He charged them "not to relent even in the face of gross unpatriotic acts of some locals who are snitching on their movements and positions."

DIGITAL SWITCH… Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed (left), and Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, during the visit of the minister to the governor on digital switch in Lagos…weekend

NEITI: Transparency in Extractive Industries will Reverse Resource Curse

Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja

The Executive Secretary, Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI), Dr. Ogbonnaya Orji, has said that with more transparency, Nigeria and other nations can reverse the much talked about ‘resource curse’ paradox.

He said in Abuja during a visit to the Director-General of the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN), Dr. Mansur Liman, that the essence of the initiative was to draw national and international attention to the dangers of resource curse and how to help countries to reverse it.

He attributed the ongoing reforms in Nigeria’s extractive sector to the collaboration between civil society, government and companies under the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) framework, of which Nigeria is a signatory.

“We have created a coalition between the civil society that represent the people, government that manages the resources to improve the

business environment and the companies that exploit and do business in the country, so they can do good business and make good returns to government. These are the reasons why NEITI exists,” he said.

A statement by the Head, Communications and Advocacy, NEITI, Mrs Obiageli Onuorah, quoted Orji as stating that the current ‘massive’ reforms going on in the oil, gas and mining sector, unknown to the public, is as a result of the work that the coalition of the civil society, government and companies are doing.

“When we publish our reports, we get the legislators and citizens to discuss the findings and recommendations. The NEITI reports recommended for instance, the introduction of the Petroleum Industry Bill,” he said.

He identified the media as a major anti-corruption platform that stands for openness, transparency and accountability, noting that

NEITI and the FRCN both agree that the country must use its resources efficiently.

While stressing that any agreement ignored in the oil and gas industry has implications on revenue losses, Orji advised the corporation to expand its energy desk to cover new issues in energy transition and promised that NEITI will provide all the technical and institutional support to make the expansion a success.

He described the expansion and digitisation of the news and programme facilities and establishment of several multi-purpose digital studios at the corporation as positive revolutions in broadcasting that should be emulated by other publicly-owned media organisations.

Making reference to the motto of the FRCN which is “uplifting the people and uniting the nation,” Orji said he was at the FRCN because the corporate values of the corporation aligned with the mandate of NEITI. “We cannot engage in public enlightenment, education and

debates on natural resource management, which NEITI is spear-heading, without the support and collaboration of the FRCN,” he stated.

Liman, while welcoming his guest, said he had followed NEITI’s progress and trajectory and was impressed by the agency’s strides in upholding the tenets of transparency and accountability as laid down by the global EITI. He commended NEITI for its efforts at guiding the government so far in its reforms of Nigeria’s extractive sector, adding that FRCN is proud to have one of its former employees as the chief executive officer of another government agency.

“Every staff at the FRCN can attest to your discipline, hard work and dedication.

The last programme which you initiated and anchored here titled “The Eagle Square,” is a programme that centred on public accountability. It is no surprise then that you are heading a transparency organisation,” Liman stated.

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NNPC’s Operating Revenues Slump By N120.9bn in January Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja The increasing landing cost of petrol and the inability of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to increase ex-depot price have continued to negatively impact on the operations of the corporation, according to latest data from the national oil company.

Figures from the NNPC from its full market operations report for January indicated that as a result of not being able to sell the product at the prevailing price dictated by incurred expenses, the group's

operating revenue as compared to December 2020, decreased by 22.12 per cent or N120.92 billion to stand at N425.74 billion.

Expenditure for the month dropped by 20.79 per cent or N106.03 billion to stand at N416.44 billion, falling from 0.98 per cent to 0.96 per cent as a proportion of revenue.

The corporation stated that it earned N190.72 billion from the sale of white products by PPMC in January compared to N288.77 billion sales in December 2020.

“Total revenues generated from the sales of white

ACF Condemns Killing of Soldiers, Alleged Military's Reprisal in Benue John Shiklam in Kaduna The Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) has condemned the killing of soldiers in Benue State and the alleged revenge mission by the Nigeria Army on communities in Konshisha Local Government Area of the state.

The forum also commended the Zamfara State government for exposing the security men who were assisting bandits in the state.

Twelve soldiers, including an officer, were ambushed by bandits on April 5, 2021, while on a routine operational task in Benue State.

The forum, in a statement by its spokesman, Mr. Emmanuel Yawe, said it did not subscribe to lawlessness and barbarism and called on security agents, community leaders and the Benue State government to fish out the perpetrators and punish them.

Yawe, however, stated that as dastardly as the actions of the bandits were, the reaction of the army was out of proportion because punishing the poor, innocent

people who had nothing to do with the killings of soldiers in Konshisha was unfair and not the best way to go.

He said: “We were attending the National Working Committee (NWC) and National Executive Council (NEC) meetings of the Arewa Consultative Forum in Kaduna when news started trickling in of another round of bloodshed in Benue State.

“We hesitated to issue a statement, hoping to get full details before going into it.

“For now, we have been informed by army headquarters that soldiers on stabilising operations in the state codenamed ‘Operation Whirl Stroke,’ were ambushed. “Ten of the soldiers and one officer had their weapons seized, were brutally murdered and their bodies set ablaze by the bandits who mounted the ambush.

“We at the ACF do not subscribe to such lawlessness and barbarism. We condemn the actions of the bandits without reservations.

“There was no need killing Continued on page 48

products for the period January 2020 to January 2021 stood at N2,070.34 trillion, where petrol contributed about 99.13 per cent of the total sales with a value of N2.05 trillion,” it added.

The corporation’s books also reflected a sizeable reduction to N9.3 billion compared to a surplus of N24.1 billion in the previous month, a difference of N14.89 billion.

The NNPC recently stated that its trading surplus or trading deficit is derived after deduction of the expenditure profile from the revenue in the period under review.

Aside that loss, the Group Managing Director of the corporation, Mr. Mele Kyari, had said in March that as much as N120 billion was being spent on under-recovery monthly, noting that while the actual cost of importation and handling charges amounted to N234 per litre, the government was still selling fuel at N162 per litre.

“This 66th edition of the

report in January 2021 presents a reduced trading surplus of N9.30 billion compared to the N24.19 billion surplus in December 2020.

“The 61.55 per cent decrease was due mainly to high average landing cost and low sales price of petrol by the Petroleum Products Marketing Company (PPMC). This is despite the significant rise in the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC’s) profit amid improved market fundamentals and strong global demand for crude,” the report stated.

In January 2021, NNPC said it remitted N163.63 billion to the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC), adding that from January 2020 to January 2021, total remittances to FAAC was N2.1 trillion; out of which the federation and JV with government priority projects received N850.63 billion and N1,041.48 billion respectively.

On dollar payments to

JV cost recovery and the federation account, the NNPC put the total export receipt at $108.75 million for January 2021 as against $125.25 million in December 2020.

It said proceeds from crude oil amounted to $24.32 million while gas and miscellaneous receipts stood at $66.28 million and $18.15 million respectively.

“Of the export receipts, $28.43 million was remitted to the federation account while $80.32 million was remitted to fund the JV cost recovery for the month of January 2021 to guarantee current and future production,” the report stated The corporation put the total sale of white products for the period January 2020 to January 2021 at 17.11 billion litres where petrol accounted for 16.9 billion litres or 99.31 per cent.

At an average oil price of $50.78/barrel and exchange rate of N379/$, the domestic crude oil lifted by NNPC was valued at $382.8 million or a naira equivalent of N145

billion for December 2020.

In addition, it stated that between December 2019 and December 2020, a total volume of 708 million barrels of crude oil and condensates were lifted by all parties.

Still in December 2020, the NNPC stated that the total crude oil production in Nigeria decreased by 2.31 million barrels or 4.99 per cent at 44.02mb with daily average of 1.42 mb/d when compared to November 2020 production.

“Production was disrupted by shutdown of the Forcados and Okono terminals due to suspected leaks on Trans Escravos Pipeline and Mystras – Okpoho subsea pipeline respectively.

“Likewise, Abo, Usan, Ima and Escravos terminals were shut down for maintenance.

Production was also interrupted at Yoho, Agbami. Pennington, Qua Iboe and Erha terminals due to planned repairs/maintenance, fire incidence, pump and flare management,” it stated.

SPREADING THE GOSPEL...

General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, Pastor Enoch Adejare Adeboye (left), and Enugu State Governor, Hon. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, during a visit by the general overseer to the governor in Enugu…yesterday

Suspension of Azman Air, Not Punitive, Says NCAA Chinedu Eze The Director-General of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Captain Musa Nuhu, has said the suspension of Azman Air is not punitive but to prevent a possible air crash.

Nuhu has also called for the review of aviation policies to separate general aviation from scheduled flight service.

He expressed the hope that Azman Air would soon resume flights because it is determined to execute all the recommendations by the regulatory authority so that all the identified gaps in its operations would be closed.

Nuhu, while fielding questions from journalists in

Lagos at the weekend said NCAA took safety issues seriously because it was the priority of the agency.

He said before it took any major decision, it conducted investigation or observation before reaching a conclusion.

“Well as a regulatory body, we take the issue of safety seriously. That is our number one priority, including the safe operation of our airlines, or any operator. However, before we take action, we must have concrete evidence.

“We must have a trend. We see what is happening and we do a risk-based analysis and we decide to take action.

“This is because grounding an airline has serious

repercussions, both on the availability of service to the public and also to the finances and reputation of the airline.

I don't think we were slow in suspending the airline.

“When we reached a point that we were not happy, we called a Zoom meeting. I could have taken the decision on my own, but I am a human being and I know I have my shortcomings. So, I called my entire team. We had a Zoom meeting for about four to five hours before we came to that decision to suspend their operations. I want to say here clearly that it is not a punitive measure. It is our responsibility and duty to guide and work with the operators and assist them to ensure that they

are in compliance with our regulations,” Nuhu stated.

According to him, the airline is doing well, striving to meet the requirements issued by NCAA as a condition for it to return to the skies.

“I must tell you the response we had from Azman Air has been very encouraging and very positive. They are taking all that we have explained to them. "Now they understand it is even better for them to improve their business model.

I have seen a shift and I can guarantee you that by the time Azman complies with all that we want, the public will see a different Azman airline.

“That is our purpose. We are not here to kill anybody or to ruin any airline, but to

guide them to operate safely, efficiently and to provide the necessary services to the travelling public. I just received a very impressive response from them concerning what they have done. We are going to start serious training for their people next week,” he added.

Meanwhile, Nuhu has also stressed the need for general aviation to be separated from scheduled flight operations, noting that the same policies should not guide the two divisions of flight services.

According to him, if separate policies aimed at developing general aviation is passed into law, it would help to develop the sub-sector, create more jobs for pilots and others in the industry.

“As regards the promotion of general aviation policy, we have the Civil Aviation Act before the National Assembly.

Hopefully, it will be passed very soon and passed into law. So, once that is done, and we know what the new NCAA mandate is, we will do a stakeholders meeting for a review of our regulations. I think we need to de-cluster and unbundle our regulations so that the requirements for general aviation were different from the requirements of the airlines. They are not the same risk. So, we need to unbundle those regulations. General aviation could be chartered flights, agric spraying, small tourism aircraft, ambulance and others,” he said.

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COMMENT

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

NNPC, US REPORT AND TRANSPARENCY

Mele Kyari is driving the state company in the pathway of transparency and accountability, writes Ray Umukoro

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or the first time in many decades, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, got into the good books of the United States and her global anti-corruption watch agencies.

This time, rather than the usual splatter of graft and miasma, NNPC grabbed global attention for transparency in an industry tainted, globally, by corruption, sleaze and skulduggery.

The United States 2020 Report on Human Rights Practices in Nigeria released by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labour under the US Department of State gave more than a passing glance at the state of human rights in Nigeria. It exhumed buried carcasses of corruption in Nigeria’s public service. But the same report also highlighted an almost neglected radiance of rainbow in the operations of Nigeria’s petroleum products mother hen, the NNPC. The 2020 Report is a compendium of the good, the bad and the unwholesome in Nigeria’s struggle to moult the ugly garment of corruption as well as cases of human rights violations, some of which showed a naked attempt by government as suppressing free speech and press freedom. But the same report holds out a reed of redemptive grace. It spared the nation’s blushes when it highlighted the new order of transparency at NNPC. In Section 4 of the over 16,500-word report, it states: “In June (2020) the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation released audited 2018 financial statements, the first such release since its establishment in 1977.

The corporation also published audited accounts of its 20 subsidiaries and business divisions. In December the federal government launched the Financial Transparency Policy and Portal, commonly referred to as Open Treasury Portal, with the aim of increasing transparency and governmental accountability of funds transferred by making the daily treasury statement public. The Open Treasury Portal required all ministries, departments, and agencies to publish daily reports of payments greater than five million naira ($13,300). The Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative and other anti-corruption watchdog groups hailed the government for providing better access to government spending data.” As far as is known to most Nigerians, this is the first time that a report emanating from the United States on the status of corruption across the globe would cast a sector in Nigeria in brilliant light. It’s always been tale after tale of corruption, sleight of hand and outright stealing of public funds.

Birthed in 1977, barely a decade after commercial exploitation of crude oil in Oloibiri community, Bayelsa State, in the heartland of the Niger Delta, NNPC has often headlined major cases of corruption in Nigeria. And it’s not just in Nigeria that corporates engaged in oil and gas business are coated in stinking tar. All over the world, there seems to be a harmony between oil companies and the scarlet symphony of corruption. Several American oil and gas companies, those in Mexico, Brazil, China and elsewhere have been indicted in oil fraud cases. NNPC is, therefore, not an exception.

But NNPC appears to have turned a new chapter since July 7, 2019, when Mele Kolo Kyari, a geologist and earth scientist versed in crude exploration, refinery, marketing and management of the petroleum value chain became the 19th GMD of NNPC. He was as forthright as he was blunt about his determination to remove every veil of opacity that had draped the operations of the nation’s petroleum behemoth. His over three decades in the industry prior to his appointment as GMD thoroughly lends him to the job.

His academic background and industry experience means he knows everything and anything about crude oil production. He can tell the soil texture that bears oil and gas. He can sniff crude oil and gas from the deepest part of the earth. Beyond that, he can also sell same. He

BY PUBLISHING THE FINANCIAL REPORTS OF NNPC FOR 2018 AND 2019, KYARI HAS SHOWN HE HAS NOTHING TO HIDE. HE HAS BROKEN A 43-YEAR-OLD JINX STEEPED IN THE MATRIX OF FISCAL MUDDINESS

understands the global market, its foibles, volatility and treachery. Yes, the global oil market is a treacherous one. It can hurt and heal. It can break and make. Some call it the Dutch Disease. Others allude to it as the Resource Curse.

Nigeria has been a victim of the “Dutch Disease” as well as the “Resource Curse. Both are symptomatic of monoculture economies where a nation relies heavily if not solely on crude cash. Whereas the ‘disease’ leads to poverty in the midst of plenty, the ‘curse’ tends to make a people lazy and uninventive. The ‘disease’ kills agriculture and the primary industry; the ‘curse’ makes the people docile and uncreative. This explains why the most progressive nations of the world with robust economies and impressive income per capital are not the largest oil-producing nations or those relying chiefly on oil and gas money. Even now, the most capitalized companies in the world are not oil and gas multinationals but companies which play in the digital economy ecosystem.

Because crude oil business is lucrative, it is also the hotbed of global corruption. Anywhere there is crude oil money, there is a high probability of graft. Russia, Venezuela, Mexico, Angola et al are ready examples. The smell of oil is the stench of corruption.

Transparency International, the global corruption watchdog, puts it succinctly: “Many countries rich in oil and gas are home to some of the world’s poorest people. How can this happen? Too often, wealth stays in the hands of politicians and industry insiders. Revenues don’t get published. Payments made to governments to exploit resources remain secret. Bribery and embezzlement go unchecked.

“Many oil and gas companies protect the identities of their equity holders and subsidiaries. This allows corrupt leaders to hide stolen funds unnoticed. Inadequate financial statements make it easy to disguise corrupt deals, and impossible for any of us to monitor them.

Many oil and gas companies don’t publish information country by country. This allows them to hide the royalties, taxes and fees they pay.

But without this information, we can’t hold governments to account for the money they receive.”

So, it’s more about keeping the books open, about publishing financial reports and information on transactions. This why Kyari’s break from the past is not only commendable but should be the benchmark for other revenue-generating agencies. By publishing the financial reports of NNPC for 2018 and 2019, Kyari has shown he has nothing to hide. He has broken a 43-year-old jinx steeped in the matrix of fiscal muddiness. The very fact that the same US report which condemned some sectors and state actors in Nigeria for corruption and human rights abuses singled out NNPC for fiscal transparency means that the US or any other super power bears no ill-will towards Nigeria. When we do good, they commend us. When we behave badly, they censure us. Kyari has chosen to do good. He has elected to lead a transformed NNPC and its subsidiaries; to repair the old, broken breaches and account to Nigerians. He deserves our prayers and support.

Kyari has shown to the world that Nigeria oil and gas sector is no longer mired in the cesspit of venality and fiscal tardiness; that the sector has taken off on a journey in the pathway of transparency and accountability. This is cheery news and it gets even better when his modest effort is not lost on the global community. International bodies like the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) which described it as a ‘significant milestone’, the Open Government Partnership, among others have variously commended this new order of openness in NNPC. Kyari is flying a patriotic flag. He should stay the course!

Umukoro, a public policy analyst, wrote from Lagos

GOVERNMENT FUNDING OF THE INFORMAL SECTOR Daisy Abiola Igaga argues that the cooperative model provides a more effective means for debt recovery

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e begin by appreciating the federal government for the very laudable economic intervention programmes it has initiated in recent times. We consider these programmes as fundamental interventions towards the economic recovery of the Nigerian State. In spite of the sophisticated content of these programmes as well as the scope of delivery projected for the programmes, the criticism of government on economic progress and general development has not abated.

We do not intend to hold brief for the government. In a country where the insecurity situation is as abysmal as it is presently in Nigeria, the anti-government posture of the citizenry is given.

However, it is important to avoid a narrative where we throw away the baby and the bathwater. It will be inimical to the interest of Nigeria if we do not applaud, and thereby seek to strengthen, the very laudable ongoing economic intervention programmes of the federal government. While the trader moni programme was laudable as an entirely Keynesian model for depressed economy, its investable amount for the individual was an absurdity. We hold that when you give a market woman or man the sum of N10,000 to improve his business, you only help the said trader to pay part of his or her debt. The recent intervention funds earn our accolade as the amount loaned convey genuine capacity upgrading for the recipient.

To that effect, it became fundamental to put forward this interaction so that we can deepen public awareness of these programmes. As an extension of this, this discussion is considered imperative to avoid these programmes being hijacked by tie-wearing city based red neck executives while the target recipients are alienated by lack of awareness that these programmes are ongoing. We also know that these programmes are many and the few persons who are minimally briefed in the public space are confused about which of these programmes are real. You will appreciate the dimension of falsified information and fraud being engendered in the social space presently. To that effect, most of the information being shared through social media are largely received with suspicion. Further to this, most of the peasant farmers and traders dwelling in the rural villages and communities have no access to WhatsApp compliant phones.

Part of the objective of this discussion is to benefit the public with direct insight on the various programmes that are in the social space and how the people can have access to these programmes. Specifically, we are aware of the AGSMIES programme and would draw analysis from it. The AGSMIES programme is targeted at Agriculture, Small and Medium enterprises. As organs of civil society with the main focus of sharing in the pains and needs of the people, we inform that these programmes benefit the “city-based populace” rather than the real or integrated farmers resident in the rural communities.

We classify the former as “city-based populace” because many of them are not in the category of the full-time farmers in the rural settings.

Speaking from the perspective of political economy, we submit that when these funds are misapplied in this context, it constitutes a regression of the expected optimum output of the initiative. We posit that the mono product character of our economy is the most pathetic undoing of Nigeria presently. While building technological and industrial capacity is highly recommended by experts of development economics, the need to explore the benefit of our environmental advantage calls for maximum application of our lands and waters consequent to its rich endowment for agricultural purposes. The AGSMIES programme is targeted at effectively and concretely diversifying the Nigerian economy. We aver that industrialisation must recourse to secondary level conversion. To that effect, the symbiotic relationship between primary agricultural production and the evolvement of industrial manufacture is self-evident.

Thus, when we mismanage, misdirect or misapply the opportunities generated by the present government’s economic intervention project, we sustain or enlarge the already terrible circle of poverty in Nigeria. It is the vision of curtailing the very appalling dimension of poverty in Nigeria by strengthening the present programmes that necessitated this advocacy intervention.

Further to the wider audience provided by the cooperative/civil society model applied herein, we posit

that the cooperative model provides a more effective perspective for debt recovery. The cooperative group have an institutional and corporate identity which the state can effectively apply in enforcing repayment of loans. The cooperative model will also reduce the number of falsified identities presently characteristic of some of the beneficiaries and applicants for these facilities. We are emphatic on a coordinated approach that effectively outlines a repayment plan as the final outcome of the programme is dependent on the recovery of the loans. This is critical to recycling the loans and sustaining the entire programme overtime.

We must appreciate the seriousness of purpose that underpins the implementation of the AGSMIES Programme. While we will urge for the inclusion of the cooperative model in the disbursement perspective, the expected delivery of this session is a more inclusive approach to implementing these programmes. We applaud the NAESA Bank in Edo State for the anticipated opening of extension offices in Edo Central and Edo North. With cooperative and civil society groups from both senatorial zones in attendance, we trust that the information provided by the NAESA directorate will substantially guide the people of these zones on having access to the AGSMIES facility. Once again, we argue that irrespective of the offices at Auchi and Ekpoma, we still have to contend with the rural, uneducated farmer being provided with access to these facilities.

Igaga is president of CONGOs, a network of CSOs/NGOs in Edo State

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T H I S D AY • MONDAY, APRIL 19, 2021

EDITORIAL SECURITY ALERT AND THE AIRPORTS The authorities could do more to secure the airports

A

recent memo from the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) to some airport chiefs across the country on the need to beef up security measures is timely. The memo hinted of a planned attack on the Kaduna, Maiduguri, Sokoto, Kano, Abuja, and Lagos airports and urged the authorities to submit a list of existing and additional countermeasures to address the threat, along with their cost implications where applicable. Although the nature of the threat is not immediately known, we assume that the alert is borne out of fear that terrorist groups might be planning to hit soft targets in our aviation sector. It is a threat that should be taken seriously.

Until the latest elevated security alert, there has been intense concern about the porous nature of security at many of our airports and the ability of facility managers to curtail terrorist attacks. In July 2019, a man, later identified as a Nigerien, jumped into the engine of Azman aircraft, which was at the holding point of the runway of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos.

In the aircraft were OUR AIRPORT MANAGERS passengers who had MUST MITIGATE already settled for VULNERABILITIES the Lagos to Port

BY EMBRACING Harcourt flight. But as the aircraft waited TECHNOLOGY-DRIVEN, for the take-off signal NON-INTRUSIVE SECURITY MEASURES FOR from the control tower, PASSENGERS AND OTHER some of the passengers saw the intruder AIRPORT USERS inside the right engine of the Boeing 737 aircraft, clutching a bag. What followed was a sad reminder of how just about anybody could gain access to the airport restricted areas and hide inside airplanes.

From the video clip that was taken by a passenger on the flight and made public, the intruder was clutching a bag. What could have happened if that bag contained incendiary device and the aim was to bomb the aircraft?

Letters to the Editor

That security breach was an indication that the huge resources spent by FAAN on perimeter fencing and deployment of CCTV in the past was a waste; it now calls for urgent provision of these critical facilities to secure the airside of the airport. It is even more urgent to protect the airports at a period when the security situation in the country is increasingly degenerating.

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

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

eanwhile, it is still fresh in memory how a disaster was averted 18 years ago, when an Air France Airbus A330 flight with 196 passengers on board, ploughed into a herd of cows that strayed into the runway of Port Harcourt International Airport while landing. The collision with the herd not only caused significant damage to the aircraft, it also left seven cows dead, the runway soaked with their blood and the airport closed for several hours. And early last month,10 airport staff were abducted and only released after ransom to bandits, who invaded the FAAN staff quarters near the Kaduna airport in the dead of night.

The scary reality is that some of the people at our airports may be moles or members of a terror gang waiting to strike when no one least expects. Besides, many of our airports are lying too close to crowded residential areas. As a result, their perimeter fences are liable to be breached by all character of people, including subsistence farmers and hunters. Terminal buildings and publicly accessible areas such as restaurants, shopping areas, parking lots and the transport system supporting airports are vulnerable targets for potential attacks. It is therefore vital for the relevant authorities to mitigate attacks through information sharing, public-private partnership and risk assessments.

Our airport managers must mitigate vulnerabilities by embracing technology-driven, non-intrusive security measures for passengers and other airport users. We earnestly implore FAAN to improve on counterterrorism strategies, plans and procedures to protect soft targets and the travelling public.

It is even more urgent to protect the airports at a period when the security situation in the country is increasingly degenerating.

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 (9501000 words). They should be sent to opinion@thisdaylive.com along with the email address and phone numbers of the writer.

COVID - 19 PANDEMIC IN THE FCT

T

he Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Lagos and Ogun States were the first few states in Nigeria to be hit by the rampaging COVID-19 virus early in March 2020.

It all started in Lagos when an Italian who arrived the country through the Murtala Muhammed International Airport was said to have tested positive to the Corona virus. Contact tracing further revealed another case in Ogun State and eventually, the discovery of an isolated case in the FCT on March 21, 2020. This created an air of panic and concern across the country prompting authorities to introduce necessary containment measures which greatly affected the way people live and conduct their businesses in the FCT. As it would be recalled, on the advice of the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 the federal government on March 29, 2020 declared a total lockdown in the FCT and the other two states. The government also directed that schools, religious institutions, markets for non-essential services, recreational centres, among others should remain shut for an initial period of two weeks to ensure that the virus does not spiral out of control.

Drawing inspiration from the PTF’s activities, and lessons learnt from containment initiatives in China and some European countries where the virus had its most devastating impacts, the Minister, Mallam Muhammad Musa Bello in his characteristic concern for health and safety in the FCT, set to work with his colleague, the Minister of State, FCT Dr Ramatu Tijjani Aliyu and developed corresponding internal mechanisms to complement the work of the PTF and keep the Covid-19 curve in check. Thus, they introduced pragmatic measures

that not only reflected the social dynamics of the FCT but also ensured guided and systematic approach to the containment process.

Among the pragmatic steps taken by the FCTA was the setting up of the Ministerial Expert Advisory Task Team on COVID-19, comprising of private sector stakeholders and headed by a former Minister of FCT, Dr Aliyu Modibbo. The team was tasked with the responsibility of harnessing private sector support and efforts towards defeating the deadly virus. Specifically, the team was mandated to rally wealthy individuals and organisations to provide medical, financial and other material support in cushioning the effect of the pandemic in the FCT. Under the synergy and collaborative engagement which the FCT Ministerial Advisory Committee on Covid - 19 signifies, organized private sector and other major stakeholders of the FCT including the China Civil Engineering and Construction Company (CCECC) which provided an elegant five-storey building training center at the Idu train facility was outfitted for use as an isolation and treatment center with a holding capacity of about 400 victims, FATE Foundation, Polaris Bank, Julius Berger Nigeria PLC, Binani Group, among others who were all rallied to provide Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), monitoring machines, furniture and air conditioners and power generators at the IDU 400-bed facility, and other necessary supports.

The wisdom behind these initiatives was to ensure the virus does not escalate in the city. As the minister had explained, “The most dangerous stage of the disease is the one that requires all the expert facilities to be available. So, as much as possible we are using support from all the other agencies to make sure that wherever people are going to be isolated and treated will be well suitable for that and I can

assure you that the external community would be well protected.” This assessment of the situation by the minister fueled his decision to recruit a number of frontline health workers and adhoc staff who were well renumerated to operate and ensure the functionality of the centres.

Part of the systematic measures adopted in compliance with NCDC/PTF on Covid-19 guidelines in the FCT necessitated the use of security agencies as was done in other counties in the wake of the virus. To this end, the FCT Administration rallied the security organisations like the Nigerian Police Force, relevant formations of the military, Civil Defence Corps, the Road Safety, the Department of State Services, FCT Department of Road Transport Services as well as all the agencies involved in the provision of services within the FCT to enforce the presidential lockdown directive under the specified term of references.

As part of their mandates, all organs of the FCT Security Services and other government agencies agreed and worked out modalities to ensure that all entry and exit points of the FCT and by extension, other satellite towns, are manned by relevant officials to ensure that everybody stays at home or keep to the schedules of movements with exemptions given only to frontline health workers and other essential workers. The FCT administration, spared no efforts in curtailing the rampaging effects of the virus as all relevant departments and groups and initiatives including erection of temporary markets, etc., were emplaced. The sensitization and awareness creation programme and also the effective communication strategy of the FCT also played key roles in the enforcement of compliance with Covid-19 control guidelines.

Jamila Musa, Abuja

16

MONDAY APRIL 19, 2021 • T H I S D AY

17

T H I S D AY ˾ MONDAY APRIL 19, 2021

Group Politics Editor NSEOBONG OKON-EKONG

POLITICS

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

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

With Light Rail Mass Transit, Lagos Increases Transportation Choices

Grappling with the transportation challenges of Lagos State with a growing population of over 21 million people who depend on an overstretched road network, the perennial problem of gridlock on Lagos roads is yet to abate, leading Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu to kick start an ambitious light rail mass transit project, write Nseobong Okon-Ekong and Vanessa Obioha

Sanwo-Olu

Jakande

Tinubu

I

t is not an uncommon sight to see Lagosians queuing up at bus stops or running after commercial vehicles on their way to and from work. Neither is the sight of vehicles meandering their way through hellish traffic like a beeline while drivers curse one another a strange view. It is even a common saying that Lagos traffic is an enigma: unpredictable and tiring. If you can survive Lagos traffic, then you can survive anything, so the saying goes.

Road traffic is a major challenge of urban cities, particularly those with limited transportation options. In Lagos State, a sprawling metropolitan city of area land size 999.6 km2 (385.9 sq mi) with one of the largest extensive road networks in West Africa, road traffic is an age-long conundrum that has befuddled different administrations such that their successes are often measured by their intervention in the transportation infrastructure. For instance, the late governor of Lagos State Lateef Jakande is credited for his various interventions in alleviating traffic congestions in his time.

Owing largely to its increasing population and the associated challenges, the success or otherwise of governance in Lagos State may be pegged on a few broad factors including, but not limited to security, waste management, traffic management and transportation.

A governor of Lagos may be adjudged a success or failure going by how well he handles these issues.

It was Jakande who introduced the odd-even traffic restriction policy in the city centre. Back in the 80s when he ruled, he devised a system where vehicles with registration numbers that began with an even and odd number are assigned alternate days of the week to access the city. For example, a vehicle with a plate number startng with an odd number such as 3 can only access the city centre on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. To further solve the traffic jams on Lagos roads, Jakande was responsible for the construction and rehabilitation of inner roads in the city such as Epe/ Ijebu-Ode Road, Oba Akran Avenue, Town Planning Way, Alimosho-Idimu-Egbe Road, Idimu-Iba-LASU Road and Victoria Island/ Epe Road. He also inaugurated the first State Traffic Management Authority known as Road Marshals.

Subsequent governors followed a similar line, launching different projects to overcome the traffic congestion in the growing city. The first democratic governor of Lagos State in the Fourth Republic, Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu conceived the idea of a state-owned agency to ensure free flow of traffic and also reduce road

Governor Sanwo-Olu (with shovel) at the ground breaking of the Red Line

accidents. It was established on July 15, 2000 to transform transportation system. LASTMA is a success story which has been copied by other states . The Tinubu administrator was in its twilight when it sought to implement the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) in 2007. By the time his successor Babatunde Fashola, came into power, BRT became a regular sight on Lagos roads with a dedicated lane.

Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode , who became Governor of Lagos State in 2015, on the other hand dedicated his time in office to building modern bus terminals like the Oshodi, Obalende, Tafawa Balewa Square and Ikeja bus terminals, as well as the creation of 5000 new BRT project under the Bus Reform Initiative (BRI).

But with a growing population of over 21 million people in Lagos who depend on the road network, the perennial problem of road traffic is yet to abate. It is no news that Lagos is one of the fastest-growing cities in Africa.

Therefore, having an organised transportation that will help in the easy movement of people and goods is too relevant to ignore. Calls to consider other alternatives of transportation such as waterways and railways have been louder over the years.

Grappling with the transport challenges of the state led to the establishment of the Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority (LAMATA) which was assigned the Lagos

Rail Mass Transit (LRMT) project. The agency was saddled with the responsibility to build the first modern rail-based public transport in the state. The LRMT network comprises six light rail transit (LRT) lines — red, blue, yellow, purple, green and orange — land one monorail (Victoria Island).

To be sure, the late Jakande was the first to propose a Lagos Metroline Project but the idea suffered a set-back as the government at the centre then, the Shehu Shagari-led National Party of Nigeria (NPN) was in a serious conflict with the Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN), which controlled Lagos State and refused to guarantee the external loan needed for the project. The idea was dumped in the dustbin of history when Jakande left the administrative seat as governor of Lagos.

History indicated that the Lagos tramway was one of the earliest public transport systems built within Lagos, carrying travellers, traders and workers from the train station at Iddo going to Lagos Island. It ran from 1902 to 1933 out of which 12 years (1902-1914) were utilized by passengers travelling from one place to another.

Tinubu in the early 2000s proposed developing a light rail network. After much consultations, it was formally announced in 2003 that a rail network would be constructed.

Despite the proposals, the railway dream would begin to take shape finally in 2008 when

Fashola

the Lagos State Government approved N70 billion for construction of the OkokomaikoIddo-Marina Blue Line, with an estimated completion date of 2011. Almost a decade later, the railway is yet to become a reality.

While work is still in progress, the construction was derailed over the years for a myriad of reasons such as political interests and funding.

Fortunately, the rail network is about to come into fruition as the present governor of Lagos State Babajide Sanwo-Olu recently launched the commencement of the Red Line project.

The 37km North-South rail route would run from Agbado to Marina with 12 proposed stations at Agbado, Iju, Agege, Ikeja, Oshodi, Mushin, Yaba, Ebute Metta (EBJ), Iddo, Ebute Ero and Marina.

The Red Line will be constructed in two phases. The first phase from Oyingbo to Agbado will be a 28km rail that shares track with the Federal Government’s Lagos-Ibadan Railway Modernisation Project and will have a dedicated track from Ebute Metta to Oyingbo.

It will have nine stations, out of which three will be constructed within the Lagos Ibadan corridor by the Federal Government at Agbado, Agege and Ebute Metta. The remaining six will be constructed as independent stations at Iju, Ikeja, Oshodi, Mushin Yaba and Oyingbo.

Phase Two, which will be mostly elevated like the blue line will have stations at Iddo, Ebute Ero and terminate at Marina where there will be an interchange to manage commuters from the red line, blue line and green lines. There will also be a BRT interchange at Marina. A unique feature of the Red Line is the integration with the Ikeja Bus Terminal as well as a link to the local and international airports in Lagos. The proposed Ikeja Train Centre will have a skywalk that will connect commuters to the local airport as well as other bus terminals such as Oshodi. There will be adequate parking and commercial spaces.

The red line concourse will be elevated for proper alignment of passengers. The rail line is expected to carry around 500,000 passengers a day at inception and over one million after completion. The duration of the journey is estimated at 35 minutes.

To facilitate smooth operations of the Red Line, the state will be constructing overpasses in different parts of the state. This it said will help eliminate interactions between the rail systems, vehicular and pedestrian traffic. The implementation of the overpasses will make it possible to remove all the existing manually operated level crossings, thereby providing grade-separated crossings that will enhance safety for both the rail systems and road users.

T H I S D AY ˾ MONDAY APRIL 19, 2021

18

MONDAY DISCOURSE

Ambode

Oladeinde

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19

T H I S D AY ˾ MONDAY APRIL 19, 2021

POLITICS

Time to Stop Insecurity in Imo Imo State is gradually drifting into a precipice and if nothing urgent happens, it may finally get out of hand, writes Amby Uneze

Buhari

I

t is no news that almost every part of Nigeria has become a theatre of war. This is very alarming, as everybody feels the harsh impact. From the North-east to the South-east; the North-west to the South-west; and from the North-central to the South-south, everywhere is charged with insecurity. Imo state, the Eastern Heartland is not left out in the criminal activities that had engulfed the country.

In recent times, Imo has turned to be another centre of violent crimes. It is no longer a once-in-a-while thing, but has become a daily affair. There are crises everywhere, every time.

Hence, something immediate needs to be done to douse or arrest the situation.

With this scenario, it does appear that Imo citizens and her neighbours are losing hope in government for protection. Unarguably, the main duty of government is the provision of adequate security and when the people feel unsafe in a country or state that is supposed to provide that constitutional obligation for them, they become helpless and are prone to attack by hoodlums or bandits.

Slowly, the society descends to an unfortunate level of self help, as the leadership becomes lame and incapacitated to function as government.

Nigeria and indeed Imo state are gradually advancing towards that level of hopelessness.

God forbid this situation.

The spate of attacks on police headquarters and some other police stations in the state and the National Correctional Centre, Owerri the penultimate week leaves a sorry taste in the mouth of everyone. However, the Owerri attack could have been avoided if all things were in place. A one-time director of the department of security services (DSS) had accused the authorities of getting the alert of the impending incident. It was so unfortunate that those who needed to do something to perhaps avert the attack could not do their job well.

The reaction of the Governor, Senator Hope Uzodimma after the attack when he accused members of Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) as being responsible for the attack was condemned. Pundits faulted the Governor for his hasty accusation on IPOB because he had no proof of that claim.

Another twist of the accusation by the governor was contained in his Thursday’s Channel Television interview where he retracted his earlier claim of accusation on IPOB. This time he laid the accusation on politicians of sponsoring the attack in the state to discredit his government. “It is not about IPOB. Yes, we agree, we have aggrieved IPOB members.

But I can tell you; those who are doing these destruction, most of them were brought from outside Imo state.

“They (politicians) try to identify grievances of people in a particular area. They hire hoodlums from outside Imo state. They bring them in pretending to be IPOB and they commit this crime and they go away”, Uzodimma said.

In the same vein, the State Commissioner for

Uzodinma

Information and Strategy, Declan Emelumba in a statement accused the former governor of the state, Senator Rochas Okorocha of masterminding the attack, a claim Okorocha swiftly denied of having anything to do with the attack.

Again, in a more confused manner, the State government also urged Security operatives in the state to expedite their investigation into the recent attack on Police and Nigerian Correctional Services facilities by hoodlums to ensure the perpetrators are fished out and made to face justice.

Government mandated the Security agencies to beam their searchlight on all possible suspects and avoid the temptation of focusing in only one direction to ensure that the brains behind the mayhem are fished out and prosecuted accordingly.

Emelumba said: “Council directed the security agents to expedite their investigation and make sure that no stone is left upturned and to beam their searchlight in all possible suspected areas and not concentrate on only one area and ensure that those who perpetrated this dastardly act are fished out and brought to book as quickly as possible.

While awaiting the security agencies to parade suspects of the attack, two weeks after the mayhem, no suspect has been identified yet, which poses a great danger to the society.

However, at the last count, about 86 prisoners have returned to the Correctional centre, out of about 1844 prisoners that escaped during the jailbreak.

As if the attack on Police headquarters and Correctional Centre were not enough, gunmen again within the same period attacked the Mbieri Divisional Police headquarters in Mbaitoli local government area of Imo state

freeing detainees and burning vehicles. After the Monday attack in Owerri, the Ehime Mbano Police station was also attacked and detainees were freed as well. Before this period, the Aboh Mbaise Police Divisional Headquarters and the Obowo Police Station had had their own series of woes in the hands of the gunmen.

When THISDAY visited the Mbieri Divisional police station two burnt vehicles were seen while the detainees were no longer there. It was learnt that the fleeing gunmen struck around 1am and immediately released the suspects in custody in the police facility. The gunmen also took away the phones belonging to suspects and the police operatives at the Division.

But a police source at Division said the gunmen were repelled by the policemen on duty.

“We resisted them but they overpowered us.

They had more sophisticated weapons. They took all the phones they saw, released the suspects when they gained access and vandalised the police building”. The source confided in our correspondent that the attackers kidnapped one police officer and injured two other cops.

Only last week, the governors of the five south east region converged in Imo Government House, Owerri under the auspices of the South East Governors’ Forum where they reached the conclusion to set up a regional security outfit known as “Ebube Agu”.

Joined by chiefs of all armed bearing security agencies in the zone with a high - powered delegation from the office of the Acting Inspector General comprising a deputy Inspector General of Police and an Assistant Inspector General of Police, the Governors resolved to bring their resources and arsenal together to fight terrorism and flush out criminals in the zone.

Part of the resolution, it was revealed, is that

When THISDAY visited the Mbieri Divisional police station two burnt vehicles were seen while the detainees were no longer there. It was learnt that the fleeing gunmen struck around 1am and immediately released the suspects in custody in the police facility.

The gunmen also took away the phones belonging to suspects and the police operatives at the Division. But a police source at the Division said the gunmen were repelled by the policemen on duty. “We resisted them but they overpowered us. They had more sophisticated weapons. They took all the phones they saw, released the suspects when they gained access and vandalised the police building”. The source confided in our correspondent that the attackers kidnapped one police officer and injured two other cop

the security agencies agreed to share intelligence and information concerning the zone and in a manner that will help check crimes.

According to the governors a committee made up of security personnel, government officials and relevant stakeholders will be set up to coordinate and monitor the implementation of the South East joint security platform called Ebube Agu with headquarters in Enugu.

“The meeting approved that the acting IGP and other security chiefs do invite the leadership of Ohanaeze Ndigbo and CAN to find out the reason for increasing insecurity of the South East,” and that the “meeting agreed that military policing in the South East should be adequately funded and become effective”.

However, in his reaction over the setting up of the regional security outfit, a lawyer, Aloy Ejimakor noted that setting up such a security outfit with security agents who are not from the zone s commanders could be counter-productive. “It’s impossible to secure the Southeast without its participation”.

He said, “In other words, Eastern Nigerians shouldn’t be the ones internally securing Western Nigeria or Northern Nigeria and vice versa. When you do that, it becomes counterintuitive to security and begins to look like an occupation, a conquest or worse. And it might bread popular resistance, overtly or covertly”.

Just as the Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo rightly pointed out in his reaction to the attack on Police and Custodial facilities in Owerri, Monday morning noted that Nigeria would rejig its security architecture for desired result; we need not to wait for a moment to do that.

According to him “We will rejig the security architecture of the country and strengthen security at correctional centres nationwide”.

“Perpetrators of this act will definitely be brought to book. They must not go scot-free.

They are cowards and will be discovered and duly prosecuted. The vice president however urged security agencies not to relent in the fight against banditry irrespective of the challenges involved”, he said.

As it is the usual palance with Nigerian leaders, they would say one thing and in practice do another. For a very long time, Nigerians have been clamouring for the restructuring of the country as well as re-strategizing the security design of the country but the government kept mute over this strong agitation for a better Nigeria.

It is pertinent to capture the denial of IPOB of not being involved in the Owerri attack.

IPOB’s Media and Publicity Secretary, Mr. Emma Powerful, said the attacks were not carried out by operatives of ESN. “The attention of IPOB has been drawn again to the fallacious and fabricated news that IPOB and ESN are involved in the attack of prison and police headquarters in Owerri Imo State.

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

T H I S D AY ˾ ͯͷ˜ ͰͮͰͯ

20

FEATURES

Group Features Editor: Chiemelie Ezeobi Email chiemelie.ezeobi@thisdaylive.com, 07010510430

Regional Security Outfits and Tribal Fireworks Kingsley Nwezeh delves into the growing list of regional security outfits in the Southern part of the country, the rationale behind their emergence and the implications for Nigeria's corporate existence

South-east governors in a photo-op after the formation of Ebube Agu regional security

W

ith the birth of the South-east Regional Security Outfit, Ebube Agu (the fearsome aura of a lion) by the Southeast Governors' Forum last week, the outfit joined the growing list of regional organisations, after their South-west counterparts launched Amotekun last year.

The alternative security measures are largely a response to wanton killings, kidnappings and rape of married and young women across the country by herdsmen, terrorists, armed bandits and other criminal elements who have recently moved down south.

It is also a sad commentary on the inability of the security agencies to contain the security breaches in the country with allegations of bias in the management of such situation in many cases.

The outfit, with headquarters in Enugu, is expected to complement the efforts of federal security agencies in tackling the security challenges in the region.

The governors led by Governor Dave Umahi of Ebonyi State, who is also the Chairman of the South-east Governors' Forum, condemned the recent burning of police stations, violent attacks on custodial centres with the unlawful release of inmates, and the killing of security personnel, natives, farmers and herdsmen.

The governors, in a communique, issued in Owerri, Imo State capital, aligned themselves with the efforts of the federal government to find a solution to the security challenges in the country.

The meeting, attended by the five South-east governors, Dave Umahi (Ebonyi); Okezie Ikpeazu (Abia); Willie Obiano (Anambra); Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi (Enugu) and Hope Uzodinma (Imo) among other decisions, resolved to "maintain a joint security vigilante for the South-east otherwise known as Ebube Agu".

The meeting appreciated the formation of South-east joint security outfit codenamed Ebube Agu, with headquarters in Enugu "to coordinate our vigilante in the South-east".

Beyond Ebube Agu, the South-east

President Muhammadu Buhari

General Lucky Irabor

Some security experts have faulted the Igbo governors' security intiative which they held lacked any component that addressed injustice, marginalisation and the absence of legal framework to back up the outfit.

Speaking in an interview with THISDAY, former Director of the Department Ebube Agu, Legal Issues and Basis of State Security (DSS), Mr. Mike Ejiofor, said South-east governors must address of Agitation Unlike its South-western counterpart, the issues of injustice and perceived Amotekun, the formation of Ebube Agu marginalisation for such an outfit to has faced stringent criticisms over its be effective.

He said leaders of the South-east legal basis.

In establishing Amotekun, the South- should convene a larger meeting of west states enacted laws guiding its all the stakeholders rather than an existence, operations and personnel idea borne by politicians with larger implications for the future. through the state legislature.

"Setting up Ebube Agu security outfit is Violent attacks by herdsmen, injustice and marginalisation have also been not the priority of the South-east. What identified as the rationale behind the they have done is misplaced. They are formation of regional security organisa- talking of setting up security outfit to address security challenges and open tions. zone is also grappling with the activities of the Eastern Security Network (ESN), associated with the Indigenous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB), which has been a target of military helicopters and troops regularly hunting for their operatives in the region.

grazing. What is the legal framework for it? Where did they have the law setting up Ebube Agu? You don't just do things because other people are doing it.

"What I expected them to do is to look at the immediate and remote causes.

Why are the youth in the South-east agitating. Is it not because of perceived marginalisation and injustice? Where there is no justice, there will never be peace", he said.

The former DSS said: "You are talking about setting up of ebube agu, there is no law backing it up. I am not happy with the governors. I do not know why they should gather and set up such an outfit without legal framework. In the South-west, they backed theirs up with laws, provided offices and operational vehicles. You just come together and proclaim Ebube Agu. What they have done is not different from Eastern

21

T H I S D AY ˾ ͯͷ˜ ͰͮͰͯ

FEATURES Security Network. They just made a pronouncement just like the IPOB did.

No legal framework".

Failure of Policing Another issue raised as the reason for the establishment of regional security outfits is the failure of policing. As the lead security agency in internal security operations, the Nigerian Police is saddled with the responsibility of provision of security for lives and property.

Paucity of funds, lack of equipment and manipulation of the force structure have combined to render it ineffective.

The recent #EndSARS protests hajiacked by hoodlums and the consequential destruction of police infrastructure readily comes to mind.

To underscore the urgency of the situation, the acting Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Usman Baba, told commissioners of police from the South-east and South-south states that the situation in the two zones required urgent attention.

"We have called this meeting to discuss issues affecting us in the South-east and South-south geo-political zones. We have a very critical situation in the two zones which needs immediate attention and rejigging our strategy to ensure that it is contained", he said.

At another meeting with the Executive Secretary of the Police Trust Fund (PTF), Mr. Ahmed Sokoto, the IG lamented the deplorable state of police barracks.

"Accommodation is an issue in our barracks that require urgent attention.

Most of our buildings are bad. It is very critical that policemen are kept in one place so that you can mobilise them for work in the shortest possible time", he said.

In an interview with THISDAY, a retired Deputy Inspector-General of Police (DIG), Mr. Parry Osayande, said the lack of attention paid to the Nigerian Police by the federal government "destroyed" the police force with the creation of several organisations out of it, notably, Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC), Department of State Security (DSS), Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commision (EFCC).

He said the situation had left the populace at the mercy of criminal elements hence the formation of regional security groups for self defence.

"The federal government deliberately destroyed the Nigerian Police. Of all the police in the former commonwealth countries, the Nigerian Police is the only one that has been decimated.

"They created EFCC, DSS, Road Safety, NSCDC out of it. They are funding them with what should have been funding for the police so the police is dead and the people are exposed. So if the regionalists decide to defend themselves, what do you have against them? They are going to suffer it eventually. So you have four other forces competing with the Nigerian police. They are underdeveloped, undertrained", he lamented.

"We need to bring people that can rule the country properly, those who have the interest of Nigerians at heart.

How do you pay a police officer 30,000 a month and a senator is earning N30 million a month. How do you find the way forward there?", he queried.

The former Chairman of the Police Service Commision (PSC) lamented the lack of commitment in resolving governance issues by those saddled with such responsibility.

"People are owed salaries, doctors are not paid and you are going abroad for medical treatment", he said.

Implications of Regional Security Outfits The emergence of regional security organisations portends danger to the corporate existence of Nigeria. It is also a reaction to unrestrained violence ravaging the country and the failure of government to respond to the genuine demands, to take a second look at demands and agitations for a better country, forcing citizens to resort to self-help.

Such groups may at a point command

Governor Seyi Makinde with Amotekun operatives, a South-west regional security outfit

Hisbah, a Northern regional security outfit

the loyalty of the people and subsequently become more trustworthy in respect of security of lives and propety than the regular security agencies.

Distrust for Ebube Agu A Human Rights Research and Advocacy group, International Society for Civil Liberties and the Rule of Law (Intersociety) had raised the alarm that Ebube Agu was a suspicious package and product of the federal authorities which would eventually be rendered inoperable.

A statement signed by a Principal Officer of the group, Mr. Emeka Umeagbalasi, said that "Intersociety is strongly suspicious of the panicky and hurried announcement of the new security outfit by the South-east Governors Forum. Coming when all hopes have been lost from state actor angles, forcing most citizens of the region to place their hopes, expectations and solutions on the table of non state actors. We are very surprised to hear the sudden announcement.

"Intersociety also doubts the sincerity and genuineness of the promoters of the new security outfit. It is doubtful, too, whether critical indigenous stakeholders and other interest groups were duly consulted and carried along. The new outfit is most likely a baptism name given to the 2019 illegitimate and unpopular “community policing” arrangement by the same South-east governors during which all the security chiefs that attended the meeting where the decision to use “community policing” to checkmate menace of jihadist herdsmen in the south-east region were made up of officers of Fulani-Hausa Muslim background", it said.

Intersociety further declared: "We therefore have strong reason to suspect and conclude that the South-east governors' newly created security outfit,

tagged “Ebubeagu Security Outfit” is a caliphate inspired counter measure to truncate or weaken non-state actor arrangements including vigilant and vigilantism resort to legitimate self defense safeguards provided in Section 258 of the Criminal Code and Section 59-60 of the Penal Code (operational in the Igbo parts of Benue and Kogi States).

"The latest moves by the south-east governors are also likely geared towards using the so called “Ebubeagu Security Outfit” to protect and consolidate the jihadist herdsmen incursions and settlements in bushes, forests and farmlands in the south-east region and its outposts in Benue, Kogi, Rivers, Cross River, Delta and Edo States", it said.

The research group alleged that the name “Ebubeagu' as a matter of fact, is meaninglessly a camouflage especially when the Nigerian Army has used similar camouflages like “Egwu-Eke” and “Atilogwu Udo” to massacre over 700 unarmed and defenseless citizens of the region and maim over 800 others and engage in other atrocious conducts including roadblock corrupt practices".

The group argued that the outfit could not be operated successfully in the South-east region where almost 100 per cent of top security especially military and police formations were in the hands of officers from other regions, most of whom are muslims of Fulani-Hausa extraction.

OPC, Igbo Group Tackle Miyetti Allah's 5000 Vigilantes Threats of more violence have continued to dominate the atmosphere, reinforcing the reason for the formation of regional security outfits.

The Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore had recently stated that it would deploy 5000 vigilantes across the country to protect Fulani interests, part of planned

100,000 vigilante deployment.

Two groups, Odua People's Congress (OPC) and the Igbo National Council have furiously reacted to the deployment plan.

The leader of OPC and Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yoruba land, Iba Gani Adams, said the threat by Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore to deploy 5,000 members of the group in the 36 states could lead to anarchy.

"Establishing a vigilante group by the Fulani in other people’s land is driving the country towards anarchy and nobody has a monopoly of violence.

They are condemning Amotekun and Ebube Agu but it is only criminals that will have the fear for any region to have their internal security outfits. Why is Miyetti Allah challenging anything that happens in other regions? I think the federal government should not take their statement lightly. If they do, it can affect the government", he said.

According to him, “If they want to organise a security outfit, it should be to help and support the government and not to work against the government.

Have the Yoruba or the Igbo in Kano organised a parallel security outfit against Hisbah? No Yoruba community has said it wants to tackle Hisbah, because they know that Hisbah is serving the state government and the state government has the right to protect the interest of the people. Miyetti Allah is making a statement that can cause crisis in the country,” he stated.

Speaking in the same vein, the Igbo National Council (INC) warned the Miyetti Allah over its threat to deploy 5000 vigilantes to the South-east and other parts of the country.

A statement issued by the National President of the group, Chilos Godsent, said the recent threat would not be tolerated.

“We have received with anger the rumour that the Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore is planning to deploy 5000 of their squad to the South-east and other zones in the name of vigilante. We want to use this medium to advice them before sending those men and women to their early grave as that project may mark the end of Miyetti Allah in South-east zone of Nigeria", it said.

The INC said “the Igbo National Council and various other self-determination groups of the Igbo nation will no longer tolerate any aggression from the Miyetti Allah sponsored terrorist attack against any community in Igbo land.”

US Warning on Movement of ISIS, al-Qaeda to the South The United States government recently warned against the infiltration of Southern Nigeria by terror groups, notably, ISIS and al-Qaeda and Boko Haram.

At a virtual media briefing, the Commander of the US Special Operations Command, Africa, Dagvin Anderson, said terror groups were moving down south and other parts of West Africa.

"We have engaged with Nigeria and continue to engage with them in intel sharing and in understanding what these violent extremists are doing. And that has been absolutely critical to their engagements up in Borno State and into an emerging area of North-west Nigeria that we are seeing al-Qaeda starting to make some inroads in", he said.

“So, this intelligence sharing is absolutely vital and we stay fully engaged with the government of Nigeria to provide them with an understanding of what these terrorists are doing, what Boko Haram is doing, what ISIS-West Africa is doing, and how ISIS and alQaeda are looking to expand further south into the littoral areas".

In view of the intelligence provided by the US government, the federal government should take steps to look more closely into the level of infiltration and strengthen counter, deployable measures against a clearly present force.

This may also provide an insight into the rampant killings, kidnappings and rape in the South and the place of regional security outfits.

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MONDAY APRIL 19, 2021 • T H I S D AY

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Group Business Editor Obinna Chima

Email obinna.chima@thisdaylive.com 08152447875

A P R I L

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

522.34% -0.83% - 6.52%

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- 6.52% - 22.07%

EXCHANGE RATE N379/1US DOLLAR* *AS AT LAST FRIDAY

Quick Takes NESG Appoints New Board Directors.

MAKING HISTORY

L-R:ChiefCommercialOfficer,VoriancorelliLmited(VC),MissJenniferOnyebuagu;ChiefOperatingOfficer,GTICapitalLimited,Mr.KehindeHassan;Chairman, VC,Mr.BolajiAkinboro; Managing Director, Lagos Commodities and Futures Exchange (LCFE), Mr. Akin Akeredolu-Ale; Managing Director,VC, Mr. Rufus Udechukwu and Chief Operating Officer, Mrs. AdesuaNosa-EhimaEfienenokwuduring pre-listingmediabriefingonVoriancorelliasthefirstcompanytolistontheLCFE inLagos….recently.

Shippers Council Fixes Deadline to Abolish N16bn Annual Container Deposit Eromosele Abiodun After several setbacks and following assurances by the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) the Nigerian Shippers Council (NSC) has said it will finally abolish container deposit by the end of June this year.

Executive Secretary/CEO of the NSC, Hassan Bello who disclosed that at a media briefing in Lagos, said Nigerian shippers paid a whooping N16 billion as container deposit in 2018 alone.

Bello, said the figures for 2019 and 2020, which the NSC will soon make available are not far from that of 2018, indicating that Nigerian shippers paid over N48 billion as container deposit in three years.

Container-deposit also known as a deposit-refund system, is the collection of a monetary deposit on certain containers at the point of sale and/or the payment of

MARITIME refund value to the consumers.

When the container is returned to an authorised redemption center, or retailer in some jurisdictions, the deposit is partly or fully refunded to the redeemer who is presumed to be the original purchaser.

According to Bello, “We are sure of this new deadline because we have stakeholders on our side.

“We are talking with stakeholders, which include the shipping companies who are the owners of the containers. On the regulatory side, we are working with NAICOM and we have called individual insurance companies.

“Some of the insurance companies have already written us that they want to undertake the insurance and the shipping companies are happy about that.

“As we speak, a meeting is

going on between NSC, NAICOM and other partners. We are actually thinking of the best way forward.

There will be a process flowchart that will talk about registration, which take care of the empty containers that are being dumped all over the place.”

Bello also assured that the NSC will continue to ensure the smooth running of the port as it did during the COVID-19 lockdown.

He said the port automation that the NSC was working hard to achieve would put an end to port congestion, Apapa traffic gridlock and corruption at the port.

“Port automation will also stop revenue leakages, corruption and make Nigeria’s ports to be more competitive,” he added.

While praising the federal government on its effort to develop new deep seaports in the country, he said the Lekki Deep Seaport will be the game changer for Nigeria and help the country

define its role in the transportation sector.

“The Lekki Deep Seaport will no doubt justify the need for Public Private Partnership (PPP) in infrastructural development, “he said.

He said the NSC has gone far in its quest for port automation adding that reports from major terminal operators showed that they are fully digitalised.

“They are commending the Shippers Council for what we are doing to promote port efficiency in Nigeria. Payments at some terminals now are been done online, some terminals have achieved 70 to 80 per cent automation.

“The second phase is the integration of systems with banks and government agencies like the Nigeria Customs Service (NSC),” he said.

Continued on page 24

All-Share Index Falls 0.2% as Market Remains Bearish Goddy Egene The nation’s stock market remained bearish last week leading to a decline of 0.15 per cent in the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) All-Share Index to close at 38,808.01, while market capitalisation ended at N20.310 trillion.

The market had similarly dipped the previous week. However, unlike two weeks ago when the volume and value of trading also decline, investors staked more funds last week.

A total of 1.263 billion shares worth N10.759 billion were traded in 19,975 deals last week, up from 887.037 million shares valued at N9.193 billion that exchanged in 17,837 deals the preceding week.

CAPITAL MARKET After the earning season and as the second quarter began recently, investors are said to be realigning their portfolio with eyes on yield movements in the fixed income (FI) market. Also, the nation’s subsisting stagflation environment remains a potent threat to investment returns in the financial market.

However, analysts at Cordros Securities said: “With the Q1-2021 earnings season on the horizon, we believe investors will be looking for clues on how corporate earnings will evolve in 2021, given the expected improvement in macroeconomic conditions.

“However, we expect the

lull in the market to persist as investors remain perturbed by the rising yields in the FI market.

Notwithstanding, we advise investors to take positions in only fundamentally justified stocks as the weak macro story remains a significant headwind for corporate earnings.”

The Financial Services Industry remained the most traded with 853.125 million shares valued at N6.754 billion traded in 11,127deals, thus contributing 67.5 per cent and 62.7 per cent to the total equity turnover volume and value respectively.

The Conglomerates Industry followed with 103.226 million shares worth N704.563 million in 954deals.

The Oil and Gas Industry

occupied the third position with a turnover of 89.472 million shares worth N353.533million in 1,479deals.Trading in the top three equities namely Fidelity Bank Plc, FBN Holdings Plc and Access Bank Plc accounted for 390.775 million shares worth N2.021 billion in3, 241deals.

A look at the price movement chart showed that the bears visited 47 equities higher than 40 equities in the previous week, the bulls visited 18 equities higher than 17 equities in the previous week.

Custodian Investment Plc led the price losers with 17.8 per cent, trailed by Northern Nigeria Flour Mills Plc with 13.7 per cent.

Mutual Benefits Assurance Plc

The Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG) has announced the appointment of new members to its board of directors.

A statement signed by the Chairman, Board of Directors, NESG, Mr. Asue Ighodalo, said the newly appointed board members are the Managing Partner,SahelConsultingAgricultureandNutritionLimited,NdidiNwuneli; Group CEO, MRS Holdings Limited, Amina Maina; Chief Limited Executive Officer,TotalE&PMikeSangster;andtheCEO,MTNNigeria,Mr.KarlToriola.

It also stated that the Managing Partner,Tran-Sahara Investment Corporation, Kyari Bukar, returns to the NESG board, adding that other newly appointed directors joining the board are the CEO, Flour Mills Nigeria Plc, Omoboyede Olusanya; MD/CEO, Nestlé Nigeria Plc, Mr. Wassim El-Husseini; Managing Partner, Agon Continental Limited, Mr. Nnanna Ude; and Managing Partner, Wizer Resource and Advisory Limited, and Wizer Consulting Services LLP, Mr. Lanre Akinbo.

Accordingtothestatement:“Thenewlyappointeddirectorswillcollaborate with current board members to drive the mandate on Nigeria’s foremost think tank and policy advocacy group in the national interest.

“The current members are Olaniyi Yusuf (Vice-Chair); Osagie Okunbor (second Vice-Chair); ‘Laoye Jaiyeola (CEO); Foluso Phillips; Adedoyin Salami; Yinka Sanni and Udeme Ufot.

“Other current board members are Tony Attah, Wonu Adetayo, Juliet Ehimuan-Chiazor,AdekunleElebute,FrankAigbogunandSegunOgunsanya.

We appreciate all members for their commitment in the national interest and charge every Nigerian to remain steadfast, innovative and resilient in these challenging times.”

Cormart Introduces CreteHard

OneoftheleadingchemicalcompaniesinNigeria,CormartNigeriaLimited hasintroducedahighperformanceandspeciallydevelopedPVA(polyvinyl acetate) adhesive, CreteHard, to the market.

A statement from the group explained that the adhesive provides strong bonds in general construction application, such as patching, rendering, surface priming, among other things. It also stated that it is also suitable for use as a concrete additive, sealing agent and a binder of old and new concrete together.

Cormart’s Business Unit Head for Construction Chemicals, Mr. Diwakar Thiruvalam, explained the versatility in the usage of the product and its effectiveness, “CreteHard was specifically designed to work for different bonding needs.

“It can be used as a concrete joint filler, plaster bonding agent, dust proofer and sealer for concrete floors and heavy duty casting.”

The Managing Director, El-Alan Construction Company, Mr. Andrea Geday, who spoke on the company’s experience while using CreteHard, said: “We are really impressed with this product. It provides excellent adhesion, reducesthepermeabilityoftheconcrete,increasestheresistanceofwear and above all, it has various applications in general construction. It’s like our ‘one-stop product’ for every adhesive need in general construction.”

TheGeneralManager,Cormat,Dr.JohannesFlosbach,statedthatcustomers’ needs were a major priority when CreteHard was being developed.

He declared that the company wants a product that its customers could use for diverse purposes, maintaining that CreteHard has been a huge success in this regard so far.

Air Peace Pilots, Others Receive Vaccine

The pilots, cabin crew and other personnel that interface with customers of Air Peace have started receiving the COVID-19 vaccine to help curtail the spread of the virus and give passengers more confidence to fly with the airline.

This was disclosed by the airline’s spokesman, Stanley Olisa, who stated that the vaccine was being administered by the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN).

Olisa, who commended the federal government for making the vaccine available, stressed that Air Peace prioritises the well-being and safety of its staff and customers, adding that all frontline personnel had been directed to receive the vaccine.

“We directed that our staff, especially those on frontline duties, get vaccinated to protect them and make the flying public feel more confident and reassured whenever they fly Air Peace,” Olisa said.

“Most countries in the world today are confronted by not only health challenges coming from the COVID-19 pandemic, causing economic crisis and others” CBN Governor,

Continued on page 24

Godwin Emefiele

T H I S D AY ˾ ͯͷ˜ ͰͮͰͯ

24

BUSINESSWORLD SHIPPERS COUNCIL FIXES DEADLINE TO ABOLISH N16BN ANNUAL CONTAINER DEPOSIT Bello, also decried the environmental pollution at the nation’s seaports by hawkers who loiter the place with engine and other hazardous substances.

“Our port environment is not clean, we are working with the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) to clean up the place, move out hawkers and retailers whose activities is messing up the port, “he added.

The federal government, he added, has linked the port with rail, which he stressed was a significant achievement, “because rail carries more cargo and is cheaper and most efficient. We now also use our waterways where we use barges to move cargo to other parts of the country.

“The electronic call-up system that was recently introduced by the NPA will help solve the traffic problem along port access roads.

“We all need to support it, it requires discipline, and we all need to work together for its success. We all know some people who are benefiting from the crisis will not want it to work, we must not allow them.”

ALL-SHARE INDEX FALLS 0.2% AS MARKET REMAINS BEARISH

shed 12.8 per cent. Fidson Healthcare Plc went down by 9.8 per cent, while Cutix Plc and Tripple Gee & Company Plc declined by 9.7 per cent apiece. Other top price losers included: NCR (Nigeria) Plc (9.6 per cent); Studio Press Plc (9.5 per cent); Champion Breweries Plc (9.0 per cent ) and FCMB Group Plc (8.9 per cent).

On the positive side, FTN Cocoa Processors Plc led the price gainers with 16.2 per cent.

Morison Industries Plc trailed with 9.3 per cent, while Royal Exchange Plc appreciated by 8.3 per cent. Meyer Plc garnered 8.1 per cent. Other top price gainers included: UAC of Nigeria Plc (7.5 per cent); Guinness Nigeria Plc (7.2 per cent); UACN Property Development Company Plc (5.3 per cent); Linkage Assurance Plc (5.0 per cent); FBN Holdings Plc (4.8 per cent) and Chams Plc (4.7 per cent).

Group Business Editor

Obinna Chima

Capital Market Editor

Goddy Egene

Comms/e-Business Editor

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

Raheem Akingbolu (Advertising) Correspondents

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

Nosa Alekhuogie (ICT) Peter Uzoho (Energy)

NEWS

New Policy Reclassifies MSMEs Based on Turnover, Not Assets James Emejo in Abuja The Director General and Chief Executive, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), Dr. Dikko Umaru Radda, has said Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in the country would henceforth be recognised by their turnover rather than asset base.

Furthermore, he pointed out that under the reviewed National Policy on MSMEs, recently approved by the federal government, micro enterprises have been split into Nano/Homestead and Micro Enterprises.

Speaking at a media briefing on the reviewed framework, he said several reasons had justified the resolve to reclassify small business based on their turnover.

He said: “Inflation and naira devaluation have eroded the asset levels set in 2007 when the first national policy was approved.

“As a result, comparison of new investments with the old becomes clumsy and misleading - that’s not the case when comparing turnovers of the same time; certifying asset values are more complex than determining turnover values.”

Under the new regime, MSMEs are further categorised as nano,

micro, small and medium enterprises.

The nano/homestead business units are required to have one to two employees with turnover of less than N3 million, while micro enterprises are required to employ three to 25 staff with turnover of

N3 million to N25 million.

Also, small enterprises are required to employ between 10 to 40 staff with turnover of over N25 million while medium enterprises are to have between 50 to 199 staff and turnover of over N100 million before they

can be qualified as such.

Among other things, Radda, said fintech and other tech-driven companies have distorted the traditional relationship between asset base and business turnover, adding that experience from comparable countries, including

India, showed they have all shifted from using assets in classifying their MSMEs. Radda, added that the company income tax waiver/incentive for small businesses under the Finance Act 2020 is also tied to turnover and not asset base.

SIMPLIFYING PAYMENTS

ManagingDirector,FraserSuites,Abuja, MohammedG.Nasreddin(left) andManagingDirector/ChiefExecutiveOfficer,JaizBank, HassanUsman,duringthe officialdeploymentofNQRcodebythebanktotheFraserSuitesHotelinAbuja...recently

National Identity: Nigeria Wasted $2.5bn in 45 Years, Says Aladekomo Emma Okonji Nigeria allegedly lost about $2.5 billion in the last 45 years due to poor implementation of several failed national identity projects, according to the Chairman of Chams Plc, Mr. Demola Aladekomo.

He said this at a recent webinar organised by the University of Lagos MBA 83-84 class.

Aladekomo, who spoke on the topic titled: ‘Socio-economic Benefits of Shifting Paradigms,’ painted a grimmer picture, when he said, “we may even waste another borrowed $400 million

by end of 2021 with the non-clarity in the management of various ID projects in the country.”

According to him, “With about 210 million Nigerians yet to be identified fully, I foresee increased chaos, anarchy, militancy, banditry, kidnapping, nepotism, secession calls, corruption and blatant stealing.

“This will further be exacerbated in 2050 when our population is estimated to be about 400 million if not gotten right at this stage.”

He emphasised that just because the federal government does not know and cannot manage Nigerians without proper identity

management, the country would be faced continuously with challenging socio-economic imperatives especially in education, health sector, infrastructure development, security, rule of law, among others. This he added, were gravely exposed in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Aladekomo therefore called for paradigm shift in three areas: prioritising data and technology; Multi-agency approach; and Private sector involvement.

According to him, “Technologies have changed the landscape, digital economy is the new play, we need databases at national,

state, agencies and sectoral levels.

“These data need to be domiciled in Nigeria while local technologies should be encouraged.

“Our private sector should be deliberately promoted to be involved in the execution of our national identity projects because with them there will be cost effective delivery, speed of execution, and attraction of funding/investment. Moreover, many of them have the right and most suited technology for our peculiar environment.”

Software Developer, Felix Adejimi, who also spoke at the webinar, said data remained the

fuel of modern economy.

According to him, “Digital transformation is the driver of global economies and as a nation, we need to take it seriously. Moreover, Nigerian government will do better if it just focus more on providing enabling and secure environment for private companies.”

Managing Director of HISPLUS, Tunde Omitogun, encouraged Nigeria to act fast and implement some of the points highlighted, in order to avoid a situation where Nigeria would be seen as creating a criminal nation or a nation of evil doers, if we have not created that already.

Adesina Urges FG to Enhance Youth Competitiveness James Emejo in Abuja The President of the African Development Bank (AfDB), Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, has called on the federal government to embark on bolder measures to enhance the competitiveness of youths in order to match their peers on the global level.

He added that the government must do everything possible to reinvent itself by focusing on the youth population, adding that with a population of 206 million people, out of which 70 pent are under the age of 30 years, “what Nigeria

does with its youth will determine the future of the country”.

He spoke virtually at the Joshua Generation International Youth Conference, themed: “Living with a Purpose,” held recently.

He expressed worry that currently, Nigeria’s youths are faced with several challenges, including unemployment, limited technical and vocational skills, limited inclusion in social and political space, and lack of financing for ventures and businesses.

Adesina said: “The greater wealth of Africa, and of course Nigeria, will come from the

youth. I know there are several misconceptions about the youth.

I don’t understand why, because I was once a youth myself.

“The youth are not the problem of Nigeria; the youth are the assets of Nigeria. We must not relegate the youth to the background; we must put the youth in the fore.”

He added that the country must explore all possiblity to reinvent itself by focusing on the youth, adding that, “Nigeria must embark on bolder measures to grow its youth into a well-trained globally competitive work force.

“The youth do not need

empowerment. Look around, often those who say they are empowering them are actually simply empowering themselves.

The youth do not need handouts.

The youth need investment.”

Adesina further said the AfBD recognised the importance of youth to the economy, stressing that this was why the bank created the Youth Entrepreneurship Investment Banks.

Through this, he said they will be financial institutions for young people, run by first-rate young bankers and financial experts, to drive youth-wealth creation in Africa.

He also said the AfDB is implementing a programme to support Africa’s youth in computer coding for employment.

Launched in 2018, he said the bank’s ‘Youth in Africa Coding for Employment Programme,’ had already equipped over 80,000 young people with ICT skills to enhance their employability in this digital era. According to him: “Huge opportunities exist for the youth in agriculture. You might wonder why?

Well, consider this: the size of the food and agribusiness market for Africa will be worth a whopping $ 1trn by 2030.

FG Inaugurates Steering Committee on Social Investment Management Project Olawale Ajimotokan in Abuja The federal government has inaugurated a steering committee for the Implementation of the National Social Investment Management Systems Project.

The inauguration took place in Abuja, recently.

The Permanent Secretary of the

Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Mallam Bashir Nura Alkali thanked the members for their acceptance to work towards collating data for all national social investment programmes in the country.

He charged the committee to work closely to ensure that

the project meets its intended conclusion, saying the project coordinators and initiators have put in a lot of work and collated so much data before the inauguration.

Responding, committee member and Director National Information Technology Development Agency, Dr. Usman Abdullahi, said due to the critical nature of

the project and its importance to the President Muhammadu Buhari Administration, the committee will endeavor to work relentlessly.

“I want to assure the Permanent Secretary and the committee, of NITDA’s commitment to the success of this project. It is a critical national project and we will do everything to ensure that

it succeeds,” he said.

In his remarks, another member of the committee, David Ibhawoh of Fourcore Technology Solutions, stated that institutionalising the project would be the core mandate of the committee by having a singular port that houses information for social growth and development.

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Taming the Tides of Nigeria’s Rising Inflation Obinna Chima writes on the need to address the state of insecurity in the country in order to reverse the trend of rising inflation

Emefiele

I

nflation in Nigeria has been on a steady rise since last year. Latest figures from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed that inflation in the country rose in March to 18.17 per cent, the highest since 2017.

It was 17.33 per cent in February 2021.

According to the Consumer Price Index (CPI) Report for March 2021, food inflation increased to 22.95 per cent from 21.79 per cent in February.

Equally, core inflation also rose to 12.67 per cent in March from 12.38 per cent in February.

The NBS attributed the rise in the food index to increases in prices of bread and cereals, potatoes, yam and other tubers, meat, vegetable, fish, oils, fats and fruits.

Similarly, core inflation was further fuelled by the highest increases recorded in prices of passenger transport by air, medical services, miscellaneous services relating to the dwelling, passenger transport by road, hospital services, passenger transport by road and pharmaceutical products.

Others are uptick in costs of paramedical services, vehicle spare parts, dental services, motor cars, maintenance and repair of personal transport equipment, hairdressing salons and personal grooming establishment.

The urban inflation rate increased to 18.76 per cent (year-on-year) in March from 17.92 per cent recorded in February while the rural inflation increased to 17.60 per cent from 16.77 per cent in the preceding month.

Indeed, high inflation distorts consumer behaviour. It can also destabilise markets by creating unnecessary shortages.

Similarly, high inflation, which is not the desire of any economy, leads to income redistribution and brings about weak purchasing power. Likewise, rising prices neutralise the money that one earns from investments. That is, inflation is effectively the reverse of compound interest.

That is why central banks globally, are never comfortable with a rising inflation rates usually seen by them as ‘evil.’

The situation is worrying with the level of unemployment put at 33.3 per cent, thereby placing the country’s misery index at 52 per cent, which is a reflection of the weak economic activities in the country.

The current inflationary pressure has been attributed to food supply shortages, arising from the heightened levels of insecurity, hike in electricity tariffs, and increase in petrol prices.

Interestingly, analysts at Cowry Asset Management Limited have predicted that headline inflation would further increase going forward amid worsening insecurity, which has since spread to other peaceful regions, thus further disrupting economic activities, especially farming activities, supply chains and general output level.

This, the Lagos-based firm noted that coupled with the long-standing structural challenges, may result in cost-driven inflation rate hitting 20 per cent level in the near term.

“Meanwhile, we note that the anticipated stronger demand for crude oil should result in higher crude price and impact Nigeria’s economy positively, especially on the exchange rate which

Minister of Finance, Zainab Ahmed has continued to depreciate, further exerting pressure on the inflation rate, amid demand pressures,” it added.

Also, analysts at Cordros Capital, stated that inflationary pressure was still skewed to the upside over the short term, with food prices being the main pressure point amid a low base effect.

“We look for month-month headline inflation of 1.51 per cent for April, cascading to a year-on-year print of 18.75 per cent,” they added.

Commenting on the likely impact of sugar and wheat that were added to the forex restriction list on inflation, the firm stated that, given the stubbornly high inflation level amid shrinking of consumer wallet, “we understand that the consumption of bread and other wheat products are now on the rise as they are considered cheaper and readily available.”

“With the recent policy action of the CBN, we believe importers will source for forex at the parallel market, which will come at a significantly higher rate than previously. Consequently, this will further compound the woes of consumers as they will bear the brunt of the increased import cost,” it added.

To Afrinvest Securities Limited, its short-to-medium term projections for inflation remain negative for two main reasons.

Firstly, it noted that poor weather condition (rain fall) and continued farmer-herder crisis are expected to worsen yield from harvest in 2021. Secondly, the “CBN’s focus on a pro-growth objective will continue to drive increased money supply and escalate inflation rate in the near term. In the light of the above-highlighted downside risk factors, we revised up our average inflation rate projection for 2021 to 15.8 per cent from an earlier projection of 14.1 per cent.”

To the Financial Derivatives Company Limited, the steep rise in inflation would be one of the major considerations at the Monetary Policy Committee meeting next month.

Majority of the committee members are more likely to vote in favour of a tighter monetary policy stance this time. As interest rates rise, the marginal propensity to save is likely to increase, reducing liquidity and tapering inflation, it added.

Taming Nigeria’s Galloping Inflation In order to tame the tides of high inflation in

Similarly, high inflation, which is not the desire of any economy, leads to income redistribution and brings about weak purchasing power.

Likewise, rising prices neutralise the money that one earns from investments

the country, the Director-General of the Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA), Mr. Timothy Olawale, urged the federal government to step up efforts at combating insecurity.

He said: “It is high time the presidency declared a state of emergency on security in the country in order to reverse the trend before it escalated beyond the reach of managers of the economy.

“The security challenges have disrupted the intervention programmes of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), as farmers in the northern region were prevented from engaging in any agricultural ventures in most part of last year.

“However, the security trend is still ongoing during the start of another planting season as well as degenerating downward to the southern part of the country. It is imperative for the federal and state governments, in collaboration with other security apparatus in the country, to address the growing menace and save the Nigerian economy from going the ways of Zimbabwe and Venezuela.

“The current situation suffices to contest the positive GDP growth recorded in the Q4, 2020 report, as most macroeconomic variables are all in the negatives.”

He added that the ripple effect of the skyrocketing inflationary rate on the economy, businesses and individuals are enormous, especially the rising food price inflation.

According to him, the rising food inflation will decrease individual and household’s disposable incomes and force a reduced consumption and saving patterns in the economy.

He said: “With less consumption trend, enterprise goods and services patronage will be dwindled and same goes to taxes and levies remittances, which form the bulk of government revenues apart from oil rents.”

Olawale also called for the provision of balancing fiscal measures that could reduce the burden of inflation on Nigerian consumers.

Olawale’s counterpart in the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), Dr. Muda Yusuf, described the current inflationary trend as a troubling phenomenon, especially the food inflation that accelerated to 23 per cent.

Yusuf identified currency depreciation, acute illiquidity in the foreign exchange market, rising transportation costs, agricultural output disruptions caused by growing insecurity, logistics challenges, hike in energy prices, climate change and structural bottlenecks to production as the key drivers of inflation.

He said: “The solution, therefore, would have to be situated in the context of these causal factors. Rising inflationary pressure weakens purchasing power of citizens as real incomes collapse; it accentuates pressure on production costs, negatively impacts profitability and undermines investors’ confidence.

“It is not in all cases that high production and operating costs can be passed on to the consumers.

The implication is that producers are also taking a hit. This is more severe where a product or service is faced with high demand elasticity. These are products that consumers can readily do without.”

Yusuf also advised the government to introduce interventions to address the challenges bedeviling

the supply side of the economy.

“There is also a need to worry about the growing fiscal deficit, especially the CBN financing of the deficit. It is characterised as inflation tax by a school of thought in economic literature,” he said.

Equally, the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) called for proactive actions to curb the country’s rising inflation.

The association noted that the trend is not good enough for a country that is recovering from recession.

Director General of MAN, Segun Ajayi-Kadir, stressed that an 18.17 per cent inflation rate is not healthy for the well-being of the people and the growth aspiration of the economy and should therefore be properly managed before it spirals out of control.

“The current inflationary condition in Nigeria adversely affects the profitability of the manufacturing sector and is partly responsible for its competitiveness. The latter being a major contributor to the low-export penetration of goods manufactured in the country into the international market.” he said.

He stressed the need to achieve price stability before the situation becomes deplorable.

Also, he advised that the Federal Ministry of Finance (FMF) and the CBN should work more closely when designing policies that affect the real sector of the economy to prevent a situation where policies are working at cross purposes.

“For instance, while CBN was creating funding windows at single digit interest rate to encourage production, Government increased VAT from five per cent to 7.5 per cent. Similarly, government increased minimum wage and also allowed increase in electricity tariff, and so on,” he noted.

He said there was need to give priority allocation of forex to manufacturers to import inputs that are not locally available and for which there are no immediate plan or resources to produce locally.

Since policies are dynamic, they could change as soon as we develop local capacity.

“Also, there are quite a number of moribund industries in the country. There should be an industrial clinic to engender their resuscitation in order to boost output and ultimately achieve price reduction.

“It is evident that there is a strong relationship between manufacturing sector growth and inflation rate, just like exchange and interest rates.

Therefore, in the immediate government should assist manufacturing productivity with credit at competitive price. This could be in the form of enhancing existing special credit windows or creating additional ones for this important sector of Nigerian economy.

“There is need to give effect to these measures immediately as the current security situation and the continued incidence of COVID-19 is negatively impacting businesses and lowering their resilience capacity,” he added.

Therefore, the expectation is that the on-going intervention activities of the central bank, in addition to the reopening of the land borders, as measures to address insecurity increases, would all provide relief to food supply shortages and dampen the pressure from food price inflation in the coming months.

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Leadway Highlights Relevance of Digital Channels to Insurance Market Ebere Nwoji Leadway Assurance Company Limited has listed the relevance of data and digital channels in driving insurance market.

The insurer also said insurance companies that want to remain relevant in the nearest future must consciously create digital channels that are customer friendly, customer-centric and device ways of delighting their customers in order to position their products in the minds of the customers.

Speaking on the topic “Insurance For The Future In 2021,” at the virtual training for insurance journalists organised by Leadway Assurance Company Limited, the company’s Principal and Investment Strategy Manager, Mr. Akinyemi Alebiosu, said underwriting in the future was going to be driven by data. He explained that data would enable companies predict losses and properly price their products.

“Data is the new oil for engine of underwriting therefore, future underwriting is going to be driven by data and analytics.

“We are getting to a point where we will be using historical records, using robotics, artificial intelligence in making decisions of pricing, type and extent of risks

we take”, he said.

He noted that insurance companies of the future would seek to collect large pools of data, analyse them, try to make meaning out of it, prepare or create predictive models and at the end of the day make decisions that will make the product better. He cited example, saying in analysing data, insurance underwriter may want to know the price point of his customers, what is their biggest concern, how will he be able to create products that meet the customers’ needs at the lowest cost .

“Because if I have a proper data, I can predict incidence of loss and properly price it and also know what their price point is.

“So at the end of the day, if we use data and analytics correctly in our underwriting process, the customer will be happy, the underwriter will be happy and all the stakeholders will benefit from the insurance ecosystem.”

Alebiosu, stated that digital channels will in future dominate insurance marketing worldwide, adding that underwriters need to consciously migrate from direct selling to digital channels that are customer friendly and customer centric.

Nigeria- Indonesia Trade Hits $459m Ugo Aliogo The Director of Indonesian Trade Promotion Centre, Mr. Hendro Jonathan has disclosed that the value of Nigeria- Indonesia trade currently stands at $459 million, which he describes as a positive growth sign for both countries.

He explained that in the bilateral trade relationship with Nigeria, the conversation has always being on the value of trade, not volume.

According to him, in terms of trade volume, it is positive for Nigeria, because export from the West African country is higher when compared with the imports from Indonesia.

Jonathan, who stated this in Lagos, during a media briefing to announce the Equipment and Manufacturing West Africa

(EMWA) 2021 exhibition, with the theme: ‘Industrialisation and Innovation: Revitalising the industrial Sector to Unlock Nigeria’s Potential,’ noted that the total volume of trade between Nigeria and Indonesia stands at $2 billion, and still growing.

He further stated that for Indonesia to be at par with Nigeria in terms of trade surplus, there was need for the country to import more commodities to Nigeria to the tune of $459 million.

According to him, “Nigeria sells more to Indonesia when we compare it. Therefore the trade balance is more positive on the Nigeria side than Indonesia.

However, we are increasing our import gradually and hopes to be even with Nigeria.

“We import crude oil, used car-

tons, rubber latex from Nigeria and export pharmaceutical products, palm oil, paper products, printing materials, vehicle tyres and textile to Nigeria.”

Earlier in his remarks, the Managing Director, Zenith Exhibition, Joseph Oru, stated that the exhibition would take place from April 27th -29th, in Lagos, adding that the expo would serve as a platform for businesses involved in the industrial and manufacturing value chains to reconnect once again, especially after the unprecedented times experienced in 2020.

He also said the 3-day expo would be unique as it runs sideby-side with conference sessions and creates an opportunity for free trainings, access to finance and networking across the industrial

sector, “aimed at providing solutions for the industry.”

Continuing, Oru said: “The trade and services industries account for a large proportion of economic activities. It boosts tourism, activates knowledge transfer, enhances partnerships and collaborations.

“It also contributes to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of a country and creates employment opportunities. We are confident that this expo presents tremendous opportunities for Nigerian businesses and it will go a long way to animate trade and commerce in Nigeria.

“With extensive industrialisation plan of the present administration, we decided to host the industry and hope that this expo will serve as a catalyst to economic recovery.”

Bayer to Organise Maize Conference Bayer Nigeria Limited, a subsidiary of the Bayer Group has announced plan to hold the third edition of its annual Nigeria Maize conference. This year’s conference which will be virtual is tagged: “Much More Maize,” and is scheduled for April 22nd, 2021.

Speaking ahead of the conference, the Country Sales Manager, Bayer Nigeria Ltd, Mr. Temitope Banjo, was quoted in a statement to have said the Nigeria maize conference is an initiative to bring together stakeholders in the maize agricultural value chain, to deliver innovative solutions that would help Nigerian farmers maximise their farm yields and secure their harvests from devastating disease and pests.

According to Banjo, “Nigeria is yet to reach its full potentials in terms of maize productivity, for example where a hectare of farmland in Egypt can yield up to seven metric tonnes per hectare, a farm of the same size in Nigeria only produces around 1.8 metric tonnes per hectare which is one

of the lowest among the top 10 maize producers in Africa.”

He went on to say that even though Nigeria is presently the largest producer of Maize in Africa, the country is still not able to meet up with its domestic and industrial needs for the crop.

He stated that the challenges with maize production in Nigeria are mainly due to poor agronomic factors and the use of bad seeds during planting and cultivation, and there is a need to educate our farmers on how they can increase the productivity and profitability of their farms, hence the theme for this year’s conference.

Commenting on how Bayer intended to address the maize production challenges in Nigeria, the Managing Director of Bayer Nigeria Ltd., Mr. Sefihait Kone, explained that Bayer has a suite of products which is called the Bayer “Much More Maize” toolkit, specially put together to help farmers protect their crops and boost productivity of their farms from the planting phase through the harvesting stage.

Senator Distributes Entrepreneurial Kits Constituents Seriki Adinoyi in Jos Senator representing Plateau South in the National Assembly, Prof. Nora Dadu’ut has distributed empowerment kits to 175 members of her constituency, saying it’s in fulfillment of her campaign promises to improve the lives of members of the constituency.

Dadu’ut, who had earlier empowered 150 youths and women of the constituency with grants worth N3.75 million, said that the empowerment schemes were aimed at providing sustainable livelihood to the beneficiaries.

Represented by her Senior Legislative Aide, Maimako

Bello, who distributed the items in Shendam, the Senator noted that such motivations would reduce the rate of unemployment and overdependence among youths, and encourage productivity in the communities.

The beneficiaries were presented with water pumps machines for irrigation farming, grinding machines, and cash to facilitate start up their businesses A beneficiary of the scheme, Nanko Bintim commended the Senator for her kind gesture, adding that it will go a long way to reduce poverty amongst the people of the district.

SPECIALRECOGNITION

L-R:ActingOperationsManagerUPSL,AdegokePalmer;ChiefExecutiveOfficer,AJLConsultsLimited/NigerianRepresentativeofPECBManagement SystemsCanada,AkindeleOlanrewaju;CEOUragaPowerSolutionsLimited,SeunFaluyi;andManagementRepresentativeforISOCertification,UPSL,Rotimi Adejo,duringthecertificatepresentationceremonybyPECBMStoUragaPowerSolutions,inSagamu,OgunState...recently ETOPUKUTT

FGAssures onQualityNutritionforNigerians James Emejo and Folalumi Alaran in Abuja The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development,(FMARD), Alhaji Sabo Nanono, has restated the desire of President Muhammadu Buhari towards ensuring easy access to quality food and nutrition by Nigerians.

This is just as the federal government has distributed free agricultural inputs to 7,500 women farmers in the Federal Capital Tertiary (FCT) to help them build production assets, create jobs as well as assist the government in achieving food and nutrition security. The minister, at the roll out ceremony of the distribution of free agricultural inputs to women smallholder farmers in Abuja, said the ministry was making genuine

efforts towards challenging the unequal access to productive inputs between men and women by releasing inputs to the latter.

He said the gesture was in line with the federal government’s commitment to gender equality and women empowerment in the agricultural sector.

Nanono, added that ministry was deliberately implementing the initiatives aimed at promoting gender equality and empowerment of women on line with the targets set out in the National Economic Sustainability Plan (NES), Agriculture Gender Policy, National Gender Action Plan (N-GAP) for Agriculture, Agricultural Sector Food Security and Nutrition Strategy Documents aimed at ensuring increased opportunities for women.

He said: “The ministry is supporting the women with value kits (planting materials, growth enhancer and agro-chemicals) in yam, cassava, potatoes, soybean, rice, maize, sesame, ginger, sorghum/millet, cowpea and horticultural crops. In addition, nutritional value kits will be distributed to the women today.”

The choice of the crops is based on comparative advantage to its production. Again, because women are disadvantaged in land inheritance in Nigeria, the use of sacks and vertical farming are being popularised and the techniques would be demonstrated.”

He added that apart from the distribution of inputs to the women, the ministry is also distributing production

and processing equipment in an effort to reduce drudgery, improve efficiency, reduce cost of production and improve quality of product and produce from the operations. He urged the beneficiaries to make judicious use of these inputs, materials and equipment to produce quality food for the nation and called on other stakeholders to provide similar support to farmers.

On his part, the Minister of State, Agriculture and Rural Development, Hon. Mustapha Baba Shehuri, said the event was one of the ministry’s efforts to work hand-in hand with the state governments and other relevant stakeholders to assist in ensuring food security, economic growth and job creation, especially in the face of the pandemic.

Truecaller Launches Anti-fraudEnterpriseSolutionfor Businesses Emma Okonji Truecaller, the global telephone search engine and caller ID service, has introduced a new identity solution for businesses to bolster safety and eliminate fraud.

According to Truecaller, the solution would address the pressing need to increase trust in communication, as the rise in fraud and scams using spoofed identities, continues across the African continent, especially now that more Africans are switching

to smartphones. As of today, there are over 43 million active users of Truecaller in Africa.

The enterprise solution dubbed Truecaller Business Identity, allows businesses to verify their identities using a green verified business badge, accurately presenting the name, photo and the logo of the organisation. The new solution brings greater trust and efficiency in communication between businesses and clients as it gives confidence to consumers, knowing that the caller is a verified business by Truecaller.

Apart from adding trust and reducing the possibility of fraud, a Verified Business badge can be a big boon for startups and businesses who are brand conscious and want to accurately present the name of their entity, logo and give their customers the satisfaction of knowing exactly who they are conducting business with.

The new feature also allows businesses to drive efficiency in their communications while improving call-pickup rates for genuine and important calls.

Speaking during the launch of the solution in Lagos recently, the Director of Business Development in Africa at Truecaller, Zakaria Hersi, said: “Fraud continues to be a major issue across Africa and as a company, Truecaller wanted to provide solutions on a business level as well as a personal level. Trust is at the heart of everything we do and with so much of our lives lived through our phone, we need to ensure that our communication happens in a safe environment.

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BUSINESSWORLD

NEWS

NASD Admits Nigerian Exchange Plc Shares, Closes at N23.67 Each Goddy Egene NASD Plc, platform providing over-the-counter (OTC) market for public unlisted securities has admitted the shares of the demutualised Nigerian Stock Exchange holding company, called Nigerian Exchange Plc (NGX) to the OTC market.

Following the demutualisation, NGX recently distributed 1,964,115,918 ordinary shares of 50 kobo each to over 200 dealing members and additional ordinary members, who have now become shareholders.

And the Nigeria’s capital market rules require all public securities to be registered with

the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and could be traded only on platforms registered by the commission.

According to the Managing Director of NASD Plc, Mr. Bola Ajomale, in line with regulatory rules and in support of enabling liquidity in the market, NASD OTC provides the perfect landing platform for the 60-year-old company that has spent approximately 10 years in its demutualisation exercise.

“NASD provides an orderly, lightly regulated and transparent environment with structure and experienced traders.

“The market delivers on the basis of easy onboarding and

withdrawal of securities into and out-of-the market space and the code for NGX – SDNGXGROUP was created at the depository within a 48-hour period.

“We are pleased to be able to do our part in deepening the capital market by expressing our mandate of creating liquidity transparently,” Ajomale said.

The shares closed at N23.67 per share last Friday.

The stock exchange last March announced the completion of its demutulisation in March following final approvals from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC). Consequently, the NGX

Group Plc was created with three operating subsidiaries.

Chairman of NGX Group, Otunba Abimbola Ogunbanjo, said they were elated that the milestone had been achieved as they celebrate the 60th anniversary of the commencement of trading at the exchange.

On his part, the Group Chief Executive Officer of NGX Group, Mr. Oscar Onyema, said they had a vision that the new group would become the premier exchange hub for Nigerian businesses and for the African economy.

“We are implementing a series of measures towards this goal, demutualisation being a critical

milestone. The completion of demutualisation is a truly significant moment, and we welcome the new possibilities that have opened up for us today,” he said.

According to the exchange, there would be Transition Plan (TP)that would take the group and its subsidiaries through to full operational launch, covers legal and practical changes to enable the functioning of the new corporate structure, with no loss of service and a seamless transition for market participants.

“The TP will also see the inauguration of boards for each of the new entities, staff reallocation to their respective

functions within the operating subsidiaries, operationalisation of business plans and budgets, technology systems transfer, and the requisite arm’s length agreements between the entities.

“Upon operational launch, the group’s new brands, including a new website, will be unveiled and the group will be in position to execute on its strategic vision.

“Stakeholders, including our new valued shareholders will benefit from the group’s enhanced corporate governance framework, access to capital to fund strategic developments and a more globally competitive exchange,” it stated further.

NCSInterceptsUsedVehicles, SmuggledRiceWorthN1.3bninQ1 Eromosele Abiodun The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Federal Operations Unit (FOU), Zone C, has announced that it intercepted contraband and raised a debit note (DN) worth N1.3 billion in the first three months of 2021.

In a statement by the Public Relations Officer of the unit, Jerry Attah the unit stated that while N1.280 billion was generated from seizures from contraband, N7.6 million was raised as DN for cargoes that exited the seaports.

The Customs Area Controller, Zone C, Compt. Yusuf Lawal, was quoted in a statement as saying, “Following our anti-smuggling drives, between January to March 2021, we have intercepted various contraband within our areas of jurisdiction which covers southsouth/south east zones with a duty paid value of N1.280 billion.

“Also, based on our intervention we recovered the sum of N7.6million from demand notices raised, making a N1.3billion within the months under review.”

According to him, the contraband items seized are bags of smuggled foreign parboiled rice, unregistered pharmaceutical

drugs, foreign soaps, tomato paste among others.

He added, “The detained and seized items include: 2,976 bags of 50kg each of foreign parboiled rice, 1,024 cartons of Colcaps medicament without NAFDAC certification, 290 cartons of Foreign Eva Soap, 204 Cartons of Foreign Tomatoes Paste, 130 Jumbo bales of used clothing.

“Others are 5,200 live ammunition cartridges, 6 exotic vehicles, one Toyota land cruiser bullet proof 2019 model without End User Certificate from NSA, one Toyota Hilux 2020 model, and one Toyota Corolla 2018 model among others.

“This feat wouldn’t have been possible without the logistics support from the ComptrollerGeneral of Customs, Col Hameed Ibrahim Ali (Rtd) and the entire Management of the NCS.” “I urge all well-meaning Nigerians to support the Service in the fight against smuggling by providing credible and timely intelligence that will help the Unit reduce smuggling to its barest minimum as we hope to improve more in the second quarter by intensifying our surveillance, “he added.

‘Secure ID’s SIM Card Certification Will Create Jobs’ Emma Okonji The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr. Isa Ibrahim Pantami has expressed confidence in the recent certification on SIM Card manufacturing, obtained

by Secure ID, the smart card manufacturing company, from the GSM Association (GSMA).

Pantami, spoke during a recent tour of the facilities of Secure ID manufacturing plant in Lagos, same day the GSMA presented the certification document to Secure ID. The minister who was represented by the Executive Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Prof. Garba Danbatta, said the certification from GSMA, coupled with the level of local content exhibited by Secure ID in the local production of Subscriber Identification Module (SIM) card, in line with government policy on local content development, would enhance job creation in Nigeria. He added: “We are in Lagos for the facility tour of the indigenous production complex

of Secure ID, manufacturers of smart cards like SIM cards, bank’s debit and credit cards, Driver’s licence, among others. “Consistent with the local content policy of the federal government, local manufacturing companies should get patronage from Nigerians and the government.”

Managing Director/CEO, Secure ID, Kofo Akinkugbe, who expressed joy over the visit and the certification from GSMA, said: “As an indigenous company, we are able to produce high quality SIM cards and other smart cards and at the same time, providing job opportunities for Nigerians.”

She further explained that SID Digital, which is the new subsidiary of Secure ID, would be providing digital solutions to all sectors of Secure ID smart card manufacturing.

“Certification is a key aspect of our business, and today GSMA has added another certification to our existing certifications. We believe strongly in security and we are certified by Visa and Mastercard for the production of financial payment cards like the bank debit and credit cards.

MEDIABRIEFING

L-R:VicePresident,LagosChamberofCommerceandIndustry(LCCI),Mr.GbengaIsmail;DirectorGeneral,Dr.MudaYusuf;President,Mrs.TokiMabogunje,and DeputyPresident,Dr.MichaelOlawale-Cole,attheLCCIquarterlypressconferenceonthestateoftheeconomyinLagos...recently ETOPUKUTT

MMIA Recorded One Million Passenger Movement in Q1

Chinedu Eze

The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) has announced that over one million passengers were processed through the international and domestic terminals of the Murtala Muhammed Airport (MMIA), Lagos between January and March this year.

Statistics made available by the agency indicated that the airport recorded a total of 323,751 passengers out of which 149,557 passengers and 174,194 passengers respectively arrived and departed through the international wing during the period.

At the domestic wing, 402,519 arrived while departure recorded 337,041, bringing the total number of passengers on the domestic routes to 739,560 between January and March 2021.

Also, in terms of aircraft movement, a total of 17, 286 aircraft were recorded at the airport during the first quarter of the year with records showing domestic aircraft movements 12,744 while international aircraft movement was 4,542.

Commenting on the statistics, the Airport Manager, Southwest, Mrs. Victoria Shin-Aba said there was no significant drop as Lagos remained the business nerve centre of the country as most flights terminate at the airport.

Shin-Aba explained that there was a gradual reawakening from the COVID-19 lockdown, noting that despite fears of second wave of the pandemic, air

travellers are not discouraged to travel.

“It is like a gradual reawakening, a gradual restart away from the COVID-19 issue, there came the second wave but that did not discourage people from travelling so, it is growing gradually.”

On COVID-19 protocols, the Airport Manager stated, “As soon as you get into the airport environment the COVID-19 protocol is activated.

“You can get to town everywhere, you don’t see people obeying it but as soon as you get to the airport, we enforce it, people would not want to cooperate but we are enforcing it both for staff and passengers, people are cooperating.

“If you don’t put on your mask we wouldn’t allow you into the terminal building and even if you are in the terminal building and you remove it we have some task force going around correcting people, asking you to please mask up, so there has been a lot of cooperation from the passengers as well as other airport users” She, however, condemned the number of family members that follow travellers to the airport, saying this has constituted a challenger in managing human movement at the airport.

“We have been having some challenges along that area. You know our culture the way we do things, one person is travelling, ten people will follow him, but we still try as much as possible to discourage people,” she said.

EU Donates 1, 300 Baking, Tailoring, Others to Borno Residents Ugo Aliogo The European Union (EU) has begun distributing livelihood kits to 1, 370 youth beneficiaries across Borno State.

Declaring the distribution open at the State Agency for Mass Education (SAME) premises, Borno State Governor, Prof.

Babagana Zulum commended the EU and Plan International for their generosity to the people of Borno state.

A statement by PLAN International said the governor who was represented by the Permanent Secretary of the state’s Ministry of Reconstruction, Rehabilitation and Resettlement, Engr. Abbah Yusuf, urged the beneficiaries to avoid the temptation of selling off the kits donated to them.

He said: “I am sure this will help to boost the economy of our state and help the youth to be self-reliant. To the beneficiaries, I urge you all to make the best use of this opportunity and not to sell these items. Make sure you are serious in the trade for which you have been trained, and make it beneficial for you and your immediate families.”

The statement further stated that the starter packs distributed included tailoring kit for 455 beneficiaries, cap making kits to 193 boys and girls, food processing kits for 125 persons, baking kits for 100 persons, kits for salons for 248 youth and ground-nut oil processing kits for 106 young people.

The statement hinted that

other starter packs had shoe making kits for 104 and soap making kits for 139 youth making a total of 1, 370 beneficiaries.

According to the statement: “A block of three classrooms being renovated for the State Agency for Mass Education (SAME) by the project was also inspected by the governor which is now about 90 percent completed.

“The starter packs are being distributed under the European Union: Support to Response, Recovery and Resilience in Borno State: Education component project being implemented by the Plan International-led consortium. Other members of the consortium include; Save the Children and Gender Equality Peace and Development Centre.”

In his remarks, the EU Coordination Team Lead, Kabiru Abass, stated the EU was supporting 21 out of 27 local governments in the states.

He added: “We are here to support the programmes of the government in helping vulnerable people in their various communities. Plan International led consortium is one of the 15 interventions of the EU in Borno state.”

In remarks, the Interim Country Director, Plan International Nigeria, Mr. Robert, Komakech, noted: “Today, we are here to flag-off the distribution of livelihood kits to 1, 370 beneficiaries of the 2, 400 youth that were selected to benefit from the first phase of the livelihood support component of the project.”

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Driving Wheat Production

PR and Marketing: Birds of a Feather?

Stanley Olisa

I

have consistently resisted the urge to pen down my thoughts on this subject, but it keeps popping up as a topic I should dwell on in my PR article series. Public relations and marketing and the similitude or otherwise between them have always been the focal point of hot debates amongst promotional communication professionals.While some argue there’s a difference between them, others believe they primarily serve the same purpose.This polarisation of perspectives forced this piece, which tries to put paid to some faulty beliefs and perceptions about the nexus and disparity that exist between PR and marketing.

Oluchi Chibuzor

W

heat derivative meals are very popular in Nigeria. Food staples such as semolina, bread, noodles and pasta, which are produced from wheat flour, form a regular part of meals in most urban and rural households.

The importance of wheat foods to the national population therefore underscores the need to develop the domestic wheat value chain which, currently is not delivering enough to meet the growing demand for wheat derivatives.

As it stands, increasing the total yield per hectare of national farmlands is critical to reaching food sufficiency levels that meet the needs of the over 200 million Nigerians.

While ecological conditions cannot be modified to generate the desired crop yields per hectare of land, the use of certified seeds of improved varieties and adoption of modern farming techniques by farmers are effective production improvement levers that can be utilized to enrich the domestic food landscape.

There is no better time than now to adopt the high-yielding-seed approach geared towards stimulating increased production of wheat on a national scale. Why is this so important? Despite having access to a large swathe of farming lands in places such as Borno, Bauchi, Yobe, Kano, Jigawa, and Zamfara States, smallholder wheat farmers have not been able to meet domestic consumption demand for wheat.

It is apparent that without removing the seed-variety barrier, the acute shortage of locally produced wheat will persist. Whereas this would necessitate the continued reliance on wheat importation to bridge the widening domestic production-consumption gap, it does not bode well for national food security.

The economic and social costs of relying on wheat importation are enormous. While foreign exchange is being sourced by local wheat millers to import the crop to meet national consumption demand, the exchange position of the local currency is affected and precious employment opportunities that could be generated by smallholder farmers if harvest reaches full capacity, are also lost.

Stressing the need to remove the seed variety barrier to improved domestic wheat production, President of the Wheat Farmers Association of Nigeria (WFAN), Mohammed Salim, said, “One of our challenges is getting quality seeds every two years. Wheat is an open-pollinated crop and the maximum you can do with a particular seed is four years or thereabout. So, if the government can finance the research institutes to come up with new varieties every two years, that will sustain production and keep the farmers in business.”

Going by this insight by Salim, providing sufficient finance to fund local research institutes to develop new seed varieties for local farmers biennially is key to bridging the domestic production-consumption gap in the wheat value chain.

However, Crown Flour Mill Limited (CFM), a subsidiary of the Olam Group and makers of the Mama Gold flour brand, in collaboration with other members of the Flour Milling Association of Nigeria (FMAN), is leveraging its agro experience, extensive industry network and deep investment portfolio to aggressively support the domestic agro research institutes to drive innovation and make high-yielding seed varieties available to local wheat farmers.

The investment and innovative approach

form a bold new drive to raising local wheat production levels while keeping smallholder farmers in business, as suggested by Salim.

As part of the collaborative approach to make high yielding seed varieties available to local wheat farmers, CFM, alongside other contributors and partners at the milling association, under the Certified Seed Production Programme, have established a research farm to nurture the seed varieties it brought into the country from the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) in Sudan and Mexico.

These efforts add to an ongoing partnership that the millers are implementing with various seed production companies comprising Rahama Seed, Greenspore and Premier seed.

In the coming months, the massive partnership network is expected to lead to the distribution of 150 tons of wheat seeds to around 3,000 smallholder farmers in Nigeria.

Meanwhile, to deepen the impact of the wheat development programme, the milling association which CFM is a major contributor to is also working with the Lake Chad Research Institute (LCRI) in Maiduguri and the Institute for Agricultural Research (IAR) at the Ahmadu Bello University, to train local smallholder farmers on the latest agronomic practices.

The expanded wheat development efforts are yielding impressive results. Smallholder farmers that are participating in the FMAN wheat development programmes have shown remarkable technical improvement that is matched by a good harvest.

The wheat farmers, who were paid a visit by a delegate from Olam, the parent company of CFM, which travelled to Jigawa after participating in a wheat development webinar programme organised by the agribusiness conglomerate in Abuja, attested to the impact of the high level of support provided by the millers’ association and its partners.

One of the wheat farmers remarked, “We were advised to plant at a particular time to get the best yield possible but I insisted on doing things my way. It nearly cost me the season but I came back to the (FMAN) team for assistance and this time around I heeded their advice and the result was unbelievable.”

Expatiating on CFM’s wheat development support drives, Ashish Pande, the Managing Director of the wheat milling firm, said, “Our commitment to research and development is the key to why we’ve been successful as an organization over the years and have been able to consistently create better quality, safe, great-tasting and more reliable food produce/ products which meet our customers’ needs and improve the livelihoods of our farmers.”

The deliberate wheat development programmes embarked upon by CFM and others under the auspices of flour milling association, when fully optimized, will no doubt reduce the high dependence on imported wheat. It will also reduce the foreign exchange wheat import bill while boosting the national economic diversification agenda.

In the end, the Nigerian consumers are going to be the real beneficiaries of the increasing level of the various interventions and wheat development programmes undertaken by CFM and other leading millers.

The consumers will continue to have access to their most cherished wheat foods such as semolina, pasta, noodles and bread at the right quality, quantity, nutritional value and most affordable shelf price.

Marketing Delivers a ‘Standard of Living’ It makes perfect sense to quote a few authorities who have postulated on marketing. Philip Kotler, the father of modern marketing, defines: “Marketing is a social and managerial process by which individuals and groups obtain what they need and want through creating and exchanging products and value with each other”. The American Marketing Association defines marketing as “the process of planning and executing conception, pricing, promotion, and distribution of ideas, goods, and services to create exchanges that satisfy individual and organisational objectives”. In the same vein, Cundiff and Still submit: “Marketing is the term used to describe collectively those business functions most directly concerned with the demand stimulating and demand-fulfilling activities of the business enterprise”.

I didn’t major in marketing at college, but I took some marketing courses, and one of my takeaways from such courses is that marketing is chiefly concerned with creating and sustaining demand for products and services. Specifically, marketing entails discovering people’s needs, developing products to satisfy those needs and promoting such products to stimulate and maintain demand. It’s about developing a product that creates value and ensuring that there is a constant demand for the product or service through an avalanche of activities including below-the-line and above-the-line advertising, merchandising, brand activations, salesmanship, etc. Marketing essentially seeks to foster patronage or purchase of products and services, making sure there is brand loyalty.

People erroneously believe that marketing has to do with only promoting the goods and services of a company in form of advertising because this is what they see. But so much happens pre-promotion- customer research, market survey, customer analysis, needs assessment, product development, product packaging, price determination, etc. All these aspects bear upon what is eventually offered and promoted to the consumers. Marketers are keen on increasing their market share, always developing strategies for winning new prospects and converting them into returning customers.

For marketers, acquiring new customers by promising superior value and retaining existing customers by giving satisfaction are major Key Performance Indicators.

Cundiff and Still, in concurrence, state: “Marketing is the term used to describe collectively those business functions most directly concerned with the demand stimulating and demand-fulfilling activities of the business enterprise”.

Marketers always monitor the customer base and ensure it is not shrinking. Marketing is a customer-oriented practice and satisfies a social demand for products and services. According to Paul Mazur, marketing delivers a ‘standard of living’. This, however, cannot be said about PR. The marketer deals with only one audience of the company- customers. Marketing creates customer value and satisfaction at a profit. This implies that the marketing department of any company is largely responsible for its (company) revenue growth. And this explains why the Head of Marketing is always summoned whenever the sales stats start to drop. It’s a source of worry because it means revenue is also dropping.

Marketing, not Public Relations, is queried to explain why the company is losing customers.

Thus, you can see the direct relationship between marketing and the company’s bottom line. It’s unmistakable.

Public Relations Manages Reputation and Relationships We can comfortably situate Public Relations

within the context of reputation management.

The art and craft of managing people’s perception about a brand- individual or corporate. Think of PR practitioners as people who employ strategic communications to manage relationships between an organisation and its publics to ensure that the interests, expectations and aspirations of both parties are in alignment. PR specialists are preoccupied with the business of making the brand look good and positively perceived by all its stakeholder groups, not just the customers. Viewed through this periscope, PR has a broader audience than marketing, which always targets only prospects and customers.

This difference also reflects in the primary objective of communication- while the PR specialist seeks to shape how the target audience perceives the brand, your average marketer seeks to immediately influence buying decisions.

It’s apt to consider the PR specialist as a mediator between the organisation and its publics, deploying strategies to elicit the desired supportive behaviour from the publics. Sustaining this supportive behaviour from all stakeholders is a major KPI for the PR specialist, and this can be arduous to achieve as a medley of factors play out in the business environment which can impact stakeholder behaviour towards a brand.

In PR, we measure success by how communication output is able to engender the desired attitudinal and behavioural change in the publics of an organisation. And questions like these usually crop up: how favourable or positive is the public perception about the organisation?

How friendly is the host community? What’s the corporate citizenship profile of the organisation?

What’s the brand’s share of voice in the media along the lines of neutral, positive ad negative sentiments? These questions are reflective of perception and reputation management- the mainstay of PR. Marketers measure success by how large their brand’s market share is; how they’re able to expand the customer base; how they’re able to convert prospects into loyal customers. Marketers’ success is tied to revenue growth while PR specialists’ success is factored within the prism of corporate goodwill and reputation. Clearly, the performance metrics for both differ.

Marketing Expectations from PR Professionals It’s common now to see PR JDs with Marketing KPIs and duties. This is improper. PR and marketing ultimately propel the growth of the brand, but their paths and approaches are dissimilar, with the former being subtle and the latter being very pronounced. Marketing uses advertising (BTL & ATL), salesmanship, brand activations, merchandising, etc, to create and sustain demand. PR, on the other hand, employs news management, CSR strategy, lobbying and other stakeholder relations management appurtenances to accomplish its goals.

CEOs/clients should stop expecting PR people to ‘make money’ for them in the immediate. What PR does is more than making money and the benefits are long-term.

PR and Marketing Must Harmonise Finally, a quote from the founder of PRmoment, Ben Smith, will suffice: “Public Relations and marketing must be integrated for any modern organisation to thrive. Transparency, openness and purpose are vital to modern business performance, and the departments responsible for reputation and promotion play a critical role in connecting any organisation with its stakeholders. The connectivity of channels in modern marketing communications means that the PR team and the marketing team naturally converge and coordinate their efforts”. t0MJTB B .FEJB BOE $PNNVOJDBUJPOT $POTVMUBOU XSPUF GSPN -BHPT

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IMAGES

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Photo Editor ÌÓÙÎßØ ÔËÖË Email ËÌÓÙÎßØ˛ËÔËÖË̶ÞÒÓÝÎËãÖÓàÏ˛ÍÙ×

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo (R) with the Chief of Staff to the President, Amb. Ibrahim Gambari, during a virtual Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) on Climate Change, at the Presidential Villa in Abuja...recently

L-R: Media Consultant to AFBA Collins Steve Ugwu; President of the African Bar Association, Mr Hannibal Uwaifo Esq, and Chairman AFBA Committee on Information Barr. Osa Director, during a briefing on the fatal decline to the Rule of Law and obedience to court orders in the African continent prompting escalation of crimes & under development due to bad governance

Director-General of NYSC, Brig.-Gen. Shuaibu Ibrahim (right) and Associate Professor of Sociology, University of Ibadan, Prof. Oka Obono, after the latter’s lecture during the 2021 NYSC Top Management Retreat held in Suleja, Niger State...recently

L-R: Deputy Senate President, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege; Kogi State governor, Yahaya Bello and Secretary APC Contact and Strategic Committee, Chief Ikechi Emenike, after a meeting of the contact and mobilization committee at the APC national secretariat in Abuja...recently PHOTO: ENOCK REUBEN

L-R: Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Communication, Hon. Lado Suleja; Executive Vice Chairman, Nigeria Communication Commission, Prof Umar Dambata; former Governor of Ogun State, Otunba Gbenga Daniel; Ogun State Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun, Chairman, 21st Century Technology, Mr Wale Ajisebutu and the State Deputy Governor, Engr Noimot Salako-Oyedele at the unveiling of Ogun State Digital Economy Infrastructure Project in Abeokuta...recently

L-R: Executive Officer- Federal Ministry of Education, Sarah Akper; Deputy Director, Gender, Federal Ministry of Education, Mrs Abukar Ajanigo and Founder of WARIF, Dr Kemi DaSilva-IBru during the presentation of a copy of the School Related Sexual and Gender-based Violence Prevention and Response Protocol for Tertiary Institutions in Nigeria to the ministry of Education by DaSilva-Ibru in Lagos...recently

L-R: Representative of Corp Mashal, FRSC, Mr Charles Edem; Chairman, FCT Correspondent Chapel, Mr Philip Nyam; and Chairman of the Occasion/Chairman Senate Committee on Army, during the 2021 FCT Correspondent Chapel’s Press Week/Lecture, at the NUJ Secretariat in Abuja...recently

L-R: Acting Operations Manager UPSL, Adegoke Palmer; Chief Executive Officer, AJL Consults Limited/ Nigerian Representative of PECB Management Systems Canada, ISO 9001:2015, Akindele Olanrewaju; CEO Uraga Power Solutions Limited, Seun Faluyi; and Management Representative for ISO Certification, UPSL, Rotimi Adejo at the certification presentation ceremony by PECB MS to Uraga Power Solutions,in Sagamu, Ogun State...recently

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L-R: Chief of the Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Awwal Gambo and former Chief of the Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Dele Ezeoba (rtd) during the visit of Ezeoba to the Naval Headquarters in Abuja...recently

L-R: National Vice Chairman, South West, Action Alliance Party (AA), Mr. Akintan Michael; Deputy National Chairman, Alh. Adebayo Lawal; National Chairman, Chief Kenneth Udeze and National Vice Chairman, North Central, Dr. Manga Asha, during the inauguration of the elected members of National Executive Committee of the party in Abuja...recently PHOTO: ENOCK REUBEN

L-R: Delta State Commissioner for Information, Mr. Charles Aniagwu; Commissioner for Technical Education, Mrs Gbubemi Ikolo, and Project Manager, Mr Samuel Akong-Egozi (right) during the inspection of ongoing work at Government Technical Collage, Effurun, Uvwie Local Government Area, Delta State...recently

L-R: Representative of the Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Science and Technology, Mr Nanpak Gono; representative of the Chairman, Senate Committee on Science and Technology, Dr Micah Umoh; Minister of Science and Technology, Dr Ogbonnaya Onu; and Director-General, Energy Commission of Nigeria (ECN), Prof. Eli Bala, during the 2021 National Energy Summit in Abuja...recently

L-R: Director General of Industrial Training Fund (ITF), Sir Joseph Are; representative of the Chief of the Air Staff, AVM Olusegun Philip; Managing Director, Equipment and Protective Application International Ltd (EPAIL), Kola Balogun, after the signing Memorandum of Understanding between Nigerian Air Force, ITF and EPAIL in Abuja...recently

L-R: Executive Secretary, Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre(CISLAC), Auwal Ibrahim Rafsanjani; Director, Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF), Dr. Nnimo Bassey; Converner, Take back Nigeria Movement, Jaye Gaskiya and Public Health Expert/Analyst, Medical Molecular Microbiologist, Dr. Casmir Ifeanyi, during a stakeholders’ Conference/report launch on the state of Biosafety in Nigeria, held in Abuja... recently

L-R: Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq; Alhaji Raheem Adedoyin; Eesa of Oro High Chief Taye Otunola; Iyaloja of Oro market Mulikat Jimoh; and Hon. Awodiji Felix; during the Governor’s visit to commiserate with marketers who lost their properties in fire outbreak at Oro central market in Irepodun LGA of the state...recently

L-R: Acting Principal, Ekiti State School of Midwifery, Ado-Ekiti, Mrs Olabisi Awe; Chief Medical Director, EKSUTH, Prof. Kayode Olabanji; First Lady, Ekiti State and Chair, Ekiti GBV Management Committee, Erelu Bisi Fayemi; Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Alhaja Maryam Ogunlade; and Permanent Secretary, Women Affairs, Dr Eunice Oladimeji; during an advocacy visit by members of the State GBV Management Committee to the School of Nursing and Midwifery, Ado-Ekiti…recently

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CITYSTRINGS

T H I S D AY ˾ ͯͷ˜ ͰͮͰͯ

Group Features Editor: Chiemelie Ezeobi Email chiemelie.ezeobi@thisdaylive.com, 07010510430

Boost for Nigerian Navy’s Fleet Recapitalisation Drive Chiemelie Ezeobi reports that in boosting its fleet recapitalisation, the Nigerian Navy recently took delivery of its first ever purpose-built Offshore Survey Vessel, NNS LANA from France as a critical component in the projection of naval power for enhanced maritime security in the Gulf of Guinea

Nigerian Navy Ship LANA after the Flag Transfer Ceremony, which represents the transfer of responsibility, authority and accountability of a vessel from one flag state to another

L-R: Nigerian Ambassador to France, Dr Modupe Irele; Chief of the Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Awwal Gambo and Director Navy MoD, Mr Kayode Julius being briefed by Commanding Officer of Nigerian Navy's newest hydrographic survey vessel NNS LANA,Captain Abdullateef Mahmud during the Flag Transfer Ceremony of the vessel in Saint Nazaire

Chief of the Naval Staff ( Right) Vice Admiral Awwal Gambo presenting a souvenir to the representative of the French Navy, Vice Admiral Oliver Lebas at the Flag Transfer Ceremony of Nigerian Navy's newest hydrographic survey vessel NNS LANA today in Saint L-R: CEO OCEA Roland Joassard; CNS Vice Admiral Awwal Gambo; Mrs Irele and Vice AdmiNazarine France...DINFO NHQ ral Oliver Lebas of the French Navy at the occasion lthough 70 per cent of Nigeria's December 2019 and the project was divided for his commitment towards the recapitalisation her homeward journey to Nigeria. According to economic growth lies on the into four major milestones which were: the of the Nigerian Navy Fleet, he also added that the DINFO, the voyage will include port visits waterways, the maritime domain completion of the deck molds, completion of the shop will play a critical role in protection to Lisbon, Las Palmas, Banjul and Tema-Ghana is often fraught with the challenges hull blocks, hull assembly on the main deck of maritime resources and preservation of law before it arrives Nigeria on May 17, 2021.

Addressing the ship's company, the CNS noted of maritime illegalities ranging from and the delivery and installation of the main and order at sea, thus contributing significantly to promotion of global maritime commerce. that the foremost desire of every littoral state is piracy, sea robbery, smuggling, illegal fishing engines at the shipyard.

He further commendedNigeria’s Ambassador to have a fleet with the right mix of platforms According to the Director of Information to brazen crude oil theft, proliferation of illegal refinery, destruction of critical infrastructure (DINFO), Commodore Suleman Dahun, to France, Her Excellency Dr (Mrs) Modupe to meet its operational objectives.

Thus, he acknowledged that the homebound for oil and gas, reckless violent crimes such these milestones were the benchmarks which Irele, the management and staff of Messrs as kidnapping, hijack and attack on security determined the level of work achieved at each OCEA and all others who have contributed voyage of NNS LANA is yet another milestage of the project. The building process was one way or the other towards the change of stone achievement in Nigerian Navy’s fleet forces and many more others.

To tackle this, the Nigerian Navy has had to successfully completed and the ship was launched Flag Ceremony, just as he congratulated the recapitalisation efforts. According to Admiral patrol the endless miles of waterways despite some on September 24, 2020 at Les Sables d’Olonne, Commanding Officer, Captain AB Mahmud Gambo, the induction of NNS LANA to NN and his ships’ company as the pioneer crew will enhance the service capacity in the provimajor challenges like shortage of Offshore Patrol France. of the brand new masterpiece as she begins sion of survey services and charting which Vessels (OPV), budget constraints, inadequate her voyage into the seas.

Handover local ship building capacity for constructing are crucial to safe navigation for improved On the choice of Messrs OCEA by the Nigerian maritime security.

In preparation for its onward journey home, naval vessels and inadequate surveillance.

The challenge is even pronounced given that NNS LANA was handed over to the Nigerian Navy to construct the new NNS LANA, he said The CNS also said that NNS LANA will the navy not just protects Nigeria's territorial Navy in France on January 15, 2021 after the it was based on its impeccable track record of serve as a force multiplier in NN's ability to integrity but also contributes its quota at the provisional acceptance trials was concluded. The high quality ship building capacity as well as the project naval power for enhanced maritime regional level, by patrolling the waters of the crew training however commenced on January belief in the company to adhere to agreed time security in the nation’s maritime environment lines, noting that the acquisition of NNS LANA and the Gulf of Guinea.

Gulf of Guinea, which is a vast expanse of water 2021 and ended on April 12, 2021. brings to 18 the number of OCEA platforms stretching almost 6,000km from Senegal to Angola.

Additionally, Vice Admiral Gambo comin the Nigerian Navy’s inventory.

Flag Transfer But today, some of these challenges are gradumended the entire NNS LANA ship company Dignitaries at the event included the Nigerian for their good conduct since their arrival in In taking delivery of the ship, a Flag Transfer ally becoming a thing of the past especially when it comes to fleet acquisition, surveillance Ceremony was held in France. This represents Ambassador to France, Dr Modupe Irele; the France recalling that there has not been any the transfer of responsibility, authority and representative of the French Navy, Vice Admiral adverse report of any sort. and ship building capacity.

It is pertinent to state that the foremost desire accountability of a vessel from one flag state Oliver Le bas and the Chief of the Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Awwal Gambo, who represented of every littoral state is to have a fleet with the to another.

About NNS LANA Speaking at the Flag Transfer Ceremony, the the Minister of Defence. Others were the CEO right mix of platforms to meet its operational According to the DINFO, the new ship with objectives in patrolling the vast littoral space. Minister of Defence, Major General Bashir Magashi OCEA, Mr Roland Joassard and representative of a visual call sign A499 was named NNS LANA So for the NN, seeking to overwhelm the (rtd), represented by the Chief of the Naval the Ministry of Defence, Major General Benson apparently conceived as a rebirth of the former criminals in their game, the requirement for Staff, Vice Admiral Awwal Gambo stated that Akinroluyo.

Nigerian Navy Ship LANA (A498) which was enormous capacity upgrade has led to massive the new vessel was conceived as a replacement decommissioned.

Boost for Hydrography fleet recapitalisation, generous logistic support, to the previous NNS LANA, a survey ship The new NNS LANA (A499) is designed According to the DINFO, it is envisaged and purposely built to enable the NN conduct retooled maintenance facilities and equipment that was decommissioned about 10 years ago.

The minister, who was the special guest of that the rebirth of NNS LANA would afford hydrographic and oceanographic surveys. It restock, processes recalibration, and manpower honour at the event, added that the occasion the Nigerian Navy Hydrographic Department is also capable of conducting geophysical boost in quality and quantity. marked a great milestone in the fulfilment of the leverage to successfully and systematically studies, search and rescue operations as well the dream of not only replacing but, enhancing conduct hydrographic surveys and charting of as patrol duties. The ship is equipped with Fleet Recapitalisation Any force is only as good as its military Nigerian Navy’s survey capability. Importantly, Nigeria’s waters. state-of-the-art modern survey equipment as He said: "It would also afford Nigeria with well as a well-equipped 7.6m surface vehicle equipment; in the case of the NN, its platforms. the new vessel is expected to fill the void created This is because in improving the domestic and following the decommissioning of the previous the opportunity of keying into the General for shallow water surveys.

Bathymetric Charts of the Oceans (GEBCO) Seabed even external maritime environment, aggressive NNS LANA. Furthermore, the ship has an Automatic Highlighting the import of having a survey 2030 project and the Global Multi-Resolution Weather Station (AWS), wet and dry laboratories, fleet recapitalisation strategy must be enabled.

Firm believers of this ideology, the NN recently vessel like NNS LANA, he said that survey Topography (GMRT) synthesis project which scientific and technical workshops as well as boosted its fleet by taking delivery of its first ever services and charting waterways play a crucial would ultimately facilitate Nigeria’s accomplish- operating and processing rooms for survey data. purpose-built Offshore Survey Vessel, Nigerian role in ensuring safe navigation as well as delivery ment of its obligation under SOLAS Convention The machineries include two x MTU engines, Navy Ship (NNS) LANA from Saint Nazaire, of maritime security. Hence, NNS LANA will not in accordance with President Muhammadu three x CAT main generators/one emergency France. They also signed contract for another only enhance the safety of Nigeria’s maritime Buhari’s deliberate and sustained policies on generator, electric propulsion system and other 35 metre Offshore Survey Vessel with OCEA. environment but the ship will serve as a critical maritime safety and security." auxiliaries. The electric propulsion which is component in the projection of naval power operated at survey speed is particularly installed for enhanced maritime security in the Gulf of to minimise distortion of data due to machinery Construction/Launch Onward Journey Home Notably, the construction of the Offshore Survey Guinea.

After the inauguration, the NN's newest noise. The ship has a maximum speed of 14 While thanking President Muhammadu Buhari Offshore Survey Vessel (NNS LANA) began knots and a capacity of 50 crew.

Vessel 190 MKII (NNS LANA) commenced in

A

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T H I S D AY ˾ ͯͷ˜ ͰͮͰͯ

CRIME&SECURITY

GOC 81 Appeals for Stronger Collaboration with Defence Correspondents, Calls for Credible Intelligence Chiemelie Ezeobi

T

he General Officer Commanding (GOC), 81 Division, Major General Lawrence Fejokwu has appealed for stronger collaboration from defence correspondents covering the division, as well as credible intelligence from members of the public.

He also charged the media to be guided by the principle of balanced reporting while disseminating information on activities of the division and by extension the Nigerian Army (NA).

The GOC made the appeal while receiving the correspondents at the headquarters of the division at Victoria Island, Lagos.

He further urged them to be mindful of sensational reports as they could attract negative inferences that could influence crisis.

Pledging that he will ensure an open-door policy that would give the defence correspondents unfettered access to clarify any report on the activities of the NA within his area of responsibility, he added that if such clarification is beyond him, he would guide them on the next step to take.

GOC 81 Division, Major General Fejokwu

Speaking on his expectation on security within Lagos and Ogun States, he said the military is here to protect

all abiding citizens by ensuring that they go about their businesses in the safest environment.

He cited intelligence as the major keys to solving any security challenges as the battle can only be won if the civil populace brings credible information to security agencies that can be used to nip security challenges in the bud before they snowball into crisis.

He further said the division will keep members of the press informed on the progress made in terms security measures put in place to improve the state of security in the states.

On possible plans by the division to prevent possible attacks on government facilities within his area of responsibility, the GOC stated that the military in conjunction with other various agencies are working on strategies to contain any attacks but for operations security reasons he would not disclose it.

He added that very soon the press would start seeing manifestation of significant improvement in the security architecture in the state.

Highlights of the visit included the introduction of the GOC and other principal staff officers of the division as well as the defence correspondents, the subsequent interactive session and group photograph.

Women Arrested for Murder as Police Boss Warns against Ritual Killing Becky Umenyili

Horror played out recently when a 35-year-old mother of seven children, Sukurat Olajoke, killed and dumped the body of her last child, a-month old baby into a river in Ogun State.

The suspect who had other six children for three different men, disclosed during interrogation by operatives of the Ogun State Command, that she acted out of frustration following her inability to cater for the baby since the father of the child denounced the paternity of the late baby.

The lady who was sighted by the police on patrol at the bank of the river in a suspicious mood, was subsequently apprehended for questioning and she accepted that what she just threw into the river was the dead body of her baby.

Further interrogation led the police to engage local divers who recovered the body of the baby from the river while the mother is presently remanded at the homicide section of the police command for further investigations and necessary prosecutions.

In a similar development, 43 years old nursing mother, Bisola Awodele, was recently arrested by the Ogun State Police for double charges of secretly killing and burying her baby about eight months ago as well as pouring hot water on her husband thereby

CP Ajogun

causing him a grievous harm.

Following the report of the case by her husband who ran to the police station with a first degree burn all over the upper part of his body, it was further discovered that the woman who claimed to have acted out of frustration in both cases because of the alleged ‘drunkenness and irresponsible attitude of her husband’, bemoaned her acts as she claimed to have been assaulted and infuriated by her husband.

Meanwhile the state Commissioner of Police, CP Edward Ajogun has ordered the immediate transfer of both cases to the state criminal investigation and intelligence department for further investigation and prosecution while the husband has been taken to the General Hospital Ota, for treatment.

Meanwhile, CP Ajogun has condemned the recent spate of physical attacks on some persons by alleged friends and family members, especially the reported case of Mr. Obinna Kalu who admitted that he shot his co-tenant, Adijat Balogun with gun at her right rib following a rift between the two.

Mr. Kalu, who initially denied committing the dastardly act, admitted upon police interrogation after his arrest during which it was revealed that he vacated his apartment after the shooting to avoid arrest.

The victim is currently recuperating at Federal Medical Center, Abeokuta while the state police boss has ordered the criminal investigation and intelligence department of the force to conduct further investigations for necessary prosecution.

He also instructed the homicide department of the force to investigate the report of another case of alleged murder of a housewife and her four years old son, Mrs. Modupeola Folorunsho and Master Peter Folorunsho

respectively by a 29-years old herbalist Baoku Gbuyi and his accomplice, a 27 years old Bricklayer Olamide Odulaja who are presently remanded in police custody.

The arrest of the suspects followed a report by the victim's husband, who officially lodged a report that his wife and his son were missing which led to police detectives search to unravel the mystery behind the sudden disappearance of the woman and her son.

Intelligence-based investigation led to the arrest of Olamide Odulaja at Ibadan, who confessed during interrogation that he and one herbalist abducted the victim and her son on February 13, 2021 and that both were killed for money ritual at the house of the herbalist.

He stated further that it was the herbalist who burnt the woman's head in the course of the ritual.

It was after his confession that the police went to arrest the herbalist only to realise that he took to flight having heard about the arrest of Olamide.

Subsequently, all the adjoining divisions were alerted to be on look-out for the fleeing suspect. He was eventually traced to Kajola village, where he was arrested with the assistance of hunters and local vigilante groups.

Further interrogation confirmed that both culprits conspired to kill the victims for money making ritual.

Community Raises Alarm over Kidnap, Killing of Albinos Rebecca Ejifoma

Residents of Enugwu Ukwu community in Anambra State have raised alarm over the increased kidnapping and killing of albinos in the community.

While a large number of the residents claimed that albinos are hunted for ritual purposes, others blamed some mystical beliefs that albinos may take over the community soon.

Those who lent their voices expressed fear that albinos may not return to the community if nothing is done, as a large number of them have fled to different parts of the country.

Speaking during an interview with newsmen, an indigene, Chinedu Idoko, conceded that although the albinos are discriminated, last month's incident left dwellers perplexed and hysteric.

Explaining, she said “Unknown gunmen entered the community last month in search of albinos. At first we thought that there was an activity going on or they escorted people who came to give COVID-19 vaccines but they started asking for albinos and the albinos started to run away."

Asked what the government has done since then, she said nothing has been done on the part of the government.

"They are just telling them to calm down that nothing will happen to them but many of them have fled. They said that when government is serious that they will come back to the community.

"Right now as I speak, it is difficult to get albino is our community because all of them are on the run. When I heard about it I also ran away because I thought they came for everybody.”

Another community member, Ezugo Akaigwe who is an albino said that they have been neglected. “People see us as cursed people who are meant to be used for rituals and sacrifices alone.

"Some of them say we come from another planet and that we are some sort of evil spirit that’s why many people don’t want to associate with us in the community.”

Asked to tell what kinds of neglect he has faced as an albino, he said it is rare to see any employer engage them “that’s why I lost a lot of jobs including my dream job just because I am albino.

"I have also lost a lot of opportunities because of this. I once went for a job interview in a bank and I passed all the tests; I went there with my friends who also went through with the interview.

"Some of them were employed but I wasn’t and when I asked they said they would call me but they never did.”

Asked if he has had any encounter with ritualists he said not at all but he tries to secure himself. “I have also been told to join the albino foundation but I have not yet joined".

Emmanuel Otiji, another resident, said he has a friend who is an albino and has suffered a lot for this reason.

“For example, in February when some armed men who help ritualists to get human and body parts came to the village he almost fell victim. He managed to escape and has fled our community just to stay alive.

“Do you know that herbalists prescribe albinos to ritualists and that’s why these days they don’t move alone but in convoy,” he added.

T H I S D AY ˾ ˜ APRIL 19, 2021

36

BUSINESS/MONEYGUIDE

Wema Bank Restates Commitment to Customer Satisfaction Hamid Ayodeji Wema Bank Plc has said its customers remain its top priority in terms of service delivery and customer satisfaction.

The bank stated this in statement signed by its Head, Brands and Communications, Mrs. Funmi Falola.

According to her, the bank has consistently pushed the envelope in offering customer satisfaction within and outside of the conventional banking needs.

Also, the bank said its alternative channels including the USSD codes and the ALAT digital banking platform are consis-

tently available for customers to make all their payments and subscriptions with ease, stressing that these channels were very helpful for customer during the Covid-19-induced lockdown as customers had no need to visit the banking halls thereby compromising their health.

In furtherance of its commitment to giving the best to its customers, the bank explained that it has always strived to identify their needs and provide solutions accordingly.

“As the heat of the coronavirus burned intensely last year, and with the implementation of the strict lockdown measures that

hindered a lot of Nigerians and by extension some of the bank’s customers from carrying out their regular business activities, Wema Bank rose to the occasion by identifying the economic challenge this would inadvertently pose and offering a solution through Covid-19 palliative distributions within its host communities”, the bank stated.

It explained that states that were most affected by the lockdown measures were identified by the bank and communities in such states needing relief funds were particularly attended to.

Jaiz Bank Introduces NQR Code to Facilitate Payments James Emejo ÓØ ÌßÔË Jaiz Bank Plc, said it has embraced and deployed the newly introduced Quick Response Code (NQR) to ease transactions for its customers and merchants.

The NQR is an indigenous payment platform designed by the Nigeria Interbank Settlement Scheme (NIBSS), to provide a reliable and enhanced payment experience with the aim of lowering transaction costs for customers.

The Managing Director/Chief Executive, Jaiz Bank, Mr. Hassan Usman, described the solution as

one of the most innovative and exiting products of the payment systems in the country.

He said the deployment of NQR by the bank was in line with its strategy of growing its retail business, deepening digital financial inclusion, and lowering transaction cost for its customers.

In a statement issued by the bank’s Head, Corporate Communication, Halima Ishaq, the MD said: “The bank is deploying NQR payment system as part of its growing digital solutions to retain and attract merchants that require efficient but cheap payment solutions due to their relatively small profit margins.”

The statement added that the code, being the newest addition to its e-banking products, will be leveraged upon to ensure quick and convenient means of payments for goods and services.

The NQR service was designed for merchants/individuals to receive or make payments for goods and services. It is a flexible digital and contactless payment solution that is convenient with an integrated process that leverages on Application Programming Interface (APIs).

It enhances the scanning to pay mode, fast-track the process for receiving money in real-time, and facilitates quick payments.

Nova Merchant Bank Posts N3.5bn Profit Nova Merchant Bank Limited has released its audited results for the financial year ended December 31st 2020, recording growth across its major financial lines.

The bank declared a profit after tax of N3.49 billion in 2020, compared with the N1.65 billion it recorded in 2019. This, represented a 112 per cent increase.

All the key financial parameters recorded major improvement over the prior year performance. For instance, gross earnings showed a quantum leap of 130 per cent growth over 2019, and profit before tax at N3.52 billion recorded a 135 per cent growth over the 2019 figure of N1.5 billion.

On a similar note, the bank recorded a decline in its cost-toincome ratio, from 55 per cent in 2019, to 44 per cent in 2020.

Also, its customer deposits stood at N89.6 billion in 2020, compared to N40.5 billion it recorded in 2019, while loans to customers grew by 71 per cent to N50 billion in 2020, compared to N29.3 billion in 2019.

The bank’s Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Nath Ude, was quoted in a statement yesterday as saying, “Our full year 2020 performance is especially gratifying as we achieved such growth amidst the unprecedented nature of the COVID-19 pandemic and

resulting macro-economic headwinds.

“In 2021, we will continue to build on our strong foundation to significantly scale the business by focussing on exceeding the expectations of our customers through innovative financial solutions while expecting our non-bank subsidiaries to start contributing effectively to the group in line with our strategic intent.”

The bank’s Chairman, Mr. Phillips Oduoza stated, “I am particularly delighted to see how the Bank has maintained its growth trajectory and improve its efficiency during such a challenging period.

Adebise

MARKET INDICATORS MONEY AND CREDIT STATISTICS Money Supply (M3)

38,779,455.43

-- CBN Bills Held by Money Holding Sectors

1,039,129.55

Money Supply (M2)

37,740,325.88

-- Quasi Money

21,779,302.69

-- Narrow Money (M1)

15,961,023.19

---- Currency Outside Banks

2,364,871.13

---- Demand Deposits

13,596,152.06

Net Foreign Assets (NFA)

7,414,275.50

Net Domestic Assets(NDA)

31,365,179.93

-- Net Domestic Credit (NDC)

42,916,586.63

---- Credit to Government (Net)

12,304,773.44

---- Memo: Credit to Govt. (Net) less FMA

0.00

---- Memo: Fed. and Mirror Accounts (FMA)

0.00

---- Credit to Private Sector (CPS)

30,611,813.19

--Other Assets Net

3,892,112.74

Reserve Money (Base Money

13,264,585.14

--Currency in Circulation

2,831,167.19

--Banks Reserves --Special Intervention Reserves

10,433,417.96 317,234.17

Ecobank Transnational Incorporated (ETI), the parent company of the Ecobank Group has announced the appointment of Akin Dada as its Group Executive, Corporate and Investment Bank.

He joined Ecobank in 2017 as the Executive Director for Corporate Bank in Nigeria, and prior to his new appointment, he was Group Head, Corporate Banking for the Ecobank Group.

Dada has over 30 years of banking experience in client coverage,

strategic transaction initiation and advisory dialogues across various client segments, including public sector, telecoms, FMCG and oil and gas. Prior to joining Ecobank, he was the Managing Director for Citigroup Cameroon. He worked for Citigroup for 26 years in Corporate & Investment Banking as Senior Transactor, Senior Relationship Banker and Business Development Manager. While at Citi, he handled a wide array of transactions in Loan Syndications,

Project Finance, Corporate Finance and Advisory. Akin also worked briefly with Access Bank Nigeria Plc as Group Head, Oil & Gas. Commenting on the appointment, the Group CEO, Ecobank, Ade Ayeyemi said: “Akin’s valuable and varied experience over many years in corporate banking as well as his broader knowledge of banking, credit and risk management position him appropriately to lead our Corporate and Investment Bank.

FirstBank Launches New Website FirstBank, Nigeria has announced the launch of its newly designed website: https://www.firstbanknigeria. com/. According to a statement from the bank yesterday, the new website was upgraded with features that are streamlined to reinforce its role in delivering seamless banking and technology

solutions to its customers across the world. It stated that it is configured with modern design and improved functionality that eases customer experience whilst carrying out various activities on the site, including electronic banking. Non-customers are also able to open an account, putting them at an edge in the industry

as they establish a relationship with the Bank that puts YOU, its customers, First.

The new website seamlessly adopts a fresh, magazine-style look and feel for easy navigation in order to promote the access to essential information for its customers, FirstMonie agents, prospective agents and the public.

˾ ÙßÜÍÏ ̋

Money Market Indicators (in Percentage) Month

Ecobank Appoints Dada Group Executive, Corporate, InvestmentBanking

(MILLION NAIRA)

JANUARY 2021

March 2018

Inter-Bank Call Rate

15.16

Minimum Rediscount Rate (MRR) Monetary Policy Rate (MPR)

14.00

Treasury Bill Rate

11.84

Savings Deposit Rate

4.07

1 Month Deposit Rate

8.82

3 Months Deposit Rate

9.72

6 Months Deposit Rate

10.93

12 Months Deposit Rate

10.21

Prime Lending rate

17.35

Maximum Lending Rate

31.55

˾ ÙØÏÞËÜã ÙÖÓÍã ËÞÏ ̋ ͯͱϱ

OPEC DAILY BASKET PRICE AS AT THURSDAY, 15 APRIL 2021

The price of OPEC basket of thirteen crudes stood at $64.48 a barrel on Thursday, compared with $63.39 the previous day, according to OPEC Secretariat calculations.

The OPEC Reference Basket of Crudes (ORB) is made up of the following: Saharan Blend (Algeria), Girassol (Angola), Djeno (Congo), Zafiro (Equatorial Guinea), Rabi Light (Gabon), Iran Heavy (Islamic Republic of Iran), Basra Light (Iraq), Kuwait Export (Kuwait), Es Sider (Libya), Bonny Light (Nigeria), Arab Light (Saudi Arabia), Murban (UAE) and Merey (Venezuela).

SOURCE: OPEC headquarters, Vienna

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T H I S D AY ˾ ˜ ͯͷ˜ ͰͮͰͯ

CSCS Grows Profit by 41% to N6.9bn, to Pay N5.8bn Dividend Goddy Egene The Central Securities Clearing System Plc (CSCS) successfully weathered the storm in 2020 financial year to deliver improved results and declared dividend.

Details of the performance showed that total operating income stood at N12.087 billion, boosted by the investment income of N7.443 billion, up from N4.612 billion.

Profit before tax (PBT) printed

at N7.392 billion, up by 22.3 per cent from N6.042 billion. However, income tax dropped by 59.34 per cent from N1.141 billion in the preceding year to N464.361 million, making profit after tax (PAT) grew faster by 41.3 per cent to N6.93 billion from N4.90 billion. The board recommends a dividend of N5.8 billion, which is 117 kobo per share. Commenting, on the results, Chairman of the company, Oscar Onyema,said: “It is exciting to report this stellar results. Defying

P R I C E S MAIN BOARD

F O R DEALS

the unprecedented challenges that characterised 2020 financial year, CSCS emerged stronger, delivering outstanding growth in top and bottom-lines, and executing farreaching initiatives that would sustainably strengthen the competitiveness and resilience of the business.”

According to him, the board and management are upbeat about the value accretive prospects of CSCS,saying that they are enthusiastic that the progress

S E C U R I T I E S

MARKET PRICE

QUANTITY TRADED

VALUE TRADED ( N )

made thus far in repositioning the business to efficiently play a more active and leading role in deepening the Nigerian capital market would be sustained.

In his comments, the Chief Executive Officer of CSCS Plc, Haruna Jalo-Waziri, said: “Amidst the COVID-19 twin threat to lives and livelihoods, and more importantly the attendant challenges in economic and business environment, we outperformed budget, reinforcing our commit-

T R A D E D MAIN BOARD

A S

ment to delivering superior value to our shareholders, irrespective of the odds. These impressive results reflect our enhanced collaboration with different stakeholders and their unflinching support and loyalty to CSCS, as the core infrastructure for the Nigerian capital market.”

He said the company would continue to invest in the collective objective of deepening the capital market and broader financial system, even as it seeks new

O F

and efficient ways of enhancing its partnerships for mutual prosperity.

“Having laid a solid foundation over the past three years, we are more than ever optimistic on the prospect of our business, especially as we diversify the business for enhanced resilience against macro and market volatilities.

We will sustain our disciplined cost efficiency culture, in our commitment to delivering sustainable value to shareholders over the long term,” he said.

1 6 / 0 4 / 2 0 2 1 DEALS

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QUANTITY TRADED

VALUE TRADED ( N)

MONDAY APRIL 19, 2021 • T H I S D AY

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MONDAY, ͹΁˜ ͺ͸ͺ͹ ˾ T H I S D AY

PAGE FOURTY SEVEN

FG, Stakeholders Meet over Financing of Safe Schools Ndubuisi Francis in Abuja Stakeholders, including government at all levels, security agencies and the National Assembly, among others, will tomorrow discuss on how to fashion out strategies to finance safe schools nationwide.

The new move is propelled by the recent abduction of students in some schools in the North-west, North-east and North-central geo-political zones.

The Safe School Initiative was launched in 2014 following the abduction of 276 schoolgirls in Chibok, Borno State.

In a statement yesterday, the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs. Zainab Ahmed, said the federal government is looking to impact education and create a safe learning communities across the country, following a high-level dialogue and well-thought-out gathering titled "Financing Safe Schools: Creating Safe Learning Communities."

Ahmed, who is to host the

event billed for tomorrow in Abuja, said the federal government alongside other stakeholders, wished to redouble efforts to achieve a safe school environment so that Nigeria’s next generation could flourish and contribute to productive economies and societies.

Providing the basis for the dialogue, she cited cases, saying that out-of-school children are especially vulnerable to exploitation and abuse and critically are ‘fundamentally ill-equipped’ to positively contribute productively to the economy.

According to her, “The World Bank has coined the term ‘learning poverty,’ which measures quality and quantity of learning in developing countries. Recent studies show only 20 per cent of children in the North-east of Nigeria who complete primary school can read.

“Education is critical to Nigeria’s future given almost 44 per cent of Nigeria’s population is between the ages of 0-14. The World Bank

estimates that COVID-19 may have increased learning poverty from 53 per cent to 63 per cent in countries like Nigeria. The impact of outof-school children in Nigeria is a structural impediment to Nigeria achieving the SDGs. “The impact of conflict on education is especially stark for girls with lower literacy rates across the country for females of 12 per cent compared to males. Yet, reports on girls education predict that making sure girls complete secondary education could boost developing country gross domestic product (GDP) by 10 per cent and a return on investment of $2.8 for every $1 invested in girls education."

The minister said the combination of multidimensional attacks (in the North-eastern region) and the ongoing COVID-19 crisis means an urgent multi-dimensional approach is needed, adding that some critical issues needed to be addressed in comprehensive strategies to facilitate sustained safe schools and safe education.

Ahmed said: "A reimagined/ revitalised sustainable strategy to finance and support safe schools will aim to increase enrolment in schools and make school environments safer."

This, she stated, will be done through "taking a multi-sectoral approach to developing and implementing the strategy, engaging key stakeholders across all Nigerian states, national and multilateral donors and the private sector to garner firm commitments, foster champions and develop accountability frameworks to embed drivers for sustained change to push momentum forward."

The dialogue will bring together state governors, the Nigerian Governors Forum (NGF), National Economic Council, (NEC), members of the National Assembly, national security adviser and security chiefs and the Ministry of Education.

Others are multilateral institutions, donors, civil society and private sector representatives, including the Nigerian Economic Summit

Group (NESG), to "address the urgent issues which are stopping the safe education of children- our next generation."

The minister in the statement by her Special Adviser, Media and Communications, Mr. Yunusa Abdullahi, the dialogue, among others, aimed at achieving re-engaging senior policymakers, including state governors, national security adviser, the Ministry of Education and others to take a stand, acknowledge the emergency and commit to taking action to reverse the current trend in numbers of out-of-school children.

Stakeholders, especially security agencies and human rights organisations, she added, are to develop cross-sectoral strategies to implement the Safe Schools Declaration, including developing strategies with students and teachers to make it safe for children to return to school and build confidence in the education system.

The outcomes of the dialogue will be summarised in a paper with a cross-sectoral

working group formed to make recommendations and actions forward.

Explaining why the finance minister decided to host the dialogue, the statement said: "She has decided on this in that at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, international projections estimated that children missing out on five months of education would collectively result in $10 trillion in lost future incomes.

“If trends continue, the worst-case scenario predicted is that half of all young people will not have the skills necessary for entry-level employment reducing country workforces and moving the countries back into poverty.

"Nigeria is facing a socioeconomic crisis borne out of an education crisis. As a result, a history of poor education provision has been exacerbated by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and conflict across the country has led to over 13 million children being out of school- the highest rate of out of school children in the world."

Confronted with this evidence of empathy for terrorists, the minister recanted the comments on Saturday, saying that he had changed several positions he had taken in the past based on new evidence, adding that he had become more mature.

According to him, “I was young when I made some of the comments; I was in the university, some of the comments were made when I was a teenager. I started preaching when I was 13, many scholars and individuals did not understand some of the international events and, therefore, took some positions based on their understanding, some have come to change their

positions later.”

Pantami said he had made efforts to mend his ways, explaining that the radical views he held in the past had been tempered by fresh knowledge and age.

“For 15 years, I have moved around the country while educating people about the dangers of terrorism,” he said, in apparent remorse, to a national daily in an interview on Saturday.

He added: “I have travelled to Katsina, Gombe, Borno, Kano states and Difa in Niger Republic to preach against terrorism.

“I have engaged those with Boko Haram ideologies

in different places. I have been writing pamphlets in Hausa, English and Arabic. I have managed to bring back several young persons who have derailed from the right path.”

But despite Pantami’s recant, the PDP added its weighty voice to the growing demand in the public space for his removal from office.

“The PDP is particularly worried about allegations in the public suggesting that the minister compromised the NIN (national identification number) registration exercise by giving room for the registration of aliens and invaders from other countries as our citizens,” the party said.

on a strike.

But in the proposal, the governors said instead of direct allocations to the state judiciaries and legislatures, a certain minimum amount will be paid monthly to them for their operations.

A source told THISDAY at the weekend that the proposal was made to end the ongoing strike by the judicial workers.

When asked if the governors had reached an agreement on how to end the judiciary workers' strike, the source said: “Yes, but that would be finalised on Monday. We are meeting on Monday. The last meeting became inconclusive because there was a report that had not been sufficiently shared.

So, everybody now has a copy, so they will look at it. But I think all that will be resolved on Monday.

“When you say agreement,

basically, this goes back to the autonomy of the judicial and legislative arms. So, the governors have agreed to a monthly payment of an irreducible amount that would help the judiciary service their operations.”

When asked if Gambari is involved in the meeting, the source said: “Yes, he has been at the heart of all these.

That interaction will happen between the governors and the leadership of the speakers on Monday in the morning.

“Then, in the afternoon, we have a meeting with the Chief of Staff. Then, the next day (Tuesday), the entire team will meet with the Minister of Labour, and I think that will end the whole thing, except there is more to it.”

THISDAY had earlier reported that a technical report containing the position of the

governors had been submitted to Gambari, while they awaited the return of the president from the foreign medical trip for a final resolution of the issue.

The governors had also faulted Executive Order 10, describing it as unconstitutional and full of inconsistencies.

A source had told THISDAY that the governors were still trying to reach a consensus over the enforcement of the order.

He added that the governors had planned to approach the Supreme Court to interpret certain provisions of the order but later shelved the plan in order not to embarrass the federal government.

per cent below the receipts in the corresponding period of 2020.

This was attributed to the weak global demand relative to the pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels.

“A disaggregation of oil receipts in January 2021 indicated that proceeds from the Petroleum Profit Tax (PPT) & royalties and crude oil and gas sales contributed N208.26 billion and N136.25 billion, respectively, jointly accounting for 94 per cent of the total oil revenue.

“At N13.53 billion, crude oil and gas export was significantly below the provisional target for January 2021 and earnings in the corresponding period of 2020

by 75.3 per cent and 76.3 per cent, respectively.

“This suggested that accrued revenues from crude oil and gas sales, were majorly realised from domestic consumption, as crude oil export earnings remained low,” it added.

It stated that at N441.01 billion or 54.6 per cent of the gross federation revenue, the contribution of non-oil revenue to the federation revenue was 20 per cent below the provisional benchmark.

“However, non-oil receipts in January 2021 outperformed collections in December 2020 and January 2020 by three per cent and 19.4 per cent respectively.

FOR ALLEGED SYMPATHY FOR TERRORISTS, PDP URGES BUHARI TO REMOVE PANTAMI who has access to sensitive government documents and information, in addition to data of all individuals, including high profile personalities in the public and private sectors as well as the traditional and faith-based circles."

The minister’s travails began early last week when a national newspaper amplified social media claims that he had been placed on the watch list by the United States for alleged links to terrorists.

Pantami, however, denied the claim, threatening to sue the newspaper for libel. The paper immediately retracted the story.

The minister would later

say in an interview with an online medium that he was being targeted because of his insistence on the National Identification Number (NIN) registration by every Nigerian and foreigner resident in the country, explaining the policy had made life unbearable for criminals.

But that did not deter those who wanted to link him to terrorism as they released, in Social Media, past videos in which Pantami, a well-known Islamic scholar, was reported to have said that while he was against the extremist anti-western ideologies of Boko Haram, he supported some of what Al-Qaeda and Taliban had

preached.

“We are all happy whenever unbelievers are being killed,” an online medium quoted Pantami as saying in an audio recording, adding: “But the Sharia does not allow us to kill them without a reason. Our zeal (hamasa) should not take precedence over our obedience to the sacred law.”

Pantami reportedly made the provocative comments in an answer to a question on the late Al Qaeda leader, Osama Bin Laden, who was the mastermind of the destruction of the World Trade Centre in which at least 3000 people died when planes crashed into the twin towers of WTC on September 11, 2001.

GOVS PROPOSE MONTHLY PAYMENT TO STATE JUDICIARIES grant financial autonomy to state judiciaries and legislatures.

The impasse triggered the ongoing indefinite strike by judicial workers, which began on April 6, to press for the implementation of the law.

The governors, in a report by a committee, chaired by Sokoto State Governor, Hon. Aminu Tambuwal, and which was set up by Nigeria Governors' Forum (NGF), proposed the payment of a minimum irreducible amount monthly to the two arms of government in each state for their operations as against the constitutional provisions for funds due to the judiciary and the legislature in each state to be on a first-line charge.

Following the failure of state governors to implement section 121 (3) of 1999 Constitution as amended, which makes votes for state judiciaries and

legislatures a first-line charge on the consolidated revenue, President Muhammadu Buhari had signed Executive Order 10 to enforce the constitution.

But the governors resisted the order as well as three separate court judgments that declared their action unconstitutional.

THISDAY gathered at the weekend that a copy of the proposal was presented to the Chief of Staff to the President, Prof. Ibrahim Gambari, last week.

The governors are also expected to meet today with Gambari to discuss the details.

The governors, it was learnt, will also meet with speakers of state Houses of Assembly later today and hold a final engagement tomorrow with the Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige.

Section 121 (3) of the 1999 Constitution as amended, grants financial autonomy to state judiciaries, stating: "Any amount standing to the credit of the judiciary in the Consolidated Revenue Fund of the State shall be paid directly to the heads of the courts concerned."

Courts have also affirmed it in suits involving the Judicial Staff Union of Nigeria Vs National Judicial Council (NJC) and Governors of the 36 states in Suit No. FHC/ABJ/ CS/667/13; Olisa Agbakoba Vs Federal Government of Nigeria, NJC and the National Assembly in suit No.FHC/ ABJ/CS/63/2013 and Olisa Agbakoba Vs Attorney General of Ekiti State and two Others in Suit No. NAD/56/2013.

Following the recalcitrance of the states, the Judicial Staff Union of Nigeria (JUSUN) shut down the courts and embarked

REPORT: FG’S REVENUE FALLS BY 12.8% TO N807BN IN JANUARY Tax (VAT), corporate tax and the federal government’s independent revenue sources.

The report said retained revenue of the federal government was lower-thantrend due to the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“At N285.26 billion, the federal government’s retained revenue fell short of its programmed benchmark and collections in January 2020, by 41.3 per cent and 7.5 per cent, respectively.

“In contrast, the provisional aggregate expenditure of the FGN rose from N717.60 billion in December 2020 to N770.77 billion in the reporting period, but remained 14.4 per cent below

the monthly target of N900.88 billion.

“Fiscal operations of the FGN in January 2021 resulted in a tentative overall deficit of N485.51 billion. Total public debt outstanding of the FGN as at end-September 2020, stood at N28.032 trillion, with domestic and external debts accounting for 56.5 per cent and 43.5 per cent, respectively,” it added.

According to the report, the shortfall in revenue target may further constrain fiscal policy implementation, particularly, at the sub-national governments, where a chunk of annual budgets was expected to be financed from Federation

Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) allocations.

It stated that total allocations to both states and local governments in January 2021, remained below the provisional budget estimate.

The report added that federation account revenue in January was driven by developments in the oil and non-oil revenue inflows.

It said oil revenue, at N366.53 billion, exceeded the provisional target of N295.39 billion by 24.1 per cent, due to the sustained improvement in crude oil prices.

However, despite the modest increase in oil prices, oil receipts in the review period was 34.2

TOP GAINERS NGN NGN CHAMS PLC 0.02 0.22 UPDC 0.07 0.79 GUINNESS 2.70 31.85 NNFM 0.45 5.35 PZ 0.35 4.50 TOP LOSERS NGN JAPAULGOLD 0.07 0.63 STERLBANK 0.45 1.48 FCMB 0.26 2.66 MBENEFITS 0.03 0.34 GSK 0.40 6.40 HPE Nestle Nig Plc ₦1,420.00 Volume: 262.510 million shares Value: N2.438 billion Deals: 3,525 As at Friday 16/4/2021 See details on Page 37

% 10 9.7 9.2 9.1 8.4 % 10 9.7 8.9 8.1 5.8

MONDAY, ͹΁˜ ͺ͸ͺ͹ ˾ T H I S D AY

48

NEWS

Senate Constitution Review Committee Dissolves into Four Sub-Committees Submits report next week Deji Elumoye in Abuja The 58-man Senate Committee for the review of the 1999 Constitution has dissolved into four sub-committees to fast-track its mandate to amend the constitution this year.

The committee, headed by the Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, was inaugurated in March 2020 by the President of the Senate, Dr. Ahmad Lawan, but could not function for the better part of last year due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in the country.

THISDAY’s findings at the weekend revealed that the committee has since become active in the last few weeks,

having dissolved into four sub-committees, which are expected to turn in their reports next week.

It was also learnt that the main committee was awaiting the release of funds for it to commence public hearing on the constitution review in the six geo-political zones in May. The four sub-committees include the one to review the previous constitutional bills that were not assented to by President Muhammadu Buhari.

The committee headed by the immediate past Chairman of the Senate Committee on Constitution Review, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, THISDAY learnt, will be meeting this

week to look at the reasons why the president failed to assent to the constitutional bills passed by the past National Assembly and advise the main committee on the way forward.

Another committee headed by former Governor of Borno State, Senator Kashim Shetima, is to study the report of the 2014 confab organised

by President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration and look at the aspect of the voluminous report that can be adopted by the main committee as a guide during the review.

The two other subcommittees are the ones to consider the report of the Governor Nasir el-Rufai- led All Progressives Congress

(APC) committee on restructuring and the subcommittee to consider all the various issues bordering on electoral reforms and local government autonomy as it relates to the 1999 Constitution.

THISDAY gathered that the sub-committees which had since swung into action, will be expected to conclude its meetings this week while their reports will now be submitted to the main committee next week.

A senator who is a member of the committee confirmed on condition of anonymity to THISDAY that the committee had dissolved into four sub-committees and that its reports will be ready by next week.

The senator, however,

expressed concern that the non-availability of funds may affect the activities of the main committee.

He said going by the committee's schedule, the public hearings at the zonal level ought to have started this month and end in May. According to him, "we await the release of funds to the committee so that it can begin the zonal public hearings as soon as we conclude and harmonise the reports of the subcommittees by next week".

The committee Chairman, Omo-Agege had on March 18, 2021, hinted that the schedule of events for the forthcoming public hearings on amendment of the constitution would

be released the following week.

The DSP who spoke when the Steering Committee of the Constitution Review panel hosted the Eminent Elders Forum, led by Professor Echefuna Onyeabadi, had said: "By next week, our schedule of events for the public hearings will be made public. We will have a national public hearing very soon. And thereafter we will have the zonal public hearings. In some of the zones, we decided that we will have at least two zonal hearings".

One month after, the schedule for a zonal public hearing is not yet out ostensibly due to lack of funds.

soldiers who have been supplying arms and animations to bandits,” ACF said.

ACF stated that the criminals have used arms to make sure that the lawabiding people of Zamfara and Nigeria know no peace.

The forum said it had told the governor to go ahead and expose those involved

in these conspiratorial acts and let the heavens fall.

“Now that seven of them are exposed and arrested, the ACF joins all patriots in hailing the governor and calls on all other Nigerians with information on these evil men to expose them so that Nigeria will experience peace and economic progress,” the ACF said.

He stated that the governor had given directives to ISIEC to kick-start the process of conducting local government elections, adding that what might be an impediment all the while was the COVID-19 pandemic.

In the past 12 years, Imo State elected council officials twice but their tenures were short-lived due to change in governments.

Former Governor Ikedi Ohakim conducted local government elections in 2009 and but his successor, Senator Rochas Okorocha, sacked the elected chairmen in 2011.

Okorocha also conducted what majority of Imo State residents had described as 'kangaroo' elections at the twilight of his exit in 2018, but former Governor Emeka Ihedioha sacked the officials.

Ihedioha was making preparations for a fresh poll when he was suddenly removed by the Supreme Court.

Meanwhile, the Zamfara State government said the insecurity bedevilling the state was responsible for the delay in the conduct of the local election.

The state Commissioner for Information, Alhaji Ibrahim Dosara, in an interview with THISDAY, said: “You know when the lives of rural dwellers are in danger, you can't gather for election.”

He added that Governor Bello Matawalle had written to the state House of Assembly for the extension of the tenure of the caretaker committee chairmen.

He said the state government would conduct elections when the situation improves.

According to him, what is paramount to the state government is to safeguard the lives of its citizens.

Edo and Osun States have not fixed dates for the conduct of local government elections too.

THISDAY gathered that the local governments in Edo State were not being run by appointed caretaker committees but their heads of administrations.

ACF CONDEMNS KILLING OF SOLDIERS, ALLEGED MILITARY'S REPRISAL IN BENUE members of the Nigerian Army who were merely on a mission to keep the peace.

“As dastardly as the actions of the bandits are, we find the reaction of the Army out of proportion.”

Yawe stated that a petition signed by Senator Gabriel Suswam, who represents the area in the Senate to the Army Headquarters alleged

that the Army was on a revenge mission in which villagers whose homes were far away from the troubled area in Konshisha Local Government were being bombed with helicopter gunboats.

“We believe that as wrong and criminal as the actions of the bandits are, the army should not use a

sledgehammer to kill a fly.

“We call on the security agents and community leaders and the state government to fish out the criminals and punish them.

“Punishing poor, innocent people, who have nothing to do with the killings of soldiers in Konshisha is unfair and not the best way to go.

“The ACF calls for restraint on both sides in this crisis so that more innocent blood is not shed,” he added.

The forum commended the Zamfara State Government for exposing the security men assisting bandits in the state.

“We are happy that Governor Bello Matawalle has authorised the exposure of yet another round of

LITIGATIONS STALL LG ELECTIONS IN ANAMBRA, KATSINA, KWARA Democratic Party (PDP) administration of Mr. Ibrahim Shema.

Masari, who sacked the duly elected chairmen and councillors on the assumption of office in 2015 over alleged violation of state’s laws, inaugurated interim management committees for the 34 councils.

However, the committee members have been dissolved by the state Assembly following the expiration of their tenure.

The dissolution of the elected councils' chairmen and councillors apparently forced the state chapter of the PDP to sue Masari over what the party termed gross violation of section 7 (1) of the Nigeria Constitution and relevant laws in the state.

But Masari while justifying the failure of the state government to conduct the poll, said until the matter is settled in court, the state cannot conduct the poll.

According to him, the state government will conduct local government elections as soon as the apex court delivers judgment on the PDP litigation.

There was also, no indication that chairmen and councillors would be elected into the 21 local government areas in Anambra State before Governor Willie Obiano leaves office in March next year.

There have not been council polls in the state, for about 10 years after the last one was conducted.

Anambra State Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Mr. Don Adinuba, told THISDAY in an interview that

the conduct of the poll was being dogged by litigation, which is still pending at the Supreme Court.

He said: "Anambra cannot conduct elections now; the matter is still at the Supreme Court. Twenty-one members of the APC (All Progressives Congress) representing the 21 local government areas in the state took the state to court over council poll.

"The matter is still in the Supreme Court; that is why no election can be held into the local government areas for now.

"The APC members are saying that they are the only ones validly nominated by their party, and as such, other parties should be barred from participating, and you know that is not possible. They took the state government to court and won, and we have to appeal. The matter is currently in the Supreme Court."

He added: "There is no electoral body in the state as I speak. I don't know why people are so interested in local government election in Anambra when the local government councils are doing well.”

He stated that other local governments being run by elected officials were not doing better than the ones in the state.

The Kwara State government attributed the non-conduct of the local government council polls in the state to the various court cases against the state independent electoral commission.

Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq had recently inaugurated the Transitional

Implementation Committee (TIC) for the 16 local government councils of the state after the expiration of the tenure of the democratically elected council chairmen.

However, speaking in Ilorin, the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Mr. Rafiu Ajakaye, said: "Kwara is constrained by various court cases on the composition of the electoral commission — the statutory body responsible for conducting elections into local councils.

"The state government will not hesitate to hold local government council polls once these issues are resolved."

No Date Yet for Edo, Ogun, Osun, Imo Meanwhile, the Ogun State government said the recent inauguration of the Ogun State Independent Electoral Commission (OGSIEC) is an indication that local government elections will soon be conducted.

The Chief Press Secretary to Governor Dapo Abiodun, Mr. Kunle Somorin, told THISDAY that since the commission has been set up, its next task would be the conduct of council polls.

"We just inaugurated the state independent electoral commission, led by Mr. Babatunde Osibodu, the process has begun," he added.

The current caretaker committees in the various local government areas were put in place by the government in January 2020 and have spent over a year in office.

Their appointments came three months after the governor claimed that the

tenure of the council chiefs under his predecessor, Senator Ibikunle Amosun, expired in October 2019.

Abiodun had promised that democratically elected chairmen would soon emerge after the composition of the electoral commission is set up through an Act of the state House of Assembly.

Already, politicians have taken to the field, campaigning for various council offices, though uncertain as to when the elections will hold.

Osibodu recently told journalists in Abeokuta that the commission was yet to fix a date for the elections.

"We cannot give a definite date for the exercise yet; as you know, we need to give 90 days’ notice to the public and the aspirants. We are also assessing what we have on the ground,” he said, adding: “We want to assure everyone that the commission will be fair, equitable, just, transparent and even-handed with stakeholders, political parties, candidates and others.”

The Imo State government said it will soon clear the processes of conducting local government elections.

The state Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Hon. Declan Emelumba, in a telephone interview with THISDAY in Owerri, the state capital, said Governor Hope Uzodimma was keen on conducting local government elections as soon as possible.

He added that the governor had constituted the Imo State Independent Electoral Commission (ISIEC) immediately he came into office with a view to holding council polls later.

Oyo to Conduct LG Poll May 15 However, the local government election will be conducted in Oyo State on May 15.

The Chairman of the Oyo State Independent Electoral Commission (OYSIEC), Mr. Isiaka Olagunju (SAN), said the election would be conducted into the 33 local government areas in the state.

"In compliance with Section 30 Electoral Act 2010 (as amended), Section 5 (a) and Paragraph 1 (1) Schedule 2 of the State Independent Electoral Commission Law CAP 154, Laws of Oyo State of Nigeria 2000, the general public is hereby informed that elections will be conducted in thirty-three (33) local government councils in Oyo State on Saturday, 15th May 2021 between 8:00 a.m. and 3.00 p.m.," he had said.

He called on prospective candidates to obtain nomination forms at the commission’s headquarters on or before April 30, upon payment of N250, 000 for the position of chairman or N100, 000 for the position of a councilor.

MONDAY, ͹΁˜ ͺ͸ͺ͹ ˾ T H I S D AY

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NEWS

Senate Constitution Review Committee Dissolves into Four Sub-Committees Submits report next week Deji Elumoye in Abuja The 58-man Senate Committee for the review of the 1999 Constitution has dissolved into four sub-committees to fast-track its mandate to amend the constitution this year.

The committee, headed by the Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, was inaugurated in March 2020 by the President of the Senate, Dr. Ahmad Lawan, but could not function for the better part of last year due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in the country.

THISDAY’s findings at the weekend revealed that the committee has since become active in the last few weeks,

having dissolved into four sub-committees, which are expected to turn in their reports next week.

It was also learnt that the main committee was awaiting the release of funds for it to commence public hearing on the constitution review in the six geo-political zones in May. The four sub-committees include the one to review the previous constitutional bills that were not assented to by President Muhammadu Buhari.

The committee headed by the immediate past Chairman of the Senate Committee on Constitution Review, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, THISDAY learnt, will be meeting this

week to look at the reasons why the president failed to assent to the constitutional bills passed by the past National Assembly and advise the main committee on the way forward.

Another committee headed by former Governor of Borno State, Senator Kashim Shetima, is to study the report of the 2014 confab organised

by President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration and look at the aspect of the voluminous report that can be adopted by the main committee as a guide during the review.

The two other subcommittees are the ones to consider the report of the Governor Nasir el-Rufai- led All Progressives Congress

(APC) committee on restructuring and the subcommittee to consider all the various issues bordering on electoral reforms and local government autonomy as it relates to the 1999 Constitution.

THISDAY gathered that the sub-committees which had since swung into action, will be expected to conclude its meetings this week while their reports will now be submitted to the main committee next week.

A senator who is a member of the committee confirmed on condition of anonymity to THISDAY that the committee had dissolved into four sub-committees and that its reports will be ready by next week.

The senator, however,

expressed concern that the non-availability of funds may affect the activities of the main committee.

He said going by the committee's schedule, the public hearings at the zonal level ought to have started this month and end in May. According to him, "we await the release of funds to the committee so that it can begin the zonal public hearings as soon as we conclude and harmonise the reports of the subcommittees by next week".

The committee Chairman, Omo-Agege had on March 18, 2021, hinted that the schedule of events for the forthcoming public hearings on amendment of the constitution would

be released the following week.

The DSP who spoke when the Steering Committee of the Constitution Review panel hosted the Eminent Elders Forum, led by Professor Echefuna Onyeabadi, had said: "By next week, our schedule of events for the public hearings will be made public. We will have a national public hearing very soon. And thereafter we will have the zonal public hearings. In some of the zones, we decided that we will have at least two zonal hearings".

One month after, the schedule for a zonal public hearing is not yet out ostensibly due to lack of funds.

soldiers who have been supplying arms and animations to bandits,” ACF said.

ACF stated that the criminals have used arms to make sure that the lawabiding people of Zamfara and Nigeria know no peace.

The forum said it had told the governor to go ahead and expose those involved

in these conspiratorial acts and let the heavens fall.

“Now that seven of them are exposed and arrested, the ACF joins all patriots in hailing the governor and calls on all other Nigerians with information on these evil men to expose them so that Nigeria will experience peace and economic progress,” the ACF said.

He stated that the governor had given directives to ISIEC to kick-start the process of conducting local government elections, adding that what might be an impediment all the while was the COVID-19 pandemic.

In the past 12 years, Imo State elected council officials twice but their tenures were short-lived due to change in governments.

Former Governor Ikedi Ohakim conducted local government elections in 2009 and but his successor, Senator Rochas Okorocha, sacked the elected chairmen in 2011.

Okorocha also conducted what majority of Imo State residents had described as 'kangaroo' elections at the twilight of his exit in 2018, but former Governor Emeka Ihedioha sacked the officials.

Ihedioha was making preparations for a fresh poll when he was suddenly removed by the Supreme Court.

Meanwhile, the Zamfara State government said the insecurity bedevilling the state was responsible for the delay in the conduct of the local election.

The state Commissioner for Information, Alhaji Ibrahim Dosara, in an interview with THISDAY, said: “You know when the lives of rural dwellers are in danger, you can't gather for election.”

He added that Governor Bello Matawalle had written to the state House of Assembly for the extension of the tenure of the caretaker committee chairmen.

He said the state government would conduct elections when the situation improves.

According to him, what is paramount to the state government is to safeguard the lives of its citizens.

Edo and Osun States have not fixed dates for the conduct of local government elections too.

THISDAY gathered that the local governments in Edo State were not being run by appointed caretaker committees but their heads of administrations.

ACF CONDEMNS KILLING OF SOLDIERS, ALLEGED MILITARY'S REPRISAL IN BENUE members of the Nigerian Army who were merely on a mission to keep the peace.

“As dastardly as the actions of the bandits are, we find the reaction of the Army out of proportion.”

Yawe stated that a petition signed by Senator Gabriel Suswam, who represents the area in the Senate to the Army Headquarters alleged

that the Army was on a revenge mission in which villagers whose homes were far away from the troubled area in Konshisha Local Government were being bombed with helicopter gunboats.

“We believe that as wrong and criminal as the actions of the bandits are, the army should not use a

sledgehammer to kill a fly.

“We call on the security agents and community leaders and the state government to fish out the criminals and punish them.

“Punishing poor, innocent people, who have nothing to do with the killings of soldiers in Konshisha is unfair and not the best way to go.

“The ACF calls for restraint on both sides in this crisis so that more innocent blood is not shed,” he added.

The forum commended the Zamfara State Government for exposing the security men assisting bandits in the state.

“We are happy that Governor Bello Matawalle has authorised the exposure of yet another round of

LITIGATIONS STALL LG ELECTIONS IN ANAMBRA, KATSINA, KWARA Democratic Party (PDP) administration of Mr. Ibrahim Shema.

Masari, who sacked the duly elected chairmen and councillors on the assumption of office in 2015 over alleged violation of state’s laws, inaugurated interim management committees for the 34 councils.

However, the committee members have been dissolved by the state Assembly following the expiration of their tenure.

The dissolution of the elected councils' chairmen and councillors apparently forced the state chapter of the PDP to sue Masari over what the party termed gross violation of section 7 (1) of the Nigeria Constitution and relevant laws in the state.

But Masari while justifying the failure of the state government to conduct the poll, said until the matter is settled in court, the state cannot conduct the poll.

According to him, the state government will conduct local government elections as soon as the apex court delivers judgment on the PDP litigation.

There was also, no indication that chairmen and councillors would be elected into the 21 local government areas in Anambra State before Governor Willie Obiano leaves office in March next year.

There have not been council polls in the state, for about 10 years after the last one was conducted.

Anambra State Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Mr. Don Adinuba, told THISDAY in an interview that

the conduct of the poll was being dogged by litigation, which is still pending at the Supreme Court.

He said: "Anambra cannot conduct elections now; the matter is still at the Supreme Court. Twenty-one members of the APC (All Progressives Congress) representing the 21 local government areas in the state took the state to court over council poll.

"The matter is still in the Supreme Court; that is why no election can be held into the local government areas for now.

"The APC members are saying that they are the only ones validly nominated by their party, and as such, other parties should be barred from participating, and you know that is not possible. They took the state government to court and won, and we have to appeal. The matter is currently in the Supreme Court."

He added: "There is no electoral body in the state as I speak. I don't know why people are so interested in local government election in Anambra when the local government councils are doing well.”

He stated that other local governments being run by elected officials were not doing better than the ones in the state.

The Kwara State government attributed the non-conduct of the local government council polls in the state to the various court cases against the state independent electoral commission.

Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq had recently inaugurated the Transitional

Implementation Committee (TIC) for the 16 local government councils of the state after the expiration of the tenure of the democratically elected council chairmen.

However, speaking in Ilorin, the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Mr. Rafiu Ajakaye, said: "Kwara is constrained by various court cases on the composition of the electoral commission — the statutory body responsible for conducting elections into local councils.

"The state government will not hesitate to hold local government council polls once these issues are resolved."

No Date Yet for Edo, Ogun, Osun, Imo Meanwhile, the Ogun State government said the recent inauguration of the Ogun State Independent Electoral Commission (OGSIEC) is an indication that local government elections will soon be conducted.

The Chief Press Secretary to Governor Dapo Abiodun, Mr. Kunle Somorin, told THISDAY that since the commission has been set up, its next task would be the conduct of council polls.

"We just inaugurated the state independent electoral commission, led by Mr. Babatunde Osibodu, the process has begun," he added.

The current caretaker committees in the various local government areas were put in place by the government in January 2020 and have spent over a year in office.

Their appointments came three months after the governor claimed that the

tenure of the council chiefs under his predecessor, Senator Ibikunle Amosun, expired in October 2019.

Abiodun had promised that democratically elected chairmen would soon emerge after the composition of the electoral commission is set up through an Act of the state House of Assembly.

Already, politicians have taken to the field, campaigning for various council offices, though uncertain as to when the elections will hold.

Osibodu recently told journalists in Abeokuta that the commission was yet to fix a date for the elections.

"We cannot give a definite date for the exercise yet; as you know, we need to give 90 days’ notice to the public and the aspirants. We are also assessing what we have on the ground,” he said, adding: “We want to assure everyone that the commission will be fair, equitable, just, transparent and even-handed with stakeholders, political parties, candidates and others.”

The Imo State government said it will soon clear the processes of conducting local government elections.

The state Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Hon. Declan Emelumba, in a telephone interview with THISDAY in Owerri, the state capital, said Governor Hope Uzodimma was keen on conducting local government elections as soon as possible.

He added that the governor had constituted the Imo State Independent Electoral Commission (ISIEC) immediately he came into office with a view to holding council polls later.

Oyo to Conduct LG Poll May 15 However, the local government election will be conducted in Oyo State on May 15.

The Chairman of the Oyo State Independent Electoral Commission (OYSIEC), Mr. Isiaka Olagunju (SAN), said the election would be conducted into the 33 local government areas in the state.

"In compliance with Section 30 Electoral Act 2010 (as amended), Section 5 (a) and Paragraph 1 (1) Schedule 2 of the State Independent Electoral Commission Law CAP 154, Laws of Oyo State of Nigeria 2000, the general public is hereby informed that elections will be conducted in thirty-three (33) local government councils in Oyo State on Saturday, 15th May 2021 between 8:00 a.m. and 3.00 p.m.," he had said.

He called on prospective candidates to obtain nomination forms at the commission’s headquarters on or before April 30, upon payment of N250, 000 for the position of chairman or N100, 000 for the position of a councilor.

50

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NEWSXTRA

2023: Buhari’s Successsor Should Come from South-east, Says Clark Deji Elumoye in Abuja Ahead of 2023 general election, South-south leader, Chief Edwin Clark has said that President Muhammadu Buhari’s successor should come from the South-east geo-political zone of the country.

Clark has however described as abominable and condemnable if any Igbo speaking person from Delta and Rivers States aspires for the exalted position because such a person speaks Igbo, adding that no person from Oshimili South and North, Aniocha, Agbor or Ukwani should come out for presidency, but they should all join the South-east to achieve it come 2023.

Speaking yesterday at his Asokoro residence, Abuja when he received the leadership of

Ohanaeze Ndigbo and some South-east leaders led by the President General, Professor George Obiazor, the elder statesman who is the National leader of the Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF), said that the time has come for the South-east region to produce the President of Nigeria, adding that 2023 would be the time.

The Ijaw leader who called for synergy, sacrifice among the people, said that the struggle may not be easy, but the region must reach out to other geo-political zones of the country in order to woo and engage them, just as he warned that the South-east region must put its house in order, work in unison and as one indivisible zone.

Clark said, “the era we have reached now is that we have agreed

SERAP Urges Buhari to Probe Missing N106bn in 149 MDAs Udora Orizu in Abuja The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has urged President Muhammadu Buhari to direct the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami and relevant anti-corruption agencies to investigate allegations that N106 billion of public funds was missing from 149 ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs), as documented in the 2018 annual audited report by the Auditor-General of the Federation.

The organisation, in a letter dated April 17, 2021, and signed by the Deputy Director of the SERAP, Mr. Kolawole Oluwadare, also urged President Buhari to direct the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs. Zainab Ahmed, to create a system of public announcements that would name and shame the indicted 149 MDAs, including those that reportedly failed to remit over N55 billion of their revenue; awarded contracts of over N18 billion for services not rendered and spent over N23 billion without any supporting documents.

The letter read in part: “The SERAP has carefully analysed the recently released 2018 audited report by the Auditor-General of the Federation and our analysis reveals the grim allegations that N105,662,350,077.46 of public funds are missing, misappropriated or unaccounted for across 149 MDAs in 2018. ‘’The auditor-general stated that the alleged infractions by the 149 MDAs could have been prevented if the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, and the Accountant General of the Federation had heeded his warning to ensure strict compliance with relevant legislation, rules and regulations across all the MDAs. “Any failure to promptly investigate the allegations and prosecute suspected perpetrators would breach Nigeria’s anticorruption legislation, and the country’s international anti-corruption obligations.

We would be grateful if the recommended measures are

taken within 14 days of the receipt and/or publication of this letter.

“If we do not hear from you by then, the incorporated trustees of the SERAP shall take all appropriate legal actions to compel your government to comply with our request in the public interest.”

to work together; how do we go on, how do we move on? I think that is the stage we have reached.”

“I don’t belong to any political party, but I speak my mind. The man who brought politics into Nigeria was the late Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, I knew him when I was 20 years when he visited Warri, we trekked 12 miles to see him.

“Some of the problems we are having today in Delta was as a result of the support for Azikiwe and without that, we would not have gotten Midwest region that later became Bendel State and now Edo and Delta States. We are together, we are one.

“We are supporting the South East Region. Anybody from Midwest, Oshimili South and North, Aniocha South and

North, Ika, Agbor or Ukwani, if you say I am ready to be the President of Nigeria because I speak Igbo, that is punishable because when you do something that people don’t like, it is abominable.

“I have said it, all the Igbos in Anioma, Rivers, in Delta, where ever they are, this is the time for Igbo, South-east President. We have the same

problem, when we went to the 2014 National Conference, we said that the South-east has five states, they should be given additional states so that everyone will have same states like in other zones if that will stable Nigeria, create them.

“We want the President coming after Buhari to come from the South East; we are together.

FG Commences Partial Payment of Stipends for 774,000 Jobs The Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Mr. Festus Keyamo (SAN) yesterday disclosed that the federal government had commenced partial payment of the N20,000 monthly stipend to the 774,000 beneficiaries of the Special Public Works programme.

In a statement issued on his Twitter handle, Keyamo

said Access Bank had verified accounts for payment while the National Directorate of Employment (NDE) had commenced payment into accounts with the bank.

He said the federal government was waiting for Zenith, UBA, FCMB, Fidelity, Heritage and Yobe Micro-finance Banks to clean up the anomalies.

“After the release of some of the funds by the Ministry of Finance for the payment of SPW stipends, I directed rigorous scrutiny of the accounts of the participants before payment.

“We discovered instances of accounts not matching BVNs, multiple accounts bearing a single BVN, non-existent BVNs, etc.

“Because of our determination to eliminate fraud, I further directed the NDE to write to the banks to clean up these anomalies before commencing payments.

“So far, only Access Bank has responded with accounts verified for payment and the NDE has today commenced payment of those accounts with Access Bank.”

AbdulRazaq Not Touching LG Funds, Says Kwara NULGE Gov’s administration transparent, accountable, says aide Kwara State Governor, Mr. AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq does not interfere in the management of allocations to the local government councils in the state, the state chapter of the Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees

(NULGE), clarified yesterday, giving lies to claims that the state government was pilfering local government funds.

The governor’s Special Adviser on Political Communication, Alhaji Bashir Adigun, has also

disclosed that AbdulRazaq’s administration has remained transparent, accountable and focused on developments that transform lives in the state.

“The union wishes to inform the general public that monthly allocation to all the sixteen (16) local government councils in Kwara State is being administered by local government representatives, and all the union leaders at local government level are also observers at the monthly allocation meeting,” state Secretary of Kwara State NULGE, Comrade Hotonou Rafiu, clarified in a statement

in Ilorin, the state capital.

“NULGE Kwara State chapter wishes to inform the general public and most especially Kwarans that Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq is not stealing local government fund as captured in a report credited to our National President Alhaji Ambali Olatunji Akeem.”

Rafiu said the misleading report has also been refuted by the NULGE President.

“We assert that neither the Governor nor the state government is interfering in the management of local government funds,” the NULGE Secretary added.

MONDAY APRIL 19, 2021, ˾ T H I S D AY

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Adebanjo: Afenifere Wants Restructuring, Not Secession Chinedu Eze Against the backdrop of agitations for secession and selfdetermination by some groups in Nigeria, the leader of the Pan- Yoruba socio-cultural group, Afenifere, Chief Ayo Adebanjo has said that the body was against secession or self-determination

but would continue to insist on the restructuring of Nigeria to avoid implosion of the country.

Speaking last night on Channels TV, Adebanjo said that while he would not oppose those agitating for self-determination, he would want President Muhammadu Buhari to urgently restructure

Six Persons Confirmed Dead as Bus Plunged into River in Ondo James Sowole in Akure The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) has confirmed that six persons died in the auto crash in which a bus plunged into a river at Aponmu village in Akure South Local Government Area of Ondo State.

It said those that died included three males, two females and a child.

Spokesman for the Ondo FRSC, Abiola Fadumo, ave the update at the end of rescue operation last night.

Fadumo said eight persons injured in the accident were rushed to the hospital.

He advised drivers to always be cautious when driving during the rainy season.

THISDAY gathered that a

Toyota Hiace commercial bus carrying 15 passengers plunged into Owena River at Aponmu village.

Among those who lost their lives, was a bridegroom, who was returning with his wife after their marriage last Saturday at a Lagos registry.

According to a source, the wedding engagement and the Church programme had been fixed for April 24, 2021, in Akure.

The bride, as at the time of filing this report, was receiving treatment at an undisclosed hospital in Akure with other injured passengers.

The ill-fated bus, marked Lagos AAA 859 XC, was said to have left Lagos park yesterday morning for Akure.

the country, or else there would be an implosion soon.

He argued that if no action was taken urgently by the federal government under Buhari, there would be many Sunday Igbohos and Nnamdi Kanus who would be campaigning for Oduduwa Republic and Biafra, respectively, adding that he did not support

secession because he had worked hard for the unity of Nigeria in the past.

“I don’t support separationist agenda. I say no to it. I am for the unity of Nigeria. So, I don’t want the disintegration of the country. I have contributed more than Buhari for the unity of this country. So, we are not agitating

for secession. We want urgent restructuring of the country,” he said.

Adebanjo said he had insisted on restructuring Nigeria so that the federating units could control their own affairs, pointing out that the current structure of Nigeria would not continue to work.

He added that the Buhari’s administration should save the country by restructuring it because it would not continue to operate with the current constitution and survive in the long run, adding that he would not support even his son to contest any election under this constitution.

Scores Killed, over 50 Houses Razed in Petrol Tanker Explosion in Benue Scores were feared killed and no fewer than 50 houses razed, after a tanker conveying petroleum products exploded at Oshigbudu in Agatu Local Government Area of Benue State.

The tanker laden with petrol was travelling from Oweto and heading towards Otukpo when the driver lost control of the truck and it fell over spilling its

content at the Oshigbudu/Obagaji junction. ppened,” he said.

Vice Chairman of Agatu LGA, Mr. John Ikwulono, who confirmed the incident, said the accident occurred at about noon.

“It was a tanker explosion and over 100 houses in the community have been burnt down and many lives have lost been lost.

“Though we cannot place a

figure on the number of deaths they are actually much. The truth is that the death toll will be massive because you know that in a house you might have up to 10 persons if not more than that.

“And the houses that were burnt down are more than 100. So, in each of the houses, there must be a human being living or staying there. There is no way a house can be completely

empty on a Sunday like this. So we have a huge crisis in our hands at the moment.

“We are calling on NonGovernmental Organisations (NGOs) and public-spirited individuals, the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) and National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) to come to the aid of the people.

Dangote Sugar’s $700m Investments will Promote Infrastructure Devt, Says Company With a national annual import of over $337million, Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc has declared its irrevocable commitment to the Backward Integration Policy (BIP) of the federal government to reverse the trend and make Nigeria self-sufficient in sugar production.

The company, which is

committing over $700million to its sugar projects told visiting members of the Nasarawa House of Assembly at the weekend that the company’s investments in sugar would revolutionalise the economy of the state and lift its people as other people-oriented infrastructures would come with the sugar projects.

The state lawmakers, who were obviously excited at the sugar projects commended the Dangote Group for choice of the state for the project and the accelerated pace with which the project was being executed despite occasional delays arising from communal disagreements.

Nigeria is one of the sub-Saharan

Africa’s largest importers of sugar second only to South Africa, but the Dangote Sugar management assured the lawmakers that by the time the company fully completes its sugar projects in Nasarawa and Adamawa under the BIP, the nation would be saved of more than half of the forex expended on sugar imports annually.

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Senate Queries FMBN over Payment of N14bn for Unexecuted Project Deji Elumoye and Udora Orizu in Abuja The Senate Committee on Public Accounts has queried Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN) over alleged payment of N14 billion to a contractor who failed to construct the expected 963 housing units at Legacy Estate in Abuja.

The Committee chaired by Senator Mathew Urhoghide based the query on the 2018 Auditor General of the Federation (AuGF)’s report, which was being considered by the lawmakers.

The Auditor General had in its report stated that the contract price for setting up Legacy Estate was awarded at N10 billion.

However, a total of N14.2 billion was disbursed to the contractor between 22nd November 2012 and April 29, 2013, thereby resulting in an overpayment of N4.2 billion.

The report said, “Audit observed that the bank awarded a contract for the construction of 963 units of residential building called Legacy Estate, with all the facilities and services of a modern urban setting at a contract price of N10,000,000,000.00.

However, a total of N 14,281,749,370.71 was disbursed to the contractor between November 22, 2012 and April 29, 2013, thereby resulting in an overpayment of N

4,281,749,370.71.

“No reason was provided for the additional payment; neither was any evidence of contract variation presented for audit. Audit further observed,

from physical inspection of the site on July 7, 2017, that the project had been abandoned since 2014, some months after payments were made, with less than 10% of work done. Yet

the bank did not only pay the full contract sum, the contractor was overpaid to the tune of N 4,281,749,370.71, without any justification for the over-payment.”

Niger Gov’s Aide Blames Amaechi for Non-operation of Baro Port Laleye Dipo The Niger State Government at the weekend blamed the non-operation of the Baro Port in Katcha Local Government Area of the state on the Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi.

The state government said Amaechi “did not believe in the project, and therefore will not allow it to see the light of the day.”

The state government position was made known by the Coordinator of Public Affairs to the state Governor, Abubakar Sani Bello, Mr. Jonathan Vatsa,

who also accused the minister of allegedly frustrating every effort made to ensure the operation of the port.

Vatsa, who was a former state commissioner for information, spoke with journalists in Minna at the weekend, declaring: “The minister did not believe in the project, and therefore, will not allow it to see the light of the day.”

He alleged that Amaechi did not hide his dislike for the project when he said at a recent public interview that the “operationalisation of Baro inland port and others are not realisable.

PDP CelebratesVictory in Rivers LG Polls Chuks Okocha in Abuja The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) yesterday celebrated the party’s sweeping victory in the election that took place in the 23 local government areas and 319 wards in Rivers State.

The party said the victory was a demonstration of its political supremacy and repositioning to take back its dominant position in the affairs of the country at the national level in 2023.

PDP further noted that the overwhelming victory in a state like Rivers, with its egalitarian population and political exposure, further confirmed that a political

party like the All Progressives Congress (APC) and its leaders have lost all footholds not only in the state but also in the Southsouth region and the country at large.

The party said in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, that the election has shown that “the APC only exists in the empty boasts of their few disoriented leaders, who have lost credence in the sight of the people and are only hanging around waiting for President Muhammadu Buhari to complete his second and final term in office.”

Power MinisterVisits Solar Hybrid Project in Abuja The Minister of State for Power, Mr. Goddy Jedy- Agba will today pay a visit to the Jabi Lake Mall Solar Hybrid project in Jabi, Abuja.

Actis, along with the developer, Cross Boundary Energy (CBE) commissioned the 609kWp solar photovoltaic (PV) project a year ago.

This is the first fully operational solar hybrid project for a Nigerian mall.

There are 1,848 solar PV modules located on the roof of the mall, which generates approximately 850 MWh per year of electricity.

Besides cutting energy costs, the solar facility will cut Jabi Lake Mall’s reliance on polluting diesel generators and will reduce carbon emissions by over 13,000

tonnes in line with the Paris agreement and sustainable development goals.

This world-class clean energy project is an excellent example of private sector investments (Actis) in sustainable buildings and renewable energy in Nigeria.

Jabi Lake Mall is located next to Jabi Lake in Abuja. The mall building adopted a “greenby-design” approach, guided

by Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) sustainability principles to accommodate solar renewable energy.

The UK company, Actis plans to roll out similar projects across their real estate portfolio in Africa over the next decade.

EFFECTIVE COLLABORATION...

Minister of Health, Dr. Osagie Ehanire (left), and Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Chief Adeniyi Adebayo, during a meeting on the draft National Industrial Policy on Medical Devices in Abuja...weekend

Sanwo-Olu Promises Support for Digital Switch Over in Lagos Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu says his administration would support the Digital Switch Over (DSO) being embarked by the country, saying it would enhanced job creation and content development.

Sanwo-Olu who acknowledged that the DSO would be of immense benefits to residents said Lagos State would be providing publicity support for the rollout.

Speaking on Saturday when the Ministerial Taskforce of the Federal Ministry of Information and Culture on Digital Switch Over led by the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, paid him a courtesy visit at the Lagos House, Marina, Governor Sanwo-Olu said the DSO will provide job opportunities for youths and many businesses, especially

those in the entertainment and tourism industry.

He said the DSO will also provide opportunity for government to use the content to inform and engage the citizens as well as bring governance closer to the people.

Governor Sanwo-Olu who advised the Ministerial Taskforce on the Digital Switch Over to make the FreeTV box

and after sale support easily accessible, said making the FreeTV Set Top Box a one-off payment with a yearly renewal, will provide opportunity for millions of Nigerians who cannot afford to pay the subscription fees being charged by the PayTV platforms to enjoy the benefit of digital television.

Warri-Itakpe Rail Line Freight Services to Create More Jobs Sunday Okobi and Kasim Sumaina The federal government at the weekend stated that the freight services on the Warri-Itakpe standards gauge railway line would create more jobs for Nigerians and promote the ease of doing business in the country.

The Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, stated this during

the flagging-off of the freight service of standard gauge railway line at Ujevwu community, near Warri in Delta State.

He noted that the development and modernisation of the railway system had been a major focus of the President Muhammadu Buhari-led federal government.

According to Amaechi, “We are here today to flag off commercial freight services on the standard

gauge route that was abandoned for over 30 years but rehabilitated by this administration and put into operation.

“It has been one of the strategic aims of the present administration to ensure that all critical infrastructure abandoned by the previous administration, particularly those that would benefit the citizenry, are completed and

inaugurated.

“It is universally acknowledged that a developing country with a large population such as Nigeria must develop a robust transport system such as modern and functional rail system. which is undeniably instrumental to creating much needed socio-economic transformation and industrial development.

Army Confers Fellowship on THISDAY Editorial Board Member A member of THISDAY Editorial Board, Dr. Okey Ikechukwu, was among the seven individuals that were conferred with the prestigious Fellowship of the Nigerian Army Resource Centre (NARC) over the weekend.

Ikechukwu, who is a public communications expert, leadership governance consultant and executive director of the Development Specs Academy, is a

training partner of the NARC on capital development programmes, including a post graduate Strategic Management and Policy Course that attracts participants from the three divisions of the armed forces and paramilitary organisations in the country.

He was honoured alongside Brigadier General S. O. K. Adeoye (rtd), Brigadier General A. B. Awodele (rtd), Professor C. B.

N. Ogbogbo, Brigadier General F. O. Pearse, Brigadier General U. T. Otaru and Brigadier General S. K. Usman (rtd).

The Director General of the NARC, Major General Garba Wahab, who performed the ceremony, commended the recipients and urged them to be good ambassadors of the NARC and exemplary patriots at all times.

The recognition came on the heels of the outstanding contributions of the awardees and initiatives designed to expand the offerings of the NARC, which was set up as a leading centre of excellence for generating and interrogating ideas and templates that address issues of defense and national security.

Anyanwu Emerges Leader of Igbo Technocrats A renowned lawmaker, Senator Chris Anyanwu, has emerged the pioneer President of Nzuko Umunna (NU), a leading thinktank of foremost Igbo technocrats and professionals.

The announcement of the new NU executive council was made by the foremost political economist and Chairman of the Nzuko Umunna Board of Trustees

(BoT), Prof. Pat Utomi.

He said: “I am pleased to flag off the formal path forward from four years of impactful service to the Igbo nation at home and abroad by the Nzuko Umunna Foundation, especially through this platform, to a new level of greater impact, with an executive council selected by the

trustees to administer Nzuko Umunna affairs for the next four years when formal elections by eligible members will decide their replacement.”

In a statement titled: ‘The Light Finds Formal Torchbearers’, Utomi noted that “a candle loses nothing when it lights another candle.

I am full of trust, therefore,

that the eminent members of this executive council will give generously of their service in knowledge, wisdom and love for God’s purpose for the Igbo person, that all may thrive wherever they are located and live in peace with fairness, justice and equity, as defining marks of their environment.”

53

TUESDAY, ͹΁˜ ͺ͸ͺ͹ ˾ T H I S D AY

PERSPECTIVE

Paragon of Virtue Dr. Tunji Olagunji

I

am grateful for the opportunity to read your biography: I learnt not only how history shaped your life, but also how the Editors have nicely captured the relevant contextual conditions that shaped and gave inspiration, positive meaning, and direction to your richly textured life. It has enabled you to navigate your way through the ebb and flow, the high and the low points, of the contemporary history of Nigeria, defined primarily by the search for national identity, in the form of a civil religion to promote the building of a virile, stable and progressive indivisible and indissoluble Nation. Of course, historical and sociocultural context matters in determining how we choose to live together.

For me, it cannot be done once and for all because it is a time-defined political process of rescue and preservation of lives of citizens, of reversals and renewals of hope in our common destiny as One People in One Nation.

2. Your development as gusto kid with a sense of honour, self-dignity, and an endowed private morality with a lachrymose tendency, has made it imperative that you regularly engage and review your understanding and use of history as a public figure, particularly, in terms of interpretation of power, ideas of social cohesion and the weaknesses of one’s inherited precepts and practices in our environment of deep inequalities. Today, our leadership cadres need to promote a better vision that focuses on social movements of a shared society and vision in order to deepen economic development of Nigeria and to reduce the destructive prejudices of our diversity.

3. Your biography underscores the following attributes that define you. You are a personality who is reliable, skillful and trustworthy. You are more of a technocrat than a politician. Above all, you are an educationist who understands that the urgent issues raised by our domestic terrorism revolve around the necessity for change in our cultural, political, and socioeconomic fabric. The composite portrait of you painted by the biography shows you as a leader who is ready to face and address the

challenges of our environment.

Of course, with your humility and brilliance, you already know what you want; and you have the knowledge to navigate

the array of challenges facing governance of NIGERIA, if the leadership are ready to create a more equal and tolerant society for her citizens.

4. Since your life has been a journey of self-discovery, permit me to ask: what have our citizens been witnesses to, and what have they seen and lived through in our political public culture? As a distinguished and seasoned Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, you are now a full-time politician, whether in Ilorin, or Kwara or Nigeria, whose mission is that of PEERING into the FUTURE of Nigeria, as mover, facilitator, and TRUSTEE of the change our country badly needs.

Today, the CONTEXT is about POVERTY, INEQUALITY and quality of LEADERSHIP and the urgent need IS to understand the relationship between religion/ ethnicity and politics. “Òtò Gé” is in my understanding social injustice and the burdensome socio-economic INCAPACITIES being suffered by citizens in Kwara State and across our beloved Nigeria .

5. What the country needs is clearly spelt out in Chapter II of our 1999 Constitution: a social restructure of our political economy along the lines of social democracy or social welfarism as a middle-way between unbridled socialism and uncaring capitalism. It rejects the imperfections and inhuman face of the capitalist market economy, but embraces its human face: it rejects the overbearing face of the State under socialism, while it embraces its human and caring face of social and contributive justice. The essence of the middle way as the ideological twin that

overturn the lifestyles of our aristocracies of privilege and enhances the need for distributive justice caused by socio-economic stresses of the citizens.

6. Given the current centrality and urgency of diverse identities (Ethnic, Religious, Culture, Zonal, Regional and generational lifestyles) our politics is in search of a vision for building new common purposes that deal with a governance culture that has allowed powerful citizens to get away with anything? Hence the need for Politics of relevant political ideology that has the capacity to elevate national civic virtues and values that focus on our common need and which also requires appropriate role for the Mass Media Institutions with the power of digital technologies for better interpretations of the underlying needs for non-blame inclusive dialogues for greater devolution of agencies of governance. Today diversity has assumed a dangerous radar while digital Technology has become instruments with that which to undermine and even underpin citizens reliance on information in the conduct of democratic governance; more so, in an environment where Politics has shifted to digital Networks of Technologies. So how can our governance use Technologies to win the hearts and minds of our citizens who are caught up between the ideological imperatives of Socialism and Capitalism in order to effectively address our contentious history of weak governance, criminality, poor industrial and education infrastructures? Today, leadership greed, poverty and inequalities of opportunities have become arsenal of social ills that are undermining our social cohesion networks as well as triggered inflections on the democratic governance of Nigeria.

Distinguished and seasoned Senator, I thank you for this opportunity and I also thank and extend compliments of the Ramadan season to the audience, who are friends, admirers and supporters of your commitment to a better NIGERIA. GOODLUCK! r0MBHVOKJ JT B GPSNFS .JOJTUFS PG *OUFSOBM "GGBJST

NEWS XTRA

PDP Govs Tackle APC Colleagues over Attack on Obaseki "1$ /PUIJOH XSPOH JO QSJOUJOH NPOFZ JG XFMM NBOBHFE Chuks Okocha and Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governors have defended their colleague, Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State, over his comment that the federal government printed N60 billion to top up the March Federation Allocation, saying that the governor merely offered a piece of informed advice.

In a statement yesterday by the Director-General of the PDP Governors' Forum, Hon. Cyril Maduabum, the governors said they were alarmed at the partisan slant a patriotic advice to the federal government by Obaseki, on its monetary policies had assumed.

The All Progressives Congress (APC), however, dismissed the furore over the resort to ways and means to finance government operations, explaining that there is nothing wrong with printing money as long as it is well managed.

The PDP faulted the APC

Progressive Governors’ Forum (PGF) statement that Obaseki’s claim did not reflect the true position of things.

The APC forum, in a statement by its Chairman, Governor Atiku Bagudu of Kebbi State, said at first, the impression it got was that it was an off-the-cuff remark made in a private meeting, but “we were, however, shocked to see yet another response from our colleague to the rebuttal by the Minister of Finance, insisting that the March 2021 FAAC was augmented via the printing of money.”

However, the PDP governors said: "It is unhelpful for the APC Progressive Governors Forum to join the fray in the manner it did by its recent statement attacking the bona fides of Governor Obaseki who merely warned the monetary authorities about the danger of uncontrolled use of ways and means, that is, the printing of naira, to support government's expenditure."

The PDP governors stated that Obaseki has a background

in economics and finance and he is a responsible governor who talks in a measured way.

The governors said Obaseki’s position, reportedly corroborated by the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr. Godwin Emefiele, and an international ratings agency, Fitch, and should be heeded rather than being crucified for warning the nation.

"No doubt the federal government has been supporting the states in the area of agriculture, budget and refund of federal government executed projects by states and a few other areas of intervention," the PDP governors said.

They, however, wondered whether the CBN was being vindictive over Obaseki’s comments by its demand for the repayment of budget support facility granted the states in 2015.

"Is CBN trying to be vindictive and vengeful by recalling its loans to the states because of informed advice by a governor? It is

unfortunate that governance has plummeted to this level," it added.

The PDP governors urged the federal government to plug financial leakages in the system and curb wasteful expenditure on projects that could be executed by the private sector.

The governors said that relying on ways and means by the CBN brought pressure on the naira with its inflationary consequences.

According to the governors, inflation in Nigeria is currently at 18.2 per cent, the highest in recent years.

“We should all be concerned to find ways of stemming the tide. We are all involved in the urgent task of rescuing the economy of Nigeria and nobody should indeed play the ostrich, "the governors said.

Meanwhile, the APC has said that there is nothing wrong in printing money provided it is well utilised.

The National Secretary of the Caretaker/Extraordinary Convention Planning

Committee, Senator John Akpanudoedehe, in a statement yesterday, said whether or not the CBN printed money, was not an issue, saying the apex bank should be allowed to perform its mandate According to him, central banks all over the world print money.

"During the financial crisis of 2008-09, the Reserve Bank of the US printed dollars to bail out companies that were too big to fail. There is nothing wrong with printing money provided it is well managed,” he said.

Akpanudoedehe said there was no evidence that the CBN was inefficient in managing the monetary aspect of the Nigerian economy.

He added that the CBN is the banker to the government and has exercised such function efficiently and effectively.

He stated that the development function of the CBN has resulted in various intervention funds in several sectors of the economy.

Akpanudoedehe stated that the ruling party inherited an economy that showed signs of a recession from 2012.

He added that the economy left by the PDP had no forex to run the system, stressing that the looting of the commonwealth was unprecedented in history, while productivity was declining.

He said the APC government implemented aggressive fiscal and monetary policies which resulted in the country's economy exiting recession in 2016.

He urged the PDP to understand how money is created as well as provide evidence showing the composition of M1, M2 and M3 in the Nigerian economy.

"The utterances of the PDP would create problems for the economy. What PDP should do is join hands with the APC to clear the mess they left behind. To destroy is very easy but to build is a task the APC is committed to," Akpanudoedehe said.

54

˜ ͹΁˜ ͺ͸ͺ͹ ˾ T H I S D AY

MONDAYSPORTS

Group Sports Editor Duro Ikhazuagbe Email duro.ikhazuagbe@thisdaylive.com 0811 181 3083 SMS ONLY

Iheanacho Shoots Leicester City to First FA Cup Final in 52 Years )R[HV GHIHDW 6RXWKDPSWRQ WR ERRN WLFNHW WR IDFH &KHOVHD LQ ÀQDO

Duro Ikhazuagbe Nigerian international, Kelechi Iheanacho, played a major part in Leicester City reaching their first FA Cup final since 1969 as

his second-half lone goal gave the Foxes victory over Southampton at Wembley last night.

Iheanacho was the beneficiary of fine work by Jamie Vardy to score at the second attempt 10

TOKYO OLYMPICS

D’Tigress Will Make Nigerians Proud, Says Amukamara On what they were able to With less than 100 days to the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, achieve while in camp, the 27Japan, D’Tigress point guard, year old who made her debut Promise Amukamara, is very at the 2018 FIBA Women’s World confident that the country’s Cup in Spain told NBBF mediathat, senior women’s basketball will “We focused on getting a lot of put up a decent performance at shots. We went over our offence the Games which Nigerians will and defence. I think it was just a be proud of. great time to come together because Amukamara believes the we haven’t seen each other since decent feat is possible with the February 2020 So, it was a good right personnel selection and better time to come together, get familiar preparations despite admitting with the new players and the new the quality of their Group B coaching staff.” opponents.

As pundits profile the 12 “With many high profile players teams who have qualified for showing interest in turning up for the games, the 2019 Afrobasket Nigeria in the wake of back-to-back winner admitted that they have Afrobasket titles, quarter final finish some solid opponents to face at the World Cup as well as a rising but, “With the experience, the profile on the international stage, all new players and team that we seem to be looking good ahead of have, Coach Otis and the rest of the Olympics”, Amukamara said . the coaching staff will do a great Reacting to the initial five new job preparing us to do well,” she faces invited to camp in Atlanta, concluded.

Nigeria is currently grouped USA, she believes they are great additions who have easily adapted alongside world number one well as members of the D’Tigress United States of America, France and Japan. family.

“Elizabeth (Williams), Erica (Ogwumike), Amy (Okonkwo), Nicole (Enabosi) and Oderah (Chidom), I think they did a great job adapting to our system which looks good,” Amukamara emphasised.

While reminiscing on the 10-day camping of the team in Atlanta earlier this year, the Charnay Basketball Club of France player said the exercise provided the players the opportunity to come together as a unit after a while Promise Amukamara...hopeful of due to the Covid-19 pandemic good outing with D’Tigress at the which rattled the sporting world. Tokyo Olympics

IOC/NOC Multimedia Reporting Training in Lagos The Nigeria Olympic Committee (NOC) in partnership with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has concluded plans to hold a two-day training for sports journalists in the country.

The training programme will hold between April 27 and 28th, 2021 and will cover courses on Print, Radio and TV, Production and Multimedia.

Speaking ahead of the training, President of the NOC, Habu Ahmed Gumel, described the programme as timely, noting that it is needed ahead of the Olympics taking place in summer.

“With few months to the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, it is imperative to train the local media in the latest strategies in reporting a multi-sports event like the Olympics.

“Covid-19 has changed how sports is organised and reported for both athletes and the media.

The training will provide insight into how sports Journalists can

navigate the restrictions to keep the excitement on the sport while providing solutions,” observed the NOC president.

According to NOC Spokesman, Phemmy Adetula, hree experienced media practitioners have been selected to take the participants through the latest trends in the industry.

Veteran sports broadcaster and author, Deji Omotoyinbo, is to lead the cast that includes experienced producer, Tola Badekale and multimedia journalist, Enitan Obadina.

The major themes of the training are - Reporting MultiSports Event In The Digital Age: Tools and Technique. And Reporting Compelling Story Ideas that provides solution to a hurting world.

The training will be both physical and online featuring participants from Lagos and outside Lagos (online). Day one of the training will hold from 9am through 5pm while Day 2 will run from 9am to 3pm.

minutes after the interval.

Iheanacho’s current form has helped Leicester City maintain a dominant place in the top four of the English Premier League.

His goal secured the place in the final against Chelsea, who the Foxes beat in the Premier League in January. Chelsea defeated cup holders Manchester City on Saturday to reach the final.

While the Foxes will be underdogs, Leicester have enough quality and resilience to be quietly confident of repeating their January shocking of the Blues

now that the stakes are higher.

The game was played in front of 4,000 supporters as part of a pilot scheme, with research being carried out on allowing fans back in to sporting events as coronavirus restrictions are eased.

Tickets were limited to residents of Brent - the north London borough where Wembley Stadium is situated - and key workers.

Those inside Wembley witnessed a mainly dour game but Leicester, playing in their

first semi-final since 1982, will not care - and neither will their followers.

Southampton were strangely lacking in intensity, barely threatening Leicester keeper Kasper Schmeichel.

Ibrahima Diallo went closest to an equaliser for the Saints but his powerful drive went just wide.

Brendan Rodgers’ side will now face Chelsea in the final on 15 May, their first appearance in the showpiece since they lost 1-0 against Manchester City in

1969.

Leicester City and manager Brendan Rodgers said his wards fully merited their victory as they were much the better team in a low-key semi-final.

They were the more composed and ordered side in a game where chances were at a premium and it took Iheanacho, who scored the winner against Brighton in the fifth round and was on target twice in the 3-1 win against Manchester United in the quarter-final, to make the decisive contribution.

Kelechi Iheanacho (on the turf) celebrating his goal with compatriot teammate, Wilfred Ndidi as Leicester City cruised to their first FA Cup final appearance since 1969

SWAN Hails Edo Govt for Showcasing World-class Facilities During Nat’l Sports Festival Adibe Emenyonuin Benin City The Sports Writers Association of Nigeria (SWAN) has commended Governor Godwin Obaseki and Edo State Government for putting in place world-class sporting infrastructure to host the just concluded 20th National Sports Festival and calls for sustainable maintenance of these facilities.

The commendation was part of the eight-point draft Communique of the association after its National Convention at the weekend, presided by its National President, Sir Honour Sirawoo.

The convention which was also attended by the immediate past Minister of Youth and Sports, Solomon Dalung as Special also agreed unequivocally that apart from the provision of world-class infrastructure, Edo 2020 is the worst managed NSF ever organised in the history of Nigeria by the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports.

First, the association of sports writers, decries the poor officiating and alleged financial inducement of officials by some states and urges Sports Federations to ensure that they engage men of proven integrity as technical officials in future festivals; while it enjoined states

to prioritise sports funding rather than cutting corners to winning.

The Communique signed by a three-man Communique Drafting Committee comprised of Isaiah Benjamin (Chairman); Tunde Liadi (Secretary); and Qaseem Oladipo (Member), equally noted the need for the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports to revisit the objectives of the National Sports Festival with a view to fast-tracking national integration, talent discovery and sports development.

It frowned at the participation of non-Nigerians and opening of the festival to established and foreign-based athletes, thereby hindering the process of replacing

aging talents, just as it sues for improve security at game venues in future.

According to SWAN, “Sports development is anchored on a tripod of administration, participation and promotion; and therefore decries lack of tools to enhance effective media coverage during the 20th National Sports Festival”. The body carpeted the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports under Mr. Sunday Dare for clear show of disrespect for the sporting media.

It therefore, vowed to boycott future festivals if sports writers as stakeholders are not properly placed in the scheme of events.

Orungbeja, Chukwueke Win Ikoyi Club Tennis Titles The Ikoyi Club Children’s holiday clinic ended at the weekend with plenty of funfare as Mayomide Orungbeja defeated Emmanuel Afammbolu 8/6, 7/1 in the final match of the Boys’ U-10 category.

In the girls’ category of the event, it was Chinyere Chukwueke who defeated Osasere Akpata 7/5, 7/2 in a match that witnessed a keenly contested first set which kept the spectators on the edges of

their seats.

Top officials of the sponsors, Leadway Assurance, executive members of Ikoyi Club and many parents of the over 70 participants were at the colourful event.

The Managing Director of Leadway, Tunde HassanOdukale, was represented by Mr. Niyi Abiola at the finals.

The MD urged the kids tennis players to find a balance between education and their

sports career.

In other categories, Kobi Ajene defeated Lamar BabaEko 10/6in the Boys U -13 while Denisa Mandela – Otaru also edged out Gabriella Okoronkwo 7/2, 7/0. In the Boys U-16 cadre, Benjamin Okoronkwo was 7/5, 10/8better than Tele Orungbeja just as Mofope Akinyemi defeated Omosofe Akpata 7/3, 7/4 in the Girls U-16 category.

The Chairman of Ikoyi Club,

Ms Maryann Chukwueke, expressed delight over the clinic which started on Monday April 12 at the tennis section of the club.

“We really had huge fun all through from the clinic to the final stage. The children are all happy to be part of the event and our sponsors, Leadway were fantastic by putting smiles on the faces of the kids,” She concluded.

55

˜ ͹΁˜ ͺ͸ͺ͹ ˾ T H I S D AY

MONDAYSPORTS

Group Sports Editor Duro Ikhazuagbe Email duro.ikhazuagbe@thisdaylive.com 0811 181 3083 SMS ONLY

Iheanacho Shoots Leicester City to First FA Cup Final in 52 Years )R[HV GHIHDW 6RXWKDPSWRQ WR ERRN WLFNHW WR IDFH &KHOVHD LQ ÀQDO

Duro Ikhazuagbe Nigerian international, Kelechi Iheanacho, played a major part in Leicester City reaching their first FA Cup final since 1969 as

his second-half lone goal gave the Foxes victory over Southampton at Wembley last night.

Iheanacho was the beneficiary of fine work by Jamie Vardy to score at the second attempt 10

TOKYO OLYMPICS

D’Tigress Will Make Nigerians Proud, Says Amukamara On what they were able to With less than 100 days to the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, achieve while in camp, the 27Japan, D’Tigress point guard, year old who made her debut Promise Amukamara, is very at the 2018 FIBA Women’s World confident that the country’s Cup in Spain told NBBF mediathat, senior women’s basketball will “We focused on getting a lot of put up a decent performance at shots. We went over our offence the Games which Nigerians will and defence. I think it was just a be proud of. great time to come together because Amukamara believes the we haven’t seen each other since decent feat is possible with the February 2020 So, it was a good right personnel selection and better time to come together, get familiar preparations despite admitting with the new players and the new the quality of their Group B coaching staff.” opponents.

As pundits profile the 12 “With many high profile players teams who have qualified for showing interest in turning up for the games, the 2019 Afrobasket Nigeria in the wake of back-to-back winner admitted that they have Afrobasket titles, quarter final finish some solid opponents to face at the World Cup as well as a rising but, “With the experience, the profile on the international stage, all new players and team that we seem to be looking good ahead of have, Coach Otis and the rest of the Olympics”, Amukamara said . the coaching staff will do a great Reacting to the initial five new job preparing us to do well,” she faces invited to camp in Atlanta, concluded.

Nigeria is currently grouped USA, she believes they are great additions who have easily adapted alongside world number one well as members of the D’Tigress United States of America, France and Japan. family.

“Elizabeth (Williams), Erica (Ogwumike), Amy (Okonkwo), Nicole (Enabosi) and Oderah (Chidom), I think they did a great job adapting to our system which looks good,” Amukamara emphasised.

While reminiscing on the 10-day camping of the team in Atlanta earlier this year, the Charnay Basketball Club of France player said the exercise provided the players the opportunity to come together as a unit after a while Promise Amukamara...hopeful of due to the Covid-19 pandemic good outing with D’Tigress at the which rattled the sporting world. Tokyo Olympics

IOC/NOC Multimedia Reporting Training in Lagos The Nigeria Olympic Committee (NOC) in partnership with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has concluded plans to hold a two-day training for sports journalists in the country.

The training programme will hold between April 27 and 28th, 2021 and will cover courses on Print, Radio and TV, Production and Multimedia.

Speaking ahead of the training, President of the NOC, Habu Ahmed Gumel, described the programme as timely, noting that it is needed ahead of the Olympics taking place in summer.

“With few months to the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, it is imperative to train the local media in the latest strategies in reporting a multi-sports event like the Olympics.

“Covid-19 has changed how sports is organised and reported for both athletes and the media.

The training will provide insight into how sports Journalists can

navigate the restrictions to keep the excitement on the sport while providing solutions,” observed the NOC president.

According to NOC Spokesman, Phemmy Adetula, hree experienced media practitioners have been selected to take the participants through the latest trends in the industry.

Veteran sports broadcaster and author, Deji Omotoyinbo, is to lead the cast that includes experienced producer, Tola Badekale and multimedia journalist, Enitan Obadina.

The major themes of the training are - Reporting MultiSports Event In The Digital Age: Tools and Technique. And Reporting Compelling Story Ideas that provides solution to a hurting world.

The training will be both physical and online featuring participants from Lagos and outside Lagos (online). Day one of the training will hold from 9am through 5pm while Day 2 will run from 9am to 3pm.

minutes after the interval.

Iheanacho’s current form has helped Leicester City maintain a dominant place in the top four of the English Premier League.

His goal secured the place in the final against Chelsea, who the Foxes beat in the Premier League in January. Chelsea defeated cup holders Manchester City on Saturday to reach the final.

While the Foxes will be underdogs, Leicester have enough quality and resilience to be quietly confident of repeating their January shocking of the Blues

now that the stakes are higher.

The game was played in front of 4,000 supporters as part of a pilot scheme, with research being carried out on allowing fans back in to sporting events as coronavirus restrictions are eased.

Tickets were limited to residents of Brent - the north London borough where Wembley Stadium is situated - and key workers.

Those inside Wembley witnessed a mainly dour game but Leicester, playing in their

first semi-final since 1982, will not care - and neither will their followers.

Southampton were strangely lacking in intensity, barely threatening Leicester keeper Kasper Schmeichel.

Ibrahima Diallo went closest to an equaliser for the Saints but his powerful drive went just wide.

Brendan Rodgers’ side will now face Chelsea in the final on 15 May, their first appearance in the showpiece since they lost 1-0 against Manchester City in

1969.

Leicester City and manager Brendan Rodgers said his wards fully merited their victory as they were much the better team in a low-key semi-final.

They were the more composed and ordered side in a game where chances were at a premium and it took Iheanacho, who scored the winner against Brighton in the fifth round and was on target twice in the 3-1 win against Manchester United in the quarter-final, to make the decisive contribution.

Kelechi Iheanacho (on the turf) celebrating his goal with compatriot teammate, Wilfred Ndidi as Leicester City cruised to their first FA Cup final appearance since 1969

SWAN Hails Edo Govt for Showcasing World-class Facilities During Nat’l Sports Festival Adibe Emenyonuin Benin City The Sports Writers Association of Nigeria (SWAN) has commended Governor Godwin Obaseki and Edo State Government for putting in place world-class sporting infrastructure to host the just concluded 20th National Sports Festival and calls for sustainable maintenance of these facilities.

The commendation was part of the eight-point draft Communique of the association after its National Convention at the weekend, presided by its National President, Sir Honour Sirawoo.

The convention which was also attended by the immediate past Minister of Youth and Sports, Solomon Dalung as Special also agreed unequivocally that apart from the provision of world-class infrastructure, Edo 2020 is the worst managed NSF ever organised in the history of Nigeria by the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports.

First, the association of sports writers, decries the poor officiating and alleged financial inducement of officials by some states and urges Sports Federations to ensure that they engage men of proven integrity as technical officials in future festivals; while it enjoined states

to prioritise sports funding rather than cutting corners to winning.

The Communique signed by a three-man Communique Drafting Committee comprised of Isaiah Benjamin (Chairman); Tunde Liadi (Secretary); and Qaseem Oladipo (Member), equally noted the need for the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports to revisit the objectives of the National Sports Festival with a view to fast-tracking national integration, talent discovery and sports development.

It frowned at the participation of non-Nigerians and opening of the festival to established and foreign-based athletes, thereby hindering the process of replacing

aging talents, just as it sues for improve security at game venues in future.

According to SWAN, “Sports development is anchored on a tripod of administration, participation and promotion; and therefore decries lack of tools to enhance effective media coverage during the 20th National Sports Festival”. The body carpeted the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports under Mr. Sunday Dare for clear show of disrespect for the sporting media.

It therefore, vowed to boycott future festivals if sports writers as stakeholders are not properly placed in the scheme of events.

Orungbeja, Chukwueke Win Ikoyi Club Tennis Titles The Ikoyi Club Children’s holiday clinic ended at the weekend with plenty of funfare as Mayomide Orungbeja defeated Emmanuel Afammbolu 8/6, 7/1 in the final match of the Boys’ U-10 category.

In the girls’ category of the event, it was Chinyere Chukwueke who defeated Osasere Akpata 7/5, 7/2 in a match that witnessed a keenly contested first set which kept the spectators on the edges of

their seats.

Top officials of the sponsors, Leadway Assurance, executive members of Ikoyi Club and many parents of the over 70 participants were at the colourful event.

The Managing Director of Leadway, Tunde HassanOdukale, was represented by Mr. Niyi Abiola at the finals.

The MD urged the kids tennis players to find a balance between education and their

sports career.

In other categories, Kobi Ajene defeated Lamar BabaEko 10/6in the Boys U -13 while Denisa Mandela – Otaru also edged out Gabriella Okoronkwo 7/2, 7/0. In the Boys U-16 cadre, Benjamin Okoronkwo was 7/5, 10/8better than Tele Orungbeja just as Mofope Akinyemi defeated Omosofe Akpata 7/3, 7/4 in the Girls U-16 category.

The Chairman of Ikoyi Club,

Ms Maryann Chukwueke, expressed delight over the clinic which started on Monday April 12 at the tennis section of the club.

“We really had huge fun all through from the clinic to the final stage. The children are all happy to be part of the event and our sponsors, Leadway were fantastic by putting smiles on the faces of the kids,” She concluded.

Monday April 19, 2021

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“Babangida Aliyu is a pathetic fellow. He has become a broken record and, sadly, he feels that is the only way to remain relevant” – Former President Jonathan berating the ex- Niger State Governor, Babangida Aliyu, for lying against him on the 2015 elections.

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okey.ikechukwu@thisdaylive.com

From Caverton Helicopters to Innoson

S

egun Adeniyi’s piece on this page last Thursday brought out some essential points about how to be a trailblazer in a business environment that is routinely avoided by those who love the word “impossible.” The points to be inferred from the piece under reference include the fact that “coming of age” by new industry players can only occur when: (1) There are people who feel the need to swim against the current; (2) There are people who resolve to create a business nitch for themselves and market their attractiveness by presenting a value proposition. (3) There people who can, by showing they can to reduce costs and, especially, dependence on foreign service providers in even highly technical and specialized fields, create a paradigm shift.

(4) There are people with the courage to go beyond merely thinking and talking about the opportunities and about getting involved, to actually taking concrete steps to get involved. (5) There are Nigerians willing to patiently study the terrain, determine their deficiencies and take up the challenge of finding foreign partners and expertise for new business lines.

(6) There are people who, in venturing forward to partner foreigners, do so with credible organizations and individuals from any part of the world who can deliver competence and industry relevance. (7) There are Nigerians who, in doing all of the above, come with bankable proposals and templates that can attract loyalty and

Chairman of Caverton Helicopters, Niyi Makanjuola

investment support.

The foregoing observations are particularly important when we consider that the new-born Nigerian aspirants to the club of helicopter industry service providers Segun wrote about did not come asking for favours. They prepared themselves and then stepped forward to take part in an open bidding and procurement process. They competed against established players and a sitting foreign firm of proven competence and years of service. The drivers of Caverton

Helicopters, freshly minted along with their company as it were, did not plead their Nigerianness. They did not tender Aso Rock connections to displace all comers, no!

In any case, that would not have worked before a cold-eye Shell Petroleum that is known for its stone-rigid disposition in the matter of standards and quality control.

The auditing process was rigorous. The approach and valuation was professional and designed to select the very best among the interested service providers. There are risks that the oil industry simply cannot contemplate from service providers.

Was it all just patriotism and daredevil on the part of those involved? I think not.

It was a combination of vision, courage, patriotism and genuine entrepreneurship in a relatively inclement policy and regulatory environment. Segun’s narrative about the Caverton giving us the first ever Level D full flight simulator in Africa, which enables pilots train safely for adverse weather conditions, helicopter failures and a variety of complex situations and emergencies, points us all to the many little remembered success tales of entrepreneurship and robust business engagements all over Nigeria. Surely, no one could have easily foreseen at the time that the Carverton venture, which must have appeared foolhardy to observers then, would one day become the poster boy for service delivery within the ranks of those needing variegated helicopter services in Nigeria’s expatriates-dominated nitch.

Could anyone have easily foreseen the

unveiling of the Caverton Helicopters’ Full Flight Simulator at its Maintenance, Repair, Overhaul (MRO) and training years back, when the organization was taking its initial steps? And, to boot, the first of its kind in Africa? I think not. While talking about Caverton, we only need to look at Mike Adenuga of Glo, Air Peace, Nestoil, Seplat, Emzor Pharmaceutical and many other organisations that ventured into new grounds to understand the full meaning of real entrepreneurship. They are all making contributions through job creation, reflation of the local economy and savings in foreign exchange.

The other point to note here is that Segun’s intervention was the result of paying close attention to the progress of the organization for the past 16 years. I had to go read up something about the organization, because a sense of history always adds value to a narrative, especially in maters of business and national development. If, as he said, a certain Mr. Babs Omotowa, former Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director (CEO/ MD) of Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) Limited, in applying the local content law, took perhaps the biggest gamble of his career by leveraging the Caverton dreamers, then the man deserves some commendation for courage. It was a mixture of patriotism, insight, resilience and a refusal to be intimidated. Many people in his position at the time would Continued on page 54

HowTwitter Activism Reshaped Fight against Boko Haram Joe Parkinson and Drew Hinshaw Seven years ago, the Islamist insurgent group Boko Haram kidnapped 276 teenage girls from Chibok, Nigeria, on the eve of their graduating exams. They were, within weeks, an international cause celebre, with millions (including Ellen DeGeneres, the Rock, the pope and Michelle Obama) tweeting calls for their freedom with the hashtag #BringBackOurGirls. The inevitable backlash held that tweets are a lazy and ineffective way to seek social change. This was not activism, critics said, but “slacktivism,” and it would make no difference in the offline universe. Ann Coulter mocked the hashtag as trivial posturing. “This is not intended to have any effect on the real world,” George Will told a Fox News panel. “Terrorists don’t read Twitter,” Sean Hannity assured Fox News viewers. Deputy national security adviser Ben Rhodes, discussing the metrics during a meeting in the White House Situation Room, expressed bewilderment over what impact the hashtag could have: “Even if it hits a billion tweets, do we think Boko Haram is going to throw up their hands and say, ‘Okay, we let the girls go’?”

Just as the cynics predicted, the crowd

soon moved on. The next viral cause, the Ice Bucket Challenge, quickly replaced #BringBackOurGirls.

Yet the critics were wrong in saying that a worldwide hashtag campaign would have no impact. For the past seven years, we’ve reported out a book project, “Bring Back Our Girls,” disentangling the ways that a few days’ worth of tweets managed to transform a war that continues to rage in Africa’s most populous nation.

Before the hashtag, the main effort to free the Chibok girls consisted of a few dozen dads revving motorbikes down a lonesome dirt road, carrying a handful of crumpled bank notes to buy the freedom of daughters they ultimately failed to locate.

Nigeria, fighting a years-long war with Boko Haram, was on its own. After the hashtag, seven foreign nations poured billions of dollars — in drones, intelligence officers, satellite coverage, special forces, FBI agents, CIA officers and eventually foreign mercenaries — into a four-country search zone to free a group of ordinary teenagers transformed by social media into a central prize in America’s global war on terror. Boko Haram became an internationally known entity and soon forged an alliance with the Islamic State.

An economy of ransoming schoolchildren emerged, and Nigeria has seen five mass abductions totaling almost 1,000 students in the past year.

It turns out that hashtag activism — “slacktivism,” if you prefer — is effective.

Just not always in the ways that people who practice it intend.

Other hashtags derided as slacktivism have had similarly lasting impact. A weeklong viral campaign in 2012, #StopKony, pushed Washington to reinvigorate a barely known military hunt for Uganda’s Joseph Kony, a warlord whose Lord’s Resistance Army forcibly recruited children as fighters.

During Arab Spring uprisings, hashtags like #Egypt, #Libya and #GeziPark, in Turkey, became rallying points for protesters on the streets but also shifted Western policy toward longtime counterterrorism allies in Cairo and Ankara. NATO war planners later admitted that they used tweets to pinpoint airstrikes against Moammar Gaddafi ’s forces.

In the White House in April 2014, quickly thumbed-out tweets tagged #BringBackOurGirls were compiled by the National Security Council into emails sent to top Obama administration officials, who then plotted a military intervention in the

same Situation Room complex where they had watched the assassination of Osama bin Laden. To the State Department, too, the hashtag represented a chance to dispatch military power for humanitarian ends.

“What if these were our daughters?” a senior department official asked Secretary of State John Kerry, whose own daughter had discussed the campaign with him by phone. After a series of meetings, the administration agreed to deploy spy planes, Air Force personnel, and Global Hawk and Predator drones to help find the girls, and dispatched a team of nearly 40 intelligence officers, law enforcement specialists and diplomats to lead the hunt.

Nigeria, previously reluctant to open up its soil to such foreign intervention, agreed, under public pressure. Other nations joined the hashtag-inspired mission. Britain sent a surveillance plane, France dispatched intelligence officers to Nigeria’s borders with three former French colonies, Israel offered intelligence, Canada sent special forces, and China promised satellite imagery.

Later, a South African mercenary company led by former apartheid-era commandos was enlisted to help the girls, joining the Continued on page 54

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