THURSDAY 26TH MAY 2022

Swiss Firm Which Paid Bribes to NNPC Officials for Crude Contracts Fined $1.1bn in US Nigerian officials collected over $52m, says State Dept.

Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja Glencore, a mining and com-

modities trading firm has agreed to pay over $1.1 billion for various infractions, including paying bribes

to several African countries to get mouth-watering crude oil purchase contracts.

Between approximately 2007 and 2018, a Department of Justice (DoJ) press release, said that Glencore and

its subsidiaries caused approximately $79.6 million in payments to be made to intermediary companies.

It stated that this was done in orContinued on page 40

Obi Dumps PDP, May Contest Presidential Poll on Another Party…Page 41 Thursday 26 May, 2022 Vol 27. No 9907. Price: N250

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CBN Rallies Investors for Devt of 1,590 Hectares Plantation in Edo... Page 5

Adamu: No Decision on Zoning Till After Screening APC Presidential Hopefuls Says aspirants will be scrutinised according to party's guidelines Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Abdulahi Adamu, yesterday,

said that the ruling party would take decision on zoning after all the presidential aspirants had been screened.

In an interview with select Hausa

Service media organisations, Adamu also said the presidential aspirants would be scrutinised in accordance with the party's guidelines for the 2023 elections

The guidelines of the party provides three ways of choosing the party's candidate for an election, which include direct, indirect and consensus.

Baring his mind on the zoning arrangement, Adamu said no decision would be taken until the aspirants were screened.

His words: "We have not

produced our candidate for the presidency yet. We have to screen the aspirants to know the way forward.

Continued on page 43

Buhari, Osinbajo, NEF, CAN Flay Killing of Pregnant Woman, Children in Anambra Those behind barbarous killings in South-east will be hounded by security forces, presidency assures Soludo declares curfew in eight LGAs, bans okada, tricycle operations on Mondays Zulum confirms 32 persons killed by Boko Haram in weekend’s attack in Kala-Balge Lawan halts campaign in honour of murdered Borno farmers Terrorists attack Masari's LG, abduct two Catholic priests, ECWA pastor, others Deji Elumoye, Adedayo Akinwale, Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja, Michael Olugbode in Maiduguri, David-Chyddy Eleke in Awka, Wale Igbintade in Lagos and Francis Sardauna in Katsina President Muhammadu Buhari,

the vice president, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, Northern Elders Forum (NEF), Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), and African Bar Association (AFBA) have condemned the alleged killing recently of a pregnant woman, Harira Jubril, and her four children

in Anambra State.

The presidency said, in a statement yesterday, that the security agencies would go after the suspected killers. It said the incident was being investigated to Continued on page 40

PDP GOVERNORSHIP PRIMARIES SO FAR

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State WINNERS Abia Prof. Uchenna Ikonne Adamawa Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri Akwa Ibom Pastor Umo Eno Bauchi Barr. Ibrahim Kashim Benue Mr. Titus Uba Delta Sheriff Oborevwori Enugu Peter Mbah Gombe Mohammed Jubrin Barde Jigawa Mustapha Sule Lamido Kwara Alhaji Shuaib Yahman Abdullahi Lagos Olajide Adediran Nasarawa David Ombugadu Oyo State Seyi Makinde Rivers Siminialayi Fubara Sokoto Sa-aidu Umar Taraba Lt.Col Agbu Kefas (rtd) Zamfara Dauda Lawal

LOSERS Lucky Igbokwe

Anofiok Luke Engr Benson Abounu David Edevbie Hon.Chijioke Edeoga Jamilu Isiyaku Gwamna Alhaji Saleh Shehu Prof. Mohammed Yisa Gana David Kolawole Vaughan Maj. Gen Nuhu Angbazo (rtd) Hazeem Gbolarumi Kamalu Isaac Prof. Joseph Kunini Shuaibu Nakwanda

Yakubu Warns of Dangers of Money Politics, Says Nigeria Moving Towards Plutocracy... Page 42

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Group News Editor: Goddy Egene Email: Goddy.egene@thisdaylive.com, 0803 350 6821, 0809 7777 322, 0807 401 0580

NEWS

PETER MBAH SET FOR ENUGU GOVT HOUSE...

L-R: State Chairman of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Hon. Augustine Nnamani; Enugu State Governor, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi and Governorship Candidate of the PDP for the 2023 general elections, Barr. Peter Mbah, after being declared winner of the party’s guber primary election held at Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium, Enugu... yesterday

Okonjo-Iweala: Global Food Crisis Could Last till 2024 Pfizer to offer all drugs not-for-profit to 45 lower-income countries Ndubuisi Francis in Abuja The world’s food crisis could last until 2024 unless safe corridors are created to move Ukrainian food stocks currently blockaded

by Russia, Director General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has warned.

Speaking at a press conference on policy outlook for trade and food at the on-going World Economic Forum (WEF) meeting in Davos, Switzerland, she explained: "The food crisis, if we don’t get these safe corridors out, is going to last another year or two, to be honest with you."

According to her, the United Nations (UN) Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres was engaged with the issue.

"He formed a crisis group composed of key UN agencies and related agencies. WTO is part of it, to look at the food, energy and finance aspects of the crisis.

"One issue is the creation of safe corridors and looking at alternative means to evacuate Ukrainian grain.

Rail could take one or two million tonnes, but it’s very difficult so we really need the Black Sea.” "I know that some work is going behind (the scenes) to see if we can get a solution. So the secretary general is involved," the WTO DG

stressed.

Trade, she pointed out, was part of the solutions to the simultaneous crises gripping the world, adding that the world faces the security crisis, the pandemic, the climate crisis, food crisis, all at same time.

"They have one thing in common -- one country can’t solve them, needs multinational approach," she further said.

Okonjo-Iweala explained that the WTO recently revised down its projections for trade growth this year from 4.7 per cent to three per cent.

"There are lots of uncertainties - many on the downside. There are lots of downside risks. If you

CBN Rallies Investors for Devt of 1,590 Hectares Plantation in Edo Riding on the back of Governor Godwin Obaseki’s investment drive, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Zenith Bank, Suntrust Bank, among other investors have made commitments to the development of a 1,590-hectare oil palm plantation operated by Raedial Farms Limited.

With the global demand for oil palm on the increase amid supply disruptions, investors are taking advantage of the Edo State Oil Palm Programme (ESOPP), to deepen imprints in the country’s oil palm sector.

According to a statement yesterday, already, Edo has about 120,000 hectares of oil palm plantation under development.

The statement revealed that other investors and stakeholders who visited the Raedial Farms facility in Iguomokhua village, Orhionmwon Local Government Area of Edo State included Boston Advisory, CAGL Global, United Capital & United Bank of Africa (UBA). They were received by the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the company, Mr. Uwadiale Agenmonmen.

Agenmonmen said work was in top gear to supply crude palm oil (CPO) and palm kernel oil (PKO) to the market through the current expansion programme of its palm plantation and mill. He stated that there was no better time to invest in palm oil cultivation and production in Nigeria other than now,

particularly against the backdrop of the recent ban on the exportation of palm oil and oil palm produced by the Indonesian government.

According to him, “The business environment is interesting. There may be ups and downs but lately, the palm oil value chain has been the best in a while, fostered by Indonesia shutting down their export recently and thereby putting the pressure back home.

“In recent times, people that normally import can no longer import palm oil and other products from Indonesia. So, the prices are going up and it is good for the farmers that actually cultivate and sell. In a nutshell, right now, the business environment is okay.”

While commending the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) for the financial support towards the growth of the industry, he stated that the major obstacle militating against the success of farmers in the oil palm industry was largely occasioned by the set of conditions or evaluation commercial banks give to those who want to access the funds provided by CBN. He added: “The farm sits on 1,509 hectares of land and has currently cultivated 700 hectares while another 500 hectares would be cultivated this year. The oil mill in the farm currently has the capacity of producing 16 tons of red oil every day and from palm kernel oil, it can produce 27 tons every

day when there is a full stock of raw materials.

“We have to bring our current investors and bankers here to physically see what we are doing because there is a difference when you talk to people about what you do on paper and phone calls. We want them to feel connected to where they have their money and with this, we look forward to better business opportunities.”

don’t have trade, you can’t move food to where it is needed, she pointed out."

Meanwhile, pharmaceutical giant, Pfizer has announced that it would supply all its current and future patent-protected medicines and vaccines on a not-for-profit basis to 45 lower-income countries, saying it was talking to other big drug-makers about similar steps.

Announcing an “accord for a healthier world” at the WEF annual meeting in Davos, the New York-based pharma firm pledged to provide all its products that are available in the US and Europe on a cost basis to 1.2 billion people in all 27 low-income countries such as Afghanistan and Ethiopia, plus 18 lower-middle-income countries including Ghana.

Pfizer had previously been accused of, “pandemic profiteering” over the huge profits it has generated from coronavirus-related medicines over the past two years.

It made almost $15 billion in sales in only three months from the Covid-19 vaccine it developed with Germany’s BioNTech and its new Covid pill for people who are at high risk of severe disease.

“We are living in a time where science is increasingly demonstrating the ability to take on the world’s most devastating diseases,” Albert Bourla, Pfizer’s chief executive, said.

“Unfortunately, there exists a

tremendous health equity gap in our world that determines which of us can use these innovations and which of us cannot.”

He told the WEF gathering in Switzerland: “I’m certain that the other pharmaceutical companies will follow. I’ve spoken to several of the CEOs and they want to be part of it.

“So medicines will be available I hope but it’s not going to be enough. We need to also work on the ground for diagnosis, treatments, and for that we need the help of WHO, Doctors without Borders and many other organisations.”

Jayasree Iyer, the chief executive of the Netherlands-based independent group Access to Medicine Foundation, said: “Based on our research, Pfizer’s commitment covers the right products by looking across the entire portfolio of patented products, the right countries by focusing on the poorest countries and the right partnerships by working with governments and international health organisations.

“But we need to see how it pans out; the commitment needs to move us forward, from vaccine to vaccination, from medicine to treatment.”

Elsewhere in Davos on Wednesday, a nurse from Liberia, George Poe Williams, staged a, “clap for

pharma profits” in protest at the profits made by drugmakers, some of which, including Pfizer, refuse to waive patents on Covid-19 vaccines.

Williams said: “If I wanted to earn what Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla made last year, I would have to work every single day until 6100 AD. But what makes me really furious is that Bourla and many of his billionaire buddies here at WEF are doing all they can to block our demands for a patent waiver – just so they can make even more money.”

Under its new initiative, Pfizer is working closely with healthcare officials in Rwanda, Ghana, Malawi, Senegal and Uganda to provide expertise to support diagnosis, education and training of doctors and nurses and improvements to infrastructure to ensure all medicines and vaccines can reach those in need.

Pfizer is working with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to develop new products such as vaccines to prevent the deadly Group B streptococcus, and for respiratory syncytial virus, which can be serious for children and older people.

Also on the panel, Bill Gates said: “This type of accord is a very good model, it’s going to get medicines out … Global health equity has made progress; we saw with Covid, we’re not there.”

FG Urged to Commit 1% of GDP to Research, Devt Ugo Aliogo The federal government has been urged to invest one per cent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) on the development of science, research and development as part of efforts to position Nigeria as a hub for science and technology in Africa.

Speaking during a media briefing in Lagos, recently, to premiere AIMS first movie titled: "Wajenzi", the Senior Outreach Manager, African Initiative for Mathematical Sciences, (AIMS), Sampson Adotey, said there was need for more scientific advisers in government. This, he said would provide would government sound knowledge and insight into the importance of the science, and technology to the economy.

He urged the government to

rethink the value of science, research and development on the economy and prioritise investment in the sector.

He further appealed to government to reconsider how they engage the academia in decision-making around the Sustainable Development Goal (SDGs), saying there was huge opportunity for collaboration between the government and the academia which could positively impact the economy.

Adotey lamented that many of the universities in Africa don’t have the infrastructure to compete at a global level, when it comes to research and development, adding, “I feel universities continues to make great progress, and we acknowledge that, but we believe that there is more to be done.”

The AIMS Outreach Manager

investment in STEM education involves building laboratories, refurbishing existing ones and raising a critical mass of young people passionate about science, research and development to ensure that the problems the country is facing are solved from a scientific point of view.

He said Nigeria could only invest in research and development based on identified needs and strategic focus, adding that the reason why countries such as South Africa, Egypt and Namibia investing up to 10 per cent was because they have identified their needs and wants to fill the gap.

According to him, “In the areas of STEM education in Africa, we have a long way to go, there was a convention that was signed in Tanzania and Africa government

has committed to dedicating 1percent of their Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to science, research and development in Africa. Sadly, less than five Africa countries have consistently done that.

“In terms of contribution of African government, I would say that there is a room for more than more because we need African government commit one per cent of their GDP consistently of their GDP to investing in science, research and development.

“If Nigeria wants to be the hub of biotechnology in Africa, Nigeria has to position itself as a hub. By doing so, it needs to invest in anything biotechnology related. It needs to be capacitate all the various faculties in the universities to be able to offer top notch programme.”

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ICAN-BOI INNOVATION HUB CENTRE...

L-R: 57th ICAN President, Mrs. Comfort Olu Eyitayo; Managing Director/CEO, Bank of Industry (BOI), Mr. Olukayode Pitan; Past President, ICAN, Prof. Francis Ojoide, and another ICAN Past President, PHOTO: SUNDAY ADIGUN Alhaji Razak Jaiyeola, at the inauguration of ICAN-BOI Innovation Hub Centre in Lagos…yesterday

Nigeria, Ethiopia to Hold Bilateral Talks on Trade, Economy, Politics Deji Elumoye in Abuja Nigeria and Ethiopia have concluded plans to hold a Joint Ministerial Commission meeting in Addis

Ababa in June, 2022, to discuss various areas of bilateral relationship and exchange perspectives on a wide range of international issues of mutual interest.

To this end, President Muhammadu Buhari, yesterday, hosted the Prime Minister of Ethiopia, Dr. Abiy Ahmed, to a state visit and a presidential lunch attended by the

Insecurity Forces Anambra PDP to Move 3-man Adhoc Delegates Election to Awka David-Chyddy Eleke in Awka The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Anambra State yesterday moved its three-man adhoc delegate election in two senatorial zones to Awka, the state capital.

THISDAY learnt that the decision was reached because of the level of insecurity in most parts of the state, causing the election of 14 local government areas in two senatorial zones - Anambra South and Anambra North - to be moved to Awka.

A chieftain of the party in the state, Hon Ngozi Agudosi who disclosed this to journalists said: "This delegates election is costing our party a lot of money, but we have to do it for the safety of our party members.

"In most communities in Anambra, you cannot even hold family meetings let alone election.

Even Ogbaru in Anambra North Senatorial zone is not safe. We wrote to the national leadership of the

party to grant us the permission for Anambra North and South Senatorial zones to hold their election in Awka, and they granted."

The election which is ongoing as at the time of filing this report was under heavy security and was also being monitored by 43

officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission INEC, led

by Mr. Ibeh Ibeh.

The election was held at the Prof. Dora Akunyili Women's Development Center in Awka by a five-man committee led by Mr. Efere Augustine.

Ministerial Commission to discuss various areas of relationship that will be beneficial to both countries. ‘‘Nigerian officials are heading to Addis Ababa in June to discuss various areas of relationship including political, economic, science and technology, mines and industry. ‘‘We have been engaging and we will continue to engage".

The envoy further said: ‘‘The Ethiopian Prime Minister, Dr Abiy Ahmed has always taken Nigeria as one of the pillars in Africa and a strong country in stabilising democracy in Africa.

“In the spirit of African brotherhood and seeking African solutions to African problems, President Buhari and the Prime Minister

consult from time to time and this visit is an icing on the cake. ‘‘President Buhari has been in Addis Ababa a couple of times so the Prime Minister thought it wise to visit Nigeria and confer with President Buhari enroute to Malabo, Equatorial Guinea, for the humanitarian conference and the African Union Extraordinary Summit on Terrorism and Unconstitutional Changes of Government. ‘‘In the private sector, Dangote has a big cement factory in Ethiopia and Ethiopia has an expanding economy in Africa. ‘‘So this is a very important and useful visit that will help officials from both countries to continue to network.’’

Temile Awards NewVessel Building Contract to Hyundai, NLNG Shipping Peter Uzoho An indigenous firm, Temile Development Co, has signed a contract with Hyundai Mipo Shipyard in South Korea, for the construction and supervision of its second 23,000 cubic meters LPG/ NH3/VCM carrier vessel.

The development which came few days after the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited and its Joint Venture (JV) partner, Sahara Group, announced taking delivery of two

23,000 CBM Liquefied Petroleum (LPG) vessels at Hyundai Mipo Shipyard in South Korea, was a reflection of the sustained inflow of investments in the country’s oil and gas sector.

The contract, according to Temile, was awarded to Hyundai Mipo Dockyard (HMD) for the construction of the vesel, and the Nigerian Shipping Management Limited (NSML), the shipping arm of the Nigerian LNG Limited, for supervision of the building of the facility.

PDP: Northern Elders Look to North Central to Placate Afenifere, Middle Belt, Ohaneze

There is an ongoing move by northern leaders to ensure that the party's candidate enjoys the support of the majority of Nigerians.

The move, it was gathered intensified during the week to push for a candidate from the North Central bridge builder One of the leaders involved in this latest arrangement who hails from the North West disclosed to journalists that, "what the PDP needs is a presidential candidate that can assuage certain fears and long-held apprehension which continue to sow division in the country.

"If the demography was that straightforward, nothing would have stopped our party from mobilising massively for a southern candidate but contemporary reality, as well as the game going on in the All Progressive Congress, APC,

First Lady of Nigeria, Aisha Buhari and Ethiopian First Lady Zinash Tayachew, at the State House, Abuja.

A major fall out of the visit was the desire of both countries to take concrete steps to expand bilateral relations in key areas including the economy, trade, science and technology, solid minerals, among others.

Briefing newsmen after the visit, Nigeria’s Ambassador to Ethiopia, Victor Adeleke, explained the essence of the visit and the burgeoning state of relations between both countries.

According to him, the state of relations between Nigeria and Ethiopia was warm, adding that, "we are working together and we will soon be convening the Joint

suggest that our candidate should be a person that will appeal to almost all Nigerians from the different zones.

"It is in view of this that some of us have started and we are making good progress, to ensure that the North Central Zone which has neither been given a vice presidential nor a presidential slot, produces our candidate.

"The South-east, too, has never produced a president but it has produced a vice president before.

"We are reaching out to leaders in Afenifere, Middle Belt Forum and Ohaneze."

The source added: "It is about the votes in the general election and a North Central candidate would not make the north lose face while, at the same time, leaders in Afenifere and Ohaneze with an alliance with the MBF may not be too alienated. We are in back

end consultations preparatory to ensuring that our candidate has the necessary mass appeal "All our aspirants are sound and they can rescue this sinking ship that Nigeria has become.

"But in politics, you need to look at the numbers and weigh your options correctly."

On the issue of consensus candidacy that produces Bala Mohammed and Abubakar Bukola Saraki, he said: "Look at the aspirants and their track record as well as the issue of baggage. Is it in terms of being able to work with other colleagues or being sellable to Nigerians, especially the business community and the youth? Each person has a record and it is there for all to see. When you were a governor, a vice president or a legislator, what did you achieve and how will that help our party and Nigeria? These are the issues."

A statement yesterday, explained that the dual contract award took place at the signing ceremony held at the World Gas Conference (WGC 2022) in Daegu, South Korea.

NSML is an integrated maritime services company providing a wide range of top-notch maritime and shipping services including training, manning, fleet management and consultancy services. The LPG carrier vessel is the second that is being constructed by the Temile Development Company and is a sequel to the first vessel which was delivered in 2020 currently chartered to Nigeria LNG Limited for domestic LPG supply.

The first LPG vessel delivered in 2020 and the newly awarded were part of a two-vessel-building project valued at over $120 million.

In the statement, the Chief Executive Officer of Temile Development Co, Alfred Temile, said the new carrier vessel to be constructed was a high-end specification vessel which has been designed by NSML in accordance with bespoke requirements using HMD's highly efficient eco-design.

Temile said the new LPG carrier was expected for delivery on July 26, 2026 at HMD in Ulsan, Korea, adding that the development demonstrates the company's commitment and support to the Nigerian Local Content Act and establishes their confidence in local capacity to deliver international acceptable standards.

He added, "We are delighted to execute the construction of our new LPG carrier with HMD, bringing onboard NSML to supervise the construction. As an indigenous company, this demonstrates our

commitment and support to the Nigerian Local Content Act and as well establishes our confidence in local capacity to deliver international acceptable standards.

"Working with HMD again makes us feel in very safe hands as we are confident that this eco-design/cleaner fuel vessel shall be constructed in line with international best practices and industrial regulations thereby creating a space for the vessel in the international gas supply value chain.

"Having taken delivery of our first LPG carrier vessel which is currently chartered to Nigerian LNG Limited for domestic LPG supply, we look forward to taking delivery of this new carrier in July 2023 to make an addition to the global gas supply industry".

The two developments occurring in a space of few days have signified increased investment inflows into the Nigerian oil and gas industry resulting from the enactment and application of the Nigerian Content Act and the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).

Commenting on the deal, the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) congratulated Temile Development Company and saluted its bullish initiative in investing in an area that was regarded as off-limits for local players.

In a video message delivered to the agreement signing ceremony, the Executive Secretary of NCDMB, Mr. Simbi Wabote, described the accomplishment as evidence of significant growth in capacity and confidence of local companies to play in the international arena and

in complex areas of the oil and gas industry. Wabote indicated that the agreement signing event and subsequent construction and supervision of the contract align with the Board’s strategic plan of maximizing the potentials in the midstream and downstream sectors of the Nigerian oil and gas industry, especially as the oil and gas industry strives to actualize the Decade of Gas policy of the federal government.

According to him, “this project clearly supports our LPG penetration initiative in Nigeria and will further close the gap in LPG penetration in Nigeria.”

He stated further that the project will bring invaluable local content opportunities in technology and innovation, human capital development and research and development.

Speaking further, the executive secretary commended Hyundai for the work it was doing at the Brass Shipyard and other investment projects in Nigeria that will support the repair of vessels.

He also applauded NLNG for the strategic initiative of deploying 100 percent LPG to the local market to close the gap in respect of LPG penetration in-country, adding the company has helped in reducing cost as well as creating a cleaner source of energy for our people.

On Monday, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) Limited and its Joint Venture (JV) partner, Sahara Group, took delivery of two 23,000 CBM Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) vessels at the same Hyundai MIPO Shipyard in Ulsan, South Korea.

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DEEPENING CAPITAL MARKETS...

L-R: CEO, Central Securities Clearing System Plc, Haruna Jalo-Waziri; Group Managing Director, Afrinvest & President, AIHN, Ike Chioke; Director General, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Lamido Yuguda, and Executive Commissioner, SEC, Dayo Obisan, at the West African Capital Markets Conference with the theme “Deepening and Strengthening the Capital Markets across West Africa through Effective Regulation,” in Accra, Ghana... recently

Oil Industry Players Seek Special Forex Window for Modular Refineries Operators Want crude feedstock scarcity addressed Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja and Peter Uzoho in Lagos Oil and gas industry players in the country have requested the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to create a unique window for modular refineries operators to enable them access foreign exchange and facilitate seamless operations.

The stakeholders also called on the authorities to initiate action to address the nagging issue of irregular supply of feedstock to the modular refineries, which they lamented is hampering the smooth

operations of the plants.

The demands were contained in a communique released at the just-concluded Nigerian Content Midstream and Downstream Oil and Gas Summit organised by the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB).

The document was read by the Manager, Corporate Communications, NCDMB, Mr. Esueme Kikile.

Industry operators further advocated that the federal government should divest from the petroleum depots and address the dysfunctions of Nigerian pipeline

infrastructure.

Participants also requested that the NCDMB should consult more with midstream/downstream stakeholders to co-produce solutions to the peculiar challenges confronting the sector. According to the NCDMB, the recommendations were geared towards addressing some of the challenges of the sectors which were identified by the delegates.

“These included that the midstream/downstream sectors face uncertainty due to the sustenance of subsidies, inconsistent supply of

feedstock, and the broken product distribution infrastructure.

“They also highlighted the challenges that modular refinery operators face in sourcing forex and called attention to the hurdles and delays that complicate the process of operationalising a valid import waiver,” the communiqué stated.

The two-day summit received 11 papers and featured three-panel sessions and at the end came up with high-impact actions that would help to maximise the potentialities in the midstream/ downstream sectors of the oil and

Coalition of Civil Society Groups Back Sanwo-Olu on Clampdown on Commercial Motorcycles Segun James Following threats posed by activities of commercial motorcyclists to life and property in Lagos, the Defend Lagos Coalition (DLC), an amalgamation of civil society organisations has thrown its weight behind the state government’s ban on okada operations in parts of the state.

The DLC at a press conference in Lagos, addressed by the National Coordinator, Activists for Good Governance, Declan Ihekaire, said there was the “immediate need for a total clampdown on commercial motorcycles (Okada) operations,” in the state.

Ihekaire said: “We have come together today to ask Lagosians to join us in demanding from the Lagos State government a total clampdown on motorcycles (okada) as a means of transportation in every nook and cranny of the state.”

While urging Lagos residents to join in demanding from the government a total clampdown on motorcycles, he stated that a collective action, which required the input of all true Lagosians, was needed to eradicate the menace of okada in the state.

He applauded Governor Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu for the bold step of announcing the ban on

Okada operations in six local government council areas and LCDAs, adding that the Lagos, “governor has shown without any doubt that he is a dutiful servant of the people who is ever-ready to listen and carry out the people's desires in line with his constitutional mandate.”

Ihekaire, who however, said, “Lagosians have, on a daily basis, experienced several threats to lives and property, flagrant disobedience of the laws of the land, by the 'army' of undocumented commercial motorcycle operators, who have laid siege Lagos State,” adding that, “the sense of insecurity convened by these dare-devil riders should not be allowed to continue.”

He noted that the conference was called to address the very urgent and crucial issue that affects the collective existence of people living in Lagos State.

Lamenting that artisans and able-bodied Nigerian youths had abandoned their trained jobs to become emergency Okada riders, the group’s spokesman added that, “Youths are no longer interested in vocational training to earn a decent and enduring living; rather, they have taken to riding Okada to make “quick” money with the attendant risk to their lives.”

Ihekaire said the group as

grassroots-based organisations had, “In the past couple of months, conducted independent surveys, which revealed that not only are majority of these motorcycle riders foreigners from countries, such as Republic of Chad, Niger Republic and other neighboring countries, we were also able to establish that they constitute a very potent risk to lives and properties of Lagosians.

They must be stopped before it is too late.

“In the past few months, we have

recorded cases of violent crimes and civil disturbances directly linked to the motorcycle operators, with some leading to the destruction of assets, loss of lives of innocent citizens and security agents.”

While reminding Sanwo-Olu of his constitutional obligation to protect the lives and properties of Lagosians, Ihekaire added that “Any form of action, which seeks to make this impossible, must be confronted, in the overall interest of the people.”

gas sector One of the action items, the players said, was an increase in NCDMB’s collaboration and alignment with other relevant ministries, departments, and agencies as well as stakeholders to mainstream Nigerian content bottom lines.

These areas, they said involved refining, processing, storage, construction, fabrication, distribution, marketing, and retail which would help liberate the potential of the sectors.

Part of the resolutions after the event which was attended by the Minister of State, Petroleum, Mr. Timipre Sylva and other top industry stakeholders, included the need to encourage accelerated investment in modernising and upscaling the local supply chain to ease petroleum product distribution.

In addition, the participants called for the formulation and implementation of policies and interventions to support indigenous operators and make them globally competitive in terms of quality delivery and product pricing.

“The recommendations also included the need to incentivise the collocation of modular refineries and the depots and the Free Trade Zones (FTZs) to enable easy offtake of petroleum products and

promotion of the utilisation of gas as an energy source of choice in Nigeria and addressing the forex liquidity constraints of indigenous companies.

“Participants at the summit observed that the midstream and downstream sectors have numerous leverage points to create value and these opportunities are yet to be fully explored.

“They also indicated that the modular refineries could be potential game-changers as they are well-suited to meet the demands for refined petroleum products in their catchment areas,” part of the communiqué added.

It also quoted participants as lauding the board and its leadership for building the momentum of Nigerian content with a call to support the progress achieved so far.

While commending the attendees, the Executive Secretary, NCDMB, Simbi Wabote, in a vote of thanks, assured participants that their recommendations would be considered during policy formation.

He also promised that the board would liaise with relevant agencies to address some of the identified challenges that are outside the remit of the NCDMB's mandate.

“We will prioritise and try to unlock the challenges and continue to push the limits,” he concluded.

NPA Inaugurates Ultra-modern Training School The Nigerian Port Authority (NPA) has unveiled its ultra-modern training institute in its bid to enhance employees' skill for efficient service delivery.

Speaking during its inauguration, the Managing Director, NPA, Mohammed Bello-Koko, explained that the move was part of its resolve to institutionalise continuous learning as an organisational culture.

According to him: "We are consistently upskilling and reskilling our employees on whom we place high premium in our overriding objective as a management team, and our readiness to position them

to be best in class, is at the core of what this training school sets to achieve.

“As most of us are aware, having in place a robust talent pool is a necessary precondition for operating efficiently in the fiercely competitive terrain that port business is."

Whilst recommending the facility for patronage by sister agencies in the maritime sector and other industry players who are desirous of a best-in-class training platform for their employees, the NPA boss said the decision to invest so much in the facility took cognisance of its former employees, some of

whom although retired were actually not tired.

"We intend to tap into their wealth of experience and institutional knowledge by inviting them as resource persons to train upcoming employees," he added.

Speaking further the Managing Director informed the gathering that processes were in the works to partner with the World Maritime University, the Nigerian Navy Hydrography Department, Nigerian Institute of Marine and Oceanography Research, the University of Lagos and other research and learning institutions in the area of curriculum development

and capacity building.

The complex located in Apapa Dockyard has the capacity of training three hundred and eighty (380) persons per time as it consists of a lecture theatre with seating capacity of seventy-three (73), a large hall with seat capacity of one hundred and twelve (112) a mini hall with seat capacity of fifty (50), another with twenty-seven (27) and six (6) simulation class rooms that seats sixteen (16) persons each, a fully automated library, a computer training hall, a canteen with seating capacity for 120 persons and a hostel with 30-Bed capacity.

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INTERVIEW Ekechukwu: Atiku Will Sweep PDP Primaries, Presidential Election US based founder of Atiku Diaspora Support Group, Diaspora Director Atiku Kawai, and the home-based Build Back Better Nigeria, Franklin Ekechukwu, tells Nduka Nwosu why he believes Atiku Abubakar has the momentum in the lead to the Presidential primaries. Excerpts:

Tell us about the group you started to promote Vice President Atiku Abubakar’s ambition to grab the Nigerian Presidency.

Atiku Diaspora Support Group started in early 2017. I simply collapsed the Goodluck Support Group into the Atiku Diaspora Support Group. This was during the beginning of 2018/19 general election. When Mama Titi Atiku’s PA, Abdulrazaq Garba reached out to me to help him do some work on behalf of His Excellency. At this time, I was disappointed with the Nigerian electorate because of the loss of Jonathan’s Presidency. I was devastated with a loss of interest in Nigerian politics, I could not comprehend the reasoning behind Jonathan losing the election to a non-versatile, and less knowledgeable individual.

Abdulrazaq Garba sat down and educated me on who Atiku Abubakar is; I went ahead to do my research on him.

It is important to me that anyone I will support will be worthy of that support, I knew of him as the former Vice President who once owned a property at the Potomac, Maryland where a bunch of Nigerians often gathered whenever he was around.

I am one person who does not commit unless I am convinced of the other person or candidate’s integrity; loyalty is all that matters.

If I believe in you nothing will make me waive my support for you and if in the process you disappoint me due to some character flaw, I will simply walk away as no one is ever perfect. However, in the case of Atiku he has been very consistent and disciplined in all aspects of his endeavors which is a very rare characteristic, I was impressed as I tried to learn more about him. My findings made the group to come alive. I mean unravelling the hitherto unknown side of this personality heightened the curiosity with an intense desire to hit the ground running.

Anyway, as soon as I set to work with my men, we have not looked back since then. We were again disappointed on the outcome of the last election and for the fact that Nigerians kept quiet over the server issue knowing quite well that there was a server made me wonder how this country can connive with the forces of evil to shortchange its destiny.

One year after the 2019 election I met a young man called Abdulrasheed Shehu who had created the Atiku Kawai Media Group. He had reached out to me to be the Diaspora Director. The amazing part of the group is that they are all youths from all parts of the country, united in the promotion of His Excellency Vice President Atiku Abubakar becoming Nigeria’s next president. Their zeal came with a sense of urgency and we are glad the momentum is here.

The conviction did not come easy as the youths of Nigeria persuaded him to run.

It did not matter we had to ask him to try again; we persisted for two years trying to let him know there was a void which only his track record of experience could fill. I am not surprised therefore that when His Excellency Atiku decided to declare his intent to contest the Presidential election, he chose as his theme Unity, that is the unity of the various but disparate components of the corporate polity defined as Nigeria and indeed, Atiku’s mode of politics has always been that of a unifier.

PDP member, I know that in PDP power is supposed to be zoned to the North because the last President that governed under PDP was from the South; that was Goodluck Jonathan. Any other sentiment is irrelevant.

Now, will not zoning the presidential ticket to the south cost PDP the election? That is a question for the Nigerian people to answer.

The real question is, will the Nigerian people allow the comatose state of affairs in the country to continue as it is just because the PDP did not zone their Presidency to the south? If you ask me if the PDP presidential candidate can unite the people, bring out the country from the brink of economic collapse it currently finds itself my answer will be yes.

If it were not so, I will be labouring in vain.

PDP should not be held to the same party rules of APC, as they are two different parties. The zoning of the presidency which is currently from the north should only apply to APC, it is a party with its set of rules, and not the PDP. In fact, Nigerians should hold APC responsible if their zoning of the presidency does not go to the South. It is incumbent upon the APC to do the right thing and zone the Presidency to the South. So, I am amazed and perplexed when the PDP was dragged into the politics of zoning.

The PANDEF has also issued a similar statement. What is your take?

I think I have answered the question of zoning, it does not matter what pressure group is unhappy, what matters is when the rule of law or set of rules applies to everyone regardless of their region or tribe.

Ekechukwu How has the group succeeded in creating public awareness and interest in Atiku as the favourite Presidential candidate?

Thank you, the Atiku Diaspora support group in 2018 set up a fantastic ground structure. One thing that I learned in 2017 through 2018, during this preparatory stage is that it is all about delegates.

Currently, I am focused on gathering delegates. The international promotion will immediately follow as soon as His Excellency clinches the nomination.

The Atiku Kawai on the other hand has had a series of successful townhall meetings in all six geopolitical zones in the country. They continue to impress in the social media and have done very well in promoting him.

What are those qualities of Atiku you want to share with the electorate?

Vice President Atiku has many great qualities which will in turn make him a great leader in waiting, Dino Melaye mentioned five qualities needed to wrestle power from the opposition and added that Atiku has all five qualities, which are character, capacity, experience, knowledge and belief in Nigeria and its people but

there are other intrinsic qualities he did not mention. These are humility, discipline, focus, and an engaging, character. The Presidential hopeful has all it takes to do the whole run. This moment in time in history for Nigeria is one of a great and visionary leader emerging to change the direction of governance and hope in the polity. Atiku the unifier is that hope.

What are the perceived obstacles Atiku must face moving forward?

The obstacle I see is this idea of zoning which is obviously a leaning on the old fault lines of tribalism, which is not good for Nigeria at this time in history.

Nepotism and tribal politics are fueled by personal interest not necessarily the interest of the tribe. When that tribal sentiment is overcome, Nigeria’s interest will take precedent and I have no doubt Atiku will overcome it because he is a detribalised Nigerian.

Do you think Atiku, or the PDP has lost the support of the Southeast for disregarding zoning to the Southeast as declared by Ohanaeze and Southeast Elders?

PDP will not lose anything, Firstly, as a

What are the chances of your principal getting the ticket as you approach the primaries?

I believe that by God’s grace Atiku will clinch the ticket, and Nigeria will be great and forward looking. It will experience a great turn around. That is what we need now. We need a leader that exudes and inspires confidence, a visionary leader that can lift the image of the country positively.

That leader is Atiku Abubakar.

He is success personified. We are a great country with great people, and we need a great man like Atiku who has gone through many phases of life to get to this point. Richard Nixon once reminded Americans he did not become President by dodging tough issues.

The same can be said of the former Vice President who proved beyond reasonable doubt to be a worthy assistant to his principal.

He did not get to where he is by dodging tough issues. He has been prepared by the assignment fate has thrust on him.

I believe the best of Nigeria lies ahead, Nigeria is ripe for economic explosion, what the country needs is one who will remove every tribal and religious sentiment and focus on the rule of law and innovation, apply those rules to everyone regardless of whose ox is gored, then begin to build institutions based on that sentiment defined as law because in the eye of the law everyone is equal. This simply means that the judicial system will have to be restructured as a step up to its true meaning of “Justice for all.” All hands must be on deck as we seek to rebuild our country in tune with that ideal state defined in Plato’s Republic.

Judging from his track record as a technocrat, a businessman, public sector player, a visionary vice president and politician, Atiku Abubakar has what it takes to turn around the numerous problems that have prevented us from building a great nation.

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POLITICS

Group Politics Editor NSEOBONG OKON-EKONG Email nseobong.okonekong@thisdaylive.com (08114495324 SMS ONLY)

Mustapha: Tinubu Isn’t Using Me to Disrupt Lagos Guber Race Nseobong Okon-Ekong interviews Mr. AbdulAhmed Olorunfemi Mustapha, a former Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Energy and Minerals Resources who promises to spring a surprise at the All Progressives Congress gubernatorial primary in Lagos State

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within an accelerated time-frame. Using the same method in our schools, one of the things I am bringing, my experience in New York City allowed me to be able to understand the framework that helped the city to accelerate development in health care, education, and security. In education for instance, the City of New York has an entity that we call New York City School Construction Authority, which allows them to be able to borrow money from the bond market to accelerate the build out of schools in the city. We are going to do the same thing in Lagos by setting up the Schools Construction Authority using some of the funding from UBEC, consolidated revenue, funding from lotteries and so on. We can go and borrow money from the market and build between 200 and 300 schools within an accelerated time frame. Those are the new kinds of thinking.

In terms of security, we would probably be using drones, CCTV cameras, in improving the command and control infrastructure so that we make sure Lagos is going to be monitored 24/7. immediately we come in, we would get a private entity to provide radios. All the Lagos state security apparatus would be on one single communication protocol and we would establish security monitoring centers in all the five regional divisions so that we would be able to improve the response time for the management of the security apparatus in the state.

hen exactly did you make up your mind to join the race for the APC governorship ticket in Lagos and what influenced your decision?

I really made up my mind to vie for the Lagos State Governorship sometimes after the EndSARS protest. Although I have always had the predisposition to public service, but the incident of the EndSARS really made me to take a good look at myself and see how I could actively contribute to the development of my country, looking back into what I have done in the past which I believe would be very beneficial not just to Lagos state, but to the entire country as a whole. Yes, I have a predisposition to public service, but everything crystallized during the EndSARS protest, where I saw the disenchantment, the alienation and the attendant effect on the youths of our state and our country. I resolved within myself to be an active participant in bringing up ideas to accelerate development, to provide jobs, good schools and hospitals to our people.

What factors do you think will be at play in how Lagos APC delegates choose their governorship candidate?

If there is any believe, the national leadership of our party will do their best to ensure a transparent process in the delegates selection process, and we affirm our believe in the competence and transparent manner that the election would be conducted and the promise to abide by the decision of the electorates.

Will godfatherism and religion influence the delegates?

We do not believe that godfatherism or religion would have any role to play in the selection process of the delegates. We have a sophisticated membership who have distinguished themselves over the years, since 1999, hence this would not be any different.

Lagos is believed to have a template for governance set up by Senator Bola Tinubu, its former governor, will you alter it?

We strongly believe in the master-plan that was put in place by our leader, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu. We are only bringing in people, process and technology to be able to accentuate the development and the deployment of the master-plan. Our goal is to crowd source funding from the private sector, work deeply with the private sector to accelerate the development and the implementation of the master-plan. That is the only component that we believe we are bringing in. The technology and working with the private sector and also crowd source funding from the bond market to accelerate service delivery.

Arguably, you are neither known to the larger Lagos public nor partisan groups, in particular, what style of leadership should Lagosians expect from you?

We are going to run an open door policy, that is participatory government where we would be working with all the various stakeholders, the local governments and all the facets of our party. Our government process and methodology and style would be data driven, collaborative and open to all and sundry. We cherish ideas and cross-fertilization of ideas and carrying all the stakeholders along so that we can achieve the best and greater numbers of goals for the greater number of our population.

I have over 35 years experience in finance, IT and project management and when I graduated, I worked for KPMG where I was able to counsel a lot of world class businesses in the United States. The last seven years of my life was spent working for the city of New York as an Assistant Executive Director with

Mustapha

a financial information service agency. We provided our support for the applications being used in finance, HR, payroll, debt management systems for the entire city of New York. As a matter of fact, I was part of the team that led the transformation of HR and payroll processes in the city of New York in which we won an award in 2005.

Coming back home, I have been part of the reformed process in ICT which attracted over $200 million investments to Lagos State from IMC for the first time when I was in the office of Overseas Affairs.

When I was in the ICT office, the SMART City project, the land administration) to automate the land processes in Lagos so that you can get your C of O within seven days. The simple and better life feeling that allows anybody the opportunity to be able to pay to Lagos State from anywhere in the world, the land use charge in which we increased the enumeration that

allows the state to be able to generate about N10 billion in a year, and we came up with the plan to generate up to N100 billion for the state. During the Ambode administration, we were able to get over N40 billion, when we were managing that project. When I was in the Power Ministry, we connected all the 20 General Hospitals in Lagos State, they are now getting nothing less than a minimum of 20 hours of electricity per day. We also came up with a plan, bringing in the public sector and the private sector to create a power and gas exchange in Lagos which would allow us to be able to bring in the private sector and the public sector. We were able to bring in banks, hospitals, eateries, we would be able to charge the private sector around N70 per kilowatt and the public sector, like N50 per kilowatt. Lagos state is uniquely placed to be able to solve the power sector challenges in our country. In terms of hospital facilities, we are looking at working with General Electric to provide hospital equipment on lease. The money to be used in buying one, we can use to lease 50 to 60 equipment, and by the grace of God, we would guarantee that we would be able to equip all the hospitals in Lagos state

It is a state that welcomes everyone since inception, and our mantra in Lagos is “Ilu to gbe ajoji ju onile lo.” That is the idea we want to adhere to because of the cosmopolitan nature. We want a Lagos that is free and available to all irrespective of where you come from, you can achieve your destiny and goals here. Also,it is important and fair to pay attention to the agitations of the indigenous people of Lagos State and address their concerns genuinely especially when you consider the level of development and mindset in this part of the world

Where do you stand on the issue of having the ‘original owners’ of Lagos as its governor?

I went to the United States of America, became an Assistant Executive Director in one of the most important agencies of New York City. Lagos is a cosmopolitan state. It is a state that welcomes everyone since inception, and our mantra in Lagos is “Ilu to gbe ajoji ju onile lo.” That is the idea we want to adhere to because of the cosmopolitan nature. We want a Lagos that is free and available to all irrespective of where you come from, you can achieve your destiny and goals here. Also,it is important and fair to pay attention to the agitations of the indigenous people of Lagos State and address their concerns genuinely especially when you consider the level of development and mindset in this part of the world.

Is it true that you are being propped up by Tinubu to alter Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s political calculations?

There is no truth in the saying that we are being used by our National Leader to disrupt or alter the gubernatorial race. This is a project based on associates and people that believe in the idea that we espouse. This is a people’s movement made up of associates and people that have listened to our ideas and share our hopes, dreams and aspirations for Lagos State.

What sectors of the economy do you think Lagos needs to pay more attention to rake in more IGR? We would look at all sectors particularly lands, physical planning permits, land processes, make it easy for people to obtain their C of Os, survey, to be able to get approval to build houses and to also look into how to formalize the informal sector. We intend to improve governance through the digitization that we’ve already started from the land administration, the one stop policy for all the various approvals, setting up Lagos land asset company to make sure that we would be able to automate and accelerate the granting of permits and various government approvals.

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

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POLITICS

Majekodunmi-Oniru: I Garnered a Lot of Political Education Early in Life In this interview with Nseobong Okon-Ekong, Mrs. Olatorera Majekodunmi-Oniru, Ogun State Central Senatorial District aspirant on the platform of the All Progressives Congress makes a solemn commitment to effectively represent the citizens of Ifo, Ewekoro, Obafemi-Owode, Odeda, Abeokuta North and Abeokuta South

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hat values are you bringing to the table in this senatorial contest?

I am running to serve the nation and deliver on achievable promises of collective prosperity. When Nigerians are happy, I am happy. We must deploy aggregate solutions to our economic development issues and drive change and immediate progress. I am committed to effectively representing great citizens of Ifo, Ewekoro, Obafemi-Owode, Odeda, Abeokuta North and Abeokuta South. This I have pledged and I have been working diligently towards as I engage with all stakeholders in our APC party. I want Ogun Central District to boldly say one year from now, 4 years from now, that .M. is our most progressive Senator. As my support group and I work hard to win the seat now, we will work much harder to win the love of every citizen once seated. To succeed, the values we carry into the upper chamber are values of ethics, smart-work, resultful leadership and equal representation. I am bringing to the table an unrelenting belief in Greater Nigeria, achievable through progressive policies and a united government. I am bringing my love for people and my determination to instill a happy and progressive culture of growth, development and humanistic leadership. I am bringing my promise to work with every leader in Nigeria to provide the highest quality education, healthy living and other important benefits for every citizen.

greater Nigeria. As someone born into a political family and someone who exhibited political traits since birth, you can consider me a politician before birth. Politics has always been a part of my path. I want to contribute to ‘Greater Nigeria’ whereby our minimum standard of living would be elevated to a level comfortable for every citizen. I garnered a lot of political education very early in life from my network, career path and educational sojourn. I always knew I would run for office with aspirations to do all I can to move our nation forward.

Majekodunmi-Oniru

and progress. Ogun state has one of the highest potentials for rapid developments. Our great country has always been one of the world’s highest potential countries but since Independence and till today, we are not yet capitalizing on our very high potentials. We must attain monumental economic growth that would significantly impact each and every citizen. I am vying for the senatorial seat because Nigeria simply must move forward, no compromise, and we must effect change on a very wide scale, from the top.

Time is not on our side to catch up with the developed world. Our children’s children must enjoy a

What inspired you to enter the race at this level and what political experience do you have?

I always knew I wanted to effectively and progressively represent great citizens of Ogun Central in advocating key policies that guarantee development, unity, peace

What attracted you to the All Progressives Congress and what kind of reception have you received?

I have been a member of APC for a while.

Many of my political associates and allies nationwide are leaders and members of APC. I identify with progressive Nigerians who work tirelessly for Greater Nigeria. The reception has always been fantastic, in line with the progressive nature of the party.

Apart from concessions allowed to women on the sale of forms, do you think gender can help you in any way?

Aside from the concession, an executive order was signed mandating 35% representation of women in Government and Politics.

Considering every delegate is aware of this executive order, it would be progressive to the unity and success of the party for us to ensure at least one of every three seats, from senate to local elective positions, goes to women; provided we have qualified and capable women running and would serve progressively for Greater Nigeria.

What will be your stance if you do not make it through the senatorial primary of your party?

We are focused on winning and nothing else.

We are confident that we will secure the APC Senate seat for Ogun Central as we continue our district-wide engagements with passion, zeal, forthrightness and an unrelenting focus on Greater Nigeria for all. We have been very well received everywhere and leaders and party members are gladden in anticipation of our victory for Greater Ogun and Greater Nigeria.

Can you give us one issue on your mind that may drive your legislative engagement when you become a senator?

The way out of many of Nigeria’s problems today, is first and foremost, a democratic system that elects the most progressive and passionate citizens into leadership positions of governance. Great, progressive citizens in positions of leadership, will work unitedly to achieve timely developments in all areas, all industries and in ways that positively impact every citizen. To achieve the best citizens in government, we must strengthen education.

I want Nigeria to provide the highest quality education to each and every Nigerian. Indigenous, all-encompassing education from primary to tertiary levels. Nigeria’s insecurity challenges today are brought on by extreme poverty which is brought on by a lack of quality education, causing frustrations with a system that’s not effectively delivering even the most minimal standard of living. Nigerians are going through a lot of told and untold hardships.

Many Nigerian citizens do not feel secure at home thus the mass migration and brain drain.

Elected and appointed leaders must do all it takes to ensure a fairer standard of living in Nigeria starting with providing the highest quality education to each and every citizen.

Laws will be strengthened to support strong, immediate developments across all public and private schools.

Gbazueagu: Why De-emphasize Zoning Because It’s the Turn of the S’East?

The National Coordinator of South-east Renaissance Assembly (SERA) and a former governorship candidate of the All Peoples Party (APP) in Enugu state in 1999, Gbazueagu Nweke Gbazueagu, in this interview with Adedayo Akinwale says, there’s ongoing talks to present a consensus aspirant from South-eastt to brighten the chances of the region to produce the next presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress. Excerpts:

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Olusegun) Obasanjo. We supported (Goodluck) Jonathan. So we have supported the two geographical zones. We have supported the South-west, we supported the South-south.

I think equity and fairness demands that the South-east should be supported. And if you watch carefully, you will realize that there is no aspirant from these geopolitical zones is saying “we deserve it”, “it is our turn” , “we have not served”, “it is the turn of the North-east” , “South-south, South-west” , what individuals are saying, which is universal, is “I am competent”, “ I can serve” , “I know the problem of Nigeria”. But when you talk about equity, justice and fairness, we stand on that to say it is our turn. And we have competent sons and daughters who are qualified in all the parties to run this country and run it very well.

t appears the members of SERA are APC members or does the membership cut across party lines?

The founding members are purely APC members. The main reason is that we want the president of Nigeria in 2023 to come from the South-east, APC and APC is where we belong . We are equally encouraging our brothers and sisters in other parties to do same and they are doing the same.

There are agitations for power shift to the South-east in 2023. And we are witnessing many aspirants of Igbo extraction contesting across party lines. Are you looking at the area of consensus?

We at SERA believe this is our finest hour and our finest moment to have a South easterner as the president of this country. And we believe that we deserve the aspiration for many reasons.

We are not against the aspiration of individuals.

These are legitimate aspirations of individuals across board, across political parties, across geopolitical zones. These are legitimate aspirations. This is democracy, but beyond that, we from the South-east, every Nigerian knows that we deserve consideration this time around. We have three major ethnic groups in Nigeria. We respect all ethnic groups, but it is obvious. We don’t shy away from it; we are the only ethnic group who have not produced the president of this nation since 1999. The current president

Gbazueagu

is from the north. He will be completing his eight years, so automatically the next president of this country should come from the South. And from the South, we have had our brothers from the South-west and South-south produce the president and we have supported those elections.

We supported (former president

There are several Igbo presidential aspirants. Is there a plan to settle for an aspirant as the consensus candidate, to brighten the chances of the Igbo in the 2023 polls? Secondly, one would expect a group like yours to be bipartisan.

That aspect is ongoing. As an APC member, I won’t speak for the PDP. But I know that the PDP personalities or contenders and membership are as vocal as we are. First of all, I said South east, we did not start by saying APC South-east. But I can influence voting as a delegate, I can vote in the APC presidential

primaries. But I cannot vote in PDP. But the PDP is as vocal and as committed and all the parties are as vocal, as committed to the cause.

It is not limited to us. There is no justifiable and sensible South easterner of note, who is not being individualistic, who will say it is not our turn to produce the president. I can tell you that 95% of every eligible South easterners believe and accept that it is our turn to produce the president of this country.

When people say we are looking at the best; please give us what you have and we will give you what we have and empirically, you will see that we have everything that is required to run this country. So, the issue of narrowing down on a candidate, we are working on that. We just finished purchasing of forms. Now that we have successfully completed the purchase of forms, we will now know the sons and daughters of the South-east APC who have purchased forms.

One augment that people have made over the years is that we should de-emphasize the issue of zoning or where the president comes from, and emphasize more competence. Would you say that for the APC family, maybe to the PDP too, South easterners that have indicated interest to lead Nigeria are the best 11 that the South east can produce.

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

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FEATURES

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

Commander Jerry Omodara: Born to Serve, Empower Kogi People Commander Duro Jerry Omodara (rtd) had a fulfilling career as a fine Naval officer who served the nation meritoriously in different capacities. As a civilian, he was appointed as the Security Adviser to Kogi State government in 2016, a position he holds till date. Given the precedence he set security-wise, he plans to represent Kabba Bunu Ijumu Federal constituency on the platform of the All Progressives Congress, Chiemelie Ezeobi reports

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ro many, Commander Duro Jerry Omodara (Rtd) is an enigma who has proven his mettle as an officer in the Nigerian Navy, a public relations expert, empowerment crusader, ambassador of peace and development, well as philanthropist.

After years of serving the Kogi people as the Security Adviser to the Kogi State government, he is now set to represent the Kabba Bunu Ijumu Federal constituency on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Well known for bringing into bear innovative ideas for optimum results in his various assignments both in and out of the military services, his name conveys different images in the minds of many people. To some he is a officer, to others he is a journalist, yet to his immediate community, he is an and philanthropist.

He is, however, a humanist to all people.

His academic efforts, professional services and political activities are all geared towards the betterment of his immediate community and Nigeria at large and are unprecedented.

dubbed the ‘Omodara’s Security Model' and recommended for the Federal Government of Nigeria and other governors whose states are being ravaged by insecurity.

All these he achieved after he was appointed the State Security Adviser to Kogi State government on June 1, 2016 and re-appointed to the same position on February 29, 2020, a position he holds till date.

And so far, he has not disappointed one bit as Kogi's Security Architecture has proven to be a successful model.

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT, EMPOWERMENT CRUSADER Beyond security, he earned a reputation for being an unrepentant community development enthusiast; youth and women empowerment crusader and an apostle of politics of selfless service to the masses styled after the late sage Mallam Aminu Kano.

His agenda for the youths and women is to make them gainfully engaged in productive ventures which he has been doing by assisting several into getting engaged at various places.

Little wonder he was the National President of Oke-Offin Development Association for fifteen years, a position he voluntarily relinquished on 26th of December 2021.

ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE Born on August 8, 1963 at Oke–Offin, Kabba/ Bunu LGA, Kogi State, academic-wise, he attended LEA Primary School Oke – Offin (now K/B Primary School), Haliru Abdul Teacher’s College Birnin Kebbi and Nigerian Institute of Journalism, Lagos.

He later proceeded to Ahmadu Bello University Zaria and Lagos State University, Ojo, Lagos. Certificates earned include, Grade II Teacher’s Certificate (1981), Certificate in Journalism (1984), Diploma in Law (1986), BSc Political Science/Education (1999).

He further earned himself an Executive Diploma in Basic Protocols from the International School of Protocol and Diplomacy, Brussels, Belgium (2013) and a Certificate in National Security and Country Resilience from Galilee International Management Institute, Israel.

Duro Jerry Omodara is a member of the “Protocol and Diplomacy International Protocol Officers Association”, USA. MILITARY CAREER He was enlisted into the Nigerian Navy as a Journalist in 1988 and received Basic Military Training at the Nigerian Navy Basic and Divisional Training School, Port-Harcourt Nigeria. He was Under Training Officer at the Nigerian Naval College Onura, Onne (1997) and was commissioned a Sub-Lieutenant in 1998. He proceeded to the Armed Forces Command and Staff College Jaji for his Junior Staff Course in 2003.

He served the navy in various capacities both home and abroad. He was in peace keeping operations in Liberia under ECOMOG during the Liberia civil war and he also served in Warri, Delta State, during Ijaw/Tsekiri war, between 2003 and 2005.

Throughout his military career in the Nigeria Navy, he maintained excellence and an unblemished record, which has paid off for him today.

Whilst in the navy, he was the Public Affairs Officer for the Nigerian Navy at Exercise Obangame Express, a multinational Maritime Exercise in Douala, Cameroon in 2013. He served as Head of Media Relations at the Regional Maritime Awareness Capability Conference involving 23 Countries from the globe in July 2013 in Calabar, Nigeria.

At one time, due to the feats he achieved, he was specially commended by the Commandant of the College, through a letter of Commendation by the Commandant, National Defence College, Abuja to the Chief of the Naval Staff, in recognition of his outstanding performance and unrivalled efforts at repositioning the college when he served as the institution’s Public Relations Officer in 2013.

He served as Head of Media Relations at the Regional Maritime Awareness Capability Conference involving 23 countries from the globe from 27 – 30 July 2013 in Calabar, Nigeria.

He coordinated the Protocol for the Nigerian

Commander Omodara (Rtd) Navy at the First Offshore Patrol Vessels Africa Conference from 27 - 30 August 2013 in Lagos. He was the Public Relation Officer to the Chief of Defence Staff, Nigeria (2002 – 2003), Base Information Officer, Nigerian Naval Ship, Delta (2004 – 2006), Staff Officer II (Press)Naval Headquarters (2006), Public Relation Officer, National Defence College (2006 – 2007), Staff Officer Information and Media Relations, Naval Headquarters (2008 – 2011), Command Information Officer, Western Naval Command, Lagos (2011 – 2013).

He again returned as Public Relations Officer of the National Defence College, Nigeria (2013 – 2014) from where he voluntarily retired from the Nigerian Navy.

APPOINTMENT He was appointed the State Security Adviser to Kogi State Government on June 1, 2016, and re-appointed to same position on February 29, 2020, a position he holds till date.

SECURITY STRATEGIST Having retired meritoriously with the rank of a Commander, his legacy did not die as his strategy became a worksheet for tackling security issues.

Little wonder he was called home in the wake of security challenges in his home state of Kogi to replicate his strategy in returning the state to the path of peace.

With his midas touch, Kogi State has witnessed tremendous departure from being a criminals’ haven to a peaceful and safe state through his unrivalled military and security strategies. This is evident in the peace and security that permeate the state which has culminated in various awards the government has won on peace and security.

His efforts and the resulting peace have been acknowledged far and wide by community policing pundits and the likes. In fact, his tactics have been put together by Mr. Peter Inyali (2021) and

"Commander Omodara's life philosophy is hinged on service to humanity and excellent service delivery"

HONOUR Contrary to the saying that a prophet is without honour in his hometown, Commander Omodara has been constantly honoured both home and abroad.

He was honoured by the Oke-Offin Development Association in 1996 for his outstanding contribution to community development and youth development.

He won the award of the Most media friendly appointee in the New Direction Government in 2020, by the Kogi State Government House Press Corps.

He received the prestigious award of the Icon of Diligence of The Macedonia Ambassador Chaplain Corps (National Command headquarters, Nigeria) in July 2021.

He was honoured by the National Association of Polytechnic Students, in September 2020, with the National Outstanding Leadership Award for his iconic societal and human transformation.

He was given the leadership award for his role and contribution to the Council of Foursquare Men Fellowship (CFM) when he served as the President of CFM, Foursquare Gospel Church, Asokoro, Abuja.

He was honoured by the The Ogidi Development Union (ODU) in 2018, in recognition of his role towards the development of the community as the friend of Ogidi.

He has also been awarded on several occasions by the Bunu Students Union, Kogi Leadership News Magazine, Obangogo Tourism Expedition (among others).

He has received the Excellence Award in Security Matters by the Crime Reporters Association of Nigeria (CRAN) in 2021.

VENTURE INTO POLITICS Omodara voluntarily retired from the Nigerian Navy on March 26, 2014, after which he ventured into party politics. He is the chairman Corporate and Protocol Nigeria Ltd. His quest to represent Kabba Bunu Ijumu Federal constituency on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC) is born out of his innate desire to empower his people.

PHILOSOPHY Commander Omodara's life philosophy is hinged on service to humanity and excellent service delivery. Commander Omodara is an enigma whether as a security strategist, empowerment crusader or a public relations expert.

With his love for watching nature and wildlife documentaries, as well as gardening, Commander Omodara has proven to be an all rounder who is capable of service in whatever ramification. Married to Mrs. Bosede Omodara, they are blessed with children.

T H I S D AY ˾ ˜ Ͱʹ˜ ͰͮͰͰ

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#THISISNIGERIA

–Daniel Adejoro

On Youth Inclusion in Nigerian Politics: 2023 and Beyond

T

he coming 2023 general elections in Nigeria could arguably go down as the most exciting since Nigeria's 1999 fourth democratic journey. For diverse reasons, set against a backdrop of one of the most challenging economic realities in Nigeria, a divisive national politics, persistent and rising insecurity, widespread corruption and a general sense of dissatisfaction among Nigerians, one would not be judged as being hasty to conclude that 2023 represents, perhaps the most pivotal election year in Nigeria—a make or break season.

Elections in Nigeria generally follow a copytemplate. Politicians criticize the other party and make vague promises. The politician or party with the most flamboyant promises as well as the most vocal Ad Hominem attack establishes its mantra. Having the deepest pockets to stage extravagant campaigns, talk a lot, bluff a lot, attack a lot and spend without restrictions project themselves as the choice candidates. Ideology, sound political principles and having an actual plan for effective governance often take the back seats during elections in Nigeria. And for the most part, one would not be wrong to conclude that Nigerians have resigned to accepting this way of politicking as being the template to how elections “should be” approached. A few really cares who the capable candidates are, what matters to most is the discourse about what political party, the candidates’ political clout, how loud their individual voices, how deep their pockets can line other pockets.

I started this article to provide some sort of insight into the mind of the average Nigerian voter and to build up to the matter of youth participation in Nigeria’s politics, especially leading to the 2023 general elections in Nigeria.

Before writing this article, I was browsing Yiaga Africa's 2020 paper on How Youths Fared in 2019 Elections. The numbers were quite interesting.

According to the report, youths in Nigeria had the numerical superiority in the 2019 general elections with 51.11% of the roughly 43 million registered voters in the country. The actual elections were a different matter however, with only about 46.3% of the total registered “youth” voters. A figure which added up to around 19 million.

Regardless, this number was more than half the total voter turnout which stood at roughly 28.6 million with the actual youth voting bloc at about 66%. In the 2019 general elections, the youth bloc in Nigeria contributed the largest voters.

When one looks at youth representation in leadership roles, it paints a completely different picture. One of low, in many cases, no representation. Defining "a youth" as "someone within the ages of 18-29" as per the National Youth Policy Organization, youth representation across board is penned at 1%.

With 1% of the leadership positions across all levels and tiers of governance in Nigeria, there's no way this trend paints a good look for an emerging economy like Nigeria in a world that is going largely digital. And this is not an ageist opinion that seeks to sideline older citizens, but facts are what they are.

There's no way a 1% representation of the most active members of the voting bloc and the majority citizen population makes any kind of sense.

Nigeria’s history tells of a society where its pre-independent/independent leaders were relatively young people. The erstwhile statesman, Chief Obafemi Awolowo founded the Egbe Omo Oduduwa in his 30s and was 45 when he became Leader of Government Business in the Western Region. The father of Nigerian nationalism, Dr. Nnamdi Azikwe was also a member of the Nigerian Youth Movement (NYM). Chief Anthony Enahoro was only 30 years old when he moved the motion for independence in 1953. Successive militarily governments in Nigeria were no different; Yakubu Gowon was 32 when he was first named Head of State. The current President - Major Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (Retired) was 39 years old when he took over via a coup d'etat in 1983. The Ali-Must-Go protests in 1978 were student-led protests against bad governance and the bulk of the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO) vibrant leadership was made up of young Nigerians who took to the streets to protest against tyrannical military regimes. Historically, Nigeria made room for youth representation in governance. But, recent decades have seen a tectonic shift from that reality.

There are a number of reasons stifling youth participation and representation, chief among them being the simple fact that Nigerian youths are economically disenfranchised to afford the absurd cost of running for any office during elections in Nigeria. Recently, the All Progressive Congress (APC) has pegged its presidential nomination form at one hundred million Naira (NGN100 million), as well as the inflated costs of running a political campaign for any elections in Nigeria with figures reported to be as high as one billion Naira to stage a moderate campaign. It's no brainer as to why elections and contesting for elective positions are largely regarded as the exclusive reserve for wealthier, more connected individuals, many of whom fall into the older age demographic. Running for elections in Nigeria is not cheap, not by a long stretch. And with 45% of Nigerians living below the poverty line and another 23% at risk of slipping below the said line, you don't have to brainstorm heavily on why things are how they are.

But looking beyond that, one could make a case that more Nigerian youths should do away with voter apathy and pick credible candidates that represent their interests well enough to make youth inclusion a priority. With 19 million voters in 2019 (a 66% majority), Nigerian youths have the majority say in who wins or loses elections in Nigeria. Mind you, the current President won the 2019 election with about 15 million votes, a considerable distance from the 19 million Nigerian Youths that voted in said election. One way to make a case for the youth demography would be to encourage more youths to simply get their PVC and to cast their votes correctly. Still, one must look at prevalent disenfranchisement in Nigerian elections as another major blockade to cross.

Vote buying, electoral malpractices and other unscrupulous activities adversely affect the integrity of most elections in the country.

Another issue is the matter of quality voter education and enlightenment. Nigerians do not vote because they simply see no reason to. And the ones who do, are affected by the status quo of voting for the candidates who talk a lot, bluff a lot, attack a lot and

spend the most.

If Nigerian youths are to make a case in 2023, the idea is that we should look beyond encouraging them to "simply vote" and instead vote intentionally - vote right. A shift from “whataboutism” politics into ideology first politics.

With a bulk of the voting number resting in the hands of youths, the focus should shift away from voting for the candidates who simply have all the money to spend to finding candidates with youth-focused policies and plans for more inclusion. Voter education initiatives tailored at doing more than simply encouraging people to get their PVCs are needed. We need to have a general awakening toward finding what our interests are, finding the candidates who share similar sentiment and aggressively voting and electing said candidates. Beyond voting still, we also need to learn about public accountability; something sorely lacking in today's politics. When you have the bulk of the voting power, you're meant to recognize your role as the arbiter of impunity from elected officers.

Beyond all these, the Nigerian youths must shift from the short term thinking of “stomach infrastructure” to participation in politics and the electoral process that enshrine sustainable socio-economic development in the country. This way, together, we kill vote buying, vandalism and thuggery. Understanding that at the end of the day, electing the right people will do more to serve the youths and the country in general.

I choose to believe that there's a lot of opportunity for youth inclusion in Nigerian politics. And that resurgence is around the corner. The 2020 #EndSARS protest is a major pointer to the power of a focused, passionate and charged youth bloc. And in the words of Kailash Satyarthi, “The power of youth is the commonwealth for the entire world. The faces of young people are the faces of our past, our present and our future. No segment in the society can match the power, idealism, enthusiasm and courage of the young people.” t%BOJFM "EFKPSP JT B XSJUFS )F DVSSFOUMZ MFBET (SPXUI BU $JUJ[FOhT 4RVBSF B 4PDJBM "DUJPO JOJUJBUJWF QSPWJEJOH %JHJUBM CBTFE SFTPVSDFT PO QPMJUJDBM FEVDBUJPO BOE BXBSFOFTT GPS :PVOH .JMMFOOJBMT BOE (FO ;hT JO /JHFSJB

20

THURSDAY, ͺ;˜ ͺ͸ͺͺ ˾ T H I S D AY

NEWS

FROM ETHIOPIA WITH LOVE...

L-R: President Muhammadu Buhari, First Lady Dr Mrs Aisha Buhari, wife of the Prime Minister Zinash Tayachew and Prime Minister of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, H.E DR. Abiy Ahmed, during their visit to the State House, Abuja... yesterday PHOTO: SUNDAY AGHAEZE

Across Nigeria, PDP Holds Primaries to Elect Governorship Candidates for 2023 Polls Segun James in Lagos, Omon-Julius Onabu in Asaba, James Sowole in Abeokuta, John Shiklam in Kaduna, Igbawase Ukumba in Lafia, Segun Awofadeji in Gombe, Ibrahim Oyewale in Lokoja, Okon Bassey in Uyo, Ibrahim Shuaibu in Kano Onuminya Innocent in Sokoto and Hammed Shittu in Ilorin The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), yesterday, in many states of the federation, elected its governorship standard bearers for the 2023 general election.

While the exercise was hitch-free and smooth in some states, some had challenges that stalled the process, while a few other states suspended the exercise.

Below are the situation reports from some of the states across the country.

Oyo State In Oyo State, Governor, Seyi Makinde, emerged the standardbearer of the PDP for re-election in 2023.

He emerged the winner at the governorship primary election held at the Lekan Salami Sports Complex, Adamasingba, Ibadan, after polling a total of 1,040 votes out of the accredited votes of 1,048, to beat Hazeem Gbolarumi, who scored two votes.

The congress was monitored by security agents, the Resident Electoral Commissioner of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Oyo State, Mutiu Agboke and other INEC officials.

Returning officer and chairman of the Oyo State PDP Governorship Congress Panel, Senator Ben Obi, who was represented by the Panel’s Secretary, Alhaji Abdullahi Mai Basira, said the total votes cast were 1,048, with six of the votes voided.

Delta State Sheriff Oborevwori, Speaker of the Delta State House of Assembly and the much-touted anointed aspirant of Governor Ifeanyi Okowa, emerged candidate of the party for the state, after scoring 590 votes.

The Chairman of the PDP election panel, Ndubuisi Nwobu, announced the results at the end of the exercise, held in the Stephen Keshi Stadium Asaba on Wednesday.

The 590 votes of Oborevwori, who hailed from Okpe area of Delta Central Senatorial District, signified 71.4 per cent of the total 821 valid votes cast, with three votes declared invalid.

But David Edevbie, candidate of former governor James Ibori, got

113 votes to come second, while Senator James Manager garnered 83 votes to come a distant third place.

Ogun State Ogun State chapter of the PDP, yesterday, produced two governorship candidates, who emerged from two separate primaries.

While a former House of Representatives, Hon Ladi Adebutu, emerged winner from the primary conducted at the auditorium of Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library (OOPL), Abeokuta, Segun Sowunmi, won the primary conducted at the Nigeria Union of Journalists Press Centre, Owe Iroyin, also in Abeokuta.

In the exercise that was held at the OOPL, Adebutu scored 715 votes to clinch the ticket of the party, while Jimi Lawal and Segun Sowunmi, did not score any vote.

In the exercise conducted at the Iwe Iroyin, Sowunmi, scored 554 votes to defeat Jimi Lawal, who scored 30 votes and Adebutu, who scored 15 votes.

However, the primary that produced Adebutu, was temporarily put on hold for almost an hour, when disagreement, ensued among supporters of Lawal and Adebutu, over the delegates list.

Lawal's supporters had alleged that the list that was being used for accreditation, was different from the one that was generated from the results of state delegate election that was conducted earlier in the month.

The disagreement, caused pandemonium which, forced the armed security men at the venue to scare the hoodlums that wanted to disrupt the process. The situation, also forced the officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), to rush out of the venue.

Scared by the situation, Adebutu's opponent, left the venue in annoyance.

But few minutes after he left, the situation was brought under control and accreditation of delegates continued till late in the night, after which Adebutu emerged winner. produced the results.

Kaduna State Result of the PDP governorship primary in Kaduna State has been delayed following the late commencement of the process.

Accreditation of delegates from the 23 Local Government Area started at about 4: 30pm, but delegates from only10 LGAs had been accredited and allowed into the Gymnasium Hall at the Ahmadu Bello Stadium (ABS), venue of the election.

The delegates were screened at the nearby Access Hotel and Nevilla Hotel, after which they were escorted in a bus to the venue by the police.

A total of 788 delegates were expected to elect the party’s standard bearer from six aspirants.

The aspirants are Hon. Isa Ashiru, the party’s flag bearer in 2019; Sani Sidi, a former Director General of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA); Senator Shehu Sani, Mukhtar Yero, a former governor, Sani Abbas and Haruna Saeed, a former accountant general of the state.

The election was expected to continue into late in the night.

Nasarawa State A former of the House of Representatives, Hon. David Ombugadu, was yesterday declared winner of the Nasarawa State PDP governorship primary.

Chairman of the Nasarawa State PDP electoral committee, Mr Bature Musa, declared Ombugadu winner of the primary election held at the headquarters of Nasarawa Local Government Area of the state.

Ombugadu polled 247 votes to defeat Maj Gen Nuhu Angbazo (Rtd), who scored 203 votes.

Gombe State Gombe State PDP has elected Mohammed Jibrin Barde as its governorship candidate for the 2023 election.

He defeated his closest rival, Jamilu Isiyaku Gwamna, with 160 votes against 119.

Other contestants were Dr Ali Gombe from Gombe local government, Ya'u Gimba Kumo from Akko local government, Air Vice Marshall Shehu Adamu Fura from Gombe local government and Babayo Ardo.

A total of 328 delegates cast votes during the election while two others were barred for turning up at the venue late after the completion of delegates' accreditation.

An aspirant Adamu Shehu, who came third polled 18 votes, the former managing director of Federal Mortgage Bank, Ya'u Kumo, scored one vote while the remaining contestants scored no vote.

Bauchi State A former Secretary to the Bauchi State Government, Ibrahim Kashim, has emerged candidate of the PDP in the state. He was the only candidate.

State Resident Electoral Commissioner, Ibrahim Abdullahi, while supervising the exercise held in the state capital, said the commission has made electoral guidelines available

to political parties, electorate and all the relevant stakeholders to avoid irregularities.

He commended the party for the orderly conduct of the election, in which over 600 delegates voted.

Kogi State Kogi State’s senate primary saw Natasha Apoti-Uduagha emerge winner of Central Senatorial District ticket on the platform of PDP.The PDP Kogi Central Senatorial primary which took place in Okene, yesterday, saw Apoti-Uduagha defeat her closest rival, Adamu Mahamud Adamu Attah, with a total of 159 votes to Attah’s 13.

THISDAY gathered that some aspirants like Senator Ahmed Salihu Ohembe and former House of Representatives member, Abulkareem Salihu, had earlier stepped down for one reason or the other, and paved the way for the only amazon among them.

Akwa Ibom In Akwa Ibom, two prominent PDP governorship aspirants, Onofiok Luke and Bassey Albert Akpan, yesterday, shunned the governorship primary of the party in the state.

The duo cited reasons including court issues for their refusal to participate in the primary.

Luke, currently a member representing Etinan Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, and Chairman, Committee on Judiciary, in a statement said he took the decision after consulting with his Amazing Grace Campaign Team.

On his part, Akpan also said his inability to participate in the primary was in adherence to court order.

Lagos State The Visioner, Lagos4Lagos, Olajide Adediran, popularly known as Jandor, has clinched the governorship ticket of the PDP in Lagos State.

He emerged winner with 679 votes to defeat David Kolawole Vaughan, popularly known as Dakova, who had 20 votes out of the 709 accredited delegates at the party primary conducted at the Haven Centre, Ikeja. Ten votes were voided.

Before the primary commenced, four contestants, Adedeji Doherty, Ade Shamsideen Dosunmu, Olanrewaju Jimi Kamal, and Rhodes Gbadebo, had withdrawn from the race.

Kano State The two factions of the PDP in Kano State, yesterday, held parallel

congresses to elect their choice governorship candidates.

It was gathered that the panel, set up by the national leadership of the party to conduct the party primary election, were also divided along the factions.

While the Alhaji Shehu Wada Sagagi group held its own at the Lugard road in the metropolis, loyalists of a former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Alhaji Aminu Wali, gathered at the Sani Abacha youth center along Madobi road.

But in spite of the division, the election was yet to commence at the Sani Abacha Center at the time of filling this story.

Kwara State A former National Commissioner, Revenue and Fiscal Mobilisation Commission, Alhaji Shuaib Yahman Abdullahi, has emerged the governorship candidate of the PDP in Kwara State ahead of 2023 polls.

Abdullahi polled 518 votes to defeat two other contestants: former Nigerian Ambassador to Japan, Prof. Mohammed Yisa Gana and former federal lawmaker, Hon. Aliyu Ahman-Pategi.

Declaring the result in Ilorin, Chairman, Electoral Committee of the PDP, Hon. Niyi Owolade said Professor Gana polled 14 votes; Alhaji Pategi polled 31 votes, while 11 votes were voided during the exercise.

The exercise was held at the Arca Center event hall, Ilorin amidst tight security and attended by 574 delegates and some elders of the party.

Jigawa State One of the sons of a former governor of Jigawa State, Alhaji Mustapha Sule Lamido, has emerged the gubernatorial standard bearer of PDP in the state, at a primary election held at Dutse stadium yesterday.

Announcing the result, Chairman of the Electoral Panel, Mr Isah Ahmed, said Mustapha Sule-Lamido scored 829 votes out of the 832 votes cast while the second candidate, who is a former minister of work, Alhaji Saleh Shehu, did not score a single vote.

Ahmed announced that three votes were invalid and subsequently declared Sule-Lamido winner, having scored the higher votes cast by delegates.

Enugu State An industrialist and former Commissioner for Finance in Enugu State, Peter Mbah, won the governorship

ticket of the PDP in the state.

Mbah, who is from Owoh in Nkanu East Local Government Area of Enugu State, won the election, held at the Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium, Enugu, with 790 votes out of the 807 votes to defeat his closest opponent, Hon. Chijioke Edeoga, who scored 9 votes.

Sir Chinyeaka Ohaa also scored 3 votes while Senator Ike Ekweremadu and Chukwunta Gilbert got one vote each.

Prior to the commencement of voting, eight governorship aspirants out of the 17 contestants stepped down for Mbah and asked delegates, who wanted to vote for them to cast their votes for him.

Sokoto State Sokoto State chapter of the PDP has elected a former Secretary to the State Government, Sa-aidu Umar, has its governorship candidate for the 2023 polls.

Umar, who was commissioner for finance in Aminu Waziri Tambuwal's first term, won the ticket by consensus as Deputy Governor, Muhammad Manir Dan'Iya, former commissioner for environment, Sagir Bafarawa, PDP State chairman, Aliyu Bello Goronyo and former deputy governor, Murthar Shagari, stepped down before the election.

According to the chairman, electoral committee, Dr Tom Zakari, said the other candidates voluntarily withdrew from the race hence the need for the 755 delegates to affirm the result.

He, however, noted that 695 delegates affirmed the result while 60 votes were voided, adding that, with the power conferred on him as the chairman of PDP electoral committee, he declared Sa'adu Umar as the gubernatorial candidate of PDP in the state.

In another development the former Minister of water resources and a PDP aspirant in the election, Murthar Shagari, has announced his exit from the party .Shagari hinged his dumping of the party on lack of transparency and democratic tenets in the primary election.

Zamfara State The former director of first Dauda Lawal has emerged the People Democratic party PDP Governorship candidate for Zamfara State.

Dauda defeated Shuaibu Nakwanda while the former Deputy Governor, Mahdi Aliyu Gusau, withdrew from race before the election

T H I S D AY ˾ THURSDAY, MAY 26, 2022

21

BUSINESSWORLD R A T E S MONEY MARKET

A S

REPO

A T

Group Business Editor Eromosele Abiodun Email oriarehu.eromosele@thisdaylive.com

08056356325

M A Y

S & P INDEX

1 8 , 2 0 2 2

S & P INDEX

EXCHANGE RATE

OPR

6.50%

CALL

10.75%

INDEX LEVEL

610.44%

1/4 TO DATE

– 1.31%

N416.75/ 1 US DOLLAR*

OVERNIGHT

7.17%

1-MONTH

9.66%

1-DAY

0.03%

YEAR TO DATE

7.13%

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3-MONTH

1028%

MONTH-TO-DATE

– 1.31%

Again, Nigeria’s Active Domain Name Slide from 178,739 in March to 177,453 in April

Emma Okonji In the last one year, Nigeria has continued to experience a slide in its active .ng domain name, which is Nigeria’s identity in cyberspace.

The recent statistics on .ng domain name, released by the Nigeria Internet Registration Association (NiRA), the body in charge of managing Nigeria’s country code Top Level Domain (ccTLD), showed a further slide in .ng domain name registration, renewal and restoration in the second quarter of 2022.

According to the statistics, which

THISDAY obtained from NiRA’s website, the total active .ng domain name, slide from 178,739 in March 2022 to 177,453 in April 2022.

According to the figures released

by NiRA, the total active domain name in the country, decreased from 180,763 domains in March 2021, to 178,739 domains in March 2022, with a further deep to 177,453 in April 2022, which is the latest report from NIRA on .ng domain name.

Analysing the figures in domain name registration, renewal and restoration, the President of NiRA, Mr. Mohammed Rudman, told THISDAY that the slide in

the active number of third level domain name, was as a result of COVID-19 pandemic, which he said, could not allow most organisations who had hitherto purchased the third level domain name, to put them to effective use.

“In 2020, we experienced an increase in the number of registration for country code Top Level Domain Name (ccTLD) but in 2021, the number of registration dropped because of the effect of COVID-19 pandemic. The issue is that all those that registered in 2020, could not use the domain name in that same 2020 because of the

pandemic and as such, they did not renew their registration in 2021 and new registration also dropped in 2021 for ccTLD,” Rudman said.

Giving more details of .ng domain name registration and renewal at NIRA’s 14th Annual General Meeting, which held in Lagos, recently, Rudman said some new registrars were accredited and that the Association would continue to acknowledge the efforts of all her accredited Registrars as well as their Resellers, for NiRA’s success.

The President added that NiRA has been working with critical stakeholders including government

institutions such as the Federal Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy and the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), to ensure improved .ng domain name brand awareness, adoption and support.

According to Rudman, “Following NITDA’s readiness to compel the adoption of Nigeria’s country-code top-level domain name, especially among ministries departments and agencies (MDAs), a 14-man enforcement committee has been inaugurated to properly monitor its implementation.”

NITDA had said that in line with the policy of the nation’s digital economy, the Federal Executive Council (FEC) approved the National Second-Level Domain Policy on February 16, 2022, making it mandatory for all governmentowned websites and official email correspondence of all government personnel to comply. Stressing the role of the agency, Rudman said it has been mandated by the NITDA enabling Act 2007, to manage and administer Nigeria’s ccTLD (.ng), which gives NITDA the authority to Continued on page 22

Emefiele: Nigeria Still on JP Morgan’s Bond Index, Reclassification Not Due to CBN Lapses James Emejo in Abuja The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr. Godwin Emefiele, has clarified that Nigeria is still on the JP Morgan Bond Index contrary to recent reports that the country had been delisted from the rating agency’s platform.

Earlier reports had insinuated

that JPMorgan had delisted the country from the market following the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC)’s inability to transfer earned funds from January to March to the government due to petrol subsidies and low oil production.

As a result, the American bank had announced that it

moved Nigeria’s debt out of its ‘overweight’ category to ‘Market weight’.

However, Emefiele, while clarifying the development after the two-day meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), explained that the country was never removed from the rating agency’s platform adding that Nigeria’s stake was

simply reclassified from the ‘overweight’ category to ‘Market weight’.

He also said the change was not a result of certain failures on the part of the CBN. The CBN governor said, “Contrary to a widespread media report that Nigeria was delisted or removed from the JP Morgan

Bond Index.

The truth is that that is very untrue- Nigeria is still on the Index. We were only reclassified – Nigeria’s rating was reclassified from Over-weight to Market-weight, which is just a mere reclassification of our size in the index.

“It is akin to a rating agency changing your outlook from

maybe positive to stable and this is basically what has happened.

“Let me repeat that Nigeria has not been deleted from any JP Morgan bond index.”

According to him, “The change is not a result of certain failures on the part of the CBN. What Continued on page 22

M A R K E T D ATA A S AT T U E S D AY, M AY 1 8 , 2 0 2 2 BILLS

BONDS DESCRIPTION

Price

Yield

14.20 14-MAR2024 13.53 23-MAR2025 12.50 22-JAN2026 16.2884 17MAR-2027 13.98 23-FEB2028

110.85

7.73

108.85

9.89

106.42

10.35

119.11

11.07

111.18

11.28

Change Updated Time (%) May 13, -0.01 2022 May 13, 0.00 2022 May 13, -0.15 2022 May 13, 0.00 2022 May 13, 0.00 2022

Discount

NTB 9-Jun22 NTB 14-Jul22 NTB 11Aug-22 NTB 8-Sep22

306,00 307,00

0.02 May 13, 2022

301,00 303,00

-0.22 May 13, 2022

297,00 299,00

-0.54 May 13, 2022

293,00 296,00

-0.57 May 13, 2022

NTB 13-Oct- 345,00 350,00 22

0.46 May 13, 2022

Yield

OTC F X F U T U R E S

CPS

MATURITY

Change Updated Time (%)

MATURITY NEVE CP I 24-MAY-22 DANC CP II 25-MAY-22 TRBH CP V 26-JUL-22 FSDH CP VI 1-AUG-22 NENL CP I 24-OCT-22

Discount Yield 16.72 16.81 8.72

Change Updated Time (%) 0.15 May 13, 2022

8.75

0.14 May 13, 2022

11.32 11.58

-0.39 May 13, 2022

8.00

-0.43 May 13, 2022

14.13 15.09

-0.16 May 13, 2022

7.86

CONTRACT Current TENOR Contract Rate ($/₦) (MONTH) NGUS MAY 25 1 427.24 2022 NGUS JUN 29 428.93 2 2022 NGUS JUL 27 3 430.63 2022 NGUS AUG 31 4 432.32 2022 NGUS SEP 28 5 434.02 2022

Updated Time

May 13, 2022 May 13, 2022 May 13, 2022 May 13, 2022 May 13, 2022

22

THURSDAY, MAY 26, 2022 ˾ T H I S D AY

BUSINESSWORLD

NEWS

UBA AFRICAN CONVERSATIONS...

L-R: Company Secretary, United Bank for Africa(UBA), Bili Odum; Executive Director, United Bank for Africa (UBA), Chukwuma Nweke; Fashion Designer and Panelist, Kenneth Ize; High Commissioner of Namibia to Nigeria and Panelist, Humphrey Geiseb; Deputy Managing Director, UBA, Oliver Alawuba; Culture and Entertainment Commentator and Panelist, Steve Ayorinde; Ghanaian Actress and Panelist, Lydia Forson; Executive Director, UBA, Chiugo Ndubisi; Nigerian Journalist and Moderator, Laila Johnson-Salami and Group Head, Human Resources, UBA, Patricia Aderibigbe at the 4th UBA Africa Conversations, themed, “The Importance of Reflecting Our African Culture in Global Success Stories,” organised by UBA Group in commemoration of Africa Day 2022, held at the UBA House , Marina, Lagos… recently

Metaverse to Contribute $40bn to Sub-Saharan Africa’s GDP in 10 Years Nosa Alekhuogie Metaverse, a vast network of digital spaces, has been projected to contribute at least $40 billion to Sub-Saharan Africa’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) over the next ten years.

This is according to a new report by a US-based economics consulting firm, the Analysis Group (AG), titled, “The Potential Global Economic Impact of the Metaverse.”

The report also estimated that the metaverse could add an estimated $3

trillion by 2031 to the global economy in its first decade if the adoption and impact evolve similarly to that of mobile technology.

The group, which cautioned that the metaverse would “likely displace some existing technologies and industries,” as others have done, modelled its projections on the growth trajectory of mobile technology.

Economists from Analysis Group forecast a universal adoption of the metaverse could contribute 2.8 per cent to global GDP in just a

decade, with Africa contributing 1.8per cent.

That translates into $ 3 trillion globally with Africa accounting for about $40 billion.

Ubuntuland, launched in 2021, is Africa’s metaverse, and several companies, including South Africa’s MTN, have already purchased real estate there.

The report adds that the metaverse, a universe that combines augmented, virtual, and mixed reality, could play a key role in Sub-Saharan Africa’s economic

development.

It further explained that the metaverse is expected to have far-reaching applications to transform a wide range of economic sectors such as education, health care, manufacturing, job training, communications, entertainment, and retail.

“Over time, if the metaverse is successful, it will displace some existing technologies and industries, as prior technologies have done before. A direction for future research is to quantify these

heterogeneous impacts and measure the potential displacement of industries and restructuring of local economies that may accompany the growth of the metaverse,” the report noted.

Recently, Africa’s largest mobile network provider, MTN Group, emerged as the first company on the continent to buy some plots of digital land in metaverse.

The leading telco announced that 144 plots of digital land were purchased in Africarare, the first virtual reality metaverse in Africa

that launched in South Africa last year. The company did not disclose how much exactly it spent for this.

In its analysis, Analysis Group quantifies the potential impact of the metaverse on GDP by applying the model of mobile technology.

Globally, mobile broadband adoption increased from 6.2 to 76.9 subscriptions per one hundred people between 2007 and 2019, implying a global Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of mobile technology adoption of 23.3percent.

Okonjo-Iweala Underscores Need to Help African Small Businesses Access Trade Finance Oluchi Chibuzor The Director-General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala has underscored the pressing need for trade finance in African countries, especially for small businesses.

She disclosed this at a workshop organized jointly by Côte d’Ivoire, the WTO and the

International Finance Corporation (IFC).

She said the event provided an opportunity for dialogue between businesses and banks, with the aim of helping small traders reduce trade-related transaction costs and better integrate into world trade.

According to a statement issued by WTO, the workshop

was established at the request of Côte d’Ivoire, was attended by small importing and exporting companies and their representative organizations in Côte d’Ivoire as well as trainers from four international institutions — the WTO, IFC, the African Development Bank and the Export-Import Bank for Africa.

She highlighted Cote d’Ivoire’s

proposals to the WTO on improving access to trade finance for small businesses in Africa and underlined the acute financial constraint, notably the lack of trade finance, which sub-Saharan Africa is facing.

She said: “Global surveys show that, while around 30 percent of international trade finance goes to SMEs, banks reject some 40

percent of applications from such companies. This rejection rate is higher than for any other type of companies. According to the African Development Bank, the rejection rate for letters of credit applications increased by 30 per cent during the pandemic.”

She stressed that the pandemic had accentuated trade-financing gaps in Africa, which, prior to

the pandemic totalled about $80 billion per year, representing about 20 per cent of the African trade finance market.

Okonjo-Iweala also said the lack of availability of trade finance or its availability at higher costs than the world market are major obstacles to the integration of African countries into world trade.

NCC Advises Telcos on Automatic Antivirus Update to Avoid Vulnerabilities Emma Okonji The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has advised telecom consumers and other Information and Communications Technology (ICT) end users

on the need to always enable automatic update features for AVAST and AVG antiviruses to prevent potential cyber vulnerabilities.

This was contained in a new advisory released by the Computer Security Incident Response Team (CSIRT), the cybersecurity centre for the telecom sector established by

the Commission, in continuation of its resolve to always keep Nigerians safe in the cyber space.

The advisory noted that cyber vulnerability in AVAST and AVG Antiviruses can lead to attacks on millions of devices with high impact in terms of consequences to the ICT user. The threat types as a result of this vulnerability are Bypass Authentication, Remote

Code Execution and Unauthorised Access while consequences range from Privilege Escalation, Bypass Security Products, Overwrite System Components and corrupting the Operating System.

According to CSIRT, researchers at SentinelOne security firm have discovered two potentially damaging vulnerabilities in AVAST and AVG antivirus

products that allow attackers to escalate privileges enabling them to disable security products, overwrite system components, corrupt the operating system, or perform malicious operations unimpeded.

“Two vulnerabilities identified as CVE-2022-26522 and CVE-202226523 targeted the “Anti Rootkit” driver of Avast antivirus (also used

by AVG) allowing an attacker with limited privileges on the targeted system to execute code in system mode (kernel mode) and take complete control of the device.

Moreover, the vulnerabilities allow complete take-over of a device, even without privileges, due to the ability to execute code in kernel mode,” the CSIRT said in the advisory.

Samsung Plans $356bn Investment in Five Years Group Business Editor Eromosele Abiodun Deputy Business Editor Chinedu Eze Comms/e-Business Editor Emma Okonji Asst. Editor, Money Market Nume Ekeghe Senior Correspondent Raheem Akingbolu (Advertising) Correspondents Emmanuel Addeh (Energy) KayodeTokede(CapitalMarkets) James Emejo (Finance) Ebere Nwoji (Insurance) Reporters Nosa Alekhuogie (ICT) Peter Uzoho (Energy) Ugo Aliogo (Development)

Emma Okonji with agency report Samsung has outlined plans to boost total investments over the next five years by 36.4 per cent, amounting to $356 billion, seeking to accelerate long-term growth by beefing-up production

of next-generation technologies.

In a statement, Samsung detailed plans to invest KRW450 trillion ($355.8 billion) across segments including chips and biopharmaceutical from 2022 to 2026, up from KRW330 trillion over the previous five years.

Samsung also plans to hire more than 80,000 employees compared with 40,000 over the past three years.

The chip and consumer electronics giant noted that 80 per cent of the planned investment will go towards its domestic market

of South Korea.

Local funding is earmarked to increase 44 per cent, while the sum includes KRW240 trillion committed in August 2021.

Samsung noted that securing domestic supply chains for chips and other products, was

vital for the country’s economic development and security.

The company recorded net profit of KRW11.1 trillion in Q1, up 56.6 per cent year-on-year, with a 19 per cent rise in revenue mostly driven by a near 40 per cent increase in semiconductor sales.

EMEFIELE: NIGERIA STILL ON JP MORGAN’S BOND INDEX, RECLASSIFICATION NOT DUE TO CBN LAPSES is important is that at least one thing they have said very clearly is that Nigeria had been left as

an Overweight country because they felt that as an oil-producing country, accretion to reserves in

the midst of an increase in crude price should result in accretion to reserves.

“And since they are seeing that this is not happening that is the reason Nigeria’s rating has been

brought from over-weight to market-weight but I think the other details are in the report.”

AGAIN, NIGERIA’S ACTIVE DOMAIN NAME SLIDE FROM 178,739 IN MARCH TO 177,453 IN APRIL allocate and administer the Nigerian Government Second-Level domains on .gov.ng; .edu.ng; .mil.ng; .sch.ng and any other second-level domain name that may be approved in the future.

“The new policy is expected to drastically enhance public confidence in the authenticity and security of information and other services accessed from government-owned websites.

Recording the level of compliance of the new policy by the state and federal ministries and agencies, 99 per cent of federal MDAs have transited to the .ng domain and have maintained compliance with

the Nigeria ccTLD scheme. This is not the same at the state and local government levels, where 80 per cent of administration websites and email addresses lack the .ng validation. The

implication of this non-compliance by the state MDAs and private businesses hinders the Nigerian government’s identity, security, and global recognition on the internet,” Rudman said.

123

T H I S D AY THURSDAY MAY May 26, 2022 Thursday 26, 2022 Vol 27. No 9908 TR

See page 24 HOW DELEGATES ARE LIKELY TO VOTE AT THE PRIMARIES AYODELE OKUNFOLAMI argues that whether direct or indirect, delegates will not go against ‘party interest’ See page 24 GERSHOM BASSEY’S MARSHAL PLAN Bassey’s manifesto is best to reset Cross River State after eight years of drift, argues PAUL OBI See page 25 TAMBUWAL: THE MAN TO BEAT DESMOND ONU argues that the Sokoto State Governor is experienced, down to earth and has capacity to lead See page 25 EDITORIAL THE KILLINGS IN ANAMBRA STATE

See page 26

& RE A S O

N

opinion@thisdaylive.com

www.thisdaylive.com

APC’S CONSENSUS OPTION: NOT A CAKE WALK A direct or indirect primary could avert the likely infighting that consensus will provoke, contends JOHN EHIMARE

UT H

TUNDE OLUSUNLE pays tribute to Ojei, frontline businessman and industrialist

NUEL OJEI: TOASTING TO A GENIE AT 71 Permit me to begin by stating very clearly that I have not seen the subject of this article, in over a decade now. Yes. I remember very clearly because Goodluck Ebele Jonathan was not yet president, the last time we saw. He is indeed a global citizen on account of his multifarious enterprise locations, so seeing him therefore requires some structuring. This, however, does not obfuscate, nor diminish my candid, personal impressions about this rare breed Nigerian. I’m indeed reminded by a section of the lyrics of one of the revered *juju* musician, Sunny Ade’s classics, that “he is worse than an thief, that person who was done a good turn, but who failed to show gratitude.”

A very senior technocrat who served in the government of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, shared with me his experience aboard D ÁLJKW WR WKH 8QLWHG 6WDWHV RI $PHULFD 86$ ZKHQ KH ZDV LQ R΀FH +H IRXQG KLPVHOI LQ WKH VDPH FDELQ FRPSDUWPHQW ZLWK D YHU\ D΁XHQW Nigerian he knew well by reputation, but had never met in person. Both men got chatting DQG WKH HUVWZKLOH 2EDVDQMR R΀FLDO LQWURGXFHG KLPVHOI D΀[LQJ KLV R΀FLDO VFKHGXOH WR KLV SURÀOH 7KH VXSHU ULFK SULYDWH VHFWRU SOD\HU expressed his delight about meeting one of the administration’s most notable performers, who by his good works, was burnishing the image of the government. As they took a break in EHWZHHQ WKHLU FKLW FKDW WKH ´ELJ PDQµ UHDFKHG TXLHWO\ LQWR KLV KDQG OXJJDJH ÀGGOHG ZLWK documents and brought out an envelope.

7KH IRUPHU 1LJHULDQ R΀FLDO VDLG WKH %LJ man “apologetically” handed him the envelope and “pleaded” he used the content to do some ´LQÁLJKW VKRSSLQJ IRU PDGDP µ ´, IHOW WKH envelope and I knew it was foreign exchange,” the former top government functionary said.

“It was a respectable sum, not one calculated to GLVUHVSHFW P\ SHUVRQ DQG R΀FH µ &RQWLQXLQJ WKH JRYHUQPHQW KRQFKR VDLG ´:KDW ED΁HG PH the most was that he never knew me, we had never met, he didn’t owe me anything. I was also touched by the fact that his gesture was against the popular grain where most people DOZD\V ORRN XS WR WKH SXEOLF R΀FLDO IRU VXSSRUW In this instance, it was a private citizen who was EHLQJ EHQHYROHQW WR D JRYHUQPHQW R΀FLDO µ I was to have a proxy encounter with this same unobtrusive, yet genial and generous gentleman ahead of the yuletide in 2006. The Obasanjo administration in which I served, was on the verge of winding down. May 29, 2007, was sacrosanct as handing over date to a successor government. There was noticeable frenzy in the political atmosphere.

New friendships and alliances were being cultivated in anticipation of the coming regime.

7UXVW 1LJHULDQV 8QNQRZQ WR VRPH RI XV WKLV “mystery” man had commissioned a discreet inquisition on us. His brief: Please furnish me with the names of 10 personal and principal aides of the President, who have served Nigeria with every commitment, diligence and patriotism, under the outgoing administration.

People who work for their fatherland with every altruism, especially those who served

through Obasanjo’s two terms of the nation’s teething democracy, should be remembered and rewarded, he told his “search team.” To my eternal amazement, my name featured on WKH OLVW FRPSLOHG IRU WKLV SXUSRVH $QG WKDW was a major lesson for me: You are the best ambassador of your own self, your own brand.

Happily, there was a telephone number on the season’s card which accompanied the message, which I found as I inquisitively XQVHDOHG WKH ZKLWH FRORXUHG ´$ µ HQYHORSH bearing the “souvenir.” It has never been in my character not to show appreciation for favours, no matter how little or seemingly inconsequential. I called the line on that card and someone answered from the other end. I introduced myself and asked to speak with the Big man. I was connected to him and I thanked him for his kind gesture. “I can appreciate your very busy schedule, Sir. You don’t owe me the goodness you’ve just demonstrated towards me. I will appreciate an opportunity to meet you, to further express my gratitude and the goodwill of my other colleagues. He gave me a date.

I was at a loss about what manner of memento to take along with me as I prepared to honour this appointment. Yet, it has never been in my character to visit people with empty hands. My book on the democratic evolution of Obasanjo, “On the Trail of History: A Reporter’s Notebook on Olusegun Obasanjo” had just been launched. I knew I would take an autographed copy along with me. I equally clutched a bottle of “Johnnie Walker Blue Label” and an exotic animal skin I brought with me from my previous trip to Australia.

And here I was in the living room of Emmanuel ,VLFKHL 8JRFKXNZX 2MHL PXOWLELOOLRQDLUH 1LJHULDQ HQWUHSUHQHXU )RXQGHU &KDLUPDQ DQG &KLHI ([HFXWLYH RI WKH IDPRXV 1XHO 2MHL +ROGLQJV 12+ EHKHPRWK 5HJXODU XVHUV RI WKH 0RERODML %DQN $QWKRQ\ :D\ LQ ,NHMD /DJRV must be familiar with the dominant address of the conglomerate, abutting the domestic wing of the Murtala Mohammed International $LUSRUW 00,$ 7KH $EXMD KHDGTXDUWHUV of the business octopus, has since joined the

skyline of the burgeoning business district in the nation’s capital. Its glass exterior glitters in the sun of the city centre, en route the boulevard to Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, 1$,$ $ YHU\ RUJDQLVHG SHUVRQDOLW\ KH ZDV seated by the time I arrived, and generous with his welcome smile. He astounded me when KH VSRNH HͿRUWOHVV <RUXED RQ P\ DUULYDO IRU D man whose names are distinctly Igbo. He was apparently trying to make me feel at home as much as possible, having deciphered my cultural background, from my name. As phone calls lined up in some relay on his phone, he FRGH VZLWFKHG HͿRUWOHVVO\ EHWZHHQ LPSHFFDEOH English language, Yoruba and Igbo.

For a man of his age and means, he came to me as an unassuming person. His occasional interjections with the expression *Diokpa,* in between his conversations, which is the Delta Igbo expression for “elder,” the equivalent of *De* in conventional Igbo, echoed his humility.

We chatted for a while. I told him my FROOHDJXHV DQG , ZHUH WKURZQ RͿ EDODQFH ZKHQ we received his most thoughtful, most kind messages. Our astonishment, I told him, was heightened by the fact that not one of those of us he reached out to, ever met, or knew him.

Smiling with delight and contentment, he said it was his personal pleasure to have “located” us with his gesture. &RQWLQXLQJ LQ <RUXED WR UHLQIRUFH KLV OLQJXLVWLF SURÀFLHQF\ MXVW LQ FDVH , KDG DQ\ doubts. *Ka sa ma se dada ni’gba gbogbo,* which means “let’s continue to be good, honest and hardworking at all times.”

I put together my gift bag and presented the items to him, one after another, providing a short background to each item. Smiling with some admiration, Dr Ojei said: “I can see you are a very good natured young man.

You didn’t have to do this, but the good side of you informed your gesture. Many people KLGH EHKLQG D ÀQJHU DOZD\V SUHWHQGLQJ QRW WR NQRZ ZKDW WR RͿHU LQ DSSUHFLDWLRQ RI RWKHU people’s kindness to them. I regard such people as unserious people, *awon ti o ni’nkan se.* It is not about the material worth of what you give, it is about the spirit behind what you give to others. Such people should learn from you.”

'U 2MHL ZDV ERUQ 0D\ LQ /DJRV +H went through primary and secondary schools in the former Nigerian capital, which explains KLV SURÀFLHQF\ LQ <RUXED +H VXEVHTXHQWO\ DWWHQGHG WKH ,VVHOH 8NX 7HFKQLFDO &ROOHJH ,VVHOH 8NX KLV KRPHWRZQ LQ PRGHUQ GD\ 'HOWD 6WDWH between 1970 and 1972, where he obtained a National Diploma in Business Administration and Management. He returned to the economic capital of the country immediately after, and began his working career as a Sales Executive the following year, at Rutam Motors Ltd, RZQHG E\ WKH VXSHU ZHDOWK\ ,EUX )DPLO\

Dr. Olusunle, poet, journalist, author and scholar, was a senior aide to former President Olusegun Obasanjo, GCFR

2 24

T H I S D AY

THURSDAY MAY 26, 2022

A direct or indirect primary could avert the likely infighting that consensus will provoke, contends JOHN EHIMARE

AYODELE OKUNFOLAMI argues that whether direct or indirect, delegates will not go against ‘party interest’

APC’S CONSENSUS OPTION: NOT A CAKE WALK

HOW DELEGATES ARE LIKELY TO VOTE AT THE PRIMARIES

No doubt the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has a herculean task sifting from the avalanche of 28 presidential aspirants consisting of political heavyweights WKDW ERXJKW IRUPV WR Á\ LWV ÁDJ +DUGO\ would anyone envy the party’s burden at this GHFLVLYH PRPHQW 7KH UHDOLVP WKDW DQ\ VOLSV on this matter can potentially put the party DVXQGHU VWLU EDG EORRG DQG RSHQ LWV ÁDQNV to be devoured by the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) seems to be infusing VRPH FDXWLRQ It may be the underlining reason for

several postponements and summersaults over its primary even as the June 3 deadline by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), for parties to hand in the list of their candidates for the 2023 general HOHFWLRQV GUDZV FORVH (LWKHU IRU LOO RU IRU good, it’s clear the APC has only the choice RI +REVRQ DV LW PXVW GHFLGH RQ LWV ÁDJ EHDUHU in the next few days particularly when INEC has given a stern warning it will not blink on WKLV GHDGOLQH ,W ZLOO EH SROLWLFDO VXLFLGH WR ULVN WKH PLJKW RI WKH 3URI 0DKPRRG <DNXEX OHG INEC that has many times demonstrated its FDSDFLW\ WR ELWH 7KH SDUW\ OHDGHUV DSSHDU WR KDYH VHWWOHG IRU a consensus option to help its apparatchiks DQG 3UHVLGHQW 0XKDPPDGX %XKDUL FURZQ their preferred choice, virtually goading the aspirants on that line but this doesn’t look OLNH D FDNHZDON ,W·V VXUHO\ D KDUG VHOO 0DQ\ of the aspirants are opposed to the consensus option, preferring that they all slug it out at WKH SULPDU\ 7KLV LV DSSDUHQWO\ D FDWFK DͿDLU IRU WKH party leaders whose previous stronghold on aspirants has now been undermined E\ WKH (OHFWRUDO $FW 8QOLNH EHIRUH aspirants now have to give their consent for the consensus option to hold sway according to the new Electoral Act, making that permutation by the party leaders as a way RI ZHHGLQJ RͿ WKH KXJH QXPEHU RI DVSLUDQWV DOPRVW OLNH ORRNLQJ IRU D QHHGOH LQ D KD\VWDFN 7KH (OHFWRUDO $FW KDV LQWURGXFHG some interesting complications to the use of WKH FRQVHQVXV RSWLRQ ,Q 6HFWLRQ WKH Act states that: “A political party that adopts a consensus candidate shall secure the written consent of all cleared aspirants for the position, indicating their voluntary withdrawal from the race and their endorsement of the FRQVHQVXV FDQGLGDWH µ ,Q 6HFWLRQ WKH Act further stipulates that where no such written consent can be obtained, then there VKRXOG EH GLUHFW RU LQGLUHFW SULPDULHV 7KLV REYLRXVO\ PD\ SURYH WRR KRW IRU SDUW\ OHDGHUV WR IRUFH WKHLU ZD\ WKURXJK %HVLGHV

many of the aspirants have enough muscle to ZDQW WR ORRN WKH SDUW\ LQ WKH IDFH :LWKRXW WKH clout to really whip the aspirants into line, the party is simply compelled to eat its humble SLH DQG VWUDWHJLFDOO\ EHDW D UHWUHDW 7KH $3&·V 3XEOLFLW\ 6HFUHWDU\ )HOL[ 0RUND in announcing the recent postponement from WKH HDUOLHU À[HG GDWH RI 0D\ VDLG LW ZDV LQGHÀQLWH WKURZLQJ VWDNHKROGHUV DVXQGHU but feelers, however, say it was just part of the DJHQGD WR DOORZ EXLOW XS WHPSHUV WR FRRO RYHU WKH FKRLFH RI D SUHVLGHQWLDO FDQGLGDWH ,W·V really a tough one discharging this burden from the array of stars angling to succeed 3UHVLGHQW %XKDUL )RUPHU /DJRV 6WDWH *RYHUQRU %ROD $KPHG 7LQXEX ZLWK DQ RYHUZKHOPLQJ VWUXFWXUH which cuts across the country and a huge ÀQDQFLDO ZDU FKHVW LV FRQVLGHUHG RQH RI WKH front runners along with the Vice President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΀FH WKH RQO\ IHPDOH DVSLUDQW 0UV 8MX .HQQHG\ 3DVWRU 1LFKRODV 1ZDJER IRUPHU 6SHDNHU RI WKH +RXVH RI 5HSUHVHQWDWLYHV +RQ 'LPHML %DQNROH 6HQDWH 3UHVLGHQW 'U $KPDG /DZDQ IRUPHU 0LQLVWHU RI ,QIRUPDWLRQ &KLHI ,NHREDVL 0RNHOX DQG 0U 7HLQ -DFN 5LFK *LYHQ WKLV ODUJH QXPEHU RI DVSLUDQWV WKH consensus option does not look safe for the SDUW\ ,W ZLOO EH LWV $FKLOOHV KHHO DQG FHUWDLQO\ throw up recriminations that will be too GL΀FXOW WR PDQDJH DV LW JRHV LQWR D PDMRU election where the PDP, which has lately EHHQ YLFWRULRXV LQ PDQ\ RͿ VHDVRQ HOHFWLRQV LQFOXGLQJ WKH )&7 FRXQFLO SROOV ZKHUH LW ZRQ the prime councils and an overwhelming number of councillors, is waiting to crown its QHZIRXQG SURZHVV It may be unfair to begrudge President %XKDUL DQG WKH $3& OHDGHUV IRU VHHNLQJ WR enthrone a malleable candidate that will QRW URFN WKH ERDW 0DQ\ RI WKRVH DQJOLQJ WR VXFFHHG %XKDUL FDQ KDUGO\ EH H[FXOSDWHG IURP WKDW UDJLQJ FKDUJH %XW WKH SDUW\ OHDGHUV in foisting their favourite candidate must be PLQGIXO RI WKH EDQDQD SHHO A direct or indirect primary could be WKH DUPRXU WR VWDYH RͿ WKH OLNHO\ LQÀJKWLQJ WKDW FRQVHQVXV ZLOO SURYRNH $OWKRXJK LW·V PXFK PRUH GL΀FXOW JHWWLQJ DQ DQRLQWHG VRQ through, it will rid the party of acrimony WKDW PD\ UHGXFH LW WR WDWWHUV %XW ZKHWKHU the party will toe this less abrasive line still UHPDLQ WR EH VHHQ

Ehimare, a political and development analyst, lives in Port Harcourt

Barring any last minute change to the Electoral Act that could alter the timetable and schedule of activities for 2023 general election, all registered political parties are expected to have conducted their party primaries to nominate their flagbearers for the national elections by 3rd of June 2022. Not only should these primaries have been done in accordance with their individual and respective party constitutions, but all disputes also arising from those primaries should have been resolved. The electoral umpire, Independent National Electoral Commission on its part, has remained firm and uncompromising on the calendar.

Some political parties have begun conducting the primary elections for lower tier elective seats.

However, watchers and the electorate are more particular about who the political parties nominate as their presidential candidates.

Unlike the general elections where the entire voting population cast their votes for their preferred candidates, political party primaries is an intermediary electoral process in which political parties do the selection to pick their individual flagbearers for corresponding positions. Not a few aspirants have indicated their interests to vie for elective positions on the platforms of their respective political parties. They have been travelling around lobbying delegates of their parties. These lobbying becomes more intense as the major political parties have opted for the indirect primary option in which their fate is in the hands (or thumbprints) of a couple of delegates who have been (s)elected in different electoral ratios by the political parties to choose their flagbearers. The way these delegates will cast their ballot should be of concern not only for the aspirants but also to the overall electorate.

What bothers the delegates, who are mainly politicians, may not necessarily align with the expectations of the nonpartisan citizen with a voter’s card in his wallet. The purpose of political parties is to control government and so what is in the mind of the delegate is to pick candidates that will end up winning the elections. Knowing that what sustains them is power and money, they enter their various conventions and congresses with the mind of electing candidates that will win. Contrary to the average voter’s expectation, electability of an aspirant supersedes his eligibility.

An aspirant may be coming to the contest with his street credibility based on his history of past performances, mentions on social media and high percentages in opinion polls, although these gains the aspirant attention, it is not enough. The delegate doesn’t follow the aspirant on twitter, he follows his godfather. He doesn’t watch the aspirant’s interviews on television, he watches the body language of his principal.

Opinion polls matter less to them. First, Nigeria has always been very unscientific in its approach to things and that won’t change suddenly because of elections. Moreover, the social media where these polls mainly take place is typified by multiple accounts and dubious credentials. Also, the delegates know the demography of respondents to these opinion polls.

They are mostly urban, young, southern, diasporic, and historically don’t account for the votes that brings them in. Politicians focus more on the voters register and voting patterns and not on the volume of social media trends. The memory verse is, “Elections don’t take place on Twitter”.

Manifestoes don’t also influence delegates. As aspirants are traversing the nation wooing these electors with generic promises of what they would do if elected, the delegates in turn respond with generic promises of their support. But the truth is this, after the aspirant is escorted out of the state, the delegates are told to vote in accordance with the

dictates of their sponsors. In a few states, the host governors have openly welcomed the aspirants and publicly declared that they vote only the aspirants the grand power broker endorses. That is why delegates may not even know who to vote for until they get to the venue of the convention.

When the only thing an aspirant brings is a retinue of past performances that is all about himself, delegates become suspicious. When the aspirant’s campaign team is mainly of people outside of the political fraternity, delegates fear they would be edged out of an eventually technocratic government. That is why some of the aspirants spent so much to buy the presidential nomination forms despite lacking the political clout for Aso Rock. It was a way of paving their way into positions for themselves or their proxies in the next administration and to remain relevant in political circles.

Ethos plays a very important role in the decision of the delegates. Besides voting based on reciprocity for previous political leverage or anticipation for future, delegates are looking for a leader when they vote. The eventual winner becomes the leader of the party. They want somebody they can respect and be submissive to. Don’t forget, our democracy is still highly gerontocratic.

Does money play a role? Not really. Yes, money would be shared at the conventions.

We are hearing those delegates may be going with as much as ten thousand dollars this time around besides the millions of naira they might have received along the way. It is scary but it is true and one wonders where EFCC is at times like this. Our politics is not only monetized, but also monopolized in the hands of some political oligarchs. Explains why politics supersedes economics. The fear of the consequences of not voting according to the principal’s script is what prompts the delegate not just what made his pocket bulge. Unfortunately, whether direct or indirect, party primaries are structured in such a way that the vote of the delegate is not secret. In other words, there is no way out for the delegate to go against “party interest”.

Had our political parties been ideologically driven, instead of all the inanities that takes the delegate into the primaries, he would be choosing candidates whose political programme parallels with his. It is this lack of principles and morality that continues to erode any democratic gain we have earned. It is high time our politicians collected their parties from bullies with state resources who only manipulate them for selfish reasons so that the perceived will of the overall electorate will be reflected in their choices.

OKunfolami writes from Festac, Lagos

325

T H I S D AY THURSDAY MAY 26, 2022

Bassey’s manifesto is best to reset Cross River State after eight years of drift, argues PAUL OBI

GERSHOM BASSEY’S MARSHAL PLAN “A great state is a well-blended mash of something of all the people and all of none of the people. The liquor of statecraft is distilled from the mash you got” -Zora Neale Hurston Elections are essential components of what makes a society great; a mishandling is also capable of leading to a collapse. A political blunder over a poor choice could as well derail society. The consequence is misdirection in governance. Since 2015, &URVV 5LYHU 6WDWH KDV UHJUHWWDEO\ PHW DOO the above threshold. Under Governor %HQ $\DGH &URVV 5LYHU KDV PRYHG from Nigeria’s number one tourists’ destination to a comatose and abandoned state, where jesters and jokers serenade the state with the dancing steps of follies.

It is on the basis of Ayade’s wasteful years that the next gubernatorial election in &URVV 5LYHU 6WDWH LV VLJQLÀFDQW :LWK $\DGH LQ WKH VDGGOH WKH VWDWH of Mary Slessor and Bishop Thomas 0F*HWWULFN KDV EHHQ VXͿHULQJ +HURHV like Margaret Ekpo, Michael Ogon, M.T. Mbu, Hogan Bassey, Prince Nico Mbaka, I.I. Murphy, Okoi Arikpo, Ntufam Ojong, 5RVH $EDQJ :XVKLVKL -RVHSK :D\DV DUH turning in their graves over dearth of JRYHUQDQFH LQ &URVV 5LYHU DQG WKH WKHDWUH of the absurd in Peregrino House. Ahead of 2023 governorship race, how do we UHVHW &URVV 5LYHU DIWHU $\DGH·V H[LW" This question is critical given that both the economic development and politics of the state have been corrupted by an administration that has spent more time in inertia while monumental misgovernance got entrenched and IXQGV WRRN ÁLJKW ,W LV LQ WKH OLJKW RI WKLV degradation, that Sen. Gershom Bassey’s candidacy for the gubernatorial race is QRZ VLWXDWHG :KDW GRHV *HUVKRP·V KDYH WKDW LV GLͿHUHQW DQG KRZ ZLOO WKDW UHVKDSH &URVV 5LYHU IRU JRRG" ,Q XQSDFNLQJ Gershom’s manifesto nay marshal plan, the understanding is that infrastructural development which was neglected by Ayade and which turned into a conduit SLSH IRU SKRQH\ SURMHFWV ZLOO GHÀQLWHO\ SUHRFFXSLHG *HUVKRP·V DJHQGD IRU &URVV River State. $FFRUGLQJ WR *HUVKRP &URVV 5LYHU needs to be fashioned as a paradise that she is, “a beautiful place that is peaceful and free from worry.” Since 2015, Ayade’s chaotic governance unleashed crisis on to the state, such that crime took stead in the state and worries gained the highest currency. Still, Gershom’s believes that there is a way we can all navigate &URVV 5LYHU IURP WKLV TXDJPLUH LQ KLV own words by building “a place where individuals and businesses alike can invest and thrive both socially and or economically. This is the vision I have for our dear state. I am committed to VHHLQJ FRQÀGHQFH UHVWRUHG LQ &URVV 5LYHU State, as the destination to raise a family, for business, technology, tourism and agriculture,” he stated.

Gershom went further to explained that “however, we have a monumental WDVN DKHDG RI XV &URVV 5LYHU 6WDWH LV DW D crossroads and it is in our hands to pull her back from the edges and redirect her path

towards growth, peace, development and SURVSHULW\ :LWK D ODQG PDVV RI DERXW 98,000km2, of which 1/3 is covered by water and 2/3 by tropical rain forests, &URVV 5LYHU 6WDWH LV XQGRXEWHGO\ EOHVVHG with very fertile soil, abundant aquatic resources for exploitation, geographic advantage (as a trading route to the East and a coastal port State) and one of the world‘s biodiversity hotspots.”

“Therefore we must look inwards and exploit these advantages through progressive governance and development.

To achieve this, our manifesto is based on the belief that decentralised development is critical to the progress of a state. On this principle, we have designed a manifesto and developmental framework that prioritises state and local development strategies that focus on security, human capital development, infrastructural development, job and wealth creation, increasing IGR, attracting investments to VWUDWHJLF LQGXVWULHV HͿHFWLYH JRYHUQDQFH and tourism, to transitioning the state into a safe, economically sustainable and prosperous state, where technology complements industry and human capital development foster job creation and a viable industrial revolution,” that &URVV 5LYHU XUJHQWO\ QHHGV Overall, the essence of a manifesto is to act as a guide for electoral contestants in RUGHU WR FRQQHFW ZLWK YRWHUV :LWK VR PXFK DW VWDNH LQ &URVV 5LYHU JRYHUQRUVKLS race, Gershom’s manifesto is an evidence toolkit that voters need to look closely in ]HURLQJ LQ RQ KLP DV D FDQGLGDWH $V 3'3 delegates assembled to elect the standard bearer for the gubernatorial election, they would be guided by the public service RI *HUVKRP DQG KLV UHDGLQHVV WR RͿHU D new slate as governor. His manifesto has manifestly set the ball rolling with several victories in the primaries; from Bassey (NR (ZD IRU &HQWUDO 6HQDWRULDO 'LVWULFW Attah Ochinke for Boki/Ikom; Eko Atu for Abi/Yakurr; Friday Okweche for Obubra/Etung; Ntufam Ekpo Okon for Southern Senatorial District; Eta Mbora IRU &DODEDU 0XQLFLSDO 2GXNSDQL (VVLHQ $\L IRU $NSDEX\R %DNDVVL &DODEDU 6RXWK *RGZLQ 2΀RQR IRU 2JRMD <DOD DQG -DULJEH $JRP -DULJEH IRU 1RUWKHUQ Senatorial District, the coast is now set for a Gershom’s victory.

Obi is a journalist, researcher and fellow at the Abuja School of Social and Political Thought interested in media, elections and democracy

DESMOND ONU argues that the Sokoto State Governor is experienced, down to earth and has capacity to lead

TAMBUWAL: THE MAN TO BEAT It is not a hidden fact that Nigeria is currently divided along ethnic and religious lines. The PDP as a party has put before its members, various presidential aspirants who aim to lead the party to victory. The delegates, 811, comprising of 774 ad-hoc delegates representing one local government each, and 37 persons with disability, are poised to cast their votes to determine who would emerge as WKH SDUW\ ÁDJ EHDUHU Already there are permutations that four aspirants lead the pack, even though the analysis of such was not grounded in facts but in mere speculations, it is evident that there are only three aspirants leading WKH SDFN 7KH ÀUVW LV 1\HVRPH :LNH executive governor of Rivers State, Aminu :D]LUL 7DPEXZDO H[HFXWLYH JRYHUQRU RI 6RNRWR 6WDWH DQG $WLNX :D]LUL $EXEDNDU former Vice President and former PDP presidential aspirant.

It is important to note that they are in their own right competent and have the capacity to lead the nation. The issue remains whether the candidates have the right temperament, sense of urgency and working plan to unite the nation and lead it to glory days ahead.

First, it is important to set out, factually, how the primaries may play out and who VWDQGV D JUHDWHU FKDQFH ,Q WKH 1RUWK :HVW RI WKH UHJLRQ $PLQX :D]LUL 7DPEXZDO leads the pack. Having lost out in 2018 to Atiku Abubakar, Tambuwal wasted little time in engaging with the delegates on a personal level. This engagement has been maintained for over four years and has HQGHDUHG PDQ\ WR KLP 7KH 1RUWK :HVW boasts of 192 delegates of which Tambuwal has well over ninety percent of them. The SROLWLFDO OHDGHUV LQ WKH 1RUWK :HVW DUH solidly behind their man and have ensured that he is the only aspirant from the region, unopposed.

1\HVRPH :LNH KDV EHHQ KHDYLO\ supported by Seyi Makinde and Ayo Fayose, both of whom are insistent on D VRXWKHUQ FDQGLGDWH :LWK WKDW :LNH FRQÀGHQWO\ KDV WKH EXON RI WKH 6RXWK :HVW ZKLFK ERDVWV GHOHJDWHV WKH VHFRQG ODUJHVW EORF DIWHU WKH 1RUWK :HVW :LNH DOVR KDV &URVV 5LYHU DQG 5LYHUV States (uncontested) but will be unable to get the full backing and support of Edo State, Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa and Delta State, thus leaving him short of the 129 GHOHJDWHV ZKLFK WKH EORFN ERDVWV RI :LNH has attempted to cover up for the loss by looking to the neighbouring SouthEast bloc which has 100 delegates, the least bloc amongst the delegates. He has successfully engaged with Anambra and may have been able to take a chunk out of Peter Obi’s votes in the state. He also has the backing of the governors of Enugu and Abia which may mean that he would go with the chunk of votes from both states.

However, he has not been able to penetrate the walls built in Imo and Ebonyi, both of which have aligned with Tambuwal and Sen. Anyim Pius Anyim respectively.

7KH 1RUWK (DVWHUQ VWDWHV DUH D VSOLW ]RQH even though they should have been the home front of Atiku Abubakar. However, delegates, both ad-hoc and statutory still feel disrespected, angry and unwilling to

forgive the former Presidential candidate for abandoning them after he lost the HOHFWLRQV $V VXFK WKH ]RQH LV VSOLW EHWZHHQ 7DPEXZDO :LNH DQG $WLNX :LWK :LNH VXFFHVVIXOO\ FR RSWLQJ WKH former governor of Gombe, Dankwambo to his side, he stands a chance of taking Gombe. Taraba and Borno may go the way of Tambuwal due to his proximity to leaders in both states that have agreed to work with him. Bauchi remains with its Governor who would also be running.

Adamawa and Yobe are the last two states and will most likely pull their weight for Atiku Abubakar. The 118 votes which the region has will be split amongst these three aspirants. ,Q WKH 1RUWK &HQWUDO YRWHV DUH VSOLW between Tambuwal, Atiku, Saraki and :LNH $OWKRXJK LW UHPDLQV XQNQRZQ who would vote where, one thing is certain, Tambuwal is no push-over and can be said to be in poll position to win the PDP presidential primaries.

The question many readers may like WR DVN LV ZKDW PDNHV $PLQX :D]LUL Tambuwal so special that he has been able to pull people his way. Tambuwal is said to be one of the most down to earth politicians, meeting people on their own terms and engaging with them in a manner like never before. Tambuwal takes his politics personal and is keen on maintaining quality conversations with people around him, never taking decisions on his own which is why he had a balanced House of Representative, giving key positions to members of the House in an equitable manner. He also carried everyone along, and made sure that consultation was the theme of the day before taking any critical decision.

As a former teacher and lawyer and secretary to the Nigerian Bar Association, Tambuwal can be said to have an array of experience. His role as opposition OHDGHU 'HSXW\ &KLHI :KLS DQG 6SHDNHU House of Representative has shown that he is a leader extraordinaire who takes consultation of all stakeholders as being imperative. Tambuwal’s rise in the Nigerian political space makes him somewhat of a political prodigy.

His capacity to lead is why he was able WR EHFRPH WKH &KDLUPDQ RI WKH 3'3·V Governors forum.

Onu writes from Abuja

4 26

T H I S D AY

THURSDAY MAY 26, 2022

EDITORIAL

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

THE KILLINGS IN ANAMBRA STATE The authorities must do more to protect lives and property of Nigerians

T

he brutal murder of a pregnant Mrs Harira Jubril along with her four children has put in bold relief the grand mayhem and unmitigated daredevilry ravaging Anambra State today. In the last 10 days alone, the state has witnessed such blood curdling atrocities that no one would ever have imagined. Describing the killing of the Jubrils as callous, brutal, and demeaning, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo VDLG LW LV ´FDSDEOH RI FUHDWLQJ HWKQLF FRQÁ LFW DFURVV WKH country hence it must be condemned by all.” When you add that tragedy to the beheading of a serving member of the house of assembly, you get the picture of a state besieged.

The security situation LQ WKH 6RXWKHDVW FRQÀ UPV earlier prognosis about the likely long-term results of a self-help approach to resolving political grievances. The repeatedly expressed fear at the time was that purposeless escalation of social tension and the triumph of never-do-wells may ultimately be out of control if the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and its modus operandi were not brought under some form of containment. What we are witnessing now is partly WKH RXWFRPH RI WKUHH \HDUV RI LOO DGYLVHG LQGLͿ HUHQFH E\ state governors and other stakeholders in the zone.

Notwithstanding the counsel by concerned elders, the IPOB movement held unto its sit-at-home order in the entire Southeast. Several innocent lives have been lost just as enforcers of the order have razed houses, vehicles and destroyed the means of livelihood of people. The illusion of dominance by armed young men who terrorized vulnerable neighbourhoods was mistaken for the reality of territorial control, which it was not. Progressively, small bands of the formerly semi-homogenous group began to function with increasing autonomy. Then, individuals and small groups with criminal motives began to cash in on the apparent air of lawlessness. Today in the Southeast,

$QDPEUD

and particularly Anambra State, nearly every one of the many groups terrorizing people is autonomous. And it is getting worse by the hour. ,W LV REYLRXV WKDW ,32% DQG LWV D΀ OLDWHV QR ORQJHU have the capacity to rein in the demonic forces ravaging a territory over which they claim both ownership and dominance. It is now also almost impossible for anyone, including the detained Nnamdi Kanu, to either VXFFHVVIXOO\ FDOO RͿ WKH SRLQWOHVV VLW DW KRPH RUGHU RU end the senseless killings. The challenge at hand is how to make the criminality that came on the heels of the triumphalism of a not-wellorganised IPOB to go away.

The Nigerian State is under siege on all fronts, with more frontiers opening at every turn. But the state of lawlessness that pervades the Southeast cannot be allowed to continue.

It is incumbent on the authorities to demonstrate the capacity to secure the lives and property of Nigerians. To do that, the federal government must assume a larger premise of its sovereign responsibility.

It should protect the people from each other and from bad people. The IPOB phenomenon has been allowed to metastasize into a self-destructive virus. The overriding doctrine ought to be that the nation is unsafe for as long any inch of the nation space is unsafe or any one citizen is unsafe.

7KH SROLFH LQ $QDPEUD PXVW DGGUHVV WKH ¶PDÀ D· business culture of organised crime and syndicated NLOOLQJV ZKLFK KDV LQÀ OWUDWHG WKH VWDWH 7KLV QDVFHQW culture has become even more frightening as bad EXVLQHVVPHQ KDYH EHJXQ WR HQWHU WKH SROLWLFDO À HOG 7KH use of targeted assassinations to eliminate opponents or to settle political scores before, during or after elections has added a dangerous dimension to the problem.

Bringing lasting security and peace to Anambra State ZRXOG UHTXLUH WKH FRPELQHG HͿ RUWV RI WKH IHGHUDO DQG state governments in addition to market associations and community leaders.

The federal government must assume a larger premise of its sovereign responsibility. It should protect the people from each other and from bad people T H I S D AY EDITOR SHAKA MOMODU DEPUTY EDITORS WALE OLALEYE, OBINNA CHIMA MANAGING DIRECTOR ENIOLA BELLO DEPUTY MANAGING DIRECTOR ISRAEL IWEGBU CHAIRMAN EDITORIAL BOARD OLUSEGUN ADENIYI EDITOR NATION’S CAPITAL IYOBOSA UWUGIAREN MANAGING EDITOR BOLAJI ADEBIYI THE OMBUDSMAN KAYODE KOMOLAFE

T H I S D AY 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 SHAKA MOMODU, PETER IWEGBU, ANTHONY OGEDENGBE DEPUTY DIVISIONAL DIRECTOR OJOGUN VICTOR DANBOYI SNR. ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR ERIC OJEH ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR PATRICK EIMIUHI CONTROLLERS ABIMBOLA TAIWO, UCHENNA DIBIAGWU, NDUKA MOSERI DIRECTOR, PRINTING PRODUCTION CHUKS ONWUDINJO TO SEND EMAIL: first name.surname@thisdaylive.com

Letters to the Editor Letters in response to specific publications in THISDAY should be brief (150-300 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 (750- 1000 words). They should be sent to opinion@thisdaylive.com along with photograph, email address and phone numbers of the writer.

LETTERS ‘I WANT TO BE A PARTY DELEGATE’ Continued from the backpage Indeed, what has become clear in recent years is the increasing desperation for power essentially to target the enormous spoils that are attached to political positions at all levels of governance in Nigeria. But against the background that the main essence of political parties is to aggregate ideas on how to solve the problems of society, something needs to change. Of course, my friend and other party delegates are not interested in such preachment this weekend. That, as the Rivers State Governor and PDP presidential contender Nyesom Wike is wont to say, “na theory!”

To be sure, money has always been the bane of indirect primaries in Nigeria. I remember what happened in Jos in March 1993 during the Social Democratic Party (SDP) national convention IRU WKH QRPLQDWLRQ RI WKH SUHVLGHQWLDO Á DJ EHDUHU 7KHUH ZHUH FRQWHQGHUV HDFK UHSUHVHQWLQJ WKHLU VWDWHV DW WKH 2SWLRQ $ À UVW ballot which ended with victory for Chief M.K.O. Abiola, Ambassador Babagana Kingibe and Alhaji Atiku Abubakar in that order. ,Q WKH VHFRQG EDOORW ZKLFK EHFDPH D VWUDLJKW À JKW EHWZHHQ $ELROD and Kingibe (after Atiku had withdrawn from the race), leader of the Oyo State contingent, the late Alhaji Lamidi Ariyibi Adedibu told his disciples that Abiola had approached him with money for

the delegates, “but I told him that because we are his kinsmen, we ZRXOG RͿ HU RXU YRWHV WR KLP IUHH RI FKDUJH µ +H DGGHG WKDW KH KDG secured some money from other politicians which he then shared.

“It may not be much, but we will make do with it so as to prove to Abiola that we are men of honour who can vote without being paid.” The next morning, Adedibu met an exultant Abiola who had won the primaries: “I told you that my philosophy is to work before I eat and that I will deliver the votes. Now where is the money for my delegates?” It was with joy that Abiola concluded the deal he had with Adedibu to pay after the votes had been cast so HͿ HFWLYHO\ WKH JRGIDWKHU ZHQW KRPH FDUU\LQJ DOO WKH ORRW ZLWK KLP 7KH FRGLÀ FDWLRQ RI D VHW RI UXOHV DQG SURFHGXUHV RQ KRZ SHRSOH should get to power and how they can be replaced is what distinguishes democracy from other forms of government. The essence of the constitutional method is to expand the space to allow for an LQWHUSOD\ RI GLͿ HULQJ LGHDV %XW LQ D VLWXDWLRQ ZKHUH HYHQ XQGHU a plurality of political parties these forces are being impeded by unbridled deployment of money to buy votes as we witness today, the outcome of such exercise cannot deliver public good.

Olusegun Adeniyi, Abuja

THE CHURCH OF SCOTLAND AND WITCHCRAFT The Advocacy for Alleged Witches (AfAW) salutes the Church of Scotland for taking steps to acknowledge abuses linked to Scotland`s historic witchcraft laws centuries ago. At its 2022 General Assembly, the church accepted the motion brought by Rev Prof Susan Hardman that regrets the terrible harm caused to alleged witches in Scotland.

AfAW received this news of the Church of Scotland`s acknowledgment with much excitement and hope for the future of its campaign to end ZLWFK KXQWLQJ LQ $IULFD 7KLV GHYHORSPHQW PDUNV D VLJQLÀ FDQW VWHS LQ WKH HͿ RUWV E\ :LWFKHV RI 6FRWODQG WR ZLQ MXVWLFH OHJDO SDUGRQ DSROR gy, and national monument for thousands of people mostly women who were convicted of witchcraft and executed between 1563 and 1736.

AfAW is delighted by the progress that the campaign by Witches of Scotland has made. On March 8, 2022, the International Women`s Day, WKH 6FRWWLVK À UVW PLQLVWHU 1LFROD 6XUJHRQ RͿ HUHG D IRUPDO DSRORJ\ WR people accused of witchcraft in the 16th and 18th centuries.

Incidentally, this campaign has elicited criticisms from some segments of the Scottish population who think that the initiative is unnecessary because these are wrongs committed centuries ago.

Leo Igwe, nskepticleo@yahoo.com

T H I S D AY ˾ THURSDAY, MAY 26, 2022

27

BUSINESSWORLD

DEVELOPMENT

Averting Food Crisis Oluchi Chibuzor highlights the urgent need for government to provide a buffer against food crisis, given that 14.6 per cent of Nigeria’s population is undernourished, coupled with 16.82 per cent food inflation

D

espite African Union’s (AU) declaration of 2022 as the year of Nutrition for Africa in order to fight against hunger and malnutrition on the continent, Africa is still worst off in the current global food shortages, as hunger crisis continue to bite hard on individuals.

Concerned by these developments, the 32nd session of the Food Agriculture and Organisation (FAO) Regional Conference for Africa recently concluded in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea, saw over 62 Ministers from 54 African countries participate in the conference with one clear commitment to raise ambitions for Sustainable Development Goals, with a common mission to end poverty and hunger.

The timing of the event was so critical as the number of malnourished people on the continent reached 282 million in 2020. Millions of children in Africa are threatened by the day, due to malnutrition.

Going by these horrifying indicators, AU stated that with the rising food prices and the low purchasing power of many Africans, the threat of social unrest becomes more pronounced, as almost one in five Africans go hungry every day, with many of them living in rural areas.

Given the above statistics, some 155 million people in 55 countries – mostly in Africa – experienced a food crisis in 2020, representing an increase of around 20 million people from the previous year, according to the Global Report on Food Crises 2021.

The 2021 Global Report on Food Crises (GRFC 2021) highlighted the high rate of people facing food crisis in 55 countries/territories, driven by persistent conflict, and COVID-19-related economic shocks, and weather extremes.

Worrisome to note is that two-thirds of these people lived in 10 countries, namely the Democratic Republic of the Congo (21.8 million), Yemen (13.5 million), Afghanistan (13.2 million), Syrian Arab Republic (12.4 million), Sudan (9.6 million), Nigeria (9.2 million), Ethiopia (8.6 million), South Sudan (6.5 million), Zimbabwe (4.3 million) and Haiti (4.1 million).

The Secretary-General of the United Nations, António Guterres, warned that hunger and poverty combined with inequality, climate shocks and tensions over land and resources, could spark and drive conflict.

For Nigeria, nearly 1,000 Nigerian children die of malnutrition-related causes every day – a total of 361,000 annually. With an approximate 2.1 million Nigerian under five children affected by malnutrition, Nigeria is said to account for one tenth of the global total.

The prevalence of chronic malnutrition among women of child-bearing age in Nigeria was put at 11.6 per cent, with 14.2 per cent and 5.7 per cent overweight and obese, respectively.

What is worrisome about these figures is that Nigeria is ranked 103 out of 116 countries in 2021 in the Global Hunger Index (GHI) of 2021, which also stated that about 14.6 per cent of the nation’s population was undernourished. According to the report Nigeria has a score of 28.3, showing that Nigeria’s hunger crisis has reached a worrisome point, like a ticking time bomb that could explode at any moment.

The report also revealed that 32.5 per cent of children under five were stunted as 11.7 per cent of children die before their fifth birthday, with 6.5 per cent of children under five being wasted.

SUPPORTING AGRIFOOD SYSTEM

An urgent calls for the transformation of agrifood systems, to make them more inclusive, economically viable and resilient to multiple shocks, as well as to produce better and more with less negative impact on the environment recent times, are generating concerns globally.

Speaking at a ministerial meeting held at the United Nations, titled, “Global Food Security Call to Action,” the Director-General, FAO, Qu Dongyu, affirmed that cumulative effects of multiple shocks related to conflicts, the climate crisis, the COVID-19 pandemic, economic downturn, rising food prices have increased people’s vulnerability and pushed hundreds of millions of more people to the brink of hunger.

According to the Global Report on Food Crisis released in 2021, about193 million people were acutely food insecure and in need of urgent assistance across 53 countries/territories.

Projections point to around 329 000 people reaching catastrophic food insecurity (IPC 5) in Somalia, South Sudan and Yemen by the end of 2022.

However, according to the FAO’s State of Food Security and Nutrition Report 2021, malnutrition rates have also increased, with millions of children suffering from stunting or wasting whereas a healthy diet is out of reach for 3 billion people.

Moreover, as the budgets of governments and consumers have been squeezed tighter and countries’ income per capita has shrunk, creating a cumulative loss to the global economy of more than $12 trillion over two years (2020-21), Qu expressed concern over the lack of progress on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

With the FAO Food Price Index reaching its highest level since its inception in 1990, Qu warned about the cascading impact of the war in Ukraine that could further exacerbate global food prices since Russia and Ukraine are dominant players in highly concentrated global grain markets.

HUNGER CRISIS PERSIST

Based on current GHI projections, the world as a whole - and 47 countries in particular - will fail to achieve a low level of hunger by 2030, making the fight against hunger dangerously off track.

The report noted that food security is under assault on multiple fronts, worsening conflict, weather extremes associated with global climate change, and the economic and health challenges associated with the COVID-19 pandemic are all driving hunger.

After decades of decline, the global prevalence of undernourishment - a component of the Global Hunger Index - is increasing.

This shift may be a leading indicator of reversals in other measures of hunger, Africa- South of the Sahara and South Asia are the world regions where hunger levels are highest. Hunger in both regions is considered serious.

According to the 2021 GHI scores and provisional designations, drawing on data from 2016–2020, hunger is considered extremely alarming in one country (Somalia), alarming in 9 countries, and serious in 37 countries.

Also inequality-between regions, countries, districts, and communities - is pervasive and, left unchecked, will keep the world from achieving the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) mandate to “leave no one behind.”

Speaking recently during atraining for journalists on SDGs, a representative from the office of the senior special assistant to the president on SDG, in partnership with United Nation Information Centre (UNIC), Dr. Bala Yusuf, said the Nigerian government has demonstrated strong commitment towards the 2030 Agenda for sustainable development.

He maintained that the SDGs Institutional Frameworks have been established at the national and sub national levels to support effective implementation of the SDGs. He said the SDGs cannot be achieved with stand-alone programmes and projects, adding that they must be carefully integrated into national and sub national policies and development plans.

FAO’S STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK

In the ministerial declaration during the 32nd Session of the FAO Regional Conference for Africa ministers, they welcomed the FAO Strategic Framework 2022-31, which shapes the organisation’s work towards achieving the SDGs under the Four Betters: better production, better nutrition, a better environment, and a better life for all, leaving no one behind.

“We call on our partners to support our efforts through enhancing investments as we step up our efforts towards the transformation of agrifood systems through the implementation of the Four Betters,” Deputy Minister for Agriculture of Tanzania, Anthony Peter Mavunde said, reading the declaration on behalf of the ministers.

The ministers also affirmed the centrality of women and young people in Africa’s transformation of agrifood systems, and called on FAO to accelerate concrete actions to tackle the impacts of the climate crisis – calling it a major threat to the African region.

Deepening its work on the continent, the FAO Director-General, launched a set of investment guidelines for youth in agrifood systems in Africa, together with the African Union Commission.

It is expected that these guidelines should be incorporated into countries’ policies as youth are the future of Africa.

Commenting on the roles of the youth in agric food systems, Partner at, Sahel Capital, Olumide Lawson, said a good investment model would have to stem from addressing all the dynamism that is currently being seen in the space now.

He noted that the rapidly changing food and agricultural landscape and social economic demographics, which in themselves are creating opportunities to not only invest in but also build transformational companies within the sector.

According to him, opportunities to fund youths initiatives would principally come from the youths itself as seen in most other sectors, adding that viable business ideas by youth which address key economic concerns or provide for clear gaps in the economy generally, will attract funds.

Public Policy and Investment Prioritisation Recently, the NBS Consumer Price Index (CPI) report released for the month of April showed that food inflation rose to 18.37 per cent in the review month, an increase compared to the 17.2 per cent recorded in the preceding month.

NBS said: “This rise in the food index was caused by increases in the prices of bread and cereals, food products, potatoes, yam, and other tubers, wine, fish, meat, and oil.”

However, In terms of food inflation, Kogi recorded the highest year-on-year increase in the food index with 22.79 per cent in April 2022, Kwara State followed with 21.56 per cent, and Ebonyi (21.45 per cent), while Sokoto (14.85 per cent), Kaduna (15.55 per cent) and Anambra (16.68 per cent) recorded the slowest rise in year-on-year food inflation.

Also Nigeria’s inflation rose to 16.82 per cent in April 2022, following a similar uptick recorded in the previous month as a result of the increase in energy and food prices, this represents the highest rate recorded since August 2021, which is highest in eight months.

With the current level of inflation governments just need to better understand how their policies affect the prices of commodities or products along the value chain by assessing price incentives indicators at producer, wholesale and retail stages.

Meanwhile, local industry analysts called on the federal government to take swift and deliberate action to cushion the effects of the disruptions in the global wheat market on Nigeria’s wheat value chain.

The analysts made the call in a recently published review of the global wheat market following the war between the two top wheat exporting countries – Russia and Ukraine.

According to the analysts, the multifaceted value chain crises, including the shortage of foreign exchange, mounting freight charges, and hike in the price of diesel, worsened by the war continue to take a heavy toll on the wheat value chain.

Citing urgent actions that must be taken to avert production and major food inflation crisis, the experts proposed the wider adoption of the agriculture value chain intervention model developed by the Senegalese government.

REVAMPING RURAL ECONOMIC SYSTEM

It is evidently clear that the war in Ukraine has pushed food, fuel and fertiliser prices toward record levels putting food security in many of the world’s poorest countries at risk.

Going by this, The UN’s International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) launched a Crisis Response Initiative to ensure that small-scale farmers in high-risk countries can produce food over the next few months to feed their families and communities while reducing the threat to future harvests.

According to the President of IFAD, Gilbert Houngbo, the disruption to global markets is shaking food systems to the core.

“This is particularly alarming for countries already grappling with the impacts of climate change and COVID-19, where more people are likely to be pushed further into poverty and hunger.

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

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BUSINESSWORLD

BRANDS AND MARKETING

As APCON Moves to Regulate Advertisements in Digital Space At last the Advertising Practitioners Council of Nigeria, appears to have concluded on modalities to use for the control of advertising contents going into social media space. Raheem Akingbolu reports

I

t is a known fact that placement of advertisements in Nigeria has taken an amorphous form for years with many advertisers flouting the laid-down rules and regulations for advert placements and exposure in the public space especially in the digital space.

How will a mother feel seeing her ten-year-old boy or girl watching adverts on breast and pennis enlargement on social media through his or her phones? Or a traditional medicine advertiser claiming his drug is capable of curing 200 plus diseases.

These are the claims of Advertising Practitioners Council of Nigeria (APCON) through its registrar and chief executive, Dr. Lekan Fadolapo, when he addressed media in Lagos about the APCON’s resolve to regulate advert placement in digital space.

Interestingly, while product advert placements in the digital space may not be the only focus for APCON, political adverts in the forthcoming political campaign and electioneering will also be monitored on the social media to eradicate placement of adverts of bitterness and foul languages that were the order of the day in 2015 and 2019 political dispensations in the country.

No doubt, the advent of the internet and new media, characterized by social networking sites such as Blogs, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, WhatsApp etc., has massively revolutionised communication globally. This has enabled the giant tech and primary digital media platforms owners including, Facebook, Google, Twitter, YouTube and others to explore the Nigeria’s digital media space with all sort of advertisements, some of which are in violation of the Nigerian Code of Advertising Practice, pre-exposure vetting and ethical requirements of an advertisement.

APCON’S POSITION

Fadolapo disclosed that the position of APCON about indiscriminate advert placements in the social

media space is to sanitise the system and make advertisements conform with the laid-down rules and regulations. He said APCON has received many petitions about the type and nature of advertisements being placed in the social media space.

According to him, “many people are bloggers and influencers offering themselves, their services, blogs and media handles as platforms for product and services to be advertised on without recourse to accepted principles and ethics of the advertising practice. The sharp increase in violation and infraction of the Nigerian Code of Advertising is not only worrisome but also portends danger.

“APCON has been inundated with petitions over unethical advertisements exposed on the online media platforms targeting Nigeria market by both the primary and secondary digital media platform owners.

“Sadly, we have had complaints and petitions from the general public to call online media platform owners to order because of some reprehensible advertisements such as those promoting rituals, patronage of private parts enlargement, breast enlargement, love portions, money charms, concoctions to provide political powers, and other many unimaginable things not worthy to be mentioned in the public media.

Some others have claimed the ability to cure all manner of ailments with one particular product without scientific proof. A particular advertisement has offered the ultimate solution with one product for getting rid of piles, HIV, diabetes, COVID, Stroke, Cancer etc. “

READINESS TO REGULATE

While the task of regulating advertisement on the social media may be a different and a difficult one, APCON said its well-armed to

effortlessly regulate the space with the help of The Federal House of Representatives in Abuja which has observed the pathetic trend of the exposure of advertisements on online media advertising platforms and consequently deliberated on the need to regulate online advertising.

To help APCON carry out this obligation successfully, the legislators have passed a resolution and has directed APCON to effectively monitor and regulate online media advertisements. The resolution passed by the House of Representatives unequivocally directs APCON to ensure that online advertisements conform with the prevailing laws of the Federation and as such must be made to comply with the provisions of the Nigeria Code of Advertising Practice, Sales Promotion and other Rights/Restrictions on Practice.

Fadolapo said APCON’s regulations extend to all advertisements broadcast, published, or exposed on any of the digital platforms directed or accessible within Nigeria. According to him, this can be found in the section 23 of the Advertising Practitioners (Registration Etc) Act, CAP A7, L.F.N 2004 which established the Advertising Standards Panel and charged it with the responsibility of ensuring that advertisements conform with the prevailing laws in Nigeria as well as the code of ethics of advertising. He added that the Panel has the power to vets and approves all advertisements before exposure. He advised all advertisers, agencies and media platforms to seek the Panel’s approval of any advertisement prior to exposure.

“The Code has adequately provided a guide and basic standard which as a matter of necessity all advertisements should embrace as minimum and acceptable level.

The Code demands that advertisement must be legal, decent, honest, truthful, respectful and mindful of Nigeria’s culture, constitutional tenets and relevant lawful enactments.

“With the electioneering season at hand, elective political office aspirants are also implored to ensure that their political advertisements are vetted and approved by the ASP before exposure on any medium. This will diminish the repugnant influence of hate speech and unethical political communication in the country,” the registrar said.

HOW TO REGULATE

In its readiness to carry out this mandate, the registrar said that APCON is working on its software which will allow it to work effectively in making sure that the digital space is sanitized. He added that APCON will also pursue all lawful means and build up the capacity within its system to carry out this function.

“APCON is committed to ensuring that the advertising ecosystem is sanitised and shall not shy away from pursuing all lawful means, including causing the prosecution of violators of the Act and the Code of Advertising Practice when violation occurs,” he said.

ANALYSTS’ OPINION

Analysts are of the opinion that while it is a welcome development to regulate advertisement in the digital space, caution must be taken in order not to block another source of revenue as it occurred when the government banned Twitter for a few months early the year.

They advised APCON to first of all engage with the stakeholders in the digital space in order to fashion out a workable system to bring about effective regulation.

Lagos Govt, AWS Harp on IoT Ko n g a Fo o d G o e s Initiative to Boost Economic Growth Live, Offers Customers Emma Okonji Amazon Web Services (AWS) Nigeria User Group and movement championing the growth developments and adoption of technology in Nigeria, in collaboration with the Lagos State government, is pushing for the new measures that will fast-track the deployment of infrastructure through Internet of Things (IoT) that will enhance economic growth of Nigeria.

At a recent stakeholders’ meeting organised by AWS, which held at the Zone Tech Park in Gbagada, Lagos, with the theme: ‘Connecting The World With AWS IoT and Serverless Event-Driven Architectures’, AWS stressed the need for an IoT-driven economy.

Speaking at the forum, the Chief Executive and Technology Officer, Datamello, Mr. Wale Adedeji,

stressed the need for stakeholders within the technology ecosystem to take advantage of emerging technologies to facilitate speed of business operations through automation.

According to him, “This Meetup is called AWS Nigerian User Group Meetup. We meet and organise this kind of meeting at intervals, aimed at educating and showcasing the amazing products people are building on AWS. AWS stands for Amazon Web Services, and it is a cloud computing arm of amazon.com.

“All what Amazon has learned over the years is a suite in our package and everything for the whole world to use to transform their businesses. So, the cloud computing has grown so much in the Western world. There is virtually any company that is

not in a particular cloud.”

Senior Special Adviser to Lagos Sate Governor on Science and Technology, Saheed Balogun, said the Nigeria User Group remained very relevant to Lagos State and the country as a whole because of its dream to fast-track infrastructural development.

According to him, “The use innovative technologies such as AWS IoT, will definitely help in reducing excess of damages. Instead of digging up constructed roads to lay fibre cables, IoT could be applied to get things right. Lagos is already working towards Smart City status, and that is why we see this initiative as a timely one, which we have already started to explore and deploy. Developers’community is critical to achieving this. I strongly believe that developers can transform Lagos to Smart City

and put it on global map.”

Balogun further explained that Lagos government partnered AWS to further leverage on IoT as an important component that will turn Lagos into a 21st century economy, as part of the THEMES agenda of the Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu. AWS Senior Solution Architect, Ousseynou Beye, during his presentation as guest speaker, disclosed that a lot of customers have benefited from AWS IoT. “The benefits of AWS IoT is quite enormous. Through it, organisations can have healthier energy resources and build smarter products. In the area of security in the home, this is also very relevant.

Our transportation system can be better organised with IoT. The same goes with tracking of inventories, ” Beye said.

Free Delivery Emma Okonji The management of Konga Food, the online food delivery arm of Nigeria’s composite e-commerce giant, has assured Nigerian food lovers of exciting times ahead, beginning with the offer of 14 days of free delivery to mark its formal entry into the market.

Konga Food is equally introducing the fastest delivery times in the online food delivery segment in Nigeria, in addition to a host of freebies and other incentives.

Head, Konga Food, Ajibola Olayiwola, said: ‘‘We are determined to raise the standard of service delivery by offering Nigerian food lovers more interesting options, unique offerings, greater convenience,

and a tech-driven, highly interactive experience. ‘‘There is so much more in the pipeline that we will soon be rolling out to delight our customers in the coming days and we urge everyone to stay onboard by following us on social media via @konga_food.”

He called on prospective customers to download the Konga Food app on the Google Play Store and the App Store for Android and iOS users, respectively, to enjoy our offer of free delivery.

Meanwhile, the management of Konga Food is also intent on creative differentiation to assure quality and improve customer satisfaction. “Customers can monitor the real-time status of their orders via the app to see if it is being prepared.

How Visa’s Practical Business Skills Multichoice, Africa Initiative Empowers Businesses Magic Deepens Market Bonding Emma Okonji

Visa’s partnership with Trace Academia, a mobile-based learning application that aims to enable 26 million youths across Africa, is the latest development in their Practical Business Skills’ (PBS) initiative, which offers potential partners integration and co-branded opportunities to contribute to business transformation and empowerment.

The partnership offers a free online learning platform that is equipped with extensive educational courses. The application which is available on Android and iOS is accessible and inclusive, boasting

multilingual learning across a myriad of industries.

The newly formed partnership is an extension of Visa’s purpose to enable entrepreneurs with the resources they need to thrive and will fuse entertainment and education to deliver an engaging learning experience.

Visa’s Practical Business Skills has been reimagined into an interactive course on the Trace Academia platform covering different skills including business planning, marketing, and securing funding.

Speaking on the initiative, Senior Vice President and Head of Visa in sub-Saharan Africa, Aida Diarra, said:

“Our partnership with Trace Academia allows us to extend our impact in levelling the playing fields of commerce for youth who are one of the key drivers of entrepreneurship on the continent” said Aida Diarra, Senior Vice President & Head of Visa in Sub-Saharan Africa.”

Practical Business Skills initiative plays a key role in supporting the job and economic development efforts of Visa’s clients and partners, such as Trace Academia. With small micro businesses accounting for more than 90 per cent of global businesses and as the source of 50 per cent to 60 per cent of global employment, PBS offers

digital educational resources and tools to help small and micro businesses thrive through complex challenges.

“Utilising Visa’s extensive expertise in financial education, we provide knowledge on what it takes to start a business, financing and cashflows, business management, marketing and ultimately, how to drive businesses into a profitable enterprise. We believe every stage of a business is important, from the development stage to maturity, and therefore, equip entrepreneurs with resources that help them confidently make informed business decision, throughout the business lifecycle,” Diarra further said.

PayTV company, Multichoice and one of its flagship channels, Africa Magic, have further strengthened their market leadership with the eighth edition of the Africa Magic Viewers’ Choice Awards (AMVCAs), which came to a rousing end last weekend. The event produced winners among the country’s leading players in the entertainment industry to celebrate African film and TV talent.

The movies, Rattlesnake – The Ahanna Story and Amina came tops with four AMVCA honors each with Best Director going to Ramsey Nouah for Rattlesnake – The Ahanna Story and Best

Overall Movie to Amina.

In the public voting categories, Stan Nze clinched the award for Best Actor in Drama while Osas Ighodaro won Best Actress in Drama. First time AMVCA nominees, Samuel Perry popularly known as ‘Broda Shaggi’ and Omowunmi Dada won Best Actor in a Comedy and Best Supporting Actress in a Drama respectively.

Producer, Rogers Ofime, also had multiple wins in the categories; Best Television Series for The Mystic River, Best Indigenous Language Movie (Hausa) for Voiceless and Best Africa Magic Original Comedy Series for The Johnsons.

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NEWS

Marketers Urged to Seek Technological Innovation Raheem Akingbolu Speakers at the final phase of Nigeria’s first marketing and media Hackathon tagged ‘MarkHack 1.0’ have taken a cue of how technology is disrupting other sectors to call on marketers to seek technological innovation to also disrupt marketing landscape in Nigeria.

Seeing how technology has disrupted other global industries, Founder of Eko Innovation Centre, and Curator MarkHack 1.0, Victor Afolabi, believed that the marketing and media industry in Nigeria was ripe for disruption.

“It is either we collaborate with stakeholders in the industry to create the disruption we anticipate or we allow disruption to happen to us”,

he said at the event where LiveBIc, which comprised Shadrach Akao and Ernest Ogbanefe emerged the overall winners from a list of 10 finalists involved in the pitch at the finals of the hackathon.

Similarly, in a chat, the CEO and Head of Growth, Identiture Africa, Franklin Ozekhome; CEO/ Chairman, Loatsad Promo media, Seyi Tinubu; and Head of Marketing, Wakanow, MuyiwaAleshinloye, called on marketers to take advantage of technology to grow their brands as Metaverse, Artificial Intelligence, and others are being deployed to ease business operations.

Also speaking, the President of the National Institute of Marketing of Nigeria (NIMN), IdorenyenEnang, while delivering his keynote address

at the event, urged marketers to continue to innovate, and know how to use their channels effectively.

Other winners include, Sprayme that clinched the second position and $4,000 prize money for innovating a new way for social gifting and content monetization; Reelbuzz emerged the third winner with $3,000 for creating an intuitive platform that helps brands connect and command higher brand loyalty; Innovatoras took the fourth position as well as $2,000 prize money for directing the leads for businesses and turning them to paying customers and Monify Cookies, fifth position with $1,000 for developing a browser tool that provides its users the ability to block all unsolicited ads and earn money from allowed ads.

Hyperia Partners YahClick Hughes to Provide Internet Connectivity to Nigerians Sunday Okobi

In its effort to contribute to the Nigerian government’s broadband ambition of ensuring that adequate internet coverage is available to at least 90 per cent of Nigerians, Hyperia Limited has partnered YahClick (powered by Hughes), a leading satellite broadband provider in Nigeria, to bridge the digital divide, especially to unserved and underserved communities in the country.

Hyperia’s Managing Director, Gabriel Bouzerdan, in a statement said: “By partnering carefully selected distribution partners, Hyperia is focused on expanding opportunities, and supporting our goal of bringing improved digital

communication services to even the hardest-to-reach parts of Nigeria.”

He noted that Hyperia is wellpositioned to deliver satellite internet services to consumers throughout the country, especially in towns and villages outside the reach of fiber connectivity.

The statement added that the market opportunity that satellite creates has been a core strategic focus for Hyperia over the past few years, adding that the “satellite broadband market is being driven by a surge in demand, and it has increased government efforts to promote infrastructure that results in efficient operations that boost productivity.

“We are proactively working

to expand our capacity to meet the growing broadband needs of Nigeria and the remote communities we serve; supporting the Nigerian Government’s broadband plan to ensure adequate coverage is available to at least 90 percent of the Nigerian population.”

Bouzerdan in the statement stated that Hyperia is a Nigerian telecommunications company that offers cutting-edge broadband satellite services in Nigeria, adding that their differentiator is that they deliver reliable solutions to businesses and homes, partnering communities and local businesses to instantly connect customers to the internet via a small satellite dish and modem from even the remotest places in Nigeria.

LWM Introduces Poundo Potato to Market Raheem Akingbolu Poundo Potato, a product by potato products maker, Lamb Weston/Meijer, has introduced Poundo Potato to Nigerians desirous of light swallow options to combine with their favourite soups. In Nigeria, the company trades as LWM Nigeria Ltd. Speaking at the unveiling of the brand in Lagos, Managing Director of LWM Nigeria Ltd, Victor Nwachukwu, said the product is made from 100 per cent Irish potatoes and consists of flakes of the popular root vegetable which is made into a light swallow meal by pouring

the flakes into boiling water and stirring for five minutes to produce a light smooth dough.

He further stated that the resultant swallow meal has an authentic potato taste and aroma.

“Lamb Weston/Meijer is one of the world’s largest producers and processors of potato products. Its products are sold in over 100 countries around the world and the global leader added Nigeria to its portfolio in 2017,” he stated.

Nwachukwu told journalists after the launch in Lagos on Friday that Poundo Potato presents Nigerians desirous of a light swallow meal

with a healthier, tastier, and very convenient option.

“Potato is an excellent source of dietary fibre, potassium, Vitamins B6 & C, manganese, magnesium and phosphorus; among other essential health benefits and this is fundamentally what drives the idea behind Poundo Potato,” he said.

“We are pleased with the initial reception of the ‘orange pack of Irish Potato goodness’ and the increasing awareness among discerning Nigerian consumers about the value that Lamb Weston Poundo Potato brings to their everyday health and convenience needs,” Nwachukwu further said.

MTN Foundation Partners Google, Microsoft to Train Entrepreneurs Nosa Alekhuogie MTN Foundation, in partnership with Google and Microsoft, recently held its first and second sessions of the MTN Foundation’s ICT and Business Skill training.

The training designed for 3000 young entrepreneurs between 18-35 years who own or manage a Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprise (MSME) for at least two years, had participants from Kogi, Adamawa, Jigawa, Anambra, Cross River, and Lagos States.

The training session began with Google, and after a twoweek-long intensive training on the virtual platform, Oluwatumise Ife-Abidakun led the concluding training session on May 6, 2022.

Participants were taught how to use digital marketing tools and social media to grow their business online.The Google training had three learning agendas. The first focused on how business owners can set up and optimise their Google My Business (GMB) listing. The second schedule was to show the trainees how to plan their digital marketing strategy, and the third learning agenda focused on how the participants can leverage social media channels and email marketing in their business.

Speaking with Techpoint Africa, Oluwatumise said she believed the event was very rewarding to the participants.

“The participants already had a basic knowledge of the things taught; an example

was setting Google My Business listing. However, most of the participants were just hearing them for the first time. Therefore, it created an opportunity for the participants to learn something new during the training” she said.

The second training session was in partnership with Microsoft, and the training ran for a period of one week.

The final training led by John Oparaji from Tech4dev and Promise Ederagobor. The training focused on Microsoft tools, especially PowerPoint.

Participants were taught the different uses of Microsoft PowerPoint, and how to efficiently make use of the tool to advance their respective businesses.

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THURSDAY MAY 26, 2022 • T H I S D AY

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T H I S D AY ˾ , MAY 26, 2022

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HEALTH & LIFESTYLE

ÜÙßÚ ÏËÞßÜÏÝ ÎÓÞÙÜ˝ Chiemelie Ezeobi ×ËÓÖ chiemelie.ezeobi@thisdaylive.com, Tel: 07010510430

Examining WHO’s Proposed Amendment of the International Health Regulation Known for its stance in holding government accountable in all policies that directly and remotely affects citizens, Equity International Initiative, a front line civil right, non governmental organisation promoting participatory democracy, citizen’s inclusion, human right, electoral Reforms, Justice and rule of law, has charged Nigeria and other sovereign nations not to sign up to the proposed amendment of the International Health Regulation 2005 by the World Health Organisation and World Health Assembly. Chiemelie Ezeobi examines why

F

or Equity International Initiative (EII), a front line civil right, non governmental Organisation promoting participatory democracy, citizen’s inclusion, human right, electoral Reforms, Justice and rule of law, the proposed move to amend the International Health Regulation (IHR) 2005 by the apex law making body of the World Health Organisation (WHO), and the World Health Assembly (WHA) should be a source of concern to sovereign nations.

According to EII Country Director, Ambassador Chris Iyama, Nigeria should not sign up to proposed amendment of IHR by WHO because the amendments have nothing to offer by way of strengthening WHO’s preparedness for response to health emergencies, adding that it is a clandestine script for positioning of WHO as world government and legalising transfer of national sovereignty of nations to UN agency.

In their posturing, the group accused the United States of submitting to the WHO a strange proposal to amend several Articles of the IHR, which are expected to be adopted by the 75th WHA that kicked off on May 22, 2022.

The 75th WHA, themed “Health for peace, peace for health”, which is being held in Geneva, Switzerland, on May 22-28, 2022 is the first in-person Health Assembly since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

WHAT THE IHR SAYS The IHR, first adopted by the WHA in 1969 and last revised in 2005, are a legally binding rules that only apply to the WHO that is an instrument that aims for international collaboration “to prevent, protect against, control, and provide a public health response to the International spread of disease in ways that are commensurate with and restricted to public health risks and that avoid unnecessary interference with international traffic and trade.

The IHR is the only international legal treaty with the responsibility of empowering the WHO to act as the main global surveillance system.

According to Iyama, in 2005, following the 2002–2004 Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) outbreak, several changes were made to the previous revised IHRs originating from 1969.

IHR AND WHO’S POSTURING “The 2005 IHR came into force in June 2007, with 196 binding countries that recognised that certain public health incidents, extending beyond disease, ought to be designated as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC), as they pose a significant global threat. Its first full application was in response to the swine flu pandemic of 2009.

“The WHO, as the global primary policy maker and stakeholder in public health is the implementer of the IHR. Without any doubt, in the about 15 years of the promulgation of the IHR, at no time has the use and abuse of the legal instrument been tested as was seen since 2020/2021 during the outbreak and aftermath of the COVID-19,” he added.

He continued that “as much as the nations of the world were looking up to the WHO for leadership and policy direction in the global effort to contain the spread of the virus, so called, signs began to emerge that the global body was leading a commercial endeavour by pharmaceutical conglomerates, non-state parties, the deep state and other non-state actors for the imposition and administration of hardly tested mixtures as vaccines as well mandating masks.

“The WHO was also accused of turning itself into a global agent of powerful western capitalists whose only interest in the fight against COVID-19, was money and hegemonic domination and control of developing and third world nations.”

Unfortunately, he said the WHO has not done anything to discourage this thinking, rather, evidence keeps emerging of the global organisation

WHO DG, Dr. Tedros Ghebreyesus

Country Director EII, Ambassador Chris Iyama

positioning itself into a world power with a huge authority over what happens within the sovereign territory of nations.

He added that “as the world is recovering from the disruptions and hardships caused by the WHO dictated measures implemented by different countries, the United States Permanent Mission to the WHO submitted to the WHO a strange proposal to amend several Articles of the IHR. Ordinarily, going by the title and introduction to the text of the proposal, one would be forgiven if it is assumed that the proposal is intended for the greater good of all and to genuinely prepare the world for future outbreaks of global infections.

“However, reading in between the lines of the texts being smuggled into the IHR and the ones proposed to be deleted from the existing law, one would clearly see the inevitably transmutation of the WHO into a totalitarian body with authority to walk across international borders without regard to rules of national sovereignty on the pretext of fighting outbreak of infection of global concern.”

BREAKDOWN OF CONCERNS Breaking down its concerns, the group said the United States of America put forward a proposal to amend Articles 5, 6, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15, 18, 48, 49, 53 and 59 of the IHR 2005, by deleting text from the existing law and introducing new texts to the law.

The NGO said a careful study and review of the texts being removed from the law and the ones being introduced to the IHR clearly, very clearly show that these amendments have nothing to offer by way of ‘strengthening WHO’s preparedness for and response to health emergencies’ but a clandestine script for the positioning of

the United Nations (UN) health agency as a world government and legalising the transfer of national sovereignty of nations to the WHO and a fortiori, those persons and organisations who sponsor and control it.

On Article 9, Equity International Initiative said the amendment being made to the original text of this article, proposes to remove requirement for the WHO to consult and obtain verification by nation where it is alleged that public health emergency of international concern has occurred before moving in or taking measures within or outside the country with respect to the alleged occurrence. “ This no doubt would be used by powerful nations and indeed, organisations to impose medicines, vaccines and measures on the citizens of nations that the people or their elected leaders are opposed to,” he said.

On Article 10, the NGO said in the text proposed to be inserted into this section, it is made a matter of compulsion of a sort for a country to accept within 48 hours, an offer for collaboration and also provide requested information by the WHO on an allegation that a health emergency of international concern has occurred or may occur in the territory of a state party.

“This proposed amendment automatically turns the WHO to a bully master of the affected nation. It is worryingly provided in the proposed amendment that a nation in which the WHO believes that a health emergency has occurred is given barely 48 hours to answer to queries from the WHO on the occurrence.

“This flies in the face of the sovereignty of the nations. Firstly, it is not possible to have such a response within the period of time provided and secondly and most worrisome is the fact that the nations and/

“Our conclusion is that Nigeria and indeed all other sovereign nations should not sign up to this proposed amendment to the International Health Regulation”

or government of nations are made answerable to the head of World Health Organisation.”

“On Article 10(4), it said by removing ‘may’ as it was used in the existing law and replacing it with ‘shall’ with respect to the right of state party where health emergency is reported to the WHO to exist to accept an offer for collaboration or help from the WHO, the proponents of these amendments are clearly set out to erode the powers of states to decide what health measures they allow on their citizens from the WHO and their agents and give the global body the power to side step political authority of nations in cases of alleged health emergencies.

“This same applies to Articles 11(2), 11(2) (e) and 11(3). On Article 12, Equity International said under the proposed amendment being introduced here, the Director General of the WHO would become a global emperor with powers to declare a health emergency has occurred within a state party even when the national authority of the country has not made such determination or does not accept the report of the WHO on the occurrence, including allegations of potential occurrence.

“This same vice is contained in the amendment in Article 12(4) (a),and the new articles 12(5) and (6) being proposed.”

On Articles 48,49,53,59, the NGO said: “Just as observed above, the true intention of the inventors of the proposed amendments to the IHR is not the positioning of the WHO to better prepare to meet the challenges to future health emergencies but to eliminate the international rule on national sovereignty and territorial integrity of nations, eradication of individual right to private life and right to decide what medication one receives for illness and also the dismantling of national boundaries making the world one open place for the WHO and its sponsors to practice their medicine merchandise.”

EII STANCE Equity International Initiative said to sign up to these proposed amendments is for a nation to cede its sovereignty, security and rights of its citizens to the WHO and its Director General.

It said authority and sovereignty must reside with the people and their elected leaders.

According to Iyama, “our conclusion is that Nigeria and indeed all other sovereign nations should not sign up to this proposed amendment to the IHR. “ Should for any reason the leadership of the nation want to cast a second look at this proposal, same should be passed to the National Assembly for our elected representatives and the public to have a say on it as the clear implications of the text of this proposal has very troubling and far reaching implications for the world at large and Nigeria in particular.

“We must all remember the ill-fated Infectious disease bill ostensibly smuggled in from Singapore by the Nigerian Law makers during the COVID-19 era under the influence of Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the WHO, which sought to transfer the powers granted only to the President to the Director of the Centre for Disease Control (CDC).

“These amendments to IHR are simply the amplified version of the failed Infectious Disease Bill. The people and government of every nation should do everything possible to stop the adoption of these amendments to the IHR.” Founded in 2018 with the sole aim of promoting Religious Freedom in Africa and across the globe. EII has championed lots civil rights engagement aimed at mobilising citizens to take back their countries from draconian and repressive government policies and demand for accountability and open Governance process (OGP). Given that Equity International Initiative has earned its reputation of consistently holding government accountable in all policies that directly and remotely affects citizens, many are of the opinion that its recent campaign against the amendment of the IHR shouldn’t be overlooked.

T H I S D AY ˾ , MAY 26, 2022

33

NEWS

NAF at 58: Logistics Command Carries out Free Medaical Outreach Esther Akinsola To mark its 58th anniversary of the Nigerian Air Force (NAF), the Logistics Command in Lagos gave free medical screening and medications to about 1,000 residents of its host community in the Shogunle area of Ikeja.

The outreach also afforded residents health education and counselling, laboratory screening, visual acuity checks and free prescription glasses, dental health services, minor surgeries, as well as free medications.

The essential drugs distributed included anti-malaria, antibiotics, eye problems, aches of all kinds, ulcer, hypertension, diabetes, arthritis, worms and stomach discomfort.

Speaking at the flag-off of the medical outreach, the Air Officer Commanding (AOC), Logistic Command (LC) NAF, Air Vice Marshal Abubakar Hassan Bala, noted that the event is a testament of the commitment of the current leadership of NAF to the wellness of its communities.

He also enlightened residents

that the task of nation building is a collective responsibility, especially with the dynamics of the current security challenges facing the country.

Bala said: “It is our constitutional obligation to protect the lives and properties of Nigerians so that they can go about their legitimate businesses unhindered. This is achieved, not only through kinetic means, but also by humanitarian interventions such as medical outreach.”

The Head of Department, Health Implementation and Programme, 661 Air Force Hospital, Dr. Mbaebie Chijoke, bemoaned the adverse effect of consumption of food condiments such as maggi, sugar and salt on the health.

He also harped on the importance of healthy lifestyles. “Less is more,” Chijioke emphasised.

“Hence the goal of food consumption should not be how much we have eaten but how healthy”.

While reminding participants that prevention is better than cure, the head of department cautioned that it is better to avoid than to

manage.

“If individuals notice strange changes in their bodily behaviour, such should be reported at the hospital immediately,” he implored.

According to Chijioke, diseases such as diabetes, hypertension and stroke have early stage symptoms. Thus, it is easy to halt their spread.

A beneficiary, Mr. Silifat Oluokun, described the initiative as a good thing while praying UIBU (PE XPVME IFMQ UIF /"' not to relent in their good work.

Meanwhile, the Community Development Chairman (CDA) Subaru, Shogunle, Mr. Isiaka Olanrewaju noted that “the Nigerian Air Force is doing well.

They exceeded our expectations, with the plans to reach over a thousand people with this initiative. However, we need more.”

According to Olanrewaju, NAF has assured them that whatever ailment cannot be attended to at the outreach would be moved to their hospital for extensive care.

“It is something that gladdens my heart,” he expressed.

AOC Logistic Command, Air Vice Marshal Abubakar Hassan Bala handing over a treated mosquito net to one of the beneficiaries of the medical outreach

RCCG Offers Free Medical Services to Residents in Daki-Biu Community in FCT Onyebuchi Ezigbo ÓØ ÌßÔË The Redeemed Christian Church PG (PE $JUZ PG %BWJE 1BSJTI Jabi in Abuja, flagged off medical Outreach programme for people living in Daki-Biu, a suburb of the Jabi District in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

Speaking at the event, PastorIn-Charge of the Redeemed $ISJTUJBO $IVSDI PG (PE $JUZ of David, Utako-Jabi District in "CVKB 1BTUPS (CPMBEF 0LFOMB said Christians must continue to exhibit love to their neighbours and communities in the face of Nigeria’s mounting challenges.

Okenla who spoke to journalists during the church’s Elders’ Week and medical outreach to Dakibiu community, said the outreach was QBSU PG UIF NBOEBUF PG UIF (FOFSBM Overseer, Pastor Enoch Adeboye to conduct regular Christian Social Responsibility.

According to him, the Church had bey doing this for over 10 years, adding that it has seen the church provide welfare support

to the indigent.

Pastor Okenla also said that exhibiting love to mankind even when there is bad news across Nigeria and the world, would raise the hope of people that good things can still come out of the country.

Okenla said the church would like to collaborate with the FCT administration in establishing health centres in the community.

The cleric recalled Jesus ‘feeding of 5,000 people with five loaves of bread and two fishes.

“Jesus demonstrated the physical aspects of love, that is why we are here. And it is part of our compassionate heart as a church to reach out to our community and that is why we are doing this, and we will continue to do it, to engage our communities, to show them love; to show them that we care and that we have not abandoned them,” he said.

The leader of the medical team, Dr. Theophilus Ado, said the church first conducted surveys in the community to identify the

disease prevalence.

He said that from the findings showed the prevalence of malaria, tuberculosis, and other diseases which can be addressed with better sanitary conditions.

As part of the Outreach programme, Doctors of various specialisation attended to the residents who besieged the venue with different kinds health challenges.

One of the beneficiaries, Maryam Ishaku, said she was treated for malaria symptoms and commended the programme.

Another beneficiary, Matthew Chorio, 54 years old, expressed joy at the medical checks and called on the government and public-spirited individuals and organisations to establish a health centre in the community.

The leader of the elders in the Church, Olusegun Olusa said the annual Elders’ Week was aimed to reach out to the communities around the church for the Christian Social Responsibility.

FERTILITY Fertility Preservation Part 2 With Dr. Kemi AILOJE drkemi@lifelinkfertility.com www.lifelinkfertility.com +2348033083580

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ast week, we started a discussion on Fertility Preservation. We discussed the meaning, when it is recommended and fertility preserving options in males. This week, we will be concluding with fertility preservation in females and give advice on fertility preserving options for adolescents.

FERTILITY PRESERVATION IN FEMALES Fertility preserving options in females includes: 1. Embryo cryopreservation – Also known as embryo freezing, is the most common and effective way to preserve a female’s fertility. In this method, a medical professional surgically removes eggs from the ovaries. The eggs are then fertilized in a lab with sperm from her partner or a donor in a procedure known as In-vitro fertilization (IVF). The embryos that result are frozen and stored for future use. When the female is ready, the embryo is thawed and implanted into the uterus for maturation and birth. While this is the most common method of female fertility preservation, it is not available to pre-pubescent girls because they do not have mature eggs that can be fertilized.

Furthermore, because this procedure needs a two-week period of hormonal stimulation for egg maturation, it is not suitable for female patients with cancers as a result of hormones such as breast or ovarian cancer, or those who cannot postpone cancer treatment.

Research studies shows that embryos can survive the freezing and thawing process up to 90% of the time.

2. Oocyte cryopreservation – This method is similar to embryo cryopreservation except that unfertilized eggs are frozen without fertilization and stored instead of embryos. In this method, the unfertilized eggs are extracted and frozen to preserve viability for future use. This preservative method is often suggested due to medical reasons, such as cancer in female patients. It is also used for elective fertility preservation in females who are not ready to become pregnant but are concerned about their decline in fertility as they get older.

Oocyte cryopreservation is now regarded as a well-established technique for female fertility preservation. However, human eggs do not survive freezing as compared to human embryos.

3. Ovarian tissue cryopreservation–Human ovarian tissue cryopreservation has been used successfully around the world to preserve fertility in female cancer patients and other pathologies where the patient is at increased risk of primary ovarian insufficiency. Most importantly, this technique may offer a method for preserving fertility in prepubescent girls.

In this method, a portion of the ovary is removed, frozen, and stored until the treatment is completed. After that, the tissue is thawed and re-implanted. Strips of cortical ovarian tissue can also be cryopreserved, but they must be reintroduced into the

body to allow the encapsulated immature follicles to mature. Furthermore, ovarian tissue is delicate under hard freezing conditions, and reintroducing it into the body may lead to reintroducing cancerous cells. Although in vitro maturation has been demonstrated experimentally, the technique is not yet clinically available.

Cryopreserved ovarian tissue could be used to create oocytes capable of direct in vitro fertilization using this technique. Also, fertility preservation techniques, such as ovarian tissue or oocyte cryopreservation may be used to avoid infertility and birth defects caused by advanced maternal age.

4. Gonadal shielding in females – This process is similar to male gonadal shielding.

In this method, the amount of radiation exposure the gonads receive is reduced by aiming rays at a small area or covering the pelvic area with a lead shield.

5. Ovarian transposition – In this method, a medical professional performs a minor surgery to reposition the ovaries and in some cases, the fallopian tubes in the pelvis so they are not in the radiation field when radiation is delivered to the pelvic area. After treatment, the ovaries are taken back to position in order to conceive. However, ovaries may not always be protected due to scatter radiation.

What can parents do to preserve the fertility of a child? r 'FSUJMJUZ TIPVME CF EJTDVTTFE XJUI children suffering from cancer as soon as they are old enough to understand it.

The parents and child consent is always required before fertility preservation is done for the child. r *G ZPVS DIJME IBT SFBDIFE QVCFSUZ oocyte or sperm cryopreservation may be an option. r (JSMT XIP IBWF DBODFS CFGPSF QVCFSUZ can have their ovarian tissue cryopreserved while in boys who have cancer treatment before puberty, the testicular tissue is surgically removed and frozen.Also, gonadal shielding and ovarian transposition may be used to preserve fertility in children who have not reached puberty. r 4PNF PG UIFTF PQUJPOT TVDI BT TQFSN oocyte, and embryo cryopreservation, are only available to puberty-aged males and females with mature sperm and eggs.

CONCLUSION Fertility preservation is an optimal solution for couples or individuals who want to start a family but are not ready to do so. Fertility decreases rapidly as men and women mature.

Medical conditions and treatments can also have an impact on fertility. However, female eggs or male sperm can be cryopreserved for future fertility options. It is advised that the earlier fertility is preserved, the greater chances of having children in the future.

34

T H I S D AY ˾ , MAY 26, 2022

FEATURES

Enhancing Quality Healthcare, Others in Lagos through T.H.E.M.E.S When Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu took over office, he placed premium on T.H.E.M.E.S, which represents Traffic Management and Transportation; Health and Environment, Education and Technology, and Security, all targeted at making Lagos great. Precious Ugwuzor reports that under his health agenda, this administration has immensely invested in the upgrade of public health facilities to enhance access to quality healthcare

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pon assumption of office as the governor of Lagos, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu set out to transform the fortunes of the commerical nerve centre of the nation. To do this, he pegged his vision under T.H.E.M.E.S, representing Traffic Management and Transportation; Health and Environment, Education and Technology.

Wrapping up his first tenure with eyes on the second tenure, one question keeps popping up; has he lived up to the billing so far?

To those in the know, the governor’s giant strides in all sectors of THEMES testifies so, especially in the health sector where he has immensely invested in the upgrade of public health facilities to enhance access to quality healthcare.

QUALITY HEALTHCARE At the center of the state’s public health policy is the provision of unhindered access to healthcare delivery without financial constraint to the residents.

The commissioning of four Mother and Child Centers (MCCs) at Eti-Osa, Igando, Badagry and Epe amply demonstrates the administration’s resolve to enhance residents’ access to healthcare.

Also, the state government through the Lagos State Health Management Agency (LASHMA) has inaugurated new centres at Ikorodu, Ikotun and Epe. Additionally, hundreds of thousands of Lagosians have been covered under the Health Insurance Scheme.

It is pertinent to add that the government has established several Triage and Oxygen centres.

The construction of the New Massey Children’s Hospital in Adeniji Adele, Lagos, a seven-storey, 150-bed hospital, the largest in West Africa, is huge boost to the state.

Also, there has been comprehensive renovation of public health facilities like that of Ebute-Meta and Harvey Road Health Centre, General Hospital, Odan and Isolo, Infectious Disease Centre, Yaba, among others.

At the last count, about 1,417 residents successfully had pediatric eye surgery, adult eye surgery, pediatric surgery, dental surgery, orthopedic surgery and Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) surgery through the initiative.

Also, the government set a roadmap for the comprehensive upgrade of infrastructure in the state-owned health facilities following approval of the plan by the Executive Council. Although this roadmap is being executed in phases, its primary goal is to revamp health facilities across the state’s primary, secondary and tertiary healthcare system and build a resilient healthcare system.

Approval has also been given for the construction and equipping of 1,500-bed Psychiatric Hospital and Rehabilitation Centre at Majidun in Ketu Ejinrin.

He also constructed a four-storey Faculty of Basic Medical and Clinical Sciences Office Block at the Lagos State University College of Medicine (LASUCOM), with plans for the renovation and upgrade of some facilities at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH).

Also, in partnership with the private sector, the government completed and handed over an oxygen plant at the Mainland and Gbagada General Hospitals.

More importantly, the governor placed premium on the blueprint designs for Comprehensive Health Center, Primary Health Center and Health Posts as part of the move to rejig their operations and service delivery, as well as help in adding bed capacity to Lagos State’s healthcare infrastructure.

Governor Sanwo-Olu The continuous improvement in quality of health service in the state through the blueprint is a core mandate of the Sanwo-Olu administration, thus moving the state a step closer to achieving universal health coverage and address the issue of brain drain, medical tourism and patient welfare.

Most importantly, the state’s response to the COVID-19, which has been commended locally and globally, helped to prevent the pandemic from spreading more rapidly across the state and also from wreaking havoc on the entire country.

The response strategy put in place by the government efficiently curtailed the pandemic and limited fatalities. EKO TELEMED, a tech-driven platform through which the government managed the spread of the virus, yielded efficient results in breaking the cycle of community infection.

The Sanwo-Olu administration has, no doubt, demonstrated that the restoration of public health facilities remains vital in its ‘Greater Lagos” Agenda as it recognises, and rightly so, that health is wealth and this explains its numerous innovative and people-centered schemes that are carefully designed to change the face of public health in the state.

EASING TRAFFIC AND TOLL ON HEALTH Beyond these, the governor also recognised the toll traffic takes on the health of citizens.

This is why the Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu administration made Health and Environment one of the cardinal programmes of its administration.

To this end, the state employed 1,300 Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) officers to manage traffic, deployed traffic lights and CCTV cameras in strategic

places in the state.

Also, after due investigation, the state of the roads was identified as one of the causative factors. These critical state roads, and several others owned by the federal government had fallen into disrepair across the length and breadth of the state.

Some of the affected roads included the Ojota stretch of the Ikorodu Road, Motorways-Kudirat Abiola Way, Apogbon highway, Babs Animashaun Road, Agric/ Ishawo and Ijede roads in Ikorodu, and the Lekki-Epe expressway from Abraham Adesanya to Eleko junction, among others.

Sanwo-Olu identified these bad roads as the major cause of the problem of the traffic jams, and, on October 13, 2019, declared a state of emergency. The governor engaged eight construction firms to immediately begin work on fixing the roads “considered critical to the reduction of traffic congestion in the state”.

He added that while the highways were being renovated, the Lagos State Public Works Corporation (LSPWC) would be carrying out repairs of 116 inner roads across the state.

Over two years later, most of those traffic jam hotspots have all but disappeared, while more roads have been completed and commissioned.

According to data published on the Lagos State Government Official Website in April 2022, the roads include 34 roads at Kosofe, Somolu, Victoria Island and Ikoyi, 384-capacity multi-level car park at Onikan, three network of roads at Oniru, Victoria Island (Adeola Hopewell, Idowu Taylor and Afribank/Churchgate Streets), Ikoyi network of roads - Mac Donald road/Lateef Jakande Roads, Milverton Road and Thompson Avenue in Ikoyi, Eti-Osa Local Government as well as the Ijede Road Phase 1 in Ikorodu.

Others were the 1.4 km flyover and

dual carriageway Pen-Cinema Bridge, Agege; Tedi-Muwo Link Bridge, Lagos-Ogun boundary roads in Alimosho and Agbado-Oke–Odo access roads. They also include 31 network of roads in Ojokoro Local Council Development Area [LCDA], Completed and commissioned the 13.68 kilometers Oshodi-Abule-Egba BRT corridor.

The data also showed that the state reconfigured six Junction/Roundabouts - Allen, Ikotun, Maryland, Lekki and Ajah (under Traffic Management Intervention Plan (TMIP) and did 110 palliatives and 361 sectional rehabilitations on Roads across the State, while rehabilitating 650 inner roads through the Lagos State Public Works Corporation (LSPWC).

One key road infrastructure that undoubtedly solve major traffic conflicts in Ikeja and environs as well as serve as a legacy project for the SanwoOlu administration was flagged off on January 27. It is the 3.89-kilometre-long Ojota-Opebi link Bridge which will open into Ojota axis in Kosofe, taking traffic from Opebi U-Turn and dropping it at Ikorodu Road via an intersection that will be constructed under Odo Iya Alaro Bridge at Mende.

The road will be supported by 276 metre-long deck-on-pile bridge and 474 metre-long mechanically stabilised earth-wall approach sections.

The carriageway, which is a new connectivity, would create an easy exit for commuters leaving Ikeja-Onigbongbo axis towards Ojota and Maryland.

The project was initiated to proffer permanent solution to inadequacies of Opebi Link Bridge and the Opebi U-Turn, and to ease pressure on overburdened routes within Ikeja, with the objective to reduce travel time along the corridor.

It is one of the ongoing major road projects amongst which are the Lekki-Epe Expressway, AgricIsawo Road, Ikorodu, Bola Tinubu-Igbogbo-Imota Road, Oba Sekumade Road, Ipakodo, Ikorodu, Itamaga to Ewu Elepe town, Construction of 22 Bus Shelters and Regeneration of GRA, Ikeja.

FOCUS ON INTER-MODAL TRANSPORTATION Governor Sanwo-Olu is also focusing on Intermodal transportation, for instance rail. It acquired 10-car intra-city metropolitan speed trains for the 37km Lagos Red Line project, compensated 263 residents affected by Red Rail Line project right of way, completed the 380-metre-long sea crossing bridge component of the Lagos Blue Line Rail spanning Mile 2 to Marina, flagged off the Lagos Red Line Rail Mass track sharing with the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC), on April 15, 2021.

For road transportation, Sanwo-Olu launched LagRide with 1,000 units of Sport Utility Vehicles (SUVs), commissioned four Bus Terminals - Mafoluku, Yaba, Oyingbo and Ajah, completed 78 bus shelters/bus depots while 22 are ongoing, reconfigured six Junctions/Roundabouts – Allen, Ikotun, Lekki I & II, and Ajah.

The state also delivered 14 new BRT stations, launched 500 units of First and Last Mile (FLM) buses as alternative means of transportation in addressing the security threat constituted by commercial motorcycles, popularly known as ‘okada’, injected 560 high-medium capacity buses for standard routes NOTE: Interested readers should continue in the online edition on www.thisdaylive.com

Duchess Hospital Introduces Affordable World-class Healthcare for Families Mary Nnah In line with its mission to provide Nigerians with the fastest, most convenient, and affordable access to the best medical expertise available anywhere in the world, the Duchess International Hospital, Ikeja GRA, Lagos has launched an Access to Affordable World-class Healthcare programmme.

With as little as N5000 registration to get a family card and seeing renowned consultants starting from N5000, the

management of Duchess Hospital is making a bold statement that the purpose-built, state-of-the art 100-bed hospital is not only for the elites.

Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the hospital, Dr. Adetokunbo Shitta-Bey, said the Access to Affordable World-class Healthcare programme was designed to “provide access to the hospital’s extensive range of high-quality services in emergency medicine and critical care, women’s health and paediatric care services,

cardiovascular medicine, kidney dialysis, endoscopy, medical and surgical treatment interventions, dental treatments, eye care services and a wide variety of additional services and sub-specialties all available at a single location in the heart of Ikeja”.

Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism, Alhaji Lai Mohammed on a tour of the hospital with over 30 journalists said that with world class health facilities springing up

across the country like Duchess International Hospital, Nigeria is on the path to becoming a destination for medical tourism and also reversing medical tourism abroad, conserving foreign exchange and creating jobs.

Alhaji Mohammed commended the hospital for putting up such a world- class healthcare facility in Ikeja, noting that “with what we have seen today and the programme that has just been launched, Nigerians can now get access to affordable and quality

healthcare in any area of medicine by obtaining a card for N5000 and consultancy fee to see an expert starting from N5000”. He said with this friendly fee structure, Duchess Hospital has widen the population of Nigerians who can access quality healthcare.

The Minister of Information expressed delight that many of the doctors at Duchess Hospital, a subsidiary of The Reddington Hospital Group, are Nigerians who had trained and worked abroad , but who have decided to

return home to practice because of the availability of cutting edge medical facilities and good work environment.

The Duchess International Hospital was launched in October 22, 2021 by the Vice- President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo. It was partly funded by the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Bank of Industry as part of the overall plan by the Federal Government to make quality health care more accessible and affordable to more Nigerians across socio-economic divide.

T H I S D AY ˾ , MAY 26, 2022

35

HEALTH

Threat to Health as Refuse Dumps Litter Port Harcourt Blessing Ibunge reports that Port Harcourt, the heart of Rivers State, which was once described as a garden city with its quality of cleanliness and well arranged plots of buildings, has now turned into a ‘garbage city’, thereby posing health threat to residents

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or over a week, THISDAY observed that disposed refuses littered the streets of the once beautiful city of Port Harcourt in Rivers State.

It was gathered that the city took a bad shape following the sack of the Sole Administrator of Rivers State Waste Management Agency (RIWAMA), Felix Obuah by the state governor, Nyesom Wike.

THISDAY further gathered that the sack could be connected to Obuah’s declaration and screening for governorship seat ahead of the 2023 guber election in the state.

Obuah was amongst the aspirants recently, screened by the Governor Douye Diri’s led Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Governorship Screening Committee for South South.

It would be recalled that on April 29, 2022, the state government had declared the termination of Obuah’s appointment as RIWAMA boss, ordered and directed the Chairmen of Port Harcourt and Obio/Akpor to ensure the cleanliness of the environment henceforth.

The statement claimed that the sack which also affected all private contractors was because of their inability to perform their duty in the cleaning of the environment.

The statement as signed by Kelvin Ebiri,l, Special Assistant on Media to Governor Wike, declared “The Rivers State government hereby announces the termination of its contract with all private waste contractors effective from 29 April, 2022.

“The decision to terminate their contract with the Rivers State Management Agency (RIWAMA), stems from their inability to fulfill the contractual obligation to ensure cleaner and healthier environment for Rivers’ citizens.

“In the interim, the Rivers State Government has directed the Chairmen of Port Harcourt City and Obio-Akpor Local Government Areas to immediately take charge of the evacuation of waste in their respective jurisdiction, pending the announcement of new waste contractors

by Monday.

“In line with its commitment to ensure a more hygienic environment, the Rivers State Government has hereby assured residents and indigenes of the state of its resolve to tackle the waste problems in the state in a comprehensive manner”.

Though the governor had promised to hire a new contractor to manage the waste, few weeks after, residents of the two major cities are

Refuse dumped along major roads and streets of Port Harcourt and Obio/Akpor in Rivers State lamenting possible serious health outbreak if nothing is not done for the evacuation of the refuses. An environmentalists and Executive Director of We the People, Ken Henshaw has slammed the state governor, Nyesom Wike for giving more attention to his political ambition than the health of the residents in the state.

Henshaw said: “The state government, local governments and state sanitation authority have failed woefully. Port Harcourt has become the headquarters of dirt and this has exposed most in the state to advent

health impact.

“How can we have a city refuse is dumped everywhere: on road corners, bus/ stops, markets etc. And I think if this is not addressed very quickly, it could result in a health pandemic very soon”, he warned.

A resident of the state who gave his name as Odimma, lamented “About few weeks ago, the city have been a mess with all manner of garbages. So it is pathetic, it despicable, it is shameful that Port Harcourt will degenerate to this level of environmental decay. “I think it lies on the government,

Church Holds Campaign against Sexual Abuse, Domestic Violence Funmi Ogundare Living Impact Christian Center ( LICC), Ilupeju, Lagos, weekend, held a walk against sexual abuse and domestic violence, to create more awareness about it with the aim of stamping out the menace.

The Senior Pastor of the church, Wale Olasoji who spoke to THISDAY, expressed concern about the decadence in the society, noting that family values are lost and sometimes married people do not respect their partners.

He said this is the reason why there is a lot of violence taking place.

“We believe that the church should lend it’s voice to conversations that are ongoing considering the spate of domestic violence and abuse in the society.

“There is decadence in the society that shows that family values are lost and people do not respect their partners, so you see a lot of violence taking place.

“The statistics during the pandemic became so alarming which means we needed to have this conversation to reorientate and reinforce the fact that domestic violence should not be allowed, “he said.

The clergyman said he believes that if all Christians, Muslims and other religious leaders speak against the menace and the laws are entrenched , the

particularly the governor of Rivers State Nyesom Wike to immediately as a matter of urgency appoint a Commissioner for Environment and a Sole Administrator of RIWAMA to ensure the cleanliness of the state capital and its environs.

“If you go through the streets of Ikwerre Road, Port Harcourt township, Rumuokoro, all the streets of Obio/Akpor, you will see the huge dump everywhere and as the day breaks, you have a multiply effect of the huge dump everywhere in the state. I suspect in the nearer future Rivers State may have pandemic of cholera in the state if care is not taken”, Odimma added.

US Ambassador to Hungary, Brinker, Charges World Leaders to Prioritise Women’s Health Rebecca Ejifoma

Members of the Living Impact Christian Center ( LICC) during the walk against sexual abuse and domestic violence, held in Lagos... recently society, will improve. “ What people need is heroinfluence or their role models speaking out in emphasising the values, so they can can identify with them.”

A Child Protection expert, Mr. Taiwo Akinlami emphasised on domestic violence prevention and what people could do, adding that children must be given adequate sexuality education and safe guarded from strangers.

He stated that those who are not married, should watch out for signs in abusive partners and walk away from such relationship. “ If you are also in a marriage and your spouse has become abusive, you must make it a point of duty to get help.

“For our children, we must put

in place preventive measures such as not keeping them with people you cannot vouch for, educating your children and letting them know what is wrong and what is right. “ You also need to build a relationship with your children so that they can talk to you about anything.”

On how people who are going through domestic violence should be rescued, Akinlami who is also a lawyer, said rather than stay in such abusive marriage, they should watch out for things that are untowards.

According to him, “ One must be very observant when things appear not to be working and if you see such signs, it is your responsibility to speak up to

talk to your sister or brother and others in the family, and if they are not listening, you need to escalate it to the law. “ Asked why inspite of the conversations, the menace seems to be prevalent in the society, Akinlami said,” we are not going to get to a point in the society where we are going to eliminate every ill, but we need to minimise the ills holistically.

“What kind of education are we giving our children?

What kind of music are we exposing them to? These are critical conversations we need to have. We are the ones protecting the children. We need to overhaul the entire conversations we are having, so that it can reflect the kind of result we desire.”

The Ambassador of US to Hungary, Nancy Brinker, has called on world leaders to empower the voices and the experiences of women to generate change while ensuring that women’s health is prioritised on a global scale.

She said this at the Global Business hybrid briefing tagged, “The Future of Women’s Health and Gender Equity” and powered

by Meridian International Centre.

Meridian International Centre has continued to strengthen relationships across the world through leadership, training, art and culture, and collaboration on world’s most pressing issues. To address the future of women’s health in line with its theme, it brought together ambassadors of different countries.

“I’ve seen with my own eyes how women who get wealthy can earn for their families, and participate in their community and make societies better.

“We’ve also seen how conflicts pandemic and other events can disrupt progress. It still boggles my mind that something so foundational to successful country and economies around the world is not considered in policy making as it should be,” Brinker expressed.

According to the Leader of Global Breast Cancer Movement and Founder of the Largest Breast

Cancer Foundation, it took years of persistent awareness and step-by-step change to get to where they are today.

She further admitted that they’ve come a long way thanks to the work of so many especially in medical scientific grounds. While acknowledging that they still have far to go, the ambassador classified cancer as deeply personal even as a cancer survivor. During her time as ambassador of Hungary, she claimed that breast cancer was the leading cause of death among Hungarian women, adding that she saw the same stigma among cancer and women health from those 40 years old in America. To address this trend, Brinker’s foundation started a campaign, Reach of Health Alliance, in 2002. They created facilities and spread information about breast cancer to Hungarian women who didn’t feel comfortable talking about it. While hailing women across the globe as backbone of society, Brinker called on world leaders.

“As world leaders look to address the issue at hand, we must remember not to underestimate the importance of partnering with private sector.

According to the cancer survivor, private sector brings resources, innovation and awareness. “More of us need to speak out and take action together.

n as al p e, a n e n d of s

T H I S D AY ˾ ˜ MAY 26, 2022

36

BUSINESS/MONEYGUIDE

UBA Restates Commitment Towards Driving Investments into Africa Nume Ekeghe The Deputy Managing Director, United Bank for Africa, Mr. Oliver Alawuba has reiterated on the bank’s commitment to driving investments into Africa as well as stimulating conversions towards achieving collective growth for the continent.

He said this at the fourth edition of its annual UBA Africa Conversations in commemoration of African unity held in Lagos.

The UBA Africa Conversations was established in May 2019 as a hallmark initiative in a series of celebrations for Africa Day. The conversations provide a platform for African and global audiences to connect with global thought leaders both in the private and public sectors, on their African journey, in a quest to change the narrative on Africa from desolate to successful.

This year’s conversation was themed, “The importance of reflecting our African culture in global success stories” and

underscores the tremendous shift in Africa’s cultural influence from Afrobeat to African films; Big African fashion labels and African authors; entertainment and culture. The African continent is creating positive impact globally.

Alawuba, who welcomed the panellists and the guests to the event stated that as Africa’s global bank, UBA remains at the forefront of supporting businesses across the continent.

He said, “It is from Africa that UBA Africa was set up. UBA has invested so much in Africa.

We are in 20 African countries and 4 countries outside Africa; Our focus has always been on driving investments into Africa, through conversations such as this.

As always, UBA brought together a rich and diverse panel including Legendary African musician and Songwriter, Youssou Madjiguène Ndour, who gave the keynote address at the event, speaking on the need for collaboration to boost

the continent’s fortunes. “Young people in Africa have a lot of questions and we have to listen to them and see how together we can be a solution for Africa.

We need to understand that there is a lot to do. Together we can make it,” Ndour said.

The Namibian High Commissioner to Nigeria, Ambassador Humphrey Desmond Geiseb talked about how globalisation has been good for Africa.

He said, “Of course, there are still some gaps, there are still a lot of things about Africa that is not known, and I believe that culture and Arts can help to get it right for us.” He added that UBA’s foray as an African bank into the United States of America is a testament to this fact.”

The Former Commissioner for Tourism, Lagos State, Steve Ayorinde who also sat on the panel pointed out that the liberalisation of the Media and digital content is helping to improve the African narrative.

From left: Executive Director, Wholesale Banking, First City Monument Bank (FCMB), Mr. Obaro Odeghe; Nollywood Actor/Brand Ambassador of FCMB Millionaire Promo, Mr. Lateef Adedimeji and Divisional Head, Personal Banking, FCMB, Mr. Shamsideen Fashola, during the unveiling ceremony of Adedimeji in Lagos...recently

MARKET INDICATORS

Interswitch Calls for Deeper Collaboration to Fight e-Payment Fraud Emma Okonji Africa’s integrated payments and digital commerce company, Interswitch, has highlighted the need for deeper collaboration among players in the digital payment ecosystem to boost the security of data and funds of Nigerians.

The call was made recently at the 2022 BusinessDay ‘Future of Payments and Fraud’ Conference.

This was one of the solutions proffered for improved detection and prevention of fraud in the ecosystem by the tech giant firm’s representative, Ejike Ngene, Head, Banking Technologies, (Interswitch Systegra).

Ngene made the submission during a panel discussion, where leaders in Nigeria’s financial

technology space engaged in the conversations around effective ways to create a fool proof system against fraud.

According to him, the payment space has grown explosively, not only in Nigeria but also globally, adding that Interswitch, as a leader in the space, has put together some preventive measures that aim to address the prevailing issue of payment fraud in the country.

He explained that Interswitch has continued to invest in robust systems that pre-empt fraudulent activities with fortified protocols that undermine fraud within the payment ecosystem in Nigeria.

The panel agreed that to create a fortified system against fraud, more skilled hands would

be required, especially in view of the current skill deficit in the field exacerbated by the continued exodus of trained labour to other countries across the world. The panellists also cited aggressive training of Nigerian youths as a necessary step to be taken.

Speaking on what Interswitch was doing to bridge the skills gap, Ngene pointed out that the tech firm’s internship programme was designed to groom tech-inclined Nigerians and to support the current workforce. He said: “To close the skillset gap, Interswitch is training and retraining Nigerians to create systems and solutions that will manage challenges bedevilling the digital payment ecosystem in Nigeria.”

“Insurance Critical to Meeting Nigeria’s SDG on Education” Managing Director, Old Mutual Nigeria, Mr. Olusegun Omosehin, has said that Nigeria would achieve its Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) on universal education, when the country has adopted and allowed insurance policies to play a critical role.

Omosehin stated this during his company’s Children’s Day Celebration. He expressed great concern about the inaccessibility of education to millions of

children across the country, and its numerous daunting implications on the affected families, communities, and the nation at large, as the unavailability of a functional educational system for Nigerian children hinders the nation’s contribution to the achievement of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030.

“We must understand that our collective future as a nation

depends largely on the quality of education available to our children. As the country, which UNICEF ranked the highest rate of out-of-school children in the world, coupled with a population that has rapidly increased over the last decade to an average of 10.5 million, all policymakers in the government and associated stakeholders must commit resources to strengthen our educational system, “he said.

‘Amstel Malta at Forefront of Elevating African Arts, Culture with AMVCA Sponsorship’ Nigeria’s Premium Malt brand, Amstel Malta, once again reiterated its stance as a brand at the forefront of elevating and championing opportunities in modern African music, film and culture with its headline sponsorship of the 8th Africa Magic Viewers Choice Awards (AMVCA) 2022.

As the headline sponsor of this year’s edition, Amstel Malta sponsored five events at the AMVCAs, namely, the Sponsors Cocktail, the MTF Screening Day, Content Market Day, Digital Content Creators’ Day, Nominees

Gala and the main Awards. The brand was also responsible for the prizes attached to specific awards categories at the event.

Amstel Malta highlighted fun and authenticity to attendees of this year’s edition of the AMVCAs, while creating a platform for authentic, meaningful experiences for all participants.

The AMVCA, which was held from Saturday 7th May to Saturday 14th May 2022, was an eight-day long celebration of African entertainment, fashion and culture, with

various recognitions given to trailblazers and innovators in the entertainment industry. Amongst the notable winners at AMVCA 2022 were Izu Ojukwu and Okey Ogunjiofor – Best Overall Film for Amina, Osas Ighodaro and Stan Nze, who respectively won the Best Actress in a Drama and Best Actor in a Drama for their performances in Rattlesnake: The Ahanna Story, Teniola Aladese – AMVCA Trailblazer Award, and Uche Nnanna Maduka, who received the Best Indigenous Language Movie or TV Series (Igbo) award for Nne-Ka.

MONEY AND CREDIT STATISTICS

(MILLION NAIRA)

JANUARY 2021 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

˾ ÙßÜÍÏ ̋

Money Market Indicators (in Percentage) Month

March 2018

Inter-Bank Call Rate

15.16

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

14.00

Treasury Bill Rate

11.84

Savings Deposit Rate

4.07

1 Month Deposit Rate

8.82

3 Months Deposit Rate

9.72

6 Months Deposit Rate

10.93

12 Months Deposit Rate

10.21

Prime Lending rate

17.35

Maximum Lending Rate

31.55

˾ ÙØÏÞËÜã ÙÖÓÍã ËÞÏ ̋ ͯͱϱ

OPEC DAILY BASKET PRICE Ͱͱ˜ ͰͮͰͰ

The price of OPEC basket of thirteen crudes stood at $114.79 a barrel on Friday, compared with $112.04 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).

37

T H I S D AY ˾ ˜ Ͱʹ˜ ͰͮͰͰ

NGX Lauds ABC Orjiako, Welcomes Omiyi as Chairman of Seplat Energy Kayode Tokede Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) has commended the immediate past Chairman of Seplat Energy plc, Dr ABC Ojiakor for his exemplary leadership and outstanding performance of Seplat for well over a decade, during which the company was listed on both NGX and London Stock Exchange.

Chairman, NGX, A.B. Mahmoud stated this when the exchange hosted members of the Board of Directors and Executive Management of Seplat Energy Plc to a Closing Gong Ceremony to honour Orjiako, and introduce the newly appointed Chairman, Basil Omiyi. Mahmoud, who was represented by a director at the NGX, Kamarudeen Oladosu, said, “The notable

P R I C E S MAIN BOARD

F O R DEALS

acquisition of eight oil and gas assets, expansion of the Oben and development of the ANOH gas plants under his leadership positioned the company as the largest indigenous domestic supplier of gas.”

In response, Orjiako, commended NGX for its high levels of corporate governance, which have been critical to the company’s growth. He said,

S E C U R I T I E S MARKET PRICE

QUANTITY TRADED

VALUE TRADED ( N )

“The high levels of corporate governance promoted by NGX for its listed companies was a key attribute that motivated Seplat Energy Plc to become part of the market. Since our acceptance into the market, Seplat Energy Plc has continued to deliver a corporate governance structure that is accountable and transparent to our investors, employees,

T R A D E D MAIN BOARD

A S

government and all other relevant stakeholders. We are committed to sustaining these high levels of corporate governance through our collaboration with NGX as we implement marketleading measures towards ensuring Nigeria achieves a sustainable energy sector.”

Delivering his remarks, Omiyi, said, “NGX has played an instrumental

O F

role in Seplat Energy Plc’s growth within the domestic and international markets. Our history with the Exchange dates back to 2014 when the shares of Seplat Energy Plc were listed in the market and over the years, Seplat has benefitted immensely from its collaboration with NGX. As we celebrate another milestone on the Trading Floor of the Exchange.

2 5 / 0 5 / 2 0 2 2 DEALS

MARKET PRICE

QUANTITY TRADED

VALUE TRADED ( N)

38

THURSDAY, ͺ;˜ ͺ͸ͺͺ ˾ T H I S D AY

Thursday, May 26, 2022

dŚŝƐĚĂLJ ĨƌŝŶǀĞƐƚ ϰϬ /ŶĚĞdž ZŽƐĞ Ϯ͘ϳй dŚŝƐĚĂLJ ĨƌŝŶǀĞƐƚ ϰϬ /ŶĚĞdž ĨĞůů ďLJ ϭϰďƉƐ dŚĞ dŚŝƐĚĂLJ ĨƌŝŶǀĞƐƚ ϰϬ ŝŶĚĞdž ĂĚǀĂŶĐĞĚ ďLJ Ϯ͘ϳй ƚŽ dŚĞ dŚŝƐĚĂLJ ĨƌŝŶǀĞƐƚ ϰϬ /ŶĚĞdž ĚĞĐůŝŶĞĚ ďLJ ϭϰďƉƐ ƚŽ ƐĞƩůĞ

THISDAY AFRINVEST 40 INDEX

Ăƚ ϭ͕ϲϳϰ͘ϴϵ ƉŽŝŶƚƐ ĚƵĞ ƚŽ ƐĞůůͲƉƌĞƐƐƵƌĞ ŽŶ E/d, ;ͲϬ͘ϲйͿ͕ Ϯ͕ϯϰϳ͘ϲϳ ŝŶĚĞdž ƉŽŝŶƚƐ ŽŶ ƚŚĞ ďĂĐŬ ŽĨ ƐĞůů ƉƌĞƐƐƵƌĞ ŽŶ t W K ;Ͳϭ͘ϯйͿ͕ ĂŶĚ h ;ͲϬ͘ϳйͿ͘ dŚĞƐĞ ;нϭ͘ϰйͿ͕ ƐƚŽĐŬƐ ĐƵŵƵůĂͲ /Zd > & ;нϵ͘ϰйͿ͕ h^dK / E ĂŶĚ

Fundamental Performance Metrics for THISDAY AFRINVEST 40 Index

ƟǀĞůLJ ĂĐĐŽƵŶƚ ĨŽƌ ϭϯ͘Ϯй͘ s/d &K D ;нϬ͘ϮйͿ͘ ƵŵƵůĂƟǀĞůLJ͕ ƚŚĞƐĞ ƐƚŽĐŬƐ ĂĐͲ Ticker

ĐŽƵŶƚ ĨŽƌ ϰϯ͘ϯй ŽĨ ƚŚĞ ŝŶĚĞdž͘ ^/ ƵƉ ϭϭďƉƐ ĂƐ E' D 'ĂŝŶƐ ϯ͘ϯй

THISDAY AFRINVEST 40

ĂƌŐĂŝŶͲŚƵŶƟŶŐ ƵŽLJƐ WŽƐŝƟǀĞ WĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ͘​͘​͘ ^/ WƌĞǀŝŽƵƐ ĚĂLJ͕ ƉƌŝĐĞ ƵƉƟĐŬ ŝŶ ,KEz&>KhZ ƵƉ ϭ͘Ϯй ;нϵ͘ϴйͿ͕ E' D ;нϯ͘ϯйͿ͕ ĂŶĚ & E, ;нϬ͘ϳйͿ ďŽůͲ

ƐƚĞƌĞĚ ƉŽƐŝƟǀĞ ƉĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ ŽŶ ƚŚĞ ůŽĐĂů ďŽƵƌƐĞ ĂƐ ƚŚĞ ůůͲ

LJĞƐƚĞƌĚĂLJ ĂĚǀĂŶĐĞĚ ϭϮϰďƉƐ ƚŽ ϱϮ͕ϱϵϭ͘ϰ͕ ĚƌŝǀĞŶ ďLJ ŝŶĚĞdž

ƌŽƐĞ

2411.85

1 Airtel Africa PLC 2 MTN Nigeria Communications PLC

ŌĞƌ ƚŚƌĞĞ ƐƵĐĐĞƐƐŝǀĞ ďĞĂƌŝƐŚ ŽƵƟŶŐ͕ ƚŚĞ E'yͲ ^/ ^ŚĂƌĞ

Current Price

ďLJ

ďĂƌŐĂŝŶ ŚƵŶƟŶŐ ŝŶ /Zd > & ;нϵ͘ϰйͿ͕ E'y'ZKhW ϭϭďƉƐ ƚŽ ϯϵ͕ϱϱϬ͘ϯϲ ƉŽŝŶƚƐ͘ ŽŶƐĞƋƵĞŶƚůLJ͕ zd ůŽƐƐ ŝŵͲ

;нϭ͘ϯйͿ͕ ĂŶĚ h^dK / E ;нϭ͘ϰйͿ͘ Ɛ ƐƵĐŚ͕ zd ƌĞƚƵƌŶ ƌŽƐĞ ƚŽ Ϯϯ͘ϭй ;ƉƌĞǀŝŽƵƐůLJ Ϯϭ͘ϲйͿ ǁŚŝůĞ ŵĂƌŬĞƚ ĐĂƉŝƚĂůͲ േϮϯ͘ϰďŶ ƚŽ േϮϬ͘ϲƚŶ͘ dƌĂĚŝŶŐ ĂĐƟǀŝƚLJ ǁĂƐ ŵŝdžĞĚ ĂƐ ǀŽůƵŵĞ ŝƐĂƟŽŶ ŝŶĐƌĞĂƐĞĚ ʬϯϰϲ͘ϬďŶ ƚŽ ƵŶŝƚƐ ʬϮϴ͘ϰƚŶ͘ ƚƌĂĚĞĚ ĚĞĐůŝŶĞĚ ďLJ ďLJ Ϯϭ͘ϲй ƚŽ ϭϭϬ͘ϴŵ ǁŚŝůĞ DĞĂŶͲ ǀĂůƵĞ

13 Nigerian Brew eries PLC 14 SEPLAT Energy PLC

ǁŚŝůĞ͕ ƚƌĂĚŝŶŐ ĂĐƟǀŝƚLJ ĚĞĐĞůĞƌĂƚĞĚ ĂƐ ǀŽůƵŵĞ ĂŶĚ ǀĂůͲ ƚƌĂĚĞĚ ƌŽƐĞ ďLJ ϴϴ͘ϱй ƚŽ േϯ͘ϭďŶ͘ dŚĞ ŵŽƐƚ ƚƌĂĚĞĚ ƐƚŽĐŬƐ ďLJ ǀŽůƵŵĞ ǁĞƌĞ dZ E^ KZW ;ϭϭ͘ϵŵ ƵŶŝƚƐͿ͕ & E, ;ϭϭ͘ϭŵ ƵĞ ƚƌĂĚĞĚ ǁĂŶĞĚ ďLJ ϰϲ͘ϵй ĂŶĚ ϱϮ͘ϯй ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞůLJ ƚŽ ƵŶŝƚƐͿ͕ ĂŶĚ K E K ;ϳ͘ϯŵ ƵŶŝƚƐͿ ǁŚŝůĞ E ^d> ;േϮ͘ϮďŶͿ͕ ϯϴϮ͘ϱŵ ƵŶŝƚƐ ĂŶĚ ʬϰ͘ϮďŶ͘

230.00

0.0%

7.9%

74.25

0.0%

6.3%

22.40

-2.6%

4.7%

-13.8%

ROA

P/E

42.9%

68.4%

5.5x

Dividend Earnings Yield Yield

P/BV

0.8x

6.2%

16.7%

68.4%

18.2%

6.2%

1.3%

16.8%

16.8%

105.6%

13.9%

14.5x

17.9x

5.5%

10.7%

10.7%

19.1%

11.2%

35.7x

6.7x

3.9%

2.8%

-13.8%

19.8%

3.2%

3.7x

0.7x

13.4%

27.1% 33.7%

6.9%

23.60

-1.7%

4.6%

-6.2%

-6.2%

20.6%

2.6%

3.0x

0.6x

13.0%

297.00

0.0%

4.2%

15.6%

15.6%

37.7%

16.4%

13.4x

4.9x

6.7%

7.4%

1,401.40

0.0%

2.6%

-10.0%

-10.0%

112.8%

16.1%

24.4x

28.3x

3.6%

4.1%

10.55

-8.7%

2.6%

-7.5%

-7.5%

8.4%

0.8%

6.2x

0.5x

4.1%

16.1%

26.50

-5.5%

3.0%

10.6%

10.6%

15.5%

11.1%

7.2x

1.1x

7.4%

13.9%

9.70

-2.5%

2.3%

4.3%

4.3%

17.9%

1.6%

2.1x

0.3x

7.1%

47.2%

7.65

-3.8%

1.7%

-5.0%

-5.0%

15.6%

1.4%

2.2x

0.3x

13.1%

45.6%

34.50

0.0%

1.3%

-4.2%

-4.2%

15.6%

2.1%

7.3x

1.2x

8.8%

13.7%

77.00

0.0%

2.0%

54.0%

54.0%

10.5%

3.9%

33.2x

3.3x

2.3%

3.0%

1,300.00

0.0%

2.6%

100.0%

100.0%

7.5%

3.6%

13.4x

1.0x

3.2%

7.5%

2.5x

0.4x

5.7%

39.9%

15 Ecobank Transnational Inc 16 International Brew eries PLC 17 Okomu Oil Palm PLC 18 Flour Mills of Nigeria PLC 19 Fidelity Bank PLC 20 AXA Mansard Insurance PLC 21 Dangote Sugar Refinery PLC

E' D ;േϭϰϱ͘ϬŵͿ͕ ĂŶĚ 'd K ;േϭϯϰ͘ϴŵͿ ůĞĚ ďLJ ǀĂůƵĞ͘

ROE

30.1% 141.2%

9.4%

8 FBN Holdings Plc 9 Lafarge Africa PLC 10 Access Holdings PLC 11 United Bank for Africa PLC 12 Stanbic IBTC Holdings PLC

ƉƌŽǀĞĚ ƚŽ Ͳϭ͘ϴй ǁŚŝůĞ ŵĂƌŬĞƚ ĐĂƉŝƚĂůŝƐĂƟŽŶ ƌŽƐĞ ďLJ

2.73%

1,608.00

3 BUA Cement Plc 4 Guaranty Trust Holding Co PLC 5 Zenith Bank PLC 6 Dangote Cement PLC 7 Nestle Nigeria PLC

Price Previous Price Current Change Price Change Weighting Index to Change YTD Date

11.70

-2.5%

1.5%

34.5%

34.5%

18.4%

1.0%

7.50

-6.3%

1.4%

51.5%

51.5%

-9.9%

-3.4%

215.00

0.0%

1.4%

51.4%

51.4%

43.6%

25.5%

11.2x

4.7x

35.00

-5.4%

1.0%

23.5%

23.5%

15.9%

4.5%

5.4x

0.8x

1.4x

-7.1% 4.1%

8.9% 18.7%

3.39

-0.3%

0.7%

32.9%

32.9%

13.3%

1.2%

2.6x

0.3x

10.4%

2.04

0.0%

0.4%

-12.1%

-12.1%

2.9%

0.9%

19.5x

0.6x

12.3%

5.1%

16.85

-0.9%

0.4%

-3.2%

-3.2%

16.7%

6.6%

9.0x

1.5x

5.9%

11.1%

10.7%

1.1%

WĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ ŽĨ ŽƵƌ ĐŽǀĞƌĂŐĞ ƐĞĐƚŽƌƐ ǁĂƐ ďĞĂƌŝƐŚ ĂƐ

22 FCMB Group Plc 23 United Capital PLC 24 Guinness Nigeria PLC

Ăůů ŝŶĚŝĐĞƐ ůŽƐƚ ƐĂǀĞ ƚŚĞ &ZͲ/ d ŝŶĚĞdž ǁŚŝĐŚ ŐĂŝŶĞĚ

25 Transnational Corp of Nigeria 26 Presco PLC

180.00

0.0%

0.5%

105.0%

105.0%

8.4x

4.2x

4.1%

11.9%

ϱ͘ϭй ĚƵĞ ƚŽ ƐƚƌŽŶŐ ŝŶƚĞƌĞƐƚ ŝŶ /Zd > & ;нϵ͘ϰйͿ͘ >ĞĂĚͲ

27 NASCON Allied Industries PLC 28 AIICO Insurance PLC

12.85

0.0%

0.2%

-2.7%

-2.7%

18.5%

5.7%

12.9x

2.3x

3.1%

7.7%

0.71

-5.3%

0.2%

1.4%

1.4%

21.1%

3.6%

28.8x

0.6x

2.8%

3.5%

ŝŶŐ ƚŚĞ ůĂŐŐĂƌĚƐ͛ ĐŚĂƌƚ͕ ƚŚĞ /ŶƐƵƌĂŶĐĞ ĂŶĚ ĂŶŬŝŶŐ ŝŶĚĞdž ƌĞŵĂŝŶĞĚ ŇĂƚ͘ dŽƉƉŝŶŐ ƚŚĞ ůĂŐŐĂƌĚƐ ĂƌĞ ƚŚĞ ŽŶƐƵŵͲ

29 TotalEnergies Marketing Nigeri 30 Custodian and Allied Insurance

234.50

0.0%

0.2%

5.7%

5.7%

1.7x

8.0%

7.10

1.4%

0.2%

-10.1%

-10.1%

19.5%

5.5%

4.2x

0.8x

7.0%

24.0%

ŝŶĚŝĐĞƐ ůŽƐƚ ϯ͘ϳй ĂŶĚ Ϯ͘ϭй ĂĐĐŽƌĚŝŶŐůLJ͕ ĨŽůůŽǁŝŶŐ ůŽƐƐͲ Ğƌ 'ŽŽĚƐ ĂŶĚ /ŶƐƵƌĂŶĐĞ ŝŶĚŝĐĞƐ͕ ĚŽǁŶ ϰ͘ϲй ĂŶĚ

31 Vitafoam Nigeria PLC 32 Unilever Nigeria PLC

22.55

0.2%

0.2%

0.2%

0.2%

50.3%

19.0%

4.2x

2.1x

6.8%

23.9%

14.20

-3.7%

0.1%

-2.1%

-2.1%

11.2%

6.9%

16.7x

1.2x

3.5%

6.0%

ĞƐ ŝŶ E D ;Ͳϵ͘ϯйͿ͕ // K ;Ͳϱ͘ϯйͿ͕ E/d, ;Ͳϭ͘ϳйͿ͕ ĂŶĚ ϭ͘Ϯй ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞůLJ ŽŶ ƚŚĞ ďĂĐŬ ŽĨ ƉƌŽĮƚͲƚĂŬŝŶŐ ŝŶ E ^d> ;Ͳ

33 Julius Berger Nigeria PLC 34 Union Bank of Nigeria PLC

30.50

0.0%

0.2%

36.5%

36.5%

18.1%

2.3%

6.8x

0.9x

8.9%

14.8%

ϵ͘ϭйͿ͕ hE/> s Z ;Ͳϯ͘ϱйͿ͕ >/E< ^^hZ ;Ͳϲ͘ϰйͿ͕ d/ ;ͲϮ͘ϱйͿ͘ >ŝŬĞǁŝƐĞ͕ ƚŚĞ ŽŶƐƵŵĞƌ 'ŽŽĚƐ ĂŶĚ Kŝů Θ

35 Oando PLC 36 Wema Bank PLC

ĞĂƌŝƐŚ ^ĞĐƚŽƌ WĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ

ĞĂƌŝƐŚ ^ĞĐƚŽƌ WĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ

ĐƌŽƐƐ ƐĞĐƚŽƌƐ ƵŶĚĞƌ ŽƵƌ ĐŽǀĞƌĂŐĞ͕ ƉĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ ǁĂƐ ďĞĂƌŝƐŚ ĂƐ ϰ ŝŶĚŝĐĞƐ ůŽƐƚ͕ ϭ ŝŶĚĞdž ŐĂŝŶĞĚ ǁŚŝůĞ ƚŚĞ &ZͲ/ d

ĂŶĚ D E^ Z ;ͲϮ͘ϮйͿ͘ ^ŝŵŝůĂƌůLJ͕ ƚŚĞ Kŝů Θ 'ĂƐ ĂŶĚ ĂŶŬͲ 'ĂƐ ŝŶĚŝĐĞƐ ĨĞůů ϭ͘ϯй ĂŶĚ Ϭ͘ϴй ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞůLJ ŽŶ ƚŚĞ ŝŶŐ ŝŶĚŝĐĞƐ ĨĞůů ďLJ Ϭ͘Ϯй ĂŶĚ ϮďƉƐ ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞůLJ ĚƵĞ ƚŽ ƐĞůůͲ ďĂĐŬ ŽĨ ƉƌŝĐĞ ĚĞĐůŝŶĞ ŝŶ /Ed Z t ;Ͳϲ͘ϯйͿ͕ &>KhZD/>> ŽīƐ ŝŶ K E K ;ͲϬ͘ϴйͿ͕ E/d, ;ͲϬ͘ϮйͿ͕ ĂŶĚ 'd K ;ͲϬ͘ϮйͿ͘

;Ͳϱ͘ϰйͿ͕ K E K ;Ͳϰ͘ϵйͿ͕ ĂŶĚ d ZE ;Ͳϰ͘ϳйͿ͘ ^ŝŵŝůĂƌͲ

37 NEM Insurance PLC 38 Sterling Bank PLC 39 Notore Chemical Industries Ltd 40 Transcorp Hotels Plc

ŽŶǀĞƌƐĞůLJ͕ ƚŚĞ /ŶĚƵƐƚƌŝĂů 'ŽŽĚƐ ŝŶĚĞdž ǁĂƐ ƚŚĞ ůŽŶĞ ŐĂŝŶͲ Ğƌ͕

ƵƉ

ϭ͘ϴй

ĚƌŝǀĞŶ

ďLJ

ƉƌŝĐĞ

ĂƉƉƌĞĐŝĂͲ

ƟŽŶ ŝŶ E' D ;нϯ͘ϯйͿ͘

KƵƚůŽŽŬ /ŶǀĞƐƚŽƌ ^ĞŶƟŵĞŶƚ ^ƚƌĞŶŐƚŚĞŶƐ

/ŶǀĞƐƚŽƌ ƐĞŶƟŵĞŶƚ͕ ĂƐ ŵĞĂƐƵƌĞĚ ďLJ ŵĂƌŬĞƚ ďƌĞĂĚƚŚ͕ /ŶǀĞƐƚŽƌƐ ƐĞŶƟŵĞŶƚ͕ ĂƐ ŵĞĂƐƵƌĞĚ ďLJ ϭϭ ƐƚŽĐŬƐ ŵĂƌŬĞƚ ďƌĞĂĚƚŚ ǁĞĂŬĞŶĞĚ ƚŽ ͲϬ͘ϱϰdž ĨƌŽŵ ͲϬ͘ϯϴdž ĂƐ ŐĂŝŶĞĚ͕ ;ĂĚǀĂŶĐĞͬĚĞĐůŝŶĞ ƌĂƟŽͿ͕ ƐƚƌĞŶŐƚŚĞŶĞĚ͕ ƐĞƩůŝŶŐ Ăƚ ϭ͘ϲdž

0.0%

0.4%

17.1%

17.1%

-4.4%

0.4%

30.3%

30.3%

88.20

0.0%

0.7%

126.2%

126.2%

1.20

-0.8%

0.3%

25.0%

25.0%

17.8%

8.1%

13.1x

0.3x

6.0%

3.2x

11.6%

2.1x

0.5%

0.5x

1.7%

6.25

-1.6%

0.1%

5.9%

5.9%

6.1%

0.7%

9.8x

0.7x

10.2%

-4.9%

0.1%

31.2%

31.2%

14.5%

2.6%

2.5x

0.3x

40.0%

3.37

-0.6%

0.0%

368.1%

368.1%

15.6%

0.9%

12.5x

1.8x

7.1%

8.0%

3.63

-9.3%

0.1%

-19.3%

-19.3%

22.3%

12.9%

3.8x

0.7x

6.1%

26.7%

2.0x

0.3x

6.5%

50.3%

1.60

0.0%

0.1%

6.0%

6.0%

9.9%

0.9%

62.50

0.0%

0.1%

0.0%

0.0%

-17.7%

-4.1%

5.89

0.0%

0.0%

9.5%

9.5%

1.8x

-9.5%

1.0x

1.2%

T o p 10 T r a d e s b y V o l u m e Vo lum e

P ric e C hg %

J A IZ B A N K

114.0

-6.7%

GT C O

12.9

-0.8%

9.9%

T R A N SC OR P

12.8

0.0%

1.35

9.8%

A C C ESSC OR P

11.7

1.0%

2.02

8.0%

Z EN IT H B A N K

8.6

-0.2%

T ic k er

P ric e

P ric e C hg %

C ON OIL

34.25

10.0%

M RS

14.95

9.9%

M C N IC H OLS

2.34

A C A D EM Y NP FM CRFB K

T ic k er

M B EN EF IT

0.27

8.0%

UB A

8.2

0.6%

C H IP LC

0.64

6.7%

ST ER LN B A N K

6.7

2.6%

ϰϭ ůŽƐƚ ǁŚŝůĞ ϱϲ ĐůŽƐĞĚ ŇĂƚ͘ dŽŵŽƌƌŽǁ͕ ǁĞ ĂŶƟĐŝƉĂƚĞ

R OYA LEX

1.20

5.3%

P R ESC O

6.6

-10.0%

ĨƌŽŵ ϭ͘ϯdž ƌĞĐŽƌĚĞĚ ŝŶ ƚŚĞ ůĂƐƚ ƚƌĂĚŝŶŐ ƐĞƐƐŝŽŶ ĂƐ Ϯϰ ƐƚŽĐŬƐ

N IGER IN S

0.21

5.0%

M ULT IVER SE

5.4

0.0%

VER IT A SKA P

0.23

4.5%

F ID ELIT YB K

4.9

-1.7%

Ă ƉŽƐŝƟǀĞ ƉĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ ĚƵĞ ƚŽ ĞdžƚĞŶĚĞĚ ďĂƌŐĂŝŶ ĂĚǀĂŶĐĞĚ ǁŚŝůĞ ϭϱ ƐƚŽĐŬƐ ĚĞĐůŝŶĞĚ͘ DZ^ ;нϵ͘ϵйͿ͕ D zͲ

ŚƵŶƟŶŐ͘

ǁŚŝůĞ dZ E^ ;Ͳϴ͘ϯйͿ͕ > ^ K ;Ͳϲ͘ϳйͿ͕ ĂŶĚ >/s Ͳ

^dK < ;Ͳϰ͘ϴйͿ ůĞĚ ůŽƐĞƌƐ͘ WƌĞǀŝŽƵƐ ĚĂLJ͕ ǁĞ ĞdžƉĞĐƚ ƚŚĞ ŵĂƌŬĞƚ ƐĞŶƟŵĞŶƚ ƚŽ ƌĞŵĂŝŶ ŵŝdžĞĚ͕ ĂƐ ĞĂƌŶŝŶŐƐ ƐĞĂƐŽŶ ŐƌĂĚƵĂůůLJ ǁŝŶĚƐ ƵƉ͘

T ic k er P R ESC O GSP EC P LC N EIM ET H UA C N

T ic k er

Value

P ric e C hg %

-10.0%

P R ESC O

1185.2

-10.0%

-10.0%

M TNN

450.1

0.0%

1.59

-9.7%

GT C O

302.8

-0.8%

13.20

-8.3%

SEP LA T

273.0

0.0%

207.0

-0.2%

P ric e 180.00 3.07

P ric e C hg %

N EM

4.05

-7.7%

Z EN IT H B A N K

P R EST IGE

0.38

-7.3%

A C C ESSC OR P

115.7

1.0%

101.8

-6.7%

81.1

-0.3%

WA P IC

0.42

-6.7%

J A IZ B A N K

J A IZ B A N K

0.84

-6.7%

ST A N B IC

-3.8%

WA P C O

79.0

-1.2%

-3.7%

GUIN N ESS

69.6

0.0%

C OUR T VILLE LIVEST OC K

Afrinvest West Africa Limited

T o p 10 T r a d e s b y V a l u e

T o p 10 L o s e r s

< Z ;нϵ͘ϴйͿ͕ ĂŶĚ ,KEz&>KhZ ;нϵ͘ϴйͿ ůĞĚ ŐĂŝŶĞƌƐ

7.6%

5.80

T o p 10 G a in e r s

ůLJ͕ ƐĞůůͲƉƌĞƐƐƵƌĞ ŽŶ t W K ;Ͳϱ͘ϱйͿ ĂŶĚ hd/y ;ͲϬ͘ϴйͿ ĚƌĂŐŐĞĚ ƚŚĞ /ŶĚƵƐƚƌŝĂů 'ŽŽĚƐ ŝŶĚĞdž ůŽǁĞƌ ďLJ Ϭ͘ϰй͘

3.50 12.90

38.8%

0.50 1.55

Investment Research

Brokerage

Asset Management

Adedoyin Allen | aallen@afrinvest.com

Robert Omotunde | romotunde@afrinvest.com Abiodun Keripe | AKeripe@afrinvest.com

Taiwo Ogundipe | togundi-

Christopher Omoh | comoh@afrinvest.com

Damilare Asimiyu | dasimiyu@afrinvest.com

39

THURSDAY, MAY 26, 2022 • T H I S D AY

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

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

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

floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange.

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

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

GUIDE TO DATA: Date: All fund prices are quoted in Naira as at 24May-2022, unless otherwise stated.

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

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

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

DAILY PRICE LIST FOR MUTUAL FUNDS, REITS and ETFS MUTUAL FUNDS / UNIT TRUSTS AFRINVEST ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD aaml@afrinvest.com Web: www.afrinvest.com; Tel: +234 818 885 6757 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Afrinvest Equity Fund 202.52 203.67 21.30% Afrinvest Plutus Fund 100.00 100.00 6.14% Nigeria International Debt Fund 320.56 320.56 4.96% Afrinvest Dollar Fund 105.48 106.63 6.91% AIICO CAPITAL LTD ammf@aiicocapital.com Web: www.aiicocapital.com, Tel: +234-1-2792974 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn AIICO Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 8.25% AIICO Balanced Fund 3.70 3.76 4.39% ANCHORIA ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED info@anchoriaam.com Web:www.anchoriaam.com, Tel: 08166830267; 08036814510; 08028419180 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Anchoria Money Market 100.00 100.00 3.95% Anchoria Equity Fund 153.56 155.32 10.28% Anchoria Fixed Income Fund 1.20 1.20 5.25% info@anchoriaam.com ARM INVESTMENT MANAGERS LTD enquiries@arminvestmentcenter.com Web: www.arm.com.ng; Tel: 0700 CALLARM (0700 225 5276) Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn ARM Aggressive Growth Fund 22.67 23.35 11.74% ARM Discovery Balanced Fund 512.39 527.84 13.57% ARM Ethical Fund 44.05 45.37 13.06% ARM Eurobond Fund ($) 1.06 1.06 -1.95% ARM Fixed Income Fund 1.04 1.04 2.48% ARM Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 5.92% AVA GLOBAL ASSET MANAGERS LIMITED info@avacapitalgroup.com Web: www.avacapitalgroup.com; Tel 08069294653 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn AVA GAM Fixed Income Dollar Fund 105.38 105.38 8.25% AVA GAM Fixed Income Dollar Naira 1,108.25 1,108.25 10.83% AXA MANSARD INVESTMENTS LIMITED investmentcare@axamansard.com Web: www.axamansard.com; Tel: +2341-4488482 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn AXA Mansard Equity Income Fund N/A N/A N/A AXA Mansard Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A CAPITAL EXPRESS ASSET AND TRUST LIMITED info@capitalexpressassetandtrust.com Web: www.capitalexpressassetandtrust.com; Tel: +234 803 307 5048 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn CEAT Fixed Income Fund 2.12 2.12 7.84% Capital Express Balanced Fund(Formerly: Union Trustees Mixed Fund) 2.43 2.49 29.48% CAPITALTRUST INVESTMENTS AND ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED halalfif@capitaltrustnigeria.com Web: www.capitaltrustnigeria.com; Tel: 08061458806 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Capitaltrust Halal Fixed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A CARDINALSTONE ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED mutualfunds@cardinalstone.com Web: www.cardinalstoneassetmanagement.com; Tel: +234 (1) 710 0433 4 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn CardinalStone Fixed Income Alpha Fund 1.04 1.04 3.24% CHAPELHILL DENHAM MANAGEMENT LTD investmentmanagement@chapelhilldenham.com Web: www.chapelhilldenham.com, Tel: +234 461 0691 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Chapelhill Denham Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 7.03% Paramount Equity Fund 20.43 20.8 17.13% Women's Investment Fund 154.28 156.14 8.63% CORDROS ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED assetmgtteam@cordros.com Web: www.cordros.com, Tel: 019036947 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Cordros Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 5.58% Cordros Milestone Fund 136.94 137.77 9.74% Cordros Dollar Fund ($) 109.50 109.50 5.12% CORONATION ASSETS MANAGEMENT investment@coronationam.com Web:www.coronationam.com, Tel: 012366215 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Coronation Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A Coronation Balanced Fund N/A N/A N/A Coronation Fixed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A EDC FUNDS MANAGEMENT LIMITED mutualfundng@ecobank.com Web: www.ecobank.com Tel: 012265281 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn EDC Nigeria Money Market Fund Class A 100.00 100.00 4.45% EDC Nigeria Money Market Fund Class B 1,000,000.00 1,000,000.00 5.52% EDC Nigeria Fixed Income Fund 1,157.77 1,169.35 -0.65% EMERGING AFRICA ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED assetmanagement@emergingafricafroup.com Web:www.emergingafricagroup.com/emerging-africa-asset-management-limited/, Tel: 08039492594 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Emerging Africa Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 8.42% Emerging Africa Bond Fund 1.04 1.04 7.75% Emerging Africa Balanced Diversity Fund 1.08 1.08 18.65% Emerging Africa Eurobond Fund 102.37 102.37 4.30% FBNQUEST ASSETS MANAGEMENT LIMITED invest@fbnquest.com Web: www.fbnquest.com/asset-management; Tel: +234-81 0082 0082 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn FBN Bond Fund 1454.27 1454.27 10.44% FBN Balanced Fund 196.68 198.12 12.23% FBN Halal Fund 119.79 119.79 9.21% FBN Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 5.88% FBN Dollar Fund (Retail) 123.83 123.83 5.32% FBN Nigeria Smart Beta Equity Fund 170.90 173.16 12.12% FCMB ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED fcmbamhelpdesk@fcmb.com Web: www.fcmbassetmanagement.com; Tel: +234 1 462 2596 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Legacy Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 4.88% Legacy Debt Fund 3.97 3.97 -0.73% Legacy Equity Fund 1.98 2.02 13.82% Legacy USD Bond Fund 1.22 1.22 1.53% FSDH ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD coralfunds@fsdhgroup.com Web: www.fsdhaml.com; Tel: 01-270 4884-5; 01-280 9740-1 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn

Coral Balanced Fund Coral Income Fund Coral Money Market Fund

4,270.56 3,553.81 100.00

4,336.00 3,553.81 100.00

24.82% 6.24% 6.09%

FSDH Dollar Fund 1.10 1.10 3.73% INVESTMENT ONE FUNDS MANAGEMENT LTD enquiries@investment-one.com Web: www.investment-one.com; Tel: +234 812 992 1045,+234 1 448 8888 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Abacus Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 4.50% Vantage Balanced Fund 3.12 3.18 15.94% Vantage Guaranteed Income Fund 1.00 1.00 4.50% Kedari Investment Fund (KIF) 140.34 140.34 2.42% Vantage Equity Income Fund (VEIF) - June Year End 1.36 1.39 13.69% Vantage Dollar Fund (VDF) - June Year End 1.09 1.09 4.23% LOTUS CAPITAL LTD fincon@lotuscapitallimited.com Web: www.lotuscapitallimited.com; Tel: +234 1-291 4626 / +234 1-291 4624 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Lotus Halal Investment Fund 1.54 1.57 8.81% Lotus Halal Fixed Income Fund 1,160.35 1,160.35 3.54% MERISTEM WEALTH MANAGEMENT LTD info@meristemwealth.com Web: http://www.meristemwealth.com/funds/ ; Tel: +234 1-4488260 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Meristem Equity Market Fund N/A N/A N/A Meristem Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A NORRENBERGER INVESTMENT AND CAPITAL MANAGEMENT LIMITED enquiries@norrenberger.com Web: www.norrenberger.com, Tel: +234 (0) 908 781 2026 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Norrenberger Islamic Fund (NIF) 101.74 101.74 6.63% Norrenberger Money Market Fund (NMMF) 100.00 100.00 7.54% PAC ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD info@pacassetmanagement.com Web: www.pacassetmanagement.com/mutualfunds; Tel: +234 1 271 8632 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn PACAM Balanced Fund 1.73 1.76 10.03% PACAM Fixed Income Fund 11.75 11.77 5.12% PACAM Money Market Fund 10.00 10.00 6.62% PACAM Equity Fund 1.57 1.59 10.53% PACAM EuroBond Fund 115.82 118.69 1.72% SCM CAPITAL LIMITED info@scmcapitalng.com Web: www.scmcapitalng.com; Tel: +234 1-280 2226,+234 1- 280 2227 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn SCM Capital Frontier Fund 133.78 137.26 11.96% SFS CAPITAL NIGERIA LTD investments@sfsnigeria.com Web: www.sfsnigeria.com, Tel: +234 (01) 2801400 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn SFS Fixed Income Fund 1.04 1.04 8.55% STANBIC IBTC ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD assetmanagement@stanbicibtc.com Web: www.stanbicibtcassetmanagement.com; Tel: +234 1 280 1266; 0700 MUTUALFUNDS Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Stanbic IBTC Balanced Fund N/A N/A N/A Stanbic IBTC Bond Fund N/A N/A N/A Stanbic IBTC Ethical Fund N/A N/A N/A Stanbic IBTC Guaranteed Investment Fund N/A N/A N/A Stanbic IBTC Iman Fund N/A N/A N/A Stanbic IBTC Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A Stanbic IBTC Nigerian Equity Fund N/A N/A N/A Stanbic IBTC Dollar Fund (USD) N/A N/A N/A Stanbic IBTC Shariah Fixed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A Stanbic IBTC Enhanced Short-Term Fixed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A UNITED CAPITAL ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD unitedcapitalplcgroup.com Web: www.unitedcapitalplcgroup.com; Tel: +234 01-6317876 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn United Capital Equity Fund 1.10 1.12 18.03% United Capital Balanced Fund 1.54 1.56 12.87% United Capital Wealth for Women Fund 1.24 1.26 14.21% United Capital Sukuk Fund 1.10 1.10 2.91% United Capital Fixed Income Fund 2.01 2.01 2.61% United Capital Eurobond Fund 124.87 124.87 2.07% United Capital Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 5.89% QUANTUM ZENITH ASSET MANAGEMENT & INVESTMENTS LTD service@quantumzenithasset.com.ng Web: www.quantumzenith.com.ng; Tel: +234 1-2784219 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Zenith Balanced Strategy Fund 14.20 14.34 7.71% Zenith ESG Impact Fund 16.46 16.65 12.70% Zenith Income Fund 22.62 22.62 2.68% Zenith Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 5.66% VETIVA FUND MANAGERS LTD funds@vetiva.com Web: www.vetiva.com; Tel: +234 1 453 0697 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Vetiva Banking Exchange Traded Fund 4.24 4.34 5.76% Vetiva Consumer Goods Exchange Traded Fund 6.78 6.88 15.98% Vetiva Griffin 30 Exchange Traded Fund 20.02 20.22 13.16% Vetiva Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 4.67% Vetiva Industrial Goods Exchange Traded Fund 22.68 22.88 13.43% Vetiva S&P Nigeria Sovereign Bond Exchange Traded Fund 153.12 155.12 -2.93%

REITS NAV Per Share

Yield / T-Rtn

116.31 51.67

1.62% 0.82%

Bid Price

Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

15.59 154.29 121.50 17.20 16.50

15.69 158.06 124.14 17.20 16.50

11.41% 17.20% 17.24% 30.85% 15.41%

NAV Per Share

Yield / T-Rtn

107.55

12.10%

Fund Name SFS REIT Union Homes REIT

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

INFRASTRUCTURE FUND Fund Name Chapel Hill Denham Nigeria Infrastructure Debt Fund

The value of investments and the income from them may fall as well as rise. Past performance is a guide and not an indication of future returns. Fund prices published in this edition are also available on each fund manager’s website and FMAN’s website at www.fman.com.ng. Fund prices are supplied by the operator of the relevant fund and are published for information purposes only.

40

THURSDAY, ͺ;˜ ͺ͸ͺͺ ˾ T H I S D AY

FORTY BUHARI, OSINBAJO, NEF, CAN FLAY KILLING OF PREGNANT WOMAN, CHILDREN IN ANAMBRA determine its factuality, and warned against any hasty reaction by the public to a viral cruel video of the said killings being circulated on social media.

Owing to the worsening security situation in the state, the governor, Professor Chukwuma Soludo, yesterday, placed eight local government areas under curfew.

As the spate of killings and violent criminal activities continued in different parts of the country, Borno State Governor, Professor Babagana Zulum, yesterday, confirmed that Boko Haram/ ISWAP fighters killed 32 persons during an attack on a village in the troubled state.

Similarly, yesterday, suspected terrorists attacked St. Patrick's Catholic Church in Gidan Maikambu, Marabar Kanya, Kafur Local Government Area of Katsina State, and kidnapped Reverend Father Stephen Ojapa and Reverend Oliver Okpara.

The police in Katsina State also confirmed that the marauding terrorists kidnapped one Reverend Ibrahim Garba of Evangelical Church Wining All (ECWA) at Gidan Garba, in Kafur Local Government Area, where the state governor, Alhaji Aminu Masari, hails from, last Monday, "and the clergyman is still in captivity".

The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) was suspected to have killed the woman, her four children, and six other northerners in Anambra State on Sunday. This occurred few days after a member of the Anambra State House of Assembly, Dr. Okechukwu Okoye, was beheaded, as allegations mounted about murders by IPOB. The presidency, in the statement issued yesterday by Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu, warned the perpetrators of the dastardly acts to expect appropriate response from the military and the security agencies. It also cautioned against any knee-jerk reactions, the creation of panic, disruption of lives and livelihoods, or even retaliatory violence following the viral videos of the alleged killings of non-indigenes by the Eastern Security Network (ESN) and its mother group, IPOB. The statement said, “While expert agencies are now verifying the factuality and veracity of the claims that accompany the horrid pictures being circulated, we call on all citizens to avoid hasty steps or conclusions that could exacerbate the situation, and, on the contrary, keep to a line of conduct that will help the law to take its proper course.

"The presidency also cautions the public against the indiscriminate sharing of posts on social media so as to deny vested interests, who seek to divide us and create disturbance, the chance to do so.

"In the issuance of his very strong condemnation of these ‘wild, barbarous and wanton killings of

innocent people’ in the South-east as well as the other parts of the country, which he described as ‘deeply distressing,’ President Muhammadu Buhari warns the perpetrators of these acts to expect tough response from the security forces."

Buhari, who also reacted to the killings in Borno and his own home state of Katsina, said Nigerians must unite to fight terrorism in all forms. He said the country was in a mourning mood over the “senseless loss of lives seen in Borno State and Katsina State over the last 48 hours”.

In a release Wednesday by Shehu, Buhari assured that the perpetrators of the killings would be brought to justice. The president disclosed that 56,000 Boko Haram and ISWAP terrorists had surrendered to the authorities in one year.

He said, "That these terrorists and bandits have been reduced to scavenging from our artisanal miners and farmers for survival is evidence that they are backed into a corner.

"This will be small comfort to the family members and loved ones of those murdered this week.

But it is in times like these that we must be at our strongest.

"Now, more than ever, Nigerians must come together, in proud defiance of those who would seek, through terror and violence, to divide us along religious, political or ethnic lines.

"And so while we are in mourning for those we have lost, let us face these cowards already fading in strength, number and willpower as one.

"Let us show them that Nigerians will not be swayed by terror. Let us show them that Nigerians will not be divided. Let us show them we will not be defeated.”

On his part, Osinbajo, in a statement by his media assistant, Laolu Akande, said the killing of the woman and her children was callous, brutal and demeaning, and capable of creating ethnic conflict across the country. He said the cruel act must be condemned by all.

According to the vice president, “What took place in Anambra with the killing of a woman and her children demeans us all. It is such a callous act and so brutal. And I think that we must be very careful, as a people, with this type of killings that are going on, especially where it is obviously to create horror, annoyance and create a situation where we begin to have ethnic conflicts again, and all that.

“And I think we must all be careful and condemn it in the strongest possible terms, there is no excuse for it whatsoever. We must not allow a situation where we get to the point where we even countenance individuals who can do this sort of thing.

“How does anyone kill a woman and her children? I think it is such a terrible tragedy condemnable

by all. Mr President has spoken about it and I just want to join my voice with those of others who are completely outraged by it.”

Soludo Declares Curfew in Eight LGAs of Anambra Soludo declared curfew in eight local government areas of the state due to the heightening insecurity. The former Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), in a statewide broadcast, yesterday, enjoined the people of the state to join hands with his administration to achieve his dream of making Anambra a prosperous homeland.

With regard to the criminal gangs, Soludo said, "The tiny but vicious gangs that have invaded our state and (are) terrorising us are mostly in eight local governments in Anambra and three neighbouring local governments in Imo State.

"They are in our forests, communities, and houses owned by individuals. They don’t come from the air, and, hence, are not ‘unknown’ gunmen. They are known. You know them, but are either too scared to speak up or out of indifference. But for how long will you be silent while our people continue to be killed in cruel and barbaric manner?

"The security agencies will continue to do their part, but we, the people, must proclaim that ‘Enough is Enough’ and demonstrate full ownership."

As part of efforts to curb the menace, Soludo unveiled more phone numbers to be used by residents of the state to report suspected cases of crime.

He added, "With effect from tomorrow, Thursday, 26th May, 2022, a 6pm to 6am curfew is hereby placed on motorcycles (okada), tricycles (keke), and shuttle buses in Aguata, Ihiala, Ekwusigo, Nnewi North, Nnewi South, Ogbaru, Orumba North, and Orumba South local governments until further notice.

"Until further notice also, motorcycles, keke and shuttle buses are banned from operating in these local governments on Mondays until the sit-at-home completely stops. The youths of every community in the zone are hereby enjoined to assist the security agencies in the implementation of this policy and are mandated to seize any such motorcycle or tricycle on the spot.

"Local vigilantes should report such motorcycles or tricycles (keke) immediately, and they will be confiscated by government and the owner prosecuted. The okada, keke, and shuttle bus union leaders must take responsibility to report their members who are involved in criminal activities.

"We shall review this after two weeks, and if members of these unions continue to be involved in criminal activities, the government will have no choice but to either disband the unions and/or ban them out rightly in the state."

The governor said no part of Anambra State would be used as camps for criminals, adding that anyone with a gun would be considered a criminal in Anambra State, and the government and people would work with security agencies to flush them out.

He added that the state government would revoke the occupancy and acquire any land found to be used in harbouring criminals, saying every community is required to provide information on any part of their land occupied by criminals as camps. He said if the community failed to do so, the government would take over such land. The same applies to buildings that harbour kidnappers and murderers, the governor stated.

Soludo added that while hotels were to find a way to get the identities of lodgers seeking their accommodation, filling stations were to install CCTV cameras, and keep their recordings, which would be produced once demanded by the security agencies during crime investigations.

CAN Condemns Anambra Killings CAN condemned the gruesome murder of Lady Fatima and her four innocent children. While demanding justice for the victims, the association urged security agencies to fish out those responsible for the wicked act in order to stop the senseless killings in the country.

A statement signed by Special Assistant to CAN President, Pastor Adebayo Oladeji, said the criminality was totally unacceptable, unjustifiable, and reprehensible to CAN and all right thinking people.

The statement said, "We call on the security operatives to wake up to their responsibilities.

The criminals are now operating with impunity while those who are expected to stop or apprehend them appear powerless.

"This cannot be the dream country of those who fought for her independence from the colonial masters.

"It is disheartening and unfortunate that nowhere is safe again in the country, as killers, bandits, terrorists, and kidnappers are on rampage in every nook and cranny of the country and all the government is able to do is to issue periodic statements condemning them without any decisive action to bring culprits to book."

CAN charged the leadership of IPOB to stop the criminalities in the pretext of fighting for freedom.

It stated, "Are they fighting for a country for the dead or the living? They should know that their criminalities are not helping the case of their leader, Nnamdi Kanu. They should not turn the South-east to a ‘No Man's Land’ in the interest of the founding fathers of this country, who hailed from the zone.

"Their actions are not only giving Ndigbo bad name but

SWISS FIRM WHICH PAID BRIBES TO NNPC OFFICIALS FOR CRUDE CONTRACTS FINED $1.1BN IN US der to secure "improper advantages" to obtain and retain business with state-owned and state-controlled entities in the West African countries of Nigeria, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, and Equatorial Guinea.

“Glencore concealed the bribe payments by entering into sham consulting agreements, paying inflated invoices, and using intermediary companies to make corrupt payments to foreign officials.

“For example, in Nigeria, Glencore and Glencore’s U.K. subsidiaries entered into multiple agreements to purchase crude oil and refined petroleum products from Nigeria’s state-owned and state-controlled oil company.

“Glencore and its subsidiaries engaged two intermediaries to pursue business opportunities and other improper business advantages, including the award of crude oil contracts, while knowing that the intermediaries would make bribe payments to Nigerian government officials to obtain such business.

“In Nigeria alone, Glencore and its subsidiaries paid more than $52 million to the intermediaries, intending that those funds be used,

at least in part, to pay bribes to Nigerian officials,” the Justice Department stated.

Last year, Anthony Stimler, an ex- Glencore trader, pleaded guilty to a scheme to bribe officials of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) for a favourable oil contract.

Stimler, who worked on Glencore’s West Africa desk from 2002 to 2009 and again from around 2011 to 2019, said that he paid as much as $300,000 in bribes to fund the election campaign of a senior government official.

In 2018, the US Department of Justice launched an investigation into Glencore's compliance with American money-laundering and corruption laws dating back as far as 2007. It concerned the mining giant's operations in Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Venezuela.

The US statement said that in the DRC, Glencore admitted that it conspired to and did corruptly offer and pay approximately $27.5 million to third parties, while intending for a portion of the payments to be used as bribes to DRC officials, in order to secure improper business

advantages.

Glencore also admitted to the bribery of officials in Brazil and Venezuela. In Brazil, the company caused approximately $147,202 to be used, at least in part, as corrupt payments for Brazilian officials.

In Venezuela, Glencore admitted to conspiring to secure and securing improper business advantages by paying over $1.2 million to an intermediary company that made corrupt payments for the benefit of a Venezuelan official.

In July 2021, the former senior trader in charge of Glencore’s West Africa desk for the crude oil business pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to violate the FCPA and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering.

Under the terms of the plea agreement, which remains subject to court approval, the Justice Department said Glencore pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to violate the FCPA, agreed to a criminal fine of $428,521,173, and agreed to criminal forfeiture and disgorgement in the amount of $272,185,792.

The department said it reached its agreement with Glencore based on a number of factors, including the

nature, seriousness, and pervasiveness of the offence.

“According to admissions and court documents filed in the Southern District of New York, Glencore, acting through its employees and agents, engaged in a scheme for over a decade to pay more than $100 million to third-party intermediaries.

“This it did while intending that a significant portion of these payments would be used to pay bribes to officials in Nigeria, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Brazil, Venezuela, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC),” it said.

The US department also said that between January 2011 and August 2019, Glencore Ltd. employees conspired to manipulate two benchmark price assessments published by S&P Global Platts for fuel oil products.

“As part of the conspiracy, Glencore Ltd. employees sought to unlawfully enrich themselves and Glencore Ltd. itself, by increasing profits and reducing costs on contracts to buy and sell physical fuel oil, as well as certain derivative positions that Glencore Ltd. held,” it added.

they are creating an atmosphere for ethno-religious wars. Will a reasonable group be committing crimes like this?

"We call on the political elite, religious leaders, and the traditional rulers of Ndigbo extraction to prevail on the violent groups in the eastern part of the country to stop needless bloodshed and tension they are causing for economic prosperity and wellbeing of the region.

“CAN commiserates with all the bereaved of the senseless killings, especially the immediate family of Lady Fatima and the recently murdered member of Anambra State House of Assembly, Okechukwu Okoye. May God console and comfort them as He pours healing balm on their wounds, in Jesus name."

NEF: IPOB Targeted Killings May Trigger National, Inter-communal Crisis NEF alleged that targeted killings

by IPOB were intended to inflame passions and trigger national or inter-communal crises.

Director, Publicity and Advocacy of the forum, Dr. Hakeem BabaAhmed, in a statement yesterday, lamented that in the last few weeks, gruesome killings of people in states of the South-east had escalated to a point which suggested that some factions of IPOB/ESN were now operating with unfettered freedom to wrought mayhem.

The forum noted that there had never been a better time than now for the leadership of Ndigbo, in particular, and other leaders to unite in openly condemning these atrocities.

NEF stated, "In addition to killings of soldiers, policemen, public servants, and other citizens, these killers are now embarking on targeted killings clearly intended to inflame passions and trigger national or inter-communal crises.

"Shocking images of murder of northerners, including children, are being deliberately circulated by the very people who murder them, to provoke widespread anger.”

It added, "This forum condemns this barbarism in the strongest terms available, and demands that those who have responsibility to bring these outrageous provocations to an end, must do so."

The forum stressed that there was no acceptable excuse for murder, saying those who have both responsibility and capacity must step up and protect local citizenry, including northerners.

The forum also called on northern leaders and elders to raise their voices against what it stressed was targeted atrocities, and take responsible steps to calm nerves.

It added, "The forum advises against any temptation to resort to violence under the impression that revenge is a solution to the targeting of particular groups. Northerners in the South-east should take all lawful steps to remain safe.

"The forum invites the attention of President Muhammadu Buhari and leaders in the South-east to note that there are dark forces at play to destroy the country under their watch.

"History and circumstances have placed them in the position to exercise leadership to stop the current slide to irretrievable disaster.

They do not have the luxury of indifference or inaction."

Zulum Confirms 32 Persons Killed by Boko Haram in Kala-Balge Zulum confirmed that 32 persons were killed by Boko Haram/ISWAP fighters in an attack on a village in the state. A statement by his spokesman, Mallam Isa Gusau, yesterday, said the 32 persons were killed last weekend by Boko Haram/ISWAP fighters around Mudu village, some 45 kilometres away from Rann, headquarters of Kala-Balge Local Government Area of the state.

Gusau, while confirming the number of deaths in an update released to journalists in Maiduguri, also disclosed that six persons were injured while two escaped the attack unhurt.

Gusau stated, “Governor Babagana Umara Zulum is very

disturbed by the unfortunate killing of fellow citizens at the weekend.

“Pending a full report, the governor was briefed by the Majority Leader of Borno State House of Assembly, Mohammed Dige, who represents Kala-Balge where the victims hailed from.

“From the lawmaker’s briefing, a total of 32 youths are believed to have been killed by the insurgents.

The youths were not farmers but highly enterprising young men engaged in gathering metals, popularly called ‘Kayan Ajaokuta’, which are sold as raw materials for steel production.

“The victims were said to have gone to a deserted Mudu village, 45 kilometres away from Dikwa, in search of the raw materials. In the process, they were unfortunately ambushed by the insurgents. Six persons were injured during the ambush while two escaped unhurt.”

Gusau further said, “A team of soldiers, alongside the Chairman of Kala-Balge LGA, on Tuesday, recovered 14 bodies of victims who were apparently tied and shot at close range.

“Governor Zulum shares deeply the pains of bereaved families and the good people of Kala-Balge and is awaiting full report by the end of today before necessary measures.”

Terrorists Attack Masari's Council, Abduct Two Catholic Priests, ECWA Pastor, Others Suspected terrorists attacked St. Patrick's Catholic Church in Gidan Maikambu, Marabar Kanya, Kafur Local Government Area of Katsina State and kidnapped Reverend Father Stephen Ojapa and Reverend Oliver Okpara. The hoodlums, who invaded the Catholic pastorium in the wee hours of Wednesday, also abducted the priests’ two assistants after shooting sporadically to scare the victims who were said to be observing their mid-week prayers.

Confirming the incident to THISDAY yesterday, the secretary of the state chapter of CAN, Dr. Musa Danladi Danmalan, said the suspected terrorists invaded the parish in large number, riding on motorcycles.

The state Police Public Relations Officer, SP Gambo Isah, also confirmed the abduction of the clergymen, saying the Commissioner of Police, Idris Dabban, has given a matching order to his men to rescue the captives unhurt.

Kafur had enjoyed relative peace, but recently, terrorist activities seem to be surfacing in the area.

Danmalan added that the marauding terrorists also kidnapped one Reverend Ibrahim Garba of ECWA at Gidan Garba, in Kafur Local Government Area last Monday "and the clergyman is still in captivity".

Danmalan stated, "Last week, Monday, one Reverend Ibrahim Garba of ECWA, Gidan Garba in Kafur Local Government Area was kidnapped alongside two of his members at the pastorium in the night.

"Early this (Tuesday) morning, Reverend Father Stephen Ojapa and Reverend Oliver Okpara of St. Patrick's Catholic Church Gidan Maikambu, Marabar Kanya, Kafur Local Government Area of Katsina State, were also kidnapped by the bandits.

"And a day before yesterday, one Suleiman Ibrahim of Gidan Kanawa village of Kankara local government was also kidnapped.

He is still with the bandits, and they are yet to contact the church or the family."

Danmalan noted that the abductors of the clergymen were yet to contact their family members, adding, however, that security personnel were working to secure their freedom.

He reiterated that the terrorists had of recent abducted the pastor of Anglican Church in Kadanyar Baushi, Bakori Local Government Area of the state, Venerable Yohanna, but he was released after the payment of an undisclosed ransom.

He, therefore, called on Christians in the state to be vigilant and report any suspicious movement of persons or activities Continued on page 42

41

THURSDAY, ͺ;˜ ͺ͸ͺͺ ˾ T H I S D AY

NEWS

MY CONDOLENCES...

L - R: Shehu of Borno, Alhaji Abubakar Ibn Umar Garbai; Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, and Borno State Governor, Prof. Babagana Zulum, during a condolence visit by the Senate President to Borno State to commiserate with the people on the recent killing of farmers by terrorists.... yesterday

Obi Dumps PDP, May Contest Presidential Poll on Another Party His name will certainly be on the ballot in 2023, says Okupe Chuks Okocha in Abuja A former governor of Anambra State and presidential aspirant, Mr. Peter Obi, yesterday, resigned his membership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and also dropped from the presidential race in the party.

Obi’s letter of resignation to the PDP was submitted to the party’s National Chairman, Dr. Iyorchia Ayu, by the Director General of his campaign organisation, Dr. Doyin Okupe, who has vowed that his resignation from the PDP notwithstanding, Obi’s name would be on the ballot for presidential race in 2023.

The letter, personally signed

by Obi, was titled: "Resignation From Peoples Democratic Party

(PDP) and Withdrawal from the Presidential Contest” and read thus: "I am writing to intimate you of my resignation from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which was conveyed to the Chairman of Agulu Ward 2 Anaocha LGA, Anambra, effective Friday, 20 May, 2022.

"Consequently, I am by this letter informing you of my withdrawal for the PDP presidential primaries.

"It has been a great honour to contribute to nation-building efforts through our party. Unfortunately, recent developments within our party make it practically impossible to continue participating and making such constructive contributions.

"Our national challenges are deep-seated and require that we

each make profound sacrifices towards rescuing our country. My commitment to rescuing Nigeria remains firm, even if the route differs.

"I wish to thank you personally for your graciousness and leadership. I wish you well and best of luck in the service of country.”

THISDAY gathered that Obi left the PDP because the body language of the party leadership suggested that he not wanted in the party.

His grouse may not be unconnected to the delegate crisis in his home state, Anambra, where the list of the delegates was swung in favour of some political godfathers in the state.

It was further gathered that Obi might be going to join the Labour

Party now seen as a third force Okupe, after submitting Obi’s resignation letter, said, "This is not the end of the presidential contest for him. Certainly, his name will be on the ballot during the 2023 presidential election."

Indications of crisis in Anambra State came to the fore, when members of PDP in the state urged the Ayu-led National Working Committee (NWC) to listen to the will of the people expressed during the delegate election.

The PDP in the state, after a four-hour meeting with all contending groups in the state, urged the NWC not to pander to the wishes of those he described as "godfathers" Addressing newsmen after the meeting, a former National

Delegates Raise Pertinent Issues as Osinbajo Rounds Off Nationwide Consultations Emameh Gabriel in Abuja

The Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo yesterday completed his nationwide consultation with national delegates of the All Progressives Congress (APC) using Lagos State, a strong hold of the national leader of the ruling APC and presidential hopeful of the party, Ahmed Bola Tinubu, as the rallying point to end his engagement with party delegates.

Osinbajo's visit to Lagos completed his visit to the 36 states of the federation and the FCT where he had robust engagement with delegates and stakeholders of the APC who joined state governors, senior party leaders and traditional rulers to receive him in their various states.

Osinbajo, who is expected to be screened this week, along other 21 presidential aspirants of the APC, said the nationwide consultations with the people was critical, especially in a country as

diverse and complex as Nigeria.

In essence, the consultation was not only meant to solicit support from delegates, but also to listen to the diverse or peculiar challenges in each region as well as feedback from the electorate.

It also gave them the opportunity to interrogate government policies and plans put in place by the present administration and for the vice president to fulfill his promises if elected.

Among the key issues raised by delegates was what they described as poor reward system in the APC. Most delegates could not hold back the feelings to express their frustration, especially those in the south-east who lamented that being members of the APC in the region was enough to place anyone in harm's way.

The same issue was raised in Kwara, Nasarawa and other PDP controlled states. The vice president who acknowledged this said one of the reasons for the

engagement was to hear directly from the people to understand their pains or grievances, but advised that party members must be involved in the process so that they could be identified.

"After every session, I will take a picture with every one of you so that you can hold me to my words tomorrow if I become the president.

You can use this to remind me of my promise, Osinbajo had told all the delegates across the 36 states and the FCT during his tour,” he said.

Speaking on tackling insecurity, Osinbajo said the challenges were that the challenge in the country today was different from what the government met in 2015.

He also noted that the number of security personnel policing the country was grossly inadequate considering its size, adding that more personnel and technology needed to be engaged for the country to be properly policed.

However, he assured that with

the purchase of sophisticated military weapons, he was confident that the challenge would be dealt with.

He said: "The size of the armed forces is too low for the population of Nigeria, a local government in Niger state, Mashegu has the land mass the size of southeast states and Lagos State with about a 100 policemen that is very inadequate, so, to police the country properly, we need more hands in the police and the armed forces.

“We also need our own local ammunition manufacturing company, we have started that at DICON, but we need to expand its capacity to produce more ammunition.

“We also need weapon and defence system manufacturing outfits locally. Presently, we depend on the western country for weaponry and the system is very complex. For instance, we pay for Tucano fighter jets and it takes over four years to get the jets into the country.”

Publicity Secretary, Olisa Metuh, said the party members in the state had spoken and "it is in the best interest of the PDP to respect the will of the people than pander to the views of the godfathers.

"The people have spoken and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) monitored the congresses. We wonder why the Ayu-led NWC is dilly-dallying over the matter? We want him to

release the outcome of the delegates election in the state.

"INEC report is clear on the conduct of the three-man ad hoc delegates list. We wonder why the NWC led by Ayu is reluctant in obeying the wishes of the people."

The story was that the delegates that were elected in the state were loyal to a certain godfather, thus stripping Obi of any control of the delegates.

Ekiti 2022: Oni Tells NULGE Leaders to Resist Bribery, Coercion Victor Ogunje in Ado Ekiti The governorship candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) in Ekiti State, Engr. Segun Oni has told the leadership of the Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) to resist bribery and vote for their preferred candidate during the June 18 poll in the state.

He accused the state government of making financial advances to NULGE leaders to sway the local government workers not to vote for the SDP governorship candidate in the impending.

A pro-Segun Oni group, the Ekiti Build Back Better (EBBB), in a statement, yesterday said part of the alleged grand plots against him had been that the workers were being told that he would sack them if elected governor .

The EBBB, which spoke through its spokesman, Idowu Adelusi, quoted Oni to have said Fayemi, "who is owing the local government workers five months salaries," found it more important to conscript the NULGE chairmen, "for the dirty job with a whooping sum of N8 million" instead of paying the workers' salaries.

Oni alleged that the chairmen had been told to go back to their respective councils and tell the workers that SDP was coming with "a policy of operation show your certificate," in order to retrench

workers, among other obnoxious policies.

"Fayemi decided to embark on this shameful blackmail, supposing that Ekiti workers are morons and not wise enough to discern between good and bad governance.

"He promised to pay them some of their arrears before the election, but decided lately to suspend it till after the election.

"The Fayemi-led administration is disturbed by the rapid way its image is going down, a development that has forced the people not to want to have anything to do with the APC governorship candidate, Mr. Biodun Oyebaniji, who they have seen as a Fayemi incarnate and continuity of Fayemi's repressive policies on the workers.

"How can a government elected by the people tell the workers that leave bonus is never a right and payment of salary will always come after legal and illegal deductions have been done with peanuts left which are insufficient to pay the workers, but the same government would rush to blame insufficient allocation from Abuja and the dwindling economy?"

Adelusi said Ekiti people were now wiser and waiting to use their votes to remove the APC government, "and install Segun Oni who they trust because he did it before and his former administration (2007 to 2010) has not been surpassed by the successive administrations."

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NEWS

TRAINING FOR A BETTER TOMORROW...

L-R: Executive Director, Finance & Admin, NPA, Aderenle Susana Adesina; Chairperson, Seaport Terminal Owners Association of Nigeria (STOAN) Vicky Haastrup; Vice-Chancellor UNILAG, Prof. Oluwatoyin Ogundipe; MD/CEO, NPA, Mohammed Bello Koko, and MD, Nigerian Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) Dr. George Moghalu, in one of the lecture theatres at the NPA training Institute…yesterday

Yakubu Warns of Dangers of Money Politics, Says Nigeria Moving Towards Plutocracy Insists security still an issue in 2023 elections Jega to INEC: Don’t tamper with your timetable, it’s recipe for disaster Chuks Okocha in Abuja Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, yesterday, expressed concerns over how politicians have monetised the nation's electoral process, noting that the nation might be inching towards plutocracy.

This, nonetheless, Yakubu said security remained a major issue of concern in the coming general elections.

At the same time, a former chairman of the commission, Prof. Attahiru Jega, who shared Yakubu’s viewpoint, also warned INEC against altering the election timetable, saying doing so would be a recipe for electoral disaster.

The duo spoke at a one-day stakeholders colloquium in Abuja on "Emerging Issues That Will Shape the 2023 General Elections in Nigeria”, organised by the Centre for Democracy and Development and Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA).

Yakubu said the act by politicians using money to sway delegates to their sides during their primaries was a thing of concern to the commission.

Compounding this concern, Yakubu said, was the increasing insecurity across the country and the issue of fake news.

He, however, assured the people that INEC would work with antigraft agencies to reverse the trend.

"Nigeria is moving towards plutocracy. But there are two dimensions to it, when you have

willing collectors, it becomes much more difficult to control the situation. We have seen cases, where voters also rejected money and voted their choice like what happened in Anambra and also there are situations where on election day, voters go after the vote buyers.

"However, right now, it is now going beyond simply the question of buying votes at polling units. What political parties do is critical to what INEC does. INEC conducts secondary elections but it is candidates that participate in the secondary elections and the way money is exchanging hands is a source of concern.

“However, we have renewed our partnership with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) on this aspect".

Yakubu disclosed that the commission has finalised the Regulations and Guidelines for the 2023 general election, adding that about 430 million ballot papers would be printed for the 2023 elections.

Jega, on his part, said though there have been incremental positive changes in INEC over the years, the political class has made a lot of efforts to undermine the integrity of elections.

While commending INEC for refusing to yield to the pressure of political parties to change the timetable for elections, Jega said the timetable was set under a process of

very careful contemplation and in the context of the new electoral law.

According to him, shifting the timetable was a recipe for electoral disaster, "because once you shift one timeframe, it affects virtually all the others. So, frankly, I think the political parties have had opportunity to work within the timelines provided by INEC. "They had since February to do all that is required, leading to the primaries, but because of this mentality of impunity, they always assumed that even at the last minute, they can put pressure on INEC to yield and that was what they are doing. And frankly, INEC should never yield to this kind of pressure.

"If you change the time for primaries, it will affect everything.

You know, so you have to keep on adjusting, adjusting, and you lose trust, you lose confidence, and in fact, it may even affect the actual outcome of the election. So, that's why I think is a disaster to change it.

"But, of course, we will also expect that if INEC refuses to change the timelines, because of pressure by political parties, we do not expect INEC to also change the timetable in its own favour.

"So, it means both the Electoral Commission and the politicians and all stakeholders must work together within this timeframe.

And I believe this can lead for us having credible elections that we desire in this country."

The former Vice-Chancellor of Bayero University, Kano, main-

AEDC Says Staff Convicted for Vandalising Company's Installations Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja

The Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) yesterday announced that one of its employees, Bamidele Rasaq, had been convicted for destroying assets belonging to the power firm.

The AEDC which has its franchise areas as Abuja, Niger, Kogi and Nasarawa, vowed to ensure that maximum punishment was meted to its staff and members of the public who willingly set out to sabotage its activities.

A statement by the AEDC's Chief Marketing Officer, Donald Etim, revealed that that Rasaq was arrested on May 19, by the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in Kogi State.

He noted that the convict was eventually charged to a chief magistrate's court and sentenced to one-year imprisonment over his involvement in the nefarious act.

Etim stated that the company has zero tolerance for vandalism of its network assets, "irrespective of whether perpetrators of such actions are staff of AEDC or members of the general public."

He disclosed that further disciplinary measures would take its full course which in the current case is outright dismissal and loss of all employee benefits.

He added that vandalism of electricity network infrastructure remained a serious offence punishable with a maximum sentence of life imprisonment under section

1(9) of the Miscellaneous Offences Act, 2004.

In a related recent incident, the AEDC stated that an upper Sharia Court sitting in Minna, Niger State, had handed down a one-year jail term to one Abdulsalamad Abubakar, who was caught equally vandalising an AEDC substation in Paida junction of Minna.

Etim noted that Abubakar was apprehended in the criminal act on the 29th of March, 2022, by an official of the Nigeria police and was charged to court for contravening Sections 123 and 385 of the Sharia Penal Code law of Niger state.

He noted that the law prescribes five years’ imprisonment as punishment for the offence.

tained that the use of money in Nigerian politics was a big issue of concern, and that, rather than having improvements in that regard, Nigeria seemed to be sliding back.

According to him, with the way money was being spent by politicians, the country was moving in the direction of becoming a plutocracy rather than a democracy.

Plutocracy is basically government of the rich for the rich by the rich.

While berating the National Assembly for increasing the threshold of campaign finance by political parties, he said, "Imagine, the National Assembly altered the Electoral Act to increase the threshold of how much a candidate can spend for election finance. That is something that we should all have opposed. Regrettably, we were too busy opposing the issue of electronic transmission and so on, that we lost focus.”

Senior Fellow, CDD, Prof. Jibrin Ibrahim, also decried what he termed the "extensive growth of banditry within the political class" and said elections in the country would always become a

complicated issue when a significant percentage of the political class were crooks and criminals.

"What we are confronted with, our elections is the extensive growth of banditry within the political class.

We as citizens will continue to have crisis in our elections if we don't get people of integrity into the political class. Elections is easy. It is a technical act. I have observed elections in many countries less developed in Nigeria but they don't have issues like Nigeria.

"When delegates collect money, they are eating the integrity of that election. Primaries are so many and we are all watching the drama with shock and manipulation is the order of the day. And how those who are involved have had the opportunity to steal public funds.

Therefore, that culture of banditry and criminality controls the electoral process."

National Chairman, Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC), Yabagi Yusuf Sani, however, defended the cost of nomination fees collected by parties, adding that parties needed funds to print posters, pay staff and organise campaigns.

According to him, blaming politicians alone for the rot in the system was unfair.

CDD director, Idayat Hassan, said Nigeria was faced with harsh realities, where parts of the country were embroiled in different forms of conflict and violence.

Hassan said all the threats have implications for the conduct of elections – both in terms of safety of election materials, personnel and even voters, adding that they also have the potential to affect voter turnout and the legitimacy of the result.

Director of programmes, YIAGA Africa, Cynthia Mbamalu, lamented that 'political bandits' had turned election to highest bidder, noting that, the high cost of nomination forms, especially, by the major political parties had kept bright minds away from the political process.

"The process is already being rigged during the primaries.

Younger people want to see themselves part of the process and on the ballot. If we don't see younger people and women participating, then, it is a challenge," she said.

BUHARI, OSINBAJO, NEF, CAN FLAY KILLING OF PREGNANT WOMAN, CHILDREN IN ANAMBRA to the security agencies and pray vehemently for the abductees to regain freedom.

Owing to the killings in Borno State, President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, yesterday, put off all his political engagements to mourn the farmers killed by terrorists in the state.

Lawan had already scheduled some engagements for Wednesday, one of which was to meet with leaders and delegates of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Borno State.

He was also scheduled to go to Gombe to meet party leaders and, particularly, the delegates to canvas support for his presidential bid ahead of the upcoming primaries of APC. Lawan decided to put off all his political engagements for the day on account of the tragic incidents and proceeded to Maiduguri on a condolence visit.

AFBA Expresses Concern Over Killings in Nigeria, Others Worried by the rise in human rights abuses by government forces in various parts of Africa, the African Bar Association (AFBA) is to organise a training workshop

for military lawyers, senior military officers, and other security agencies on legal boundaries of counter-terrorism. President of the association, Hannibal Uwaifo, disclosed this yesterday in Lagos, at a media briefing on insecurity in Africa and its effects on civil liberty.

Uwaifo, who is also President, South-east, South-south Professionals of Nigeria (SESSPN), expressed shock at the rate of anarchy being unleashed in the eastern part of Nigeria by armed criminal gangs.

He said, "With deep sadness, shock and awe, the SESSPN has continued to watch the unfolding anarchy being unleashed in the eastern part of Nigeria by armed criminal gangs seeking to achieve what no right thinking mind can decipher.

"The terrible nature of these crimes in outright killings and beheading of innocent people predominantly of the South-east is not only unfortunate but calls for deep resignation.

“As if arson, kidnapping, rape and molestation of innocent citizens were not enough, these angels of darkness and despair have continued to carry on unchecked and have become a

law unto themselves such that the eastern part of Nigeria has become very famous for bad news and serious criminality."

Uwaifo stated that Nnamdi Kanu, who is presently standing trial, brought terror to his people rather than peace and progress, which they deserved.

He added, "If, however, the gentleman never intended this, the authorities holding him must grant him the permission to make a public statement condemning this carnage and dissociating the proscribed IPOB from these heinous crimes.

"He can do this by recorded broadcast on the electronic media and he can order a stop to all these atrocities just as he ordered the activities of IPOB. This is the only way to clear his name in the face of history in the making."

Speaking further on the workshop, Uwaifo said it would deal essentially with building operational capacities for military lawyers and senior military officers who hold command and administrative positions.

The workshop, which is in collaboration with Defence Headquarters, would hold on June 8 to 10, 2022, at the Nigerian Air Force Conference Centre, Abuja.

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NEWS

TAX COMPLIANCE OF POLITICAL OFFICE HOLDERS MEETING WITH INEC...

L-R: Executive Chairman, LIRS, Mr. Ayodele Subair; Chairman Code of Conduct Bureau, Prof. Muhammed Isah; Chairman of INEC: Prof. Mahmood Yakubu; Executive Chairman FIRS, Mr. Muhammed Nami, and Executive Chairman KADIRS, Dr. Zaid Abubakar during a collaborative meeting for Effective Tax Compliance of Political Office Holders held at the INEC head-office on Tuesday

Ahead of Today’s Guber Primary, Omo-Agege Releases 60-Page Agenda for New Delta Deji Elumoye in Abuja Deputy President of the Senate and governorship aspirant of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Delta State, Senator Ovie OmoAgege, has released a 60-page work plan to build a new state for the good of all Deltans.

In the document personally signed by him ahead of today’s governorship primary of the APC, the ranking senator described the manifesto as the EDGE to Build a New Delta (BAND), which covers critical areas of governance that would drive his government’s agenda if elected governor during the 2023 elections.

According to him, “EDGE encapsulates Employment and Empowerment, Good Governance, Development and Enduring Peace and Security. It is a product of profound thought based on my practical experience both in the Executive and Legislative arms of government.

“Having served as Secretary to

the Delta State government, and as senator, and now as Deputy Senate President, I am privileged to have a panoramic view of the issues of governance. It is these experiences I am bringing to bear on my plans for Delta state.

“Yes, governance is tough, but it is not all rocket science. So, we are going to engage with vigour on all fronts, and build a brand new Delta,” Omo-Agege said, adding that he was motivated by a desire to arrest receding hope among Deltans and build a state, where the people's future is brighter than their past.

His words: “I will address our scary unemployment rate by prioritising public investment in agriculture and tech-driven entrepreneurship. My plan as stated in our manifesto will change the business ecosystem of the state and create an investment friendly charter that makes access to funds and infrastructure a natural way of life.

“Human capital development,

agriculture, tourism, infrastructure, housing and other labour intensive interventions are at the core of our agenda. We shall establish a Delta State Employment, Entrepreneurship and Empowerment Programme (DEEP), and facilitate the establishment of cluster industries in each of the 25 LGAs of our state.

"We will deliberately create an enabling environment for industries and manufacturing, establish technology hubs, set up small business loan guarantee schemes, promote skills acquisition and set up a Career Development Centre for Deltans.

“As part of our plans to promote ease of doing business, we’ll undertake institutional and process reviews, remove red tape and bureaucratic bottle necks, improve infrastructure, re-engineer our peace and security strategies, while establishing a one stop repository of business knowledge and information.

Continued online

WINNERS, LOSERS IN THE PDP SENATORIAL PRIMARY ELECTIONS State

Abia South: Adamawa Central: Bayelsa Benue Delta

Edo

ADAMU: NO DECISION ON ZONING TILL AFTER SCREENING APC PRESIDENTIAL HOPEFULS We have aspirants from across the country in the race. We will take the decision when we get there."

On likely consensus arrangement, Adamu noted that party members could not be denied the right to contest for president.

"You can't stop our party stalwart from contesting elections or aspiring for the presidency. It is their right and we are happy for them. There is nothing wrong for anybody aspiring for the exalted seat of the presidency. It is God that decides who gets what. Once God makes up His mind and says this is who He wants, that is what we are praying for.

"We have 28 aspirants for the presidential ticket and everybody knows that all of them cannot get the ticket. If it's God's wish, they all can even be president of the country one after the other. Our goal is to ensure justice in the choice of who emerges as the candidate of the party. That does not mean we are perfect. But we pray we do the right thing," he stated.

Asked if the party was considering adopting the type of consensus arrangement that produced him as the chairman of the party, Adamu said the chairmanship position was not the same as the position of the president.

According to him, "There is no truth in what you said. Reason is

that the chairmanship seat is not the same as that of the tussle for the presidency of the country. You can't even compare the two of them.

That question does not arise.

"However, the party has laid down its rules and regulations for the aspirants. We would scrutinize all of them based on our guidelines to be sure we pick the right candidate for the party."

When asked if having such a high number of aspirants was not a subtle ploy to extend President Muhammadu Buhari's tenure, Adamu said such insinuation was also not true, because the president sought no extension of tenure.

He said, "I can only say God will deal with those behind such insinuations. President Buhari had since 2019 declared that he would not seek tenure extension. He told everybody and swore with the Qur'an that he would not breach constitutional provision on his two terms tenure.

“The issue does not even arise.

The president while performing the lesser hajj reiterated this position. If there is truth in such talks, none of the aspirants would have procured expression of interest form."

On the allegations that aspirants were sharing money to delegates, Adamu said he had no evidence to that effect.

"For now, no law is against

aspirants talking campaign to delegates. I don't have evidence that aspirants are sharing money to delegates. For me, it's the delegates that are selling their conscience, which is not proper. Our delegates should know that anybody sharing money to them can't be the right candidate for the party. He doesn't mean well for the country. I don't have a solution for the problem."

With 145 governorship aspirants and 25 presidential aspirants, Adamu noted that the reason was because APC was the government in power and those that matter in the country were in the party.

"You don't know the reason, it's because that is where those that matter in the country are. It didn't start today. We are the government in power today. In spite of all the insults, the APC has the advantages far ahead of the other parties. A sign of a powerful man is the one that is full blooded and fat.

“Today, the APC is the biggest party in Nigeria. It's natural that the APC will attract more Nigerians than any other party. This is where it is happening. Any right thinking politician would naturally gravitate towards the APC. Of course, we have our problems, but today we are the cynosure of all Nigerians and I am hopeful, God-willing, we will retain power at the general election."

Zones

Enugu

Lagos Ogun Ondo Osun Plateau Taraba

LOSERS

South: North: West: South: North: South: Central:

Okezie Ikpeazu (Unopposed) Aminu Iya Abbas Binos Yaroe Rev. Amos Yohanna Seriake Dickson Abba Moro Ned Nwoko Michael Diden Chief Ighoyota Amori

South: Central: North: East: North:

Matthew Iduoriyekemwen Senator Clifford Ordia Pascal Ugbome Chimaroke Nnamani Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi

Matthew Urhoghide

South:

Sunday Katung Adamu Lawal Khalid Mustapha (Unopposed) Tajudeen Yusuf Dr. Victor Adoji Segun Adewale Ajibola Kalejaiye Agboola Ajayi Ifedayo Adedipe (SAN) Mr. Tokunbo Modupe Senator Francis Fadahunsi Mr Olubiyi Fadeyi Simon Mwadkwon Shuaibu Issa Lau Darius Ishaku Haruna Manu

Senator Danjuma La’ah Ibrahim Usman

Kaduna Central: Kogi

WINNERS

North: West: East: West: East: South: Central: North: East: Central: North: North: South: Central:

Auwa Tukur Peter Fiwa Zira Maigadi

Paul Oseji Daniel Reneyieju Chief John Nani

Eze Godwin

Dino Melaye Yomi Ogungbe Nicholas Tofowomo Ayo Akinyelure Gbenga Onigbogi Mr. Ganiyu Olaoluwa Istifanus Gyang David Ishaya

44

THURSDAY MAY 26, 2022˾ T H I S D AY

NEWS

SAN Wants Regional Supreme Court to Enhance Justice Delivery Alex Enumah in Abuja

As part of efforts at enhancing speedy justice dispensation in Nigeria, a senior lawyer, Chief Ogwu Onoja, SAN, yesterday made a case for the establishment of Regional Supreme Courts.

Onoja explained that the Regional Supreme Courts, when established, are to be saddled with responsibilities of handling cases which ought not to get to the Central Supreme Court.

As part of enhancing the nation’s jurisprudence, the senior lawyer also beliefs it is high time the bench of the apex court considers some of its dissenting judgments as law.

He was speaking at the public presentation of a book on ‘Dissenting Judgments of a retired Supreme Court Justice, Ejembi Eko in Abuja.

Speaking against the backdrop of depletion of Justices on the Supreme Court bench, Onoja lamented that the apex court would continue to be over worked with unprecedented number of cases unless something is done to address the situation.

Onoja, whose law firm put the book together, disclosed cited cases such as land disputes, marriages and civil cases among others that should not get to the central but terminated at the Regional Supreme Courts adding that

issues such as policy and Constitutional matters should be handled only by the Central Supreme Court.

Onoja insisted that Regional Supreme Courts as being operated in advanced countries of the world would definitely

ensure speedy and quality justice delivery in Nigeria when adopted.

“With only 15 Justices and mountains of cases, Supreme Court will continue to be overworked. There is the need to fill the vacancies as quickly

as possible.

“Cases in the Supreme Court as presently constituted last for more than ten years. That is one of the reasons why parties are changed along the lines due to deaths and incapacitations.

“At the moment, all manners

of cases such as marriages, land and employment matters are finding their ways into the only Supreme Court in the land.

This trend is unnecessary because it is affecting the quality of justice delivery in the country.

INFINIX PHONE NEW OFFERING…

L-R: Tech Influencers, Fisayo Fosudo; Tobi Ayeni; Manager, Integrated Marketing Communications, Infinix Mobile Nigeria, Yemisi Ode, and Marketing Manager, Infinix Nigeria, Yemi Adewunmi, at the launch of Infinix Note 12 phone in Lagos… recently.

ETOP UKUTT

Oyetola’s Wife Canvasses Support A’Ibom APC Members Protest Plot to Impose Udofia as Guber Candidate May 26. in Abuja on behalf of the candidate.

Akinwale in Abuja for Husband’s Re-election in Osun Adedayo However, the protesters protesters said that there was “The Akwa Ibom State Members of the All Progressives armed with placards with no doubt that there would be Government is the sponsor Yinka Kolawole inOsogbo

The Wife of the Osun State Governor, Mrs. Kafayat Oyetola, has appealed to the elecorates to give her husband, Mr. Adegboyega Oyetola, all the supports he needed to be re-elected in the July 16 governorship election in the state.

According to Mrs. Oyetola, the incumbent governor remained the best and the only candidate to beat among the other 14 candidates of the different political parties jostling for the number one seat in Osun State.

She stated this while leading an all women high powered campaign team to Sekona and Ilobu markets in Osun State.

Amidst singing and dancing by the traders and non-traders in the two markets, the first lady’s

campaign team was received with excitement and jubilation during a campaign walk round the two markets While thanking them for their warm reception and show of love, Mrs. Oyetola promised that more dividends of democracy would be delivered to them if they would re-elect Governor Oyetola.

On the campaign tour with Mrs. Oyetola were the wife of the Deputy Governor of Osun State, Mrs. Oyefunke Alabi; a former member of the House of Representatives, Hon. Ayo Omidiran; as well as wives of top government functionaries in the state. Moreover, female aspirants vying for one elective position or the other were not left out of the campaign tours to the two markets.

Niger PDP Postpones Governorship Primary over Protests by Aspirants LaleyeDipoinMinna The governorship primary election of the main opposition Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) in Niger State has been postponed over protests by some of the aspirants.

The exercise has now been fixed for Thursday.

THISDAY reporter at the state headquarters of the party in Minna reported that the postponement was after all delegates from the 25 local government areas had assembled and commenced accreditation before some aspirants raised observation on means of identification.

As a result four aspirants, namely Mr. Sani Idris Kutigi, Mr. Sidi Abdul, former Minister of Sports, Mr. Abdulrahman Gimba and Mr. Abubakar Isah Jankara had threatened to stage a walk out if their demand of ensuring proper identification of all the proposed 800 delegates was not carried out.

The aspirants later held an emergency meeting in one of the offices in the secretariat after which they approached the Chairman of the State Electoral Panel and Deputy Governor of Bayelsa State, Mr. Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, on their decision to pull out of the contest.

BON Moves to Reward Operators in Broadcast Industry Ebiti Yusuf The Broadcasting Organisations of Nigeria (BON) on Tuesday unveiled the logo of the Nigeria Broadcasting Awards (TNBA) aimed at recognizing and rewarding excellence in the broadcast media industry.

Speaking at the event, the Chairman of BON, Mr. John Ugbe, who is also the Chief Executive Officer of MultiChoice Nigeria, said the awards would hold in October.

According to him, the awards

were introduced to formally celebrate the excellence of broadcast media professionals, responsible for providing daily information, public enlightenment, and entertainment to Nigerians.

He said the decision to introduce the TNBA was taken at the BON 76th General Assembly, which approved the composition of the Awards Steering Committee drawn from public and private broadcast media houses under the chairmanship of Mr. Guy Murray-Bruce, who is the President, Silverbird Group.

Congress (APC) in Akwa Ibom State yesterday stormed the national secretariat of the APC in Abuja to protest against the alleged plot to impose Akanimo Udofia as the governorship candidate of the party in 2023 elections.

Recall that in the revised timetable and schedule of activities of the ruling party, the governorship primary election would take place Thursday,

various inscriptions like “Akan Udofia, Akwa Ibom State does not wants you,” “Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) sponsoring known mole in APC,” “No to Akan Udofia, PDP mole in APC,” “Akan Udofia is working for PDP and Governor Emmanuel Udom,” arrived at the party secretariat around 10:30 a.m.

Mr. Obong Victor who addressed journalists yesterday

serious costly dissatisfaction in the party.

Victor said: “This is to urgently bring to the attention of the National Chairman and the entire members of the National Executive Council (NEC) of our great party that an established and confirmed PDP sponsored mole in the person of Akanimo Asuquo Udofia is about to be imposed on Akwa Ibom APC members as their governorship

of Akan Udofia. The purpose is to pick the governorship ticket of APC and later pave the way for the success of the Udom Emmanuel imposed governorship candidate of PDP. “It is also part of their agreement that in the eventual circumstance of disqualification of the PDP candidate, Akan Udofia will carry on with the interest of Governor Udom Emmanuel.”

2023: Forum Urges PDP Not to Ignore Northern Elders’ Advice on Consensus Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja

The South-south Emerging Leaders Forum (SELF) has called on the leadership of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) not to ignore the consensus arrangement reached by the Northern elders ahead of the party’s presidential primary scheduled to hold on Saturday.

Former President Ibrahim Babangida-led Northern leaders had asked the Northern aspirants in PDP to pick a

consensus aspirant among the four major aspirants from the region which later produced Governor Bala Mohammed of Bauchi and former Senate President Bukola Saraki.

But in a statement issued yesterday by the National Coordinator of the forum, Mr. Preye Johnson, said only Mohammed can convincingly win a presidential election for the PDP based on facts on the ground.

The group noted that for the

main opposition party to return to power, PDP leaders should not ignore various opinion polls conducted by various reputable organisations which came out to be in favour of Mohammed.

It said: “In the North East zone comprising of Bauchi, Gombe, Adamawa, Taraba, Yobe and Borno, PDP has equal states with the APC, but the party owes its strength in the zone to Bala Mohammed who has repeatedly funded the party activities not just in

Bauchi but also in Gombe and Yobe where the party is not in power.

“The national body of the party has consistently leaned towards the governor when troubled and seeking for a way out. In one of the instances, the Uche Secondus-led National Working Committee had in May 2021 appointed Bala Mohammed to chair a committee to advise it on the contentious zoning arrangement ahead of the 2023 election.

Mbam’s Campaign Council Alleges Plot to Disrupt Ebonyi APC Governorship Primary Some All Progressives Congress (APC) stakeholders in Ebonyi State have alleged a plot by the state government and its agents to disrupt the party’s governorship primary scheduled for today.

The stakeholders, under the aegis of Destiny 2023 Campaign Council, said in a statement by their leader, Paul Okorie, that armed thugs had been ‘imported’ to cause mayhem during the exercise.

They added that they

had uncovered plots by the government and its agents to drag the party to court against the laid rules that all aggrieved members must first explore internal conflict resolution mechanisms.

However, party Chairman, Stanley Okoro, described the allegation as “laughable and baseless.”

The statement by the Campaign Council of the immediate past Chairman, Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission,

Chief Elias Mbam, however, called on the APC National Chairman Abdullahi Adamu to take note of the antics of the government to destroy the party in the state.

The statement reads in part: “It has come to the knowledge of the Destiny 2023 Campaign Council, the campaign organization of Elias Mbam, of the plans to scuttle the gubernatorial primary in Ebonyi State scheduled to hold tomorrow(today), Thursday 26th

May 2022 by agents of Ebonyi State government.

“Credible intelligence available to us alleges that agents of Ebonyi State Government have procured armed thugs .., some of who are already in the state, in liaison with the local vigilante (Ebubeagu Security Network) with the plan to attack and cause mayhem at the venue of the gubernatorial primary tomorrow to ensure that it does not hold and prevent perceived opponents from attending.”

Kogi Restates Commitment to Boost Food Production Ibrahim Oyewale in Lokoja

Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello has restated the commitment of his administration to continue to give priority to agricultural sector in the state, noting that agricultural value chain system will always boost food production in Nigeria.

Governor Bello, who disclosed

this while speaking at official presentation of 39 transportation facilities to 87 marking groups to ease movement of farm produce across the three Senatorial District of Kogi State in Lokoja yesterday.

Bello, who was represented by the Deputy Governor, ,Edward David Onoja formally handed over the facilities to the beneficiaries congratulated

them for the rare opportunities.

The governor urged them to project 12 years from now and see what they can achieve with the support given to them by the APPEALS project as it is meant to take them to the next level.

Bello expressed gratitude to the APPEALS project in the state led by the State Project Coordinator, Dr Sanni

Abdullahi Ozomata for transforming the agricultural sector of the state, recalled the support facilitated by the project across the segments of production, processing and marketing along with the Women and Youth Empowerment Programme (WYEP,) noting that great value has been added to the Agricultural sector of the state.

THURSDAY MAY 26, 2022 ˾ T H I S D AY

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NEWSXTRA

2023: INEC Sticks to Election Timetable as SAN Warns of Constitutional Crisis Chuks Okocha in Abuja The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has advised the 18 registered political parties to go ahead with the business of electing party candidates across board as there will not be any tinkering of the 2023 General Elections Timetable and Schedule of Activities.

This is even as a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) has warned that there will be a constitutional crisis in the country and a breach of ECOWAS Protocol on Elections if the 2023 General Elections Timelines issued by INEC is adjusted for whatsoever reason.

Speaking on Channel Television programme monitored in Abuja yesterday, INEC National Commissioner and Chairman, Voter Education Committee, Festus Okoye, reiterated the position of the commission that the 2023 Election Timetable and

Schedule of Activities will not be adjusted for whatever reason.

He insisted that controversy trailing the Amendment to

the Electoral Act 2022 by the National Assembly (NASS), the delay in signing it into law by President Muhammadu Buhari and the demand by

political parties for adjustments to the Timetable and Schedule of Activities do not affect INEC in discharging its mandate.

“INEC rolled out the 2023

General Elections Timetable and Schedule of Activities after President Buhari gave Assent to the Electoral Act 2022. And at the moment INEC is making

use of Electoral Act 2022 and until the Act is amended and Mr. President gives his assent, the commission will continue to work with the Act.”

REMEMBERING OLUKOREDE ADEYEMI...

L-R: Representative of Minister of Works and Housing, Mr Hakeem Bello; former Ogun State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Babatunde Ipaye; Senior Special Adviser to Lagos State Governor, Mr.Omotayo Sanyaolu; Legal Practitioner, Mr. Andrew Adeosun; Dr.Sirajudeen Owosho of Department of Philosophy, University of Lagos, and President, Clarion Call For The Yoruba Race (IIPE OMO ODUA), Prince Adeyinka Oyediran at a book launch in honour of late Mr. Olukorede Adeyemi in Lagos...recently DAN UKANA

Insecurity Forces Anambra NSCDC Arrests 65-year-old for Alleged PDP to Move 3-Man Ad-hoc Abduction of Two Minors in Kwara Delegates Election to Awka David-ChyddyElekeinAwka The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Anambra State yesterday moved its three-man ad hoc delegate election in two senatorial zones to Awka, the state capital.

THISDAY learnt that the decision was reached because of the level of insecurity in most parts of the state, causing the election of 14 local government areas in two senatorial zones-Anambra South andAnambra North-to be moved to Awka.

A chieftain of the party in the state, Hon Ngozi Agudosi, who

disclosed this to journalists, said: “This primary election is costing our party a lot of money, but we have to do it for the safety of our party members.

“In most communities in Anambra State, you cannot even hold family meetings let alone election. Even Ogbaru in Anambra North senatorial zone is not safe, and we wrote to the national leadership of the party to grant us the permission for Anambra North and South senatorial zones to hold their primary elections in Awka, and they granted.”

Friends, Well-wishers Felicitate Aregbesola at 65 Family, friends and wellwishers yesterday converged on Lagos and Osun to pray and celebrate the Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola who clocked 65 years.

Speaking in Lagos, one of the locations for the celebration, the former Commissioner for Home Affairs and Culture, Tourism, Osun State, Prince Adetona Sikiru Ayedun said they were in the state to celebrate the birthday of their mentor, benefactor and a trailblazer in the person of Aregbesola.

Ayedun said: ’’ The man

we are celebrating today is a great mentor, a politician and a core activist and all of us here celebrating him are politicians and we have benefited greatly from his ocean of wisdom and benevolence. Our gathering here is to celebrate him, celebrate God in his life and his entire family.’’

Also speaking, the former Lagos State Chairman, National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) Alhaji Rafiu Olorunwa, said:’’ We are here to celebrate our mentor and our leader in the person of Ogbeni Rafiu Aregbesola, who clocked 65-year- old.’’

Commonwealth Council, Nigeria Collaborate on Food Security Dike Onwuamaeze

The Chief Executive of the Commonwealth Enterprise and Investment Council (CWEIC), Mrs. Rosie Glazebrook, has said that the council would collaborate with Nigeria on food security, transition from fossil to cleaner energy sources and enhancing the skillset of Nigerian enterprising youths through internship program.

Glazebrook expressed this view during his recent visit to Nigeria to mobilise the Nigerian organised private sector to attend the forthcoming Commonwealth

Business Forum 2022 (CBF 2022) in Kigali, Rwanda, to let their voice be heard by the global investment community.

Glazebrook said that the CBF 2022, which would hold from June 21-23, is being organised by the CWEIC in partnership with the government of Rwanda as an official part of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM), in Kigali, Rwanda.

She said: “We see huge opportunities here. We have talked about energy transition and that is certainly a key area for opportunities for us to do more work with Nigeria.”

Ilorin, May 25, 2022 (NAN) The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, (NSCDC) in Kwara has arrested a 65-year-old man, Oluwole Akinola for alleged abduction and assault of two minors in Ilorin.

This is contained in a statement signed by the spokesman of the Command, Mr Babawale Afolabi and made available to newsmen on Wednesday, in Ilorin.

Afolabi said that the suspect

reportedly abducted two minors for days and sexually assaulted them while they were in his custody.

The spokesman said that the Gender-based Violence Unit of the Corps interrogated the suspects while the two victims helped in the investigation.

“It will be recalled that one of the victims’ father, Borokini Oluwaseun, 32, of Aduralere Street, Ilorin, made a complain that his 12-year-old

daughter was missing.

“After some days, the girl was found in the custody of the suspect at Shao Garage Area, Ilorin,” he said.

Afolabi said that the timely arrival of the NSCDC operatives saved the suspect from mob action.

He added that the people of the neighborhood alleged that it was not the suspect’s first time of being accused of rape and sexual

molestation of minors.

“In his statement, the suspect claimed to have lost his wife 15 years ago, which made him to live alone,”.

He also denied having sexual intercourse with minors.

The suspect said that the two girls actually approached him to shelter them and he harbored them for some days, but he did not sleep with them.

Oxfam: A Million People Could Fall into Extreme Poverty Segun AwofadejiinBauchi It has been observed that for every new billionaire created during the pandemic, one every 30 hours, nearly a million people could be pushed into extreme poverty in 2022 at nearly the same rate, reveals a Non-governmental Organization, Oxfam has said According to a statement by, Executive Director of Oxfam International, Gabriela Bucher which was made available to newsmen yesterday, “as the cost of essential goods rises faster than

it has in decades, billionaires in the food and energy sectors are increasing their fortunes by $1 billion every two days.

“Profiting from Pain” is published as the World Economic Forum — the exclusive get-together of the global elite in Davos — takes place for the first time face-to-face since COVID-19, a period during which billionaires have enjoyed a huge boost to their fortunes.

“Billionaires are arriving in Davos to celebrate an incredible surge in their fortunes. The pandemic and now the steep increases in food

and energy prices have, simply put, been a bonanza for them.

Meanwhile, decades of progress on extreme poverty are now in reverse and millions of people are facing impossible rises in the cost of simply staying alive” “Oxfam brief shows that 573 people became new billionaires during the pandemic, at the rate of one every 30 hours. We expect this year that 263 million more people will crash into extreme poverty, at a rate of a million people every 33 hours” “Billionaires’ wealth has risen

more in the first 24 months of COVID-19 than in 23 years combined. The total wealth of the world’s billionaires is now equivalent to 13.9 percent of global GDP. This is a three-fold increase (up from 4.4 percent) in 2000” “Billionaires’ fortunes have not increased because they are now smarter or working harder.

Workers are working harder, for less pay and in worse conditions.

The super-rich have rigged the system with impunity for decades and they are now reaping the benefits.”

Court Jails Two for Forgery, Felony in Ondo

Fidelis David in Akure

An Ondo State High Court sitting in Akure, the state capital yesterday, sentenced Stella Akinbobola and Adewumi Matthew Opeyemi to seven years and five years imprisonment respectively.

They were convicted for forcible entry and conspiracy to commit felony.

The convicts were dragged to court by the police for unlawful invasion of land located at Ondo town, in

Ondo West Council Area of the State.

In his Judgement, Justice Williams Rotimi Olamide convicted the duo but discharged and acquitted the third defendant, Ojopaun Tope.

Justice Olamide however gave Stella an option of fine to the tune of N250,000 on each of the charges, while Matthew was given an option of fine of N100,000 on counts 1 to 4.

The two were accused of forgery and uttering a Warrant of Possession after same had

been signed by His Lordship, Hon. Justice Bode Adegbehingbe by altering the documents with the use of corrective fluid.

The suspects were also accused of inserting Claimant in the column where 1st defendant was originally written and inserting 1st defendant where Claimant was originally written.

With their action, the duo gave possession of land in possession of the rightful owners to a wrong party.

The prosecuting counsel, Tolu Abisagbo, said the case was a long journey to justice A former member of the House of Representatives, Joseph Akinlaja who supported nominal complaints in the case, said he decided to take up the matter because the two defendants forcibly took over the lands that belong to the people.

Akinlaja, said the judgement is a clear indication that the judiciary is the hope of the common man.

UN Expresses Worries over Rising Displacement in North-central, North-west Michael Olugbode in Abuja

The United Nations Migration Agency, International Organisation for Migration has expressed worries over rising displacement in the North Central and North West region of the country as a result of growing ethnic and religious groups as well as renewed attacks by bandits.

The organisation’s

Displacement Tracking Matrix (DTM) released yesterday showed that there is a new higher level of displacement in the two region between May 16 and 22 with 5,570 people affected by attacks and a total of 5,509 persons displaced.

The statement read: “Nigeria’s north-central and north-west zones are afflicted with a multidimensional crisis rooted in long-standing

tensions between ethnic and religious groups and involves attacks by criminal groups and banditry/hirabah (such as kidnapping and grand larceny along major highways).

“During the past years, the crisis has accelerated because of the intensification of attacks and has resulted in widespread displacement across the region.”

The statement further

revealed that: “Between the 16th and 22nd of May 2022, armed clashes and banditry have led to new waves of population displacement.

Following these events, rapid assessments were conducted by DTM (Displacement Tracking Matrix) field staff to inform the humanitarian community and government partners, and enable targeted response.

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THURSDAY, ͺ;˜ ͺ͸ͺͺ ˾ T H I S D AY

THURSDAYSPORTS

Jose Mourinho...history maker. He’s now first coach in modern era to win all UEFA trophies

Group Sports Editor: Duro Ikhazuagbe Email: duro.ikhazuagbe@thisdaylive.com

0811 181 3083 SMS ONLY

AS Roma players celebrating with the inaugural Europa Conference trophy in Albania shortly after defeating Feyenoord 1-0...yesterday

Mourinho Makes History with Roma, Wins Inaugural Europa Conference Title Super Eagles forward, Cyriel Dessers, fails to lift Feyenoord Peseiro Vows to Take Super Eagles Back to the Top

Roma won their first major European trophy by beating Feyenoord 1-0 in the inaugural Europa Conference League final in Tirana, Albania last night.

Jose Mourinho's first season in charge of the Italians ended with a trophy after Nicolo Zaniolo chested down Gianluca Mancini's lofted pass before

beating goalkeeper Justin Bijlow with a clever flick.

Super Eagles forward, Cyriel Dessers who was hoping to make history with the Dutch clubside was effectively marked by the tactics deployed by Mourinho.

Mourinho, who has won the Champions League, Europa

League and the UEFA Cup, is the first manager to win all of UEFA’s major European trophies.

The Portuguese was criticised after Roma were embarrassed 6-1 in Norway by Bodo/Glimtin the group stage last October.

But this win continued the former Chelsea and Manchester United manager's perfect record

in European finals, having now overseen five wins in five finals.

Feyenoord, whose campaign started in the qualifying rounds back in July, were denied an equaliser when Rui Patricio tipped Tyrell Malacia's attempt on to the bar soon after Mancini inadvertently hit his own post while trying to make a clearance.

Over N60m in Prize Money on Offer at 8th Okpekpe 10km Road Race A total prize purse of over N60million will be on offer at the eighth World Athletics Elite Label Okpekpe International 10km road race this Saturday in Okpekpe near Auchi in Edo State after organisers announced an unchanged prize money outlay on the event’s website, www. okpekperoadrace.com.

In the outlay, a total of $103,000 is on offer as prize money to the

top eight finishers in the men and women’s elite race with the winner in each gender category going home with $20,000 while $13,000, $9,000, $6,500 and $3,000 respectively will go to the second, third, fourth and fifth placed finishers.

Organisers also announced an unchanged prize money outlay for Nigerian runners at the race. The first placed finishers in both the

men and women race will go home with N1,000,000 while the second to the fifth placed finishers will get N600,000, N400,000, N250,000 and N150,000 respectively.

“The prize money on offer at the Okpekpe race is clearly more than the minimum gross guaranteed prize money specified in World Athletics' road race regulations,” said the Race Director, Zack Amodu, who

‘Sacked’ Kida NBBF Denounces IMC

The sacked board of the Nigeria Basketball Federation (NBBF) led

by Ahmadu Musa Kida has rejected the setting up of an Interim Management Committee (IMC) by the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports Development (FMY&SD) to run basketball in the country.

In an unsigned statement issued from the official email of the NBBF, the board said it rejected the move as it has no place in the constitution of the federation.

“The attention of the NBBF has been drawn to the Press Statement from the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports Development constituting an Interim Management Committee to run Basketball in Nigeria instead of the legally elected Board of the Nigeria Basketball Federation (NBBF) legitimately elected by

its Congress on 31 January.

“The Elective Congress made up of the certified delegates of the NBBF held in Benin, Edo State elected its representatives in a free, fair, and transparent election with the firm approval of the Ministry.

“The NBBF, therefore, denounces the Interim Management Committee (IMC) set up by the Federal Ministry, as this action is not in line with the provisions of the NBBF-approved statutes, which the Ministry vetted, accepted and a copy domiciled with them.

The board insisted that IMC was alien to NBBF. “The idea of an IMC is alien to the NBBF Statutes as approved by the same Ministry of Youths & Sports Development, the Nigeria Olympic Committee (NOC), and the Federation of International Basketball Associations (FIBA),

under which the affairs of the Federation are governed. It further violates FIBA Statutes and Regulations and a deliberate usurpation of power that has made Nigeria a laughing stock amongst basketball-playing nations,” it further stressed.

It describes this latest move as selfish move to cripple the sport in the country.

“The latest move is not to save basketball, but a selfish agenda to cripple the sport for reasons best known to such persons. “ To drive home it’s points, the body urged basketball stakeholders and players to ignore any competitions embarked upon by the Federal ministry of sports.

Already, the South East and the North East zones have declined to participate in any competition organised by the FMY&SD until the resolution of the crisis.

revealed that payment of prize money and bonuses is dependent upon athletes clearing the usual anti-doping procedures. ''Athletes running for the prize money on offer must also achieve a level of performance before they can redeem their respective prizes. ''For example, to qualify for the $20,000 top prize for the elite runners, the athletes must run 28:35.00 minutes or better for the men and 32:41.00 minutes for the women.

“For the Nigerian category, the winners must run 29:04.00 minutes or better for men and 34:05.01 minutes for the women’s race,” he added.

Amodu also revealed that only the top five finishers will benefit from the prize money on offer unlike in previous editions where the top eight finishers were captured.

“We are sticking strictly with World Athletics standard as specified in the new road race regulations which came into force last November,' explained Amodu.

Nigerian athletes who finish in the top five in each gender category will share in both the prize money for the elite athletes and also that reserved for Nigerians.

The Okpekpe international 10km road race is the first road race in Nigeria nay West Africa to be granted a label status by World Athletics.

Femi Solaja Newly appointed Super Eagles’ Head Coach, Jose Peseiro, has said that his aim is to take the senior Nigerian national football team back to the top after series of failed attempts.

In his first message to millions of Nigerians yesterday on social media, Peseiro said his wish is to take Eagles back to the top of African football and by extension on the global scale.

The Super Eagles were surprisingly eliminated in the Round of 16 at the last AFCON tournament in Cameroon. It was worse than the bronze medal feat achieved by sacked Gernot Rohr at the 2019 edition in Egypt.

The situation got to a head as Ghana came to Abuja to hold Nigeria to a one-all draw and qualified on the away goal rule for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar

Peseiro’s immediate task now will be to qualify the Super Eagles for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations in Cote d’Ivoire.

“Pride! It is with great pride and joy that I am the coach of one of the greatest football nations in the world.

“Commanding the Super Eagles starts with knowing how to respect the history, value it and be inspired by its roots,” Peseiro wrote on his verified Twitter handle yesterday.

Peseiro’s first competitive game in charge of the Super Eagles will be the 2023 AFCON qualifier against the Leone Stars of Sierra Leone at the Moshood Abiola Stadium, Abuja on Thursday, June 9.

Before then, the former Venezuela and Saudi Arabia gaffer will oversee the international friendlies against Mexico and Ecuador in USA starting this weekend .

Jose Peseiro...has promised to lift Super Eagles to summit of African football

THURSDAY MAY 26, 2022 • T H I S D AY

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Thursday, May 26, 2022

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MISSILE

Peter Obi to PDP Leadership

“Our national challenges are deep-seated and require that we each make profound sacrifices towards rescuing our country. My commitment to rescuing Nigeria remains firm, even if the route differs”—Former Anambra State Governor, in his letter of resignation and withdrawal from the presidential race on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) yesterday

OLUSEGUNADENIYI ‘I Want to Be a Party Delegate’ THE VERDICT

olusegun.adeniyi@thisdaylive.com

I

have a friend who is forever seeking trending jobs. He once wanted to be a petrol attendant.

None of us (his friends) understood why someone with a master’s degree could set his sights so low until he told the story of how a petrol attendant had ‘oppressed’ him by snatching his girlfriend during a fuel scarcity in the country. Last week, our guy scaled up by looking for anyone who could help him secure a job in the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation (OAGF). I’m still not sure how that went but I saw someone who resembled him in the ‘Baba Oyoyo’ crowd that ushered the new Overseer of the OAGF (interim replacement for the N80 billion guy) into office on Monday.

Readers must have seen the video clip of senior civil servants behaving like Lagos touts before their elevated colleague some now address as ‘His Excellency’!

Meanwhile, in fairness to my friend, he has never sought help from me. But that changed yesterday. I was in my office thinking of what to write this week when he walked in. After exchanging pleasantries, he said, “You know Segun that I have never disturbed you with my hustle.” I affirmed that. “But what I have come for is within your power. Promise me that you will help.”

I told him I don’t make such commitments until I know more about the request. “Well, that is fair. I am aware you know many prominent politicians so you can help me. I want to be a national delegate to the presidential primaries holding this weekend.” Before I could respond, he added, “Let me explain something to you because I am here for serious business. I am also aware that Omoyele Sowore is your friend, but I am not interested in being a delegate to the African Action Congress (AAC) national convention. I want to be a delegate for either the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) or the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)…”

I understood where my friend was coming from. Being a delegate at the national convention of one of the leading political parties in Nigeria has always been a lucrative enterprise. But it is even more so now going by the way the National Assembly has unwittingly reduced the number of delegates to elect party candidates for various offices. In the PDP, there will be just about 811 delegates to elect the presidential candidate and, in the APC, about 2320 delegates. What this means is that the fat cat aspirants in the two parties can afford to give each delegate $10,000 without leaving a hole in their pockets! The person to thank for that is the Deputy Senate President, Ovie Omo-Agege.

Shortly after the passage of the Electoral Act 2022, Omo-Agege sensationally confessed to unilaterally writing the law to advantage himself in the politics of Delta State. Addressing an audience comprised of his political loyalists in Pidgin English, he said: “No be who first call police dey win case o. They (obviously referring to some politicians within the state) dey here (Delta); we dey Abuja. You know what that means…As my leader, Dr Mordi said, electoral regime don change and that electoral act wey una dey hear so, na me write am. I write am because I know how Delta politics be.”

Omo-Agege may have written the electoral act as he claimed in the trending video, but he has hurt himself and colleagues in the process. For the first time under the current dispensation which commenced in 1999, all the ‘statutory delegates’ comprising public officials (from president to governor to council chairmen as well as federal and state lawmakers) have been played out. It was

not intentional. While Omo-Agege was obsessed with inserting the contentious section 84 (12), he unwittingly rewrote the rule to exclude himself and others from voting at the primaries. By the time he realized his mistake and called back his colleagues for a quick-fire amendment, it was too late. Now, we have a situation in which party members saddled with the power to nominate candidates have become super delegates and money is effectively the name of the game.

In recent days, interesting reports on the delegate business across the country have emerged based on what transpired at the PDP primaries.

A candidate for a federal constituency with 46 delegates and four contenders reportedly paid 20 delegates five million Naira each, thinking that would be enough to secure him a simple majority victory. When the ballots were tallied at the end of the exercise, he garnered only three votes. I understand the politician is now in the hospital.

There was a report in Daily Trust on Monday of how the son of a former vice president is asking delegates who collected N2 million each from him for a refund after he failed in his bid for a House of Representatives ticket. Each delegate in that federal constituency must have returned home last Sunday with close to N8 million but the young man had only two votes to show for his ‘investment’. Since there are no receipts/vouchers for such transactions, I wait to see how he might get his money back. In Delta State, a defeated aspirant slumped when he realized that the same delegates he had paid were singing ‘Winner o o o’ for his conqueror. Reports also indicate that you may have millions of followers on Twitter yet be short in the number of party delegates to secure a senatorial ticket as it happened to a popular political entertainer and skit maker!

With the nomination of presidential candidates slated for this weekend in both parties, the stakes are now even higher. The PDP commences its process on Saturday with the APC following 24 hours later. Not surprisingly, politicians have descended on Abuja from all over the country

for what promises to be a weekend of shock and surprises. But many are no longer leaving things to chance. On Tuesday, Senator Shehu Sani tweeted a story of how a defeated House of Representatives aspirant in Kaduna State “recovered over N100 million from delegates this evening, using vigilantes and hunters.” I have also been told by those who should know that some presidential aspirants have brought in ritualists who would administer an ‘oath of allegiance’ to delegates before they dispense any largesse.

What is going on today would be most fitting for a Nollywood blockbuster, except that we are talking about the future of Nigeria. Ideally, countries choose leaders based on their vision, intellect, and charisma. But in Nigeria, the route to power remains deploying ill-gotten money with expectations of a return on their investment. With a plethora of financial scandals dominating media headlines in recent weeks, it is not too difficult to know where the funds being thrown around by political office seekers are coming from. More unfortunate is that at a most desperate period in the history of our country, nobody is discussing issues. Scores of people are being killed daily in different parts of the country by sundry cartels of criminal gangs; rural communities, especially in the north, are being taken over by bandits who kill, maim and rape while imposing ‘taxes’ on the people. Even though the price of oil at the international market has continued to rise, we derive no benefit because of the way we have mismanaged the sector. The challenges at hand are numerous, yet not reflected in the disposition of those who seek to preside over our affairs.

Former Anambra State Governor and presidential aspirant, Peter Obi yesterday resigned from the PDP, but I believe he has left it too late to play the role of the much-needed political disrupter that the system urgently needs.

At practically all levels, there seems to be a misconception of what leadership and governance are all about. The tragedy of that misconception is evident in the scorecards of public officials who

celebrate inanities: erect boreholes, paint school premises, distribute wheelbarrows to young men, donate expensive vehicles to traditional rulers, allocate a billion Naira a day for some ill-defined ‘Egg Wednesday’ for ten million pupils that cannot be accounted for etc. These people fail to understand that good governance is that which is focused on citizens, their safety and welfare, the optimal allocation of scarce resources and the effective implementation of policies for service delivery. And because of that, only money for the purchase of votes is on offer by those who aspire to retain their offices as well as those who seek to oust them.

To wean the country of this transactional ethos in politics, we need to have a conversation about the minimal expectation of governance, and the values that should drive public office in Nigeria. What we now witness in the name of party primaries are bazaars and financial shoot-outs in which the highest bidders are securing the tickets. When the process for selecting candidates is compromised, it stands to reason that the people have already been rigged out because at the election proper, the electorate may be left with no more than a choice between rotten oranges and maggot-infested apples. And that is why there must be serious reform in the manner candidates emerge from the political parties.

People, according to the former Czech President and public intellectual, Vaclav Havel, are driven into politics “by ideas about a better way to organize society, by faith in certain values or ideals, be they impeccable or dubious, and the irresistible desire to fight for those ideas and turn them into reality.” From what we are witnessing, that may not be true of our country. Most are drawn into politics as just another job with which to make a profitable career. That perhaps also explains why even those who have completed their terms in various executive and legislative offices (and those still serving) now sponsor their sons and daughters for elective positions.

Before my friend left yesterday, I learnt a lot about the most lucrative trending job of the moment.

He explained to me how being a party delegate carries no risk but offers maximum rewards for all the ‘stakeholders’ involved, especially those who eventually secure the votes. It is difficult to doubt him.

NOTE: Piece concluded on page 26

Of ‘Ayinla’ and Rudigar

L

ast Sunday, I watched on Netflix Tunde Kelani’s brilliant biopic, ‘Ayinla’ (which depicts the life and career of the late Apala musician, Alhaji Ayinla Omowura). It was the same day I read the moving farewell message (‘Dear Chelsea’) of Antonio Rudiger, the Chelsea Football Club of London’s German defender with African roots. Ayinla and Rudiger are two different professionals with the latter still very much in the prime of his life and career while the former died 42 years ago. But in different ways, both (Ayinla’s biopic and Rudiger’s message to Chelsea fans) speak to talent and character as well as how the intersection between the two (or a lack of one) can make a remarkable difference in someone’s life trajectory. ‘Ayinla’ is a fitting tribute to one of the most iconic music stars of a certain generation. And I commend Kelani for making the movie. As for Rudiger, may his star continue to shine!

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