THURSDAY 16TH SEPTEMBER 2021

DPR to Exceed N3.2trn Revenue Benchmark, Adjusts to N5trn By Year End Gas transportation code attracts $1bn investment Regulator calls for industry collaboration on PIA Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja Buoyed by an impressive revenue performance, which has seen it generating 70 per cent of its

initial target of N3.2 trillion, the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) has raised the bar and now targets N5 trillion income by year-end

The oil and gas industry regulator noted that the recently launched gas transportation network code had already generated over $1 billion in investments. It called for

industry synergy to ensure that President Muhammadu Buhari’s vision for the sector was realised.

Speaking during a visit to the Abuja head office of Executive

Secretary of the Petroleum Technology Development Fund (PTDF), Dr. Bello Gusau, Executive Secretary of DPR, Mr. Sarki Auwalu, explained that as of the

end of August, over 70 per cent of the initial N3.2 trillion revenue target had been realised, making Continued on page 10

Okonjo-Iweala Named among TIME100 Most Influential People in 2021... Page 6 Thursday 16 September, 2021 Vol 26. No 9656. Price: N250

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Military Airstrike Hits Yobe’s Civilians in ‘Error’

NAF probes incident as Gov mourns victims

Kingsley Nwezeh in Abuja and Michael Olugbode in Maiduguri

FIFA GRACES AISHA BUHARI CUP TOURNAMENT...

L-R: FIFA President, Giovanni Infantino; Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu and his wife, Dr. Ibijoke, during the opening of the Aisha Buhari Cup at the Mobolaji Johnson Arena Stadium, Onikan, Lagos... yesterday

A military fighter jet believed to be targeting the Islamic State in West African Province(ISWAP) terrorist Continued on page 10

Salami: With Debt Service-to-Revenue at 98%, Nigeria's Borrowing Unsustainable Asks FG to sell off N900bn dead assets to enhance fiscal position Nigeria's public debt grows to N35tn, says DMO Ndubuisi Francis and James Emejo in Abuja Nigeria's current public debt stock is unsustainable even though the country’s debt-to-Gross Domestic Product (GDP) ratio at 35 per cent seems comfortable, Chairman of President Muhammadu Buhari’s Economic Advisory Council (EAC), Dr. Doyin Salami, has

said. Salami also lamented that with debt service-to-revenue ratio at 97.7 per cent (January to May 2021), the country's public debt profile was unmaintainable.

The assessment comes on the heels of Buhari’s fresh loan request, in a letter to the National Assembly seeking the legislature’s Continued on page 10

No Recoveries Yet on Stamp Duty, Malami Tells Govs...

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A PARTNERSHIP THAT WORKS...

Kwara State Governor, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq (right), presenting a souvenir to the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Baba Usman, when the IGP paid a courtesy visit on the governor in Ilorin... yesterday. The two held a meeting centering on how to strengthen security in the state, including the administration’s support to and partnership with the security agencies.

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

NEWS

AT FEC MEETING...

L–R : Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr. Boss Mustapha; Minister of Water Resources, Sulieman Adamu ; National Security Adviser (NSA) to the President, Major General ( Rted) PHOTO: GODWIN OMOIGUI Babagana Monguno and Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, at the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting held at the Presidential Villa, Abuja …yesterday

Dollar Scarcity May Hamper Shell’s Planned Sale of Nigerian Assets Chevron votes $10bn to cut carbon emissions in Nigeria, others by 2028 Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja The current challenge of dollarcrunch in the country may hinder plans by Royal Dutch Shell to sell off its onshore and shallow water assets, being managed by its Nigerian unit, the Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC), THISDAY learnt yesterday.

A Bloomberg report indicated that Nigeria’s lenders likely do not have enough dollars to fund clients seeking to acquire the oil assets put on sale by the International Oil Company (IOC), quoting Guaranty Trust Bank Plc. Guaranty Trust Bank Chief Executive Officer, Segun Agbaje said he didn’t see the likelihood of any client raising the estimated $2.3 billion needed to purchase the Shell assets.

Such a deal would require a syndication of up to $1.8 billion, and it “can be very tough to raise this kind of funding locally at the moment,” Agbaje said.

“When I look at the books of Nigerian banks today, I don’t see a lot of dollar liquidity,” Agbaje told an investor conference call in Lagos, according to Bloomberg, adding that “It’s becoming a very difficult deal for people to pull off.”

Nigerian banks in 2013, syndicated $3.3 billion debt to Dangote Industries for a refinery and petrochemical plant and recently financed Heirs Holding’s $1.1 billion acquisition of OML 17.

A slump in crude prices and an economic downturn arising from the coronavirus pandemic curbed foreign-currency flows into Africa’s largest crude producer and has continued to pressure its foreign reserves.

In May this year, Shell had said its onshore operations in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry were no longer compatible with its long-term climate strategy, coming

under increasing pressure from investors to slash emissions and pivot toward cleaner energy.

The company’s Chief Executive Officer, Ben van Beurden, told investors that the additional community issues in the Niger Delta were becoming a huge challenge for the company.

“The balance of risks and rewards associated with our onshore portfolio is no longer compatible with our strategic ambitions. We cannot solve community problems in the Niger Delta and the company has started discussions with the government on how to move forward,” he said.

The Anglo-Dutch company had been gradually selling onshore assets in the West African country for more than a decade, as it sought to put aside chronic problems such as pollution caused by ruptured pipelines and the resulting legal battles with local communities.

The issue has become more acute in the past year after Shell pledged to transform itself into clean energy giant and gradually wind down its oil and gas business to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.

The federal government also recently confirmed that talks were ongoing with Shell, but stated that it was encouraging the company to keep its onshore operations instead of divesting.

However, local communities from the Niger Delta have said that Shell cannot abandon the area after years of degrading their farming and fishing environment, insisting that aside remediation works, compensation must be paid before the company’s planned exit.

Recently, Wood McKenzie, a leading global oil and gas consulting firm, putting the total value of SPDC, the subsidiary the parent company proposes to totally divest

from, at about $2.3 billion. But the IOC must get consent as well as negotiate the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC)’s pre-emptive rights before the assets can be sold, it was gathered.

As many as 19 Oil Mining Leases (OMLs) would be put up for sale by the oil giant in onshore locations and shallow waters in the company’s eastern and western operations in the Niger Delta.

In February, a Dutch court held Shell’s Nigerian subsidiary responsible for multiple oil pipeline leaks in the Niger Delta and ordered it to pay damages to farmers.

Meanwhile, Chevron Corporation has pledged to triple to $10 billion its investments to reduce its carbon emissions footprint through 2028, but said it was not yet ready to commit to a 2050 net-zero emissions target.

Oil producers globally are under mounting pressure from

investors and governments to join the fight against climate change and sharply cut greenhouse gas emissions by mid-century, with US majors lagging efforts by European companies.

Chevron said half of its spending will go to curb emissions from fossil fuel projects, total of $3 billion will be applied for carbon capture and offsets, $2 billion for greenhouse gas reductions, $3 billion for renewable fuels and $2 billion for hydrogen energy, Reuters reported.

Chief Executive Michael Wirth told investors Chevron may not be ready to commit to net-zero targets, so as not to put the company, "in a position in which we lay out ambitions that we don't believe are realistic and deliverable."

"The board is looking to see, how do you deliver a strategy that meets the needs of shareholders today and the expectations of shareholders for the future?" the CEO said,

adding that, “Directors may re-address a net-zero goal later this year with the company's climate report.”

European oil producers have set plans to shift away from fossil fuels with larger investments in renewables and 2050 emission targets.

US oil producers Chevron, Exxon Mobil Corp and Occidental Petroleum sought to reduce carbon emissions per unit of output while backing carbon capture and storage.

BP Plc has said it will invest $3 billion $4 billion a year in low-carbon projects by 2025 and shrink oil and gas production by 40 per cent in the next decade, while Royal Dutch Shell Plc in February set annual investments of $2 billion $3 billion in clean energy.

Chevron maintained its goal of paring greenhouse gas intensity by 35 per cent through 2028 compared to 2016 levels from its oil and gas output, saying it

would expand renewable natural gas production to 40 billion British thermal units (BTUs) per day and increase renewable fuels production capacity to 100,000 barrels a day to meet customer demand for renewable diesel and sustainable aviation fuel.

"We expect to grow our dividend, buy back shares and invest in lower-carbon businesses," Wirth said.

Chevron aims to increase hydrogen production to 150,000 tonnes a year to supply industrial, power and heavy duty transport customers and raise carbon capture and offsets to 25 million tonnes a year by co-developing regional hubs.

“We have favoured action over pledges,” Wirth said on a call with reporters, insisting “We have not at this point declared a net-zero 2050 ambition as others have because we are still working on all of the elements that we believe will be essential in order to get there.”

FG Says Twitter’s Suspension to Be Lifted Soon Deji Elumoye in Abuja The federal government yesterday disclosed that the suspension placed on the operations of international microblog, Twitter, in the country would soon be lifted.

It assured that it was 'very close' to resolving the issues it had with Twitter which led to the temporary ban placed on the social media platform about100 days ago.

Speaking on the issue after the Federal Executive Committee meeting, Information and Culture Minister, Lai Mohammed, while fielding questions from newsmen on efforts to resolve the matter once again said in a matter of

days, the issue would be resolved.

He said: "I think even Twitter itself two days ago gave what I will call a progress report on our talks with them. And I think if I want to quote them rightly, it has been productive and quite respectful.

"And as to how soon is soon, right? I want to assure you that between the time that Twitter operation has been suspended, and when it will be restored is by far, much, much shorter.

“That I can assure you that it is by far. In other words, if the operation has been suspended for about 100 days now, I can tell (you) that we're just actually talking about a few, just a few more days now.

"What we're trying to do is the changes that have been going on, but we need to dot the i's and cross the t's, but I can assure us that we're not mindful of the anxiety of Nigerians and both parties are working very hard to put a closure on the matter.

"And like Twitter itself said the changes have been very productive on both parties. It has not been advisory at all.

And it's quite respectful."

Prodded further to be specific on when the matter would be resolved, the Minister said, "Honestly, we have gone very far, I won't be specific but we have gone very far, and honestly, it's just going to be very, very soon, just take my word for that.

Honestly, I can't be more specific than what I've told you that it is going to be very soon."

The federal government had in July suspended the operation of Twitter for deleting President Muhammadu Buhari's tweet on Mazi Nnamdi Kanu-led Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).

With the action of the government attracting condemnation from all and sundry, the federal government had on August 11, assured that the suspension would soon be lifted.

Mohammed had five weeks ago told newsmen at the end of a virtual FEC meeting that, “the end for amicable resolution is very much in sight."

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Okonjo-Iweala Named among TIME100 Most Influential People in 2021 Obinna Chima TIME Magazine has named the Director General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, in its 2021 TIME100, the annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world.

Okonjo-Iweala is the only Nigerian on the 2021 list which also had other global influential personalities such as the Duke and Duchess of Sussex Prince Harry and Meghan; Naomi Osaka, Britney Spears, Angelique Kidjo, Joe Biden, Donald Trump, Elon Musk, Kamala Harris and others.

Prince Harry and Meghan in an article on the selection of Okonjo-Iweala hailed the WTO boss, especially in her efforts to ensure vaccine equity.

“What will it take to vaccinate

the world? Unity, cooperation—and leaders like Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala,” wrote Prince Harry and Meghan wrote.

“As the first African and first woman to lead the WTO, a 164-member group of nations that oversees trade across the world, Okonjo-Iweala took on the role of director-general this March at a watershed moment for our global health and well-being. Make no mistake, her job affects every person, family and community.

“As we face a constant barrage of vaccine misinformation, bureaucratic slowdowns across both government and industry, and the rise of variants that underscore the urgency of the situation, OkonjoIweala has shown us that to end the pandemic, we must work together to equip every nation

with equitable vaccine access,” they added.

Prince Harry and Meghan pointed out that their, “conversations with her have been as informative as they are energising.

This is partly because, despite the challenges, she knows how to get things done—even between those who don’t always agree—and does so with grace and a smile that warms the coldest of rooms.

“The fragility of our world right now cannot be overstated. Just over a quarter of the nearly eight

billion global population is fully vaccinated.

“Achieving vaccine equity is a global duty of compassion for one another. Our hope is that guided by strong leaders like Ngozi, we can get there soon.”

Okonjo-Iweala, 67, is an economist and development specialist.

She is a renowned global finance expert with over 31 years of experience, having worked in Asia, Africa, Europe, Latin America, and North America. She used to be the Chair of the Board of

GAVI, the Vaccine Alliance and formerly African Union Special Envoy to mobilise international financial support in the fight against COVID-19.

In addition, Okonjo-Iweala served twice as Nigeria’s finance minister, from 2003-2006 and 2011-2015 and briefly as foreign affairs minister in 2006, the first woman to hold both positions.

As finance minister, OkonjoIweala steered Nigeria through the varying degree of reforms, particularly on macroeconomic,

trade, financial and real sector issues.

As Managing Director (Operations) of the World Bank, her several portfolios included oversight responsibility for the World Bank’s $81 billion operational portfolio in Africa, South Asia, Europe, and Central Asia.

Okonjo-Iweala spearheaded several World Bank initiatives to assist low-income countries during the 2008-2009 food crises and later in the trying period of the global financial crisis.

US Donates $6.8m to Combat Human Trafficking in Nigeria Michael Olugbode in Abuja The United States has donated $6.8 million for projects to combat trafficking in persons in Nigeria.

The US is sponsoring the projects through its Department of State’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) with the fund made available to the United Nations Office for Drugs and Crime (UNODC), which would oversee the projects in the country.

A statement by the US Embassy in Nigeria yesterday, explained that the INL donation would fund UNODC to train the Nigeria Correctional Service in the northeastern states of Borno, Gombe, and Adamawa.

The funds would also support UNODC’s Middle Belt Investigations project by ensuring local police investigators in Kaduna, Plateau, Benue, and Nasarawa states have the training

and resources to respond more effectively to incidents of criminality, kidnapping, and conflict.

The project also aims to improve the capacity of local courts and prosecutors by increasing transparency and adherence to due process for cases related to the activities of Boko Haram and ISIS-West Africa.

The statement noted that the United States values its relationship with Nigeria and, through her partnership with the UNODC, provides support to its work combatting drugs, crime, and corruption, and building the capacity of the Nigerian National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP).

It further revealed that the INL funds were made possible through appropriations made by Congress to the U.S. Department of State to support efforts in the fight against organised crime and drug trafficking worldwide.

AirCrash:AIBSubmitsInterim Report to Air Force Chief Report makes 27 initial findings, eight safety recommendations Kingsley Nwezeh in Abuja The interim report of the joint investigative body constituted to unravel the circumstances sorrounding the crash of the Nigerian Air Force Kings Air-350 in Kaduna, some months ago,was yesterday submitted to the Chief of the Air Staff, Air Marshal Oladayo Amao.

The aircraft had crashed while landing in Kaduna, killing then Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. General Ibrahim Attahiru and 11 other senior military officers.

A statement issued by the Nigerian Air Force said the Commissioner and Chief Executive Officer of the Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB), Engr Akin Olateru, submitted an interim report on the incident to the air force chief in his office in Abuja after three months.

"The submitted report is organised into three sections namely, the information obtained in the course of the investigation, analysis of data collected in view of the board’s terms of reference and the conclusion, which covers the initial findings and immediate recommendations.

"It should be noted that at this interim stage, a total of 27 initial findings and eight immediate safety recommendations were made for the convening authority as well as other aviation-related agencies for immediate implementation.

"It is expected that the final report will contain the flight data recorder readout, the reviewed

operator’s and service provider’s standard operating procedures as well as other detailed analysis," it said.

While receiving the report, the air force chief reiterated the essence of activating the ‘joint investigative’ clause contained in the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed between the NAF and the AIB on July 1, 2020.

According to him, the successful collaboration was a clear indication of the potency of collaboration in aircraft accident investigation, which must be encouraged.

Amao also noted that such collaborative efforts made accident investigations more transparent and open while also stating that the outcome of the investigation was not necessarily aimed at punitive measures but essentially at generally improving safety in the aviation industry.

Chief Executive Officer of AIB, Engr Akin Olateru, in his remarks, stated that the joint investigation with the NAF was its first direct involvement in military air crash investigation in Nigeria and second investigation outside its mandate, having also assisted Sao Tome and Principe in the past.

He also stated that copies of the report with the endorsement of the air force boss would be submitted to the Minister of Aviation and Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) to ensure that the recommendations addressed to aviation agencies were implemented.

No Recoveries Yet on Stamp Duty, Malami Tells Govs Alex Enumah in Abuja The Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, has written the 36 states governors of the federation regarding the state of stamp duty collection and remittance in the country.

Malami in the letter stated that although recoveries were being conducted for federal Ministries, Departments, Agencies and the financial institutions but, "At this stage liabilities are being established, and no actual recovery has been made."

The letters according to Malami's media aide, Dr. Umar Gwandu, were written pursuant to the provision of Section 111 of the Stamp Duty Act which provides that, “all duties, fines, penalties and debts due to the government of the federation imposed by this Act shall be recoverable in a summarily manner in the name of the Attorney General of the Federation or the state.”

In a statement made available to journalists yesterday, the media aide added that the letters were for the purpose of compliance with audit and recovery of back

years of stamp duty from January 15, 2016 to June 30, 2020.

“Pursuant to Mr. President’s approval and directives, I also wish to request Your Excellency to direct the State Ministries, Departments, Agencies, and Regulatory Institutions of Financial Sector to engage and grant access to the appointed Recovery Agents for the purpose of the Audit and Recovery of Stamp Duty to ensure that all established liabilities are remitted as appropriate,” the letter read in part.

Gwandu noted that Section 111 of the Stamp Duty Act granted the Attorney General of the Federation an exclusive power to recover any outstanding payment or remittances related to stamp duty.

He explained that what the Attorney General of the Federation did was to activate those powers, conduct the audit and recovery of back years stamp duty in collaboration with stakeholders.

He said the federal government of Nigeria has set up an InterMinisterial Committee on Audit and Recovery of Back years Stamp Duties from January 15, 2016 to June 30, 2020.

Members of the committee were

drawn from Office of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice in collaboration with relevant agencies including the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Federal Inland Revenue Service, Office of the Accountant General of the Federation, Ministry of Finance, Central Bank of Nigeria, Revenue Mobilisation and Fiscal Allocation Commission, among others.

The statement explained that in view of the need to provide a comprehensive overview of the process and to properly understanding the task, the AGF organised a meeting with Attorneys General of States since they have similar powers with respect of stamp duty of Ministries, Departments, Agencies and Financial Institutions in their respective states.

Only last month, the Attorneysgeneral of the 36 states sued Malami, over the alleged failure of the federal government to remit funds generated from stamp duties into states accounts.

The states had argued that they are the sole authority to collect stamp duties and not the federal

government.

Meanwhile, states starting with Rivers are challenging the right of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) to collect Value Added Tax (VAT), with a Federal High Court already given judgment in favour of Rivers State.

Justice Stephen Pam of a Federal High Court in Port Harcourt had in a Judgment delivered August 9, stopped the FIRS from collecting VAT in Rivers and directed the state government to take charge of the duty.

Following the court judgment, Lagos had asked FIRS to stop issuing demand notices for VAT payments in the state, as well as went ahead to pass its own law on VAT. Although, the Court of Appeal, Abuja had made a temporary order asking Rivers and Lagos not to give effect to the judgment of Justice Pam, the Rivers State Government however on Tuesday appealed the ruling, asking the Supreme Court to nullify the temporary order restraining it from obeying the order of the Federal High Court.

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Immigration: We Seized Odili’s Passport for Being on EFCC’s Watch List Former Rivers governor sues service Alex Enumah in Abuja Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has revealed that the reason it seized the passport of a former Rivers State governor, Dr. Peter Odili was because he was on the

watch list of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

But Odili has dragged the service and its Comptroller General before a Federal High Court in Abuja, over the seizure of his

international passport, which took place at the Nnamd Azikwe International airport in Abuja for undisclosed reasons.

The service, which made the disclosure in a counter affidavit deposed to by one Okwe Ernest

from its Legal Department, averred that Odili was watch listed at the request of the EFCC. The Immigration Service claimed that the former governor was not entitled to the request presented before the court and

that his suit should be dismissed as premature.

The deponent asserted that the action of Immigration was as a result of collaborations of all the federal government security agencies and that the respondents were

WITH LOVE FROM NORWAY...

L-R: Norwegian Trade Counselor, Mr. Hans Christopersen, Minister of State Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva and Norwegian Ambassador to Nigeria, Knut Lein, during a courtesy call on the minister, at Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) Headquarters, Abuja, on Wednesday

AccessBankSuccessfullyLaunches$500mEurobond Eromosele Abiodun Access Bank Plc yesterday announced its successful launch of a $500 million 144A/RegS Senior Unsecured Eurobond, as part of its Global Medium-Term Note Programme.

According to a notice the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX), signed by the company’s secretary, Sunday Ekwochi, the transaction recorded massive interest from top quality investors globally, including the United States, Europe, Middle East, Asia and Africa, anchored by a number of large tickets.

The offering, Access Bank stated, achieved the lowest (outstanding) Nigerian bank Eurobond coupon, “supported by an over 3x oversubscribed orderbook of over $1.6 billion, which represents the largest orderbook ever for a Nigerian bank Eurobond transaction.”

The bank added that the bond, which would mature on September 21, 2026, was issued

with a yield and coupon of 6.125 per cent, with interest payable semi-annually in arrears.

“The coupon of 6.125 per cent is another first in the corporate Eurobond issuance space. Interestingly, the bond is already trading at a premium from issue levels with bids around 5.89 per cent levels whilst offers are around 5.78 per cent as the unmet demand from the auction filtered into the secondary market,” Access Bank said.

Access Bank Plc had few years ago announced the final redemption of its $350 million Eurobond notes due July 25, 2017.

The securities were issued in 2012 by Access Finance B.V., a direct, wholly owned subsidiary of the bank, on the back of an unconditional and irrevocable guarantee of the bank.

In October 2016, holders of $113 million of the notes chose to exchange same for a new 5-year bond, issued by the bank at the time. Upon maturity of the Eurobond in July 2017, the outstanding

portion of $237 million, as well as the final coupon value of $8.69 million, was redeemed from the bank's available cash reserves.

The bank had in a statement stated, “Access Bank has continued to maintain a robust balance sheet, supported by its strong liquidity position. The implementation of a disciplined capital and liquidity plan ensured that the bank was proactive and focused on raising capital in the International market,” Access Bank said the last note was issued at a period of extremely difficult macro-economic condition in 2016.

“Nonetheless, the success of the transaction, the first during the period, repositioned the Nigerian market in a positive light, following a year of volatile market conditions, and paved the way for other corporates to gain access to the market.

“Access Bank’s ability to redeem the $350 million Eurobond Notes highlights the resilience of our balance sheet and the efficiency

of our asset and liability management process, especially in the face of a macro underlined by FX illiquidity, double digit inflation and currency devaluation,” Access Bank’s Group Managing Director/ CEO, Herbert Wigwe said.

“By building a robust risk management culture and sustainable capital and liquidity management strategy, the bank has positioned itself to compete and win in the challenging but recovering macro

Don't Be Distracted By IPOB, Other Agitations, Arthur Eze Tells Buhari Deji Elumoye in Abuja Oil tycoon and businessman, Prince Arthur Eze has advised President Muhammadu Buhari not to be distracted by separatist agitations by the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and other groups in the country.

Plateau Killings: House Urges FG to Redeem N10bn Pledge for Victims’ Resettlement Udora Orizu in Abuja

The House of Representatives has appealed to the federal government to redeem its pledge of 10 billion naira for the resettlement of victims of Plateau attacks, and to also extend to them, similar privileges accorded to victims of crises in the North East and other parts of the country.

The House, therefore, mandated the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, National Emergency Management Agency and other relevant humanitarian agencies to

as a matter of urgency, provide relief materials to the victims of the attacks, in order to assuage the sufferings of their survivors.

It further mandated the Speaker, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, to lead a high-powered delegation to pay a condolence visit to the Government of Plateau State and commiserate with the Governor on the lives and properties lost.

The Green Chamber equally mandated the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to as a matter of urgency, conduct bye election to fill the vacant seat of Jos North/Bassa Federal Constituency, so that they

could also have their voice back in the parliament.

The resolutions were sequel to the adoption of a motion of urgent public importance, sponsored by the Chairman, House Committee on Navy, Hon Yusuf Gagdi.

Moving the motion, Gagdi recalled that within the duration of their recess, a lot of ugly events bothering on the state of security of the people occurred.

He lamented that scores of lives were killed with farmlands and properties worth hundreds of millions destroyed in various communities in Jos, Plateau State.

He said the House was aware

condition,” he added.

He said further that Access Bank has continued to leverage its corporate strategy and an experienced board and management, to consistently deliver solid performance.

“The recent re-affirmation of its credit ratings by several credit rating agencies as well as an upgrade to Aa- from A+

by Agusto, reinforces the bank’s strong fundamentals,” he said.

only carrying out their statutory functions.

The affidavit stated that since the passport was seized, Odili has never for once demanded for its release or cared to know why it was seized.

However, Odili, in the fundamental rights enforcement suit, claimed that the international passport with numbers B50031305 was seized from him on June 20, 2021 by operatives of the Immigration Service and has since been withheld.

In an eight paragraph affidavit personally deposed to, the former governor claimed that the passport was seized from him upon his return to Nigeria from the United Kingdom, where he had gone for his medicals.

Odili averred that on his arrival, his traveling documents were checked and given back to him and that while waiting for his luggage an official of Immigration demanded for the passport on claim of routine check, which he complied with but that the document has since been withheld.

He claimed to be a senior citizen of Nigeria, law abiding and had not done anything to warrant the seizure of the passport from him.

Odili prayed Justice Ahmed Mohammed to compel the two respondents to release the passport to him and also issue an order of perpetual injunction against the respondents from further harassing, embarrassing, intimidating or interfering with his fundamental right to freedom of movement.

The former governor also demanded a written apology for the embarrassment caused him by the Immigration.

When the matter came up on Wednesday, counsel to Immigration Service, Mr Jimoh Abdulkadir Adamu, informed Justice Mohammed that he had just filed counter affidavit to oppose the suit of the former governor and served same on him as required by law.

Adamu, the Legal Adviser to the two respondents, therefore, sought a brief adjournment to enable him put his house in order.

Odili's lawyer, Chief Ifedayo Adedipe, SAN, did not oppose the request for the short adjournment Justice Mohammed subsequently fixed September 28 to hear the matter.

that these barbaric killings had caused a serious breach of peace in some parts of Jos and the said communities had no voice in the parliament to air their grievances, following the death of their representative, late Hon. Maitala Haruna, who passed away in an accident on April 2, 2021.

Adopting the motion, the House commended Governor of Plateau State, Simon Lalong for taking active steps that prevented the escalation of the reprisal attacks that was imminent and also observed a minute silence in honour of victims of the recent killings.

Rather, he said the president should remain focused in his resolve to move the nation to greater heights.

According to a statement issued yesterday by the Media Adviser to the President, Femi Adesina, Eze stated this during a private visit to President Buhari at the State House, Abuja.

The businessman urged Nigerians to always preach peace as against hate, and draw lessons from countries suffering the effect of war.

He pledged loyalty and commitment to the unity, peace and indivisibility of Nigeria, urging President Buhari to stay focused and not be distracted by agitations for separatism rocking some parts of the country.

The oil magnate said: “There are countless Igbos scattered around the nooks and crannies of Nigeria, who live happily in peace, and do their legitimate businesses without complaint of marginalisation.

“No matter what, let’s tolerate one another and always embrace the spirit of peace, forgiveness and reconciliation. God that brought us together has not

made a mistake. I have no other country than Nigeria, let's join hands and solve our problems ourselves."

Eze commended the President on the successes recorded in the north-east where Boko Haram fighters are surrendering in droves, urging more efforts in the North-West against bandits and other criminals.

He also praised President Buhari on the infrastructural development in the south-east, particularly the second Niger Bridge, which has attained about 70 per cent completion and slated for commissioning before the end of 2022.

He advised the government to give more opportunities to local outfits like the Nigerian Security Printing and Minting Corporation to print election ballot papers, sensitive security documents, certificates, local, state and federal government revenue and treasury receipts, passports, and others, since it had the capacity to do so.

Responding, President Buhari thanked Eze for visiting and for his good wishes for the country and government at all times.

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IG: Buhari Has Approved Recruitment of 60,000 Police Officers in Six Years AbdulRazaq seeks better security presence in Kwara

Hammed Shittu in Ilorin

The Inspector General of Police, Mr. Usman Alkali Baba, on Wednesday, disclosed that as part of initiatives to tackle prevalent shortage of manpower as well as contain increasing insecurity, President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the recruitment of 10,000 police personnel each year, translating into 60,000 in six years.

This, nonetheless, the Kwara State Governor, Alhaji AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, has called for increased presence of police officers and other security officials in the state to enhance the security of life and property.

Baba, who dropped the hint in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital, during his one-day visit to the state said, the exercise would take place across the 774 local government councils in the country in order to reflect the home-based grown security apparatus.

According to him, the engagement of more police personnel was supposed to have started last year.

"A total number of 20,000 police personnel would be employed this year across the 774 local government areas of the country in order to take care of last year planned employment that did not take place.

"President Muhammadu Buhari has given approval for us to recruit 10,000 police personnel every year for six years. We have started but we have not done for 2020. So, we are doing for 2020 and 2021 between now and the end of the year. Their training is for six months. Latest by the end of 2021, our strength is expected to increase by 20,000," he said.

He stressed that the recruitment exercise would help employ those that stayed within their localities since they were expected to know the areas they would be covering.

The police boss pointed out that, the development would also assist the police to have cultural background of the recruited men that would be monitoring the day-to-day maintenance of law and order in their areas.

He, however, contended that the country was winning the war against banditry and insurgency, adding that the police were not fighting the war alone.

"All other security agencies are in synergy in the fight against the bandits, including the military, which is leading the war and we're winning," he said.

Baba charged the officers and men of the Police to change their attitude to work by shunning bribery and stop extortion, saying,

"anything that comes through bad ways, affects you in bad ways," even as he encouraged the officers and men to rededicate themselves to their job.

Baba, who also said part of his visit was to inspect the Nigeria Police Intelligence School, which was under construction in Share, Ifelodun local government area, stated: "I am here on a one-day visit to appreciate and give words of encouragement to our officers and men in Kwara, as well as tell them what my administration has come to do.

"The government of President Muhammadu Buhari is doing its best efforts to meet our needs. The police reform is also being pursued.

Our pension, which is one of the bane of retired police officers, is also being looked at.

"We have one of our most important institutions in Kwara, which is our intelligence school, which ought to have taken up since in Share (Ifelodun local government). My mission is to get it take off immediately."

According to him, his administration was adopting intelligence gathering and ICT to check crimes and criminalities in the country.

"I have a mission and vision of policing through intelligence and proactive means of policing.

Policing is key, ICT is key and training is key. With the three, you can sit down and police the whole state.

"It is our intention to do manpower development in the art of intelligence gathering so that we will be able to police the country not manually but through e-policing.

"We can do a lot with proactive policing instead of being reactive.

We are asking for more support from your administration to ensure that the school takes off.

We are ready and willing under this administration to make the condition of service more conducive for our officers and men to better serve the people, he said.

Speaking directly to his men, he said, "You're here doing the job of law enforcement officers. Most of us serving here must have come from other part of the country. It is Nigeria Police, it is not Kwara Police or Ilorin Police. So, we must dedicate ourselves to do more.

However, I want to congratulate you that Kwara State is the most peaceful state compared to many others.”

He clarified that community policing was a voluntary vocation and meant for people, who had jobs but only wanted to give back to their society by helping to keep

SALAMI: WITH DEBT SERVICE-TO-REVENUE AT 98%, NIGERIA'S BORROWING UNSUSTAINABLE approval of $4.179 billion ($4.054 billion and $125 million) and £710 million external loans.

This is just as the Debt Management Office (DMO) yesterday disclosed that Nigeria's total public debt, comprising states and federal government debt obligations, grew by 7.75 per cent, from N32.916 trillion in December 31, 2020, to N35.465 trillion as of June 30, 2021.

According to Salami, the country’s debt stock is estimated to hit about N54 trillion when Ways and Means as well as the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) liabilities and projected fiscal deficit for 2021 are put into consideration.

To improve revenue, therefore, the economist said the government must block leakages, unlock opportunities at state level, improve tax efficiency and coverage, and sell-off dead assets, which are estimated at $900 billion.

Salami, in a presentation on "The State of the Economy," pointed out that the federal government's expenditure had been on the increase, and at a faster pace than its revenue. He added that public debt had continued to expand on the back of growing fiscal deficit.

He said from January to May 2021, actual fiscal deficit was N3.01 trillion, representing 53.8 per cent of total budgeted deficit for 2021.

Salami stated, "While overall expenditure has grown by 102 per cent, from N5 trillion to N10.1 trillion between 2015 and 2020, revenue increased by just 15 per cent.

"This subdued government revenue is as a result of constraints around domestic production/ investment; low tax base, as tax revenue to GDP still revolves around seven per cent; limited effort to explore and unlock opportunities for revenue generation at state level; overcentralisation and issues relating to efficiency in revenue collection."

The economist pointed out that macroeconomic stability, consistency of policy and regulation, sectoral reforms, human capital development, and resolution of the security crisis were key to the economy’s ability to rebound. He also stated that the investment climate in the country currently faced major headwinds, as total foreign investment inflows into Nigeria remained low.

The presidential advisor said foreign direct investment (FDI)

inflow was $875 million in the second quarter of 2021, which was the lowest quarterly inflow since first quarter of 2016.

Salami said FDI inflow into Nigeria had revolved around $1 billion in the last five years, adding that FDI inflow in the second quarter of 2021 was $78 million, even lower than Q2 2020.

He said the country's investment climate was being constrained by macroeconomic instability, policy inconsistency, inadequate infrastructure, insecurity, as well as tough business climate.

Salami said the way forward for the country was for the state Houses of Assembly to help in improving state competitiveness by reallocating spending priorities.

He said more emphasis should be given to human capital development and the provision of social amenities for the populace.

Among other things, Salami said they serve as champions of Ease of Doing Business, adding that the legislative bodies can review existing legal impediments to doing business in the states.

The steps, according to him, would include amending tax laws; reforming procurement laws to support indigenous private sector; improving access to construction permits; and making it easier to register properties.

Nigeria's Public Debt Grows to N35tn

Meanwhile, Nigeria's total public debt, comprising states and federal government debt obligations, rose by 7.75 per cent, from N32.916 trillion in December 31, 2020, to N35.465 trillion as of June 30, 2021.

The federal government carries 83.07 per cent of the debt burden while the states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) account for 16.93 per cent Domestic debt accounts for 68.40 per cent while the external component stands at 38.60 per cent.

Director General of the Debt Management Office (DMO), Ms. Patience Oniha, who gave the figures during a virtual debt management presentation to the media yesterday, said while the total external debt component stood at N12.706 trillion as of December 31, 2020, it rose to N13.711 trillion as of June 30, 2021.

Oniha also said total domestic debt increased from N20.210 trillion as of December 2020, to N21.754 trillion as of June 30, 2021.

A breakdown of this gives N17.632 trillion for the federal government, while N4.122 trillion is for states and the Federal FCT. Of the N13.711 trillion external debt, the federal government only accounts for N11.828 trillion while the states and FCT make up the balance of N1.883 trillion.

Explaining the latest move by the federal government to secure $4.054 billion, €710 million and $125m fresh borrowing, Oniha stated that it had nothing to do with President Muhammadu Buhari as an individual.

According to her, approval has already been secured from the Federal Executive Council (FEC) and the National Assembly under the under the 2018-2020 External Borrowing (Rolling) Plan to finance capital projects.

Oniha noted that there were entrenched processes and statutory instruments, including annual budgets, anchored on the Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF), which allowed borrowing.

Buhari had on Tuesday asked the Senate to approve $4.054 billion, €710 million and $125 million fresh external loans to fund projects captured under the 2018-2021 borrowing plan.

The president said the projects listed in the borrowing plan were to be financed through sovereign loans from the World Bank, French Development Agency (AFD), China-Exim Bank, International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), Credit Suisse Group and Standard Chartered/China Export and Credit (SINOSURE).

He said the loans would be used to fund federal and state governments’ projects that cut across key sectors, such as infrastructure, health, agriculture and food security, energy, education and human capital development, and COVID-19 response efforts.

Oniha also spoke on the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) overdrafts to the federal government. She said at the beginning of the year, they stood at N10 trillion, and must have increased by now. When added to the current debt profile, it would certainly increase the debt figures, she stated.

But she noted that the process of adding the CBN loans had commenced, adding that the approval of the Federal Executive Council and the National Assembly would be secured to do that.

it safe.

The clarification came on the heels of suggestions that the government was meant to pay some community police constabularies that were recently inducted across the country, including in Kwara State.

"For those who are interested in the community policing project, community Police officers are supposed to be people, who have lawful means of livelihood. It is not a paid job. Community Police officers are not going to be paid.

“They are people, who have the interest of protecting their community, who would volunteer service to their community at their own leisure hours, may be after closing from work, market or their business, and come together in support of their community and try to provide service.

"We have made a lot of efforts to train those who are interested and we are also training more. Our training is just for them to have rudiments of policing, rudiments of crime prevention and control. The training is for them to know the rules of 'dos and don'ts'. These are some of the aspects of the things we do," he said.

He, however, maintained that, "Nobody eliminate crimes completely from any society but you can mitigate or reduce it to the barest minimum. When

you reduce crimes to the barest minimum, people will go about their lawful businesses. When you enforce law and order, the society will be a society, where impunity is brought down and other forms of lawlessness will not be there.

"When you dedicate yourself to your job as law enforcement officer, you have your reward not only here but also in heaven, because it is a social service. This uniform will give you your paradise and it can also give you your hell, depending on how you wear it and how you want work with it.

On his part, AbdulRazaq, who made the call for better security, when he received Baba at the presidential lodge, Ilorin, said, "Our challenges are enormous.

Being a relatively safe state, security agencies tend to be comfortable with Kwara and that explains why they often take out forces from Kwara to bolster security elsewhere.

"For example, the Army has taken out most of their men to Northeast and we are making efforts to get them back. For the police, our need requirement is about 8,000-10,000 men but we have only about 3,000 now.

Many officers of the two mobile squadrons here have been moved out. I am saying this because we definitely need more men on ground here.

MILITARY AIRSTRIKE HITS YOBE’S CIVILIANS IN ‘ERROR’ group, yesterday, wrongly hit a civilian population in Yobe State, allegedly recording many casualties.

The unfortunate development, THISDAY gathered, happened in Buhari village in Yunusari Local Government Area of the state.

But the Nigerian Air Force said last night that it had immediately launched a probe into the incident.

In the same vein, the Yobe State Governor, Mai Mala Buni, yesterday, mourned victims of air strikes said to have killed an unspecified number.

Sources told THISDAY that the air strikes were targeted at ISWAP locations but hit civiliansin error.

Spokesman of the Nigerian Air Force, Air Commodore Edward Gabkwet, said last night that the air force was investigating the bombing.

Also, a statement issued by the Yobe State government said the governor, has "commiserated with families of those, who lost their lives in the unfortunate Air strike on Buhari village in Yunusari council.

He said although it could have been an accident or mistaken target, government would join hands with the security agencies to unravel the

root cause of the incident.

Buni, has therefore, directed his Special Adviser on Security Affairs, to liaise with the Nigeria Airforce and the Multi National Joint Task Force, to look into the unfortunate Air strike.

"Government will work closely with the security forces especially, the Nigeria Airforce to establish what actually happened," Buni assured the people in the statement.

Continued, the governor said, "This is very important and necessary for us to guard against future occurance and to safeguard the lives of our people."

Buni, who reiterated the preparedness of his administration to work with all security forces to ensure the safety of the state, has directed government hospitals in Geidam and Damaturu to offer free medical services to those who sustained injuries from the air strike.

"Similarly, the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) has been directed to provide relief materials to cater for the immediate needs of the families of the deceased persons and other members of the community," the official statement stated.

DPR TO EXCEED N3.2TRN REVENUE BENCHMARK, ADJUSTS TO N5TRN BY YEAR END the organisation to set a new N5 trillion target.

Auwalu said he was at the PTDF headquarters as part of efforts to strengthen collaboration with other agencies in the oil and gas sector, stating that as a capacity building organisation, PTDF and DPR have a lot in common. He said plans were already in place to pursue the new revenue target, hinting that parties in the years between 2005 and 2007 oil bid rounds have started paying part of their signature bonuses to halt the activation of the “no work programme” bond.

The DPR executive secretary explained, “Last year, we exceeded our revenue target. We were given N1.5 trillion, but we were able to generate N2.7 trillion for government and this year, our revenue budget was N3.2 trillion and as of August, we had generated up to 70 per cent. So, it is obvious that this year, we are going to exceed the target.

“We are targeting N5 trillion for government, but as it is now, the N3.2 trillion as of 30 August, we had generated 70 per cent. So,

with September to December, it is obvious the 30 per cent will be a walkover.

“We have seen the fiscal part of the PIA and there are the 2005, 2006, 2007 bid rounds, which bonds were attached to the PSC blocks, but were not activated. They were based on work programmes. So, if you don’t do work programme, we will activate the bond for you to pay and the bond is handsome. We have budgeted it in our revenue.”

Auwalu pointed out that because some of the bid block owners did not want the clause used, they had started writing to the DPR to pay certain percentages of their signature bonuses, so that they would retain the assets and delay activation of the clause.

“They feel that if they retain the block, they will enter into the new fiscal terms and that has immensely generated serious revenue to the signature bonus account,” he emphasised.

While calling on the PTDF to be part of the work programme scheme, which will give them a

full view of all the programmes in the industry, Auwalu said it was high time the industry started exporting skills to neighbouring countries that were just discovering oil. He stressed that with the recognition of seven new basins, including Sokoto, Upper Benue, Chad, Anambra, Dahomey, and the traditional Niger Delta basins, the PTDF had to fully work with sister organisations for new skills in the sector.

He stated that the leadership of the steering committee for the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) was clear-headed enough to deliver on its mandate and ensure that the right thing was done.

Auwalu stated that with the national oil and gas excellence centre working with the PIA implementation committee, there was a lot of untapped potential to be explored, adding that the centre now has the capacity to see every reservoir with the latest hardware and software.

According to Auwalu, “We have 7,100 discovered reservoirs in Nigeria, but we are producing from 1,331. We have producing

reservoirs of 1,700, but we are not producing from all these oil and gas reservoirs. We have 18 billion barrels of oil in P3 reserves and in P2 areas.

“We have 68 TCF of gas in P2 areas and 70 per cent of this can be produced, giving us capacity to migrate and increase our reserve base as a nation and that was achieved after the establishment of NOGEC centre.”

Auwalu said with the help of the gas transportation network code that had registered shippers, aggregators, and gas producers in the network, investment generation exceeding $1 billion had been achieved.

“We will continue to push until we are satisfied that history has been made and the country is de-risked and there’s more investment coming into the country,” he explained.

In his remarks, Gusau stated that the managements of both organisations were sorting out all the issues raised during the PTDF’s earlier visit to the DPR. He expressed appreciation to Auwalu for the collaboration.

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T H I S D AY • THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 2021

COMMENT

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

EMEFIELE, CBN AND THE ECONOMY The attacks on the Central Bank governor are mischievous, writes Ahmed Abdulkadir

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entral Bank of Nigeria (CBN), in recent years always gets the denigration when the economy dithers. It’s becoming a pattern. And the man in the maelstrom of deprecation is usually Mr. Godwin Emefiele, the Governor of the apex bank. An inquisition on the serial attacks shows that they are borne out of ignorance of the baying mob. Ignorance of the role of central banks across the globe; ignorance of micro and macro-economic dynamics in a national economy.

But talk is always cheap. And in a democracy with its full complement of free speech, talk is even cheaper, in some cases, crass. This is the context to situate the recent poorly choreographed verbal attacks on Emefiele and the CBN. Some Nigerians have blamed him even for their personal failings. Others think he has everything to do with the sudden arrival of the coronavirus pandemic since early last year. Emefiele has been blamed for Nigeria’s dwindling economic fortunes. And you would think he and he alone has the magisterial power to determine the price of crude oil in the international market.

Simply put, Emefiele has become the fall guy in the national blame game. And surprisingly, the Nigerian central banker takes all the darts with equanimity and grace. He has managed to stay focused, heralding a plethora of reforms to move the nation from the pit of consumerism to productivity. He has fought many battles and still does. Those who criticise the CBN Governor obviously do so either out of ignorance or are driven by sheer mischief to satiate the pleasure of rent merchants, crooked forex foxes and abusers of the basic rudiments in banking including bank-customer relations.

A sinister pattern is emerging in the manner the central banker is being placed on the chopping board by his traducers. Each time Emefiele busts the bubble of enemies of the nation’s economic well-being, he gets the flaks. When in June 2015, the CBN in a bold bid to save the naira and shore up the nation’s forex reserve excluded importers of 41 goods from accessing forex through the official window, all hell was let loose.

Import magnates and tycoons who have over the years abused the official forex window by accessing forex from CBN for local production of goods and services only to turn round and plough the same forex into importation of the same items they pretended to produce locally, found in Emefiele the obstacle to their easy fortune. It did not matter to them that Emefiele had to make the tough decision to save the naira and encourage local production.

These import mandarins went to town, calling for the head of the CBN Governor. Away with Emefiele, they chanted. Some alluded to his incompetence. To them, anybody that stops their devious trade of making easy money to the detriment of the nation’s economy is evil, an enemy of progress. But they, not Emefiele, are the proven enemies of the nation. They are the ones who frustrated local production and have turned our factories into warehouses for their imported merchandise.

Today, by hindsight, Nigerians now see the wisdom in Emefiele’s courageous decision to discontinue funding importation of those items from the nation’s hugely depleted forex reserve. Most of those items are now locally produced in commercial quantity through a vastly improved value chain.

Local production of rice, for instance, has never been this glorious.

Nigerian rice now competes favourably with foreign rice in quality.

Needless restating the fact that in terms of health benefits and for purposes of healthy living, Nigerian-produced grains come highly recommended ahead of the foreign ones most of which have not only long expired but are highly toxic because they have been subjected to

EMEFIELE IS NOT THE PROBLEM OF THE ECONOMY. ON THE CONTRARY, HE’S THE SOLUTION PROVIDER, BRINGING COMFORT AND MOUNTING A COTERIE OF INTERVENTIONS TO SAVE THE NAIRA AND BY EXTENSION, THE ECONOMY

huge volume of preservatives and chemicals to elongate their shelf life. This is aside the fact that Emefiele has used that masterstroke of no-forex funding for about 40 items to provide jobs for millions of Nigerian farmers, fabricators and those in allied industries.

Now, the same Emefiele has come under another hail of censure.

A group styled Arewa Youth Assembly wants Emefiele to resign. The group accused Emefiele of being responsible for the downward spiral in the value of the naira. They say he is nursing a Presidential ambition in 2023; that he’s responsible for yet another bout of ASUU (Academic Staff Union of Universities) strike. They even accused him of ‘dishing out’ BDC licences to National Assembly members, the same Emefiele that recently reined in BDCs by stopping sale of forex to them because they have continually breached the agreement under which they were given forex and also for aiding in the spread and sustenance of terrorism in the country. Some BDCs had been reputed to be willing conduits through which Boko Haram and its bloody mission are funded.

But it’s obvious that the group lacks the capacity to understand the basic functions of CBN, or the sacrifices being made by CBN through several interventions to keep the economy afloat. The group’s pathetic lack of capacity is eloquently highlighted by the solecisms and gross infelicities including grammatical flaws that defined its press statement.

Such is the cheapness of talk. And more importantly, such is the uncanny fate of the critic. As George Edward Monroe once said, ‘the lot of critics is to be remembered by what they failed to understand.’ This is the sense in which critics of Emefiele should be excused. They dabble into a subject matter they have no understanding of. They goof and roll in the mud and still expect rational minds to applaud them. Never! No applause for them. They can only be remembered, even pitied, for what they failed to understand.

But wait a minute, does this not sound like another voice of Jacob and hand of Esau? How come this new ‘Emefiele must resign’ crusade is coming after Emefiele curbed the excesses of BDCs? And it might just as well be that there’s a big masquerade beating the drums for these young critics. But need I remind my beloved Arewa Youth Assembly that if there was ever any Central Bank Governor that has been fair, nice and benevolent to the north and the cause of the north, it’s Emefiele. The resurgence of momentum in agri-business in the north is all thanks to Emefiele who introduced the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme (ABP). The fact that we have rice pyramid these days in Kebbi, improved processes across the entire rice value chain; the fact that there’s improved cotton, maize, beans, wheat production among other productive ventures captured in the ABP speaks volume of the love of Emefiele for the north who today are the highest beneficiaries of the ABP. Emefiele is not the problem of the economy. On the contrary, he’s the solution provider, bringing comfort and mounting a coterie of interventions to save the naira and by extension, the economy. It’s not Emefiele’s fault that Nigeria produces crude oil, sells it cheap and spends much more than the production cost to import finished products of the same crude oil. It’s not Emefiele’s fault that Nigeria these past decades abandoned agriculture and a once thriving primary sector to anchor her economy on the weak ramparts of crude oil receipts which today has dropped significantly.

Let’s spare a thought. Emefiele has been good to the north, and to the country in general. We should never be the same people calling for his scalp. That’s the height of ingratitude.

Abdulkadir, a farmer, wrote from Kano

TINUBU, WIKE AND THE POLITICS OF VAT Olusegun Adeniyi canvasses a political solution to the VAT crisis

Continued from backpage

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ince everybody is talking about alcohol, including those who don’t drink, let us start from the VAT derived from it. In addressing the unholy wedlock between religious pulpit and political podium in my September 2019 column, I referenced the issue, following the destruction by the Kano State Hisbah Board of 196,400 bottles of beer in its effort to ensure a “sane, peaceful and sharia-compliant society.” I wrote: “this is the sort of hypocritical decisions that makes many to question the viability of our federal structure. The issue of VAT proceeds is one of the strongest points being canvassed by proponents of restructuring the country and it is difficult to fault. It is also one of the arguments made by former Vice President and presidential candidate of the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar before the last general election. ‘If a state is opposed to cattle tax or bicycle tax or alcohol tax, or pollution tax, for instance, it should not expect to share in the tax proceeds from those items,’ Atiku said in 2017.”

So, I align myself with those who say states that ban alcohol cannot benefit from VAT derived therefrom. But the notion of a ‘Parasitic North’ and ‘Productive South’ that forms the basis of most narratives when discussing the contradictions of Nigeria is not supported by any empirical evidence. While we cannot discount the argument of the Niger Delta whose people have for decades

borne the brunt of oil exploration without much to show for the resource, the oil money for which some people deride others is rent rather than “any rigorous productive activity,” as my egbon, Bashir Ibrahim Yusuf, reminded some of us in a chat group during the week. “The most hardworking Nigerians are the farmers who feed the nation with iron age tools without a fair reward for their labour.” And you find this class of Nigerians everywhere in the country.

As I have consistently argued on this page, the saber-rattling about North and South is a distraction from the real issue which is that Nigeria is not working for majority of its citizens. Now that the system is creaking beneath all of us, we must begin to fix it by bringing to the table the productive capacities of every citizen which means we need to wean ourselves of this distributive mentality that oil has foisted on our collective psyche. When the federal government argues for the retention of the status quo on VAT, it is to protect at least 30 of the 36 states which are both in the north and south.

But it is also now clear that the market is over for these states that must begin to generate their own economic activities. The days of taking begging bowls to Abuja that is neck deep in foreign debts is gradually but surely coming to an end.

This VAT crisis therefore comes with a huge opportunity to address fundamental issues in an economy that is already in dire straits and perfect our skewed federal structure. As I argued in my ‘Platform Nigeria’ presentation with the

theme, ‘Is Devolution of Powers the solution to Nigeria’s Problem?’ in May this year, the fiscal imbalance in which the federal government controls disproportionate power and wealth has become a huge problem. The current regime of ‘sharing the national cake’ is also unsustainable.

“We should actually be thinking in terms of getting the people to directly fund their government, not the gathering to share oil money, and the laziness, lack of accountability and tension associated with it. We should be moving from an extract and share economy to one funded by taxpayers.”

Last Friday, the Appeal Court sitting in Abuja ordered all parties to maintain the status quo and refrain from taking action that would give effect to the VAT judgement. It is interesting that the Rivers State Government has approached the Supreme Court to challenge that stay. From my reading of the whole situation and given the experience of Lagos on this issue, a political solution appears the surest bet to the VAT imbroglio. For that to happen, President Muhammadu Buhari must show leadership on the issue. He can delegate Osinbajo to use the instrumentality of the National Economic Council which he chairs to negotiate with the states.

In practical terms, there is value in a centrally collected tax and the current VAT regime has its own merit. We may need to change the name, increase derivation component, reduce cost of collection by FIRS and allow states to retain 100% taxes on certain items (like alcohol) that some may

have issues with. We may also need to tweak the sharing formula such that only a certain percentage will go to the central pool for sharing. But asking each state to keep all the VAT it generates will be difficult to implement under the current circumstance.

If, for instance, the courts uphold the current ruling, each state will have to create its own VAT law to plug the hole that the centrally collected and distributed VAT will create in their already troubled finances. Different rates in different states will make it difficult to do business across the country. Things exempted from VAT could also be brought under such law (like food and agricultural products, for states that don’t have other things they can immediately tax.) The implication will be higher prices and inflation. Besides, since most states don’t have the capacity that FIRS has, they may deploy commissioned consultants and motor park touts to do the job of tax collection. We all know that will be an open invitation to anarchy.

At the end of the day, we have two major problems. One, we have a revenue problem across the board. Without necessarily raising rates or creating new taxes, we need to bring more people into the tax net and be more efficient in collection.

Two, we need to spend the accrued revenues more prudently. No point taking taxes from the people and expending such proceeds on frivolities or having some mummy and son fight over millions of Naira after daddy had ‘disappeared’ the dollar component into his Babariga!

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EDITORIAL

ISSUES IN PANTAMI’S ‘PROFESSORSHIP’ The promotion of Isa Pantami to the rank of a professor is questionable

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he process of attaining a professorial height is part of the tradition of academic discipline, requiring a specific record of research and publications, and a rigorous conformity to the prescribed rituals of independent evaluation and authentication. Counterfeiting and quackery should therefore have no place in a nation’s university system especially when it comes to appointments and promotions. It is precisely the strict adherence to standards and procedures that make universities the universal gold standard for the measurement of knowledge among the nations of the world. And there is a sense in which a nation is as good as the quality and integrity of its universities.

In recent times, however, Nigerians are being treated to a new phenomenon of tertiary institutions literally trading in academic honours and positions. These range from honorary degrees to endowment related recognitions. Of course, it is legitimate for any university to name units and structures after generous donors as recognition for the A UNIVERSITY linkage between PROFESSORSHIP IS town and gown. The real RECOGNISED AS THE travesty is when HIGHEST POINT ON THE core academic LADDER OF ADVANCEMENT positions and FOR SCHOLARS. IT promotions are IS A RECOGNITION reduced to objects OF DISTINGUISHED of political tinkerACCOMPLISHMENT IN ing and patronage.

RESEARCH, TEACHING AND That amounts OVERALL CONTRIBUTION TO A to a sacrilegious SPECIFIC FIELD OF LEARNING contamination AND KNOWLEDGE of the very soul of the university system.

The most recent consequential instance of such travesty is the much orchestrated ‘promotion’ of Isa Pantami, the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy to professor of Cyber Security by the Federal University of Technology, Owerri. Pantami has never taught or been on the faculty of this university. Even more scandalous is the revelation that there is no

Letters to the Editor

evidence that the university authorities observed extant due process before awarding Pantami’s so-called promotion. It remains a matter of semantics whether an institution can technically ‘promote’ a person who was never on its staff to any position.

O

T H I S DAY EDITOR SHAKA MOMODU DEPUTY EDITOR 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 DAY N E W S PA P E R S L I M I T E D EDITOR-IN-CHIEF/CHAIRMAN NDUKA OBAIGBENA GROUP EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS ENIOLA BELLO, KAYODE KOMOLAFE, ISRAEL IWEGBU, IJEOMA NWOGWUGWU, EMMANUEL EFENI DIVISIONAL DIRECTORS SHAKA MOMODU, PETER IWEGBU, ANTHONY OGED ENGBE 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

rdinarily, the appointment of an external applicant for the position of professor ought to follow the evaluation of both internal and external assessors. This is usually accompanied by independent external reviews of the publications and credentials of the applicant by known academic authorities in their field of specialisation. The criteria considered for such appointment include years of teaching, research, publications of original books and articles in learned local and international journals. There is yet no indication that any or all these procedures were followed before Pantami became a ‘Professor’. These lapses sadly point to a questionable violation of the university’s extant procedures.

A university professorship is recognised as the highest point on the ladder of advancement for scholars.

It is a recognition of distinguished accomplishment in research, teaching and overall contribution to a specific field of learning and knowledge. It is not a decorative title freely handed out as the equivalent of a chieftaincy title. Ordinarily therefore, our universities ought to be insulated from the penchant for periodic handout of all manner of disfigured cultural titles and awards.

Given Pantami’s current position, this questionable appointment becomes a matter of public interest from the point of view of both the ethics of his high office and the integrity of the university in question as a publicly funded institution whose actions ought to be guided by the provisions of the law establishing it. In either direction, both Pantami’s doubtful assumption of a position he may not have genuinely attained and a federal university’s perfunctory handing out of an academic position to a serving minister who has never featured on its faculty list are matters which deserve to be investigated. Our high public officials have no business desperately hustling to obtain laurels they have not earned. Worse still, a federal institution funded from the public treasury has no business allowing its processes and procedures to be bastardised by self-seeking political agents.

TO OUR READERS Letters in response to specific publications in THISDAY should be brief (150-200 words) and straight to the point. Interested readers may send such letters along with their contact details to opinion@thisdaylive.com. We also welcome comments and opinions on topical local, national and international issues provided they are well-written and should also not be longer than (9501000 words). They should be sent to opinion@thisdaylive.com along with the email address and phone numbers of the writer.

A PROFESSOR IS EQUIVALENT TO A MAJOR-GENERAL

I

must say I was surprised that Professor Farooq Kperogi’s back-page column of the Saturday Tribune of 11th September 2021 was a vituperation of the academic fraud that Ali Isah Pantami, Nigeria’s federal minister of Communications and Digital Economy got himself enmeshed in. All this while, I had held the belief that Prof. Kperogi was an all-admiring “disciple” of the harsh doctrines of Sheik Pantami, especially, as Kperogi once wrote, Mullah Pantami sought avenues to befriend Kperogi, a US stateside resident. This situation is rightly the nightmare-case for the FBI: a rambling Christophobe mullah resident in Saudi Arabia back then trying to ingratiate himself into the life of a devote Nigerian Muslim resident in the US, one so “devoted” that he “scored a hit” by marrying a Christian Nigerian-American Igbo lady and has probably “converted” her to Islam now. But, in his criticism of the fraud perpetuated by Pantami as per Pantami “stellar” ascension to the terminal rank of a Professor of Cybersecurity at the Federal University of Technology, Owerri, where Pantami has never held any teaching or research appointment (why does the name “Hope Uzodimma” keep tugging at my consciousness?), Prof. Kperogi was thoroughly unbiased, stating facts as they should be. However, in doing correlation analyses

of rankings in the civil service, private sector, military, etc., Prof. Kperogi observed that a professor in a university is the equivalent of a Field Marshal in the army. Alas, this is not so.

I have always held that the academia and the military, because of their strict regimental structures, are only the two institutions in Nigeria where law and order still prevail. I have had the fortune of experiencing both worlds, so to say. Because of the soldiering career of my father, my first 20 years of life was spent in a military setting, then it was another 10 years for post-secondary school education, and these past 20 years I have been associated with the academia as a teacher of physics in the university whilst enjoying the vistas open to me to do research inquiries. What I have come to recognise is the academia is the “mirror-imagemathematical-operator” of the military (to coin a term from optics and quantum mechanics): which is to say that, if an all-out war broke out and Nigeria desires to fill its military officer-corps with “brains” from the academia, the following ranking system would be adhered to, viz; Second Lieutenant/Graduate Assistant, Lieutenant/Assistant Lecturer, Captain/Lecturer II, Major/Lecturer I, Lieutenant “Light” Colonel/Senior “No PhD” Lecturer, “Full” Colonel/Senior “PhD” Lecturer, Brigadier/Associate Professor, Major-

General/Professor.

Methinks a Lieutenant-General is no one more than a professor who is a Vice-Chancellor, a General is a professor who also serves as Chairman of Council of a university, and a Field Marshal is a Professor Emeritus who is revered for either the purposeful researches to his name or for the Nobel Prize that he has earned. Since there cannot be a plethora of Field Marshals in any army corps, or none at all, it follows therefore that a professor cannot be the equivalent of a Field Marshal. Actually, in the Nigerian military set-up as well as in the academia, the most stressful period for an “active-duty, up-climber” is the time of holding the rank of a Brigadier or an Associate Professor and not being sure that a “vacancy” exists out there that would enable that holder hit “generalship” or “professor” before retirement comes knocking on the door. Isn’t it the norm now that a “general” and a “professor” retires with “full salary?” No wonder the military was “smart” to append “General” to the traditional rank of a Brigadier; alas, ASUU has not got on this “trick” yet with respect to the prospect of an Associate Professor retiring with “full salary.”

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

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THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 2021 ˾ T H I S D AY

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FOREIGN DESK

COMPILED BY BAYO AKINLOYE

N . KO R E A F I R E S 2 B A L L I ST I C MISSILES AMID KOREAN ARMS RACE North Korea test-fired two short-range ballistic missiles Wednesday, its second launch in less than a week and latest apparent attempt to increase diplomatic pressure on the United States.

South Korea’s military, which monitors such launches, says the North Korean missiles travelled about 800 kilometres, reaching an altitude of 60 kilometres, before splashing into the sea off North Korea’s east coast.

According to VOA, Japan’s defence ministry said the projectiles did not enter Japanese territory and fell outside Japan’s exclusive economic zone.

In a statement, the U.S. military’s Indo-Pacific Command said the launch “highlights the destabilizing impact” of North Korea’s illicit weapons programme.

It is not immediately clear what type of missiles were launched. North Korea has tested several types of new, short-range ballistic missiles since 2019.

The launch comes two days after North Korea claimed to have test-fired a new long-range cruise missile. It was Pyongyang’s first known missile test in about six months.

North Korea may also be conducting missile tests to keep up with the expanding arsenal of its neighbour, South Korea, which has recently rolled out new ballistic missile technology.

AFGHANISTAN WOMEN’S YOUTH FOOTBALL TEAM ESCAPES TO PAKISTAN

Female players from Afghanistan’s junior national soccer team have crossed the border into Pakistan, BBC reports.

The girls had spent the past month in hiding amid fears of a crackdown on women’s rights by the Taliban.

Women were barred from participating in sports during the Taliban’s last spell in power from 1996-2001.

Last month, the adult side flew out of Kabul, but the youth team was reportedly left stranded because they lacked passports and other documentation.

Thirty-two players and their families won visas after lobbying the government by charity “Football for Peace.”

Officials said the group, totalling 115 people, will travel from Peshawar to the eastern city of Lahore, where they will be housed at the Pakistani Football Federation’s headquarters.

The Independent recently revealed that the players had written to Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan to ask for urgent permission to enter the country.

as Albert Ho and Figo Chan, who were sentenced earlier this month to lengthy sentences for taking part in an unauthorised demonstration in October 2019 at the height of anti-government protests triggered by a controversial extradition bill that evolved into a greater demand for greater freedoms for the financial hub.

The nine defendants pleaded guilty earlier this month for attending the 2020 EU TO GIVE LOW-INCOME candlelight vigil, which authorities banned, citing the COVID-19 pandemic.

NATIONS 200M COVID-19 The vigil had traditionally been held VACCINES The European Union is pledging to every year to commemorate the June 4, 1989 donate 200 million doses of COVID-19 crackdown on student-led pro-democracy vaccines to low-income countries by protests staged in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square, where they called for an end to mid-2022.

European Commission President Ursula official corruption, political reforms and von der Leyen made the pledge Wednesday a more fair and open society.

Human rights groups believe as many in Strasbourg, France, during her annual as several thousand people were killed State of the European Union speech before the European Parliament, the VOA reports. when tanks rolled through Tiananmen Von der Leyen said the 200 million doses Square to squelch the demonstrations.

The nine activists were handed sentences the EU plans to contribute is in addition ranging between six and 10 months in jail. to an earlier promise of 250 million doses, which she described as “an investment Three other defendants who also pleaded in solidarity, and it is an investment in guilty for taking part in last year’s vigil received suspended sentences. global health.”

Von der Leyen said, “the scale of injustice and the level of urgency is obvious,” with PROSECUTOR NAMES less than one per cent of all global doses HAITI PRIME MINISTER AS of COVID-19 vaccines administered in SUSPECT IN PRESIDENT low- and middle-income countries.

“Let’s do everything possible so that it ASSASSINATION Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry does not turn into a pandemic of the nonvaccinated,” she told the EU lawmakers. has been suspected of being involved Meanwhile, U.S. Army officials issued in the assassination of President Jovenel a mandatory vaccination order for all Moise, but he has fired and replaced the chief public prosecutor seeking charges uniformed personnel.

Officials said Tuesday that the Army against him.

Prosecutor Ben-Ford Claude had sent expects all active-duty soldiers to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by December a letter to a judge Tuesday, alleging that 15 while imposing a deadline of June 30, phone records showed the prime minister 2022, for all Reserve and National Guard spoke twice with Joseph Felix Badio, an official wanted by police in connection soldiers. with Moise’s assassination, on the morning of July 7, hours after the president was HONG KONG ACTIVISTS gunned down at his home.

JAILED FOR PARTICIPATING Claude said he asked Prime Minister Henry to discuss the evidence. Claude IN VIGIL Nine Hong Kong pro-democracy activists also asked Haiti’s immigration authority were sentenced to several months in to issue an order banning Henry from jail for taking part in an unauthorized leaving the country.

In a letter released Tuesday but dated candlelight vigil in observance of the brutal 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown on the day before, the prime minister’s office said the prosecutor was being dismissed student protesters, says VOA. The nine defendants include such figures for an undisclosed “administrative error.”

The letter claimed that the girls were at risk of “grave threats” from the Taliban.

After the fall of Kabul, players were warned by the national team’s former captain, Khalida Popal, to delete pictures of themselves playing on social media and to burn their kits to protect themselves from potential reprisals from the new regime.

The office posted a tweet late Tuesday announcing that Frantz Louis Juste has been named to replace Claude as chief prosecutor.

More than 40 suspects have been arrested in the investigation into Moise’s killing, including 18 former Colombian soldiers and two Americans of Haitian descent.

Badio remains at large.

Henry, a political moderate and neurosurgeon, was named prime minister

by Moise days before his death to ease friction between rivals and create a new consensus.

BIDEN ADMINISTRATION SUES TEXAS OVER ABORTION LAW

The U.S. Justice Department has filed an emergency motion with a federal judge asking him to block the southwestern state of Texas from enforcing a new law that bans nearly all abortions in the state.

In a 45-page motion filed late Tuesday with a federal district court, the Justice Department argued that the new law, commonly known as Senate Bill 8, was drafted “to prevent women from exercising their constitutional rights” to obtain an abortion.

The emergency motion is the second legal action the Biden administration has taken against Texas over the new law, after filing a lawsuit last week citing the same legal grounds.

The new law, which took effect on September 1, outlaws abortions after the sixth week of pregnancy — which opponents say is well before most women are even aware they are pregnant — with no exceptions for pregnancies resulting from rape or incest.

Texas is among a dozen mostly Republican-led states that have enacted so-called “heartbeat” abortion bans, which prohibits the procedure once a “fetal heartbeat” is detected, often at six weeks, and sometimes before a woman realizes she is pregnant.

Courts in the past have blocked such bans, ruling they did not conform to the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision giving women in the U.S. the constitutional right to an abortion without excessive government interference.

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POLITICS

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

Ogbebor: It’s Delta’s Turn to Lead NDDC Sunday Okobi was part of a select group of journalists, who interacted with an Itsekiri leader, and Niger Delta activist, Chief Rita-Lori Ogbebor, on issues concerning the Niger Delta Development Commission. Excerpts:

D

o you subscribe to the idea of NDDC being supervised directly by the Presidency for efficiency?

In the past, I had called for the amendment of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) Act to put the commission directly under the supervision of the Presidency.

The reason is simply that I haven’t seen much in terms of service delivery. The President is doing his best because if the President wasn’t involved in the appointment of the board, there wouldn’t have been any kind of sanity. What they are doing now is to mount pressure on the President to appoint a board. They are also creating situations that will make the President believe it is the whole of the Niger Delta that is speaking. I can tell you that it is not. What I am asking for is for our oil money to be used to develop the environmentally ravaged region.

We need people with vision who will create jobs, develop the region and solve our peculiar problems. I feel so bad about the people we send to represent us at the National Assembly.

Instead of helping the region, they are destroying the region. Before a new board is constituted, they have to convince us that what they are doing will bring progress to our people. It can’t be said that Federal Government hasn’t done much for the Niger Delta. Government has tried its best. For instance, the Amnesty Programme was created but they ended up using it to settle their families and cronies. Federal Government has pumped a lot of funds into that place. What have we got to show for the quantum of money pumped into the Niger Delta? We can’t say that government appointed non-Niger Deltans as leaders of the NDDC all through the years. Our sons have been the people managing it. So, who is to blame? It is getting to a point where I may decide to fight only for the Itsekiri instead of the entire Niger Delta region.

There are reports that the suit you instituted at the Federal High Court, Abuja, against President Muhammadu Buhari, Senate President, Ahmed Lawan and others to stop the inauguration of the board of NDDC, was done at the behest of the Minister of Niger Delta, Senator Godswill Akpabio The allegation is not only stupid, it is also disgraceful. It is very sad that some people are still trivializing issues when things are falling apart in this country. We are praying and begging God to help us restore the glory of this country but this set of people, who have nothing doing only sit down to malign the name of people working for the good of the country.

Concocting stories against someone like me, who through the years, laboured with other statesmen and women that they may eat, is an insult. I am one person in this country, who has laboured as a journalist, activist and employer of labour to better the lives of people. People call me an activist but I regard myself as someone who fights in defence of the conscience of the nation. I learned under people like Zik and Awolowo. They taught us that the country is more important than anyone else. They made us realise that they are handing it over to us.

In many ways, they taught us things to do to move our country forward. That is what I have been doing all my life in different capacities.

That is why I have never taken a contract from government. I worked as Programme Director in Nigeria Television Service (NTS) which is now NTA. After that, even when I felt the country was not going the way our founding fathers taught us, I resigned from NTS. Peter Enahoro resigned from the Daily Times, Theresa Bawa went her own way. It happened so because we are people of conscience. When things are not right, we say they are not right. I didn’t run away from the country. I stayed up until now for things to get better. We fought alongside Chief E. K. Clark for the Niger Delta because we felt we were feeding the whole country and our region was getting nothing. That was long before now. And the biggest fight was the Ijaw/Itsekiri fight, which is now called

Ogbebor the Warri Crisis. At the time we didn’t understand that what was happening was not just the neglect of the area. Funds for the zone were also being mismanaged by our people.

What’s your perspective on NDDC irrespective of various allegations?

During the administration of President Olusegun Obasanjo, we fought hard to ensure the Niger Delta got a better deal.

That was how the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) was created by President Olusegun Obasanjo. It is a result of the struggle by people like me, Chief E. K. Clark and others. Those people making noise today, where were they when we were fighting for the agency they have now turned into a conduit pipe? The template on how the commission would operate was spelt out. In all my fight for justice, I have never asked anyone for help. I have never asked any governor or president to help me or give me anything. My battles for the good of the Niger Delta have always been self-funded. And I challenge anybody to say if I have ever come to him to solicit help for my crusade for the good of my people. That is why I don’t believe in NGO. I fund my struggles. I don’t even allow my children to seek favour from government.

I told them I won’t even look back if the need arises to criticize any government.

Therefore, there is no need for them to seek favour from government. Linking me with Akpabio is funny because I have never met him before. I have never met him. He hasn’t been to my house either.

The way things are going, it seems no one cares about Niger Delta as an entity.

They care only for their separate tribes, but that is wrong. We tried to bring all the tribes in the region together for collective development but I have found that individual and group interests matter more to them. Every individual is fighting for himself in the Niger Delta. They use the name, Niger Delta, to get money in Abuja and do the wrong things instead of developing the region. You can imagine a Senator collecting so many contracts for the Niger Delta without executing them. Go to the so-called Niger Delta, what you will see are small islands and a few ramshackle houses. And if anyone talks about the wrong things going on in the region, they abuse the person.

Maybe those insinuating that I instituted the suit at the behest of Akpabio do not know that there is nothing Akpabio can give to me. Definitely, he is richer than me but I can’t accept anything from him or anybody because I believe in my cause.

There are also claims that your suit is meant to perpetuate the lifespan of the NDDC Sole administrator. Is that the reason you are in court?

My suit is against injustice. What I am saying is that it is the turn of Delta State to produce the leadership of the NDDC. And in the state, there are tribes to produce either the Chairman or Managing Director. After looking through the roaster of appointments through the years, I believe the tribe to produce the next leadership

Who are even the people mismanaging the funds? They are our leaders who are representing us at different levels of government. I am very sad that what we fought for is being used by our own people to impoverish the region.

Since I cannot take up arms, I went to court because I believe in the ability of the judiciary to deliver justice

is the Itsekiri. It is a fact that the Itsekiri area produces the highest quantum of oil in the state and we have not produced the leadership of the commission since inception. Itsekiriland is sitting on oil. Even my father’s house sits on oil.

I had a worker who wasn’t satisfied with the job I gave him, he went to tap oil illegally and died. His wife and child also died. That is to tell you how much oil the Itsekiri have. To say that these people sitting on oil shouldn’t have a stake is wrong. To have even brought someone and lied that the person is Itsekiri just for him to head the commission is wrong. The same person doing all these wants to be the governor of the state. I consider this an insult. I went to court to challenge the appointment earlier made and the President graciously listened by canceling the appointment of the board that wasn’t even inaugurated. The President ordered a forensic audit and I agreed with him because ever since the NDDC was created, there hasn’t been any meaningful development in the region. And money is being pumped into the commission yearly. What do they do with the money? Who are even the people mismanaging the funds?

They are our leaders who are representing us at different levels of government. I am very sad that what we fought for is being used by our own people to impoverish the region.

Since I cannot take up arms, I went to court because I believe in the ability of the judiciary to deliver justice. They came to my house here to seek support but I insisted that what is right should be done for the Niger Delta. They are now saying Akpabio should create another board immediately even without making the result of the forensic audit public. That is not possible. Why the hurry when we haven’t seen the outcome of the exercise ordered by the President. We deserve to know what went wrong and who did what. We need to know why the Niger Delta is where it is despite the creation of NDDC. The same people are giving Akpabio an ultimatum. This ultimatum they are giving, on what ground are they doing so?

It must stop now because when you give an ultimatum, you must state what you want. You don’t just give an ultimatum selfishly and the Federal Government runs to you. And that is the end of the matter. We have been doing this for 20 years without any result in the Niger Delta. That is why people just see us as fools who are agitating for pecuniary reasons instead of selfless aims. I went to court to stop this nonsense and to ensure the President keeps his promise. We must know the outcome of the forensic audit. Those found wanting must be prosecuted. It shouldn’t be business as usual anymore in NDDC. You have been consistent on this for many years. What’s keeping you going?

Everybody is created for a cause. This is how God has created me. It is natural. I am not the only example. What made Zik and Awolowo go the extra mile for this country?

What made people like Fela stake their lives for this country? What made Gani Fawehimi lead the struggle all his life? What is making Wole Soyinka remain in the struggle? Why is he still fighting? He is fighting for the love of the country. And that is how he was created.

It is difficult for us to say that what is wrong is right. That is the way I am. I can’t change it.

My children will do anything to make me not talk because they want their mother safe. But I don’t care. I can’t be comfortable when people are suffering in the Niger Delta and all over the country. I am against injustice anywhere and anytime. I am simply fighting for the good of my people. The only time I had directly sought help for my people was when I took Itsekiri women to Okowa . It was because a pregnant woman who was coming from Escravos to have a baby died on the road because there was no healthcare where she was. I took the women to the governor and he promised to build hospitals in the area. I am glad to say that Okowa has fulfilled his promise in a short time. That is the kind of leadership we want in the Niger Delta. He visited the area before executing the project.

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T H I S D AY ˾ THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 16, 2021

POLITICS

Obinna Uzoh

Good Governance Not an Esoteric Project Standard bearer of the Social Democratic Party, Dr. Obinna Chukwudum Uzoh, shares riveting insights into his vision to reposition Anambra State. He spoke to Louis Achi. Excerpts:

Uzoh

A

s a politician of note, especially one aspiring to govern a strategic state like Anambra, what really is your conception of governance?

It is necessary to stress good governance here. I conceive good governance as central to meaningful human development and social progression. It has eight major characteristics. It is participatory, consensus oriented, accountable, transparent, responsive, effective and efficient, equitable, inclusive and follows the rule of law.

It assures that corruption is minimized, the views of minorities are taken into account and that the voices of the most vulnerable in society are heard in decision-making. It is also responsive to the present and future needs of society.

Deficits in these areas give rise to conflict and set back human development. The lack is the reason for our developmental woes expressed in retrogression and socio-political stagnation that you can observe.

Key good governance deliverables must include security of lives and property on the one hand, and economic development-cum-human development on the other. Our operational Constitution requires in Section 14(2)(b) that “the security and welfare of the people shall be the primary purpose of government”.

Good governance is not an esoteric project or process. It is epitomized by predictable, open and enlightened policy-making; a bureaucracy imbued with professional ethos acting in furtherance of the public good, the rule of law, transparent processes, with a strong civil society participating in public affairs.

The imperatives I have laid out can really not be overstressed. They have guided my politics for over two decades. These flow from my deep belief that, law, faith, business, philanthropy and politics fundamentally address transformation of the human condition for better.

The conception of governance you have enunciated should have a foundational

linkage to your vision of changing Anambra State. Can you share this?

I have nursed a strong vision of transforming my home state Anambra from the infrastructure-challenged land of giants that it currently is, to a modern state. You certainly cannot deny abiding this imperative. As a 21st Century development and technological model that I aspire to transit the state to, other states, regions and the country at large can clone and grow the inspirational model.

The foundation for this vision is rooted in my abiding belief in God and my over three decades of entrepreneurial engagements and impactful interventions in diverse humanitarian theatres.

My Anambra folks are widely recognized for their industry, courage and resourcefulness. These qualities have enabled us survive as a people in the face of daunting existential challenges. It’s worth recalling that at the state’s creation in August 27, 1991, by the General Ibrahim Babangida regime, Ndi-Anambra had over 75 percent literacy level and boasted extra-ordinary human and material resources. These attributes need to be given a new direction, new discipline and new energy. God has given me the vision to do this.

I have identified 10 key sectors that deserve total focus to transform the state. These include security, infrastruc-

tural development which is foundation for transformational industrialisation and will support Nnewi, Onitsha and Awka as critical technology hubs, real agricultural revolution. Deploying a transparent, judicious and efficient management of resources, I will empower our people with skills acquisition, mainstream our judiciary, step-up sports development, provide microfinance for SMEs and pursue an integrated development scheme that should fundamentally change the game in Anambra State.

Permit me to make it very clear that I am not contesting the 2021 governorship election in my state lightly. It was a product of deep introspection and wide consultation.

I want to partner with all stakeholders to salvage, save, secure, develop and prosper Anambra State.

I believe that at this moment of our national history and the rapid changes impacting both the continental and international arena, Anambra needs a deep but temperate personality and thinker to guide its journey. Many may not know this. With all modesty, the fate of Anambra State has fundamental connections with the fate of Ndigbo and Nigeria at large.

You are reputed to be one of the biggest philanthropists in South-eastern Nigeria. What’s the inspiration behind this compelling course?

I have identified 10 key sectors that deserve total focus to transform the state. These include security, infrastructural development which is foundation for transformational industrialisation and will support Nnewi, Onitsha and Awka as critical technology hubs, real agricultural revolution

I deeply believe that God did not lift me for nothing. There must be a strong reason for the elevation of any particular human being.

One must give back to society and humanity.

Speaking for myself, it is a sacred duty. Let me share with you that from a very challenging personal journey, I founded and nurtured the GOCUZ Group of Companies - a very successful conglomerate comprising Gocuz Oil Services, Gocuz Engineering, Gocuz Chambers, Gocuz Construction, Gocuz Finance & Security and Gocuz Farms Limited. This has made me a widely travelled man both nationally and internationally with considerable connections and affiliations.

So God has blessed me and humanity should be meaningfully be touched too.

Personal modesty shouldn’t prevent me from letting you know that I am the only Papal Knight (Knight of Saint Gregory the Great) in the governorship race. Don’t forget that Anambra State is a highly religious community. The dominant churches in Anambra State are the Catholic and Anglican Churches - and then the Pentecostals.

Can you share a few examples of how you have impacted humanity through your notable philanthropic interventions?

A few years ago, I donated a 110-room ultramodern students’ hostel at the Holy Family Youth Village, Awka to the Catholic Church. This came barely one year after I built and donated an imposing church complex in Ihiala - the All Saints Parish complex, in Umunnamehi, Ihiala, which was dedicated by the Papal Nuncio in Nigeria.

Because of the high value I place on education, I have awarded scholarships to many students in primary, secondary, colleges of education, polytechnics and universities across the country.

I have also awarded special scholarships to indigenes of Anambra State in Medicine, Law, Accountancy and Engineering, et cetera.

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

22

T H I S D AY ˾ ˜ 16, 2021

FEATURES

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

L-R: Head Retail, Morinsola Arogundade; Chief Operating Officer, Adedunmola Fabikun-both of DashMe Foundation; Chief Commercial Officer, Ogochukwu Onyelucheya, and Head Corporate Communications, Felix Ofulueboth of Ikeja Electric, during the presentation of donated items to DashMe Foundation to support the needy, in Lagos, recently

Mobilising Partnership to Support the Needy Precious Ugwuzor writes that Ikeja Electric's recent partnership with DashMe Foundation was achieved by mobilising workforce and resources towards donating to support the needy

I

n a philanthropic alliance that seeks to mobilise its workforce and resources towards donating to support charity, Nigeria’s leading Electricity Distribution Company, Ikeja Electric (IE), recently partnered DashMe Foundation.

DashMe Foundation is a non-profit charity organisation, which aims to change lives, one gift at a time, by creatively raising funds and awareness for grassroot charities in Africa.

Speaking on the partnership, IE’s Head of Corporate Communications, Felix Ofulue said the partnership with DashMe Foundation is in alignment with the company’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) goals.

According to him; “The rationale behind mobilisation of our staff to support this noble cause is to leverage our CSR platform which promotes the culture of giving back to communities in which we operate.”

He noted that the existing giveback culture in Ikeja Electric has helped to impact lives positively within the company’s network.

“We are very confident that this collaboration with DashMe Foundation will further contribute to strengthening support to the needy and underserved communities, which is a positive change as well”, he said.

Giving further insight on the donation drive, Ofulue said in celebration of this year’s International Charity Day, employees of the company are encouraged to voluntarily donate their neatly used clothes, books and other household items, which are expected to be put on sale at the DashMe Foundation stores and proceeds donated to charity.

On her part, the Chief Operating Officer, DashMe Foundation, Morinsola Arogundade explained that DashMe Stores business model

relies on strategic partnerships with the staff of corporate Nigeria and that the partnership with Ikeja Electric is another key step in the mission.

“With our donation points in key Ikeja Electric outlets, we look forward to collections in the Ikeja area as well as enhanced sales due to increased awareness, in our short operational history, we have been able to operate profitably and regularly fund work with orphanages, vulnerable children, disadvantaged youth and victims of domestic violence in line with our mission”, she said.

Arogundade expressed the foundation’s gratitude to the directors, staff and customers of Ikeja Electric with the hope of a better and interminable partnership.

Noting that the foundation was established by Kemi Adeosun, former

minister of finance, Arogundade said they are currently working on strategic partnership with corporate Nigeria, adding that "we are trying to raise funding at the grassroot level for orphanages, disadvantaged youths, vulnerable children, and victims of domestic violence.

"One of the ways that we raise funds is by opening a thrift store which relies on the donations of Nigerians and Diaspora, which once received, we sell them off and use the profit to give grants to several charity organisations. We have been in operation for just two months we have given out quite a few and have been able to impacts lives of several children which is our mission.

"The motivation behind our establishment was from Kemi Adeosun after she travelled abroad and in Africa and realised that a

The rationale behind mobilisation of our staff to support this noble cause is to leverage our CSR platform which promotes the culture of giving back to communities in which we operate...We are very confident that this collaboration with DashMe Foundation will further contribute to strengthening support to the needy and underserved communities, which is a positive change as well

lot of charity organisations are doing the most but don’t have funding. So we are trying to bridge the gap and make more impact.

"The reason we decided to partner IKEDC is for feasibility awareness and so that residents are able to donate at the various IE locations and we can do pick ups as well as enhanced sales due to increased awareness.

"Our vision is that we are trying to build a community of givers and we are currently online. We have a website www.dashme.org.

The profit goes directly to the the community and we are changing lives. So keep donating and shopping with us, so together we can change lives."

Over the years, Ikeja Electric has remained dedicated to integrating CSR strategies across all aspects of its business through the provision of life impacting and self-empowerment programmes, in a bid to create a positive and critical impact in the communities where it operates. It was not surprising therefore when Ikeja Electric was adjudged the 2020 Philanthropic Electricity Distribution Company of the Year, at an Award Ceremony organised by CSR Reporters, a specialised news publication with concentration on how organisations and well-meaning individuals are giving back to the society.

According to the organisers, the award was given in recognition of IE efforts to give back to the society in which it operates. The citation read that Ikeja Electric was selected because it demonstrated integrity and transparence while engaging in several corporate social responsibility interventions in 2020.

The sustainable CSR initiatives, aimed at enhancing the quality of lives, are in key areas of Youth Empowerment, Health and Primary Education.

23

T H I S D AY ˾ ˜ ͯʹ˜ ͰͮͰͯ

#THISISNIGERIA -Rotimi Fawole

A Country Cursed With Abundance

A

fter 6 years of the Buhari regime, two things amongst several others are clear. First, the President and his ministers are relics of an age long since gone and two, they have absolutely no understanding of social media and its primary uses. The result, and this is not exclusive to the executive in Abuja, is that every portrayal of the government in realistic, unfavourable light is by default perceived to be a calculated attempt to embarrass the government.

There are reports of government officials who are supposedly saddled with the responsibility of leading the nation’s media affairs demanding that journalists and press persons in general softpedal on certain reportage which the government feels embarrasses leadership, portraying them as unable to protect the citizens. Eventually, when these reports are thrown into the spotlight by everyday citizens via social media, the information is classified by the government as fake — and utterly embarrassing—especially when foreign, neutral parties are reporting these incidents as real occurrences.

One recent and rather humorous example was the response of Sunday Dare, Minister of Youths and Sports Development, to the Tik-Tok post by Chukwuebuka Enekwechi, a shot put finalist at the just-concluded Olympics. For readers who are yet to see the video, Enekwechi filmed himself washing a jersey with the caption, ‘When you qualify for the Olympic Finals but you have only one jersey’. It went viral and in the typical it-was-not-my-fault template response for the average government official, Dare’s subsequent comments included the usual accusation of a calculated attempt to embarrass the government. Never mind that this was at a global event where some of our athletes had been disqualified for insufficient testing prior to the games and where there was also a kit fiasco that resulted in Puma cancelling its contract with the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN). None of the government’s incompetence and illogical justification was calculated to embarrass itself.

No, it was the tongue-in-cheek social media post by an athlete that did that all on its own.

What government officials need to understand first of all is that the average social media user microblogging his or her life is chasing a laugh - banter. Social media, when you are not an influencer, is largely about capturing the ordinary events of the day but making them sound quirky or funny. Nigerians are extremely adept at this and, dear Lord, there is ample material to deploy.

So as sure as the sun will rise, there are Nigerians all around you looking at social media posts right now and laughing. Like Nigerian government officials whose laughing pictures we see at the height of our daily crises, we too like to laugh.

If the situation captured is true, as it was in Enekwechi’s case, that it was embarrassing to the government was collateral damage - like a friendly fire incident blowing up internally displaced people in their camp. This is not to say that social media users never set out to embarrass the Nigerian government. You will know that this is their objective when they tag CNN, BBC, the British High Commission and the American Embassy in their social media posts. Because, as we all know, there is nothing the government official hates more than being called out for incompetence or lawlessness in a CNN report or, horror of horrors, no longer being able to flee to the US or UK for their medical checks and really, just to decompress from the conditions they have created in Nigeria.

The next Olympic Games in Paris are only three years away. Our officials have not accepted any blame for the Tokyo outing, so it is very unlikely that they will approach the Paris games differently.

At any rate, unfortunately for our athletes, next year is an electioneering and politicking year and it would most likely suck the oxygen out of any attention the government would have paid to sports development programmes. We no longer

have a kit sponsor so that is another round of intrigue to further muddy the waters.

A former boss once said to one of my colleagues, following a stare down in the office, ‘I am more disgusted at you than you are at me!’ This is the reality of the relationship between the Nigerian government and its bosses, the citizens of Nigeria. Nigerians are the ones who need to complain about the embarrassment its government brings to them daily. From a presidency set on betting the proverbial farm on nomadic herding to an attorney-general whose statements on applicable law are routinely discredited by colleagues to media and press aides whose primary output is hagiographies, our affairs are led by people with absolutely no sense of the urgency of the task at hand. How

long are we going to continue to trudge on, under the weight of their ineptitude; a nation with great potential yet lacking in output optimisation? How long are we going to tiptoe around their egos , while every index or benchmark of effective governance and social development keeps breaking records in reverse? How long are we meant to endure leaders with absolutely no sense of irony - running abroad for their treatment yet accepting dubious awards from the wrong cluster of Nigerian doctors?

Sunday, the 12th of September 2021 marked 100 days of the Federal Government's Twitter ban. It's unclear who exactly Lai Mohammed and his boss were seeking to punish here, as it is primarily Nigerians who sell and promote goods and services on Twitter that

have borne the brunt. Nevertheless, as citizens, we must continue to speak up against mediocrity.

And we should take pride in continuing to do it as creatively as we have so far. Our elite Instagram and Twitter comedians deserve all the support and recognition they get. As do the rest of us struggling to get through the day one punchline at a time. Together, we are unstoppable, VPNs notwithstanding.

We must never shy away from speaking about our daily lives simply because it might embarrass the government. If the government finds our circumstances embarrassing, it needs to roll up its sleeves and make our lives more camera friendly. Either way, we shall remain witty, woke and continue to laugh! LOL! t3PUJNJ 'BXPMF JT B MBXZFS BOE TBUJSJTU

24

THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 16, 2021 • T H I S D AY

25

T H I S D AY ˾ THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 2021

BUSINESSWORLD R A T E S MONEY MARKET

A S

A T

REPO

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

08056356325

S E P T E M B E R

S & P INDEX

1 5 , 2 0 2 1

S & P INDEX

EXCHANGE RATE

OBB

14.00%

CALL

4%

INDEX LEVEL

565.29%

1/4 TO DATE

6.06%

N412.08/ 1 US DOLLAR*

OVERNIGHT

14.50%

1-MONTH

6%

1-DAY

–0.11%

YEAR TO DATE

– 15.66%

*AS AT LAST FRIDAY

3-MONTH

10%

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0.41%

Stakeholders Back FG’s 5G Network Rollout Approval, Assure Nigerians of High Speed Data Connectivity, Low Latency

Emma Okonji Industry stakeholders under the aegis of the Association of Licensed Telecoms Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), have applauded the federal government for approving the rollout of the fifth generation (5G) network in Nigeria stressing that the approval was a step in the right direction.

Citing the unconfirmed rumors that 5G network contributes to the

spread of COVID-19 and also pose huge health risk, a section of the Nigerian public had berated the government for accenting to the commencement of the rollout of the fifth generation network in Nigeria But the Chairman of ALTON, Gbenga Adebayo, told THISDAY that there had not been any known scientific report from any recognised health bodies, which claimed that 5G network could trigger COVID-19 spread and could post health risk

on human health.

Contrary to their beliefs, Adebayo said 5G technology would enhance rapid digital transformation in the country, boost high speed data connectivity for video streaming, while maintaining very low latency period, which is the actual time it takes for a data packet to travel from one designated point to another, in the course of completing a transactional target.

The Minister of Communications

and Digital Economy, Dr. Isa Ibrahim Pantami, had last week, announced that the Federal Executive Council (FEC), has approved the rollout of 5G network in Nigeria, a development that raised dust among some Nigerians that had earlier kicked against 5G rollout, citing health implications and the fast spread of COVID-19 pandemic, which they said, are associated with 5G rollout.

Reacting to their fears, Adebayo

said although there had not been any known negative effect of 5G on humans, he however said the many advantages attached to 5G rollout, could assuage all perceived disadvantages.

“5G delivers improved data rates, up to 100 times faster than current mobile networks, supporting virtually instant access to services and applications, with network latency significantly reduced. In addition, it offers network slicing

technology making it possible to dedicate a unique part of a 5G network for a particular service,” Adebayo said.

He listed the three key advantages of 5G network over 4G network, to include: Higher speed rate of data, Larger data capacity, and Lower latency.

He further explained that the deployment of 5G would require Continued on page 26

Banks, Telcos Urged to Collaborate to Drive Technology, Innovation to Spur Financial Inclusion Emma Okonji Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has urged the banking sector and the telecoms operators (Telcos), to develop a cross-sectoral collaboration that will further drive technology innovations that are necessary to achieve Nigeria’s financial inclusion goals.

Osinbajo stressed the importance of collaboration during the 14th Annual Banking and Finance Conference, which held simultaneously in Abuja and Lagos, and streamed online from both locations.

Such collaboration, he said, should be extended to Financial Technology (FinTech) players, who are currently creating positive disruptions to financial transactions, through their technology solutions.

According to Osinbajo, “Bankers are afraid of the telcos and they are very skeptical about them, but financial inclusion demands that innovators in the telecoms sector, must come up with products and services that are diverse and heterogeneous, which give room for wider collaboration between banks and the telcos. To make this

work, government, on its part, must promote financial literacy through policy implementation that will help people have the knowledge to make the right financial decisions.”

He said only 29 per cent of agent banking operators are in the rural areas, while further stressing the need to scale up financial inclusion strategies by leveraging mobile technology even in rural communities.

He said banks must take advantage of the rapid changes in technology to further drive the financial sector.

He further said: “This means that banks must also collaborate with FinTech companies and payment service companies, to drive seamless financial transactions in the country.

Banks must leverage the data provided by the Nigeria Inter-bank Settlement System (NIBSS) and the Bank Verification Number (BVN) for data information that will help both the banks and government to plan well. The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), for instance, can use the data obtained from banks to issue a global standing instruction policy that will make it possible for banks to recover

their loans from borrowers across other banks. This will help reduce incidence of non-performing bank loans and also expand personal and business loans on a much wider basis.”

Osinbajo added that financial inclusion remained critical to the digital development of the country, with clear case objectives to recover loans faster in the financial sector.

He therefore said that access to financial services was particularly important for those outside of the financial inclusion ecosystem, which he insisted, would enable them to

develop loan facilities.

The Vice President however thanked the banks for the critical roles they are playing in advancing the country’s digital economy drive, especially their roles in the delivery of the federal government social investment programme, by making it easier for government to make payments to the beneficiaries of the programme in several locations, across the country.

Osinbajo also challenged the banks to step up their support for Continued on page 26

D ATA S AT D AY, M AMRAKREKTEDT ATA A SA AT W EWDENDENSEDSAY, S EAPUT GE U MSBTE R1 11, 52, 022012 1 ONNDDSS FFGGNN BBO DESCRIPTION 11.668 FGNSB 12.175 15-AUG-2021 10-OCT-2021 10.301 FGNSB 11.244 16-AUG-2021 16-OCT-2021 11.150 FGNSB 10.296 11-SEP-2021 13-NOV-2021 12.364 FGNSB 13.390 12-SEP-2021 14-NOV-2021 12.175 FGNSB 9.091 FGNSB 10-OCT-2021 11-DEC-2021

BILLS

OTC FX F U T U R E S

100.09 100.56

3.16 3.77

Change Change (%) (%) 0.00 1.05

100.10 100.62

3.16 3.82

0.00 1.03

9-Sep-21 NTB 14-Oct-21

3.10 3.76

3.11 1.02 0.00 3.78

100.67 100.99

3.13 4.07

0.00 0.93

16-Sep-21 NTB 28-Oct-21

3.15 3.88

3.16 0.97 0.00 3.90

100.80 101.50

3.12 4.08

0.00 0.93

30-Sep-21 NTB 11-Nov-21

3.25 4.00

0.00 0.84

NTB 25-Nov-21 14-Oct-21

3.35 4.12

Price

101.47 101.13

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3.08 4.32

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26-Aug-21 NTB 30-Sep-21

3.00 3.65

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CONTRACT TENOR (MONTH) 1

Contract

Current Rate ($/₦)

AUG29 252021 2021 420.93 NGUS SEP

2

SEP 27 29 2021 422.38 NGUS OCT

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OCT 27 NGUS NOV 24 2021 423.83

3.26 0.93 0.00 4.03

4

NOV29 242021 2021 425.28 NGUS DEC

3.37 0.88 0.00 4.15

5

DEC26 292022 2021 426.73 NGUS JAN

CCPs Ps MATURITY

Discount Discount Yield Yield Change Change(%) (%)

MREP CP XXXI MTNN III 2013-AUG-21 SEP-21 UNCP CP XXXIX III 27MREP AUG-21 20-SEP-21 VAAG CP IXV 27-11CMBL AUG-21 OCT-21 TTNG CP VIII II 31UBNP 18AUG-21 OCT-21 SIBP CP CMBL CPI 2-SEPXII 3121 OCT-21

9.02 6.71

9.03 6.72

4.26 17.70

4.27 17.74 0.00 1.12

10.20 7.15

10.25 7.19 0.00 1.04

4.59 8.75

4.60 8.82

0.00 1.02

4.13 4.98

4.14 5.01

0.00 0.97

0.00 1.12

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THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, ͰͮͰͯ ˾ T H I S D AY

BUSINESSWORLD

NEWS

INTERACTIVE SESSION…

L-R Assistant General Manager PR, Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Mrs Carol Adekotujo; Director, Operations, Licensing and Training Standard, NCAA, Captain Elisha Bahago; Director General/CEO, NCAA, Captain Musa Nuhu; and Chairman, League of Airports and Aviation Correspondents (LAAC), Mr Olusegun Koiki, at an interactive meeting between PHOTO: KOLAWOLE ALLI LAAC members and DG, NCAA in Lagos… recently

Ford, MacArthur Foundations, LEAP Africa Launch $5m Fund for Nigerian Youth Peter Uzoho Ford Foundation and MacArthur Foundation in close partnership with LEAP Africa, have announced the launch of the Nigeria Youth Futures Fund (NYFF), a new $5 million fund tailored to support and strengthen the youth leadership ecosystem in Nigeria.

NYFF is a five-year collaborative fund with $3 million seed capital from the Ford Foundation and $2 million from the MacArthur Foundation to facilitate young

people’s leadership and civic engagement in Nigeria, with the goal of raising $15 million from additional partners and other foundations.

The fund would be managed

by Leadership, Effectiveness, Accountability & Professionalism (LEAP) Africa, a youth-focused leadership development non-profit with a mission to inspire, empower, and equip a new cadre of leaders with skills and tools for personal, organisational, and community transformation.

NYFF would build on momentum in the region inspired by the youth-led #EndSARS movement, a statement signed by the Senior Communications Coordinator, LEAP Africa, Bernard Ibelih, stated.

The statement noted that young people under the age of 30 comprise more than 70 per cent of Nigeria’s population, with projections that the figure would continue to grow over the next few decades.

It added that given the significant number of youths, researchers

had suggested that the future progress of Nigeria was based upon the extent to which young people were educated, skilled, healthy, and active in civic and political processes, including their involvement in the formation of long-term development strategies.

Speaking on the development, the Programme Officer in the Office of West Africa, Ford Foundation, Dabesaki Mac-Ikemenjima, said, “We’re excited about this launch because over the last decade, several analyses have shown that there

is likely to be a great return on investment in youth across the economic, social, political, and technological domains of Nigeria’s development.

“I believe that the fund is a critical part of efforts to empower youth, enhance their leadership capabilities, expand opportunities for them to be engaged in national development, and facilitate a proactive and constructive relationship between the youth and governments across Nigeria.”

Also commenting on the launch,

the Co-Director and Director of the Nigeria Office, MacArthur Foundation on Nigeria Programme, Kole Shettima, stated, “Today’s youth embody the hope and promise of a thriving Nigeria that will lead the African continent for generations to come.

“There is no better time to invest in the civic engagement and participation of our young people, and the Nigeria Youth Futures Fund will sustain their work locally and amplify their voices in the halls of power.”

Dangote Refinery Partners Content Board on Oil Sector Research, Devt Bennett Oghifo Dangote Oil Refinery has thrown its weight behind the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) to promote the critical issue of Research and Development (R&D) in the oil and gas sector of the country.

To display its readiness for this promotion, Dangote Petroleum Refinery was a Platinum sponsor of the 2nd Edition of Edition of the

NCDMB Research & Development Fair and Conference 2021, which took place in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State recently.

According to a statement issued by the company yesterday, Dangote Oil Refinery has already selected six graduates across the six geopolitical zones in conjunction with NCDMB to take the MSc and/or PhD programmes at the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria for Research & Development in Zeolites ZM5in.

With the theme: ‘Creating Sustainable Collaboration in Research and Development for the Energy Sector’, the well-attended conference created a convergence of researchers, industry players, investors, finance enterprises and manufacturing companies to identify patentable or commercially viable products resulting from R&D activities.

The R&D fair afforded Dangote Oil Refinery the opportunity to showcase its 650,000 barrels-per-

day single largest train refinery project and what the company has done in terms of Research and Development during the construction of the refinery.

Speaking during his visit to Dangote Oil Refinery exhibition booth at the fair and conference, Executive Secretary, Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board, Simbi Wabote, commended the company for showing support to the board by participating in the fair.

He expressed the need for companies in the Nigeria oil and gas sector to start nurturing the growth of the country’s homegrown technology rather just being wholesome consumers of other people’s innovations.

He stated, “Analysis of global practices of Research and Development revealed that the combined R&D spend of just five countries makes up 63.5 per cent of the entire global R&D spend. These five countries, namely USA, China,

Japan, Germany, and India were also observed to have accounted for over 50 per cent of the global Gross Domestic Products.

“Africa, on the other hand, accounted for less than one per cent (1%) of the global R&D spend while its GDP is only 3 per cent of the global GDP. You will agree with me that there is a nexus between the spend on Research and Development and economic prosperity, ”the Executive Secretary added.

Experts: Technology Adoption Will Enhance Development, Growth of AfCFTA Emma Okonji Technology experts have stressed the need for collaboration among government, policy makers, the banks and Financial Technology

Group Business Editor Eromosele Abiodun Comms/e-Business Editor Emma Okonji Aviation Editor Chinedu Eze Asst. Editor, Money Market Nume Ekeghe Senior Correspondent Raheem Akingbolu (Advertising) Correspondents James Emejo (Finance) Ebere Nwoji (Insurance) Chineme Okafo (Energy) Emmanuel Addeh (Energy) Reporters Nosa Alekhuogie (ICT) Peter Uzoho (Energy) Ugo Aliogo (Development)

(FinTech) players, in order to adopt the right technology that will enhance faster market development and growth of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

The experts who spoke at the Techgrind Africa virtual event organised by Summitech Computing Limited in Lagos recently, said such collaboration would help AfCFTA to contribute

to the strengthening of African currencies, through the use of different technology solutions to navigate procurement, payment, logistics and communication, during trade transactions.

Panelists at the virtual event, focused their discussions around the theme: ‘What Opportunities Does AfCFTA Hold for the Tech Sector in Africa?’

According to the experts, the

success of AfCFTA would largely depend on technology to achieve its goals.

They were of the view that the involvement of major technology industry players would facilitate Pan-African competition, as industry players would incorporate the opportunities that the agreement brings, into immediate plans and also take advantage of them to expand trade.

During the panel session, the MD/CEO Summitech Computing Limited, Adekunle Kunle-Hassan, said technology would be a major driver for AfCFTA. According to him, “Business movements such as mergers and acquisitions and funding from venture capitalists, will drive expansion of the thriving tech brands into major participating markets. Therefore, there has to

be a heightened interest of major players in the tech space as this agreement is pivotal to its success.

If there is a better time to start thinking of positioning to reap its gains, it is now. However, policy makers and technology companies in major markets need to partner and create an understanding of policies and operations to enable and support cross-border trade.”

BANKS, TELCOS URGED TO DEVELOP CROSS-SECTORAL COLLABORATION TO DRIVE TECHNOLOGY INNOVATIONS NECESSARY FOR FINANCIAL INCLUSION the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), which he said, would further support financial transactions in the free trade area.

“It will be important to develop inter-regional and continental payment system to facilitate the

expected increase in the trade of goods and services in the free trade area. It will also be good if the proposed Pan-Africa payment and settlement platform that is being promoted by Afreximbank, gets the support of the banks and the

finance industry, so that Africans can have a system that works for cross-boarder payment system across the continent.

“The banking sector has remained one of the most stable sectors since the last century, but

the next decade promises to bring about fundamental changes in the financial sector, which Nigerians are beginning to see, through the rise of FinTech companies, blockchain technology and the role of digital currency,” Osinbajo said.

The Chairman, Conference Consultative Committee and Group MD/CEO, Access Bank Plc, Herbert Nwigwe, assured Nigerians that deliberations at the two-day conference would help to further drive financial inclusion in Nigeria.

STAKEHOLDERS BACK FG’S 5G NETWORK ROLLOUT APPROVAL, ASSURE NIGERIANS OF HIGH SPEED DATA CONNECTIVITY, LOW LATENCY significant investment from mobile operators and other stakeholders.

“We need more investment in the sector. In terms of possibilities and use cases, 5G enables increasingly intelligent personal assistant in the cloud, providing information and offering on-demand services to customers, Adebayo further said.

Comparing 5G technology with other forms of technology, Adebayo

said: “2G technology is basically deployed for voice communication, while 3G covers voice and data, and 4G is meant for video streaming with heavy video content. But the 5G, which is an improvement on 4G technology, comes with higher connectivity and higher download speed, with larger data capacity and picture quality.”

Giving details of global

adoption rate of 5G, Adebayo said most countries of the world are fast adopting 5G network for faster development. He explained that the device for high rate adoption would be the smart mobile phone.

Citing global statistics, Adebayo said 5G global adoption rate is estimated to reach 235 million by the end of 2021, 645 million by

2022, 1,240 million by 2023, 1,815 million by 2024 and 2,457 million by 2025, with Huawei Technologies taking the lead among technology companies that are developing 5G technology, followed Ericsson, Hisilicon and Nokia.

Pantami, in his submission on 5G, revealed that the radiation of the 5G Policy is lower than that of 4G currently in use by Nigerians

while the deployment of the policy which is with immediate effect would be carried out in phases between now and 2025.

Pantami however said it took government close to two years to come up with the 5G policy because of the initial resistance by stakeholders, who claimed that the 5G technology has serious health implications.

27

T H I S D AY ˾ THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 2021

BUSINESSWORLD

BRAND & MARKETING

MTN: Can the Next Twenty Years be Better?

Raheem Akingbolu reviews the 20 years of MTN operation in Nigeria, challenges and lessons

T

he coming of global system for mobile telecommunications, GSM, into Nigeria in 2001 changed the dynamics of telecommunications in the country. But it also goes beyond that. By the time the derivate of that ‘revolution’ started rolling in some five years later via instant messaging by service providers like Blackberry, then the impact of that singular move hit home; albeit in a pleasant manner.

At the centre of the Nigerian telecommunications revolution via the GSM was the South African company, MTN, who alongside the then Econet (now Airtel), won the bid for the GSM licences carried out earlier that year. A Nigerian company, Communications Investment Company, CIL, owned by billionaire businessman, Mike Adenuga, could not make the cut due to issues raised by its France-based financier, BNP Paribas, who wanted an indemnity over frequency given to CIL which was subject of litigation by the Stallion Group that had earlier won the bid carried out by the previous military regime but which was cancelled by the new civilian government. After the expiration of the 48 hours, which was the moratorium given to those who won the bids to pay the $280 million licence fee, the frequency awarded to CIL was withdrawn. And that began the battle that culminated in the naming of the second national carrier in Glo, also promoted by Adenuga, which ironically became the third GSM service provider after MTN and Econet.

THE ROLL OUT

MTN rolled out in August 2001. According to sources close to the company, the target at the time was to hit 100,000 subscribers within the first one month but this was surpassed within one week.

The pioneer managing director of the company, Lazarus Zim, was said to have been impressed by the quick progress the company made during the first three months of operation and backed with massive investment funds, the company was able to roll out in Abuja and other major cities then. And it was not surprising when the company adopted the slogan, “Your Best Connection” which it later changed to “Your Better Connection” after it was reminded that there could not be best between two competitors.

One of the things that worked in favour of MTN was the boardroom fracas that engulfed its major competitor, Econet, shortly after they launched operations. Owned by Zimbabwean businessman, Strive Misiyiwa, the company, after paying the mandatory $280m, did not have funds for expansion and growth. It approached some state governments like Akwa Ibom and Delta who made massive investments in the business. However, boardroom politics ensured that Misiyiwa had to abandon ship and return to its homeland. Two years later, the company changed to Vodafone and later V-mobile and then Celtel before the latest name, Airtel, after which

“In establishing its brand value and ensure constant connection with its patrons and subscribers, MTN chose its communication strategy by identifying with those events that the culturally connected with the people. MTN decided to partner with the organisers of events…” it stabilised and was able to play its roll as credible brand challenger to MTN. The massive and quick expansion of MTN into the interior established it as a major and indisputable number one GSM service provider in the country and has remained so till today.

Its strength is nit just in the reach of its service, but the fact that it also the provider of the nation’s data backbone which has further reinforced its position as the power behind Nigeria’s effective telecommunication services.

MTN started with the N1500 recharge card and later the N700 value before introducing the N400 value. It also introduced the monthly N4000 Booster card, which would half the cost of calls made on the network. It also introduced the Business Package, which was prepaid.

Despite these initial innovations, the company pointedly told its subscribers’ that per second billing was not possible. This was a massive challenge for its early subscribers who were being charged N50 per one minute of call.

BILLING CONTROVERSY

The greater challenge, however, was that if you made call of one minute and two seconds, you would be charged N100.

The company’s Public Relations Officer at the time, Calixthus Okoruwa, had told THISDAY that the company was not ripping off Nigerians but that per second billing was no just possible shortly after roll-out of GSM services in any country.

“It usually takes about five years before you can switch to per second billing. This is not a Nigerian thing but what is obtainable worldwide. You also have to put the technology for this in place. So Nigerians have to bear with us, ”Okoruwa explained in an interview.

For the first one and a half years of GSM operations in Nigeria, it seemed per second billing was a mirage until Glo rolled out in 2003. Inside sources told THISDAY that Glo did not want to start with per second billing as the promoter, Adenuga, believed he had to start also with per minute billing to recoup investment and be at par with the existing service providers, MTN and Econet.

He was, however, persuaded that the only

innovation he could bring into a market already dominated by MTN and Econet was to roll out with per second billing. This was a game changer. Withing weeks of Glo rolling with per second billing, MTN and Econet followed suit. And so the competition started in full force but in terms of service and reach, MTN remained ahead of the chasing pack.

In establishing its brand value and ensure constant connection with its patrons and subscribers, MTN chose its communication strategy by identifying with those events that the culturally connected with the people. MTN decided to partner with the organisers of events like the Ofala Festival in Onitsha, Argungun Fishing Festival in Sokoto as well as the Osun Oshogbo Festival in Oshogbo, Osun State.

These festivals provided the brand with the opportunity to show that it was not just a foreign business concern making money in Nigeria, but a brand that had come to stay and establish itself as a protector of the people’s cultural identities. This move massively helped the brand’s value and enhanced its perception amongst its patrons. Beyond this, the brand also identified with the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), by registering its presence in virtually all Orientation Camps in the country. It was another way of showing that it was ready to be part of building the nation’s future.

SUCCESS AS BURDEN

For MTN, success also become a burden.

And like every big brand, there is always the tendency to get carried away and dare the authorities and test their resolve.

The first major brush MTN had with the authorities was when it was accused of not deleting over five million lines, which were not registered and were still being used by subscribers. Earlier one, the federal government had decreed that every GSM user in the country, irrespective of service provider, must register their lines on or before a stipulated time frame after which the lines so unregistered would be deleted.

However, it was discovered by Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), via the compliance audit carried out by the

Commission, that MTN had about 5.2million Subscribers Identification Modules, SIM, simply known as lines, it had refused to disconnect or deactivated. Invoking Section 20, subsection One of Telephone Subscribers Regulation, TSR, Law on MTN, the NCC fined the GSM service provider a sum of $1000 for each of the 5.2 million lines that were not deactivated by the service provider amounting to $5.2billion. This was in October 2015.

On November 2, 2015, the MTN wrote a letter to the NCC admitting wrongdoing on its part but asking for reduction in its fine and more time to be able to pay the fine. The NCC said the decision on the fine was final but that the two parties could meet to see how the deadline payment of the fine could be reviewed and structured. On 16th November of the same year, the NCC assured the public that the payment of the penalty would not be enforced until the two parties had come into an agreement.

It was a major public relations crisis for the company and head had to roll. The chief executive officer of the company, Sifiso Dabengwa, had to resign. He was not the only one. The Head of the Nigerians Operations, Michael Ikpoki, too had to go. Head of Corporate Affairs, Akinwale Goodluck, too had to resign.

THE CASUALTIES

In resigning, Dabengwa had this to say: “Due to the most unfortunate prevailing circumstances occurring at MTN Nigeria, I, in the interest of the company and its shareholders, have tendered my resignation with immediate effect.”

What followed were diplomatic efforts by the South African government and its Nigerian counterpart to give MTN a safe landing and mitigate the effect of such a humongous amount of fine could have on its finances. At the end of the day, a compromise was reached and MTN had to pay $3.2billion dollars instead of the initial $5.2billion.

Irrespective of how it has operated in the last 20 years or the challenges it has faced, MTN has paid its dues in Nigeria. In terms of innovations, it changed the way Nigerians were communicating.

Beyond that, it extended its services to towns and villages where telecommunications probably would never have reached. Till today, there are communities that only have MTN as their GSM service provider. Beyond this, the MTN Foundation has been touching lives in a positive manner since its inception.

In terms of brand communication, MTN has produced iconic brands, which not only communicated its brand value but also tried to emotionally connect with its subscribers and patrons. The ‘Mama na Boy’ television commercial remains evergreen till today.

The first 20 years have come and gone with its own story of ups and downs. The next 20 years can only be better.

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BUSINESSWORLD

NEWS

Akeredolu Justifies Reason for Borrowing to Pay Salaries Fidelis David in Akure

The Governor of Ondo State, Mr. Oluwarotimi Akeredolu has revealed that the state government has been borrowing to pay salaries of workers due to economic situation.

The governor has also directed the payment of the salary of the state’s striking doctors after he interfaced with their leadership at his office in Akure.

The doctors were led to the meeting with the Governor by the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Health, Mrs. Foluke Aladenola, and the Nigeria Medical Association State Chairman, Mrs. Stella Adegbehingbe.

“The most painful thing is that we now borrow money to pay salaries because it got to that point where we cannot allow our workers to be seen as suffering due to no fault of ours.

“But if it is to bend backwards to keep our workers afloat, we shall not hesitate and that is why we are reviewing our earlier stand that we would not borrow to pay salaries.

“The danger, however, remains that we are eating our future as more goes into the recurrent than the capital as it were,” Akeredolu said.

Members of the Ondo State Chapter of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) and its affiliates recently suspended their industrial dispute with the state government after a protracted intervention by stakeholders and traditional rulers.

While justifying his borrowing, Akeredolu said the stalemate that led to their industrial action was as a result of the lack of understanding from a section of their association which was encouraging segregation of the workforce in terms of payment of salaries.

The governor however assured them that the Commissioner for Finance would commence the process of payment of their salary with immediate effect.

He said: “As regards the salaries of those who have not been paid, I can assure you that the money is intact, and it has been kept in an escrow account.

“But you need to know

that we paid all but one of your salary arrears of seven months that we met” Akeredolu, while explaining that all stakeholders in the health sector in the state must come to a mutual understanding with the government, the Governor said he is not happy with the financial situation of the State.

According to the Governor, “We all have fundamental roles and responsibilities to our people. The only difference is the distribution of positions as given by God. He said, “My role cannot be more important than yours as doctors because I cannot save lives but you do. Honestly, if language permits, you are not unhappier than me about what we have been made to contend with financially in the state.

We know it is a global issue but we are more concerned about how it affects us.”

The Permanent Secretary appealed that salaries of those affected in the National Association of Government and General Medical and Dental Practitioners (NAGGMDP) and the Association of Resident Doctors (ARD) be paid.

Report: Increase in Phishing Attacks on Nigerian Organisations Hits 66% Emma Okonji Sophos, a global leader in nextgeneration cybersecurity, has released the findings of its global survey report, titled: “Phishing Insights 2021,” which reveals that phishing attacks targeting organisations, ramped up considerably during the pandemic, as millions of employees working from home became prime targets for cybercriminals.

According to the report, the majority, about 66 per cent of Information Technology (IT) teams in Nigeria said the number of phishing emails targeting their employees increased during 2020.

Analysing the report, Principal Research Scientist at Sophos, Chester Wisniewski, said: “Phishing has been around for over 25 years and remains an effective cyberattack technique.

One of the reasons for its success is its ability to continuously evolve and diversify, tailoring attacks to topical issues or concerns, such as the pandemic, and playing on human emotions and trust.

“It can be tempting for organisations to see phishing attacks

as a relatively low-level threat, but that underestimates their power.

Phishing is often the first step in a complex, multi-stage attack.

Sophos Rapid Response team had revealed that attackers frequently use phishing emails to trick users into installing malware or sharing credentials that provide access to the corporate network.”

The findings also revealed that there is a lack of common understanding about the definition of phishing. According to the report, 55 per cent of IT teams in Nigeria, associate phishing with emails that falsely claim to be from a legitimate organisation, and which are usually combined with a threat or request for information.

The report said forty-five per cent consider Business Email Compromise (BEC) attacks to be phishing, and more than one-third, about 34 per cent think that thread jacking is phishing, especially when attackers insert themselves into a legitimate email thread as part of an attack.

“The good news is that most organisations in Nigeria 86 per cent have implemented cybersecurity

awareness programmes to combat phishing. Respondents said they use computer-based training programmes (55%), human-led training programs (39%), and phishing simulations (36%). The ideal would be to prevent phishing emails from ever reaching their intended recipient,” Wisniewski said.

Effective email security solutions can go a long way towards achieving this, but this should be complemented by alert and primed employees who are able to spot and report suspicious messages before they get any further,” Wisniewski added.

The Sophos Phishing Insights survey polled 5,400 IT decision makers in 30 countries across Europe, the Americas, Asia-Pacific and Central Asia, the Middle East, and Africa.

Powered by threat intelligence, AI and machine learning from SophosLabs and SophosAI, Sophos delivers a broad portfolio of advanced products and services to secure users, networks and endpoints against ransomware, malware.

Bamgbose, Adewole Denise Babalola’s Claims on Star Orient Ownership Femi Solaja Counsel to the parties in the ownership tussle over Star Orient Nigeria Limited, Agbafo & Co, has denied claims made by, Babatunde Babalola against his clients, Lanre Bamgbose and Isaaki Adewole in his publication in the media.

In a letter addressed to the Managing Director of THISDAY, he described the publication as injurious falsehood.

He said Babalola’s libelious claim is capable of affecting economic and business interest of the company.

According to the counsel, its clients have been wounded, traumatised, libeled and de-marketed by the publication of an article styled: “Babalola Debunks Claim

on Ownership of Star Orient”, which was unabashedly and purposefully, thrust on the corporate and natural world to his clients.

“The said article which was purely a hatchet job with no pretense to objectivity, clearly sent out the tendentious falsehood that the Company has a shadow ownership arrangement by which it is controlled by a ghost individual, who is neither a shareholder nor a director and who is never visibly or directly involved in any financial transactions but owns and directs its affairs,”he said.

“By that portrayal, you implied that our client company is indeed a vehicle or artifice, for crime syndication and

is not a bona fide corporate entity. That the company’s registration with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) is but a farce, in fact, a snare to the public, who will deal with information in the records of the CAC to their detriment because those registered as its owners are not owners and that fact is not disclosed — deliberately!.”

The counsel added: “That our clients: Lanre Bamgbose and Isaaki Adewole, are incompetent and fraudulent persons who have mismanaged the company and have put it in a state of ruin and decline; That the company is in receivership; That the company has lost all patronage and has been deliberately programmed to be wound up.”

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ANALYSIS

BDCs and $34bn Dispora Remittances The CBN should institute a framework that allows BDCs, which have automated their operations, to receive the estimated $34 billion diaspora remittance into the economy to boost dollar reserves, writes Hameed Ayodaji

T

here are many things working in favour of Nigeria that are hardly noticed. Top on the list is the $34 billion estimated annual remittance by Nigerians in diaspora that are barely touched because of non-existence channels to attract the funds into the economy.

Globally, Nigeria is one of the few countries that concisely attract funds from migrant workers.

Others are Pakistan, Canada, USA, Australia, and Vietnam.

Nigeria is on the side of those that have many migrant workers in the rest of the world, and therefore earn foreign currencies they want to remit home.

But there is a huge problem that limits the funds from getting home.

In a media report, renowned economist and chief consultant at B. Adedipe Associates Limited, Dr. Biodun Adedipe, explained that if Nigeria is able to manage that remittance effectively, it will add 0.4 per cent to our GDP growth annually.

He disclosed that a lot of the dollar don’t come into the FX market in Nigeria. The receiver gets the naira equivalent of the fund even when the funds never got to Nigeria, denying Nigeria the full benefit of diaspora remittances , despite the country being at the top in terms of benefitting from migrant workers.

“So what then happens is that instead of bringing it into the FX market in Nigeria, they keep it outside.

That also becomes a leg that supports speculations that we talked about earlier on. I believe that was part of the reason why the CBN introduced the $1 for N5 incentive. The idea now is to see if the country can harness the most of the remittances,” Adedipe said.

“That now is a policy I think we need to interrogate more. How can we make it more attractive for those foreign currencies generated by migrant Nigerian workers to be remitted home, and become a part of our national supply to our market here?

That now is a space for the BDCs”.

Analysts said that what is needed is implementation of laws that stipulated that oil companies and other multinational companies bring dollars into the economy instead of keeping them at Home countries.

This will ensure that what is kept outside the market would come into Nigeria to boost supply.

CBN already has the tools, but they need to enforce it.

ABCON President, Alhaji (Dr) Aminu Gwadabe said globally, BDCs remain one of the channels through which the Diaspora remittance funds come into countries.

He said that the BDCs remain at the centre of economic development and have the capacity to attract needed capital for the development of the Nigerian economy and deepening of forex market.

Findings have also shown that forex remittances from Nigerians in the Diaspora far exceeded the country’s earnings from crude oil export last year.

Since many transactions are unrecorded or take place through informal channels, the actual amount of remittance flows into the country is arguably higher. The estimation is that migrant remittances to Nigeria could grow to $25.5 billion, $29.8 billion and $34.8 billion in 2019, 2021 and 2023 respectively.

Gwadabe said Diaspora remittances remain cheap source of fund, because it is not to be paid back with interest but goes directly into the construction of houses, payment of school fees, medicals and a lot of things that are adding value to the weak economy.

Again, BDCs are supposed to buy from travelers coming into Nigeria, whether they are foreigners or they are Nigerians who did some things offshore, and were able to make some money, and brought back those foreign currencies.

BDCs are also expected to operate two-way rate, then in response to what they have told you, you will now disclose whether you want to buy from them or sell to them. The operators are also expected to be in tune with market dynamics, be able to fix its own rate within the recommended commission rate in such a way that is competitive in that market.

Other issues include customer service, relationship management and commission which must be within market range.

IMPORT PRESSURE ON FOREX

But because we were net importers, that brought pressure on the FX market. And like we have also argued overtime, the major worry for the CBN or anyone considering the management of the FX market is the premium.

Premium is the difference between the official rates of the FX rate you get in other segments of the FX market. The other segments will mean, the

parallel market, the BDCs, of course in those days we used to talk about export proceeds, and all manner of different arrangements.

But today, the idea simply is that any other market outside of CBN is an alternative. So what is the rate there? How is it as compared to the official rate? So, the difference between these rates is called premium.

Adedipe said: “Anytime that premium is greater than five per cent, it then becomes an incentive for round tripping. This means that the foreign currency becomes now attractive for those who want to speculate to go and buy, sell and then, they generate more Naira. So they can return to the official market and buy even more dollars, then go back and convert the dollar and get even more naira. That’s why it’s called round tripping. There is no currency anywhere in the world that can survive such an arrangement.”

MORE FOREX SUPPLY NOT SOLUTION

Adedipe also said that the question that needs to be answered is what drives the exchange value of the Naira. If you are able to answer that question, it will bring us to the understanding of what is happening today.

But ordinarily, in the interplay of demand and supply, what CBN has done is not to reduce the supply of FX to the market. What they have done is to shift the supply from one segment of the market to another, and even doubled the volume; which means, the response of rate is not to the supply coming to the market, which in fact has doubled.

Equally, what could have been the concern is access. The CBN has also dealt with that by not only telling the participatory banks to have desks designated for forex, where members of the public in need of foreign currencies for defined purposes can have access to the foreign currencies required, which you can now also give to them either in cash, or as a credit into their domiciliary account, or into their dollar card.

This means the issue is not supply on one hand, and on the other hand also, access is not the problem. It means the real issue is that the speculators knew that this position of the CBN is not something sustainable, which means that it’s not institutionalised.

This means therefore that if another Governor comes into office, after the expiration of Emefiele’s term, there is a likelihood that he or she may go back to the old way of doing things. So we have to come back to look at those factors that cause exchange rates to move.

There are about 12 of them in economics.

“One of them is the interplay between demand and supply, which as of today does not support what we see happening in that market. That is the depreciation of the Naira in the market as we see now is not supported by the interplay between demand and supply.”

“Which is why I say, ultimately, the only reason we can admit this is speculation, which is based on the fact that, oh, CBN will not be able to sustain this? So, the question now will be, why can’t they sustain it? If we look

at our external reserves, there are two ways to interpret that in this connection”.

DIASPORA REMITTANCES AND BDCS

The BDCs have for years supported Nigeria’s growth agenda and CBN’s commitment to exchange rate stability. To continue to play these roles creditably, the BDC industry needs improved access to forex.

The ABCON believes the success of BDCs goes beyond favourable rates but access to multiple streams of forex earnings to deepen the market, keep the naira stable and boost BDCs operations.

Making BDCs one of the channels through which over $34 billion annual Diaspora remittances enter the economy will give depth to forex market and boost BDCs operations.

Diaspora remittances to Nigeria, now at $23 billion annually remain a reliable source of forex to the domestic economy and that is why over 5,500 CBN -Licenced BDCs should come to mind.

Concerned with the stagnant state of the nation’s economy marred with inconsistent forex earnings through oil export, the ABCON agreed with Adedipe for BDCs to be one of the channels for receiving Diaspora remittances into the economy.

Gwadabe explained that Diaspora remittances represent household income from foreign economies arising mainly from the temporary or permanent movement of people to those economies. The remittances cash and non-cash items that flow through formal channels such as electronic wire, or through informal channels, such as money or goods carried across borders adding that Nigeria can cover a large part of capital flow gaps through remittances from its citizens in diaspora using the BDCs. “Nigerian BDCs operators have also identified with the immense opportunities presented

by Diaspora remittances and want to play greater role in attracting more foreign capital into the economy. Reason being that remittances are known to help poorer recipients meet basic needs, fund cash and non-cash investments, finance education, foster new businesses, service debt and essentially, drive economic growth,” Gwadabe said.

CONNECTING BDCS’ TO REMITTANCE BUSINESS

Financial pundits have continued to give reasons why BDCs

should be brought into the Diaspora remittance business. For instance, financial institutions’ long procedures, complicated forms, and history of poor service quality means BDCs are needed to deepen the market. The BDCs segment of the market operates in a simple manner while remaining closer to the people needing the remittance funds.

“BDCs buy foreign currency from remittance recipients and sell it to Nigerians who want to travel abroad. The reason for establishing these institutions in 1989 was to broaden the forex market and improve accessibility to hard currency. The CBN supervises and issues operational guidelines for BDCs. In March 2006, Nigeria had 293 licensed BDCs which have risen to over 5,500 operators today. This development means that BDCs are willing and ready to do the remittance business,” Gwadabe said.

For him, remittances are on track to become the largest source of external financing in developing countries and Nigeria cannot be left behind.

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HEALTH & LIFESTYLE

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

Growing Concern over Mental Health of Cancer Patients For cancer patients, since the global explosion of COVID-19 pandemic, growing concern over their mental health has become more expedient, especially since most can’t access health facilities for treatment or work to raise funds, thus spiraling them into depression, Ayodeji Ake reports

COPE cancer survivors

E

ight years ago, Mrs. Nnena Obasi was struck by cancer which stripped her of her finances and some of the properties she laboured hard for. Due to her experience, cancer patients develop mental illness due to the outrageous cost of treatments. According to her, in most cases, the worry of generating money for cancer treatment has sent a lot to early grave. For survivors, a lot have developed one mental illness or the other through stigma.

“It all started in the year 2013. I felt a lump on my left breast. I didn’t know what it was until I visited the hospital and was referred to an oncologist and after the examinations it was confirmed it was cancer and that was how the journey started. I had my radiotherapy then I started the treatments.

“The stigma wasn’t easy especially when you have girl children and people getting to know their mother is a breast cancer survivor, men run away from them because they feel cancer is hereditary, which is not. Then, people were afraid of me and there were a lot of discriminating rumours. Some said it’s a spell, some spread the rumour that cancer is contagious and there were a lot of stories making rounds but today I am a living testimony.

“In Nigeria, we have a serious problem. Cancer patents are neglected and cancer treatment is still very expensive. I spent so much money, I sold so many of my properties to survive cancer but there are a lot of Nigerians out there who don’t have the opportunity. We need cancer centres in local governments so it can be easily accessed. Also drugs and treatment prices should be subsidised.

When one looks around and discovers no financial support, there is no solution other than death.

Support from the government will go a long way to assist cancer patients” she said.

Mental health became a growing concern especially during the COVID-19 lockdown. A lot of activities were stopped and gatherings were disrupted to curtail the deadly virus from spreading. Consequently, cancer survivors like Mrs. Obasi couldn’t access health facilities for treatment. A large number of survivors ran into depression.

“Before COVID-19, the cancer survivor group had line-up activities we engaged in: we visited the beach, the spa, the cinemas and other social activities but since the era of COVID-19, we couldn’t meet up with these activities again. A lot of people called that they were running into depression. I know of someone who was depressed and now down with stroke,” Obasi said.

Expert Opinion about Mental Health Mental Health Advocate, Dr. Olamide Bello, in an exclusive with THISDAY, noted that although physical health is very important, mental health is also very crucial.

She further explained that mental health is attached to all health conditions, most especially depression and anxiety disorder.

She said: “We tend to focus on physical health and dealing with chronic conditions like hypertension, diabetes, cancer and other health issues. However, we tend to forget that mental health also plays a part in addressing the region

as a realistic person and the fact that having these conditions puts you at risk of mental health disorders for instance particularly depression, anxiety disorders.

“It is important to take note that even though we address physical health in terms of treating those conditions we need to value our mental health and also our social wellbeing because WHO defines health as the state of physical emotional and social wellbeing and not just the absence of diseases and infirmities.

“Mental health deals with the fact that how we move, think, adapt, feel and how productive we are. Mental health is the state of wellbeing in which an individual realises their own capabilities and is able to handle stress, and be productive at work and in their community. We need to understand what our skills are and how we can build these skills to help our mental health” she said.

According to Bello, the transformation and alteration of the physique of cancer survivors may trigger mental disorder.

“It is a fact that breast cancer is a chronic condition and so having to deal with breast cancer is alone puts one at risk of a mental health disorder because it’s a life changing thing, it’s not a just a disease, it’s not just malaria, I mean if I go to the hospital if I have malaria now and I am given medications I am going to be fine.

“If I start treatment on time, I am going to be fine and be discharged but it’s a chronic thing, it’s not something that gets solved in a day or something that gets solved in a month, it affects your emotions because the fear of stigmatisation because I have breast cancer, or whether I am going to lose my breast because I have breast cancer?

“Men also have breast cancer, but women particularly, we are identified with how we see ourselves when we look into the mirror and this is someone that used to feel and see these aesthetics. Looking at the mirror and you telling me that I will have to cut off my breast because I have breast cancer, is a life changing thing.

“As much as possible, we need to have the talk and see that people are not feeling stigmatised because they don’t have breast or because they have breast cancer, I cannot look beautiful anymore or I don’t feel like myself anymore and I mean even the amount that I spent in managing the condition, you go for chemotherapy, you lose taste in what

frequent state of panic mode as well as gaining weight due to infrequent exercise. I am grateful for my daughter who encouraged me to de-stress by listening to my favourite jazz music and starting a small vegetable farm, which now puts a smile on my face each time I tend to the plants and consume fresh vegetables.

“With the respite that the vaccines have brought, and although no country is completely out of the woods, we felt it was important to find a way to Mental Health in COVID-19 In an encounter with the Founder, Care organise a meeting to encourage our members Organisation Public Enlightenment (COPE), while maintaining safety protocols.

“We specifically wanted to have a mental health a breast cancer non-profit organisation, Mrs. Ebun Anozie, she recounted experiences on professional speak to the group on how to cope impact of COVID-19 on cancer survivors as with the mental health impact of the pandemic, even as the world begins to slowly open up again. it relates to mental health.

“There is no doubt that the pandemic We presented the idea to the group and they threw the entire world into a state of embraced the idea.

“I sought the support of Leadway Health and uncertainty because it was unexpected.

In the first few weeks of the lockdown in they graciously agreed and have been supporting Lagos, communicating primarily virtually us. Also, we distributed gifts which had been was a challenge for our group members. A generously donated to our members by the ever lot of them were always thrilled to attend supportive Founder, GingerSoulLifestyle, Mrs. our monthly meetings where we invite Amina Gbajamila,” she said. professionals to provide members of our support group with the necessary tools on Preventive Measures Speaking on preventive measures, Dr. Bello how to live a healthy and fulfilled ‘new normal life’ after breast cancer diagnosis noted that keeping social relationships and healthy and treatment(s) with COVID-19 and the lifestyle modification by consuming vegetables, state lockdown, we could no longer meet fruits and adequate water, stabilises mental health.

She said: “the key things really for tips on in person.

“Furthermore, some of our members how to help is, in terms of lifestyle modification also found it difficult to visit their doctors we can talk about eating well in terms of eating for treatment for fear of becoming infected more fruits, eating more vegetables, drinking a with COVID at a hospital, which was lot of water, exercise also that is very key because understandable considering the global those things help with building what we call statistics on certain categories of people endorphins, they are hormones that help with with underlying medical conditions being improving mood as much as possible.

“Things like fitness, finding things that you susceptible to complications if infected with COVID-19. A lot of our members also missed enjoy if it is taking minutes out of your time communicating frequently with their support every day to do something you love doing even group partners who they rely on for emotional, if it is listening to music, even if it is dancing, even if it is cooking, whenever it is and then all social and spiritual support” she said.

Sharing her personal experience, Anozie these other things, sometimes you might just narrated how she during COVID-19 indulged need to express yourself.

“It might just be finding someone to talk to, herself in some activities to avert destabilised expressing yourself, the person just listening and mental health.

“Personally, I became lethargic. I became just that singular action of talking to somebody paranoid, I could not go out to exercise and might help with managing your stress and there became unnecessarily confused and anxious is what we call the four As of stress management wanting to know the latest news on COVID-19. where we talk about Avoiding, Altering, Adapting I found myself flipping from one news channel and Accepting. So those things, different situations to the other listening to conflicting theories. require different things and it is an on-going daily I did my best to be brave because I needed challenge, it’s not something you can solve in a day, you have to keep doing it every day. to allay the fears of our group members.

“I mentioned earlier that to build a habit you “However, it was infuriating being in a have to keep doing something for twenty one days and even after you do it for twenty one days when you have that habit, you have to keep doing it every day because it is an on-going daily challenge, you always have to go through stress, you always have to go through one thing or another.

“So you need to keep making sure that are you reassessing yourself on a daily basis, after today now did I do well in terms of managing my stress, tomorrow what am i going to do, am I doing it in a better day?, so you need to keep re-accessing and re-evaluating your journey because it is not something that get solved in a day”. you use to enjoy, you go for radiotherapy, your hair starts falling out. “ I mean people feel beautiful when they make their hair but now your hair is falling out and things like that. So there is no way it’s not going to definitely affect anybody and that puts the person at risk of having a full blown mental health disorder,” she said.

Mental health deals with the fact that how we move, think, adapt, feel and how productive we are. Mental health is the state of wellbeing in which an individual realises their own capabilities and is able to handle stress, and be productive at work and in their community

T H I S D AY ˾ , SEPTEMBER 16, 2021

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NEWS

FERTILITY Crown Flour Mill Joins Global Efforts to Curb Malnutrition DANGER SIGNS IN PREGNANCY (PART 3 ) Large-scale food fortification is an essential action to reduce micronutrient deficiencies in Africa. To unlock the full potential of fortification, the private sector needs broader partnerships to foster investments in food processing technology and infrastructure as well as to drive consumer education.

This was the submission of Ashish Pande, the Managing Director of Crown Flour Mill (CFM) Limited, an Olam Group Company in Nigeria, during a virtual high-level consultation organised by the Government of Côte d’Ivoire and the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), through the Regional Centre of Excellence against Hunger and Malnutrition (CERFAM), on September 2 and 3, 2021.

The high-level consultation, with the theme “Food fortification: which dietary approach to reduce micronutrient deficiencies in Africa?”, brought together representatives from governments, regional and sub-regional organisations, the African Union, development partners, control and regulatory agencies, the private sector, academia, civil society organisations, food systems’ experts and key players working in the field of nutrition in Africa.

The event aimed to collate and propose actionable interventions to governments and other key stakeholders to support the efforts of African countries to eliminate malnutrition from the continent.

Speaking about the roles of technological and financial partners in deepening the food fortification efforts in Africa,

Pande said, “Acquiring the right food processing technology infrastructure as well as communicating and educating the importance of micronutrients and a healthy diet to key value chain players and especially, consumers will fast track the food fortification agenda on sub-regional and regional levels in Africa.”

He added, “Crown Flour Mill Limited, along with Technoserve and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation have developed a fully automated premix facility, which is first of any miller in West Africa.

“Our premix facility ensures the right quantity and quality of micronutrients, which conform with the required standards of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) and the International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO), are put in foods at the factory processing level.”

According to Pande, “In addition to ensuring our food processing standards match regulatory prescriptions, we conduct extensive consumer education initiatives, while also regularly working with bakers to familiarise them with food fortification technology for the nutritional benefit of the end consumers, via the Baking School initiative.”

He explained that CFM works with leading international agencies to continuously improve its food processing methodologies in line with global best practices and the various international food fortification and affordability

agendas such as the African Union’s Agenda 2063, the Malabo Declaration on Accelerated Agricultural Growth and Transformation for Shared Prosperity and Improved Livelihoods, the Africa Regional Nutrition Strategy 2015-2025, and the 2030 Agenda of the United Nations, particularly the Sustainable Development Goal 2, amongst others.

Pande was a panelist at Session 8 of the high-level food fortification consultation webinar titled “Technological and Financial Partners Commitment to Food Fortification in Africa”. The panel, which was moderated by Dr Rolf Klemm, the Vice President of Nutrition at the Helen Keller International, also had as panelists Martin Fregene, the Director of Agriculture and Agro-Industry at the African Development Bank; Shawn Baker, the Chief Nutritionist at the United States Agency for International Development (USAID); and Yannick Foing, the Global Director of DSM’s Nutrition Improvement Unit.

Participants at the webinar agreed that scaling-up food fortification and diet diversification supplementation needs the support of wider advocacy and partnership strategies.

In addition to flour, the fortification of other staple foods, particularly of rice, will be needed to end hidden hunger and achieve SDG 2 on the continent.

They emphasised the importance of strategic national & regional policies, and effective regulatory frameworks as critical drivers of food fortification globally.

B Medical Systems Introduces World’s First In-transit Temperature Control Technology for Vaccine Transportation Mary Nnah In a bid to solve the perennial challenge of vaccines wastage in many countries caused by the lack of a reliable end-to-end cold chain movement of vaccines, especially to remote areas in their right temperature, a global leader in the vaccine cold chain industry, B Medical Systems, has announced plans to roll out an in-transit temperature control technology for vaccine and cold specimen transportation in Africa.

The technology which was recently unveiled for the supply of COVID-19 vaccines will facilitate the safe delivery of vaccines to remote areas in their right temperature.

The innovation, the first of its kind in the industry, has received a Performance, Quality and Safety (PQS) pre-qualification from the World Health Organisation (WHO) and can reliably transport vaccines or any other specimens in a 2-8 °C temperature range.

The successful rollout of immunisation programmes depends on the quality of the vaccine supply chain and the ability to provide a cold chain until the last mile.

However, with several health centres located in extremely remote, rural, hostile terrains with minimal road infrastructure, delivering an end-to-end cold chain can be challenging.

The Luxembourg based healthcare company has partnered with Toyota Tsusho Corporation to create a refrigerated vaccine transport vehicle to facilitate movement for the vaccines in a safe environment.

The WHO pre-qualifies products and devices so that member states and UN purchasing agencies are assured of their suitability for use in immunisation programmes.

Countries across the world can now procure this solution for the reliable transportation of vaccines.

“Last mile has always been the weakest link in the vaccine cold chain. In several regions across the world, the last mile health centres are in remote areas that are difficult to access due to the terrain and infrastructure. We are extremely excited to bring such a solution to the market along with Toyota”, CEO of B Medical Systems, Mr. Luc Provost said.

Provost explained further that the refrigerated vaccine vehicle can easily travel through rough terrains and narrow roads delivering vaccines even to the most remote health posts, thereby ensuring an effective last mile vaccine cold chain delivery.

He said further that the design of the solution also ensures that none of the vials are broken during the delivery process, eliminating vaccine wastage,

which is otherwise common in refrigerated trucks.

“We are very happy that the product received the PQS pre-qualification. The combined solution has the power to revolutionise the way vaccines are delivered until the last mile”, he noted.

Provost added that the company is now in talks with various countries in Africa with a view to introducing this technology to their markets.

“We see this technology as a good platform for the international framework of COVAX, co-managed by Vaccine Alliance GAVI and managing the COVID-19 vaccine roll-out in Nigeria, which seeks to distribute vaccines for COVID-19 fairly to developing countries and its use as a means of transportation for COVID-19 vaccines, is also expected. The companies have started the manufacturing of refrigerated vehicles and expect to ship the first batch in the coming weeks,” he added.

The refrigerated vehicle has a B Medical Systems vaccine refrigerator with a storage capacity of 396L incorporated into a Toyota Land Cruiser 78.

The vaccine refrigerator is powered via the vehicle while in motion and can also be powered by an external regular electric supply when parked.

Info@lifelinkfertility.com; Website: lifelinkfertility.com 08033083580

L

ast week, we looked at the likely signs to indicate danger in a pregnant woman, this week aims at highlighting one of them which occurs especially in the late second and early third trimester of pregnancy posing a real threat to mother and baby known as preeclampsia PRE-ECLAMPSIA: also known as pregnancy-induced hypertension (PIH) or Toxemia. It is a serious condition that makes regular prenatal visits even more important. The condition typically occurs after 20 weeks of pregnancy and can cause serious complications for the mother and baby. Between 5 and 8 percent of women experience the condition. Teenagers, women 35 and older, women pregnant with their first baby, African American women, are at a higher risk.

There should be no stress about gaining weight as that is expected in pregnancy, most body part may seem to be getting bigger and a little bit of swelling might be expected, close attention must be paid to the hands and face. Severe, sudden swelling in the ankles and feet must also be noted. Puffiness in the face and anything more than a little swelling of the hands with weight gain of more than 2kg per week could be a sign of pre-eclampsia.

Early detection and close monitoring with regular blood pressure check and specialist evaluation/management is required.

SYMPTOMS Symptoms of preeclampsia include high blood pressure, protein in the urine, sudden weight gain, and swelling of the hands and feet.

Prenatal visits are essential because screening done during these visits can detect symptoms like high blood pressure and increased protein in the urine. If left untreated, preeclampsia can lead to eclampsia (seizures), kidney failure, and, sometimes even death in the mother and fetus. Women should never ignore symptoms of preeclampsia. Seek emergency medical treatment if you have rapid swelling in the feet and legs, hands, or face.

Other emergency symptoms include persistent headache that doesn’t go away with medication, loss of vision, floaters in the vision, severe pain on the right side or in your stomach area, easy bruising, decreased amounts of urine, and

shortness of breath. These may suggest severe preeclampsia.

Blood tests, such as liver and kidney function tests and blood-clotting tests, may confirm the diagnosis and can detect severe disease.

CAUSE AND PREVENTION Despite years of scientific study, the true cause of preeclampsia is not known, nor is there any effective prevention. The treatment, however, has been known for many decades and that is delivery of the baby.

The problems associated with preeclampsia can continue even after delivery, but this is unusual. Timely diagnosis and delivery is the best way to avoid serious problems for mother and baby.

The exact cause of pre-eclampsia is unknown. However, it is important for you to receive care as soon as possible.

Sometimes medicines like magnesium sulfate can help stop preterm labor and delay delivery.

Each day pregnancy is prolonged increases the chances for a healthy baby. If preterm labor begins after 36 weeks, the baby is usually delivered since the risk of lung disease from prematurity is very low.

Delivery of the baby may be the best treatment for preeclampsia, however if baby has not developed enough, bed rest at home or in the hospital until blood pressure is controlled or the baby is ready for delivery is needed depending on the appropriate option of treatment by the physician that is managing the patient.

Doctors often give a steroid medication to moms whose preterm labor starts before 34 weeks. This helps your baby’s lungs mature and reduces the severity of lung disease if your labor can’t be stopped.

Steroid medication has its peak effect within two days, so it’s best to prevent delivery for at least two days, if possible. All women with preterm labor who haven’t been tested for the presence of group B streptococcus should receive antibiotics (penicillin G, ampicillin, or an alternative for those who are allergic to penicillin) until delivery.

Preeclampsia not treated will get severe, and can cause brain, liver, kidney, heart, or eye damage and sometimes seizures.

TO BE CONTINUED NEXT WEEK

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T H I S D AY ˾ , SEPTEMBER 16, 2021

NEWS

SEPLAT JV Restates Commitment to Visual Health of Host Communities Uchechukwu Nnaike As part of efforts to ensure healthy lives and promote wellbeing of all, in line with Sustainability Development Goal (SDG) 3, Seplat Energy Plc, operators of the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC)/SEPLAT Joint Venture, has kicked off its ninth annual ‘Eye Can See’ CSR programme.

The programme, which held at the Oba of Benin’s palace recently, witnessed a large turn out of people from within and outside Benin City, who desired to have their eyes checked, obtain prescription glasses or get operated upon to remove visual impairing cataracts.

The company said the programme will be deployed in different centres across Delta and Edo States, and thousands of Nigerians will be screened for eye ailments, surgeries performed, and eye glasses dispensed.

The Oba was represented at the event by Chief John Oviesoge, the Eribo of Benin Kingdom, who led other chiefs.

Other dignitaries present included key government officials and NPDC repre-

sentatives.

In her remarks, the Director, External Affairs and Sustainability, Seplat Energy, Dr. Chioma Nwachuku, stated that ensuring sustainability of its host communities remains the country’s priority, particularly the health and well-being of their people.

“We are committed to partnering our host communities with the view to touching lives.

The ‘Eye Can See’ programme has been on since 2012, and every year, the company brings a dedicated team of medics to ensure it makes the right and needed impacts,” she said.

According to her, Seplat has through the programme, impacted 80,194 persons; dispensed 35,755 reading glasses, and performed 3,456 cataract and related surgeries.

Welcoming the company and dignitaries to the palace, Chief Oviesoge commended the company for supporting and enhancing the physical and mental wellbeing of members of its host communities and pledged his kingdom’s support to the company and its activities.

He also applauded the company’s resolve to continue investing in its areas of opera-

FCT Urges Mother s to Vaccinate Babies against Polio Olawale Ajimotokan ÓØ ÌßÔË The FCT Minister of state, Dr. Ramatu Tijjani Aliyu, has urged all mothers to come out and vaccinate their babies, in order to eradicate polio from the territory.

She made the appeal at Area 2 Primary Healthcare Centre, Garki Abuja, when she vaccinated two newborn babies as the chief vaccinator during the inauguration of the second round of the response to the Poliovirus outbreak circulating in the territory.

“We urge all mothers to come out and vaccinate their babies because we want polio to be kicked out or eradicated, and we want the status to be maintained.

“I know mothers are the most excited people in the world, especially with a newborn baby. However, follow all the processes as directed by medical personnel,” she said.

The minister assured that FCT would participate in the October National Immunisation Plus Days when under-five children in the FCT and the 36 states of the federation would have another opportunity to be vaccinated with the potent novel oral polio vaccine.

In his remarks, the acting Secretary of FCT Primary Health Care Board, Dr. Iwot Ndaeyo, said the first round was conducted in the five area councils of Abaji, Abuja Municipal, Bwari, Kuje and Kwali in August and all are due for the second round this month.

He also stated that the first-round report showed Abaji, Kwali and Bwari performing well and passing the end process evaluation at the first test, while Abuja Municipal and Kuje area councils had to undertake mop-up exercises to meet the required coverage and eventually passed the end process test.

tion, saying the move had helped to boost the fortunes of the areas.

The ‘Eye Can See’ programme is in addition to other yearly social programmes deployed by Seplat in its areas

of operation.

Beneficiaries of the programme, who received free eye screening and treatment with many whose sights were restored following surgery, commended the company for

bringing hope to their lives and giving them the opportunity to maximise their potential.

“The programme is open to anyone that comes to any designated venue whenever it is being deployed. The

company is by this programme restoring hope to those with visual impairment. Having their eye problems cured gives them the capability to generate income for themselves and their families.”

L-R: Permanent Secretary, Edo State Ministry of Minerals, Oil and Gas, Mr. Bernard Oigbokie; VP Finance, Seplat, Mrs. Eleanor Adaralegbe; Dep. Manager, Seplat JV, NPDC representing MD NPDC, Mr. Bassey Etim Bassey; Director, External Affairs and Sustainability, Seplat, Dr. Chioma Nwachuku; Permanent Secretary, Edo State Ministry of Health, Dr. Osamwonyi William Irowa; and Permanent Secretary, Edo State Ministry of Science and Technology, Mrs. Birgitta Eno Okodugha, at the kick off of Seplat JV Eye Can See CSR Programme, at the Oba of Benin Palace... recently

Smile Train, COSECSA, Invest $1.2m to Enhance Surgical Training in Africa Sunday Ehigiator In a bid to strengthen the surgical systems in Sub-Saharan, Smile Train, world’s largest cleft charity, in partnership with the College of Surgeons of East, Central and Southern Africa (COSECSA) has invested a total of $1.2 million in the education and training of 112 additional cleft and reconstructive surgeons across Africa.

In a recently signed statement

by Smile Trains’s Media Spokesperson, Emily Manjeru, the investment was said to be aimed at narrowing the gap of 5 billion people who lack access to safe, affordable surgical and anaesthesia care.

The statement revealed that through the partnership of the two organisations, 12 surgeons will receive a full scholarship to a three-year plastic surgery fellowship, with four positions specifically reserved for female surgeons. The partnership will also support 10 scholars to engage in an eight-month

post-fellowship cleft surgery certification program.

“In addition, over a five-year period, Smile Train will support sixty scholars to attend country-level ‘Train the Trainer Surgery Workshops’ as well as thirty scholars to participate in a fully funded Surgical Exchange program.

“Smile Train will further support program management and the COSECSA examination processes. Smile Train has continuously supported COSECSA’s training programs over the last five years.

“This increased investment is part of the organisation’s commitment to scaling cleft surgical education and training.”

Speaking more about the training, Senior Vice President, Global Medical Programs, Smile Train, Esther Njoroge-Muriithi said, “Smile Train led training innovation for cleft surgeons more than a decade ago when we first released our groundbreaking Cleft Surgery DVD, which has since evolved into an

award-winning Virtual Surgery Simulator.

“We also distribute the highest-fidelity cleft simulation devices in the world through our division Simulare.

“We support our more than 1,100 partners with a range of education and training opportunities throughout the year.

We are truly transforming the landscape of cleft treatment around the world, and in doing so transforming surgical systems.”

Similarly, the Vice President and Regional Director, Smile Train Africa, Mrs. Nkeiruka Obi said the “partnership comes against a backdrop of increased need for qualified surgeons in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).

“The COVID-19 pandemic has proven the need to have more robust surgical systems in the local communities, and through Smile Train’s unique teach a man to fish model we can help elevate surgical capacity.

“Together with COSECSA, we are bridging the gap for the 5 billion people who lack access to safe, affordable surgical and anaesthesia care; and will increase the number of surgeons across Africa, including those who specialise in cleft care.”

In his remarks, President of COSECSA, Prof. Godfrey Muguti, noted that the burden of surgical care was astronomical and out of reach for many, and families gamble with fundraisers to the tune of millions to receive better care in developed nations.

He said through the investment in the knowledge exchange in the organisation’s MoU with Smile Train, “we aim to build confidence in Africa’s surgeons, find local solutions to local challenges and administer quality, more affordable care in the local community.”

The statement further encouraged interested applicants are encouraged to review the qualifications and apply through COSECSA’swebsite.

Red Cross Charges Journalists to Cultivate, Educate Public on First Aid Rebecca Ejifoma The Red Cross Society of Nigeria (RCSN), Tuesday, charged journalists to cultivate the skills of first aid to save their lives while on duty in areas of conflict and violence.

This was the thrust of the three-day First Aid Training, which runs from Tuesday, September 14 to Thursday, September 16, in Lagos State.

It was organised by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in collaboration with the Nigerian Red Cross, and the Red Crescent.

The training focused on first aid practice, safety and security, recovery position, full body examination, bleeding, breathing, burns, and broken bones among others considering the safety challenges linked to the work

of journalism.

The Head of Training and Resource Mobilisation at Red Cross Society Abuja, Audu Goji, harped on the importance of journalists having first aid skills should they or their colleagues be injured.

He emphasised: “We find out that first aid is necessary for everybody now and we found out that the journalists

will be injured while carrying out their responsibilities.

“So we decided that it is very necessary for them to be trained in first aid. If they are injured or any of their colleagues is injured during their services they can render help as far as first aid is concerned.”

With first aid as the core mandate of the Red Cross Society, Goji, therefore, im-

plored journalists to educate people on the significance of first aid because it’s not a one man responsibility. “We want everybody to have that knowledge of first aid.”

According to the head of training, Nigeria is over 200 million and the health services will not be able to cater to her populace. “By the time everyone has knowledge of first aid they will be able to

compliment the effort of the hospital.”

Goji further noted that if every Nigerian is equipped with first aid skills, more deaths will be averted.

There were 20 journalists from 13 media organisations, including electronic media, currently participating in the workshop which afforded them both practical and theoretical aspects.

37

T H I S D AY ˾ , SEPTEMBER 16, 2021

NEWS

Collaborative Campaign against Spread of COVID-19 in Kano Communities Ibrahim Shuaibu in Kano writes that the Federal Government of Nigeria, in collaboration with the United Nations in Nigeria and funding from the European Union recently embarked on a national social behavioural change campaign, tagged ‘POWERFUL HANDS’, targeted at containing the spread of COVID-19 and its emerging deadlier variants

‘ POWERFUL HANDS’ campaigns against spread of COVID-19 in Kano Communities

T

he index case of COVID-19 that surfaced in Kano in 2020 compelled residents to adopt measures to control and overcome the epidemic in a densely populated environment.

All of a sudden, handwashing, wearing of face masks and observing social distance became a pastime among the teeming populace which in no small measure drastically reduced the spread of the virus across the state.

However, as the initial lockdowns were relaxed, various organisations and government agencies have been struggling day and night to ensure that the society becomes safer.

In a bid to contain the spread of COVID-19 and its emerging deadlier variants, the Federal Government of Nigeria, in collaboration with the United Nations in Nigeria and funding from the European Union (EU), embarked on a national social behavior change (SBC) campaign, tagged ‘POWERFUL HANDS’.

In Kano, the Powerful HANDS campaign activities, which is being implemented by Centre for Communication and Social Impact (CCSI), with technical support from UNICEF, has embarked on several neighbourhood campaigns, market storms, engagement with people living with disabilities and school interventions designed around a superhero called Captain Bubbles.

The campaign rallies local government areas of Kano to educate and promote preventive behaviours such as hand washing, wearing of face mask and observing social distance, among various communities in Fagge, Gwale and others.

During the launch of the ‘Powerful H.A.N.D.S’ campaign, the Director-General of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control

(NCDC), Dr. Chikwe Ihekweazu, said it was aimed at increasing the number of people who practice COVID-19 preventive measures, which includes regular hand washing.

According to Ihekweazu, the campaign will be carried out in six states of Lagos, Oyo, Kano, Kaduna, Plateau, and Rivers, as well as the Federal Capital Territory.

“This will last for an initial period of four months while communicating the main message that “The power to stop COVID-19 is in our H.A.N.D.S,” Ihekweazu said.

In Kano State, the campaign team began operations at Fagge Local Government Area where the residents turned out in large numbers and accepted the campaign.

Most of the areas of Fagge Local Government have been visited by the team of campaigners, who shared out fliers and advocated for use of facemasks and washing of hands.

Malam Abdullahi Mai Nama, a meat seller at Layin Kasuwa Fagge, told the

campaign team that “what you’re doing is really good to all of us. Look at how you politely talked to us and even shared fliers in the Hausa language for us to read and be careful not contract the virus”.

Abdullahi explained that “ on a daily basis, I leave my home at Badawa for this market in Fagge, I will carry the campaign to my community ‘.

Mrs Seyi Akinjide, a food vendor at Fagge Wapa, expressed optimism that the campaign will help to sensitise people against the coronavirus pandemic.

Seyi who pasted the flier in front of her kiosk, said “people must read it before allowing them to sit on my bench to buy food. Our health is better than everything.”

The team shared the objectives of the campaign and messages to all participants.

The ‘HANDS’ is an easy-to-memorise acronym which will help to control infection rates and prevent another surge.

In full, HANDS means “Have your hands washed or sanitised frequently; Always cough or sneeze into your elbow; No going

The campaign rallies local government areas of Kano to educate and promote preventive behaviours such as hand washing, wearing of face mask and observing social distance, among various communities in Fagge, Gwale and others

out without a face mask; Distance of at least two arm’s length should be maintained and Stay indoors and self-isolate if you feel sick.”

The campaign team visited Yan Mata, Rijiyar Lemo, Fagge D, Kasuwar Malam Sule, Layin Danwawu,Fagge Model and Fagge Kuka School Aima, to sensitise people on using hand wash, facemask and observation of social distance.

There were also market campaigns at Kwari market, Wapa, Rijiyar Lemo GSM market and Fagge Yan babura market which are all under Fagge local government area of the state.

The team also engaged people with disabilities, conducted roadside campaigns and distributed fliers. There was no resistance from the community as they were fully committed with the backing of the ward head of Fagge, Alhaji Dan Iya, who was extremely supportive of the intervention.

The public are encouraged to continue to be vigilant of coronavirus symptoms which include a new continuous cough, high temperature, or a loss or change in sense of taste or smell and are also educated on frequent hand washing and use of facemask, the team reiterated.

Also, the Powerful HANDS team held an elaborate campaign in Gwale Local Government Area. The team addressed people who sell meat, fish, fruits, food vendors among others.

The traders were fully enlightened to ensure that they were properly washing their hands and observing social distance.

In Gwale, traders and households also got fliers and were guided on the usefulness of handwashing. The women were educated in their houses, while school children were told about the importance of washing hands and wearing facemasks.

THISDAY gathered that many residents demanded for free facemask and hand sanitiser.

38

T H I S D AY ˾ ˜ 16, 2021

BUSINESS/MONEYGUIDE

FGVows to End Food Insecurity, Begins Distribution of Improved Storage Facilities to 19 States Hammed Shittu ÓØ ÖÙÜÓØ The federal government has commenced distribution of improved food storage facilities to farmers in the 19 states of the federation so as to ensure food security for Nigerians.

The facilities distributed in the first phase include 1,000 iced-fish boxes, 600 NSPRI hermetic steel drums, 120 NSPRI smoking kiln and 18 parabolic solar dryers.

Speaking at the flag off of the distributions of the improved food storage facilities for farmers, vulnerable women and youths at the the Nigerian Stored Products Research Institute (NSPRI), Ilorin, Kwara state capital, the permanent secretary, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr. Ernest Umakhihe said that, the development would go along way of improving food

production and productivity that would boost the socio economic growth of the populace.

He said the federal government has identified poor post- harvest management system among farmers as the major factor that impeded the growth of agricultural development in the country.

According to him, “Post-harvest looses is one of the major problems of the Nigerian agricultural sector as food looses due to the poor-harvest technologies have potential affects on food security and nutrition and these causes shortage of food supply, availability, access and utilization.”

He said that, ‘Access to improved storage systems and technology is a perfect strategy in reducing food looses both at the harvest, home and market.”

Represented at the event by the

director, external services of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Mr. Frank Kuala, the permanent secretary added that, “the quest for enhanced food security in Nigeria is the major target of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and it is continually making efforts in the areas of skills development and empowerment of Nigerian farmers to improve production and productivity”.

He said that, “it is due to this stand that the ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development directed the board and management of NSPRI to key into the vision of the Federal Government driven by the ministry so as to make food production abundant for all and sundry in the country.”

CBN, Others to Lead Discussions on Infrastructure, SME Financing Nume Ekeghe The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA), Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Debt Management Office (DMO) are set to lead discussions on infrastructure as well as small and medium scale enterprise financing at the Finance Correspondents Association of Nigeria (FICAN) conference.

The summit is part of activities marking the 30th anniversary celebration and 2021 annual conference of finance correspondents association of Nigeria (FICAN).

A statement from the association said the theme of the

conference scheduled to hold on September 25th and 26th, 2021 in Lagos would assemble stakeholders to discuss “Financing Infrastructure & SMEs for Inclusive Growth in Post-COVID-19 Economy.”

It would bring together leaders in the banking, technology, SMEs fields, including regulators and government agencies as they explore areas Nigeria can mobilise funds for infrastructure development and upgrade.

The statement stated that seasoned experts and leaders in the financial services sector will serve as panelists in the media interactive session with sub-themes: “Synergising monetary and fiscal policy for economic sustainability.”

It added that the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning Mrs Zainab Ahmed is expected to give opening remarks while the Governor, Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr. Godwin Emefiele will deliver the keynote address.

It added, “The Managing Director NSIA, Mr. Uche Orji, will be the guest speaker while panelists will include: Mr. Ifie Sekibo, managing director, Heritage Bank; managing director FMDQ Mr. Bola Onadele-Koko, director general, Debt Management Office, Ms Patience Oniha; managing director Fidelity Bank Mrs. Nneka Onyeali Ikpe, officials of the CBN and Chairman of the Foundation for Economic Research and Training (FERT) Lagos, Professor Akpan Ekpo.

Wema Bank Launches ALAT Quick Loan Feature for 17m SMEs To assist Nigerian entrepreneurs, startups and corporate customers scale their businesses, Nigeria’s leading digital bank, ALAT by Wema, has launched Quick Loan.

According to a statement from the Wema Bank, the additional feature which is hosted on ALAT for Business, its corporate internet banking platform, will help small/medium-scale enterprises (SME) and corporate customers access loans between N100,000 to N10 million. It added that Quick Loan will enable ALAT for Business users to access loan services virtually from any location without the need to locate

a physical branch.

“A Nigeria SME survey report developed by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), shows there are about 17.4 million small and medium-scale enterprises (SMEs) in Nigeria and these contribute about 48 per cent of the national GDP, accounting for 96 per cent of businesses and 84 per cent of employment in the country.”

Product Manager ALAT for Business, Samuel Robson, highlighted the pivotal role that SMES play in the economic, employment and export growth in Nigeria.

“However, despite the significant contribution of SMEs to the

Nigerian economy, challenges persist that hinder the growth and development of the sector, “Robson said. “loan access has been one of the most challenging factors faced by this sector and we understand the need to support SMEs by providing easy access to the loans they seek.

“Hence the launch of Quick Loan on ALAT for Business, a platform that currently serves our corporate customers and SME owners. We believe this extra feature will help to mitigate some hassles entrepreneurs and businesses experience”.

ACCI Move to Strengthen Halal Businesses in Nigeria The Abuja Chamber of Commerce and Industry ACCI is opening up opportunities in Nigerian market for Halal market activities round the country.

The President, Abuja Chamber of Commerce and Industry, ACCI Abubakar Al-Mujtaba said it is their hope that efforts being made by ACCI in partnership with Halal activities in Nigeria will translate to economic benefits for participants

in Nigeria and beyond. Al-Mujtaba disclosed this at the Halal Expo 2021 in Abuja stating that the chamber provides for its members through trade facilitation and the 2021 Halal Expo is one of such numerous initiatives by the Chamber.

He said, “Halal businesses covers, Finance, Manufacturing, Hospitality, Fashion and cosmetics, Agriculture business and livestock

and others. The Halal Expo Nigeria, 2021 rides on four cardinal pillars, to create awareness about the Halal industry sub-sector in Nigeria.

“To harmonize and galvanize Halal registration and registration process into a one-stop shop for ease of accessibility and availability by business people interested in investing in the Halal - industry.

MARKET INDICATORS 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 ˜ ͷ

The price of OPEC basket of thirteen crudes stood at $71.82 a barrel on Thursday, compared with $71.17 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).

39

T H I S D AY ˾ ˜ ͯʹ˜ ͰͮͰͯ

Buying Interest in MTN Nigeria, 13 Others Lift Stock Market by N24.92bn Darasimi Adebisi The Nigeria equities market yesterday sustained prior day’s gains by N24.92 billion, due to buying interest in MTN Nigeria Communications (MTNN) and 13 others.

At the close of trade, the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) All Share Index (ASI) increased by 47.84 basis points, representing a growth of 0.12 per cent to close at 38,968.34 basis points. Similarly,

the market capitalisation gained N24.92 billion to close at N20.303 trillion. The upturn was impacted by gains recorded in medium and large capitalised stocks, amongst which are; MTN Nigeria Communications (MTNN), Northern Nigeria Flour Mills (NNFM), Oando, Guaranty Trust Holding Company (GTCO) and UACN Property Development Company (UPDC).

However, the market breadth closed negative, recording 18 los-

P R I C E S MAIN BOARD

F O R DEALS

ers as against 14 gainers. UPDC recorded the highest price gain of 9.64 per cent, to close at N1.82, per share.

NNFM followed with a gain 9.59 per cent to close at N8.00, while Oando appreciated by 6.21 per cent to close at N4.62, per share. Learn Africa went up by 5.88 per cent to close at N1.44, while Honeywell Flour Mills appreciated by 3.83 per cent to close at N4.07, per share. On the other hand, Transcorp Hotels

S E C U R I T I E S

MARKET PRICE

QUANTITY TRADED

VALUE TRADED ( N )

led the losers’ chart by 10 per cent to close at N4.50, per share.

Consolidated Hallmark Insurance followed with a decline of 9.43 per cent to close at 48 kobo, while Prestige Assurance shed 8.33 per cent to close at 44 kobo, per share.

Champion Breweries shed 8.17 per cent to close at N1.91, while Lasaco Assurance depreciated by 7.69 per cent to close at N1.20, respectively.

The total volume traded declined by 38.1 per cent to

T R A D E D MAIN BOARD

A S

141.408 million shares, worth N2.973 billion, and traded in 3,079 deals. Transactions in the shares of Universal Insurance topped the activity chart with 17.987 million shares valued at N3.597 million. Zenith Bank followed with 9.712 million shares worth N229.356 million, while United Capital traded 9.342 million shares valued at N76.221 million.

Transnational Corporation of Nigeria (Transcorp) traded 9.083 million shares valued at

O F

N8.286 million, while Access Bank transacted 9.024 million shares worth N83.788 million.

On market outlook, analysts at Afrinvest Limited said: “In the next trading session, we expect the bullish performance to be extended on the back of bargain hunting activities in the market.”

According to analysts at Investment One research: “The equities market closed up today due to the gains recorded in MTNN (+1.45per cent) .

1 4 / 0 9 / 2 0 2 1 DEALS

MARKET PRICE

QUANTITY TRADED

VALUE TRADED ( N)

40

THURSDAY, ͹;˜ ͺ͸ͺ͹ ˾ T H I S D AY

THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 16, 2021• T H I S DAY

41

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 14Sept-2021, unless otherwise stated.

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

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

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

DAILY PRICE LIST FOR MUTUAL FUNDS, REITS and ETFS

MUTUAL FUNDS / UNIT TRUSTS

AFRINVEST ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD aaml@afrinvest.com Web: www.afrinvest.com; Tel: +234 818 885 6757 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Afrinvest Equity Fund N/A N/A N/A Afrinvest Plutus Fund N/A N/A N/A Nigeria International Debt Fund N/A N/A N/A Afrinvest Dollar Fund N/A N/A N/A ALTERNATIVE CAPITAL PARTNERS LTD info@acapng.com Web: www.acapng.com, Tel: +234 1 291 2406, +234 1 291 2868 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn ACAP Canary Growth Fund N/A N/A N/A ACAP Income Funds N/A N/A N/A AIICO CAPITAL LTD ammf@aiicocapital.com Web: www.aiicocapital.com, Tel: +234-1-2792974 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn AIICO Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 9.67% AIICO Balanced Fund 3.28 3.44 -3.43% info@anchoriaam.com ANCHORIA ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED info@anchoriaam.com Web:www.anchoriaam.com, Tel: 08166830267; 08036814510; 08028419180 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Anchoria Money Market 100.00 100.00 7.84% Anchoria Equity Fund 133.28 134.93 0.20% Anchoria Fixed Income Fund 1.13 1.13 -15.36% ARM INVESTMENT MANAGERS LTD enquiries@arminvestmentcenter.com Web: www.arm.com.ng; Tel: 0700 CALLARM (0700 225 5276) Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn ARM Aggressive Growth Fund 19.52 20.11 7.66% ARM Discovery Balanced Fund 430.93 443.92 7.63% ARM Ethical Fund N/A N/A N/A ARM Eurobond Fund ($) 1.09 1.10 -0.54% ARM Fixed Income Fund 0.98 0.98 -7.03% ARM Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 8.24% AVA GLOBAL ASSET MANAGERS LIMITED info@avacapitalgroup.com Web: www.avacapitalgroup.com Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn AVA GAM Fixed Income Dollar Fund 106.23 106.23 4.44% AVA GAM Fixed Income Naira Fund 1,033.99 1,033.99 3.40% AXA MANSARD INVESTMENTS LIMITED investmentcare@axamansard.com Web: www.axamansard.com; Tel: +2341-4488482 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn AXA Mansard Equity Income Fund N/A N/A N/A AXA Mansard Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 9.12% CAPITAL EXPRESS ASSET AND TRUST LIMITED info@capitalexpressassetandtrust.com Web: www.capitalexpressassetandtrust.com ; Tel: +234 803 307 5048 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn CEAT Fixed Income Fund 2.05 2.05 -7.10% Capital Express Balanced Fund(Formerly: Union Trustees Mixed Fund) 2.13 2.17 -7.30% CARDINALSTONE ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED mutualfunds@cardinalstone.com Web: www.cardinalstoneassetmanagement.com ; Tel: +234 (1) 710 0433 4 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn CardinalStone Fixed Income Alpha Fund 1.02 1.02 3.10% CHAPELHILL DENHAM MANAGEMENT LTD investmentmanagement@chapelhilldenham.com Web: www.chapelhilldenham.com, Tel: +234 461 0691 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Chapelhill Denham Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 8.57% Paramount Equity Fund 16.46 16.77 2.94% Women's Investment Fund 136.47 138.04 2.54% CORDROS ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED assetmgtteam@cordros.com Web: www.cordros.com, Tel: 019036947 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Cordros Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 7.91% Cordros Milestone Fund 2023 118.89 119.65 Cordros Milestone Fund 2028 N/A N/A Cordros Dollar Fund ($) 108.08 108.08 CORONATION ASSEST MANAGEMENT investment@coronationam.com Web:www.coronationam.com , Tel: 012366215 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Coronation Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 8.13% Coronation Balanced Fund 1.20 1.22 0.25% Coronation Fixed Income Fund 1.44 1.44 -9.00% EDC FUNDS MANAGEMENT LIMITED mutualfundng@ecobank.com Web: www.ecobank.com Tel: 012265281 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn EDC Nigeria Money Market Fund Class A 100.00 100.00 7.31% EDC Nigeria Money Market Fund Class B 1,000,000.00 1,000,000.00 6.39% EDC Nigeria Fixed Income Fund 1,158.68 1,176.13 0.61% FBNQUEST ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD invest@fbnquest.com Web: www.fbnquest.com/asset-management; Tel: +234-81 0082 0082 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn FBN Fixed Income Fund 1,416.77 1,416.77 11.33% FBN Balanced Fund 191.08 192.32 1.81% FBN Halal Fund 112.77 112.77 9.91% FBN Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 9.71% FBN Nigeria Eurobond (USD) Fund - Retail FBN Smart Beta Equity Fund FCMB ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED Web: www.fcmbassetmanagement.com; Tel: +234 1 462 2596 Fund Name Legacy Money Market Fund Legacy Debt Fund Legacy Equity Fund Legacy USD Bond Fund FSDH ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD Web: www.fsdhaml.com; Tel: 01-270 4884-5; 01-280 9740-1 Fund Name Coral Balanced Fund Coral Income Fund Coral Money Market Fund

126.93 158.14

126.93 3.45% 160.16 4.60% fcmbamhelpdesk@fcmb.com

Bid Price 1.00 3.97 1.58 1.19

Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn 1.00 5.98% 3.97 2.69% 1.62 4.06% 1.19 4.56% coralfunds@fsdhgroup.com

Bid Price 3,785.95 3,399.56 100.00

Offer Price 3,839.66 3,399.56 100.00

Yield / T-Rtn 1.05% 3.75% 5.04%

GREENWICH ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED assetmanagement@gtlgroup.com Web: www.gtlgroup.com ; Tel: +234 1 4619261-2 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Greenwich Plus Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A Nigeria Entertainment Fund N/A N/A N/A GROWTH & DEVELOPMENT ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED assetmanagement@gdl.com.ng Web: www.gdl.com.ng ; Tel: +234 9055691122 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn GDL Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A INVESTMENT ONE FUNDS MANAGEMENT LTD enquiries@investment-one.com Web: www.investment-one.com; Tel: +234 812 992 1045,+234 1 448 8888 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Abacus Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 7.63% Vantage Balanced Fund 2.79 2.85 -2.43% Vantage Guaranteed Income Fund 1.00 1.00 4.50% Kedari Investment Fund (KIF) 153.14 153.42 -1.52% Vantage Equity Income Fund (VEIF) - June Year End 1.27 1.32 1.17% Vantage Dollar Fund (VDF) - June Year End 1.10 1.10 3.99% 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 1.42 1.44 4.17% Lotus Halal Fixed Income Fund 1,150.98 1,150.98 5.97% 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 11.42 11.46 9.00% Meristem Money Market Fund 10.00 10.00 9.12% 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 1.68 1.70 7.09% PACAM Fixed Income Fund 11.60 11.60 -4.60% PACAM Money Market Fund 10.00 10.00 6.44% PACAM Equity Fund 1.69 1.71 7.04% PACAM EuroBond Fund 113.20 115.14 3.09% 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 130.98 133.26 8.69% 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 1.05 1.05 10.04% STANBIC IBTC ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD assetmanagement@stanbicibtc.com Web: www.stanbicibtcassetmanagement.com; Tel: +234 1 280 1266; 0700 MUTUALFUNDS Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Stanbic IBTC Balanced Fund 3,282.58 3,317.25 2.20% Stanbic IBTC Bond Fund 232.97 232.97 3.61% Stanbic IBTC Ethical Fund 1.22 1.24 4.24% Stanbic IBTC Guaranteed Investment Fund 307.35 307.35 4.31% Stanbic IBTC Iman Fund 225.60 228.93 3.36% Stanbic IBTC Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 7.59% Stanbic IBTC Nigerian Equity Fund 10,439.23 10,580.39 -0.56% Stanbic IBTC Dollar Fund (USD) 1.27 1.27 3.83% Stanbic IBTC Shariah Fixed Income Fund 115.63 115.63 4.10% Stanbic IBTC Enhanced Short-Term Fixed Income Fund 103.74 103.74 UNITED CAPITAL ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD Web: www.unitedcapitalplcgroup.com; Tel: +234 01-6317876 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn United Capital Balanced Fund 1.31 1.33 2.17% United Capital Bond Fund 1.92 1.92 4.70% United Capital Equity Fund 0.87 0.89 9.30% United Capital Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 9.31% United Capital Eurobond Fund 120.27 120.27 5.07% United Capital Wealth for Women Fund 1.06 1.08 4.01% United capital Sukuk Fund 1.06 1.06 6.24% QUANTUM ZENITH ASSET MANAGEMENT & INVESTMENTS LTD service@quantumzenithasset.com.ng Web: www.quantumzenith.com.ng; Tel: +234 1-2784219 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Zenith Equity Fund 12.83 12.94 8.08% Zenith Ethical Fund 14.28 14.43 17.00% Zenith Income Fund 24.36 24.36 1.58% Zenith Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 6.24%

REITS NAV Per Share

Yield / T-Rtn

124.98 53.10

10.62% 5.15%

Bid Price

Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

13.29

13.39

0.56%

120.99 96.31 17.18 18.32

124.00 98.42 17.28 18.42

0.62% -2.93%

Fund Name SFS REIT Union Homes REIT

EXCHANGE TRADED FUNDS Fund Name Lotus Halal Equity Exchange Traded Fund

SIAML Pension ETF 40 Stanbic IBTC ETF 30 Fund MERGROWTH ETF MERVALUE ETF

VETIVA FUND MANAGERS LTD Web: www.vetiva.com; Tel: +234 1 453 0697 Fund Name Vetiva Banking Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva Consumer Goods Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva Griffin 30 Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva Money Market Fund Vetiva Industrial Goods Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva S&P Nigeria Sovereign Bond Exchange Traded Fund

funds@vetiva.com Bid Price

Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

3.86 5.47 17.36 1.00 19.50 156.25

3.90 5.55 17.46 1.00 19.70 158.25

2.28% -3.88% 6.98% 7.58% -4.96% -28.89%

NAV Per Share

Yield / T-Rtn

107.40

13.11%

INFRASTRUCTURE FUND Fund Name Chapel Hill Denham Nigeria Infrastructure Debt Fund

The value of investments and the income from them may fall as well as rise. Past performance is a guide and not an indication of future returns. Fund prices published in this edition are also available on each fund manager’s website and FMAN’s website at www.fman.com.ng. Fund prices are supplied by the operator of the relevant fund and are published for information purposes only.

42

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 2021 • T H I S D AY

news

Babalakin: Independent Body, Not Perm Sec Should Develop White Paper on UNILAG Panel Report

Accuses university VC of funds’ diversion Says leaked committee report vindicates him

Uchechukwu Nnaike, Emma Okonji and Nosa Alekhuogie

A former Pro-Chancellor and Chairman, Governing Council, University of Lagos (UNILAG), Dr. Wale Babalakin, has urged the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Education, Sonny Echono to recuse himself from the process of producing a white paper from the recent report of the Presidential Visitation Panel on UNILAG. The report, which negated the previous special visitation panel to the institution, had indicted the Vice-Chancellor (VC), Prof.

Oluyatoyin Ogundipe, revealing that the vice-chancellor was given a fair hearing by the Babalakin-led governing council before he was previously removed.

But Babalakin, who spoke on the Morning Show on Arise News Channel, explained: "You set up a panel on the basis that there was no fair hearing, your own panel comes back to you and says there was fair hearing, you can't sit in judgment of that document again.

It is just immoral, someone else should sit on it.

"And for you to be upfront, publish the panel report and publish your own recommendations so that we know that it flows directly from it."

He argued that the first panel set up to look into the matter was inappropriate, saying the technocrats in the ministry, without hearing his side, concluded that there was no fair hearing for the vice-chancellor.

According to him, members of the first panel were academics and their agenda was to indict him and

save Ogundipe.

Babalakin also faulted the level of control the Permanent Secretary wields in universities, saying all activities at UNILAG, even appointments were wrongly done.

"What is the business of the Permanent Secretary with the universities?” he queried.

In line with the report which validated the previous council's claim that the VC misappropriated funds, Babalakin said it would be wrong to only dismiss him, stressing that if Ogundipe is not prosecuted to send a message to everybody, then the decay in the university system would continue.

"If allegations made against Ogundipe and confirmed by the panel are found to be so, it will be unfair to only dismiss him, because contextually, he is worse than the governors that are being jailed.

“From N5 billion internally generated revenue (IGR), he diverted N1.8 billion, that is 30 per cent. The governors that are being jailed didn't divert 30 per cent," Babalakin alleged.

He further alleged that corruption was endemic at UNILAG, saying it did not start under Ogundipe.

While lauding the panel's recommendation that an international accounting firm should look into the affairs of the university, the Chairman of The Bi-Courtney Group of Companies said a judicial panel with a judge knowledgeable in finance should assess all Nigerian universities, especially UNILAG. "It will be discovered that the federal government is pumping money into these universities without getting commensurate return,” he maintained.

On the planned strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Babalakin, who was the chief negotiator at the time he presided over UNILAG council, observed that ASUU was asking for more money, and the money was not being well spent at the institution he was heading then.

The Senior Advocate of Nigeria said his views on funding and administration differed with those of ASUU members who insisted that the government alone should fund the universities.

"My position was that government will not sign any document it cannot comply with. I said good education is compulsory, if government is able to fund it so be it, if government is not able to fund it, the students must not be deprived, and we must find other sources of funding apart from the federal government.

“The ASUU position is that

the government must take care of everything. And I said what if the government cannot afford it. They said that is government's business.

"I insisted that we must have key performance indicators to know whether these lecturers are actually delivering and I was called the neo capitalist, bringing World Bank's policies. You said we shouldn't measure you, and we should continue to give you a lot of money."

On ways to improve the quality of education in order to produce employable graduates, he said there should be a change of mindset.

Also, he said universities should not be under the full control of the ministry.

Babalakin added: "When you free these universities, they will become their own people, we can't run them like a factory.

Every university should have its own identify.

Comparing UNILAG that is worth $200 million with Harvard University that has over $50 billion in reserve, he said "what impact can such a poverty-stricken institution make on education."

He said no Nigerian university can have such financial base if it is government-controlled.

"I advised, take out one university per zone as a test run, put it under a dynamic leadership, and see how it works.

"Only as recent as the 70s University College Hospital, Ibadan was rated fifth in the Commonwealth, we had prochancellors who could profess outside Nigeria," Babalakin said.

He argued that the university system in Nigeria has completely collapsed, due to financial fraud and diversion of funds meant to facilitate teaching and learning.

He alleged that the monthly disbursement of N500,000 to the Law Faculty of the University of

Lagos for the purchase of Law Books which he used to provide when he was Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the Governing Council of the university, was also diverted for two years.

According to him, “At the first meeting when I was the Pro-Chancellor and Chairman, Governing Council of the University, I presented the new vision of the university to council members and stated that the university needed to create funds for research and development.

“I told them at that meeting that throughout my tenure, I would not collect remuneration or fees from the university and that I would pay for all the expenses incurred by my staff, throughout my tenure.”

He said his decision to take such position, was because the federal government struggled to fund the university system.

Analysts Express Cautious Optimism as Inflation Drops Further MPC meeting begins today James Emejo and Sonia Mayomi in Abuja The Consumer Price Index, (CPI) which measures inflation further dropped to 17.01 per cent (yearon-year) in August compared to 17.38 per cent in July, indicating the fifth consecutive months of decline.

The development is a major boost to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)'s efforts towards achieving a single-digit inflation and is expected to influence decision of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) which begins its two-day meeting today.

But analysts have said despite the deceleration in the headline index, it was too early to celebrate, partly due to the fact that the statistics do not conform to reality.

They said though the drop in inflation was a welcome development, increases in pump price of fuel which comes with the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021 as well as higher electricity tariffs still posed major threats to prices.

According to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), food inflation slowed to 20.30 per cent in the review period compared to 21.03 per cent in July.

The NBS, in its CPI report for the month under review noted that food prices increased at a slower rate in August, following moderation in prices of bread and cereals, milk, cheese and egg, oils and fats, potatoes, yam and other tuber, food product, meat and coffee, tea and cocoa.

On the other hand, the core

inflation, which excludes prices of volatile agricultural produce also slowed to13.41 per cent in August 2021, down by 0.31 per cent when compared with 13.72 per cent in July.

The highest increases in the core index were recorded in prices of shoes and other footwear, household textile, motor cars, garments, game of chance, major household appliances whether electric or not, hospital services, catering services, appliances, articles and product for personal care and clothing materials, other articles of clothing and clothing accessories.

The urban inflation rate dropped to 17.59 per cent (yearon-year) in August from 18.01 per cent in July 2021, while the rural inflation rate also slowed to 16.43 per cent from 16.75 per cent.

However, analysts in separate interviews with THISDAY argued that in real terms, cost of household goods had continued to increase with consistent rise in the naira/dollar exchange rate, thereby affecting importation of raw materials and the cost of goods and services.

Managing Director/Chief Executive, Dignity Finance and Investment Limited, Dr. Chijioke Ekechukwu, said even though there are indications that the economy was easing off with resilient economic traction and activities, the harsh economic reality does not call for celebration yet.

He said, "Although exchange rate continues to go up, one would have expected a resultant increase in CPI but we are seeing a drop.

AT LAST, JERIGBE TAKES SEAT IN SENATE...

Senate President, Ahmad Lawan (left), swears in Jarigbe Jerigbe to represent Cross River North District

INEC Chairman: Delta’s Bye-election Was Historic With BVAS

Says election credibility dependent on integrity of managers Charges new commissioners, REC not to compromise

JChuks Okocha in Abuja The National Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof Mahmood Yakubu, yesterday, described as historic, a recent bye-election for Isoko South 1 State Constituency area of Delta State, using a new technology, the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS).

Yakubu, who hinted at this while swearing-in three national commissioners and a Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), however, charged the new officers not to compromise their oaths office and adhere to the rule of law, because the credibility of any election was always to the extent of the integrity of the managers.

According to him, the commission piloted the BVAS during the Delta bye-election and it turned out a huge success.

"We introduced the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) for efficient human

recognition through a biometric verification mechanism using both fingerprint and facial recognition of voters. The result of the pilot in the 84 polling units was very encouraging indeed.

“It took an average of just one minute for the device to correctly locate the voter in the system and another two minutes to authenticate a voter.

In terms of the ruggedness of the device and its battery life, no single BVAS was replaced due to discharge of battery throughout the voting period.

Most importantly, the device was able to guarantee the credibility of voter accreditation by preventing the incidents of multiple voting or the use of stolen PVCs to vote.

"All voters were accredited electronically using the BVAS. The use of the incident form was eliminated: The Isoko South 1 State Constituency bye election was historic in this respect," he said.

He, however, acknowledged that there were a few challenges, which included "Matching the voter’s live image against the image on the register was difficult in a few instances due to the quality of pictures of some voters arising from previous registration.

"Secondly, some polling units were not bright enough when taking the photo for the facial authentication. Thirdly, there was the age-old problem of thuggery during elections."

Nevertheless, he assured the people that the Commission would address the challenges,including the installation of a mechanism to disable and track the device in the event of theft by hoodiums He explained that the mechanism would be activated ahead of the forthcoming Anambra State governorship election.

Telling the new national commissioners that the successes of the commission as election

management body were due to adherence to the provisions of the law and its integrity as election managers, Yakubu said, "We must be strict in the application of the law, firm in handling the public trust bestowed on us and fair in our dealings with political parties and candidates.

"We must remember that in discharging our responsibilities, Nigeria and Nigerians must always come first. We must abide by our oaths of office to defend the choice made by Nigerians at the polls in all elections and continue to protect the sanctity of the vote without which democratic election is meaningless" The INEC boss told the new commissioners and REC that they were coming on board just 52 days to a major election in Anambra State, because the election to choose a govermor for the state was scheduled to hold on Saturday November 6, 2021.

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Army Chief Talks Tough, Says Military Will Now Speak the Language Terrorists, Bandits Understand Orders commanders to take fight to enclaves of insurgents Kingsley Nwezeh in Abuja The Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen Faruk Yahaya, yesterday declared that henceforth the military will speak the language the terrorists and armed bandits understand, a reference to an impending massive onslaught against insurgency and armed banditry.

He ordered commanders to maintain a state of alertness to avoid surprise attacks by terrorists and take the war to their enclaves in order to neutralise them.

He warned that laissez faire attitude on the part of commanders would no longer be tolerated.

In apparent reference to the security breach at the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA), Yahaya, who spoke at the closing ceremony of the Combined Chief of Army Staff Second and Third Quarter Conference 2021 in Abuja, warned that commanders would be held responsible for any security breach in their bases and areas of responsibility.

The army chief stated that henceforth war commanders would undergo performance evaluation.

“I would like to seize this

opportunity to advise those fueling the crises being witnessed across the country to desist from their unpatriotic acts as we remain committed to ensure

peace returns to every part of the country in no distant time.

“The Nigerian Army, within the ambit of rule of law, will talk to the terrorists,

bandits, kidnappers and other perpetrators of violence in the language they understand while ensuring that all peace-loving citizens of this country go about

their legitimate businesses and live their lives without fear or intimidation”, he said.

“I want to remind formation and unit commanders on the

need to ensure adequate security of their bases, barracks and cantonment.

Commanders would be held responsible for any security breach,”he added.

HONOUR FOR EFCC BOSS…

L-R: Fellow, Chartered Institute of Forensics and Certified Fraud Examiners of Nigeria (CIFCFEN) and Chief Operating Officer, Association of National Accountants of Nigeria (ANAN), Dr. Musa Ahmed; President /Chairman Governing Council, CIFCFEN, Dr. Iliyasu Gashinabki; Executive Chairman, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr. Abdulrasheed Bawa; Permanent Secretary, Legislative Budget and Planning, National Assembly, Dr. Michael Okpara, and member, Board of Trustees, CIFCFEN, Mr. Anthony Nzom, when CIFCFEN conferred a fellowship on the EFCC boss in Abuja… yesterday

UNIBEN VC Apologises to FG Okays N30bn Contract Variation for Loko-Nasarawa Road Students, Cancels Fine for Late School Fees Payment Deji Elumoye in Abuja

Adibe Emenyonu in Benin City The Vice Chancellor of University of Benin, Prof. Lillian Imuetinya Salami, has tendered an apology to the students.

She was also said to have also agreed that no student would be punished or victimised for taking part in the protest, especially for making her walk from her official lodge to the university’s main gate.

The apology was contained in a statement signed by the university Registrar, Mr. Ademola Bobola.

The statement read: “After due consultation, and in the overall interest of the general students’ body, the Vice Chancellor has, on behalf of Senate, apologised to our dear

Students.

“This is based on security reports from the Department of State security (DSS) to avoid the students’ action being hijacked by hoodlums; and thereby prevent any form of breakdown of law and order within and outside the campuses of the University.

“Accordingly, students can login into their Kofa page as the extra charges has be reversed.

Please disregard any message stating closure of the university before 12:00 noon.”

Earlier yesterday, aggrieved students of UNIBEN had ignored the order of the University Senate closing down the school as they continued their two-day old protest over the hike as penalty for paying tuition fees late.

The Federal Executive Council (FEC) has okayed N30 billion contract variation for the completion of the 74-kilometre long Nasarawa - Loko Road in Nasarawa State.

FEC at its weekly virtual meeting at the State House, Abuja, which was presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari, also approved N8.436

billion variation for two other road projects in Bayelsa and Anambra/Imo states.

Works and Housing Minister, Babatunde Fashola, who made this known to newsmen after the Council meeting, explained that FEC granted three approvals for contracts’ augmentation, all amounting to N38.436 billion for the Ministry of Works and Housing, including the Nasarawa to Loko Road project.

According to him, the 74-kilometre road project, which was first awarded in 2006, when eventually completed, would reduce the travel time between Oturkpo, in Benue State, to Abuja by three and a half hours, adding that it is part of the administration’s projects aimed at lifting Nigerians out of poverty.

“The 74-kilometre Nasarawa to Loko Road. That is the road

that was awarded, I believe, in 2006, so it’s 15 years today, 74 kilometres and it has not been completed. This road links the Loko-Oweto Bridge, which we inherited and which we have completed and that Loko-Oweto Bridge links Nasarawa to Benue, across the River Benue and also connects to the Oweto to Oshogbedo Road, which we also inherited, which we have completed.

Rivers to Spend N5bn on Health Facilities’ Rehabilitation

Blessing Ibunge in Port Harcourt

The Executive Council of the Rivers State Government has approved over N5 billion for the renovation, rehabilitation and installation of medical equipment at its major health facilities.

The State Governor, Mr. Nyesom Wike presided over the meeting at the Government

House, Port Harcourt, yesterday, where the approval for the rehabilitation of hospitals were made.

Speaking to journalists after the meeting, the state Commissioner for Health, Prof. Princewill Chike said the approved sum would be required for the revamping of the Prof. Kersley Harrison Hospital and the Dental and Maslofacial Hospital located in

Port Harcourt.

“For the Prof. Kersley Harrison Hospital in Port Harcourt, the civil work is to cost One Billion, Seven Million, Two Hundred and Five Thousand, Nine Hundred and Forty One Naira, Fifty One Kobo.

“While the equipping, furnishing and installation of medical equipment will cost Six Hundred and Ninety Three Million, Five Hundred and

Seventy Six Thousand, Three Hundred and Sixty Seven Naira and Twenty Five Kobo,” he said.

The Health Commissioner said the work at the Prof.

Kersley Harrison hospital was expected to last for a period of 13 months and when completed, would be an affiliate of the Rivers State University Teaching Hospital, to add to the training of medical doctors and medical personnel.

House Probes Alleged Killing of Four Lagos-Ota Road Ready in December, Says Abiodun Governor Abiodun who commuters along the roads.

FERMA fixes those places and Oyo Residents by Customs Officers James Sowole stated this yesterday when The governor also said the immediately begin to carry out Udora Orizu in Abuja The House of Representatives has mandated its Committee on Customs and Excise to investigate the July 16, 2021, killing of four residents of Igangan, Igbo-Ora, Ayete and Tapa in Ibarapa Area of Oyo State by men of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) with a view to ensuring that victims are adequately compensated.

The lawmakers condemned the killings and gave the committee three weeks to report back for further legislative action.

The resolutions followed the adoption of a motion sponsored by Hon. Ajibola

Muraina.

Muraina noted that the attackers dressed in NCS and Nigeria Army uniforms, drove on high speed into the communities in a convoy of two Toyota Hiluxs and one Toyota Sienna bus, and without any provocation from the residents shot sporadically in built-up areas.

According to him, the officers allegedly killed Muritala Ajasa, the Amotekun Commandant in Ibarapa Central Local Government Area, at Igbo-Ora, killed two passers-by at Igangan, one person at Ayete and left several residents with life-threatening gunshot injuries.

The people of Sango-Ota and its environs would soon heave a sigh of relief as Ogun State Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun, has revealed that palliative works will soon commence on the bad portions of the Lagos-Ota and Ota-Idi-Iroko roads, and to be concluded by December.

he led the Minister of Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola on an inspection of the ongoing construction of Toll Plaza at Lotto, along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, stated that the palliative which would be done

by December, is to reduce the hardship being experienced by

failed portions, which would be reconstructed by the Federal Road Maintenance Agency (FERMA) would cost N13.4 billion and would be part of the N56 billion revived contract sum.

“In the meantime, the minister has graciously instructed that

palliative works on that road.

“We have given the commitment that we will relocate traders; we will control and manage traffic, whatever that it is we need to do, we will ensure that we begin to bring succour and needed relief to our people.

Safety of Lives, Property My Priority, Says Sanwo-Olu Segun James Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has said that the safety of lives and property will be given a priority status by his administration, saying this would be demonstrated through the implementation of various

policies and strategies aimed at making roads in the state safer for all.

The governor, who stated this while inaugurating the State Road Safety Advisory Council (SaRSAc), said that the state as a sub – national government, had been in the fore-front in the implementation of global road

safety strategies, including the United Nations Decade of Action for Road Safety which ended in 2020, and that he intends to build upon this.

The SaRSAc chaired by the governor, with the deputy governor, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat as alternate chairman, has the Commissioner for Transportation,

Dr. Frederick Oladeinde; Commissioner for Works, Mrs. Aramide Adeyoye; Commissioner for the Environment, Mr. Tunji Bello, among other principal road safety stakeholders as members, is charged with the responsibility of setting the State Road Safety Strategy target(s) in line with the NRSS.

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Don’t Fraternise with IPOB, Presidency Warns Yoruba Nation Agitators Group vows to continue with protest Deji Elumoye inAbuja The Presidency has advised a group known as Yoruba Nation, to be mindful of their relationship with the outlawed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).

The Senior Special Assistant on Media & Publicity to the President, Garba Shehu, gave the warning yesterday in reaction to the protest that both groups staged at the United Nations headquarters in New York, on Tuesday.

Shehu, who noted that it was not unexpected for Nigerian diaspora groups to use the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) to garner attention to their causes, however, said it was shocking, to see “Yoruba Nation” advocates unequivocally throwing their lot in with Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).

The presidential spokesman, while describing IPOB as a designated terrorist organisation, which regularly murdered security services and innocent civilians, opined that without doubt, Nigerians and the entire world would judge Yoruba Nation by the company it kept.

He said, “No one can take seriously this organisation if it continues its IPOB association.

When their allies systematically trample human rights, it raises

sober questions about their claims to uphold the values of the UN. The cooperation is a worrying development, once parsed with

Yoruba Nation’s increasingly violent rallies in Nigeria. Actions and associations speak louder than words. Yoruba Nation’s talk of

human rights promotion must therefore be ignored.”

Shehu further said the Nigerian government would continue

its work at the UN to fight against corruption and illicit financial flows, and international cooperation and urged the media

to work with the government and to also focus attention on the core issues the President has during his trip to the United Nations.

THE NEXT TITAN…

L-R:Head, Corporate Communications, SIFAX Group, Mr. Muyiwa Akande; Special Adviser to the Minister of Youth, Sports and Development on Information Communication Technology (ICT) and Corporate Relations, Mrs. Kemi Areola; Executive Producer, The Next Titan, Mr. Mide Akinlaja; and Founder/CEO, Phronesis Nigeria Limited, Ms. Chichi Eriobu, at the media presentation on the commencement of season 8 of programme in Ikeja, Lagos yesterday ETOP UKUTT

Ex-militant Leader Accuses PAP Despite Court Order, Edo Bars Civil Servants, of Insincerity, Calls for Probe Others from Secretariat Omon-Julius Onabu in Asaba

Ex-militant leader under the Presidential Amnesty Programme, (PAP), Mr. Kingsley Muturu, has accused the leadership of the programme of insincerity in the execution of activities of the programme designed to impact positively the lives of youths in Niger Delta.

Muturu, who is a peace ambassador and Delta State Chairman, Phase 2 of the amnesty programme, made the allegation at his country home in Bomadi, yesterday.

He noted that although the programme had, between the period of 2012 and 2015, trained artisans for a number of months and the beneficiaries provided starter-packs on graduation, it suffered setbacks under successive leaders amid certain scandalous allegations.

He expressed concern that

some of those who should benefit from the programme had been left unattended for over 10 years running, alleging some deceitful manipulations.

Muturu said, “I am pained as a leader of ex-agitators when seeing manipulations in the amnesty office, to the extent that beneficiaries since 2009 have not gone for training or to school till date.

“I want the PAP leadership to respond to some salient issues: Is it proper to call beneficiaries to Lagos or elsewhere, lodge them in hotels for three days and give them peanuts as packages without any training?

“PAP Phase 2 has 6,166 (sux thousand one hundred and sixty-six) beneficiaries them have been trained and how many are not and from whose camps? How many of them are benefiting from the monthly stipend?

Uzodimma Inaugurates Committee on Land Matters White Paper

Amby Uneze in Owerri

Governor Hope Uzodimma of Imo State has inaugurated a Whitepaper Implementation Committee on Lands and Other Related Matters, charging members to recover all the assets gazetted in the Whitepaper as recommended.

Performing the ceremony at the Government House, Exco Chambers, Owerri, yesterday, the governor directed the Committee not only to recover as recommended by the Whitepaper all illegally acquired Imo assets but also recommend to the government how best to put into use the recovered assets.

Uzodimma explained that the implementation of the

Whitepaper was of profound importance to the people of Imo State, as the implementation was seen as the final contract with the people upon which his administration would be judged.

He described the action as an integral part of the Shared Prosperity Administration in Imo State, pointing out that with the implementation, the 3R mantra would be further amplified.

“You must implement the recommendations to the last letter as the demands of the Whitepaper is unambiguous.

This is because both government and people’s property were illegally and fragrantly acquired by a few individuals and their cronies without regards to the rule of law,” he said.

Adibe Emenyonu in Benin-city

Edo State Government yesterday appeared to have ignored a Federal High Court order restraining it from forcing people in the state to take the COVID-19 vaccine, by going ahead to enforcement it yesterday in Benin-city.

The state government had in August announced that

by September 5, 2021, access to public places would be determined by the COVID-19 vaccination status of individual owing to the third wave of the virus.

However, a Federal High Court in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, on August 30, restrained the state government from enforcing the inoculation of COVID-19 vaccination in

Edo State.

In the suit number: FHC/ PH/266/2021 filed by Charles Osaretin against the state Governor, Godwin Obaseki, and five others, the court ordered parties in the suit to maintain status quo pending the determination of the Motion on Notice for the enforcement of the applicant fundamental rights till September 10, 2021,

for hearing of the substantive motion.

However, yesterday, civil servants and other people who could not present their proof of vaccination were refused entry into the state secretariat and other government establishments without any proof that the state government has vacated the order.

Senate Steps Down Presentation of 2022-2024 MTEF/FSP Report

Deji Elumoye and Juliet Akoje in Abuja

The Senate at plenary yesterday refused to consider the report on the 2022-2024 Medium Term Expenditure Framework and Fiscal Strategy Paper.

It however passed two bills for the establishment of a Federal University in Ekiti

State and Federal University Teaching Hospital in Nasarawa State.

The decision by the upper legislative chamber to defer its presentation and consideration of the report was sequel to a motion moved to that effect by the Senate Leader, Senator Yahaya Abdullahi and seconded by the Minority

Leader, Senator Eyinnaya Abaribe.

According to Abdullahi, the report on the 2022-2024 MTEF/ FSP needed further legislative work by the Joint Committees on Finance; National Planning; Foreign and Local Debts; Banking, Insurance and Other Financial Institutions; Petroleum Resources

(Upstream); Downstream Petroleum Sector and Gas. “The document needs further deliberation on, and, therefore, needs to be finetuned,” he said.

The presentation of the report was, thereafter, stepped down to allow the Joint Committee conclude further work on it.

Jonathan Foundation Enjoins African Leaders to Protect Democracies The Goodluck Jonathan Foundation (GJF) has called on African leaders to safeguard democracies on the continent by adhering to the rule of law and delivery of good governance.

Communications Officer of the Foundation, Wealth Dickson Ominabo, in a statement to mark this year’s international day of democracy, quoted Executive Director of GJF, Ms Ann Iyonu, as saying, “Essential values of

democracy such as the rule of law, separation of powers and constitutionalism are no longer adhered to in many Africa countries” and this trend posed a threat for the survival of continent’s democracy.

The foundation claimed democracy as a form of government was a platform for achieving peace, equality, justice, inclusion and sustainable development.

“However, in many African countries today, the essential values of democracy such as the rule of law, separation of powers and constitutional term limits are no longer adhered to.

“This situation poses a threat to the survival of democracy in Africa, as the promises of peace, justice, and human freedoms are daily betrayed.

“To safeguard our democracies from further recession and

attacks, we call in governments to deliver on the promises of good governance, and prioritise free and credible elections and guarantee the rights of all citizens.

“Democracy flourishes in an atmosphere of peace, freedom and justice. This is the route we should follow to shore up our democracies and make democracy meaningful to all citizens,” it stated.

Nigeria @ 60 Exhibition: ALGON Tasks Members on Participation Ahead of its September 26-30, 2021 trade fair, exhibition and lecture programme, the leadership of the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria, ALGON has called on local governments across the country to ensure full and active participation at the event.

Titled, ‘Nigeria @ 60: ALGON

Made-In-Nigeria Trade Fair and Lecture’ the programme seeks to reposition the local government as a major contributor to the growth of the economy and development of the nation at large, so as to minister to the needs of grassroot dwellers.

ALGON also stressed that the programme which is part of a

year-long stretch of activities to celebrate the country’s 60th Independence anniversary as directed by President Muhammadu Buhari is a veritable platform for critical stakeholders to brainstorm on the need to fast-track and stimulate rural economic development at the grassroot level.

In a statement, ALGON National President, Hon. Kolade Alabi, commemded Lagos and few other states who have demonstrated readiness to tap from this all-time opportunity at their disposal. He further called on all 36 State Governors to assist in supporting their LGAs towards participating in the event.

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Doctors, FG Resolve to End Strike Soon To report terms of agreement to court on Friday Alex Enumah and Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja Striking doctors and the federal government have resolved to settle all issues surrounding the six weeks industrial action that has crippled medical services in the country.

This is just as the federal government has asked the two main unions on the health sector, the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) and the Joint Health

Sector Union (JOHESU) to end the end the division among their members so as to address most of the outstanding industrial issues in the sector amicably.

However, the resolution was reached with the striking doctors at yesterday’s proceedings at the National Industrial Court, Abuja.

Consequently, they are to return to the court of Justice Bashar Alkali, on Friday, September 17, to report the terms of agreement reached

Ondo Charges LGs on Security Fidelis David in Akure Elected political office holders at the local government levels in Ondo State have been charged to chart a new course towards strengthening security system at their level of governance.

The Deputy Governor of Ondo State, Mr. Lucky Aiyedatiwa, gave the charge at a two-day workshop for the elected political office holders across the 18 local government areas of Ondo State yesterday in Akure.

The workshop was organised by Ondo State Ministry of Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs in collaboration with Code of Conduct Bureau, Abuja.

Aiyedatiwa said that insecurity has retarded

development while stressing that no nation could prosper in the absence of peace.

He said: “I charge you at this critical stage in the annals of our nation that you make necessary sacrifice towards national peace and harmony as we are aware that the existence of Nigerian as a nation is being seriously threatened by the current security challenges.

“Insecurity no doubt retards development. No nation can prosper in the absence of peace.

“We must, therefore, chart a new course towards strengthening our security system at local government levels. Advocacy for individual and communal security network platform must not only be embraced but also be stepped up.”

among the parties.

The National Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) had on August 1, embarked on an indefinite strike over irregular payment of salaries, amongst others.

However, after several appeals

failed to stop the doctors from embarking on the industrial action, the federal government approached the court for an order compelling the doctors to return to work.

The industrial court in a ruling on an exparte application

accordingly restrained members of NARD from continuing with the strike.

“It is hereby ordered that claimant/applicant and the defendant/respondent suspend all forms of hostilities forthwith pending the hearing and

determination of the motion on notice,” the court had ordered.

But when the matter came up yesterday, lawyer to the federal government, Mr. Tochukwu Maduka, informed the court that he has filed a case of contempt against NARD.

Abiodun Seeks N83.5bn Loan for Agric, Solid Minerals, Tourism James Sowole in Abeokuta The Ogun State Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun, yesterday asked for a speedy approval of the N83.5 billion loan requested from the 1.68 percent Development of Natural Resources Fund

(DNRF) from the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RAMFAC).

Abiodun said the loan, if approved, would be used to boost agriculture, tourism and other sectors of the state economy.

The governor stated this while playing host to members of Fiscal Efficiency and Budget Committee of RMFAC led by its Chairman, Alhaji Adamu Dibal, in his office at Oke Mosan, Abeokuta.

The Dibail-led committee was in Ogun State on

evaluation tour, which was part of the requirements for accessing the facility.

According to Abiodun, the release of the fund would help diversify the state economy as well as complete the ongoing construction of the Agro Cargo airport in the state.

Delta Community Commends Okowa for Road Project Goddy Egene The people of Ikpide-Irri in Isoko South Local Government Area of Delta State, have expressed satisfaction with the standard of roads constructed in the community and commended Governor Ifeanyi Okowa for the development of the area.

Speaking to journalists, Chairman, Ikpide-Irri Progressive Union, Mr. Orose Edemo, said the road was 95 per cent completed even as they have been using the road for the past two years without complaints.

“We have no problem with the road under construction and has enjoyed the road for the past

two years, the road is motorable, trailers and tankers move on the road without problem, we are satisfied with the standard and Ikpide people supports the road project, Edemo maintained that the community is small but governor Okowa through his magnanimity, has developed the area with

internal roads as encapsulated in the SMART AGENDA of the state government.

He noted that the road is now accessible to people from Port-Harcourt and other cities around the area, noting that the community dissociated itself from cheap blackmail published in the social media and newspapers.

CORAfrica Trains 1,000 Refugees, Others on Agribusiness

Bassey Inyang in Calabar

The Children of Rural AfricaNigeria (CORAfrica), a nongovernmental organization, has completed the training of 1000 migrants, refugees and Internally

Displaced Persons (IDPs), in agribusiness and educational opportunities in Cross River State.

The Founder of the CORAfrica, Rev. Dr. Peter Obele Abue, said that the training would equip refugees to become self reliant and

reduced poverty, and economic hardship that the refugees are going through under degraded condition.

Speaking at the training workshop on Agro-business and Education Opportunities organised

by CORAfrica, yesterday at Transcorp Hotel Calabar, the cleric lamented how the entire world now passes through a historical moment marked with alarming frustrations from wars, terrorism, kidnapping and insecurity.

THURSDAY, ͹;˜ ͺ͸ͺ͹ ˾ T H I S D AY

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THURSDAYSPORTS

Group Sports Editor: Duro Ikhazuagbe Email: duro.ikhazuagbe@thisdaylive.com

0811 181 3083 SMS ONLY

Monday Gifts Nigeria Aisha Buhari Cup Opening Day Victory

Gift Monday...scored brace that earned Super Falcons 2-0 victory over Mali in the opening match of the Aisha Buhari Cup in Lagos ...yesterday

Substitute Gift Monday handed Nigeria a sweet 2-0 victory on the opening day of the maiden edition of the Aisha Buhari Invitational Women’s Tournament in the City of Lagos.

Frustrated by their winless three-match campaign at the US Summer Series in June, the Super Falcons welcomed the Female Eagles of Mali the to Mobolaji Johnson Arena with the aim of returning to winning ways.

Despite boasting numerous scoring chances, the wasteful hosts were unable to get the ball past the Malian defence and the first half ended 0-0 amidst several threats made

by Aissata Traore.

Monday, interestingly a player of FC Robo Queens of Lagos, spun in the air to meet a cross

by Captain Asisat Oshoala in the 83rd minute and nod past goalkeeper Fatoumata Karenta, six minutes after coming into the fray for Francisca Ordega.

The goal put the Super Falcons in the lead after a rather turgid day on Lagos island, with the Malians showing greater zest and desire in the opening half and returning after the recess with the same impressive fighting spirit.

The visiting Malians had survived a raid on their area in the 5th minute as Nigeria looked to go into the lead with a corner, but the defence cleared.

Nine minutes later, Ordega sidenetted from another quick dash upfront, and in the 18th minute, Ageusissa Diarra tested goalkeeper Chiamaka Nnadozie from a 30-yard free-kick.

In the second half, Uchenna Kanu sidenetted in the 67th

Messi Struggles in PSG Draw with Bruges Reds win five-goal thriller at Anfield, City hammer Leipzig 6-3 C H A M P I O N S L E AG U E Lionel Messi struggled to make an impact on his first Paris St-Germain start as the French side were held 1-1 by Belgian Club Bruges in the Champions League last night.

Messi struck the crossbar but, for all the hype around PSG's new signing, it was Ander Herrera who netted the opener after great work from Kylian Mbappe.

Hans Vanaken scored a deserved equaliser before the break to get the Jan Breydel Stadium rocking.

A frustrating evening for Messi then saw him carded for a second-half foul.

Elsewhere, Liverpool had to come from behind to win 3-2 a Champions League thriller against AC Milan at Anfield.

Jurgen Klopp's team laid siege to Milan's goal from the start, taking a deserved early lead when former Chelsea defender Fikayo Tomori deflected a cross from Trent Alexander-Arnold into his own net.

Liverpool, who missed the chance to double their advantage when Mohamed Salah's penalty was saved by keeper Mike Maignan, were stunned when Milan struck twice in the space of seconds

right on half-time after being completely outplayed to take the lead through Ante Rebic and Brahim Diaz.

Klopp's side regrouped to subject Milan to intense pressure once more after the break and were rewarded for their stirring comeback, Salah making amends after his penalty miss by equalising from close range after 48 minutes when he was superbly set up by Divock Origi.

Jordan Henderson rifled home his first Champions League goal for seven years in the 69th minute when Milan could only partially clear a Liverpool corner to settle this richly entertaining Group B opening game.

RESULTS Besiktas

1-2 Dortmund

Sherrif

2-0 Shakhtar

C’Bruges

1-1 PSG

Man City

6-3 Leipzig

Liverpool

3-2 AC Milan

Sporting

1- 5

Inter

0-1 Real Madrid

Atletico

0-0 Porto

Ajax

Lionel Messi...rendered ineffective

minute, before Oshoala, who should have scored with only the goalkeeper to beat, failed to get past Karenta.

In the 74th minute, Karenta again saved from Kanu.

In the 83rd minute, Monday rose highest in the box and

nodded past Karenta, bringing so much excitement to the Arena.

One minute into added time, the same Monday was again at the end of an Asisat assist, and looped the ball over an advancing Karenta to put huge smiles on the face of Nigerians.

Gianni Infantino...FIFA President

Infantino on AriseTV, Says an African Team in Women’s World Cup Final Possible Soon Duro Ikhazuagbe FIFA President, Gianni Infantino who is in the country for the Aisha Buhari Cup has said that it is his dream to see an African team play in the Women’s World Cup final in the near future.

The world football governing chief who is in Lagos for the sixnation Aisha Buhari Invitational Football Tournament which kicked off yesterday, said in an exclusive interview on AriseTV that he was in Nigeria to support the growth of women’s football.

“With an event like this Aisha Buhari Cup, I believe it will help boost the women’s game. I hope an African team will make it to the final of the Women’s World Cup very, very soon,” observed Infantino who described Nigeria as a “football crazy” nation.

Infantino recalled how over two billion people watched the last women’s World Cup final in France two years ago.

“The women’s football is rising and interest in the game is growing. At the last Women’s World Cup final in France two years ago, over two billion people around the world were following the game. That was incredible and awesome.”

The FIFA President stressed that with more than 50 Per cent of the African population female, “We need to force through good organization, more of women into football. We are looking at the possibility of more participants from Africa through our youth tournaments,” he noted.

Infantino remains hopeful that

with the next Women’s World Cup around the corner in 2023 in Australia, “We are looking at the two years circle of the women’s World Cup and are hoping that African women’s football will be at the top very, very soon.”

While calling for more investments in the women’s game, Infantino called on the men’s clubs to lend helping hands to their female counterparts.

“The men’s teams have to help the women’s game to grow. We need to have the men’s teams also having female teams. Revenues generated from the men’s game should help by investing into the growth of women’s football. It is high time that we treat this half population of the world that are women as truly, truly deserve all our support to flourish.”

Asked to comment on the women’s team that catches his fancy at the ongoing Aisha Buhari Cup, Infantino danced away, preferring instead to say he was going to root for the FIFA referees doing great.

“I am looking forward to seeing Nigeria perform as always but also should not forget that all the other teams are getting better.”

Infantino, CAF President, Patrice Motsepe, NFF and FIFA Council Member Amaju Melvin Pinnick, and Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu were amongst the distinguished VIPs that watched Nigeria’s Super Falcons defeat Mali 2-0 in the opening match of the Aisha Buhari Cup at the refurbished Onikan Stadium now rechristened Mobolaji Johnson Arena on Lagos Island waterfront.

47

THURSDAY, ͹;˜ ͺ͸ͺ͹ ˾ T H I S D AY

SPORTS

Europa Conference: Son Left out of Spurs’ Trip to Rennes Son Heung-min did not travel to France for Tottenham's opening Europa Conference League Group G game against Rennes this evening.

The forward, who missed Spurs' defeat by Crystal Palace on Saturday, is still recovering from a calf injury sustained while on international duty.

Boss Nuno Espirito Santo also confirmed defender Eric Dier will not feature.

Dier was substituted in the 12th minute after suffering a dead leg during that 3-0 defeat at Selhurst Park.

Nuno said he is unsure whether the pair will be fit for Sunday's Premier League game

against Chelsea.

"I cannot say. They are improving, day by day they are better, but alongside the South American players, we still have to assess," he said. "(Steven) Bergwijn is better, he travelled with us, he trained yesterday and today, he is much better."

Spurs are also still missing the three players who defied Premier League guidelines and travelled to South America for World Cup qualifiers last week.

Argentina's Giovani lo Celso and Cristian Romero and Colombia's Davinson Sanchez are training in Croatia and expected back at the club on Saturday.

TODAY Helsinki Flora Famagusta Roma Sl’Prague Red Imps Bratislava NS Mura Rennes Randers Jablonec

v v v v v v v v v v v

LASK KAA Gent P’ Belgrade CSKA Sofia U’ Berlin PAOK Salonika Copenhagen Vitesse Tottenham AZ Alkmaar CFR Cluj

Pope Knights Okene, Former Captain P/Harcourt Golf Club Olawale Ajimotokan in Abuja The head of the Catholic Church, Pope Francis has approved the investiture of a former Captain of Port Harcourt Golf Club 1928, Sir Emmanuel Ufuoma Okene as a Papal Knight of St Gregory.

The knighthood is the highest lay honour from the Papacy and is given in recognition of Okene’s service to humanity and engagement in activities of several parishes.

The inauguration will hold at the Our Lady Mother of Mercy Catholic Church, Idah, Kogi State, on September 25under the supervision of the Most Rev Dr Anthony Ademu Adaji.

Okene, the Chairman of Gasstocks Limited, a marine logistics engineering and

Son Heung-min...left out of trip to Rennes

Schmeichel Vows to Stop Osimhen and Napoli Stars Tonight Leicester City goalkeeper, Kasper Schmeichel, has said that it is important his wards not "complacent and timid" in their search for more success, starting with tonight’s Europa League opener against Napoli.

The Foxes reached the last 16 in 2020-21, along with winning the FA Cup and finishing fifth in the Premier League.

They and Italian side Napoli are two of the highest-rated sides in this season's competition.

"The club is always looking to improve," said Schmeichel.

"That's the most important thing to me, when you are in an organisation which has had success the hunger is still there.

"You cannot become complacent and timid. That's when you take the foot off the gas. We have always got to be looking for what's next. We can't use the past for anything - that past is done.

"There are many steps we can still take We are looking to improve every day and this season is another opportunity.

"We are in a very good place.

We have had a lot of recent success but that means you have a choice to make. Are you content with that or do you want to progress and move on?"

Leicester were beaten by Slavia Prague in the Europa

League last season, but are tipped to progress from a group that also contains Spartak

Moscow and Legia Warsaw.

The eight Europa League group winners progress

Kasper Schmeichel...insists no chance for Napoli tonight

automatically to the last 16, with the runners-up playing the eight third-placed teams in the Champions League groups.

Schmeichel added: "It's never been our approach to look at others, we look at ourselves more than anything. When I look at our dressing room I have every reason to be supremely confident.

"There are top-class sides in this competition and others coming in from the Champions League. You can't always say because you don't know who is going to be coming into the competition."

City boss Brendan Rodgers has no fresh injury doubts for the Group C curtain-raiser, with James Justin (knee) and Wesley Fofana (broken leg) both longterm absentees.

Napoli travel to England after a superb start to their domestic season, having won their three opening games in Serie A. This includes a 2-1 win over Juventus on Saturday, with highly rated centre-back Kalidou Koulibaly scoring an 85th-minute winner.

In attack they have Lorenzo Insigne, who has excelled for Italy in their record-setting run of 37 games unbeaten, during which they won Euro 2020 in the summer.

procurement company is a philanthropist and an avid golfer.

He is also a member of Ikoyi Club 1938 and Lakowe Lakes Golf and Country Club, Lagos.

He was a member of the Nigerian contingents to the World Golfers Championship in Hua-Hin, Thailand in October 2010 and Durban, South Africa in October 2012 and October 2013 respectively.

Okene served Port Harcourt Club Golf Section as the Vice-Captain from 2013 to

2015 before he was elected to succeed Adokiye Ikpoki as the captain from 2015 to 2017.

He was the second man ever to serve on the Port Harcourt committee for two successive terms with his tenure as captain of one of Nigeria’s oldest and most prominent golf clubs, leading to remarkable transformation in the club.

He is a mentor to many and a strong advocate for a structured charity that has continuously supported the Catholic Church faithfully and financially.

Adron Games Organisers Inspect Gateway Stadium in Sagamu Organizers of the 5th edition of the Adron Games yesterday inspected the facilities at the Gateway Stadium in Sagamu, venue of the 2021 edition.

The Adron team led by the Group Managing Director of the Adron Homes, Aare Adetola Emmanuel King, expressed satisfaction with the facilities at the Sagamu Stadium and looked forward to the Games next month.

He said that the company was unwavering in its avowed plans to help develop sports in the country, as well as, promoting healthy living and friendship among its staff and

other members of the corporate world.

Ex- Super Eagles attacker and CEO of Match International, consultants to the games, Waidi Akanni, said this year’s event would be more competitive, glamorous and exciting, in line with theme of games, ‘Be Fit For The Top.’ Akanni said, “This is the 5th edition of the Adron Games. I want to tell you it promises to be fun and exciting.

“Last year, we held it in Ibadan, and this year, we are have it here at the Gateway Stadium in Sagamu, Ogun State, in November,” stressed.

R-L: Mrs Yemisi Adewunmi, Mr. Chris Ukaegbu, GMD - Adron Homes - Aare Adetola Emmanuel- King and consultant to the Adron Games, Mr. Waidi Akanni during the inspection of Gateway International Stadium, Sagamu ahead of the Games

Thursday, September 16, 2021

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Price: N250

MISSILE Uche Ogar to Private Jet Owners “Categories of Nigerians at the top – from political office holders, politicians, traditional rulers, top security officials, etc. are involved in gold smuggling and illegal mining in one way or the other. The poor ones are doing it on behalf of the big ones” —— Minister of State for Mines and Steel Development, Uche Ogah, accusing unnamed private jet owners of aiding and abetting illegal mining and smuggling of gold out of Nigeria.

OLUSEGUNADENIYI THE VERDICT

olusegun.adeniyi@thisdaylive.com

Tinubu, Wike and the Politics of VAT I n September 2018, there was an interesting exchange in Premium Times between Vice President Yemi Osinbajo and his ‘illustrious predecessor’ (as he described him), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar. The issue in contention was restructuring of the country.

The latter had taken on the former on his postulation that what Nigeria required was “managing resources properly and providing for the people properly.” To Atiku, Osinbajo failed “to appreciate the connection between Nigeria’s defective structure and its underperformance.”

Defending his stance, Osinbajo argued that “good governance involves, inter alia, transparency and prudence in public finance,” before throwing this punchline: “Surprisingly, Alhaji Atiku leaves out the elephant in the room – corruption. And how grand corruption, fueled by a rentier economic structure that benefits those who can use political positions or access to either loot the treasury or get favorable concessions to enrich themselves.”

However, the bit that is relevant to this piece is where Osinbajo explained “the issue of deeper fiscal federalism or restructuring” and “how the then Lagos State Government, led

by Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, decided to fight for greater autonomy of states.” Osinbajo then listed sundry issues on which he, as Attorney General of the state, took the federal government to court, before concluding: “Years later, we also filed an action at the Supreme Court arguing that the Value Added Tax, being a consumption tax, should exclusively belong to the States.”

From the foregoing, we can draw some quick conclusions. One, there has always been a contention about VAT because it conflicts with the federal nature of our constitution as imperfect as it may seem. It is particularly instructive that General Ibrahim Babangida did not promulgate the VAT Decree No. 102 of 1993 until 24th August 1993, just three days before he ‘stepped aside’. And President Olusegun Obasanjo also did not assent to the VAT Act 2007 until 23rd May 2007—six days before he left office! Two, the VAT controversy has nothing to do with ethnicity; afterall, both Tinubu and Obasanjo that started the battle were Yoruba and from the same Southwest.

Three, we can use VAT and the debate around it to begin the process of restructuring our country. Four, whatever may be his position today, Osinbajo was an advocate that VAT “should exclusively belong to the states.”

I have spent considerable time in the past week to investigate the VAT case under reference and my findings are quite revealing. In the statement of claim filed at the Supreme Court, the LASG under Tinubu had stated: “The House of Assembly of Lagos State of Nigeria is the body entitled, to the exclusion of any other legislative body, to enact laws with regard to the imposition and collection of tax on the supply of all goods and services within Lagos State of Nigeria and that Lagos State of Nigeria, or any agency of the State, is the body entitled, to the exclusion of any other body, to assess and collect such tax, and that the revenue of the Lagos State Government has been and continues to be affected by the enforcement of provisions of the Value Added Tax Act.” Based on this claim, Lagos then urged the

Wike

Tinubu

Supreme Court to determine “Whether upon the coming into effect of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, the said Value Added Tax Act is an existing law within the meaning of Section 315 of the said Constitution, being a federal legislation, which is deemed to be an Act of the National Assembly.”

Apparently mindful of the implications of the case against the background of some earlier rulings, the Supreme Court counselled Lagos to seek a political solution on the issue.

That was understandable. A few years earlier, when the state challenged the powers of the federal government to grant licenses and permits to erect structures in Lagos without its permission, prior knowledge or consent, the Supreme Court ruled in favour of the state. The apex court held that any item “not expressly mentioned in the Exclusive Legislative List or Concurrent Legislative List is Residual and within the legislative competence of the state government.”

Knowing it had a solid case on VAT, Lagos refused to toe the suggested line of political solution. Eventually, the federal government filed a preliminary objection, asking the supreme court to strike out the case on grounds that there was no dispute between it and the LASG. Without going into the merit of the case, the federal government argued a technical point that the authority the LASG was challenging was that of the Federal Inland Revenue Services (FIRS) so the suit ought to have been filed at the FHC. The federal government averred: “The Plaintiff’s cause of action relates to acts of a federal organ and cannot form the basis of invoking this Honourable Court’s Original Jurisdiction to entertain this suit; and the entire suit constitutes an abuse of court processes.”

In determining the case, the Supreme Court held that based on the affidavits filed, the grouse in question was about “…a dispute pertaining to the operation of an agency of the federal government.” With that, the Supreme Court concluded that it was the FHC “that was imbued with jurisdiction to the exclusion of any other court in civil causes and matters relating to the revenue of the government;

connected with or pertaining to taxation of companies and other bodies; the operation and interpretation of the constitution in so far as it affected the federal government or any of its agencies.”

There were arguments at the time that the Supreme Court deliberately chose a clever route since Lagos was challenging the VAT Act enacted by the National Assembly and not FIRS as claimed by the federal government.

But Lagos was left with the option to take the matter up at the FHC. Somewhere along the line, the state that had for 16 years been in opposition suddenly found itself in the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in 2015 and decided not to pursue the matter any further.

However, apparently taking a cue from Lagos, Rivers State under Governor Nyesom Wike filed a case against the FIRS at the FHC. And in his judgement, Justice Stephen Pam declared that FIRS “has no constitutional authority to enforce and administer taxes not expressly stipulated under Items 58 and 59, Part I, Second Schedule to the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.” Following that decision, the Rivers State House of Assembly quickly enacted VAT Law No. 4 of 2021 to end the authority of the FIRS to administer, collect and enforce the VAT Act, 2007 in Rivers State. Lagos State that had pretended to be sleeping on the issue also jumped in with the accelerated passage of the VAT bill “in line with fiscal federalism that we have been talking about.”

I have always suspected that the VAT law would unravel one day. In a 2016 interview with Ms Modele Sarafa Yusuf, former president of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) and respected tax consultant, Mr Emmanuel Ijewere, explained the mandate Babangida gave the committee (which he chaired) that came up with the VAT law in 1993. “What was happening at that time was that there was a sales tax in several states, and there was no particular rule as to what they were charging. It was being used as a source of creating confusion, so the government now

said let us standardize it.” Ijewere said his committee was told that “whatever money was collected in a state belongs to that state” while the VAT tax commission would retain 5% for administration. “Somewhere along the line, the federal government took it over, pushed the states aside, and that defeated the whole thing. It now turns out that the states that are generating a lot more VAT are not getting the commensurate amount of money from their economic activities and that was the unfair part of it.”

While the intention behind the 1993 VAT decree may have been altruistic, it has created more problems than it attempted to solve.

But we cannot blame Babangida for that.

Although he enacted the VAT decree before leaving office, implementation started on 1st December 1993 by which time General Sani Abacha was in power. Now, what is the issue? VAT, in a nutshell, is a consumption tax imposed on the supply of all goods and services, except those specifically exempted in a Schedule to the Act. The main challenge is that there is a near unanimity of opinion that the unjust sharing formula in VAT Act creates an impression of ‘robbing Peter to pay Paul’. That has always been the problem.

It is difficult to fault Wike’s argument that it makes no sense that Rivers State generated N15bn VAT revenue in June this year but got N4.7bn (about 30%) in return, while Kano generated N2.8bn in the same month and got the same N2.8bn back (100%). Meanwhile, Lagos State that generated N46.4bn in the same month was allocated N9.3bn (about 20%).

“Sometimes, you don’t want to believe these things exist,” Wike said. But while the Rivers Governor may have championed the recent fight, Tinubu was in the forefront before APC came to the centre. At that time, aside Osinbajo who was constantly in court, the intellectual wing of the party and government composed of legal scholars and experts in taxation like Abiola O. Sanni and Ade Ipaye, SAN. They were the people writing opinions and making analysis in support of the argument that VAT proceeds belong to the states. Ipaye, by the way, is currently the Chief of Staff to Osinbajo (proper designation: deputy chief of staff to the president). A former professor of Law, specializing in Taxation at the University of Lagos, he was appointed by Tinubu as SA on Taxation before Babatunde Raji Fashola, SAN, (as Governor) elevated him (Ipaye) to the position of Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice in the state. All these principal actors are now in the federal government.

Meanwhile, the FHC judgement in favour of the Rivers State Government has thrown up issues about the nature of our system. If we were running a proper federation, the federal government would have jumped at it; being the biggest beneficiary if we disaggregate the VAT components. But many of the states would suffer and that is where the interest of the federal government comes in. With Wike talking tough against the background of the mismanagement of our diversity by the current administration, the VAT issue has provoked another North-South brouhaha. I want to deal with a few of them before I conclude.

NOTE: This piece is concluded on page 14

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